Archive for March, 2009

Confessions of a sustainable gardener Part 1- Pest

March 31, 2009 at 8:17 am · Filed under Lesson Your Footprint - Sustainable Gardening ·Tagged , ,

LESSON YOUR FOOTPRINT

Confessions of a Sustainable Gardener

Part 1 – PEST

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BACKGROUND

With my background and interests, one would think my garden became sustainable via a well thought-out, altruistic route.  Heck, I spent years at university studying the environment obtaining 2 degrees in environmental engineer followed by 2 decades as a practicing environmental engineer.  More importantly, I am a life long gardener, learner and admirer of nature.  In reality, I became sustainable out of need and laziness.  As such, I just kind of backed into it.

PEST

It all started one day about 20 years ago when I got tired of chasing the next pest.  This is important and worth repeating – I got tired of chasing the next pest.  I went after one, then another, then another, and then the first one came back and it all started again.  It was a viscous cycle.  I no longer had the time or energy to spray or dust.  I thought, what if I just stopped all this nonsense and see what happens naturally?

There was some written about organic garden and maybe even sustainable gardening, although I don’t recall that being the term used at the time.  More was written about organic gardening, which for me, today, is just part of my sustainable whole.  But twenty years ago, I didn’t know I would go in this “sustainable” direction.  I didn’t even know what it was and I certainly didn’t have time to research it.   So, I just applied logic.  Logic told me if there were good bugs and bad bugs, then there were also checks and balances.   As such, I just stopped interfering.  I was confident nature would take care of herself, or at least that was my hope.

And she did.  My first season, there were more bugs than I care to admit; there were holes in my leaves and half eaten flowers.  Gaining courage, to rid them, I started to hand pick some of those bugs off the plant and into a jar of soapy water.  This was not the easiest thing I did that year, and I still get squeamish doing so today, even after all these years.  But I managed to rise to the occasion when the need arises.

By the next year, there were less holes and more flowers, PLUS more birds, bees and butterflies.  It was noticeably different.  This was all the encouragement I needed.  When I look back on this early pest control decision, I also had to accept a level of tolerance for less than perfect plant displays.  The plants themselves were perfectly happy; they just looked a little worse from the chewing.  But this was traded for honeybees pollinating my cucumbers, butterflies alighting my Lantana, and birds singing in the wee morning hours.

This went on for a few years.  Yet, to label myself an organic gardener was not something I was ready to embrace.  Even though this was the first step to organic gardening, I figured there had to be more to it and as such, didn’t feel I was worthy of the label.  Today, I can say with confidence, I am an organic gardener.  What I didn’t know then that I know now, was that my first steps toward organic gardening 20 years ago is all that is really needed to become an organic gardener.  Every journey begins with the first step.

Over the next couple of weeks, I will post the rest of my journey that brought me to where I am today.  I’ll enlighten you on soil, mulch, right plant in the right place, fertilizer, water-wise design, rain harvesting, fungicides, herbicides, pre-emergences, and in general, my organic gardening philosophy.

Thanks for taking this journey with me: I hope not to disappoint you.  It is my hope you too will look at your garden just a little bit differently and feel it is OK to wear the label “organic gardener.”

Until next time…

Helen Yoest
Gardening With Confidence

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Triangle Gardener launched!

March 30, 2009 at 10:02 am · Filed under Book Reviews

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New Gardening Publication Launches in the Triangle

Raleigh, NC… Starting in April, Triangle gardeners will have something new to read.

Triangle Gardener™, a local guide to enjoyable gardening, is a free bi-monthly newspaper that will be available in the Triangle region starting with the April/May issue.

The inaugural issue features gardening stories specific to the Triangle growing season and climate. Among the topics in the April/May issue are stories on rain gardens, vegetable gardening, invasive plants, roses, fire ants, and a top 10 list of plants for this year’s garden. Each issue also features news from the gardening community, a two-month calendar of garden events and tours, and a garden maintenance calendar.

The stories are written by gardening professionals, county extension agents, horticulturists, and others who are experts on gardening in the Triangle.

The publication will be available free of charge at local garden centers, garden specialty stores, arboretum/botanical gardens, bookstores, coffee shops, and more throughout the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area and surrounding communities. A complete list of distribution spots will be available on www.trianglegardener.com.

The publisher and editor of Triangle Gardener is Beverly Hurley, a Triangle resident who has a background in garden scouting and writing, marketing and public relations. She started Triangle Gardener as a way to bring the variety of gardening information available at multiple sources into one resource publication that gardeners can keep and refer to throughout the gardening season.

She is also a member of the Garden Writers Association, which will hold its 2009 convention in Raleigh this September.

To kick off the first issue, Triangle Gardener is a sponsor of the upcoming Southern Ideal Home Show, April 3-5, at the State Fairgrounds. Show attendees can stop by the Triangle Gardener booth in Dorton Arena, pick up a copy of the free newspaper and ask gardening questions of volunteers from various Triangle area plant societies, along with experts from the JC Raulston Arboretum, North Carolina Botanical Garden, and the Sarah P. Duke Gardens.

For more information on this new publication, contact 919-926-7501.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Contact Beverly Hurley at 919-926-7501 (office) or 913-461-3066 (cell) for questions or images.

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Sunday March 29, 2009 Puttering in Helen’s Haven

March 29, 2009 at 11:19 am · Filed under Helen's Haven ·Tagged , ,

More rain.  I wish I could box it up to use in August when I know I’ll really need it.  Oh, that’s right, I am!  My rain harvesters are full.  As of right now, I have 680 gallons stored for a time when rain will not be so plentiful.  You may be wondering if 680 is a lot or a little, especially since many of you have a 60ish gallon rain barrel and I have an order of magnitude more.  Let’s just say, this is all I plan to have.  My gardens have been re-designed so that, in the absence of rain, I can use only this water.  In an extreme drought, I will be suffering like everyone else.

Aster next to the 250-gallon rain harvester

Aster next to the 250-gallon rain harvester

In the next week or two, I plan to write an in-depth analysis of how much water Helen’s Haven needs.  These needs were based on a dry summer – not an extreme drought, which, by the way, precipitated the whole rain harvesting notion in the first place.  I started harvesting rain in December 2007.   As it happens, this was when the rains return to Raleigh.  I didn’t know that at the time.

I evaluated 100 years of data and clearly understood that statistically, we could and probably would have a year of plenty following the drought.  And we did.  But I also realized we could just have easily had an average rainfall.  In fact, we were more likely to have rain followed by a drought than a drought two years in a row.  I still proceeded.  Because of the variable whicky-whacky-ness of our rain fall from year to year, if I was planning to do something, I realized I needed to plan for some extremes.   Storing the water was not a problem for me.  Not having water to water my ornamentals and veggies, was.  Designing my gardens to be more water efficient was the first place I started…but I digress.  I will be specific about the details in a later post. Back on the subject for today; today I have little need for this water; it has rained a month of Sundays, plus more.

This past Monday I had the good fortune to spend time with Brian Shrader, Anchor with WRAL news and camera man Robert.  WRAL was preparing a segment on organic gardening and Helen’s Haven was the example garden used in the segment.  Tomorrow morning during the morining news and again at noon, Helen’s Haven will get her 20 SECONDS of fame.  Brian thought I would be able to load it up on my blog.  I’ll see tomorrow if I’m able to do this.

Left to right - Brian Shrader, Anchor WRAL News, Helen Yoest, and Robert the camera man

Left to right - Brian Shrader, Anchor WRAL News, Helen Yoest, and Robert the camera man

Because of all the rain this week, I got behind, so little time could be spent in Helen’s Haven.  I did manage to get some fun stuff done.

  • Mowed the lawn.
  • Made sure the purple smoke bush as OK.  I transplanted it last fall from the Secret Garden to the Mixed Border.  Finally saw signs of life.
  • Planted a hardy orchid.  I bought some in Charleston, SC last spring, but they didn’t return.  We had a severe winter.  There I go again.  If I stuck to only buying plants with a zone wrapped around it, I would not be at risk of loosing it.  So what do I do, I bought another one…this time only one.  Last year I bought AND lost 3.
  • I mulched a path from the front garden to the back.  By mulched, I 250-gallon-water-harvester-001mean I used mini bark as a path to delineate an area where there was only composted leaf mulch.  Not sure what I want to put there, if anything.  The different mulch material made a nice temporary choice.
  • Eyed the lavender and counted how many would need replacing this year.  Cold, wet, and old they are.  I might get one more year (this one) out of them.  When in bloom, their rattiness will be less noticeable.
  • Spent the weekend mornings with coffee watching the birds at the feeder.  Saw the first yellow finch, Thrashers, Robins, Cardinals, woodpeckers, jays, and Carolina finches.
  • Saw a bunny at least 3 feet tall.  Really!  OK, maybe only 18 inches, but it was big.  Aster says a bunny that big is called a rabbit.  David say an even bigger rabbit is called sir.
  • Again, contemplated adding pea gravel to the herb garden as a mulch.  I like the look of it.  Kk tells me it wont help with weed suppression, but I don’t really have a weed problem there.  I also don’t have a drainage problem, so the herbs are not sitting wet stuff.  I just like the look of it, especially in an herb garden.  I really want crushed oyster shells.  When in South Carolina last spring, the gardens there have what was referred to as a #3 crushed oyster shell. It was used as paths and mulch.  I checked our coast for something similar, but the shells are returned back the ocean, making crushing the shells politically incorrect.  May need to cross the border;~}  Actually, I’m all for re-population our oyster population.  I just love these sweet, salty little suckers.
  • Planted birdhouse gourds on top of the compost pile.  Need to find a new location for my next pile.  I move them around each year.  I believe in slow composting.  Another name for this “compost” pile is a wildlife pile.  I put large sticks at the bottom and others  on top as well as well as leaves, grass clippings, kitchen scraps, etc.   I create a new pile  each year for the wildlife to play in during the winter.  Come spring, the pile isn’t as necessary.  In the fall, I’ll find a new location or maybe use the same.  It just just depends on my mood.
  • David and Aster gathered earthworms from the curb that were drowning from all this rain and relocated in the veggie garden.  Aster (7) calls it his victory garden.  His own personal victory of a successful first time gardener.
  • That’s it.  That’s enough.  Despite the rain, the spring maintenances have started and I managed to squeeze some in between the rain, as well as, a couple of consultations.  As such, taking a rain date was actually a welcome relief.

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Raleigh spring plant sale – a perennial favorite

March 26, 2009 at 2:32 pm · Filed under Public Service Announcements ·Tagged , ,

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A Perennial Favorite

Spring Plant Sale Held

On the Grounds of the NC State Fairgrounds

There are certain things in nature that just make sense. Like the early morning being the best time to water the garden, it also best time to be in the garden! It also makes sense with the arrival of spring, plant sales abound. For North Carolina gardeners, the mother of all plant sales is at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds each spring just when Carolina Gardeners are itching to plant.

This mega plant sale has no official name, but rather it is made-up of five non-profit gardening and civic concerns. Independently, but coordinating the date of the weekend, each sets up at the NC State Fairgrounds to sell plants as a fundraiser for various interests, primarily horticulture interests.

This annual event started in 1980 when a younger Tony Avent (owner of Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh) suggested to his garden club, the Gardeners of Wake County, to hold an event – an azalea sale – to help raise money for scholarships for horticulture students at NC State. With Tony’s connections, as well as others in the garden club, they were able to offer many more varieties of azaleas than were currently available in local nurseries. This helped feed the wants of local gardeners and newcomers to the Triangle.

Over the years, other gardening concerns and a civic organization joined the plant sale with each selling a specific plant species so as not to complement each other and to attract a larger group of plant buyers. The first to join in the mid 1980’s was the Wake County Junior Master Gardeners 4-H Program selling Rhododendrons and Camellias. In 1990, the Pilot Club, a civic organization to help people with brain-related disorders and disabilities, joined selling germanium, other annuals and hanging baskets. In 1996, the Raleigh Garden Club, looking for a venue to also raise money for scholarships and to provide donations to other horticulture related activities, approached Betty Cook, then president of the Gardeners of Wake County.  The two garden clubs negotiated an arrangement allowing the Raleigh Garden Club to sell plants along side the Gardeners of Wake County as long as they sold plants that did not compete with their agenda – azaleas.  The Raleigh Garden Club focuses on native perennials and ground covers, as well a less common new plants and forgotten favorites. The latest to join this mega plant sale is the Herb Society of Wake County.

The common thread for this annual event is to raise money to aid the community. According to Carol Norden, who is in charge of the Wake County Junior Master Gardener 4-H program and chair of the plant sale on their behalf since1996, “We see approximately 60 young people a year; from all over Wake County and some from Johnston County. Our program is very diverse and includes youth of all abilities, ethnicity, and school situations (public, private, charter, and home-schooled.)”

In 2008, the Gardeners of Wake County were able to support six bachelor’s degree candidates in NC State University’s Department of Horticulture Science.

This annual event takes the entire year for planning and preparation. “If we added the hours spent on the sale and paid them a minimum wage our sale would not make a profit. Volunteers do make a difference.” Say past President Anne Clapp.

The azaleas sold by the Gardeners of Wake County, come from 5 nurseries offering some 6,500 azaleas for sale with 120 varieties including deciduous and Encore. Plant varieties are presented for sale in the flower show area of the Fairgrounds with signage showing a photo of the plant in bloom along with growing information. Recently, they began selling gardenias, as well.

Raleigh Garden Club members setting up before the sale

Raleigh Garden Club members setting up before the sale

The perennials come from nurseries but also from divisions from member’s gardens.  Each year, The Raleigh Garden Club plant sale committee ensures accurate handling of inventory and labeling.  Plant information is entered into a spreadsheet by common and botanical name, bloom color and season, size, light and moisture requirements, and landscape value such as deer resistance, drought tolerance, southern heirlooms, native plants and plants to attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

There is also a wealth of information to be had from the member volunteers on-site who will answer your gardening questions. Members and volunteers at the plant sales are a variable who’s who in the gardening community and they are also just like us, buying plants!

Inevitability, not all the plants sell. Many of those that don’t sell are donated to various community concerns such as Habitat for Humanity. Again, there is the consistent common thread to aid the community.

Each group is passionate about the plants they sell, as well as, the concerns for which the money is raised. Mark you calendar for this most unique plant sale, support good causes, and enjoy a happy spring.

The annual plant sale is held the 3rd week in April. At the flower show area of the North Carolina Fairgrounds, Gate #6 at Youth Center Road, Raleigh.

2009 dates are:

Friday, April 17th from 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Saturday, April 18th from 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Sunday, April 19th from 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.

The GWC also offer a 20% discount to club members on the “members only” sell day on Thursday, April 16th from 1 p.m. – 6 p.m.

With a cost of an annual membership of a mere $15.00 or $25 for two people at the same address, it is worth becoming a member just to take advantage of this sale.

To learn more about the Gardeners of Wake County, please visit Gardeners of Wake County

To learn more about the Herb Society of Wake County, please visit Herb Society of Wake County

To learn more about the Raleigh Garden Club, please visit Raleigh Garden Club

To learn more about the Wake County Junior Master Gardener 4-H Program, please visit Junior Master Gardeners Kids

To learn more about the Pilot Club, please call Betty Moore at 1-919-787-7467

By Helen Yoest

Gardening With Confidence

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In Print – Carolina Gardener – Urns: Elevate your Garden’s Status

March 23, 2009 at 10:09 am · Filed under In Print

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Photo courtesy of Campania International

My story in the Spring 2009 issue of Carolina Gardener is out.  Unfortunately, I’m unable to link the story, just the magazine.

Here’s the intro…

Imagine traveling down a garden path.  You round a curve and come upon a large, shapely urn.  The urn is a focal point set in the garden as if it were a tree, a shrub, or a fine specimen plant.

Most garden designers will tell you, get the “bones” of the garden right and the rest will follow. The lines, hardscapes, paths, trees and accents should look as good in the winter as they do in a summer. Today the increasingly popular urns are just one more element to create interest and add year ’round appeal to your garden…

I hope you want to read more.  Pick up a copy today!

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A visit to Pearl Fryer’s garden

March 22, 2009 at 11:15 pm · Filed under Garden Conservancy, Garden Profiles ·Tagged

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April last year, I stopped to visit Pearl Fryer’s topiary garden.  I have been an admirer for a very long time.  As a volunteer regional representative for the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour, it did me proud when Pearl’s garden came under their protection.

It was a cold misty day when I visited April, 2008.  I plan to go again.   One night, a while back, the kids and I watched the documentary on Pearl.  They, as was I, were wowed by the man and the garden.  They want to see this garden.  It’s in a neighborhood where one might otherwise feel like an intruder – sweet, quiet, quaint.  But it’s OK, Pearl and the neighbors are use to the traffic.  Even when I visited, on a cold and misty day with no one in sight, the garden was welcoming.

Here’s an expert from my journal…

By the sweet smell of wood smoke coming from his chimney, I assumed Pearl Fryer was home – inside warm, dry, and cozy – outside 50, drizzling, and gray. Yet the sculpted gardens were bright and cheerful. I finally had peralbishopsvilleyoest-14the chance to visit the amazing topiary gardens of Pearl’s dreams. I’m glad I did. Located in Bishopville, SC, this garden is now being preserved by the Garden Conservancy.

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Sunday March 22, 2009 Puttering in Helen’s Haven

March 22, 2009 at 1:48 pm · Filed under Helen's Haven ·Tagged ,

Happy Spring!  Raleigh has fine springs.  Some years they last a week.  Other years, they last 3 months.  Sometimes spring comes in February; sometimes winter comes back in April.  We take what we can get, when we can get it.

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A walk around Helen’s Haven excites me.  There are new leaf buds, new leaves, flower buds. The Redbuds are saying, hello; the flowering apricot flowers are saying goodbye.  The dogwood bracts are ready to bust.  The forsythia flowers are joined by their new foliage, and the daffodils are laughing in the lawn.

I see Robins, jays, bluebirds, cardinals, towhees, thrashers, chickadees, hawks, wrens, mourning doves, cedar waxwings, finches, sparrows, and titmice.

The week seems to have just flown by.  Here is some of the fun going on in Helen’s Haven:

  • A TV station will be taping Helen’s Haven for a story on organic gardening.  The producer wanted to tape on Friday, but I said give me a few days to tidy up.  “Oh” he said, “I thought your garden was always in shape.”  To which I replied, “I’m not talking about my garden.”
  • Some of the box I moved last year were listing.  I popped and reset several.  Now that I gained a few days to tidy up, I thougth it best to spend some of that time on the garden.   Since I moved the box last fall, they now needed to be trimmed uniformly.  A nice haircut will help a lot.  “Patrick, I need you” I typed in an e-mail to him.  Once again, he will give me an assist. We all need a Patrick.  Mine is Patrick Barkley with  Elysian Fields Outdoor Services – efoutdoors@hotmail.com.  I don’t have a straight eye.  Whenever I need help with trimming that needs to be exact, like my box hedge, I call Patrick.  He will come Monday morning to help me.
  • Removed dead Prunus mume ‘Dawn’.  Not sure what got it, but it bit the dust.
  • I went with my hort group to Orchid Trail in Moorsville, NC on Friday followed by a trip to Camellia Forest in Chapel Hill, NC.  It was a full and wonderful day.  I’ll post about both later this week.
  • I spent part of Sunday planting my goodies from Camellia Forest.   Having moved to their new location since I was tere last, it was interesting to see their progress. I liked their set up – still low key, which is best of all.  I also picked up some finds for kk who has been looking for certain cultivars.   Also planted other goodies I picked up while shopping for clients at various wholesalers.
  • Planted Erysimum ‘Fragrant Sunshine’, Dianthus ‘Firewitch’, Epimedium, Dwarf Japanese Garden Juniper, Creeping wirevine, Rhodea Japonica ‘Asian Valley’, Prunus Mume ‘Bridal Veil’, a Cameillia Forest introduction, Mahona x confusa.  I also picked up a Camellia transnokoensis, but it’s only a year old so I will wait to plant after last threat of frost.
  • Severely prunned the red stemmed dogwood.
  • Cut back dead growth in the herb garden, including fennel, rosemary, tansey, orgeno, salvias, lavendar, society garlic and a bunch more.
  • Added a fresh layer of pine soil conditioner in the herb garde, which is what I use here as a mulch.
  • Planted lettuces.
  • Helped Lily plant her cabbage.  Growing cabbage in the 3rd grade is a time honored tradition.  Lily told a classmate that she will ask me for tips.  Her friend told her that would be cheating.  So, mums the word.  You’re on your own, chica.
  • Never to forget my bird buddies, I filled the bird feeders,  cleaned out the birdbaths and filled with fresh water.
  • Ran the fountain for the first time in a while.  As soon as the water was running, birds arrived to have a drink a bath.  A beautiful sight.

The weather was cool, but nice this weekend.  Spring is one my four favorite seasons!

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Plant Delights Nursery – E newsletter

March 20, 2009 at 8:23 am · Filed under Public Service Announcements ·Tagged

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Dear PDN’ers:

Happy first day of spring! I know parts of the country are still covered in snow, but at least the calendar now makes it official. It’s been a roller coaster late winter as we opened for our Winter Open House to 70 degrees F, followed the next day by 36 hours of rain, then 2″ of snow, then consecutive lows of 16 and 15 degrees F…then back to 70 degrees F. How would you like to be a plant? Unlike humans, who can go inside on bad weather days, our plants are stuck to fend for themselves…pretty impressive, if you think about it. On the good side, this has been the first winter in six years we’ve gotten meaningful hardiness data on many of our trial plants…especially agaves. Damage on agaves may take more than a month to show up after the plant has been affected by cold, so don’t get too excited when your plant looks great the morning after. Conversely, don’t fret over the older leaves turning black, as this is normal. The older leaves on an agave lose winter hardiness, while the new younger growth remains fine. Although I haven’t been able to confirm our theory, it appears the sugars (plant antifreeze) produced in the leaves tend to migrate from the older to the newer growth, leaving the older leaves more susceptible to winter damage.

We are also trialing a number of clumping bamboos including many in the genus borinda. All of the borindas have lost their foliage at 9 degrees F, including B. boliana which showed absolutely no damage at 12 degrees F, and despite West Coast reports of 0 degrees F tolerance without leaf burn. All plants in the genus bambusa also lost their leaves, but this was expected based on past experience. It will take a few months to determine if any of these will resprout from the canes or if they will need to be cut to the ground.

We’ve had several folks ask how our Wollemia nobilis fared in the cold this year, and the answer is fine. One plant showed a bit of foliar damage, but the other ten or so we’ve planted are untouched. The big problem with Wollemias is excess summer moisture, so be sure your soil drainage is impeccable. We’ve seen extensive foliar damage this winter on plants that haven’t shown any in recent years, one being the hardy cycads. Both C. taitungensis and C. panzhihuaensis had complete leaf frying this winter, but both are fine at the base and will resprout in late spring. I like to leave the damaged leaves until the new leaves begin to emerge, but that’s strictly a personal preference.

We’re actually having a very late spring as some plants are more than a month later than normal…which is a good thing. That being said, we’re in that time of year when other plants insist on waking up too early, followed by more cold weather. We’ve already had several days in the 70s this winter and sure enough, here come the early emerging Arisaema ringens out of the ground. That would have been fine if our temperatures hadn’t decided to drop back into the low teens. Podophyllum versipelle also peeked it’s head above ground, but we expect it to get blasted at least 2-3 times each spring. To deal with early emerging plants, we use spunbound polyester row covers we cut to fit over each plant. The plants are covered with the row covers, then topped with a large container. Row covers vary in their thickness and consequently their amount of temperature protection. Typically a 1.5 ounce fabric provides 6-8 degrees of protection while 3 ounce material provides 10+ degrees of protection. Even the best row cover isn’t much good below the mid-20s F. If you have the option to throw some shredded leaves over the row covers, that will provide added protection. The covers should be removed as soon as the weather permits. We store the cut row cover pieces during the summer so that they can be reused…many for over a decade.

We added a few special plants to the web right before open house including some of our special Arum italicum seedlings. We have been growing these from seed to select special forms, then subsequently propagating our selections by division. In doing this, we wind up with far too many excellent seedlings that aren’t unique enough from each other to introduce them all. This year we decided to offer these as a seed strain we call PDN Clouded Forms. They are different from the typical Italian arums in that instead of having marbled vein patterns, they have a silver center often flecked with green. At Open House this winter, I had a couple of folks comment about their arums spreading by runners to other areas of their garden. This is an oft perpetuated garden myth, since arums, like me and my bad knees, have no ability to run. When arums are allowed to set seed, birds can pick up the seed and deposit them anywhere throughout your garden. This is the only way arums can spread. If you get to the point where you have enough arums, simply cut off the flowers or developing seed between the time they flower in early May and the time the seed ripens in July. We hope you enjoy some of these special selections.
http://www.plantdelights.com/Catalog/Current/page10.html

Related to arums is probably the strangest plant we grow, a plant known by the monikers, Pigs Butt Arum or Dead Horse Arum…Helicodiceros muscivorus. This unusual Mediterranean native emerges in late winter and flowers in early spring before going dormant for the summer. The three-dimensional foliage is strange enough, but the flowers that resemble (and smell like) a pig’s rear end, are truly bizarre, making a great gag gift for your gardening friends or a perfect way to get a non-interested child to pay attention to plants. We’ve only got a small number available this season, so get them while they last.
http://www.plantdelights.com/Catalog/Current/Detail/08667.html

One of the plants I seem to continually talk about in spring is ipheion and the related nothoscordums. If you haven’t grown these, they are small bulbs that make a stunning late winter/early spring show, then go dormant in the summer. This year, we are offering for the first time, the white flowered Ipheion uniflorum ‘Greystone’ from NC’s Norman Beal. I. ‘Greystone’ has smaller flowers than the white flowered I. ‘Alberto Castillo’, but makes a much more compact clump and for us has had heavier flowering. Nothoscordum sellowianum (used to be an ipheion) makes a short 1″ tall fast offsetting clump topped, starting in February, with small bright yellow goblet-shaped flowers. Unlike most nothoscordums, this one is sterile, so you’ll need to divide it if you’d like to share. We have this growing in our full-sun rock garden and I can’t say enough good things about this gem.
http://www.plantdelights.com/Catalog/Current/Detail/08519.html
http://www.plantdelights.com/Catalog/Current/Detail/06448.html

As we head into spring, we routinely check our garden soils for nutrient levels and soil pH. Before we mulch, we prefer to add any soil amendments if needed. If our soil needs phosphorus, we use rock phosphate and if the soil need potassium, we use Greensand…a natural source of potassium. If you need to raise the pH of the soil, either calcitic lime or dolomitic lime will do the trick. If our soil test shows a high magnesium reading, we opt for calcitic lime. If you garden in an area with a high pH that you need to lower, then Flowers of Sulfur will do the trick. Once these are applied, then you’re ready to mulch. Timing of mulch application can be a real time saver for weed prevention. There are basically three groups of weeds; winter annuals, summer annuals, and perennials. Mulching isn’t of much use in preventing perennial weeds, but it can work wonders for many annual weeds….especially if they require light for germination, which many do. Some winter annual weeds start germinating in fall, while others germinate best in late winter. Two most popular annual weeds in our climate are chickweed and henbit. A good mulch applied before they sprout works wonders on their control.

We’ve been asked by a number of customers to compile a list of plants resistant to deer, since these have become the number one pest of gardeners nationwide. We’ve hesitated to put together a list because we don’t believe any plant is completely deer resistant and deer tastes, like human tastes, vary greatly. That being said, we spent quite a bit of time compiling our list from available research as well as observation from ourselves and our customers. Please keep in mind deer resistant plants may still get a nibble until the deer realizes it isn’t one of their favorites…even some humans eat things that many of us consider inedible…i.e. liver or tripe. Our list of deer resistant plants as well as a list of plants to attract hummingbirds have been posted at http://www.plantdelights.com/Tony/deer-resist.php
http://www.plantdelights.com/Tony/hummers.php We welcome your input on additions or deletions.

In the “in case you missed it” category, you’ve got to check out the Floral Bras, compliments of the Quilters of SC that give a whole new meaning to sex in the garden. Actually, the bras will be on tour throughout South Carolina until fall, at which time they will be auctioned to benefit breast cancer patients. If you have a female gardener in your life who is hard to buy for, check these out.
http://www.quiltersofsc.org/artfullbras/artfullbras.htm

In the “where are they now” category, many plant collectors will no doubt remember Stephen Burns, formerly of the Vine and Branch Nursery in NC. Stephen was J.C. Raulston’s go-to grafter for the odd and hard to graft woodies in the 1980s. Stephen and his wife Rhonda closed the nursery in the late 1980s and moved to SC, where he worked for years at Gilbert’s Wholesale Nursery. From there, Stephen was called to the ministry, where he still works today. http://restorationchurch.org/our-staff

The botanical garden world was surprised to hear of the impending retirement of Missouri Botanical Garden director, Dr. Peter Raven, who announced he will be stepping down from his post at the end of July 2011. Peter has been the director at Mobot (as it is called in botanical circles) since 1971 (40 years in 2011). The news was such a surprise because most of us think of Peter as an ageless iconic figure that we all assumed would outlast the garden. Anyone with even a passing interest in plants has benefitted knowingly or unknowingly from Peter’s legacy of work. Peter’s devoted years to researching and publishing Floras of all the world’s plants including the current Flora of China project, which would probably never have happened without Peter’s vision and drive. Peter is married to the former Dr. Pat Duncan, an NCSU Horticulture Department graduate and former classmate of mine. You can read more about Peter and his list of accomplishments, awards, and philosophy at the links below http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_H._Raven
http://news.mongabay.com/2007/0312-interview_peter_raven.html

Thanks to David Theodoropoulos for alerting us to a great on-line seed germination reference. This publication from The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources is used by worldwide seed banks to assist them in germinating a wide range of unusual plants. This is not a homeowner guide, but one for scientists that requires a bit of seed germination knowledge to use properly and the information is amazing. http://www.bioversityinternational.org/publications/Web_version/52/

If you’re in the greenhouse or nursery business, you are probably too familiar with the Modine family of heaters, which are the top brand of heaters in our industry. When we got started in the business, we checked out other heating options, which at the time were limited to Reznor and from our research didn’t offer a dramatically better option. It wasn’t that Modine was a bad heater, but in greenhouse applications, the heaters didn’t have a very long life span, both due to the nursery moisture and fertilizer salt residue. I actually wrote to Modine several years ago expressing my concern and asking if they would work with us to develop a cover that would help protect the heaters in the summer when we removed our overwintering greenhouse covers. Unfortunately, they didn’t even choose to reply. After decades of going through a warehouse of Modine parts, Bob Stewart of Arrowhead Alpines told me about the L.B. White brand of Guardian heaters. The White heaters are actually designed for hog production and not greenhouse use, but the beauty is their use in hog production is far more degrading than in a greenhouse. Not only is the cost about half of a comparable Modine heater, but the operation is much simpler, the heat output is variable, and the heater is far more resistant to degradation in outdoor conditions. The White heaters are also ventless, meaning you will not need the standard heat losing vent stack that you typically see extruding from the greenhouse sidewall. If you live in an area where the temperatures drop below the 20s and the heater will run continuously, you will need a small intake and outflow vent since the heater can actual suck all of the oxygen out of the greenhouse and extinguish the pilot light. If you’ve been looking for a different heater for your greenhouse, check out these heaters. http://www.lbwhite.com/index.asp?menuID=129

After 21 years, the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle and the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, the second and third largest flower shows in the country respectively, come to an end this year. Salmon Bay Events, which puts on both shows, is for sale by founders, Duane and Alice Kelly, who are retiring from the flower show business so Duane can start a new career as a playwright. Attendance at both shows has declined in recent years due to the economy. The Northwest Show has just ended and the final San Francisco Show will be starting soon. If you’d like to attend the last show, check out their website for more details. http://www.gardenshow.com/ For between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000, the shows can be yours, so if you know anyone looking to buy a flower show, give Duane a call.

My speaking schedule for the remainder of the season has been updated at http://www.plantdelights.com/Tony/talks.php I look forward to meeting you when I visit your region for a program.

As many of us in the mail order industry struggle for survival, we’d once again like to say a heartfelt thanks for those who have ordered this year… Thank you!

If you have gardening friends that would like to be added to our email list, just click on the link below and follow the simple instructions.
http://four.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements
Please direct all replies and questions to office@plantdelights.com.

Thanks and enjoy
-tony

–
Tony Avent
Plant Delights Nursery @
Juniper Level Botanic Garden
9241 Sauls Road
Raleigh, North Carolina  27603  USA
Minimum Winter Temps 0-5 F
Maximum Summer Temps 95-105F
USDA Hardiness Zone 7b
email tony@plantdelights.com
website  http://www.plantdelights.com
phone 919 772-4794
fax  919 772-4752
“I consider every plant hardy until I have killed it myself…at least three times” – Avent

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Don’t be a bore – hellebore!

March 19, 2009 at 10:16 am · Filed under Flowers ·Tagged , , , ,

Nice arrangement from Pine Knot Farms in Clarksville

Nice arrangement from Pine Knot Farms in Clarksville, VA

I met my first hellebore back in 1988. Judy, my next door neighbor at time, introduced us.  I remember the day well, plant-wise,  anyway.  But for the life of me, I can’t remember where we went.  My first hellebore made her home in my Oakwood garden where I often wonder if she’s still there.

I was smitten by the promise of a flower blooming in the winter.  That was all the encouragement I needed -  even if I did have to lay on the ground to see it. This was also the beginning of my winter gardening journey. If it flowers in the winter and I can grow it, I do.

Over the years, as I built my winter garden display, it’s the hellebores that I return to time and time again.  They were my first love, and somehow first loves are always the best.

Many of my hellebores are baby crosses that my clients wanted cleared out or passed to me by a friend.  They cross easily.  They baby easily.

Haphazard pot-up of hellebores - what they will be, will be a surprise

Haphazard pot-up of hellebores - what they will be, will be a surprise

Unless you are particular about getting a variety you desire, getting babies from a gardening friend is a good way to go.  I branched out this year and bought my first double.  Then another.  I promised I would never do that, but then I remembered, never say never.

'Southern Belles'

'Southern Belles'

My first double was ‘Southern Bells’, one that I picked up at this year’s Pine Knot Farms open hellebore days I shared the wealth and purchased my next double hellebore at Gethsemane Gardens in Greensboro, NC

Double purchased from Gaethsemane in Greensboro, NC

Double purchased from Gethsemane in Greensboro, NC

I thought I had a nice collection until I visited the hellebore garden of my friend Bobby.  Here is some from his collection:

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march-8-2009-0563

march-8-2009-054

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march-8-2009-0511

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march-8-2009-0351

march-8-2009-0651

Street-scape makes a nice home for hellebores

Street-scape makes a nice home for hellebores

Here’s some more from Helen’s Haven:

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march-9-2009-0051

2007-march-dump-061

So jazz up your winter garden.  Don’t be a bore – hellebore!

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In Print – Triangle Style Magazine – Caring for orchids in your home

March 17, 2009 at 7:00 am · Filed under In Print

Gardening With Confidence

Caring for orchids in your home

march-20-2009-058

Oh, an orchid. They beg to be noticed. The long lasting blooms and simple care also make them oh, so desirable. With a little care, these flowering gems will give you many weeks of enjoyment.

There are several different types of orchids – each with their own unique growth habits. It is best to be prepared before purchasing orchids so you get the right variety for the right location in your home.

Cattleyas, Dendrobium, Oncidium, Paphiopedilum, and Phalaenopsis are some of the easiest to grow and easiest to find orchid varieties.

Generally, most orchids require sufficient light to thrive. The ideal location is to place in an east or lightly shaded south-facing location. Paphiopedilum is the exceptions, preferring limited light making this an ideal houseplant.

Most orchids like to be watered about once every week allowing to dry-out between waterings. Paphiopedilum and Phalaenopsis are the exceptions, preferring to stay evenly moist.

Orchids like it warm and humid making the kitchen and bath ideal locations. They also want to be fed a fertilizer about twice a month, but only when they are not in bloom. So, for most of us who don’t plan to keep the plant after it finishes blooming, this care is not necessary.

Below are some specific orchid care requirements.

Cattleyas (kat-lee-uh) adapt to a wide range of indoor temperatures.

This orchid will thrive with lots of light and time to dry-out between waterings

Dendrobium (DEN-dro-bee-um) like moderate temperatures, lots of light, and time to dry-out between waterings.

Oncidium (on-sid-EE-um) like moderate temperatures, lots of light, and time to dry-out between waterings.

Paphiopedilums (paff-ee-oh-PED-ih-lum) are commonly known as Lady Slippers. They only require limited light to thrive. This is an ideal choice for a place in your home that will receive little direct light. They are also thirsty plants – keep evenly moist.

Phalaenopsis has been named America’s favorite orchid by the American Orchid Society. Very sensitive to cold so it is best to keep this orchid in a location where the nighttime temperature remains above 60 degrees. They like lots of light and like to stay evenly moist.

Few flowers match the quality, longevity, and enjoyment of an orchid. And the choices are oh, so easy.

By Helen Yoest

First printed Spring 2008 Issue of Triangle Style Magazine



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