This time of year the show-stopper in our Suisun City front yard is the spring-flowering perennial shrub Forsythia: bold, fragrance-free yellow blossoms crowd its branches before any leaves appear. Flowering branches can be cut and forced. One sees this spectacular plant in local gardens so rarely that passers-by sometimes stop to ask what it is. I remembered it fondly as the first bright roadside accent against the shady evergreen backdrop of North Carolina yards and ordered some from our local nursery.

Genus Forsythia is part of Oleaceae, the olive family. One species is native to southwest Europe; the rest come from East Asia, where some are critically endangered because the plants are harvested for medicine. In our part of the world, many species and varieties--varying notably in height--are available to gardeners. Looking for something to plant in front of our raised front porch for early spring color, and later as a leafy green backdrop for smaller flowering plants, I bought two Monrovia Magical® Gold Forsythia, Forsythia x intermedia ‘Kolgold.' The label says “moderate grower to 5 ft. tall, 4 ft. wide.” Sunny exposure--check, well-drained soil—check, medium watering—check, fertilize before new growth begins in spring—check.

Those plants grew well all right! Bigger than advertised. Forsythia's fountain of long, leafy, branched stems occupied far more space than I expected. They blocked the view from the front porch and arched into flowering space needed by neighboring Lily-of-the-Nile (Agapanthus sp.). All of a sudden pruning, which should be done immediately after bloom, became a necessity.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension produced an excellent video about pruning Forsythia so as to preserve its graceful, arching shape. “How to Prune a Forsythia” is available on YouTube: https://www.google.com/search?ei=hPWnXMSoHoL8tAW-5JP4Cw&q=How+to+prune+Forsythia&oq=How+to+prune+Forsythia&gs_l=psy-ab.3..0j0i7i30l2j0l4j0i7i30j0l2.116708.117421..118343...0.0..0.123.556.0j5......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i71j0i7i5i30.wTtKi92ekgk#kpvalbx=1. I can only imagine the cascade of golden blossoms that would result. Because I have no other sunny spot for my plants, I pruned them into a hedgerow instead--“put them in a box,” as my cousin scornfully remarks. The Monrovia label is more forgiving: “For a formal appearance, shear annually after flowering.” I regret the loss of my Forsythia's natural form, but the hedgerow shape looks nice too.

Two photos by Patricia Matteson:

1) Closeup of Forsythia blossoms

2) Blooming Forsythia hedgerow in front of the raised porch

Steve's dad has had some problems with his foot that has slowed him down a bit.  One day while I was with him, we were talking about what I should write for my next blog.  He had been looking at mail that was piled up and showed me a couple of issues of the magazine pictured below.  He said that the magazines had really good information on all kinds of birds, and he thought that I should write "a story" about birds.  That seemed like a very tall order, plus there are several presentations coming up by our peers about our native birds and gardening to attract them.  I thought that there might be something IN the magazine that would inspire me.  Then, of course, the top line piqued my interest, so I started leafing through this particular issue.  He gave me several issues that he had already read "for research."

Needless to say, I am not writing about any bird or plant.  What I am writing about is how enjoyable these magazines are.  The photography is amazing.  The pictures of the birds and plants that they live with are accompanied by brief articles.  There are also articles about butterflies and plants, accompanied by beautiful pictures.  One section that caught my attention is "What's this..." Q&A of pictures sent in by readers from all over the country.  Birds,  plants, and butterflies were the main topic of the questions.  I was intrigued by the pictures of birds that I have never seen as they are not native to our area.

So, if you are interested, this is definitely a publication that I would recommend.

You've heard of hydroponics and aquaponics, but have you heard of aeroponics?  Unlike hydroponic systems where the plant roots are held in a soil-free medium such as sand or gravel in nutrient-rich water, in aeroponics the plant roots are left to dangle in the air in an enclosed environment.  Plants receive their nutrition from nutrient-infused puffs of air to the plants' roots.  To start the plants from seed, the seeds are frequently inserted into small pieces of foam which are given light on the top side, and puffs of infused nutrients on the bottom.  The plant stem is held in place in the pot by the foam as the roots develop in the air.  The roots, although allowed to dangle in the air, are still enclosed in a structure to prevent sun damage to the roots and to hold in humidity.

Aeroponics was developed in the eighties as a research method to allow scientists to study root growth.  But it has slowly moved into the commercial sector due to the increasing emphasis these days on minimal water usage in farming.

The advantages of aeroponics are many.  For one, it uses significantly less water (up to 95% less water) than in-ground or hydroponic growing methods.  Because the plant roots are grown in a soil-free enclosed air environment, there's no potential for soil-borne pathogens.  The extra oxygen the roots are exposed to also accelerates plant growth.

But aeroponics also has its downsides.  For example, the nutrient solution needs to be precise for the plants being grown.  And the nutrient misters require reliable electric or other ongoing power since the roots require regular puffs of nutrients every few minutes.  Even brief power outages could easily result in the loss of the crop.  Plus, the mister nozzles need to be cleaned regularly to prevent them from getting clogged.

You can learn more about aeroponics from an article on NASA's website at www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/technologies/aeroponic_plants.html and from an article in Modern Farmer at https://modernfarmer.com/2018/07/how-does-aeroponics-work/.