- Author: Jamie Davis, Master Gardener
Dandelion
When true Spring finally envelops us, weeds pop up. Weed is an interesting word. It conjures up the negative but also the positive aspects of plants that have developed reproductive systems which disperse seeds by the thousands. Many will end up where the home gardener may not appreciate them.
For example, the dandelion. It made its way from England and now resides in California as Taraxacum officinale. A perennial, it prefers sun but can eventually acclimate to some shade. The plant has no true stem but, instead, a long taproot produces serrated leaves at the base of the plant. (Serrated leaves gave inspiration to French speakers who began to call the plant ‘dente de lion' or tooth of the lion, hence, in English, dandelion.) The yellow head, known as the inflorescence in science-speak, appears at the terminal end of a stalk, and contains hundreds of ray flowers. The seeds will eventually form the puffball that the wind spreads far and wide.
Not in the mood for dandelions in your garden or lawn? Acquire a simple tool called a dandelion knife which, with practice, will enable you to remove the entire tap root. Check out the link below for other methods.
More information may be found here --> Dandelions
Snails & Slugs
Have you ever watered your garden at night, gingerly stepping around snails and slugs on a wet walkway? And then observing as they slowly move to a nourishing meal provided by your plants? Snails and slugs are mollusks; the most
The management of snails and slugs takes many forms. Methods range from selecting plants with highly scented foliage and woody stems, to handpicking, or luring into traps. Irrigation method matters; drip irrigation is more effective.
More information may be found here >>>>> Snails
Blossom-End Rot
Summer arrives, the vegetable garden is planted and who isn't craving a fresh aromatic tomato? We watch as the fruit develops, with visions of salads and sauces containing the fruit of our labors. And then water-soaked spots dare to appear at the end of one or more of the fruits. The spots turn brown and leathery and begin to enlarge until they cover half of the tomato. Looks awful; what went wrong?
Blossom-end rot on tomatoes is a physiological disorder that is not caused by a microorganism. Proper care of the plant may prevent any sign of the disorder. The tomato fruit is most susceptible to BER while it is still green and has only reached 1/3 to 1/2 of its growth. A deficiency of calcium within the fruit itself may be the culprit and there are ways to prevent this from happening: spread mulch around the base of the plant, irrigate consistently to prevent water stress, fertilize with a balance of phosphorus and nitrogen, and avoid over-watering when very hot, dry weather sets in. Using preventative cultural practices is a key to tasty tomatoes!
- Author: Janet Swanson, Master Gardener
If you have an antique pail that is dented or rusty, drill a hole in the bottom for drainage and turn it into a rustic garden planter. An old unused faucet makes a great hook for hanging your plants. An antique ladder makes a perfect plant stand with multiple levels. Other items such as metal colanders, old wire baskets, and bushel baskets all make wonderful containers for a vintage garden scene. A vintage children's bicycle is a great focal point in the garden, add your potted plants around it for an old-fashioned look.
Have fun and get creative, make it whimsical. Anyone can plant a plant in the ground but adding a repurposed, upcycled or antique piece will make a unique display for your garden or home. Get the grandkids or children involved. Happy Gardening!
- Author: Morris Lacey, Master Gardener
Sanguisorba minor belongs to the Rosaceae family. This herb is hardy and can tolerate cold and warm with the best of us. It prefers well drained soils as puddles tend to give it grief, but it handles foot traffic of large and small creatures – both I and my dog walk through and on it, obtaining a fresh scent rising from the touched leaves.
Also known as burnet, garden burnet, small burnet, Toper's plant, and burnet-bloodwort, salad burnet is an herbaceous edible perennial. Placed as a leading edge of an herb garden gives you the opportunity to easily harvest the leaves and flowers to add to beverages, butters, spreads, vinaigrettes, and – of course – salads! Its cucumber-like flavor brings a crisp, clean touch to most everything sharing the method of conveyance to one's mouth.
This plant can be purchased at various nurseries, shared from an existing plant one of your friends may have, or seeded directly into the garden where it can handle full sun to partial shade. The plant self-seeds and also spreads from its roots but is not too “invasive” and is readily controlled by borders.
A walking path of Burnet, Thyme, and Mint is suggested by Francis Bacon as herbs “which perfume the air most delightfully, not passed by as the rest, but being trodden upon and crushed”. Such elegant language they spoke back in the late 1500 to early 1600. The combined smells are quite “heavenly”!
Native to the Mediterranean Region, it was brought to Britain in the early 1500's and quickly naturalized. It probably came to the Americas as exploration and settlement took place during the 1600's. Since then, it has also naturalized itself in most of North America and parts of South America.
The flower is a beautiful reddish globe of blooms.
The plant grows upright for the most part, but easily conforms to being “walked upon” and will lie flat on the ground in a circular fashion.
I hope you try SaladBurnet in your herb garden.
- Author: Pegi Palmes
For drying, plant material should be harvested when it is completely free of moisture to avoid the development of mold. If you must gather flowers when they are wet, toss them gently on blotting paper to remove surface water, and stand the stems in a container of water in a warm, dry room until the petals are thoroughly dry. Don't be tempted to start one of the drying processes while the flowers are still damp.
Except for seed heads, it is best to gather flowers for drying early or late in the day; from noon to mid-day the plant is at its most vulnerable and more inclined to wilt than respond to the drying treatment. Gather the flowers at the mid-way stage of their development, or just before they are fully opened. An exception to this rule would be everlastings like statice and strawflowers, which can be harvested when they are in full bloom.
Air drying is the simplest method of preserving plant materials. The process is not an exact science and the actual temperature is not critical, though it should not fall below 50°F. A dry area with no direct sunlight and a small oscillating fan set on low is ideal. Some plant types are best dried upright with the stems loosely held in tall containers
A desiccant or drying agent expands opportunities to preserve flowers like narcissus, pansies, freesia, chrysanthemums, ranunculus, carnations, camellias, orchids, roses, and many others. These can be harvested at any stage of their cycle, including buds. With this method, any one of a number of drying agents may be used to fill every cavity and crevice of the plant material, cover every part of every surface and, in so doing, support the plant and keep it perfectly in shape.
Desiccant options available are alum powder (aluminum sulfate) and household borax, both of which are suitable for small, delicate flowers. Silica gel absorbs the moisture from the petals. The blue beads change color from blue to pink once the gel is saturated and needs to be replaced. Desiccants are available at craft and hobby stores.
For drying with a desiccant, spread a thin layer in a container, arrange the plant material by type and not touching, then
PTYXIS, (Botany) noun, pronunciation: Tik'-sis. – the way an individual leaf is folded within a bud, how an immature leaf is creased and bent upon itself within a bud.
I have always loved spring as plants unfurl new leaves. It's happening now in my garden, in the Demonstration gardens and in every place that has plants growing, whether they are wanted greenery or weeds. I have enjoyed the different shapes and colors of the new leafage but I didn't know there was a term to define the intricate folding of new leaves before they appear and expand. As with all Botany subjects, diving deeply into any horticultural term reveals a complex, evolutionary study designed to categorize the myriad growing habits and leaf forms of millions of plants.
Generally, Ptyxis has two major categories:
Leaves that are bent or folded in the bud:
1. Reclinate Ptyxis: Example: Loquat, Rhododendron. New leaf tips are folded toward the leaf base.
2. Plicate Ptyxis: Example: Palms, deciduous trees like maples. The nascent leaves are folded like a fan on vein lines
3. Conduplicate Ptyxis: Example: Magnolia. The leaf is folded in half length-wise like a V.
4. Crumpled Ptyxis: Example: Cabbage. New leaves are covered by older leaves, wrinkling the new leaves more and more in the cramped space.
Leaves that are rolled up and emerge by unfurling:
5. Circinate Ptyxis: Example: Ferns. New fern fronds are tightly wound spirals in the center of the fern. Each slowly rolls upward from the bottom to the top. This new growth is also called a fiddlehead. This careful unrolling allows the base of the frond to strengthen as the “basal lump” is exposed to light and begins photosynthesis. By rolling from the bottom up the tender tip of the frond is protected from weather and hungry animal eaters.
6. Involute Ptyxis: Example: Lotus, Sago Palm. A new leaf on a lotus is held as two tight wound tubes rolled toward the mid-vein. As the leaf emerges (vernation) the tubes remain wound up until the full diameter is reached and then they slowly unfurl.
7. Convolute Ptyxis: Example: Hosta, Canna Lilies. New leaves are held in a roll like paper towels. When the plant emerges in the spring it looks like a cone. As it gets taller the first leaf begins to unroll, then a little taller, then the second leaf, etc. If the deer or snails eat the tip of the new cone, each and every leaf that unfurls will have a bite out of it.
8. Revolute Ptyxis: Example: Oaks, Ilex, Primrose. The leaf margins curl toward the backside of the leaf. In newly emerged leaves it is easiest to see. In new primrose leaves the revolute shape is prominent, looking like tubes until fully unfurled.
I just wandered my yard for a bit. The Japanese maples are beginning to flush out, each unfolding like they have been stored carefully in a Space Bag. No ironing needed as they flatten themselves out as they grow. The boxwood is showing new growth that is V-shaped – conduplicate. I'll cut an iceberg lettuce head in quarters for dinner to see the crumpled ptyxis. I have many ferns beginning to unfurl new fiddleheads – circinate ptyxis. I found some newly emerged leaves on my primroses and they certainly are revolute. My hosta are just showing a tiny bit of their cone shaped emergence. Better protect them from the snails. The sago palms are not ready to start their new growth. It's too cold but I am very familiar with the involute leaves that emerge like rolled tubes and then stretch to great lengths with their pokey veined leaflets. It is interesting that once mature the leaf shape is called revoluted as the leaflets curve down from the midrib. The only plant type I don't own is one with reclinate ptyxis. Guess I have to go to the nursery!