Hi Gardeners
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| Rex Begonia leaves |
We are getting some sun in bits and pieces today and
it is most welcome. And while it has
been partially obscured by clouds the Full Snow moon has made the night much
brighter the last few nights. I love looking out at snow covered areas on a
moonlit night. The light reflected off the snow makes spotting night creatures
much easier. Deer, possums, coyotes, rabbits playing, coons scurrying and owls
waiting for mice can be seen from a window.
When I was younger that kind of moonlit night would
draw me outside for a quiet, peaceful walk. The hooting of an owl or howling of
coyotes and the scrunch of deer hooves on snow let you know where to look. Now
my old joints protest the cold too much and walking through the snow is too much,
but I do remember.
My little snowdrops are now snow covered. The colder
weather and snow will delay the progression out of dormancy for our garden
plants and trees, which is probably a good thing. If you want some early spring
blooms you can cut branches of forsythia, witch hazel, Amelanchier (or serviceberry),
Cornelian cherry, flowering quince, any fruit trees, red maple, birch, poplar, pussy
willows and clove currant, and put them in a vase of water in a warm room. They
should bloom in 1-3 weeks inside.
Valentines Day is Friday. Want to learn about some plants that promote
love -or lust? Try this article.
Potatoes inside?
About this time of year many of you will find
potatoes starting to sprout in your cupboard. If you are itching to garden, you
might want to have a little fun and plant some of those sprouting potatoes. With
luck you can produce a tasty meal or two in a couple months.
If you have a sunny location in your home or grow
lights you aren’t using potatoes will grow inside. Of course, it would be
difficult to grow any quantity of tubers, but it’s a fun project for kids or
the bored gardener.
First take a sprouting potato and cut it in chunks,
with each chunk having a sprout or two – or eyes. (Little small potatoes, like
tiny red potatoes or fingerling types can be used whole.) Let the chunks sit
for two or three days in a sunny window or under a grow light. Putting an apple
near them will make the sprouts develop faster as apples give off ethylene gas,
which promotes sprouting. The cut parts of the potato should dry and form a “skin”
before planting. You can leave the potato pieces on the windowsill until
sprouts are an inch or so long without harm.
You’ll need a good-sized container for every 2 pieces
of potato or small whole potato. A five-gallon bucket or 12-14-inch-wide, deep pot,
will do. I have used small Styrofoam coolers,
the cheap kind, with good results. Grow bags would work well. The container
must have good drainage. Drill or melt holes in the bottom if needed.
Fill the bottom 3 inches of the container with a good
lightweight potting mix. If it doesn’t come with fertilizer mixed in, add a
granular slow release fertilizer for vegetables according to label directions
and mix it in well. Put the potato pieces on the potting mix and lightly cover
them. When the potato shoots are 3 inches above the mix, add more potting mix
until just the top set of leaves is sticking out. Repeat this as the shoots
grow until you have filled the container to an inch or two from the top. Do not
add fertilizer every time, however.
Your potato container needs to be in strong light (south
window) in temperatures between 45 degrees and 80 degrees F., 72 degrees is
ideal. If using artificial light give them 14 hours of light. Natural daylight
should be supplemented with lights in the evening for a total of 14 hours of
light for best growth. Potatoes need regular watering, so the potting mix is
always moist but never soggy or waterlogged.
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| Potato flowers |
Your potatoes should grow rapidly and bloom in about
6-8 weeks. Tubers will begin forming when blooming stops. It is natural for
stems and leaves to begin to yellow a few weeks after bloom. A month or so
after the potatoes bloomed you should have small potatoes. They should have
formed all along the buried potato stems. Dump the pot out to find them. Harvest
and eat potatoes grown inside before they get too large for best results.
If the potatoes seem to have completely died back
sometime after blooming dump the pots to see if you have any tubers. Potatoes
naturally die back as tubers get larger.
If you start now you could have some new, small
potatoes by late May, just after potatoes would be planted in the garden
outside.
Should everyone plant trees?
Should everyone around the world be planting trees
anywhere there’s an open spot? That seems to be a very popular thing for people
to advocate for, to help with global warming. Even the president talks about
planting trees and he doesn’t believe in the science of global warming. But while
planting a tree or trees on your property probably is a good thing, researchers
say planting trees isn’t always a good idea for some places on earth.
As the northern and southern pole areas get warmer,
vegetation is beginning to grow where there once was little. While that seems
like a good thing, it does have a downside. Snow covered areas reflect light,
which cools the earth, the darker colors of vegetation and exposed earth absorb
the suns heat, leading to more warming. Over time the tree line will probably
shift north, but scientists don’t think we should encourage it.
The other time when planting trees may do more harm
than good is in areas that are getting drier. Everyone who owns a farm pond
knows that trees around it will drop the water level in the pond when they are
actively growing and taking up water. Trees invade wet areas in the process of
succession, first to come are tree species that tolerate wet roots, then more
upland species until what was once a marsh becomes a forest. The trees dry up
the ground by holding water within them and by moving it from the soil to the
air.
A research study done by Cambridge University on 43
areas of the world and published in the journal Global Change Biology,
found that trees reduce the amount of water that flows into and through
rivers. Five years after planting trees
in watershed areas or near rivers the water flow was reduced. After 25 years the flow was decreased 40% as
an average and some rivers were dried up completely. In some places small
rivers and streams were dried up in 10 years.
When rainfall is regular and abundant trees moving
water out of surface water areas and from the ground water fuels the water
cycle, keeping rain more frequent and abundant. Everyone has enough water. But
when it gets hotter the air gets drier, and suddenly the amount of water being taken
up by trees can’t put enough moisture back into the air to promote rainfall.
Lakes, rivers and ponds dry up, and wells begin going dry.
The chemical reactions of photosynthesis require
water to produce food for the tree and since photosynthesis shuts down at high
temperatures, trees also need water for evaporative cooling. When its hotter
trees require more water to keep cool, the water evaporates off the leaf
surfaces.
Think of a tree as a huge column of water moving from
the roots to leaf surfaces where water escapes as a gas through leaf pores.
Every large tree holds thousands and thousands of gallons of water and on a hot
day the tree is pumping that water into the air continuously. A large mature
forest ties up astounding amounts of water within it and moves water into the
air at phenomenal rates.
The water never leaves the earth’s atmosphere of
course. It just goes on the wind somewhere else, until the air gathers enough
moisture to create droplets of rain or snow. We know that as the earth warms
patterns of rainfall and storms are changing. With these changes some areas, generally those
that were on the border of previously drier areas, and those that tend to have
seasonal rain with long dry areas between are going to see less rain.
When we plant trees on those drier areas, they may
actually speed up the process of drought, eliminating smaller ponds, lakes and wetlands,
diminishing the flow of rivers and streams and lowering the water table. The
water the trees pulled from those sources goes into air too hot and dry to
promote rain and moves away from the area on the wind.
When the hot, drier air meets cooler, more humid air,
the water in the drier air melds into it, saturating the air enough so that
rain or snow form. Some areas of the
country are going to get wetter in the process, sometimes catastrophically so,
and more humid. The wetter areas are where planting more trees is going to be
very helpful.
We’ve also observed that where trees are removed in
the tropics the areas get hotter and drier and that promotes less rain. It’s a
tricky balance, some areas need more trees and some areas don’t. When you
remove trees from some areas, you cause drought. But when you plant trees in
other areas you also promote a water shortage.
For most Americans planting trees on your property is
still a good thing and to be encouraged. Trees cool the air around homes, and
they cool the entire region down too, if there is good tree coverage. Trees are
important producers of oxygen and absorbers of carbon dioxide. Tree cover does
have the ability to modify the climate in a small way. Just make sure to plant
species of trees that are right for your conditions.
But there are areas of the country that are getting
drier and hotter where planting trees may not be a good idea. First, if trees
must be watered on a regular basis to survive after the first year or two of
establishment, they probably shouldn’t be planted. Use plants more suited for
dry areas.
If you depend on surface water for drinking,
irrigation or other uses in drier areas, planting trees close to a river,
stream or pond and in the area that drains into those waters, may reduce that
water source, and often permanently. In areas with water tables close to the
surface (shallow wells) trees can also rob that water.
If you want a marsh or swamp for wildlife habitat
planting trees in and near it and allowing trees to seed into it and grow may
not be wise. Planting trees around prairie “pot holes” or small ponds where
trees could dry up the water source is also not a good idea. Usually ponds are
either catch the runoff of surface water or are where ground water is close to
the surface or small springs bubble up. These ponds will be more likely to dry
up if trees grow around them.
If you have an area that is flooding more frequently
than it used to, planting thirsty trees like willows and poplars could actually
help. There are numerous tree species that can be planted on flood plains. They
take up some of that water and hold it and their roots stabilize soil that
might get washed away. They reduce the amount of water that gets into rivers
and streams, which may stop flood damage.
The bottom line, most of you should plant trees if
you have the space to do so. Trees are a big help to the environment. But there
are some gardeners, landowners and project managers who should think carefully
before planting trees. Trees are not always right for every situation.
More reading
Daffodil Begonia -Begonia
narcissiflora
You may have seen this begonia in some bulb catalogs
this spring, I have just ordered some.
For a long time, this rare begonia was only available from Golden State Bulb
Growers, the only nursery keeping it in production. It was discovered in 1898
so it’s not new but little breeding or propagation was done with it. I don’t
know what changed but several bulb catalogs are featuring the plants this year.
I have seen salmon and white colors offered, I
ordered salmon. In the Netherlands there is a pale yellow-pink variety, but I
haven’t seen it offered here. Different catalogs show the salmon as different shades,
so it will be a surprise when the ones I ordered bloom, I guess.
The center tepals of this begonia’s male flower form
a cone or trumpet shape and the flower looks a lot like a daffodil flower. Descriptions
say the male flowers are 4 inches long. Tepals are a kind of sepal-petal
mixture that many types of flowers have. Begonias have two types of flowers on
one plant, male and female. The female flower in begonias is smaller and less conspicuous.
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| Daffodil begonia Photo from Springhill nursery |
These daffodil type begonias are a tuberous begonia
and the care should be similar to other tuberous begonias. They would be good
for baskets and containers in light or partial shade. They are supposed to
bloom from early summer until frost. Like all tuberous begonias they could be
treated like annuals or the bulbs can be allowed to go dormant and then stored
over the winter.
Some places to buy them;
Focus on Rex Begonias
Rex
begonias are a great plant to brighten up the winter. As a houseplant their interesting
foliage will add color to the windowsill. And they can be moved outside in
summer to bring color to shady containers and baskets.
Rex
begonias have large leaves, generally pointed, although rounded and other
shaped leaves are not uncommon. The leaves are thick and wrinkled looking and
come in a variety of stunning colors and patterns. Some plants can reach a foot
high and some plants have been bred that stay quite small.
Rex
begonias are great collector’s plants because there are hundreds of varieties
for sale. You’ll have a hard time picking just one plant to grow.
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| Rex begonia |
Growing conditions
Rex
begonias are relatively easy to grow except for one requirement. They need
humid conditions to keep leaves from getting crispy edges and eventually
falling off. If you have a well-lit bathroom, rex begonias may thrive there.
They may also do well over the kitchen sink. Plants can be used in terrariums too.
If you
don’t use a humidifier in the house in the winter, you can place the rex
begonia in a shallow tray of water with stones or marbles in the bottom to keep
the pot bottom above the water line. Grouping rex begonias with other plants
also helps with humidity. Misting the plants isn’t recommended as rex begonias
will get spots on the leaves from water sitting on them.
Rex begonias
like bright light but not direct sunlight. An east or north windowsill will
generally work or place them about a foot away from a south or west window.
Good, strong light brings out the best leaf color. In the summer outside they
need partial shade. Rex begonias can also be grown under artificial light.
Plant
the rex begonia in good, light potting soil or use an African violet soil. Keep the soil moist but don’t let the pot get
waterlogged. While rex begonias like moisture and humidity their roots also
need some air.
Fertilize
lightly beginning in March through September, maybe once a month. Don’t over
fertilize, as foliage plants, rex begonias don’t need much fertilizer. Keep
dead leaves picked off. Plants may go through a period of adjustment when
moved, especially from a humid greenhouse or from outdoors into a drier indoor
location. Some plants will even go dormant.
If the
rex begonia does seem to drop all its leaves and die down to soil level all may
not be lost. Let the pot dry out until it’s barely moist. Put the pot in a
clear plastic bag and set it out of direct light for a few weeks. Check from
time to time to see how moist the soil is and add a little water if it is very
dry. After a month or so- or sooner if you notice new growth, take the plant
out into bright light and resume watering.
Like
most begonias, rex begonias flower.
However, this species of begonia does not have very showy flowers and
you will probably want to clip out the flower stems that peek out from the
center so the plant concentrates on producing its showy leaves. I am a lazy
person when it comes to trimming flowers however and I still have nice plants.
Rex Begonia propagation
Rex
begonias are one of the few plants that propagate readily through the leaves.
You can remove a young leaf and stem and insert the stem into a moist pot of
planting medium. Place the pot in a clear plastic bag in bright indirect light
and keep moist. Wait for a new plant to form at the leaf base.
You can
get many plants from one rex begonia leaf using this method. Find a wide
container that a large leaf can lay flat on. Flip a rex begonia leaf over and
make small cuts across several of the large veins. Don’t cut all the way
through the leaf. With a cotton swab rub some rooting powder- found in houseplant
supplies- on each cut.
Fill
the container with moist potting medium.
Place the leaf on it cut side down and weigh down the leaf with small
pebbles, metal washers or some other small item so that the cut vein contacts
the soil. Place in a clear plastic bag in bright indirect light and wait for
new plants to form at the leaf surface by each cut.
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| Rex begonia cut along leaf veins |
These
wonderful plants are a great way to share plants between several plant lovers.
Each gardener can buy a different variety and start new plants to trade with
other gardeners. But even if you don’t want to propagate and share a rex begonia
or two can add some color to your life.
Have a fun Valentines Day- Remember chocolate is good for the heart-
Kim Willis
All parts of this blog are copyrighted and may not be used without
permission.
And So On….
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ReplyDeleteHey,
Thanks for sharing this blog its very helpful to implement in our work
Regards.
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