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The Garden Clickit                                December

               By Bob Stewart

            The Non-Poisonous Poinsettia

          One of the most persistent myths in gardening is that of the poison poinsettia.  Despite sound evidence to the contrary, poinsettia phobia continues.  A recent Bruskin/Goldring Research poll of 1,000 Americans commissioned by SAF found that 50 percent of those polled said they believed poinsettias are toxic if eaten.  Only 16 percent correctly know that they are not.  Another 34 percent said they don’t know.  “It’s a testament to the persistence of myths,” says Paul Bachman, marketing chairman of the Society of American Florists (SAF).  “Poinsettias simply are not toxic.  That was proven 23 years ago in scientific tests and we want to set the record straight we want people to know that there’s absolutely no reason to miss out on this favorite holiday plant.”

          In fact, no other consumer plant has been as widely tested as the poinsettia.  Researchers at Ohio State University (OSU) have measured the effects of ingesting unusually high does of all parts of the plant (including leaves, stems and sap) and found the plant to be non-toxic.  According to POISINDEX (R), the information resource used by the majority of U.S. poison control centers, a 50 pound child would have to eat more than 1.25 pounds of poinsettia bracts (500 to 600 leaves) to exceed the experimental does that found no toxicity.  That’s not to say you should eat one, though.  Like other non-food items, if ingested, the poinsettia may cause some stomach discomfort – but nothing more.  According to the American Medical  Association’s Handbook of Poisonous and Injurious Plants, other than occasional cases of vomiting, ingestion of the poinsettia plant has been found to produce no effect.

          After reviewing all available poinsettia-related information, the CPSC denied a petition in 1975 to require warning labels for poinsettia plants.

          The poinsettia’s species name, pulcherrima, means “most beautiful”.  And that it is, with its large red bracts and rich green foliage.  This pairing of red and green may be what has made the poinsettia the second most popular holiday plant, second only to the Christmas tree.

          The poinsettia is a member of the euphorbia family of plants.  These plants are characterized by white milky sap high in latex.  The poinsettia which originates in Central America and Mexico, was brought to America by our first ambassador to Mexico, Dr. Joel R. Poinsett in 1825, after whom it was named.  It may be the similarity of his name to the word poison that make people associate them with toxicity.

          Another well known plant in this group is the crown of thorns.  Both the poinsettia and the crown of thorns have biblical legends associated with them.  According to legend, a Mexican girl named Pepita was on her way to church on Christmas Eve, and having no flowers to bring to the Christ Child, she, under the encouragement of her brother grabbed some weeds along the way to offer as a gift.  As she approached the altar, a miracle occurred and the weeds blossomed into brilliant flowers.  These became called the Flores De Noche Buena, the Flowers of the Holy Night, now called poinsettias.  The crown of thorns was the plant used to make the crown Jesus wore when he was crucified.  Up until that time it bore a beautiful white flower, but after it was chosen to make that crown, it forever more bloomed red.                              

      Bob Stewart has a B.S. in Horticulture from Penn State, and has worked in this field for 25 years as a wholesale grower, grounds manager, and retail florist / garden center manager.

The Garden Clickit

September

By Bob Stewart

Extend your Flowering Season into the Fall

As the days grow shorter and the intensity of the summer sun fades, our garden’s color may lose its impact. This doesn’t need to be so. There are many plants whose glory comes in the fall.

Almost everyone is familiar with traditional garden mums. These hardy perennials can bloom anywhere from August to October. Their colors range from white through shades of yellow, lavender, bronze and red. Many different flower shapes are available too. Daisies or pompons are the most common flower shapes chrysanthemums, or mums, can have but increasingly popular are the buttons, anemone, spider and spoon tipped daisy forms.

Mums are perennials, hardy in our region. However, many people have little success getting their plants to come tack the second year. Most often this is because the mum is purchased and planted when it is in full bloom. While this may be when it is most attractive it is not the best time to plant it. By the time the mum has matured to display its dramatic flowers, the plant itself has begun to rest or go dormant. A mum is an aggressive, vigorous grower when in its vegetative state. It spreads itself over wide areas with thick underground modified stems, like runners. It is when it is in this patterns of growth that it is best to plant. The plant will not be showing any color, but most often they are sold with a care tag that pictures or describes the color the bloom will be when mature. If you do purchase a mum in full bloom, it will be more likely to come back the following year if you plant it near a foundation, or with a southern exposure, anything that will keep it a little bit warmer, and shorten its cold period.

When the cold weather sets in, or you mum is clearly not attractive anymore, cut it back to about 2 inches, cover it with some leaves or whatever else you use for mulch. The mulch minimizes temperature fluctuation and eases the stress of winter. The following spring you mum should emerge quickly and vigorously. Unchecked, this growth will give a giant plant, but one that is easily damaged by wind or hard rain. It is best to pinch back your mum twice by the 4^th of July to assure a large vigorous and sturdy plant for the fall.

Pansies and Ornamental Cabbage or Kale are two more plants that are excellent in the fall. Pansies are becoming big business in fall planting in climates just to our south. There is no reason not to use them here. Pansies love the cold. Plant them in the sun, where you wouldn’t have planted them in the spring. Don’t be surprised to see them bloom in December and be your first spot of color in the spring next year.

Ornamental Cabbage and Kale are fantastic additions to the fall and winter garden. As the weather gets colder, the heads become large and more intense with color. They are tremendously hardy and will look good through Christmas. The head can be cut off and set in a bowl of water for a wonderful and unique centerpiece, try it with some evergreens around Christmas!

Hardy asters are another autumn blooming perennial to try. Typically, it has been the New England and New York Asters that have delighted gardeners with their tall late summer bloom filling in the garden background as the garden fades, but now breeders have developed compact robust asters much like garden mums to be used in the near garden border. Their colors are pastel with varying shades of pink, lavender, and purple, in a pleasant daisy shape. They are very worthwhile, perhaps blending better with more select perennials in a bed designed for autumn appeal.

Bob Stewart has a B.S. in horticulture from Penn State. He has worked as a wholesale grower, grounds manager, and retail florist. He can always be reached at Myer the Florist Inc., Milford, Pa

The Garden Clickit October

By Bob Stewart

AUTUMN IS A BUSY SEASON

BULBS Fall is the time to plan bulbs. As night temperatures drop at the end of summer, naturalized bulbs are awakened from their dormancy and begin to grow their roots for next spring. Take advantage of this inborn urge in all bulbs by planting your new bulbs as soon as possible, anywhere from late August until Halloween. This will allow them to sprout their roots this season so that they will have a better start in the spring.

When buying bulbs go to a reputable dealer or quality mail order firm. Avoid buying from mass merchants, their prices might be tempting but remember, you get what you pay for. Every person that has asked me why their bulbs didn’t bloom has purchased them from a mass merchant. Proper handling and storage of bulbs in marketing and distribution are critical. Shortcuts and improper practices reveal themselves next year. The bulb industry is a science upon which the nation of Holland was built. American mass merchants have provided an outlet upon which bulb brokers can dump their inferior bulbs for profit, much the same way that the poultry industry has found a way to make money from chicken wings through the sale of buffalo wings.

The smaller independent retailers understand bulb grading and have made their reputation by buying the largest and best quality bulbs available. Patronize them and your garden will reward you.

There are many meritorious bulbs if deer aren’t a problem for you. Experiment, a small expenditure can yields a lot of enjoyment, consider you bulbs the spice of the garden, a few novelty bulbs here and there, can make your backyard a bistro. Try tulips with different blooming times to extend their season. If deer are a problem, daffodils full size and minis, crocus, snowdrops, allium, and grape hyacinths are good choices.

PERENNIALS Autumn is a good time to plant perennials. Many garden centers have sales to reduce the number of plants they have to overwinter. A fall planted perennial undergoes less transplant shock than a spring planted one, experiencing less dramatic temperature fluctuation and quite likely better rainfall. Plant the perennial rather high crowned so that water will run away from it.

Keep in mind that most of the perennials you plant will be going into dormancy, so the top growth probably won’t look like much. Before you buy the plant don’t hesitate to pop it out of the pot to examine its roots. If they look healthy, buy it. The money you save in a fall sale outweighs the risk taken. Fall planting is the safest planting.

WINTER PROTECTION OF ROSES Winter damage to roses is usually caused by either severe temperatures or by the drying out, dessication, of exposed tissue. Damage is just as likely to occur because of wind or sun, as it is by temperature. The winters with no snow are the worst.

To minimize winter injury, remove all dead canes and dropped foliage from the plant and its surrounding area. Pile soil around the plant to a depth of ten to twelve inches. In other words, bury the plant. When the weather has frozen the ground, apply a layer of straw or hardwood leaves to a depth of six inches over the mounded soil. Hold the straw or hardwood leaves in place with cut boughs of evergreen.

In the spring uncover the rose bush in stages, removing one layer at a time and allowing the exposed portion to harden before removing the next layer of protection.

Bob Stewart has a B.S. in horticulture from Penn State. He has worked as a wholesale grower, grounds manager, and retail florist. He can always be reached at Myer the Florist Inc., Milford, Pa

The Garden Clickit November

By Bob Stewart

PRUNING – HOW, WHY, WHEN

Pruning is done for a number of reasons. It is done to remove old dead branches, to control the shape, height, and direction of growth, to rejuvenate, and to minimize stress to the plant during transplanting.

Pruning, the manipulation of plant growth by cutting, falls into two practices, thinning and shearing. Thinning is the practice most often performed this time of year on deciduous shrubs and trees. Thinning removes old or injured wood and shapes the plant to the pruner’s whishes for next year’s growth. Shearing cuts all the branches to alter the shape and size of the plant to achieve a specific effect. Shearing is typically not done in the fall.

Many words could be written about how to prune but for me this classic illustration from “The Complete Book of Garden Magic” by Roy Biles, copyright 1935, simply and effectively explains the entire principles of both thinning and shearing.

Proper pruning involves some basic knowledge of the plant you want to prune. One of the most frequently made mistakes is to prune a flowering shrub at the wrong time of year. Flowering shrubs fall into two classes. Those that flower on old wood, stems that were formed during the previous year’s growth. This type should be pruned right after the blooms fade. Forsythia is a good example.

The other class bloom on new wood, that which is created during the new season’s growth. These usually bloom later in the summer. This type should be pruned in fall, winter or very early spring so that the new growth will be vigorous and full of bloom. Rose of Sharon is a good example.

Mistakes occur when a spring flowering shrub is pruned in the fall, removing the flower buds for the following spring. Some plants that should be pruned after blooming are azaleas, quince, forsythia, andromeda, lilac, viburnums, and spireas.

A good general rule is, if it blooms before June prune after bloom, if it blooms later than June, prune it in the fall. If the shrub is new to you wait a year and see when it does bloom, and prune it accordingly the following year.

Bob Stewart has a B.S. in horticulture from Penn State. He has worked as a wholesale grower, grounds manager, and retail florist. He can always be reached at Myer the Florist Inc., Milford, Pa