Biology

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Cyclamen: Pretty in Pink

cyclamenLike dominoes, much of the garden continues to succumb to days of frost.  The cyclamen, however, look terrific. The plant pictured above remained dormant all summer.  As spring and summer annuals died, my trusty cyclamen bloomed again.  I’ve always loved the way the flowers soft petals seem to fold in like little clam shells.

The nurseries are full of them this time of year, usually in red and white.  I assumed they were all the same plant, but apparently the nursery variety are grown for indoors.  Though sold as ‘house plants’, they prefer cool temps.  In fact, if you keep one indoors, they suggest putting it outside for a few hours, or even overnight, to prolong the health of the plant.  It seems counter-intuitive.  The rest of the garden needs salvaging from the carnage of this unusual frost, but the Cyclamen crave it.

According to Garden Web:

Cyclamen [in its native habitat] is an endangered plant. Centuries of collecting from the wild have decimated populations and the Cyclamen is now protected by CITES. CITES is the Congress on International Trade in Endangered Species. It is a worldwide body set up to protect not only plants, but animals that are in danger of extinction. It is illegal to import or export Cyclamen to or from any cooperating country without a CITES permit.

I had no idea!  I saw hundreds of them on display at a nursery earlier this week, so hope this bodes well for their survival.  Meanwhile, this little gem is looking pretty in pink and happy in the garden.  I’m inspired to plant many more.

Further Reading:

 

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Magnolia vs Scale: This Tree has Game

tulip magnolia March 2012

Tulip Magnolia
March, 2012 BC (Before Scale)

All is not lost!

Last week I wrote about my struggling tulip Magnolia. It’s infested with scale, a nasty soft scale insect.  It’s been a problem for two seasons.  You can continue reading, or pop over to this page to view graphic photos.

Did you go look? It’s not pretty, is it?

I met with a certified arborist today to discuss the tree’s plight. The arborist nodded and said ‘yes it’s a problem,’ and agreed that gardens with tulip magnolias frequently harbor scale.  He went on to say the problem is systemic and that most treatments don’t work.

He did, however suggest a fairly new product that has recently shown promise.  Bayer Tree and Shrub Protect and Feed.   It’s applied at the roots so no spraying.  Further, it’s supposed to have minimal impact on beneficial insects, always a concern. I’m going to give it a try.  He said improvement wouldn’t happen ‘over night’ but that with time, it may help.  He noted the green shoots on the tree and the lack of mold as two good signs.  Apparently all my scraping and washing helped.

Two hours worth of scale removal.

Two hours worth of scale removal.

The arborist also approved of the banding  my husband banded did last summer.  It’s an ant barrier, a sticky substance that the ants won’t cross.  Since ants protect the scale in order to harvest the secreted honeydew, it’s another step toward protecting the tree.

Hope, renewed.

In other news…

Special thanks to Betsy of What’s Green With Betsy!?! and Pauline of The Contented Crafter for including me in there list of recommended bloggers.  I’ll write more about this later in the week.

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The Colors of Fall: Our Own Special Tree

colorful leaves

Colorful leaves

New England states are known for stunning displays of fall color.  My husband and I crossed the country by train one year so we could enjoy the spectacular (and fleeting) beauty.

We also had the good sense to plant our own fall color in the strip of land between the street and the sidewalk.  Though there were four beautiful trees growing in the back yard when we bought our house in 1996, we didn’t have a single tree out front.

August, 1996

Planting the tree
August, 1996

We planted two that first year, and have since planted a couple more.   The Magnolia shows off in early spring with huge, snowy-white flowers but the fall belongs to the splendid Chinese Pistache.

The City of San Jose requires a permit before planting a tree in the sidewalk strip, the space between the sidewalk and the street.  They provide a list of “approved” street trees.  Approved trees must have non-invasive roots, non-staining fruit and other good-neighbor qualities.  In the past, neighboring streets sported Liquidambar trees.  They’re pretty but a nuisance when planted curbside.  Invasive roots lift the sidewalks, causing myriad tripping hazards, and the seed pods are hard enough to twist an ankle when stepped on.  I remember getting them caught in the wheels of the boys’ s stroller and later in the undercarriage of scooters.  One by one, homeowners removed the Liquidambar, leaving neighborhoods bereft of trees.

A few years back the trend reversed, and once again families are planting trees.

Planting a tree is an act of hope and optimism.  It also says “I’m here to stay!”  My family moved a lot when I was a child, and I moved even more during college and my early working career.  The same was true for my husband. Planting a tree outside our front window said  “we plan to stay awhile.”

chinese pistache newly planted

August, 1996

chinese pistache spring

Spring, 2011

Now and again my husband grumbles that our tree is not as tall or as full as the one across the street.  I immediately come to our trees’ defense and assure him that it’s just fine.  BK (before kids) we used to measure the tree’s height each year.  We settled into life raising two boys, and measured their growth each year instead.

Winter Views of the Pistache

Growing boys, sleeping tree

Now we have three strapping teenagers (two boys and one tree) and all three are taller than me.  The colors of fall, and our beautiful tree, are an introspective time to reflect.

chinese pistache

November 12, 2013

hummer in pistache

This little hummingbird sang while I raked

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Aren’t You Glad I Said Arachnid?

nocturnal spider

Nocturnal spider

The itsy, bitsy spider went…

Who am I kidding!  This baby is huge!  Spider, arachnid, eight-legged wonder.  You can call it what you like, but these super-sized spiders make my hair stand on end.

I was enjoying a warm evening on deck with my hub,  when he pointed out this nocturnal spider. The spider’s web stretched from the house to the Magnolia tree, across the ramp leading to the deck.  By day, this arachnid must pack away her web, but once the sun sets, she’s open for business.

I say ‘she’ because my friend once suggested that I think of all spiders as female or as someone’s
mom making them appear less creepy.  I’m not sure it helped.

Spiders are great for the garden.  I’m delighted they’re here and appreciate the good work they do, reducing the non-beneficial bug population.  It’s just that I prefer they do it when I’m not looking.

spider in web

Waiting for dinner

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Coleus Splendiferous

Potted coleus

Potted coleus

Our splashy coleus greets our guests as they cross the deck to our front door. Aren’t the colors amazing? This fast-growing plant seems to double in size, minutes after the summer heat descends.  Small purple flowers appeared last week, but they almost seem beside the point.  The true beauty of this plant is the leaves.  I have three varieties growing on the deck, but this is my favorite.

coleus flowers

Spikes of purple flowers

I grew two coleus last year, then tried, unsuccessfully, to keep them alive through the winter. I wrapped then in frost cloth, kept the watering going, but alas one hard frost and that’s all she wrote.

coleus leaves

Apparently it’s tasty too.

This year I’m ready.  I’ll take cuttings instead.  I have rooting compound for the occasion, along with a lightweight planting medium.  I even have my eye on a small, portable green house, so that I don’t have to use the always-busy kitchen for my growing pursuits.  I’ll keep you posted.

Meanwhile, I’m enjoying my colorful deck.

Do you have a summer favorite?

coleus closeup

Stunning colors

 

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Itsy Bitsy Spider

The birds aren’t the only ones laying eggs this time of year. I happened upon a newly hatched ‘family’ of spiders today.  I put family in quotes, because honestly there were hundreds of them. They look big in the pictures, but they are as small as a pin head.

I was clearing dried leaves around the orange tree, tossing them into the compost bin. As I reached for a dried branch, I saw what looked like tiny flowers caught in a web. The ‘flowers’ however, were moving in different directions. Good thing I withdrew my gloved hand when I did. Our neighbors would have heard me scream like a B movie actress in a horror film.

ferns with spider web

Ferns under the orange tree

Ferns...at little closer

Ferns…at little closer

Ferns...closer still

Ferns…closer still

I grabbed the camera and took several shots.  Video would have been better, but I’m still not well versed with this camera.baby spiders on fern 4-18-2013 12-47-11 PM

spiders up close 4-18-2013 12-46-40 PM

Spiders up close: look, Ma, no hands!

Lindy came over to investigate.  It’s not every day she finds me sitting in the ferns.  Once I  turned the camera in her direction, she went all feline on me and gave me the cold shoulder.

Lindy near the ferns 4-18-2013 12-47-58 PM

Lindy Lu

I have an interesting relationship with spiders.  Indoors, they creep me out.  I humanely remove them with my spider-catcher, and set them loose in the garden.  Outside, unless they’re bigger than a quarter, I’m usually okay with them.  When startled, however, I freak out.  It’s the strangest thing.

How do you feel about spiders?  Are you indifferent?  Did you pass out at the first photo?  Or are you as fascinated with nature as I am?  Maybe all three.

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D.J. and the Speckles

I love my community!

Yesterday I wrote about a bird’s nest and her speckled eggs, sheltering on a client’s patio.  I didn’t have a photo of Mama Bird, but knew she was ‘brown.’  Not much to go on, was it?  After a futile Google search, I asked for help identifying the eggs.

My friend Sheila forwarded the photos to Larry Jordan of The Birders Report to see if he could help. Larry quickly identified the probable bird as a Dark-eyed Junco.

Dark-eyed Juno

Mama Bird, aka D.J.

Dark-eyed Junco in a maple tree

“You’re still here with that camera, I see. Don’t you have better things to do?”

Dark-eyed Junco nest

Dark-eyed Junco nest

When I passed by the Pittosporum this afternoon, once again Mama Bird flew the nest. She kept her eye on me while I loaded the car, then posed for several photos. (Actually, I’m pretty sure she was just humoring me till I cleared out of there.)  My photos aren’t as sharp as the one on Larry’s site, but all the signs are there:  dark eyes, light brown feathers, orange beak.

I’m filled with joy knowing D.J. is still there and that she hasn’t been scared off from her nest. Mamas of all stripes are pretty fierce when it comes to protecting their young.  I’m happy to report she’s no exception.

One last detail that makes me smile whenever I look at this photo: a sweet, aging Black Labrador Retriever lives in the home.  It looks as though she’s made her own contribution to the lining of this nest.

Resources:

If you’re as fascinated with nests as I am, this site is for you.  Larry has an extensive photo library of bird eggs and nests with guidelines for identifying (without ever disturbing) the mama-bird and her clutch.

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Magnolia Scale: It’s Not For Wimps

My house is super clean which can only mean one thing. I’m procrastinating.

The decorations are down and the house is back in order. The sun is shining. I’m all out of excuses.  It’s time to tackle the Magnolia Scale. Blech!!!

Adult Scale

Adult Scale (Red)

Last summer we discovered a severe scale infestation on our Tulip Magnolia.  It was everywhere!  I removed numerous branches, perhaps close to a third, since the infestation was so bad.  We ordered beneficial lacewing eggs, hoping they would finish off the rest.

Now that the tree is dormant, it’s easy to see what remains.  Though not nearly as bad as last year, dozens of red scales (the adult female) along with the immature male and female nymphs, cling to the young branches.

Scale Removal

Scale Removal

Today, with my bucket and gloves in hand, I spent an hour scraping off scale.  They’re easy to see (bright red) against the trunk, but I had to stand on a step stool to reach all of them.  After tossing them into a bucket, I went back with a warm, wet rag and wiped off the nymphs.

The overwintering nymphs are all over the tree!  There is no way I could get all of them, but I sure gave it a try.

Scale Nymphs

Scale Nymphs

After giving the tree one last look, I sealed the scale in a plastic bag for disposable, and soaked the bucket, rag and gloves in hot, soapy water.

Scale in a Bag

Scale in a Bag

I’ll check on the tree again tomorrow, and if the weather warms up, I might take a hose to the underside of the branches to remove some more.

Here’s what I’ve learned:

  • When purchasing a young Magnolia tree, check the inner branches first for infestation.  Apparently many of the trees have scale before you bring them home.
  • Prune judiciously.  Magnolias, especially mature ones, don’t handle heavy pruning.
  • Time your pruning appropriately.  I’ve read the best time to prune is late winter, early fall, after flowering and before new buds set.  Given those parameters, you really need to stay vigilant.

Resources:

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Viburnum Tinus: Odoriferous With a Side of Thrips

A row of Viburnum Tinus grow below the window of our den. The plants fill the space nicely between the ramp to the deck and our house. It’s a good-looking shrub, producing pretty flowers and berries during the winter months.  But…that smell.

We naively thought the pungent smell was coming from under the house. I thought a small animal might have died in the crawl space. My husband thought a neighborhood cat was spraying and tried a deterrent in the immediate area. The smell was so overpowering when we opened our window in the spring that we started keeping it closed while we researched the cause.

Viburnum tinus

Viburnum tinus, early buds

Viburnum tinus, buds

Viburnum tinus, small buds look like stars and beads

Last summer we noticed the lower leaves were a grayish brown. Turns out we had thrips. Was that what caused the smell?  We ordered beneficial insects (the larvae eat the thrips), reassured that we had good insectary sunflowers nearby for the mature adults. Further, I heavily pruned the lower branches, cutting away as much damage as possible. I hauled all the underbrush away from the plants to allow air circulation.

I noticed today that the thrips are back (along with the tell-tale brown leaves) though the plant continues to grow, flower and fruit.  I did a little research, and it seems the smell and the thrips are exclusive. According to Plants For a Future  the tinus “plants give off an offensive smell in wet weather.” Several writers on the forums describe it as something a dog left.

That’s it! At long last we have our answer. Now what to do about that odoriferous smell?

Viburnum tinus

Viburnum tinus, opening blooms

Viburnum tinus

Viburnum tinus, flowering white

Viburnum tinus berries

Viburnum tinus berries (inedible)

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Hostess Gift: A Praying Mantis

We hosted our 8th annual Halloween party this afternoon. Mother Nature graced us with a clear, warm, spectacular day.  My sister and I enjoyed donning our costumes and posing for photos on the garden deck. My sister dressed as The Corpse Bride from the animated Tim Burton film of the same name.  I made a dress to emulate artist and greeting card designer, Bela Pillar.   Our friends came and went all afternoon.  We had a blast.

Corpse Bride and Bela Pilar Dress

Corpse Bride and Papyrus Greeting Card

One of the first guests to arrive lives just a few houses over. Bobbie and his son came bearing an awesome hostess gift: a full-grown praying mantis (mantid). They spotted it on the walk over and knew how much I would appreciate it.  Awesome!

We all gathered around the plant to watch the mantid in motion. He was quite active, and at one point swiveled his triangular head and looked directly at us, before turning back and reaching up to the next set of leaves.  I could have watched him all day.

Mantis (or mantid) can live up to a year, shedding their skin several times as they grow.  This one is fully grown, probably about six inches long (15 cm). These pious bugs are great for the garden, since they dine on unwanted insects and bugs. You can buy praying mantis egg sacks at local nurseries to organically control bug infestations.

praying mantis
praying mantis 2
praying mantis 3Once the party guests went home, and the house was back in order, I went outside in the dark with a flashlight hoping to spot him.  Instead I saw a katydid sitting on a flower, wondering why on earth I was snooping around in the bushes after dark.

Perhaps she had a point.  I’ll check back tomorrow and I’ll let you know.

Halloween Countdown

party going pumpkin

Charlotte’s Pumpkin