Gazette December 12

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GAZETTE
BIRCHWOOD GARDEN CLUB
Topic for December:
Houseplants!
The Birchwood Garden Club will
hold its fourth meeting of the
2012-2013 season on Wednesday,
December 5th, at 7:00 PM in the
Whatcom Museum of History & Art.
Our speaker will be the always interesting and personable Chuck McClung
who will talk about Houseplants. Chuck
has returned to Bellingham (and
Bakerview Nursery) from tropical
locations with new insights on the
indoor horticultural wonders.
Houseplants are a source of
inspiration. Their contribution is never
more appreciated than during the drab
months of winter. To maximize our
houseplant experience, Chuck will
present his famous “Houseplant Tips”
lecture which will cover topics such as:
what houseplants are available and
which ones might be right for you; light,
humidity, soil, temperature, and water
requirements; pests and diseases; saving
a houseplant in distress.
Come join us!
☼
Thoughts to Ponder
If at first you don’t
succeed, destroy all the
evidence that you tried.
www.birchwoodgardenclub.org
CHARTERED 1931
But I Want “That” Color!
By Ira Penn
Many years ago I grew a Gladiolus called Ataturk. It was, at the
time, purported to be the only Black Glad. Today there are several on
the market: Black Beauty, Black Jack,
and Black Star, none of which are truly
black, but then… neither was Ataturk
(which seems to have disappeared from
commerce completely).
Black is an elusive color in the
flower world. The Black Pansy is about
as close to true black as I’ve ever seen
and when viewed for the first time it
almost seems surreal. And yet there
are other colors that, although they are
prevalent throughout most of the
garden, steadfastly refuse to attach
themselves to one particular flower.
The perfect example is blue. You
Black Pansy
can find blue in Delphinium, Iris,
Hyacinth, Hydrangea, Columbine, Morning Glory, Forget-Me-Not,
Lobelia, Campanula, Virginia Blue Bells (of course), and many other
plants, but you will not find a blue Rose. (If you do see one in the
florist shop or grocery store, it’s a white one that’s been dyed!)
Why is this? Why, despite years of hybridizing, are there no blue
Roses? Well, I could be flip and say, “Because dats just da way it be!”
but that answer would be more appropriate for my “Sprouting Off ”
column than for a serious scholarly piece such as this one. (That’s a
joke folks; I don’t do scholarly pieces!)
But the bottom line is exactly that. Roses aren’t blue because they
can’t be blue. They lack a pathway for manufacturing the enzyme
responsible for delphinidin—the blue pigment.
Yes, I know… you’re already saying to yourself, “But in this age of
genetic manipulation, why not just insert a delphinidin gene into the
Rose DNA?” Good question. It seems that the vacuoles that store
pigments vary greatly from species to species and those in the Rose
simply won’t accept delphinidin. Not that it hasn’t been tried. The
variety ‘Applause’ was released in in 2009 and heralded as blue. It’s only
blue to those who are color blind.
☼
Sprouting Off
the
Gazette
Editorial Opinion/Observation
By Ira Penn
I used to have a big yard and a
compost pile of commensurate
size. I’ve got a small yard now and
I didn’t think I had room to make
compost. But then it dawned on
me that all compost containers
don’t have to be 64 cu. ft. like my
last one. So I bought a plastic
compost bin, placed it in a back
corner, and set about the business of decomposing. (The plant
material, not me!)
This past spring I “harvested”
my first batch. Lovely stuff. Eager
to try it out, I used it when
planting some Tree Peonies I’d
bought. They did fine—and so
did the little tomatoes, melons,
cucumbers, etc. that popped up all
around them. (Well, those would
have done fine had I not immediately removed the things!)
The problem was that my
“pile” got warm enough to break
down the organic matter but not
hot enough to kill all the seeds that
were there. Compost needs to get
to 145o F. to kill seeds. I’m sure
mine wasn’t even close.
I found it all more amusing than
annoying. There weren’t that many
little volunteers and those that
emerged were easily disposed of—
back into the compost bin of course.
Gardening always provides
little surprises like that. Another
unwanted visitor this year was a
Rose. Don’t ask me what kind
because it never bloomed. In fact,
it was just one long cane. And it
grew… and grew… and grew.
It seems that when I’d dug out
one of the Hybrid Tea Roses that
had succumbed to winter two years
ago, I’d neglected to get all the
roots. As most hybrid teas are
grafts, the rootstock left in the
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ground was some nondescript thing
good for vigor but little else.
Fortunately, I was able to easily
extract it. Next year we’ll see if I
got it all.
Of course sometimes the surprises are positive. For example,
there are numerous ferns popping
up in the rock retaining wall in
front of our house. They look
great, but I can’t take any credit
for that landscape design. Dee
Dee’s explanation for such serendipitous horticultural events is:
“Garden happens!”
Espaliered Dogwood (fall)
Another positive accident was
the Dogwood tree (Cornus florida)
that somehow seeded itself on the
property. It was only a 12-inch
twig when we bought the house,
and growing in the completely
wrong place to just let it be. So I
decided to experiment. I transplanted it to another location
against a West-facing wall and
started it on its way to becoming
an “espalier.” Not only did it take
well to being trained, but it turned
out to be a pink-flowered variety.
The blooms are large and lovely
and I enjoy the beautiful colors of
the foliage in the fall as well.
☼
The Birchwood Garden Club Gazette is
published monthly, September thru May,
by the Birchwood Garden Club, P.O. Box
362, Bellingham, WA 98227. Articles,
inquiries, letters to the editor, or other
comments should be directed to the Editor,
Ira Penn, via e-mail at:
[email protected]
Deadline is always the 12th of the
month prior to publication.
Authors’ statements, either of fact or
opinion, are their own and do not
necessarily express the official policy of
the Birchwood Garden Club. While the
advice and information in this newsletter is
believed to be true and accurate at the
time of publication, neither the authors nor
the editor can accept any legal responsibility for errors or omissions. The BGC
makes no warranty expressed or implied
with respect to the material contained
herein.
The Birchwood Garden Club is open to
everyone in Whatcom and Skagit Counties
who supports the objectives of the
organization. Meetings are held the first
Wednesday of each month from September thru May. Annual membership dues
are $10 for an individual, $15 for a
family, due in September. Membership
applications are available at:
www.birchwoodgardenclub.org.
2012-2013 Officers and Standing
Committee Chairpersons
President—Jane Johnson
Co-Presidents Elect—Karen Teper &
Kaye Dykas
Treasurer—Dianne Gerhard
Secretary— Ann Holland
Garden Tours—Sheri Lambert
Historian—Kay Reddell
Hospitality—Tina Swanson
Library/Museum Gardens—
Loretta Hogg
Membership—Judy Lewis
Plant Sale—Kathy Sparks
Programs—Tamara Hall
Publicity—Susan Metcalfe
Silent Auction/Raffle—Cheryl Haak
Sunshine—Norine Morrison
Webmaster—Tom Sparks
the GAZETTE
How’d They Do That?
Meeting Minutes
By Ira Penn
Submitted by Ann Holland
Forty four people attended the
meeting on November 7 th .
President Jane Johnson welcomed
everyone. The minutes from our
O c t o b e r 3 r d m e e t i n g we r e
approved with no corrections.
Ja n e r e m i n d e d u s t h a t
membership dues need to be paid
at this meeting or mailed to our
PO Box. Our membership roster
needs to be finalized and
distributed to the general membership. If you do not receive
your December newsletter, then
you will know that you need to
pay your dues.
Jane introduced our Co-Vice
President, Karen Teper and our
Historian Kay Reddell, both new
in these positions. Jane Johnson
asked if any members have ideas
or suggestions for the Club to
consider during this coming year.
Please let us know.
Thanks to Norine Morrison,
Kay Reddell, and Ann Holland for
tonight’s refreshments; and also to
Sheri and Russ Lambert for
providing Lone Jack Coffee each
month. Raffle tickets were sold
for a Weeping Sequoia donated by
Wells Nursery.
Our program was presented
by Mark Turner, a member of
BGC and the Washington Native
Plant Society. Mark presented
beautiful slides of native plants
growing in local gardens. Mark is a
professional photographer so each
slide was a “work of art.”
The picture that follows is a
Daylily named “August Pioneer.” It
was introduced in 1939 by Arlo Stout
who was very much a pioneer himself
when it came to hybridizing Daylilies.
It was, in its day, a “cutting edge”
flower and quite a star. You may have
something similar to it in your yard.
☼
August Pioneer
BGC Cleans Up The
Library Gardens
Snacks
By Loretta Hogg
It was a crisp, sunny morning on
November 10th when BGC members
gathered to clean up the Library
gardens. Many, many thanks to
Cheryl Haak, Sandy Gurosko, Lillian
Nelson, Judy Lewis, Ann Katherine
Walton, Kaye Dyaks, and Tyson
Marsh, a community helper. High
praise also goes to the Club members
who kept the gardens watered during
our extended summer: Gail Haines,
Wilma Bryant, Laurie McClain, Kathy
Sparks, Sandy Gurosko, Zapote
Gregory, and Elisabeth Bays. Most of
them gave up two Saturday mornings
for it. Fifty-five volunteer hours will
be reported to Bellingham Parks and
Recreation. ☼
the GAZETTE
This month’s meeting snacks will
be provided by Judy Lewis, Laurie
McClain, and Dianne Gerhard.
Coffee will be generously
donated by Russ & Sheri Lambert
of Lone Jack Coffee.
www.lonejackcoffee.com
Fast forward to today. The Daylily
below is named “Close To Thee.” It is
a 2013 introduction by hybridizer John
Shooter of Marietta Gardens in North
Carolina.
Thank you!
Bonus Link
www.youtube.com/watch?
v=l1XkcYWbq8s
Close To Thee
Continued on page 4, column 3
PAGE 3
Now You Sedum,
Now You Don’t!
By Ira Penn
When you think of Sedums, you
probably think of Autumn Joy. It
belongs to a part of the Sedum genus
Autumn Joy in fall
known as border stonecrops and it
is by far the most popular variety,
having won the Royal Horticultural
Society’s Award of Garden Merit
way back in 1993.
Border stonecrops are perfect
for the late summer/early fall
garden. They are practically fail-safe
and the plants are quite attractive.
Few pests and diseases bother them
(although occasionally they’ll suffer
from a Deer munch). They are very
drought tolerant yet can also do well
in moist soil. They don’t care if soil
is acidic or alkaline and are hardy
down to Zone 3. All they ask for is
sun.
BUT… you won’t ‘sedum’
anymore. Border stonecrops are
no longer Sedums. The “powers
that be” (i.e., plant taxonomists)
have decided that about 35 Sedum
species should be moved into the
genus Hylotelephium, which is
infinitely more difficult to
pronounce than Sedum, and
border stonecrops were part of the
move.
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I’ve grown border stonecrops
for years. I currently have greenleaved ones, gray/green-leaved
ones, and purple-leaved ones. Each
has its own particular charm. For a
while I grew some variegated
varieties but I found they had a
tendency to revert so I stopped.
Remember my rule: Grow what
grows!
About the only real problem
I’ve ever had with border stonecrops (besides the Deer who I
don’t think really like them but they
have to try eating everything) is that
they grow too high and flop over
from the weight of the flower
heads. But there’s a way around that
problem—if you don’t need dinnerplate-sized heads. On July 4th (not a
critical date but one that’s easy to
remember) you simply cut the stalks
down by half! Yes, you’ll be cutting
off a lot of buds. But the stalks
will branch out and be just as
floriferous—and they won’t flop.
How’d They Do That?
Continued from page 3, column 3
So... how was it done? Simple:
Seventy-five years of effort by lots
and lots (and lots) of people!
Hemerocallis is probably the most
hybridized species in the entire flower
world. Currently there are some 50,000
registered cultivars, tens of thousands
of which are in active commerce. And
it’s all been done by “amateurs”!
Want even more of a shock?
Look at the next picture. “Secret
Family Recipe” is a 2013 introduction
Secret Family Recipe
Autumn Joy in winter
In the winter border stonecrops
can provide a special treat. The old,
dead stalks are very sturdy and the
dried out flower heads stay attached. With a nice snowfall, they
can put on a lovely show.
In the end the name doesn’t
really matter. By the time all the
horticultural books and nurseries
catch up with this change, we’ll all
be long past caring!
☼
from Faye O. Shooter (who just happens to be John’s wife).
As hard as it is to produce
something beautiful like “Close To
Thee,” getting something magnificent
like “Secret Family Recipe” is even
more difficult. It is a tetraploid (Tet)
which means it has 44 chromosomes,
twice as many as a diploid (Dip) which
has 22, the normal state of the
Hemerocallis. Since there are no Tet
Daylilies in nature, they have to be
created by chemically treating diploid
seeds with Colchicine. Once you have
a Tet, you can cross it with another Tet
to produce more Tets. But you can’t
cross a Tet with a Dip unless you first
convert the Dip to a Tet. Got it?
☼
the GAZETTE