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Too many Houseplants?

How many is too many Houseplants? At last count I had over 70! Maybe that’s not enough…

I have been gardening outdoor for many a year, yet I am reasonably new to Houseplants. Like my love of gardening, I am sure I have inherited my new found love for houseplants from my Mum. AKA my font of all garden and houseplant knowledge.

I can still remember a trip with my Mum over thirty years ago (eek!) to a garden centre. She purchased a Rubber Plant – Ficus elastica. This character has to be up there with easy care houseplants. A bit of bright indirect light, not too much water and it’s really happy.

I can also remember as a child helping to care for the plant by washing its leaves. What fun! I am sure there were more interesting things I could have been doing, but I loved it.

My Mum still has the plant to this day. I am now the proud owner of a full sized plant from a cutting my Mum started from the original plant all those years ago.

Mother plant and Child to the left, with an Aspidistra friend, who is actually older than me!

At my first house, I only had one windowsill in the kitchen that was viable for growing. This was used for growing herbs for cooking. The rest of the the house was dark with not a lot of space.

When I moved to my current house, I had so much more light and space to play with. It seemed rude not to decorate with plants. I had already planned and started work on the garden outside. On a trip to a certain Swedish furniture store, I happened upon their houseplant section. An Areca palm and that old favourite of the 70’s Monstera deliciosa aka Swiss Cheese Plant came home with me. Actually two Monstera came home and so it began….

Next I wanted to learn as much about houseplants as I could. I devoured every houseplant book I could find. Alongside the marvellous gardening community on social media, there is also a thriving houseplant community. What a joy to see so many beautiful houseplants that I want,  no need!

For many reasons houseplants have had a revival in popularity over the last few years. The selection and places to buy from have improved immensely.

With this great new selection, and the power of social media to promote their beauty, and how to care for them – even gardeners and non gardeners alike are being won over by houseplants.

They are such a joy to have inside, especially in the grey wet days of winter.

Here are just a few of my favourites:

Fittiona – Nerve Plant – another cutting from my Mum. Also used in terrariums and bottle gardens. As long as it doesn’t dry out, it’s happy even when not enclosed.

Aloe Vera- So useful! As a bonus it’s doesn’t need much water being from the succulent family.

Calathea– Another purchase from the Swedish Shop. Just look at those leaves! It’s fascinating how this plant, also called the prayer plant closes up at night.

Ponytail Palm – Beaucarnea recurvata – Take a look at this rockstar what hair! Even my Husband who doesn’t care about plants thinks it’s very cool.

With the joy they bring and the huge variety, I’ve concluded there is no such thing as too many houseplants.

Nicki has gardened for many years in Sussex. You can find Nicki at https://twitter.com/makinggardens and https://instagram.com/makinggardens

The Native Forest.

We all understand and feel the need to plant trees. But if we switched our attention to planting forests, then we could repair the damage we have done, realign the environment and ultimately guarantee our future.

The key is to plant native forests, but why is native so important?  Native trees are the ones that have been here in the UK since the last ice age, that’s around 7000 years ago!

As such these tree have taken the time to adapt to their environment and biology. Nature knows which are the most suitable trees to grow in each environment. These trees also provide the suitable homes for all the other levels of life. The biology is correct and harmonious for the insects and these other levels of life.

If we just left them too it, all would be well.

The problems came when man, as far back as the Bronze Age, introduced non-native species. Non-native trees are not properly adapted to the biology they are forced to grow in. This causes disease, imbalance and low levels of biodiversity.

A great example is the English Oak (native) verses the London Plane (non native). The Oak provides a habitat for at least 360 different species of insect. The London Plane provides a home for less than 3 species!

So native works for a reason. If we then up scale this to the forest, native is vitally important too. The trees in a natural native forest will grow in harmony, complimenting each other and preforming different roles.  The Oak, Ash and Hawthorn ,for example, always used to grow together as they created a synergy of growth between them.

Biodiversity and a healthy ecosystem is the long-term result.

We should look to plant native forests, it’s not hard and is hugely rewarding for us, the environment and future generations.

This is basis of what we do at Wild Urban Spaces – creating rapid growth, low maintenance native forests in any environment.

For further information please go to www.wildurbanspaces.com

For me, I accidentally fell in love with gardening. I didn’t set out on a horticulture career, I set out on life with no plan. I joined the Army at 18 and my military career took off. I was lucky to travel the world and see lots of things in places others would love to, but I have also travelled to places I would not wish on my worst enemy!

I had a great career with lots of ups and downs but my biggest down was in 2016 when I received a medical discharge from the Army. I suffered a Bi-lateral stroke which has left me with no feeling in my left hand side, ataxia on my right and my hearing has been affected. When it happened I was a mess. Unable to walk for a long time (still struggling now), I was torn away from my military family and sent to a military hospital. My treatment was going ok but I kept being drawn to the hospital garden and to Carol, who worked there and was encouraging patients to try horticulture.

I loved it, I felt good being outdoors again putting all my pent up aggression into the heavy jobs in the garden and then making a space I could just chill out in and relax and enjoy the surroundings. Towards the end of my time I even spent two days a week at a local golf club working with the grounds maintenance team. Working in the garden I felt like me again.

I left the hospital and received a letter in the post saying I was no longer needed or wanted in the army as I was unable to complete my job to the standard required. While I accepted this, I was going backwards and hating everything in life. Just getting out of bed was a hassle and so was looking for work, especially when I had been advised there was nothing I could really do that would be suitable given my injuries. I fell into a spiral of despondency and just started to give up.

My fiancée Sarah grabbed me by the hand and fought relentlessly to get me the help I needed. It turned out I was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and after getting a diagnosis I began to get the help I needed. I have regular therapy sessions and continue to keep my hand in with horticulture. Having a brilliant garden designer and horticulturist as a fiancée has helped me stay up-to-date and informed about all things garden-related.

In November 2018, I decided to set up Veterans’ Growth, a charity working with veterans from the tri-services who suffer with mental health issues. Bearing in mind my own struggle to get help, I  wanted to provide treatment and support to veterans who are unable to access help and support from the NHS or other charitable organisations. Given how much I benefitted from horticulture, I wanted to pass this opportunity on to others too, so the charity provides a programme of horticultural therapy to every veteran in the UK who’s interested in taking part.

I have to say that losing a family like the Army was hard but I have landed on my feet in horticulture. The industry has taken me in and been immensely supportive, everyone from gardening greats to amazing designers, from growers to product suppliers. I feel like I’ve found a new family and they’ve made me feel at home. The phenomenal support for www.veteransgrowth.org has further enforced my conviction that I am doing the right thing and I hope to bring many Veterans into the welcoming world of horticulture.

Please follow our new journey on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

If you think you can assist or offer any donations of equipment or funds please send me a message on Jason@veteransgrowth.org or donate on our JustGiving page. https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/veterans-growth?utm_term=d9z8bDwEv

”Thank you so much for supporting us in 2019!

We are so grateful to you for your support in 2019: we hope you enjoyed our lectures and lunches, our plant fair and open gardens, our talks and our weekly expert blogs on our website (which themselves form a treasure-trove of gardening expertise).

We appreciate every single one of your donations and contributions and purchases, which together have meant that we have awarded grants totalling almost £50,000 in 2019: and helped over 800 people – from as far apart as Truro & the Isle of Lewis, from Neath to Norwich – to get back into their gardens and re-discover that unique and special joy which is gardening.  On behalf of our clients and the Gardening for Disabled Trust, Thank you.’’

Personally I believe that a garden is in all people’s mind, whether a pot plant or an old mattress in the yard, we all have our perceptions.   The general thought of gardening is that we attend an outside area that we are able to derive pleasure from, some have a gravel area with patio planters, others a garden as we all understand, flower beds or vegetable beds, maybe both. However what we are all aware of is the climate emergency, how the environment responds, therefore it must be up to every one of us to understand what we can as individuals achieve.

I am in the fortunate position to be the chairman of The East London Garden Society, have been for some years now, so I will explain a passion of the communities in East London, what they wish to attain.

When approached with a development in Shoreditch, near Liverpool Street Station, a public realm was to be for the local community, but whether ignorance or not being to hold a brief, the design group had decided what the community should have, not what the community wanted.  This approach was doomed to failure, The East London Garden Society was requested to become involved, looking at the remit, Shoreditch was compromised with very poor air quality, the new development would make it worse, it was therefore decided to have as much vegetation atop the redundant rail viaduct, there being also a community interpretive part to the public realm/community park.  The largest Forest Garden in Europe was born.

Taking five years for the developers to understand what a forest garden was, indeed to agree the concept, a lot of work was involved.  Once we had all agreed on the way forward, a colleague mentioned, a further expanse for nature in the area, the redundant viaduct ventured a further 2 miles, which in turn led to many parks and gardens along the route.  The River Thames was greeted at many exits.  We had found a five mile stretch from Hackney, through Tower Hamlets to Newham, all London boroughs, a nature playground for children of all ages, disability friendly.  The Great eastern Parks Route encompasses a nature reserve, a bird sanctuary, a forest garden, much more.

There are so many wonderful historic gardens to visit in England that picking only one to write about has been a challenge. I have chosen Mottisfont, near Romsey in Hampshire, a romantic house and garden which lies beside the River Test.

As it’s only twenty minutes from where I live, I often pop in there when I’m at home and whatever the season, there’s always something to see: hamamelis and daphne in the Winter Garden, carpets of bulbs in the Spring, in June old fashioned roses in the Walled Garden and as summer slips into Autumn, the magnificent reds and golds of the trees. Mottisfont belongs to the National Trust and as well as a shop, there are two places to have coffee and lots of areas to explore around the estate. Most of the grounds are accessible by wheelchair with the paths surfaced with a mixture of stone and clay which can be uneven in places. The paths in the Walled Garden are narrower but still wide enough for a wheelchair. Paths through the meadow walk are rougher and can become boggy in wet weather.
And now to its history. Mottisfont is first mentioned in the Domesday Book when it belonged to William the Conqueror but by the end of the twelfth century it was owned by William Briwere who founded a Priory of Augustinian monks here c.1201. Pilgrims would stop at Mottisfont on their way to Winchester to worship a relic, said to be the finger of St John the Baptist. [A recent music installation in the grounds called ‘Pilgrim’ has come across some technical difficulties but hopefully will soon be up and running]. The Priory was disbanded during the Dissolution of the Monasteries and in 1536 was given to Sir William Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys; he was also Lord Chamberlain to Henry VIII. Sandys transformed the priory buildings into a house centred around two courtyards with two wings either side of the existing church nave. [The sacristy and cellarium can be seen on the lower ground floor and last time I visited the area was filled with the magical sound of Gregorian chants.]

The Sandys’ fortune dipped in seventeenth century and William, 6th Lord Sandys sold his other house, The Vyne, [also owned by the National Trust] making Mottisfont his principal home. The 8th Lord Sandys had no children and on his death in 1684, the property was inherited by Sandys’ nephew Sir John Mill; the barony became extinct. Sir John’s second son, Richard, succeeded his father in 1706 and remodelled the Tudor house to virtually how it is today. Mottisfont remained in the Mill family until the nineteenth century but by 1922 the house was empty and it was not rescued until 1934 when Mottisfont was bought by Gilbert and Maud Russell. They began the restoration of the house and appointed Rex Whistler to decorate the gothic room with a spectacular trompe l’oeil echoing Mottisfont’s medieval past. [On your visit, ask the volunteer to point out where Whistler painted: ‘I was painting this Ermine curtain when Britain declared war on the Nazi tyrants. Sunday September 3rd. R.W.’ Sadly, Whistler was killed in action, 18thJuly, 1944.] Gilbert Russell died in 1942 and in 1957 Mrs Russell gave Mottisfont to the National Trust although she continued to live in the house until 1972.
Although records of c1340 describe the gardens at Mottisfont, the Russells used a garden plan of 1724 for the restoration of the garden. They commissioned several garden designers to reflect the different periods of the house’s history. Norah Lindsay designed a box-edged knot-garden in front of the house taking her inspiration from a piece of Tudor glass which has since been lost while Geoffrey Jellicoe created the pleached lime walk to the north of Mottisfont to echo the medieval priory’s cloister.

In the Journal of the Royal Society of Arts, 1980, an article records a lecture chaired by Sylvia Crowe, of a discussion between Graham Stuart Thomas (who designed the rose garden in the Walled Garden) and Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe. Sir Geoffrey had returned to the garden after thirty years:
I looked at my own work and I came to the conclusion that it was forgivable. I think it fitted in with the beautiful building at Mottisfont, with its glorious Gothic and early Renaissance facades. One had to suppress one’s ego and I think it is true that at Mottisfont the fact that one did reduce one’s ego to very simple lines (it is not easily done, it took an awful lot of working out) and seeing all the clipped hedges and so forth and the long terrace that I made, I think it is modest enough in the historic context. You see, when a place has got powerful ethos like Mottisfont, you have got to respect it with every line that you do.

Thomas’s words are more practical and modest, saying that all he had to do at Mottisfont was put the roses ‘in order’ as there was already in place ‘a surrounding wall, box hedges, a fountain, a pool and sentinel yews’.

If you have enjoyed reading this article and would like to find out more about historic gardens in England, then sign up to my blog which contains everything from garden news to book reviews and exhibitions: https://blog.visitgardens.co.uk/ or visit my website: https://www.visitgardens.co.uk/ where you’ll find more about the history of gardens and photographs.
Camilla Anderson
Garden Historian
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Instagram: visitgardens

No dig by Charles Dowding

Charles Dowding by Heather Edwards

What is the no dig method of gardening?

No dig is a simple and easy method, which perhaps is why it has struggled to be taken seriously, until recently.

Charles’ no dig market garden in September 2019, 1000 square metres of beds. Use the same approach for one bed or 100 beds

There are three key facets.

1 Soil is undisturbed so its organisms can work and multiply

Most soil already has structure for plant roots to grow, nutrients to feed plants, and is full of growth-enabling organisms. Billions of fungal threads, nematodes and earthworms, to name a few, are being helpful right under our feet, mostly out of sight. We need to help them to help us.

You have already started no dig without knowing! Since the last time you dug or tilled or forked your soil, it has been healing itself, with networks of fungi and recreation of a stable structure. With no dig you simply and literally build on that.

2 Organisms are fed with organic matter on the surface, as in nature but faster

Allow soil to work its magic. Nutrients become available when needed by plants, through a combination of air and soil temperatures being high enough for photosynthesis to happen. Roots  ask fungi for food and moisture, and fungi work best when undisturbed, hence you see stronger growth in no dig soil.

Homeacres no dig garden 29th October, and no compost or feeds have been applied for ten months, showing how nutrients are available all the time without using fertilisers

3 Plant feeding is about biology (fungi etc) more than chemistry (nutrients/minerals)

No dig increases the ability of plants to find food. Compost mulches serve as a rapid source of food for soil organisms and enhance their activity, hence improving soil structure. In damp climates, compost is best for mulching as it affords no habitat for slugs.

Why is no dig beneficial?

In three words: speed, ease and productivity.

For example, you can plant into a new bed created on weeds, on the same day, see https://youtu.be/OIojWdJz0RE

Note that beds with new compost often want treading down to firm the compost.

Problems diminish and gardening becomes easier, in particular because weeds grow less, since their healing properties are not needed by healthy soil.

• Soil is lively, structured and does not stick to your boots
• You can walk on your beds, thanks to soil’s firm but open structure.
• No dig means no compaction layers caused by damage from cultivations: no compaction means no fermentations due to anaerobic conditions, no fermentation’s mean no alcohol produced, and no alcohol means fewer slugs – this explanation thanks to Elaine Ingham.

Feeding soil organisms by mulching with old cow manure (compost) on newly planted garlic Oct

Grow more from less – keep paths narrow and avoid wooden sides where possible

No dig uses less compost than an equivalent area dug, because no carbon is lost from cultivation, and active soil life increases fertility.

How can gardeners adopt the method organically without risk of invasive weeds?

In a word, mulch.

This means covering weeds to deprive them of light, so that new weed growth is futile because it happens in darkness and cannot feed existing weed roots. Eventually they die completely, see this video https://youtu.be/Mmv2zGfhG8w for more.

However only in the first year do you need to use light-excluding mulches such as cardboard and polythene, to kill perennial weeds. This saves much time, in all subsequent years.

By September, on ground that was full of weeds in April, these Uchiki Kuri squash have grown well through cardboard and a little manure on top

I have many times completely and easily eradicated couch/twitch grass (Elymus repens) within a year.

1. If I cover weeds with polythene, how do I know when they are dead?
2. Best method is to lift the polythene and check for recent growth: it will be white or pale yellow stems. If you see lots of them, best leave the polythene in place because weed roots still have sufficient reserves in their roots to continue growing.

Please click on the following link to watch a video about starting no dig

https://youtu.be/IC6OBOyQ0mY

1. Why does no dig mean less weeding?
2. Less weeds germinate in undisturbed soil, and compost mulches on the surface make it easy to pull weeds or to run a hoe through the surface. Light hoeing and raking is fine, usually the top 3cm/1in which is your surface mulch of compost.

Use a dibber or trowel to create holes for new plants.

1. Does no dig work to control marestail and other perennial weeds?
2. From the many reports I hear, gardeners who don’t disturb soil have more success for less effort in reducing marestail (equisetum), compared to gardeners who dig.

Whatever weeds you have, mulching rather than attempting to dig out every root means soil grows it less. Why? If only soil could talk… like all organisms, it’s happier when not disturbed.

What are three small things you think all new gardeners should know?

1 Feed the soil not the plants

2 Simple, easy methods are not lazy but clever

3 Do your homework on best sowing and harvest times for all your food plants.

New summer planting of lettuce after clearing onions, with no bed preparation or compost added

What advice do you have for people with limited outdoor space but who want to get green fingers?

• Start with a pot or box on or in a window, sow a few salad seeds (fast to harvest), and buy a few plants as well for rapid results.
• Plant a potato in spring in a small bag or bucket of compost, it’s fun but the leaves need space to grow!
• Make one small bed, even say 1.2 square metres (4ft) and pack it full of say multipurpose compost. Sow or plant in that, and keep it full with new plants all the time, as soon as gaps appear.

1 Bed of 1.2×2.3m in May with first plantings of beetroot, lettuce, onions, fennel, carrots and peas for shoots

2 Same bed in October with harvests of second or third plantings: radish, celery, leek, radicchio, beetroot and chard

• Don’t use any synthetic fertilisers or chemicals, they are bad for soil life.
• Buy some mesh to keep pests off, perhaps also some fleece (30gsm thickness) to warm early plantings in spring.
• No dig is great for flowers and ornamental plants: fewer weeds, gorgeous blooms.

 

One of Charles’ no dig flower borders in July, Homeacres in Somerset

End result is you have more time for productive  rather than routine work, plants are healthier, you harvest more food per square metre and your garden glows with health..

I’ve been growing giant vegetables since the age of four (37 years) when my late father, Mike Fortey, developed the giant vegetable movement over a pint and a bit of banter on who could grow the biggest pumpkin and onion in the town of Cwmbran, South Wales. He inspired my brother, Gareth and I to compete against him on his allotment, and gave us the bug for growing.

Within two years, the contest had turned into a truly international based competition with growers from all over England and Wales competing to win a share of a potential £10,000 prize fund over in the USA when our Dad teamed up with Organisers and Growers over in San Francisco.  After 2 years, the Pumpkins were getting that big that they needed to find a venue with double doors to accommodate the ever increasing sizes of the Pumpkins.

During the 80’s the contest moved from Cwmbran to locations in Cardiff and as far away as Baytree Garden Centre in Lincolnshire, where we filmed with Chris Akabusi for record breakers and for Big Breakfast with Chris Evans. It was during this time that the Giant Vegetable contests grew in popularity and the contest migrated to places such as Alton Towers, Shepton Mallett and the current home of the UK Giant Vegetable Championships at the Three Counties Showground, Malvern.

Since our Dad passed on in 1996, growing giants has become a sport, rather than just a hobby, with thousands giving it a go around the world.
We have taken part in several TV Programmes, our first success was filming with the Great British Village Show on BBC1 featuring Alan Titchmarsh, Angelica Bell and James Martin where we had the honour of winning the Crown for the UK’s biggest marrow. This programme also featured with Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall at their home at Highgrove where we was presented with a specially commissioned Maple bowl, one of only 13 commissions.  Following this, more recent programmes include a three part series with Countryfile Diaries, ITV’s 100 Best Backyard Gardens, NHK Japan, PPTV36 Thailand and recently we filmed with a Channel 4 broadcast and this episode is due to go out at Christmas time. It truly is an exciting time for Giant Veg.

You might still wonder why we do it? Well, Usain Bolt is the world’s most successful runner, and, like Bolt, a giant veg growers highest accolade is  to grow the world’s heaviest, or longest, and secure a place in the Guinness World Records.

In 2015, my brother and I secured our biggest achievement in the Giant Veg world, securing a place in the giant veg history books, growing the world’s longest radish, measuring just over 88in, 2.2 metres. It was the most nerve wracking experience taking the fine tap root out of the long drain pipe.

In 2017, we secured our second World Record growing the world’s Heaviest Chili Pepper, weighing 348g, at the UK Giant Vegetable Championships in Malvern. Like all records, they are there to be broken and the above two records have been broken by longer and heavier specimens.

However, in 2019, we secured the Guinness World Record title for the World’s Heaviest Beetroot weighing 23.995kg, just over 53 pounds in weight. This was a great moment for us as a family as our Dad had developed the original record breaking seed that Ian Neale used to grow the former World Record. The seed for our current record breaking Beetroot had been under development for just over 7 years. It’s something of a rarity as it’s the only seed in the world that now has the genetic potential to grow even bigger.

Following on from our record breaking Beetroot, we recently successfully lifted and weighed a ginormous marrow weighing 92.5kg just over 203 pounds in weight. Our former UK Record Marrow weighed 171 pounds in 2011.

For those thinking or having a go there’s a few simple tips to growing giant veg. These are good weather, the right seed, a little knowledge, and ultimately, a bit of good luck. 

We have developed a hugely successful platform for engaging growers both new and old, male and female and all ages, through our Giant Vegetable Community group on Facebook.  The group has been the catalyst for the expansion of a number of other gardening related groups springing up on Facebook. Within our group, we have gathered over 4,200 growers from across the globe and we really are a giant family.

The main benefit for the group is celebrating both online and offline communities and the ability for growers from all corners of the globe to engage with one another. Growers post their successes, failures and techniques, so we can learn from one another.  Some of our tips include wrapping our marrows in a duvet for the night. This might seem a little peculiar, but we treat the vegetables like our children, nurturing them and talking to them while we watch them grow.

Like most things that involve nature and the elements, growing giant veg is not without its frustrations. Spending five months growing a Giant marrow – nurturing the seedlings, planting it in the ground, growing the plant on, wrapping it up on cold nights, and then seeing it burst open and ruined in a downpour can test your patience.

Of course, all of that is forgotten when you see one of your giants smash a record. The finale of the growing season is taking your oversized produce in cars, vans and trailers to the local village or national shows. It’s a site to behold and a great way to engage with growers that you’ve been following on the Facebook Group – Giant Vegetable Community amongst others.

The shows provide an opportunity to exchange ideas, seeds and, if you are lucky, a few secrets.
When you think you have a winner, someone can come through the door with a specimen that beats you by an ounce, After all, in our sport, size really does matter!

Anyone thinking of growing giants should make sure they have plenty of space, lots of time, and plenty of passion. You can even get the kids involved and make it a family affair – it is far better for them than sitting in front of a PlayStation or the Xbox.

Many people ask what happens with the vegetables following the shows or at the end of the growing season. Well there’s a new World emerging that has seen the vegetables feature as props in movies such as Pudsey The Movie, Vegan Events in London and more recently we have launched a campaign to celebrate British Growers and the Vauxhall Combo Cargo Van that was used to transport 800kg of Giant Vegetables to create the UK’s largest ever fruit and veg stall, showcased at RHS Hyde Hall, Essex.

My passion for growing and deep rooted family tradition has enabled me to develop a role as an ambassador for Giant Vegetable growing throughout the World. We have a number of talks and interesting projects planned for the New Year. The first will take place in January where i’ll be heading over to Jersey to visit the Prison Service to talk Giant Veg, and finish the visit off with a talk to a great bunch of enthusiastic growers who I hope I can convert into growing Giant Vegetables.

One final point, I am passionate about promoting the benefits of Gardening and improving people’s overall Mental Health and I was fortunate to visit the House of Lords with a group of clinicians as well as influential figures from around the Globe to talk about Mental Health and diversionary activities. If you are experiencing difficulties with your Mental Health, you might not know this, but soil contains anti-depressant properties so just digging the soil and getting your hands in the ground can play a huge part in your recovery.

Whether you are young or old, big or small,  you can’t beat being out in the great outdoors. Sharpen your spades and start preparing for the coming season. Good luck and Happy Growing.

for more information please visit http://www.giantvegseeds.com/

Newfoundland Mountains

One of my favorite things to do is botanize in the west desert of Utah.  Besides the off limits army and air force bombing ranges, one of the least visited and more difficult places to reach in the west desert are the Newfoundland Mountains; a desert island mountain range surrounded on all sides by salt flats and playa.

I headed out to the mountains after work to meet my dad, sister, and dads friend who had left earlier in the day to set up camp. Getting there isn’t the easiest. There are two ways to reach the Mountain, from the south driving on an access road through the air force bombing range and across the railroad grade, or from the north from the Hogup Mountains.

When I arrived, the sun was already going down so I didn’t really have time to do any real botanizing, but I tried anyway. Without adequate light the only flower I noticed was the non-native Storksbill near my tent.

Other than interesting wind-carved granite rock formations, and a few common desert shrubs, the only other cool thing I found that night was this Stink Beetle that was expressing just how happy it was to be found.

The next morning we decided to make our way to a canyon on the east side of the range that has a bunch of old mining equipment in it. As we drove on the bumpy dirt road, we made a few stops along the way, the first at this stone monument.

While everyone was admiring the monument, I went off to find whatever plants I could. This was my first time ever seeing Thorn Milkwort, a spiny desert shrub that leaves a great deal of puncture wounds while trying to collect it for Pscience®.

It has small greenish yellow and pink flowers that are very well protected by a stiff fortress of sharp, woody thorns.

Although not new to me, this next plant deserves some attention. Nevada Mormon Tea is one tough gymnosperm. It grows out in the dryness and heat of the desert and also puts up being grazed to death by cattle and sheep.

These are the male cones with the stamens exposed waiting for the wind to carry their pollen to an awaiting nearby female cone.

Mormon pioneers once made what was called an “energizing tea” from the dried branches. I’ve tried it multiple times and didn’t ever feel really all that energized. About all I remember from each experience is drinking down bitter hot water that tasted like dried sticks.

This next plant is a cool little annual called Brightwhite, closely related to Wirelettuce (Stephanomeria spp.). The flower heads are composed of only ray flowers and the stems contain latex like other plants in the same tribe.

After taking some time at the stone monument we stopped at a perennial spring to see if we could see any animals or find some arrowheads. No luck with the arrowheads, but I did find a poop fly on a Littleleaf Horsebrush.

Utah has five species of Horsebrush and all but one are spinescent shrubs found only in the desert.

Next I encountered Greasewood, a halophytic shrub in the same family as Lambsquarters (Chenopodium album). Greasewood are usually found growing in areas with high water table, such as springs, lake margins and playas.

And then this happened…

As we drove closer to the mining equipment, the truck began to lose power and soon wouldn’t run at all. The Newfoundlands isn’t exactly the best place to have car problems; you’re lucky if you see another human being. This trip, though, we just happened to be the luckiest people as we met two very nice men who were scouting for Desert Bighorn Sheep for their upcoming hunt.

They drove me back to camp to pick up my Xterra so I could tow my dads truck back to the main gravel road. As I rounded the tip of the range to begin the tow, I got lucky again and saw a Desert Bighorn just off the road.

When we got to the main gravel road at the north end of the range we took a break from towing for a bit before starting the long trek back to civilization and as usual I went and turned over logs and board looking for whatever I could find.

The first thing that caught my eye was a Long-nosed Leopard Lizard as it sped away. They are very fast runners and if you happen to catch one, they like to bite and hang on!

This next little guy or girl was not nearly as fast, but I was also not as eager to try and catch it as I was the lizard. Northern Scorpions are the most common scorpion in Utah, found in every county.

Finally, the last cool plant I found as I was being hollered at to tow the truck was Alyssum Evening Primrose. The flowers of this annual are a little larger than a dime, open white and age to a dark pink.

After a few hours of towing, this is how the trip ended. Grateful it wasn’t anything worse than a broken fuel pump, but it did cut our trip a day and a half short. Who knows what other cool plants could have been found.

Jason W. Baker is independent Botanical Consultant specialising in plant identification and botanical surveys in the intermountain west as well as the Great Basin and Mojave Deserts.

Please visit http://www.jasonthebotanist.com

Brugmansia for your Garden

Commonly known as Angel Trumpets, Brugmansia are from high altitude, moist tropical cloud forests with specific temperature and humidity. These conditions vary between species but generally speaking a warm day at about 23°C combined with a high humidity will keep them happy. If night temperatures are around 10°C, give or take 3°C, a strong growth rate will ensue. In summer months these temperatures can be easily exceeded, but an average humidity of 70% will ensure optimal growth and full flower colour. The good news is, the UK has the perfect humidity and temperature to support Brugmansia growth, but the more challenging part is overwintering the plant when temperatures dip below freezing, understanding Brugmansia species is key to healthy plants.

There are seven Brugmansia species. These species are then divided into two natural genetically isolated groups, cold growing (CG) and warm growing (WG).

Cold growing Brugmansia include B. sanguinea, B. vulcanicola, B. arborea and all cultivated hybrid varieties of these are adapted to the cool climate of their native habitat in the Andes, South America.

Warm growing species include B. suaveolens, B. insignis, B. versicolor, B. aurea, and hybrid cultivated varieties of these, which all grow well in a UK summer. Each species has slightly different growing conditions.

All warm growing species originate from high humidity warm regions but frosts are unlikely due to the shelter of the rainforest, cloud forest and altitude. In their native habitat these warm growing species require a lot of water and we recommend frequently watering during the hot summer months and regularly feeding to encourage flowers.

It is important to know the microclimate of your garden balancing humidity with sun, wind and shade. Best conditions for warm growing Brugmansia species generally tend to be part shade in summer to stop the root ball drying out and over scorching the leaves or flowers. An enclosed area of your garden with some shade facing south or west will suit best, protecting them from strong winds and hot sunny days.

In the UK during prolonged cold conditions it is necessary to force  Brugmansia into dormancy for the winter, during cold frosts and snow. This is easily achievable by fleecing and storing them in a dry storage room, garage, shed or greenhouse which is frost free and ventilated. The foliage can be removed but this may drop by itself which is perfectly fine. Growth will recommence again when temperatures exceed 8 to 10C.

If you would like to purchase a Brugmansia from Exotic Earth Plants please visit http://www.exoticearthplants.co.uk for more information. Please use the code AUTUMN10 when ordering to get an exclusive 10% discount .