Oct 9, 2019
Does your Christmas Cactus have red on its
leaves?
If so, that red is an indication that the plant is stressed
out.
It could be that it has that color on the leaves when it’s blooming
because blooming puts pressure on the plant.
In general, those leaves will turn a little red if you’re watering
them too much or
If you have them too much sun.
One of my oldest Christmas cactuses came from my husband‘s
grandmother that was a very craggy looking. I managed to keep it
alive for about a decade and then it was time to start over with a
new one. Don’t forget that you can propagate your Christmas cactus
with the required simply graph one of the leaves
The leaves in twisted off you can put the water or you can have a
little booty or you can add a little rooting hormone
And twisted off you could you can put the cutting in water or you
can have a little breathing hormone and put it directly in the
soil
If you want to keep your Christmas cactus compact now is the time
to prune it just take all those little cuttings and get the routing
and then share them with friends
Brevities
#OTD On this day in 1801, the botanist François-Andre
Michaux returned to Charleston.
François-Andre was the son of the botanist Andrea Michaux. His
father named an oak in his honor.
Michaux's mom died just a few short weeks after he was born.
His father was so despondent, he turned to botany to deal with his
grief. Given his position in France, his mentors were the top
gardeners in the French Royal Gardens. The expert guidance helped
Michaux accelerate his learning.
When François-Andre was 15 years old, he and his dad set sail for
North America.
His father had a very clear goal for his time in America; establish
a botanical garden and send specimens back to France. When they
arrive, the year was 1786 and the location chosen by Michaux for
the garden was on property that’s now occupied by the Charleston
Area National Airport.
Today, as you leave the airport, you’ll notice a stunning mural
that honors the Michaux's. It includes scenes depicting the rice
fields along the Ashley River and the Charleston Harbor where
Michaux introduced one of the first camellia plants. In one panel,
Andre-François and his father are depicted in the potager or
kitchen garden. The mural was installed in 2016.
#OTD On this day in 1887 the Los Angeles Herald ran
an interview with the superintendent of the botanical gardens
William Smith about the senators in Washington during the
1880's who had a passion for plants.
Here's what he said:
Senator Charles Sumner from Massachusetts was a great
enthusiast... He used to tell me that when traveling he would peer
out of the car windows by the hour, on the lookout for a beautiful
tree, and when his eye for the lovely and symmetrical was satisfied
he would go into raptures. ... The last enjoyment I had with him,
shortly before he died, was in visiting a favorite elm of his own
Boston Common.
Senator John James Ingalls, of Kansas, ...is a most devoted
student of arboriculture. Some of the most valuable suggestions
about distributing plants in the west come from him.
Senator William Pitt Fessenden, of Maine, was an ardent apostle
[of gardening] all through his long public life. I remember that
his wife had a sweet verbena in their home in Maine, of which she
was very fond. She watched it tenderly as a child, and Mr.
Fessenden shared the feeling so thoroughly that for thirteen sears
ho would journey home from Washington to take up the plant in
autumn and make another trip in the springtime to set it out. No
pressure of public business could make him forget that verbena. It
was really a paternal devotion.
Senator James A Pearce, of Maryland, was one of the most
cultivated botanists ever in Congress. Scarcely a day passed that
he did not drop in on me to watch the growth of some favorite plant
or some new experiment, and his ideas were always scientific and
valuable.
And then there was Senator Benjamin Gratz Brown from Missouri,
a very warm lover of flowers and a thorough master of their
cultivation. During all the time he was in the Senate I don't
believe he missed a day at the garden, and we would chat for hours
when he felt in the humor.
There's another botanist in Congress,... I know the name will
surprise you— Senator William Steele Holman, of Indiana ... It
seems almost a contradiction that one of his reputation should be a
lover of flowers, but he certainly is. No one has been in Congress
since I can remember, and that's a long time, with a more hearty
and intelligent love for the garden. He is a frequent visitor [of
the botanical garden], and you can see from his conversation that
he watches every new phase of the science as keenly as he does the
money bags of the treasury. It seems to be a mental exhilaration
for him to commune with these curious plants from all over the
world, and study their hidden life. He is quite as familiar with
the botanical names and the habits of plants and flowers as most
professional botanists. He picked it up as a recreation and his
spare time is nearly all devoted to it.
Senator Samuel Sullivan "Sunset" Cox is a first-class botanist,
but let me add that he's also the best reader that I ever met. He
is a walking cyclopedia on every subject covered by books. ... But
then, this doesn't apply to his botany alone; it's the same with
everything else. He can learn more in shorter time than any man I
ever saw.
#OTD On this day in 1899, Augustine Henry wrote to
his friend the designer Evelyn Gleeson after meeting Ernest Henry
Wilson for the first time.
Toward the end of his time in China, Augustine Henry living in the
Simao District in the Yunnan Province of China. He knew that the
flora of China was an untapped market for European horticulture.
Meanwhile, a young botanist named Ernest Henry Wilson was just
starting out.
Henry wrote to his friend, Evelyn Gleesen, to share the news about
his Wilson after their first visit together:
I have ... a guest of all the things in the world at Szemao, a
Mr. Wilson, late a gardener at Kew, who has been sent out by
Veitch's to collect plants or rather their seeds and bulbs in
China. He has made his way here to consult with me
on best way of procedure and concerning the interesting
country around Ichang and he will stay here 2 or 3 weeks. He
is a self-made man, knows botany thoroughly, is young and will get
on.
Henry also shared with Evelyn that he,
"would be glad if [Wilson] will continue to carry on the work
in China which has been on my shoulders for some years. There is so
much of interest and of novelty."
Later the same day, Henry also reported back to Kew about the
progress of their new, young plant explorer, Wilson:
"[He will] do, I think, as he seems very energetic, fond of
his botany and level-headed, the main thing for traveling and
working in China.... [I wrote] on a half-page of a notebook
... a sketch of a tract of country about the size of New
York State [on which I marked the place where I had found the
single tree of Davidia involucrata (the Dove Tree or
Handkerchief Tree) in 1888. I also provided Wilson with useful
information and hints.]"
Henry and Wilson stayed close and corresponded for the rest of
their lives. Wilson went on to find the Dove tree - but that is
another story for a day dedicated to Wilson. As for Henry, when he
returned to his native Ireland, his was increasingly concerned with
de-forestation in his home country and he began to study
forestry.
the rate at which that country was being deforested, his interests
had turned to the study of forestry. In 1913, he became
the first professor of forestry at the Royal College of
Science for Ireland. He and his wife, Elsie opened their Dublin
home to famous friends like Yeats, George Russell, Erskine
Childers and Evelyn Gleeson.
Henry is regarded as the father of Irish commercial forestry.
#OTD On this day in 1985, Strawberry Fields, a 2 and ½ acre
garden memorial in New York City's Central Park, was dedicated to
the memory of John Lennon.
Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, came up with the idea for the park. She
remembered how she and Lennon took strolls through that section of
Central Park after they moved to the Dakota nearly 10 years
ago.
"It is our way of taking a sad song and making it better," said
Ono.
Originally, the concept called for every nation donate a
remembrance to Strawberry Fields. Soon, Ms. Ono and the New York
City Parks and Recreation Commission found themselves dealing with
trees that couldn't grow in a northern climate.
A second request, along with tips about what would survive New York
winters, brought 150 specimens from countries around the world;
England sent an English Oak tree, Canada a Maple tree.
There was one notable exception to the list of participating
countries - the United States. Sadly, President Reagan White House
never acknowledged the request.
The memorial park site was made possible by a $1 million donation
from Ono to the city. It didn't cost taxpayers a dime.
Unearthed Words
"Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn."
- Elizabeth Lawrence
"October is nature's funeral month. Nature glories in death more
than in life. The month of departure is more beautiful than the
month of coming - October than May. Every green thin loves to die
in bright colors."
- Henry Ward Beecher
Today's book recommendation: Magic Gardens: Grow In the
Dark by Lisa Steinkopf
If you want to catch that super helpful interview about all things
house plans just head on over to the Still Growing podcast and
search for episode 598.
Grow in the dark is Lisa’s latest book. She’s putting the spotlight
on 50 of the best healthcare plans that you can grow in dim or dark
areas.
And Lisa should know since she’s made room for over 1000
houseplants thriving in her Michigan home where light is a
premium.
For six months out of the year gardeners know that having a
south-facing window doesn’t always guarantee you the best light to
grow plants - especially if your window faces an alley or a
tree-lined street. And, what’s the point of growing in urban jungle
if tall buildings are blocking all your sunshine does compact guide
designed to look good on your shelf will help you learn to make the
most of your light so you can reap the physical benefits of living
with plants leases book offers detailed profiles of the plants
including tips on watering just right
Proper living detailed profiles of the play just write properly
potting plants troubleshooting eases also learned which plants are
safe around kids and pets but do you live in a shady top floor
apartment or a dungeon in the garden level this book will help you
grow your plant collection even when the light is a challenge
master light did you master much of what you need to know to make
your house plants happy
Today's Garden Chore
As fall dieback sets in, it's a marvelous time to plant climbers
and vines.
One that should be on the top of your list for shady areas is
the Schizophragma hydrangeoides (the Japanese hydrangea vine)
or the Hydrangea petiolaris climbing hydrangea.
Although the two look similar, they are both Asiatic vines, they
are different and once you see them, you'll forever be able to tell
them apart. In the Hydrangea, which is more hardy, the flowers
create a tiara. In the Schizophragma, the petals are more white and
appear individual and not in fours. Gardeners need to know
that Schizophragma blooms later in the season. It looks neater and
cleaner than the climbing hydrangea.
If you plant either vine, be prepared to wait a bit. It takes three
years for them to really get going; but once they are established
the flower show is spectacular.
#OTD On this day in 1931, The Arnold Arboretum sent Beatrix
Farrand Schizophragma hydrangeoides (climbing hydrangea)
at her summer home called Reef Point. Ferrand
gushed:
"This grew marvelously up to the second-floor windows on
the north comer of the garden house, only outdone in
magnificence by two big Hydrangea petiolaris, which clambered to
more than thirty feet."
Something Sweet
Reviving the little botanic spark in your heart
On this day in 1947, The Times out of Streator, Illinois,
shared a story called Ailment of 2 Boys Solved by
Botanist.
Here's what it said:
"Two eight-year-old boys gave their parents a bad time when they
fell victims to raging fevers and hallucinations in which weird
animals stalked across the ceiling. The frantic parents summoned
psychiatrists, but it was a botanist Dr. [Otto Emery Jennings] of
the University of Pittsburgh who finally solved the mystery.
Dr. Jennings said yesterday, the boys had nibbled on some
jimsonweed found on a vacant lot near their homes. The plant -
famed in cowboy songs and history books - has seeds containing a
substance used in medicine and which produce fever and
delirium."
The same weed poisoned many English soldiers at Jamestown Virginia
in 1608 as they tried to suppress Bacon's Rebellion. This is why,
in addition to being called Jimsonweed (Datura stramonim), it is
also called Jamestown Weed or Devil's Snare.
In Robert Beverley, Jr's, book about the history of Virginia, he
describes the crazy scene at Jamestown:
"The Jamestown Weed (which resembles the Thorny Apple of Peru...
was gathered ... for a boiled salad, by some of the soldiers sent
thither to quell the rebellion of Bacon ...
Some of them ate plentifully of it, the effect of which was a very
pleasant comedy, for they turned natural fools upon it for several
days:
One would blow up a feather in the air;
Another would dart straws at it with much fury;
And another, stark naked, was sitting up in a corner like a monkey,
grinning and making [grimaces] at them; A fourth would fondly kiss
and paw his companions, and then sneer in their faces ...
In this frantic condition they were confined, lest they should, ...
destroy themselves — though it was observed that all their actions
were full of innocence and good nature.
[Although], they were not very cleanly;
A thousand such simple tricks they played, and after eleven days
returned themselves again, not remembering anything that had
passed."
Thanks for listening to the daily gardener,
and remember:
"For a happy, healthy life, garden every day."