Hits & Misses: Hardy all-stars & smoke and mirrors
Question of the Week: Should I be watering my trees?
Science & Technology: Research rituals

I had the opportunity to attend the Green Industry show here in Edmonton this past weekend. The show presents a great opportunity for people in the greenhouse and landscape industry to get together to reflect on the past year and to get a sense of where the “green” industry is headed. Not surprisingly, the environment tops the list of concerns regarding the future health of our planet. Also not surprising is that plants are a large part of the environmental equation. One exciting initiative already under way is a large-scale trial of tree species that may be suitable for harsh prairie winters. Various sites in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba were chosen (based on climatic zones) and in 2008, hundreds of test trees were planted. Hopefully, within a few years, some new and outstanding trees will emerge and be added to our prairie landscape.

Hits & Misses
Hit: Hardy All-stars
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of listening to Corinne Hannah speak about some of the Calgary zoo’s perennial trials. Each year, the zoo, along with Olds College and the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton, plant various varieties of perennials in their gardens to determine which ones are all-stars for our climate. In her presentation, Corinne spoke about the virtues of what must have been nearly 100 trial plants—everything from daylilies and delphiniums to grasses and ferns. Some of her favourites were from the Firecracker series of chrysanthemums (Chrysanthemum morifolium). Apparently, the varieties ‘Showbiz’ and ‘Tiger Tail’ wowed the crowds this year with their blooms, which started in early July and performed straight through the fall.

Showbiz (top) and Tiger Tail (bottom) are quickly becoming proven performers. Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nursery.

Miss: Smoke and Mirrors
One plant that Corinne and I both felt was a miss is a variety of Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) called ‘Double Decker.’ Even though this plant has been highly touted in many gardening magazines for its unusual double row of flower petals, it’s just not worth the buzz. From what I can tell, Double Decker has double the hype but only half the performance of other outstanding coneflowers.

Question of the Week
Should I be watering my trees?
We always recommend watering in perennials, trees and shrubs before the ground freezes. In our area, this task is usually completed sometime in October. This, however, is an unusual year, thanks to the fact that the ground has not yet frozen. So…it’s possible that your trees may indeed need another drink. To find out, simply scratch down into the soil about three or four centimetres. If it’s dry, think about dragging out the hose. Pay particular attention to raised beds (which are more prone to drying out) and to perennials or trees you planted this fall. As a rule of thumb, provide shrubs and trees with 15 L of water per 1 m of height or width (whichever is greater). Just remember to disconnect your hose and put it back into storage.

Science & Technology
Research Rituals
The latest issue of Science magazine puts to rest the age-old question that many a curious child (and a few mean ones) have asked: do the cabbage butterflies in your garden really require their hind wings to fly? As you may or may not know, butterflies have two sets of wings (two large forewings and two smaller hind wings). Well, video recordings collected by researchers Jantzen and Eisner have revealed the answer: No. Hind wings are not required for flight…but as for flight performance, let’s just say there was a deficit in linear as well as turning acceleration. Gee, just think of the pile of research dollars I could have saved everyone when I was 10 years old.

Trend Spotting

Silver is definitely centre stage this Christmas. Gold is the usual décor complement to traditional reds, whites and greens but not this year. Instead it’s cool metals, such as platinum, brushed nickel and steel.

Did You Know?
In the summer, a tomato vine will transpire about 1/4 L of water into the air per hour. That’s approximately 2 L per day!

‘“Now shall I walk or shall I ride? “Ride,” Pleasure said. “Walk,” Joy replied.”’
–W. H. Davies

Hits & Misses: Reindeer rule & condensation woes
Question of the Week: Can small evergreens for indoor use be planted outdoors?
Science & Technology: Pricey winners

This past week the Alberta government announced that weed and feed products will no longer be sold in Alberta as of January 1, 2010. As I mentioned to several reporters, I can’t see the discontinuation having more than a minor impact on homeowners and their lawns. The reason is simple: even though the application of weed and feed is easy and convenient, it was never the solution to poor quality lawns. To have a great-looking lawn requires starting with deep, rich loam, planting superior varieties of high-quality grass seed, watering regularly, mowing the grass to the correct height and, lastly, aerating and top-dressing it regularly. Only after addressing these factors should one think about adding fertilizer or herbicide. Great grass is all about the basics.

Hits & Misses
Hit: Reindeer Rule
Reindeer of every size and description are what’s hot in the garden centre. Ceramic reindeer, wooden reindeer, glass reindeer—you name it—hoofed is hot this year. Hmm…perhaps red noses are beacons of hope during economically uncertain times. Forget the bull and bear. Long live the reindeer!

Miss: Condensation Woes
When you grow and water thousands of poinsettias in the confines of a greenhouse, it’s inevitable that some water will condense on the ceiling. Right around this time of year, the condensation is at its worst because cold temperatures outside mean less opportunity to safely ventilate the humid air. Quite frankly, I’m not sure who hates the condensation more—our poinsettias or our growers. Poinsettias and water droplets don’t mix because cold water can damage the colourful bracts. The growers hate the falling droplets because they inevitably manage to hit you square in the eye or find the only bare spot on your back.

Question of the Week
Can small evergreens for indoor use be planted outdoors?
Well, that depends on what type of evergreen you purchased for your indoor holiday decorating. Cypresses, for example, are not hardy for our area and won’t survive a winter outdoors. Cedars and spruce trees, however, are generally hardy and can be planted outdoors in the spring. Remember though, that for transplanting to even be an option, you need to properly care for these miniature evergreens. To do so, first pick the coolest possible site in your home to display the evergreens. Then after Christmas, provide them with winter dormancy conditions (meaning, keep the evergreens at temperatures between 3 and 10°C) until spring arrives.

Science & Technology
Pricey Winners
As I was flipping through the September publication of Chronica Horticulturae, I came across an interesting article about the popularity of giant pumpkin competitions. Apparently, the pumpkins grown for these competitions all essentially come from one cultivar called ‘Atlantic Giant.’ The desire to win the title Grower of the World’s Largest Pumpkin is perhaps best summed up by what one is prepared to pay for a single pumpkin seed. According to the article, one grower spent $850 (US) for a single seed! Considering that some of these prize-winning pumpkins can gain weight at the astonishing rate of 23 kg per day, maybe $850 is a bargain.

Did You Know?
Seed viability generally decreases over time. However, scientists in Israel successfully germinated a 2,000-year-old date palm seed in 2005.

“It is not much for its beauty that makes a claim upon men’s hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanates from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit.”
–Robert Louis Stevenson

These last few weeks have been spent in meetings with our architect, structural engineer and greenhouse contractors from Holland and B.C. And while sitting in one place is not any of our fortes, we do it because it enables the design process to begin.

As we sat settling many of the outstanding design issues, words like stanchions, structural slabs, purlins, ebb and flow floors, solar-control glass, and open-sky ventilation floated around the conference room. The more we talked, the more the information flowed and took shape. As it did, I couldn’t help think about my dad and the first greenhouse he built.

Ted Hole hard at work with one of his most enduring innovations: the hand seeder created from a hair clipper.

To say the process has changed since then is an understatement. When Dad prepared to build, his meetings were with himself, He was the architect, the structural engineer and contractor. He wanted to and had to know everything about how his greenhouse would be built.

Dad learned much of what he accomplished by doing. He knew that staying involved in every aspect of the build meant he’d know what to do when something went wrong. Well, I need to do the same thing. I need to set up a system that helps me understand this new project as well as Dad understood his. I need to know where the problems reside. Unlike Dad, however, I’ll have to accomplish that not by doing everything, but by designing the processes.

How things have changed.

We’ve been planning for nearly two years now, and though I want to know as much as possible about every aspect of this project, it’s clear to me that I cannot be everywhere. Instead, I have to rely on other people to make sure things are done well. I need to spend my time in meetings. I need to manage emails. I need to research new ideas.

Dad dug water lines, threaded gas lines and hammered thousands of nails to get his greenhouse working. I will spend more of my time digging through information, threading procedures together and hammering out the processes.

Times have changed. I wonder what Dad would say about that.

One of the systems we are strongly considering for the new building is the use of flood floors for watering. The following video show the efficiency and effectiveness of this method.

first published November 6, 2008

My brother Bill and his wife, Valerie, recently travelled to the Glee show (garden and leisure exhibition) in Birmingham, England. Besides catering to commercial plant growers and garden retailers, the show is also known as “the place” where renowned speakers shine up their crystal balls to forecast gardening trends for the coming years. Despite the obvious climatic and cultural differences between the Brits and us, it appears that the gardeners on each side of the pond are not that different. So with no further ado, here’s taste of what was seen and heard.

V is for…
One category of gardening that’s really captured the Brits’ fancy and had a surprising resurgence in popularity is vegetable growing. The 100-mile diet (160.93 kilometres if you prefer metric) is something that’s definitely caught on. Of course, it’s not likely that either British or Canadian gardeners will start consuming only those fruits and vegetables they grow themselves, but they have experienced a collective epiphany about how their yards can put a serious dent in produce importation. The unused garden space in a variety of neighbourhoods is increasingly being seen as a valuable, untapped resource that’s best used for growing food. In the UK alone, statistics show a 40 to 60 per cent increase in the number of vegetable seeds and transplants being grown in gardens this past year.

Now, in all fairness, the gurus didn’t attribute the entire increase in homegrown produce to the 100-mile diet. They seem to believe that a few other factors are also at work, one of them being the significant trend in wanting to cook gourmet food. And since an essential component of true gourmet food is fresh, high-quality produce, the backyard is naturally where it all begins. After all, even the finest chefs in the world can’t transform a rock-hard, imported tomato into anything that resembles the flavour of a homegrown tomato—no matter how pretty the plate looks.

In addition to the 100-mile diet and gourmet desires, there’s another powerful force driving the homegrown-vegetable movement in Britain, and it’s a familiar one: parental guilt. More specifically, the angst parents have over their children’s poor eating habits. Young moms in particular are very interested in growing more produce so that they can have more control over what their children are consuming. Unfortunately though, this desire to grow one’s own is at odds with the skills needed to do the actual growing. It seems that somewhere along the road to the supermarkets, the knowledge required for sowing and harvesting has been lost. A classic case of where are Grandma and Grandpa when you’re finally ready to listen to them.

Vegetables, such as corn, can be highly decorative as well as practical.

Lastly, but certainly not least comes the final proof of a real trend—the blatant displaying of it for the whole world (or at the very least, your neighbours). That’s right, vegetables are undergoing a migratory pattern, moving from the seclusion of backyards to the display gardens of front yards. Who knows, perhaps the taboo of growing vegetables for all to see is slowly being replaced by the desire to demonstrate social responsibility and to utilize space more productively. Then again, the homegrown-edibles trend both here and in Britain could be much like the trends we see in fashion—hot for a year or two before quickly turning cold. I truly hope that won’t be the case, but even if it is, having a temporary increase in gardeners who dedicate green space to food production can’t be a bad thing…unless, of course, you’re a petunia.

Hits & Misses: Incendiary colour & misperceptions
Question of the Week: There are spiders on my poinsettias; what should I do?
Science & Technology: The skinny on compost

I had a wonderful opportunity to speak to the Entomological Society of Alberta this past Friday about bugs and bug control. More specifically, we talked about how home gardeners and commercial growers are striving to understand more about the insects they deem to be pests and the ethological practices available for controlling them. Professional growers, for example, are utilizing more bio-controls (good bugs fighting bad bugs) but as a result are facing the challenge of learning the complex relationships between beneficial bug and pest insect. All in all, getting together with a group of experts in the field of entomology was very interesting and enlightening. It’s always nice to chat with people who share my wonder of the insect world.

Hits & Misses
Hit: Incendiary Colour
It’s really tough not to warm up to one particular variety of poinsettias that we’re growing in the greenhouse. It’s called ‘Cortez Fire’ and its flowers have an incendiary-like quality that’s lighting up Greenhouse 4 with a fiery glow. They are a bit of a challenge to grow and there aren’t many of them—but they’re definitely causing a burning passion in many of our customers.

Miss: Misperceptions
During a fairly recent windstorm, a long-dead poplar tree in my neighbour’s yard finally toppled over. Fortunately, the tree didn’t cause any major damage (other than slightly denting my chain-link fence), but what did amaze me was that a “useless” dead tree was really only useless from a human perspective. The dead poplar was riddled with nesting holes and, obviously, provided a great structure for supporting numerous bird families. One man’s trash…

An otherwise “useless” dead tree can have a purpose.

Question of the Week
There are spiders on my poinsettias; what should I do?
The short answer is nothing. Spiders are good bugs that feed on bad bugs, so their presence should never be discouraged. Fine webbing on a plant can be an indicator of spider mites, but if you also can actually see a creature before you, it’s an arachnid. Spider mites (the other type of web spinners) are microscopic in size and usually found on the undersides of leaves. However, if you are not interested in establishing biological controls in your home (meaning, allowing the spiders to reproduce), then hand-picking and disposing of the spiders is the best bet.

Science & Technology
The skinny on compost
Composting is a wonderful way of collecting “waste” organic matter and recycling it in your garden to improve soil. It’s interesting to note that half of the weight loss from a pile of organic matter, such as leaves and household green waste, is due to the release of water and carbon dioxide into the air.

Did You Know?
Insects dominate the animal kingdom. Over 90% of all the animal species on earth are insects, with the majority of the approximately 1 million known species living in tropical climates.

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”
–Reggie Leach

Hits & Misses: Flower power & uphill battles
Question of the Week: Can I grow orchids in my sunroom?
Science & Technology: Tea trivia

I just returned from Hong Kong this past Sunday, where I had the pleasure of sharing the University of Alberta’s centenary celebration with the many alumni who live there. I had but a mere four days to attend the various functions, but in between fulfilling my duties as Alumni Association president, I did manage to sneak in a visit to the Hong Kong Botanical Gardens. One of the highlights of the botanical garden tour was getting to see the building that housed the History of Tea Exhibit. Not only was there an enormous collection of ancient teapots to be seen, but there were also various varieties of tea plants growing just outside the door. True tea plants belong to a species called Camellia sinensis, the glossy leaves of which are harvested from metre-tall shrubs. And while this might not have been a highlight for every one, I have a special love for tea. As my mother often told me, I began drinking it at the tender age of three months. Apparently, Mom would put a bit of hot tea in my bottle of milk to sooth my earaches. To this day, tea still makes me feel better.

Hits & Misses
Hit: Flower Power
One of the other hits of my Hong Kong trip was a visit to the city’s flower market. And by market, I mean endless sequence of small flower shops that spill onto the street. Cutflowers were everywhere, as were grafted and braided tropical plants. Phalaenopsis (a.k.a. moth orchids) were also very popular and of outstanding quality.

Miss: Uphill Battles
Beautiful bedding plants were also common at the flower market, but I did notice some potted pansies that were struggling. I don’t fault the growers of the pansies though. Pansies like cool weather, so daytime temperatures of 30°C that fall to 25°C at night aren’t going to keep them happy.

Question of the Week
Can I grow orchids in my sunroom?
Most orchids prefer at least six hours of light a day, so a bright room is great. Your obstacle, however, is direct light. Orchids are hardier than one would think, but too much direct sunlight will cause their leaves to sunburn or bleach out. It’s not a science, but the colour of an orchid’s leaves will reveal a lot about its health. As a general rule, orchids that receive ideal light will have light-green to medium-green coloured leaves that are cool to the touch. Fortunately, you can easily correct a light problem by hanging sheer draperies on your window. A second thing to remember is that orchids will bloom longer if you treat them to cool nighttime temperatures (no lower than 14°C).

Orchids are the largest family of flowering plants, and there are many that are suitable for novice collectors.

Science & Technology
Tea Trivia
The terminal bud of the tea plant and the two or three leaves immediately below it is called the pekoe. Tea leaves contain about two to four percent caffeine and are rich in antioxidants.

Did You Know?
The art of bonsai is believed to have begun 2000 years ago during the Han Dynasty in China. Bonsai is actually Japanese for the Chinese word penzai.

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.”
–Marcel Proust

first published October 23, 2008

The fall truly is a glorious time of the year. The hustle and rush of the summer is over and there’s finally time to slow down the pace. Time to prepare for the coming winter. Time to ask one’s self age-old questions such as why don’t woodpeckers get headaches, and what are the side effects of swallowing swords? Time to ponder the consequences of erudite vernacular utilized irrespective of necessity (a.k.a. problems using long words needlessly) and to give serious consideration as to whether or not country music has an effect on suicide. Really? You’re not asking? Well, fear not. Someone else is—and not just any old someone, either. Harvard University.

Every autumn, Harvard University hands out its infamous Ig Nobel prizes—awards that honour individuals who, for some strange reason, perform research that ranges from the slightly eccentric to the downright weird. Fortunately for plant lovers, one of this year’s winning papers hails from a field that’s near and dear to my own heart: plant science! That’s right. The Swiss Federal Ethics Committee on Non-Human Biotechnology won an Ig Nobel for their study titled “The Dignity of Living Beings with Regard to Plants: Moral Consideration of Plants for Their Own Sake.” Rough translation: do plants have feelings?

While we know sensitive plants are sensitive to touch, the question is are they also emotionally needy : )?

Now, even though the title of the paper may have induced some rolling in the aisles during the awards ceremony, the research is not as ignoble as the award’s name might suggest. In fact, what the research boils down to is the need for us to ask ourselves whether or not a nervous system is a prerequisite for sentience. And since we currently don’t have enough scientific knowledge to answer that question, we have no choice but to say we simply don’t know.

I know. Nothing is quite that cut and dry, but to bolster their argument, the researchers cited that plants and animals share a developmental history that goes back some three billion years and that at the cellular level, the two kingdoms do not differ fundamentally. Also pointed out was the fact that although plants and animals seem to be incomparable at first glance, both can respond to external stimuli, use hormones for internal communications, react to touch and stress, and defend themselves against predators and diseases.

So, while I assume that few of us will ever feel guilty about eating a bowl of salad, I also think that the number of us who view all plants with equanimity is also pretty low. After all, when a several-hundred-year-old Ontario oak tree makes headlines in national newspapers because its existence forced a highway to be built around it, then yes, the concept of sentient plants doesn’t seem quite so far-fetched.

As for whether or not there will ever be a paper published in the International Society for Horticultural Science about a plant scientist conversing with a coconut tree…I think the odds of a dialogue are rather remote. Then again, I can also say with great certainty that when an entire greenhouse of my poinsettias looked as if they weren’t going to colour up last Christmas, I had a long heart-to-heart discussion with them. Thankfully, they listened.

Hmm…“Lachrymose Growers and their Effect on the Inflorescence and Bract Pigmentation of Poinsettias.” Sounds like an Ig Nobel winner to me.