Dr. Mellichamp also talked about the way plants propagate. The organs that mean most to gardeners are the ovaries, which become fruit and the ovules which become seeds; but for those who save seeds, the entire process is pretty important. Dry fruits, such as nuts and dandelions, are disbursed by animals or wind. Fleshy fruits are disbursed almost entirely by animals. That includes us of course.
The wind borne seeds usually have to be saved by tying a bag or something over the seed head to catch the little seeds. It would not be too good to let the arugula choose where it wishes to be planted. The nuts are distributed by squirrels and birds. Dr. Mellichamp said that the acorns were designed by the willow oak tree to be distributed by blue jays. Those acorns are just the right size and shape to fit into the blue jays beak and on occasion fall out. The blue jay goes back to the tree to get another rather than look on the ground for the one that was dropped.
The dry seeds are usually in an inedible case so the seed is the only thing that is eaten. The fleshy fruits are usually in a case that serves as an enticement to some carrier to plant the seed somewhere. The single seed fruits, like cherries, are called drupes. The multi-seed fruits, like tomatoes, are called berries.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Master Gardener (Day 2 and 3)
Monday and today the classes were on Botany and were conducted at UNCC. The class Monday dealt mostly with the parts of plants and how to identify plants by their parts. Today (Wed) we learned about the naming of plants. The first name is the “Genus”. The second name is the “species”. These two names are specific for each plant and can help avoid the confusion sometimes present with common names.
Only wild plants have a distinct species name. Garden plants are mostly “cultivars”. The important thing about cultivars is that they have been either bred or selected for certain advantages. Most cultivars could not exist in the wild because they need someone (a gardener) to take care of them. It is critical that the gardener choose the proper cultivar.
One of the tools gardeners have for choosing the correct cultivar is the zone map. The zone map is based on minimum temperatures. This is why the seed catalogs list the plants as suitable for zone 3-6 or 4-8. The cultivar chosen is based on cold hardiness and heat tolerance. Rainfall and soil type is also important, but that is indicated in the zone maps.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Only wild plants have a distinct species name. Garden plants are mostly “cultivars”. The important thing about cultivars is that they have been either bred or selected for certain advantages. Most cultivars could not exist in the wild because they need someone (a gardener) to take care of them. It is critical that the gardener choose the proper cultivar.
One of the tools gardeners have for choosing the correct cultivar is the zone map. The zone map is based on minimum temperatures. This is why the seed catalogs list the plants as suitable for zone 3-6 or 4-8. The cultivar chosen is based on cold hardiness and heat tolerance. Rainfall and soil type is also important, but that is indicated in the zone maps.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Friday, January 21, 2011
Master Gardener Day 1
The day before yesterday (1/19) was the 1st class for Master Gardener. It was primarily orientation so nothing was learned about gardening, only about the program and the co-operative service. We did get to meet each other. The next class will be on botany and will take place at UNCC. That should be very informative.
A bunch more stuff sprouted in the greenhouse. There are now a lot more plants under the lights than in the “incubators”. The decision time is coming close about culling some of the little plants that don’t look so healthy or a few that are obviously dead. The reason for reluctance is that there were several seeds put into each cup and maybe there are un-sprouted seeds hanging around.
The warmer temperatures have made the garden more enticing. Maybe this weekend there will be an opportunity to replant the greens and rework any un-refreshed beds. The old turnips and mustard still need to be pulled off.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
A bunch more stuff sprouted in the greenhouse. There are now a lot more plants under the lights than in the “incubators”. The decision time is coming close about culling some of the little plants that don’t look so healthy or a few that are obviously dead. The reason for reluctance is that there were several seeds put into each cup and maybe there are un-sprouted seeds hanging around.
The warmer temperatures have made the garden more enticing. Maybe this weekend there will be an opportunity to replant the greens and rework any un-refreshed beds. The old turnips and mustard still need to be pulled off.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, January 20, 2011
So Much for Resolutions
There is no way that there will be 15 posts this month. I will try to do better next month. The snow kept me out of the garden for the most part, but the greenhouse is doing well. The “new regime” seems to be keeping more of the plants alive and healthy. There was an organic liquid fertilizer in a spray bottle that attaches to the hose at Home Depot. It makes a really nice spray. At first the spray seemed too heavy. The water pressure was turned down and it got worse. The pressure was turned all the way up and by standing back from the plants a nice sprinkle was achieved.
The snow seemed to perk up some of the things in the garden. Others are just beyond hope. They are now in the compost pile. New seeds have been purchased along with a roll of 1.5 mil polyethylene. 2 raised beds will be converted to tunnels so that they can be covered on extremely cold nights.
The greenhouse is filled to capacity with sprouted and un-sprouted plants. The cabbage, broccoli and pak choy can possibly be transferred to the garden once the tunnels are finished. They would normally be planted outside in mid-February anyway.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
The snow seemed to perk up some of the things in the garden. Others are just beyond hope. They are now in the compost pile. New seeds have been purchased along with a roll of 1.5 mil polyethylene. 2 raised beds will be converted to tunnels so that they can be covered on extremely cold nights.
The greenhouse is filled to capacity with sprouted and un-sprouted plants. The cabbage, broccoli and pak choy can possibly be transferred to the garden once the tunnels are finished. They would normally be planted outside in mid-February anyway.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Thinking Green(house)
(Written Jan 10)
Last night all of the little growies in the greenhouse that had sprouted got a good dose of an organic foliar feed. Three more flats got planted. There is only room under lights for one more flat. It is time to look into at least one more light. When going through the seeds last night to do the planting, I realized that I had forgotten to order Jalapeño pepper seeds. One packet of seeds won’t cover a minimum order, so an alternate source will need to be found. The stores don’t have many summer seeds right now.
The compost is accumulating really slowly right now. There are plenty of leaves available, but they don’t really make very good compost by themselves. The main thing going into the bins is wood ashes and kitchen scraps. The little snow we had did a good job of soaking through the piles, so the compost is heating and decomposing well.
The only thing in the garden to eat is onions, kale and spinach. Everything else is frost killed. Nothing appears to be coming back except some of the cabbage. I may replant some of the greens this weekend depending on the advice I get from Mr. Blackley at Renfrow’s.
Last night all of the little growies in the greenhouse that had sprouted got a good dose of an organic foliar feed. Three more flats got planted. There is only room under lights for one more flat. It is time to look into at least one more light. When going through the seeds last night to do the planting, I realized that I had forgotten to order Jalapeño pepper seeds. One packet of seeds won’t cover a minimum order, so an alternate source will need to be found. The stores don’t have many summer seeds right now.
The compost is accumulating really slowly right now. There are plenty of leaves available, but they don’t really make very good compost by themselves. The main thing going into the bins is wood ashes and kitchen scraps. The little snow we had did a good job of soaking through the piles, so the compost is heating and decomposing well.
The only thing in the garden to eat is onions, kale and spinach. Everything else is frost killed. Nothing appears to be coming back except some of the cabbage. I may replant some of the greens this weekend depending on the advice I get from Mr. Blackley at Renfrow’s.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Greenhouse Green
Almost everything from the first sowing in the greenhouse has sprouted. This in itself is a big improvement over last year. Of the three subsequent sowings, most of that has come up as well. The sprouted plants were moved to flats without cloches as they came up. Now it is a matter of moving the un-sprouted plants to a covered flat. Everything that had sprouted as of Monday received a foliar feeding of organic fertilizer.
The organic spray bottle fits on a garden hose. The spray is a little bit strong for tiny plants. It may be necessary to mix some of it in a spray bottle until the plants get a little bit larger and stronger. A new hose nozzle was purchased at the same time. It has not been tried yet, but it has a mist feature which should provide a more gentle spray.
The garden plants that were damaged by the hard freeze have not recovered. If they have not shown more resilience by the weekend they will be pulled off. I wonder if a new planting of any of the greens would be successful. There are cabbage, broccoli and pak choy plants in the greenhouse which will go into the garden as soon as they are large enough. They can be covered if another really hard freeze is predicted after they are set out.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
The organic spray bottle fits on a garden hose. The spray is a little bit strong for tiny plants. It may be necessary to mix some of it in a spray bottle until the plants get a little bit larger and stronger. A new hose nozzle was purchased at the same time. It has not been tried yet, but it has a mist feature which should provide a more gentle spray.
The garden plants that were damaged by the hard freeze have not recovered. If they have not shown more resilience by the weekend they will be pulled off. I wonder if a new planting of any of the greens would be successful. There are cabbage, broccoli and pak choy plants in the greenhouse which will go into the garden as soon as they are large enough. They can be covered if another really hard freeze is predicted after they are set out.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Monday, January 3, 2011
Happy New Year
The New Year is starting mixed. Almost everything in the winter garden got killed by the sustained cold snap last month. The greenhouse is having exceptionally good results early on. It is hoped that the lessons learned last year will make the garden better this year. This year I will begin training to become a master gardener. The lessons there should improve my garden and maybe your garden as well. They will be shared as they are learned.
A Year in the Life of the Garden is the working title for a new garden book. The progress on that book can be followed at http://davidsegrest.com. It gets posted almost every day and is much more in depth than the blog. The postings began on December 7th at the beginning of the hard cold spell. The rationale being that creation begins with destruction, the cold snap definitely wreaked destruction on the winter garden.
As usual, I made a lot of New Year’s revolutions (resolutions). Some of them involve the garden and this blog and those I will share. The most important is to complete the Master Gardener Certification program. Another is to make a minimum of 15 posts per month to the blog. Every year I try to increase the yield from the garden. That is more of an aspiration than a goal, but this year the goal in that resolution is to develop an improved storage system for the produce we get so that less (much less) of it winds up in the compost because it wasn’t used.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
A Year in the Life of the Garden is the working title for a new garden book. The progress on that book can be followed at http://davidsegrest.com. It gets posted almost every day and is much more in depth than the blog. The postings began on December 7th at the beginning of the hard cold spell. The rationale being that creation begins with destruction, the cold snap definitely wreaked destruction on the winter garden.
As usual, I made a lot of New Year’s revolutions (resolutions). Some of them involve the garden and this blog and those I will share. The most important is to complete the Master Gardener Certification program. Another is to make a minimum of 15 posts per month to the blog. Every year I try to increase the yield from the garden. That is more of an aspiration than a goal, but this year the goal in that resolution is to develop an improved storage system for the produce we get so that less (much less) of it winds up in the compost because it wasn’t used.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
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