I just learned that we can overwinter the corms of sweet potato vine!  The underground bulbs are much like sweet potatoes;  they just dont taste as sweet.  Sweet potatoes are way too much work to grow in the garden, but the ornamental sweet potato vines are so much fun to grow.  They are great in hanging baskets, or as fillers in planters.  And they come in several colors.  We love them.

 

Well... we don't have to buy new ones every year!   They are not perennial, but you can dig them up and save the "potatoes" by keeping them cool and dry.  I'm going to try it this winter by cutting off the green part and putting the potatoes in brown paper bags, and keeping them in the basement. 

 

I'll let you know if it's worth the trouble.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

This is a very kind picture of a very nasty plant.  I'll post a more fitting rendition, when I get one.  But for now, this works for plant ID.  Poison ivy, Toxicodendron radicans.  I've also seen Rhus radicans as its botanical name.

 

Whatever name you call it, don't touch it!!!  Notice the three leaflets, and the vining growth habit.  In Girl Scouts we learned that you can shake hands with 5 leaflets, but not with three.  A similar looking vine is Virginia creeper.  It has 5 leaflets, and is harmless.   At a distance, they look similar, but up close you can see the differences.  

 

Both Va creeper and poison ivy are climbers, reaching 10-15 feet up into the trees.  They are both changing colors right now.  Va creeper is going red; poison ivy turning a sickly yellow-brown.  But later in the season poison ivy will turn a brilliant scarlet.  So far, I'm not helping much, but wait!!  Poison ivy growing up a tree has very distinctive roots.  They look hairy.  Noticeably hairy!  Most other vines don't have the fiber-hairy stems.

 

Every part of poison ivy carries the oil, Urushiol.  And it is this oil that causes inflammation of the skin.  People vary in reaction to the heavy oil, but the skin must come in direct contact with the oil or the smoke from burning poison ivy.  I have way too many stories about poison ivy to even start to tell, but let's just say I've become an expert at identifying it.  I can spot it at 100 yards at 55 mph.   It often grows alongside Jewelweed, with orange flowers, but you can't always depend on that for identification.

 

That's why I'm writing about it now.  I want you to learn to identify it now while the leaves are present, because once the leaves drop off it's more difficult to identify, but no less hazardous.  Figure out where it is, and avoid those areas. Pulling weeds and running into poison ivy roots can cause the skin reaction.  Brushing against the roots on tree trunks can still cause the reaction.  Be aware when you are burning yard trash, the smoke can really be bad news, affecting eyes and lungs.  No, really!!!  Know the enemy.   For me, it's poison ivy.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

I'm not sure if this picture works, but it was the best I could get at the time.   Meet Paulownia tomentosa, Princess tree. This particular tree is on the corner of Stonebriar and Crabapple.  Several people have asked me what it is.  Or if those yellow balls are pecans.  They are the fruits of the tree, but not pecans.  I'm not even sure if the squirrels eat them.

 

The best time to spot the princess tree is in spring, when she's blooming.  The purple flowers are about 2 inches, in large clusters.  They are easy to see along the highway, even at 45 mph.  The trees are medium height, usually growing like a weed tree:  wherever its seeds touch down.

 

Right now, though, the tree sports huge heart shaped leaves, and these clusters of yellow nuts.  You can see last year's fruit too;  those clusters are darker, almost black.  And you can see next spring's flower buds in large clusters of velvety-hairy spikes.  

 

Princess tree is not a tree I would plant in my front yard, because it's a little messy, but it is delightful to see in our woods, and along the road.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

I don't know about you, but we have a few tropical (read: indoor) plants that we put outdoors for the summer.  They love the bright light, and the warm days and nights.  This is my Night blooming Cereus.  She has doubled in size this summer, being outside.

 

BUT...I just saw that the temperature is going to drop this Saturday.  When the night temps drop below 50°, we bring everybody into the basement.  My weather source shows 50° on Friday night,  and 46° on Saturday night.  That's fabulous for us, but some plants can't take it.

 

We don't haul in the mums, or other hardy stuff, but it's a good idea to either bring in or protect your tender indoor plants.  It's a big job, but we will bring in the Benjamin fig, cereus, and a few others.  The small ones may go back out during the day, but the big ones only get moved once!  

 

Before bringing them back inside, like today, I will hose down the leaves, and deep water the pot to get rid of any creatures who may have moved in over the summer.  Mostly, I'm looking for ants.  I don't want them inside!!!  This will give enough time for them to relocate, and the plant to dry enough to move it.

 

If you have put out your philodendrons and pathos, sansevierias, or Norfolk Island Pine, you might consider shifting them to their winter positions.  They will love you for it.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

I am not an expert in this field, but I have several friends and relatives coping with Alzheimer's disease and dementia:  as patients and as caregivers.   I want to be better equipped to communicate with them.  Better equipped to communicate with the patients AND their caregivers.

 

I subscribe to Alzheimer's Reading Room and i get occasional readings delivered to my inbox.  I don't know how, but they are often VERY timely and appropriate for what's happening.  The readings are almost personal to me.  Today's reading especially spoke to me, that's why I thought I'd share.  4 lessons I learned

 

If you have loved ones with dementia or know someone who cares for Alzheimer's or dementia patients, then Alzheimer's Disease has touched your life.  There is so much we don't understand, but it's so helpful to learn from someone who has been there, done that.  

 

I have this hope that if I can learn about something vicariously, and really understand it, then maybe I won't have to experience it myself.  So far it's working.  At the very least, I'm learning to be kinder, maybe more patient.  I need that.

 

LIVE WELL!!

 

 

 

I just found this caterpillar in the fennel.  It's the Black swallowtail that I was telling you about.  It uses fennel as a host plant.  Another good reason to grow fennel in your garden.

 

Black swallowtail butterflies also lay eggs on other members of this family:  parsley, dill, carrots, queen Anne's lace:  Umbelliferae.  In my experience, the caterpillars like the particular food they grew up with.  I've tried to feed fennel to caterpillars I picked off of parsley, and they would not shift to another food from the same family!!  Very picky eaters.

 

We still like to put the fat caterpillars in a dry aquarium, feed them until they make their chrysalids, then watch as they emerge as adult butterflies.  So I either have to provide enough food to get them full grown, or leave them alone to fend for themselves, (probably the best way, definitely the easiest.) 

 

Either way, I know we are providing food for Black swallowtail butterflies.  Very exciting!!

 

I think I'll nab this one before a bird or praying mantis gets it.  He is just right for making a chrysalis, so I won't have to feed him for much longer.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

 

If you have been interested in my latest subject: herbs, you may like to check out this website.

 

http://www.herbwisdom.com 

 

It talks about all kinds of herbs, nicely organized from A to Z.

Not only does it address culinary herbs, it also covers herbs for health and healing.

 

I love this site, and have bookmarked it for my quick reference.  You can't have too many resources.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

I just read in The Farmer's Almanac that the next few days are good for planting, especially leafy greens.

 

This is leaf lettuce, grown from seed.  It has leaves ready to eat in just 40-50 days.  You can even plant it in a pot and have lettuce way into the fall.  

 

This is so pretty, it could go in your front flower bed.  What about as a temporary border, or tucked into those big rocks?

 

Other cool weather greens are kale, spinach, mustard, swiss chard, arugula.  We love our cool weather greens;  they are so easy to grow and give us so much.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

 

Foeniculum vulgare,  Fennel.  Herbaceous perennial.  Every part of the plant, from the seed to the root is edible.  Fennel is also called anise.  I give you the botanical names because several other plants are called anise.  This way I can be more specific, and you can learn the way I did, scientifically.

 

There are a couple of varieties.  Florence fennel is the one grown commercially for its succulent bulb, and the bronze form, which is the one we grow.  The bulb of bronze fennel is still edible, just not as big as the one you can buy in the grocery store.  In the garden, nobody is companionable with fennel.  Don't know why, but I've read it more than a few times, so I don't push my luck...

 

Fennel self-seeds once it is established.  We brought this with us too, when we moved from VA.  I love that Black swallowtail butterflies are attracted to it.  They use it as a host plant for their caterpillars.  We would capture the tiny caterpillars and raise them in my classroom, watching as they grew, made their chrysalids, and emerged as adult butterflies.  What a thrill for 3 and 4 year olds.  For me too!!  Sometimes I still capture the caterpillars so I can see them emerge.  It's very exciting!!

 

Fennel is also delicious.  We add the berries (the plump, unripe seeds) to lots of things.  They are great with tomatoes, eggplant, in pasta salads, you name it.  If the flavor of licorice appeals to you, you need to grow fennel.  Come get the seeds and plant your own.  I love to share the garden's wealth.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!

 

Origanum spp.  Oregano and Marjoram, hardy herbaceous or shrubby perennials. 

 

When we moved here from Virginia Beach, VA,  I brought a small rectangular planter of oregano with us.  We planted it in the area just above our house.  In the last 13 years it has spread enough to fill that whole garden bed.  I cut it back every year, and Jon has mowed it on occasion.  It is related to mint,  and you know what that does!!  DON'T buy oregano!!!  Come get fresh oregano and dry it yourself.   

 

Nobody in my life should ever have to pay $$ for Oregano.

 

Oregano is an ancient culinary herb.  The Greeks gave it the name: oros ganos, meaning joy of the mountain.  And the sweet spicy scent of sweet marjoram is a symbol of happiness, reputedly created by Aphrodite.  In ancient Egypt, it was well-known that oregano had the power to heal, disinfect and preserve. 

 

We grow oregano today to attract bees and butterf!ies.  Oregano also goes into most things we cook:  bread, pizza dough, salad greens, most vegetable dishes.  It can be used fresh or dried.  We harvest it, then hang the branches to dry, and crush the leaves just before using.  I'll add Jon's pizza dough recipe in the recipe section.

 

Really, come get some before cold weather sets in.  It can even be transplanted now into pots.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!