Posted on by tonytomeo

Wintry Weather Can Damage Trees

(This posted in 2011.)

Wind brings out the worst in trees.

Pasadena sustained the worst of the damage caused by the strongest Santa Ana Winds in three decades. Huge piles of debris from broken trees are much more than can be removed any time soon. Falling debris and trees damaged many roofs, cars and anything else that happened to get in the way.

Other towns and neighborhoods throughout the area, particularly those at the base of mountains, also sustained major damage. At the same time, severe winds ravaged the San Francisco and Monterey Bay Areas as well, particularly in the Santa Cruz Mountains and the hills of the East Bay.

Some of the damage caused by wind in urban areas might have been less disastrous if trees had gotten the respect and attention that they deserve. Some trees develop structural deficiencies that need to be corrected by pruning, either to eliminate the problems, or at least to decrease the strain exerted onto the structurally deficient parts. A few trees that become unstable as they mature may likewise need to be pruned or even removed.

It is not always possible to prune trees to remove all structural deficiencies without damaging the affected trees more, or causing more structural problems to develop. For example, major pruning to remove all parts that may get blown down by wind, such as pollarding or ‘topping’, may seem to be effective for the short term, but actually stimulates the development of vigorous secondary growth or watersprouts that are disproportionately heavy and even more likely to tear off from the older limbs.

Structural pruning more often involves thorough reduction of weight and wind resistance. Weight of foliage and stems directly applies leverage against unions where smaller stems are attached to the larger stems from which they originate. Wind resistance adds more leverage as foliage gets blown about by wind. Thinning obviously removes significant weight, and also decreases wind resistance to allow wind to blow though the affected canopies.

Besides helping to compensate for structural deficiency, structural pruning is also beneficial to potentially unstable trees for the same reasons. However, unstable trees typically need even more reduction of weight and wind resistance. Some of the most unstable trees and those that are deteriorating need to be removed because their instability cannot be accommodated.

During winter, while deciduous trees are bare, evergreen trees are more susceptible to wind damage, obviously because they retain their weight and wind resistance through winter while the weather is the most severe. Unstable trees become even more destabilized as rain softens the soil. Regardless of the potential for susceptibility to wind damage, this would be a good time of year to get any needed tree maintenance done, prior to any more windy and rainy winter weather.

Arborists certified by the International Society of Arboriculture are the most qualified to identify potential structural problems or instability, and to prescribe corrective procedures. A list of certified arborists can be found at the website of the International Society of Arboriculture at http://www.isaarbor.com.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Horridculture – Sniveling

My colleagues are as totally excellent as my career is!

Horridculture is a collection of rants about horrid horticulture. Almost all of such rants are from my own experience and observation within the various horticultural industries. There are more than I can write about. I have been involved with so much more than just production of horticultural commodities on the farm. Horridculture is a bunch of sniveling about the worst of it.

Perhaps I should occasionally say a bit more about the best of it. If I thought it would be more interesting, I could write much more about the best than the worst. Except for the few experiences that I so frequently snivel about, my career has been awesomely RAD!

Therefore, for this week, I will briefly deviate from the typical Horridculture theme.

While we were in school, the professor who taught ‘Orientation to Horticulture’ told us, “If you want to make a lot of money in your career, change your major NOW!”. Of course, we did not. Brent and I both were naturally horticulturists, even if we were not good students. We studied exactly what we wanted to study. We made our careers of what we do naturally. Brent became one of the most renowned landscape designers of the Los Angeles region. I became a nurseryman.

Not only did I work for two legendary nurserymen within my primary career, but I also worked for at least four legendary arborists. I worked with the production of both citrus and rhododendrons with their companion crops. My gardening column was not planned, but has continued for a quarter of a century. Although not as well distributed locally as it had been, it is presently shared with a few publications between San Francisco and Beverly Hills in the Los Angeles region. These few publications sometimes share it with a few others elsewhere.

So, besides all the sniveling, I have been very pleased with my career. The worst of it may not have been as difficult as retirement might be. Fortunately, I do not necessarily need to retire completely, although I should quit sniveling.

Posted on by tonytomeo

flowering maple

Flowering maple should finish bloom soon.

The identities of the many different garden varieties are vague. Most are likely hybrids. A few might be simple species. Some that seem to be hybrids are really cultivars of simple species. Regardless, most flowering maples collectively qualify as Abutilon X hybridum. If all were hybrids, as their name implies, none would generate viable seed, as some do.

Flowering maple can grow somewhat fast, but tends to be lanky if it does so. It should be a bit fuller with slower growth or minor tip pruning. Several cultivars grow no higher than doorknobs, but others reach first floor eaves. Flowering maple demands regular watering and rich soil. It enjoys humid warmth, but may roast in arid heat with harsh sun exposure.

Bloom is sporadic from late spring until frost. The flowers resemble those of hibiscus, but are no more than three inches broad. Most are pastel tints of yellow, orange or pink, with prominently richer veining. Some are red, burgundy red or creamy white. The light green or variegated foliage may get a bit sparse through winter. Foliar lobes are quite variable, or lacking.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 2 Comments

Frost Is Simply Too Chill

Some minor frost damage is acceptable.

Chill can be good. Frost can be bad. The difference is thirteen degrees Fahrenheit. Chill is at or less than forty-five degrees. Frost is at or less than thirty-two degrees. Chill helps some flora to maintain its seasonal schedule. Frost causes some flora to freeze. Both are limiting factors of home gardening. Both are weather patterns that are limited by climate.

Many species from climates with more pronounced seasons rely on chill. They know that it occurs only during winter, and that they should bloom afterwards. Duration of such chill is more important than temperature. Any temperature at or less than forty-five degrees is equally sufficient. Within that, different species require different durations, or ‘chill hours’.

This limits the selection of many species, like various fruit trees. Citrus orchards formerly grew within the San Fernando Valley. They require no chill. Stone fruit orchards formerly grew within the Santa Clara Valley. They require a bit of chill. Pomme fruit orchards grow in the Willamette Valley. Many cultivars of pomme fruit perform best with significant chill.

Frost also limits the selection of many species. Pomme fruits do not mind it. However, if it happens late, it can ruin stone fruit bloom or developing fruit. It might damage citrus trees whenever it happens. Some climates here experience frost annually. Some experience it only rarely or mildly. Several coastal climates experience merely minor chill without frost.

Many garden enthusiasts grow a few species that are vulnerable to frost. Of course, such species are safe within frostless climates. Elsewhere, they may need shelter during cold weather. Potted vegetation may benefit from seasonal relocation. Temporary tenting can shelter imobile vegetation in the ground. Some vegetation is too large to shelter, though.

Vegetation that sustains frost damage is unsightly. However, it is best to delay pruning or grooming until subsequent frost is unlikely. Damaged outer growth insulates undamaged inner growth. Besides, pruning stimulates new and more vulnerable growth. Some types of vegetation should want only superficial grooming. Others might require major pruning.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 9 Comments

New Mouser

Rodents departed when she arrived.

Darla, the former mouser here, relocated to a more domestic lifestyle in Santa Clara during the unusually stormy weather and flooding last winter. She is getting rather elderly, and has earned a comfortable retirement. Unfortunately though, rodents of all sorts arrived immediately after her retirement.

Mice and rats infested the buildings while gophers and ground squirrels infested exposed ground outside, including the recovery nursery. Rodents of some sort ate the tops off a few of my banana plugs, and chewed the base of my cup of gold vine. Another chewed into a bag of seed for mixed erosion control vegetation, and made a mess of it.

Then, the rodents seemed to leave as suddenly as they arrived. Even tree squirrels became scarce. At about that time, we noticed, on rare occasion, what seemed to be a stray kitty. I thought that the kitty must live nearby, and would eventually return home. It avoided us, but never completely left the area for long.

The kitty appears to be rather grungy because of its color pattern. I recently learned that this particular color pattern is known as tortoiseshell, and that almost all kitties with this tortoiseshell color pattern are female. I hope that she is not offended if my assumption of her gender as female is inaccurate. She is quite small and lean, with a thin tail that is kinked at the end. I intend to get a better picture of her to share with neighbors, just in case someone is missing her.

A bit more than a week ago, this kitty seemed to become a bit more interested in human activity here. For the first time, I offered her a bit of something that she might enjoy. Because there was no kitty food here, I gave her a small can of tuna from the galley. She enjoyed it so much that I got her some real kitty food. She now comes for it to the meeting room daily after the crew leaves. I have been able to get a bit closer to her daily, and petted her briefly for the first time a few days ago. She purrs quite loudly when petted, although she also seemed to be rather nervous. She prefers interaction with Rhody, who now chews her ears. I invited her into the hallway because it gets somewhat cool in the evening, but she does not want to come inside.

Because I believe that her presence here convinced the rodents to relocate, I would prefer her to stay if she has no other home to return to. If she only wants a bit of food from me, this could be a mutually beneficial situation. If so, we should determine what her name is.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Alocasia or Colocasia? II

Alocasia or Colocasia or both?

While it seems that anything can be found online, it is baffling to see what can not be found online. Horticultural concerns seem to be particularly lacking. Perhaps those who enjoy horticulture innately dislike the internet. Perhaps they are merely too busy in their gardens to bother getting online too much.

‘Pele’s Smoke’ has been one of the more popular cultivars of sugarcane for home gardens for quite a while, but I can not determine how wide its canes are. Eucalyptus pulverulenta and Eucalyptus cinerea seem to have traded their names since the 1980s, but now, no one seems to know which is which, or if either ever was the other. No one can explain how seed from sterile banana cultivars are available online. Anyone can say anything. There is no accountability.

Alocasia and Colocasia are as baffling now as they were when I mentioned the difficulty with choosing between the two about a month ago. I am still inclined to procure Colocasia gigantea for a riparian landscape at work. However, I am now inclined to also procure Alocasia macrorrhiza. Both are quite appealing. I think that I would like to grow both within the same landscape so that I can compare them later. It would be easier than trying to compare vague information about them that I can find online. Realistically, since I would grow them from corms, both are quite inexpensive. If necessary, I can later relocate whichever is less appealing than the other.

This would not be my first occasion of not relying on the internet. I am working with ‘Pele’s Smoke’ sugarcane presently, and will be pleased with it regardless of how it behaves. I grow both Eucalyptus pulverulenta and Eucalyptus cinerea; although by mistake, since I procured one because I thought it was the same as the other. All of the cultivars of banana that I grow were procured as pups or plugs, since I do not trust seed. Ultimately, I will be pleased with both Alocasia and Colocasia.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 6 Comments

Six on Saturday: Self-Replication

Kwanzan flowering cherry is spectacular as it blooms for early spring. Only one inhabits our landscapes, and of course, it is dormant and defoliated until next spring. I took these six pictures of it anyway, to demonstrate that it is deteriorating fast, but could be able to replace itself before it succumbs to decay completely. Unfortunately though, it will likely be removed before it is able to do so, so that we can install a purple leaf plum within this particular situation instead. I only assist with this self-replication process because of the very unlikely possibility that replacement with another different tree may never actually happen. It has been delayed for years.

1. This flowering cherry tree has been deteriorating for the past several years. Several big limbs have died, leaving its canopy disfigured and lopsided. Its right half is nearly gone.

2. Only shiners remain where some of the major limbs that died were removed from the trunk. If this tree were to survive any longer, these shiners would decay before they heal.

3. Incidentally, this tree is not grafted. Suckers from the roots are indistinguishable from growth of the canopy. Bark of exposed roots is indistinguishable from bark of the trunk.

4. Therefore, this sucker is genetically identical to the original tree. The roots have been generating suckers for several years. All but this one were removed. Instead, it is bound.

5. The binding stake is nailed to one of the major limbs of the original canopy, as well as to a big root below. Damage to the limb is unimportant. It will be removed soon anyway.

6. The bound sucker is now more than six feet tall. It could develop branches to begin to grow as a new tree next year. It could stay as a replacement after removal of the original.

This is the link for Six on Saturday, for anyone else who would like to participate: https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 4 Comments

Horridculture – Cyclamen (deferred from Wednesday)

Cyclamen are too expensive to be as disposable as they are.

Cyclamen persicum is a popular cool season annual. It is known simply as cyclamen here because it is the only common cyclamen that is available. It might be known as florists’ cyclamen where other species are available. Red and white are the most popular colors because cyclamen are associated with Christmas. Cyclamen can alternatively bloom with various tints and shades of pink, salmon pink and purplish pink. Some bloom with two-toned color or picotee margins. Cyclamen really is a delightful perennial.

Yes, perennial. Like many garden annuals, cyclamen is actually a perennial. It can survive in the garden for many years. It merely goes dormant through warm summer weather, and then resumes growth as weather cools during autumn.

Not only is it a perennial, but it is an expensive perennial. It is too expensive to be so disposable. So-called ‘landscapers’ do not mind. Disposable annuals are lucrative for them. Besides, even where cyclamen can perform as a perennial, it is not colorful throughout the year, and even in season, it is not as colorful as it is for its first season away from the nursery that it originally grew in.

Other species of Cyclamen that are available within other regions are becoming available here as well. Their bloom is sparser, with only light pink or blushed white flowers. They are grown as perennial wildflowers that bloom for autumn or winter, when not much else blooms. Although not as garish as common florists’ cyclamen, they are appreciated for their perennial performance.

The few florists’ cyclamen that we install at work bloom somewhat reliably only until spring. Because they were grown within ideal greenhouse conditions, they do not adapt immediately to landscape conditions. By spring, many are already beginning to rot. Those that survive their summer dormancy may become perennial.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Coffee

It looks more like a houseplant than the source of coffee.

The White Raven Coffee Shop, the best little pourhouse in Felton, has an interesting but old fashioned houseplant on the counter. This group of four small but rapidly growing coffee trees, Coffea arabica, was a gift from a loyal customer.

Mature plants can get to thirty feet tall in the wild. Fortunately, coffee trees are easy to prune to fit interior spaces. Pruning for confinement is actually better than relocating big plants outside, since they do not like cold weather and are sensitive to frost.

Like various species of Ficus, coffee is appreciated more for lush foliage that happens to grow on a tree that can be trained by pruning to stay out of the way, overhead or in other unused spaces or corners. The simple remarkably glossy leaves are about two and half inches long or a bit longer. The very fragrant small white flowers are almost never seen among well groomed houseplants, and only rarely and sporadically bloom among less frequently pruned larger trees in greenhouses and conservatories.

The half inch wide coffee fruit, which is known as a ‘cherry’, is even more rare than flowers among houseplants because of the scarcity of both pollinators and pollen (from so few flowers). Those fortunate enough to get flowers sometimes pollinate them with tiny paintbrushes or clean make-up brushes to compensate for a lack of insects about the house. The resulting bright red or somewhat purplish cherries barely taste like cherries and only make two coffee ‘beans’ each; not enough to bother roasting and grinding for coffee, but great for bragging rights.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 4 Comments

Christmas Trees Grow On Farms (2011)

Christmas trees grow on farms rather than forests, but some farms are in forests.

(This is an old article from 2011, so much of the information within is no longer relevant.)

Douglas, grand, white and Noble firs, as well as sierra redwoods, Monterey pines and at least fourteen other varieties of Christmas trees can be found and cut at Santa’s Tree Farm and Village near Half Moon Bay. Certainly, no one needs that many Christmas trees; and most select only one. Yet it is good to know that somewhere within such a vast selection, there is the perfect Christmas tree. Santa’s Tree Farm and Village also provides wreathes, garlands, tree stands, flocking, fire retardant and delivery.

On weekends, Sleighbells Gift Shop is open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; and through December 18, Santa Visits between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 pm.. For $2, children from two to ninety-two and older can ride the train from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., as weather allows. Younger children ride for free. Santa’s Tree Farm is open between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekends (except for closing at 1:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve), and from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays.

Except for trees on the Diamond lot and pre-cut trees, prices range from $46 to $69. VISA and Mastercard and leashed dogs are welcome. Santa’s Tree Farm and Village is at 78 Pilarcitos Creek Road at Highway 92, six and a half miles from Highway 280 on the way to Half Moon Bay. Coupons, showtimes (yes, ‘showtimes’) and more information can be found at the website http://www.santastreefarm.com, or by telephoning 650 – 726 2246.

Atlantic cedar, Austrian pine, Arizona cypress, Leyland cypress Scott’s pine, sugar pine, white fir, as well as many other varieties of Christmas trees can also be obtained from Crest Ranch Christmas Tree Farm, located in the Santa Cruz Mountains west of the San Lorenzo Valley. Douglas firs, pines, cedars and cypress are $37 up to five feet tall, and $7.40 for each additional foot. White and Greek fir varieties are $42 up to five feet tall, and $8.40 for each additional foot. All sales are cash or check. An ATM is available.

The beautifully scenic picnic area is a good excuse to bring lunch, or at least get something at the snack bar. Leashed dogs are welcome. More information can be found at the website http://www.crestranch.com or by telephoning 831 – 426 1522. Crest Ranch Christmas Tree Farm is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. until December 20, and is located at 12200 Empire Grade outside of Felton.