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Issues March 2001
March 10, 2001
The Tumbleweed Garden News
The newsletter devoted to plant
enthusiasts!
Trivia- How large of a pitcher can a
pitcher plant grow?
Answer at the bottom.
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Welcome new subscribers!
Volume 3 Issue 10
In this issue
- Pitcher
of Death
- Nepenthes
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Want our new 2001 Exotic Tropical
Seed List by Mail? Click below or
reply to the newsletter with “catalog request” in the subject header and
be sure to include your mailing address.
http://www.driftwoodgardens.com/catalogrequest.htm
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Pitcher of Death
by Jon Valley
The ant followed some sort of hidden
markers on a trail not seen by the eyes of man.
Clearly on a mission the tiny black feet breezed down the tendril and on
across the mottled mix of green and blood red patches of color that graced the
smooth, outer skin of the plant, searching for the elusive source of a nectar so
sweet, yet so very costly. The
plant seemed so innocent a sight, with its dangling bowl-like features and
known as a pitcher plant or nepenthes.
With the close-up lens on the Canon, and
the goal of capturing a shot of the very moment when life hangs in the balance,
I patiently waited out the ticking seconds.
Like a creature lost in the hot, empty desert, searching for anything
cool and moist, the ant paused, waiving antennae in the air as if re-capturing a
scent then moved on to the sweet smell of impending doom.
The alluring sweet tasting nectar could not be resisted and so the
seduction began.
The ant reached the outer rim of the blood red bowl, a thousand times the size
of the tiny ant, and paused. My finger ready on the trigger, my eye checking the
light meter, waiting for that precise moment in time, when the shot is either
captured or not. But the wait is worth it all the same.
The challenge was worth the adventure, reward or not.
Picture captured or lost, I know it will remain frozen in time, in my
mind.
Would he take the plunge inside?
Sitting on the rim, it seemed as if he knew not to go
further, but resist he did not and so he bent inside with half his body hanging
out on the rim and seemed to taste the fluid inside. And when I thought there
was still time to escape he slid right down the soft waxy interior to the bottom
of the pitcher, where he would be engulfed in the digestive fluids of the plant
and digested as nourishment.
It was then at that very precise moment, when the life
and death struggle of this tiny life, and the shot so patiently waited for, hung
in the balance, that my neighbor hollered over the fence, “hey what’re you
up to over there!” that I realized I never pushed the button on the camera and so the
perfect shot was lost along with the ant.
(Jon Valley is a writer of things
western, a lover of life and all things green)
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Nepenthes
By Dale
Johnson
Nepenthes, commonly known as a pitcher
plant, grow mainly in the tropical rainforests of South-east Asia.
It is a carnivorous plant, meaning that it gains part of its nourishment
from live food sources, like insects. They are very abundant in Borneo.
Legends have it that explorers to Borneo, in need of fresh water to
drink, poured off the rainwater from the pitchers of these plants, making sure
to leave the underlying layers of insects behind.
In their native habitat, these plants
have been known to reach 50 feet in height.
Two types grow. One grows in
the highland regions where the altitude above the jungle canopies is higher than
a mile and the temperatures are colder. The
other grows in the lowland region where the temperatures are hot and humid
(above 70%)
There are about 82 species and each one
grows it own distinctive pitcher that varies in size, color and shape.
The pitcher has a lid that produces the nectar and protects the lower
portion from heavy tropical rains. They also usually have a brightly colored
reddish rim that also lures insects with its color.
They require constant warmth and a
steady source of humidity all year round. They
do best in greenhouse conditions, but are worth a try in the home.
Provide filtered light and mist them every day.
They will grow fine in a standard soil less mix or an orchid mix with
excellent drainage. Place moistened sphagnum moss on top of the soil to retain
moisture and also to allow the moisture to provide a source of humidity as it
dries. Don’t leave the pot sit in a tray of water but instead water from above
on a daily basis, much like the conditions of a rainforest environment. It will
also be necessary to fertilize with a high nitrogen fertilizer at least once a
month. A good orchid fertilizer
will work great.
Once a year they will produce a long
stem of flowers. This stem will
consist of either male or female flowers but not both.
This plant is more of a challenge than most tropical plants but one that
is truly rewarding and very exotic.
Think
Spring!
In the coming months:
How seeds spread, tropical water gardening, deck gardens and tropical
plants, more from Jon Valley, and much more!
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We are looking for article
contributors. Put your plant
growing experience to work! If you
would like to contribute a one time, or occasional article please reply to this
newsletter with contributor in the subject heading for guidelines. We would live
to hear from you! You don’t have
to be an expert! Just someone who
loves plants! We would also really like a regular writer for garden oriented
articles once a month. Come join
us!
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Copyright ©
[Driftwood Gardens] March 10, 2001. All rights reserved. No part of
this publication may be reproduced, in part or in whole, without the
written consent of the owner/publisher. It may, however, be forwarded, in
its entirety, to whom you choose as a referral.
__________________________________________________________________
Thanks for reading!
Dale and the staff at Driftwood Gardens
Answer to the trivia- In their native
habitat a pitcher plant can grow a pitcher the size of a football.
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March 17, 2001
The Tumbleweed Garden
News
The newsletter devoted to plant
enthusiasts!
Trivia-
When were the first coffee beans sold to the Europeans?
Answer at the bottom.
_________________________________________________
Welcome new subscribers!
Volume 3 Issue 11
In this issue
_________________________________________________________________
Did You Know. . .
- the
first coffee house opened in Oxford, England in 1650 and was called “The
Angel”
- Many
coffee houses soon followed and by the seventeenth century these places
became notorious for scandalous gossip.
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From the Archive
I have area in my lawn that grow moss
and I can’t seem to get rid of it. What
can I do short of some major chemical attack?
We don’t have too much of a problem
with moss, here in semi-arid Colorado, unless too much water is being poured on
the lawn and it is very shady and we kind of think of it as a novelty. In fact, I like to collect it and use it in our Bonsai
displays.
Anyway, if you do have a problem you
wouldn’t be the first and here’s what we suggest you do.
- Improve
drainage first. If you don’t
want to rip up the lawn, hire a company to aerate the lawn or if you have
the ambition, rent an aerator to do it yourself.
- Cut
down on the watering.
- Check
PH and try to raise it to a 6 to 6.8 range. Check your local nursery for the best product to use for
your area.
- Moss
loves infertile soil. So get
the lawn back into shape with an good quality lawn fertilizer or compost.
Think Spring!
Copyright ©
[Driftwood Gardens] March 17, 2001. All rights reserved. No part of
this publication may be reproduced, in part or in whole, without the
written consent of the owner/publisher. It may, however, be forwarded, in
its entirety, to whom you choose as a referral.
__________________________________________________________________
Thanks for reading!
Dale and the staff at Driftwood Gardens
Answer to the trivia- the first coffee
beans were sold to Europeans in the 1640’s
____________________________________________________________
March 24, 2001
The Tumbleweed Garden
News
The newsletter devoted to plant enthusiasts!
Trivia- Where is most of the
world’s production of Cocoa come from?
Answer at the bottom.
_________________________________________________
Welcome new subscribers!
Volume 3 Issue 12
In this issue
· Theobroma cacao -Cocoa
· Special offer
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Theobroma Cacao
by Dale Johnson
Most are familiar with the wonderful taste of
chocolate. And most know that chocolate is
derived from the cocoa tree grown somewhere in the tropics.
Did you also know it is possible to grow a cocoa tree as a tropical
houseplant? Seed is very hard to obtain, though, and if you can get
it is not viable for more than about three weeks. Plants are even harder to
find.
Cocao will tolerate pH ranges of 4.0 to 7.4,
which makes it a very versatile plant when it comes to soil. For best growing
conditions it will need well-drained soil and
regular moisture so it does not dry out.
Seed should be sown at approximately 80° F in a
standard soil less mix. The seed should
sprout within 30-45 days.
Light pruning should be done only to remove
diseased wood, but otherwise prune as little
as possible. The tree can grow up to 30 feet in its native
habitat and will bloom clusters of white flowers developed right off
of the branches or the trunk of the tree. The leathery green leaves are
similar to feel as are coffee leaves and should be protected from hot direct
sunlight. Cocoa plants are often grown under the shade of other trees,
like the Mother Tree (Erythrina Berteroana). They will make a most unique
plant if grown indoors or in a greenhouse. You can contain the size
of the plant, much like a citrus tree, by the size of the pot it is grown
in.
 Fruit
is produced off the trunk in 8” pods and contain around 25 seeds per pod
on average. These Cocoa beans go through a fermenting process to remove
the edible pulp from the seed. It is then roasted and ground into the
bitter taste of chocolate. Aztecs used this bitter powder to make a popular
drink, but the Europeans sweetened it to make a more delectable drink.
Europeans first encounter happened when Cortez was served a drink called
chocolatl in the court of Montezuma. With the advent of milk chocolate
the demand mushroomed. Parts of this tree were used, at one time,
as a heart ailment treatment and to help aid the respiratory system.
___________________________________________________________________
Copyright © [Driftwood Gardens] March 24,
2001. All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced, in part or in whole, without the
written consent of the owner/publisher. It may, however, be forwarded,
in its entirety, to whom you choose as a referral.
__________________________________________________________________
Thanks for reading! Dale and the staff at
Driftwood Gardens
Answer to the trivia- Brazil, Nigeria & Ghana
_________________________________________________________________
The Tumbleweed Garden
News
The newsletter devoted to plant enthusiasts!
Volume 3
Issue 13
In this issue
_________________________________________________________________
From
the Archives (our newsletter used to
have a question and answer page)
Question of the week,
I planted a pine, this spring, and it
turns out I planted it too close to the house.
I moved it, a couple weeks ago, to a better spot, but then it starting
losing its needles. Did I kill the
tree? It was a 6’ tree.
How long should I wait?
S. M.
Vermont
First
of all, don’t feel bad. Planting
a tree too close to houses and other trees is a common mistake.
It is hard to visualize that the tree will become so large in the future.
You have done well to move it now and try to save the tree rather than
cut it down in the future and have wasted it.
We planted three, ten to twelve foot, Spruce trees for a client this spring.
Having known her for several years we knew she was prone to changing her
mind- usually after the fact. So, the day before planting I stopped in to flag
the spots where the trees were to be planted and made sure this was it.
“We can’t move the trees once they are in the hole, they are too
big.”
Guess what? She couldn’t stand
two of the trees in the place where they were planted.
She insisted they be moved to a spot three feet away, no matter the cost.
I feared the worst for the trees, but after all, they were newly planted
and should transplant well. The
only problem was wrestling them back out of those holes and possibly damaging
the root ball.
Well, we did move the trees and about half of their needles dried up and fell
off. About twice a week we soaked
the root ball down and sprayed the needles with a fine mist. It has now been two
months and they are finally getting new growth and the needles have softened.
I would give the tree you transplanted at least the whole summer to see if it
will take off and don’t forget to water it at least once a month through the
winter.
Good luck!
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Did
you know?
·
Early arrivals to America from Europe didn’t have time for
pleasure gardening. Their main
focus was to grow food for survival. But
as time passed, gardening methods and ideas changed.
- George
Washington, though away much of the time, kept on close contact with the
overseers of his plantations during his service to the country, at war and
politics. Much writings remain that depict his ideas about crop
rotation, garden experiments, like grafting and the utilization of native
shrubs and trees for use in the garden design. People
from all over sent him exotic plants for his gardens.
- Even
after the war English design was influential in American landscapes.
Washington, Jefferson and other Americans bought plants and seeds
from Bartram Nurseries in England. And
Jefferson was a regular visitor to many English gardens for ideas about what
to do and what not to do.
Copyright
© [Driftwood Gardens] March 24, 2001. All rights reserved. No part
of this publication may be reproduced, in part or in whole, without the
written consent of the owner/publisher. It may, however, be forwarded, in
its entirety, to whom you choose as a referral.
__________________________________________________________________
Thanks for reading!
Dale and the staff at Driftwood Gardens
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