Volume 57 Illustrated with more than 150 photographs and drawings- Dwarfed Fr'uit Trees 9y HAROLD BRADFORD TUKEY. In this authoritative guide the author identifies the important dwarfing rootstocks and describes their propagation and growth in the nursery, He discusses the selection and spacing of trees, bracing and trellising, and fruit trees grown under glass, as bonsai and as ornamentals. He also covers tree structure and physiology, modern scientific theories of dwarfing, soils, fertilizers , pollination, costs, yields, and the locations where dwarfed fruit trees are most likely to succeed. Originally published in 1964 and now reissued , this book is unique in its field. 150 black-and-white photographs, 7V2 x 10. Society member's price: $26.55 (Regularly $29.50).
"Highly recommended for those interested in maintaining ornamental trees and shrubs." -UbraryJourna/ Insects That Feed on TliAT FEED ON INSECTS AND SHRUBS
~traled An l/Ius Trees and Shrubs By WARREN T. JOHNSON and HOWARD H, LYON. "A beautiful book. It is of high quality stylistically-of folio size, with good paper, of excellent design, and with every other page being a ~;A:";~~: full-color plate .. .. There is no question about the authority and competence of Johnson and Lyon _:.::~:._ _ or of the scientific validity of the book." -Choice. 212 color plates, 9 x 12. Society member}'s price: $31 .50 through June 30, 1978; $34.65 thereafter (Regularly $35.00; $38.50 after June 30 . Of related interest------_._------__ ----J AGrowth Chamber Manual Environmental Control for Plants
Edited by ROBEIH W. LANGHANS. Focusing primarily how to provide precise control, and how to keep a chamber on sophisticated growth chambers used for experimental running at optimum conditions. 44 black-and-white photo purposes, thirteen experts cover all aspects of the mainte graphs and drawings, 6 Vs x 9. Society member's price: nance and operation of growth chambers - how they work, $15.75 (Regularly $17.50).
orebid Biology: Reviews and Perspectives, J Edited by JOSEPH ARDITTI. Enhanced by a generous the largest of plant families. 10 figures, 20 black-and-white selection of photogr.aphs, both in color and in black and photographs, 4 color plates, 7V4 x lO V4. Society member'S white, and by impressive botanical drawings, this informa price: $26.55 (Regularly $29.50). tive book provides an up-to-date look at various aspects of All titles are Comstock Books published by CornelllJniversity Press. Use this coupon to order today!
Ir------~ I THE AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY ----.A GROWTH CHAMBER MANUAL @ $15.75 per copy. I Publicati ons Department , Mount Vern on, Virginia 221 21 __OR CHID BIOLOGY @ $26.55 per copy. I I Pl ease send me at once the books I have indicated below. Prices shown I refl ect a 10% discount on the publishers list price. (Pl ease add 50Q per co py I for postage and handling.) I enclose $ __. 0 Check 0 Money Order Name ______I I __D WARFED FRUIT TREES @ $26.55 per copy. I __IN SECTS THAT FEED ON TREES AND S,",RUBS @ $31.50 per Address ______I co py (through June 30, 1978) I __IN SECTS TH AT FEED ON TR " ES AND SHRUBS @ $34.65 per I co py (after June 30, 1978) City ______,S tate ______J..Zip ___ _ _ I I I ~------~ American HG)rticulturist Volume 57 Number 3 June 1978
Editor: Murray Keene Editorial Assistant: Jane Steffey Horticultural Consultant: Donald Wyman Art Directors: Mary Jourdan and Rebecca McClimans , Grafik Book Department: Tom Stevenson Production Coordination: John Simmons Publisher: The American Horticul tural Society, Mount Vernon, Vir ginia 22121. 703 /768 -5700 For United Horticulture . . the particular objects and business of the American Horticultural Society are to promote and encourage na tional interest in scientific research Cover Photo: Ka tydid on and education in horticulture in all of its branches. Clematis by Elizabeth AMERICAN HORTICULT URIST is Friedman © 1978 the official publication of Th e American H o rticultural Society, 7931 East Boulevard Dri ve, Alexan Education dria, Virginia 22308, and is issued in February, April, June, August, 8 Fertilizers for Cultivated Plants-R. Milton Carleton October and December. Mem ber 4 Cephalotus Follicularis: The Australian Pitcher Plant-Richard M. Adams, II ship in the Society automatically in cludes a subscription to America n 12 Mulches for Gardens and Landscapes-Francis R. Gouin Horticulturist and $1.50 is desig 18 Getting A Rock Garden Together-Lynne Meyer nated for each issue of this publica tion. Membership dues start at 42 Growing Melons in the Mountains-R. D. Morse; C. R. O'Dell; $15.00 a year. Editorial Matters: Refer to Murray D. A. Bender Keene, American Horticulturist, Mount Vernon, Virginia 22121 Change of Pace Advertising Matters: Refer to Pub lisher Services, Inc., 621 Duke 11 Textures of our Earth-Nancy Hemenway Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314 26 Hearts O'Flowers-Francis C. Cox AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST is devoted -t o the dissemination of knowledge in the science and art of Travelog growing ornamental plants, fruits, vegetable s , and related s ubjects. 34 The Cary Aboretum-Willard W. Payne Original papers which increase 38 Flowers of the Midnight Sun-Kenneth J. Smith knowledge of plant materials of economic and aesthetic importance are invited. For manuscript specifi Gardener's Notebook cations please address the edi tor, 6 Summer Natives Give an Architectural Value to our Woodlands Mount Vernon, Virginia 22121. Replacement Issues of AMERICAN Mrs. Ralph Cannon HORTICULTURIST are available at 22 Willows for Pleasure and Benefit-Floyd F. Smith; Dorothy K. Smith; a cost of $2.50 per copy, but not be yond twelve months prior to date of George W. Argus current issue. The opinions expressed in the arti 30 Ground Covers as Shady Aristocrats-Gary L. Koller cles which appear in AMERICAN HORTTCULTURIST are those of the My Favorite Plant authors a nd ~re not necessarily those of the Society. They are pre 3 Mountain Laurel-An American Original-Marcia Bonta sented as contributions to contem 14 Mangos-The Apples of the Tropics-Simon E. Malo porary thought. Second c lass postage paid a t Alexandria, Virginia and a t ad ditional mailing offices. Copyright © 1978 by The American Horticul 1 tural Society. Color separations by CHROMA-GRAPHICS IN C. Editorial "Thank You" The officers and directors of the to amateur gardening-reaching an es American Horticultural Society wish to timated audience of well over a million. thank the following members of the Currently the Society is implementing corporate community for their financial a major undertaking of far-reaching support of the programs and activities educational value-the construction of of the Society: a National Center for American Hor ticulture. The Center is being built on Alcoa Foundation the Society's 25-acre headquarters at American Garden Products, Inc. River Farm. It will offer a unique and American Telephone & Telegraph Co. significant number of activities designed David Burpee to serve professional and technical in Corning Glass Works Foundation terests in horticulture as well as the con Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company cerns of the amateur gardener. H . J. Heinz Company What will the National Center be and IBM Corporation do? Proctor & Gamble Company • It will offer indoor and outdoor live Time Life plant displays tracing the develop Whirlpool Corporation ment of horticultural programs in America' s corpora tions have long the country from the colonial era to been leaders in supporting our pressing the present. needs in the field of health, education, • It will demonstrate the impact of social welfare, and the arts. More re new plant introductions, the effect cently this aid has been expanded to in of hybridization and technical re clude support of our national heritage in search on horticulture and garden the field of historic preservation and the ing over the past twenty decades. conservation and protection of our nat • It will present displays emphasizing ural environment. not only ornamental horticulture There is yet another area where the but plants for food and environ corporate community is currently turn mental enhancement. ing its attention and s upport: the • It will offer audiovisual presenta American landscape and its related dis tions designed to acquaint the gar ciplines of gardening and plant science. dening public with all aspects of These concerns comprise a surprisingly planting, cultivation and plant important component of national inter maintenance. est and endeavor. Of most Significance, the National Directing the force of this movement Center will permit the coordination of is the American Horticultural Society. staff, office facilities and expense Founded in 1922, the Society is in the sharing among other scientific organiza tradition of serving the needs and inter tions locating their operations at River ests of more than 35,000 individuals, Farm. professionals, ecologists, environmen Will the corporate community con talists, scientific organizations, educa tinue to help? We have every confidence tional institutions and commercial en that it will. Companies joining the Soci terprises. It is dedicated to the science of ety as Corporate Sponsors at $1 ,000 or horticulture, plant development, culti more annually will be making a signifi vation and landscaping. Its impact, cant investment in our ability to extend however, reaches an impressive seg and deepen the Society's services to a ment of a considerably wider audi greater number of individuals, organi ence . .. . the average American gar zations and educational institutions. dener. We, in turn, offer the participating cor The Society's broad range of activities porations certain benefits in return for have had a marked effect on the face of their meaningful support. this nation to the extent that it has taken For more information concerning the the leadership in disseminating knowl Society's appeal to the corporate com edge to a wide segment of the popula munity for support and preserving tion with topics related to gardening America's landscape, please write Mr. and the horticultural sciences. Its inter Thomas W. Richards, Executive Vice ests and services span a range from President, American Horticultural Soci 2 technical research in plant development ety, Mt. Vernon, VA 22121 . Moun~· Laurel An Atnerican Original
Marcia Bon ta Until quite recently, very little Box 68 h orticultural research had been Tyron e, Pa. 16686 done on the mountain laurel. But to my great delight, I discovered The June is mountain laurel time in Laurel Book by Richard A. Jaynes, central Pennsylvania. Almost ev published by Haffner Press in 1975. eryone who loves the outdoors This beautifully done book, with spends at least a few hours viewing many fine color photographs, is the laurel on foot or from a car win highly readable for the layman, as dow. well as the expert. Our own Pennsylvania moun It answers many questions I have taintop farm produces a spectacle had about mountain laurel; in par nearly every year. A wide jeep trail ticular, why it seems to bloom most over a mile and a half long is rim med on both sides by thousands of spectacularly every other year. Ac laurel bushes. Planted by nature, cording to Jaynes, the seed capsules their beauty rivals any formal gar develop on the flowering clusters den. after blooming and limit the new Mountain laurel is one of seven shoot growth which is necessary for species of the genus Kalmia , all of flower bud setting. which are purely American. They During the early part of this cen Jaynes also tells of his work with were named after Peter Kalm, an tury, laurel foliage was very popular the Connecticut Agricultural Exper eighteenth century Swedish natu as greenery in bouquets and iment Station, which began a breed ralist, whose journal contained one wreaths. In 1924, one thousand tons ing and genetic study of all Kalmia of the first detailed accounts of the of foliage was used in New York species in 1961 . This is long, dif mountain laurel. "Their beauty ri City alone. For this reason, quite ficult but rewarding work, and has vals that of most of the known trees stringent laws have been passed in led to the development of new in nature," he wrote. The Swedes many states, forbidding the pruning s trains such as "Goodrich" and called them "spoon trees" because or digging up of mountain laurel. " Shooting Star." He includes a de Indians made spoons and trowels of Luckily, since we own many acres tailed list of available gardens and the wood. But the English named of it, I am able to snip a few nurseries throughout the country them laurel since the leaves look branches for bouquets each June. where these new strains can be like their Laurocerasus, according to They make splendid cut flowers, seen, and sometimes· purchased. Kalm. lasting well over a week in a vase. Someday, there may be as many Today, mountain laurel is the Mountain laurel can be rather eas mountain laurel varieties as there state flower of both Connecticut and ily transplanted, but it does need an are azaleas and rhododendrons. Pennsylvania, and while its scien acid soil. It grows well in shade and This will not lessen my appreciation tific name is Kalmia latifolia , it has even better in full sunlight. Plants in of my own mountaintop laurel dis many local names. Calico-bush, the sun seem to produce more of play, but it will enable me to land calmoun, and mountain ivy are just the pink-budded varieties, at least scape the home grounds with other a few. tha t has been our experience. beautiful varieties. 0 3 Cephalotus IOllicularis: The Australian Pitcher Plant
Richard M. Adams, II Department of Biological Sciences , Union College, Sch enectady, NY 12308 The expression " carnivorous plant" immediately brings to mind the Venus fly trap (Diona ea mus cipu/a) , which has long been a source of fascination to plant en thusiasts because of the "steel trap" motion by which its carnivorous leaves capture lured insects. Egually fascinating to the perceptive plant person, however, are the carnivor ous pitcher plants, whose leaves form hollow pitfalls structured to trap insects without any associated motion. ~ Cephalotu s follicularis, the Austra- "~ D lian pitcher plant, is the smallest B o and most intricately structured of ~ the pitcher plants. A single species Cephalotus Jolliculnris in its own family, the Cephalo taceae, it is endemic to the damp on the inside and out, which are strengthen the pitcher and serve as areas of extreme southwestern conducive to the luring, capture, walkways to lead earthbound in Australia-the Albany swamps and and digestion of insects. A slippery, sects up to the pitcher orifice. Cap around the King River. ridged rim extends around the tured insects are digested in a fluid Unlike other pitcher plants, in pitcher orifice. The ridges extend as secreted by the pitcher and serve as which every leaf forms a pitcher, stationary "teeth" into the pitcher a source of nutrients. Cephalotus produces two types of opening. Although it was known While the pitcher is similar in leaves: foliage leaves and pitcher that the underside of the protective structure to those of Nep enthes and leaves. Both rarely exceed two lid contained nectar glands which the Sarraceniaceae, the three inches in length in cultivation. The lure insects to the pitcher, it was not families are not related. Cephalotus foliage leaves are produced in the until the accompanying scanning is, in fact, related to roses at the fall to carryon photosynthesis over electron microscope photograph order level, as revealed by flower the frost-free winter, while the was taken by the author that nectar structure. The flowers, small, buff pitcher leaves, pale green with at glands could be seen lining the colored, and supported by a two tractive reddish markings, develop teeth. These probably play an inte foot stalk, are not a significant asset during the winter to be ready to gral role, together with the slippery to the decorative nature of the catch insects in the spring. nature of the rim, in the capture of plant, however, and are best re The pitchers are equipped with insects by this plant. On the out moved since they decrease the 4 structures of intricate fineness, both side, three girder-like ridges plant's vigor. Like other pitcher plants, plants may be grown in terrariums. Cephalotus is worthy of cultivation Good drainage and proper ventila as a miniature ornamental and a col tion must be maintained, however. lector's item. Although still quite An ideal set-up is to keep the plant rare in cultivation, it is one of the in a pot which is placed in a loosely easiest pitcher plants to grow. It tol covered terrarium having a layer of erates a comparatively wide range moist gravel at the bottom. of cultural conditions for tempera Fertilizer. As with all carnivorous ture, light, watering, humidity, and plants, ca ptured insects serve as a soil. source of nutrients, especiall y ni Culture trogen, which may be lacking in the Temperature. Cephalotus may be cul substrate. These nutrients may al tiva ted successfully under inte r ternatively be provided by a bal media te-to-wa rm growing condi anced chemica l or organic fertilizer tions (night temperature 50-70°F). administered to the roots. . It will survive a light frost. Temper P ropaga tiol1. Cephalotus is easily atures of around 50°F, which would propagated by stem cuttings, which signify the approach of winter in its will root in a few weeks under mist habitat, favor the production of and w ith bottom hea t. Leaf cuttings foliage leaves; while warmer tem and rhizome divisions are also suc peratures, indicative of summer, cessful. This obviates any need for favor pitcher leaf production . the removal of plants from the lim Ligh t . Although Cephalotus is ited wild stands to accommodate found in moist, open areas, the those who may wish to include this low-growing plants are hidden by striking, but easy-to-grow, plant in an overgrowth of grasses and their collections. sedges. Thus, filtered light or Acknowledgement semi-shade is recommended for The author wishes to express ap greenhouse or windowsill growing. preciation to Dr. D. Huttleston, Equally good results can be ob Messrs. P. Nutt and R. Smith, tained under lights by maintaining Longwood Gardens, for their criti the plants 6 to 12 inches from the cal reviews of the manuscript. 0 fluorescent tubes. Soil and Water. Overwatering is not a problem associated with the pitcher plants, but Cephalotus prefers to be References kept drier than most, without being DeBuhr, L. 1976. Field Notes on allowed to dry out. Excessive water Cephalotus folliculari s in West may result in the shedding of the ern Australia . Carnivorous Plant pitcher leaves, while the closing of Newsletter 5:8-9. the pitcher lid indicates wilting. Hodge, W. H. 1962. A Rarely Culti Spagnum moss is an ideal growing vated Pitcher Plant. The Ameri medium, for it combines high water can Horticultural Magazine retention properties with good aera 41:13-16. tion. Peat moss or commercial Kutt, D . 1976. Cultivating houseplant soils may also be used. Cephalotus follicularis. Car The use of clear plastic pots allows nivorous Plant Newsletter 5:10. soil moisture conditions, as well as Mazrimas, J. 1976. On Growing the root growth, to be monitored. Shal- ~ Australian Pitche r Plant low pots or trays encourage the ~ Cephalotus. Carnivorous Plant spreading habit of the plant. "8 o Newsletter 5:10-12. Humidity . A relativ~ humidity of ~ Pietropaulo, J. and P. 1974. The 60-90 percent is ideal. This may be .3 World of Carnivorous Plants. higher than is available for some ~ Mrs . Ra.lph Cannon 5849 North Kastner Avenue Chicago, IL 60646 In the last 25 years, modern farm ing has reduced many meadow areas once growing summer wild flowers. Road and expressway con struction has taken out many more acres. As gardeners, we have a commitment to conserve all the wild plants that we can, and to keep these flora alive and growing. 0 ;;: There are many native plants of ~ architectural value growing in our ~ woodlands which we must con- ~ ;;: serve and enjoy. These are not rare Cl. or endangered plants, but they are Rudbeckia interesting and produce great color to ayvait another rebirth. The deli ferns are a magnificent sight with among the trees. Most of the plants cate tints of the spring flowers are their great shuttlecocks rising are perennial and herbaceous. They replaced by the stronger hues of among the profusion of other ferns, have been planted by nature and summer and fall . The dividing line such as Athyrium filix-femina, Dryap occur either in sunny spots or at the between spring and summer na teris marginalis, the Osmundas and outer fringes of the tree branches. tives is an arbitrary one. Summer Onaclea sensibilis. They all colonize Others appear at the edges of plants with their blooms are eagerly happily and their foliage is of lasting shadows where there is light. awaited; for they are a bright em interest, creating a quiet oasis of Nature generally keeps its plant broidery on nature's landscape. green through the growing season. ing simple. Single specimens in In early summer, the ferns on the Besides the ferns, which cannot small patches create restless spots, hillside add dignity and beauty. be surpassed for grace and varia but plants growing naturally in the They are at their best with their dif tion, are the herbaceous plants that wild appear in sweeps or drifts ferent hues of green, all of pleasing give colorful bloom during the which give a handsome effect. texture. For architectural emphasis, summer season. These drifts are of aesthetic impor two large ones that are favorites are A slender plant blooming in early tance. They are natural works of art. Dryopteris galdieana, the golden wood summer is Camassia leichtlinii. These Summer plants grow and bloom fern, which grows two to three feet onion-like bulbous plants are hardy after spring natives have carpeted in height, and the bold ostrich fern, and grow in sunny meadows. Their or colonized under the trees, giving Matteuccia pensylvanica, growing five blooms are star-like, six-parted 6 a pastoral effect before fading away to six feet in height. The ostrich flowers, (white, in our woods), and woodland w he re ver it grows is Cimicifuga racemosa . The rising torch-like spires drift among the cushions of Smilacina racemosa, al ways vying for suprem acy, and p resent a statue-like appearance. These tall Cimiclfuga plants of fi ve to eight feet with large co mpound, toothed, butter-cup-like leaves and wa nd-like racemes of buds, resem ble strings of pearls and always at tract a tte ntion . Whe n the buds open , the feathery, d ecora ti ve plumes of small white fl owers are a further attraction in their environ ment. Unfortunately, these fl owers have an unpleasant fragrance, but are so co nspicuous and beautiful that the odor is not strong enough to be objectionabl e. Even after the Above-Ecliil1acea purpllren flowers have formed seed heads, borne on racemes of 15- 18 inches in the spikes of seed remain an impor length. The whole blooming stalk tant feature. grows three to four feet high . The Th erm opsis caroliniana, fortu blooms start at the bottom of the nately, proves to be one of the most race m e and work upward . Th e majestic of all the summer bloom leaves are strap shaped, about 12 ers. They brighten up any area and inch es long and one inch wide . are vigorous in growth;-three to They grow happ il y and will seed four feet tall -and produce spires themselves to produce a fine group of bold, golden, lupine-like fl owers, planting. Every summer they charm making them ideally suited for the us with their excellent ap pearance woodla nd. They have p ea-like and are most effective when they leaves, three-parted, grayish-green become massed. in color. They bloom in July and will Verol1icas trum virginicum albulI1 , a grow in sun or dappled light. Their w hite, starry-flowered for m of impressive seed head s are interest Culver's root, grows four to five feet ing and will remain on the plant high. Its well spaced w h orls of T17 erl1l0pS1S over winter. They are easily propa slende r, finely toothed , la nce single zone surrounded by a mass gated from seed . shaped leaves are terminated by of petals. Best known, of course, is The latest seasonal fl owers are the dense racemes of small white fl ow Rudbeckia fu lgida with its rou gh native asters and goldenrods. They ers, also in whorls. They like to leaves and golden daisy-like fl owers signal the cl osing dates for summer grow in open areas where daffodils with blackish-purple cones. activity and greet the turning of the and shooting stars bloomed p ro Another cone fl ower of decorative leaves on our maples. The pictur fusely in the spring. Given the right value is Echinacea purpurea, rising on esque " New England aster" and the environment, the root stock w ill sturdy stalks three to four feet high. " New York" are just a couple of the produce a mass of plumes. If not al The blooms a re a rich, reddish many that roam at will and decorate lowed to crowd, they become excit purple color, adorned with a large the whole orchard. ing plants of architectural emphasis dark cone with a flush of orange. Blue lob elia and Ph ytola cca are and always a lovely sight. They are long-lasting even when other plants prized for their display Two beautiful members of the cut for the vase. Their leaves are of leaves, fl owers, and fruits. All of Compos itae family with rich colors rough, ovate, toothed, and grow al these summer natives, paragons of that light up a sunny, shady situa ternately. Growing in drifts, they sturdiness, not only give architec tion are among the most handsome are a great attraction and add gaiety tural emphasis to our woodland but plants growing in our woods. They to the open spaces. They continue join to produce such a pageant of ha ve a long season of bloom. to flower for weeks. The dried cones color that we can readily see why Though their colors are many, their can be used for winter decoration. nature's art demands all of our ad- form is daisy-like, consisting of a One planting that will enliven the miration . 0 7 Plants Plants, on the other hand, have R. Milton Carleton 1938 High Point Road no digestive apparatus (even the Sarasota, FL 33577 so-called carnivorous plants merely allow the flies and other insects they Growth of plants is influenced by trap to rot where their bodies will four elem ents-heat, light, food permit the simple compounds to and water. The gardener can do lit reach the plant's vascular system). tle about light and heat as a rule, but They are unable to break down food and water are, to a consider elaborate foods and use them di able degree, subject to his control. rectly. Man can eat hamburgers: Science is now in agreement that plants cannot. at least 15 elements are essential to and the nutrition of animals. They What this means is that all com the growth of green plants are alike in that all living things, plex, organic fertilizers, applied for carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, phos whether a human being, a giant use by green plants, must be broken phorus, potassium, nitrogen, sul Sequoia, a fungus or a mouse down by some agency into simple fur, calcium, iron, magnesium, bo must have some source of energy chemicals, almost into elemental ron, zinc, manganese, iron, copper, foods-sugars or starches that are form, before they can be of any use. and molybdenum. "burned" by living cells, as fuel, in That agency is the microorganism We do little to control carbon in the process of living. population of the soil-fungi, bac the open garden. Plants take their teria, and similar organisms, which They differ in that green plants supply from the carbon dioxide in are able to digest organic matter. In air. It is perhaps the most important are able to manufacture their own this process, they use some of the single element in the amount energy foods out of simple carbon energy and build nitrogen, phos needed-nearly half the weight of dioxide, water and minerals from phorus, potash and other food ele many plants is carbon. Oxygen is the soil, whereas animals must de ments into their own cells. liberated as a gas in the process of pend upon these same starches, When these microorganisms die carbon utilization from water taken manufactured in plants, for their (and their life cycles are usually up by the roots. This water is the energy. quite short), the elements are then source of the plant's hydrogen Animals, including man, have available to plants, less a certain loss needs. organs capable of ingesting elabo inevitable in the long chain of or Differences Between rate organic substances, whether of ganism to organism. Plants and Animals animal or vegetable origin, and by Here we have the reason for ad There are fundamental dif digestion, reducing these into sim vantages and disadvantages of nat ferences, as well as similarities, be- ple compounds, which can circulate ural manures and other organic fer 8 tween the feeding of garden plants through the body and be used. tilizers. Obviously, they cannot begin feeding plants the moment itial preparation of soils for turf, the plants, or require only a slight they are applied. Various chains of old-time practice of applying an or change to make them so, such as bacteria are needed to complete the ganic fertilizer to the lawn in late fall sulfate of ammonia. breakdown of protein (the source of has little to recommend it. For one Although tremendous differences nitrogen in organic fertilizers) into a thing, it does not break down and are claimed by organic gardeners whole series of simpler forms. do much feeding in the cool soils of favoring so-called "natural" fertiliz Soil organisms are not always fall. For another, it feeds certain ers, these must all be broken down predictable in their working. They fungi, which are active at low tem finally into the same ammonia are fussy about pH, seration, and peratures and cause the various dis nitrite-nitrate products, which are about their own food supply. At eases lumped under the name released in much shorter time by temperatures below 60 degrees, Snow Mould. This does not mean chemica ls. most of them stop moving and feed an outright condemnation of such Herein lies the advantage of ing. Because their activity is low at fertihzers, if they have been used chemicals. They are available to this stage, they live longer, retain without ca using difficulty in the plants almost as soon as applied, ing the foods absorbed earlier. This past, but if Snow Mould attacks and produce rapid responses in is useful in fall, when unused fer year after year, avoid all forms of growth. It is not unusual to apply a tilizer elements in the soil are taken organic fertilizer. chemical fertilizer to a lawn, and see up by bacteria and fungi. They Delayed nitrogen burn is a puz the grass turn a darker green color serve as a blotter to absorb these zling condition w hich often occurs in two or three days. Immediate re plant foods and conserve them for in lawns. It is caused by improper sults mean rapid use of the material use the following spring. use of organic fertilizers, usually applied, however. Almost all chem The slowness with which organic sewage s ludge. Because no im ical plant foods must be applied at fertilizers are released depends on mediate effect can be seen after ap short intervals where maximum how they are ''bound up" in the plying sludge to turf in early spring, growth is wanted. basic material. Dried blood, perhaps amateurs often figure they have not Because they are not dependent the most valuable single fertilizer, is applied enough fertilizer and put on upon soil bacteria to make them largely available about as soon as another dose. If weather conditions available, they can be absorbed by water can dissolve it. Unfortu change suddenly and temperatures plants in early spring. This makes nately, it commands such a high soar into the nineties, soil bacterial them useful on lawns when grass is price that very little is today avail action may be so rapid that far more making rapid growth long before able for fertilizer use. It contains nitrogen is released than either the the soil warms up. every element needed by plants in a grass or plants can absorb. Practically all vegetable crops are form that can be taken up for use The result is a nitrogen burn, fed chemically, when grown com almost at once. At the opposite pole exactly like that caused by applica mercially, because growth can be is humus, also a highly valuable or tion of too much chemical nitrogen, kept at maxi mum by regular feed ganic source of nitrogen. Here ni but seldom associated with the fer ing. trogen is so tightly bound that at tilizer application because the cause The one disadvantage claimed normal pH readings, it will be re and effect are so widely separated. against chemical plant foods is that leased at a rate of between 1 percent of " burning". This occurs if applied Chemical Fertilizers and 2 percent a year. This means at rates higher than recommended, that it will remain as a source of fer The difference between chemical or if applied dry and not sufficiently tility for half a century or more. The and organic fertilizers is largely one watered to dissolve all of the salts. long " pay-out" of humus means lit of complexity of the latter and the The advantages of liquid fertilizers tle to the gardener raising a crop of simplicity of the former. In a strict have brought on a rash of claims, lettuce, but when planting a lawn interpretation of the word " Or which is not substantiated by re (which cannot be rolled up to allow ganic", it should be applied to all sults: they merely increase costs to him to get at the soil underneath), materials which contain carbon. exorbitant figures for the amount of or a tree (whose roots may not be This, however, makes the fertilizer actual plant foods they contain. accessible again in his lifetime), it is urea an organic fertilizer, since, While these are convenient for use the only material that can be used while it is made artificially, it does on house plants, they are certainly for "permanent" feeding. contain carbon and cannot be dis illogical for use on lawns and gar All garden soils should contain tinguished in any way from urea ex dens. some organic matter, however, be tracted from urine. High analysis dry chemicals are cause of its beneficial effect on soil In general, we consider a fertilizer available to be mixed with water for organisms. chemical if it is made of salts or simi application through a hose, which Although the use of organic mat lar materials in simple form, which are often more economical than ter is highly recommended in the in- are either immediately available to Continued 011 pnge 28 9 Nancy Hemenway plants. She appreciated things in 1524 30th Street, NW nature that I had hardly stopped to Washington, DC 20007 contemplate: a delicate insect web ©Nancy Hemenway surrendering its moisture to the morning sun; the intricate trail of the fiddler crab whose mosaic ap If you witness a July sunrise at peared on the beach at low tide. Juniper Point, in the Boothbay Har Upon reaching her studio, I talked bor region of Maine, you will be too with her. The result is recorded be overwhelmed with the tranquility of low. I hope you don't mind if I the scene to notice a small rowboat share it. heading for Mouse Island. Instead, your interest will be directed toward M.K. one of the many lobstermen tending his traps, or a 40-foot motor-sailer "What interests me most in na rounding Tumbler Island, heading ture? The delicate shadings on a for Monhegan. tulip petal, the lace of orb webs on I met Nancy Hemenway and her morning grass, and a single feather rowboat as a college student. I was lying on pine needles are all impor employed by her parents as "cap tant to me as an artist. It is often the tain" of the motor launch and reluc intricate detail, rather than the ex tant weed-puller in the gardens. pansive view, that absorbs me. Nancy was forever dabbling in oils Because I work in embroidery and and water colors, producing inter textiles, I find myself saying, 'How Left-Winter Weave (trees) esting and somewhat abstract paint Above-Nancy Hemenway in her can I capture so much beauty with ings of fog, waves, trees, and rocks. summer studio my medium? What stitches trans Hardly a day went by that she did late the curve of a bird's wing and not gather some fresh impression In 1977, she produced one of her the floating grace of the dandelion?' from nature to be reshaped in her many exhibitions for the Bowdoin There is also the clear knowledge mind for specific use in her art. Her College Museum of Art. The results that beauty is everywhere, not just proficiency is startling, be it were breathtaking. She stirred the in the forests, or a June garden, but sculpture, tapestry, or oil. Her latest imagination of all who attended the in simple plants poking up through form, "Bayetage", reflects the opening. the city pavement. culmination of her efforts. It brings I had the good fortune to be The open country and tall pine a new dimension to art. She works aboard Nancy's rowboat, with her woods of New England were my in full-b!'}died, raw wools, rare al two grandchildren, one early July childhood haunts. Much of the pacas, delicate mohair, and exquis morning in 1977. The destination wonder and love of nature that in ite gossamer organdy. All are skill was Mouse Island, some 600 yards spires my tapestries comes from N ~ fully blended into tapestries with off the coast. She was using the late memories that go back to the age of ~ I:: <..> ({) striking effect. Her inspirations Harry Emerson Fosdick's studio, four. I still think of forest trees as l:l C o come not only from Maine, but from which clung precariously to the the most imposing of all the world's E iO' high in the Andes of Bolivia, the edge of the eastern shoreline. sculptures. My tapestries express CE > Blue Ridge Mountains, and the I photographed her nature walk my feeling of awe. I also remember D o o white sand beaches of North with her granddaughters and mar from my youth blowing dandelion .r:: "- Carolina. veled at her knowledge of native Continued on page 33 11 for s In most home gardens, mulches Francis R. Gouin generally consist of wood chips, University of Maryland pine bark, shredded bark, pine College Park, MD 20742 needles, straw, peat moss, aged sawdust, tan bark or garden com The gardener who revised post. In recent years, there has been popular nursery rhyme stressed one an increase in the use of pea stones, of the most important features of a marble chips, granite chips, ground good mulch. Horticulturists have tires, plastic films, newspapers, and long recognized the value of fiberglass .sheets. Some of these mulches in the garden and in the newer mulching materials are com landscape. A good mulch should Mary, Mary quite contrary, patible with the landscape design help control weeds, reduce the fre How do es your garden grow? and the kinds of plants being mulched. quency of watering, allow water to Use a mulch and you will find , Marble chip mulch have become percolate through to the soil, and You 'll seldom need to hoe . . . keep the soil cooler in summer and popular in many areas because they warmer in winter. In the landscape, taken on a new look, especially in are attractive and provide contrast a mulch should enhance the ap commercial agriculture. Black plas ing color and texture to the land pearance of the plants and not de tic mulches are being used in the scape. In general, most plants re tract from it. production of strawberries, cut spond well to being mulched with Mulches have played and con flowers and vegetables. Reflective marble chips, and in some instances tinue to play an important role in mulches, such as aluminized plas improved plant growth has been agriculture. In addition to being tics and aluminized paper, have observed. However, in several cases used in landscapes, mulches are added a new dimension to mulches. marble chip mulches have caused a used in the production of fruits and In addition to controlling weeds and severe decline in plant vigor and vegetables. In addition to control conserving soil moisture, reflective death of certain species, especially ling weeds and preventing the mulches repell insects, reducing the ericaceous plants. Azaleas, rhodo evaporation of water from the soil, need for pesticides. They are being dendrons, andromedas, mountain mulches help to keep fruits and used in many areas for growing laurel, and other related plants fre vegetables clean. What would squash, cucumbers and other vine quently lose their vigor within one strawberries be called if it weren't crops. To help farmers harvest year after marble chip have been for the straw mulch protecting the muskmellons earlier, clear plastic applied over their roots. Freshly berries from lying on the garden mulch over sterilized soil is being crushed marble and smaller size soil? Mudberries? Sandberries? tested in several eastern states. Soils stones appear to be more damaging Dirtberries? under the clear plastic mulches than larger stones or stones that Although mulches have generally warm quickly and the plants grow have been weathering for a long been considered to be loose mate- more rapidly, especially in early period of time. Since marble con 12 rials, in recent years they have summer. sists primarily of calcium carbonate, soil beneath the marble chip mulch Washington, D.C. and Baltimore Because it is li ght, weeds can easily becomes less acid with each irriga areas died last winter. Close exami push their way up through the tion, and the availability of iron in nation of many dead plants re mulch. As the sun bakes the wet the soil is reduced. The plant vealed that the original root systems p eat moss, it forms a hard crust symptoms generally appear as iron of the winter-killed plants had died which sh eds water like asphalt. chlorosis of the new foliage and one or two years previously, and Crusting is also a problem when eventual die-back of the branches. minimum winter temperatures had sawdust or grass clippings are used Shredded bark, bark nuggets, killed the new roots growing in the as mulches. Although companies and wood chips from tree chippers mulch. have attempted to market coarse are currently the mos t popular To avoid over-mulching, inspect grades of peat moss, as they disin mulches used by home gardeners. the plant carefully, using a garden tergrate w ith time they form a Their popularity is primarily due to rake or fork to loosen the existing water-sh edding crus t. A good their availability, low cost, persis mulch. If 1 to 2 inches of undecom mulch should not shed water away tence, and appearance. They gener posed mulch remains, delay apply from the roots of plants. Peat moss ally contain all of the attributes of ing any new mulch until next year. is an excellent soil conditioner and good mulch, especially if they have To derive the maximum benefits the major ingredient in many pot been composted. However, many from an organic mulch, delay apply ting mixes. Its uses should be lim home gardeners are overusing these ing the mulch until fa ll . Mulches ited to those and not to mulching. mulches and losing many plantings applied in the fall delay freezing of Now that water is fast becoming a as a result. the ground, beca use a loose mulch scarce commodity in many areas of There is a tendency among many has a higher insulating value than a th e country, and many municipali home gardeners to apply a fresh mulch that is compressed. If mulch ties have issued bans on watering layer of mulch in the spring, is needed, a pply only a 1 to 2 inch la w ns and garden s, more home whether or not the plants need it. In layer. gardeners should be using mulches many instances, yearly applications Compos ted bark, wood chips, to grow bea utiful gardens while of bark mulches result in a gradual and shavings are better than fresh conserving water. Black plastic buildup of organic matter around materials. To compost, simply mix mulch and even newspaper mulch the stems of plants, often covering approximately 4 oz. of ammonium are easy to use when planting an the stems of lower branches. Some nitrate, or urea, or 10 oz. of 10-6-4 nual flower or vegetable gardens. plants can tolerate this gradual fertilizer with every bushel of fresh To use these mulches, simply pre buildup while others cannot. mulch. Thoroughly m oisten the pare the soil as you normally would Overmulched azaleas, rhododen mulch and cover with a sheet of and rake smooth. Avoid walking on drons, andromedas, yews, and hol clear plastic. Twice each month, mix the prepared soil as much as possi lies frequently stop growing and the compost and moisten if needed . ble to facilitate planting. Spread the begin to decline in vigor. Symptoms Within 2 to 3 months the composted black plastic mulch or several layers of decline generally appear as lim mulch is ready to use. Wood chips of newspapers over the prepared ited new growth, small leaves, iron from trimming, collected when the soil. If newspapers are used, cover chlorosis, and sporadic die-back of plants are in full folia ge, compost only small sections at one time and branches throughout the plant. If quickly without any additional fer soak the paper with a fine mist im the plants are unable to initiate new tilizers. Composting will not only mediately. Do not walk on the roots higher up the stem and into improve the mulching properties of newspapers after they have been the upper layer of mulch, they gen the bark, wood chips or shavings, layed down; otherwise, you will erally die. If the plants can initiate but will also improve the appear punch holes through them. If plant new roots higher up the stem, fre ance of the mulch. If the mulch can ing through black plastic mulch, cut quently observed in over-mulched not be composted, simply apply the an X mark 4 to 6 inches wide and Japanese hollies, privet, and for 1 to 2 inch layer of mulch uniformly plant through the 4 loose flaps of sythia, the plants will survive but over the area and broadcast the rec the plastic. If newspapers are used, new growth will frequently be lim ommended amount of·fertilizer over make a hole sufficiently large to ac ited. However, the roots growing in the mulch, and water thoroughly. commodate the plant with your fin the upper layer of mulch are more There is a tendency among be gers or trowel. Water the plants susceptible to drought and winter ginning home gardeners to use pea t thoroughly, immediately after injury than the original roots grow moss as a mulch. The common hor planting, and scatter a thin layer of ing in the soil. Over-mulching, ticultural grades of peat moss sold organic mulch over the plastic or combined with the coldest winter in locally are undesirable mulches. newspapers as camouflage. 40 years, is one of the main reasons The particles are generally too fine Mulching is a time-proven hor why many hollies, Japanese privet and are easily blown away by wind ticultural practice. Learn to use it and boxwood plantings in the unless watered down immediately. wisely and enjoy gardening more. o 13 THE APPlES OF THE TROPICS rounded by a riot of flavors, but the English language has invented few names for flavors, and neither I be lieve, has any other language. And because of that I cannot tell you what my mangos taste like. There is a strange intoxication, a 'mango madness' that comes on us at that season." There are those, however, who resist new taste expe riences and find it difficult to appreciate any unfamiliar flavor. Thus, we have the view of the nescient Eng lishman who, when first introduced to the mango in India, caricatured the fruit by saying: "A ball of tow soaked in molasses which you have to eat in the bathtub." It is human nature to accept exotic flavors grudgingly, but the fact remains that there are so many widely different types of mango that the inexperienced can quickly form a bad opinion if first confronted with an unimproved fibrous sort with its typical turpentine flavor. However, as with most highly developed fruits, there is a world of difference between the fruit from a wild seedling and that from a grafted superior commer cial cultivar. 'Tommy Atkins' Mangos are so popular and abundant in warmer latitudes that they have been called the "apple of the Simon E. Malo tropics." In the Orient, and in India in particular, man Universi ty of Florida Agricultural Research and Education Center has grown mangos for over 4,000 years. The Aryans Hom es tead, FL 33031 who invaded the Subcontinent around 1500 B.C. re corded their keen partiality for this fruit in the Vedas, the To the uninitiated, the mango conjures feelings of four books which register their complex religious beliefs mystery and fascination, associated with visions of and practices. Ever since the rise of Indian civilization, faraway exotic places. However, it needs no introduc the mango has been inextricably associated with their tion to South Floridians, who have relished it for over 80 culture and folklore. A sacred tree to the orthodox Hin years. Its delicious flavor and aroma captivate the gus dus, it plays an important role in their mythology and tatory senses of local residents during the summer ceremonial rites. Akbar, the great Mughal emperor months, some say making the heat and humidity more reportedly planted the famous Lakh Bagh orchard near bearable. Darbhanga-in northeast India-which, with 100,000 David Fairchild-the great American horticulturist trees, was perhaps the largest in the world of the 16th and mangophile-wrote about Florida's mango season century. 14 in "The World Grows Round My Door": "1 sit here sur- The mango is native to Southeast Asia and is believed to have evolved specifically from the forests of northeast as a form of apomixis. It is significant in that it assures India and northern Burma, where many of the wild uniformity in seed propagation of the Indochinese forms of Mangifera indica L. , and othe species of Mangi mango, since the seedlings are actually a type of clone. fera, are so prevalent. We recognize three races of groups The constantly uniform )1ucelJar seedlings make excel of the cultivated mango. The two most prominent-the lent rootstocks because variability in the root is highly Indian and the Indochinese-differ from each other in undesirable in graftage. certain well defined characteristics. The Indian race has A third, less important group of mangos, is a con totally monoembryonic seeds-as do most plants-i.e. glomerate of assorted types most of which are polyem their seedlings are subject to genetic segrega tion and bryonic. Many are common in the African and American concomitant variability, which leads to the production tropics. Their origin goes back to the dawn of the spice of fruit entirely different from the mother tree. This trade, during which they were introduced to the African group is also known to have, in most cases, a stronger coasts from the Orient by early Arab traders. More re flavor and fragrance, particularly when compared to the cently, Portuguese and Spanish navigators brought Indochinese group, which is generally milder in taste them from India and the Philippine Islands to Brazil, and aroma. This latter group is characterized by being Central America and Mexico. Some polyembryonic polyembryonic, a condition in which the gametic (zygo varieties (apomicts), such as the 'Manila' of Mexico, tic) embryo, if present, seldom if ever develops because have remained largely unchanged since the 16th cen it is inhibited by others whose origin is in the nucellus of tury. Various polyembryonic forms, generally known in the fertilized egg. This phenomenon is also referred to Florida and Central America as "Turpentine" for their Left-Mangos in flow er Above-'Jubilee'Tree peculiar flavor, make ideal rootstocks since their large seeds give vigorous seedlings of uniform size. Under most conditions, the mango is a medium size tree with dense foliage. The leaves are lanceolate, leather-like in texture and dark, dull green when ma ture. Young leaves can be from pale green to a spectacu lar burgundy in color, and always glossy. Trees have the peculiarity that their branches seldom flush out in new growth at the same time. Consequently, during the rainy season a tree may have several flushes in various stages of development with different colors, according to the age of the leaves. Mango trees are sensitive to sudden temperature 15 drops and react unfavorably, sometimes in unpredicta tirely too expensive. An irrigation system with a capac ble ways. They are very susceptible to frost conditions; ity of 1/4 inch per hour will give adequate protection thus, temperatures of 25°F for a night are deadly even to down to a temperature of 20°F, if the wind does not large trees. On the other hand, uninterrupted year blow at speeds over 5 miles per hour. Water prevents around warm weather is ideal for best performance and the temperature from going below 32°F, because as it growth. Consequently, trees are stunted in regions turns to ice it releases a certain amount of heat (heat of where the nights are cool, even if the days are ver;y fusion), which protects plant tissue from cold injury. warm or hot. For instance, Florida cultivars are com Thus, paradoxically the crucial element is to maintain a monly dwarfish in southern California, Israel, the Ca cover of ice on the foliage, continuously washing it with nary Islands and southern Spain, which share an arid, sufficient water so that the ice does not become super semi-desert climate, with considerable fluctuations be cooled, damaging the tissues underneath. tween day and night temperatures. Additionally, the Most of the world's modern commercial mango cul newly formed embryo of young fruit has the peculiarity tivars have originated in South Florida. The farming of being even more susceptible to chilly weather than areas surrounding Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm other plant parts. It aborts if the temperature remains in Beach have been veritable melting pots for a great the high thirties or forties for considerable period£ of number of mango introductions which started in 1833. time, and the resulting condition is a seedless, golf ball That year Henry Perrine brought mango seeds, and sized fruit-commonly referred to as nubbins-which seeds of other tropical fruits, from Mexico, but none of have no commercial value. these plants prospered. Years later in the 1880's, and Mango growing is confined in the continental U.s. to continuing after the turn of the century, many choice the southern third of Florida because unfavorable win Indian and Indochinese cultivars were brought from the ters elsewhere. Even here, in areas below Lake Orient by private growers and by the U.S. Department Okeechobee, the temperature may occasionally of Agriculture. Interestingly enough, none of these in drop-as it did in Jan. 19-20, 1977-to a minimum of troductions proved successful in the humid environ 26°F which spells disaster for mango orchards. At pres ment of South Florida, but outstanding varieties began ent, the best protection again£t these conditions is to appear in their progeny as a result of a blending of sprinkler irrigation, since oil burning in heaters is en- their best characters. Today, we have a considerable "Lord & Burnham makes a truly fine greenhouse. It's the one I chose for myself." "A greenhouse is a very impor tant purchase. You'll probably buy just one - as the fulfillment of a lifetime dream. That's why it really makes good sense to get the best - one that will last and give you years and years of gardening pleasure. That's why I chose Lord & Burn ham - both for my home and for my T.V. series Crockett's Victory Garden. Their product is excellent and has been for over 120 years. If you're thinking about buying a greenhouse, talk to Lord & Burnham first. I never seriously considered anyone else." r------, • ~" LORD & BURNHAM • I Division Burnham Corporation I • IRVINGTON, N.Y. 10533 Dept. 8 • • NAME • Jim Crockett. Star of Crockett's Victory Garden T.V. Series • ADDRESS • Author of the Time-Life Encyclopedia of Gardening I. CITY '. Send today for your copy of the new 1978 Lord & Burnham Catalog, • STATE ZIP I 16 Jim Crockett's personal guide to the finest greenhouses in America . • ______• number of commercial cultivars which excel by their at fects which tend to make them not as profitable to the tractive appearan ce, toleran ce to disease, a nd grower. Good examples of these are 'Sensation', 'Van productivity-three attributes lacking in old world Dyke', 'Jubilee', and 'Smith', which have proved re mangos. markably better in tropical areas with lower humidity The cultivars most likely to be encountered by the than Florida. reader in northern and midwestern ci ties are primarily The overriding and most limiting cultural factor of 'Tommy Atkins' and 'Keitt'. The first is a midseason mango production in most warm areas is susceptibility (mid-July-August) mango which has most of the qual to a nthracnose disease. It is particularly relevant in ities a grower wants, n amely: tolerance to anthracnose Florida because its humid climate encouarges the spread disease (ca used by the pan-tropic fungus Colletotrichul11 and infectivity of the fu ngus. Control requires repeated gleoesporiodes) , outstanding production, and a striking applica tions of fungicides, which start before the growth reddish color. 'Keitt' is a late (August-mid Sepi ) of the panicles and usually end before fruit harvest. mango, also with good productivity and tolerance to Spraying is a costly operation, contributing over 40% to disease, but lacking the attracti ve appearance of 'T. At the price of the frui t. kins'. Its dull, pinkish color and large size is a marked Most of the U.S. cons umption of this mouth disadvantage in marketing. However, with the possible exception of 'Kent', mango connoisseurs would un watering, tropica l delicacy co mes from Florida. Limited hesitatingly put 'Keitt' ahead of most varieties for its imports of Mexican mangos have to be fumigated flavor, fiberlessness and overall outsta nding eating qual against several species of fruit flies which are endemic in ities. There is a concensus that 'Kent' has the most de that country, and which might otherwise threaten the licious, best balanced fl avor of the commercial cultivars vast fruit industry of the U.S. and 'Irwin' has perhaps the mildest taste with the least Mango production is increasing by leaps and bounds fragrance. Other varieties are 'Palmer' and 'Haden', in many tropical areas, encouraged by modern transpor both with the characteristi c strong mango flavor which ta ti on and fruit handling facilities. Indeed , jet appeals to the experienced taste buds of Floridians. tra n sport-by solving the age old problem of Small quantities of other promising cultivars are also spoilage-is quickly making " the apple of the tropics" a produced; however, they are handicapped by small de- world-wide item of commerce. 0 Revolutionize Your Gardening T With The Garden Weasel • New tool from Europe cultivates Order yours today. (delivery with half the effort. Thms weeds to within two weeks of order). mulch before they get a start. At last there is an easier, more r ONLY $29.957 POSTPAID.., effectfve way to handle tough Ma il c heck or money order for _____ gardening chores. The Garden G a rden Weasels of 1 V2 ", uproot Expiration Date ______young weeds, and plants and roses. More than Signat ure -,-,--- :-;--:c;-:---,----- reduce the drag 300,000 patented Garden . Missouri residents add 4% sales tax and labor Weasels have been TO: associated with an old-fashioned purchased by gardeners in GARDEN WEASEL Europe over 1013 We st 8th Stree t IB-861 hoe or cultivator. Kansas City. Missouri 64 101 Removable tine sets and a short the past 3 handle for flower years. Units NAME ______box gardening make are precision ADDRESS ______ the Garden Weasel manufactured C1TY ______many tools in one. in West You can even work Germany of STATE ______Z IP ____ MONEY BACK GUARANTEE safely around your rust-free, If you 're not delighted, return wi thin 15 days for full youngest, tenderest pressure-cast alloy. refund. ..J L ------17 0pul1tia cOl11pressa ga Rock Garden 1( In the rock garden, rocks and Lynne Meyer gravel are used in many ways: as a 10705 Great Arbor Drive Potomac, MD 20854 garden path or mulch, or as a scree or moraine, incorporated into the soil. But, most importantly, these The presence of rocks does not materials serve as the structural guarantee the creation of a rock framework of the garden. How garden. Rocks contribute a variation rocks are used is important and in form and texture in many land should reflect the natural origins of scape settings. the rock garden, both in types of A rock garden features particular rock selected and their placement. types of plants which have a natural The best site for a rock garden is association with rocks in their na an existing natural rock outcrop tiv ~ habitats. A " true" rock garden is frequently confused with another ping. This is a rare situation. Most type of garden with rocks, the"rock gardeners will have to select a site ery". This garden contains mix and construct from scratch. An ap tures of plants: fruit trees, annuals, propriate and favorable location is highly bred double-flowered per the first prerequisite to a successful ennials, as well as a representation garden. An existing slope is a good of "rock plants". beginning, particularly one that "Alpine gardens" and "rock gar faces frequently-used, outdoor dens" are terms often used areas, where one can spend long synonymously, but "alpine gar moments contemplating the deli dens" represent a special type of Rock gardens are thought to have cate textures and intricate patterns garden in which only alpine or developed in China some centuries of the flowers and foliage of the rock mountain flora are grown. Climate B.C. An account of the eighteenth garden plants. A north or northwest frequently limits gardeners in their century garden of the Emperor of orientation is ideal. It helps prevent culture of alpine plants. The alpine China in Peking describes a view of rapid moisture depletion, which garden is often incorporated into a "stones and rocks scattered to pro often occurs on southern slopes. larger rock garden with the specific duce a deceptively wild and rustic The loca tion of the garden calls for a goal of simulating one of nature's effect-to seem truly a work of na naturalistic surrounding, not one alpine regions, characterized by ture!" Rock gardens were also a part which is formal or architectural in waterfalls, pools, and conifers. of seventeenth century England, character. Flat areas can be carefully An exotic garden may also be a and became increasingly popular in regraded to include a variety of part of a rock garden with flora from the late eighteen-hundreds through slopes and to recreate nature's desert regions. The red, purple, and the efforts of William Robinson, an areas, where rocks appear emerging ochre colors of desert rocks, how ardent proponent of the naturalistic through eroded soil. Nature's rock ever, are difficult to use away from school of design. He gave to their gardens are not always pretty their natural setting. The warmth design a variety and intricate detail, places; they have a starkness and and vibrancy of these colors need the result of his extensive knowl vastness which cannot be easily re the strong sun and crystal blue skies edge of wild flowers and alpine produced. We must apply lessons 18 of the desert. plants. nature teaches us about using rocks and placing plants. The first thing to ground springs during a relatively foliage texture and color, as well as learn is not to use too many rocks. short growing period. In most gar of flowers. Most rock garden plants The dominance of stone, except dens, there is a need to supply have fine textured foliage. Many perhaps in a small alpine area, will water for longer periods, and to add exhibit leaves with shades of blue or make a garden harsh. Rocks should water-holding humus to all but the gray-green. The careful combina not cover more than two-fifths of top inch of scree material. As large tion of textures and colors through the area. As plants grow and rocks form our.garden cliffs with the out the garden in rhythmic patterns spread, they should be contained so scree below, dwarf conifers repre can create a beautiful effect. Flowers that at least one-tenth of the area sent forest trees. The scree is the may not be necessary in the rock remains rock. In nature's gardens, perfect background to exhibit these garden to produce interest or the exposed surfaces of rocks vary characteristics. Dwarf conifers can beauty, but are always enjoyed. in size and height. Most rocks ap have a value equal with rocks in Many rock plants have small flow pear firmly imbedded in the earth. forrning the structural frame of the ers easily missed unless closely This "iceberg effect" is important. garden. In a small garden, one viewed. Others have their small In na ture, as soil is eroded the specimen may set the theme and flowers grouped in fairly large, cleavage lines of the rocks become scale for the entire design. Cedrus showy clusters. Although spring apparent. In alpine regions, cal deodara 'Pendula' is a graceful, will be the time for an abundance of careous zones exhibit horizontal or weeping choice. Picea abies 'Pen bright flower colors, plants can be onl y sligh tl y inclined fiss ures. dula' is also good. chosen to provide flowers through Siliceous ranges often have vertical Rocks and gravel make an effec out the summer months as well. fissures, sharply pointed crests, and tive mulch in nonscree areas until Nature plants in large masses, slopes covered with rubble. In the plants spread to fill the spaces be which are repeated across her gar average garden (approximately two tween rocks. Large, flat stones are den. These masses are punctuated hundred square feet), at least one an ideal material for steps and by smaller groupings to provide rock should be large enough to walkways. They last forever and are contrast in unending variety, with make machine handling necessary. harmonious. Gravel can be used but all colors displayed in a continuous Irregular spacing of various sized requires replacement and is some kaleidoscope. Many rock plants in rocJ trogen at one time, yet feeding One defect in this method of feed Fertilizers plants over a long growing season, ing is that the effect is gone about as COl/ til/li ed fro lll page 9 several methods of slowing down fast as it has taken place. Only a lim con ventional garden fertilizers. nitrogen release have been devel ited amount of plant food can be Since these are pure plant food, oped. A chemical in regular com applied to a leaf. For this reason, fol with no added fillers or carriers, mercial use at present is called a iar feeding is largely a device for shipping costs per unit of fertilizer ureaform. It is·a soft plastic made by quiek stimulation; but as a supple are lowered. This reduces cost to reacting urea and formaldehyde. ment to regular soil fertilization, it the user. This plastic breaks down slowly and has its place. releases the nitrogen it contains at Light Weight Fertilizer Formulas Lawn Fertilizers about the rate grass can absorb it. The breakdown is slightly affected In order to use fertilizers prop Because of high shipping costs, by soil chemicals and moisture, but erly, we must know how to read an and as a convenience to gardeners is largely caused by bacterial action. analysis and figure out how much who cannot handle 50-pound bags, As a result, ureaform fertilizer alone of each element a given product ac light weight lawn fertilizers have is slow to act in spring and does not tually contains. Since nitrogen is the been developed. Practically all of release in late fall, but does an out most costly ingredient and is the these analyze about 20 percent ni standing job of feeding during element most often in short supply, trogen, 10 percent phosphorus, and warm weather. Newer plastic fer the usual practice is to figure for this 5 percent potash, and are sold in tilizers have been introduced re element and take the others for bags weighing between 20 and 22 cently which have similar qualities. granted. pounds. Ureaforms, of course, supply A great deal of fuss is made about Ureaform Nitrogen only nitrogen and are not complete ratios, most of it unnecessary. turf fertilizers. They are at their best About the only place where ratio is In an attempt to solve the prob as ingredients in mixed fertilizers; really important is when low lem of applying large amounts of ni- but to be sure of their long-feeding phosphorus lawn fertilizers are es advantages, at least 50 percent of sential to the proper functioning of the mixture should be ureaform. pre-emergence crab grass controls Some quickly-available type of ni con taining calcium arsenate. In trogen should be used for early practically every other place where feeding before soils warm up. fertilizers are used, no such thing as Straight urea form is a particularly a perfect-ratio general fertilizer valuable ingredient to be used when exists. This may sound like heresy planting nursery stock. The critical to rose enthusiasts, who have been period for newly planted trees and known to spend an entire evening shurbs is usually the first two years session of a rose club arguing the of growth. If well fed with nitrogen, merits of formula "A" versus for they are usually able to survive and mula " B". thrive whatever conditions occur lat True, a fertilizer to exactly fit the er. Many nurserymen add a mix needs of a specialty crop, such as ture of half sewerage sludge and roses, could be devised for a given half ureaform nitrogen to the soil soil under given cultural methods. used in covering roots of newly About the only effect of such a per planted stock. fect ratio would be to avoid the waste of a minuscule amount of one Foliar Feeding or more nutrient elements. !IIANYONE CAN DO ITIII COmpleh?ly soluble plant foods Much of the pother about analysis !!!SAVE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS III are often applied in solution to the arises out of the fact that farmers, !!!LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE REAL STONEIII leaves of plants. These are absorbed when planting a field of 50 to 100 It'a TRUEI The stone on the fireplace pictured aoove and are almost instantly available to was made lor less than $50! AND. it LOOKS and FEELS acres to a single crop, do find this so REAL it's unbelievable!!! I invented the process. and the plant. This is one reason why ifs so SIMPLE, it amazes me why nobody has tIlought factor of importance. By omitting or to try it before!!! You can make it in any color! Use it many liquid fertilizers gain such a inside or out! Cover fireplace. wall, cookout, fou'1dation! including a certain element in Make your own planters, cornerstones for driveways, reputation for stimulating growth. THOUSANDS OF USES,,· GUARANTEED 100%111 exactly the right amounts, savings FREE BRQCHURE. However, costly liquids are not nec Paten I Applied 10f 797' *© Darrell Wri ght 19n of several hundreds of dollars can STONE, Fox Bay Road, Dept. 7-1 , essary. Most dry, completely solu be effected. Loris,S.C.29569. Phone: (803)756-8175 True, fertilizers can be overused. Dealer Franchise Inquiries Invited. ble fertilizers can be used in this 28 manner. Most experienced gardeners have seen lawns burned by too much ni Using Fertilizers trogen. This, h owever, would be Although fertilizer bags always the result wh e ther the lawn fer give specific directions for applying tilizer used had 12 percent phos the products they contain, these are phorus instead of 5 percent; or 8 of little use, except as a rough guide percent pota sh instead of 4 percent. to safe limits. Usually, they err on It is the excess that does the dam the side of conservatism to avoid age, not the analysis. claims of injury caused by overuse. What is not appreciated is that In mos t instances, these can be plant roots are selective. So long as doubled with safety on most soils. enough of each element is availble In the case of lawn fertilizers, to meet normal needs, and pro overstating coverage is a survival of vided any excess ca n be buffered or Send today for my FREE the day when one pound of actual fact filled, informative absorbed in the soil, plants w ill nitrogen was considered a good ap COLOR CATALOG thrive. plication for 1,000 square feet of turf Since nitrogen is the most costly for an entire growing season. To Full size, home gardener, element, let's see how to figure for day, from four to eight times that quality California it. The formula usually includes amount is cons idered desirable REDWOOD greenhouses. only three elements-Nitrogen, where maximum luxury growth is FREESTANDING MODELS, Phosphorus and Potash. These are wanted. LEAN·TO AND DOMES! the elements which all states insist In general, heavy clay soils and 95 must appear on the bag. This usu those high in organic matter can ab From$134 ally appears as 10-10-10 or 4-12-4. sorb and store anywhere from two The first number stands for nitro to ten times rates recommended ~ RUmuliEA-. gen, the second for phosphorus and on bags with safety. Poor, thin soils THE GREENHOUSEMAN® cannot be fed as heavily with safety the third for potash. The figures 980 17th Ave., Dept. 71·F given are percentag€s. In order to to plants. Because they need more Santa Cruz, Calif. 95062 reduce them to pounds, consider nutrient elements, and because they them as decimals. That is, if we are lose these faster than heavier soils, dealing with a 10-8-6, we multiply plants must be fed often and in the weight of the bag (say 50 lighter doses, usually at the recom pounds) by .10 to give us nitrogen, mended rates. (a total of 5 pounds); by .08 to give Soil s also benefit from the ele us phosphorus, (a total of 4 ments added by organic materials. pounds); and b y .06 to give us Such material improves conditions potash, (a total of 3 pounds). for the vi tal microorganisms. A t Although you should consider least one fertilizer appli ca tion dur what form of fertilizer you are buy ing the year should be an organic ing (chemical, organic, ureaform, material such as sludge, well-rotted Increase your growing compost or animal m anures. If mixed ureaform), in general, you these are not readily available, sub space with a can figure that a pound of nitrogen stitute peat moss and add a chemi Janco Greenhouse in one form does the same work as a cal fertilizer. Application during the When you've run out of space for your pound of nitrogen in another. Di summer months is best. indoor plants ...when you want to "open viding the cost of a bag b y the up" a living or family room, bedroom or No two soils are alike. Every gar number of pounds of nitrogen it kitchen to sunshine & flowers ...when den owner must run his own tests you want "growing pleasure" all year contains is a simple way of figuring of responses to added plant foods. round, then you're ready for an all alumi num, minimum-maintenance Janco. out whether you are getting your The one important thing to keep in Quality, price, design-these are the 3 money's worth. mind is that if a fertilizer is com major reasons customers give for choos For example, a 50-pound bag of plete, containing all the minor or ing a Janco. Over 100 lean-to & curved eave models to fit any site, every budget. sewage sludge at $4 looks like a trace elements, as well as the " Big Write for FREE 48-pg. full color cata tremendous bargain against a 25- Three" of Nitrogen, Phosphorus log today--compare our quality, price pound bag of urea form at $8, but and Potash, plants will take what & design I when the former is figured out as they need. If the pH reading of the Janco Greenhouses co£ting $1 .33 a pound for nitrogen soil is kept between 6.0 and 6.9, all Dept. AH-6 and the latter at $0 .64, the reverse is these elements should stay in avail 9390 Davis Avenue true. able form. 0 Laurel, Md. 20810 29 (301) 498-5700 Ground Covers as ShadyAristocrats species eventually form a dense, dark green turf. While Gary L. Koller Liriope spicata is fairly uniform in appearance, Liriope Supervisor of Th e Living Collections Th e Arnold Arboretum muscari displays a considerable variation in height, floral Howard University, color, foliage and vigor, depending on the cultivar Jamaica Plain, MA 02130 selected. Flowers occur in short spikes in late summer and vary in color from white through rose to purple, Established gardens often present two major prob again depending on the variety. The Liriopes' greatest lems for gardeners. One is scattered plantings of large attributes are that they are evergreen, tolerant of poor trees and shrubs which have little visual or spatial unity. soils, drought, dense shade and intense root competi The second problem, imposing greater limitations, is tion. Hardiness is not reliable below approximately 10°F. varying degrees of shade, which inhibits the growth of The visual monotony of a large expanse of Liriope can be understory plants, and results from existing plantings, relieved by interplanting with Hosta or Hemerocallis to shade cast by walls, fences, and overhead structures. create textural patterns. One landscape element which offers a solution for both Yellow Archangel (Lamia strum galeobdolon 'Var issues is ground covers. These plants add the finishing iegatum') is a relative newcomer when used as a ground touch to the landscape by visually tying together sepa cover. This plant grows rapidly by sending out long rate elements into one cohesive design. shoots which creep across the soil and root at each leaf In plant selection, it becomes crucial to consider the joint. The plant is deciduous but growth begins early in limitations imposed by shade and seek plants tolerant of spring, and during May the plant is adorned with small, this environment. Shade-tolerant species occur natu yellow flowers. Its greatest attribute is the silvery-white rally as understory plants in woodland areas. Here, cen leaf markings which add a brightening effect to the turies of natural selection pressures have adapted a gloom of dark areas. In its great enthusiasm to spread, wide range of woody and herbaceous species to op Yellow Archangel can become invasive; however, best timum growth under the stress of low light levels, as growth occurs in soils high in organic matter. Lamias well as the competition for water and nutrients, im trum , previously known as Lamium galeobdolon , is attrac posed by the roots of large trees and shrubs. tive blended with masses of Ho sta or tall-growing ferns Ground covers highly successful in considerable for textural, color, and height contrast. shade are Vinca minor, Pa chysandra terminalis, Convallaria The Bishophats (Epim edium sp.) are among the most majalis, Ajuga rep tans and the various forms of Hedera persistent and dependable ground covers over time. helix and Euonymus fortunei. Because these plants are They form dense colonies which grow eight to twelve tough, competitive and easy to care for, they have been inches tall and spread in ever-increasing dumps by un subject to overuse in the landscape. But many people derground stems. The green leaves are heart-shaped, never look beyond these fine plants to the exciting and especially beautiful in texture and subtle coloration range of possibilities which exist for the gardener lucky as they unfurl in the spring. Flowers appear with or just enough to have shade. Here are some additional sug after the new leaves have expanded, and in a few in gestions: stances are hidden in the foliage. In most, the flowers Creeping Lily turf (Liriop e spicata) is a grass like plant are visible as finely branched clusters of white, yellow, which grows six inches tall and spreads rapidly by pink or red flowers. These plants tolerate dense shade rhizomes. Lily turf (Liriope muscari) is a taller version, with best growth occurring in moist, organic soils. varying from twelve to eighteen inches in height, and Vancouveria (Vancouveria hexandra) is an American na 30 growing in slowly spreading, tufted dumps. Both tive with a growth habit similar to the Epimediums. Growing six to twelve inches tall , it spreads outward by underground stems and sends up thin, wiry stems ter minated by graceful, fine textured, li ght green leaves. It is slow to reestablish upon tra nsplanting, but eventuall y fo rms a dense, persistent ca rpet, tolerant of poor soil conditions. Flowering occurs in June with delica te, fin e tex tured panicles of white fl owers. Sweetwoodruff (Ga li ul17 odoratum) is an old garden plant of deli cacy and charm, lacking in many garden schemes. This decid uous plant with light green foliage for ms a dense ca rpet six to eight inches tall. Galium bears tiny, white star-shaped fl owers in May, which remain attractive for several weeks. Best growth occurs in moist, organi c soils; however, this plant, at its best, is rampant and ca n quickly take over an area. Recently, this author has seen Galium used in co mbi- Left- £lIdllYIIlIi S for tullei Above- Liriope II/li senr i nation with Asarum europeum, w hich h as bold, shiny, dark green leaves six to eight inches in height. The tex tural and color contrast between the. two plants was dramatic and highly ornamental. You might also con sider mixing Galium w ith occasional drifts of Lily-of the-Valley (Convallaria majalis) for contrast of h eight, leaf color and texture. H owever, the Lily-of-the-Valley is so enthusiastic in its growth that it needs to be thinned out occasionally. Another companion plant is Corydalis lutea, with blue-green, fine-cut foilage. It grows nine to twelve inches tall and bears yellow fl owers through out the summer. Once established by seed, this plant can also become invasive and will charmingly invade neglected corners of the garden . Creeping Forget-Me-Not (Omphalodes verna) is a plant of prostrate trailing habit, w hi ch spreads rapidly by sto lons. Its striking ornamental fea ture is the small, white eyed , brilliant blue fl owers, w hich appear in earl y spring. This plant is intolerant of drought and full sun, so best growth occurs in sh ade and moist, organic soils. Consider creating drifts of Astilbe within a mass of Creeping Forget-Me-Not to add visual relief and extend COll tinued 011 page 37 31 Canada. They are readily grown dug with a root ball or established in Willows outdoors in small containers where Continued from page 25 containers during the dormant sea light is adequate. Their naturally son. When willows are transplanted purp urea 1. X 5ilesia ca Willd. dwarf growth habits and gnarled in leaC the foliage wilts or turns yel (20369), in the Soil Conservation branches make them suitable for low and drops off; the new foliage Service collection from Czecho bonsai specimens or for growing in gradually replaces it. By stripping slovakia have grown to 5 m tall and the rock garden. Among native off most of the leaves at transplant 1 m wide after five years. These species growing in the rocky alpine ing time, the few remaining leaves could be used as a substitute for areas of America are 5. herbacea 1., retain turgidity and the plants re Lombardy poplar, Populus nigra L. found in New Hampshire and cover more easily from their trans var. italica Muenchh., in narrow northward; 5. rotundifolia Trautv. planting shock as they develop a hedges or for accent plants in order ssp. dodgerana (Rydb.) Argus, one of nE?W set of leaves. to avoid the poplar canker problem. the smallest "trees" in the world, OrnamE?ntal willows require well grows on calcareous alpine slopes Weeping Willows drained, fertile soil; an annual ap from Alaska to western Northwest plication of fertilizer; and pruning In America, the best known and Territories with a disjunct popula back of the older growth in early most widely planted weeping wil tion in Montana and Wyoming; 5. spring after flowering to stimulate low is 5. babylonica 1. (23466) . It was reticulata L. , the wrinkled willow, an strong new shoots and buds for brought from China to Europe and unusually attractive plant grows maximum production of catkins. England in 1692. On the island of from Alaska to Labrador: and 5. Severe pruning of the fantail willow St. Helena, Napolean's favorite tree uva-ursi Pursh., the bearberry wil is essential for production of the de was this weeping willow, and such low found from Alaska to Labrador sired fasciated, curled, and curved great numbers of cuttings from it and south to New York. These and shoots. were distributed in Europe and other species of dwarf willows may Willows for commercial forcing America that many willows in this be available from nurseries or ar are cut back in March or April be country may trace their ancestry to boreta in this country. However, we fore growth starts to three or four this tree. This willow grows 12 - 20 should discourage the collection of buds on the strongest shoots of the m tall and its long, green branches these species in their native alpine previous year in order to stimulate may touch the ground. Other weep habitat because of the difficulty of maximum shoot growth with cat ing willows are available in nurse transplanting them and also be kins for the next crop. The colora ries including the Wisconsin weep cause of their scarcity in nature. tion of yellow or red barked willows ing willow, S. X blanda Anderss. (5. Propagation, Transplanting is most intense on the stems of the babylonica X fragilis) . However, the and Culture previous year's growth. Annual fer long, pendulous branches of this tilization and hard pruning, E?ven to variety are brittle and litter the lawn Dormant cuttings of willows in 15 the ground, will E?nhance the bea uty more than those of other willows. cm lengths are readily rooted under of these trees the next year. mist when they are placed in peat The Thurlow weeping willow, Preparing Decorative Material 5. X blanda cv. Elegantissima, also is pellets or pots containing a rooting a highly ornamental tree with long, medium. A rooting hormone has Willow branches are used in dec green, pendulous branches. The tens rooting. After two to four orations when the catkins are partly identity of these three willows is weeks when roots have formed, the expanded, preferably before the an often confused. plants are set in 10 cm pots and thers open and shed pollen. To The golden weeping willow,S. grown on in the greenhouse or cold bring them into proper condition, alba cv. Tristis (23468) , with bright frame until they are planted in the the dormant shoots should be held yellow, pendulous branches is field. Willow cuttings can be rooted in vessels of water at cool tempera highly ornamental in the winter in water or in benches or boxes of ture (15°C.). Occasional spraying of landscape. sand or perlite and then trans the shoots with water to maintain planted to pots; but they may die if high humidity insures against de Dwarf Willows for Rock Gardens the brittle roots are broken. Willows hydration. and Bonsai may also be propagated in outdoor The corkscrew willow shoots may Warren-Wren (7) discusses 48 wil beds or fields by planting 30-cm be used for floral design work while lows that grow as dwarf shrubs or dormant cuttings in a vertical posi dormant or they may be forced until trailing plants in rocky or gravelly tion and leaving no more than five the new leaflets appear that add to areas in the Arctic or alpine regions to seven cm of the top end exposed. their interest in arrangements. of Eurasia and America. Some of Bare roots of dormant plants are Pests these are native to the mountain re- easily damaged in transplanting so Insects attack some willows more 32 gions of the United States and for best results, willows should be severely than others, but in most I· cases, the plants do not need spray 'I Textures I: ing to prevent damage to next sea COlllillIlCr! {rolll pnSr! 11 son's growth. The copper blue im I' ported w illow leaf beetle, Plagiodera a nd milkweed pods against October versico lor (Laich artin g), and Ja p wind. !I " an ese beetl es, Pop ill ia japo ni ca Now that I have grandchildren, I I.- Newman, may have to be sprayed if wa nt to share with them the sensi ~ II they appear. If the willow beaked ti ve and exuberant world of bud, J~ WALLS gall midge, Mayetiola rigidae blossom and seed. For that is w hat (Osten-Sachen), attacks susceptible our own li ves are. The chil dren are Vegetable Factory® willows such as S. cap rea, the galls lea rning to step li ghtly in the grass, sh ould be cut and d estroyed by compare the colors of moss, and see SOLAR PANEL March 1 or before the adults emerge the configu ra ti on of liche n. This is (5), but m ost willows discussed in th e wid e-open secret I have to GREENHOUSE this article are either immune or lit share. As th y discover each new tle damaged by this pest. On e of plant, as we test together the spiny USES 60% several species of borers may attack sea urchin, or marvel at the fritil lary, our world expands. LESS HEAT. branch es and lower stems of wil This practical thermal wall greenhouse lows. Cut and destroy infes ted parts Tha t same expansion finds its solves the energy cost problem. Patented rigid double-wall construction, tested in promptly to prevent ex tensive dam way into my tapestries. Nearly all Vermonl. Cost about V3 as much to heat my d esign s a re large. A M urex as ord inary greenhouses. More than pays age. lor Itself in heat savi ngs alone .. Exclusive, Watermark, a disease caused by ha nging of organdy is seven feet lactory direct only. All models and sizes, high. Embroidered in wool on or 5 year wa rranty. Free Color Brochure. the bacteria, Erwinia salicis (Day) Call or Write lor Inlormation Chester, causes w ilting and death of gandy, it h a ngs, su spended, to willows in several European coun ca tch the li g h t. O ther organdy ~"--_----,,.... - P.O. Box 2235 Dept. AH-6 tries. It is n ot known to occur in ha ngings, e mbroidered o n bo th Grand Central Station Ame rica . Any imported w ill ows sides, of dandelion, nautilus, marsh New York, N.Y. 10017 (212) 867 -01 13 sh ould b e observed under strict grass, all magnify the exqu isite quarantine before release. 0 s tructure of their n a tural forms. Where windows look out on barren city scenes, I have my transparent References tapestries to form a world of light Literature Cited and beauty. Someti mes I spen d hours examin 1. Carlson, J. R., and J. O . Preston. ing the curve of blossom and leaf of 1976. Streamco purp le osier wil a single plant. I have watched the Your plaee in low. A me ri ca n N u rseryma n , pa tterns of rain with a magnify ing p. 29, July 15. glass. All of this intimate knowl the sun. 2. Hillier a nd Sons. 1973. H illi ers' edge is part of my preparation for .. . for year 'round gardening. Manual of Trees and Shrubs. Ed. each tapestry. • Over 90 Lean-To and Free 3, 576 pp. Salix pp. 349- 358. Standing models. Precision 3. Holmes, F. O. 1974. Willows as nec These impressions are then trans prefabricated to assemble easily, tar plants. G leanings in Bee Cul lated into embroidery on handwo Quickly. Totally Quality engineered. Full accessories ture, 1202(2):40-41. ven wool or organdy. My materials line including automatic 4. Rehder, Alfre d . 1951. Manual of Cul come from countries as remote as climate controls. tiva ted Trees and Shrubs Hardy in North America. MacMillan and Bolivia and Southwest Africa. I pre Company, 2nd ed. , 996 pp. fer natural colors and the staining 5. Smith, Floyd F. , Ralph E. Webb, colors of wild plants. J. A . Di ckerso n , a nd H . W. With my tapestries, I often find Everett. 1975. Willow beaked-gall that I write poem s to help establish midge: control by insecticides and pruning. J. Economic Entomol, the rhythm for the final design . All 68(3):392-394. my good han gings have rhythm. I 6. Stott, K. G. 1962/63. New uses for think this is because I come from the willow. Coed wigwt: The Forester, edge of the sea wh ere the motion of 4: 83 - 88. wind and water is so compelling. 7. Warren-Wren, S. C. 1973. The Com plete Book of Will ows. A. S. In my art form I try to capture the Barnes and Co., Inc., Cranbury, strength and tenderness that I find N .J . 08512, 179 pp. in nature." o 33 The Cary Arboretum was established as a division of the New York Botanical Garden in 1971, through a gift of land and funds from the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable IHE Trust. The heart of the nearly 2,000 acre property is a pair of small mountains, known as the Canoe Hills, the highest of which is the site of Mrs. Cary's summer aiRY house, the Tea House, with a breathtaking view west across the Hudson River valley to the distant Catskill Mountains. Spreading from the west slopes is a large tract of relatively flat bottomland, sinuously cut by the East Branch of Wappinger's Creek, flowing toward the Hudson River fifteen miles away. The lowland marshes are flanked by meadows, filled in autumn with wildflowers-deep blue gentians, purple bergamot, gold and yellow black-eyed Susans and goldenrod, and blazing masses of lythrum, accented by white flashes of meadow rue and boneset. North and south, rolling, upland farms give way to forests and deep ravines. In the east, Wappinger's Creek dances through a massive gorge, dark beneath dense stands of virgin hemlock, but enlivened by occa sional sun shards that glint from riffles and rustling falls . In quiet pools, sleek, brown trout inspect the pass ing possibilities. Many different soil types, exposures, Willard W. Payne, Director slopes and drainage conditions produce a rich array of Millbrook, N Y 12545 habitats and species, and offer a wealth of environmen tal situations for ecological study and experimentation. The programs of education, research, and horticulture being developed here are concentrated in four basic areas, emphasizing living systems, and are designed to complement the programs of systematic botany, biochemical research, and horticulture, for which the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx is so well known. The core of the instructional program is use of the Arboretum as a resource center for ecological and evolutionary studies at college and graduate levels, in cooperation with several area colleges. Doctoral training is conducted through a special affiliation with the State University of the New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse. A number of adult education courses are offered to area residents, and these are facilitated by classrooms and laboratories in the Gifford House, an early nineteenth-century Federalist country home that, after extensive remodel ing, now serves as the Arboretum's Education and Vis itor Center. Here also is a gift shop, a special activities room for the Friends of the Cary Arboretum, and an instructional resource center that includes facilities where visiting area teachers can find resources to be used in their own classrooms. The Arboretum works with the Garden in the Bronx to broaden the learning experiences of horticulture students enrolled in the State-certified horticulture program; and students 34 studying for the certificate spend at least one semester working with the Arboretum staff in settings and on projects that are not possible in the urban environment and more fully developed campus of the Bronx. Wildlife abounds in the forested regions of southeast ern New York, where the Arboretum is located. White tailed deer, woodchucks, rabbits, and many species of rodents constitute a formidable threat to sensitive plant ings of seedlings and sa pling trees. For this reason, the Arboretum supports a full program of wildlife study, designed to ex plore mechanisms for controlling animal populations and reducing plant damage. Wherever pos sible, fencing is eschewed in favor of natural control measures, including baiting. When necessary, however, innova tive fencing techniques seek to combine effec ti veness with minimal upkeep and maximum aesthetic acceptability for the landscape. As with any li vi ng plant facility, the Arboretum ac cumulates ornamental plants that delight visitors and enli ven the buildings, offices, and grounds. These are displayed in a formative visitors' program that so far includes twice-weekly tours of the grounds, green houses, and other buildings. The Cary Arboretum also serves as the host institu tion and organizer for the Russian-American botanical collectors' exchange program. The temperate woody floras of the USSR and the USA are closely related. Dur ing the Tertiary Period, many temperate plants had a widespread range, but with the onset of the advancing glaciers, managed to survive only in a few relic areas, such as the Appalachian Mountains in the USA and the Caucasus Mountains in Asia Minor. During the two years of activity, the Arboretum has accumulated seeds of several hundred specimens from the Caucasus Moun tains and from Central Asia, many of which have never before been grown in this hemisphere. The program provides opportunity to develop a living genetic bank of natural stocks from throughout Russia, and this will be come a central feature of the Cary Arboretum's collec tions in the years to come. In most instances, seeds col lected in Russia, and on forays throughout America to satisfy the needs of Russian scientists visiting here on reciprocal, collecting trips, are available for exchange. They enrich the Cary Arboretum's Index Seminum which features seeds of the northeastern United States. This seed list, one of the largest in the United States, is made up almost entirely of seed collected from the wild. The Horticulture Department, working with the Edu cation Department, is also responsible for planning spe cial educational displays on the grounds. A fern glen is presently being developed with the aid of the American Fern Society that will include the largest and most di verse collection of naturalized, temperate ferns and fern allies to be found in the northeastern United States. Another project is a native tree walk, stretching through 35 several natural and successional ecosystems, and incor conflicts that will arise between technological demands porating a great diversity of the species found in this and aesthetic needs, as we increasingly must manage fl oristic region . the natural landscape to enable us to exploit it to substi Ecological and systematic research includes studies of tute, at least partially, photosynthate for petroleum plant-insect co-adaptation as seen in the biology of products. ex tra-floral nectaries and nectar, plus investigation of Nowhere is the concern for sound energy practices the evolutionary and ecological significance of nectar more vividly expressed than in the exciting new Plant from floral glands. Other areas of interest include the Science Building, the administrative and research center evolutionary biology of induments and pollen of a vari that houses the library, plus a variety of laboratories and ety of taxonomic groups, and of nutrient partitioning meeting facilities. This is the largest, privately financed, among the co-existing species in natural communities. solar-heated building in the United States. In addition Many of these studies are enhanced by the availability of to being heated preponderantly with solar heat (at least laboratory, herbarium, and library facilities in the Bronx, 85 percent of the total annual requirement) captured in and by support from the diverse staff there. ranks of collectors on the roof ridges, the building in These and other investigations undergird the several corporates many energy-saving devices that will pro research and education programs oriented toward vide examples of, and offer opportunities for, energy plants and man. In one such program, we are attempt conservation experimentation. Among the features: the ing to develop haploid strains of American elm to be two-story building is sunk in the ground, with the lower used in breeding for resistance to Dutch elm disease. In story buried and the upper partially encased in soil another, precise investigation of the pollution tolerances bermed up around the walls; the masonry walls are un of urban trees is being studied. Selected clones and usually massive to provide heat sinks that tend to seedling populations are exposed to known concentra stabilize the temperature in summer or winter; the ex tions of common atmospheric pollutants, and are then ceptionally effective insulation is exterior to the walls subjected to field trials in circumstances ranging from and roof elements (rather than within them), providing the heavily polluted streets of central New York City to a protective shell that is unbroken for the entire build the relatively pollution-free atmosphere of the Ar ing; insulated skylights provide general lighting wher boretum grounds. The Arboretum supports a program ever possible, and electric lighting is made most effec of urban tree study and collaborates with several local tive as task lighting with illumination concentrated only corpmunities in investigations of street tree problems where work is to be performed; all skylights and win and urban forestry. The urban tree work has included dows, including window walls in the library and meet preparation of detailed analyses and management plans ing rooms, can be covered manually at night with insu for the communities involved, including ingenious, lated panels to reduce heat loss; hands are washed with key-like mechanisms for finding species or clones espe tepid water heated to appropriate temperatures by the cially suitable for the particular circumstances of soil, solar system, and not cooled to acceptable temperatures shade, sidewalk or pavement, height, and growth fea after overheating as in conventional systems; even the tures that are inherent in considering the desirability of restroom lights are on timers, spring wound as one en plants for actual urban sites. ters the facility, providing frequent reminder of the need The Arboretum also serves as a center for assessment for concern for energy use. of the likely impact of major economic development Library collections at the Arboretum emphasize en projects on the ecosystems and human populations in ergy literature, in addition to serving the biological and the tropics . Recen t work has been carried out in horticultural needs of the staff. Daily service brings Bangladesh, Malaysia, Surinam, Brazil, Argentina, Col books to the Arboretum from the Bronx, and weekly ombia, Nicaragua, and Guatemala, under contract with trips by the Arboretum librarian enable him to work leading international organizations such as the World personally at the main collection in the Bronx on refer Bank. In the United States, Cary staff has also led the ence requirements of the research personnel. The library way in studying use and development of rights-of-way is regularly open to the public. for power lines as carefully integrated elements, not The Cary Arboretum is unique in America today, only of the landscape but of the ecosystem, seeking being a young institution that is committed to develop ways to structure them to provide food and refuge for ment as a major center for plant biology education and wildlife and for plant species usually found only at forest clearing ecotones. research, emphasizing living organisms from this coun As a basic tenet of its philosophy, the Arboretum is try and abroad that can be grown in the northeastern committed to energy conservation and to good, en United States. As an organization now in only its vironmentally sound, energy management. An educa seventh year, the Arboretum is in an active growth tional program in woodlot management is combined phase, with many facets of its work still taking shape. with wood production from grounds maintenance to As the grounds and collections mature, so will its pro provide fuel for several wood-fired boilers used to heat grams. We want always, however, to remain youthful in houses, repair shops, and maintenance sheds. This is outlook, receptive to change and innovation, continu 36 part of a growing program that will attempt to study the ally in cycles of maturity and rejuvenation. 0 vary according to variety and give the gardener oppor Ground Covers tunities for design flexibility. Astilbes thrive in low, COlltinu ed frolll pnge 31 moist sites and look stunning highlighting the edge of a the flowering period of a landscape area. Ol17pha/odes is stream. For the gardener with rich woodsy soil, or will great as an underplanting to face down a border of ing to supplement the soil with leaf mold or compost, shrubs. these plants can be used almost anywhere in the shade. Strawberry Begonia (Saxifraga st%nifera), a trailing Once established, clumps ex pand in size and your plant with runners, is a house plant most gardeners do colony ca n be rapidly increased by division of existing not consider to be hardy. It is reliable to about oaF and plants. While not tolerant of drought, plants given thrives outdoors in many Philadelphia gardens. The adequate moisture are dense, persistent and dependa plant bears rounded, fleshy green leaves which are at ble over time. Astilbes ca n be used to great advantage in tractive because of their white veins. Wispy-appearing, groups of three, five or seven and scattered as drifts white fl owers occur on tall branched stems during May among other covers. One plant which appears to be an overgrown Astilbe is Goatsbeard (Aruncu s dioicu s). This is a plant of yes teryear almost forgotten today. It bears large terminal panicles of creamy-white flowers in early summer and can grow four to seven feet tall. It too, prefers a moist soil and light shade. While it is not a ground cover plant, it can be used to advantage, singly or in small groups, to break la rge patches of Pa chysandra, Vinca or Hedera helix. Plantain-lily (Ho sta sp.) is the queen of ground covers for bold sweeping masses. Depending on the species or variety selected, size can vary from six inches tall to approximately three feet. Leaves can be thin and lance shaped to large and ovate; green, blue-green or varie gated. Flowers occur on basal spikes in mid to late sum mer and vary from white to deep purple, with some varieties being quite fragrant. Individually, the plants form dense mounds, but in mass they create a bold, flowing accent which can be used to highlight drive ways or walks, or face down shrub borders or the foun dations of buildings. Hostas are not fussy about soil type and will thrive almost anywhere; they do wilt under drought conditions. Their greatest disadvantage is that they are not evergreen . When mentioning Hostas as a ground cover, I am frequently told that they would be great if they weren't so dense, vigorous and invasive. What could be better attributes for a plant which will add beauty and ease of maintenance and last a lifetime? One problem people have with ground covers for large areas is initial purchase price. All the plants dis cussed herein are easily increased by division. It be Hostas create a bold sweeping mass to visually tie a tree into comes possible to buy an affordable quantity, install the larger landscape picture them into a growing area with well prepared soil, high in organic matter and near a water source. By subjecting and June. It thrives outdoors in light shade and a soil the plants to a high level of culture with adequate water rich in organic matter. Rapid soil coverage is achieved and liquid fertilizer applied every two to three weeks, by spreading runners, which are easily removed and set the clumps will increase rapidly. It is surprising how into new areas. In severe winters, it does have a tend rapidly a good gardener can turn twelve plants into ency to die out in spots and needs to have plants plug thirty-six. In two years, I have split three clumps of ged into open spaces. Since this plant tends to be a bit Astilbe twice and have managed to get twenty-seven ephemeral, it should be used sparingly. small but healthy plants. Astilbes (Astilbe x Arendsii hybrids) have delicately cut Shady gardens present landscape challenges, but by foliage and brilliant flowers in midsummer, but few their very nature give a sense of permanence and stabil gardeners consider planting this in spreading masses as ity. If you find yourself with such a growing situation, a ground cover or in combination with other shade tol think of how lucky you are to have the perfect environ- erant covers. Height, floral color and bloom sequence ment to grow shady aristocrats! 0 37 Kenneth J. Smith The London Free Press Ontario, Canada Summer arrives in the arctic like the crash of cymbals as the ice fi nally frees the land almost over night. To us " southerners" the 21st of June is well into summer with the thoughts of winter long since for gotten. In the vast land of tundra stretching from Baffin Bay to the Beaufort Sea which washes the north shore of Alaska, summer comes and goes in a great rush. For the visitor flying overhead it is an unbelievable, endless, seem ingly uninhabited, barren land, where even the two-month summer cannot dispel the last frozen ves tiges of winter. Yet below, almost anywhere one sets down, the rock and tundra are alive with a vast array of arctic flowers jamming ev erything into this one brief period of "life" . Here, an estimated 500 species of flow~ring plants complete their growth cycles. All true arctic flowers are peren nials, for only this type can survive if a seed crop fails. There are few climbing plants, no plants that sting or poison, nor any that are pro tected by spines or thorns. Perhaps we can surmise that protection is not needed under the circumstances. Aside from being cold, the Arctic region is virtually a desert, with some areas getting less than seven inches of annual precipitation. Only 38 Ri ght- Arctic Green Orchis the perpetually frozen ground pre and widespread of the Arctic plants. much more than moss, grasses, vents the surface water from sink In spite of its common name, it is small evergreens and burned ing below the reach of the plant not a rose at all. Dryas integrifolia , or scrub-tree stumps occupied the site. roots. To conserve moisture, many Arctic avens, with its clustering na Three members of the pea fa mily plants fall into the category of ture and oak-like leaves is fo und were in evidence on closer inspec xerophytes ... those tha t can throughout the n orth . It was tion. Astragalu s belonging to the withstand prolonged periods of adopted in 1975 as the fl oral e n orm ous genus of ve tch-like drought by having small leathery emblem of the Northwest Ter herbs, Hedysarum , most of whose leaves, often covered with densely ritories, and is one of the few arctic members are found in the Old matted hairs. plants that will survive in warmer World, a nd Lnthyrus closely re By special adaptation, plants climates. Southern gardeners will sembling the sweet pea. hoard whatever heat can be found. need patience, however, as plants There was Hepatica from the but They grow cl ose to the ground, raised from seed take several years tercup family, Eriophorum , com have comparatively large, colorful to flower. monly ca lled cottongrass, an Arctic blooms to trap the solar heat, and Again near the Arctic shoreline lily still in tight bud. Also present often grow closely together to form we fo und Pedi cularis hirsuta , the was Linul17 , one of nearly 100 small warm "forests" of vegetation. hairy l o u~ewor t. A strange name for species from the family Linaceae, A researcher reported that the tem so pretty a flower, but folklore re commonly ca lled flax, and several perature near the base of a tested cords tha t some of the 500 odd members of the family Ericaceae, in plant was 38 degrees Fahrenheit, species in this genus were believed cluding the blueberry and cran while the surrounding air tempera to give ca ttle lice if they ate them. berry. ture was only 10 degrees. Though innocuous itself, foxglove, One of the smallest, yet perhaps Arctic plants are able to withstand one member of the fami ly has some one of the most beautiful specimens freezing .... some flo wers can be medicinal properties. Fou nd in was the Andromeda . It comes from a frozen stiff only to thaw and con most regions of the Arctic, it bears genus comprising only two species tinue their growth cycle. its fl owers early and quickly. A ta p of the hea th family, and is some From the pages of a surv ival rooted plant, it is topped with elon times ca ll ed bog rosem a ry. The manual we learn that most arctic ga ted spikes of pale pink blooms one-inch gem taxed my close-up plants are edible. The leaves of the surrounded by a delicate foam-like equipment to the limit. Labrador tea (Ledum) a member of fuzz that wraps around the stem. The real joy of this expedition was the heath family, and common Everywhere among the rocks, the the discovery of a s m all green across the tundra, produces a ta sty ground pussy willow (Salix) pushes clump of plants topped with dainty drink when steeped; the licorice its stems of regularly spaced pinkish creamy-white blooms. On the way root, a trailing plant of the muskeg, blooms skyward. back to town I asked my learned has a rootstock that is almost tasty Eighty miles inland near the friends if there were any orchids in raw or boiled. When cooked like modern Arctic town of Inuvik is an th e area. The reply was it was spinach, the young flowering stems area of open grassy patch es in doubtful. Upon receipt of my color of the lousewort might be consid terspersed along the edge of the fad slide, the Professor agreed that I ered a nutritional delicacy. in g tree line . H ere the Lupinus had indeed found a rare clump of The area of our particular floral arctieus or arctic lupine thrives in Habenaria hyperborea, or arctic green discoveries was limited to the delta luxurious clusters,·its light-blue and orchids. region where the mighty McKenzie white flower spikes reaching for the For m any, a trip into the arctic is river meets the Arctic Ocean. Here sun. too expen sive and arduous. Moun at Tuktoyaktuk, on a rock outcrop I visited this area while a Univer tain climbing is often easier. Many within a hundred feet of the quiet sity Professor and three of his stu of the flowers found in the arctic, lapping Arctic Ocean shoreline, we dents were studying a burned sec can also be found growing at vari found the true arctic rose (Rosa tion where lightning had started a ous altitudes in the Rocky Moun borealis). Just three inches high, it fire nine years ago. They were at tains in the United States and had one bud just about to open. tempting to determine how many Canada, where the severe tempera Further south near Yellowknife, the plants had returned to this tract of tures and sparse growing condi capital of the Canadian Northwest rock and tundra. tions are similar. Territories, the northern rose grows In an area beside the road not It was a revelation for me to find in greater profusion. It is larger in more than one hundred feet square that m an y of these same plants size than Ro sa borealis and is I found 19 different arctic plants. . . . the Ledul17 , Erieaeeae, Aven and excluded from the true arctic variety They ranged from one inch speci others, survive the windswept, cold by its thorny stems. mens to others almost two feet in slopes of Mount Washington in Strange as it may seem, another height. Yet, surveying the area from New Hampshire, almos t th e "rose" is one of the most common the road seemed to indicate not breadth of a continent away. 0 39 tures ca n be regulated with varying de grees of precision; damage from wind and rain is ?voided; injury from pl ant Book. Reviews diseases and insects is reduced, but not eliminated. Growing media, moisture By Tom Stevenson co ntent, and fertility levels can be ad Cactus and some other succulents are and ideas that are of direct and practical justed to meet plant requirements, ac exa mples of nature's ingenuity in adapt value in gardening. It is with these ideas cording to Dr. John W. Mastalerz, pro in g plants to survive in environmental that this book is concerned . It can bring fessor o f fl oriculture, Pe nnsylva nia extremes. The deserts of the world con about a better understanding of what's State Uni verSity. tain most of them and they are found going on in the garden. Dr. Mastalerz is the author of a new also in jungles and on mountain to ps. Van Dersal, a resident of Arlington, book, " The G reenhou se Enviro n Imagine them in the home as house VA., was former deputy administrator ment- The Effect of En viro nmental plants' Yet, they are becoming more and of the Soil Conservation Service, U. S. Factors on Fl ower Crops," published by more popular and more widely used, Department of Agriculture, and is now John Wil ey & Sons, New York, N. Y. , lovely to look at and easy to grow. dean of the Management College, Na 625 pages, illustrated, $18.95 . Whe th er e nj oyed for their fl owers, tional Graduate Uni versity, in Wash "This book," he says, "was written foliage or fo rm, they are probably the ington, D.C. for s tude nts pla nning careers in most fa scinating group in the entire " Most peopl e are aware that we have greenhouse management. It is also di pl ant kingdom. a great variety of climates in our coun rected to growers desiring to increase There is another interesting wrinkle: try . But besides the general climatic and their knowledge of pl ant growth under Grow cacti fr om seed (they are listed in soil conditions, every garden site has a greenho use conditions." several seed catalogs) and then create number of little climates of its own," Its purpose is to develop an under oddities of plant forms not found in na says he. standing of the fundamental role that ture by grafting a part of on e onto These are ca lled microclimates by the environme nt plays in the growth of another. scientists, and they are very important plants. G reenho u se ma nagers w h o It isn't difficult and the know-how is in gardening. A simple exa mple of a combine a knowledge of plant growth provided in a new paperback, "Cactus microclimate would be in the shade with their judgement of economic fa c and Succulents," by the editors of Sun under a tree or in the shade cast by your tors will have the best opportunity to set Books and Sunset Magazine, pub house. Because the sun's rays may not use their resources effectively. lished by Lane Publishing Co., Menl o reach such an area, it will be a little The greenhouse structure has a dis Park, CA. , 94025, 80 pages, many illus cooler than elsewhere. Transpiration tinct effect on several environmental trati ons, some in full color priced a t (l oss of moisture by the foliage) won't be factors, particularly temperature, li ght, $2.95. quite as fa st and the plants there will not ca rbon dioxide, and humidity . The Here are two additional recent Sunset require as much water. So there will be changes that occur in these environ paperbacks, both worthwhile: "Sunset a little climate in the shaded area that mental factors, how they can be mod Ideas for Small-Space Gardens," 80 may enable the gardener to grow plants ifie d , a nd w h a t limita tio ns the pages, beautifully illustrated, $2. 95; and he could not otherwise. greenhouse structure and its equipment " Landscaping & Garden Remodeling," " A number of scientists have been impose upon the manager's control of 80 pages, beautifully illustrated, $2.95 . giving close attention to the control of the en vironment are d escribed a nd They ca n be very useful for the pur insect p ests and diseases of plants," he evaluated . poses implied by the titles. says. The results of their work, espe Afte r the basic fa cts abo ut the cia II y in recen t years, a re lea ding greenhouse environment have been es plantsmen to think a little more care tablished, the effects of environmental There has been a lot of criticism lately factors on the growth and development of gobble d ygook (wordy, legali s ti c full y about applying poisonous chemi cals. It turns out, in fac t, that there are of fl ower crops are expl ored in detail. phrases used in documents and other Plant response to specific environmen papers), and a growing insistence that ways to deal w ith plant pests that do not involve some of the hazards and side tal factors is related to the basic physio language be used w hich the average logical processes tha t occur in pia n ts American can unders ta nd. So me effects associated with the use of plant poisons. and to yield and quality, the goal of botanists and authors of garden books plant production in the greenhouse. are almost as guilty as the lawyers and The use of such chemicals almost al ways has a number of side effects we " For the student," says Dr. Mas bureaucrats, using complex jargon that talerz, " basic courses in botany, chemi s isn't easy to read. really did not intend at all. Many insects are kept under fair con try, physics, and an introductory course William R. Van Dersal in his new in soil s w ill provide sufficie nt back book, "Why Does Your Garden Grow? trol by parasites-whether other kinds of insects, or fungi, or bacteria of one ground for the principles and practi ces (The Facts of Plant Life)," published by discussed in this book. " Some knowl Quadrangle/The New York Times Book sort or another. These parasitic forms are pretty useful crea tures. If the chemi edge of plant physiology would be very Co., 200 pages, well illustra ted, $8 .95, helpful. provides informa tion useful to every cals we use kill them too, we've lost gardener, easy to read, easy to under some helpful allies. We may, indeed, be stand. killing an insect pest already parasitized "The Complete Book Of Bulbs," by " It is not a book about how to grow which means that the parasite, unable F. F. Rockwell and Esther C. Grayson things, except more or less incidentall y," to co mplete its life cycle, goes down the (Mrs. Rockwell), published more than he says, but rather a book that attempts drain along with the insect pest. 30 years ago, has been one of the best to provide some basic knowledge about books on bulb fl ower ga rdening in the plants for the benefit of practi ca l gar Greenhouses are used to control or United States. Now there is a new edi deners. modify many of the environmental fac ti on, revised and edited by Marj ori e J. 40 There are certain key scientific facts tors affecting plant growth. Tempera- Dietz, published by J. B. Lippincott Co. , Philadelphia and New Yo rk, 366 pages, ma ti on sho uld help you decide w hi ch Anoth er good s uggesti on is to take well illustra ted, $10. fr uit and vegetabl es you wa nt to grow children into co nsidera tion when plan "All the helpful ing redi ents of th e a nd also give you most d etail s of how to ning the la nd sca pe. Some of the most ori gi nal reference guide are here," says grow th em. enj oyabl e of a ll children's ga mes involve Dietz, " not only telling the bulb gar There are a lot of good suggesti ons in places to hide from each o th er a nd dener how to succeed with these pl a nt , the book. O ne such is th e recommenda places w hi ch th ey ca n claim as secret but showing how, with m.ore th a n 100 ti on to tart sweet co rn in th e pea t pots fr o m their parents . Even room 0 11 a col or a n.d black-and-white photographs indoors to pla nt o utdoors w he n th e lawn for a sma ll tent w ill make an ordi and many informa ti ve line drawin gs." wea ther is suitable. This permits you to na ry ga rd en into all sorts of w il d, wid e "Ju st how va lu able wa the ori ginal harves t sweet co rn mLlch earli er in th e open spaces for th e children who ca n book?" she asks. season. Li se it, acco rd in g to the book. "In the course o f my resea rch, I had need of an additional copy of the out of-print ori gi nal. While talking to one of the counh-y's leading experts on bulbs, I Drop garden waste in- J1l. entio ned th a t I ce rtainly would be 'Accelt!fator' Super 18 happy to have hi s copy, a nd indeed has 18 panels, 36" would gladly pay him fi ft een doll ars for high, 34 " diameter, capacity 17.5 cu. ft . it. To which th e expert repli ed: 'Tha t's Slide panels Continuous very interesting! Now if you were able process. to offer me a thousa nd doll ars, I guess [ $54.95 would co nsider it. ' Perhaps he would delivered. have entertained a lower fi gure, but he 'Accelerator' Super 14 has 14 panels, 36" did not make me a counter-offer within high, 27" diameter, capacity 10.6 cu . ft. my budget." Slide panels. Continuous process. $45.95 The Engli s h s upposedl y are be tter delivered. garde ne rs than American , the main 'Accelerator' Super 10 reason being they've been at it much has 10 panels, 36" longer. Be that as it may, occasionally a high, 19" diameter, very good book comes along, origina ll y capacity 5.4 cu. ft. Slide panels. published in Engla nd, w hich is a lso Continuous -I process. worthwhile for gardeners in the U.S.A. $39.95 Such a one is "Practical Gardening En ~ -' delivered. cyclopedia," mad e up of contributions by about 50 leading British horticul shovel rich compostpout. turists, publis hed by Van Nostra nd, Just think what tons of compost will do for your Over 450,000 Rotocrop compost bins are in use garden . 11'5 the ideal natural fertilizer and soil throughout the world. Gardeners know that they end Reinhold, New Yo rk, N.Y., 350 pages, unsightly heaps, make compost faster and are conditioner all in one - free for the making . scientifically designed to turn garden and kitchen wastes superbly illustrated, $19.95. into rich, valuable compost within weeks-no turning Among other things, the book covers the heap, no unpleasant odors. Make a ton of Now, Set on Soli or compost in one season! types of soil , improving the soil, soil Paving, Indoors or out Grow more bountiful vegetables, more beautiful testing, clima te and its effect on plants, The new raised internal ventila flowers, more luxurious lawns and healthier house tors, now with all Accelerators plants w~h the natural plant food and conditioning design, and planning of bedding, land and Economisers, provide ideal • • • humus that Rotocrop compost adds to your soil. scapes, an ex planation of how plants air flow through the pile. Set the bin anywhere-on soil in the gar UNIQUE DESIGN FEATURES: Rotocrop's 'Accelerator" grow, all phases of culti va tion, propaga den, on a patio, or indoors for compost bins are constructed from precision-extruded winter composting in basement nugged plastiC panels which slide together to fonm a tion, evaluations of ornamental plants, or garage. sturdy, heat-retaining cylinder. Last for years. Will not and how to take care of pests and dis rot, shrink or swell. With no corners to cool off, fermentation heat extends to all edges of the heap. Air eases. The index includes more than vents in each panel allow air in without letting heat out. 2,500 entries. Economiser LIFT-OFF compost bins A base ventilator allows convection of air right through heap. The molded flip-up, button- Please ship my Earthway Lite-Gro: o Indoor Garden Center • o Occasional Table o Casters (set of four) • o I'm interested, but please send additional • information first. o Check or money order enclosed • Please charge to Credit Card- AccountNo. ______• o Master Charge 0 Visa 0 Am. Express • Give complete address (including No. & Street) for delivery by U.P.S. • Name ______The Occasional Table or T.V. Stand measures 30" wide x 14" deep x 22" high and weighs a • Address ______sturdy 42 pounds ... it makes a truly fine furni • ture addition and conversation piece. • City/State/Zip ______Occasional Table • Phone ______ONLY $87.00 • Dealers' inquiries welcomed taxonomy of willows is confused troduce the reader to the uses of wil Introduction and the province of the specialist lows, which seem to be less ap Willows are among the earliest (4) , but this is true only in part. preciated today than they were in known vascular plants; they appear Many species are readily recog the past, and to discuss a number of as fossils in Cretaceous Period de nized, and disagreements among distinctive willows that are being posits over 135 million years old. taxonomists are not as great as they grown in America by nursery men The 300-350 species that have once may have been. However, or in arboreta and are interesting evolved over this time occur almost there are problems in the identifica materials for ornamental cultiva worldwide, but abundance is tion of species because of the sep tion. The authors have long been in greatest in northern North America aration of sexes on different plants; terested in ornamental willows and and Europe and in the mountains of the appearance of flowers before the have procured for their own plant China. They are uncommon in trop leaves in some species; and the high ings various species and cultivars ical regions where there are a few degree of variation in leaf form and available in North America that species and are absent from the Ant hairiness, which is sometimes due have ornamental qualities as shrubs arctic region and Oceania. In Aus-, to environmental factors. Hybridi or trees or possess unusual growth tralia and New Zealand they occur zation is another source of confu habits which lend interest to the only as introductions. sion that is often overemphasized landscape. The first two authors Willows are distributed by means but does lead to some puzzles. Then have also had an interest in decora of their small windblown seeds, by these hybrids are sometimes tive shoot material for floral designs stems and seedlings carried by selected for cultivation, and what and in distinctive foliage or flowers stream and rivers, and by man who may have been a rare exception in useful in floral arrangements; the has carried willows throughout the the wild becomes abundant through third author has been a student of world. Many willows have been extensive cultivation and introduc the classification of willows for successfully moved from one part of tion (2). twenty years and has published on the world to another, but some are Commercial nurseries, and even the taxonomy and biology of North not readily adaptable to growth in botanical gardens, are often unreli America willows. Most of the new regions. For example, some able sources of properly named wil species and cultivars discussed here dwarf species from cool ar.ctic alpine lows, and species or cultivars, for are in the collection of the first two 22 regions do not tolerate warm or example Salix gracilistyla Miquel, are authors and clone material has been contributed to the United States willows. A list of medicinal plants methods used today are much the Department of Agriculture, Plant prepared in A.D. 64 and used as a same as those employed by earl y Materials Center, Beltsville, Mary valuable reference for 16 centuries Romans. Since female (or pistillate) land 20705 and to the National Ar reported ma ny species of willow pla nts produce m ore vigorous boretum, Washington, D.C. At both from which were extracted a group sh oots and larger rods than male locations qualified growers ma y of glucosides including pure plants are chosen for delicate bas apply for cuttings or other source of sa liciposid e, salicylic acid, and sa li poa nts are chosen for delicate bas materials. In addition there are a cin. Thus, men were relieving their ket making. For most need s, the number of willows grown by the pains by chewing willow ba rk or bark is stripped from the rods while Soil Conservation Service, USDA, leaves 2000 years before they had still green . When basket making Beltsville Agricultural Research aspirin pills. Also, quite early, a was an important industry, about 20 Center, that are of ornamental value black dye for tanning was obtained species of osier willow and clones of and that are referred to in the tex t. from several species . In Scan- some species were selected for spe cial needs and were shipped from on e country to others, including America. Growing osier willows for basket making is still an important industry in European countries, in cluding Britain, Belgium, Holland, France, Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia and in Argentina. Several ornamental willows are also used as osier willows in Eng land and Europe. For example, fresh shoots with golden bark from S. alba L. cv. Vitellina, are the toughest osiers grown and are used as tie-rods by nurserymen and mar ke t garde ners. Other ornamental willows used as osier willows in clude the bay willow, S. pentandra L. ; varieties of the purple willow, S. purpurea L., which produce the most slender rods for their length; and the goat willow, S. caprea L., which is used in making barrel hoops in Holland. Plastics have almost entirely re placed the demand for osiers in many countries. One may predict that need for osier willows will in crease as our present plastic re source materials are exhausted and as the price of these resources in creases. Timber Production The Fantail Willow The prime timber commodity of Willows as a dina via, dried inner willow bark willows in England is the cricket bat Benefactor of Man was ground and mixed in oatmeal and to a lesser extent artificial limbs. Although willows are among the as food in times of famine; and mac The bat willow, S. alba L. cv. erated willow bark fibers have been earliest plants used by man, many Coerulea is used exclusively, and of their attractive and beneficial spun into cloth. only the basal trunk of female trees qualities are today unknown to the Willows for Osier general public and even to many Production is acceptable for producing the re horticulturists. From time immemorial, willows quired standard of timber. About The genus Salix refers to the early for osiers have been propagated 2-million bat willow trees growing recognized medicinal qualities of from cuttings, and the cultural today are progeny, by cuttings, of a 23 single female tree selected in 1803 in lect pollen from the staminate flo w woolly willow, considered the most Suffolk, England. ers. Indeed, ornamental willows are beautiful willow in Sweden because Also, English farmers make poles now being planted near apiaries to of its silver leaves and brilliant cat for ga tes and fences by cutting from provide important early season kins and also valued for its high sprouts on stumps of timber wil sources of nectar and pollen (3), and yield of nectar. lows every five or six years, and wil a sequence of flowers lasting four to Warren-Wren also states that or low boards are used for crating ma six weeks would be available by namental willows are used much chinery; for veneer for baskets; for planting the species discussed in more extensively in the United containers for fi sh, fruits, and veg this paper. For example, bees visit States and Scandinavia than in etables; for carvings for toys; for the earliest flowering Japanese and Great Britain. This comment is sur paper pulp; for plywood; and to Persian willows in great numbers prising to us. Willows seem not to make fine charcoal for artists. In be fully appreciated in North America, the tough, light wood of America though they can add much the white willow,S. alba L., would to the enjoyment of our gardens (in b e suitable for making packing cluding outdoor bonsai specimens), cases, veneer for baskets and boxes, roadsides, and park plantings, and and toys. In Holland, willow is in especially to the floral decorations great demand for making clogs. In in our homes. In the following sec Argentina, the natural forests are tions, some available ornamental being augmented by willows grown willows are grouped according to for packaging, cellulose, and paper their special uses. The number in pulp. It is not economically feasible parentheses following the scientific to grow willows just for pulp in name refers to the number of the Europe; but, where they are also Soil Conservation Service of the useful in soil conservation and are USDA for that particular clone. used for veneer, the tops may be Willows for Forcing Catkins and profitably disposed of as pulp (6). Arrangements Erosion and Environment The Persian willow,S. aegyptiaca Undoubtedly, the greatest benefi L. (5. medemii Boiss.) (13663, 14876) cial effect of willows is least known is an upright shrub 12 m tall with and least appreciated. N everthe stout, slightly pubescent branches less, throughout their history, na and black winter bud scales that tive willows have been the first veg open into an abundance of bright etation to cover and protect vast Corkscrew w illow arrangement w ith yellow catkins 3.5 cm long. It is one areas of ground laid bare by reced blue iris and pachysandra of the earliest to bloom and lasts for ing glaciers, by burned-over forests, 8-12 days. and by earthquakes, floods, war on warm days and some even when The Japanese pussy willow,S. tem pera tures are rela ti vel y cool. devastation, gravel pits, and mine graci listyla Miquel (23460), is a Then the visits become more regular wastes. Willows growing naturally broad, upright shrub 3 m tall. during the warmer periods of later along stream banks not only control Young branches are gray, and the flowering species, each of which is erosion of valuable lands, but they long winter bud scales are grayish attractive for 8-12 days. provide an environment favorable purple. This willow is one of the for fish, birds, and other wild life. Ornamental Willows first to bloom and produces long Willow wood is a favorite food of Warren-Wren (7) states that in branches bearing masses of large beavers; willows provide browse for Great Britain 24 species of willows catkins that are 3.5 cm long and deer, moose, and livestock. have colorful or aromatic stems and change from red to golden yellow Selected clones of 5. purpurea are foliage (catkins) that make them and age as silky gray (Fig. 1) . now being propagated and planted valuable as decorative sprays in Branches can be forced to open in by various U.S. government agen winter and spring. Six of these are January, sometimes December. This cies to combat erosion in critical available in North America and are willow has been called the "rose areas (1). discussed in thi£ paper. Other gold" pussy willow, also the "big Early Season Pollen species on his list that have unusual catkin" willow (Fig. I-A). An un and Nectar Sources catkins differing from those avail usual variety, melanostachys (Mah.) Honey bees and other insects visit able to us are: 5. daphnoides Villars C. K. Schn. (22487), has blackish both the pistillate and staminate with ornamental catkins from large catkins and red anthers that open to 24 flowers of willow for nectar and col- crimson buds and 5. lanata L. , the bright yellow. The French pussy willow or goat from Japan, is a handsome shrub or about 10 days after S. caprea, is willow, S. caprea L. (23467), origi small tree to 5 m tall. The conspicu grown commercially for its curved nated in Europe and northern Asia ous yellow catkins that reach 3.5 cm shoots as well as for its normal and is probably the most common long are a late-season source of shoots with catkins. home garden pussy willow in the flow ering branches for flower ar The corkscrew willow or dragon United States. The upright branches rangements. claw willow, S. matsudana Koid. cv. and winter buds on this 10 m shrub Salix gilgial1a Seem. (13604), a na Tortuosa (23469), is an upright are glabrous brown and lustrous. tive of Japan, is a dense shrub to 5 m growing, narrow, oval tree to 10 m The plant flowers about 2-3 weeks tall with green glabrous branches. tall. Its twis te d and contorted later than S. graci/istyla . The male The coloration of its immature male branches and smooth, olive-green catkins with dense stamens becom catkins is useful in making interest bark provide useful material for dis ing 3.5 cm long are conspicuously ing flower arrangements. Great tinctive floral arrangements. The yellow. The female S. caprea pro numbers of cylindrical ca tkins pro tree is also an interesting landscape duces large, cottony catkins in great duced on every branch are si lky plant in summer with its narrow, profusion. brown to purple when young and twisted leaves and displays an in The American pussy willow, S. then become conspicuously yellow teresting silhouette in winter. The discolor Muhl. (22962 «, 22966 0' ) is as they open. plants produce vigorous, contorted found as an upright, oval shrub or The prairie willow, S. humilis new growth after cutting back and small tree 7 m tall from British Col Marsh. (23464 0', 23465 « ), grows to could also serve as a narrow hedge. umbia to Newfoundland and south 3 m tall and is found from New The ba y willow, S. pentandra L. to Pennsylvania and Indiana. The foundland to Manitoba and south to (23740), native of Europe, grows to jet black winter buds, a discerning Minnesota and South Carolina. Its a tree 20 m tall. It is highly orna character for S. discolor, on glabor staminate catkins, 1.5 cm long, are mental because of its shining, dark ous mahogany brown shoots and at first red but become conspicu green, aromatic foliage, the golden the expanding gray, young catkins ously yellow on opening. It is an in male catkins that are produced after produce a striking effect. The male teresting native willow that grows the leaves appear, and the lustrous, catkins, less compact than S. caprea in poor wasteland soil and in dry, brownish-green bark on young and opening about one week later, sandy forests. It is a late season branches and tw igs in winter. reach 3.5 cm long; the dark green source of arrangement material. The white willow, Salix alba L. , female catkins with contrasting which has been long cultivated as a Willows with Distinctive Branches black bracts become 7 cm long and timber tree, hds several variations or Foliage persist for 2-3 weeks. This willow with highly colored branches in has merit as an open growing or The fantail willow, S. udensis cluding S. alba L. cv. Chrysostella namental shrub for forcing and for Trautv. & Mey. cv. Sekka (5 . sach (13652), with coral red branches and decoration. Unfortunately, all wil alinensis Fr. Schmidt cv. Sekka) S. alba L. cv. Tristis (23468) with lows that we purchased as S. discolor (23461), is a Japanese shrub 4 m tall bright yellow pendulous branches from several nurseries proved to be on which strong new shoots de sometimes called the yolk-of-egg one of several other species. velop extreme fasciation, with curl willow. These willows lend interest Wimmer's willow, sometimes re ing and curves. The name "Sekka" to the landscape and provide cut ferred to as S. X wimmeriana Gren. means fasciation in Japanese. Less branches for winter floral decora & Godr. (5 . aurita L. X S. purpurea vigorous shoots are normal, and se tions. Although they grow into 20 m L.) (12360), originating in Europe vere pruning enhances the fascia ted trees if unpruned, they can be cut and cultivated for over 100 years, is condition. The stems are green and back annually and maintained as an attractive, broadly oval shrub to winter buds are brown, but after highly colorful, low shrubs. 5 m tall with numerous slender, they are cut and dried, the surfaces The sage willow, S. e/aeagnos dark mahogany stems and large become a rich, glistening mahogany Scop. (13603, 20336), is a handsome numbers of small catkins that open brown as if varnished. The fascia ted shrub or small tree to 15 m tall that 3-6 weeks later than the earliest or shoots are superb for creating un originated in Europe and Asia namental willows. This plant is ex usual effects in flower arrangements Minor. Its leaves are linear, narrow, cellent for flower arrangements and and the normal shoots are used for densely hairy, and 5 cm long. The is highly productive for cutting or their catkins. Both fasciated shoots grayish, feathery, summer foliage, forcing branches even when it is not and the less vigorous, normal useful for its effect in flower ar pruned back each year. It would be shoots produce an abundance of rangements, turns yellow in the fall. suitable as specimen shrubs or for catkins that sometimes almost con Two similar clones of distinctly broad hedges and screens, and re ceal the branches; thus the whole columnar, purple willows, S. pur quires minimum pruning. male bush becomes a mass of yel purea L. cv. Eugenei (20362) and S. Salix miyabeana V. Seem. (20355), low. This willow, which flowers Continued 0 11 page 32 25