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walterandersen.com facebook instagram youtube shop San Diego’s Independent Nursery Since 1928 TM JULY 2019 A Nod To What’s In The Bog By Tom Dougherty IN THIS ISSUE A Nod To What’s In The Bog 1 Let’s Grow Blueberries! 1 Find Hidden Gems 1 A Bird Lover & Inventor 2 Walter: Cymbidium Orchids 4 To Do List: July 4 Old Ben: Parrots Of San Diego 5 Old Ben’s Specials 5 In the bog by the garden railway at the These plants are truly carnivorous and July Classes 6 Poway store, there is a group of plants meet the requirements of such a desig- July Specials! 6 that never need fertilizing. That’s be- nation. They attract, capture and kill cause they get all their nutrients by animal life forms as well as being able (oh, sweet revenge) eating insects. to digest and absorb the nutrients. The varieties you’ll find in the bog are There are more than 600 species and Sundews (Drosera), American pitcher subspecies that exist. plants (Darlingtonia, Sarracenia) and continued p2 Natal Albuca Venus fly trap (Dionaea). Let’s Grow Blueberries! By Jolene Andersen Who doesn’t like Blueberries? Espec- ially fresh blueberries? These plants can grow and produce very well in our area. Vaccinium corymbosum, the botanical name, is native to the north- Find Hidden Gems eastern part of the United States. Among The Favorites Growers have found that by preparing By Melanie Potter the soil and creating an acid condition, many varieties flourish in Southern It’s the time of year when all the California. Newer hybrids have been old favorites, the standard land- introduced that do well with little scape plants, those reliable ones are winter chill and are well suited to our blooming. You’ve seen them, the jac- milder climate. arandas, day lilies, and agapanthus. Blueberries make a nice landscape There’s a reason why they appear plant and can be used as informal in so many landscapes and while I appreciate them, I found a few gems continued p3 Blueberries from Monrovia that don’t get a lot of attention. continued p2 07.19 2 What’s In The Bog continued from p1 Hidden Gems continued from p1 ger hairs on the leaf surface, the trap quickly closes. These plants need a humid environ- ment. Their soil must be very damp and acidic. A mixture of half sand and half peat moss works very well. The water must be mineral free. Rain water or distilled water or even reverse osmosis filtered water can be used. Ordinary San Diego tap water with its high salts will probably kill these plants in a matter of weeks. Come see our bog and look for the lizards that know where to get an easy meal. These opportunistic rascals have been spotted stealing an insect snack Sundew from the Sundews. If you are lucky, you Penstemon gloxiniodes How Our Bog Plants Attract Prey may spot the occasional road runner I spied the Penstemon gloxiniodes that knows where to find distracted sitting next to the Tacoma stans Sundews, with their sparkling, delicate lizards. But not to worry. With all this and with its show of purple blooms, beauty, work like flypaper to capture competition, most plants can get by thought maybe a new color had been their prey with tiny drops of glistening, with as little as one bug meal a week. introduced. The bell-shaped flowers sticky goo. Tom Dougherty is a customer service look similar but the tag clearly iden- American pitcher plants have oddly representative at Walter Andersen Nurs- tified it as Penstemon, not a Tecoma. shaped and dramatically colored leaves ery’s Poway location. His areas of exper- These grow to two feet tall and the that become tubular traps for unwary tise include water plants and citrus. If flowers attract hummingbirds. Pen- insects. you are interested in carnivorous plants, stemon form dense spikes of tubu- Venus fly traps are the most familiar. visit the annual show and sale for the lar flowers in early to mid summer. They lie in wait with their little nectar San Diego Carnivorous Plant Society Flower colors include pink, blue, red, laden leaves open and inviting. When on July 20 from 10am - 4pm at Balboa purple, and white. They can tolerate the unsuspecting bug touches the trig- Park (Casa del Prado, Room 101). • dry soil but will need some water through summer’s dry months. The Natal Albuca had a spike of Old Ben Is A Bird Lover & Inventor! interesting looking white flowers. By Melanie Potter It is nicknamed Slime Lily because the leaves excrete a slimy sap when You would think Old Ben is someone ball of the plant in the wire basket, I put broken, so just admire the plant. The who wants birds, lots of birds, to flock it over my container. I put in a bamboo plant is evergreen and hails from to his yard. That is partially true, but stake to tie the wire mesh to. I also Natal, South Africa. The foliage is he doesn’t want them eating his baby used RapiClip heavy duty garden wire deep green and fleshy and grows to plants. “I was having problems with to wrap around the container to hold 3’ tall. From late winter into spring, birds eating my seedlings. When the the mesh in place” he recounted. the flowers rise above foliage on corn or radishes first sprout, the birds slender 4 to 5 foot tall stalks. The But Old Ben is not done describing his eat them as fast as they come up”, large white flowers have 3 outer invention. “The wire mesh is flexible lamented Ben. tepals that flare slightly outwards and stretches easily to accommodate while the inner 3 remain together So, one day Old Ben had to channel his the pots. I purchased the 15 gal mesh pointing upward, all with a distinct inner McGyver and create a solution. which would be a 15 inch diameter green midrib to each tepal. root ball, these pots are little over 20 “Conventional methods did not work inches and I had room to spare. As To give it a good home, plant in well- for me, he admitted. “While at the soon as the plants are big enough to drained soil in full sun along the nursery, I found what I believe to be a stand on their own, I will remove the coast to half day sun or light shade new product, the Original Grow Master inland. It requires only occasional Gopher Basket. Instead of putting the continued p3 irrigation in coastal gardens, more frequently inland. • 07.19 3 Blueberries continued from p1 to about 5 to 6 feet. O’NEAL This variety is often considered to have the best flavor of the Southern Highbush Blueberries. Large dark blue fruit matures very early from summer to early fall. This one will grow to 5 to 6 feet tall and as wide. SOUTHMOON This variety produces large, sky blue fruit that ripens in sum- mer. Highly productive in areas with cooler winters. White, bell-shaped flow- ers and colorful fall foliage are added benefits. This one may lose all foliage in winter. The plant can reach 6 feet tall and wide. hedges, individual plantings and even your new blueberries with a good SUNSHINE BLUE Pink blooms, fade container plants. The most important acid-type fertilizer such as Dr. Earth to white and yield abundant crops of things you need to provide are full sun Rhododendron-Azalea-Camellia. Gro- large tangy fruit. This is a very low chill and well draining, acidic soil. For most Power Azalea-Camellia-Rhododendron variety that grows well and produces plantings, we recommend a planter food is another excellent product for even in our coastal areas. Semi-dwarf mix that contains Canadian peat moss, acid loving plants. Try to fertilize the to about 3 to 4 feet. Attractive foliage which is naturally acidic. You could also first of each month spring through fall holds well into winter. • use Canadian peat moss mixed 50-50 for optimum results. with E.B. Stone Big Harvest Garden To insure your planted areas stay Soil. It’s ideal to have a soil mix with on the acidic side, you may have to Old Ben Inventor a pH of 5 to 5.5. Though self-fruitful, apply Soil Sulphur occasionally, as our continued from p2 you will have better production with water may cause pH levels to rise. To two different varieties of blueberries; keep them greener, your blueberries which allows you to enjoy larger fruit may want an iron supplement once or crops due to cross pollination. twice a year. When planting in containers, use a fairly large container, like a 20 inch square Blueberry Varieties: box or octagonal tub or one of the BOUNTIFUL BLUE This variety has a larger plastic containers, at least a 15 prolific fruit set of large, super sweet gallon size. Place the mix of your choice berries and the “bluest” foliage. Works in the bottom of the container to bring well in the landscape or in containers. the root ball up nearly even to the top It’s a smaller plant to about 3 to 4 feet of the container, pack in additional soil tall and about as wide. Attractive foli- lightly and give a good watering. age holds well into winter. If you choose to plant in the ground, dig JUBILEE Abundant crops of medium- a generous hole, at least two times as large, very sweet fruit mature from late wide as the container, approximately summer through fall.

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