...for discerning weeders October, 2011
H-TWO-OH! Inside this issue:
Coming Events
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Critter Calendar
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Amazing Plant
3
It’s Never Too
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Late BIA Home Show
4
Weed of the
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Month Mark Your
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Calendar Graveyard Plants 6 A ‘Wild’
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Halloween October Holidays 7 Book Review
8
Last Word
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DON’T FORGET! You have to log your hours onto the VMS system!
Bill Buckellew
A couple of months ago, another Master feet of duct tape, and two very sore backs, Gardener talked me into digging a shallow- the picture shows the end result. water well. “It‟s easy,” he said, “You just We felt like James Dean when he hit the stick a hose down into a pipe, turn the oil gusher in “Giant.” That water is going water on, and it goes down until you get to right back down to the 200,000-gallon unthe water.” He had done this many times. derground rain barrel where it came from, “What the heck, I‟ll try it,” I said, even and it‟s nice and cool, even in the summer though I didn‟t know squat about wells. heat. What I also didn‟t know was that this had We‟re already working on the second well. not been attempted in the Rocky Bayou This one will have an electric pump like the area before. one in the picture, and the other will have I went down a few feet easily; the hose just an old-fashioned hand pump to add to the pushed the sand up, and the casing went down. Then, the trouble started. Hardpan, peat, clay, and sand so compacted that it took a sledgehammer to drive the casing down. I called the mentor and asked for help. (Note that “I” changes to “we” after this point.) After a few weeks‟ work, we finally got down to 22 feet and hit water. We beat on the pipe until we got down to 29 feet and had a sevenfoot water table. We put a well point down, and then atBill’s new well. tempted to extract the casing. Inch by excruciating inch, we jacked it up. landscape and give the grandkids someNow, it was time to hook up the pump. thing to fool around with. While we knew we were in water, all we This is one of those “if I can do it, anyone could pump was air. Troubleshooting small can” projects. If you are interested, I can let air leaks in PVC pipe connections is very you know the material costs. Rick‟s a good tedious work. Now, after three jacks, two teacher, we both had a fine time at it, and I water pumps, a crankcase pump, several have lots of clean, high-quality water now. 1
OCMGA ANNUAL PICNIC October 8th @ 2pm Location 5642 Old Bethel Road Crestview
October 11, 2011 Quincy Field Day Pre-registration is required by October 6th http://fallfieldday2011.eventbrite.com
Bring a side dish and a lawn chair!!! Contact Charlotte for more info onenoah@cox.net
FFGC District 1 and Dogwood Garden Club of Gulf Breeze Present: Welcome to our Home: Designs and Dessert! Sunday, November 13, 2011 2pm—4pm at the Gulf Breeze Presbyterian Church 100 Andrew Jackson Trail A virtual holiday home tour, including how to decorate for Thanksgiving thru New Years, flowers, cooking, baking etc. Vendors, Entertainment—cost $15 contact Marie Harrison for more information
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A Walk on the Wild Side Linda Meyers Courtesy of www.wec.ufl.edu/extension Ahhhh...fall has arrived!!! Cooler days, Halloween fun, football games, boiled peanuts and apple cider. We also get to enjoy a new season of wildlife activity. Here are just some of the critters we will get to enjoy. Birds: Warbler migration peaks early this month. Sandhill cranes that nested in more northern latitudes begin to move down to join our resident birds. Ducks begin to arrive for the winter. Grosbeaks, warblers, tanagers, orioles, and thrushes begin migrating south for the winter.
Cuban Oregano Plectranthus amboinicus In the garden and hanging around
Mammals: Flying squirrels will be moving into pecan groves as the nuts ripen. Black bears are feeding heavily in preparation for winter. Amphibians: Flatwoods salamanders breed with the first rains of October.
New growth
Insects: Monarch butterfly migration nears its peak along Florida‟s gulf coast. Fish: Redfish and trout move up creeks and rivers in north Florida. Fall spawning of redear sunfish. Largemouth bass active in cooler waters.
Amazing Plant! This spring, I bought a Cuban oregano as a decoration for my herb spiral. I had no plans to eat it, even though Tammy at the Niceville Garden Center told me they knew some folks who cooked with it. I just thought it was pretty and would add some color. It‟s not at all like regular oregano; the leaves are large, thick, and fleshy. It does smell and taste pretty good, however. Then, for Fathers‟
Bill Buckellew
Day, my daughter gave me an herbdrying ring. You hang it up, tie herbs to it, and they air-dry. I put it in my greenhouse and hung basil, catnip, regular oregano, and some of this stuff on it. Everything dried out quickly in the 110-degree heat in the greenhouse except the Cuban stuff. It just hung there and stayed green. Now, after hanging in the heat for over three months, it‟s sprouting new leaves. The stem is not in water, 3
water does not get into the greenhouse, and by any reasoning, it should be dead. Looks like I have found a new “air plant.” (We‟ll probably find out that it is invasive.) Ed. Note: Cuban oregano is also known as Vicks Salve, Mexican Mint, or Spanish thyme. It is actually in the Lamiaceae (mint) family. Grows easily in a well-drained, semi-shaded location. It is frost tender. Excellent addition to stuffing.
It’s Never Too Late
Linda Meyers
Recently, coming out of the theater after enjoying the movie “The Help,” a friend confided that she had always wanted to write a novel. “What stopped you?” I asked. She responded with the typical reasons...married fresh out of college, concentrated on getting a career going, raising kids and working a full time job...there just wasn‟t enough time. Her next comment also so often heard...”Now I‟m in my 60‟s and it‟s just too late.” Maybe you too have had a dream, an aspiration perhaps to play the piano, write poetry, learn to paint, study photography, learn about landscape or floral design, or take ballroom dancing lessons. It‟s NEVER too late, too selfish or too silly to explore a new creative path in your life. I can‟t resist giving YOU that nudge to exercise your imagination. Now is the perfect time to “think fun, do what intrigues you, explore what interest you.” Having some doubts? Maybe you don‟t think you can bring back that creative spirit. Creativity is our true nature, we are creative beings...it‟s like breathing. Everything we do requires creative choices, the way we dress, how we set up a room, do our job, the movies we see, the books we read, the color car we drive, even our choice of friends. It‟s
where we develop our strength to experience and celebrate life. All you have to do is recognize the creative longing you would love to fulfill and nurture it. “Creativity is like crabgrass...it springs back with the simplest bit of care.” Art of any kind is the imagination at play. Exercise your imagination, build confidence, develop skills and have the courage to make the art you always wanted to. When Barbara Dave retired at age 60 she decided to pursue her lifelong desire to be an artist. She wrote “I can pick a flower, and it will last only a few days. If I paint it, it will be forever in bloom.” Your creative spirit needs only a few simple nutrients, nurture and protect it and listen to that small voice that leans over you and whispers „grow, grow.‟” “Creativity is an act of faith...leap and the net will appear.” Julia Cameron. Have fun and play, play, play! Resources: “The Artist’s way” by Julia Cameron and quote from Barbara Dave in “The Artist’s Magazine” March 2009 issue.
BIA Home & Garden Expo
Marg Stewart
September 24th was the BIA home show at the Crestview Community Center. Thank you to Mike Crow for being point man. Great job to all those who participated! We had three speakers, volunteers in our booth, counting attendees and manning the plant clinic outside. Thanks to everyone!!!
Mike, Lynne and Stacey
Faye and Carol
Sandie and Jane 4
Weed of the Month Is it a beautiful vine with wonderful red fall color and berries that songbirds love or is it a weed? You be the judge! Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is a native, perennial, high climbing or trailing woody vine that reaches up to 90‟ long. This vine produces many seeds, reseeds itself readily and can grow practically anywhere. As a native plant it has the potential to become invasive and often reproduces into nearby landscapes. This benign relative of the Grape can sometimes masquerade as Poison Ivy. Though its compound leaves usually have 5 leaflets, they may also have 3 or 7. Both plants display red pigments in fall and winter. Remember—Poison Ivy ALWAYS has 3 leaflets...”Leaves of 3 let it be!” Virginia Creeper climbs by many branched tendrils with adhesive disks that look like the small suction pads on lizards‟ feet. Given enough time it can completely cover walls, fences, small buildings, and trees. The fruit is a round berry, 1/4” wide, and is black to dark blue when it ripens between October and
Jenny Gillis
December. Songbirds are the principal consumers of Virginia Creeper fruit but woodpeckers, thrushes, deer, squirrels, and other small animals also eat them. It is a salt tolerant plant and can be used for watershed protection and erosion control. While this plant may be espaliered against a wall, it probably would not be wise to do so on wood siding. Its tendrils will work themselves between the boards and are difficult to remove. Also, the dense foliage will dry out slowly after rain, causing a variety of moisture problems. If you find Virginia Creeper is taking over your landscape, you can cut the vine as close to the ground as possible. Immediately paint a concentrated herbicide (glyphosate or triclopyr: vine & stump killer) on the cut stem. Another option is to utilize a standard floral water pick with a cap. Fill the water pick with your herbicide and snap on the cap. Cut the weedy vine, leaving about an 8 to 10 inch stem coming out of the ground. Jab the water pick into the ground next to the vine stem. Carefully bend the 5
stem over and insert it into the water pick. Allow the vine to take up as much herbicide as it can. You are unlikely to ever totally eliminate this troublesome vine from your landscape. However, you can keep it from overgrowing everything!
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
October 5th General Membership Meeting
October 8th OCMGA Annual Picnic
October 11th Quincy Field Day
October 15th OCMGA Native Plant Sale
October 24-26 Master Gardener State Conference Check your member’s site for details!
Graveyard Plants
Shari Farrell courtesy of eHow.com
Far from being frightening, graveyards provide a place of tranquil repose for both the living and the deceased. Planted with rich foliage and stately trees, many graveyards act as parklands or gardens for the living, providing a place of serenity amidst the bustle of modern life. Several varieties of plants are traditionally associated with graveyard gardens, and are chosen for their beauty, hardiness and symbolic meanings. Cypress: Traditionally associated with the underworld since ancient times, the Mediterranean cypress (Cupressus sempervirens) is a favored tree for graveyard garden plantings. Chosen for its longevity, mournful coloring and stately growth habit, cypress appears in historic and modern graveyards throughout Europe, the Americas, and the Middle East. Known for their erect, conical shape and dramatic whorls of evergreen foliage, cypress trees thrive in Mediterranean climates around the world, including California and southwestern Australia. Weeping Willow: Few plants are more representative of graveyards than the weeping willow. Referred to as “the perpetual mourner,” Mediterranean weeping willows earned this epithet with the mournful, trailing appearance cypress U. of of their branches. Native to northern Arizona China, weeping willows are a culitvar of the Babylonian willow (Salix babylonica), bred for their classic shape and narrow, silvery leaves. In addition to their aesthetic appeal, weeping willows serve a practical function when planted in graveyards, due to their ability to remove excess moisture from soil, which can cause graves and headstones to collapse. Weeping willow Calla lily:
grace graveyard gardens with their large, semi-tubular flowers. Native to southern Africa, calla lilies produce an abundance of evergreen foliage in areas of ample moisture and rich soil, sending up thick stalks topped by fleshy white flowers through the growing season. Symbolic of resurrection and eternity, calla lilies are often planted at the head and foot of graves. Poppy: A potent symbol of death and immortality, corn poppies (Papaver rhoeas) have been featured in burial places since ancient times. Traditionally a symbol of lives lost in battle, corn poppies bear large, showy flowers in late spring, with a second blush in early autumn. Known for their vivid red hue, corn poppy flowers feature four large, delicate petals with black markings in the center. In cemetery settings, corn poppies are generally planted along the tops of graves where they quickly naturalize into dramatic drifts, reappearing each year.
Tombstones are one of the oldest forms of funerary art. Originally, a tombstone was the stone lid of the coffin itself. In the 18th century graves also contained footstones to demarcate the foot end of the grave. Headstone engravers faces their own “Year 2000 problem” when still -living people, as many as 500,000 in the US alone, pre-purchased headstones with precarved death dates beginning 19—. Older markers usually contained epitaphs like, “The
White flowers hold a deep symbolic meaning of death, mourning and resurrection in many cultures around the world. In Europe and the Americas, calla lilies (Zantedeschia aethipica) frequently
pretty flowers that blossom here, Are fertilized by Gertie Greer.”
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October Holidays and Observances Karen Harper Most of us think of Halloween when October comes around but October is also host to a number of other interesting observances. It‟s a month of health awareness: Breast Cancer Awareness, Lupus Awareness and it‟s also National Diabetes Month. For foodies, October is: National Pizza Month, National Popcorn Popping Month and Seafood Month. October 4 is National Frappe Day. October 10 is National Angel Food Cake Day. If that‟s not your favorite treat, anything goes on October 13 for national Dessert Day. On the 21st you might find a use for all those carved pumpkin innards by celebrating National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day. For mean people, October is Sarcastic Month. For kind
people, October 5 is Do Something Nice Day; for cheap people October 1 is International Frugal Fun Day; for the geeks and nerds among us October 3 is Techies Day; for hoarders (and those who would like to get rid of hoarded stuff) October 6 is Come and Take it Day. October 12 is Moment of Frustration Day, followed by International Skeptics Day on the 13th. If any of those leave you feeling vaguely dissatisfied, you can sort it all out on October 19 which is Evaluate Your Life Day. And finally, we work our way towards Halloween night by first observing October 29—National Frankenstein Day, October 30, Mischief Night and October 31, Increase Your Psychic Powers Day.
A “Wild” Halloween
Linda Meyers
Most gardeners enjoy watching and learning about the diversified wildlife attracted to the beautiful gardens they have created. Some of you may also have seen first hand and admired unique behaviors or “tricks” nature has armed animals with to help insure their survival. Here are just three of the most talented “pranksters” found commonly in Northwest Florida. Eastern Hognose Snake: This harmless nonvenomous snake knows a “trick or two.” When threatened it has the ability to flatten its head and neck while hissing loudly (similar to a cobra). Rising up it may strike, but harmlessly with its mouth closed. If this doesn‟t scare off a predator and it continues to feel threatened this great actor will flip over on its back, convulsing, even defecating and regurgitate its food. It will lay still for several minutes belly up with its mouth open and tongue hanging out. When it feels danger has passed it will turn over and slowly crawl away. Hognose playing “dead.”
Eastern Glass Lizard: This legless lizard is easily mistaken for a snake (a great disguise), but if you look closely you will see it has eyelids and ear openings on the side of its head. They reach lengths of 18Glass lizard 40 inches with 2/3 of its body being the tail. If attacked the tail can easily break off (hence the name Glass Lizard) and continues to wiggle distracting the predator, while giving the lizard time to escape. In several weeks the lizard will regenerate a new tail. Virginia Opossum: When threatened by a predator, either man or beast, opossums will usually turn and in a very defensive manner hiss and snarl. If this tactic doesn‟t scare off an intruder, their acting skills may take over and they will lie down with their mouth open and very effectively remain lifeless, appearing dead (“playing possum”) for several minutes. Many predators won‟t eat animals that are already dead, so they lose interest and eventually leave the lifeless opossum alone long enough for it to successfully escape.
Virginia Opossum 7
Sources: University of Florida IFAS publications and the Florida Museum of Natural History
Book Review Marg Stewart Anyone who has had to come up with a Halloween costume at the last minute knows that this is the time of year when you hope your creativity is still alive and well. Creative Thinkering, by Michael Michalko is a unique look at not what creativity is but how our brains process information and how we can „train‟ our brains to think creatively. Part I covers the nature of what Mr. Michalko calls „conceptual blending.‟ This is the „act of combining, or relating, unrelated items in order to solve problems, create new ideas, and even rework old ideas.‟ There are many little experiments to try in each chapter that show how the process actually works. Part II explores and explains ways that you can change your analytical thinking into creative thinking. Mr. Michalko challenges you to pay attention
not to „what‟ you think but „how‟ you think. How many times do we feel stuck in solving a problem and then someone else walks up and mentions a solution that seems so simple that we‟re amazed that we didn‟t think of it? Or, you are working on something and suddenly just get a flash of the “AHA!‟ moment? There‟s actually a reason for it and a way to train your brain to have more “AHA!” times. Great book and a fun, informative read.
Thanks to Lynn for these photos taken in her yard. Not your average visitor to a feeder! I wonder what the hummingbird thinks about the new neighbor? 8
LAST WORD
Have pictures or an idea for an article? Send it in! Articles and pictures are always welcome.
Your member site: www.ocmgamembers.org
“What would Dorothy do?” That‟s something I ask myself every time I‟m faced with a problem. A craft project isn‟t going according to plan, something in the garden isn‟t going the way I wanted it to....Yes indeed what would Dorothy do? „Dorothy‟ visited my house one Halloween quite a few years ago. Yes, that Dorothy, the one from the Wizard of Oz. My Dorothy however, was about 4 years old and cute as can be. She had the pigtails, dress and even had the red shoes. Over her arm she had a basket that I saw had a stuffed animal in it. “Oh look!” I said, “You even have Toto.” She replied very seriously, “Yup, but he‟s a cat.” Now we all know the story, Dorothy has a DOG. But, who says Toto HAS to be a dog every time? I mean really, I have a cat who thinks he‟s dog so why can‟t the reverse be true? My Dorothy saw nothing wrong with Toto being a cat, in other words, it wasn‟t a problem at all. Just another little interesting note to the universe. Think about it, how often do we try
Marg Stewart to do something and it won‟t work so we give up? Perhaps it‟s just the way we are looking at it. If we perceive that it is a problem of course that is exactly what it‟s going to be....a problem! But what if, we changed the perception from something is a problem to something is a possibility? What if we allowed our creativity to come to the fore and just went with the flow? Oh, but I don‟t have a creative bone in my body! How often have we heard or said that? Really? Nothing? There was a time when you just knew that dandelions were wish makers and not weeds. There was a time when string and tin cans made a telephone. There was a time when the fort in your bedroom was really an outpost in the darkest Amazon jungle. That part of us still exists. We just need to give ourselves permission to let it out again. I think we‟d all be amazed at the results. So the next time you‟re faced with a „problem‟ ask yourself, “What would Dorothy do?”
If you haven‟t volunteered to help with the plant sale please do so NOW! We still need folks to help with set-up, labeling and working the actual day of the sale! The Foundation for the Gator Nation.....An equal opportunity institution.
We need all the support possible to make this project a success! 9