Wild dates in Charlotte County

The Phoenix sylvestris,  also known as  the wild date palm, or,  more commonly, the  Sylvester palm, is a strikingly magnificent palm relatively new to our area in comparison to the Canary Island Date Palm (pineapple palm) .  The blue-green fronds and  attractive patterned trunk make this palm particularly special.  Sylvester palms are often planted at entrances and gateways to housing developments or high-end commercial properties.   You may have already seen one and pondered on the palm’s true identity.

The Sylvester palm is native to India where it is tapped as a source of sugar and, as such, is sometimes called the sugar date palm or toddy palm.  Slowly growing upwards to fifty-feet tall, with dense fronds up to ten feet long, the attractive golden trunks of the Sylvester palm are patterned with triangular to diamond-shaped leaf scars.  Mature specimens produce colorful clusters of orange fruit.  Beware the fronds as, like many other Phoenix palms, they are armed with very sharp spines.

Sylvester palms are fully hardy in our area and are noted for taking temperatures as low as fifteen degrees F.   Plant Sylvester palms in full sun in well-drained sandy soils.  After establishment, this palm is considered drought-tolerant, but will still appreciate some occasional watering. 

One concern to be mindful of is a new disease called Texas Phoenix Palm Decline or TPPD.  This disease has been found in a number of Phoenix palms including the Canary Island date palm, the edible date palm, and the Sylvester palm.   Texas Phoenix Palm Decline has also been found in our native Sabal palms and queen palms, but only once in the Pygmy date palm, and once in the mule palm.  While this problem has been documented in Charlotte County, I have not seen a case as yet.  I do however hear of TPPD occurring much more frequently north of us and to the west.   For more information, please see this publication - https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pp163 - Texas Phoenix Palm Decline.

While most Sylvester palms are available as mature specimens, on occasion you may find some smaller individuals in containers at garden centers and nurseries.   I received mine as a two-gallon plant which in ten years has grown to about ten feet tall with not much of a trunk at this point. 

The Sylvester palm is a beautiful landscape subject that you will want for your own yard.  In the meantime, as you daydream about it, simply admire one from afar!  For more information on all types of Phoenix palms suitable for our area,  please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Northrop, R. J.,  Andreu, M. G., Friedman, M. H. McKenzie, M. & Quintana, H. V. (2013) Phoenix sylvestris, Wild Date Palm.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Culbert, D. F. (2001) Make a Date With Palms.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Okeechobee County.

Phoenix sylvestris. (2015) Wikipedia.

When cardboard plants attack!

The first time I saw a cardboard plant was up north when I worked for a garden center.  They were small specimens meant to be houseplants in that situation.  And they did feel just like cardboard to the touch or even something artificial.  Here in Southwest Florida, the cardboard plant or cardboard cycad is a popular landscape plant for shrub boarders that gives a very tropical lush appearance.  They grow slowly, but can eventually get up to six feet in diameter.  Planning ahead for the space needed, the cardboard plant can make a nice addition to any yard.

The cardboard plant has been available to Florida gardeners for some time and is  a frequent component of many landscapes.  Although palm-like in appearance, the cardboard plant is a cycad more closely related to conifers.  Other plants that are cycads include the native coontie and the sago.  The fronds of the cardboard plant are leathery and have the feel of cardboard due to the fuzzy texture.  New fronds emerge from the center of a thick trunk in  a rosette pattern.  There are separate male and female plants which each produce cone-like reproductive structures.  The female plants develop seed-bearing cones which produce large red seeds.  These attractive red seeds (and plant parts) are noted to be toxic to both animals and people so make sure to keep pets and children away. 

Not only was the cardboard plant listed as one of Florida Nursery Growers & Landscaper Association’s (FNGLA) 2007 Plants of the Year, but it is also considered a Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ plant selection.  As such, it is considered drought tolerant, salt tolerant and will grow in sites from full sun to partial shade. 

As mentioned previously, the cardboard plant needs room to grow.  I have seen many plantings that did not take the ultimate size of this plant into consideration and they outgrew the site spilling out into walkways and other such travel areas poking and interfering with passersby. Cardboard plants are also armed with spines on their stems which can be hazardous.    As a result, they were often hideously pruned by hacking off portions and shaping them into no-longer ornamentally useful ragged cubes.  Not only did they outgrow the site as individual plants, but they also spread via side-shoots and germinated seeds.  This is one of those cases again where you need to “plan before you plant”.    Those smallish two-gallon plants will slowly, but surely grow larger into six-foot disks.  If pruning is needed, just take off out-of-bound fronds.

Cardboard plants are excellent subjects for the landscape that are practically carefree.  However, prior planning will help keep these beautiful cycads under control and in your good graces!  For information on all types of plants suitable for our area, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Gilman, E. F. (2014) Zamia furfuracea Cardboard Plant, Cardboard Cycad.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Scheper, J. (2004) Zamia furfuracea.  Floridata.com, Tallahassee, FL.

Culbert, D. (2007) Five New Plants For 2007.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Okeechobee County.

Zamia furfuracea. (2015) Wikipedia.

McAvoy, G. (2015) Cycads Provide and Exotic Prehistoric Look.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Hendry County.

Gardening Solutions (2015) Cardboard Plant.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

The Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Guide to Plant Selection & Landscape Design. (2010) The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Pretty poison

The rosary pea is a vining plant with pinkish flowers and two-inch seed pods.  Once the seed pod opens, up to eight shiny bright red seeds with black spots are visible.  This invasive plant not only infiltrates natural and residential areas, but also produces highly toxic, attractive seeds ready to infest new areas.  Once identified, this non-native plant can be controlled.

It is believed that the rosary pea originated in India and has now spread to many tropical and subtropical areas of the world including Florida.  The colorful seeds have been used for a number of reasons including jewelry and as a standard for measuring the weight of gold.  These seeds, although colorful and attractive, are highly toxic to people and animals and can be deadly.  The actual perennial woody vine will grow up into shrubs and trees where it often disappears in the foliage of the understory almost hiding in plain sight.  The pinnate leaves frame the clusters of pinkish flowers which are followed by flat two-inch pods.  When ripe, the pod flares open reveling the brilliantly-colored seeds.  Besides humans spreading the seeds, birds also move them about.  This plant has deep roots making it difficult to eliminate.

Rosary peas are found in central and southern Florida including Charlotte County.  Characterized by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (FLEPPC) as a Category I Invasive, the rosary pea does invade natural areas and can displace native plants.  Prevention of this invasive plant is the best measure to keep rosary peas from establishing in residential properties.  Hand-pull rosary pea plants when spotted.  Chemical control with the careful use of herbicides can also be used.  The literature mentions that treatments applied in the fall are the most effective.  As with using any pesticide, read the label as it is the law. 

The bottom-line here is don’t plant the rosary pea, don’t use the seeds for any purpose, and eradicate this plant whenever it is found on your property.  For more information on all types of invasive plants in our area, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Abrus precatorius (2015) UF/IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Langeland, K.A. Cherry, H. M., McCormick, C. M.,& Burks,  K. C. (2008) Identification and Biology of Nonnative Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas – Second Edition.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS. 

Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council’s 2015 List of Invasive (2015) http://www.fleppc.org/list/2015FLEPPCLIST-LARGEFORMAT-FINAL.pdf.

Abrus precatorius (2015) Wikipedia. 

The African violet – a gift for the holidays

African violets were the first houseplants I remember growing as a child.  Walk into any garden center or supermarket floral section these days and you are liable to see a nice display of African violets.  These traditional flowering houseplants not only make a great Holiday gift idea for the gardener, but also have a place in every home.  These plants do well in low light, (even artificial light), and come in a wide variety of flower colors and leaf style and texture.

So, you bring your African violet home and wonder where to place it so that it gets the correct amount of light.  These plants will do best with indirect light.  African violets will tell you if they are getting enough light.  Too low of a light intensity, and the African violet will not flower well.  Too much light will result in leaves that are pale or yellowish-green.  The literature indicates that an African violet needs about one thousand foot-candles of light for eight to twelve hours per day – in other words, bright, indirect light. 

Hand-in-hand with light requirements is making sure your plants receive the proper temperature.  Try to keep your night to day temperatures between seventy to eighty degrees F.  Temperatures over eighty degrees F can affect growth and flowering.  Air conditioning can help provide an even temperature.  In association with temperature of course is humidity.  Humidity can be maintained by placing pots on pebble-filled trays of water.  Make sure that the pots do not touch the water directly.

Ready-to-use African violet potting soils are usually available at any retail garden center.  The soil medium is generally made up of peat and perlite (volcanic material) which provides water retention and good drainage.  Water African violets from the top or the bottom with room temperature or warm water.  Using a good liquid fertilizer at intervals recommended on the package label will ensure good growth and frequent flowering.  Good leaf color and normal flowering are signs that your feeding program is working. 

Even novice gardeners will find that African violets are very easy to propagate.  In as little as six months you can grow a new plant ready to flower!  Leaf cuttings (with the petiole - leaf stem-attached) are made by snapping or cutting a leave from the original plant.  Make sure that the stem is about one and one half inches long.  Insert the leaf stem into a sterile potting medium.  Insert this leaf into a pre-dug hole made with a pencil and firm the medium gently around the cutting.  Expect roots in three to four weeks and leaves in about another month.

Pest control will include monitoring your plants for pests and always quarantining new plants to prevent introducing infestations.  Cold water can cause spotting on leaves - use warm water as mentioned earlier.  Soluble salts that accumulate on pot rims can cause problems to leaf petioles from chemical burns.  The cure for this can include watering from the surface to flush excess fertilizer salts away or by using fertilizer less frequently.

African violets are real gems of the houseplant world – give one as  a gift this season!  For more information on all types of houseplants, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resource:  Park Brown S. (2013) African Violets, The University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service, IFAS.

Top of the morning, Tithonia!

The Tithonia or Mexican sunflower is a spectacular annual flowering plant that does well in our area.  I used to grow it as a kid up north, but found that it does even better in Florida! Easy to start from seed, this brilliant orange-red flower will impress you.

Tithonia rotundiflora is an old-time annual flower favorite not to be confused with a perennial relative called the Bolivian Sunflower (Tithonia diversifolia).  Tithonia diversifolia is an aggressive plant can easily take over an area if you are not careful.  The Tithonia in today’s article is easily controlled and a pleasure to have in your yard.  Growing from five to six feet tall, this annual has fuzzy, soft leaves and stems topped with three-inch, bright orange-red flowers with yellow centers that remind you of a daisy or a zinnia.  Direct seed in a full sun location in late winter/early spring for summer and fall flowers.  Be prepared to stake your Tithonia as they can get floppy and fall over. 

The cultivar called ‘Torch’ is perhaps the most common selection and has been given an All-America Selection designation.  There is also a yellow version.  Both of these cultivars are tall, so you may want to look at some dwarf varieties.  Only growing to three feet tall, ‘Goldfinger’ and ‘Fiesta Del Sol’ provide a  more compact version of this plant.  Both heat and drought-tolerant, Tithonia do well in our summer weather. 

Besides being a colorful bedding plant, Tithonia lends itself to the production of great cut flowers that keep producing.  This flowering plant is also a magnet for butterflies.  Butterflies love to perch and sip nectar from the high vantage point provided by the Tithonia.  This plant may also supply seed for birds at certain times in the year. 

Once an individual flower is spent, it will set seed which will likely drop to the ground, germinate, and may provide another set of Tithonia to flower in fall and early winter.  A frost will likely finish off the plants, but many seeds will self-sow and become ‘volunteers’ for next year.  As such, Tithonia can naturalize a bit wherever it is grown.  Also, look to pass some extra seeds to a friend as Tithonia makes an excellent “pass-along” plant.

So, if you are looking for success with annuals in 2016, perhaps the Tithonia will be part of your garden!  For more information on all types of annual flowers suitable for our area, please , call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Christman, S. (2006) Tithonia rotundiflora. Floridata.com, Tallahassee.

Delvalle,  T.  B. (2015) Garden Help: Colors, butterflies in abundance. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS - Duval County.

Malone, K. C., Wilber, W., Hansen, G., Daniels,  J. C., Larsen C. & Momol E. (2013) Community ButterflyScaping: How to Move Beyond Butterfly Gardening to Create a Large-Scale Butterfly Habitat. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Yates L. (2014) Passalong Plants Add Variety to the Garden.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS - Leon County.

Attracting Birds - FS 6099 HORT (2015) The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS - Brevard County.

True Blue

Blue flowering plants really catch my attention.  One of the plants that is catching my eye these days is the sky-blue flowering plumbago.  This evergreen flowering shrub is great for foundation plantings, in planters, as a hedge or planted so that it cascades over a wall. While seen in almost every home landscape, the plumbago is an essential and colorful subject worth some additional attention.

Native to South Africa, the plumbago is a fast growing shrub that can grow over six feet tall and eight feet wide in time and without pruning.  Best in full sun for superior flowering, this shrub will become fairly drought tolerant after establishment.  Allow up to six feet between plants when planting in mass to promote the mounding, almost fountain-like growing habit that is natural for this woody plant.  The yellow-green leaves frame the spectacular, one-inch wide flowers that form clusters that may remind you of phlox.   While most  plumbago come in sky blue, there is a cultivar called ‘Royal Cape’ with cobalt blue flowers.  For something different, there is also a white variety called ‘Alba’.

Plumbago can become very bushy, so, to promote new growth, prune this shrub relatively heavy  in late winter.   Although hardy in our area, frosts or freezes can nip plumbago back a bit as well.  Even if it were frozen back to the ground, the plumbago will more often than not, grow back without a problem. 

While plumbago have very few pests, an insect known as the chili thrips entered Florida in 2005 and had really taken a liking to many formerly  low maintenance plants such as plumbago. Chili thrip-infested plumbago almost looked like they have a fungal disease due to the numerous blackened leaves.  The good news is that this insect problem seems to have abated and has leveled off in our area as natural predators have built up to suppress chili thrips to a point where damage is minimal to none. 

One additional item to note is that plumbago have what are called chalk glands on the underside of their leaves.  This white deposit is natural and should not be confused with a fungus or other pest. 

Consider plumbago, a true Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ recommended plant, in your landscape for color and eye-appeal.  For more information on a “rainbow” of colorful plants to grow in our area, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Gilman, E. F. (2011) Plumbago auriculata. Plumbago, Cape Plumbago, Sky Flower.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Scheper, J. (2011) Plumbago auriculata.  Floridata.com.  Tallahassee, FL.

Ferrer, A. (2014) Plumbago. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Seminole County.

Caldwell, D. (2006) Chili Thrips: New Thrips Found on Plumbago: Could Mean Serious Losses for Ornamentals and Veggie-Fruit Industries. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS – Collier County.

White, green, purple and lavender – heirloom eggplants offer color and food

Do ‘Rosa Bianca’, ‘Pandora Striped’ , ‘Casper’ , and ‘Apple Green’ mean anything to you?  These are just a small sampling of heirloom eggplant varieties that you can grow in Florida.  The number of different eggplant varieties available to grow has expanded well beyond the large deep purple fruits that most people are familiar with.  There is huge assortment of heirloom eggplants that offer color and shape to please any gardener.  Eggplants (some do actually resemble eggs) were first introduced by Thomas Jefferson and the rest, as they say,  is history.

Eggplants were around well before Thomas Jefferson started to promote them in 1806.  In fact, the eggplant is native to India and Pakistan and has been used as a crop for at least four-thousand years.  Well-known in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, the eggplant has traveled the world and, as a result, is available to home gardeners.  Heirlooms, by definition, whether eggplants, tomatoes or some other cultivated plant, must have been in common use for fifty years, come true from seed, and be pollinated by natural means.  Generally heirlooms have great flavor or some other noted characteristic, but not necessarily disease resistance. 

Eggplants like full-sun locations with well-drained soil enriched with plenty of organic matter.  On average, most varieties take from sixty-five days up to around eighty-five days from transplant to the first harvest.  For our fall/early winter gardens, eggplants can be planted from August through October.  They are sensitive to frosts, so be prepared to cover them as we enter early winter.  Eggplants can also be planted in the late winter/early spring garden after the weather has settled.  I have successfully grown them during the summer as well.  Space the plants twenty-four to thirty-six inches apart in rows thirty-six to forty-two inches apart.  Pick the fruits when they are young and shiny as over-mature fruit can develop bitterness. 

As for what heirloom eggplant varieties you select, it all depends on your particular needs and tastes.  A few green cultivars to try include ‘Apple Green’, ‘Louisiana Long Green’, and ‘Thai Long Green’.  For white-fruited eggplants, try ‘Casper’, and ‘Japanese White Egg’.  There are a number of long, narrow purple-fruited types such as ‘Fengyuan Purple’, ‘Long Purple’, and ‘Ping Tung Long’ ( I have grown ‘Ping Tung Long’ twice with good success).   For eggplants of a different color, look for lavender-pink fruited ‘Rosita’ or the purple-white striped cultivars ‘Listada de Gandia’, ‘Pandora Striped Rose’ or ‘Rayada’.   If you like the classic, large, bell-shaped eggplants stick with ‘Black Beauty’, ‘Florida Market’, or ‘Florida Highbush’. 

Heirloom eggplants are colorful, interesting and tasty!  For more information on all types of vegetables that you can grow in our area, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Ozores-Hampton, M. (2013) Heirloom Eggplant Varieties in Florida.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Christman, S. (2004) Solanum melongena.  Floridata.com, Tallahassee, FL.