It’s November. With pansies, kale/cabbage and bulbs planted there is little to do in the ornamental garden but pull hen-bit. For the greenhouse grower, we are all worried about that red plant soon to grace everyone’s fireplace and/or table. Thats right, poinsettia.

The poinsettia was brought to America by the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett in 1828. And despite what most say, is not poisonous (unless you are eating salads of it).

With the poinsettia being the #1 potted plant in the U.S, every greenhouse grower is sure to have them on their benches. Most growers will buy rooted cuttings to be shipped in around August. Depending on the variety and the size of the plant needed the grower will pinch the plant in September. Pinching is done to destroy apical dominance. Once the tip is removed from the plant the concentration of auxin (the hormone responsible for phototropism, geotropism, apical dominance and promoting root formation) the lateral buds will begin to grow. See the pinched plant below that was pinched three weeks before the picture.

Some growers will apply a plant growth regulator such as Cycocel and/or Florel which are synthetic hormones to keep the plant short.

Poinsettia, like mums, are photo-sensitive plants. They require a day length shorter than 12 hours in order to bloom. Basically a chemical that is produced inside the plant that can be destroyed by light can sufficiently build up and trigger the plant to bloom. The dark must be uninterrupted. If the poinsettia sees more than 2 fc for even a moment, blooming can be delayed. High temperatures can also be a factor.

Sounds pretty simple…Right? Well there are a few more things to consider; nutrients (I send tissue, media, and water samples to a lab to be tested), space, watering, fungus and whitefly. And if you’re like me, six months more of work!!! Thats right I produce my crop myself from stock plants.

Here is how I do it.

Week 13 (middle of March) I receive around 1,000 rooted cuttings. The cutting come to me rooted in a oasis wedge that is very similar to florist foam. I plant the wedges into a 6.5” pot and place them pot to pot. They end up taking one bench (6’x40’). I grow them on and pinch them around the end of April. By the end of May they go from taking up one bench to six benches. In June I begin taking cuttings. The photo below is one of a group of cuttings produced by a "direct stick" method. I root them under mist and shade. Over two to four weeks I reduce the amount of mist and increase the amount of light.

When to take cutting depends on the rooting time, vegetative build-up (after pinching) time plus blooming time. Then you count that time back from your sales date and that is when you take the cutting.

You may notice the pinching and Auxin and most gardeners know that if they remove the tip of their plant the lateral branches will begin to grow. Consider doing the opposite of apical pinching and encourage apical dominance. You can remove the lateral buds and encourage one large flower as seen in my standard poinsettia below (three plants in a pot).

You can also take the idea of destroying apical dominance and combine it with encouraging apical dominance to produce a poinsettia tree. In March pull out some of your stock and do not pinch them. Grow the plants on. While they grow remove the lower 50 percent of lateral buds. In September (with the other plants) pinch the plant. Pinch again to get the poinsettia tree.

Now I may have made poinsettia production sound fairly simple. But before all the greenhouse growers out there grab their pitch-forks and torches, let me ensure you poinsettia production is very involved. I have lost many nights sleep worrying about flowering on time, flowering too soon, pest (whitefly in particular), nutrients, the plant growing too big, or the plant being too short, growing too many pink flowers, not growing enough red, are the heaters working, etc..

So as you enjoy that "decoration" on your fireplace or table. Take a moment to think of the jorney we took to this holiday season.

Hello Plant friends,

For this post , let’s keep it simple. We’ll start formally, with introductions…..

I moved in to my new house a few years ago. A nice house that I hope to retire in, but there was one problem; the backyard. The backyard was (as I would describe it to friends) “just fence and grass.” Unfortunately it was too hot to plant when we moved in.

My backyard began as it should have, on paper. I had a lot of sketches. Finally I drew the yard to scale. Because autumn was approaching I decided to get the hardscape done and plant my trees and shrubs. First I took the measurements from my plan/drawing and spray painted the gravel path and the patio, then I called Okie-Dig to locate power, gas and cable lines. Next, I rented a sod-cutter and cut the path and the patio.

Next I laid down landscape fabric and edging stone.

Next, I filled in the area with screening (which will later be compacted and receive flagstone).

Then I began working on the beds. But first let me share with you my war with Bermuda!! Two applications of glyphosate (Round-Up) and still there was grass. So like a 13 year-old cleaning his room, I did what most males would have in that situation…..I brushed it under the carpet. Using 6mill plastic, I stapled it down and covered it up with mulch. But let me warn you, if you are to cover a large area with plastic to kill grass, use black plastic, I’ve seen Bermuda growing under clear plastic. Also, and most importantly, if you are doing a large area, have mulch on hand! Late night in (windy) Oklahoma I would be awakened by the sound of plastic whipping against my bedroom window like some crazed bird seeking refuge.

Fall is the perfect time to plant trees and shrubs. It allows the plant time to get established before the stress of spring winds and summer heat. However, in hindsight, I would have bought and planted my three crapemyrtles (Lagerstroemia indica) in March, because we had such a cold winter (in February) that the plant died back to the ground, so right now the plant is about a foot shorter than when I bought it almost a year ago, such is gardening. I also planted a lacebark elm (Ulmus parvifolia). Lacebarks are wonderful trees with exfoliating bark providing winter intreast, arching braches provide shade later in life, and a muscling trunk. Lacebarks do flower and fruit in the fall adding to the leaf pick-up.

Now spring. Is there a better time? Dutch bulbs (planted in October) show early promises in the garden that color is on its way. But, not for me. You see this is my "investment year." We all know the saying with perennials "the first year it sleeps, the second year it creeps the third year it leaps" (except for echinacea, which really looks its best after the second year and then declines). With that being said, my garden looks a bit like a specimen garden. But I promise you this, next year when those perennials are established; flat by flat the annuals with their continuous color will march into my garden.

So let’s met a few friends.

Dianthus: there are several All America Selection winners. In the picture on the left there is Chedder Pink and the picture on the right is ‘Bouquet Rose Magic’. I grew Bouquet Rose Magic for a cut flower grower, but fell in love with the variety and had to take it home.

Hellebore: Now Hellebores are one of those interesting flowers where the attractive part of the flowers are really the sepals and not true petals. Hellebore was named an Oklahoma Proven plant and is best used in full to part shade. So far this year it has been a little bit of a water commitment, but worth it. I’m a sucker for green flowers, but you can find shades of yellow, white and violet.

Physostegia virginiana ‘Crstyal Peak White’: This plant was planted later then I would have liked. But, has stood up well, it began blooming in June and hasn’t stopped. A great border or midgarden plant!

Columbine (Aquilegia sp): there is a native yellow columbine, but I adore the ‘Song bird’ varieties. There larger flowers are something to behold. This plant does have a bad rap. Columbine can go "summer dormant," therefore some people give up too early and dig it up.  Also allow it to seed, I’m not 100% certain that it is a perennial (I'm not convinced) but allow it to seed and it can naturalize. And on a greenhouse grower note, this crop takes approximately 23 weeks to produce. Columbine needs a vegetative build-up time and then a vernalization period (period of cold four weeks if the temp is 41 F, longer if the temp is higher). Then it will bloom in six weeks. So hats off to the growers that produce columbine.

Bird of paradise (Caesalpinia gilliesii): with bi-pinnate leaves, when I first saw this plant in the pot I thought it was a mimosa. Bird of paradise quickly grew 3 feet tall. It bloomed in late spring/early summer. Its flowers remind me of a giant cleome, but its red stamens really set it apart. It now has another round of buds on it!!

Cleome ‘Senorita Rosalita’; really an annual, but I have to share. This plant is a dwarf. Growing 2.5’ tall I grew this plant for my spring sale. 'Senorita Rosalita' began blooming early in production and hasn’t stopped. Watering has been easy, the plant seems to be pretty tough. I’m praying that it will re-seed (even though I may not get the same habit from its seed).

Cleome sp. Spider flower: two years ago a friend was showing me pictures of her vacation, being a fellow horticulturist none of the pictures were of people….all plants. One of the plants was the cleome, a forgotten plant, and yes also an annual. Last spring I grew cleome from seed and planted it in pots out front (western exposure) which they quickly outgrew. Becoming tried of watering small pots with big plants, I pulled them from the front to the back yard, where yes, they re-seeded. A pretty carefree plant that once planted you will always have.

Every time I met a new student going thru the Horticulture Program I always like to ask them about their "plant story." Every gardener has that beginning moment when they were at some garden and saw something that lit this gardening fire. For me it was visiting an arboretum in Virginia. They had an herb garden that you stepped down into, which made your waist about level with the ground. Father-Thyme, from a distance, I thought was moss; taking a closer look I noticed its tiny foliage, and I suppose right then it clicked "you can really LOOK at plants," so I will always have an herb garden.

(Nasturtium in early spring)                                     (Dill late summer)

(Chamomile in summer)                                                (Basil and Eucalyptus ‘Lemon Bush’ early spring)

Asclepias tuberosaor butterfly weed: A must have re-seeding native plant. It’s the primary food source for the monarch butterfly

Dill: since we a talking about butterflies, dill is an herb that I always plant (or let reseed) that is a great food source for the caterpillars, who never share.

Digitalis purpurea-  foxglove: there are a lot of varieties out there; the one shown is ‘Camelot White’. Typically known as a bi-annual, some are being marketed as perennial. They have a hard time here in Oklahoma and require close monitoring on watering. But I just can’t give up on this plant.

Well I hoped you’ve enjoy meeting some of my friends, till next time.

Hello my fellow plant lovers!! Welcome to my first blog post. If you are in Oklahoma (and surrounding states) I am sure that you are using the same word to describe your garden as I am “HOT.”

First let’s talk about how the heat maybe affecting your garden. If you have a veggie garden, your tomatoes may have stopped (if they ever got started) producing fruit. This is because of the ambient air temperature. Pollen in the tomato flower slows down and even become sterile in high temperatures. But put that shovel away. Once we cool off, the tomatoes will fruit again. So put those salad bowls and hopes for fresh bruschetta aside for now and keep those fingers crossed.

Another effect the heat has on our gardens is death (I know I didn’t want to say it). But, you may have noticed that quite a few trees have gone……..well, not-so pretty anymore. Some trees and shrubs will "give-up," but have no fear, they are ‘"hoosing their battles." For some trees and shrubs it’s easier to drop their leaves and "go to bed." This is referred to as summer dormancy. Fortunately the vascular cambium of plants is close to its outer layer (like the outside ring in a tree). This enables us to do a simple test or check the heart beat. Simply scratch the outside of some new growth, if you see green then there is life and we can wait for those secondary buds to break later. If you see brown, check a few other places to be sure. If you think that you have lost a tree and can scar the oldest of wood never seeing green then you may want to wait until fall (the best time to plant trees and shrubs) and replant. If you are concerned about a shrub or vining plant, wait till after the last frost of this upcoming winter. The shrub may come back from the ground, after all you’re a gardener – patient and optimistic and you know, worst case you can replant in the spring. A lot of herbaceous perennials, such as columbine, will enter a summer dormancy as well. Therefore my finial word to you is "wait, it could come back."  

Next, let’s talk about grass. No not that pretty stuff like Festuca ovina ‘Elijah Blue’ or Melinis nerviglumis ‘Savannah’ (an Oklahoma Proven plant). But that area between your house and the street. Watering is the most misunderstood aspect of lawn management. Now I know that you are not "that person" that runs their irrigation system every day. But I know that you know"‘that person, like that bank down the street that runs their irrigation system in the rain!! So here is me on my soap-box (feel free to print this off and tape it to that bank’s front door, I won’t tell). Frequent and light irrigation on lawn encourages weed seed germination, soil compaction, thatch, shallow rooting and a high water bill. Typically (and you should apply this for every plant) you should irrigate when the lawn shows signs of stress such as a blue-green color or no "bounce." Then water until you moisten to a 6” depth, if you start to pool water or water runs off, then stop. Mowing is determined by species, some Bermuda is .5” to 3”. I always use the old saying “cut it high in July."

Finally, a topic that we have already touched on, irrigation. The best way to water your garden (drum roll please) is by drip irrigation. Hang around for later post and I will show you how to build a drip irrigation system for not a lot of money. Drip irrigation systems apply water directly to the soil creating an "upside down cone" pattern of moisture beneath the soil surface. You’ll water only the plant that you are trying to keep alive and not the weed in the back corner. It can improve the production of fruiting crops like tomatoes as well. For those that don’t have a drip irrigation system and are trying to keep their gardens alive during this heat, let me offer this plan. Abandon that sprinkler (that is if you don’t have a massing of plants but more of an individual planting) grab your hose and ever-so-slightly turn it on to a little more than a drip. Place the hose next to the plant that needs water (remember we only water when we start to see decline) and go weed another area of the garden. As you're weeding, watch for runoff, then move it to the next plant that is asking for a drink. This will enable you to water only the plants that you want to keep alive and save on water.

Hopefully you can get this all done before your garden turns into the surface of the sun – leaving you to retire to chilling wine and the AC.

Cheers everyone, see you next post!