Gardening

[Gliondrach]

My Christmas cactus is in flower. Two flowers, another one nearly open and a fourth one in bud. I noticed three or four buds a couple of weeks ago.

[Gliondrach]

Be careful in the garden.

Scientist Suggests Carnivorous Petunias, Potatoes Among Us

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

By Charles Q. Choi

Petunias and potatoes may actually be carnivorous plants, scientists now suggest.
Indeed, carnivorous behavior may be far more widespread in plants than commonly thought — if we take a closer look, botanists said.

At least six different kinds of killer plants have been recognized since the time of Darwin, such as Venus flytraps, which snares insects between its jaw-like leaves, and pitcher plants, which capture victims in slippery pits. These plants apparently target animals to supplement their growth in harsh, nutrient-poor habitats.

Many other plants, some quite common, have also been suggested as potential carnivores over the years that have failed to gain wide acceptance as such thus far. Petunias and potatoes, for instance, have sticky hairs that trap insects, and several species of campion flowers have the common name catchfly for the same reason.

"We may be surrounded by many more murderous plants than we think," said botanist Mark Chase, Keeper of the Jodrell Laboratory at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in England.

Cryptic carnovores

Chase and his colleagues reviewed all the research so far on carnivorous plants. A number of plants might actually be carnivorous, they noted, but merely go about their murderous business in a subtler manner than their more conspicuous cousins.

For instance, the cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix) is not typically considered a carnivorous plant, but this pink flower possesses sticky, adhesive glands and dwells in poor soils. Also, while carnivorous seeds might be a strange concept, those of the shepherd’s purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) possesses a sticky layer with chemicals that can attract, kill and digest victims.

"Although a man-eating tree is fictional, many commonly grown plants may turn out to be cryptic carnivores, at least by absorbing through their roots the breakdown products of the animals that they ensnare," Chase said.

The reason why most of these plants are not generally thought of as carnivores is because they have not been found capable of digesting what they entrap as more obvious carnivorous plants do. Still, because roots can readily absorb nutrients released from decaying corpses, nearly all plants are capable of carnivory, Chase and his colleagues assert.

"In almost every habitat, the nitrogen and phosphorus that animal bodies can provide are limiting factors for growth, and even a minimal amount of carnivory can reap some benefit," Chase told LiveScience.

Sophisticated plants

Although Chase feels there is more than just circumstantial evidence that demonstrates how widespread carnivorous plants are, to prove the point, researchers can dose insects with mildly radioactive nutrients. Scientists can then track such molecules to see if the plants are really absorbing them, which would show they are benefiting from killing prey.

"What plants are doing is much more sophisticated than we ever imagined," Chase said. "Although animals are eating plants, plants are also eating animals. It's not just a one-way street."

The scientists detailed their analysis December 4 in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society.

foxnews.com/story/0,2933,579736,00.html?test=faces

[Bowwowmeow]

I have been sprouting horse chestnuts. Another name for the fruits of the California Buckeye, which is a very pretty native tree. I found one along the roadside full of fruits a few months ago, so I collected half a dozen, and looked up how to sprout them online. In one of my garden books it said they are easy to sprout, but gave no directions, so I found some online.

I have one already planted in a pot, and it is six inches high. The second one is still in its sprouting bowl, but it needs to be planted soon. I want a few of these trees on my property, since there are a few next door, but none on my side of the fence. They look beautiful in winter with no leaves, and they also bloom with large pendulous blossoms in spring that smell really good.

As soon as I plant number 2, I'll put in another horse chestnut for sprouting. Now that they have dried out a bit, they do resemble edible chestnuts, but these are toxic and inedible.

[Gliondrach]

Our horse chestnuts were introduced but are now seen all over the place. We have the Aesulus hippocastanum type. The conker tree. I enjoyed playing conkers. I always wanted to get a six-er but I don't think I ever managed it.

[Bowwowmeow]

Oh we are overrun with eucalyptus. Sometimes when I see photos of Australia I think they are photos of the Bay Area. There was a movement afoot many years ago to chop them all down in the Berkeley hills and allow native species to reforest. I wonder what it looks like now.

[Gliondrach]

Are there any koalas on them?

[Bowwowmeow]

No, only at the zoo. Plenty of escaped pet parrots though, There is a stand of these trees near the Burlingame train station that was well known as a feral parrot haven. I wonder if they are still there. I haven't been there in ages.

[Gliondrach]

I remember reading something about wild parrots and the campaign to save them. Or am I thinking about the parakeets in London Town? No, it was in California.

[Gliondrach]

I'd like to try this on my balcony.

Square Foot Gardening.

This seems like a great idea. In the video on the site he says that, compared to normal gardening, you can grow crops with 50% of the costs, 20% of the space, 10% of the water, 5% of the seeds, and 2% of the work.

ht-tp://ww-w.squarefootgardening.com/

[nagev]

I'm excited about my garden this year, growing a variety of food stuffs. I'm also doing some container gardening, but mostly for strawberries and some herbs.

I'm trying some ginger too and it's already about 3 inches tall.

I like the idea of square foot gardening too, so I'm going to try to do some of that in our regular garden. I'll see how it works out.

[Gliondrach]

Some of the reviewers of the book, on Amazon, say that it can be expensive if you buy the things the author says you need - compost, I think. Others say it's not expensive.

Do you make compost from kitchen waste? I'm thinking about making a compost bin on my balcony - if it doesn't attract flies, or gives off smells. My neighbours might complain. They already complain a lot about my dawn yodelling practice.

[nagev]

Originally Posted by Gliondrach

Some of the reviewers of the book, on Amazon, say that it can be expensive if you buy the things the author says you need - compost, I think. Others say it's not expensive.

Yeah, I like the idea of container gardening, however it seems like there is a lot of input costs, compared to just growing in the dirt. I suppose it all depends on what can be scrounged or done yourself.

Originally Posted by Gliondrach

Do you make compost from kitchen waste? I'm thinking about making a compost bin on my balcony - if it doesn't attract flies, or gives off smells. My neighbours might complain. They already complain a lot about my dawn yodelling practice.

I do make compost from kitchen waste. What is your idea to do it in on the balcony? A pre-made compost bin or more of a do-it-yourself method?

[Gliondrach]

Probably some home-made contraption. But there are quite a few things I want to make this year as well, including a wood gas stove and a solar cooker.

[nagev]

Originally Posted by Gliondrach

Probably some home-made contraption. But there are quite a few things I want to make this year as well, including a wood gas stove and a solar cooker.

Wood gas stove? What's that? A combo type stove?

[Gliondrach]

Some info about them in post 70 of the following thread:
http://www.thesaucyvegan.com/showthr...tove#post69809

And post 25 of this thread:
http://www.thesaucyvegan.com/showthr...tove#post69806

I already have an empty tin that had beans in it. I have some aluminium sheeting. I just need one or two other things.
I already have an empty tin that had beans in it. I have some aluminium sheeting. I just need one or two other things.

Very Funny, making the writing invisible. I hope I have spelled this correctly as I can't see what I am writing.