Wisteria Garden Circle » In Case You Missed It

Building A Greenhouse

Julanne Rutten — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:27:02 +0000

We had a great time at the Extension Office Open House on Saturday, including watching this demonstration on building a small greenhouse. Many beautiful plants are in bloom, and we came away with some great gardening ideas. For more information, go to the Leon County Extension Office.

Building A Greenhouse

Window for venting

Two support beams on both ends

Space heater suitable for greenhouse

Door (duh)

PVC pipe and joints

Window supports

Plastic covering

Cooking with Herbs

Andrea Johnson — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:33:01 +0000

Mango Salsa Recipe

Ingredients

1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and diced (about 1 1/2 cup) (See: How to Cut a Mango)
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 Jalapeño chile, minced (include ribs and seeds for a hotter taste if desired)
1 small cucumber, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
3 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
3 Tbsp fresh lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Also good with diced red bell pepper and jicama.

Method

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the salsa ends up being a little too hot or acidic for your taste, you can temper it by adding some diced avocado.

Peach Salsa Recipe

Ingredients

2 ripe, but firm medium peaches
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup diced red and/or green bell pepper
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon (or to taste) minced jalapeno pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Fresh Basil Pesto Recipe

Ingredients

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Special equipment needed: A food processor

Method

1 Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. (If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.) Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.

2 Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Makes 1 cup.

Serve with pasta, or over baked potatoes, or spread over toasted baguette slices.

Navigating the Wisteria Circle website

Andrea Johnson — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:55:13 +0000

Here’s the PowerPoint we will be reviewing at our next meeting. See you there!

Wisteria PowerPoint

Planters: How’s YOUR Osteospermum?

Leisa Pichard — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 23:17:49 +0000

Remember back to April? It was cool. Rain was regular. And we created patio planters in our Wisteria meeting at the garden club. I’m sure you’ve all taken great care of your little pots full of color. So let’s see how they are doing. The picture to the left is the planter I brought as a demo. Let’s see how your planters are growing. Comment on this story and share your pictures.

One tip, petunias and other viney plants may tend to get rather forlorn at this point in the growing season. Don’t be afraid to replant if they’ve have gotten a bit sparse and leggy.

Air Layering Camellias with Howard Rhodes

Andrea Johnson — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:55:26 +0000

Air layering is the process of propagating new camellias from previously established plants. The ancient Chinese developed a variation of this process by burying the branch of a living camellia under the ground to produce new roots.

Instead of having to wait several years for the camellia to reach a moderate size, air layering will typically produce a good-sized plant in just one year. The air layering process creates roots on an existing branch while it is still attached to the mother plant.

It is usually best to perform air layering in the spring (April). The propagated section of the plant can then be harvested and replanted in the fall (September).

To air layer camellias, you’ll need the following supplies:

sphagnum moss
water
aluminum foil (cut into 12″pieces)
small knife
rooting hormone
metal labels

Air Layering Instructions:

Select the breed of camellia you’d like to replicate. On a healthy branch, remove about a 1″strip of bark, down to the cambium layer.
Soak the sphagnum in water until very wet. Grab a handful of moss and wring out excess moisture.
Place the moss on the aluminum foil (shiny side in towards the moss). Sprinkle the moss with the rooting hormone.
Carefully wrap the aluminum foil and moss around the branch, making sure the rooting hormone comes into contact with the stripped area. Twist the ends of the foil around the branch in opposite directions so it will stay moist inside.
Label with the name of the cultivar (and your name if necessary).
Wait 6 months.
(Hopefully) unveil your new rooted camellia. Cut the branch below the foil and plant!

For complete instructions with images, please visit: http://jefferson.ifas.ufl.edu/ag_pages/camellia_layer.PDF

Click on the thumbnails below to view photos of our air layering session with Howard.

Visit To Jim West’s Lincoln Plant Sale

Leisa Pichard — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 01:36:12 +0000

For those of you who didn’t make it to the Lincoln plant sale after our last meeting, I’m posting the pictures of the trellis Jim described. As you can tell, it’s in its infancy. He’s stretched some wire and string for the plants to climb up on. He explained that once the vines get big enough, they will support themselves (hopefully before the string rots away). If you’d like to see more pictures, go to picasaweb.google.com/nutmegoc/garden2008

If you feel inspired and build your own trellis, let us know how it goes.