PLANTWISE

Grafted Tomatoes

An old-fashioned technique with a new use for home vegetable gardeners

Posted by: Kate Bryant on Jun 21, 2010 at 09:22AM 3 Comments

There’s a new craze in grafted tomato plants this spring: – read about it here.

Grafting is an old-fashioned horticultural technique: it’s basically splicing plants, just like audio tape used to be spliced. It allows you to grow the desirable plant you want on a more vigorous root stock so you get faster (or slower) growth, disease resistance, and better or more fruit or flowers.

Fruit trees are often grafted to keep the tree height in check or improve vigor or adaptability. Wine grapes are nearly always grafted onto tough Vitus labrusca rootstock. Some roses are grafted, as well as witch hazels and many other ornamental plants.

Grafting tomatoes is a great idea for gardeners with tiny spaces or just room for one or two containers but who want more than one type of fruit (for example, a red cherry tomato and a yellow pear tomato): you can get more than one variety on a single plant. It’s also said to increase productivity so it could be nice for people who want lots of, say, Brandywine tomatoes, not just three per plant per summer (typical for this sometimes touchy but exquisitely desirable heirloom tomato).

The rootstocks used on grafted tomatoes are also disease resistant so should you have disease issues in your soil, the grafted plants might do better for you.

Apparently, vegetable grafting has been going on in commercial settings for years, both in the US and Europe. Eggplants and peppers are probably coming up next – stay tuned. Meantime, grafted tomatoes are available now at retail nurseries where Log House Plants are sold. They cost several times more than regular plants but you’ll be in the vanguard this spring and will definitely have bragging rights! I’m dying to see photos of producing plants so be sure to send me a photo if you try these grafted plants.

And here’s a video showing how tomatoes are grafted, courtesy of Johnny’s Seeds via Log House Plants:

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Tags: Vegetables, Gardening Tips, Container Gardening, Edible Gardening

Plant a Summery Container

Posted by: Kate Bryant on Jun 08, 2010 at 08:50AM 2 Comments

I saw this planter a couple of years ago at Cornell Farm Nursery, which sells lovely ready-made planters. Apparently, that hot coral color in the zonal geranium is very fashionable right now!

View Slideshow » Photo: Kate Bryant

Even estate gardeners at the Biltmore let themselves go a little bonkers sometimes. The plant is golden pineapple sage (Salvia elegans ‘Golden Delicious’), which often flowers until December in Portland, though it rarely survives January and February.

View Slideshow » Photo: Kate Bryant

I ran into garden designer Lucy Hardiman and gardener extraordinaire Nancy Goldman at the Portland Nursery last week, as they gathered plants for a joint container planting spree. What did you do with all those plants, ladies?

View Slideshow » Illustration:

Designer Lucy Hardiman has this trio of pots in her front garden that I love for its summery lushness. Variegated hosta, golden Japanese forest grass and the cold-hardy perennial Impatiens omeiense, with exquisite marbled foliage and apricot or pale yellow flowers in summer. Divinely simple.

Planting a summery container is pretty easy: at its most basic, you pick your container, then add soil, plants and water. But as with most things that sound easy, there are a few fancy little tricks of the trade to know about if you haven’t done it much before.

First…

1. Pick your pot. You can start with an existing planter and then find the plants that will suit it or start with the plant and pick a container. But chances are, you already have a pot, window box or urn that’s left over from last year, waiting to be filled.

If you’re working with a smallish pot (say, 12” diameter or less), try planting just one fine, summery flower or foliage plant in it. An ordinary coleus, succulent or geranium can be perfectly charming, even rather clever – when it’s featured solo. Just make sure you’ve picked a plant that will survive in the amount of sun or shade you’re offering. More than one or two plants in a small pot and you’ll be on frequent watering duty in hot weather.

A larger pot (=more root space) expands your options, although most seasonal plantings (vs permanent plantings) really only need 6-10 inches of soil depth. Consider using a planter insert ($5 to $13, depending on diameter) or light-weight pot filler ($20 for small/medium pot -$30 for medium/large) to minimize the weight of larger pots, decrease the amount of soil you need to use, allow you to move pots more easily, and improve drainage.

2. Add potting soil. Most quality commercial potting soil combines peat moss, compost or worm castings and pumice or perlite. Some also include ground bark, coir to improve moisture retention, slow-release fertilizer (“organic” or petroleum-based, depending), or micorrhizae to feed plants’ roots.

For good drainage (think succulents, pines or lavender), choose potting soil with plenty of pumice or perlite. Ground bark can be a helpful addition for potting up trees and woody shrubs, as well as conifers. The debate rages on about whether peat is “renewable” – it seems like an old-growth product to me, and too slowly renewable, so I avoid it where possible. Coir (derived from coconut hulls) is a good lightweight alternative but very moisture-retentive (perfect for, say, fuchsias, ferns or begonias) so not as good for plants requiring quick drainage. Buy organic fertilizer and micorrhizae separately (try Naomi’s Organic Farm Supply or Concentrates and custom-blend them or just buy organic potting soil containing those materials pre-mixed. Help drain holes stay clear in smaller seasonal pots by placing a square of air-permeable frost cloth over the bottom of the pot to prevent pumice or wood chips from clogging it. Avoid using gravel, soda bottles, Styrofoam peanuts or any other “junk” at the bottom of pots, as these materials are difficult to remove or clean and the latter two materials compact.

3. Pick out your plants (the fun part). Combine seasonal summery flowers that tickle your fancy – fragrant, dark purple petunias with chartreuse licorice plant (Helichrysum petiolare ‘Limelight’) and hot coral zonal geraniums or perhaps quaint orange Cuphea or hot pink, velvet-budded Salvia involucrata to attract hummingbirds. Or plant perennials that will look better and better as the summer turns to fall, like tall sedum, ornamental grasses like Shenandoah switch grass (Panicum virgata ‘Shenandoah’) or mixed pots of herbs (try rosemary, sage, thyme and a peachy calendula, with chives in the middle).

If you’re having trouble deciding what to plant, bring the pot to a well-stocked local plant nursery and tote it around on a cart while hunting for inspiration. If the pot’s too big or fragile, bring a photo of it with you (with measurements). Some local nurseries like Cornell Farms , Seven Dees and Portland Nursery have some talented people who can provide solid container planting advice.

Finally, add non-toxic slug bait (Sluggo) and scratch in organic fertilizer a couple of times in the summer to keep plants fiesty.

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Tags: Flowers, Container Gardening, Get Dirty

Lighten the Load

container gardeners rejoice!

Posted by: Kate Bryant on Jan 19, 2010 at 05:00PM 2 Comments

For years, I have battled with the lightweight packing peanuts and Styrofoam chips used as filler in the bottom of large pots on condominium terrace gardens. Weight restrictions often limit how much soil can go in containers on rooftop/terrace gardens – but there were no good commercial, gardening-specific alternative to these lightweight materials. And it goes without saying that the biodegradable corn-based, eco-packing peanuts are completely unsuited to wet use in a pot! Yet in addition to being toxic, regular peanuts are notoriously difficult to handle, blowing around on breezy rooftops and being hard to corral when wet. Plus, they become impossible to clean for reuse or recycling. Once dirty from gardening, they must be thrown in the landfill. The re-use ends there. I particularly balked at the idea of growing food in pots full of these junky, sometimes toxic materials.

So it was a happy day when I met entrepreneur Joanna Guzzetta, President of Portland-based Four Seasons Container Gardens and creator of Packing Pearls – a product that could make my container garden projects a good deal easier – and more environmentally friendly.

The system is comprised of three parts:

*air-permeable, heavy-duty fabric liner that separates plant roots and soil from the packing pearls below and can be cut to fit.

*appropriate quantities of 2.5-inch diameter, expanded polystyrene balls (FDA approved safe for edibles)

*a drain shield which sticks to the bottom or side of the pot to keep the drainage holes clear but air-permeable

Invented here in Portland, Oregon by a professional gardener and made and assembled in the US, Packing Pearls are composed of 1/3 recycled material. They are recyclable (can be formed into new products) – and reusable (because they do not themselves break down). Because they do not break down, it is important to save and reuse them indefinitely. Did I mention that they are round – and definitely cleanable?

According to the company literature, Packing Pearls’ 3-part system creates a good drainage system in the pot by keeping the soil contained and separate from the pearls, by allowing air and water to move through the spaces between the pearls, and by keeping the drainage holes clear.

In addition to establishing good drainage in pots, the Packing Pearls system minimizes potting soil use, is simple to assemble and disassemble, and is made of non-toxic products. They are also a great solution to square or unusually shaped containers and troughs, since the pearls and fabric liner can be custom-fitted. These are good reasons to try it, even if weight isn’t an issue for your containers.

Packing Pearls starter kits come in two sizes: small/medium (for pots up to 16" wide), including 1 drain shield, 1 piece 18×18″ pot liner, and 50 pearls, $19.99) and medium/large (for pots up to 22" wide including 1 drain shield, 1 piece 24×24″ pot liner and 80 pearls, $29.99). Parts can be purchased separately as well.

Joanna came by my home office earlier today to explain the system and left me a sample to try in a large planter. I guess this is one of the perks of my job, huh? Stay tuned – at some point in late spring, I’ll report back.

I’m also testing out a system called Ups-A-Daisy planter inserts. I got a sample pack of these from Kianga, Inc., a company in Illinois, and set them up in five small to medium planters last fall.

As with the Packing Pearls, the Ups-A-Daisy products reduce the amount of soil you need to add to a pot – especially useful when you’re creating temporary/seasonal plantings, which don’t usually need as much soil as they’re in anyway. By minimizing the possibility of excess soil sitting below the plants’ roots in a container, they can minimize the likelihood of root rot. They also reduce planter weight, and eliminate the need for toxic or aggravating chips, peanuts, used water bottles, rocks, or other detritus. They can be re-used year after year.

The Ups-A-Daisies were drop-dead simple to install – I just lowered them into the pot, right way up, and added potting soil. I did use a cut piece of landscape fabric over the center hole to prevent soil crumbling through it, although the company says this is not necessary.

Of course, being round, they only work in round pots with a wide enough top opening to accommodate the disk. They have a good drainage system comprised of a center hole and many smaller holes in the indented groove running around the edge. So far, I have appreciated the ease of installation and I certainly used less potting soil in the containers. I’ll know more when I take the winter planters apart in May to install the summer plantings.

Ups-A-Daisy Pot Inserts range from 10-18 inches in diameter, running from $4.99 for the 10" disk to $12.99 for the 18" disk.

Both companies are relatively new but their products can be found in some local garden shops including Cornell Farms Nursery on SW Barnes Road – and, of course, may be ordered directly.

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Tags: Garden Stuff, Container Gardening

Plant Spring Bulbs in Containers

A festive autumn project

Posted by: Kate Bryant on Oct 08, 2009 at 10:00PM 2 Comments

Materials all assembled: pots, potting soil, mulch, scissors, frost cloth, bulb food… and the bulbs!

It’s October and that means it’s time to plant spring-flowering bulbs. Purple crocus, sunny yellow miniature daffodils (Narcissus), elegant blue iris, and other bulbs, both exotic and prosaic, can be found at retail nurseries now. (Portland Nursery has an especially wonderful selection at the moment, I noticed yesterday.) Plant bulbs now (certain kinds are best for this) and they will flower during the cold, dreary days of winter. In fact, if you plant Tete-a-Tete Narcissus in a pot in the next few days, you might even get them to flower by Christmas. They make nice gifts – and are all the sweeter when you have grown them yourself.

There are some tricks to planting different kinds of bulbs. To keep it simple, start with Tete-a-Tete Narcissus. Perhaps the most popular dwarf narcissus for forcing in the world, Tete-a-Tete is reliable, cheerful and above all, early. You can use adorable little terra cotta pots from yard sales (cheap!) and, once you have your materials assembled, you can pot up a half-dozen pots in 20 minutes. If you’re feeling adventurous, try some other easy, early types of bulbs like Crocus, other dwarf Narcissus and Iris reticulata as well.

First, gather your materials:

-a one-foot square of white frost cloth or newspaper (optional)
-scissors
-a bag of all-purpose potting soil (1 cu ft bag for a dozen medium terra cotta pots is about right)
-a bag of fine hemlock mulch (min 1 cu ft bag)
-organic bulb fertilizer (optional – it just gives bulbs nutrition for next year’s flowers, should you wish to plant them out in the garden after flowering)
-a few little pots (at least 4-5" deep for Tete-a-Tete narcissus – and as wide as you like)
-Bulbs (try other types in addition to Tete-a-Tete Narcissus if feeling adventurous!) You might start with 25 or so and plant any extras in your garden. I plant hundreds – but then again, I have zillions of little pots!
-plastic labels (I use the empty flip side of existing plastic plant labels – popsicle sticks work, too)
-a fine Sharpie pen or sharp pencil

Now, set up your work area. I always do it outdoors so I can make a mess.

1. Lay out your pots and estimate how many bulbs to plant per pot.
2. Cut newspaper or frost cloth squares 2-3 times the size of the drain holes and lay them over the holes to prevent soil from escaping when you water.
3. Fill the pots 1/3 full of potting soil.
4. Sprinkle fertilizer at recommended rate (by the tablespoon full for small pots) and mix it up.
5. sprinkle another handful of potting soil to separate the fertilizer from the bulbs – pots should be about 1/2 full of potting soil.
6. Gently snug bulbs onto potting soil. Don’t compact or push them hard into the soil. Their roots will need room to expand down there. I keep a tiny space between bulbs them so their roots have more room to spread out.

Like most bulbs, Narcissus can be fit closely but shouldn’t touch one another. Their roots can take up a lot of space so be sure there’s enough room at the bottom of the pot for the roots to spread out.

7. Sprinkle more potting soil onto the bulbs to cover, adding more until there is about 1/2-1 inch of space left at the top of the pot.
8. Label each pot with the bulb name, quantity, and date of planting.
9. Also calculate how long a cold period each type of bulb you plant needs (ie, Tete-a-Tete Narcissus 8-10 weeks; Iris reticulata ‘Pixie’ 12-15 weeks) and mark the day on your calendar to bring them indoors.
9. Add hemlock mulch to the top of the pots.
10. Water thoroughly, until water drains out of the bottom of the pots.
11. Finally, snug the pots into a dark, shady spot outdoors where they will receive winter rain. (Remember to water them during cold, dry periods in winter.) I place my pots on the north side of an unheated shed or garage, where no sun can warm the pots all winter. Then spread hemlock mulch over the containers so that the sides of the pots are completely buried in protective mulch. This will help insulate them from frigid temperatures in their tiny pots and also help retain moisture. If squirrels are burying nuts in your pots, lay chicken wire over the top.

I use fine hemlock bark to top-dress bulb pots. This helps retain moisture in the potting soil (which can tend to crust and dry out) and helps protect the bulbs from the cold winter air.

12. When the bulbs have been in cold sleep long enough (see chart below), look for small white shoots. At this point, you can scrape off some of the hemlock mulch and bring the container indoors in a cool, bright place like a drafty east windowsill (about 60F). This is where the term “forcing” comes in. By bringing the pots indoors, you are in effect tricking them into thinking it’s springtime, even when it’s cold outside. After 5-7 days, the sprouts start turning green. Move the container to a sunny window (no more than about 68F or shoots elongate and become floppy). Water daily and watch the beautiful flowers develop!

COLD, DARK PERIOD (40F or below) CHART:
Crocus: 10-12 weeks plus 2-3 weeks cool, light period
Hyacinth 12-15 weeks plus 2-3 weeks cool, light period
Miniature early Narcissus (including Tete-a-Tete): 8-12 weeks plus 2-4 weeks cool, light period
Tall Narcissus: 12-15 weeks plus 2-4 weeks cool, light period
Tulip: 14-16 weeks plus 2-4 weeks cool, light period
Iris: 12-15 weeks plus 2-3 weeks cool, light period

Some bulbs are more easily forced than others. Easy types include Crocus chrysanthus, Muscari latifolium or Muscari ‘Valerie Finnis’, Narcissus obvallaris, Narcissus ‘Rijnvelds Early Sensation,’ Narcissus ‘Jack Snipe’, early tulips like ‘Purple Prince’, or hyacinths. Larger bulbs are usually best in larger pots, not only because the bulbs themselves are bigger but because taller pots balance the height of taller bulbs. But play around. I like the look of small, late, black-flowered Fritillaria persica, the surreal ball-shaped Allium karataviense and pale blue Valerie Finnis Muscari. I’ve also planted a single orange parrot tulip bulb in a little terra cotta pot and it looked divine.

Iris reticulata ‘Pixie’ is very early and has the loveliest rich purple color.

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Tags: Gardening Tips, Indoor Gardening, Container Gardening