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Laguna Hills Nursery
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Greetings!
I don't remember a fall rainy season like this year since perhaps 1968 when there was local flooding. In the last few days my garden received over 2 inches of rain. I won't have to water the lawn for at least 1 week, more likely nearly 2 weeks. Unfortunately if we have one 80 degree day, I'll have to water my potted plants.
For those of you with palm trees, this is probably the last chance you'll get to fertilize them effectively before next spring. Palm trees, in general, can't absorb fertilizer when the soil temperature drops much below 70 degrees. Palms need a good store of potassium and magnesium to avoid the yellowing and spotting on older fronds during late winter-early spring. If you have Sago palms with fried, almost withered, leaves, your plant may be suffering from a lack of manganese (not magnesium).
Thanks to everyone who expressed interest in ordering onion seedlings. This week I'm going to give everyone a different option (see below) to make it possible to get more variety.
One of the nice things about mid-fall is that insect activity lessens significantly. Budworm damage to Geraniums (Pelargoniums), Petunias, and Hibiscus will become negligible until next summer. With the rains, though, come snails and slugs. You may have treated your garden earlier this year, however the rain allows snails and slugs to cross streets and walls.
The best long-term treatment for snails and slugs are the natural predator, Decollate Snail. Decollate snails do not grow as large and have a long slender shell, resembling a fat, unicorn horn with the tip broken off. Decollate snails can eat plants and damage seedlings. Generally, however, they consume fallen leaves. In this respect they compete with pillsbugs and sowbugs. They also burrow through the ground and consume snail and slug eggs. Be aware that snail and slug poison will kill them. Decollate snails are only allowed in certain counties in Southern California. In other areas they may endanger native snail and slug populations.
Despite the crazy weather, the plants in my backyard nursery are growing. We should have several new items available at our internet store shortly. See it at www.lagunahillsnursery.com
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 Ordering Seedling Onions PART 2
 So far I have received requests for about 40 bunches of onion seedlings. That is enough for an order, but I'll continue to promote them until it's time to finalize the order in early December. I have also decided to offer all the varieties that can do well locally. Here's the entire lineup.
CANDY This sweet yellow onion is a globe that can reach 6" in diameter. It is a hybrid that stores for a minimum of 3 months. It is our BEST SELLER and routinely wins blue ribbons at county fairs across the county.
CONTESSA This sweet white onion is a globe that can reach 5" in diameter. It is a hybrid that stores for a minimum of 2 months. It is a good early variety.
RED CANDY APPLE This sweet red onion is a flattened globe that can reach 3" in diameter. It is a hybrid that stores for a minimum of 2 months. Fertilize heavily to get larger size. Red onions are more expensive at the store because a higher percentage of the harvest has to be culled. This is currently the best red onion and is a beauty.
SUPER STAR This sweet white onion is a globe that can reach 4" in diameter. It is a hybrid that stores for a minimum of 2 months. It is also known as SIERRA BLANCA. This is the only white onion to ever be awarded the All-America Selection.
TEXAS SUPER SWEET This sweet yellow onion is a globe than can reach 6" in diameter. It is an open pollinated variety that stores for a minimum of 2-3 months.
WHITE BERMUDA This sweet white onion is a flattened globe that can reach 3-4" in diameter. It is an open pollinated variety originally from the Canary Islands that can store for a minimum of 2 months.
YELLOW GRANEX This sweet yellow onion is a semi-flat globe that can reach 5" in diameter. It is a hybrid that stores for a minimum of 1 month. This is the famous VIDALIA onion from Georgia and is similar or the same as the famous MAUI onion from Hawaii.
The storage time listed is the minimum to expect. Most of our customers get 5-8 months. The varieties listed at 3 months generally store longer than the varieties listed at 1 or 2 months.
When planting, the recommended distance between onions is 4", but if you wish to use half as green onions, plant them 2" apart. Thus, one bunch (approximately 60 plants) is enough to plant a row 10-20' long. The rows should be at least 16" apart. The soil should be well drained. Fertilize heavily. The faster they grow, the larger and sweeter the resulting bulbs are. As with all vegetables, make certain you rotate the crops in the garden.
The cost will be as follows:
$10.70 for a single bunch
$14.70 for 2 (mix or match)
$20.00 for 3 (mix or match)
$24.00 for 4 (mix or match)
$27.50 for 5 (mix or match)
$32.00 for 6 (mix or match)
$36.40 for 7 (mix or match)
$40.80 for 8 (mix or match)
Please confirm, add or cancel your requests within the next few weeks.
I will figure out how to collect money later.
I will deliver to your home if you live in Orange County either December 17, 18, or 19th. Delivery will be free.
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 2Fixing Plants From Other Growers
I assume most of you purchase plants from stores other than Laguna Hills Nursery. Many of these will ultimately perform poorly because they were grown in an organic compost-based container soil rather than a mineral-based soil.
In Nature, plants grow best in mineral (loam) soils. These soils are typically 97% to 99% mineral and 1% to 3% organic.
Wholesale growers began using organic-based soils just over a generation ago because it weighs a fraction of what actual loam does and plants initially perform better due to superior air flow to the roots. Unfortunately, organic matter continues to decompose and eventually collapses and disappears, or turns into uninhabitable muck. This may happen a few months after installation, or may delayed for a few years. Even though this zone of organic matter may only surround the base of the plant by a few inches it can have dire results. This causes the plant to lean or shift and the crown of the roots to become stressed or diseased. The foliage becomes smaller, sparser and off-colored, often browning at the margins. Symptoms often include a lack of nutrients, but this is due to a lack of feeder roots rather than inadequate fertilization. Entire branches may die. If the plant survives, it often eventually recovers, but many years have been lost. I have seen plants grow well initially only to die from crown rot several years later.
Plants show a wide range of tolerance to poor root conditions.
The following plants are highly tolerant and usually perform well enough straight from the growers:
Conifers (Cedars, Cypress, Junipers, Pines), Grasses, Chrysanthemums (Daisies), Roses, Palms, Ficus, Bird-of-Paradise, Privets, Tobira, India Hawthorne, Alders, Ash, Coral Trees, Eucalyptus, Elm, Day lily and Succulents.
The following plants are greatly affected by poor root conditions and should be fixed before installation:
Calla lily, Elephant Ears, Camellia, Gardenia, Phormium, Kangaroo Paw, Lavender, Bougainvillea (and most vines), Photinia, Kohuhu (Pittosporum tenuifolium), Plumbago, Citrus, Persimmon, Avocado (and most fruit trees), Magnolia, Brisbane Box, Redbud trees, and most native California plants.
You can fix a plant by removing the organic material and replacing it with mineral. The least destructive way of separating the roots from the compost is to wash it away with water. Use a hose with a good nozzle. If care is exercised you can avoid excessive breakage. It is easy to do small plants with little effort. The smaller plants with smaller rootballs are generally more successful. 1-gallon is fairly easy. 5-gallon is more difficult. 15-gallon can give poor results. It is better to do this operation during cool, humid weather in the evening. It is important to not let the roots ever get dry. The best soil to replace the compost is a coarse mineral mix.
Here are a few of your replacement soil options:
1. Sand (washed plaster sand)
2. Sandy loam (a natural sandy soil)
3. 1 part sand mixed with 1 part Laguna Hills Nursery ACID MIX POTTING SOIL (my favorite)
I like to work with a mineral soil mix that is damp but not excessively wet. Wet soil is heavy and may tear roots as you are covering them. Make certain the plant is buried at the original level. Try to keep the roots separated as you bury them. I usually hold the main stem securely in one place so that it doesn't sink too deep as the soil is replaced. Sometimes I'll even tie the plant to a stake to help maintain its position. Water repeatedly and thoroughly after installation. Fertilize lightly.
Whenever the roots are washed, they suffer temporary damage that impedes their ability to absorb water. If the following days are hot and dry the foliage can use up all the plant's water causing severe damage or death. The roots will repair themselves within 2 weeks. We need to make certain that the plant will stay alive until the roots recover.
If the plant you acquire is relatively healthy looking you have a few options:
1. REMOVE ONLY ABOUT 1/2 THE SOIL
Wash off about half the soil evenly around the outer surface of the plant's rootball. Plants normally can tolerate damage to half of their roots without showing stress. Removing 1/2 of the compost is often enough to insure future performance.
2. REMOVE ALL THE SOIL
Wash off just about all the soil of the plant's rootball. Unless the plant is a type of succulent, any foliage will have to be removed at this time (at least 90%). Deciduous plants are best done in winter after they naturally shed their leaves. Other plants can have their rootballs purged either in early summer or late winter. Just pull off or cut off the leaves. It is quicker (but not necessarily better) if you cut off all small stems along with the foliage. Relatively healthy plants will start regrowing foliage within 2 weeks after removal during the summer months. More or all foliage can be preserved if the plant is in the shade for at least 2 weeks following purging. Plants in containers can be placed in bright shade. Plants in the ground can be shaded with objects such as a branch from a tree nearby.
I have fixed thousands of plants over the years. It is a bit time consuming but I couldn't bring myself to sell certain plants that I knew were going to die. Don't be surprised if the plant you are fixing has been surviving with very few healthy roots. Don't be surprised if you get 2 of the same plants from the same wholesale grower and find they have very different types of soil. Some plants are more sensitive to disturbed roots. I've had poor results (less than 50% survival) trying to fix Gardenias. Surprisingly I've never lost a Bougainvillea even though they have a reputation for delicate roots. If I don't count Gardenias, my success rate has been well over 90%.
If the plant is already in the ground and has done poorly for quite a while, go ahead and roughly dig it out, wash it and replant into the native soil. Plants do better in native clay soil than they do when they are surrounded by compost sitting in a hole in the clay soil. You've got nothing to lose.
How will the repaired plant respond?
Generally the plant shows nothing for two weeks. Longer, if it is the dormant period.
By the third week you will see signs of new growth. The new leaves will grow to a larger size. The foliage color will be improved. Green leaves become greener, blue leaves bluer, etc. Growth becomes denser and fuller and is not easily stressed. Deciduous plants wake up earlier and drop foliage later in the year. All-around performance improves greatly.
Generally the larger the plant is when you fix it, the longer it takes to respond.
What if your soil has been similarly amended?
A plant can also perform poorly if installed into soil that has been heavily amended with compost. Unfortunately the landscape supply companies are not soil experts. They supply homeowners, gardeners and landscapers with amended topsoils that may contain 40-50% compost. Also, many homeowners, gardeners and landscapers are under the impression that the native soil should be heavily amended with compost. If you suspect that your soil contains too much compost you can do a visual check. In an established landscape you'll find the most roots (at least 1 root every 1/4") from about 2" deep to about 10" deep. If you find few roots below 2", there is a lack of oxygen. Compost mixed into the soil can cause poor conditions for more than a decade.
Sometimes the soil is replaced with "potting soil". Unfortunately most potting soils (other than our Laguna Hills Nursery soils) are 80-90% organic and will not support vigorous plant growth for more than 3-12 months. If you suspect that the odd-looking soil in that bed where plants don't grow is potting soil, do a visual check for good roots below 2".
If the soil won't allow deep root growth it should be replaced. It cannot be fixed and won't self repair in a reasonable amount of time or effort. Generally the problem soil is usually visually distinct from the native soil. Replace the problem soil with SANDY LOAM.
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This newsletter can be more effective if I know what you're thinking
I can get into a rut when I have no feedback. Please send me questions or point out horticultural topics that peak your interest and I'll include then in subsequent newsletters.
send questions and suggestions to gary@lagunahillsnursery.com
Gary |
26285 Verona Place
Mission Viejo, California 92692
visit us at www.lagunahillsnursery.com
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