Looking Back: Heavy Lessons on Thinning Young Fruits

Peaches in my garden - summer 2013 

Too much of anything is not a good thing.  There is balance to be observed between that which is beneficial and that which is permissible for a healthy life - plants included.   This year we were delighted to see a beautiful crop of peaches which is attributed to the absence of leaf curl infection.  The drier weather from late winter to early spring was not conducive for the proliferation of the pathogen Taphrina deformans.  In previous years, the tree would lose all its early leaves leaving the developing fruits to starve until the new set of healthy leaves come out.  Sometimes the fruits also get infected which results not only in low yield but poor quality crop.  

As the fruits grew larger under the summer sun, the problem slowly surfaced.  The slender stems laden with fruits began to hang straight downwards.  One of the larger branches was so heavy. I was afraid that it might break.  We had to prop it up with three pieces of 2x4x8 lumber.  I admit that my tree is not in its best form.  Pruning on this tree has been mainly for the purpose of making sure it does not arch into our neighbors' yard.  (I doubt they appreciate peaches falling into their swimming pool.)  This effort has led to the formation of a lop-sided tree.  It is a nice tree but it not strong enough to bear a heavy crop.  

   

A heavy fruit load can be detrimental to the tree.

Based on the situation described here, the problem that needed to be addressed is excessive fruits.
Under favorable growing conditions, such as what we had this year, fruit trees set more fruits than they can support adequately.  And this problem is magnified when trees have not been properly pruned in the previous season.  A heavy fruit load can result in branch breakage.  When there are too many fruits competing for carbohydrates, the fruits cannot reach their optimum size.  The tree also gets nutritionally deprived and weakened - making it more susceptible to pests and even sunburn damage.  Another possible effect of excessive fruits on trees is alternate bearing (the cycle in which the tree bears a heavy crop in one year and a skimpy or no yield in the next).  This phenomenon happens when the tree is nutritionally deprived while supporting its fruits - a situation that will continue to plague my tree until I will muster enough discipline to remove the excess fruits when they are young.  

Rule for fruit thinning:  Mature fruits should not be touching each other.

Peaches are among the fruit trees that require fruit thinning for best results - superior quality fruits are produced while maintaining a healthy tree.  As a general rule, allow room in between fruits so that at maturity fruits should not be touching each other.

HortiCOOLture - Designed for Dispersion

Bitter Melon fruits are dehiscent - they crack open when ripe.

Plants continually amaze me.  The designer of life, I personally believe it to be God, made sure that each one is uniquely equipped with everything it needs to succeed.  For plants, success means to be able to reproduce their kind.  They photosynthesize and grow in order to flower.  Flowers eventually turn into fruits.  Fruits bear the seeds.  The seeds are dispersed to begin a new life.  And the cycle goes on.  Unlike other organisms plants do not have the mobility that would facilitate dispersal of seeds.  Nonetheless, plants have the ability to lure other life forms and the environment into scattering their seeds.  In the wild world where cultivation is not an option, plant seeds are dispersed by animals, wind, and water.

Case Example
Bitter melon (Momordica charantia L.), a member of the Cucurbitaceae family, produces fruits that are characteristically bitter.  Unaided, this unpalatable plant has a chance to grow only on the same place over and over again.  That would be a losing proposition.  But this plant is equipped with a mechanism that compensates for the bitterness of its fruit.  First of all, this plant is equipped with dehiscent fruits.  Dehiscent fruits are those that split open at maturity.  Most plants in the Cucurbitaceae family produce fruits called pepo with thick rind like that of the watermelon, pumpkin, and cucumber - they are indehiscent fruits.   But the bitter melon is one of the rare exceptions.  The fruits crack at maturity.  Secondly, as the fruit opens, the seeds that are encased in sweet red membrane are revealed to the rest of the world inviting all to come and have a taste.  Animals cannot resist the succulent and sweet seed-covering but they leave the seeds elsewhere.  At this point, seed dispersal is complete.

Have you observed any special plant features that aid seed dispersal lately?

Tomatoes in September

Fig. 1   Harvest ('Sun Gold' and 'Super Fantastic' -  September 18,2013)

Today my husband brought in these tomatoes from the garden.  They are still producing and the fruits are still sweet and juicy.  Here in our area, as long as we continue to tend to these indeterminate tomatoes, we can expect to have fresh tomatoes until early November or Thanksgiving depending on the weather.  

Fig. 2  Super Fantastic showing flower buds as of September 18, 2013

As seen on the growing tips of the indeterminate 'Super Fantastic' tomatoes (Fig 2) flowering continues even as we approach the end of summer.  In fact, they will continue to flower until the temperature gets too cold. (Determinate tomato varieties, on the other hand, will cease to flower in spite of favorable growing conditions.)  At some point however, even when the flowers set, low temperature will hinder the fruits from growing into reasonable-size tomatoes as they will also fail to ripen.  This is the reason for fried green-tomatoes in my kitchen.

Fig. 3  Beautiful fruit set

I also noticed some signs of tomato worm damage in the tips of the tomatoes.  Fortunately, because we have resident Blue Jays in the garden, the damage is not extensive at all.  

 How are your tomatoes doing this month?

Pride of Madeira

 Echium candicans

Common Name: Pride of Madeira

Family: Boraginaceae

Plant Type: Annual or Biennial or Shrub

Country of Origin: Portugal (Madeira), Spain (Canary Islands)

Zone: 14-24

First encounter

Every year, for one reason or another, we would find ourselves roaming or driving along the coast of California enjoying the wet salty breeze on our skin.  This is what inland-Californians do, I guess.   And almost always, my eyes seem to be awakened and drawn towards an elegant shrub covered with purplish blue flowers flower heads that point to the sky.  The Echium candicans is a very delightful plant overall.  I fall in love with it every time I see it.  I can remember seeing it first a long time ago (before internet was open to everyone) in Carmel while on the 17-Mile Drive.  Looking at it from a distance I knew I saw something good that I wasn't looking for.  From that time on I saw it again many times but it was when my family was visiting the Mission San Luis Obispo that I came very close to the "Pride of Madeira" (its American nickname). The temptation to have this plant rushed all over me that I could not resist to break off a tiny branch from the shrub. Wrapped in a moistened paper towel tucked it in a plastic bag, the branch came home with me.   I gave all the necessary tender care and it rewarded me by showing me some roots and then new leaves grew.  The plant lives!  But when winter came that year, the plant died.   And I didn't even know its name.  

Funnel-shaped flowers are borne on spike-like panicles.

Facts about the Pride of Madeira

It was only when I started working at the nursery that I came to know more about the plant.  I found out that this plant has the following attributes:

• Large gorgeous plant (5-6 ft tall and 6-10 ft wide)
• Beautiful purplish-blue flowers from spring to summer float above foliage.
• Evergreen (green and grey-silver) leaves
• Attracts butterflies, bees and birds.
• Drought tolerant in the coastal areas 
• Tolerates poor soils
• Deer Resistant
• Poisonous (all plant parts)
• Reseeds - it can become a weed if unchecked.

New branches do not grow on old wood. 

Factors to Consider in Growing Pride of Madeira

• Sun - Full Sun or part shade in hot climates (like mine),
• Soil - moderately fertile; sand, clay or loam; well-drained soil.  Neutral or alkaline pH.  Rich soils can hinder good flowering.
• Fertilize during growing period.  No fertilizer is required in winter.
• Pruning for shape is not necessary.  If you need to prune only within the branches that have leaves.  The plant branch only on new stems.  
• Deadhead to avoid reseeding.
• The plant naturally forms into a round shrub.
• Protect from frost in situ with frost cloth.  Young growths are susceptible to freezing temperature.
• Potential pests include snails and slugs especially when the shoots are young.

Recently, my family visited Angel Island and again "Pride of Madeira", in full bloom all over the island, captured my heart. (The pictures featured in this post were all taken from the island.) The sad truth is - this plant is not adaptable to my Zone 9 climate.  But I will try to bring her to my garden one more time.

Did you know?  Echium candicans is poisonous.  This is probably why it is deer resistant.  

Garden Bunny

It's been almost two years ago since Lexy, the bunny, came to be part of our family.  My youngest child wanted a pet when her big sister went to college.  We adopted one of the rabbits that have been abandoned by their original owners. We chose Lexy because she's litter box-trained and looked docile which meant that my daughter could pet her.  She's a house bunny - we had to sign an agreement that we will not let her live outside the house.  But even a house-bunny needs to be in a cage because there are cords lying around that are in danger of being chewed into pieces.  

Discovering the secret spaces in the garden.

This house bunny is a garden bunny by day.  She gets the necessary dose of sunshine and enjoys a little bit of freedom being with the rest of nature out there while nibbling on some fresh greenery.   When no one is there to keep her in line, she is confined in her outdoor cage on the shady area of the lawn.  She used to be scared whenever the neighbor's dog barked from the other side of the fence. Watching her ears twist as they listen to the source of unusual sounds around was quite entertaining.  But now she feels secure - observant but not easily startled.  She has a box she can run into whenever she needs the security of an enclosed space.

Lexy sits in her cage on the lawn.

There have been some changes in the garden, of course including the increase of nitrogen levels on some areas of the backyard.  The wood pellets from her litter box are being used as mulch for the acid-loving shrubs in the yard such as roses and boxwood.  All that is needed is to add extra nitrogen fertilizer necessary to feed the hardworking microorganisms during decomposition process.  These wood pellets mulch are also very effective in suppressing weeds.

Nibbling on everything but spitting out the unpalatable.

Lexy is a quiet bunny but she adds life in the garden - socially and organically.  How is your own pet changing the course of nature in your backyard?

Bitter Gourd

Momordica charantia L.

Family:  Cucurbitaceae

Common Names in the US*:  Bitter Melon; Bitter Gourd; Balsam Pear

One vegetable vigorously growing in my garden at this time in the season is the bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.).  This vegetable was a part of my everyday diet in my earlier years.  Sadly, it has increasingly become a rarity since I moved to California.  But this trend is soon to be reversed. With my success this year, bitter melon may yet become a regular item in my summer garden.

Bitter melon is an important vegetable crop in the Philippines and all of Asia.  The fruits and leaves are edible - both bearing a strikingly bitter taste that varies in intensity depending on variety.  

In my village, bitter gourd is believed to be purgative.  Newborn babies (before their first taste of their mother's milk) are given a teaspoon of bitter melon tonic - pure extract from the leaves of the plant. This blackish-green delight is bitter enough to squeeze every facial muscle of the infant.  As if this is their initiation into the world.  However, this does not diminish the fact that bitter melon is an acquired taste even to Filipinos.  For my grandmother, the more bitter the parya (Ilocano word for bitter melon) the better it is.  But to my grandfather, parya and food did not go together.

   

In the bigger world, bitter melon has gone a long way.  Extensive research has led to understanding the medicinal properties of the plant down to molecular levels.  Bitter gourd has emerged to be one of the most significant botanical remedies for type 2 diabetes.  Recently,  AVRDC - The World Vegetable Center spearheaded a project called the Bitter Gourd Project which "aims to improve the incomes and health of the poor in developing countries, particularly the quality of life of diabetics, through scientific research on bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.)."  But as for me, bitter gourd or bitter melon is just one of my favorite vegetables in the world.  

Now let's talk about the plant. 

Bitter gourd is tender perennial - in this area it is treated as an annual plant.  The vine grows eight to ten feet in length with robust branching and foliage growth.  It looks delicate but its every node bears a tendril that allows the plant to secure itself easily on trellises or other plants.  The palmately lobed leaves are beautiful.  

The flowers are bright yellow and very fragrant.  Just like all other plants in the Cucurbitaceae family, the bitter gourd is a monoecious plant - having separate male (staminate) and female (pistillate) flowers on the same plant.  Only the pollinated female flowers turn into fruits. 

Fruits of bitter gourd are generally warty with colors ranging from dark green to white.  They can be small and rounded (one-inch diameter) to large and elongated (3-inch diameter and 15-inch long).  The plants growing in my garden have small and elongated fruits with an average length of 3 inches.  

Growing Bitter Gourd

1. Choose sunny location - afternoon shade in hotter climate like mine.  Bitter gourd can be grown directly into the soil or in containers. Mine is growing in a five gallon bucket.
2. Incorporate compost or decomposed animal manure into soil.  
3. Plan and install support structures for plants (I attached wire mesh on the fence but you can used bamboo stakes or trellis). 
4. Direct sow plants in warm soil after the last frost.  Water the seeds thoroughly.  It takes about a week for seeds to emerge.  
5. Protect seedlings from snails and slugs - I've learned it the hard way.
6. Water regularly to keep soil moist but not wet.  
7. Mulch to conserve soil moisture and reduce weed growth.
8. Fertilize bitter gourd when there are two tendrils stretching out of the stem.  Repeat every two to three weeks. 
9. Yellowing of the leaves can be a sign of nutrient deficiency.  Remember:  Low-dose fertilizer applied frequently is better than high dosage at a less frequent interval.  
10. Check for pest and diseases regularly.  
11. Harvest fruits when they are green and shiny.  When fruits begin to turn yellow then it is too late.

Have you ever grown bitter gourd in your garden?  And have you eaten bitter gourd before?  What did you think? 

Dioscorea macrostachya

 Dioscorea macrostachya 

Synonym: Dioscorea mexicana

Family:  Dioscoreaceae

Common Name:Tortoise Plant

Country of Origin: Panama, El Salvador, Mexico

Fig. 1  Caudex on close-up view - resembles a tortoise shell.

The caudex which is the thickened and enlarged base of the stem is what gives this plant an extraordinary visual appeal.  Part of the caudex grows above-ground exposing a hardened outer layer that resembles a tortoise shell .  As the caudex expands, the hardened layer breaks into almost regular polygonal plates that becomes protuberant with age leaving deep furrow in between (Fig. 1).  

Fig. 2  Flowers and leaves on long vines

The pictures here are images of the specimen Dioscorea macrostachya at the Conservatory of  Flowers in San Francisco.  From the appearance of the stem and leaves, this perennial plant looks like and ordinary vine (Fig. 2).  Capable of growing up to 36 feet in a year, this plant is a vigorous grower.   Unless you take the time to  guide your eyes to follow where the vine originates, it would be so hard to imagine that the caudex below (Fig. 3) is related to the far-reaching vine with the heart-shaped leaves.  

The plant  

Fig. 3    Branches arising from the caudex.

As a normal sequence of events, every year, a new set of branches emerge from the apical end of the caudex and dies back at the end of the season depending on growing conditions.  In the tropical forest where this plant would be found in nature, the caudex would be sitting in the shade where it prefers to be with lots of water.   Sunlight requirement for this plant is relatively moderate.  The new vine would then have to reach up above the other plant canopies to access to direct sunlight.  Thus a rapid growth of the vine is necessary for existence.  The rate of growth of the caudex is a function of the photosynthetic rate on the foliage.  

Fig. 4      The Caudex: Tortoise-like

Dioscorea macrostachya is grown as an ornamental plant as it adds oddity to any plant collection.  

Suggested reading on Caudiciforms:
http://www.bihrmann.com/caudiciforms/subs/dio-mex-sub.asp

Find time to walk in a garden today.