Nature’s Healing Power
In his essay titled “Why We Need Gardens,” neurologist and author, Oliver Sacks wrote: “I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains, but I have seen in my patients the restorative and healing powers of nature and gardens, even for those who are deeply disabled neurologically. In many cases, gardens and nature are more powerful than any medication.”
Sacks, who died of a rare cancer in August of 2015, explained how he was introduced to the wonder of gardens as a child. And, as a physician in New York City, he took his patients to visit gardens whenever he could, believing that, just like music, gardens were vital “therapy” for people living with chronic neurological diseases. What is it about nature that is so calming and reinvigorating? he wondered, recounting the time a friend with Tourette’s syndrome became calm and tic-free on a hike in the desert. And how is it that patients with advanced dementia or Alzheimer’s disease can’t remember how to do everyday things like tie their shoes. “But put them in front of a flower bed with some seedlings, and they will know exactly what to do. I have never seen such a patient plant something upside down,” Sacks recalled.
“Clearly, nature calls to something very deep in us,” he continued, explaining his belief that nature affects us deeply spiritually and emotionally, as well as physically and neurologically. Had I read that essay before his death, I might have written Dr. Sacks a letter saying that, as a longtime gardener and lover of long walks in the woods, I couldn’t agree more with what he said in that lovely bit of writing. (Which can be found in the posthumously-published collection, Everything in Its Place: First Loves and Last Tales.) I’m not sure how I developed biophilia, an urge to connect with living things and nature, which I suppose progressed over time into hortophilia, the desire to interact with, manage and tend nature. But I’ve got both Big Time. And I know a whole lot of other gardeners who would say they do too.
Like Sacks, I can’t precisely tell you how nature works its mojo on people, but I do remember the first time I saw it happen. I was in college and working nights and weekends at a women’s shelter in North Minneapolis. The shelter had once been a convent for nuns, so the narrow, tile-floored room I used as an “office” had probably once been a nun’s bedroom. Our country doesn’t care about people who are struggling with mental illness, so the underfunded shelter paid me, and several other young women, about $8 an hour to look after dozens of women of all ages who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and/or other serious mental health issues. Tucked away in their own narrow nunnery rooms upstairs, those women were also often dealing eating disorders, broken hearts, drug-and-alcohol addiction and abusive boyfriends who showed up to bang on the front door at all hours of the night.
Read More»Got Dead Basil? Give African Blue Basil a Try
- On August 06, 2019
- By Meleah
- In Annuals, Container Gardening, Herbs, Uncategorized
- 0
Right about this time last year I wrote a column talking about how sad it is that everyone’s favorite Genovese basil, which used to grow so nicely until late summer, is now being decimated early in the season by a fairly new disease called basil downy mildew. A mold that loves warmth and humidity, this disease starts out slowly with just a few yellow leaves and before you know it, the whole plant is a gross mess of yellow and brownish black splotches.
I offered several tips in that column for potentially avoiding basil downy mildew— or at least putting it off until you can make a couple of pizzas or something. And then about a week after the column came out, all of my basil plants got it and died. So, ha! What do I know, right? Well, seriously, it is nearly impossible to avoid this basil plague. But I’m not giving up on Genovese basil, and you probably don’t want to either. So let me offer another strategy that I’ve been trying this year that is so far going well.
In addition to planting about five Genovese basil seedlings, like I always do, I also planted African Blue basil, which is not susceptible to the disease. At this point in late July, I’ve only had to toss one diseased Genovese into the garbage. The other four are doing all right—fingers crossed. I’d never heard of African Blue basil until last year when a fellow gardener told me about it. He said he’d tried it and, though the leaves are a bit tougher than Genovese, the flavor is very similar and the plants have done really well in his garden. I planted two of them in early June, and I agree with him on all counts. I’ve made some really great pesto out of this new basil, and because it grows super quickly and doesn’t bolt, I’m be making a lot more.
For those who’ve never heard of African Blue basil either, let me explain a bit about it. A hybrid variety created by crossing camphor basil and ‘Dark Opal’ basil, it is grown as a perennial in climates much warmer than ours. But even in Minnesota, plants can easily grow to 3 feet tall over the summer. The foliage is a pretty blend of dark green and purple, and plants produce loads of purplish-pink flowers that don’t need to be removed because, unlike most basils, they don’t go to seed because African Blue basil is sterile. Pollinators LOVE the purple flowers, and I’ve found that they are just as tasty as the leaves and can be used in pesto, salads, pasta, cocktails or anywhere else you’d use basil.
Even if you don’t like the taste of African Blue basil, it’s a great plant to add to sunny perennial gardens because it’s quite striking and you’ll attract plenty of bees and butterflies. African Blue basil is also said to grow more easily indoors, so I’m going to try putting one in a sunny window this winter. If all goes well, perhaps I can plant it outside once the weather warms up next season. The one hitch with this type of basil is, since they don’t go to seed, you have to buy new plants each year and they are a few more dollars than the typical varieties of basil we are all used to planting.
Or, to save a few bucks, you could try propagating new plants yourself by rooting cuttings in water and then transplanting them into small pots until they grow big enough to be transplanted into the garden. I can see this working well in warm climates, but I’m not sure how successful we’d be using this strategy since we would need to overwinter the plants indoors for several long, cold months. I think I’ll give it a try this winter and let you know how that turns out.
Happy gardening. And may all of your basil be free of mildew.
Tips for Saving Amaryllis Bulbs
To help make our long winters less drab and dreary, I usually grow several different amaryllis plants so there is something colorful and blooming in the house between November and February. Normally, I toss the bulbs into the compost bins after they’re done flowering. But after talking to some master gardener friends who save and replant their amaryllis bulbs, I’ve decided to do the same. I figure, even if I didn’t pay a lot for the bulbs (they range in price), it would be nice to give the plants the opportunity to flower again if they’re able. If you’d like to try this, too, here are some tips you need to know.
Like other bulbs, amaryllis use their leaves to store up energy for next year. So once the flowers fade, cut them off so the spent blooms don’t go to seed, which uses up energy the bulb needs. Leave the long leaves intact. Yes it does look weird to have a bulb in a pot with goofy, long leaves poking out of it. But those green leaves will feed the bulb through photosynthesis if you leave the pot near a sunny window.
Keep watering and fertilizing the bulb as you did when it was flowering. I usually water once a week, which is when the soil starts to feel dry. It’s a good idea to fertilize every time you water. Use about half the amount suggested on the package of whatever type of fertilizer you use.
Once we make it past the last frost, put your amaryllis plants (in their pots) outside in a spot that’s not in direct sun. Like seedlings, they need some time to acclimate to being outdoors so over the course of a week or two, move the pots into more and more sun. Ideally, they need to end up in a place where they will get a minimum of 5 hours of sun daily. You can leave them on your patio in their pots, or bury the pots in the garden someplace for the summer. At this point the leaves may be yellowing, browning or otherwise looking awful. But even if they are still green, you can cut the foliage back to about 3 inches. Keep up the watering and fertilizing (now at full strength) during the summer and new leaves will grow.
Read More»Overwintering Plants Indoors
As summer comes to an end, it’s tempting to bring tropical plants indoors for the winter. It’s not a bad idea, but as you probably already know, some of them don’t do so well in our cool, dry houses for months on end. The key is to offer the right amount of care, which sometimes means a lack of care, depending on the plant.
If you want to try to keep tropicals alive so you can bring them outdoors again in the spring, there are three ways to do it:
- Bring the plant in and let if just keep on growing in a warm sunny spot.
- Put the plant in a cool, dark place and let it go dormant.
- Take cuttings from plants you like, root them and pot them up so you can enjoy those new plants in the spring.
Going with option one means you need to have a sunny window where temperatures are between 60 and 75 degrees during the day and not below 45 at night. Jasmine, hibiscus, bougainvillea and small citrus trees are just a few of the plants that can survive the winter this way. If you don’t have that sort of sunny spot, you can always put plants under fluorescent lights or grow lights, but make sure you set a timer so they get about 12 hours of light daily.
If plants grow enough to get leggy, prune them back at least once. And do worry about a few dropped and/or yellowed leaves because that’s bound to happen, particularly right after you brings plants indoors. Water as needed, but don’t fertilize plants until spring. And be sure to inspect plants regularly for pests. If you find some they can usually be controlled by plopping the plants in the sink or shower and giving it a good blast with water.
Letting plants go dormant takes more of an understanding of plants’ individual needs. Good information on that can be found in the book, Bulbs in the Basement Geraniums on the Windowsill: How to Grow & Overwinter 165 Tender Plants by Alice and Brian McGowan. Basically, it all depends on whether the plants are woody, soft-stemmed or bulb-like. For example, elephant ears and caladiums should get a little bit frost nipped before they come inside so they understand that the season is over and it’s time to go dormant. They can either be stored in a cool, dark place right in their pots and your job is to keep the soil slightly moist until spring. Or, you can take them out of their pots, remove the stems and foliage and store only the bulbs. Read up on how to do that: everyone seems to have a way they like to do it.
Taking cuttings from plants that are difficult to overwinter, like coleus and geraniums, is easier than it sounds. If you’re going to do this, take the cuttings in the fall and toss the main plant (sometimes called the “mother” plant) in the compost bin. Instructions for taking cuttings and rooting them can be found in books, online and of course there are YouTube videos.
Keep Tomato Plants Healthy and Happy
At this point in the season, tomatoes are either doing great or tipping toward disaster. So in addition to offering some growing tips to help make tomatoes happy and healthy, I’ll explain some of the common things that can go wrong.
Probably the most important thing you need when growing tomatoes is sunlight—8 hours or more is best, but 6 will allow plants to produce a fair amount of fruit. If you don’t have a spot that gets even 6 hours of sun and someone is home a lot during the day, consider buying a few round, rolling plant stands. I got mine (which look like metal Frisbees on wheels) at Ikea, but most garden centers sell them now, too. Put your tomatoes in large pots, set them on the rolling plant stands and move them into the sun as it moves throughout the day.
Soil is key to tomato success too. They thrive in healthy soil, so it’s a good idea to work some compost and composted manure into the area before planting. If you’re planting in pots, just add those things into your potting mix. Halfway through the season, scratch a little more compost into the top of the soil around plants, but don’t add more manure. Too much nitrogen (N) will give you lots of leaves and little fruit. You want a fertilizer with more potassium (K) than nitrogen in it. Phosphorous (P) can also be on the low side, usually, since compost supplies a good amount of that. Product labels always show the N-P-K ratio like this: 10-10-10 or 5-2-1. You want something more like: 1-0-4 or 1-1-3. Seaweed (powdered or liquid kelp) is a great choice and is usually 1-0-4.
Tomatoes like water, but not too much. Water plants deeply but not so often, or so much, that you end up with soggy soil. That can lead to disease problems and, later in the season, to tomatoes that don’t taste like much because all that water got channeled into the plant’s fruit. If you’re growing tomatoes in pots, stop watering when you see water running out of the bottom of the pot. Watering consistently, every few days in hot weather—more often if plants are growing in pots—will also help prevent the dreaded blossom end rot. You know you have this common problem when your tomatoes have black spots on their bottoms. Consistent watering allows the fruits to get the calcium they need from the soil to develop properly.
Did you bury the stem at planting time? If not, do that next year by gently plucking off the plant’s branches below the top flush of leaves. Depending on the size of your transplant, you’re usually burying 2 to 6 inches of stem, and that’s a good thing because new roots will sprout all along that stem and help your tomatoes be strong and healthy.
Pruning tomatoes doesn’t need to be as complicated as it is often described. Tomatoes are classified by growth habit: determinate tomatoes—also called bush tomatoes—are bred to be more compact, usually about 4 feet tall while indeterminate varieties—also known as climbing or vining types—can grow to 6 feet tall or more. Determinate tomatoes don’t need much pruning beyond removing all of the suckers below the first flower cluster. Indeterminate tomatoes benefit from some pruning, but you don’t need to grow crazy. Basically, if you pinch out suckers and pare plants down to around stems, you’ll get bigger fruit and less sprawling growth. If you let plants be more unruly than that, you’ll get more fruit but you’ll have to deal with a more tangled mess of vines. Either way if fine, so don’t sweat it a whole bunch.
Are the leaves on your tomato plants curling up in hot weather? Don’t worry, that’s probably not a disease. It’s just how some tomato varieties react to the heat. This type of leaf roll usually starts on lower leaves and works its way up. It doesn’t look great, but it shouldn’t affect fruit development. Watering regularly and mulching the ground beneath your tomatoes can help keep this problem at bay.
Seeds, Seeds and More Seeds
- On March 22, 2016
- By Meleah
- In Annuals, Container Gardening, Herbs, Natives, Perennials, Seeds
- 0
Hello dear readers. It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted a blog. Life gets too busy sometimes and you have to let go of at least a few things or you’ll go batty. (At least that’s how I work.) Now that the load has lightened up a bit, I’m back and I’ll try to post much more regularly going forward—at least during the growing season.
First off, happy spring! If you live nearby I want to let you know that the Little Free Seed Library is up and running again at my house, so please come on over and leave some seeds to share with others. Or take some home for yourself. This season, I’m happy to say that we have a few more items to share thanks to Do It Green! Minnesota.
The Minneapolis-based non-profit has long been committed to sustainability and promoting healthy communities, and with support from the Gannett Foundation they started up their own Do It Green! Seed, which provides free native and organic seeds to Twin Cities residents. They also distribute educational information about seed saving and other topics, and when they heard about my seed library, they kindly gave me a variety of seeds to share with you. They also gave me many copies of two handouts: One explains how to choose quality seeds and save seeds, and the other covers the different types of milkweeds home gardeners can plant to help monarch butterflies.
Both handouts will be in the library as long as supplies last. Or, you can print your own copy of Do It Green!’s Seed Saving handout by clicking on a link you’ll find on their website. Their site also offers a link to a very nice seed label that you can print and use on your own envelopes when saving seeds at home. Those of you who visit the library at my house will see that label on the seed packets donated by Do It Green!, which include swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) and organic China rose radish, garlic chives and cilantro.
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