Park Seed Garden Journal

All-America Selections has announced the 2007 winners!

AAS Flower Award Winner:

                            Celosia ‘Fresh Look Gold’                                            Celosia plumosa Fresh Look Gold
Requires full sun, moist, well-drained soil, tolerates normal to loamy soil.

Celosia ‘Fresh Look Gold’ is an annual with a 10 in bloom size. Blooming season for this winner is early summer to early fall. Fresh Look Gold’s make great ornamentals and cut flowers. They are drought and heat tolerant; growing 12-16 inches wide and 12-16 inches tall.

AAS Vegetable Award Winner:

                                           Pepper ‘Holy Mole’                                                                Capsicum annuum Holy Mole
Requires full sun, moist, well-drained soil, and tolerates normal to loamy soil. Holy Mole matures in 85 days, sizing in at 7-9 inches long and 1.5 inches wide — no wonder it’s called "holy mole"!

This pepper is resistant to Tobacco Mosaic Virus and disease. Plants can reach 3+ feet in height and 2+ feet in width.   

AAS Bedding Plant Award Winner:
                                   Petunia ‘Opera Supreme Pink Morn‘                                          Petunia grandiflora Opera Supreme Pink Morn
Requires full sun, moist, well-drained soil, and tolerates normal to loamy soil. Pink Morn blooms light pink, white, and light yellow. This multi-color annual has a 2 inch bloom spread from early to late summer.
Opera Supreme Pink Morn works great as a ground cover, in beds, containers, or baskets. They are also long bloomers, low-maintenance, and repeat bloomers.

AAS Bedding Plant Award Winner: 
                                      Vinca ‘Pacifica Burgundy Halo’                             Vinca rosea Pacifica Halo                                                         Requires full sun, moist, well-drained soil, and tolerates poor, normal, and loamy soil.
This Vinca has 2 inch blooms of burgundy and white petals from early to late summer.
Pacifica Burgundy Halo is disease and drought tolerant with several uses and features. They work well indoors or outdoors, in beds, containers, baskets, and as borders or ground covers. Pacifica Burgundy Halo is a low-maintenance, long blooming, season extender for any garden!

For more information about AAS winners, visit www.all-americaselections.org. Don’t forget:  2007 is the 75th Diamond Anniversary for the AAS program. Click on the link above for more information.

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com

Anita,

Thanks for dropping in and donating your Besto Pesto recipe! I’ll have to try it this week in something I make for Thanksgiving — not in BMT’s though, my family is full of meat-eaters!

I wanted to share these beautiful pictures I received from a long time customer of ours, Ray Theis. All of his neighbors ask where he got the lovely petunias in his front yard. The variety shown is Petunia Wave Purple Hybrid, an All-America Selections Winner and Classic. Ray’s lovely wife is also pictured with their dog.

Which reminds me, next year is the 75th Diamond Anniversary of AAS…

Gone to Research-

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com

Hello there, Nadia! 

I bet you didn’t expect to see me here!  I know, I should be doing other things with my workday – maybe like researching super-popular gift apple varieties like CandyCrisp™ and Honeycrisp™??? Sorry, readers – I just HAD to mention it!

I saw your post and wanted to tell you about my basil experience this past summer.  I LOVE Basil.  On pizza, in spaghetti sauce, on BMTs (basil-mozzarella-tomato sandwiches), and floating on top of yummy Thai seafood soups that my friend Joy makes for me when she’s in town.  It’s all good.  I’m even planning a basil-tasting party next summer if I can get my planning gears going soon enough to start many different varieties in spring.   One of my all-time favorite things to do with Basil is make pesto to freeze so I can enjoy a little sunshine from my garden over gray winter days. 

I read somewhere once that in the Salem Witch Trial days, a woman was considered a witch if she had basil growing in her garden.  Wow.  I tried Valentino this past summer, and let me tell you – I’d have a hard time giving this variety up even if there was a torch-bearing mob hot on my tail.  I’d cut herb and run!  The deeply crinkled leaves were so big, I only needed one to cover an entire slice of bread for my BMTs.  I made a separate batch of pesto using only the Valentino – and you’d think I had a vat of kryptonite in my freezer.  It beams its brilliant lime-green color at me everytime I grab some ice.  I know – shameless plug of Park Seed product.  I just had to share this with you though…for all the world to see.

Besto Pesto!

2 cups tightly packed basil leaves

1 handful parsley and oregano (or marjoram)

2-3 large garlic cloves(depending upon how much you like garlic, use less or more)

1/4 cup lightly toasted pinenuts (more than most call for, but I like pinenuts!)

1/4 cup parmesan, asiago, or romano cheese

1/2 cup olive oil (or more to thin out to a smoother consistency)

Salt and pepper to taste

Just whiz all ingredients together in a food processor or blender until smooth and voila!  Pesto!  I just throw it in an old margarine tub, put it in the freezer, and spoon out a chunk whenever I need it!  Some yummy variations to try are adding sundried tomatoes and olives to the mix.  Mmmm.

See you in the garden – I’ll be the one with basil breath,

Anita

anita.dover@gmail.com

With the holidays approaching quickly, the kitchen is about to be put to work. Cooking, cooking, and more cooking is what goes on at my house during the holiday season – I’m just glad my significant other is a chef! He uses many fresh herbs from my little windowsill garden  for many reasons: 1) our mortgage payment doesn’t allow us to buy the best brands and chefs have to use the best, so it’s cheaper to grow our own herbs rather than buy them at the store, 2) it smells delicious when cooking or just growing, and 3) the addition of fresh herbs to anything improves taste (you can add flavor to sandwiches by adding basil to mayo, rosemary to tea, etc). Growing fresh herbs year round in your kitchen is quite simple. First, you need to select a container that will hold several plants, provide good drainage, and fit comfortably in your kitchen. Clay, wood, or ceramic pots work well for growing herbs, and it is easier to find small pots made of these materials. When growing indoor herbs in the kitchen, it is important not to grow them near the oven or stove. They thrive best at room temperature with sunlight (south or west windows do best) and a well-drained soil mix that isn’t too rich.                                                             

Herbs can be started in the kitchen from a sprig off of another herb plant or by seed. Good choices for direct-seeding include dill, basil, and oregano. Be careful when selecting seeds to specify the "compact" varieties, as the regular varieties are difficult to grow indoors because they need more room to roam. Most culinary herbs make great indoor herb gardens (or container plants) because they have compact growth and are drought resistant. Some of these herbs include Summer Savory, Calendula, Chives, Marjoram, Thyme, and Rosemary. To start the seeds, just fill each pot with  regular potting soil, tuck the seeds into the soil – the depth will be specified on the seed packet and mist with water. Some seeds will germinate within days.

A recipe that lists herb quantities in dried form can be transformed by using fresh growing herbs right from your garden. The amount of herb has to be doubled or tripled for the same strength of herb flavor. Why increase when using fresh herb? Well, when herbs are used in cooking it is the essential oil, contained in the cells in the leaves, which provide the taste. The oil of an herb is what you smell when you touch or rub the leaves, and the smell becomes the taste. When you dry herbs, the moisture is removed from the plant, but the oil remains. The leaves shrink with the reduction of moisture; hence a small bottle of dried herb represents a large quantity of fresh leaves, which also explains why buying herbs from a grocery store can be very expensive.

When cooking, the oils in herb leaves release their scent; which adds flavor to the food. The more heat used in preparing a recipe, the faster the oils are dispersed. For instance, a soup on simmer will take 30 minutes to acquire flavor from the herb. By this time, the oils vaporize with the steam and are gradually lost. Herbs should be added last in long-cooking recipes (one exception to this rule is Bay Leaves, which take longer to impart its subtle flavor to a dish).

Cold-prepared foods take longer to absorb herb flavors. Cold foods take a few hours to fully absorb the taste of herbs. However, the acid content of a mixed salad dressing or sauce containing vinegar or lemon juice speeds up the transfer of flavor.

Full herb and spice racks are often given to people as gifts, but how long do the herbs keep? The best way to determine this would be by a smell test. An herb with little or no scent has lost its oils, and has little to no flavor.

There’s no doubt that using fresh herbs in cooking makes excellent food, but herbs have many attributes; they smell wonderful, are very attractive, and often used for medicinal purposes.

Herbally Yours,

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com

I don’t really regret killing slugs when I was a child. For some odd reason it was fun to pour salt on them and watch the slime ooze out. Sounds pretty gross, but back then it was fun.

Here lately, I think the grandchildren of the slugs I killed a long time ago are coming back for revenge!

The whole slug karma thing started when I was helping out in the Garden Center. I agreed to cut back some Hostas — which turned out to be a lot more than some. Anyway, I would grab the plastic pot off of the ground and on place it on my lap so I could see what I was doing. Before you know it, I had to quit because I encountered 3 slugs – actually touched them and had slime all over my hand. Everyone got a crack out of it because my face looked like I was about to get sick.

Encounter #2 (this is where my main problem is): My back patio is just a concrete slab. Fine and dandy when it is sunny, but for some reason when it rains, there are slugs everywhere. I am a little too old to be outside with a salt shaker giggling and killing these little creatures. So, working at Park Seed, I figured everyone would have advice.
The most common answer was to place a shallow dish full of beer outside. Slugs are attracted to the sweet, yeasty smell and slither in for a quick sip, but drown instead of catching a buzz. You don’t even have to use a lot of beer, so you can enjoy the rest while you watch your problem disappear. Just be sure to freshen your beer bait every few days to keep them coming!

Of course, there were suggestions to use Sluggo Bait, which is completely organic and won’t harm plants or animals.

A very interesting tip I heard was to use copper wire or copper tape around raised beds or containers. When the slugs come into contact with the copper, it gives them a mild electrical shock and deters them from sliding over the barrier.

Slugs need to keep moist at all times otherwise they will dehydrate and die (which is what we want anyway). They are nocturnal, and more active when it is wet, which is why they only crawl on my patio when it’s raining.

Another interesting tip I heard is to set a wide board or piece of cardboard on the ground by the affected area. Slugs will hide under the board during the day because it is moist and shady. Simply flip the board over during the day and choose a way to kill them.

Slugs eat decaying vegetation so it is important remove fallen and damaged leaves from your patio area and plants.

Looks like I’m headed for a slimeless patio with all the great tips my colleagues gave me. Please email any tips or suggestions you have and I’ll post them!

Nadia

    You could get 14 packets of seed for ten cents? Well, in January of 1900, George W. Park made the following offer in Park’s Floral Magazine (circulation 363,000), "I want everyone who loves and cultivates flowers to become acquainted with this MAGAZINE, and to further extend its circulation and influence I make this  unparalleled offer:  Send me ten cents, and I will mail my MAGAZINE three months on trial and the following fine collection of 14 packets."

The seed collection included Aster, Chrysanthemum, Lobelia, Mignonette, Nasturtium, Pansy, Petunia, Pink, Poppy, Schizanthus, Sweet Pea, Ten Weeks’ Stock, and Zinnia. The offer concluded,"10 cents pays for the above 14 packets choice Flower Seeds, packed in richly-illustrated chromo seed-bags, with full cultural directions, also Park’s Floral Guide and Park’s Floral Magazine trial subscription. The seeds are alone worth $1.00. There are none better. The magazine is entirely floral, original and practical, and a favorite everywhere. For 10 cents you thus get a whole flower garden and full information about its treatment. Order now. Tell your friends."

One of my colleagues purchased two old Park Seed catalogs off of Ebay. They are absolutely fascinating! The magazines are more like a journal with writings from gardeners everywhere. There are poems, tips, recipes for fertilizer, almost anything you can think of that pertains to gardening.

I have scanned a Park’s Floral Magazine from 1899 that my boss purchased a while back. You can read the actual print — I scanned the whole magazine into Flickr. Just click the Flickr and it will take you directly to the 1899 catalog.

I will work on getting this 1900 edition on to Flickr for everyone to view. Until next time…

Enjoy the Past,

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com

I found a few more helpful tips/tasks that go along with November gardening chores that might be helpful…

• Rodents such as voles, moles, and squirrels are busying themselves for the long winter season, so protect your trees with repellants or tree guards to keep them from causing too much damage as they tunnel around the trunks.
• Clean any remaining dirt off of tools, sharpen the blades, oil them, and store them in a dry area.
• Store bean poles, tomato cages, and any bamboo stakes in a clean, dry area.
• Pull up beets and carrots to store for winter. If you aren’t quite ready to harvest these root vegetables, provide a light mulch of shredded leaves or straw to help protect against freezing.
• Clean up Rose beds, making sure to dispose of any diseased leaves or canes.
• Bring out all of your birdfeeders, cleaning them and stocking them with fresh food to keep birds well-fed over the winter. Don’t forget to continue to provide fresh water in your bird baths. Consider purchasing a heater designed for bird baths to keep water from freezing.
• Now is still a great time to plant trees and shrubs. A good rule of thumb is that if the soil can still be worked, you can still plant trees and shrubs.
• Make sure you’ve planted all spring bulbs before the ground freezes solid in your area.

I’m still working on the last one myself .

Starting soon on my to-do list,

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com

Happy Halloween and Welcome Sweet November!! Here are some tips for the month of giving… Thanksgiving that is — gobble, gobble!

• Clean up fall leaves and plant remains and transform them into valuable compost and leaf mold for the garden. A number of garden plants need protection from fall and winter weather now.

• Ornamental gardens still contain plenty of interest for the next few weeks. Some plants will need to be lifted and stored under cover for the winter. Flower borders need to be cleaned up. This is also a great time to divide and replant perennials.

• Mid-fall is the ideal time to lay turf if you are planning for a new lawn. If you are just trying to improve the condition of your lawn, top-dressing (mix peat, good quality, sieved loamy soil, and medium horticultural sand) applied now will make an amazing improvement. Your lawn will look messy at first, but the dressing will eventually disappear. Next spring will bring strong, dense grass.

• Clear vegetable crops. If you do not have a vegetable garden, now is a good time to get started for one next year.

• Make plans to fill any gaps you find in borders.

• Protect outdoor faucets and water pipes from freezing.

Digging For Knowledge,

Nadia

nvanderhall@gmail.com