Family Plot - Nov. 1, 2012

>> Cooper: Hi, thanks for joining us. And welcome to "The Family Plot: Gardening in the Mid-South." Terrariums are a fun and unusual way to grow a variety of plants with minimal care. Today we're going to show you how easy creating a terrarium can be. And we'll fill you in on some trendy gardening and foodie terms. All that and more is just ahead on "The Family Plot: Gardening in the Mid-South." So stay with us. >> Female announcer: This is a production of WKNO, Memphis. Production funding for "The Family Plot: Gardening in the Mid-South" is provided by Good Winds Landscape and Garden Center in Germantown since 1943 and continuing to offer it's plants for successful gardening with seven greenhouses and three acres of plants plus comprehensive landscape services. >> (instrumental music) ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ >> Cooper: Hi, Welcome to "The Family Plot." I'm Chris Cooper. Joining me today is Laurie Williams. Laurie is the adult education manager with the Memphis Botanic Garden. And Walter Battle is here. Walter is the Director of the Haywood County Extension Office. Walter's outside to give us an update on the progress of our garden. Walter, how's it look out there? >> Battle: Chris, things are looking great out here. For those of you who's been watching, we tried to kill this grass -- this Bermuda grass out here using plastic. And what you've seen here is that it didn't really work that good for this time of year because really it's just not getting hot enough to really cook this grass down like we would want to see it. So that's when we switched on over to the glyphosate. And it is taking this Bermuda grass out. When it comes to constructing a raised bed, people use all types of materials. They use boards. I've seen cross ties used. What they have here is good old landscape timbers. And these things are very, very, very sturdy. And you just put them in. And as you put these in and build this bed, you use pieces rebar like this that will go in there to support it. Always remember to call 8-1-1 before we, you know, drive anything down in to the ground near the home or a building. Always have the power companies come out to check to make sure that you're not hitting some type of, you know, electrical line, or some cable line, or what may be a water line. Remember -- safety first. We have the landscape fabric down and we also have our pea gravel. That's going to provide excellent drainage opportunities. It will really pay off big for you -- just laying the foundation down real good for this raised bed here. By next time, we should have the beds built up. We'll have them filled with soil -- pull our soil test. And we'll be ready to roll. >> Cooper: Alright, Ms. Laurie -- Let's talk about terrariums, okay? We've heard a lot about it. Now let's show the people what it is exactly. >> Williams: Okay -- A terrarium So the moisture is released from the plants and then sort of rains back down on them. So if it ahs a lid on it, you can call it a terrarium. I brought a couple of other examples of things that you could plant that wouldn't be a true terrarium but it would still be sort of a little self enclosed landscape, if you will. The reason is I like terrariums is they're low maintenance. I've been on your show before and I've kind of talked to you about how you have to have the will to survive to make it in my yard or my house. Yeah -- I'm not a real high maintenance kind of a person. So these take very minimal care which is what I really like about them. Once a month, you can get in there and take care of things and then that's it. So maybe 12 times a year, spend a little time with your terrarium and it will make it on it's own. We're going to actually show your viewers how to build one. >> Cooper: Alright, let's show 'em. >> Williams: This is one that has been planted for a little while. And I have changed some of the plants out recently. But that's how you want it to look -- kind of jungly and full. Now some folks like individual plants just like in a landscape, you know, kind of self contained so you can see each plant. And I like chaos and mayhem. So that's my kind. I like them sort of real full in there. >> Cooper: Can you tell us what plants do you have in there? >> Williams: Yeah -- I've got quite a few in here. Some Pothos, some Filadendron. Let's see -- some Wandering Jew. Yeah -- that purply one. And there is some fern down here that's just getting hold. So it'll eventually take over the whole thing. And that's one of the things you have to do about once a month -- is get in there and take the dead leaves off. Maybe pull some things out and divide them up a little bit. Maybe make a couple of more terrariums with them because it can get so full that all of a sudden, everything starts to die. So that one is getting pretty close to the point that it probably needs a little bit of -- a little bit of attention maybe. Alright -- Should I go ahead and build one? >> Cooper: Let's go ahead and build one. >> Williams: Alright -- You can buy expensive things to put these in, you know, big brandy snifters and all those kind of things. I like cheese ball containers. They're really big so you can get lots of stuff in there and they are free. And you're also recycling. How can you go wrong? >> Cooper: We've got to help the environment all at the same time. >> Williams: That's right. Now one thing I do want to do is warn your viewers. We do some things called horticultural therapy where we do some outreach things with some folks that have special needs. And we have given them the opportunity to plant this way. I like it this way because it looks like the ship in the bottle sort of a thing. You have more. But what they did was they went ahead and planted it this way and when they go ready to leave, they picked it up and took it this way. So kind of pay attention to your population if you're going to give them some choices. So first thing that goes in is some charcoal. You can get this at Better Nurseries or you can also use the charcoal that they put in fish aquariums -- okay? And that just kind of keeps the soil a little bit purer since this is -- It doesn't get a lot of fresh air. So a little bit of that in the bottom. A little bit of gravel. Everything that goes in here needs to be fairly sterile -- fairly clean because it doesn't get a lot of fresh air. So if you put a bunch of disease and pests and insects and all that in there, they're going to blow up and you're going to have a problem. >> Cooper: How do you clean it? >> Williams: Just rinse it -- like this, I got from outdoors but I kept rinsing it until the water was clear. And one of the benefits of this is it will also give a little weight to this. So it will not roll around on the counter. And some drainage -- give the plants a little but of drainage. >> Cooper: Just any kind of gravel? Does it matter? >> Williams: Well, pea gravel -- small things. You wouldn't want limestone gravel in there because it will change the pH. In this small little world it would have a pretty dramatic effect. And then some potting soil. Now don't soak your soil like you would if you were gonna plant because you don't want anything in here to be extremely wet. You put a lid on it. So if it's too wet, it'll never have a chance to dry out. >> Cooper: But any kind of potting soil -- does it matter? >> Williams: A peat-based potting soil is best. And I have moistened this but not soaked it down. And I'm not probably going to do this whole thing because we're going to run out of time before I have a chance to do it as well as I would if I were really spending the time. But I like to make kind of a berm in the back -- something kind of high. And that's where I'll put my plants that actually have full sets of roots on them. And I would go ahead and extend this a little bit -- alright? So plants in the back that have roots. This is Selaginella. It's kind of a ground cover. And I'm going to pull some of the roots off. I'm going to make a mess on your table, Chris. >> Cooper: That's alright. That's what it's here for. >> Williams: So you would just put that in. And you want to plant it about the same height it came out of the pot. So get the soil up -- not up over the crown but up around the roots, alright? And I would go ahead and put it in the soil. Since that one has roots on it, I would go ahead and plant my other plants in there. And then you can also root cuttings in a terrarium which is what I brought a lot of -- just pieces. That's the Wandering Jew you saw in that one over there. And just kind of pinch it off close to the node. Pinch off any leaves that would be below the soil. And then you just poke it in that moist soil -- okay? Change your plants around so you've got feathery things next to things with big leaves and higher things not next to the other higher things -- just like you're landscaping. You wouldn't want a bunch of plant that look exactly alike in your landscape and you wouldn't want them in your terrarium, either. >> Cooper: Landscaping in a bottle. >> Williams: It is. That's exactly what it is. And see this one. You can see the roots on it already. And so that will go ahead and root in here. I'm going to put it in the middle since it's a little bit higher -- okay? And you would just keep building and putting different things in. This is one that I really like. I think it's a variety of Wandering Jew. I've had this plant since 1980. My grandfather gave me my first cut. >> Cooper: 1980? >> Williams: Since 1980. He didn't know what it was so I'm not exactly sure what it is either. It's one of those 'pass along' things. But you would go ahead and keep on building. And now you can put some things in there that flower. What you would probably want to do is put it towards the front though because it's not going to continue to be in flower for ever. This is a Cyclamen. And what you would do is let it go ahead and do its flowering thing. And then pull it out, put it back in the pot -- maybe put it in your sunroom or something and put something else in there. So you sort of change out your colors just like you do in your yard again -- change out your annual color. And then this one is a Strawberry Begonia. This one would do really well in here because they spread and cover the ground. So this one would probably eventually cover my soil. But I'm really making a mess on your thing here now. Put this one in as well -- okay? So you go ahead and sort of fill that up. And then just to dress it up a little bit, you can use this sheet moss. And this is a living organism -- sheet moss. If you keep it moist, it will stay green and kind of continue to grow and spread. And so we're going to put that in there. And you would just cover your soil just to dress it up so you wouldn't have a bunch of black dirt showing around the edges and stuff. Now if you want to get really fancy you could put like a little gravel path through here. You know, you can kind of just do a whole landscape in a bottle if you want to. So those are some of the things that you would kind of look for. You don't want to use a potting soil that has a lot of fertilizer in it. The whole idea is low maintenance. If you fertilize, they grow fast. So you're going to be in there trimming things back and pulling things out all the time. So hardly any fertilizer if any at all. Plants make their own food. And as long as this gets enough light, it will make it's own food. >> Cooper: Now since we're talking about light -- How much light do we need? >> Williams: Okay -- You do not want to put this in direct sunlight. This will act like a magnifying glass. It will cook your little plants in there -- absolutely. But it does need bright light so some place that, you know, doesn't get the direct sunlight but gets a lot of light so your plants will look good. Otherwise, they'll start to get real pale. And then when you get it all planted -- Instead of pouring water in there, what you want to do is mist it, okay? And so you would mist until you feel like there's a fair amount of moisture in there. Put the lid on it. And then watch it for a couple of days. Now you don't want this much moisture in it, okay? That's too much moisture -- right. Now, you know, I just sprayed this so that's where that came from. But if they can get a close-up shot of that one -- You want just a hint of moisture around like the corners of the jar, alright? This one is perfect. Now I did have to mess with it a little bit. I took the lid off one day and then it was too dry. And I had to mist it again and put it back on. And just keep working with it until you get it so there's just a little bit of moisture around the top. And that'll be just about right. >> Cooper: So you have to keep the lid on -- That's the whole idea? >> Williams: That's the whole idea of a terrarium -- is to put a lid on it. If you got one of the containers like this -- you can go to the dollar store and just get something clear that's attractive to put on it. That one down on the end I think was probably a biscuit jar or a cookie jar and somebody maybe broke the lid. But you can find those a lot of times as a replacement at a Goodwill or something like that. Somebody else has broken their cookie jar and don't want the lid anymore. And so you can put a lid on that one. Now this is an Edwardian case. This Victorians loved to collect plants from exotic places. They liked anything rare and unusual. They probably did more damage to orchids -- you know, the whole orchid species than any other population because they would bring them home and they would die. But they would try to put them in here to keep the humidity around them just like you are with a terrarium. And if you sue something like this, what you could do is just put your plants in there in the pot and then put your moss around them to cover the put. And then as they pull them out and put another one in. Talk about really easy maintenance. >> Cooper: That's pretty good. Thanks, Laurie. That's a real nice demonstration. Maybe I'll take that up one day. Alright -- There are a number of gardening events going on in the next couple of weeks. Here are just a few of them. And all open-pollinated means is that it can be pollinated by insects, or the wind, or what ever. And that's one criteria for it. The other criteria for it -- Now, this is where we get in to a little argument with people. Most folks say it's a cultivar that was around before the1950s. Okay -- So some of this heirloom varieties can date back --oh, gosh -- a hundred years or so. And the reason for that -- That's kind of before the time that we started, you know, in the field with plant breeding and introducing these different genes and things like that, you know, so that they can be resistant to diseases or whatever. And there are also some people who will tell you that heirloom varieties are also more flavorful and tasteful because they have no been bred for, you know, shelf life, or to be resistant to some type of bug, or what have you. So you're basically getting, you know, the good flavor and all that still intact. And another thing about it being an heirloom is that the seed from that plant will be just like the parent. So, you know, assume that you, you know, use the same proper plant nutrients, watering, and production practices. So that's really what an heirloom plant is all about. And I will tell you this -- I love heirloom tomatoes. There's nothing like a Cherokee tomato. I'm here to tell you. They're just great. >> Cooper: Okay -- Now here's the next one. What do you mean by organically grown because we hear that term a lot these days. >> Battle: Been hearing it a lot. And again, I'm going to try to just simplify this as much as possible and keep as much terminology out of it. But its basically a crop that's grown -- that has been grown without the use of a lot of synthetic fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and those kinds of things that are fungicides. In organic, usually we're going to use a lot of like manures and compost as they fertilizer base. We're going to use things like pepper spray and things like that as far as treating it for insects. And they can use DiPel as far as grubs are concerned. Any type of Bt product will also help you with that. Another good thing about organic gardening and farming, so to speak, is that you hear the term 'certified organic.' And there are certain I guess certifying or accrediting agencies where growers have to go through and prove that they are organic growers. And basically, if you're somewhat interested in that, you go to the USDA website and you browse on down and get to Tennessee and they'll tell you the certifying agencies. >> Cooper: Okay -- good deal. How about home-grown? We hear that one all the time, too. It's home-grown. >> Battle: That's right -- home- grown. And I will tell you -- To me, the true definition of home- grown means that it was grown within that county. Now but I will say this -- I take it a step further. And I always say if it's grown within the state. You know, that's kind of -- but since we're in the Mid-South here, I'm sure there's a few north Mississippi things that would be called home-grown also. It is kind of funny. Sometimes when people buy the early tomatoes of the season, I will know that sometimes in our area, I kind of suspect there's some tomatoes that come from Arkansas that ends up being sold as home-grown. So it's interesting. >> Cooper: That's home-grown. Okay -- This one is pretty good. Locavore. >> Battle: Oh -- yes, yes, yes. If you read those good culinary magazines and things like I do, you'll see that one. A locovor is basically people who really like to eat foods that are grown from their immediate area. And that's basically summed it up. You'll see a lot of restaurants even say that we use locally grown, you know, produce. And of course, looking at me and my size, I'm pretty much an omnivore. I eat everything. But locovor people who really like to eat local. They really love that. And it's kind of funny how they spell that. They spell it L-O-C-O-V-O-R. Some people would say its 'loco.' I don't know. That that up with somebody else. >> Cooper: Alright, quickly -- the last one. What is meant by pasture-raised eggs or meat? >> Battle: And of course I know usually here we're talking about plants. But getting over in to the animal side a little bit -- A lot of particular pork and poultry, they're raised in confinement areas. And there are some people who really like to eat the meat that comes from pork that's been allowed to graze around on a pasture or a chicken that's been allowed to, you know, have free roam and just lay her eggs. You know, they collect it. And that's really what pasture- raised means. It's just kind of a different way of, you know, eating your meat product, so to speak. >> Cooper: Okay -- Well, thanks for explaining those trendy gardening terms for us, alright? I like the locovor though. That's pretty good. Alright -- Q and A session. Ms. Laurie, you ready for the Q and A? >> Williams: I hope so. >> Cooper: Alright, this is the fun part right here. First viewer e-mail has a couple of questions. The first one is.. >> Cooper: What do you think about that, Walter? >> Battle: Yes, I think that's fine. You know, if you have a cool season lawn -- >> Cooper: Which would be my question. We don't which one. >> Battle: You know, obviously, you know, I've seen people mow on January and December. >> Cooper: Okay -- And the second part of that question is... >> Williams: We actually the Botanic Garden plant through December. Because -- well, for one thing it's a time constraint just trying to get that many It takes us that long. But it is a good idea to plant bulbs now for spring flowering things. Now there's a few that you might want to plant closer to the end. >> Cooper: So we can do that now. This is a time to put our bulbs in the ground. Okay -- good deal. Alright -- here's our next question. >> Battle: Well, actually now is the time. You know, if your soil test says you need to add lime, now is the time because it's going to take it about five to six months before that calcium is made available. So by the time we rolled around to next March or April, it'll be, you know, five or six months. >> Cooper: Especially over the winter time. It gets weathered. So it's definitely be a good time. But you can put it out anytime. According to your soil test though, We can't stress that enough. Alright -- here's our next question. It says.. >> Cooper: And I understand you're a tree hugger so. >> Williams: I am a tree hugger. >> Cooper: Can you help us out with that one? >> Williams: Not necessarily. But they need to definitely wait And over winter they can kind of monitor it for if the buds are continuing to swell. That will give them an idea if the plant has survived. A lot of trees this summer drop You know, the less leaves you have, the less water you have to suck up. And so they drop their leaves just to kind of see if they can make it through until the rains started coming in the winter. >> Battle: And also, you know, if you go out there on that tree and some of the twigs on it -- If you can bend them and they're still pliable, then that tree is probably alive and have a little green tissue in there. But if it snaps, you know, when you try to bend it, you know, you might have a problem there. And I would like to add also that if that tree is alive, definitely next spring let's put some 10-10-10 fertilizer on it to get that plant growing again -- to get that tree growing again. >> Cooper: And I guess still talking about this tree is we talked about this earlier, Walter. Most people don't water their trees. You know, I'm guilty of that, you know, in my own landscapes. So we gotta make sure that you water your trees throughout the summer, even in to the fall- winter. >> Williams: If we're not getting rain -- that's right. >> Cooper: Because there's a possibility that that might happen. And also, what do you think about mulching? We should mulch our trees? >> Williams: Absolutely -- It would help keep the moisture in the soil during those two months in the summer that we don't get any rain. >> Cooper: Now what kind of mulch would you suggest for your trees. >> Williams: Hardwood mulch -- We actually rented a chipper shredder. And you know, we're on two and a half acres. So we run it through and make our own mulch. It's cheap. >> Cooper: Oh, yeah. (laughter) >> Battle: Yeah, that's economical there. >> Cooper: That's pretty good. DO you mulch your trees at home? >> Battle: No, I really don't. I'll be honest with you. But I do mulch all my shrubs though. They are mulched. >> Cooper: Okay so putting down the triple-10 is okay during this time of the year for your trees? >> Battle: I like doing it in the spring to kind of kick it off. >> Cooper: Alright -- here's our next questions. Actually, there are two products that does a wonderful job on it. One is called Sedgehammer. And I mean, you know, it will take it out. And also, Basagran is another product that will take it out. And I mean, both really do a tremendous job. But that is a tough breed species. And the problem with it is because, you know, underneath the ground it's putting out those roots. And it's just a tough one. It's just tough. And also, it's kind of a waxy leaf surface. So it's hard for a herbicide to stick to it. So you might want to add just a little bit of dishwashing liquid when you spray. You gotta make it stick on there. >> Williams: Aren't those edible? I read that somewhere -- that they're edible. Might need to check in to it before any body tries it. You can hire a locovor. (laughter) >> Cooper: How about that! You definitely could do that. But here's the interesting thing about nutsedge, because you know I like weeds -- okay. Purple Nutsedge is considered to be the world's worst weed -- the world's worst weed. >> Williams: Worse than Kudzu? >> Coopers: Yes. It could deal with adverse conditions. It actually likes moist conditions but it can adapt to extremely dry conditions. So that's pretty tough and, of course, nutsedges have the triangular stem. >> Battle: That's right. >> Cooper: So if you ever try to pick it out of the ground and you break it off right at the soil surface, you just made it mad. Because the other ground system will come up somewhere else. You pull it up and you don't get all of it, it's here, back there, over there somewhere. So yeah -- good luck when trying to control that. But there's also some that the homeowner can get. Image is something that can control nutsedge. The homeowner can get from a big box store and nursery. Follow the label on that. It contains Imazaquin. It's the active ingredient. And it does a good job with nutsedge -- purple, yellow, or coalinga which is also a sedge that we see a lot this time of the year, especially in low areas that are damp. So if you have nutsedge or coalinga, you have poor drainage. Just to let you know -- okay. Thank you for that. That was good. That's all we have time for today. Be sure to join us next week. Don't forget -- Send us an e- mail or letter and let us help answer your gardening questions. And if you miss an episode of "The Family Plot," you can watch past shows online. Just go to WKNO-dot-org and click on 'KNO Tonite. And be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks for joining us. I'm Chris Cooper. And I'll see you next time on "The Family Plot: Gardening in the Mid-South." Be safe. >> (instrumental music) ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ >> Female announcer: Production funding for "The Family Plot: Gardening in the Mid-South" is provided by Good Winds Landscape and Garden Center in Germantown since 1943 and continuing to offer it's plants for successful gardening with seven greenhouses and three acres of plants plus comprehensive landscape services.