Archive for December 10th, 2011
Vitex tree gets Texas Superstar ranking | The Advertiser | theadvertiser.com
Vitex tree gets Texas Superstar ranking | The Advertiser | theadvertiser.com
Texas Superstars, like our Louisiana Super Plants, are plants that have been designated by horticulturists in their respective states as outstanding performers in those locales. I was happy to read this week that the vitex tree, also known as chaste tree, (Vitex agnus-castus), has been awarded the Texas Superstar ranking.
And even better news is that whereas the old Vitex had small, unimpressive spikes of flowers that were pale lilac, mauve, off-white or light pink, horticulturists now have identified and tested improved varieties such as ‘Montrose Purple’, ‘LeCompte’ and ‘Shoal Creek’ which have 8- to 12-inch long spikes. The bloom spikes on these improved varieties are not only large and beautiful, they’re fragrant and provide long-lasting cut flowers. These varieties will all be marketed under the name, ‘Texas Lilac’ Vitex.
Long-time readers will remember when The Advertiser reported in 1995 that a federal grant had been awarded to replace trees lost as the result of Hurricane Andrew. Listed among the selected varieties were trees known as summer lilacs or chastetrees, names not familiar to many of us. They were to be planted on Arnold Boulevard, and as far as I know, are still there. Their lilac-hued, spikey flowers, reminiscent of butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii), bloom in early summer, but the color has not been dramatic.
Vitex was commonly grown in old gardens of the South. However, as is often typical of plant popularity, interest declined. Later, new gardeners are discovering that it is a low-maintenance tree plagued by few problems. Plant it in dormancy (late fall to early spring), in full sun to light shade and relatively dry, well-drained acidic soil. Provide a regular fertilization program and faithful deadheading of faded blossoms to keep the tree vigorous and flowering.
Large old trees can live to be 40 years old or more. They are sometimes killed to the ground by severe winters; however, they re-sprout from the roots each spring. Because it is a fast grower, you may choose to cut it back to the ground yearly to keep size under control.
The wonderful flowers produced in early- and mid-summer last for several weeks and attract butterflies and bees. With its tough reputation, the Texas Department of Transportation plants it on highway medians.
Let lycoris foliage fade
The foliage on lycoris bulbs is gathering sunlight to provide nourishment for next year’s blooms. Once it has yellowed and withered, it has done its photosynthesis and serves no further purpose. Feel free to remove it. Without foliage, the bulbs are dormant and water should be withheld.
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The Lorax Wins! Bluebird Canyon Euc Trees Spared the Chainsaw!
http://lagunabeach.patch.com/articles/the-lorax-wins-bluebird-canyon-euc-trees-spared-the-chainsaw
The Lorax Wins! Bluebird Canyon Euc Trees Spared the Chainsaw!
City Council wrapup: The six trees in question will be trimmed and monitored, not removed.
NO EUCALYPTUS APOCALYPSE
The Laguna Beach City Council Tuesday night voted to go along with Southern California Edison’s change-of-heart proposal to trim and maintain six eucalyptus trees in Bluebird Canyon, which Edison had initially planned to remove entirely …
So not only does the Lorax win (he speaks for the trees, y’know), so does Laguna Beach’s huge population of wild koala bears, which crunch down on euc leaves like nobody’s bidness in Australia, where the trees are native to …
(Yeah yeah, we know there aren’t any koalas in Laguna … they were all eaten by coyotes. But if you see one, you better snap a pic and email it to us …)
Edison had originally wanted to chainsaw the trees out of concern that they were precariously close to their power lines, which in turn posed a severe fire danger. The council sided with Edison in an October vote …
But after some Bluebird Canyon residents pooled their pennies—about $700—to hire an arborist, and after Edison’s own arborist took a look at the troublemaking trees, the utility company changed its mind.
“I’ve never seen six trees get as much attention as these have,” said Edison’s Steve Nelson, addressing the council Tuesday …
“We believe that a phased approach of pruning the trees—reducing the crown, removing any weak branches, along with monitoring the trees on an accelerated schedule—would satisfy our concerns,” Nelson continued. “If we notice any problems developing, then we would return to the city and take the next steps, whatever that might be.”
The consensus from Nelson, as well as Greg Applegate, the homeowner-hired arborist, was that the eucalyptuses (eucalyptusees? Eucalyptusi?) don’t pose a danger if they’re well-maintained. And while Applegate acknowledged the fears of some of the pro-removal folks in the meeting, he pretty much said their claims were unfounded, fear-based ones …
“It’s twice as likely to get struck by lightning as it is a falling tree or tree branch,” Applegate told the council. “I think that puts it in a little bit of context. We have no statistics that say a eucalyptus is more or less dangerous than any other tree.”
Some folks, however, couldn’t be swayed, saying that the trees were not only a fire hazard, but if one fell, it would block any exit route for residents out of Bluebird Canyon or a similar box canyon neighborhood in the event of a disaster where people would need to evacuate. Roads would be blocked, ambulances wouldn’t be able to rescue people, darkness would descend upon the earth, streets would run red with the blood of the non-believers, dogs and cats living together, etc.
“It’s a very unsafe situation,” said Kimberly Leeds, who claimed that her husband was almost killed by a falling eucalyptus tree in the 1980s. “These are non-natives, the roots clog up the sewers, the roots cause road damage, they have high levels of oil. In Australia, it’s actually illegal for you to camp underneath these trees because they’re so dangerous.”
Wow. It was as if the eucalyptus trees were deranged beings out to destroy everything holy and righteous in the universe! You got the feeling that if it would’ve helped their cause, they might have said Hitler was a euc lover …
Seriously, the argument to remove the trees outright was a bit on the shallow side. The trees in question aren’t in any danger of randomly falling over, they’re just in the way of some Edison power lines. If the pro-removal crowd had gotten their way, that would’ve just armed them with the chutzpah to try and take out all of the city’s eucs, claiming that they’re gonna kill somebody, someday, eventually. Then why stop there when it comes to potentially offensive, pseudo-threatening trees and plants?
You can see it now: “Hey … that rose bush is looking at me funny!” Yank …
Suppose that if we really want to feel safe against the threat of bloodthirsty, man-eating trees, we could just pave the city over with asphalt. Laguna’s skateboarders would surely approve …
ADDENDUM!
The council also voted to declare December 15 to be A Day Without A Bag, an annual endorsement promoting the use of reusable shopping bags, as opposed to single-use plastic or paper bags. As in the past, the day will be marked by free giveaways of reusable bags at various locations (if previous years are any indication, this includes the Whole Foods, Albertsons, Pavilions and Ralphs stores in Laguna Beach). Also, if you want a bag, Jane Egly (a.k.a. Da New Mayor) told everyone to tap her on the shoulder and she’ll dig one out of her Prius. Sweet!
Rarest of Bumblebees Rediscovered
http://news.discovery.com/earth/worlds-rarest-bumblebee-rediscovered-in-new-mexico-111207.html
RAREST OF BUMBLEBEES REDISCOVERED
Discovery News > Earth News > Rarest of Bumblebees Rediscovered
The most rare U.S. species of bumblebee, last seen in 1956, has turned up once again in the White Mountains of south-central New Mexico. Called “Cockerell’s Bumblebee,” this prized pollinator is known from an area of less than 300 square miles, giving it the most limited range of any bumblebee species in the world.
“Most bumblebees in the U.S. are known from dozens to thousands of specimens, but not this species,” entomologist Douglas Yanega said in a press release. He is part of the University of California, Riverside, team that identified the three newest specimens of Cockerell’s Bumblebee. Collected on weeds along a highway north of Cloudcroft, New Mexico, on Aug. 31, 2011, these new bees bring the known total to 36.
Any story about bees surviving in the wild is uplifting news in light of the well-documented decline of bees worldwide. Recently the U.N. reported bee losses of up 85 percent in some areas of the industrialized northern hemisphere, where pesticides, pollution, and parasites may all be to blame.
NEWS: Save the Bees, Urges U.N.
Cockerell’s Bumblebee, among nearly 50 species of bumblebees native to the U.S., has avoided many of these threats, living on protected national forest and tribal lands. For that reason, it is not especially surprising for an insect species to be rediscovered after decades, when people might otherwise imagine that it may have gone extinct.
“When an insect species is very rare, or highly localized, it can fairly easily escape detection for very long periods of time,” Yanega says. “There are many precedents of insects that have been unseen for anywhere from 70 to more than 100 years, suddenly turning up again when someone either got lucky enough, or persistent enough, to cross paths with them again.”
Indeed, entomologists rediscover “lost” insect species and discover entirely new ones on a regular basis. Yanega and his colleagues at the Entomology Research Museum in Riverside alone turn up several dozen species every year, primarily in groups such as bees, wasps, beetles, and plant bugs.
Two weeks ago, scientists announced the discovery of 11 new bee species, four of which have been anonymously pollinating gardens in New York City:
According to recent estimates, approximately 8 million insect species are in existence, and yet only about 1 million have been described. So, we’re probably safe anticipating more good news along with the bad.
IMAGE:
Cockerell’s Bumblebee (Courtesy G. Ballmer, UC Riverside)
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