Date: 13 Aug 2019
Caring of Soursop in container
Q: I have ordered dozens of trees from you and have a question about Soursop. I have a Soursop in a container and ants and aphids are under new leaves. Do Soursop like little water? I water almost everyday living in southern Los Angeles it's been around 76-80F. I spray the aphids and ants off with a mist setting on my hose. They come back every day. They're only on new leaves...
A: First of all, you don't have to remove the ants iа they
don't bother you. Ants are good insects, they do not harm plants; most likely
they are attracted by a sweet sap - aphid by-product. Ants clean up a plant,
and they may even take care of some bad insects.
It is not difficult to get rid of aphids. Use a safe treatment: in a
small spray bottle, mix 1 cup of warm water, 1 teaspoon of dish soap and 2
tablespoons of any cooking oil (if you have Neem oil or Horticultural oil - even
better, but prepare, they are pretty stinky). Spray the leaves with this
solution to a dripping point. Repeat in a few days if needed. This simple remedy
will take care of the aphids.
Daily water may be ok for the plant during hot weather, as long as the
soil is not constantly moist. Let the surface of the soil get a little dry
between waterings.
Recommended fertilizers for fruit trees:
Fruit Festival Plant Food - Super Crop Booster
Mango-Food - Smart Release Fruit Tree Booster
SUNSHINE-Honey - for sweeter fruit
SUNSHINE SuperFood - microelement supplement
Date: 8 Aug 2019
Tabernaemontana africana - a bush or a tree?
Q: I received a Tabernaemontana africana, but it is not the compact cultivar, from the photo, this is definitely the tree version, not the compact version?
A: The plant in your picture is Tabernaemontana africana and it is a shrub version, not a tree. The
plants we have in stock are smaller size but very vigorous so they can be
trained into standards.
We have this plant in our garden in the ground (3 years old) and by now
it bushed out and remains under 4 ft without any pruning. Just keep in mind
this plant requires regular applications of micro-elements, because the
species is very susceptible to iron deficiency.
The supplement we use, in case you notice any leaf yellowing, is Sunshine-Superfood
Date: 8 Aug 2019
How to grow Parijat indoors in winter
Q: I purchased Parijat plant last year spring. It had good growth in Summer, after that I kept the plant inside the house in winter. A couple of weeks it was ok, after that the plant lost leaves. What is a better idea for growing Parijat plant indoors in Winter?
A: Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, Parijat - is a semi-deciduous plant, which
means, it may lose its leaves during unfavorable conditions such as drought,
cold, low light and/or humidity. In your case, the plant dropped leaves because
of the stress of moving indoors that includes reducing light and humidity
levels. When a tropical plant loses leaves during winter, this means it goes
into a dormant stage. If this happens, you need to reduce watering and keep the
plant on a dry side, water in only when the top level of the soil feels dry
to touch. Do not fertilize.
Try to place the plant in a well-lit spot such as a windowsill. If the
windowsill and the window glass feel too cold for touch during wintertime,
you may place a sheet of a Styrofoam underneath the pot, and a sheet of a
bubble-wrap between the plant and the window glass, to create an extra barrier
from cold. The plant may re-leaf during wintertime; if not, it may wait until
spring, be patient.
Bring it back into outdoor light when minimum temperatures rise above
65F and resume fertilizing.
Recommended fertilizers for fragrant plants:
Pink N Good Daily Plant Food - Flower Booster
Plumeria Top Dress - Smart-Release Booster
SUNSHINE SuperFood - microelement supplement
Date: 3 Aug 2019
Agave amica? Polianthes tuberosa...
"A tuberose by any other name would smell as sweet..."
by Mark Hooten, the Garden Doc
A: Recently, we received a beautifully grown batch of Polianthes tuberosa, all in one gallon pots. These are commonly called
Tuberose in the cut-flower trade. I was so happy to see them that I could
hardly contain myself from exploding with joy! It had been such a number of
years since I have even seen this plant that I had nearly forgotten about its
existence. I first grew it as a little kid "up north", after seeing it listed in
an old-fashioned mail-order catalogue, probably Gourney's. I remember doing
things like mowing neighbors lawns and shoveling snow from driveways in-order
to save enough money so that toward spring I could order a few things from
those plant catalogues...
Continue reading...
Date: 3 Aug 2019
Grafted or seedling?
Photo: Mr Barcy meditating before planting Nutmeg seeds
Q: I planted an avocado seed and it sprouted quickly, it has been only a couple months and I already have a small plant. How soon will it produce fruit? Can I grow other tropical fruit from seed?
A: Unfortunately, some fruit trees, including varieties of
avocado, mango, lychee, as well as apples and peaches - must be either grafted or
air-layered in order to produce, for 2 main reasons:
- seedlings may take a very long time until fruiting, up to 10-15 years
- seedling gives no guarantee on the quality of the fruit or variety
These fruit trees should be propagated as "clones" - both grafted
material or cuttings are actually copies of the mother plant and will keep the
same fruit qualities. Grafted trees usually start producing immediately.
However there is a number of fruit trees that come true from seed, and
take a very short time to start flowering. Jackfruit, Annonas (Sugar Apple, Guanabana, etc), Papaya, Icecream Bean, Eugenias start producing at a young age (3-4 years from seed).
Recommended fertilizers for fruit trees:
Fruit Festival Plant Food - Super Crop Booster
Mango-Food - Smart Release Fruit Tree Booster
SUNSHINE-Honey - for sweeter fruit
SUNSHINE SuperFood - microelement supplement