A NEW LEAF Duval County Extension

Volume 15, Issue 6 Inside this Issue Things to do in November and December

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What to Plant in November and December

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Brahminy Blind Snake

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Hugelkultur

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Chinese Rain Bells

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Seminole Pumpkins

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Winter Lawn Care Tips

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American Holly

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Choosing a Christmas Tree

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November/December 2014

Winter Weather Predictions According to NOAA predictions, we are in for wetter than average conditions and well below average temperatures. They predict that a weak El Nino may develop by the end of the year which is the driving force for our weather conditions. California will continue with warmer weather and the drought; both will affect our pocketbook at the grocery store. Based on the forecast, here are a few things to consider for this winter.  Purchase frost blankets or row covers to protect tender plants during freezes.  Root cuttings of tender perennials that might not survive the cold so they will be ready for planting next spring.  Because of the continued drought in California, consider growing a few vegetables in containers or in the landscape. Lettuce, kale, and broccoli are all very easy to grow.

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Upcoming November/December Classes Saturday November 22— Gardenfest featuring “Art in the Garden” from 9AM till 3PM at the Extension Office. Topics include Color in the Garden, Florida-Friendly Theme Gardening, Soft Choices for FFL Landscapes, and Fun with Flowers for the Holidays. Registration fee is $12 and deadline is Nov. 15th. Bring your own bag lunch; snacks provided. Contact Rachel Wilson at 904-272-4252 to register. Wednesday December 3—Winter Workshop from 10AM to 12:30PM. Make and take workshop featuring Holiday Gifts Plants and Things to Attract Wildlife. $10 fee to attend with pre-registration payment by Nov. 26; checks made to DCOHAC. Call 255-7450 to register. Tuesday November 24—Benefits of Organic Gardening—from 6 to 7PM @ BEAM, 850 6th Ave. South, Jacksonville Beach. Call Jeannie at 255-7450 to register. Canning Classes - Holiday Gift Classes, Saturday, December 13th, and Monday, December 15th, both from 9 AM-Noon. Making 5 different varieties of jam (deco jars), $20 per person. Pre-registration and pre-payment required. Call Jeannie 255-7450 for reservation.

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Things to do in November/December

By Terry DelValle

Flowers  Divide and replant overgrown perennials now

or drain to avoid mower problems next spring at the end of the mowing season.  Do not add nitrogen fertilizers to lawns. If you except for those that are in bloom. missed the fall application, consider applying a  Continue ten weeks of short-day treatment for fertilizer that contains potassium like a 0-0-16. Christmas cactus which began in mid-October for blooms at Christmas. Make sure poinsettias are  Got weeds? Cool season weeds are popping up in plant beds and in lawns. Hand pull or spot not exposed to exterior lights at night because treat with a post-emergence herbicide labeled for this interferes with flowering. Cover poinsettias in your lawn or plant beds. For information on weed the event of a freeze. control, go to http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EP141.  Scout lawns for pest problems. Tropical sod Fruits and Nuts webworms are still active and mole crickets will  Harvest persimmons as they ripen. Astringent be more obvious due to their size. Wait until varieties must be left on spring to treat for mole crickets. Go to http:// the tree until they fully ripedis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_turf_pest_insects for more en but non-astringent information. types can be harvested when firm.  Monitor lawns for large patch fungus (brown patch), take-all root rot, and pythium. Treat with a  Harvest season for recommended fungicide if present. See page 4 citrus begins with Satsufor more information. mas leading the way. These fruit are often ready Trees & Shrubs even though peels are not completely orange so  Remove leaves as they drop from deciduous test one for sweetness. plants if they had a leaf spot disease to reduce  Harvest pecans. Beat the squirrels and harvest disease problems next year. Otherwise, use them pecans as they ripen. If you don’t have a tree, to mulch plant beds, in vegetable gardens, or check local Farmers Markets for locally- grown compost piles. pecans.  Install new ornamentals in the landscape now Lawns to give them a chance to establish roots before the heat kicks in next spring. Keep watered if  Adjust sprinklers to one weather is dry. day a week on November  Avoid heavy pruning now because it will stimu2nd, the start of Eastern late new growth that is susceptible to the cold. It Standard Time. Home propis okay to prune dead wood, diseased wood, and erties that end in an odd suckers coming from the plant base anytime of number or with no address the year. can irrigate on Saturday and those with even addresses on Sunday. NonVegetable Garden residential properties are on Tuesday. Turn sprinkler systems off when rainfall is adequate. There  Scout for pests daily especially caterpillars and aphids. Insecticidal soaps and oils will control are several lawn diseases that thrive with cooler most soft bodied insects. Bt (Dipel or Thuricide) nights and moist conditions and irrigation when is a good treatment for small caterpillars. Switch not needed only increases the problems. Estabto spinosad for larger caterpillars. Avoid overhead lished woody shrubs need water every two to irrigation to reduce disease problems. three weeks if there is insufficient rainfall.  Keep up with lawn mowing, if needed, and mow  Wash vegetables before eating to remove pesticide residues and bacteria. Wash for at high going into the winter. This will help least 20 seconds or with a mild solution of three develop a strong root system that is more cold parts vinegar to three parts water. hardy. Use up all the gasoline in the lawn mower

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What to Plant in November/December Fall gardening is in full swing. This is the season for arugula*, beets*, broccoli*, Brussels sprouts, cabbage*, carrots*, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage*, collards*, English peas, kale*, kohlrabi*, leek*, lettuce, mustard*, onions*, parsley*, radish*, spinach, and turnips. Add to the list for December those with an * listed above. Try growing leaf lettuce in a container and you can bring them in during a hard freeze.

By Terry DelValle

kale, pansy, petunia, Shasta daisy, snapdragon and violas. Because a lot of vegetables are also attractive, consider using plants like Swiss chard or leaf lettuce in place of annuals. Remove old flowers on snaps, petunias, and pansies to encourage new blooms.

Bulb-type plants include African lily (Agapanthus), amaryllis, anemone, Aztec lily, calla, crinum, daylily, freesia, hurricane lily, hyacinth, Iris spp., Ixia, kaffir lily, Lily spp, Moraea (African lily), narcissus, pineapple lily, shell ginger, snowflake (Nov. only), society garlic, spider lily, Star-of-Bethlehem, Ornithogalum spp., walking iris, Tuscan Kale ranunculus (buttercup), tritonia, tulip (Dec. only), Plant strawberries in November. Varieties include voodoo lily (Dec. ’Chandler’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Sweet Charlie’ and only), watsonia, and Festival’. Plant in double rows and raised beds. Commercial growers cover soil with black plastic, but zephyr lily. some home gardeners prefer to use an organic mulch like pine straw to prevent weeds and conserve Society garlic on right moisture. Strawberries also grow well in containers. is a great landscape plant that has color There are many annuals for cool weather. For both most of the year and November and December, plant carnation (China is low maintenance. Society Garlic doll), delphinium, dianthus, foxglove (digitalis), larkspur, lobelia, ornamental cabbage, ornamental

Brahminy Blind Snake by Terry DelValle Before you bring your potted plants inside this winter, you might want to double check and make sure there are no critters in those pots. This one is nicknamed the flower pot snake so that should be a hint. This non native snake from Southeast Asia is not listed for Duval County but a homeowner recently brought these in for identification. They have been in Florida since 1983 and have likely moved throughout the state. At first the homeowner thought they were earthworms but they held up their heads in a defensive manner and acted just like a snake. It’s hard to be intimidating when you are this small but they tried. Credit: Steve A. Johnson, UF/IFAS They are only four to six inches long, are shiny gray to brown in color and unlike earthworms their body is not segmented. It is difficult to determine the head from the tail but the tail is tipped with a point. These snakes are all female so reproduce without mating. They usually lay eggs but may also bear live young. Most of their time is spent buried in the soil or covered by leaf litter or mulch. One plus is that their diet consists of the eggs, larvae and pupae of termites and ants.

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Hugelkultur

By Master Gardener Victoria Freeman

And, as the saying goes, constructing the basic mound is not rocket science. Sepp Holzer, Austrian Permaculture expert, recommends building mounds that are 3.3 ft. wide and any length. They Closer to the current era, one of my vintage books can be started in a trench that lowers their profile--discussed mounding manure and planting on top of the mounds. This reminded me of the summer I gave which is suggested if one has critical neighbors or an HOA-- or started on level land, but the recipe is the up the hoe and planted tomatoes on full bags of same: pile up logs, branches, twigs. Cover with soil. Black Cow manure. Thinking about planting on the bagged manure mounds reminded me of something Insert seeds. Irrigation is optional at first and unneca friend told me she was creating on her farm outside essary later. For an excellent article full of precise video instruction Google Hugelkultur, the ultimate Jacksonville. She called it Hoogle Culture, but said this was a Deep South pronunciation of a German word Hugelkultur, an ancient technique which is growing increasingly popular with market gardeners. Having gardened for a decade in the front yard of my 1920’s house, I have been interested in garden info from that era. Some of the info sounds Florida Friendly familiar like “Pick plants suited to particular places.” But some of it puzzles even the professionals. One such bizarre directive was” Put road scrapings on your vegetable patch.” A web site writer explained that the pre SUV roads being scraped were used only by horses not autos. Road scrapings were a polite reference to the collection of horse and ox manure.

According to Eugene Cook, a farmer and artist whose elegant farm the Good Shepard Agro Ecology is in Atlanta’s West End, Hugelkultur is time honored German garden and farming technique using woody debris as a base. Cook’s land had some of the probThis bed was topped with a native grass lems sadly familiar to lots of urban gardeners. The soil was compacted. The site was overgrown with raised bed garden. weeds and armies of invasive plants. Using Hugellkultur techniques, Cook could grow ABOVE his problem soil. The technique allowed him to produce lots of subterranean compost and at the same time create a garden that was topographically useful. At the tallest point, the mounds are about three feet high which means children and the elderly can access them easily. The mounds merge easily with the interesting shapes on a nearby playground.

And what can be planted on Hugel mounds? Beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, collards, English peas, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, mustard, onions, parsley, radish, spinach and turnips.

And, of course, before planting, don’t forget to top off the mound with road scrapings if you happen to live near a dirt road traveled only by horses and the occaHugelkultur mounds also rate well with the earth care sional ox. community. The mounds help reduce sediment and phosphorous loss to local waterways by acting as Photo and line drawing above are from the web artivegetative buffers to slow surface erosion and incle on hugelkultur: http://laep.ced.berkeley.edu/ crease water infiltration. Planted with sunflowers and blakegarden/?tag=hugelkultur other flowers that pull up toxins and heavy metals from the soil, mounds can help bio- remediate toxic sites.

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Chinese Rain Bells

By Master Gardener Martha Dysart

It dies down to the ground with frost, but comes back in the spring. One very cold Winter, I covered the whole Chinese Rain Bell stems are segmented, so just sticking a length of stem in the ground, making sure plant with a one or two of the segments is buried is all it takes to sheet for almost a month. When I took the sheet off, the top part was frost-burned, but the bottom was root. still blooming!! I do know somebody who cut the It can get BIG (six foot high and wide) and sprawl. It whole bush back in mid-summer, and had NO blosdoes not sucker easily, but limbs touching ground will soms that fall, so just find a place for this thing to spread out, and wait for Fall. root. It likes dappled shade, and its water requirement is a little above average.

Here is a beautiful plant for Fall having (Springifiedlooking) bright pink flowers and dark, green, 6-inch leaves with serrated edges. Its name is Chinese Rain Bells (Strobilanthes cusia or S. flaccifolius), and it is a cousin to the purple and silver-leafed Persian Shield (S. dyeranus). I bought this from a local nursery some years ago.

Seminole Pumkins By Terry DelValle Seminole pumpkins, Cucurbita moschata, were grown by the Seminole Indians in the 1500s before the Spanish arrived in Florida. Although called a pumpkin, it is more closely related to butternut squash and Calabaza. These warm season plants are started by seed in March/April or early August and take 95 days from planting the seed to harvesting the fruit. Plants prefer a fertile soil and vines extend over a large area so be sure to give them plenty of space. They will either sprawl along the ground or will climb trees or fences. Native Americans sometimes planted them at the base of a dead tree and the fruit were called “chassahowitska” which means hanging pumpkin.

which will also reduce potential disease problems. They also have less pest problems as compared to summer squash varieties.

Full sun will insure best production and irrigation is a must during dry spells. Master Gardeners planted these in one of our community garden plots and are currently harvesting a bumper crop.

The inside flesh of the Seminole pumpkin is bright orange in color and the flavor is sweeter than the butternut squash. They can be sliced open and baked similar to other winter squash. When fruit are young, they can also be eaten like a summer squash similar to a zucchini or yellow squash. Likewise the flowers are edible too.

They are prolific growers and seem to be ideal for our tropical climates. Several references state they are resistant to powdery mildew but the leaves have some white blotches so this is sometimes mistaken for the disease. Avoid using overhead irrigation

Some indicate fruit can be stored up to a year if kept in a cool, dark place because of their hard outer covering. Now is not the time to plant, but you might find one to try at local markets to see if you are interested in growing next year.

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Winter Lawn Care Tips

By Terry DelValle

the affected leaf becomes dark and rotted. Small circular areas turn Mowing Info: Now is when a lot of homeowners take a break from yellow and then reddish-brown or the weekly ritual of mowing the lawn. Cooler straw colored as temperatures will bring less growth so only mow leaves die. Once when needed. As long as the lawn is still growing, the disease kicks continue to mow removing a third of the height at in, it is difficult to each mowing. control the situation and these areas will be more susceptible to Mow at the correct height to encourage a deep root system going into the winter. Measure the lawn when freeze injury this winter. you finish mowing. The mowing height for bahiagrass is 3 to 4 inches, bermudagrass 0.5 to 1.5 Go to http:// inches, centipedegrass 1.5 to 2 inches, seashore edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ paspalum 1 to 2 inches, St. Augustinegrass 2.0 to 4 lh044 for control inches, and zoysiagrass 0.25 to 2.5 inches. Standard options. St. Augustinegrass varieties should be mowed at 3.5” to 4” and dwarf varieties like Seville, Captiva, All warm season Sapphire, and Delmar at 2.0” to 2.5”. As the weather grasses are cools and days get shorter, the lawn will stop growing susceptible to and mowing should be stopped until next year. take-all root rot. Initial symptoms are irregular yellow to light green patches. Lawns with more advanced stages will experience thinning and dieback plus Deciduous Trees: Deciduous trees surrounded by lawn area means that roots will be short, black and rotted. Stolons or lawns will soon be covered with a layer of leaves. rhizomes (runners) can easily be pulled up and may Leaving the leaves in place will prevent the sun from have black lesions or are rotting. Like large patch, heating the soil and may also keep the area too moist this is a soil borne disease and will resurface when when we get rainfall. Once the leaves have dropped, conditions are favorable. One learns to manage this it’s a good idea to rake and bag or turn into compost. disease or eliminate the turf and replace with plants other than lawn. For more information on take-all root rot and treatment options, go to http:// Disease Problems: The two main diseases to watch for in the fall are edis.ifas.ufl.edu/lh079. large patch disease and take-all root rot. If the lawn has a history of these diseases, when conditions Irrigation: become favorable in the fall, the disease will again Avoid over watering rear its ugly head. Preventative treatments may be lawns. Even though needed to keep these in check. To reduce the threat the new times for of these diseases, only irrigate the lawn if it needs watering landscapes additional water and water in the morning only. is once a week doesn’t mean we Large patch disease (brown patch) can be an issue need to run it that on all warm season grasses but is especially frequently. If we get problematic on St. Augustinegrass and Zoysiagrass. 1/2 to 3/4 inch of rainfall during the week, skip that The disease is soil borne and becomes active when week. If lawns turn brown due to frost/cold damage, temperatures are below 80ﾟF and leaves are wet for roots will still need some level of moisture so stay in tune with the weather, both rainfall and freezes. 48 hours or more due to rainfall, irrigation, and/or high humidity. Lawn roots are healthy but the base of Lawn care slows down as the temperatures drop but they still need some level of maintenance.

Tree of the Month: American Holly, Ilex opaca

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By Larry Figart, Urban Forester

The weather is finally starting to cool off. The holidays are fast approaching. Many folks decorate their homes with garlands of holly. Have you ever wondered why the holly tree was chosen to represent such a big part of the holiday season? First a little about the tree. American holly is a medium sized tree that grows to about 45 feet in height at maturity. It has a pyramidal shape with a 15-20 foot spread.

green and ripens late in the fall. It will persist on the tree for several months, which makes it a good wildlife food source. The American holly grows well in full sun to partial shade. It should be planted on fertile, well drained, but moist soil. It prefers slightly acid soils below 6.5 pH.

Now back to some holly folklore. The pagan Druids appear to be the first culture to find meaning in hollies. They viewed holly as a sacred plant because of its ability to remain green and produce berries in the winter. The Romans used holly as a gift to their god Saturn, and decorated idols of Saturn with holly boughs for Saturnalia, the mid-winter feast. Later, in The flowers are small, white and fairly inconspicuous. Male and female flowers are produced on differ- order to avoid persecution from the Romans, Chrisent trees. Therefore, only female trees produce ber- tians decorated their homes in holly as well. As ries. For good fruit production, male trees should be Christian customs grew, the symbolism of holly lost located somewhere nearby in the neighborhood or in its pagan association , and became a symbol of the surrounding woodlands. Berry production is high- Christmas. est in full sun. The fruit is a drupe that starts out The leaves are thick, leathery and armed with pointy spines. The leaves persist on the branches for a few years and then drop off in the spring. When the tree is stressed it may drop most of its leaves creating a bare appearance.

Choosing A Christmas Tree Soon it will be time to brave the crowds and select a Christmas tree. Here are some hints to help you keep your tree attractive throughout the season. First, you should select the right place for your tree before you go purchase one. It should be convenient to an electrical source. It should be in a spot that does not get direct sun, nor should it be below an air duct that will blow warm dry air on it when your heater comes on. Make sure it is not near a fireplace, and that it is out of the normal traffic patterns. Measure your ceiling height as well as the height of your tree topper. Nothing is more frustrating than having a tree that is too tall. Now it is time to find a tree. As you are choosing a vendor, consider these things; the unwrapped trees should be stored in the shade or in a cooler to remain fresh. The unwrapped displayed trees should be in water. A fresh tree will have soft pliable branches. Scotch and white pine or Douglas and Balsam fir

By Larry Figart

have naturally good needleholding qualities, while spruce trees tend to lose needles quickly. Run your hand through the branches. Very few needles should come off in your hand. The sap on the tree stump should be sticky and moist, not hard or caked. The vendor should make a fresh cut on the base of the tree. If you are traveling with the tree on top of your vehicle consider taking a route home that enables you to drive a little slower. The wind from driving at high speeds can dry the tree out quickly. When you get home, immediately place the tree in a bucket of water until you are ready to set it up. After the tree is set-up and decorated, make sure that you fill up the water reservoir and replenish the tree’s water daily. A properly cared for tree should last throughout the holiday season.

Duval County Extension 1010 N. McDuff Avenue Jacksonville, FL 32254 (904) 255-7450 Fax: (904)387-8902 Website: http://duval.ifas.ufl.edu

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Jacksonville Agricultural Fair By Terry DelValle

While there, make sure to visit the Exhibit Building. Master Gardeners will be on hand in front of the Extension Learning House to answer gardening questions, plus there is lots of educational information available. Tour the educational exhibits on growing hot peppers, Integrated Pest Management, Citrus Greening, Florida-Friendly Landscapes, Urban Grow Buckets, and Weeds.

pickled okra, four berry jam and more are available at the store. The Jax Beekeepers Association is selling local honey and can offer advice on starting your own hive. Check out their hive at the fair and find the queen bee.

Get the kids involved in a scavenger hunt where they look for answers throughout the exhibit area. Make a radish seed necklace to take home and plant once the seed germinates. Visit the Country Store to see what Master Gardeners have canned using local products. Squash pickles, fig preserves,

Hours for the Exhibit Building on weekdays unless otherwise noted are from 5PM to 10PM, 3 PM to 10PM on Fridays, 10AM to 10PM on Saturdays and Sundays and 10AM to 10PM on 11/10 and Veterans Day. For details go to http:// www.jacksonvillefair.com/pb/Geninfo.html.

Don’t miss the Greater Jacksonville Agricultural Fair running from Nov. 5 through Nov.16 @ 501 Fairgrounds Place, next to The Jax Municipal Stadium.

Once you have read this newsletter, turn “A New Leaf” and pass this information on to a friend. Terry B. DelValle Extension Agent-Environmental Horticulture

For individuals requiring special accommodations, please contact our office (904-255-7450) within a minimum of 5 working days of the program. For persons with hearing or speech impairments, when contacting our office please use the Florida Relay Service at 1-800-955-8771 (TDD). Extension programs are open to all regardless of race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, disability, religion, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. Reference to commercial products or trade names is made describing picture or graphic. with theCaption understanding that no endorsement by the Extension Office is implied.