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VOL. 8, NO. 5 The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
Cochise County Master Gardener
MAY 1997
PLANT PROFILE-
Mediterranean "Natives"
Many plants that perform so well in ourSouthwestern gardens are not true natives butoutstanding "non-natives." Two of my favoritesare rosemary and lavender. Rosemary, Ros-marirms offtcimlis, is an aromatic perennial evergreen shrub and herb. Native to Mediterraneanand Europe, especially the coastal areas—^theLatin name means dew of the sea. It is the herbof friendship and remembrance. It endures hotsun, winds, and poor soilsand littleto no watering once established (it does require good drainage). The uses for rosemary are endless. InEn^and rosemary is often used for hedges andtopiary. In cookingrosemary compliments meatdishes, potatoes, and makes an excellent herbbutter for vegetables. Strip the leaves off thestem for a barbecue skewer. Rosemary is a wonderful tonic to the heart, brain, and the nervoussystem. When eaten or used as a tea frequentlyit stimulates blood flow to the head and relaxesthe muscles and prevents migraines andheadaches.
Lavandula officimlis. Lavender, is one of thebest loved scents. Also from the Mediterranean
region, it thrives in hot weather and will grow inalmost any soil as long as it is well drained. Ifind that they make excellent container plants.Use lavender for hedges in the herb garden andcollect the flowering stems just as the flowersare opening for drying. Dried flowers are usedfor potpourri, herb pillows (to help inducesleep), and linen sachets (to scent linen drawersand protect from moths.) Fresh flowers can beused to makejams, ice cream, honey, andlavender vinegar.
Other noteworthy "natives" from the Mediterranean include Olives (Oleaceae), Sweet bay(Laurusnobilis), and Thyme (Thymus vulgaris).
Cheri MeltonMaster Gardener/StaffWriter
Lavandula angustifolia
1140 N. Cfriombo, Sierra Vista, AZ 85635(520) 458-8278, Ext 141
Cochbe County Cooperative Extension450 HaskeU, WOlcox, AZ 85643(520) 384-3594
Cuttings
'N'
Clippings• Peggy Dierking has pellet-fed horse manure - free, youhaul. CaU her at 378-7125
(leave message).
• The Cochise County MasterGardeners Association meets
the first Wednesday of eachmonth at 5:00 pm. Please callthe Sierra Vista CooperativeExtension OfBce for the loca
tion. All certified Master
Gardeners/Trainees are invited
to attend.
• Thanks to the Master Gar
deners who opened their gardens to the public for thexeriscape garden tour. It was anunqualified success! Watch forthe "2nd annual" next year!
• The Sierra Vista Area Gar
dener's Club meets on the third
Thursday of each month at 2:00pm in the Mona Bishop Roomof the Sierra Vista Public Li
brary. Eliot Edwards, MasterGourdsman, will be the guestspeaker at the May 15 meeting.The garden club is requestingthat you save seeds for their"Seed Exchange" at the 1998High Desert Conference.
• The Ace Hardware stores in
both Benson and Sierra Vista
are presenting free "How to"Clinics. Check with the stores
for upcoming classes and dates.
7
Cynaracardunculas
The globe artichoke is a welcome addition in the garden forthose gardeners who desire edible landscapeplants.
Imperial Star Seeds purchasedfrom Shepherd's Seeds produced a humble tiny seedling.The seed was
planted in awell-preparedbed of native
soil, sand, andhorse manure.
A very largeplant grew (3 to4 feet in diame
ter) which required a bit ofroom. Some
may even grow
larger.Artichokes can be planted in
the fall or early spring. Theflowers will produce globes oftender buds which are pickedfrom the plantjust about now inour high desert area.
Artichokes are perennial and asingle plant will produce threeor four new plants which willappear the following year at thebase of the original plant. Oncethe fiuit has been harvested, theplant will begin to dry out andgo dormant during the hotsummer.
Each plant has a spray ofspikey frond-type silvery serrated leaves. These strikingleaves and large flowering stalkscreate a landscape plant of individual character. It is comfort
able standing alone and with its
noticeable foliage is a great or-namratal plant in the landscape.Artichokes are a good choicefor a specimenplant.
An added bonus is that desert
fauna do not enjoy the flavor ofartichoke so the plant will notneed to be protected against thenibblers ofthe desert. If the gardener wishes to not eat the fiuit,the flowering stalk can remain
on the plant andallowed to dry.The fliiit will
form a thistle
like single largeflower on a
sturdy stalk. After the flower
dries it can be
used as a deco
rative part of anarrangement, a
single display, orin a wreath.
Artichokes are not difficult to
grow in our area. The plant willbegin to green again in the fallonce the temperatures turncooler. It is one of the first
plants to vigorously armouncespring.
Barbara KishbaughMaster Gardener/StaffWriter
Newsletter Staff:
Peggy DierkingCarolyn GruenhagenBarbara KishbaughCheri Melton
Virginia Westphal
Rob(
Extension Agent, Horticulture
The Virtual Gardener-
Mediterranean Plants
Cheii Melton's article on
Mediterranean natives that have
found homes in Arizonaprompted me to see what Icould find out about Mediater-
ranean flora on the Internet. A
search on the phrase "Mediterranean flora" yielded several interesting documents, manyoriginated by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAG). One of themost interesting of these documents was an FAO report onthe East and South Mediterra
nean sub-region covering Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria,Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan,Palestine, Ldjanon, Syria,Cyprus, and Turkey(http:web.icppr.fao.org/snn/snn-SYN/med/l.HTML).
According to the report, thewild ancestors of many of ourfavorite and most useful domes
ticated plants originated in thisarea, including cereals such aswheat, barley and rye;.legumessuch as chickpea, pea, and lentils; and vegetables such asbeets, artichokes, carrots, rockets, lettuce. Many of our favorite flxiit and nut trees also have
wild ancestors fl'om this region,including chestnuts, walnuts,apples, pears, plums, pistachios,hazel nuts, almonds, and olives.
The region is also the ancestral homeland of many flowersand onuunental plants such asAllium, Anemone, Arum, Cen-taurea, Chonodoxa, Cistus,
Coclchicum, Crocus, Cyclamen,Delphinium, Eranthis, Fritil-laria, Galanthus, Gladiolus,Gypsophylla, Hellborus, Hyo-cinthus. Iris, Laurus, Leucojum,Lilium, Musccai, Myrtus, Narcissus, Nectaroscordum, Ner-ium, Ophyrs, Orchis, Omi-thogalaum, Peaonia, Pancratium, Retama, Rosa, Scilla,Scorzonera, Silene, Stember-gia, Tulipia, and Viola.
One of the reasons why plantsfl'om areas around the M^ter-ranean do well in the Arizona
desert is because the climate is
in some areas is very similar toour own. Although the climatevaries widely in the re^on, it isgenerally characterized by relatively mild winters and hot drysummers. Armual precipitationranges fl'om 30 mm to over2000 mm on the highest mountains (Sierra Vista's annual rainfall is about 400 mm). I spent acouple of years living in Turkeyand found many areas in the interior of the country that lookremarkably like Arizona deserts.
Gary A. Gruenhagen, Master Gardener(gruenha@c2i2,com)
How CoveCy tfiesilence of
growing ihingsl
Check Out
These Books!
Insects ofthe Southwest, FloydWerner, Ph.D. and Carl Olson,M.S., Fisher Books, 1994.Eightchapters of creepy insects.Great drawings and no nonsense text tell you everythingyou want to know (or not wantto know) jbout Southwestinsects.
Gardening Success With Difficult Soils, Scott Ogden, TaylorPublishing Company, 1992.Everything you need to know ifyou have limestone, alkalineclay, or caliche soils. (Thatmeans everybody should alreadyhave this book!) Highlight is thelist of heat/drought tolerantplants that love these soils andtough conditions.
Plants for Natural Gardensand Natural by Design, JudithPhillips, Muslim of New Mexico Press, 1995. You can purchase these two booksseparately or as a beautifullyboxed companion set. Plantsfor Natural Gardens showcasesover 180 plants native to thehigh desert. FGghlight is thepropagation technique for eachplant. Natural by Designteaches the principles of design,planting, and maintenance. Gorgeous pictures.
Chert MeltonMaster Gardener/Staff Writer
Page 3
May Remindersy Deep water<J Plant warm season crops^ Check tree ties
^ Control pestsy Control weeds
(Controlling Weeds - a bulletin available from the Cooperative Extension)
Locoweed(a.k.a. Crazyweed)
Locoweeds, Point locos,Peavines Astragalus spp.Fabaceae (Pea family)
There are many species of locoweed in Arizona, perhapshundreds. Considered to be a
low-growing, perennial herb,the leaves pinnately compoundinto numerous linear to oval
leaflets. Flowers are said to varyin color, white to purple, byspecies but emerge fi'om a leafless stalk (fi'om the center of theplant) and form a spear-likecluster of blooms. The kidney-shaped seeds form in a tougb,pea-like pod.
Long thought to be a joke ora point of humor, locoweeds(and their relatives) are nolaughing matter, but are toxic toall classes of livestock in varying degrees. Horses are usuallyaffected the most and will not
recover if their poisoning hasbeen ofa chronic nature.
According to literature supplied by Kim McReynolds,Cochise County Range
Management Specialist, thereare three distinct groups oftoxic species within the Astragalus gmus.^lenium: The first group is associated with selenium-rich
soils. Selenium smells like garlic. These plants have the abilityto concentrate selenium at toxic
levels to animals:
Two grooved milkvetch (5/8 lb.can be fatal to sheep within 30minutes), Narrowleaf poison-vetch, Gray- £s milkvetch.Stinking Vetch Loco: Thissecond group causes locoism(neurological symptoms rangingfrom incoordination, visual impairment, depression, unpredictable behavior, emaciation andeventual death) in livestock. Allplant parts are toxic. Two in-dolizidine alkaloids (swainson-ine and swainsonine N-oxide)are responsible for locoism inanimals. These plants cause locoism in animals:
Specklepod loco. White Point,Purple Point loco. Two-grooved milkvetch. Earlessloco, Wooly loco. Sheep loco,Wooton loco, Silverline loco.Nitre compound: The thirdgroup of astragalus species includes Timber milkvetch and
Red stemmed peavine. Lactat-ing sheep and cattle are themost susceptible group to poisoning. Horses have a low deathrate but after recovery, they areonly fit for minimal usagethereafter.
For immediate concerns about
animal behavior in regards toany of the above suspectedplants, consult your local vet.
Animals will not normallychoose to eat any ofthese plants
if oth^ forage is available.However, if an animal has beenchronically exposed to locoweeds, it can become addictedand will seek the plants whengrazing. Prevention and earlydiagnosis will save the lives ofmany livestock. Horses do notrecover well.
For proper identification ofany suspicious plants, submitplants with flowers to KimMcReynolds at the local Agricultural Extension Office.
Peggy DierkingMaster Gardener/StaffWriter
Water
Factoids
>• Water covers 70% of the
earth's surface. At least 97% of
the world's water is salty andundrinkable. Another 2% of the
earth's water is polluted, polarice, or otherwise inaccessibleand undrinkable. That leaves approximately 1% of the earth'swater for humans to use.
> On a daily basis, the peopleof the United States, directlyand indirectly, use more than380 billion gallons of water, orapproximately 1,668 gallons perperson.
> The use of six gallons ofgasoline per week requires6,000 gallons of water for production. If you drink onecanned beverage per day, theproduction of that can required29,000 gallons ofwater.
—Denver Water Department
The Agent'sObservations
much fertilizer
shade trees need,^^^^gwhat kind is the best,
when should it
be applied?
shrubs planted in fer-^fflMI^8tile, well drained soil^^^^s»that are growingnormally do not need extra nutrients. If they are not doingwell fertilization may be helphilbut only after the problem causing poor growth is corrected.Symptoms of poor growth maybe light green or yellow leaves;smaller and/or fewer than nor
mal leaves or dead spots; wilting of foliage; few flowers;short annual twig growth; andbranch tip die back. Thesesymptoms of poor growth maybe caused by poor environmental situations like; inade
quate soil aeration andmoisture, or nutrition; adverseclimatic conditions; wrong pH;or insects and diseases.
Normally the only nutrient applied to established trees andshrubs is nitrogen. Other situations like chlorotic leaves, manifested by yellowing of leavesbut veins remain green, requirespecific applications of a nutrient, in this case iron. Theamount of nitrogen needed willdepend on the size of the plant.Measure the diameter of the
trunk about one foot fi'om the
ground, ^ply O.OS pounds ofactual nitrogenfinch of trunk diameter. If a tree has a trunk di
ameter of six inches multiply byO.OS to get 0.3 pounds of actualnitrogen. Divide the amount ofnitrogen by the percentage ofnitrogen content of the fertilizerto be applied. For example: 0.3pounds of nitrogen applied as21% ammonium sulfate would
be: 0.3/21% = 1.43 pounds ofammonium sulfate fertilizer
from the bag.Distribute the fertilizer evenly
by measuring the distance between the trunk and drip lineand multiply by 125%. This willdetermine the outer boundaryradius for fertilizer application.Distribute the fertilizer evenly inthe outer 2/3 of this circle. For
example: If the trunk is eightfeet from the drip line, then theouter boundary will be ten feet,(8 X 125% = 10). Apply fertilizer around the tree or shrub in
a doughnut shaped band 3.3 feetto 10 feet from the trunk, (10/3= 3.3). Applicationsare best applied from early spring.
I have a peach col-ored rose that has
one blossom that is
' half peach and halfwhite. Even one of the petals ishalf peach and white. How didthis happen? Was there crosspollination?
No CTOSS pollination.have found
what is known as a
"bud sport." This isa genetic mutation of the budtissue. In this case the tissue
most likelylost the genetic codefor the peach color, therefore inthe absence of color white re
sults. This is how 'Golden Deli
cious' apples came intoexistence. In the late 19th Cen
tury a branch of a 'Red Delicious' apple tree produced ayellow apple named 'GoldenDelicious.' Buds were graftedinto other trees and rootstocks
and viola! 'Golden Delicious'
apples are now producedworldwide.
Robert E. Call
Extension Agent, Horticulture
Pecan Tree
Budding & GraftingWorkshop
May 199710:00 am in Elfrida
The public is invitedto this free demo
Please call the
Cooperative ExtensionOffice in Willcox
or Sierra Vista
for directions to
location
sued in furtherance c^Coqwrative Extoidon work,acts<^May8 and June30,1914, in cooperation withtheUnitedStatesDepartmoitof Agriculture, JamesA. Christens<H),Director, Cooperative Extension, College Agriculture, The University of AnzooBi and Arizona Counties coopoating.The University ArizonaCollegeof Agriculture is anecpial qjportunity employer authorized toproi^ research, educational information and other services only toindividuals and institutions that function without regard tosex,race, reli^on, color, national (xigifi, age, Vietnam Era Veteran's status, ordisability.The informationgiven h^ein is suppliedwiththe understanding that no discrimination is intendedand no endorsement by Coqjoative Extensionis implied.Anyproducts,services,or organizationsthat are n^rtioned, shown,or indirectlyimpliedin this publicationdo not implyenckxsen^iitby the UniversityofArizona.
COOPERATIVE EXTENSION
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
^ TUCSON, ARIZONA 85721
OFTICIAL BUSINESS
PENALTY FOR PRIVATE USE $300
BULK RATE
POSTAGE & FEES PAH)USDA
PERMIT No. G268
r
V
CoHiHivinity Soil W^terConservation ¥ci\r
S^tvir^l^y, M^y 10 ' 9:001:00 pmThe University of Arizona Sierra Vist^ C^ntpvis
1140 M. CobntboSponsore^i by:
'M'erefoPFi Vlotvir^l l^esoviree Conservation districtThe U of A Cooperative Extension
DEMONSTRATIONS
Erosion Control
Soil AnalysisWater Harvesting
EXHIBITS
Arizona Cactus and Succulents
BLM
Cochise County Master Gardeners Assn.Hereford NRCD
Nature ConservancyU.S. Department ofAgriculture
U.S. Forest Service
WaterWise Program
J