Weather: Overcast, cool.
The mornings project was attempting to control a Norantea brasiliensis vine in the Cascade garden. N. brasiliensis is native to Brasil (hence the ensis suffix). It has ovate, alternate glossy dark green leaves and also produces fleshy adventitious roots. The plant at longwood has not been flowering, and after some research Joyce discovered that it flowers on the terminal ends of shoots. Therefore as the plant had been pruned to control its size, it was not getting the opportunity to flower. In order to attempt to both control the vine but give it a chance to flower Joyce has been tying and training the vine in using black wire. Whilst I was working away near the roof in a tucked away corner I noticed a flower bud! So exciting, it hasn't flowered in... Well, no one knows, maybe never. Pat Nutt (an ex longwood employee and local legend) said that it may have flowered in the 60's here.
Lunchtime included a brown bag presentation of the Grad students trip to India. Very interesting, though it sounds like a tough trip. I want to go!
After lunch I worked on a project for Joyce, compiling information on nutritional deficiencies of palms.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Dividing more ferns, all staff meeting and orchids
Weather: Really windy, high of 38.
First off today it was back out into the fern passage dividing the biggest specimens. We're onto the third long bed out of four, so getting there! Today the four of us (Mark, David, Andrew and I) were ambitious and set the objective of getting the last big specimens in the third bed done by 10.30 when we had an all staff 'town hall' meeting. It was a bit of a rush but we got it done and tidied up on time. We repotted another huge Dicksonia antartica, two large Asplenium australasicum and a number of smaller ferns, Colysis sp etc.
photos finally!
After finished tidying up the fern passage we had a town hall meeting. It mostly focused on acknowledging the 'victories' of the past quarter; Christmas, snow ops, online course registration etc. Paul Redman (director) also gave an update on Longwoods finances and an update on the 40 year master plant being developed by the landscape architecture firm West 8. Pretty cool stuff really. Its all conceptual at the moment but its interesting to see an institution completely re-envision layout, buildings etc. It will be pretty neat to come back to Longwood in 20 or 30 years and see how its evolved.
And after lunch I was with Marie and the Orchids again. Started by repotting a few Laeliocattleya hybrids.
Then pricked out some Disa uniflora hybrid seedlings. Disa uniflora were bought back by a longwood gardens expedition to South Africa and have since been hybridised at Longwood. The seedlings are sown in wet sphagnum moss. I pricked out approximately the 40 strongest and potted them into fresh sphagnum with a bit more space to grow, about 15 to a pot. They're tiny so it was fiddly work, I used the wire of two paper clips to help prick them out. worked well enough. the pots were then placed in a pan full of water.
First off today it was back out into the fern passage dividing the biggest specimens. We're onto the third long bed out of four, so getting there! Today the four of us (Mark, David, Andrew and I) were ambitious and set the objective of getting the last big specimens in the third bed done by 10.30 when we had an all staff 'town hall' meeting. It was a bit of a rush but we got it done and tidied up on time. We repotted another huge Dicksonia antartica, two large Asplenium australasicum and a number of smaller ferns, Colysis sp etc.
photos finally!
After finished tidying up the fern passage we had a town hall meeting. It mostly focused on acknowledging the 'victories' of the past quarter; Christmas, snow ops, online course registration etc. Paul Redman (director) also gave an update on Longwoods finances and an update on the 40 year master plant being developed by the landscape architecture firm West 8. Pretty cool stuff really. Its all conceptual at the moment but its interesting to see an institution completely re-envision layout, buildings etc. It will be pretty neat to come back to Longwood in 20 or 30 years and see how its evolved.
And after lunch I was with Marie and the Orchids again. Started by repotting a few Laeliocattleya hybrids.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Ferns, orchid repotting, and dividing
Weather: Sunny, high of 40oF
Monday. Well, first off today it was back into the fern passage to continue the large repotting/dividing project. We split into two teams, I worked with Andrew Hemme, and David and Mark worked together on a different section. Because the fern passage is narrow its really a matter of getting the biggest plants done before opening at nine. And today Andrew and I only managed to get two plants done, a massiveTasmanian tree fern (Dicksonia antartica) and a large giant maidenhair (Adiantum trapeziforme). The Dicksonia took awhile as we had to take it out of the wooden planter box it was in (with a hatchet...) and significantly reduce the rootball with the aid of an old pruning saw to make it fit into the largest planter bag (21") we had.
I was actually meant to be working with Marie with the orchids today, but will be helping out with the fern passage projects before nine to try and get the large stuff done as soon as possible. So after cleaning up a bit with the ferns I found Marie and went to work with the orchids. The main tasks with the orchids are staging the display, repotting those that come off display and watering. Marie is a wealth of knowledge on the many different species and cultivars of orchids as well orchid pests and diseases, care etc. We started by repotting some Miltonia. After lunch I watered the orchid baskets in one of the orchid houses, and then we continued repotting, this time Laelia.
At two I went back to Tims team and helped divide and repot some Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) that has been sitting in one of the houses since the waterlily display closed for the season. Dividing and giving the plants some room now will prepare them for the upcoming season, which really isnt so far away now. We potted them up in crates lined with plastic bags, and used a clay soil. Cyperus papyrus is a member of the sedge family Cyperaceae and is best known for being used by the ancient Egyptians to make paper. It has also been used to make rafts and parts of the plant are also edible. Papyrus is a clump forming perennial, with tall triangular stems that are topped by tufts of thinner stems arising from a thick woody rhizome.
Monday. Well, first off today it was back into the fern passage to continue the large repotting/dividing project. We split into two teams, I worked with Andrew Hemme, and David and Mark worked together on a different section. Because the fern passage is narrow its really a matter of getting the biggest plants done before opening at nine. And today Andrew and I only managed to get two plants done, a massiveTasmanian tree fern (Dicksonia antartica) and a large giant maidenhair (Adiantum trapeziforme). The Dicksonia took awhile as we had to take it out of the wooden planter box it was in (with a hatchet...) and significantly reduce the rootball with the aid of an old pruning saw to make it fit into the largest planter bag (21") we had.
I was actually meant to be working with Marie with the orchids today, but will be helping out with the fern passage projects before nine to try and get the large stuff done as soon as possible. So after cleaning up a bit with the ferns I found Marie and went to work with the orchids. The main tasks with the orchids are staging the display, repotting those that come off display and watering. Marie is a wealth of knowledge on the many different species and cultivars of orchids as well orchid pests and diseases, care etc. We started by repotting some Miltonia. After lunch I watered the orchid baskets in one of the orchid houses, and then we continued repotting, this time Laelia.
At two I went back to Tims team and helped divide and repot some Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) that has been sitting in one of the houses since the waterlily display closed for the season. Dividing and giving the plants some room now will prepare them for the upcoming season, which really isnt so far away now. We potted them up in crates lined with plastic bags, and used a clay soil. Cyperus papyrus is a member of the sedge family Cyperaceae and is best known for being used by the ancient Egyptians to make paper. It has also been used to make rafts and parts of the plant are also edible. Papyrus is a clump forming perennial, with tall triangular stems that are topped by tufts of thinner stems arising from a thick woody rhizome.
Monday, January 31, 2011
First day indoors
So, today I started back in indoor display. And well, I'm going to try to keep up to date on these blogs! I was actually meant to be working with the arborists this month. But well, I wanted to come back indoors as I wanted to work with both Joyce (who looks after the palm house, cascade garden and tropical terrace) and Marie (who looks after the orchids). Orchid extravaganza is going on at the moment with orchids scattered throughout the conservatories. Both Joyce and Marie are very knowledgeable (Marie is super passionate about orchids) and I'm looking forward to working with them and asking them questions.
But this week at least I am working with Karls team. Though today, it was with Andrew Hemme. I have worked with Andrew before and really enjoyed it. He looks after the fruit houses and the childrens garden. Working with Andrew is always interesting because he has a very good plant knowledge and keeps me on my feet asking questions.Today's main project was replacing a bunch of daffodils in both the childrens garden and the fruit house containers. The fruit house containers looked good when finished as we also used some pussy willow canes in the larger containers and a Viola variety in the smaller containers. The childrens garden daffodils are planted with a bright blue hydangea, very cheerful. I am unsure of the cultivars we planted but will try to find out tomorrow.
But this week at least I am working with Karls team. Though today, it was with Andrew Hemme. I have worked with Andrew before and really enjoyed it. He looks after the fruit houses and the childrens garden. Working with Andrew is always interesting because he has a very good plant knowledge and keeps me on my feet asking questions.Today's main project was replacing a bunch of daffodils in both the childrens garden and the fruit house containers. The fruit house containers looked good when finished as we also used some pussy willow canes in the larger containers and a Viola variety in the smaller containers. The childrens garden daffodils are planted with a bright blue hydangea, very cheerful. I am unsure of the cultivars we planted but will try to find out tomorrow.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Curatorial Summary
Woah, so its been awhile since I have done a blog entry... Oops. So a summary is in order. Well it is now 2011, and nearly the end of January already! I left the IPM department the week before Christmas and went up to my friend Davids house in the Pocono mountains. It was a great break, learnt to snowboard, ate plenty of food and generally lazed. Much needed. The week after Christmas I drove up to Wochester Massachusetts (Pronounced woo-sta in New England speak. It's not too far from Boston) for a Phish show with my friend John. Great time, and I made it into Boston one day as well. New years was spent riding into into Philadelphia on a yellow school bus and going to a Lotus show.
So back at work again in the New Year and I started in the Curatorial department. Its been a busy month, not only with work but also with a whole bunch of job applications! Yes its that time... I have only four months left at Longwood, and I have suspicion its going to fly by.
Curatorial has been fun. I am working with Kristina Aguilar, an intern named Josh and a new PG, Jeanelle. Tomasz Anisko is the curator of plants, but is away for half the month as he is going to Brazil to research Victoria amazonica, on which he is currently writing a book.
The curatorial department is responsible for the recording, mapping and labeling of plants, both existing and new. Plants are recorded using accession numbers, which are always 8 digits and a "qualifier". The first 4 digits are the year it was received at Longwood. It is important to recognise that it is its received date, not its age. The next 4 digits is its number in that year. Accession numbers can, and are, given to groups of plants received. The qualifier is unique to a plant, and is always one or more letters, starting with A. Therefore an example of an accession number would be 1999-0236*A, which for the record was a Corylopsis glabrescens.
The primary tool of the trade is the database known as Botanic Gardens-Base, or BG-base. BG-base is a database that was designed specifically to manage plant records. It is a large application that has been under development since 1985, and originally was written in DOS. Partly because of this it is not exactly "flashy" or particularly user friendly. There are codes left over from DOS, for example F7=start new record, and the s/list (a search function that really makes BG-Base) requires typing like "select plants with acc_num "1999-0236" ". So there is a lot to learn with BG-Base. Despite its looks, BG-Base has the capability to store and organise a huge range of data, from plants accession numbers to images, mapping, plant conservation statuses, bibliographies, contacts, DNA sequences etc... As the manual puts it, "no one institution uses all of BG-Bases functionality". Information is stored in different 'Tables', for example the 'Names' and 'Images' tables. Tables can be thought of as being like different drawers on a filing cabinet. The advantage of a database such as BG-base over other spreadsheets such as Excel is that you can search and consolidate information stored in different tables and fields.
In my first week Kristina set me two tasks, one learning how to enter data onto BG-Base. For this I picked a group of plants (a mixture of herbaceous perennials from the perennial garden) and entered data on flower color, culture requirements, and hardiness. The other task was learning how to upload photos. For this picked an area (the silver garden) and took photos of all the plants that didn't yet have photos and attached them to the plants accession number in the images table.
After learning how to do this, I was set the task of creating a tour for Longwoods website "Plant Explorer" (Plantexplorer). Plant explorer is a website that takes information from BG-Base and a mapping program designed specifically for Longwood, BG-Map. The site allows the public to find information on what plants are at Longwood, or to design a tour relating to what the want to see. I decided to do my tour on plant species at Longwood that are rare or threatened (Threatened sp tour, click on plant names for more information). Writing the tour first required finding the plants (using s/list), then narrowing the list to those that were practical to include, were in public areas, weren't seasonal etc. It started out as a large list but was quickly narrowed down. One issue I encountered was whether or not to include plants that are common in cultivation yet threatened in the wild, eg Metasequoia glypstrboides. Longwood is primarily a display garden, and while there is a huge diversity of plants at the gardens, there are not a lot of truly rare and and endangered species here. Although from talking to Tomasz, its sounds like conservation and collections are becoming more important to Longwood (as it is to gardens around the world). After compiling a list it was a matter of researching and gathering information, writing and taking any photos that were needed.
All in all it was a fun exercise to do on a subject I am very interested in.
Oh and a weather update. Before I left for Christmas we were getting snow flurries that werent sticking. Now its defineatly sticking! We got about 20 inches last night, so there was a fair amount of shovelling to do in the morning.
So back at work again in the New Year and I started in the Curatorial department. Its been a busy month, not only with work but also with a whole bunch of job applications! Yes its that time... I have only four months left at Longwood, and I have suspicion its going to fly by.
Curatorial has been fun. I am working with Kristina Aguilar, an intern named Josh and a new PG, Jeanelle. Tomasz Anisko is the curator of plants, but is away for half the month as he is going to Brazil to research Victoria amazonica, on which he is currently writing a book.
The curatorial department is responsible for the recording, mapping and labeling of plants, both existing and new. Plants are recorded using accession numbers, which are always 8 digits and a "qualifier". The first 4 digits are the year it was received at Longwood. It is important to recognise that it is its received date, not its age. The next 4 digits is its number in that year. Accession numbers can, and are, given to groups of plants received. The qualifier is unique to a plant, and is always one or more letters, starting with A. Therefore an example of an accession number would be 1999-0236*A, which for the record was a Corylopsis glabrescens.
The primary tool of the trade is the database known as Botanic Gardens-Base, or BG-base. BG-base is a database that was designed specifically to manage plant records. It is a large application that has been under development since 1985, and originally was written in DOS. Partly because of this it is not exactly "flashy" or particularly user friendly. There are codes left over from DOS, for example F7=start new record, and the s/list (a search function that really makes BG-Base) requires typing like "select plants with acc_num "1999-0236" ". So there is a lot to learn with BG-Base. Despite its looks, BG-Base has the capability to store and organise a huge range of data, from plants accession numbers to images, mapping, plant conservation statuses, bibliographies, contacts, DNA sequences etc... As the manual puts it, "no one institution uses all of BG-Bases functionality". Information is stored in different 'Tables', for example the 'Names' and 'Images' tables. Tables can be thought of as being like different drawers on a filing cabinet. The advantage of a database such as BG-base over other spreadsheets such as Excel is that you can search and consolidate information stored in different tables and fields.
In my first week Kristina set me two tasks, one learning how to enter data onto BG-Base. For this I picked a group of plants (a mixture of herbaceous perennials from the perennial garden) and entered data on flower color, culture requirements, and hardiness. The other task was learning how to upload photos. For this picked an area (the silver garden) and took photos of all the plants that didn't yet have photos and attached them to the plants accession number in the images table.
After learning how to do this, I was set the task of creating a tour for Longwoods website "Plant Explorer" (Plantexplorer). Plant explorer is a website that takes information from BG-Base and a mapping program designed specifically for Longwood, BG-Map. The site allows the public to find information on what plants are at Longwood, or to design a tour relating to what the want to see. I decided to do my tour on plant species at Longwood that are rare or threatened (Threatened sp tour, click on plant names for more information). Writing the tour first required finding the plants (using s/list), then narrowing the list to those that were practical to include, were in public areas, weren't seasonal etc. It started out as a large list but was quickly narrowed down. One issue I encountered was whether or not to include plants that are common in cultivation yet threatened in the wild, eg Metasequoia glypstrboides. Longwood is primarily a display garden, and while there is a huge diversity of plants at the gardens, there are not a lot of truly rare and and endangered species here. Although from talking to Tomasz, its sounds like conservation and collections are becoming more important to Longwood (as it is to gardens around the world). After compiling a list it was a matter of researching and gathering information, writing and taking any photos that were needed.
All in all it was a fun exercise to do on a subject I am very interested in.
Oh and a weather update. Before I left for Christmas we were getting snow flurries that werent sticking. Now its defineatly sticking! We got about 20 inches last night, so there was a fair amount of shovelling to do in the morning.
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Field trip to Brandywine Valley Museum
Weather: Snow flurries
Well, the morning was more scouting. The highlight of the day was a trip to the Brandywine Valley Museum. Well, it doesnt sound particularly thrilling, but turns out they have an excellent collection of paintings by both N.C Wyeth and his son Andrew Wyeth. N.C Wyeth is well known for his illustrations for Treasure Island, a book I love. I was completely surprised when I walked around a corner and saw them. So all in all a good trip.
Thats Alex Giwi and Woon Sung, both internationals braving the snow. And bad ass Captain Bill Bones
Well, the morning was more scouting. The highlight of the day was a trip to the Brandywine Valley Museum. Well, it doesnt sound particularly thrilling, but turns out they have an excellent collection of paintings by both N.C Wyeth and his son Andrew Wyeth. N.C Wyeth is well known for his illustrations for Treasure Island, a book I love. I was completely surprised when I walked around a corner and saw them. So all in all a good trip.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Rose pruning
Weather: High of 41oF. Snow in the morning, but none of it really accumulated.
First thing in the morning we watered the Poinsettias and collected some cottony cushion scale from the infected Artemisia to feed to the Vadelia beetles. After that, we went to the nursery to start pruning roses. IPM has a plot at the nursery where they are conducting trials for blackspot resistance. I've done plenty of rose pruning at the Wellington BGs rose garden so it was familiar. Though I must say Ive never pruned in the snow before!
The roses are fairly young as the trial is only a year or two old. And for that reason the pruning was fairly easy, plenty of fresh healthy canes to work with. I pruned with the principles I learnt in Wellington; first pruning out dead diseased and dying (pruning 101), crossing and obviously weak or old canes; then pruning (ideally) the remaining 3-6 into a open vase form with buds facing outwards; then clearing out leaves and debris from around the crowns. In Wellington we would take the extra step to brush the crowns lightly with a stiff wire brush in order to clean them up and encourage budding. But we didn't have a wire brush so we skipped this step. Not crucial, and anyway, as noted the roses are relatively young and vigorous. And well, they're an IPM trial. Dare I say it, they're not meant to be well treated. I
Apart from being a tad cold, it was fun. I enjoy rose pruning. Especially when its not the 300 or so beds that Wellington has (Wellington does do a very good rose garden). The trial beds are much smaller and we got more than half done before lunch. We will finish the rest tomorrow morning.
In the arvo me and Carolyn collected samples from some fungus that are growing on one of the large copper beech on oak knoll. I had admired the tree before from a distance, but getting close you quickly realise that there is a lot of damage on the trunk, including a lot of carved graffitti... Its a shame because it is a beautiful speciman.
We also collected some samples from the main conservatory Poinsettia beds to send off and then did a bit more scouting for the arvo.
First thing in the morning we watered the Poinsettias and collected some cottony cushion scale from the infected Artemisia to feed to the Vadelia beetles. After that, we went to the nursery to start pruning roses. IPM has a plot at the nursery where they are conducting trials for blackspot resistance. I've done plenty of rose pruning at the Wellington BGs rose garden so it was familiar. Though I must say Ive never pruned in the snow before!
The roses are fairly young as the trial is only a year or two old. And for that reason the pruning was fairly easy, plenty of fresh healthy canes to work with. I pruned with the principles I learnt in Wellington; first pruning out dead diseased and dying (pruning 101), crossing and obviously weak or old canes; then pruning (ideally) the remaining 3-6 into a open vase form with buds facing outwards; then clearing out leaves and debris from around the crowns. In Wellington we would take the extra step to brush the crowns lightly with a stiff wire brush in order to clean them up and encourage budding. But we didn't have a wire brush so we skipped this step. Not crucial, and anyway, as noted the roses are relatively young and vigorous. And well, they're an IPM trial. Dare I say it, they're not meant to be well treated. I
Apart from being a tad cold, it was fun. I enjoy rose pruning. Especially when its not the 300 or so beds that Wellington has (Wellington does do a very good rose garden). The trial beds are much smaller and we got more than half done before lunch. We will finish the rest tomorrow morning.
In the arvo me and Carolyn collected samples from some fungus that are growing on one of the large copper beech on oak knoll. I had admired the tree before from a distance, but getting close you quickly realise that there is a lot of damage on the trunk, including a lot of carved graffitti... Its a shame because it is a beautiful speciman.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Snow! And finding new unidentified bugs...
Weather: High of 35oF. Snow flurries in the afternoon, but none of it stuck.
In the morning Carolyn and I picked up the compost tea buckets and checked the mouse traps in B1. Nothing caught... After that we scouted the other 14 house, which consists of five smaller houses containing a mixture of Tims ferns and Kats succulents in different climates. The main pests we found were soft brown scale and mealy bug. Keely also found two more unknown mealys... And I found a scale on the ferns that I wasn't sure about. I couldn't tell if it was alive or dead, and the male casings looked similar to bois duvel scale except no females were present. So add them to the list of unknown bugs. Ha.
After lunch I got a chance to look under the microscope at the unknowns. The scale on the fern turned out to be alive, and with a little research in "Scale insects of Pennsylvania greenhouses" (an old and rare book according to Mike), figured out that it is most likely Fern Scale, or Pinnaspis aspidistrae. http://www.entomology.umn.edu/cues/inter/inmine/Scalef.html
http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG136/scale3.html
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ch195
The two unknown mealybugs are, well, still unknown. I couldn't find any likely candidates in any books, and haven't come across a key that I would be able to follow (they get very technical...). So theyll go in the fridge and Ill ask Mike when I next see him. I will try to get photos up of them.
In the morning Carolyn and I picked up the compost tea buckets and checked the mouse traps in B1. Nothing caught... After that we scouted the other 14 house, which consists of five smaller houses containing a mixture of Tims ferns and Kats succulents in different climates. The main pests we found were soft brown scale and mealy bug. Keely also found two more unknown mealys... And I found a scale on the ferns that I wasn't sure about. I couldn't tell if it was alive or dead, and the male casings looked similar to bois duvel scale except no females were present. So add them to the list of unknown bugs. Ha.
After lunch I got a chance to look under the microscope at the unknowns. The scale on the fern turned out to be alive, and with a little research in "Scale insects of Pennsylvania greenhouses" (an old and rare book according to Mike), figured out that it is most likely Fern Scale, or Pinnaspis aspidistrae. http://www.entomology.umn.edu/cues/inter/inmine/Scalef.html
http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG136/scale3.html
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ch195
The two unknown mealybugs are, well, still unknown. I couldn't find any likely candidates in any books, and haven't come across a key that I would be able to follow (they get very technical...). So theyll go in the fridge and Ill ask Mike when I next see him. I will try to get photos up of them.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Tying wreaths and mulberry whitefly
Weather: high of 32oF, or 0oC! The first day Ive noticed where the expected high is 0.
In the morning me and Carolyn delivered compost tea to Mark at the Pierce Dupont house and also Mary in the potting shed. We didn't have to prepare anymore as none is needed tomorrow.
At 9 we went to a wreath making class with Mary Allinson. I hadnt made a wreath before, so it was fun to do a learning session about them. Wreaths, and for that matter all christmas decorations, seem to be a very northern hemisphere tradition. I cant really remember too many people making them in NZ. But well, Christmas in NZ is in the summer, and wreaths and evergreen decorations do fit more brightening up a winter landscape.
Wreaths in concept are easy to make, simplytwiring evergreen foliage and decorations to a frame. But like any floral arrangment, there is a huge range of combinations, styles, and ways of making them. We made 12 inch diameter wreaths, which are quite small. the first step is to attach your wire to the frame, and then lay a bunch of greenery onto the frame and attach it to the frame by wrapping the wire around. It is then simply a matter of adding overlapping bunchs of greenery. I used a combination of white pine, blue spruce and douglas fir as my backing. After your done with the backing you can add accents and decorations such as bows. I used a variegated american holly and some winterberry holly as accents, and didn't add and bows or bells and whistles. I was pleases with the end result, with my only criticism being the the winterberry holly made it look a little similar to the boxes I made for Christmas which I'm sick of. Still, it was a fun to make. Other people made all sorts of combinations, and they all looked good. It is definitely a skill that I will take with me, I would love to do Christmas displays somewhere like the Wellington Botanic gardens.
Heres some photos
After lunch Keely and I went and scouted the Pierce Du Pont house. It hasn't been scouted in awhile! There was lots of two spotted spider mite, mealy bug and also a bunch of thrips on the Holly Fern. And we also found two new unidentified... scales? One lot on the underside of some Azalea leaves, Small (3mm), green, flat oval disks with a waxy fringe. And then another lot on the underside of a Chamaedorea, small (2mm), black with an white waxy coating.
When we got back we asked Mike about the bugs. His hint was, "its not a scale". After a bit of guess work we came to whitefly. And after we consulted a book we worked out that the black 'scale' was mulberry whitefly. Tetraleurodes mori, bugguide, Whitefly. As The first 'scale' remains unidentified, but it is most likely another species of whitefly. I will try to get photos, though it could be difficult.
In the morning me and Carolyn delivered compost tea to Mark at the Pierce Dupont house and also Mary in the potting shed. We didn't have to prepare anymore as none is needed tomorrow.
At 9 we went to a wreath making class with Mary Allinson. I hadnt made a wreath before, so it was fun to do a learning session about them. Wreaths, and for that matter all christmas decorations, seem to be a very northern hemisphere tradition. I cant really remember too many people making them in NZ. But well, Christmas in NZ is in the summer, and wreaths and evergreen decorations do fit more brightening up a winter landscape.
Wreaths in concept are easy to make, simplytwiring evergreen foliage and decorations to a frame. But like any floral arrangment, there is a huge range of combinations, styles, and ways of making them. We made 12 inch diameter wreaths, which are quite small. the first step is to attach your wire to the frame, and then lay a bunch of greenery onto the frame and attach it to the frame by wrapping the wire around. It is then simply a matter of adding overlapping bunchs of greenery. I used a combination of white pine, blue spruce and douglas fir as my backing. After your done with the backing you can add accents and decorations such as bows. I used a variegated american holly and some winterberry holly as accents, and didn't add and bows or bells and whistles. I was pleases with the end result, with my only criticism being the the winterberry holly made it look a little similar to the boxes I made for Christmas which I'm sick of. Still, it was a fun to make. Other people made all sorts of combinations, and they all looked good. It is definitely a skill that I will take with me, I would love to do Christmas displays somewhere like the Wellington Botanic gardens.
Heres some photos
After lunch Keely and I went and scouted the Pierce Du Pont house. It hasn't been scouted in awhile! There was lots of two spotted spider mite, mealy bug and also a bunch of thrips on the Holly Fern. And we also found two new unidentified... scales? One lot on the underside of some Azalea leaves, Small (3mm), green, flat oval disks with a waxy fringe. And then another lot on the underside of a Chamaedorea, small (2mm), black with an white waxy coating.
When we got back we asked Mike about the bugs. His hint was, "its not a scale". After a bit of guess work we came to whitefly. And after we consulted a book we worked out that the black 'scale' was mulberry whitefly. Tetraleurodes mori, bugguide, Whitefly. As The first 'scale' remains unidentified, but it is most likely another species of whitefly. I will try to get photos, though it could be difficult.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Coconut Mealybug, Nipaecoccus nipae.
Weather: Clear, cool.
First thing, we made compost tea. After that me and Carolyn finished scouting 14I and the Palm house. Both 14I and the palm house have plenty of soft brown scale (usually on Anthuriums or Philodendrons) and Mealybug sp. There were also plenty of Aphids in the palm house on the Alocasias and a Heliconia sp. I also found more of the unidentified mealy/scale in 14I.
After lunch I got a chance to ask Mike Leventry what he thought the unidentified mealy/scale was. He narrowed it down to most likely being mealy (Pseudococcus) after flipping an adult specimen and seeing legs waving in the air. From there we went to the resource books. Still, the giant tombs (Mealy insects of California etc) are useful if you have an idea of what your looking for, but if your just looking for photos theyre not the place to go. Instead they are filled with technical descriptions and drawings of the mealy undersides. But, by chance I was flipping through and found a photo of the unidentified. It is coconut mealybug, or Nipaecoccus nipae. After a little research on the net I found this Coconut mealybug. Good info. And from the pictures it seems like it can be a serious problem.
So, good to have IDed it. But as Mike pointed out, its important only for curiosities sake. From a control viewpoint, figuring out that it is a soft bodied mealybug that is inside is enough to say that we would most likely control it with horticultural oil or a generalist beneficial predator. If it was outside a positive ID would be more important as we would have to work out what stage of its life cycle it was at with growing degree days (on which I will write more later). Scale and mealy are most susceptible to control as crawlers.
First thing, we made compost tea. After that me and Carolyn finished scouting 14I and the Palm house. Both 14I and the palm house have plenty of soft brown scale (usually on Anthuriums or Philodendrons) and Mealybug sp. There were also plenty of Aphids in the palm house on the Alocasias and a Heliconia sp. I also found more of the unidentified mealy/scale in 14I.
After lunch I got a chance to ask Mike Leventry what he thought the unidentified mealy/scale was. He narrowed it down to most likely being mealy (Pseudococcus) after flipping an adult specimen and seeing legs waving in the air. From there we went to the resource books. Still, the giant tombs (Mealy insects of California etc) are useful if you have an idea of what your looking for, but if your just looking for photos theyre not the place to go. Instead they are filled with technical descriptions and drawings of the mealy undersides. But, by chance I was flipping through and found a photo of the unidentified. It is coconut mealybug, or Nipaecoccus nipae. After a little research on the net I found this Coconut mealybug. Good info. And from the pictures it seems like it can be a serious problem.
So, good to have IDed it. But as Mike pointed out, its important only for curiosities sake. From a control viewpoint, figuring out that it is a soft bodied mealybug that is inside is enough to say that we would most likely control it with horticultural oil or a generalist beneficial predator. If it was outside a positive ID would be more important as we would have to work out what stage of its life cycle it was at with growing degree days (on which I will write more later). Scale and mealy are most susceptible to control as crawlers.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Birthing wasps
Weather: High of 34oF. Over night low of 25oF, or -3oC. Getting cold
Feeling a little bit sick in the morning. Nothing major, just glands up and feeling a tad gross. First thing this morning, made some compost tea. After that me and Keely took some soil samples from the Poinsettias on the west walkway of the main conservatory. A large portion of the 'Orion Red' cultivar have started to crash. The biggest symptom being wilting, even when the soil media is still moist. The most likely culprit is Pythium root rot. The samples that we took will be sent to the University of Delaware for confirmation (though Mike seemed pretty confident...). Without having the resources of a university, a good way to diagnose a root rot (admittedly unspecific...) is to gently pull the roots. If the outer layer slides back then a root rot (of some form) is present. When we arrived back at the lab I read a little about Pythium in the excellent book Diseases of herbaceous perennials. Pythium, like Phytophtheras, used to be classified as a fungus. They have recently been reclassified and are now in a completely different kingdom, the Chomalvolata. But are still thought of as being fungus-like organisms. Plant diseases are an area I feel I could learn a lot more.
After lunch me and Carolyn scouted Joyce's 14 house and the Palm house. I found more of the unidentified scale, this time a slightly larger colony. I still have to get Mike to have a look at it. I also found some more parasitised brown soft scale. The scale are parasitised by a tiny wasp that lays an egg directly into the scale. The grub then proceeds to eat the scale from the inside out. Last week I found a parasitised specimen, and accidentally squashed it while trying to dissect it under the microscope. Today though, I was a little more successful! I found a parasitised scale (not hard, theres a few of them. You can tell them apart from normal scale as they're a darker colour and slightly swollen). I then gently pulled the scale casing away under the microscope using a scalpel. A bit of prising, and there was a kinda startled looking wasp. Which then started to run off (I guess its wings weren't developed fully)... So I put it in a petri dish with some alcohol. Sorry wasp. Felt a bit bad killing beneficials... But now I have to ID it.... It is most likely a species of Aphytis, Coccophagus, Encarsia or Metaphycus (from http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7408.html).
Feeling a little bit sick in the morning. Nothing major, just glands up and feeling a tad gross. First thing this morning, made some compost tea. After that me and Keely took some soil samples from the Poinsettias on the west walkway of the main conservatory. A large portion of the 'Orion Red' cultivar have started to crash. The biggest symptom being wilting, even when the soil media is still moist. The most likely culprit is Pythium root rot. The samples that we took will be sent to the University of Delaware for confirmation (though Mike seemed pretty confident...). Without having the resources of a university, a good way to diagnose a root rot (admittedly unspecific...) is to gently pull the roots. If the outer layer slides back then a root rot (of some form) is present. When we arrived back at the lab I read a little about Pythium in the excellent book Diseases of herbaceous perennials. Pythium, like Phytophtheras, used to be classified as a fungus. They have recently been reclassified and are now in a completely different kingdom, the Chomalvolata. But are still thought of as being fungus-like organisms. Plant diseases are an area I feel I could learn a lot more.
After lunch me and Carolyn scouted Joyce's 14 house and the Palm house. I found more of the unidentified scale, this time a slightly larger colony. I still have to get Mike to have a look at it. I also found some more parasitised brown soft scale. The scale are parasitised by a tiny wasp that lays an egg directly into the scale. The grub then proceeds to eat the scale from the inside out. Last week I found a parasitised specimen, and accidentally squashed it while trying to dissect it under the microscope. Today though, I was a little more successful! I found a parasitised scale (not hard, theres a few of them. You can tell them apart from normal scale as they're a darker colour and slightly swollen). I then gently pulled the scale casing away under the microscope using a scalpel. A bit of prising, and there was a kinda startled looking wasp. Which then started to run off (I guess its wings weren't developed fully)... So I put it in a petri dish with some alcohol. Sorry wasp. Felt a bit bad killing beneficials... But now I have to ID it.... It is most likely a species of Aphytis, Coccophagus, Encarsia or Metaphycus (from http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7408.html).
Monday, December 6, 2010
Christmas field trip to Baltimore
Weather: Cool, high of 57oF, but with quite a wind chill factor.
Today was the Christmas field trip. We went down to Baltimore and visited the national aquarium. The aquarium is located in the inner harbour of Baltimore, which is fairly upmarket (the bus driver pointed out some kondos that are at 500 grand and up...). Nice waterfront really, but from what I hear other parts of Baltimore can be pretty rough. The aquarium itself is an interesting building, very modern. It is built out over the water with lots of sharp angles. Almost reminded me of Te Papa in the sense that its not exactly easy on the eye. The exhibits inside however were very much what you'd expect from the national aquarium. Sharks, rays, turtles. They had some very good interpretations and displays, eg one on examples of natural selection. One aspect I enjoyed was that they didnt just focus on the attractive sea specimens (dolphins etc), and included plenty examples of freshwater fish both in the US and in other areas such as the amazon basin (including electric eels!). They exhibits spiraled up through the centre of the building until you reached the roof, which is a conservatory and aviary (with some sloths thrown into the mix), and then you spiraled back down again around the outside of the building, which had some excellent examples of reptiles, poison dart frogs etc. In a separate building there was an Australia exhibit. So all in all it was impressive and I enjoyed it. After lunch we had some time to wander around the waterfront. It was a good day, and now Ive seen all of the big cities in the area (NY, Philly, Baltimore and DC) .
Today was the Christmas field trip. We went down to Baltimore and visited the national aquarium. The aquarium is located in the inner harbour of Baltimore, which is fairly upmarket (the bus driver pointed out some kondos that are at 500 grand and up...). Nice waterfront really, but from what I hear other parts of Baltimore can be pretty rough. The aquarium itself is an interesting building, very modern. It is built out over the water with lots of sharp angles. Almost reminded me of Te Papa in the sense that its not exactly easy on the eye. The exhibits inside however were very much what you'd expect from the national aquarium. Sharks, rays, turtles. They had some very good interpretations and displays, eg one on examples of natural selection. One aspect I enjoyed was that they didnt just focus on the attractive sea specimens (dolphins etc), and included plenty examples of freshwater fish both in the US and in other areas such as the amazon basin (including electric eels!). They exhibits spiraled up through the centre of the building until you reached the roof, which is a conservatory and aviary (with some sloths thrown into the mix), and then you spiraled back down again around the outside of the building, which had some excellent examples of reptiles, poison dart frogs etc. In a separate building there was an Australia exhibit. So all in all it was impressive and I enjoyed it. After lunch we had some time to wander around the waterfront. It was a good day, and now Ive seen all of the big cities in the area (NY, Philly, Baltimore and DC) .
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Scouting
Weather: Clear and cool, High of 420F, low of 29.
In the morning I scouted Juergens houses, G37b and G37c. G37c was fairly clean as it is mostly bulbs (Velthemia etc), but I did find some two spotted spider mites on the Eupatorium. G37b has a lot of the non hardy standards that longwood grows. It had a fair amount of pests over the summer and there was a lot of dead aphids, scales and there combined honeydew and sooty mold. But, the Lantana standards had citrus mealybug, thrips and green looper caterpillers (that were pupating and had already done damage). I also found spider mites and thrips on the Cestrum newellii,on one quite severly.
After scouting me and Carolyn did our project for the hour or so before lunch.
In the morning I scouted Juergens houses, G37b and G37c. G37c was fairly clean as it is mostly bulbs (Velthemia etc), but I did find some two spotted spider mites on the Eupatorium. G37b has a lot of the non hardy standards that longwood grows. It had a fair amount of pests over the summer and there was a lot of dead aphids, scales and there combined honeydew and sooty mold. But, the Lantana standards had citrus mealybug, thrips and green looper caterpillers (that were pupating and had already done damage). I also found spider mites and thrips on the Cestrum newellii,on one quite severly.
After scouting me and Carolyn did our project for the hour or so before lunch.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Weather: Rain! And pretty windy as well.
Carolyn was away sick today. First thing in the morning me and Keely delivered compost tea to Joyce. Keely then had to go to do trailer backing training so I worked on the greenwall beneficials project. Here is an excerpt:
Green wall size: 4072 ft2, 378m2
Expected pests
Spidermites
Aphids
Mealybug
Thrips
Whitefly
Biological controls of:
Spidermites
Neoseiulus californicus (Syn Amblyseius californicus), Cali Predatory Mite.
o Opitmum temperatures 55-105 oF. Goes into diapause in less than 11 hours sunlight.
o Sterling recommends release of 2500-5000 mites per acre at first sign of spidermites. Therefore the rate for the green wall is 233-467 mites. Biobest recommends preventitive 1-2mites /m2 (378-756 mites for the greenwall) every 2-3 weeks.
• Available from Sterling Insectary
The minimum order is 5000 mites @ $65
• Available from Biobest (as Amblyseius californicus)
Available per 2000 mites (nymphs and adults) in 250ml bottle.
• Available from Syngenta
Available per 2000 mites in 100ml bottle.
Galendromus occidentalis, Western Predatory Mite.
o Optimum temperatures 60-120oF. Goes into diapause in less than 11 hours sunlight.
o Sterling recommends Release at 2500-5000 mites per acre at first sign of spidermites. Therefore the rate for the green wall is 233-467 mites.
• Available from Sterling Insectary
The minimum order is 5000 mites @ $65
Thrips
Orius spp, minute pirate bug.
o Do best in temperatures above 59oF and 60% humidity.
o They can be introduced preventatively if a food source (pollen or prey) is present, at a rate of 1-2 per m2. Therefore the amount needed for the greenwall is 378-756 bugs.
Available from Biobest
• Available per 500 or 1000 in a bottle.
Available from Syngenta
Once the project is complete I will upload a copy. Most of the information (for example application rates) is coming from the company websites. biobest, syngenta-bioline, sterling insectary, insectary.com/lw/lacewing, beckerunderwood.com, bioworksinc
In the afternoon Me and Keely made more compost tea, and then finished taking photos of the Poinsettias. For the last hour of the day I did the project and looked up info on several pests in this excellent book (Pests and Disease of herbaceous perennials). I specifically looked up Scale (Coccids) and Mealy (Psuedococcids), as Joyce had stopped by earlier and quizzed me on the three most common mealybugs at Longwood (Longtailed, Citrus and Madeira). Interesting fact of the day. The biological control of Mealy bug Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (Mealy lady bug, Cryptolaemus montrouzieri) is not as effective a preventative control against Longtailed mealybug as against other species. This is due to the fact that unlike other species of mealy, Longtailed Mealy give birth to live young instead of laying eggs. Cryptolaemus requires mealy eggs to prompt it to lay its own eggs, which it lays in a mass of mealy eggs. This therefore means that control of Longtailed Mealy with Cryptolaemus will require subsequent reintroductions.
Carolyn was away sick today. First thing in the morning me and Keely delivered compost tea to Joyce. Keely then had to go to do trailer backing training so I worked on the greenwall beneficials project. Here is an excerpt:
Green wall size: 4072 ft2, 378m2
Expected pests
Spidermites
Aphids
Mealybug
Thrips
Whitefly
Biological controls of:
Spidermites
Neoseiulus californicus (Syn Amblyseius californicus), Cali Predatory Mite.
o Opitmum temperatures 55-105 oF. Goes into diapause in less than 11 hours sunlight.
o Sterling recommends release of 2500-5000 mites per acre at first sign of spidermites. Therefore the rate for the green wall is 233-467 mites. Biobest recommends preventitive 1-2mites /m2 (378-756 mites for the greenwall) every 2-3 weeks.
• Available from Sterling Insectary
The minimum order is 5000 mites @ $65
• Available from Biobest (as Amblyseius californicus)
Available per 2000 mites (nymphs and adults) in 250ml bottle.
• Available from Syngenta
Available per 2000 mites in 100ml bottle.
Galendromus occidentalis, Western Predatory Mite.
o Optimum temperatures 60-120oF. Goes into diapause in less than 11 hours sunlight.
o Sterling recommends Release at 2500-5000 mites per acre at first sign of spidermites. Therefore the rate for the green wall is 233-467 mites.
• Available from Sterling Insectary
The minimum order is 5000 mites @ $65
Thrips
Orius spp, minute pirate bug.
o Do best in temperatures above 59oF and 60% humidity.
o They can be introduced preventatively if a food source (pollen or prey) is present, at a rate of 1-2 per m2. Therefore the amount needed for the greenwall is 378-756 bugs.
Available from Biobest
• Available per 500 or 1000 in a bottle.
Available from Syngenta
Once the project is complete I will upload a copy. Most of the information (for example application rates) is coming from the company websites. biobest, syngenta-bioline, sterling insectary, insectary.com/lw/lacewing, beckerunderwood.com, bioworksinc
In the afternoon Me and Keely made more compost tea, and then finished taking photos of the Poinsettias. For the last hour of the day I did the project and looked up info on several pests in this excellent book (Pests and Disease of herbaceous perennials). I specifically looked up Scale (Coccids) and Mealy (Psuedococcids), as Joyce had stopped by earlier and quizzed me on the three most common mealybugs at Longwood (Longtailed, Citrus and Madeira). Interesting fact of the day. The biological control of Mealy bug Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (Mealy lady bug, Cryptolaemus montrouzieri) is not as effective a preventative control against Longtailed mealybug as against other species. This is due to the fact that unlike other species of mealy, Longtailed Mealy give birth to live young instead of laying eggs. Cryptolaemus requires mealy eggs to prompt it to lay its own eggs, which it lays in a mass of mealy eggs. This therefore means that control of Longtailed Mealy with Cryptolaemus will require subsequent reintroductions.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Christmas changeover day two
So I this morning the main conservatory was looking fairly bare. By the time I left at 6.30 most of the south, west and central passages were planted. In short, today was a lot of planting. Production was constantly bring up plants. The design for this year is a mixture of pinks and whites, silvers with some blue and red. The central walkway is a mixture of a pink Poinsettia, silver Senecio with a pink/white Hippeastrum poking through. There are christmas trees everywhere, the total was 72 for the entire gardens. the biggest are the 32 foot Gardeners tree outside, and the 28 foot trees in the east and main conservatories. Each tree has to be lit and decorated, though each of the main trees have their own teams so I am not involved. I feel like we achieved a lot today. Me and Emma planted a large bulk of the Poinsettias that are being planted on the North and west walkways.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Christmas changeover day one!
Today was the first day of Christmas changeover. Had a nice relaxing Sunday, made some leek and potato soup with David and Amber, ate some delicious pastries... And then at 4.30 went into work... The objective of the Sunday night is to clear and prepare the beds in the main and east conservatories. This involves removing plants that are being saved, and ripping out and composting the rest. All horticulture staff, as well as the director and various office folk helps out with the Sunday night rip out. Which is pretty neat and makes for a fun atmosphere. After a briefing from Karl (mainly on health and safety stuff, wet floors etc) teams everywhere got to it. The perimeter guys were driving pallet movers with big bins for compost and soil, teams were ripping out and separating stakes and cane caps, another team was moving the Christmas tree in the west exhibition hall doors. And then as beds were cleared others were picking up plant debris, tilling, walking beds, raking beds, moving in trees... All in all, organised chaos. It was pretty cool to see it all progress.
For the duration of christmas changeover I am in working in a team with Tim (a PG) and led by Emma (a senior PG). Both awesome people and a lot of fun to work with, it was a good team to end up in. Though of course, whilst in a team it is easy to end up working all over the place. We really just worked where we were needed, but on paper we were responsible for working on the northeast corner of the orangery. For a good quarter of tonight me and Emma drove an electric cart around collected plants that were being saved and moving them to production. And then I ended up at different points of the night planting trees, clearing beds, walking and raking beds... We wound things up at about ten, went home and crashed out.
For the duration of christmas changeover I am in working in a team with Tim (a PG) and led by Emma (a senior PG). Both awesome people and a lot of fun to work with, it was a good team to end up in. Though of course, whilst in a team it is easy to end up working all over the place. We really just worked where we were needed, but on paper we were responsible for working on the northeast corner of the orangery. For a good quarter of tonight me and Emma drove an electric cart around collected plants that were being saved and moving them to production. And then I ended up at different points of the night planting trees, clearing beds, walking and raking beds... We wound things up at about ten, went home and crashed out.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Picking up christmas ornaments and doing Chrysanthemum multiplications
First thing today me, Alan, Sara and Koa went over to the barn to pick up Christmas ornaments. There were 96 boxes, and then some more to pull. Luckily we were able to use the box truck and take it over in a couple of loads. There are masses of christmas ornament in the Barn!
After lunch I did some mum multiplications in the hood. The list of mums required for next years festival has come out, so those that are currently in culture need to be divided and pushed for production. Multiplying is a simple process, just trying to get as many cuttings as possible from the whatever good plant material is in the test tube. The cuttings can be small, down to one node and they will still grow.
After lunch I did some mum multiplications in the hood. The list of mums required for next years festival has come out, so those that are currently in culture need to be divided and pushed for production. Multiplying is a simple process, just trying to get as many cuttings as possible from the whatever good plant material is in the test tube. The cuttings can be small, down to one node and they will still grow.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Finished Christmas boxes!
OK, I realise I havent posted at all this week. But, well, thats because quite simply Ive being doing that same thing every day... Christmas planter boxes.. Yikes. But today by lunchtime we (me and Barritt) finished. It was a big job and It was mostly just me and Barritt. Once the boxes were filled with Douglas fir greenery we filled them in with Juniper branches, yellow Chamaecyparis, Winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) and Red Twig Dogwood (Cornus sericea). They look really good and, dare I say it, festive. We made 106 in total and they will be placed in a various locations around the gardens, with the bulk of them being outside the conservatory.
After lunch Sara and I went over to the Kapf barn to start bringing over Christmas tree ornaments for the trees that Alan will be in charge of. Christmas changeover is this Sunday! Everyone in the gardens is very busy making final preparations.
After lunch Sara and I went over to the Kapf barn to start bringing over Christmas tree ornaments for the trees that Alan will be in charge of. Christmas changeover is this Sunday! Everyone in the gardens is very busy making final preparations.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
More chirstmas boxes...
Weather: Clear and sunny. High of 57oF. Low of 34 ( For those not familiar with Fahrenheit, freezing is 32)
Fairly uneventful day really... Morning, cleaning up in the lab. Washing test tubes etc. The process of washing the test tubes is: First unwrap the parafilm that seals the cap, and use alcohol to get any marker pen off. The tubes then go into the autoclave for ten minutes; not to sterilize but to soften the agar and plant material. After they come out the agar and plant material is emptied and they get loaded in to a dishwasher facing down. When washed they are stored facing down to avoid the accumulation of dust. They're then ready to be filled with agar and sterilised in the autoclave. The most eventful part of the morning was spilling a bucket of half liquid agar. Bah ha ha. Yikes, it was quite a mess but well, the floor needed to be mopped anyway.
In the afternoon we (Barrett, Emily, Kristen and myself) started filling the Christmas planter boxes with Douglas fir (Psuedotsuga sp) branches. To the greenery we will add accents such as red stem dogwood or winterberry holly. Fun really, much like floral arranging (which reminds me I have to sign up for a course...).
Douglas fir seems to be the predominant christmas tree here in the northeast. Funny really, Id always just kinda assumed that the ratty Pinus radiata saplings we use in NZ were the norm.
Fairly uneventful day really... Morning, cleaning up in the lab. Washing test tubes etc. The process of washing the test tubes is: First unwrap the parafilm that seals the cap, and use alcohol to get any marker pen off. The tubes then go into the autoclave for ten minutes; not to sterilize but to soften the agar and plant material. After they come out the agar and plant material is emptied and they get loaded in to a dishwasher facing down. When washed they are stored facing down to avoid the accumulation of dust. They're then ready to be filled with agar and sterilised in the autoclave. The most eventful part of the morning was spilling a bucket of half liquid agar. Bah ha ha. Yikes, it was quite a mess but well, the floor needed to be mopped anyway.
In the afternoon we (Barrett, Emily, Kristen and myself) started filling the Christmas planter boxes with Douglas fir (Psuedotsuga sp) branches. To the greenery we will add accents such as red stem dogwood or winterberry holly. Fun really, much like floral arranging (which reminds me I have to sign up for a course...).
Douglas fir seems to be the predominant christmas tree here in the northeast. Funny really, Id always just kinda assumed that the ratty Pinus radiata saplings we use in NZ were the norm.
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