Narration: Making It Grow is brought to you in part by the South Carolina Department of Agriculture.

Certified South Carolina grown helps consumers identify, find and buy South Carolina products.

McLeod Farms in McBee South Carolina.

This family farm offers seasonal produce, including over 22 varieties of peaches.

Additional funding provided by International Paper and the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation and Farm Bureau insurance.

♪ Amanda: Well, good evening, and welcome to Making It Grow.

We're so glad that you could join us tonight.

I'm Amanda McNulty, a Clemson Extension agent.

And one of the things that's going to be fun tonight, as you're going to see some segments from we had a wonderful, wonderful day visiting down at the Medical University of South Carolina, not because anybody was sick, but just saying how tremendously fun and I'm integrated into being well and giving a healing process to the community.

Their grounds are.

Terasa Lott is the Master Gardener coordinator.

And she is kind enough to put on a second hat and help us out all the time here Making It Grow.

Terasa: Thank you, Amanda.

It's a pleasure to be part of team Making It Grow and also to coordinate the Master Gardener Program.

Our Master Gardeners are a huge resource with their main responsibility helping our local horticulture agents to get that research based information to the hands of people who need it.

Amanda: Thank you, Terasa.

And Phillip Carnley is the horticultural agent at Area fruits and vegetable specialist, I guess for Calhoun and Orangeburg.

Phillip: Orangeburg, Orangeburg and Calhoun counties Correct.

Amanda: okay, well, Orangeburg is bigger.

So you can put them first, although you might get some noses out of joining Calhoun.

And you said that now, farmers everywhere, diversifying some and and is there a reason some doing some row cropping?

And is that just to to kind of not hedge their bets?

Or does it have some properties to help control pest or problems that they may run into?

Phillip: Well, it's it's twofold.

Amanda, it's used for a rotational crop for the row crops so that they can help control disease issues.

And it's also a safe bet that you can make money on the vegetables as well.

Amanda: So by doing that, perhaps they don't have to use quite as many pesticides and things to control diseases.

Because with the heat and humidity here, we do know that that's the problem.

Correct?

Okay.

Laura Lee Rose is down there in Beaufort, that also, you get to go up to that wonderful town of Walterboro.

Sometimes too.

Laura: do I've made a lot of friends in Walterboro and I hope they're watching.

Amanda: And I'll give you a shout out because of the new format that the master gardeners are using, where they still go to locations that are near them.

But one person presents a little Will Lacey came home and said to his mom, we just had the most wonderful person tells us about dirt today.

And I said, Well, he didn't learn to say soil.

And she said, Well, who was it?

He said, Laura Lee Rose.

And of course, we were all friends back in the day.

And I'm glad that we're still friends.

Me too.

Yeah.

And Keith Mearns is the director of grounds at Historic Columbia, and you have a good many properties to keep up and they're different.

So don't just go to one go and see different ones.

But y'all have had some super exciting things happening lately.

Keith: Yeah, some people who know us may lately.

know that the Hampton Preston Mansion site has had the most activity in the recent years.

And we just celebrated the finishing of that site with the opening of a big new glass house.

And the gatehouse, both of which funded generously by the Boyd Foundation, a wonderful, wonderful partner for the city of Columbia.

Amanda: They have Susan Boyd and her late husband, Darnell, she has decided to really support horticulture and other events as well in a very, very generous way.

And your greenhouse.

Fascinatingly, they had a corner of a picture that kind of showed, but about the one that used to be there.

I understand that.

Keith: Yes, we all have a very, very tiny little peek of the original structure.

Amanda: Yeah, but when you go and you're gonna have I believe in their plants that would have been in the greenhouse back in the day.

That's correct.

Keith: Yeah, we have a shortlist of those.

So we'll be displaying some of that.

Amanda: We can't wait to come up and, and film that with you.

It's gonna be a lot of fun.

Well Terasa before we have problems, let's start off with people who are having wonderful, at least spots of the yard that they can share with us the gardens of the week.

Terasa: That sounds like a great idea.

This is like our virtual field trip when we get to see what's going On in your yard gardens, perhaps with indoor plants or even beautiful places that you visited.

So let's take a look.

We begin with Lisa Fullmer who shared creamy yellow snapdragons, which are named for the resemblance of the flowers to the face of a dragon that opens and closes its mouth.

When squeezed.

Keith Hearn shared sunflowers and these are grown for microgreens.

From Edie and Pam Rivers, we have one of their favorite daffodils, a white flowered variety.

Cynthia Lally shared Pearl Bush, a spring flowering deciduous shrub in the rose family.

And we wrap up with Sissy Ziech who was so excited.

She said, It's a dream come true, the first flower on her lemon tree.

So thanks, everyone for sharing and sissy, we hope you'll share a photo of your first lemon once it arrives.

Amanda: I hope she'll get one.

That would be wonderful wouldn't It?

Terasa: That would be.

Amanda: Yeah.

Well, Teresa, thank you so much.

And also thanks to all the people who send pictures.

And I believe sometimes there are other pictures that you have on our Facebook page, because we only have room for so many.

Laura: Indeed, there are the ones that we share is just a random sampling.

So we hope people look at all of them on our Facebook page.

Amanda: Well, we're going to share with you tonight, several segments on snippets of a visit we made to the Medical University of South Carolina.

And we're going to start with the Urban Farm and I'm going to talk with Noni Langford.

♪ I'm talking to Noni Langford, and she is a landscape designer.

And she is on the grounds crew at the Medical University of South Carolina.

And I just can't believe how integrated overall health is here.

Through what y'all do on the grounds, tell us a little bit about how all encompassing it is, Noni: I'm happy to we are that this is the MUSC urban farm, which is a half acre farm and purpose.

And our mission is to connect food to your health and eating healthy.

And so we serve the community we serve students and staff here and patients.

So you don't mean Amanda: you're fixing them food, you're introducing them to these healthy foods.

Exactly.

Noni: We're teaching them how to do it, we get a lot of people sick Wait, I have some students in here who grew up in the city, they'd never seen tomatoes grown on the tomato bush.

So we'd like to enlighten them and get them to be interested in gardening as well as eating healthy.

Amanda: And a lot of that is done just perhaps out means they have haphazardly, but just casually.

People love to come by and talk to you while you're working.

Noni: Exactly they really do is it's a lot of fun.

And then we also have volunteer options for people.

We are doing some construction right now.

So we don't have as many as we normally do.

But by the by the spring, we're going to be back up full steam.

And we will have people come in at they'll sign in and they'll come work with us.

We call it work and learn.

And they can whatever we're harvesting, they can have some to take home with them.

But Amanda: also you have studied diversity and inclusion, and people with disabilities.

And so you're finding ways to let them be a part of things here.

Some of that happens here.

And some of it takes place inside patient facilities.

Noni: Absolutely we are we call it horticultural therapy.

And the purpose of that is to really have people understand how being in nature can make them feel better.

Do you know there's documents and reviews that talk about this.

So we love the idea of letting them have a hands on experience with nature, especially plants.

We love to teach them about plants and teach them how to grow and give them the confidence they need to maybe consider doing this in the future.

Amanda: And you've got some things that y'all just designed.

So people in wheelchairs can get up and you don't have them all stuck off by themselves.

They're integrated where everybody else is.

Noni: Absolutely that and I mean, the entire campus, of course meets the guidelines of the American Disabilities Act, but we want to make our gardens even more comfortable and welcoming for people with mobility or any kind of disability.

Amanda: And you've got a children's going that's got garden going now, and I saw some people over there playing and it's new the dental clinic and so a lot of people come and maybe you'll have some kids with them and now there's something for them to do.

Noni: Imagine how much more relaxed they are when they get in the dental chair if they haven't been able to run it and get some energy out and have some tactile things to do.

Amanda: Do Now some people are inpatients for a variety of reasons.

And you found ways to take programs to them as well.

What are some of the challenges that that presents?

Noni: Well, the number one challenge is safety, obviously, for the patient and for and for us, we want to make sure that there's we're not introducing a problem for them if they are, if a child has his own chemotherapy, there's a big list of things they cannot do.

So and then there's also simple things like peanut allergy, so we don't use peanut butter for bird feeders we use Sun Butter.

From that's made from sunflower seeds.

So that's one minor example.

And you've planned Amanda: programs like for one group, you have young children, middle school, and then older people, and you go in and you got to have something going for all of them.

And I know that you got to keep people busy, or else you're going to lose their attention.

Noni: That's exactly right.

But they're outside and they're happy to be outside.

And it's just, it's really been a great experience for them.

Amanda: Well, it just sounds like the everything on campus supports what y'all do?

Absolutely.

Which I think is remarkable.

Because what's the basis is the best thing is to stay healthy and not have to come to MUSC.

But if you do come how wonderful that you can have programs that encourage ways to improve your health.

Noni: Absolutely.

And it's a it's a large campus.

And of course, we're have satellite campuses now as well.

But this campus is 93 acres, and it is a Arboretum.

We have we it was very hard to get the status of arboretum through trees, USA, and we're very proud that we have it.

And so every tree on the campus is monitored to make sure it's healthy.

We have some fun, tree walking tours where we take people around and show them special trees.

Amanda: What a tremendous resource for Charleston and for the people who are in need of the expert care you get here, but also of people who just need to feel better and have ways to come and have casual conversations, and maybe pick up horticulture as a way of life.

Thank you so much.

Thank you If you find yourself near the Medical University, do get a parking spot and go and visit and stroll the grounds.

It is a remarkable experience.

And the administration really supports all that they're doing to try to integrate, you know being outdoors and all the benefits of that with being healthy.

I think it's tremendous.

Well, did we got a question that we can try to help somebody with Terasa?

Terasa: We sure do.

This question comes from Dia in Conway who's asking for our help.

She said I moved two Hollies last summer that the builder had installed.

Now they look like this.

Can you ID the holly and recommend a treatment?

Amanda: Oh my goodness.

Hmm.

Well, Philip, um, you have had a long horticultural career before you transitioned over to fruits vegetables and all the things that's involved.

Does this ring any bells with you?

Phillip: I believe that it's a Burford, Holly, just based on the picture.

And it showing symptoms of scale, insect damage, and scale can be a little bit tricky.

It likes to have some air movement to help prevent it.

And if it's a bad enough case, insecticides are warranted.

Usually we would use something systemic, imidacloprid, or one of the other neonicotinoid insecticides works very well usually dependent on the species.

Amanda: And remind people that timing is particularly important with those because even though we don't think of Holly's is having a lot of flowers.

The male Hollies really attract bees.

And so you want to be careful because of imidacloprid use systemically can be a problem for some of our pollenators.

Phillip: That is true, Amanda it is transmissible through the flowers and pollen.

So you need to make sure that it is used in a in a manner where the bees are not affected, usually after flower.

And you can also prune out heavily affected areas to reduce that population as well and use an insecticidal soap to smother the scale insects that will also work well.

Amanda: And those can they can get so dense.

And from what I've tried to understand it sounds like that the more air movement, you've got that sometimes that can help as well.

And with camellias I've tried to keep mine limbed up a good bit and they actually are doing better with scale.

Now that I've done that, Phillip: yes, airflow is very important and helps to reduce that population as well as keep the plant healthy.

If you print it properly and promote that good growth that is vigorous, you usually don't have as many issues later down the road.

Amanda: Okay, Laura Lee, did you want it add something to this.

Laura: The only thing that said insecticidal soap, but horticultural oil could be used to judiciously you want to, again read the label because the label is going to tell you how to mix it and when to apply it.

But generally with the horticultural oil, you want to try to do it early in the morning, late in the afternoon, when the temperatures are not excessive.

Oh, because it can damage the plant if it's too can, and you don't want to upset the beneficial insects.

Okay.

And I'd Amanda: like to remind people that they can always call reach out to Clemson Home and Garden Information Center.

And we have very knowledgeable people there who would love to help you with that with your with your questions, Laura: and great fact sheets on the web site as well.

So that it's a wonderful Amanda: resource.

Terasa: Yeah.

And you know, I noticed that she mentioned she transplanted them last summer so I would suspect that the plants were stressed and anytime a plant is stressed that can make it more susceptible to some sort of pests.

Thank Amanda: you.

That's a wonderful, wonderful thing to point out that fall is really the best time to plant but everybody gets excited when they go to the go shopping in the springtime because there's so many beautiful things to do yard.

Well what else have we got Terasa that we can help someone with?

Terasa: Well, let's see if we can help Terry in liberty.

Terry says what is the best rooting powder and way to root plants?

Amanda: Whoa, oh boy.

That's a big area.

Laura Lee, would you like to give maybe some specific?

Laura: Sure I can give you some a couple of pointers.

First of all, there's copious information on timing again, timing is really important when you're taking cuttings or doing any kind of rooting there.

The book that I've always used is the Dirr book.

The woody plants the manual woody plants because he specifically for each genus or even species he'll cover propagation tips.

That's Michael Dirr Michael Dirr manual of woody plants, the but but rooting hormone is going to be found there are liquids there gels and there are powders.

Basically those hormones mimic a naturally occurring hormone.

So there may be times when you can take cuttings and it may be again, dependent on the plant.

You may take do her herbaceous cutting, she may do semi hardwood or hardwood cuttings.

Timing is everything but the rooting hormone some times will help you hedge your bets can be and they they're also they don't have a real long shelf life.

So she's out.

So because their hormones, you should really keep them in a packaged place in a cool dry place.

Amanda: Okay, all right, Laura: don't just leave them in your potting shed.

Amanda: Oh, cause it's gonna get so hot.

I want you they may become so it may be one of those things where you just better off starting over baking powders that way.

And my house with no air conditioning it doesn't last very long.

Okay, well, Keith, I think you've got something that you want to share with us.

Keith: Sure.

Um, an interesting plant here that we use in a couple of places at Historic Columbia.

I'll just place it right there.

This is a small one.

I picked a small one to bring here.

But this is a kind of blueberry Believe it or not?

Well, it does have that and it is in bloom right now.

So a little bit later maybe than some of the other blueberries you have in your yard but this is a species native to the southeast.

I think more so the coastal plain down into Florida.

But it's really a pretty Tuff little plant likes to grow and sort of Sandy Savanna like habitats kind of rough.

But for us it does well is almost any, any place you want to put it as long as it's not sitting in water.

Okay.

Amanda: And what is the name for it?

Keith: So DARROW'S blueberry or Vaccinium darrowii, okay, is the species and this is a selection called roses blush.

The reason it's called that is because especially in the winter, the foliage you can see a little bit left gets a is nice powdery blue color, but it will also get a sort of pink blush color to it with the cold weather.

Amanda: So you don't have to wait for the flowers with the fruit to enjoy it.

Keith: absolutely not no.

And you can eat the fruit.

Now the fruit are tiny, teeny tiny little things.

But somebody is gonna eat birds are gonna get probably before you do, which is another good thing.

Yes is a wonderful wildlife plant.

But also it's something I've never had to spray anything on or do anything to.

But you can use this in a multitude of ways.

You could make a little hedge out of it.

You could use it in a container as sort of a little feature You're in your container there.

But it's a really useful plant in many different respects.

Amanda: And how big is it going to be when it gets to its full size?

So Keith: it's a slower grower.

So I might say in three years, it's gonna put on maybe six or eight inches.

So it's not a lot.

But that that's kind of nice, I think.

Amanda: Well, so you would use that in the front of an area where somebody could appreciate it.

Mm hmm.

Or maybe near an interest or something, Keith: right.

Absolutely needs full sun, the full sun plant?

Yeah.

Well, Amanda: one of the other areas that they specialize in, in the MUSC campus is horticultural therapy.

And I'm going to talk with Sharon Fowler and learn a little bit about that.

♪ People behind me are having a wonderful time and engaging in stress relief, we're going to learn a little bit more about it.

Things that are fine.

I was speaking with Sharon Falah, who's part of the grounds crew at the Medical University of South Carolina, in downtown Charleston.

And Sharon, we got to watch you with some people doing something and it looked like they were having a wonderful time.

But I think there was more reason for it than just having a great time and going home with some beautiful flowers.

Yeah, well, it Sharon: definitely was a good time, I mean, a sunny afternoon doing some flower arranging outside.

And it's one of our practices is to invite people to do flower arranging as it can reduce stress.

Being with plants and the nature shown to improve mood and bringing something like that into your home can just create a more happy, healthy environment.

So we set up some materials, some that were purchased, and some that were forged from around campus.

And they got to enjoy a great practice of self expression and create some beautiful arrangements.

Amanda: And we know that a lot of our healthcare professionals, no matter what department, you're in administration are actually on the floor as a student, and we had people representing all those things.

This has been a stressful time for everybody.

Sharon: Absolutely, yes, with the I mean, the entire population at MUSC has felt the stress as everybody has over the last two years now.

So to have something that's a little out of the ordinary, like stepping outside and creating a flower arrangement, that is an activity that would really focus a person to not think about what they have to do today or later today or next week, or, you know, just really be present in the moment, find a slice of joy.

Amanda: Well, and there was a lot of selection involved, I could see people making decisions about what they like, how to put it together, I think it really takes you into a different place.

And so for a little while, you get that peace of mind and serenity that we Sharon: all need.

Yeah, just peace and stillness.

Amanda: And that fits in with the overall theme before to therapy and inclusion, which is a part of the whole medical universities practicing in philosophy, I believe, Sharon: absolutely.

The Grounds Department, the entire MUSC grounds is an arboretum focused on the idea of of healing through nature and that kind of power.

So as a farm educator at the MUSC urban farm, that's something that I bring to work every day.

Amanda: Well, I think it's wonderful that you have this great campus to collect from I think they enjoyed the found material even more than the things you bought thanks for letting us come and share this their joy today.

Sharon: Thank you so much.

♪ Amanda: People were so relaxed and they so enjoyed being together.

And um, and then they got with a lovely little arrangement to take back to work or to take home.

We I was out looking for a hat and I found that my flowering crab was in flower which was very nice to see.

And I found some I don't know what this little blue bulb is, but it's all over the place.

And it's been there long since before I got there and I've been there a long time.

And then I went out and one of my collards had gone to flower.

So um, so this is a very diverse hat kind of like your work like your growers, right?

Yeah.

It's good to be diverse, isn't that right?

Okay.

Terasa what else can we help somebody with?

Terasa: We have a question from Amy in Orangeburg, Amy asked, I've heard people talk about heirloom tomatoes.

What are heirlooms?

And are there any specific varieties I should try?

Amanda: Well, they are absolutely delicious that often peculiar looking, and um, and, and worth buying, but I've guess you can grow them, somebody grows, some Phillip.

Phillip: Absolutely, you can grow heirlooms, they are a little bit more difficult than some of the newer varieties that have a increased disease resistance package specifically for Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus and a few others.

But you can think of it as an heirloom plant as a vintage, one of a kind that's been bred for flavor and taste.

Not necessarily beauty, not necessarily beauty.

There are several of them, that are a very wrinkled fruit, brandy wine being one of the most common varieties that I have had personal experience with and had very good success with another one being German Johnson.

And it is a what I would call a slicer or semi beefsteak type.

Amanda: Cherokee Purple is one that I like to Phillip: it is a great variety.

And what what I like to get.

It is, it is a great veriety you'll find with these heirloom varieties is some of them the mainly the beefsteaks, they tend to be what's labeled as indeterminant meaning that they will continue to grow for as long as the weather allows.

So you can have a vine that can be 15 to 20 feet worth of vine, where some of the newer ones like I believe, Amelia, or Roma types, they tend to be determinant so they'll greet reaches a set genetic height.

And then they will sit there fruit.

Amanda: Kieth you've got a big garden out towards Winnsboro don't you?

Do you do some of the heirlooms out there?

Keith: Yeah, you know, I, I worked a little bit with my friend Roger Winn in Little Moutain Yeah, for a couple of summers.

And he does a lot of sea growout.

So you do have to treat a lot of the heirlooms a little bit differently.

They were selected usually in other places, but um, I found if you really focus on, obviously good organic matter, and straw mulching, I found is really kind of a wonderful thing to do with some of the heirlooms especially because they're indeterminant and they're going to get tall.

A lot of times what we would do is prune the first couple of leaves and an actual flowers off and then you get straw under there and fluff it fluff that straw around the neck keeps soil from splashing up on the plant, which is one of the main causes of a lot of the disease foliar diseases again.

Amanda: And Roger.

Last year, I was able to get some grafted heirlooms for him.

And I think there's a real movement towards that now.

Keith: There seems to be you know, graft in the top of what you want on a more robust bottom more or less.

So you get kind of the best of both worlds on a tomato plant that way.

Amanda: Yeah.

And if you want a great tomato sandwich, you can't go wrong with an heirloom.

Yeah.

Okay, well, thank you.

What Terasa, what else can we do to help try to help somebody?

Terasa: Linda Joyce from Lake City would like help starting plants from seeds.

She said, This is my first attempt at starting seeds.

Someone said they are leggy.

I have no idea what that is.

Should I go ahead and plant them or start over?

Amanda: Well, I can tell you one thing I'm not leggy.

At least so that that kind of relates to starting transplants.

Laura Lee.

Can you can you help us with this?

Laura: Yes.

Amanda: So leggy in a seedling with mean, Laura: it may it's stretching for light.

So they're, they're trying to get to the light.

So if you're planting seeds, what you want to do is you want to have your light source right on top of your seedlings.

And even hanging on a chain you can use a shop light, you don't have to use fancy grow lights.

But as the plants grow taller, you can raise the light then that way the plants aren't trying to stretch to the sunlight.

Amanda: So that's probably the main thing that people run into.

They're trying to start them inside their windowsill Laura: or something.

It's just the sunlight is not strong and these are some lettuce seeds that I planted about two weeks ago.

I really love the mesclun mix.

So this is these are ready now to go out and to get transplanted into a bigger either into a bigger pot or I'm going to put I'm going to do a whole bunch of window boxes and just have them hanging out everywhere on my railings of my deck and how have lettuce for a couple of months.

And then I might put them around on the shady side.

Okay, Amanda: well thank you so, so really, before you start looking find a way to have a light, come up with some contraption, I have that there from the beginning.

Laura: So and then with any kind of seed starting operation, you want to start with sterile equipment, you want to be sure that your pots are sterile your soil media is sterile.

So don't reuse potting soils, don't reuse potting soil for starting seeds.

Now it's okay.

You know, for other uses, we definitely you know, don't want to throw it in the trash but, but I like to just buy a what they call a seed starting mix a little lighter, so it's real light and, and until you put your dirty hands down in the bag, it's sterile.

So wash your hands wear an apron, there are a lot of ways that we can prevent that disease transmission.

If you're Amanda: If you're saving containers that you've had before, which lots of us do.

You can go in the bathroom and stand in your underpants, underwear and Clorox them yet, because otherwise you can use a trash can.

But every time I try to use the Clorox, I get into my clothes Laura: with Clorox you want to use a 10% It's pretty diluted.

So that's one part of Clorox to nine parts of water.

And, and the way we did it in our propagation classes where we use these great big trash cans, and we washed the pots first if they did have any soil, and then we would dip them and then rinse them.

Okay, the Clorox will dissipate, but you probably want to just to be on the set, especially if you're gonna be Amanda: working around it.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay.

Well, thank you.

And I think I look forward to seeing you this summer and having a great, so I'll give you a couple to start.

Laura: Take home.

Thanks.

Okay.

Amanda: Okay.

Um, Keith, I think you've got something that you're going to tell us about.

Wonderful little blueberry.

Keith: Yeah.

So how about let's talk about this weird, weird guy.

Amanda: Let's talk about it.

But I don't want to touch it because I wouldn't don't want to Keith: touch it.

Yeah.

So this is a plant that I managed to root, we have a larger one, the Hampton Preston Mansion, because we know that this species was present somewhere on the property historically, during our target time periods.

So this was popular back in the day, it was popular among those who could afford it.

And this, this tree is really unique.

It's a conifer, which is a cone bearing trees, like pine trees, and that same sort of umbrella family of plants.

But this is a very, very old species.

Kind of like when people talk about gingko, they talk about living fossils, and this is sort of in that realm.

A lot of people like to call this plant a monkey puzzle tree.

Because it would puzzle, a monkey has had a climb it because it's so sharp, and it is quite sharp.

Amanda: And they are not soft.

Keith>>: So the scientific name is going to be araucaria araucana.

That's which I believe they named that sort of after the region, one of the regions that it comes Well, that was a pretty good defense.

Yeah.

from in Chile, and mountains of Chile, really, so this is a challenge for us to grow.

We have a very different climate, and requires very sharp drainage, which we have done our best to provide and ours is doing okay so far.

But you've got one that said that at the Hampton Preston Mansion, we're actually in there for about five years now.

So it's doing okay, so we have two species.

Now this is araucaria araucana from Chile.

And as it gets bigger, it's gonna branch out and actually eventually have sort of a candelabra shape.

If you can imagine sort of an upside down umbrella really shaped eventually, just to get very old before you see that.

Okay.

But it's a really neat tree, it looks really reptilian.

And one of the things I like to tell people about it as the species is so old, and it really hasn't changed much is that these points, these sharp points are an adaptation against being browsed upon, right by herbivores.

Yeah.

As it turns out, the herbivores this was defending against were dinosaurs.

Wow.

That's how old the species it is.

So there are not a lot of them around the world anymore, but it is really neat plant.

Well that was a pretty good defense against a dinosaur Well, that's great fun.

Thank you so much for sharing that with us.

Well Terasa what's up next?

Terasa: It seems Ashley had some plants that were affected by cold temperatures.

Ashley said some of my plants look terrible after those cold temps back in March.

What should I do?

And when and I'll tell Ashley that I can sympathize because I know I have Distylium all of the new growth just was burnt.

Amanda: So I mean, my azaleas and I've seen dogwoods.

I mean, just everything got hit.

Phillip, I know that you've got fruits and vegetable growers and for the in the small fruits, the strawberries, you know, I mean that that's a lot of money and a lot of business.

Phillip: Those are very high target high value crops and myself and my growers we're at throughout the state in the southeast.

Actually, we're sweating, a little cold snap we had just prior to like Terasa said we had, we'd been in the 80s in Orangeburg, and Calhoun counties.

Amanda: So every everything had gotten ready to flower out everything they had buded Phillip: and was certain things were beyond bloom.

Blueberries in particular, they had already set fruit.

But if you were able to overhead irrigate with water, and create a nice insulation of ice, your blueberries were were saved or insulated enough to where that crop would be salvaged.

Strawberries actually came through the cold, relatively unaffected, thanks to row covers, and the nice stout breeze that we had blowing up until about two to 3 am.

Now why does the breeze help Philip, that breeze will not allow the frost to settle.

Oh, so you may have 18 19 degrees.

But that constant air movement and airflow, make sure that frost doesn't settle on your plants or your row covers.

And the idea Amanda: of using overhead irrigation.

Apparently, it's um, when water freezes, it actually gives off a little bit of heat is that Phillip: that is it's an exothermic reaction.

So now you do have to apply it at the right timing.

So if we're going to be down into the 20's teens or 20's, you want to apply it well above the freezing point at about 38 degrees, because it will create a super cooling effect once you put that water out.

And you will instantly drop five to six degrees.

So you can injure your crop or your plants.

More.

So had you had you not done anything.

Amanda: So for homeowners, maybe I will a row cover or just covering something with a sheet.

Sometimes a row Phillip: cover or a sheet is a fabulous way.

And Keith had mentioned another way where you can stack straw, wheat straw or pine straw around your plants.

And that is a great form of insulation for the homeowner.

Amanda: All right, good.

Thank you so much.

So I'm really hoping that we're going to have some strawberries and blueberries to enjoy.

Alright, so we ended up our wonderful day at MUSC.

Looking at the flower beds and containers, oh, just everywhere you walk, there was color color, and they change it out seasonally.

And so it was with Sarah Petrowski.

We are on the campus of MUSC.

And I'm speaking with Sarah Petrowski, who has a really great job, Sarah, you get to see to it that the landscape beds and these containers always have seasonal color so that y'all are lifting people's spirits and keeping people mentally happy is a large part of health, isn't it?

Sarah: Yes, absolutely.

And that is the goal.

And I'm really grateful that I get to play a part in that.

So we try really hard and I love being able to work for somewhere that you know, prides and then sees it as important because I definitely feel it is Amanda: I think you've got two dozen or so places that you work on.

But tell us some of your favorites.

Sarah: So some of my favorites right now as I do love the, we call it the Greenway, the Medical District, which is actually between MUSC and Roper and but it's an area for people to be able to congregate we have food trucks, events, and lots of flower beds, lots of flower pots, so we try to keep it really lively and happy over there.

Another favorite of mine is actually there's this very long bed at Ashley River Towers.

And I did something kind of different this year than I normally do and I'm loving the results.

And so what fiction is that Amanda: we have to do things differently sometimes so we'll get we'll get stale.

Exactly.

It's Sarah: really nice to be able to push myself outside of my comfort zone and also work with colors that I'm not so used to so honestly I am in love with orange and pink that is that is my go to Color love and add some lime in there.

I am a happy girl.

That's my personal choice.

Amanda: And is there another one that you'd like to tell us it is a favorite Sarah: the other is actually I love I go completely opposite I love pale lavenders with like a pale butter lemon.

And then also like a pale blue very watercolor style on this Monet and that some deep rows to it to give a little bit like contrast.

Amanda: Is there a place where you've used those colors that you could mention?

Sarah: Yeah, so that's actually the Institute of Psychiatry.

I ended up going more and I got My romantic look or I use the roses in the light pinks and blue delphinium.

And I have there's digitalis the foxglove in there.

So that's the other thing when I plant I really like to have the instant impact color at that moment.

But I like to put in stuff that also is gonna surprise you in a month or two.

Right?

And now it keeps a constant evolution.

Amanda: A lot of people walking by these things everyday back and forth on their way to work.

Let's talk about this container.

Are you real picky about potting soils, tell me what you're looking for.

Sarah: I am picky about potting soils.

But at the same time, I will contradict myself because I also like to try new things, okay, so that it can see it especially down here since I'm new to this campus.

The environment here, there's so many microclimate in the wind.

And then the irrigation is all new and different to me.

So when we look around, you'll notice I've used like traditional plants that are hearty, but that's because I'm trying to figure out what the best soil is right now.

So this one we got from a box store, and it's one that I've used before even at my own home, and I've always been happy with it.

Um, Amanda: it was relatively lightweight.

It's not a very heavy soil.

Sarah: It's not a very heavy so but it's also not very peat heavy, which I like because peat tends to get hydrophobic, especially.

Amanda: And it's not, it's not a renewable resource either, it is not a renewable resource.

Sarah: And so this has compost in it.

It's bark, but they're sand.

So this case is a little bit new to me.

Sarah: I've get some plants in.

Yes.

Sarah: So what I'm actually doing in this one is viewing a cluster of this peacock cow like yeah, there were times that kind of reminds us of feathers.

Yeah, we'll just go into I'm actually doing a pretty big cluster of them.

Amanda: five plants.

And I guess you're going to tease the root ball just a little Sarah: bit.

Yes, that's really I liked it or teaser we like call it tickling, yeah, tickling roots.

But honestly, Amanda: that's if something's been somewhat root bound that it's necessary to do that.

So like, we can see here.

This has been in the pot a little while.

So you're gonna tease it apart a little bit to encourage those roots to move outward.

Sarah: You've got to remind them that's not their life, they can go other places.

Amanda: You don't have to stay in your room for your life.

Sarah: Exactly.

You know, the only one that I found that's not a huge fan like plant is not a huge fan of that is snapdragons.

Oh, I learned that from a lady from Ireland is a master Snapdragon grower, and she makes them more susceptible to find top job.

My work.

Yeah.

So I found there like, Amanda: I guess I put one into you trust me.

Okay.

All right.

Sarah: The other thing I like about kale is that you can bury it, and it'll still root.

So that way, kind of cause what I was doing is trying to keep the center one kind of tall.

Okay.

Amanda: Okay, beautiful.

All right.

Let's move on to some color.

Sarah: All right, so this is going to be the name of our color.

And actually, I also can be worried about I love being asymmetrical.

No, it's funny.

I like that too.

Yeah, so this is gonna be kind of Amanda: like one here.

One here.

One here.

Yeah, like to group things like they're grow in a garden.

Sharon: And also I'm going to plant there's already one planter done and we're gonna plant in a mirror image, okay, for the most part, but really, so I have this really great.

This is a bubblegum Petunia.

Yeah.

And it's one of the varieties of petunias that I love so much.

I mean, it blooms all the time.

It'll go probably through most of the summer.

Amanda: Wow, they used to be so finicky about hot weather.

This variety.

Oh, and this one's pretty pot bound so I guess Sharon: Yeah, so this is one is really good and I like to just go around and like quarters and give a little squish on it but not ripping it off.

Like okay people to kind of do break it up a little.

So this is actually going to go so this one can be a trailer I guess that's it.

Yes.

this is gonna trailer um, so as the sum Amanda: is it grows and it's imagined that something that's you know, from a Petunia is Sarah: pretty low.

Yeah.

And so then next to it because this is the other thing that I really find important is because also my other favorite thing in flowers is designing and colors is I am in love with monochromatic Okay, I like pink purple balance, every shade of purple.

Though, you have to make sure that you have like to this Petunia yes is more of a medium size flower.

You have something small like this alyssum next to it.

So that also creates the contrast so they show each other off.

Yes.

And so the trailers and that'll get in and then the other thing that we're working with today that these are kind of our showstopper piece.

Oh, these are the most important.

Um, these are going to be our pansies in violet.

These are just gonna be our fillers we're gonna fill wherever we see a hole, or like, I think some purple should go there.

All right, then we'll do that.

But the other one is, this is a strawberry.

Nisha.

That was just lovely.

Oh, isn't it?

So pretty so.

And we'll do that.

So, and these ones actually, in these are all these have all been sourced locally from a garden center here.

So nice in the Charleston area.

Amanda: Shop locally.

Well, I think I picked up a few tips of the trade.

So let's just keep on working.

And then we'll see how it looks at the end.

How does that sound?

Sarah: I think that sounds lovely.

Amanda: Well, Sarah, we've done a good job getting a knees and our fingernails dirty.

Good for your health.

Of course it is.

And then you're gonna water in now.

Sarah: Yes, and we're gonna start the old fashioned way with watering cans.

So we know again, really nice slow water, every plant gets touched and settled in.

And then we'll come back and listen, drip irrigation, which again, very important, keep it around the edge and then do a spiral in the center.

And then even more fun, though we're talking about is I can now control it from my phone, because we've got a very fancy here.

But it's amazing.

And I'm really excited Amanda: Well, I don't after meeting you and about this.

all the other hard workers here.

I don't think that you're going to be lounging in the lounge chair and doing it from home.

I think you're going to always be all of y'all have done such a tremendous job.

You've had so much fun meeting the crew here and seeing how much you do to contribute to the health and beauty of the city.

Thank you very much.

Sarah: Thank you so much.

It's lovely having you here.

It's been so great.

Amanda: And isn't it cool that they're being water wise, with their irrigation down there at MUSC?

Um, Terasa, have we got another question, Terasa: of course we do.

This one comes in from Alice in Port Royal.

Alice would like to know where could I use native azaleas in my landscape?

Amanda: Oh, wherever you can walk by him and smell them.

Larra Lee.

I think that's something you have in your Laura: home.

Yes, and I brought this native azalea the native Azaleas are going to do very well in underst as understory shrubs, they say they like shade, filtered light, high organic matter.

I just water them to get them established.

And then I pretty much let them go.

Amanda: They don't don't put them in a place where the ground is gonna stay wet no Laura: because they really like well well drained soil.

Amanda: And and you know a lot of people don't understand that.

They it's not one you use as the foundation plant.

Laura: No, my goodness.

This one is taller than I am.

It's probably six feet, eight, seven feet tall and five feet wide.

So it is a she is a beautiful spreader.

And then I've got a Pinkster or one of the pink honeysuckle Azaleas next to it, and it's probably pushing on eight feet tall.

So they and they were both planted.

They've probably been planted 20 years.

I lost the tags.

But I think they're for some of those that Tom Dodd juniors selected down when he was living down in Alabama.

Amanda: Now he lives in South Carolina.

Oh yeah.

His bride is from South Carolina and I'm hoping to see him when I go down to Santee Cooper.

They're having a Garden Festival.

Oh good.

I think we're gonna get to see each other there.

Well, um, they really are beautiful and the smell is it's not overpowering.

It's not like a gardenia or anything.

It's just been is dramatically wonderful.

There Laura: are some that that really have a half fragrance this one was more a little more subtle, but in the in the truck coming up here it was nice and fragrant.

Now there's one I know and downtown Beaufort, I think it's one of the Florida flames at one of the historic gardens there and I promise you can probably see that one from the space station when it blooms.

So beautiful.

so dramatic.

That's really fun.

So it's a wonderful accent plant to answer the question.

It's okay.

Amanda: We'll Kieth did you have something else to share with us Keith: for sure.

Um, this one is something that a lot of people have probably seen and and you'll notice has a little damage on it which is kind of a dovetails with one of our other questions earlier, but um, people call this plant false Holly a lot because sir enough evergreen leaves right looks like a holly but it's actually a Tea Holly it has spines.

It's a tea olive It's a different species than what most people think of is Tea hollies most of the time you have osmanthus fragrans, yes, the great big green leaves that have a little bit of a prickle on them.

But this is osmanthus heterophyllus.

So it's a different species.

Now it does bloom less often than osmanthus fragrance, but it will bloom and, and what it does is quite fragrant.

But this is a plant that I like to promote to people because it's a slow grower.

And if you want some really unique texture and foliage color in your garden is a wonderful substitute for a variegated boxwood, which are, as we know, difficult for us now, yes, and it has a little bit of new growth here but then also some new growth was here.

As you can see inside you know, we got so warm that it came out and and then it got damaged.

But you know, don't worry about that you can actually if you really want to you can come to the next node below that and cut that right off in the plane, I'll be just fine.

Amanda: I really can't don't have time to get it and do that it'll, Keith: if it'll be fine as well.

Okay, so but this is just a wonderful replacement for some of the more difficult to grow maybe more standard landscape plants.

Amanda: Now there's been a lot of research done with tea olives I mean, they used to be the osmanthus fragrans which is the one always got planted too close to the house.

I mean, I have to my Dewalt Saws-All and I mean they can just get huge huge huge huge and um but if there have been some some smaller ones develop that well friendly for more modern yards Keith: You know, I'm not seeing a lot of smaller osmanthus is fragrance but this species yes much smaller is actually one that's not variegated smaller than this called Kaoru he made that the leaves are are actually half the size of these ones, goodness, wonderful little Amanda: plant and um, doesn't have scale problems or anything but you Keith: know, it can happen, but I found it to be uncommon.

Okay, really tough little plant to keep it happy.

Amanda: And you'll help Yeah, Keith: get it established.

Like we all like to say, make it make sure you get it established, and it'll be good to go.

Amanda: Okay, Terasa says we just have a few minutes left, is there something you might be able to help people with?

Laura: I think we might be able to help Mitchell and Hopkins who's interested in fruit.

Mitchell asks our peaches a good choice for the home landscape?

Amanda: Well Phillip after what I've heard that the peach groves have had to do to try to have some features for us this year.

What advice would you give a homeowner?

Phillip: If you're a glutton for punishment, then absolutely.

They tend to be a little bit problematic in the landscape.

Because they take such specialized care.

You have to prune them yearly to produce a good crop as well as maintain a good spray program to keep them fungus free as well as insect free.

Now there I do offer or recommend alternatives to peaches for the homeowner, one being fig, which does phenomenally well in our area, as does the Japanese persimmon.

It's a great one that will give you some fall interest as its fruit ripens in in October in about October time Amanda: Now you're talking probably about the non astringent.

Phillip: There are astringent Japanese non stringent ones but the do recommend those non astringent veriaties.

Amanda: everybody who wants to go apples I just think that the non astringent Japanese persimmon you can eat it when it's crunchy and it just gets sweeter and sweeter.

You don't have to wait until it till it falls off the tree and eat it with the spoon.

Right Phillip: and apples are kin to peaches.

Yeah, definite no go with Cedar apple rust in the chill requirement.

Amanda: Well, and then early.

I've you know, Keith, you was showing us the blueberry.

And I think that's a great demo.

I mean, you might want one that's a little bit larger than this one Keith: here.

If you're going to looking for fruit.

Yeah, there's a lot of selections and I guess maybe aside from the early spring bloom, they're pretty tough.

Phillip: They are a great choice.

Titan is a makes a great big berry about the size of a nickel and you see it in landscape quite frequently as his climax.

Climax tends to be the most popular berry in our area in the Midlands and sub south towards the coast.

And it is a phenomenal variety.

Amanda: and Philip Bruce McLean came on to talk to us while back and explained to us that with blueberries they're early mid season and late and you need to get some that can pollinate each other is that correct?

They self pollinate well Phillip: they do not self pollinate very well so you do need to mix and match your varieties.

So if you have southern highbush which is recommended over the northern highbush it's recommended that you have a pollinator every third or fourth plant that is a rabbiteye.

Amanda: Okay.

And then rabbiteyes in general, I think just fine for our area.

Absolutely Phillip: they they tend to do but the best of the three different types.

And one that everybody knows.

I want to say is, if I'm not mistaken is bright will and I could be wrong that might be a highbush type.

Amanda: Okay.

Well we can always call HGIC or read their factsheets.

Well I want to thank everyone for being with us and I want to thank everyone at home for joining us and good night.

♪ Narration: Making It Grow is brought to you in part by the South Carolina Department of Agriculture.

Certified South Carolina grown helps consumers identify, find and buy South Carolina products.

McLeod Farms in McBee South Carolina.

This family farm offers seasonal produce, including over 22 varieties of peaches.

Additional funding provided by International Paper and the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation and Farm Bureau Insurance