HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Growing Clematis in pots...
Date: 13 Apr 92 20:22:52 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

fmbutt@mrbt.sw.stratus.com (Farooq Butt) writes:
> Heh, heh, heh, I just blew a large chunk of change on all manner of 
> fun bulbs, rhizomes etc.  My questions for you: I am growing clematis
> via a "rootlet" that I purchased.  What I bought was a 2 inch thin
> piece of what seemed to be live root.  Is this the way this is 
> propagated ? If so, is there any net.advice on what to do if 
> growing in a large pot ? I am growing on a patio, BTW.  Oh yeah, 
> what should I do, come winter ? Dig it up or is it dead in fall ?

You can propagate clematis by seeds, cuttings, divisions or grafting.
Sounds like you got a small division.

Clematis likes (in general), loose, light, loamy soil, with circumneutral
pH.  Mine seem happier in areas where they get a fair amount of water
(the one a little downhill from the hose bibb is the best I've ever
grown!).  You'll need to find out if yours is one that blooms on new
wood or old wood.  If it's on new wood, you'll need to prune it in
the winter, and if not, you'll need to do a milder pruning.

Do you know what kind you bought?

Clematis range in their USDA zone tolerances from 3 to 9.  If you live
outside zone 9, you'll probably have to bring it in in the winter or
sink the pot in a border outdoors.  Many of the Ranunculaceae require
cold treatment to flower; don't know if that's true for Clematis, but
your pot may need to go in the refrigerator in the winter...

> Species on the patio: peas, gladioli, morning glory, clematis, 
> dahlias, dwarf cannas, Thai "Eagle Claw" chili peppers, and 
> of course the Cherimoya tree :-) 

Sounds like a fair amount of biodiversity for one little patio!   8-)

Kay
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Mosquito Plant
Date: 16 Apr 92 15:51:39 -0500
Distribution: usa
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <29EDA7AD.7033@ics.uci.edu>, mnaka@perfect-tommy.ics.uci.edu (Merri L Naka) writes:
> Okay, am I the only clueless one?  What is DEET?

Oops, sorry, Merri.  I forget I'm not in the lab.  DEET is n,n dimethyl-
metatoluamide, the active ingredient in most mosquito and tick repellants
sold in the US.  Cutters and Off! are a couple of common brands.  (Me,
I buy the "jungle juice" that is just DEET in alcohol since I'm allergic to
many masking fragrances they stick in cosmetics.)

I heard that some entomologists in Florida were working on some stronger
repellants, but haven't heard what or where.

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI
From: machanicm@gtephx.UUCP (Mindy Machanic)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Rhaphiolepis indica (Indian Hawthorn) question
Summary: we've got one
Keywords: Indian Hawthorn
Date: 10 Apr 92 16:28:23 GMT
Organization: AG Communication Systems, Phoenix, Arizona

> Rhaphiolepis indica and about all the tag says is medium shrub.  It is
> an evergreen with pretty pink flowers.  What I'm interested in is some
> information on the plant's habit and culture.  Also, soil preference

We've got a white one in our front yard here in Phoenix. We planted it last year,
and it's done a great job of getting fat. They're supposed to get to be about
4-6" tall and around (that's a medium shrub to some people, but it's a pretty big
one to me!) In the spring, it sent out zillions of flowers - quite pretty. After
the flowers, you get these dark blue-black berries, also quite pretty.

We have alkaline soil here, so obviously they'll take that. We added some mulch
(from a bag, mostly shredded bark) but that's all we added to the soil. We fed it
a couple times last year, and made sure it got deep waterings in the summer. And
left it alone. My suspicion is that it will grow anywhere, in any soil. Since I
don't have my Sunset Western Garden book here at work to look it up, I'm just
guessing. 

You'll like it. The leaves are nice, too, when nothing else is happening to it.

Mindy

-- 
*****************************************************************************************
Mindy Machanic  (AG Communication Systems/Quality Engineering, Phoenix, AZ)               
UUCP: ....!{ncar!noao!asuvax | att}!gtephx!machanicm       FAX: (602) 52-7111
Internet: gtephx!machanicm@asuvax.eas.asu.edu              Voice: (602) 582-7374
From: koo@tcville.HAC.COM (Frances Koo)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Gypsum, Sulphur, pH and clay
Keywords: clay soil
Date: 14 Apr 92 15:46:36 GMT
Reply-To: koo@tcville.HAC.COM (Frances Koo)
Followup-To: <10254@inews.intel.com>
Distribution: usa
Organization: Hughes Aircraft Co., El Segundo, CA

> Has anyone here had any luck using sand to loosen clay soil?  
>
> In my experience it tends to make the soil set and harden, not unlike
> concrete.  Might be different with different clays?
> 
> chris

I'm not very experienced (just started this year), but I think I have
your problem -- maybe worse.  I did a soil test and my soil has almost
no nitrogen and a 7.5 pH.  :-(

I added peat moss (it's organic, increases acidity a little, holds
moisture, and allows drainage all at the same time) and perlite, a white
lava rock (to lighten and loosen the soil).  

I think I may add a little Sulphur (for instant results) also when I get
around to doing it.

Keep posting, people!  Many thanks for the info so far!

	Frances (koo@tcville.hac.com)
From: kpv@ulysses.att.com (Phong Vo[dgb])
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: nursery, tree farm recommendations?
Keywords: evergreens, flowering trees
Date: 6 Apr 92 13:39:24 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill

We currently have bare front/back yards that will need
lots of landscaping work. We`ll need just about everything,
trees, foundation plants, groundcovers, etc.
A few people have told me that it is worth it to go south
to Pennsylvania to buy trees and evergreens (we are in north NJ).
Unfortunately, nobody has come up with a name of a place.
Could someone from Pennsy give recommendations for places to go?
If you happen to have price information, that'd be great.
Thanks in advance.

Phong Vo, kpv@ulysses.att.com
From: smay@hpdmd48.boi.hp.com (Scott Smay)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Identify this lawn pest?
Date: 13 Apr 92 16:15:47 GMT
Organization: Hewlett Packard - Boise, ID

We have a weird lawn problem, apparently animal, that we are having trouble
identifying (and fixing).

The symptom is numerous holes, maybe 1" in diameter, spaced from 6" to several
feet apart, frequently connected by grooves where the lawn thatch has been
consumed or otherwise destroyed. There are no mounds as we've had with gophers,
and these holes are neater and smaller than gopher holes. There are perhaps
20 holes each in two separate 10X15 foot areas.

The lawn is adjacent to a golf course, and I did find a  similar patch of holes
about 150 yards from our house on the course.

What are they and what can I do eliminate them and particularly stop them from
spreading. Email preferred, post acceptable. Thanks for any and all help.

cheers,
scott smay
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
From: jcp@islay.dco.dec.com (Jolly C. Pancakes)
Subject: Re: hallucinogenic plants was illegal plants--lobelia
Organization: Electric Otter Eel Emporium
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1992 17:36:42 GMT

In article <1992Apr9.152438.7929@HQ.Ileaf.COM> bcking@HQ.Ileaf.COM (Christine King x4426) writes:
>One day I noticed a stunted plant growing there.  "Jesus!", sez I as
>I drove by, "That's Datura!"  Sure enough, those leaves, that flower
>bud.  Daily I stopped at the traffic light next to it, gazed at it.
>It exerted a strange fascination as its beautiful flower unfolded...
>it was evil, deadly, maddening, enlightening, hypnotic, primal.  It spoke
>of Arizona, Carlos Castaneda, O'Keeffe .  Part of its charm was that I
>was sure it was completely unnoticed by everyone else.


	This is what happens when people spend too much time in cities
and suburbs.

	Growing up on the family farm in prosaic old Delaware, we had
jimsonweed (Datura stamonium) all over the place. It was called locoweed
because of the unfortunate and sometimes fatal effects it had on cows.
It was very hard to eradicate, both because it was deeply rooted, but
also because one had to wear very thick gloves to handle it - the
alkaloids are absorbed directly through the skin. We were taught as
children never even to touch it with our bare hands.

	When I discovered that some people grew it in gardens,
intentional, I was flabbergasted. It would be like growing ragweed, you
know? (Of course, I know someone who grows pokeweed as an ornamental,
too - no accounting for tastes.)

-- 
jcpatilla						jcp@decuac.dec.com

Do your otters dance the morris? Do they shake their bells and bows?
Do they love that fiddle music? Do they leap and kick their toes?
From: darkstar@u.washington.edu (Alden Hackmann)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: city composting sites
Date: 7 Apr 92 18:59:34 GMT
Organization: University of Washington

Ecology Center Fund <ecologycntr@igc.org> writes
> 
> The guy didn't know what he was talking about, but it's not his fault,  
really.
> Though its true that many garden chemicals will break down in a hot compost
> pile, the question is, what do they break down INTO?  In general, only the
> chemicals' manufacturers know even the littlest bit about potential breakdown 
> products of most commercial pesticides, and they aren't telling.
> 
> Much as I admire Kay Kliers wealth of knowledge, for instance, I don't
> share her acceptance of glyphosate (Roundup) primarily for this reason.  Its
> sold as a product that "breaks down on contact with soil", but i have never,
> in a decade of trying, found any info on its breakdown products in soil and
> their potential effects. 

Should have looked in the Merck Index:  (I have the 10th ed., 1983.  I believe  
there is a more recent edition out.)  It says, reprinted without permission: 

Glyphosate.  N-(Phosphonomethyl)glycine; 
<some nifty stuff here on its formula, preparation and patent numbers> 
Metabolism and degradation in soil and water: M.L. Rueppel et al, J. Agr. Food  
Chem 25, 517 (1977)

The bottom line is that it's a glycine (which is an amino acid) with a little  
phosphate group attached at the side.  If anybody feels like looking up the  
Rueppel article to tell us what happens to it later, I'd like to hear about it.  


--

Alden F.M. Hackmann                             University of Washington
darkstar@u.washington.edu                       Department of Pathology

"You can know, even for a moment, that it's your turn, 
 that you can walk with the power of a thousand generations"  - Bruce Cockburn
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
From: dadams@cherry.cray.com (David Adams)
Subject: illegal plants--lobelia
Originator: dadams@cherry
Organization: Cray Research, Inc.
Date: 6 Apr 92 14:53:06 CDT


Recently we had a discussion about listing plants
that were illegal.

Two days ago I heard that lobelia (Indian tobacco,
pukeweed) was illegal, or at least that it could
not be sold as an herb.  Does anyone know 
anything more about it?  Do any catalogs
sell seeds for it?  I know a lot of herby people
swear by it as a cure for asthma, coughs etc.  
The "Readers Digest Book of Herbs" indicated that 
pharmapsudical (sp?) companies obtain lobeline, used 
in cough medicines, from lobelia.

Does anyone know why it might be illegal?  How 
poisionous is the stuff?  Is it really worse than 
alot of other weeds like nightshade?  Is nightshade 
illegal?  I found jimsonweed growing by my garage when 
I moved in.  That is supposed to be pretty poisionous. 

-david adams      dadams@cray.com
_______________________________________________________________________
member--Minnesotans for Global Warming.

Newsgroups: rec.gardens
From: SUSAN.A..BOHN@OFFICE.WANG.COM (Susan Bohn)
Subject: push mowers
Organization: Mail to News Gateway
Date: 06 Apr 92 10:14:56 EST

PLEASE in this very interesting and helpful lawnmower thread, can people start
specifying brand names of the push mowers under discussion?  Good ones as well
as bad.  My father used a push mower for years, and I used to love the sound
of it slicing through the grass - rhythmic, soothing, summery.  Of course, I
wasn't the one doing the pushing!

Susan
From: djd@cbnewsg.cb.att.com (david.j.daulton)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: glyphosate and composting
Date: 9 Apr 92 13:41:48 GMT
Article-I.D.: cbfsb.1992Apr9.134148.15232
Organization: AT&T

Last year  our environmental club here at AT&T Columbus brought in a
speaker to talk about the blue bird paths he maintains in central Ohio.
He carefully monitors his paths, and he said that after years of monitoring
he can pretty much tell you what local farmers are spraying on their fields
by observing bird mortality.  Some cause eggs not to hatch, some kill
hatchlings in the first week etc.  Among the treatments that kill hatchlings,
he listed Roundup.  That surprised me, since I thought it was well tested.
This guy was no "environmental extremist" and had no ax to grind.  The more
I learn about herbacides and pesticides, the less I like them.

Dave Daulton, AT&T, Columbus, Ohio (Site of AmeriFlora '92)
From: margo@crash.Prime.COM (Margo Roy)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Red Osier Dogwood
Date: 6 Apr 92 13:37:27 GMT
Article-I.D.: crash.1992Apr6.093727
Organization: Prime Computer R&D

I recently bought some Red Osier Dogwoods and was wondering how far apart to
plant them.  I'm planning on using them as a screen between my yard and the road.

Thanks,
	Margo
From: machanicm@gtephx.UUCP (Mindy Machanic)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Compost Contents
Summary: about that lint...
Keywords: compost, lint
Date: 7 Apr 92 16:28:13 GMT
Organization: AG Communication Systems, Phoenix, Arizona

In article <31417@sdcc12.ucsd.edu>, cs173sbj@sdcc5.ucsd.edu (Sean Maschue) writes:
> 
> 
> About what goes into a compost pile: Dryer Lint.  Should this stuff
> just be thrown out?  Does it damage a compost pile or can this add

> opinions of where lint belongs?
> 
According to somebody in "Hints from Heloise" or one of those kind of columns
in the paper this past week, the little birdies love dryer lint to line their
nests with. I don't know about in compost piles, but I got some dryer lint and
pulled it into smallish pieces and put them around the yard and on the fence.
I thought the birds would get spoiled by the softness of the lining and would
probably want a constant supply, so I plan on putting it out for them every
once in a while. The column also said they like cat hair in clumps for their
nests. My cats leave clumps of fur around attached to the thorny things in
the yard they insist on crawling under, and it generally disappears after a
while, so maybe the birds do take it away...

-- 
--Mindy in Phoenix            
******************************************************************************************
Mindy Machanic
AG Communication Systems/Quality Engineering               
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
From: GC.SUL@forsythe.stanford.edu (Sullivan)
Subject: applying Roundup
Organization: Stanford University, California, USA
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1992 16:21:00 GMT

Last year I gave up on digging up Bermuda grass and decided to just
nuke it with round-up.  My method of application is to dilute it in
a large 5 gal bucket, and apply with a cotton rag mop.  This way
you don't have to worry about apray drift on other plants, or spray
residue in the air you are breathing.  The mop method also works
well on poison oak.  You can drench the foliage without getting too
close to it!

Karen
From: cs173sbj@sdcc5.ucsd.edu (Sean Maschue)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Compost Contents
Keywords: compost, lint
Date: 7 Apr 92 06:28:36 GMT



About what goes into a compost pile: Dryer Lint.  Should this stuff
just be thrown out?  Does it damage a compost pile or can this add
something...contribute anything to healthy compost piles?  Does
anyone pust this fluff in their piles, or does anyone have their own
opinions of where lint belongs?

Thanks.
-- 
sean maschue <smaschue@ucsd.edu>
university of california at san diego
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
From: kevinf@ecs.comm.mot.com (DX531 Kevin Fluharty)
Subject: My Son the Squid
Organization: secure_comm
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 18:14:31 GMT

I recently purchased a weeping hose for my flower garden.  The 
package claims it can also be used to water vegetable gardens.  That
*implies* that it's safe to use this on vegetables.  But is it
really?  The hose, I believe the brand name is Moisture Master,
is made from recycled tires that are somehow bonded to polyethelene,
if memeory serves me.  I know polyethelene is safe, but I have
no desire to go chow down on some used tires--- come to think of it,
I have no desire to ingest NEW tires either.  

My question is, "Is there any danger of any nasties leaching out of
the tire compounds?"  If so, I'll use the weeper on my flowers, 
and continue to water my vegetables the old fashioned way,
since I don't want my future offspring looking like squids.

What caused me to think about this was the claim on some garden hoses,
"drinking water safe".  Gee, if I can't drink from a  hose, should I
water something that I plan on eatting?  I just wonder how much 
research has been done on this matter...breasts implants were once
touted as being safe, now we find that little research was done before
they were released.
 
Thanks for any thoughts on this matter.

Kevin Fluharty
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: HELP SOUGHT FROM OWNERS OF MID-LARGE GREENHOUSES - BUG INFESTATION!
Date: 9 Apr 92 19:21:45 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

Several years ago, I heard of a consortium of university greenhouses
that was forming.  The consortium was to try to figure out how to
use biological controls and very low toxicity pesticides (like 
pyrethrins) for managing mixed greenhouses.   Since I was a grad
student at the time, I (of course) didn't pay much attention.

My recollection is that the organizers were at one of the 
Illinois state universities -- Carbondale, Urbana or DeKalb,
most likely.  I'd love to get in touch with these folks.  Anyone
know anything more???

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Methyl bromide fumigation (was nematodes)
Date: 12 Apr 92 16:51:06 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

ja@gnv.ifas.ufl.edu writes:
> I'm not sure what's on the market for homeowner use, a widely used
> agricultural fumagant for nemetodes (and other things) is methyl bromide.  This
> is similar to CFCs (it's a halinated hydrcarbon) and can potentially damage the
> ozone layer.  

Dunno about the ozonolytic effects of MeBr (but I think it requires 
fluorinated hydrocarbons), but Methyl Bromide is VERY toxic to most (?)
all (?) forms of life.  It is occasionally used for fumigating museums,
herbaria, ag produce, libraries, etc., but I sure hope that it isn't
available for the average homeowner.  Too d**n toxic.

A couple of years ago, a restaurant was fumigated overnight with MeBr,
and they forgot to tell the morning manager, who had been gone for a 
few days (vacation or illness, I forget which).  Anyhow, the manager
beat the pest control guys to the restaurant the following morning, and
was found dead about 6ft into the building -- he'd let himself in with
his keys.  The pest control company had not put a fumigation sign on
the back door.

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI
From: dplatt@ntg.com (Dave Platt)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: Who says there are no frost resistant chiles?
Date: 16 Apr 92 19:08:21 GMT
Organization: New Technologies Group, Inc.  Palo Alto CA

In article <10400@inews.intel.com> pharvey@mipos3.intel.com (Paul Harvey) writes:

>Capsicum pubescens
>  chile manzano rojo y amarillo, (red and yellow apple chiles), rocoto  (~28oF?)

>[Temperatures are from my own limited experience in N.Calif. Is anyone
>else growing these? They come from the high tropics, (exc arbol) near 
>the tierra frio zones or places of nightly frosts. That is why they have 
>some frost tolerance]

I've been raising the manzano amarillo for several years ('89 and '90,
and now again this year).  Mountain View frosts were too much for the
one I grew in '89, even with a cover over the plant on the coldest
nights... and the "Arctic express" freeze we had in December '90 wiped
out the one I grew that year, even inside a small sealed mini-greenhouse.
I may rig up an outdoor heating-cable to keep my greenhouse up above
frost temperatures, next winter... I'd love to carry a manzano over into
a second year.

It's possible to get the manzano amarillo to bloom and bear fruit in one
year (I failed in '89, succeeded in '90).  Hints: start them indoors
EARLY to give them a long season (I started seeds on 2/15/92, and now
two months later the seedlings are less than 1" high), plant them on the
east side of a building so they get only a half-day of direct sun
(Hudson's suggestion... many of his Zapotec seeds seem to prefer
short-day conditions), hand-pollenate the flowers with a small
soft-bristle brush, and give them sufficient water (unlike most chiles
they prefer a good deal of moisture).

Hottest chiles I've ever raised.  I've found it necessary to wear
disposable plastic gloves when chopping and de-seeding them... and even
so, a tiny big of juice got through a hole in one glove, and the back of
my right hand felt as if it were glowing for an hour afterwards.

>Seed Source:
>J.L. Hudson, Seedsman, po box 1058, redwood city, ca, 94064, CAT $1

Great folks to deal with.
-- 
Dave Platt                                                VOICE: (415) 813-8917
              Domain: dplatt@ntg.com      UUCP: ...netcomsv!ntg!dplatt
 USNAIL: New Technologies Group Inc. 2468 Embarcardero Way, Palo Alto CA 94303
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Re: sheep
Date: 12 Apr 92 17:46:46 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

dwhitney@hamp.hampshire.edu writes:
> For lawns sheep would be the ticket--witness all the cemetaries in rural 
> areas that have a type of--stile I guess you'd call it.  The sheep could be
> turned in to graze down the grass and people could walk up a few steps and
> down a few to visit the dead without letting the animals out!-- 

Sheep have the unfortunate ability to eat plants right down to ground level,
and even tear up the roots.  I think I'd prefer horses or cattle.
But I'm basically a prairie pyro at heart...

When I was in Britain with a couple of other botanists, we noticed that
a lot of the pasturage was in pretty poor shape by North American standards
(abysmal shape when compared to what should have been growing there)--
and it seemed to be mainly due to overgrazing by sheep.  The Nature
Conservancy had built a series of "sheep exclosures" on a preserve
area in Wales, to see if the poor habitat in one of their bird breeding
areas was due to "oversheepage".  Only problem was, the sheep just
climbed over the pens to get the taller plants.

After awhile, we started describing densities of sheep in the terms as
we had used when we were hospital lab techs looking for white blood
cells indicating infection in urinalysis specimens -- "Full field sheep!"

I also began to understand why my old major prof, a grass specialist who
began his career on the King Ranch in Texas, refused to call them
sheep.  They were always, "wooly, maggotty, snotty-nosed, money-making
SOB's".  Said _very_ fast.  Even in college lectures...

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI