Arid vine maintenance

I returned to the Greenhouse after a 6-week break so that I could do some traveling. I'm grateful to be allowed the time away from the volunteer opportunity at the University's Botanical Greenhouse, which I so much enjoy. Today, I was assigned the task of maintaining the vining plants in the desert room, on the Collection side of the greenhouse.

The vining plants in this room are situated on one of the benches along an internal glass wall. The vines are attached to a number of wooden and metal trellises. Over the past year, the vines have grown and become a bit misshapen. Some of the stems are quite dead, or nearly so. My task was to cut down, prune, and re-string the vines to be ready for the coming growth season.

Here are a few examples:

Xerosicyos danguyi, silver dollar plant

Xerosicyos, or silver dollar plant, is in the cucumber family Cucubitaceae from Madagascar.

Fockea edulis

Fockea is a succulent shrub in the dogbane family Apocynaceae from Africa. It has the nickname 'water root.'

Bowiea, climbing onion

Bowiea volubilis, or climbing onion, is in the asparagus family, Asparagaceae. It is from the desert regions of east and southern Africa.

Adenia glauca

Adenia glauca is in the passionflower family, Passifloraceae, native to southern Africa.

Here is the finished product of my attempt to get the bench ready for the growing season:

Vining and climbing desert plants

Comments

I celebrate learning this about cycad plants

I didn't know that the cardboard palm - Zamia furfuracea - is a cycad. It isn't a palm tree (don't judge me, I'm not a botanist). But it also doesn't look like the other more familiar types of cycads with their fluted upright palm-like fronds. I didn't know it is said to be the second most commonly cultivated cycad, after Cycas revoluta . I didn't know this plant is unrelated to the common ZZ plant - Zamioculcas zamifolia - although they have a similar appearance. Before today I didn't know any of these things, but now I am happy to have learned them. From the parking lot I walked to the U of M Conservatory greenhouse in near-zero F weather. Stepping into the tropical spaces was a joy of its own. But being able to learn new information and experience new procedures was a compounding factor. Joy squared. During my 3-hour volunteer shift, my initial task was to clean the parasite critters (mealybugs and scale) from the stems and leaves of the cycad, Zami...

A Sensitive Plant and Common Weed

Mimosa pudica, also commonly called the sensitive plant was a popular houseplant when I was growing up in the 1970s. It was popular for its ability to quicky change shape by folding up its leaves to protect them from herbivore predators. At the slightest touch the plant is able to expell water from special cells in the leaves, changing the shape from frond-like to a stick-form. The plant creeps along the ground, never for than a foot or so in height. In tropical parts of the world this plant is considered and invasive weed. Today, as I was treating plants to remove pests I happened to touch the leaves of a Mimosa pudica , one with a pretty puff-like flower. Sure enough, the leaves all folded up to almost nothing. Mimosa pudica , the sensitive plant Other more routine chores during my four-hour shift at the U of M Conservatory included cleaning three plants of Hibiscus clayi, native to Hawaii. These three plants in particular have suffered repeated infestations with a variety of in...

A Thames River Walk Through Time: Repurposing Tow Paths

I love it when old technologies are repurposed to solve entirely different problems. A perfect example is the extensive system of canals and tow paths throughout England. Before the Industrial Revolution and the advent of railways, these canals were built to transport goods between cities and towns. Narrow boats pulled by horses or mules along tow paths were a common sight. Today, however, these tow paths have found a new purpose: recreational walking. They offer picturesque routes through the English countryside, allowing people to explore the beauty of the canals and rivers. The commerce that once flowed along these waterways may have shifted to railways, but the paths themselves continue to serve a valuable function. This year, I had the privilege of joining three other hikers on a journey along the River Thames tow path, from the city of Oxford to its source, a distance of about 50 miles. Farther upstream, the river gradually narrowed, eventually transforming into a swollen creek b...

City Gardener

Search This Blog