Another pest warning and Symbol meanings on tags

 

Those are not seashells. Those are snail shells and are a sign that they once were brought in. They are called Decolate Snails and were originally introduced as a control for garden snails. Big problem though, they are omnivorous and only ate juvenile snails and the eggs, when that supply runs out they go vegetarian with a vengeance. So another example of someone thinking they were doing good but may have caused a bigger problem. 

Another 'transplant' from a well meaning gardener. Those are rose cuttings. From rootstock roses that have sprouted in various places around the grounds. Oh and the same person is watering the wild purslane and crabgrass that is coming up in the bed with the mint. Sigh.

 

 

 

Deciphering plant tag symbols (best one I could find)

 

Full sun: (not shown, but would be a full, open sun) This means during the warmest part of the year it should get a minimum of 5 hours direct sunlight. Some plants can survive with as little as 4 but not thrive.Tomatoes need 5+ hours of sun. I managed to grow three plants that only got 3 hours and they grew tall but had few tomatoes. Even some full sun plants suffered a few years ago when we had a sudden 90+ degree heat wave with very low humidity. The shade plants even suffered because it was the extreme HEAT not direct sun that caused issues.

Part sun: (symbol is a half dark and light circle or the quarter circle) Big difference sometimes depending on the plant and time of year. In general I am speaking of peak hot season when the temperatures and exposure would be the greatest. Some people when asked how much sun the area gets where they want to plant, they say 'well.... right now...' or 'I don't know we just moved there'. People people people.... use a compass! Figure out where the sun comes up and goes down. What time of year is the sun going to be at the highest point. Are there trees blocking the area? Goodness I had to ask twenty questions to give an educated suggestion and some people actually got frustrated and complained that I didn't want to help them.

Full shade is under eaves, heavy canopy trees, not direct sun whatever. Indirect light is okay, just no direct sun for any longer than an hour or two. Very few plants can thrive in that kind of condition so you may have to do some hunting. Two that come to mind are ferns and clivia. They thrive in deep shade.

The infographic above is pretty explanatory, all of it is useful information and pretty generic.

Check the tag or info on the plant. In the hot summer places (inland valleys/desert) anything that says part shade means full shade or don't plant it at all.

 

Here's something else that is a buyer beware situation. The difference between a 'local' nursery and a big box store is who determines what they get and when. Local nurseries with have plants and information that is keyed for the area they are being grown in. Big Orange had supplies and plants that may have been grown here but corporate was in the midwest. Subsequently they went according to the planograms of other climate zones. They had geraniums.... of all things,  labeled as annuals. Several times I had to tell customers to ignore the signs and even some of the tags on what it was suppposed to be. 

We got japanese maples and hostas in the fall one year because that was what was at the growers (who were in SoCal but they were going according to what district said to put out). This irked me no end. Signs were hung where the corporate dictated so that stores all looked the same. This is bad. 'Seasonal' had an entirely different meaning for those vendors that followed corporate dication. 

So if you have no other choice, shop there with that in mind, even if it costs less you are getting product for a particular market and not a whole lot of variety. It may cost a little more but shop at a smaller nursery or garden center that is more likely to carry things correctly labeled not only for information but for the area you live in.

 

Rant over.

 

It is warming up here. I went out to dig around in the dirt and see if it needed water, which it didn't but I will be watering tomorrow. General rule of thumb is literally the depth of your thumb or to the middle of your finger. Dig down about two inches, if it's dark and moist, leave it alone. Even new plants don't need water that often. The tomato and pepper are showing no signs whatever of any wilting so I'm wondering what it is with people who say that happens to them. I didn't rip the roots apart, just loosened them a little. Ah, nother topic

 

When transplanting and pulling the plant out of the pot, look to see how wrapped the roots are around the ball. If there is a mass of roots at the bottom, pull them off gently and loosen the roots that are left (depending on the plant of course). Usually that's found in six packs and four inch potted annuals and perennials. My veggies were kind of heavy on the roots in the corners but nothing major, this is a plus for plant survival. 

 

Meanwhile back at the garden, other than the rose cuttings nothing else is going on. I would really like to plant something else, maybe another tomato or oooh, a tomatillo? Radishes? Those may have to wait until fall. Will have to see what I can find locally. Also need some fertilizer...sigh. My favorite fertilizer is not sold locally convenient and nothing smaller than a 5lb bag so will have to go for the organic Dr. Earth that is sold in small pouches. 

Oh yeah. READ THE DIRECTIONS ON THE PACKAGE! Do not assume you know the quantity and timing. Less is more usually, my preferred fertilizer at this point is dry because I don't have to fill up a watering can and mix a full gallon when I only need a half gallon or less. Dry lasts longer as well and the right stuff will help nourish the soil as well as the plant.

All done. Just another picture of the Jacaranda cause it's pretty. Oh and because it is Brazilian it is a soft Jz sound  not h if it were Spanish and not E if it were Greek. Not going to call the botany police on you though.