"Cold is the ogre which drives all beautiful things into hiding. Below the surface of a frost-bound garden there lurk hidden bulbs which are only biding their time to burst forth in a riot of laughing colour (unless the gardener has planted them upside down), but shivering Nature dare not put forth her flowers till the ogre has gone," wrote P. G. Wodehouse as far back as 1915 in his novel Something Fresh.
Diversion No. 1
Citizen scientists are being sought to carry out the first survey of slugs in decades will look at the 40 or more species thought to be living in Britain. The year-long research project is being conducted by the Royal Horticultural Society and Newcastle University, explained BBC Science.
For millennia, few composts have been judged better than those of cattle when it comes to soil improvement. Today, the routine use of antibiotics on commercial livestock raises the question of how safe are such bovine byproducts? Scientists found multiple effects on soil from manure from cows administered antibiotics, researchers reported late last year in the journal Ecology Letters. They identified alteration of soil microbiome and ecosystem functions, soil respiration and elemental cycling. Given that it is known that vegetable crops can absorb and concentrate soil pollutants, as noted in the journal Science, perhaps a little caution at least around the home veggie patch is called for.
Diversion No. 2
Hi, I'm Hannah, she announced to Bored Panda. I'm a one-woman ceramic business that focuses on handmade planters that feature witty and sassy sayings. I call them Pun Pots . . . Plantastic; Crazy Plant Guy; Fronds With Benefits; You Make Me Wanna Sprout; Botany Any Plants Lately?; I'm Sexy and Grow It; You Prickle My Fancy; Cactus Makes Perfect; You Grow Girl.
Eight to twelve weeks before the last frost and the soil warms, and its time to seed those special varieties of tomatoes, peppers and eggplant missing from store racks. Not from those of online mail order seed companies though. Fill 4-inch (10cm) plastic pots with light potting soil and press in three seeds per pot. Keep evenly moist, not wet, in bright light but not direct sunlight until ready to plant out in May or early June, depending on weather. This is usually a week or so after the lilacs reache full bloom.
Diversion No. 3
The passage of time holds few changes for the Gingko biloba trees, commonly known as the maidenhair. Through tens of millions of years and mass extinctions, the "botanical oddity" has stood unwavering, an ever-fixed "living fossil," as the world ages around it, writes Carly Cassella, ScienceAlert. The species is practically immortal – and that's not an exaggeration. As it turns out, individual trees can live over 1,000 years (some accounts suggest 3,000 even), and now, the most detailed study to date suggests their lifespan is theoretically unlimited. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Asks the Toronto Star, would you pay $3,000 for a houseplant? The newspaper explains 'why Monstera collectors are investing in these delicate darlings of Instagram.' Perhaps, but if so Monstera deliciosa is making yet another bid at popularity. As an indoor plant, it has been appreciated for over a century. The so-called Split-Leaf Philodendron – although a vigorous vine, it is not botanically assigned to those equally popular Araceae – originally from the Yucatan peninsular, has resulted in about twenty relatives accepted for indoor decor. Aficionados might live to regret their choice of an office or house mate. In order to support vigorous, heavy growth, it produces strong, rope-like adventitious roots. These fasten on wood, plaster or other surfaces, to their detriment. Consider yourself warned.
Diversion No. 4
Allowing the carcasses of dead deer to remain in the Oostvaarderplassen nature reserve has a positive effect on biodiversity in the area. In the short-term carcasses attract many more insects and other arthropods. In the long term, plant growth increases. Plants located near animal carcasses became five times bigger than usual, leading to a surge in the number of plant-eating invertebrates on the plants and, therefore, also in the number of their predators, scientists reported in PLOS ONE. Neighbours might complain if tried in the home garden.
There cannot be a gardener who has not encountered a millipede. There are at least 12,000 species of these largely harmless arthropods. At least most of them – The giant African millipede exceeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) in length and whose exudations can be painful. One thing has long remained a scientific blank: their sex life. When it comes to mating, almost all millipedes have remained a mystery. Now, researchers have revealed in the journal Arthropod Structure and Development how these creatures' complex genitalia work, thanks to new imaging techniques and blacklights that make the different tissues glow. One can only imagine what the numerous porn providers will make of the news. Incidentally, despite the reference, millipedes do not have a thousand feet. The record for a species is 750 legs.
Wes Porter is a horticultural consultant and writer based in Toronto. Wes has over 40 years of experience in both temperate and tropical horticulture from three continents.
