What Causes Red Fuchsia Leaves?

Just like we humans, fuchsias can also get a bit grumpy and difficult if the weather gets too chilly. Red leaves, as shown on this fuchsia plant, is a sure sign they have caught a chill. It is usually caused by the build-up of the red pigments, anthocyanins, and is especially associated with fabulous autumn colours in certain years (think about acers and ancient oaks).

Although commonly believed to be due to early frosts, this is not in fact the case. Anthocyanins build up in the leaves with an increase of carbohydrates (sugars). This occurs during cold nights and warm sunny days. Carbohydrates produced by photosynthesis in the leaves during the day, are not fully distributed at night because this process slows down due to low temperature. Hence the build-up.

WHERE'S THE CHLOROPHYLL?
The green chlorophyll has not disappeared. It's still there, masked by the anthocyanins. We can show this by boiling the leaf. Because anthocyanins are water soluble they will be removed once the cell walls have been broken down, leaving the chlorophyll pigments, which are lipid (fat) soluble, not water soluble.

This leaf was taken from the plant above, then the left half was boiled for about 30 seconds in a microwave. You can see the red anthocyanins have disappeared, leaving it surprisingly green and normal-looking.

WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT IT?
Unfortunately, the leaves do not behave like traffic lights. They don't turn back to green once warmer weather arrives. However, new green leaves do finally appear and things return to normal.

P.S. Triphyllas also contain anthocyanins.
P.P.S. ON NO ACCOUNT BOIL YOUR PLANTS; THEY WILL NOT RECOVER!

Meet Son Of Turbo Pot Dryer**

Yes. I know it's not much to look at (a bit of an understatement). But don't be deceived by appearances. This could be the best idea I have ever had (what do you mean, 'that figures?').

And before you ask, I'm not talking about the 6.25 cm (2.5 inches) pot made from the base of a 200 ml plastic cup*, ingenious as it is. No. I'm talking about the length of toilet roll, complete with twisted end stuffed down the inside of the pot. Who would believe this could be like 'Manna from Heaven' at the appropriate time (what, you as well?)?

As you know, I'm trying to keep my fuchsias outside, because of the light (it keeps them tight-jointed). But in strong winds the other week, they kept blowing around. So watered the pots to keep on ground. Needles to say, once watered, wind dropped. What to do? This was the result.

Although not shown in the photo (to maintain dignity), the toilet tissue was actually nearly 2 feet (60 cm) long, and dangling in the air. Left in the pot overnight, the compost had miraculously dried next morning. A brilliant wick. Fantastic.

* I made this to fit into the coffee jar propagator. But it's too flimsy and disturbs the roots too much when I pick it up. Not too good in the sun, either!. ** See also 'The Turbo Pot Dryer'

Severed Coriander Root Dying After 29 Days?

Something has happened to the coriander root severed 29 days ago. The severed half seems to be dying.

Sorry about the photo. But the severed base of the old root (red) has suddenly begun to wither at the top. Strangely, it still seems white at the base, presumably where it's attached to the other roots. However, what I don't understand is why the base of the new lateral side shoot (pink), attached to the original intact root, is turning brown at its base. Since it seemed so strong and healthy, I would have expected it to be pristine white.

Seems strange one is withering at base, other at top. i.e. Both are dying in roughly the same part of the cup. Could there be something (perhaps a toxin of some sort) causing this? I don't know. But what I can say is that there's no compost behind the roots in this area, so it might have caused too much desiccation (drying).

However, it's unlikely, since roots do not normally turn brown and begin to die when they reach an air pocket; they just stop growing and hang around in limbo. Mysteries, mysteries.

P.S. Have started another pot of coriander and have cut the roots in several places. Tell you about this later . . ..

P.P.S. Rising temperatures means now watering about every 5 days. Look at how much this watering has stimulated root growth.

Feed Potassium To Avoid Fallen Daffodils

So much for the ericaceous feeding, back in February. It wasn't the wrong time; it was the RIGHT TIME; but unfortunately the WRONG FEED. Daffodils should be fed twice: once in February (in the UK) at the beginning of spring growth to fuel flowering, and again at the end of flowering to feed the bulbs .

Of course, the cause of the problem is TOO MUCH NITROGEN, which gives excess soft growth. It also gives loose bulbs, which can cause problems. Whilst ericaceous feed is not really high in nitrogen, a better feed for spring bulbs is the one I usually use: high potash (potassium) - tomato feed, or 'Phostrogen'. These will harden the stems and tighten the bulbs. Had it not been for the recent strong winds, this problem might never have occurred. But, as is often the case in life, they did - and it did.

Coriander Re-Pot Increases Growth Rate And Leaf Size

The time has come to give the coriander roots more space - time for a re-pot (see last year's post). Although this is not absolutely necessary, a larger root run will vastly increase both growth rate and leaf size. And we need to get a move on now so we can cut the crop before it goes to seed, as it does in early summer. If you want to keep a plant growing, keep the roots growing. Once this stops, growth stops. As you can see, the roots are beginning to fill the pot, so growth will be slowing down. Most growers re-pot in half inch stages, saying this helps fill the pot better. They also use additions to the compost, such as grit or perlite, to help avoid over-watering. I have never done any of this - I have always used plain multi-purpose compost. Provided it is not compressed too much, and provided it is allowed to dry out adequately between waterings, there should be no problems. I am not saying there are no benefits to compost additions - there will be. But growing, to me, is about keeping things simple and cheap. Re-potting can be done as per last year. A frost-free spot in the garden would also be ideal. If you want to cut costs, try mixing about half compost, half garden soil. Because of the severed root, I am not re-potting this pot. The severed root seems to be still alive, and the new root buds formed on the other half are starting to grow.

Moss-Free Spring Lawn After Autumn Treatment

My lawn hasn't looked like this in spring for ages. No moss whatsoever. I'm really pleased. Although I fed it a couple of weeks ago, I have resisted cutting it till now to help root growth. Leaving the grass longer both provides more food for root growth and prevents stress. This last point has been apt this year; things are getting very dry.

Gave it a quick comb with the raker (scarified lightly at half walking pace)
to remove the dead grass. Quite a lot came out but it hardly showed. Great. Autumn moss treatment definitely pays dividends.

P.S. Don't throw your rakings away. They make an excellent soil conditioner and moisture retainer. We shall soon be digging them into the soil.

Geraniums: Removing Unwanted Long Autumn Growth

The geranium cutting you saw last year has produced lots of new short growth (red) over the winter. This is good, since it will lead to a more compact plant. Pity about the autumn long growth (pink) stuck in the middle. Never mind. Splitting this plant into 3 sections (green) will help remove the unwanted growth.

This will leave a compact plant with 3 stems (right). Because this plant now has a basic structure, it can be watered and fed to build it up. It can also be re-potted, soon.

As a bonus, we also have 2 more short-jointed geranium cuttings. I put these into 3 inch square pots of soil to root (square pots cuts down on space). Soil will keep the growth short-jointed whilst we build up the structure of the new plants. I will also keep them on the dry side and will not feed.

Shriveled Stems On Geranium Cuttings

The last batch of geranium cuttings, taken last November, have never done well. It was asking for trouble trying to root them on old ripe wood so late in the year, but I wanted to show that they could make roots.

Things were going fine until the compost dried out, forcing me to water - almost always fatal with geranium cuttings. The first sign of trouble is when the leaves lose their bloom and become dull and lifeless.

Examination of the stem shows that instead of being round and shiny, it is becoming sunken, dull and shrivelled (especially at the base). Some sort of wilt or rot disease has taken hold.

Although I have seen this condition several times, I have never been able to match it with any bacterial or fungal disease illustrated in the text books (not the ones that I have, at least). I don't think its 'Pythium' (blackleg) fungal disease. It might be Xanthomonas 'campestris pv. pelargonii' (bacterial stem rot), but I'm not sure. Although this seems most like it, I don't think so. Both diseases are common on geraniums. There are also several other geranium diseases which I have not yet investigated, such as 'Fusarium cutting rot' or 'Cottony stem rot'.

Anyway, whatever the cause, I sealed the whole lot in a freezer bag after first spraying with bleach, then thew the lot in the bin. On no account should this type of infected compost be allowed to infect garden soil.

Conifer Hedge - Does Potassium Feed Prevent Die-Back?

Normally, at this time, the conifer hedge has several dead patches from the previous year, plus occasional winter damage. Not this year. Although there is slight frost damage, it's still completely free from die-back. Why?

I'm not sure. But I think feeding last year with 'Phostrogen Plant Food', a highish potassium feed (14-10-27), has much to do with it. I think the potassium has hardened the foliage, making it less attractive to insects and fungal disease.

I am still not really sure what causes die-back, even after much research. There seem to be several theories, ranging from suffocation through to disease and aphid attack. The trouble is that by the time the symptoms appear the causal agent is long gone. I currently think it's aphids, since the birds start feeding on the hedge around this time.

I applied the feed with a hosepipe applicator.

TREATING THE DIE-BACK
If you're wondering what the holes are for, they're where I dug out the last lot of die back. I have found that after cutting out the dead tissue back to the stems, re-growth occurs and the holes fill in. However, it's very important not to cut TOO far back. You want to be able to see at least a glimmer of green life.