RANDY JOHNSON ORGANICS

Native milkweed...... a few things to consider.

The article in yesterday's Dallas Morning News has created a lot of buzz about native milkweed and the need to install those species instead of the Mexican variety. The information is valid but the heightened frenzy to locate and install native species of milkweed immediately is overblown and here's why.....

Remember this first, there are always exceptions in Nature, nothing is standard but in-general, here are how things work:   The use of milkweed by Monarch butterflies is largely a spring/early summer event. The suitability of the plant to support egg laying is restricted to the early part of this plants life cycle, after they have flowered and cast seed the plants generally wither and go dormant in our summer heat;  this usually occurs around mid-June to early July depending on our weather.  By that time of year the vast majority of Monarch butterflies have continued their migration north, you do see some Monarch's locally and will often see them off and on throughout the summer but these represent a very small number of butterflies. When the southern migration begins milkweed is mostly not available (the plants are underground, dormant) or are in a condition not suitable for oviposition (old and tough). We do see a few individual plants that push new growth after we get cool nights and fall rains but the number of plants that do this is extremely small. Monarch butterflies that encounter native milkweed with new growth in the fall will probably lay eggs on those plants but the numbers are so small that it has no real effect on butterfly populations, that activity does not affect the reproductive dynamic of this species. So, what about getting native milkweed and installing it at this time of year.....

I wouldn't do it right now.  I'd wait until fall to purchase and install native milkweed because the need to have it available for Monarch butterflies has largely passed for this year. It's a full-sun species and planting as we are about to get hot is not the best strategy around here, best to wait until fall. Fall plantings are less stressed and will quickly go to sleep until spring and that is when Monarch's need them. Installed in the fall, the plants will grow roots all winter, establishing them prior to next seasons stresses. The plants will come out of dormancy next spring and will be available for female butterflies carrying eggs...... make sense? You need Asclepias in your landscape, it serves many more species than Monarch butterflies but the impetus to find, purchase and install it at this time is unfounded. Relax. Don't stress over this issue, my suggestion is to wait.... but if you can't or do not want to wait I will have milkweed available sometime in June, check with me at organicrandy@gmail.com. I hope this info helps, take care.....

'Yellow is the new Blue'

That is not a quote from Coco Chanel but a statement from our environment......

I was contacted last week by a reporter to comment on what I knew about "bastard cabbage" and the next day, on the Channel 8 news, a story ran about this plant and the fact that is is apparently displacing our beloved Bluebonnets.  There is no apparently to it, this is happening......

Non-native, invasive species are wreaking havoc on natural areas and native habitats all over the world and Texas is no exception.  Bastard cabbage, Rapistrum rugosum, is a Eurasian annual seen along most highways in abundance right now, often growing in the middle of a stand of Bluebonnets and it is a pretty combination for sure but that beauty belies something sinister:  This plant is extremely aggressive and out-competes our native species, Bluebonnets included.  The co-evolution of leaf chemistry and leaf-eating insects is an important one when considering population control.  If something eats you, your population can be controlled and if nothing eats you, you can pretty much procreate at-will.  Insects co-evolved with plants for many reasons and one of them is the chemicals that are found in plants, in many cases certain insect species cannot live without obtaining certain chemical via ingesting plant material;  the Monarch butterfly is a great example of this relationship.  Our insects did not co-evolve with Rapistrum and this plant is not eaten to the extent that it's population can be naturally controlled so, it quickly becomes one of if not the dominant species on any site that it occupies.  One of the reasons it is so successful, besides the fact that nothing eats it, is that it is Eurasian and it co-evolved with the European honeybee (yes, the one we have here that everyone is so worried about).  Because it co-evolved with Rapistrum it is super-efficient at pollinating this plant and there is a large crop of seeds which increases the number of individual plants which then produce many more seeds.... this is cyclic.  It only gets worse over time.  So, the color yellow will soon be the new spring wildflower instead of our blue Bonnets and the generational tradition of 'Baby in Bluebonnets' photography will be a thing of the past.  This story is being repeated all over with many different non-native species...... the scariest thing to me is KR bluestem, I will have a piece on that grass very soon, it is a true beast.

What can you do?  Be responsible with your plant choices.  Choose native species, those that occur in your region and if you do utilize non-natives make certain that they do not naturalize, that they cannot naturally reproduce on their own....... I am not afraid of a Peony invasion.

Transitioning crops in the vegetable garden........

      Nature is naturally transitional, easing into each new condition as time and the seasons pass, your vegetable garden should mimic this rhythm.   I am seeing a lot of gardeners changing the species in their plots down at the community garden of which I am a member and a common pattern emerges.  They usually rip-out the entire plant in order to create a 'clean slate' in which to install their new, warm-season varieties and this in no way mimics Nature nor is it healthy to an organic garden ecosystem...... that's the key word right there: 'ecosystem'.   A vegetable garden is nothing more than creating habitat for insects using primarily food crops, think of it this way and it will become clear that 'clear-cutting' your garden every time the seasons change is not the way to go.
     One lady had an absolutely gorgeous stand of bolting broccoli and Arugula in her plot,  the plants were loaded with aphids and the associated myriad species of beneficial insects, numerous genera of pollinators swarmed the blossoms and tons of biomass in the form of roots which will enrich the soil after the plants are 'crowned'.   'Crowning' is a term (I think I just created) and it refers to the practice of  cutting a plant off below it's point of above ground growth leaving the root system in-place.  These roots will be consumed by the resident soil biology and soil structure will be enhanced as their 'shadow spaces' become conduits for movement of everything from the biology to water and air.  Valuable stuff.
    So, what to do.  If I were her I would have selectively removed some plants to create a mosaic pattern and then installed SOME of my summer crops.  As these mature and start to flower they create the habitat for pollinators and beneficials, they take-on the role of the fading species.   As her winter crops continue to fade she can collect the seed and then crown them and install her remaining summer stuff;   transition in this manner at every seasonal change.   This way your garden is never without something blooming or mature structure for the native fauna.  Install the new plants as close to the 'crowned' plants as possible and when the biology finishes consuming that old root system they will naturally migrate to the newly installed plants roots.  Living plants attract soil biology to the rhizosphere, the root zone, the area of nutrient uptake with root exudates.  These exudates are composed of carbs and proteins and are a major by-product of photosynthesis, soil biology chow.  They eat it and poop and the plants 'eat' the poop.  Poop is good stuff,  soil biology poop is the best poop on Earth.
    A clean and tidy garden, neat rows spaced evenly apart rarely provide the quality habitat that a natural, 'messy' garden does.  Throw-in some herbs and even flowers to create diversity, after all, vegetable species are for the most part simply annuals that produce big, tasty fruit.  This is just a mechanism for seed dispersal, a way to distribute genetics and increase range.   Another good idea is to plant several varieties of the same species, this way you can see what produces best for your soil and climate types.
    Be conservative and deliberate as you transition your garden and I think you will work less and produce more and I know your garden fauna will be much happier..........

Beware: The 'Green Industry' is after your green........

     With the advent of the organic movement came 'product'.   When I am out on a prairie or in a forest, any wild area really I often shake my head at what is offered as 'vital' to maintaining a healthy landscape.  Just south of downtown Dallas is the largest urban forest in the nation and I never see anyone running down there to feed that system, Mother Nature takes care of her children just fine.
    Think about this when you are attending a seminar listening to someone tell you about organic horticulture or in your garden center shopping.  In almost every instance you are suggested to buy this product and that for various conditions that may or may not exist.  How can a salesman know what your landscape needs or does not need without actually laying eyes on it?  And bringing them plant samples for evaluation is rarely effective,  most samples are worthless once removed from the plant, these things need to be viewed in situ.  The environment in which the plant exists has a huge impact on what affects it both negatively and positively, the approach must be holistic.
    Assessing true need is something that I approach deliberately.  A great example of this is the wonderful aphid.  Aphids are usually one of the very first 'pest' species we see in early spring.  These are piercing/sucking insects and new, lush, tender tissue is perfect for them which is exactly what spring growth represents.  They quickly multiply and will seemingly overwhelm your plants but there is a natural control that will soon appear and tip the scale in the other direction.  Beneficial insects.  Lady beetles usually come first followed by Syrphid flies and Brachonid wasps, green and brown lacewings too;  there a numerous beneficial species that prey directly on aphids.   Once these species find a food source they hang around and aphids rarely get so numerous that they do actual harm.
     This brings me to practical application of my theme...... don't buy lady beetles.  Number one, if you are organic and you have aphids they will find them, it's what they evolved to do.  I like free, my lady beetles cost me nada except a few hundred or thousand aphids.   Numero dos is that most lady beetles sold are native California species, unfairly harvested at their over-wintering sites (numbers and species are declining directly because of this) then shipped and bagged across the country.   These belong west of The Rockies;  it is estimated that the majority of lady beetle species east of the Rocky mountains are non-native.  Brutal.
     Nematodes.  These can actually be very effective BUT there are many, many species of nematodes and not all are beneficial.  Predatory nematodes are what you will usually need for fleas, grubs, ticks, thrips..... any 'pest' species whose life-cycle involves living underground.  So, you have to trust that whoever is packaging these microscopic worms can identify their species and is not selling you root-knot nematodes instead.  If you decide to take a chance on these always inspect the contents of the package, these guys have a shelf-life.  A simple 10X hand loupe will spot them, they are thin glass-like worms and will be moving after they warm-up a bit if they are living.
   In a future post I will address compost, compost teas and the industry associated with those products.  Companies that produce and apply these products will also be discussed, the first thing I will say about that is NEVER sign any annual contracts FOR REGULATED OR REGULARLY SCHEDULED APPLICATIONS.  This is where they hook and scam you BIG time........
    The list of products sold as organic, necessary or essential is long and I barely touched on the subject but I want you to think slowly when shopping or being pitched-to,  do you really need it and is the person telling you that you do really qualified to do so?  A consultation by a qualified professional is a great investment to assess genuine need and to help you save your hard earned green.........

Are raised beds really necessary?

Raised-bed gardening is not necessary and it seems to be all-the-rage these days.  I wonder why folks think they need to move away from our native soil, it is some of the most fertile on Earth.  My grandparents were farmer/ranchers in Kaufman County and they were on our wonderfully rich black clay, they always had a very productive garden without raised beds.  I can see some benefit to them: if you can't get down that low, if you are on VERY thin soils or if you just love the aesthetic but the farther away from the Earth you get the more complications you will have.  I have touched on this subject before but I want to reiterate that the so-called 'custom bedding mixes' that I have seen are a carboniferous load of crap.  Way too much high-carbon 'brown' material mixed with a little expanded shale, this stuff can cause you major problems.  Nitrogen sequestration is almost assured with these mixes and most of the time plants installed in them just sit there and do nothing.  This situation is unnatural and the plants tell you that loud and clear not to mention the enormous cost involved;  some companies are charging as much as $700.00+ for these contraptions.  Over time, as the soil biology has a chance to break-down the material, this will change and the system will work just fine but why not take advantage of what you already have and save all the time, expense and money?  If you garden organically you can't use treated lumber and your boards will last about two seasons and then it will be time to replace them..... cha-ching.  Plus I hate the abrupt edge to these beds, zero transition zone.  'Edge Effect' is a powerful, dynamic situation and this is completely lost with the design of most raised bed gardens.  'Edge' is created when two ecotypes converge and merge, it is a transition zone and it is the zone of highest biological activity (think faunal activity here) and will reflect this in high biodiversity.  Martha Stewart would describe this as a "good thing".
    Clay can indeed be challenging but the most that is required is to amend your clay soil with some good, finished compost and if you like  some expanded shale, this will create an environment in which you will be able to grow most any food crop....... but my grandparents never saw expanded shale and only used compost.  They went to town occasionally to supplement their pantry but most of what they ate came right out of the ground, not from a raised-bed.  I guarantee you this:  Nothing engineered by man can compete with what Mother Nature has already provided.......