Propagation and Cloning of Phalaris Grass

Growing phalaris grass is easy enough for any grower to do successfully. Occasionally, people will have trouble getting grass seed to germinate right away, but here are some tips for getting the most phalaris grass growing as quickly as possible.

You can grow phalaris in clumps or in patches. For clumps, you will want to choose a large, deep pot. For patches, aluminum roasting pans work well. With each pan, you will be able to start a patch of phalaris grass larger then the area of the pan by creating plugs.

Phalaris basically only needs steady moisture to get going. While phalaris seeds can be germinated outdoors, you should be able to speed things up by starting indoors. Some outdoor grows seem to be halted because moisture control is tougher to accomplish. Diligent watering is required, which can be offset by strong sun or wind. Wind also has a tendency to blow your seeds away.

Start out by moistening all of your soil. Then press it flat without any significant compacting. Sow your phalaris seeds on the surface of the soil and press them into the moist soil so they can soak in the moisture more easily. You may cover your seeds with a thin dusting of soil, although we typically do not. We do recommend covering your soil with clear plastic wrap because it allows for better moisture control, which, as mentioned before, is the key to the quickest germination. In a side by side, comparison with phalaris brachystachys seeds, we found that a pot that we covered with clear plastic germinated 1-2 days more rapidly with a higher percentage than seeds in the pot that was not covered.

Once your phalaris seedlings begin growing, you should then sprinkle some loose soil in between each blade to provide support. You no longer need the plastic cover once you are sure most of your phalaris seeds have germinated. Allow your phalaris clumps or pans of seedlings to fill in thoroughly under artificial lights. You may also keep them outdoors in a shady area, but you must take care not to let the soil dry out. You will also have to worry about other seeds getting into the soil. In some cases, a screen may be helpful to keep them out. When growing phalaris grass, it is important to develop a good root system before any transplanting into the ground. While they are indoors your phalaris seedlings do not have to worry about competitors, and it is a good idea to give them a good foothold before introducing them to an environment where invaders exist.

When you are sure that your root system is well-developed, it is time to start your phalaris patch. If you only want clumps, your job is pretty much done by putting them in the ground. For patches, it is best to till the soil to loosen it and remove any competing weeds. Then, go ahead and divide up your tray in to a number of smaller clumps. A 4”x 4” clump should be suitable. Now, plant your phalaris plugs in your prepared area using a spacing approximately half the thickness of the clump. So, a four inch clump will be given two inches of space. Keep the area well-watered, being sure to remove any weeds or other grass species. The spaces in between your phalaris plugs will eventually fill in as the roots spread out, and you will have a large phalaris grass patch. You may then go on to separate clumps out from the patch and plant them in a similar manner to expedite the expansion of your patch even further.

This process is possible because phalaris grass rhizomes spread and send up new blades. Each phalaris seed has its own genetics, but every blade sent up from the root system of the same seed is part of the same phalaris plant. In a batch of phalaris grown from seed, you will have several different sets of genes mixed in from each of the different seeds. Now, let’s say you have a blade that grows especially fast or has unique coloration. If you isolate an individual blade, it will multiply so that every blade has the same code. You may then proceed to clone this grass by making plugs from the patch that develops using the method described above. The resulting patch will have phalaris grass blades that all have the same characteristics. The seeds of these blades may have similar genes, just like a parent has similar genes to his or her child, but they will still have some variation. Phalaris “Big Medicine” and “Yugo Red” are examples of reed canary grass specimens that have been reproduced by cloning. To have true specimens of these varieties, you must have gotten them as clones.

Nobody would say phalaris is hard to grow in the first place. But now you should be equipped to maximize your potential and create a patch that will be exactly as you want it to be, whether in terms of size shape or genetics.

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Poor Man's Spore Syringe Tek: Making Syringes Without a Glovebox

Materials:

Clean Spore Print
91% Isopropyl Alcohol
Paper Towels
New Zipper lock Bag (Quart sized or larger)
Sterilized Syringe(s)
Shot Glass or alcohol lamp
Match or lighter
Water

The following procedure is an inexpensive method for making clean spore syringes without the use of a glove box. We used this technique for shiitake, but it can be applied to other mushrooms as well. Here is an overview of the process: You will be sterilizing water in a syringe, getting your print inside a clean bag, then injecting the sterile water from the syringe right into the bag and sucking it back out with the spores.

You will need an empty sterilized syringe to start off with. Fill your empty syringe with water and pressure cook it at 15 psi for 20 minutes. This will ensure that the water in the syringe is sterile. Water may be replaced with your choice of liquid growing medium if you would like the spores to germinate right in the syringe. You should be extra certain of the sterility of your print if this is the case. When sterilizing your syringes in the pressure cooker, make sure to keep them with the tip facing up or you will lose all of your liquid during the process. The caps should be placed loosely on top of the needle points so that you do not poke yourself when trying to grab them. You can use a quart size Chinese soup container to hold your syringes because it can withstand the temperature. Be sure to allow your syringe to cool fully before use.

Now that your syringe water is at a safe temperature for your spores, go ahead and soak your paper towel with rubbing alcohol. If you cannot find 91%, 70% will work. But try to use the highest possible concentration. Use the alcohol to sterilize the outside of your spore print. Keep it in between the folded halves of your alcohol-soaked paper towel. Then go on to sterilize the opening of the zipper lock bag. Most bags will do, but you want to try to get one that is not too thick, and you will see why later.

Once the outside of the bag is sterilized, you have to get your print inside without letting any air in. This involves closing all the doors and windows in your house and reducing body movement. You may want to spray the air with air sanitizer if you have it. The key is to only open up one side of the bag enough to get the print in. Before acting, prepare the print in the paper towel so that it will face the entrance of the bag properly and be able to drop right in. You want to be able to just open up the two halves of the paper towel and let it drop in. Once the print is in, close the bag up quickly and just give another quick wipe along the entrance with your paper towel.

Now is the part where a thinner bag with help you. You have to unfold the print while it is inside the bag. The ease of this part of the process will depend on your personal skill and how the print was prepared. Eventually, you will become good at it. The key is to be gentle and not use your fingernails too roughly so that they penetrate the bag. You will want the print situated at the bottom corner of the bag when it is finally opened.

Now that the print is open, you will need to sterilize your needle. Fill up your alcohol lamp or shot glass with isopropyl alcohol and light the top so you have a flame. If using a shot glass, you will have a better flame if it is filled to the very top. The flame will also give you some idea of how still the air is in your room. (You can utilize this earlier in the process when you are inserting your print into the bag as a gauge of your air movement.)

Next, you want to sterilize the tip of the needle so that the entire thing burns red hot. If you get one area to turn red, come back to it every second or two while you’re working on another area of the needle so that it stays hot. Don’t go too close to the plastic either, or it will melt. You may hear popping if there is any water inside the tip. When your whole needle is sterilized, cool it down by folding it in an alcohol soaked paper towel.

Hold your sterilized syringe in the towel and bring it to the ziplock bag. While it is safe inside the alcohol-soaked paper towel, use another part of the alcohol-soaked towel to wipe the part of the bag where you will be inserting your needle. (By the way, you may need to add alcohol to the paper towel as needed during the process).

From this point on, you want to act very slow and think out each movement before you act. Stick your entire needle into the bag through the spot you just sterilized with the alcohol-soaked paper towel. Do not worry about the direction the needle is facing. Instead, be sure that it does not go through the bag at any other point or it will let in unwanted air. If this happens, you may still succeed, but it is undesirable. You want the entire needle in the bag so that none of it is left in the open air to pick up contaminates. Once the needle is in, be sure to keep your alcohol-soaked paper towel over the entry hole so that no new air can get in. At this point you want to squirt out the contents of the syringe into the bag. You may squirt right on the spore print to remove the spores more easily, but that is not needed. The beauty of this technique is that you can rub the spores off with your finger right from the outside of the bag. Once the water is saturated with spores, slowly adjust your needle point to face the corner of the bag. Allow the water to collect in the corner and draw the water back into the syringe.

With this technique, you can usually get all of your spores into a single syringe. If you would like to do additional syringes on the same print, just be sure to keep the hole covered with your alcohol-soaked paper towel while you sterilize the next syringe.
That’s all there is to it…

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Treating Pests on Houseplants: A Complete Regimen

With the onset of cool weather, it may be time to bring your non-hardy perennials indoors. Unfortunately, this is also a risky time of year for your plant collection because you run the risk of bringing pests indoors where they can infect your entire collection. Simple inspection is often not enough. In this guide, we will learn how to treat pests and keep them from ruining your houseplants as they come in for wintertime.

The presence of pests outdoors does not always manifest as a problem because they have the room to spread naturally. After all, they were designed to exist in nature. As houseplants, they are in an artificial environment. They are limited only to the plants you have in your collection. Whereas you may only get a few bugs on each plant outside, your favorite houseplant might have to support an entire population by itself. Aphids can be especially prolific, coating the entire surface of your plant. Although, we have been able to restore plants from these conditions using the methods in this guide, it is much easier to fight off the population before it explodes. This is especially true for flying insects that do not have wings until they mature.

Pests or even eggs can reside anywhere on your plant, including in the soil. They can be picked up in any environment, and nobody is immune to their wrath. It is important to know how to fight pests in all their hiding spots. Even careful inspection can fail to reveal them. But inspection is still a good place to start your battle. Many pests dwell on the undersides of leaves or in the nodes where the leaves meet the stem. Pests are especially fond of the new growth on a plant, so always focus your inspection there as well. Check up and down the stem for insects like scales. Chewed leaves are an obvious sign of some pests, such as whiteflies. Also be on the lookout for deformed leaf growth. While there are other reasons for this, it can also be a sign of insects. Remove the affected leaves as long as it is not one of the only leaves or does not apply to almost all of the leaves. Also be sure to scrape or pick off any pests you can.

Whether or not you spot pests, it is a good idea to rinse the plants thoroughly under a strong stream of water. Smaller plants can be placed under a running faucet for several minutes. Larger plants can be sprayed with a hose or put under a bathtub faucet. Be sure to concentrate on the undersides of the leaves and any crevice that could potentially house pests. This manual removal of the pests is often more effective than trying to kill them with pesticides, and it does not tend to harm the plant as long as you are careful. If you are lucky, this simple treatment may be all that is needed.

Now that your plants have been washed, and have no visual evidence of pests left, it is time to quarantine them. By keeping plants separated, it allows you to identify which ones may still be infected without any risk of a crisis among the entire population. If you only have a few plants, you can keep them in separate rooms. It is likely that flying insects would have been washed away by this point in the process so you do not have to worry about much cross contamination this way. If you have more plants than rooms, there is another approach.

Individuals in a large collection can be isolated by putting them in terrariums or humidity tents. A humidity tent is usually just a fancy way of talking about a clear plastic bag placed over the top of the plant and secured around the base of the pot with tape or a rubber band. As long as there are no gaps in the bottom or holes in the tent, it contains any infestation inside. Throughout the period that your plants are in the tent, it is important to give them regular doses of fresh air to avoid mold or fungus attacks or you will have an entirely new battle to fight.

After you have given the plants a few weeks to “incubate,” you will be able to identify which plants need further treatment. As we mentioned earlier, in a contained environment, it is more likely for a problem to escalate and reveal itself. It is ideal if you have a separate location to bring the infected plants to at this point just as an extra measure of caution. But you will be keeping them in their tents anyway until they prove safe to interact with the rest of your plant community.

Now that you have identified your problematic plants, it is necessary to provide further treatment for them. Since you have literally grown new pest specimens, you will want to go back to washing the plant. Change the humidity tent or sterilize it with rubbing alcohol and allow it to dry fully before reusing it.

There are a number of commercial pesticides, but we always recommend organic ones that will minimize damage to the plant and avoid introducing chemicals to your home environment. A sprayed solution made of cigarette tobacco soaked in water is effective in many cases. We have also had great success with Safer’s brand insecticidal soap. It works on a large range of pests. A concentrate is available, to which you add water and dilute it to a useable level. There are also various home recipes for insecticidal soap, which typically involve dish soap and canola oil. It is generally considered safe to ingest plant material that has been treated with insecticidal soap of this kind, as long as it is washed well. Insecticidal soap works by coating the bodies of insects and blocking respiration. The only drawback is that it must be applied directly to the body of the insect to be effective. This can be especially tough for plants that have numerous places to hide. Therefore, a regular schedule of washing the plant and applying the soap is usually needed until the problem disappears. You may even opt to make a bath and dip the plant inside if the battle persists. Before intermingling the plant with healthy houseplants, be sure to give it some time by itself without treatment, to see if the problem resurfaces.

A complete treatment of houseplants for pests includes treating the soil. We recommend diatomaceous earth for soil treatment. Diatomaceous earth is a highly absorbent white powder composed of the skeletons of algae-like organisms. The sharp surfaces of the particles act like glass to cut up the bodies of tiny insects. The absorbent power of the particles also sucks moisture from insect bodies. Some growers will mix diatomaceous earth in with their soil before potting. Others will water their plants with a solution of diatomaceous earth and water. However, the most common application is to put a layer of about ¼” across the top of the soil, leaving no spaces for bugs to surface without running into the diatomaceous earth. Diatomaceous earth may be sold as an organic pesticide. There is also a food grade powder, which can be used to kill parasites in the body. Diatomaceous earth is also used to filter swimming pools. Any of these will work fine. Once the diatomaceous earth has been laid across the soil, it has a tendency to absorb moisture from the soil and cake up. This is beneficial because it reduces gaps where pests might escape. It is best to water plants from the base of the pot rather than the top because you are likely to wash the layer away.

Many of us have lost prized specimens to pests. Hopefully, this winter we will all be better equipped to handle these situations. Pests can even be picked up in the house, especially as plant immune systems are reduced. It is important to provide adequate light to keep your plants in good fighting condition. Always remember to isolate and treat. Never leave a plant to be treated while it is still among healthy plants that can potentially be infected. Pests may be persistent. But if you are too, they really don’t stand a chance.

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Growing Psychotria Viridis from Seed and Cuttings

Although we will be talking about psychotria viridis, the same techniques that are used for viridis can also be used for related species like p. alba, p. nervosa and p. carthagenensis. Psychotria viridis can be propagated by both seeds and cuttings. While stem cuttings work well, psychotria species are unique in that they can even be cloned from a single leaf. This allows plants to be multiplied much more rapidly. While leaf cuttings are generally the preferred method of propagation, we will discuss the various ways to start new psychotria plants.

Psychotria viridis and its relatives are notoriously hard to grow from seed. The seeds are generally only viable for a few months, and germination tends to be very slow. With such a long germination period and the presence of fruit around the seeds, psychotira viridis seeds are prone to rot. For the sake of freshness, it is ideal to have seeds in the berry, although seeds that have been removed are fine too. If you are starting out with your psychotria seeds in the fruit, you will want to remove all of the fruit from the outside of the seed.

Each psychotria berry should contain two seeds. If you allow the seeds to dry in the berry, they tend to stick together to form what looks like one round seed. If this is the case, you will want to separate the seeds. You can sometimes accomplish this by squeezing the seed pair until they split. Otherwise, you may need to locate the seam between the two with your thumbnail and press in. The dried fruit will be black on the outside and may flake off easily once the seeds are separated. If not, you should scrape off as much as you can because it will provide more of a foothold for bacterias and molds.

One you have clean psychotria seeds, you will want to soak them in a mild bleach solution. A 10% solution should work fine without harming the seed. Again, the intention is to provide as much of a sterile starting point as possible. Soak your seeds for about 15 minutes.

Once the psychotria seeds have been soaked, they are ready for planting. Some growers find that it is advantageous to use a non-organic growing medium such as sand or rock wool. By using something like this, it deprives the environment of nutrients that molds and bacterias could enjoy. The seeds need only to be planted about 1/8" deep. Keep the soil moist and be patient. You can expect to wait one or more months before you see anything.

If you are not up for the challenge of growing phychotria viridis from seed or do not want any genetic diversity in your crop, you are better off using cuttings to reproduce. Of course, you would already need to have a phychotria viridis plant to do this. Technically, stem cuttings can be taken from any stem material. But it is ideal to use thinner stems that have new growth on them. It will also improve your success to remove larger leaves because they will sap the cutting of needed moisture. While you may use something like spaghnum moss, perlite or vermiculite to root cuttings in, simple water will do the trick. You may add a bit of rooting hormone if you have some, but it is not required. Keep your plant covered with some sort of clear plastic whether it be a plastic bag or a Chinese soup container.

Stem cuttings will give you a larger plant than the other methods, but they require more starting material. With that same stem cutting, you can probably make several leaf cuttings. Leaf cuttings are also the simplest cuttings to make. Some psychotria viridis grow guides suggest to remove the leaf so that you take off with it a piece of the stem's skin. We have not found this entirely necessary. If you can manage, then do so. But if you fail, do not panic. Since the tip of the leaf is the first to lose water, it is common to cut off the tip.

Another optional trick is to snap the leaf's center vein in one or more places. Just take the leaf between your thumbs as if the vein was a stick you were snapping. You want to segment the central vein without breaking the leaf apart. It is then possible for shoots to come from each of these segments. Once you have prepared the viridis leaf, all that is needed is to bury about half of it in any direction. In other words, you can place it upright or on its side. Just like with a stem cutting, you want to cover it with clear plastic and give it a few weeks. It will not be long before you have your own psychotria jungle.








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Germination Instructions for Ginkgo Biloba

Ginkgo Biloba is a tree whose leaves increase circulation in the brain. It is a popular herb in Chinese medicine and has been linked to improving memory and cognitive functions. The unique fan-shaped leaves of the ginkgo tree make it a popular ornamental as well. It is even grown as a bonsai.

The germination of ginkgo is a little tricky, but there are a few tips that will increase your success. Freshly picked seeds are covered in a malodorous fruit. The ginkgo fruit contains small levels of urushiol, a skin irritant that is found in poison ivy and poison oak. To avoid this, obtaining cleaned seeds from a seed company is recommended.

Ginkgo biloba seeds have a long germination period and a tendency to pick up mold on the outer shell. The presence of mold on the outer shell does not automatically indicate that the seed is dead. It will be fine so long as the mold does not reach the embryo. To ward off mold while waiting for germination, sterilize the ginkgo seeds in a mild bleach solution (1:8, Bleach: Water) for a few minutes and rinse well. It might seem counterproductive to introduce bleach to a living seed. However, the solution is diluted, and the seeds should only be soaked long enough that the bleach soaks into the outer shell and not beyond.

The next goal is to allow moisture and air to reach past the shell. Nick the sides of the shell along the rim or that goes around the circumference of the seed. Do not damage the embryo. (There's a very thin brown membrane around the embryo too, which does not have to be penetrated).

Ginkgo trees grow in areas where freezing is normal. Ginko seeds are, therefore, used to these temperatures and have adapted to respond to seasonal changes. The change from cool to warm temperatures after the winter lets the seed know it can begin growing. If you are not planting your seeds outside during the cooler weather, you will have to artificially create this experience for the seed. The process is known a moist cold stratification. Cold stratification is easily accomplished by storing the seeds in the fridge for a month. If your seeds have not been pre-stratified, you should do this before exposing them to the warm temperatures needed for sprouting. This can be done before or after nicking.

Assuming your gingko biloba seeds have been cold stratified, they are now ready for germination. Place the nicked seeds in moist, preferably sterile sand and place them in a zipper baggie. Situate them so that the seeds just barely stick up through the sand. Adding a small amount of hydrogen peroxide to the water used to moisten the sand is another option to prevent mold.


Keep the planted ginkgo seeds at temps of about 70-75 degrees. When the seeds sprout you will see the green stems press up against the bag. When you see leaf development, transplant your ginkgo seedlings to a mix of more sand than soil. Keep the soil moisture equal to that of the sand in the bag and keep out of direct sun and heavy water.

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Cactus Recommendations

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