October 2009 - On Top of the World Communities Info

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10 The World News® October 2009NativePlant GroupRon BromanSeven years ago, we wrote an articleon Beautyberry, Callicarpa americana;our group president, Margitta Claterbos,took the picture used then. I know that tobe a fact, because my wife Betty has beenkeeping all the articles in two scrapbookssince February 2001, when our group wasborn.We don’t usually write about a particularnative plant more than once; but thistime, by special request from our president,we return to showcase Beautyberry.As we walked the Longleaf Pine Trailthe other morning, we noticed somethingcurious. That’s the fun of walkingthat trail with folks who are observant.There’s always something exciting to seeor hear. This time, it was two plants of thesame genus, and even the same species,but there was something different aboutthem.Gil Nelson, in his The Shrubs andWoody Vines of Florida, includes threeother names for Callicarpa americana:Beautybush, American Beautyberry andFrench Mulberry. He also includes anothersmall but very interesting detail; but Iget ahead of myself.In most of our articles, we stress thebloom of the native plant, which is moreoften-than-not able to get the reader toconsider including it in his or her nativegarden. Not so with Beautyberry, as thename implies. The flower is small, pinkand comely up close; but at this time ofyear, French Mulberry flashes some of themost beautiful purple fruit of any plant inthe forest or yard.I cautiously add this negative: the fruit,at least for my taste, are near the bottomof the list. As we stated in the October2002 article, “[They] are a survival food.”If you’re lost in the woods and starvingperhaps you could survive on them if youhad few other choices.But back to those two plants on thePhoto by Ron BromanBeautyberry, the white drupeform.trail. We noticed that one of the plantshad the usual clump of purple fruit. Theother, however, handed us a great surprise.The berries were white! We thoughtit might be an anomaly until we did someresearch. This quotation from Gil Nelson’sbook assured us that we had somethingexceptional.“Fruit: A small, magenta to rich purple(very rarely white), rounded drupe [fruitwith a seed-bearing pit], borne in conspicuousclusters at the leaf axils; appearingmostly in late summer and fall.”Sure enough, our two Beautyberryplants, one with magenta fruit and thePhoto by Ron BromanBeautyberry, the purple drupeform.other with white fruit, are there for alltrail walkers to observe, for awhile atleast, a very unusual and beautiful gift tosteward.Isn’t that, after all, our purpose on thisplanet?Our first meeting of the 2009-2010year will be Wednesday, Oct. 14, at 1:45p.m. in the Arbor Conference Center,Suite H. Guda and Dave Taylor of TaylorGardens Nursery will present the program.There will be a plant raffle and theavailability to purchase native plants. Wehope you’ll find this a great way to beginthe year growing native.Condors fly at Condor Cross in Culca Canyon, Peru.Photo by Ron BromanBirders’ BeatJane CallenderWelcome back snowbirds! The UniqueBirders will have their first meeting forthe 2009-2010 season on Tuesday, Oct.20, 1:30 p.m. in Suite H of the Arbor ConferenceCenter. If you are interested inthe life of birds, please come to our meetings.We have a field trip planned for Oct.29. Anita and Tom Martinetto are the coordinators.We go far away for this month’s bird.Mac Tipof the MonthSherry Surdamwww.OnTopoftheWorldInfo.comBetty and Ron Broman were in Peru thispast July. Ron titled his photo “CondorsFly at Condor Cross, Colca Canyon,Peru.” By coincidence, I saw an articleabout the California condor.This condor was almost extinct dueto collisions with power lines, being shotillegally and from poisons in carcassesthey ate. By 1981, only one female andfour male condors roamed free. The U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service sanctioned capturingthese birds and adding them to thecaptive breeding population.By 1992, 63 condors existed in captivity;so eight young birds were returned toCalifornia habitat. By spring of 1994, halfhad perished from power lines, shootingand poison. Power line aversion trainingwas added to young condors’ regimenand since then, few condors havebeen electrocuted.Today there are 189 wild birds in California,Arizona and Baja, Mexico. Manyfree flying condors have been marked withnumbered wing tags to facilitate trackingby researchers.Grand Canyon National Park is themost reliable place to view free flyingcondors. Humans visiting condor countryshould leave no trace except footprints.Condors curiously investigate shiny bottlecaps and colorful plastic--then trashbecomes life threatening if ingested.Do you find that you forget to emptyyour e-mail Trash folder on a regular basis?E-mail takes a surprising amount offile space, especially if you get a lot of attachments.You can have the Apple Mailprogram do that for you automatically.Simply open Mail, go to Preferences andselect the Accounts tab. If you have morethan one account (aka e-mail addresses)you will have to do this for each one, butthe procedure is the same for all.Select the account name (a no-brainerif you have just one e-mail address) thenclick on the Mailbox Behaviors tab. At thebottom of the screen, you will see theTrash icon and a checkbox next to “Movedeleted messages to the Trash mailbox.”Be sure to put a checkmark in that box ifthere is not one there already. Once thatbox is checked click on the dropdown boxjust below “Permanently erase deletedmessages when:” to see your customizationchoices. You can elect to have yourtrash emptied: Never, when it is One dayold, One week old, One month old orwhen Quitting Mail.
October 2009 The World News® 11Little Gem Magnolia Blossom from my backyard.Photo by Doris MauricioOrchid ClubLinda RoseOur October meeting promises to bean informative one thanks to Tim Wright,former president of the Ocala AmericanOrchid Society. Tim will be monitoring apanel discussion; we’re expecting membersto have their questions ready for himon anything pertaining to orchids. Thiswould be the perfect time to bring in anyquestionable plants that are problematic,or one you’d like identified if you’ve lostthe tag for it. If it is not blooming, a picturewould be helpful.Oct. 10 will find us carpooling toGainesville’s American Orchid SocietyShow; it will be the first time many of themembers have ever attended one of theseshows.Thanks to Hildegard, we all have a betterunderstanding of what it takes to putone of these events together. Hopefullywe can attend more shows in the future!While many of us are missing Amorn’sOrchids at our Farmer’s Market, we canstill visit her at the Markets of Marion onSaturdays and Sundays.I reported earlier this year, the AmericanOrchid Society’s Garden in DelrayBeach would be closing. After the financecommittee researched the problem, theywere able to determine the gardens couldsustain themselves financially for eightmonths out of the year. Upon reachingout to the local community, they wereable to gain both financial support as wellas commitments from local society membersto volunteer hours to work the gardenand greenhouses. It’s good news tohear that they will remain open; both thisgarden and the Morikami Japanese Gardensare side by side and a very worthwhiletrip to consider if you’re ever in theDelray area.On Top of the World Orchid Club madethis trip in February 2008 via bus; but unfortunatelyMother Nature dumped monsoonrains on us that day which curtailedgetting a full tour of the gardens.On Top of the World Orchid Club willmeet again on Thursday, Oct. 15 at 1:30p.m. in the Arbor Conference Center,Suite C. Hope to see you then!Emergency After-HoursPhone Number236-OTOW (236-6869)NatureAround UsDoris MauricioNow that things are beginning to cooldown, we can get back into our gardensand enjoy the refreshing fall breezes.Cool weather annuals such as digitalis,petunia, Shasta daisy, alyssum and snapdragonsshould start to be available inthe local nurseries. It’s better to wait untilNovember to plant pansies.October is a great month to add a treeto your yard. It is important that you doa little research before purchasing a tree.You need to know its height and width atmaturity, will it grow in our climate zone,does it need sun, partial shade or fullshade, will it tolerate drought, will it dropits leaves in the fall, will it flower, is it ashape you like, and does the tree fit youryard. Stand in the spot where you wantthat tree. Look up and all around you tomake sure that tree will fit.Some smaller trees suitable for oursmall lots include Redbud, Pindo palm,East Palatka holly, Winged Elm, CrapeMyrtle, Dahoon holly, Yapoon holly, Loquatand Little Gem magnolia. Thesesmall trees require little space or work.Examine the tree you wish to purchaseto make sure of the following: the treehas only one trunk, the leaves are cleanand all green, check for insects, roots arenot pot-bound (winding around the rootball), the roots are not diseased, and thesoil is moist.Planting is not difficult if done correctly.Dig a hole twice as wide as the root balland about two inches shallower than theroot ball. The ball will sink after planting.Place the tree in the hole. Fill halfway withthe soil from the hole and fill with water.Wait until the water soaks in then fill tolevel with the ground. Water again. Usethe left over soil to create a dam aroundthe planting hole. It will serve to hold thewater you will give the tree every day forthe next three weeks, then twice a weekfor another three weeks. This wateringschedule will ensure new root growth.It is recommended (by University ofFlorida) that you do not fertilize a newlyplanted tree. The first fertilization willtake place in the spring. If the tree is locatednear the lawn, your lawn fertilizerwill suffice.The Marion County Extension Officehas Master Gardeners on duty on weekdaysfrom 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to answer yourgardening concerns. You can call themat 671-8400. You can reach me at 237-3479 or dmauricio@cfl.rr.com. I will domy best to assist you with your gardeningconcerns.Mark your calendars for the followingevents in October:Butterfly Gardening in Central Floridapresented at Freedom Library on Oct. 13at 2 p.m.Master Gardener Fall Gathering on Oct.10, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. A large assortment ofperennials and shrubs grown by MasterGardeners will be available at reasonableprices.Happy gardening!Car Decals IssuedCustomer Service8 a.m. to 4 p.m.Monday - FridayBring your car, ID card, autoregistration and $7.
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