WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.160 --> 00:00:06.320 Coming to you from Studio A here at proven Winner's Color Choice Shrubs. It's 2 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:11.599 time for the Gardening Simplified Show with Stacy Hervella, me, Rick weisst and 3 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:18.000 our engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson. Today let's talk tools. When push comes 4 00:00:18.039 --> 00:00:22.719 to shovel, you got to have good tools to well take care of your 5 00:00:22.800 --> 00:00:27.000 landscape. And I love talking about tools, Stacey. And one of the 6 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:32.200 things I think about immediately when the topic of tools comes up is heirloom tools, 7 00:00:32.280 --> 00:00:37.000 tools that have been gifted to you by a grandfather or a great grandfather. 8 00:00:37.439 --> 00:00:43.439 And I think of the great Greek philosopher Plutarch and the ship of Thesis. 9 00:00:43.520 --> 00:00:48.240 Now the thesis paradox is this. They had this ship and they took 10 00:00:48.280 --> 00:00:51.200 all the planks off it, and then they put new planks on it. 11 00:00:51.359 --> 00:00:55.240 When you put new planks on the ship, is it still the original ship. 12 00:00:55.799 --> 00:00:59.439 That's a good question, exactly, something to ponder. And I think 13 00:00:59.439 --> 00:01:03.200 about that my shed because if I have an ax from Grandpa, but I 14 00:01:03.280 --> 00:01:07.640 replace the handle on the ax, is it still Grandpa's end? Absolutely? 15 00:01:07.680 --> 00:01:10.760 In that case, you know the handle's gonna wear out, The head is 16 00:01:10.799 --> 00:01:14.879 still good. The business end is still Grandpa's and that's what matters the business 17 00:01:15.000 --> 00:01:17.799 end. I like that, Stacy. All right, So if you go 18 00:01:17.920 --> 00:01:22.400 to you go on the web and you search garden tools, usually the first 19 00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:27.599 three things you see are tools for weeding, tools for your comfort like knee 20 00:01:27.640 --> 00:01:34.560 pads or clothing, and then tools for pruning. But of course you have 21 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:38.920 to start with shovels, got it, because a shovel is a ground breaking 22 00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:45.239 invention. Sorry, it is literally and figuratively. Yes, you got correct. 23 00:01:45.480 --> 00:01:51.799 Don't buy cheap shovels. Put your money into a really, really good 24 00:01:51.920 --> 00:01:57.000 shovel and you can get handles of composite, fiberglass, steel, or wood. 25 00:01:57.200 --> 00:02:01.480 You can get open back shovels, close back shovel forged shovels. I 26 00:02:01.680 --> 00:02:07.080 like to sharpen my shovels. Pay attention to your shovels and make sure it's 27 00:02:07.120 --> 00:02:10.120 quality. Well. You know, the fact is that, especially if you're 28 00:02:10.280 --> 00:02:14.919 young and you're just getting started out at your first home, it's very tempting 29 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:16.879 to buy an inexpensive shovel and just say this, I'll do the job. 30 00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:23.280 But the simple fact is that you will absolutely spend that same amount of money 31 00:02:23.319 --> 00:02:29.360 over time replacing said inexpensive shovel oh you know, because it keeps breaking. 32 00:02:29.400 --> 00:02:34.240 Because shovels take a lot of work. They take they take a beating really 33 00:02:34.360 --> 00:02:37.000 then, especially if you live in clay soil, I mean living in pretty 34 00:02:37.000 --> 00:02:39.240 sandy soil, our shovels don't take quite as much. But you never know 35 00:02:39.280 --> 00:02:43.680 when you're gonna hit a rock or some old concrete down there and it's gonna 36 00:02:43.680 --> 00:02:46.479 bust it. So it's worth it, not just in shovels, but in 37 00:02:46.560 --> 00:02:51.599 all garden tools, to really shell out and make the investment in a lifelong 38 00:02:51.680 --> 00:02:53.560 tool that can be in air loom. It doesn't have to be, you 39 00:02:53.560 --> 00:02:58.000 know, a five hundred dollars shovel, even if you could potentially find one, 40 00:02:58.280 --> 00:03:00.439 even those ones they use it. You know, fake tree plannings and 41 00:03:00.479 --> 00:03:05.520 ground breakings are just spray painted goals. But you know, invest in a 42 00:03:05.560 --> 00:03:08.560 good tool and it will pay you back by not having to replace it every 43 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:12.800 year. Oh amen, I tell you, when push comes to shovel I 44 00:03:12.840 --> 00:03:16.800 have a propensity for shortening the life of shovels, So spend some money up 45 00:03:16.800 --> 00:03:22.080 front, make sure it's good. You need a good spade shovel for edging, 46 00:03:22.520 --> 00:03:28.759 you need a stainless steel soil knife. I like soil knives because otherwise 47 00:03:28.759 --> 00:03:31.159 you end up using your pruning shears, and that's not a good idea. 48 00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:35.120 I have never Okay, I've got a confess ric. I am a little 49 00:03:35.120 --> 00:03:38.560 disappointed that you've been using your pruning shears in the soil. The only time 50 00:03:38.599 --> 00:03:40.960 my pruning chears see the soil is if I have to cut a root. 51 00:03:42.479 --> 00:03:46.319 Yes, but you know then I'm not like Jabin at it. I'm actually 52 00:03:46.439 --> 00:03:47.879 using them to prune the root now. But I will say this about a 53 00:03:47.919 --> 00:03:52.280 soil knife. One thing that's very handy about a soil knife is it's super 54 00:03:52.319 --> 00:03:55.039 easy to keep in your pocket because it's flat. So soil knife is kind 55 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:58.680 of like so when you think knife, are not thinking like a butter knife 56 00:03:58.759 --> 00:04:04.919 or a kitchen knife. It's like a flattened trowel exactly with a sharper edge 57 00:04:04.960 --> 00:04:08.680 on each side. So really easy to fit in your back pocket. If 58 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:11.520 you got one of those loops on your pants, a carpenter loop, if 59 00:04:11.520 --> 00:04:14.280 it's in there. If you got a side pocket, it fits in there. 60 00:04:14.280 --> 00:04:16.279 So it's really easy to have handy, and it's not always like jabbing 61 00:04:16.319 --> 00:04:18.920 into your pocket, so you can't kneel down. Ask me how I know. 62 00:04:19.160 --> 00:04:23.480 I just don't sit on it. Don't sit on it. Well, 63 00:04:23.560 --> 00:04:26.360 I tell you what another tool that you have to have is you have to 64 00:04:26.399 --> 00:04:30.399 have good quality gloves. Now you may debate that gloves are not a tool, 65 00:04:30.480 --> 00:04:33.040 but for me, they're super important. And I wanted to show you 66 00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:39.480 my favorite gloves. I have it on here. They're called West County gloves. 67 00:04:40.040 --> 00:04:44.040 And what I love about these things is that they have kevlar on the 68 00:04:44.160 --> 00:04:47.839 tips, so I can be as rough as I want to be. But 69 00:04:47.920 --> 00:04:54.120 they're gentle soft right here on the thumb so you can wipe your brow when 70 00:04:54.199 --> 00:04:59.360 you're sweating. And they're made of recycled spandex. I don't want to think 71 00:04:59.800 --> 00:05:02.639 of of what they recycled, but they were recyclably, just the cutoffs. 72 00:05:02.759 --> 00:05:06.600 Okay, So this is this is my go to and to prove it to 73 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:13.639 you for our YouTube viewers, these are West County gloves that I took out 74 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:15.639 of my car. This is just out of my car. Oh my gosh, 75 00:05:15.680 --> 00:05:20.279 look at that one. It's shreds. This one's it's shreds. Yeah, 76 00:05:20.360 --> 00:05:24.800 which brings up the point when we talk about gloves. Have some leather 77 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:30.680 gloves around for projects where you're moving stones or patio stones or landscape timbers. 78 00:05:30.720 --> 00:05:34.160 But for gardening. And these people aren't paying me. Okay, but West 79 00:05:34.519 --> 00:05:43.480 County gloves a reciprocating saw for cutting ornamental grasses. Oh we've had some job 80 00:05:43.600 --> 00:05:47.920 ye yeah, who have suggested that a good hand hatchet, safety glasses and 81 00:05:48.160 --> 00:05:54.759 sunglasses to go with it. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates more than 82 00:05:54.800 --> 00:06:00.639 thirty seven thousand Americans suffer a power more related injury every year. Oh that's 83 00:06:00.759 --> 00:06:04.920 terrifying, how horrible. And many of them were cutting the grass bare foot. 84 00:06:05.000 --> 00:06:09.639 Oh gosh, no, never, never smart. I remember when I 85 00:06:09.680 --> 00:06:15.199 first broke into the industry early nineteen eighties, the fly mole was very popular. 86 00:06:15.240 --> 00:06:18.920 It's a more that did not have wheels, but the blade would spin 87 00:06:19.079 --> 00:06:25.199 so fast it would it would go airborne. Oh that sounds safe. Yeah, 88 00:06:25.600 --> 00:06:29.040 And here's the problem. People started trying to trim their hedges with it 89 00:06:29.120 --> 00:06:31.800 and what could grow around? Gosh, yeah, so I never heard of 90 00:06:31.800 --> 00:06:35.240 that. One's something You'll have to look for it in estate sale because I'm 91 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:42.519 pretty sure they took those. They did. According to the National Safety Council, 92 00:06:42.560 --> 00:06:46.519 there were nearly one hundred and sixty six thousand, two hundred and ninety 93 00:06:46.519 --> 00:06:51.199 four injuries related to yard and garden equipment in twenty twenty one. Wow. 94 00:06:51.800 --> 00:06:56.720 So with that, Stacy, I give you a dangerous tool, limb a 95 00:06:56.839 --> 00:07:00.720 rick. This old tool is a family heirloom. Its sharp blades, my 96 00:07:00.879 --> 00:07:05.040 hedges, groom. But if I'm not cautious, I'm going to be nauseous 97 00:07:05.079 --> 00:07:10.480 when they take me to the emergency room. Each time you prune, you'd 98 00:07:10.519 --> 00:07:15.920 take a chance in appendage. You could lance treat tools with great respect. 99 00:07:15.319 --> 00:07:20.720 If they're used incorrect, you're gonna split your plants. Oh, it's be 100 00:07:20.800 --> 00:07:24.519 careful out there, right. Yeah. When I was in horticulture school, 101 00:07:24.759 --> 00:07:28.759 we had a plan id exam and there is a difference between two very popular 102 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:33.120 types of Forcythia, Forcythia intermedia and Forcythia suspensa. And the difference between them, 103 00:07:33.279 --> 00:07:36.199 I mean, there's some habit differences, obviously, but is if you 104 00:07:36.240 --> 00:07:41.120 cut open the stem, there's one has chambered pith, so the pith inside 105 00:07:41.160 --> 00:07:44.480 is kind of like in little rooms, and one is a solid column of 106 00:07:44.480 --> 00:07:47.519 pith. So I wanted to be absolutely correct, and I was in a 107 00:07:47.600 --> 00:07:50.519 hurry, and I was bouncing my clipboard and I took my pruners and I 108 00:07:50.600 --> 00:07:55.240 cut up the stem and I cut myself real bad. Oh, and I 109 00:07:55.279 --> 00:07:57.920 didn't want to tell anybody, so then I was just kind of like trying 110 00:07:57.959 --> 00:08:01.680 to hide my bleeding finger and finish the exit I am. And it's you 111 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:03.360 know, in all, it's just like anything else around the house. Those 112 00:08:03.360 --> 00:08:09.240 injuries happen when you're not paying attention, not giving everything your full devotion, 113 00:08:09.399 --> 00:08:11.560 and that's really important, especially when you're using dangerous tools. It's true, 114 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:16.720 you got to pay attention. I recommend a good garden krt, a good 115 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:24.319 watering can, a good wheelbarrow. Wheelbarrows don't get enough respect. They're always 116 00:08:24.360 --> 00:08:28.000 getting pushed around, and you need a good wheelbarrow in your landscape, a 117 00:08:28.040 --> 00:08:37.440 spading fork, and of course my favorite tool is my cherninator where I grind 118 00:08:37.519 --> 00:08:41.080 up leaves in the fall. I love that. It's very handy to have. 119 00:08:41.600 --> 00:08:46.039 We still need a video of that, yes, and speaking of videos, 120 00:08:46.320 --> 00:08:48.879 we are going to have some shorts on YouTube of us telling you about 121 00:08:48.879 --> 00:08:52.159 our favorite tools. So please do check us out on YouTube if you want 122 00:08:52.159 --> 00:08:56.840 to see the tools that we have amassed, heirloom or not just our favorite 123 00:08:56.840 --> 00:09:01.919 tools that we will be sharing in videos on your fantastic I love it head 124 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:07.960 shears now, of course I love a really good solid head shears once again 125 00:09:09.039 --> 00:09:13.919 for cutting my ornamental grasses. I've got lots of ornamental grasses. But the 126 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:18.200 point here is with headshars or shovels or pruning shears, where you get a 127 00:09:18.320 --> 00:09:26.120 good quality bypass pruning chears stacy. The quality matters, the heft and the 128 00:09:26.200 --> 00:09:30.879 quality matters not only for how long you own the tool, but just for 129 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:33.399 how it operates. It really does, and you can tell the difference. 130 00:09:33.399 --> 00:09:37.759 And if you know, if you're shopping for tools, don't just look at 131 00:09:37.759 --> 00:09:39.720 the prices and grab the cheap one and walk by. Take a moment to 132 00:09:39.799 --> 00:09:43.879 really hold and you know the different ones like you would be using them, 133 00:09:43.919 --> 00:09:48.759 because you will notice there's something that happens when you have a really good, 134 00:09:48.799 --> 00:09:52.480 high quality tool in your hands. You can just tell. And that makes 135 00:09:52.559 --> 00:09:56.799 especially jobs that you don't particularly enjoy in the garden a lot easier if you're 136 00:09:56.919 --> 00:09:58.600 using a tool that not only does the job really well, but you actually 137 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:05.039 enjoy using and that you have invested the time and money into procuring and adding 138 00:10:05.039 --> 00:10:09.720 to your collection. It's a great point with hand trowels or hand cultivators. 139 00:10:09.799 --> 00:10:13.720 I always insist on stainless steel, not the cheapy ones, because you'll go 140 00:10:13.799 --> 00:10:16.759 out there, use it one time and throw it in the trash, and 141 00:10:16.879 --> 00:10:20.840 you know, some things you probably do want to have a little cheaper like 142 00:10:20.039 --> 00:10:24.759 trowels. Maybe if you are the kind of person like me who always has 143 00:10:24.919 --> 00:10:26.519 a big bucket of weeds and you throw your trowel in there and then a 144 00:10:26.519 --> 00:10:30.320 few more weeds come on top and then blam, oh no more trowel. 145 00:10:30.720 --> 00:10:35.320 Blama. Been there a couple times, just saying make sure you've got five 146 00:10:35.360 --> 00:10:39.080 gallon pails, trug tubs. And then finally, real quickly, I just 147 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:43.399 want to mention an upside down sprayer. If you don't know what that is. 148 00:10:43.440 --> 00:10:48.360 We're going to put the link at the website at Gardeningsimplified on air dot 149 00:10:48.399 --> 00:10:52.120 com. But you need one of those, yes, absolutely. Coming up 150 00:10:52.159 --> 00:11:03.159 next, plants on trial here on the Gardening Simplified Show, Prooven Winners, 151 00:11:03.200 --> 00:11:07.320 Colored Choice Shrubs cares about your success in the garden. That's why we trial 152 00:11:07.399 --> 00:11:11.799 and test all of our shrubs for eight to ten years, making sure they 153 00:11:11.799 --> 00:11:15.360 outperform everything else. On the market. Look for them and the distinctive white 154 00:11:15.399 --> 00:11:20.440 container at your local garden center. Greeting's gardening friends, and welcome back to 155 00:11:20.519 --> 00:11:24.799 the Gardening Simplified Show. We're talking tools today, and you know, I 156 00:11:24.879 --> 00:11:28.559 always feel like I have to. You're doing such a great job in the 157 00:11:28.600 --> 00:11:30.720 first segment. I don't want to interrupt you, but I always like, 158 00:11:30.759 --> 00:11:33.639 I really want to just say this one thing. So so then when we 159 00:11:33.639 --> 00:11:35.159 get to plants on trial, I feel like I need to just say that 160 00:11:35.200 --> 00:11:39.879 one thing. And that one thing for me is, you know, gloves, 161 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:45.679 I think are the most polarizing of all garden tools. People have very 162 00:11:45.679 --> 00:11:50.240 strong preferences about gloves, as you do, as we just saw, and 163 00:11:50.399 --> 00:11:52.440 I do as well. And for years I did not wear gloves gardening. 164 00:11:52.480 --> 00:11:56.799 I was a gloveless gardener. I like to feel the soil, I like 165 00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:00.559 to be down in there. And then I found myself as a whole culturist 166 00:12:00.600 --> 00:12:03.720 in New York City and there was not a chance that I was going to 167 00:12:03.879 --> 00:12:07.159 not wear gloves digging around in the soil in New York City, where you 168 00:12:07.159 --> 00:12:11.759 know, who knows what can happen, And so that kind of started me 169 00:12:11.440 --> 00:12:15.000 on a habit of using gloves, and even when I moved back to Michigan 170 00:12:15.000 --> 00:12:16.960 and I said, oh, I don't have to use gloves anymore. This 171 00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:20.080 is great. The first day I gardened without gloves, I was like, 172 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:22.279 ouch, you know, because your hands I get, even if you're not 173 00:12:22.279 --> 00:12:26.480 really doing anything that you know of, they just get like these small kind 174 00:12:26.480 --> 00:12:31.039 of lacerations on them and it's really painful. So to me, you know, 175 00:12:31.120 --> 00:12:33.279 gloves were thinking back to when I was a kid, you know, 176 00:12:33.320 --> 00:12:39.519 in the eighties, and they had those little cotton flower print gloves that had 177 00:12:39.519 --> 00:12:43.240 the little tiny piece of elastic on the back that barely did anything, and 178 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:46.039 those gloves are terrible. I mean for me, again, gloves are very 179 00:12:46.039 --> 00:12:48.559 personal. You can all if you like those gloves, that's fine, but 180 00:12:48.600 --> 00:12:52.279 those aren't good gardening gloves. They don't give you a lot of dexterity. 181 00:12:52.720 --> 00:12:56.360 And gardening gloves have come so far, and I think your West Country gloves 182 00:12:56.360 --> 00:13:00.720 are a great example of that. My personal choice are the kind that are 183 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:05.879 elastic, have the knitted elastic and are dipped in the like eurothane or whatever 184 00:13:07.000 --> 00:13:09.360 Latex. Yeah, yeah, so they're reusable. I usually go through one 185 00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:13.159 pair a year because I end up blowing out the fingers because I'm always digging 186 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:18.360 around with my gloves. But I love those. They're cool, they're easy 187 00:13:18.399 --> 00:13:24.080 to stash in your pocket, they're pretty inexpensive, and they do everything you 188 00:13:24.120 --> 00:13:26.480 need. They give you the grip that you need. They have good dexterity. 189 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:30.720 So I have totally come around and now I'm a fully gloved gardener and 190 00:13:30.759 --> 00:13:33.679 I wouldn't even think about doing much more than harvesting a few herbs without gloves. 191 00:13:33.720 --> 00:13:37.919 I agree, speaking of fully gloved, I have a tendency of losing 192 00:13:37.000 --> 00:13:41.159 either the right hand or the left hand, so then I'm out there like 193 00:13:41.240 --> 00:13:45.360 Michael Jackson with one glove on. But still, but it's not a fashion 194 00:13:45.360 --> 00:13:50.159 statement. It's not a fashion statement. Well, anyway, that's my thoughts 195 00:13:50.159 --> 00:13:54.159 on gloves, and if you have thoughts on gloves, we would welcome you 196 00:13:54.200 --> 00:13:56.519 to leave a comment on the YouTube version because we know everybody has something that 197 00:13:56.559 --> 00:14:01.440 they really love and we love hearing about that. So the topic of today, 198 00:14:01.440 --> 00:14:05.039 of course is tools. And so since I do like to relate the 199 00:14:05.039 --> 00:14:09.840 plant on trial to the theme of the show, I have picked aphrodite Kelly 200 00:14:09.879 --> 00:14:13.840 Canthus, what an incredible plant. It really is now, this is a 201 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:18.480 plant that when people see it, they just love it. And a lot 202 00:14:18.480 --> 00:14:22.440 of the plants that we offer in the Proven Winner's Color Choice Shrubs line are 203 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:28.840 you know, plants that people are already familiar with, that people already love 204 00:14:28.039 --> 00:14:31.840 and know well, and we're just trying to find improved versions of those. 205 00:14:31.399 --> 00:14:35.960 And to me, aphrodite kelly canthus is one of the relatively few plants in 206 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:39.320 the line that's kind of a plant geek plant. You don't have to be 207 00:14:39.320 --> 00:14:43.679 a plan geek to appreciate it, but it is one that plant geeks look 208 00:14:43.720 --> 00:14:46.519 at and say, oh, now, that is a cool plant. So 209 00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:52.519 it is a kelly canthus, which is also known as a sweet shrub, 210 00:14:52.320 --> 00:14:56.879 and it's a hybrid of our North American native sweet shrub, which is kelly 211 00:14:56.879 --> 00:15:01.840 Canthus floridus, And like so many North American nationative shrubs, it has acquired 212 00:15:01.360 --> 00:15:07.720 a massive range of common names over the years. Sweet shrub is the most 213 00:15:07.759 --> 00:15:09.679 common, but you will also here depending on the region you are in, 214 00:15:11.159 --> 00:15:20.360 sweet Betsy, sweet Bippy, sweet Bippy, and strawberry shrub. I have 215 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:24.000 only heard sweet, I've only read sweet pippy. I have not actually had 216 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:28.559 a gardener come up to me and say, you know, get a load 217 00:15:28.600 --> 00:15:33.799 of my sweet pippy. But anyway, apparently that's one of the common names. 218 00:15:35.519 --> 00:15:39.480 So it's a hybrid of our native one and Sino kelly Canthus chinensis, 219 00:15:39.519 --> 00:15:43.200 which is the Asian species, and so in many cases there are similar plants 220 00:15:43.240 --> 00:15:46.759 in Asia as there are in North America, and so this is a hybrid 221 00:15:46.799 --> 00:15:52.480 of the two. And it fits into toy Today's theme of tools because this 222 00:15:52.679 --> 00:15:56.960 is a shrub that you're gonna need probably a special tool if you want to 223 00:15:58.000 --> 00:16:02.919 prune it. This is because it is a big shrub, and a lot 224 00:16:02.960 --> 00:16:06.279 of shrubs that we sell in the proven Winn's line are not that big. 225 00:16:06.320 --> 00:16:08.000 We know people aren't looking for something that's going to overgrow their house are going 226 00:16:08.080 --> 00:16:11.240 to, you know, need a lot of pruning. It doesn't strictly require 227 00:16:11.320 --> 00:16:15.159 pruning, but if you do want to prune this, it's going to grow 228 00:16:15.799 --> 00:16:21.519 big, thick, sturdy branches that are going to need loppers. So lappers 229 00:16:21.600 --> 00:16:23.519 is not something we talked about, but lappers is kind of like a bypass 230 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:27.840 pruner, but much longer, so it's on a longer handle so you can 231 00:16:27.879 --> 00:16:33.840 really get in there leverage and it's really good for you know, pruning out 232 00:16:33.919 --> 00:16:37.919 large branches from the center of a big mature shrub. You can even use 233 00:16:37.919 --> 00:16:41.720 it on trees to take out you know, branches probably up to like an 234 00:16:41.720 --> 00:16:44.559 inch and a half to two inches in diameter, So it's just like a 235 00:16:44.559 --> 00:16:47.559 hand pruner, but it gives you a little more reach and leverage, and 236 00:16:47.879 --> 00:16:52.320 uh is a lot can take out a lot bigger branches. So if you 237 00:16:52.399 --> 00:16:56.440 do want to prune, if you have aphrodity Caillie canthus and you're going to 238 00:16:56.440 --> 00:16:57.960 prune it, this is a plant that I would recommend you're going to want 239 00:16:57.960 --> 00:17:00.639 some looppers on. But once you oppers, you'll find all sorts of great 240 00:17:00.720 --> 00:17:04.160 uses for them. They're very handy. But this is a big plant. 241 00:17:04.200 --> 00:17:08.839 So it's a five to ten feet tall and wide shrub. And you might 242 00:17:08.839 --> 00:17:11.200 be thinking, WHOA, that's a pretty big range. Do I expect it 243 00:17:11.200 --> 00:17:15.079 to be five feet or do I expect it to be ten feet? And 244 00:17:15.119 --> 00:17:18.119 the answer to that is that the coldier climate, the more it's going to 245 00:17:18.440 --> 00:17:23.119 be towards that five to seven foot range, and in those warmer areas it's 246 00:17:23.119 --> 00:17:26.920 going to reach every bit of that ten feet by ten feet. But if 247 00:17:26.960 --> 00:17:32.240 you have the space for this. I cannot think a few other ways to 248 00:17:32.359 --> 00:17:36.680 transform a spot in your yard from something that you have to mow or weed 249 00:17:36.880 --> 00:17:40.000 or whatever. Just plant this shrub, and all of a sudden, you've 250 00:17:40.039 --> 00:17:45.240 got like ten square feet of yard taken up with something that's beautiful that you 251 00:17:45.279 --> 00:17:48.039 barely have to take care of. That's fantastic. And Stacy, you got 252 00:17:48.039 --> 00:17:52.960 me so excited about this plant by simply telling me to stick my face in 253 00:17:53.039 --> 00:17:56.960 there and take a whiff. Wow. Right, So I do want to 254 00:17:57.119 --> 00:18:00.319 I'll get into the flowers, but I want to kind of give every a 255 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:03.400 mental image of of what the what the plant looks like. So if you've 256 00:18:03.440 --> 00:18:07.240 seen the North American sweet shrub, the flowers are similar, so they have 257 00:18:07.279 --> 00:18:14.240 that same kind of deep red maroon color. But the Asian heritage of the 258 00:18:14.240 --> 00:18:19.440 the Asian parentage give the flowers a really large size and they're much more open. 259 00:18:19.480 --> 00:18:23.119 So we'll put pictures of both on the show notes at Gardeningsimplified on air 260 00:18:23.160 --> 00:18:26.400 dot com, so you can see our native species, just straight species like 261 00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:30.400 you'd find in the wilds and the Appalachian mountains. And then we'll put pictures 262 00:18:30.400 --> 00:18:33.440 of aphrodite. So it's a hybrid of the two. So if you're trying 263 00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:37.160 to conjure up a mental image of this, I would say, imagine a 264 00:18:37.279 --> 00:18:42.599 magnolia or water lily flower and now imagine it dark red, good descript So 265 00:18:42.640 --> 00:18:47.400 that's pretty much what they look like. Now. The foliage on this plant 266 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:52.640 is also very very large and very very glossy. So it's a really interesting, 267 00:18:52.799 --> 00:18:56.640 unique plant. Definitely not like something that you know you usually see as 268 00:18:56.640 --> 00:19:02.000 you're walking around, and as you might guess because of the name Sweet Srub, 269 00:19:02.240 --> 00:19:06.920 it is fragrant. Now, fragrance is one of those things that is 270 00:19:07.039 --> 00:19:11.559 highly subjective for people. And our native sweet Srub and we have a version 271 00:19:11.599 --> 00:19:15.759 of our native Sweet Srub in the proven Winner's line called Simply Sensational Kelly Canthus, 272 00:19:15.279 --> 00:19:18.880 and that thing, the fragrance on that will absolutely knock your socks off. 273 00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:25.160 It is the most delicious and unique fragrance of almost any of our shrups 274 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:29.079 minus al Nino Chetalpa, which I've talked about. It smells like melon vanilla. 275 00:19:29.599 --> 00:19:34.000 This Simply Sensational Kelly Canthus smells like ripe strawberries. Kind of. Oh, 276 00:19:34.039 --> 00:19:38.079 it's such an amazing smell. Now because aphrodite. The one we're talking 277 00:19:38.079 --> 00:19:44.000 about today is a hybrid. Its fragrance is a little bit more elusive, 278 00:19:44.720 --> 00:19:47.720 so it's not necessarily one of those plants. Every single time you walk by 279 00:19:47.759 --> 00:19:48.759 it you're going to go, WHOA, what's that smell? Like you would 280 00:19:48.759 --> 00:19:53.920 with simply sensational. But if you take a flower, especially as it's starting 281 00:19:53.920 --> 00:19:57.799 to fade, so it's gotten a little bit older, and especially later in 282 00:19:57.839 --> 00:20:02.920 the day, and you ask people what it smells like, you're probably gonna 283 00:20:02.960 --> 00:20:06.799 get a different answer from every single person that you ask, because it is 284 00:20:06.839 --> 00:20:11.079 a very subjective fragrance. Now, to me, the flowers on Aphrodite kelly 285 00:20:11.119 --> 00:20:17.319 Caanthus smell like an apple that has fallen off the tree at infall on a 286 00:20:17.400 --> 00:20:22.079 warm sunny day, and that ripe, that kind of overripe apple smell is 287 00:20:22.119 --> 00:20:23.799 just you know, wafting up from the warmth. That's sort of what the 288 00:20:23.839 --> 00:20:26.559 flowers smell like to me in a good way. Great description, and I 289 00:20:26.599 --> 00:20:30.960 think you nailed at Stacey simply by saying delicious. This is a flower that 290 00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:34.079 smells delicious. Yes. Now, again, if you're looking for the best 291 00:20:34.079 --> 00:20:37.839 fragrance, you're going to definitely want to go with our North American native species 292 00:20:37.880 --> 00:20:45.240 Kellycanthus floridus or simply sensational, but the flowers on aphrodite really make up for 293 00:20:45.279 --> 00:20:49.319 that lack of power in the fragrance. So it's not native because it is 294 00:20:49.359 --> 00:20:53.400 a hybrid of the North American native and the Asian. But again a big 295 00:20:53.440 --> 00:20:56.279 plant, so give it space. But if you have space for it, 296 00:20:56.319 --> 00:21:00.440 I would highly recommend it. I don't have a huge yard. I grow 297 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:03.559 it because I love it so much, so it's definitely definitely worth growing. 298 00:21:03.599 --> 00:21:07.799 It does take well to pruning if you want to prune it, but you 299 00:21:07.880 --> 00:21:10.759 do have to bear in mind that it flowers on old and new woods, 300 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:14.160 so it starts to flower for us here in Michigan probably late spring, early 301 00:21:14.240 --> 00:21:17.759 summer, so you'd want to prune it after that, and then it does 302 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:22.279 here continue to flower through the summer. It always has some flowers on it, 303 00:21:22.319 --> 00:21:25.680 really clear through i'd say August, so you get a lot of bang 304 00:21:25.680 --> 00:21:29.240 for your buck with this plant. It does not require pruning, but again, 305 00:21:29.279 --> 00:21:30.599 if you are going to prune it, you're probably gonna want those loppers 306 00:21:30.599 --> 00:21:37.000 because this is a big, vigorous plant. For coverage. Birds love it. 307 00:21:37.000 --> 00:21:40.240 It is also very dear resistant. I have not had any nibbles on 308 00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:42.000 mine, which is really saying something I'm going to knock on wood though, 309 00:21:42.039 --> 00:21:47.440 just to be safe. Hard to do usdas on five heat tolerant through USDA's 310 00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:53.400 one nine and really just a very very interesting, unique plant with some incredible 311 00:21:53.559 --> 00:21:56.960 color. Now, that was a lot to take in, so if you're 312 00:21:56.000 --> 00:21:59.880 wondering what it looks like, please do check us out at Gardening Simplified on 313 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:03.079 it. You can also check us out on YouTube. Adriana is gonna put 314 00:22:03.079 --> 00:22:07.039 some fabulous footage of Aphrodit kellikanthus into our show, and of course you can 315 00:22:07.079 --> 00:22:10.680 always check us out on Instagram. We got to take a little break right 316 00:22:10.680 --> 00:22:12.119 now. When we're coming back, we're opening up the mailbag, so please 317 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:22.519 stay tuned. At proven Winner's Color Choice, we've got a shrub for every 318 00:22:22.559 --> 00:22:27.319 taste and every space. Whether you're looking for an easycare rose, an unforgettable 319 00:22:27.400 --> 00:22:32.079 hydrangea, or something new and unique, you can be confident that the shrubs 320 00:22:32.079 --> 00:22:34.839 and the white containers have been trialed and tested for your success. Look for 321 00:22:34.880 --> 00:22:41.839 them at your local garden center. Greetings, gardening friends, and welcome back 322 00:22:41.880 --> 00:22:45.359 to the gardening Simplified show. It's time to open up the garden mailbag. 323 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:48.440 We know you've got questions, and if you haven't asked them yet, you 324 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:52.960 can reach us at help HLP at Gardeningsimplified on air dot com, or just 325 00:22:52.000 --> 00:22:56.799 go to Gardening Simplified on air dot com and you can click the contact form 326 00:22:56.119 --> 00:22:59.559 and send us a question that way. I know we're getting into the thick 327 00:22:59.599 --> 00:23:02.240 of it. You know a lot of people are sitting there going I need 328 00:23:02.279 --> 00:23:04.599 an answer now. I can't wait till next week when Gardening Simplified is back. 329 00:23:04.920 --> 00:23:07.759 So you can also reach us. Just go to the Proven Winner's website 330 00:23:07.799 --> 00:23:11.359 preven Winners dot com. There is a feedback It says feedback Questions, We're 331 00:23:11.400 --> 00:23:15.759 listening. You can click there and one of our horticulturists will get back to 332 00:23:15.160 --> 00:23:18.440 We try to get it within the next business day if we can. So 333 00:23:18.440 --> 00:23:21.200 if you have an urgent question, you can't wait a week for it to 334 00:23:21.200 --> 00:23:22.359 be answered, definitely check us out there. So what do we got in 335 00:23:22.359 --> 00:23:26.240 the mailbag this week? Well, Stacey, a question from Lori Anne. 336 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:30.359 I have a question about my pine trees. They're shedding little branches. Is 337 00:23:30.400 --> 00:23:34.519 that something that happens every few years. I honestly don't remember that happening before. 338 00:23:34.880 --> 00:23:40.400 Did they drop pine cones before? Did you thought you might know? 339 00:23:40.559 --> 00:23:44.359 Thanks Malch, These are the trees in my front yard. She sent some 340 00:23:44.480 --> 00:23:48.119 pictures. Ran into a neighbor walking this morning and their trees have the same 341 00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:53.960 issue. Her neighbors said it was from heavy snow. What in the world 342 00:23:55.079 --> 00:23:57.240 is going on? Otherwise, just filed this in the crazy lady file. 343 00:23:57.400 --> 00:24:02.599 Oh no, absolutely not, Lorianne. You are not crazy. No, 344 00:24:02.759 --> 00:24:07.480 lorian the squirrels are. You are not crazy. But the squirrels certainly are, 345 00:24:07.599 --> 00:24:10.680 and they're hungry. And so when you get to the end of winter, 346 00:24:10.799 --> 00:24:14.319 they'll go up there and soft little pieces of branches, leave them on 347 00:24:14.359 --> 00:24:18.559 the ground, eat the bud and leave the debris. Yeah, they eat 348 00:24:18.599 --> 00:24:21.599 the bud. They'll eat the sap. And we talked about that a little 349 00:24:21.599 --> 00:24:25.000 bit when we had don snowy inc On a few weeks ago. The sap 350 00:24:25.079 --> 00:24:29.519 is running and that includes in those pines and spruces and all of that, 351 00:24:29.640 --> 00:24:33.160 and that bud, yeah, so tender, so full of flavor, and 352 00:24:33.240 --> 00:24:36.119 so they go in there, they snip off that bud and they don't mind 353 00:24:36.359 --> 00:24:38.759 letting those little pieces just drop all over, and yeah, it can look 354 00:24:38.839 --> 00:24:42.960 like a genuine carpet if they really get busy with it. So the fact 355 00:24:42.960 --> 00:24:47.559 that this is happening, Lorienne, and it hasn't happened before, could just 356 00:24:47.559 --> 00:24:49.799 be that some squirrels moved into your neighborhood that weren't there before, or they 357 00:24:49.880 --> 00:24:53.640 just discovered your tree. I also think they kind of do it just out 358 00:24:53.680 --> 00:24:57.400 of boredom. I think so too. They're chewing, they're sharpening their teeth, 359 00:24:59.000 --> 00:25:03.519 and they hack these things off. Lori. Anne sent some pictures for 360 00:25:03.640 --> 00:25:07.319 our YouTube viewers. You're seeing those pictures right now. For those listening to 361 00:25:07.519 --> 00:25:15.079 podcast or radio. Adriana will put them at Gardeningsimplified on air dot Com. 362 00:25:15.319 --> 00:25:18.559 You bet, so, nothing to worry about. The tree will be fine, 363 00:25:18.680 --> 00:25:22.079 The squirrels will be fine. Some of them might make it into their 364 00:25:22.119 --> 00:25:25.359 nests. Some of them they're just they're just that's just the way it's going 365 00:25:25.400 --> 00:25:27.680 to be. It's part of nature, and the squirrels are kind of controlling 366 00:25:27.759 --> 00:25:30.599 the growth. Whether they mean to you or not. It's just one of 367 00:25:30.599 --> 00:25:34.400 those things. But I've seen it happen myself. It's nuts. Randy writes 368 00:25:34.440 --> 00:25:41.680 to us he's he asked before about growing hydranges in containers a few weeks ago. 369 00:25:41.799 --> 00:25:45.759 I remember that follow up question. I'm curious when I start putting your 370 00:25:45.799 --> 00:25:51.119 soil mix mixture in the pot, when and how much of the fertilizer I 371 00:25:51.160 --> 00:25:53.720 should add to the pot, And I'm going to top it with mulch as 372 00:25:53.799 --> 00:26:00.200 you recommended. So Randy is our listener viewer who's putting hydranges in Yes, 373 00:26:00.319 --> 00:26:03.200 So, I thought this was a really good question that was probably not a 374 00:26:03.240 --> 00:26:07.480 lot of people's minds, and we've hit on it a couple times here and 375 00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:11.400 there on the show. But the simple fact is that when you are buying 376 00:26:11.640 --> 00:26:15.240 new potting mix from the garden Center, you don't usually need to add any 377 00:26:15.279 --> 00:26:19.279 fertilizer. And the reason for that is because most potting mixes, just in 378 00:26:19.400 --> 00:26:23.880 terms of like their basic ingredients, the phagnum moss, the bark, the 379 00:26:23.960 --> 00:26:27.559 vermiculite prolate, all that kind of stuff doesn't really have a lot of nutrition. 380 00:26:29.119 --> 00:26:32.720 So if you ever wondered why every single potting mix seems to come from 381 00:26:32.720 --> 00:26:34.920 a fertilizer company, there's a reason for that, and that's because they're adding 382 00:26:34.960 --> 00:26:40.920 their fertilizer to it to get that nutrients in there. Now, if you 383 00:26:41.000 --> 00:26:44.960 are reusing a potting mix, then you're definitely going to want to fertilize. 384 00:26:44.960 --> 00:26:48.160 So what I usually do is I will just film my containers, put a 385 00:26:48.160 --> 00:26:51.279 handful of you know, plant tone, flower tone, something like that. 386 00:26:51.359 --> 00:26:52.960 You know, we like those fertilizers a lot. Put a little bit of 387 00:26:53.000 --> 00:26:56.279 that in, mix it into the to the top, you know, a 388 00:26:56.319 --> 00:26:59.640 couple inches of soil. I don't personally feel like I need it all the 389 00:26:59.680 --> 00:27:02.839 way through through the soil because if it's at the bottom, the roots aren't 390 00:27:02.839 --> 00:27:06.039 going to be down there. The water's going to be working on that fertilizer 391 00:27:06.079 --> 00:27:07.440 and it's just going to go out the bottom without ever being used. So 392 00:27:07.519 --> 00:27:11.160 I like to keep that fertilizer just up in the early root zone of the 393 00:27:11.200 --> 00:27:17.240 plant. But yeah, so new soil, don't worry about fertilizing, especially 394 00:27:17.240 --> 00:27:19.880 for shrubs. If you're reusing old soil, then you definitely want to get 395 00:27:19.880 --> 00:27:23.880 some fertilizer in there and you can continue to fertilize, you know, through 396 00:27:23.920 --> 00:27:27.160 the season to get that growth that you need. So Randy, no cost 397 00:27:27.240 --> 00:27:30.720 or concerns, save that fertilizer for next year, because you're going to need 398 00:27:30.720 --> 00:27:34.160 it. Then when they've been through a whole season, dirty job, somebody's 399 00:27:34.160 --> 00:27:38.200 got to do it. Our friend Jim has a great question about pruning hydranges. 400 00:27:38.799 --> 00:27:41.680 Stacy, if I had a dime for everyone who is right, I 401 00:27:41.680 --> 00:27:45.720 feel that, Yeah, we have a question about high range of pruning. 402 00:27:45.799 --> 00:27:51.440 Despite watching many pruning videos, we can never quite come to grips very well 403 00:27:51.480 --> 00:27:53.920 done. Nice. I like that. With how to deal with the whirls 404 00:27:55.079 --> 00:28:00.359 which emerge from the pruning point, we tend to get whirls. That's a 405 00:28:00.359 --> 00:28:03.880 tough word to say. Have three long flowering stems from every pruning point, 406 00:28:03.960 --> 00:28:08.119 and they can get long and pendulous. So we wonder how to keep the 407 00:28:08.119 --> 00:28:12.759 plant from opening out too much. We figure if we cut it below the 408 00:28:12.799 --> 00:28:18.400 whirl each year, we will be cutting the hydrangea lower and lower and lower 409 00:28:18.960 --> 00:28:25.160 year by year. So you get the idea here, Stacy, Gym's looking 410 00:28:25.200 --> 00:28:29.279 for some detailed instruments. And you know, I understand because I have encountered 411 00:28:29.279 --> 00:28:32.960 this myself. And when your hydrange is young, it might not matter that 412 00:28:33.079 --> 00:28:36.359 much. But as your hydrangees get more mature and you're seeing more of this 413 00:28:36.440 --> 00:28:38.359 world. And what Jim means by a worl, And if you've grown panicle 414 00:28:38.400 --> 00:28:42.680 hydrange is before, you've probably seen this. Usually the leaves come across, 415 00:28:42.680 --> 00:28:47.599 come out opposite from each other on the stem, but occasionally you will see 416 00:28:47.599 --> 00:28:52.440 these worls form, and the worl is basically that there's three leaves around the 417 00:28:52.480 --> 00:28:56.119 stem. So instead of just cutting and having that forked growth, you're gonna 418 00:28:56.119 --> 00:28:59.079 have three branches coming out of that point, and you're gonna get these weird 419 00:28:59.119 --> 00:29:03.000 fireworks like we just talked about in our smoke bush pruning video that's on our 420 00:29:03.039 --> 00:29:07.119 YouTube channel. And you stand there going what in the world just happen? 421 00:29:07.160 --> 00:29:08.920 That's exactly what you do. So first you ask yourself, what in the 422 00:29:08.960 --> 00:29:12.440 world do I do now? And we will try to make a video on 423 00:29:12.480 --> 00:29:15.759 this gym if we can find a good hydrange Probably most of the hydrangees around 424 00:29:15.799 --> 00:29:18.400 here have been prune, but if Adrian I can find a good place to 425 00:29:18.440 --> 00:29:22.599 do it, we will make a video of this. So what I recommend 426 00:29:22.680 --> 00:29:26.839 that you do is go ahead and prune the panicle hydrangel wherever you need to 427 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:30.440 do. Usually we're recommending, you know, taking off about a third of 428 00:29:30.519 --> 00:29:33.559 the total growth of the plant. Because this kind of splits, the difference 429 00:29:33.960 --> 00:29:38.240 between taking the plant back to where thicker buds were formed earlier in the season, 430 00:29:38.680 --> 00:29:41.640 so you get a lot of vigorous new growth, but also preserving enough 431 00:29:41.680 --> 00:29:45.599 of the old woody framework so that you have a nice, strong and supportive 432 00:29:45.720 --> 00:29:48.559 plant. So usually it's a third, it can be half. It really 433 00:29:48.559 --> 00:29:52.359 depends on what you need to do. Now. If you are pruning to 434 00:29:52.519 --> 00:29:56.119 that WORL, go ahead and make your pruning cut as usual, and then 435 00:29:56.400 --> 00:30:03.000 wait and watch over the coming weeks as that new growth starts to come from 436 00:30:03.079 --> 00:30:07.400 the world. And then at that point I would thin it to just one 437 00:30:07.519 --> 00:30:11.680 or two branches. And I have pictures of this what the owner of our 438 00:30:11.759 --> 00:30:17.559 trialgarden has done to his and you'll be able to see that where those hydranges 439 00:30:17.640 --> 00:30:21.880 usually would fork, what he has done is selected one branch to continue that 440 00:30:21.960 --> 00:30:23.799 growth. It'll be real parent in these pictures. So please check us out 441 00:30:23.799 --> 00:30:27.119 at Gardening Simplified on air dot com and I'll put those there. So what 442 00:30:27.160 --> 00:30:32.480 you're going to want to do is just selectively thin to one or two branches 443 00:30:32.559 --> 00:30:34.359 going in the direction that you want to go, because those three branches are 444 00:30:34.400 --> 00:30:38.559 going to be going three different directions, and so whatever way you want the 445 00:30:38.559 --> 00:30:41.839 plant to grow. If you want it to grow away from your house, 446 00:30:41.880 --> 00:30:44.720 then you would select the branch that's growing away from your house. If you 447 00:30:44.720 --> 00:30:47.279 want it to grow left, you'd select a branch that was on the left, 448 00:30:48.119 --> 00:30:52.880 thin out the other two and then let that one branch take over. 449 00:30:52.960 --> 00:30:56.759 And that way you don't have to keep lowering the height of your pruning and 450 00:30:56.799 --> 00:31:00.640 you keep getting that nice, thick, vigorous growth at that point where you 451 00:31:00.680 --> 00:31:03.559 want it. You are a true pruning expert, Stacy, I am, 452 00:31:03.839 --> 00:31:07.519 you know what, I'm really not a parting expert. The thing is like 453 00:31:07.640 --> 00:31:12.000 I find these myself in these situations all the time where I'm pruning something and 454 00:31:12.039 --> 00:31:17.559 I think, I think, what do I do? But the expertise comes 455 00:31:17.720 --> 00:31:21.079 from you know, really, I think taking the time to think about it 456 00:31:21.519 --> 00:31:26.079 and think about how your actions are going to impact the plant growth. And 457 00:31:26.759 --> 00:31:29.359 you know, of course, as we talked about in our pruning show a 458 00:31:29.359 --> 00:31:33.400 couple of weeks ago, another important part of being a good expert pruner is 459 00:31:33.400 --> 00:31:37.960 knowing and to walk away knowing when to not prune and say, you know 460 00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:41.039 what, I don't know what to do, so I'm just going to leave 461 00:31:41.039 --> 00:31:45.240 this for this season. There's a lot of knowledge you need to apply, 462 00:31:45.599 --> 00:31:48.559 but ultimately the stakes, as long as you're not taking out too much, 463 00:31:48.559 --> 00:31:53.640 are pretty low. It's like a soap opera as the world urns. I'm 464 00:31:53.680 --> 00:31:57.000 still trying to nail that down. Am I saying that right, Stacey war 465 00:31:57.359 --> 00:32:02.680 Yeah, you are say it is a strange word, but it's a strange 466 00:32:02.680 --> 00:32:06.960 growth habit for the panicle hyge rangers because hydrange's, as most people no, 467 00:32:07.079 --> 00:32:09.960 tend to be very strongly opposite. Yep. Most other types of hydrangs that 468 00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:14.640 I have seen have not don't grow into these three leaved worlds. It's really 469 00:32:14.720 --> 00:32:20.480 specifically panical hydrangs that have this unique characteristic. So you know, and I 470 00:32:20.519 --> 00:32:24.440 was asking Megan, our plant breeder here, if she knew why it happened. 471 00:32:24.480 --> 00:32:28.160 I was asking a bunch of people who here if they knew why it 472 00:32:28.240 --> 00:32:30.519 happened. And it's just just one of those things that it just does. 473 00:32:30.599 --> 00:32:34.759 So Stacey, It's what I always say, there's three types of people in 474 00:32:34.799 --> 00:32:37.400 this world. Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, 475 00:32:37.839 --> 00:32:42.960 and those who wonder what in the world just happened? Yes, I think 476 00:32:42.960 --> 00:32:45.640 I'm in the latter, so me too. Anyway, thank you all so 477 00:32:45.720 --> 00:32:46.920 much for your questions. If you have a question as well, please don't 478 00:32:46.920 --> 00:32:51.319 hesitate to reach out Gardening Simplified on air, dot com, or of course, 479 00:32:51.359 --> 00:32:54.240 you can always leave a comment on the YouTube video and we will pess 480 00:32:54.279 --> 00:32:58.359 that along and get that answered for you. So we're going to take a 481 00:32:58.359 --> 00:33:00.839 break. When we come back, we have a very very special guest, 482 00:33:00.119 --> 00:33:09.519 so please stay tuned. The Gardening Simplified Show is brought to you by Proven 483 00:33:09.519 --> 00:33:15.680 Winners Color Choice Shrubs. Our award winning flowering shrubs and evergreens have been trialed 484 00:33:15.680 --> 00:33:20.559 and tested for your success so you enjoy more beauty and less work. Look 485 00:33:20.599 --> 00:33:23.839 for Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs and the distinctive white container at your local garden 486 00:33:23.880 --> 00:33:30.039 center. Welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show. It's time for Branching News, 487 00:33:30.200 --> 00:33:35.359 and today in Branching News, we have the privilege of talking to Adam 488 00:33:35.480 --> 00:33:42.160 Moseley. Adam's title is Breeding director with wyn Gen LLC. It's a plant 489 00:33:42.240 --> 00:33:47.160 breeding company just south of Austin, Texas. And I'm looking forward to this 490 00:33:47.279 --> 00:33:53.839 interview because I always love talking about plant breeding here in the Golden Age of 491 00:33:53.960 --> 00:33:59.839 plant breeding. But in addition to that, I love talking about super Tuna 492 00:34:00.079 --> 00:34:04.599 because Stacey, they're one of my favorite plans. You know what they are 493 00:34:04.640 --> 00:34:08.519 a plant that has really just totally upended the way people think about Petunia's absolutely 494 00:34:08.599 --> 00:34:12.719 Adam, welcome to the show. Thanks for joining us, my pleasure. 495 00:34:12.800 --> 00:34:16.280 Thanks for having me. Adam, give our listeners and viewers first of all, 496 00:34:16.480 --> 00:34:22.880 and idea of what a breeding director does. Give us your vantage point 497 00:34:22.960 --> 00:34:29.599 of the work that's being done in Austin, Texas as well as around the 498 00:34:29.639 --> 00:34:32.719 world in breeding these fabulous plants. Yeah, great question, Rick, So 499 00:34:32.920 --> 00:34:37.559 we do plant breeding. Plant breading is one of those things that I think 500 00:34:37.639 --> 00:34:40.880 is not very consumer facing, and as a breeding director, you know, 501 00:34:40.920 --> 00:34:45.960 there's a lot of different aspects that we have to deal with, and so 502 00:34:45.480 --> 00:34:50.480 you know, my job here in Austin, Texas revolves mostly around sowing out 503 00:34:50.559 --> 00:34:58.480 speed and making selections and making those selections go into what we call trials or 504 00:34:58.519 --> 00:35:04.280 plant trials at different propagator companies that we work with, and then helping to 505 00:35:04.360 --> 00:35:09.440 facilitate getting that plant from from the breeding concept into the market. That's fantastic, 506 00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:16.239 and as it relates to supertunias. I guess the question that comes up. 507 00:35:17.079 --> 00:35:22.079 You know, I grow supertunias. I've worked in the garden center industry. 508 00:35:22.440 --> 00:35:24.440 I know the value of a supertunia. As a matter of fact, 509 00:35:24.480 --> 00:35:30.039 I was looking at Proven Winners website and it basically describes it as the best 510 00:35:30.199 --> 00:35:37.719 petunia period and I think they're right. And I'm super excited about the Supertunia 511 00:35:38.000 --> 00:35:45.119 Hoopla vivid orchid coming out this year. Give us an idea of the process 512 00:35:45.199 --> 00:35:50.280 here as you developed new varieties of supertunias. Sure. Yeah, Petunias is 513 00:35:50.280 --> 00:35:53.400 one of those crops that's very interesting. It's kind of a numbers game. 514 00:35:53.519 --> 00:35:57.840 You know, you've got to work with a lot of plants to find the 515 00:35:57.880 --> 00:36:04.159 best petunia period and in that particular case, refers to Supertunia visca bubble gum, 516 00:36:04.199 --> 00:36:07.199 which has been just I think a benchmark for for all petunias on the 517 00:36:07.239 --> 00:36:12.199 market. If consumers have grown that plant in the past, they know that. 518 00:36:12.840 --> 00:36:15.679 You know, it's more resilient to disease, it's got better flower power, 519 00:36:15.920 --> 00:36:21.199 it seems to last through the season more than the typical, you know, 520 00:36:22.039 --> 00:36:24.320 less expensive petunias that are maybe grown from seed that you can buy at 521 00:36:24.360 --> 00:36:30.159 the garden center. And I think that's a big distinction between the supertunias and 522 00:36:30.559 --> 00:36:32.519 you know, a lot of what you can find at the garden center that's 523 00:36:32.559 --> 00:36:38.119 grown from seed. These are vegetative petunias that are grown from a vegetative cutting 524 00:36:38.239 --> 00:36:43.440 or a clone of that plant. And the beauty in that is that you 525 00:36:43.480 --> 00:36:46.719 don't have to inbreed to get to a true to type seed. You know, 526 00:36:46.960 --> 00:36:51.519 we can say, all right, I'm going to combine this great petunia 527 00:36:51.599 --> 00:36:53.639 with this other great petunia, and I'm going to make a selection from that, 528 00:36:54.360 --> 00:37:00.679 and it's superior now. But if I start to ingreed that plant down, 529 00:37:00.800 --> 00:37:02.559 say I needed to be pink, I needed to be this size, 530 00:37:02.599 --> 00:37:09.920 I needed to bloom in you know, March twelfth in the Midwest, because 531 00:37:09.920 --> 00:37:14.320 that's when the retail market center wants it to be in flour for the for 532 00:37:14.400 --> 00:37:17.199 the consumer bench to come and buy it. You shoul start to lose a 533 00:37:17.239 --> 00:37:22.079 lot of that you know, wild species, bigger and and and the things 534 00:37:22.079 --> 00:37:27.880 that make a petunia really resilient and great for a consumer. And so you 535 00:37:27.920 --> 00:37:34.239 know, we make our selections and we send that particular clone into trials. 536 00:37:34.880 --> 00:37:37.840 That's the same exact plant that we're gonna that you're gonna buy, even if 537 00:37:37.840 --> 00:37:42.719 we reproduce it a million times or ten million times or one hundred million times, 538 00:37:42.880 --> 00:37:50.599 it's the same plant. And supertunias are all vegetatively propagated hybrid petunia that 539 00:37:51.079 --> 00:37:55.079 have superior performance. And I think that's part of the special medicine that that 540 00:37:55.119 --> 00:37:59.320 makes them so great. Yeah, And and what that means, I think 541 00:37:59.320 --> 00:38:02.039 for a lot of PEO people is that no matter when or where you buy 542 00:38:02.039 --> 00:38:06.320 it. Say you bought supertunia one year in New York and then you move 543 00:38:06.360 --> 00:38:08.760 across the country to Oregon and you want to grow supertunia again. Well, 544 00:38:08.760 --> 00:38:13.519 sure there are climatic differences between that, but the plant itself is the same, 545 00:38:13.559 --> 00:38:16.239 and so you can expect that nice consistent performance. And I have to 546 00:38:16.239 --> 00:38:20.119 wonder, well, hey, this this time it did great, and this 547 00:38:20.239 --> 00:38:23.920 time it didn't. And that consistency is so important in building that trust that 548 00:38:24.000 --> 00:38:29.119 now I think Supertunias really has I agree, Yeah, I feel like Suportunias 549 00:38:29.159 --> 00:38:32.000 have made you know, proven Winners has done a really good job of marketing 550 00:38:32.000 --> 00:38:37.000 to the consumer. You know, brand recognition and name recognition is something that 551 00:38:37.239 --> 00:38:39.000 you know, you want to have trust. If if I'm a consumer and 552 00:38:39.079 --> 00:38:44.320 I'm going to the garden center and I've got a five hundred dollars budget and 553 00:38:44.360 --> 00:38:46.119 i want to buy, you know, one hundred plants, and I want 554 00:38:46.119 --> 00:38:49.519 to get some soil, and I want to get some fertilizer, and I 555 00:38:49.519 --> 00:38:52.079 want to do my garden. You want to make sure that those you know, 556 00:38:52.320 --> 00:38:55.599 five six seven dollars four inch containers that you're planting are going to give 557 00:38:55.639 --> 00:39:00.280 you the garden that you're expecting. You can do all these other things right. 558 00:39:00.559 --> 00:39:04.599 You don't start with good genetics. It's hard to have a good green 559 00:39:04.679 --> 00:39:07.159 thumb, for sure. Now I have a question several several years ago, 560 00:39:07.320 --> 00:39:10.800 I was in San Antonio, Texas in spring, right about this time of 561 00:39:10.880 --> 00:39:16.320 year, and they were using petunias as I think this was even probably before 562 00:39:16.320 --> 00:39:22.960 supertunias were a thing. They were using petunias as a spring annual. Now, 563 00:39:22.000 --> 00:39:25.400 would you say that even in warmer climates like San Antonio or Austin, 564 00:39:25.599 --> 00:39:30.519 that supertunias can actually continue to be a summer annual or are they still going 565 00:39:30.599 --> 00:39:35.119 to be more of a spring and fall performance kind of plant. That's a 566 00:39:35.119 --> 00:39:37.199 really good question. You know, if you're a great gardener. I think 567 00:39:37.199 --> 00:39:44.159 you can do well with supertunias in most regions most of the summer. The 568 00:39:44.199 --> 00:39:47.079 thing about Texas, especially where we are here, is is all plants and 569 00:39:47.480 --> 00:39:52.519 especially things like annual they need you know, good watering, right, and 570 00:39:52.599 --> 00:39:55.679 I think outside of the keat that we get here in the summer, we 571 00:39:55.800 --> 00:40:00.559 just get really dry, and so it can be difficult to keep you know, 572 00:40:00.920 --> 00:40:07.320 certain annuals that do like to drink on a consistent basis alive through the 573 00:40:07.360 --> 00:40:12.360 summer in climates that are drier like we are here in Texas. You know, 574 00:40:12.440 --> 00:40:15.760 I know, I did a planting of them last spring in my front 575 00:40:15.800 --> 00:40:22.519 yard here in Austen and I had super nas pink cashmere and super tunia. 576 00:40:22.559 --> 00:40:27.280 This the bubble gum, and I planted them in about February twenty fifth, 577 00:40:27.360 --> 00:40:30.880 maybe from a four inch container and they look yeah, I know, right 578 00:40:30.280 --> 00:40:36.000 from the northeast in your garden of February. But we have to take advantage 579 00:40:36.000 --> 00:40:38.559 of those cool nights in the spring, and you know, you hope you'll 580 00:40:38.599 --> 00:40:44.360 get a really hard late freeze. But we planted those in March or at 581 00:40:44.360 --> 00:40:46.760 the very beginning of March, late late February and they lasted all the way 582 00:40:46.840 --> 00:40:52.480 through July. Fourth of July. But at that point I got into water 583 00:40:52.519 --> 00:40:55.199 restriction and I'm trying to water my grass and trying to water my garden. 584 00:40:55.360 --> 00:40:59.440 I end up with a seven hundred dollars water bill one month, and I'm 585 00:40:59.440 --> 00:41:01.800 like, that's it. I'm done, you know, I gotta shut it 586 00:41:01.840 --> 00:41:07.039 down. So sure, you're in some places that have better, better consistency 587 00:41:07.079 --> 00:41:12.280 with moisture, you know the Carolina, you know, even North Florida, 588 00:41:12.519 --> 00:41:15.159 you can you can grow them all summer long. I mean, that's huge, 589 00:41:15.159 --> 00:41:19.880 that's a huge advancement. Absolutely. We're chatting with Adam Moseley. He 590 00:41:20.079 --> 00:41:25.079 is breeding director at WinGen LLC. It's a plant breeding company just south of 591 00:41:25.199 --> 00:41:30.360 Austin, Texas. Talking about supertunias. Adam, I, you know you 592 00:41:30.400 --> 00:41:36.280 mentioned bubble gum. I love that plant, the whole Supertunia Vista series, 593 00:41:36.679 --> 00:41:40.639 and I think that this is a These are petunias that are ideal for hanging 594 00:41:40.840 --> 00:41:45.599 baskets. Uh years ago in the garden center industry, we'd put petunias and 595 00:41:45.679 --> 00:41:51.760 hanging baskets and they'd get long and leggy and stretched, and we're pinching and 596 00:41:51.800 --> 00:41:57.119 we're chopping. My experience with the Supertunia Vista line, bubblegum or whatever it 597 00:41:57.159 --> 00:42:02.320 may be, is that they create this massive ball of flowers and just keep 598 00:42:02.480 --> 00:42:07.639 blooming. I think it's the ideal plant for a hanging basket. Yeah, 599 00:42:07.679 --> 00:42:12.880 I would agree. We definitely look at the Vista series as well as the 600 00:42:12.960 --> 00:42:17.079 many many Vista series, and and your traditional Supertunities is being great hanging basket 601 00:42:17.119 --> 00:42:22.679 plants. The Vistas I've noticed, you know, they mixed really well, 602 00:42:22.800 --> 00:42:27.280 especially with each other. They've got this special recipe to them. You know, 603 00:42:27.320 --> 00:42:30.119 they're they're tall, you know, in the landscape. You'll find that 604 00:42:30.159 --> 00:42:32.880 they'll grow to you know, twelve to eighteen inches tall off the ground, 605 00:42:32.920 --> 00:42:37.639 which is atypical for a normal petunia. And they'll make almost these little, 606 00:42:37.679 --> 00:42:42.840 you know hedges. So you think about the branching, the superior branching that's 607 00:42:42.880 --> 00:42:45.920 there, and the flower power. Combining them with other plants that maybe aren't 608 00:42:46.000 --> 00:42:49.239 quite as strong, you know, they tend to we used to say, 609 00:42:49.400 --> 00:42:51.599 and trials be like, oh, it's just gonna eat that. You know, 610 00:42:51.639 --> 00:42:53.679 it'll eat it by the end of the spring trial season and all you'll 611 00:42:53.719 --> 00:42:58.719 see is bubble bump but if you mix it with Vista silverberry or this the 612 00:42:58.760 --> 00:43:00.920 snow drift or this the usha, you know, then you get this really 613 00:43:01.000 --> 00:43:07.480 nice combination of the three of the three colors coming out. And that's because 614 00:43:07.519 --> 00:43:12.599 they just they've got high, bigger, they've got grape branching. Uh. 615 00:43:12.719 --> 00:43:15.519 They really like to fill that container. And they don't have a bald top. 616 00:43:15.599 --> 00:43:20.039 They don't like to flit when you get too much rain or wind or 617 00:43:20.239 --> 00:43:22.719 these inclement weather, it'll hold its shape and it will continue the flower. 618 00:43:22.960 --> 00:43:25.960 And I think that that's your point about the hanging baskets. You know, 619 00:43:27.280 --> 00:43:30.480 having something that you know is going to continue the flower and not crack all 620 00:43:30.519 --> 00:43:36.400 open and look weird or you know, it's important. It's what you expect 621 00:43:36.440 --> 00:43:38.239 from you when you spend the kind of money that you want to to get 622 00:43:38.239 --> 00:43:43.079 the plants in the gardens. If you go to proven Winners dot com. 623 00:43:43.119 --> 00:43:46.119 Of course, at proven winters dot com, there are a lot of recipes 624 00:43:46.440 --> 00:43:52.400 for combining some of these supertunias. Like I saw one a blend of Supertunia 625 00:43:52.480 --> 00:44:01.079 honey and Supertunia royal velvet in combination. It's called Hypnotic post Boy. The 626 00:44:01.199 --> 00:44:08.800 variety in supertunias just continues to expand. Adam, you must be working to 627 00:44:09.199 --> 00:44:15.559 continue to develop more and more varieties, from raspberry rush to honey picasso in 628 00:44:15.840 --> 00:44:22.320 purple latte, A lot of interesting varieties. Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, 629 00:44:22.320 --> 00:44:29.360 we go through about four hundred families of petunias a season, which we 630 00:44:29.440 --> 00:44:32.400 sell at least one hundred seeds of each one. So we're looking at about 631 00:44:32.400 --> 00:44:38.719 forty thousand plants every year. From those forty thousand plants, we pick out 632 00:44:38.840 --> 00:44:45.599 four hundred or so to go to trial. After we do our first internal 633 00:44:45.639 --> 00:44:50.480 trial here in Texas and with our company, we end up with maybe two 634 00:44:50.519 --> 00:44:54.000 hundred and fifty to three hundred that actually go in and get trialed with proven 635 00:44:54.039 --> 00:45:01.239 winners. From there, they pick maybe three to go to market. And 636 00:45:01.280 --> 00:45:06.440 so if you think about forty thousand down to three, you know, that 637 00:45:06.480 --> 00:45:08.760 plant's got to be pretty special. It's got to have you know, good 638 00:45:08.840 --> 00:45:13.360 branching, it's got to be easy to produce, it's got to be you 639 00:45:13.400 --> 00:45:15.960 know, the foliage has to stay nice and green. The flowers need to 640 00:45:16.000 --> 00:45:22.000 hold up against rainstorm, you know, preferentially. You know, it's not 641 00:45:22.199 --> 00:45:24.400 like, oh, I need to be fertilized all the time to keep growing. 642 00:45:25.360 --> 00:45:30.320 There's just so many different things that go into picking these plants, and 643 00:45:30.360 --> 00:45:32.679 that trial process can take up to two or three years. The breeding process 644 00:45:32.679 --> 00:45:37.199 itself can take four or five years. So when you see a new plant 645 00:45:37.239 --> 00:45:40.239 in market and it's something like a Supertunia honey or a supertunia that's the bubble 646 00:45:40.280 --> 00:45:45.639 gum, you know that plant has six, seven, eight years of growth 647 00:45:45.840 --> 00:45:50.679 and production trials and all the things that go into making it a supertunia before 648 00:45:50.719 --> 00:45:53.480 it'll ever make it for the retail market. And Stacey, I think that 649 00:45:53.480 --> 00:45:58.880 that's important to note. I appreciate that, Adam, because for the shopper 650 00:45:59.079 --> 00:46:02.880 in a garden center or they may not fully understand the work that went into 651 00:46:02.920 --> 00:46:07.920 developing these plants. And like I mentioned Adam working with Kevin Hurd at Proven 652 00:46:07.960 --> 00:46:14.519 Winners, or someone like yourself working with Stacy Adriana and the great people here 653 00:46:14.559 --> 00:46:19.639 at Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs. Stacy, there's a lot of work research 654 00:46:20.079 --> 00:46:24.639 boiling down and the ultimate goal. They always have that goal in sight. 655 00:46:25.559 --> 00:46:30.480 How's this plant going to perform in the consumer's yard. Yeah, it's R 656 00:46:30.519 --> 00:46:32.440 and D. And you know it's so funny. I've often you know, 657 00:46:32.519 --> 00:46:37.960 commented to other people that people don't realize that it's as much research and development 658 00:46:38.039 --> 00:46:42.119 as goes into an iPhone or something like that. It's the same kind of 659 00:46:42.639 --> 00:46:46.039 level of dedication and trialing and ideation, and people just think, oh, 660 00:46:46.039 --> 00:46:49.559 it's a plan. It just happened, And so it's really good to hear, 661 00:46:49.840 --> 00:46:53.239 you know, that whole kind of story of what it takes to actually 662 00:46:53.280 --> 00:46:57.039 bring that plant to market. So, you know, I know people in 663 00:46:57.079 --> 00:46:59.880 this R and D there, they're looking for the next big thing. And 664 00:47:00.199 --> 00:47:04.039 obviously supertunia vista bulgum has been around for a while and people love it. 665 00:47:04.440 --> 00:47:07.400 But I'm sure a lot of people are like me, and maybe like me, 666 00:47:07.480 --> 00:47:09.559 they aren't a pink person, or they're just wondering, Hey, what's 667 00:47:09.639 --> 00:47:15.079 next? Can I grow another supertunia that is this vigorous, that performs like 668 00:47:15.159 --> 00:47:20.880 this that I don't need to deadhead? What other colors are there? So 669 00:47:20.960 --> 00:47:22.800 in your experience, you know, what are some of those other varieties, 670 00:47:22.800 --> 00:47:27.320 whether they're new or have been around a while, that people can expect that 671 00:47:27.400 --> 00:47:31.239 similar performance from, but aren't visa bubble gum. The breeding that it takes 672 00:47:31.280 --> 00:47:37.280 to make a vista requires us to use, you know, particular plants that 673 00:47:37.119 --> 00:47:44.880 have a strong dominance for a purple pink color, and so making the performance 674 00:47:45.000 --> 00:47:47.440 of a petunia do what we want it to do. To be called a 675 00:47:47.559 --> 00:47:51.840 visa, that name to us is a sacred right. We say, okay, 676 00:47:51.880 --> 00:47:54.280 there's only five or six of these that are truly visas, and a 677 00:47:54.320 --> 00:47:57.960 lot of them, that's not all of them could be said to be within 678 00:47:58.039 --> 00:48:00.920 that pink spectrum. Now you have this the Snow Drifts, which is a 679 00:48:01.000 --> 00:48:06.719 white which, honestly, if you want a color that will combine with almost 680 00:48:06.800 --> 00:48:09.519 anything else, a white is a great color. I always used to like 681 00:48:09.599 --> 00:48:13.400 making these recipes and it would be like, oh well, let's use super 682 00:48:13.400 --> 00:48:15.960 being a white out, or let's use this the snow drift or you know 683 00:48:16.000 --> 00:48:20.960 super Tuni Mini Vista white, and it just brings that color. It combines 684 00:48:21.039 --> 00:48:24.599 with most other colors and gives you a really nice fresh pop of color. 685 00:48:24.599 --> 00:48:29.199 And I love white because at nighttime, when I'm at home, you know, 686 00:48:29.360 --> 00:48:31.199 that's when I get to enjoy my garden. You know, something like 687 00:48:31.280 --> 00:48:36.159 Royal velvet or these sueper darker colors, they don't really pop in the evening, 688 00:48:36.280 --> 00:48:38.320 you know, whereas a white flower really seems to stand out in my 689 00:48:38.400 --> 00:48:45.000 garden, so I've always been drawn to that. You know, for other 690 00:48:45.199 --> 00:48:53.639 colors of petunias, it's difficult to breed and stay within that first or second 691 00:48:53.760 --> 00:48:59.960 or third generation of hybrids and get away from the pink and the white color. 692 00:49:01.320 --> 00:49:05.960 We have this the Paradise, which is as a as a bright, 693 00:49:06.360 --> 00:49:08.760 you know, kind of electric sort of prink color with a little bit of 694 00:49:09.039 --> 00:49:15.000 sort of cherry tones in it. That one is probably the most different from 695 00:49:15.119 --> 00:49:21.559 the the traditional vista colors. When I look at the many Vista series, 696 00:49:21.800 --> 00:49:24.559 there's uh several in that that would give you a different color scheme. Like 697 00:49:24.880 --> 00:49:30.599 many this the violet Star is a fantastic plant. Many of this the Indigo 698 00:49:30.840 --> 00:49:34.920 is an awesome, awesome plant, and that sort of lilac blue color. 699 00:49:37.119 --> 00:49:40.440 Many just the scarlet is a nice red that's probably one of the best reds 700 00:49:40.480 --> 00:49:45.760 that has come out of onto the market. Maybe this the yellow is a 701 00:49:45.800 --> 00:49:50.559 great color. So it seems to me when we breathe these plants, you 702 00:49:50.599 --> 00:49:57.360 know, giving giving us the true big vista style plant is that's the code 703 00:49:57.400 --> 00:50:01.039 that we're working on breaking. Right when we get into the mini vistas and 704 00:50:01.079 --> 00:50:05.039 we've got. Okay, I can get I can get a little bit tighter 705 00:50:05.119 --> 00:50:07.440 habit, I can get a little bit smaller flower, but I still get 706 00:50:07.440 --> 00:50:14.360 the same landscape performance. I still get the same disease resistance, the ability 707 00:50:14.360 --> 00:50:16.920 to grow in multiple climates with the same kind of performance. You know. 708 00:50:17.000 --> 00:50:20.719 Then I get many of this, the scarlet many, just the yellow many, 709 00:50:20.760 --> 00:50:23.800 this the red midnight, many of the the indigo. You know, 710 00:50:23.880 --> 00:50:30.119 all of those ones become that colored palette becomes much wider, and so those 711 00:50:30.119 --> 00:50:32.719 are a lot of my favorite. So the mini vistas are basically they have 712 00:50:32.800 --> 00:50:37.039 everything that the vistas have, but just smaller. Just like the name says, 713 00:50:37.719 --> 00:50:40.800 yeah, absolutely yeah, And honestly, like in my garden, the 714 00:50:40.840 --> 00:50:45.159 minivisas, I use them almost more than the visas because it's like, you 715 00:50:45.199 --> 00:50:49.920 know, yeah, I can have I have a whole place for pink and 716 00:50:50.039 --> 00:50:52.360 white, like I'll use this the snow drifts quite a bit. But yeah, 717 00:50:52.360 --> 00:50:54.920 if I want to use yellow or blue or something like that, the 718 00:50:54.920 --> 00:50:59.519 minivisas are a great second option, you know. They just have a slightly 719 00:50:59.559 --> 00:51:04.960 smaller flower and a slightly more compact have it. But otherwise the brand, 720 00:51:05.000 --> 00:51:07.480 the branching, the color, coverage, the bigger you know, all of 721 00:51:07.480 --> 00:51:12.199 that stuff is very similar to the to the traditional distoce. That's really good 722 00:51:12.199 --> 00:51:14.679 to know. Yeah, I actually did know that, So I will definitely 723 00:51:14.679 --> 00:51:16.880 be looking at those because you know, those of us who maybe aren't quite 724 00:51:16.880 --> 00:51:21.280 a pink person or doesn't go with our house color or our container colors, 725 00:51:21.679 --> 00:51:23.719 you know, we want that performance, but just a couple more options. 726 00:51:24.159 --> 00:51:29.639 I yeah, absolutely, I get excited every spring to plant the supertunia vistas, 727 00:51:29.679 --> 00:51:32.679 and I wanted to mention for our listeners and our viewers and mentioned to 728 00:51:32.760 --> 00:51:37.760 you, Adam that I love combining them with something that has a little height, 729 00:51:37.360 --> 00:51:42.719 So I like to I think they're the perfect combination with a two can 730 00:51:43.159 --> 00:51:50.360 cannas, truffle of pink, Gamprina sun credible sunflowers, the rock and salvias, 731 00:51:50.559 --> 00:51:54.639 or the meteor shower of Verbinas. Any of those really make good partners 732 00:51:54.679 --> 00:51:59.519 with supertunias. You have a blast of color by July and August here in 733 00:51:59.559 --> 00:52:02.440 the North. Yeah, definitely, I totally agree. You know, we 734 00:52:02.519 --> 00:52:06.039 used to learn in school, what was that you have your thriller, your 735 00:52:06.079 --> 00:52:08.639 filler and your spiller, right, and so you know, you know, 736 00:52:08.719 --> 00:52:16.519 having having these recipes that proven Winters has developed in your wheelhouse and having those 737 00:52:16.519 --> 00:52:21.320 plants available at the garden center. You know, that's another big tricky privately, 738 00:52:21.440 --> 00:52:22.800 Oh well, I want to plant this recipe, You've got to be 739 00:52:22.840 --> 00:52:25.400 able to buy them, right, And that's why I proven winters dot Com 740 00:52:25.480 --> 00:52:30.599 is a really good resource for folks that are looking for very specific varieties. 741 00:52:30.639 --> 00:52:32.880 But yeah, those those plants work really well together. You know. It's 742 00:52:32.920 --> 00:52:37.199 the biggest thing about making a good recipe is are they all similar watering requirements? 743 00:52:37.280 --> 00:52:43.360 Are they all similar fertilizer requirements? Is one plant can they eat another 744 00:52:43.400 --> 00:52:46.159 plant by halfway through the season? Or is it powerful enough to keep past 745 00:52:46.239 --> 00:52:49.239 it? And you know, what do I what do I want out of 746 00:52:49.280 --> 00:52:52.679 it? Do I want? Is a particular color scheme that I'm looking for? 747 00:52:52.960 --> 00:52:55.679 Or is it I'm trying to, you know, give some structure to 748 00:52:55.719 --> 00:53:00.639 the side of my front door, or I wants this hanging basket to spill 749 00:53:00.679 --> 00:53:05.880 and trail down the side of my my patio or something like this. You 750 00:53:05.920 --> 00:53:08.840 know those are it's anybody's it's a playground, and I think they do a 751 00:53:08.880 --> 00:53:12.840 really good job. I used to run the R and D department at Pleasant 752 00:53:12.880 --> 00:53:16.079 View Gardens, and there's a woman man named Jessica Tatro, and she just 753 00:53:16.119 --> 00:53:22.239 does a fantastic job building and designing these recipes and trialing them, you know. 754 00:53:22.320 --> 00:53:23.400 And I think it comes down to that at the end of the day, 755 00:53:23.440 --> 00:53:28.960 when when you find a recipe in the proven Winner's handbook or on the 756 00:53:29.000 --> 00:53:32.000 proven Winner's website, you know, you can be sure that those three plants, 757 00:53:32.039 --> 00:53:37.360 those three plants have been grown together so many times that we know that 758 00:53:37.360 --> 00:53:40.599 that's gonna work, you know, and it's going to keep the color on 759 00:53:40.679 --> 00:53:44.920 it, it's going to you know, it's going to work. And I 760 00:53:44.960 --> 00:53:47.280 think it can be really tempting for folks to go to the to the garden 761 00:53:47.320 --> 00:53:50.639 center and be like, I'm going to take this, you know, this 762 00:53:50.760 --> 00:53:52.719 pogonia, and I'm going to take this petunia, and I'm going to take 763 00:53:53.119 --> 00:53:58.239 you know, this other plant and plant them together. But the begonia doesn't 764 00:53:58.280 --> 00:54:00.920 like a ton of fertilizer and he needs full suns, but the bigonia needs 765 00:54:00.920 --> 00:54:04.679 a little bit of shade, and you know, and so you just get 766 00:54:04.679 --> 00:54:07.360 into this scenario. It's like, well, why my begonia die with my 767 00:54:07.360 --> 00:54:10.800 petunia's great let's sig Overridge puts the basket right, and so that's why the 768 00:54:10.840 --> 00:54:15.880 recipes on the proven Winners dot Com site are so valuable. Adam, As 769 00:54:15.880 --> 00:54:21.119 we wind up here, what are you as as a creator of supertunias? 770 00:54:21.840 --> 00:54:25.599 What are your must know tips for someone who is maybe growing supertunious for the 771 00:54:25.639 --> 00:54:29.840 first time or wants to make sure that they are getting the most from the 772 00:54:29.880 --> 00:54:35.280 plants that they buy. Sure, good question. Okay, So vistas and 773 00:54:35.320 --> 00:54:39.599 many vistas will work fantastic in the ground or a container. A lot of 774 00:54:39.639 --> 00:54:44.320 the supertunias. There's a few exceptions, but most of the supertunias are going 775 00:54:44.400 --> 00:54:49.360 to prefer to be in a container versus being in the landscape. That's kind 776 00:54:49.360 --> 00:54:52.280 of tip number one. Number two is bed preps. You know, get 777 00:54:52.280 --> 00:54:55.159 in there, get the weeds out. If you've got hard packed soil, 778 00:54:57.599 --> 00:55:00.400 kill it up. You got to. You got to create some air pockets, 779 00:55:00.480 --> 00:55:02.760 create some drainage in that soil. You know. I like the backfill 780 00:55:02.840 --> 00:55:06.719 here in Texas with chocolate loam, you know. So if I'm building a 781 00:55:06.719 --> 00:55:07.960 new bag, we'll cut all the grass out, We'll get rid of all 782 00:55:08.000 --> 00:55:12.000 the weeds, We'll pill it up a little bit, We'll add in three 783 00:55:12.079 --> 00:55:15.719 or four inches of chocolate loam. We'll pill that in Bedprep is so important 784 00:55:15.760 --> 00:55:20.920 for getting the plant established and being able to grow out from there. As 785 00:55:20.920 --> 00:55:23.880 a home gardener, I don't fertilize a lot what I do for fertilizer. 786 00:55:25.119 --> 00:55:30.360 I really like slow release fertilizer. I don't have the time to always mix 787 00:55:30.440 --> 00:55:35.400 up liquid feed at home. Now in the greenhouse with research growing producers, 788 00:55:35.599 --> 00:55:38.400 yes, we're going to use liquid feed pretty constantly. And if you're a 789 00:55:38.440 --> 00:55:42.639 home gardener and you can give it an extra shot of liquid feed every couple 790 00:55:42.679 --> 00:55:45.039 of weeks, it's not going to hurt it. It's only going to help 791 00:55:45.079 --> 00:55:49.320 it. Follow the label directions and go for it. But if you put 792 00:55:49.320 --> 00:55:52.239 out at a high rate, something like you know, proven Winter slow release 793 00:55:52.519 --> 00:55:59.440 or any slow release fertilizer three to six month release something like this, the 794 00:55:59.679 --> 00:56:01.239 general US, you know, go at the high label rate. Put that 795 00:56:01.320 --> 00:56:07.480 down. If you're like me, you don't water frequently, you go through 796 00:56:07.519 --> 00:56:09.639 and put a soaker hose in something like that. That's what we used here 797 00:56:09.639 --> 00:56:15.000 in the gardens in Texas. You know, just put wind a soaker hose 798 00:56:15.119 --> 00:56:17.320 kind of around, not not perfect, but through the bed somewhere where I 799 00:56:17.320 --> 00:56:22.039 want it to irrigate and then cover it with mulch. Try and hold that 800 00:56:22.119 --> 00:56:25.400 moisture around the root zone, you know, for us about two three months 801 00:56:25.440 --> 00:56:29.440 after we do that. So we'll do that all at end of February, 802 00:56:29.519 --> 00:56:32.119 beginning of March, plant the garden and then just you know, set it 803 00:56:32.119 --> 00:56:38.559 to irrigate for thirty minutes every other day something like that, you know, 804 00:56:38.840 --> 00:56:42.199 and let it run, let it run, do it things. It rains 805 00:56:42.199 --> 00:56:44.840 and rains, you know, so be it. Put the water on there 806 00:56:45.559 --> 00:56:49.519 anyway. And then around the fourth of July we come back and we top 807 00:56:49.599 --> 00:56:53.239 dressed with more slow release. That's that's the best way to do it in 808 00:56:53.239 --> 00:56:57.920 a container garden situation. You know. We did a lot of trials with 809 00:56:58.320 --> 00:57:02.480 different types of fertilizers when I was at Pleasantviy Gardens in New Hampshire, and 810 00:57:04.280 --> 00:57:08.360 we found that liquid seed like if you take that grande and you plant that 811 00:57:08.440 --> 00:57:13.480 grande into a larger container, and we would take three grandees of Visa bubble 812 00:57:13.480 --> 00:57:16.800 Gum or many of our other proven Winner's annuals, put them into a five 813 00:57:16.840 --> 00:57:23.079 gallon container and top dress with the high rates of slower release. Fertilizer. 814 00:57:23.920 --> 00:57:28.880 We compare that to liquid feeding one hundred, one hundred and fifty parts per 815 00:57:28.920 --> 00:57:34.360 millium every watering. You know, six weeks later, those plants were very 816 00:57:34.400 --> 00:57:37.719 comparable, very comparable. Eight weeks later, ten weeks later, twelve weeks 817 00:57:37.800 --> 00:57:42.039 later. You know, you're starting to see a little bit better performance out 818 00:57:42.360 --> 00:57:45.840 out of the liquid seed than the slow release. But it was fully acceptible. 819 00:57:45.280 --> 00:57:49.679 So as a general rule of thumb, I'm a I'm a slow release 820 00:57:49.760 --> 00:57:52.639 fertilizer kind of person, Like I want to set it and forget it in 821 00:57:52.679 --> 00:57:55.599 some way as long as I can irrigate well, which I think is you 822 00:57:55.639 --> 00:57:59.719 know, as much as you can hope for out of most gardeners is just 823 00:58:00.079 --> 00:58:05.039 give it water when it's dry. That's what you should be able to do 824 00:58:05.239 --> 00:58:09.199 and be successful. And if you combine proven leaders genetics, slow release fertilizer, 825 00:58:09.400 --> 00:58:15.239 piece of bed prep or container prep, and just you know, irrigation 826 00:58:15.400 --> 00:58:21.239 on a basis that is acceptable for you, you're going to have success. 827 00:58:21.760 --> 00:58:23.679 Can't beat that. I mean, that's what summer is all about, is 828 00:58:24.199 --> 00:58:28.840 doing the work at the beginning of the season and then letting he reap all 829 00:58:28.840 --> 00:58:31.800 the rewards for the rest of it so well said. His name is Adam 830 00:58:31.840 --> 00:58:37.119 Moseley and he is breeding director with wyn Gen LLC, a plant breeding company 831 00:58:37.599 --> 00:58:44.039 just south of Austin, Texas, and we've talked about Vista Super Tunas. 832 00:58:44.119 --> 00:58:46.920 I can't wait for spring to start. Adam, thanks for your time today, 833 00:58:47.039 --> 00:58:52.599 your enthusiasm, your work, and looking forward to spring twenty twenty four. 834 00:58:53.079 --> 00:58:57.719 Absolutely y'all have a great spring up there. Thanks Adam, Thanks Adam, 835 00:58:58.280 --> 00:59:00.920 well, that was great. I am ready to go annual shopping all 836 00:59:00.920 --> 00:59:02.719 the way. No, it's a bit too early, still, I cannot 837 00:59:02.760 --> 00:59:06.599 wait. So we want to thank Adam Mosley for his time talking to us 838 00:59:06.599 --> 00:59:09.559 about suprtunias. Thank you Rick, thank you Adriana, and of course thanks 839 00:59:09.599 --> 00:59:12.800 to all of you for listening. We hope you have a wonderful week ahead.