WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.680 --> 00:00:06.360 Broadcasting from Studio A Here at proven Winns Color Choice Shrubs. 2 00:00:06.360 --> 00:00:10.439 It's time for the Gardening Simplified Podcast, YouTube and radio 3 00:00:10.640 --> 00:00:14.720 show with Stacy Hervella, me, Rick Weist, and our engineer 4 00:00:14.720 --> 00:00:18.519 and producer Adrianna Robinson. Stacy, I thought it'd be fun 5 00:00:18.559 --> 00:00:22.239 today to talk about trigger plants. Some plants are just 6 00:00:23.079 --> 00:00:28.000 good communicators. They tell us when something's wrong. Other plants 7 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:33.719 are kind of stoic, like squars or succulents. It's like, 8 00:00:33.799 --> 00:00:37.000 no matter what comes their way, they basically don't tell 9 00:00:37.039 --> 00:00:40.920 you that something's going wrong. But some plants do. 10 00:00:40.960 --> 00:00:43.399 You might call them drama queens drama queens, or you 11 00:00:43.479 --> 00:00:47.119 might call them trigger plants as we are entitling this episode, 12 00:00:47.159 --> 00:00:49.719 but yeah, I feel like I also would call them 13 00:00:49.759 --> 00:00:53.119 like signal plants or century plants. They kind of give 14 00:00:53.200 --> 00:00:59.000 you that, you know, clue that something's going on. For me. Well, 15 00:00:59.039 --> 00:01:00.600 one of the plants in my guard that I would 16 00:01:00.600 --> 00:01:04.879 consider one of these plants is a plant called Agastaki nepatoides. 17 00:01:05.680 --> 00:01:08.760 It is the green, giant green Agastaki, very cool plants, 18 00:01:09.719 --> 00:01:11.760 but it doesn't really want to grow in full sun 19 00:01:11.799 --> 00:01:14.319 and dry soil like I have it in it will 20 00:01:14.480 --> 00:01:18.000 tolerate it. But if it has not rained for a while, 21 00:01:18.040 --> 00:01:20.840 it's the first plant to be like, whoa, I am 22 00:01:20.840 --> 00:01:23.680 peacing out. It's the first plant so well then I'm like, oh, 23 00:01:23.799 --> 00:01:26.560 things are really dry. So that's my that's my one 24 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:28.280 of my trigger plants. But that kind of shows you 25 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:31.480 that the plants that we're talking about may or may 26 00:01:31.519 --> 00:01:34.480 not trigger something depending on how you grow them in 27 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:38.120 good conditions, the conditions it prefers, this plant would not 28 00:01:38.280 --> 00:01:40.640 really be a trigger plant, would be perfectly happy, Yeah, 29 00:01:40.840 --> 00:01:42.680 perfectly trying to push it, you know. 30 00:01:43.040 --> 00:01:48.040 Yeah. I call them read the tea leaves plants. I 31 00:01:48.040 --> 00:01:51.079 think fortune tellers used to have you drink a cup 32 00:01:51.120 --> 00:01:53.560 of tea and then the tea leaves that are left 33 00:01:53.599 --> 00:01:56.640 in the bottom of the cup. They'd interpret them or 34 00:01:56.640 --> 00:01:59.159 whatever it may be, but reading the tea leaves. So 35 00:01:59.280 --> 00:02:03.840 for me through the years, one plant in my landscape 36 00:02:03.959 --> 00:02:08.599 or in landscapes in general, would be impatiens wall arianna okay, 37 00:02:09.319 --> 00:02:12.439 and often, you know, years ago we would allow them 38 00:02:12.479 --> 00:02:16.000 to get to the droop stage, so to speak, because 39 00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:18.080 it put the plant under a little bit of stress 40 00:02:18.120 --> 00:02:22.919 and they bloomed better that way. But with impatiens wall Ariana, 41 00:02:23.039 --> 00:02:26.319 when they're being a drama queen and you get out 42 00:02:26.360 --> 00:02:30.919 there and water them, suddenly they pop right back up. 43 00:02:31.080 --> 00:02:34.719 So yeah, I guess you know. There are some plants. 44 00:02:35.039 --> 00:02:39.080 Let's take this as an example. It's finally hot here 45 00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:39.680 in Michigan. 46 00:02:39.879 --> 00:02:42.439 It is at long last, and what you. 47 00:02:42.439 --> 00:02:46.879 Start to hear from people is it's so hot. I'm like, 48 00:02:47.560 --> 00:02:50.039 we just went through winter. This is what we've been 49 00:02:50.080 --> 00:02:54.280 waiting for. But there are plants that have dramatic droops. 50 00:02:54.360 --> 00:02:58.199 So I mentioned impatients Waile Ariana. You add water, that 51 00:02:58.319 --> 00:03:03.439 distress is gone. You look at house plants spatifhylum or peace. 52 00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:05.520 That was on my list for sure. 53 00:03:05.879 --> 00:03:08.599 Yeah, and often you'll see them in office spaces where 54 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:13.159 they are being a drama queen and exhibiting that dramatic group. 55 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:16.080 Yes, and they are a plant that definitely. The cool 56 00:03:16.120 --> 00:03:18.280 thing about them is not only are they telling you 57 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:22.400 like whoa, hey, I need water, they wilt extremely dramatically, 58 00:03:22.800 --> 00:03:24.919 and then when you rehydrate them, they're really none the 59 00:03:24.960 --> 00:03:27.199 worse for the wear. You know, some plants that they 60 00:03:27.319 --> 00:03:30.039 dry out and will dramatically, they're going to show some 61 00:03:30.120 --> 00:03:33.840 brown edges around their leaves, and really, you know, kind 62 00:03:33.840 --> 00:03:37.199 of not like have suffered from it, whereas the peace 63 00:03:37.240 --> 00:03:40.800 lily is just like, Okay, thanks, just wanted your attention. 64 00:03:40.879 --> 00:03:43.800 Appreciate that moving right on, life goes out. Yes, now 65 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:46.639 for you in the industry, I thought your big trigger 66 00:03:46.639 --> 00:03:49.039 plant was going to be geraniums oherums. 67 00:03:50.599 --> 00:03:52.879 But you know what, let me run this one by you. 68 00:03:53.159 --> 00:03:55.319 I think macrophilla hydrangels. 69 00:03:55.319 --> 00:04:00.080 Oh, they definitely are rama queens. They are drama queens, 70 00:04:00.159 --> 00:04:04.319 but you know, I feel like they're not just I 71 00:04:04.360 --> 00:04:08.599 feel like they have a limitation, right, Okay, So big 72 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:11.000 leaf hydrange is hydrange of Macrophylla. It's right there in 73 00:04:11.039 --> 00:04:13.960 the name. They have big leaves and they're beautiful plants, 74 00:04:14.599 --> 00:04:18.600 but they are just not that efficient at using water. 75 00:04:18.639 --> 00:04:20.600 Some plants are very efficient at using water, so our 76 00:04:20.680 --> 00:04:23.600 aforementioned is bad thephylum you give it that water poof, 77 00:04:23.720 --> 00:04:28.600 it's totally fine. Whereas the max those big leaves lose 78 00:04:28.759 --> 00:04:31.600 water faster than the roots can replace it. So it's 79 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:34.319 kind of like, I don't know, you know, like you 80 00:04:34.399 --> 00:04:36.839 just have things running at two different rates. The absorption 81 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:40.399 rate and the transferration rate are are two different levels. 82 00:04:41.680 --> 00:04:44.199 So they're not trying to be dramatic. They just physically 83 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:48.759 can't handle, you know, the heat. But they're also fine, 84 00:04:48.959 --> 00:04:50.759 you know, and so it's a lot of things. What 85 00:04:50.839 --> 00:04:53.079 I tell people, if you have a big leaf hydrangel 86 00:04:53.680 --> 00:04:57.959 and it's consistently wilting on hot summer afternoons and you've 87 00:04:58.040 --> 00:05:01.519 just watered it, don't worryorry about it. It's just trying 88 00:05:01.560 --> 00:05:04.600 to deal with, you know, what it has to deal with. 89 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:06.480 And that wilting in the case of the big leaf 90 00:05:06.519 --> 00:05:10.480 hydrangeas is its attempt to reduce the amount of leaf 91 00:05:10.519 --> 00:05:14.600 service exposed to the sun. If the plant is photosynthesizing, 92 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:16.800 it's stomata on the underside of the leaves are open, 93 00:05:17.279 --> 00:05:20.600 that's giving off water vapor. When a plant wilts reduces 94 00:05:20.600 --> 00:05:22.800 the amount of leaf surface exposed to the sun. That 95 00:05:22.920 --> 00:05:25.959 also covers up the stomata on the underside of the leaf, 96 00:05:26.279 --> 00:05:29.639 so that preserves some of that water that's transpiring out 97 00:05:29.680 --> 00:05:33.240 of the stomata. And it's just a survival mechanism. But yeah, 98 00:05:33.240 --> 00:05:34.959 they're usually just fine in the morning. So if that's 99 00:05:34.959 --> 00:05:37.759 what you're seeing with your max wilting in the hot 100 00:05:37.800 --> 00:05:41.120 Sunday afternoon, next morning, everything's fine, and you're like, wait, 101 00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:44.000 do I need water or not, you probably don't. 102 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:47.439 Yeah, but a great trigger in the landscape that at 103 00:05:47.480 --> 00:05:50.360 a glance you can see, oh, things are a little 104 00:05:50.399 --> 00:05:53.160 hot and a little dry out here. And I'm glad 105 00:05:53.199 --> 00:05:56.319 you mentioned that because there are plants that have i'm 106 00:05:56.319 --> 00:06:00.000 gonna call it pronounced mid ribs on the full leaf, 107 00:06:00.600 --> 00:06:03.639 and it causes that plant to have the ability, as 108 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:06.920 you mentioned, for the leaf to fold on itself and 109 00:06:07.040 --> 00:06:10.120 preserve moisture. You know, a great example of that are 110 00:06:10.160 --> 00:06:13.199 the Pikus trees that we enjoy in our homes as 111 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:17.319 a houseplant down in Florida. When they're growing there and 112 00:06:17.360 --> 00:06:20.000 they're getting a lot of hot sun, they use that 113 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:23.240 midrib to cause the foliage to fold on itself a 114 00:06:23.240 --> 00:06:26.839 little bit to conserve some moisture. On let's say a 115 00:06:26.959 --> 00:06:30.160 hot summer day. You bring them up to Michigan, put 116 00:06:30.199 --> 00:06:33.040 them in a home where it's low light. You'll see 117 00:06:33.079 --> 00:06:36.920 where that foliage starts to flatten. The mid rib is 118 00:06:36.959 --> 00:06:40.560 not as pronounced, The color goes away from the leaf 119 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:44.720 as opposed to that really dark dark green. A perfect 120 00:06:44.759 --> 00:06:47.800 example of a trigger plant out in the landscape. I 121 00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:52.160 think dogwood is a great example. Dogwood leaves will curl, 122 00:06:52.759 --> 00:06:57.000 they will fold on that midrib and they will change 123 00:06:57.040 --> 00:07:00.000 color to a degree. A dogwood's a great trigger plant. 124 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:02.120 I always thought that was from infectives. 125 00:07:02.399 --> 00:07:06.000 Well that's part of it too, exactly, so it will 126 00:07:06.040 --> 00:07:09.000 try to tell you what's going on. Let me give 127 00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:13.000 you a trigger plant, limb a rick. For my every 128 00:07:13.079 --> 00:07:18.160 well intended action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. Guess 129 00:07:18.199 --> 00:07:22.319 Newton was right. My plant in hot sunlight is now 130 00:07:22.360 --> 00:07:27.639 a drooping distraction. Not always what one preconceives. Plant problems 131 00:07:27.639 --> 00:07:32.560 can be pet peeves. Thank goodness, they communicate before they 132 00:07:32.600 --> 00:07:37.959 capitulate by wearing their emotions on their leaves. See what 133 00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:43.480 I did, I thank you. I like that one. But no, 134 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:46.959 there are many trigger plants. I always plant, but copa 135 00:07:47.000 --> 00:07:50.160 with annuals. But copa is a really great trigger plant 136 00:07:50.160 --> 00:07:52.199 where you can look at a container and at a 137 00:07:52.240 --> 00:07:56.199 glance you can tell whether or not there are water issues. 138 00:07:56.279 --> 00:08:01.439 We do that with bridle veil baskets in the greenhouse. 139 00:08:01.519 --> 00:08:04.680 You can see it at a glance. And again, Stacey, 140 00:08:04.759 --> 00:08:08.040 coming from the garden center industry, when I walk into 141 00:08:08.079 --> 00:08:10.199 a garden center and it's hot and dry, and it 142 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:13.160 looks like the employees are having difficulty keeping up with 143 00:08:13.240 --> 00:08:16.800 the watering. One of the first group of plants that 144 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:20.759 I walk up to our Shasta daisies. They're usually really 145 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:23.720 full in the pot and the leaves will in my 146 00:08:23.839 --> 00:08:29.759 landscape too immediately exhibit this drooping and again being a 147 00:08:29.879 --> 00:08:32.559 drama queen, So I think Shasta daisy's too well. 148 00:08:32.559 --> 00:08:34.919 And you know, it's important to realize about these trigger 149 00:08:34.919 --> 00:08:37.679 plants is that they aren't just telling you what they need. 150 00:08:37.679 --> 00:08:41.399 They're also kind of compensating for the plants nearby them 151 00:08:41.440 --> 00:08:44.440 that maybe don't have that ability. And by the time 152 00:08:44.519 --> 00:08:47.639 they wilt, it's too late. You know, they're really going 153 00:08:47.679 --> 00:08:50.360 to be suffering if you see, you know, those plants wilting. 154 00:08:50.480 --> 00:08:52.759 So these are good plants to have to kind of 155 00:08:53.200 --> 00:08:55.480 give you that hint, especially if you are like me 156 00:08:55.679 --> 00:08:59.480 and you don't typically supplemental water and you don't really 157 00:08:59.559 --> 00:09:01.519 know what's going on. You know, my plants are close 158 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:03.600 together in my garden, so they kind of help to, 159 00:09:03.960 --> 00:09:05.759 you know, shade each other out at the roots. And 160 00:09:05.799 --> 00:09:07.759 I have a lot of mulch, but yeah, I rely 161 00:09:07.840 --> 00:09:10.080 on those those cues to know, like, I better get 162 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:11.879 to devoting some time to water. 163 00:09:12.200 --> 00:09:16.480 Exactly a lawn is a perfect trigger and something for 164 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:19.799 you to keep an eye on in summertime. I always 165 00:09:19.799 --> 00:09:22.159 suggest to people just take a walk across your lawn, 166 00:09:22.480 --> 00:09:26.399 then stop. Look back. If your footprints have a silvery 167 00:09:26.639 --> 00:09:29.799 cast to them in the grass, you'll be able to 168 00:09:29.840 --> 00:09:32.080 tell or you've cut the grass and you can see 169 00:09:32.120 --> 00:09:35.600 that silvery cra you know, just kind of a silvery 170 00:09:35.679 --> 00:09:38.679 cast to the lawn. You know, things are dry and 171 00:09:38.720 --> 00:09:41.399 it's time to irrigate, or things are very hot. So 172 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:44.799 there are many, many different types of triggers, and we'll 173 00:09:44.840 --> 00:09:48.440 talk more about them. Give you some good trigger plants 174 00:09:48.960 --> 00:09:50.120 in segment for to day. 175 00:09:50.240 --> 00:09:53.080 Yeah, and we've talked a lot about summer triggers and wilting, 176 00:09:53.440 --> 00:09:55.519 but there's winter triggers too that we've talked quite a 177 00:09:55.519 --> 00:09:59.159 bit about, you know, like the rhododendrons decreasing their leaf surface. 178 00:09:59.480 --> 00:10:03.320 I think the important thing is, you know, to to 179 00:10:03.600 --> 00:10:06.600 take the time to notice these types of things and 180 00:10:06.799 --> 00:10:09.720 think about what they might mean. It's a language that 181 00:10:09.799 --> 00:10:12.200 you pick up on gradually, and that is really part 182 00:10:12.279 --> 00:10:15.080 of gardening, is it's you know, decoding the language of 183 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:18.000 the plants. And you know, I think your thing about 184 00:10:18.039 --> 00:10:20.799 the silvery lawn makes sense. Someone might be going like, 185 00:10:20.840 --> 00:10:22.399 I have no idea what he talks about, what he's 186 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:25.559 talking about, but one day this summer, you're gonna actually 187 00:10:25.559 --> 00:10:27.879 notice it. You'll be like, that was what Rick was saying. 188 00:10:28.039 --> 00:10:30.399 That's right, or the tire tracks, and you're right. The 189 00:10:30.399 --> 00:10:34.480 macrophila hydranges, those blooms they look grumpy to me. The 190 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:38.120 rhododendrons in winter, they just look like they're moping. 191 00:10:38.200 --> 00:10:39.039 They look very sad. 192 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:41.440 Yeah, yeah, Well, let's see how Stacey ties this in 193 00:10:41.519 --> 00:10:44.559 and plants on trial. That's coming up next here on 194 00:10:44.600 --> 00:10:46.600 the Gardening Simplified. 195 00:10:46.000 --> 00:10:54.840 Show, beautify your home and community with proven Winn's Color 196 00:10:54.960 --> 00:10:57.840 Choice Shrubs. With over three hundred and twenty five unique 197 00:10:57.879 --> 00:11:01.039 varieties to choose from. There's a flower shrubber evergreen for 198 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:04.279 every taste and every space. Just look for the distinctive 199 00:11:04.320 --> 00:11:07.039 white container your local garden center or learn more at 200 00:11:07.080 --> 00:11:12.399 proven Winner's Color Choice dot com. Youre Reading's gardening friends, 201 00:11:12.440 --> 00:11:16.120 and welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show, where today's 202 00:11:16.120 --> 00:11:19.240 topic is trigger plants and basically what we're saying. I 203 00:11:19.240 --> 00:11:21.360 guess you know, I couldn't quite think of like the 204 00:11:21.480 --> 00:11:25.320 perfect word for this concept, you know, but they trigger 205 00:11:25.519 --> 00:11:28.720 an action from you because they are showing you like, oh, hey, 206 00:11:29.320 --> 00:11:33.720 something's not great in my environment here. Now, for humans, 207 00:11:33.720 --> 00:11:35.679 of course, if something's not great in our environment, we 208 00:11:35.720 --> 00:11:39.879 are able to get up and move to better surroundings. 209 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:42.600 And plants don't have that ability. So you know, what 210 00:11:42.679 --> 00:11:45.399 they're doing is not saying to you like, literally, hey 211 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:49.840 I need water, But they are using their survival mechanisms 212 00:11:50.279 --> 00:11:53.399 to deal with those conditions. And those are not necessarily 213 00:11:53.399 --> 00:11:56.799 conditions that you notice, we experience life different than plants. 214 00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:00.200 So they then trigger an action from you. But I 215 00:12:00.200 --> 00:12:05.799 think it's also important to acknowledge in this conversation that 216 00:12:05.879 --> 00:12:08.960 some of these trigger plants. You know, it's not necessarily 217 00:12:09.000 --> 00:12:11.399 a good thing and can trigger from you. The action 218 00:12:11.519 --> 00:12:15.799 it should trigger is moving it, because what it's actually 219 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:19.559 telling you is like, good, I don't really love this, 220 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:24.080 you know. And I gave that long example and exactly well, 221 00:12:24.080 --> 00:12:26.080 I gave that long example in the first segment about 222 00:12:26.120 --> 00:12:29.919 big leaf hydrangeas, and yeah, it can absolutely withstand that 223 00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:33.679 afternoon welting. You know, if you are in Michigan and 224 00:12:33.840 --> 00:12:37.480 you have you know, relatively few hot days, that's not 225 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:39.840 going to be a problem. If you are in a 226 00:12:39.879 --> 00:12:43.240 warmer climate or a hot climate and that's happening, that 227 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:47.000 would be to me a signal that you should move 228 00:12:47.159 --> 00:12:50.159 the plant into an area where it is in afternoon shade. 229 00:12:50.159 --> 00:12:53.000 Because if that's, you know, happening, like in Michigan, we 230 00:12:53.080 --> 00:12:56.399 might get you know, no more than ten or twelve 231 00:12:56.480 --> 00:12:59.120 days where that's probably happening. But certainly if you live 232 00:12:59.159 --> 00:13:01.679 in a very hot climate and that's happening every day, 233 00:13:01.759 --> 00:13:05.639 for in July, August, in September, and eventually that plant 234 00:13:05.679 --> 00:13:09.159 is going to start to suffer from that. So it's 235 00:13:09.200 --> 00:13:11.919 always worth considering, you know, as you notice these things 236 00:13:11.960 --> 00:13:16.360 about your plants, if the trigger action should be putting 237 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:18.840 it on your fall list to transplant. 238 00:13:19.039 --> 00:13:21.519 I like your line of thinking there, And the trigger 239 00:13:21.799 --> 00:13:26.159 essentially helps you make a decision. Maybe it's down the road, 240 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:29.440 but make a decision for that plant, because that plant 241 00:13:29.480 --> 00:13:31.720 can't get up and walk away, right. 242 00:13:31.919 --> 00:13:32.399 Yeah. 243 00:13:32.440 --> 00:13:37.039 And we often used that phrase or that analogy read 244 00:13:37.120 --> 00:13:41.039 the tea leaves in running a business. I used it 245 00:13:41.080 --> 00:13:43.720 for years in running a business because if you look 246 00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:47.279 at the balance sheet or the financial statement in hale, 247 00:13:47.679 --> 00:13:51.399 you're essentially reading the tea leaves and making decisions maybe 248 00:13:51.399 --> 00:13:54.879 for future actions, but you're trying to analyze what's going 249 00:13:55.000 --> 00:13:58.320 on here and taking the clues that are being presented 250 00:13:58.320 --> 00:13:58.519 to you. 251 00:13:58.679 --> 00:14:01.320 Definitely, and it really is like learning a language. And 252 00:14:01.720 --> 00:14:04.600 the language that you're going to be learning does include 253 00:14:04.600 --> 00:14:06.320 the things that Rick and I are sharing today, but 254 00:14:06.360 --> 00:14:09.399 it also includes the things that you will observe in 255 00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:12.840 your own garden. And that's really what gardening is all about. Now. 256 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:14.879 Most of the plants that we have discussed so far 257 00:14:15.440 --> 00:14:19.759 as trigger plants. We've been talking about the changes that 258 00:14:19.799 --> 00:14:23.879 they undergo due to a result of some sort of stress. 259 00:14:24.639 --> 00:14:28.919 But today's plant on trial is a trigger plant that 260 00:14:29.039 --> 00:14:32.360 what changes about it is something that actually makes the 261 00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:38.039 plant more attractive when the trigger happens. I can see 262 00:14:38.039 --> 00:14:40.480 Adriana's wheels are turning back there. I don't know if 263 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:43.799 I'm not explaining this well, but when I announced today's 264 00:14:43.799 --> 00:14:46.320 plant on trial, in one second, it's going to dawn 265 00:14:46.399 --> 00:14:49.200 right on her. Because today's plan on trial is pinky 266 00:14:49.240 --> 00:14:55.159 winky hydrangea. Yes, she's nodding, so pinky winky, if you're 267 00:14:55.200 --> 00:14:58.399 not familiar with it, is a panical hydrangea, and this 268 00:14:58.480 --> 00:15:01.720 is one of the earliest panicle high ranges that we introduced. 269 00:15:02.039 --> 00:15:04.159 Now I have to like take you back in time 270 00:15:04.200 --> 00:15:07.679 for a moment here Before Limelight came on the market 271 00:15:07.720 --> 00:15:11.879 in the nineteen nineties, panicle hydranges like PG or tart 272 00:15:11.919 --> 00:15:15.519 of A, they barely turned color, you know, they kind 273 00:15:15.559 --> 00:15:17.320 of sort of took on like a little bit of 274 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:19.039 pink at the end of the season, but it was 275 00:15:19.120 --> 00:15:23.279 not a main feature. Since Limelight, there has been a 276 00:15:23.399 --> 00:15:27.639 real trend over these last couple decades to select panicle 277 00:15:27.720 --> 00:15:31.720 hydranges that start out white and then take on better 278 00:15:31.799 --> 00:15:34.039 and better color. And I think you really see that 279 00:15:34.440 --> 00:15:38.799 across the proven winners color choice hydrangees that are subsequent introductions. 280 00:15:38.960 --> 00:15:42.399 For the most part, there's a couple exceptions have had 281 00:15:42.440 --> 00:15:44.440 better and better color and just briefly so I don't 282 00:15:44.480 --> 00:15:48.000 forget those couple of exceptions don't change color because some 283 00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:50.320 people don't actually want the color to change. So that 284 00:15:50.360 --> 00:15:52.919 would really be a puffer fish hydrangea and to a 285 00:15:52.960 --> 00:15:55.360 lesser extent, Bobo, which does take on some pink, but 286 00:15:56.039 --> 00:15:58.879 so some people don't like it. But most people when 287 00:15:58.879 --> 00:16:03.320 they buy that panicle hydrangel, what they really want is 288 00:16:03.399 --> 00:16:06.440 that pink color and pinky Winky was really I think 289 00:16:06.480 --> 00:16:09.759 one of the very first panicle hydrangeas to kind of 290 00:16:10.360 --> 00:16:14.559 make its main benefit or main feature this color. Now, 291 00:16:14.639 --> 00:16:17.519 let's talk about that trigger, because when you buy a 292 00:16:17.519 --> 00:16:20.799 pinky Winky hydrangea, it's going to start to flower. It's 293 00:16:20.799 --> 00:16:24.080 going to have a big, huge, beautiful it's honestly one 294 00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:27.320 of the biggest panicle hydrange of the flowers are enormous, 295 00:16:27.720 --> 00:16:30.840 the stems are huge and thick like reebar. Beautiful plant. 296 00:16:30.919 --> 00:16:32.600 Not a great choice for cut flowers unless you have 297 00:16:32.679 --> 00:16:38.120 a massive vase. Ask me how I know. But so 298 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:40.279 they come out with these beautiful lace cap white flowers 299 00:16:40.919 --> 00:16:45.360 and then you know, about mid summer, or sorry, about 300 00:16:45.399 --> 00:16:48.639 mid August, what's going to start to happen is the 301 00:16:48.679 --> 00:16:51.120 flowers are going to start to shade from the bottom 302 00:16:51.200 --> 00:16:54.480 towards the top, from deep pink to light pink to 303 00:16:54.639 --> 00:16:58.080 white at the top, and then gradually, as the season progresses, 304 00:16:58.120 --> 00:17:02.279 it will go completely pink. Now, when this happens in 305 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:06.400 mid August, you're probably on your summer vacation, reading a 306 00:17:06.480 --> 00:17:08.519 juicy book by the pool or on the beach, and 307 00:17:08.559 --> 00:17:12.880 you're like, this is the high of summer. This is amazing. Well, actually, 308 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:15.880 from the plant's point of view, it's fall, yes, because 309 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:20.160 what has triggered this color change is the shorter nights 310 00:17:20.680 --> 00:17:24.039 and cooler nights that happened by August. Now I wanted 311 00:17:24.079 --> 00:17:27.039 to kind of get some context for this, and so 312 00:17:28.279 --> 00:17:31.519 just to help you understand, and this is just just 313 00:17:31.640 --> 00:17:34.480 using grand Haven, so it will be different in other areas. 314 00:17:35.160 --> 00:17:39.079 But on the summer solstice in grand Haven we have 315 00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:44.039 almost seventeen hours of day length. That's how long our 316 00:17:44.119 --> 00:17:47.680 days are. So by our June twentieth or so, little 317 00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:51.160 under seventeen hours. By the time mid August rolls around, 318 00:17:51.599 --> 00:17:55.920 we are under fifteen hours, so it's about fourteen hours 319 00:17:55.960 --> 00:17:58.000 and forty five minutes of day length. So by the 320 00:17:58.039 --> 00:18:01.839 time mid August rolls around, you have a night that's 321 00:18:01.880 --> 00:18:06.400 basically longer by ninety or so minutes. And that's what's 322 00:18:06.440 --> 00:18:10.759 actually triggering that. So's those longer nights and the cooler temperatures. 323 00:18:10.759 --> 00:18:13.400 Why the cooler temperatures because as I've said many times 324 00:18:13.400 --> 00:18:17.559 on the show, plants synthesize their pigments at night, and 325 00:18:17.599 --> 00:18:20.680 when it's cool, they can synthesize their pigments more effectively 326 00:18:21.279 --> 00:18:25.160 and they get brighter. So this is triggered by long, 327 00:18:25.240 --> 00:18:27.799 cool nights, not a problem for us here in Michigan. Now, 328 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:30.599 many of our friends in warm climates they grow panicle 329 00:18:30.680 --> 00:18:34.640 hydrangees and they never turn color. They're just so disappointed, 330 00:18:34.640 --> 00:18:37.119 and they're like, what gives. Well, a couple of issues here. 331 00:18:37.559 --> 00:18:39.880 First of all, because you live in a warmer climate, 332 00:18:40.400 --> 00:18:43.920 your panicle hydrange is bloom much earlier than they do 333 00:18:44.039 --> 00:18:47.680 for us here. For us, panicle hydrangees, the first ones, 334 00:18:47.720 --> 00:18:50.680 which are the quick fire hydrangs, those will usually be 335 00:18:51.200 --> 00:18:53.799 first blooming around fourth of July, but most of them 336 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:55.799 were looking more like mid to late July for that 337 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:58.759 initial bloom. You live in a warm climate, you're looking 338 00:18:58.799 --> 00:19:02.240 at probably early to mid June. So now what that 339 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:05.240 means is that as those blooms are starting to age, 340 00:19:05.720 --> 00:19:09.480 instead of that happening in August, where your day length 341 00:19:09.599 --> 00:19:14.079 is now almost two hours shorter than before, it's happening 342 00:19:14.079 --> 00:19:18.559 in July, during your hottest period of the entire year. 343 00:19:18.640 --> 00:19:22.359 So your nights are still quite long, your nighttime temperatures 344 00:19:22.519 --> 00:19:25.000 are still really high, very often in the South, you know, 345 00:19:25.720 --> 00:19:28.880 typically in the seventies or higher. We're talking about places 346 00:19:28.880 --> 00:19:31.160 that are too hot to even grow tomatoes, because tomatoes 347 00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:33.880 can't really grow where nighttime temperatures are consistently in the 348 00:19:33.920 --> 00:19:37.759 eighties and so you don't get that color. So this 349 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:40.079 is a trigger again that you can't control. And I 350 00:19:40.119 --> 00:19:44.000 know this is sometimes confusing for people because of course hydrangees, 351 00:19:44.039 --> 00:19:46.559 as we've talked about many times. You know, there's all 352 00:19:46.559 --> 00:19:49.440 this confusion because they're all different. And some people say, well, 353 00:19:49.799 --> 00:19:53.799 panicle hydrangees change color, must be the soil chemistry like 354 00:19:53.880 --> 00:19:57.039 with big leaf hydranges, But no, it's entirely weather and 355 00:19:57.240 --> 00:20:00.839 day length triggered. So unfortunately, nothing you can really do. 356 00:20:01.279 --> 00:20:05.240 If you live in a hot climate, you either have 357 00:20:05.319 --> 00:20:09.240 to resign yourself to not enjoying those beautiful pink colors, 358 00:20:09.880 --> 00:20:13.279 or if you are an experimental gardener, you could play 359 00:20:13.319 --> 00:20:16.039 around with pruning it. You could play around with pruning 360 00:20:16.039 --> 00:20:17.880 it a little bit later in the spring. Don't want 361 00:20:17.880 --> 00:20:19.240 to go too late. Of course it's too late for 362 00:20:19.240 --> 00:20:21.559 this now, but you don't want to go too late, 363 00:20:21.599 --> 00:20:24.559 and that will help to delay the bloom. And if 364 00:20:24.599 --> 00:20:27.920 you're able to push that bloom further into July so 365 00:20:27.960 --> 00:20:31.079 that you can kind of take advantage of that downswing 366 00:20:31.240 --> 00:20:36.480 on the nighttime temperatures, you might be able to enjoy 367 00:20:36.559 --> 00:20:36.960 that color. 368 00:20:37.039 --> 00:20:38.720 It's a form of Chelsea chop. 369 00:20:38.839 --> 00:20:40.359 It is kind of like a Chelsea chop. 370 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:43.000 Yeah. And when they turn color like that here in 371 00:20:43.039 --> 00:20:46.400 the North in August into September, I always get this 372 00:20:46.480 --> 00:20:48.359 kind of melancholy feel. 373 00:20:48.400 --> 00:20:50.880 Because you know, you know what it's triggering. Other people 374 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:54.279 are like, this is great at summer, and you're like, oh, shoot, 375 00:20:54.319 --> 00:20:57.000 my hydraene hit turned pink fall is on the way. 376 00:20:57.279 --> 00:20:59.440 It's like back to school time. 377 00:20:59.599 --> 00:21:02.240 Yes, yeah, like moms at the garden center. 378 00:21:03.880 --> 00:21:04.599 Mom's the word. 379 00:21:05.759 --> 00:21:08.200 So anyway, it's a great trigger plant. This is a 380 00:21:08.200 --> 00:21:11.880 case where the trigger works in our favor. And this 381 00:21:11.960 --> 00:21:14.359 isn't true just of today's plan on trial Pinky Winky. 382 00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:16.640 I picked Pinky Winky, like I said, because it really 383 00:21:16.799 --> 00:21:20.960 was the first of all panicle hydranges in the current 384 00:21:21.039 --> 00:21:24.319 era to really be sold for that color change. But 385 00:21:24.359 --> 00:21:27.480 there's tons more Pinky Winky prime. The new version of 386 00:21:27.519 --> 00:21:30.599 it has even better color, so you can find that 387 00:21:30.680 --> 00:21:33.400 at your local garden center. We're talking about hardy down 388 00:21:33.440 --> 00:21:36.279 to USDA Zone three heat tolerant through USDA Zone eight. 389 00:21:36.359 --> 00:21:39.400 They can grow on zone nine, but definitely not getting 390 00:21:39.440 --> 00:21:42.440 any color in USDA Zone nine, so bear that in 391 00:21:42.519 --> 00:21:45.279 mind as you decide whether you're going to add Pinky 392 00:21:45.319 --> 00:21:48.640 Winky or any of the Perfuminer's panicle hydranges to your garden. 393 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:50.599 We're gonna take a little break. When we come back, 394 00:21:50.640 --> 00:21:52.519 we're opening up the mail bag, so please stay tuned 395 00:22:00.200 --> 00:22:02.920 at Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs. We know that a 396 00:22:02.920 --> 00:22:06.000 better landscape starts with a better shrub. Our team of 397 00:22:06.039 --> 00:22:09.119 experts tests and evaluates all of our flowering shrubs in 398 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:12.519 evergreens for eight to ten years to ensure they outperform 399 00:22:12.559 --> 00:22:16.839 what's already on the market. For easycare, reliable, beautiful shrubs 400 00:22:16.839 --> 00:22:20.000 to accentuate your home and express your personal style. Look 401 00:22:20.039 --> 00:22:22.880