Yard & Garden Line News
Volume 7 Number 2                                                               February 1, 2005
Features this issue:

University of Minnesota Outreach, Research and Education [UMore] Park
Anthuriums; Nature's Valentines
Contemplating Compost
Lady Beetle Light Trap Trials
Editorial Notes

University of Minnesota Outreach, Research and Education [UMore] Park
Philip O. Larsen, UMore Park, Director of Operations

Part of the Master Gardeners' garden.
Soybean research.
Photo Credits: UMORE Park
The University of Minnesota Outreach, Research and Education Park (UMore Park) is a living laboratory at an active urban/rural edge used for teaching, research and community education about contemporary issues such as land use history and planning, agriculture, natural resources, health, environment, energy and water. As a large university owned property with a rich and varied history, UMore Park demonstrates the impact of different kinds of land use, the significance of research in addressing both rural and urban issues, and increasingly serves a wider variety of programs and social needs appropriate to the site. UMore Park is a diverse landscape for the pursuit and demonstration of design excellence and environmental restoration at the urban/rural edge of the Twin Cities; and a regional treasure for the interpretation, exploration and enjoyment of Minnesota's natural and cultural heritage.

UMore Park is composed of 7,686 acres located on the southern edge of the Twin Cities in Dakota County adjacent to the City of Rosemount. The property was formerly owned by the U.S. Government for the purpose of manufacturing smokeless gunpowder for use in World War II. Many of the concrete remnants of that activity still remain on certain portions of UMore Park. Approximately 3500 acres is devoted to research on a variety of topics. While the majority of the research underway involves crops and livestock, it also includes such topics as carbon recycling, land use planning and recreational trails. UMore Park's location on the edge of one of the most rapidly growing areas in the Twin Cities presents many opportunities for studies of the impact of urban expansion into traditionally agricultural areas.

Each year, UMore Park is home to the research projects of 35 to 45 faculty, their students and staff from the Colleges of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Science; Architecture and Landscape Architecture; Natural Resources; and Veterinary Medicine. World class crops and livestock research and outreach projects are conducted each year on corn, soybeans, edible beans, wheat, barley, oats, turkeys, beef, potatoes, and forage. The research spans a broad array of topics including crop and livestock genetics, animal health, soil fertility, plant disease, weed, and insect control, and beef and turkey nutrition and reproduction.

Minnesota ranks first in turkey production nationally. UMore Park is the primary site for turkey production research in Minnesota. Each year several thousand turkeys are used for research on nutrition and reproduction. The Minnesota Turkey Growers Association sponsors an annual turkey "media day" which is held around Thanksgiving at UMore Park for the purpose of informing media representatives and local officials about turkey production, nutritional quality, and the economic value of the turkey industry to Minnesota.

Beef cattle
Photo credit:
UMORE Park
Minnesota beef producers are collaborating with Extension Animal Science faculty on a project called the Beef Carcass Merit program. This program tracks such factors as rate of gain and meat quality in relation to the genetic background of about 130 feeder calves that are fed to finish in our feedlots. The information gained from this project is extremely helpful to beef cow/calf operations in making genetic improvements in their herds that will lead to high quality beef for the consumer.

As you drive through UMore Park on Highway 46, an east-west roadway bisecting UMore Park, you will notice the Master Gardener's Research, Education and Display Garden. The large maroon and gold M created from flowers provides a spectacular landmark that draws attention to the Garden where more than 100 volunteer Master Gardeners work throughout the growing season. The Garden is open to the public and is a popular venue for community residents to learn about ornamental plant selection, plant culture and landscape design. The Garden is also a site for testing experimental flower varieties for private seed companies. Additional landscape plantings are now being planned for installation at UMore Park during 2005. These plantings will provide a site for community members to obtain ideas for landscape design that might be used in their own landscapes. In addition, an interpretive tree trail is now being planned that will provide an opportunity to learn about trees suitable for growth in Minnesota. The University of Minnesota Extension Service and Master Gardeners will continue to develop the gardens at UMore Park as a living classroom for horticultural education.

Lone Rock Trail is a recreational trail located in the southeastern sector of UMore Park. From April to November it serves as trail for horseback riding and hiking. From December to March the Trail is groomed for cross-country skiing in cooperation with Dakota County Parks. The trail is 9.8 miles long and traverses agricultural areas, ridges, wetlands, and forested areas that abound with wildlife. The trail was constructed under the advice of faculty in the College of Natural Resources and serves as a teaching venue for students studying the development of recreational trails. Lone Rock Trail is open to the public for its enjoyment.

Further information about UMore Park can be obtained from its website at www.umorepark.umn.edu or by calling at 651-243-2455.

Anthuriums; Nature's Valentines
Deborah Brown, Extension Horticulturist

Flamboyant flamingos Photo credit: Deb Brown
Anthuriums or "flamingo flowers" make wonderful gifts this time of year, whether you choose a fresh bouquet or a flowering potted plant. Either way, the waxy, heart-shaped flowers will keep their good looks for a long time.

Anthuriums belong to a large, important family of plants, the Araceae, which includes many of our most popular tropical houseplants: philodendrons, pothos, peace lilies, diffenbachias, Chinese evergreens, and arrowhead vines. Their flowering structures are unique – minuscule true flowers on a little stem called a spadix that emerges at the base of a modified, often colorful leaf called a spathe. Jack-in-the-pulpit is a Minnesota wildflower belonging to this group; "jack" is the spadix, his pulpit, the spathe.

Not all aroid flowers are equally showy. Dieffenbachia and Chinese evergreen blooms look like tiny cream-colored canoes, and are more a curiosity than anything. Often people see them and mistakenly think something's wrong with their plant – they certainly don't resemble flowers as we know them.

Peace lilies, however, are prized for the white flowers that develop even when they're grown under relatively modest light levels. But anthuriums are most showy, with their eye-catching spathes ranging – depending on cultivar – from white to pink, coral, or flaming red. The cut flowers are even more flamboyant, and may come in apple green as well as the above colors. Some unusual ones are a variegated combination of several colors.

Caring for potted plants
Peace lily Photo credit: U of M Extension Service
Newer anthurium cultivars will bloom year-round, if you provide good growing conditions.

Light is the most critical factor – they like lots of it! Anthuriums don't require direct sun all day, though, just a really bright location. Without enough light, you'll get fewer flowers, and they'll be smaller and less colorful than those the plant produced when it was growing in a greenhouse. If light levels are truly deficient, the plant probably won't bloom at all. They have attractive foliage, so they look nice even without the blooms. Not as nice, though.....

Keep Anthuriums fairly moist, but make sure their soil drains rapidly when you water it. Allow the soil to dry a bit below the surface before watering, but never approach the point where it feels "bone dry." As with most houseplants, saturate the soil, then spill out any excess water sitting in the saucer or tray after a few minutes.

To encourage anthuriums to produce as many flowers as possible, use a fertilizer formulated specially for African violets or blooming houseplants. If the anthurium sits near a bright window, you can fertilize every three or four weeks, year-round, but mix the plant food only 1/4 strength in late fall and winter. By the end of February you should be able to mix it ½ strength, possibly moving to full strength in June and July. I think ½ strength is smarter though – just apply it more frequently when days are long and the plant is putting on lots of new growth.

Keep anthuriums looking their best by trimming off any old discolored leaves, right at the base of the stems. Remove each flower once its spathe fades to a greener hue, and its spadix turns tan. New ones will take its place.

Keeping cut flowers
Anthurium production. Photo credit: Deb Brown
It's easy to keep cut anthurium blooms looking good. Just make a fresh cut (preferably under water) when you get them, then plunge the stems immediately into a clean vase of lukewarm water and floral preservative. They'll do best in a relatively bright location where they don't get too hot. Be sure to keep them away from cold drafts and leaky windows, though. As tropical flowers, they're unaccustomed to chilly temperatures.

Change the water every few days before it gets murky, inspecting stems at the same time. If the base of the stems looks brown, use a sharp knife to cut back into healthy tissue. Slice at an angle, so stems won't sit flat on the bottom of the vase. A fresh bouquet should last several weeks – a nice reminder of Valentine's Day sentiments.

Contemplating Compost
Janna Beckerman, Extension Plant Pathologist


Compost piles
Photo credit: Beth Jarvis
Compost is a concept that deserves contemplation. Compost itself is a mixture of decayed organic matter like fruit and vegetable scraps from the kitchen, leaves, and lawn clippings. The primary process of composting is decomposition, whereby invertebrates like worms and insects, and microorganisms like fungi, bacteria, and nematodes, break down organic waste, turning it into a valued end product used for improving soil quality and plant growth.

Decomposition
Decomposition is a natural process that plants are constantly subjected to. When a healthy plant is attacked by a pathogen, we call this disease. When a plant dies, microorganisms, insects and other invertebrates consume and decompose it. Through decomposition, plant products are turned into humus and nutrients are recycled within the ecosystem.

In a natural system, humus happens, but in the home compost pile we can encourage decomposition by creating optimal conditions for the organisms that do the work. Composting, and the process of decomposition, is dynamic process that is constantly changing, and we can drive the process based upon our understanding of decomposition. By understanding a few features of decomposition, you can begin "active" composting, which occurs in as few as two to six weeks. Don't feel like composting? Don't worry! For the unmotivated, the motto "Compost Happens," works just as well, as a neglected leaf pile will inevitably decompose, too. This has been referred to as "passive composting," because little maintenance is performed. However, if you want to speed things along, fast or "active" composting can be completed in two to six weeks. All it requires is: 1) "aeration," by turning the compost pile; 2) consistent moisture; 3) the proper carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio. Other factors that affect composting include 4) the amount of surface area exposed; 5). The temperatures reached in compost pile and 6). The outside temperatures. For more information about these factors, see the links below.

Materials

Compostable materials Photo credit: Beth Jarvis
Like everything in life, what you get out is related to what you put in. Compost is no different: Quality waste makes for quality compost. Kitchen wastes like fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags, and eggshells make for good compost. Yard wastes, like leaves, make up the majority of Minnesota compost piles, and the quality varies with the leaf: Oak leaves make for great compost and quickly break down, whereas silver maple leaves decompose more slowly. Grass clippings can be composted as well, but your lawn is better served if you use a mulching mower and allow them to decompose where they fall. If grass clippings are used, be sure to mix them with other yard wastes such as leaves or kitchen scraps to maintain air space, and increase the rate of decomposition.

Successful composting isn't all about the plant material: The diversity of decomposers in a compost pile means that some organisms thrive on vegetable scraps while another prefers oak leaves. The compost pile is a mini-ecosystem that is constantly changing. If the compost pile environment becomes inhospitable, succession will occur, and one group or consortium of decomposers will be replaced by another more adapted to the new situation. Replaced organisms may be present but dormant and persist as spores, or eggs, or they may move or grow to a different part of the pile. The dynamic nature of compost is a microstudy of both ecology and evolution.

The success of compost in improving garden soil has resulted in the marketing of compost aids, or bio-activators, that consist of prepackaged, concentrated microbes. The advertisements around these products suggest that they aid in decomposition; however, these microbes occur naturally, and should already be present in a well-constructed compost pile. Don't waste your money buying what you already have in abundance!

Compost Tea
Hopefully, you're convinced that compost is great stuff for your garden. With this simple idea, proponents have developed several different methods to make a "tea" from compost. They argue that the right compost with the right microorganisms turned into tea and sprayed upon plants protects plants from disease. However, in numerous studies, compost tea was no better, and in some instance worse, than spraying with water for the control of powdery mildews, downy mildews, and leaf spots like apple scab, or rose blackspot. In a study Jeff Gillman, Chad Giblin, and I performed at the TRE Nursery, compost tea was not at all effective in the control of rose blackspot, and not as effective as water in the control of rose powdery mildew. Compost is great stuff, but most controlled studies, including our own, suggest that compost tea is not effective in disease control.

Compost and Plant Disease
Compost piles in Minnesota do not get hot enough to kill plant pathogens. Therefore, diseased plants should not be composted, but disposed of. Adding compost to the soil can improve soil texture, and increase water retention, and improve plant health-all of which are great, but do not directly prevent plant disease. Healthy plants are less likely to become infected, and healthy soils have a multitude of organisms, some of which may feed on soilborne pathogens, thereby reducing disease. Nothing in life is certain, but disease, like compost, happens.

For more information, see:
Composting and Mulching: A Guide to Managing Organic Yard Waste: http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG3296.html
How to Compost: http://www.howtocompost.org/
Please check out the new diagnostics web pages at
http://www.extension.umn.edu/projects/yardandgarden/diagnostics/


Lady Beetle Light Trap Trials
Jeffrey Hahn, Assist. Extension Entomologist
Bill Hutchison, Professor, Ext. Entomologist

MALB
Photo credit: Jeff Hahn
Multicolored Asian lady beetles (MALB) are an annual problem during fall in Minnesota when they enter homes in large numbers. The standard management for lady beetles is to prevent them from entering buildings through physical exclusion, i.e., caulking and other types of sealing, and applying an insecticide barrier around the building's exterior, especially along doors, windows, and roof lines.

However, this may not always keep these lady beetles out. If these exclusionary tactics are not applied to all sites MALB use to enter homes or they are not applied until after lady beetles started to move indoors, than significant numbers of MALB can enter buildings. Sometimes, lady beetle numbers are so large that it is impossible to keep them out not matter how well you caulk or spray. Once lady beetles are found indoors, the problem becomes how to eliminate them.

One solution that is available to homeowners to control MALB indoors is to use light traps to capture them. However, these traps are largely untested in scientific trials in the upper Midwest so it is not clear how effective they are. With that thought in mind, we decided to test two light beetle traps to see how well they would eliminate lady beetles inside homes.

We obtained traps from Gilbert Industries (219GT trap) and SpringStar LLC (Asian Ladybug Trap) for use in our study. The 219GT trap is sold primarily to professional pest management workers but is primarily for catching flies and not lady beetles. The Asian Ladybug Trap is sold to the public specifically for collecting lady beetles.

Gilbert 219GT Photo credit: Gilbert Industries
We asked for volunteers in or near the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. We wanted to cover as large a geographic area as possible. We looked for volunteers that had a history of MALB problems in their home, especially last season. They also needed to be available through the course of the study (late September through November) and be prepared to record data on a regular basis. We preferred homes that were not treated for MALB.

We selected 12 volunteers, mostly master gardeners, and grouped them into six pairs with each pair being in roughly the same geographic area. One volunteer in each group received the Gilbert 219GT trap and the other the Asian Ladybug Trap. Volunteers were given data sheets and were instructed to place their trap about 2 - 3 feet above the floor and to block as much light as possible so competing light did not distract the beetles. They were told they only needed to run the trap at night, although if they decided to run it continuously they needed to keep the room as dark as possible. They were instructed to check their trap in the morning and record how many MALB were in the trap. We also wanted them to estimate how many MALB were in the room outside the trap (low, 1-5; medium, 6-24; or high, >24). The volunteers set up their traps in late September and continued counting lady beetles until sometime in November.

Despite seeing large numbers of MALB in 2003, our volunteers encountered small populations in their homes in 2004. This undoubtedly was due to the cool summer we experienced and may have been correlated with much lower soybean aphid infestations throughout the state, a major source of MALB. Of the 12 volunteers, three reported finding five or less MALB a day during the trial. One volunteer did not turn in their data. These results will not be considered in our discussion.

Asian Ladybug Trap Photo credit: SpringStar LLC.
Of the remaining eight volunteers, three used the Gilbert 219GT trap and five used the Asian Ladybug Trap. For those using the Gilbert traps, we found mixed results. In one case, moderate numbers (average of 10/day with a high of 42) were collected consistently in the trap while small numbers (5 or less) were counted outside the trap (with only a few exceptions). In another case, less than two beetles were collected each day while high numbers (>24) were observed in the room during much of the same period. The third Gilbert trap faired somewhere in between trapping more than five per day. The number of MALB found outside of the trap was similar to the trap catch, i.e., days of low trap catches saw low numbers of MALB outside the trap and days of high catch counts saw high numbers of MALB in the room.

Three of the Asian Ladybug Traps collected very few MALB, averaging less than one a day while MALB numbers were moderate or high outside the trap. The third trap averaged two to three MALB a day (a high of 21) while only small numbers were observed outside the trap. The last trap averaged about four MALB per day while small numbers were counted in the room.

Interestingly, several volunteers observed their traps also collected boxelder bugs and/or flies in addition to the MALB.

Both traps collected MALB but they did not consistently trap a majority of the lady beetles present. However, base on these results and additional lab studies (in progress), we believe there is enough potential to repeat this experiment. We would like to see how well the traps work in early spring when MALB emerge from their overwintering sites in homes, although there may not be enough MALB this spring to perform a meaningful trial. Future experiments may also include using multiple traps in each home to improve beetle catch.

Get the low down on this month's insect pests at Insects http://www.extension.umn.edu/projects/yardandgarden/EntWeb/Ent.htm


Editorial Notes

Noerenberg Garden scene. Photo credit:
Beth Jarvis
In early January, I attended the Minnesota Green expo, the nursery, greenhouse, garden center, golf course and even cemetary groundskeepers' annual trade show. It's always great to hear about and see new products coming out. One workshop discussed crosses between tiarella (foam flower) and heuchera (coral bells) to form heucherella. Cool.

A benefit of attending is to see friends and acquaintances who are in the industry. This year, I ran into Arla Carmichiel, who is the garden designer at Noerenberg Garden, pictured at left. It's mid-winter eyecandy. In season, it's a fabulous garden. For directions, see: http://www.threeriversparkdistrict.org/parks/index.cfm. Please feel free to cut and paste any of the articles for use in your own newsletters. All we ask is that you give our authors credit.

Back issues Yard & Garden Line News are on the Yard & Garden Line home page at www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/. Our home page has clickable links to the components of the Yard & Garden Line, such as Bell Museum of Natural History, INFO U and the Soil Testing Lab. There are new links to the Insect Journal, Plant Disease Diagnostics, Disease Watch and now the Urban Forestry Resources clinic.

Deb Brown answers gardening questions on Minnesota Public Radio's (MPR) "Midmorning" program on the first Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. The program is broadcast on KNOW 91.1 FM, and available state-wide on the MPR news radio stations. (Scroll down for map.)

For plant and insect questions, visit http://www.extension.umn.edu/askmg. Thousands of questions have been answered, so try the search option in the black bar at the top left of the board for the fastest answer.

If you would like to receive an e-mail reminder when the next issue of the Yard & Garden Line News is posted to the web, just send an e-mail to: listserv@lists.umn.edu (note: the second E in listserve is omitted), leave the subject line blank, then in the body of the message, type: sub yglnewslist or to unsubscribe, enter: unsub yglnewslist

Happy gardening!

Beth Jarvis
Yard & Garden Line Project Coordinator


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