Chief Joseph Pine

A beautiful specimen of Pinus contorta 'Chief Joseph' (Lodgepole Pine) has been donated to  The Oregon Garden by Rare Tree Nursery in Silverton.  'Chief Joseph' has the distinct and unusual characteristic of having the needles turn golden yellow in the winter and then back to green again in the summer.  This tree was recently planted in the Conifer Garden which is one of the most popular sections in The Oregon Garden, by a group of volunteers.  The Conifer Garden has become quite well known throughout the western U.S. for the diversity of the conifers on display.  'Chief Joseph' was discovered in the Wallowa Mountains of eastern Oregon by Oregonian Doug Will.   This beautiful specimen has been planted on a small mound and the golden yellow it displays in winter makes it an eye catching plant that stands out a against a background of green and blue conifers.

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Tomato Bumble Bee

Salem OSU Master Grower has been a frequent guest on my program this past season as he shares information about his experiments with grafted tomatoes.  Some of his grafted tomatoes reached 11-12 feet in height and his fruit production was also quite good this year.  It probably helped that we had a beautiful late summer and fall season with plenty of sunshine and little rain.  But we eventually do get fall rains and as Harry reported to me, "What does the most damage, before frost finally gets our plants --- is rain.  The tomatoes split".  Harry grew some experimental tomato plants this year and one was called 'Bumble Bee'.  This tomato was 1-1 1/4 inches in diameter, bright colored and very sweet.  Harry says, "Not one Bumble Bee split in the rain!"  This new tomato is expected to be available from Log House Plants next spring.

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Poinsettia 'Red Jubilee'

When Jill West, Head Grower for Al's Garden Center, was a guest on my program this past Saturday (December 8), she talked about the large varieties of poinsettias that are now available.  Whereas at one time, they were only red, now there are different colors like white, pink, burgundy and even some with multi colored bracts.  However red is still, by far, the most popular color for the holiday season.  With new improvements in breeding, poinsettias are smaller and more compact plants and the bracts can often continue looking good for several months.  Some of Jill's tips are keeping the plants looking good are to place them away from draft areas in a house such as a forced air heating duct.  Poinsettias like light but not direct sun and it is usually best to take the plant to a sink to water thoroughly.  If your plant has an aluminum sleeve, be sure to remove the sleeve when watering so water does not accumulate in the bottom.  Many plants are lost due to being in standing water.  The plant shown is 'Red Jubilee' which is one of the most popular Poinsettias that Al's Garden Center sells.

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Flowering Quince

Elizabeth Peterson is a local garden writer who regularly writes feature articles for Digger, which is the official publication of the Oregon Association of Nurseries.  In the December issue, Elizabeth wrote an article “Riots of Red” which is an assortment of plants with red flowers, bark, new growth, leaves, stems, berries or a combination of some.  To discuss plants with red colors at this time of year seems particularly appropriate and thus the reason for having Elizabeth as a guest on my show (December 8).  One of the plants she mentions is Chaenomeles japonica ‘Atsuya Hamada’, which is an outstanding red flowering quince and a favorite of Sean Hogan of Cistus Nursery on Sauvie Island.  The flowers on this quince are very dark red, almost maroon and plants begin flowering in early spring and continue over a long period.  Give it some space in the garden as it has spiny branches and the plant can reach 10 ft in height.  Once established it is an easy care plant to have in the garden with little maintenance other than pruning.  

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