When Chives Grow Flowers

"Don't wait for someone to bring you flowers. Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul". 

What's more, it is not necessary to plant a flower garden. Flower gardens do have their unique allure. However, vegetables and herbs can provide flowers to beautify your garden space. 

So far, I have observed a minor leaf miner attack on my small plot of white and purple chive varieties. Leaf miners affect both the productivity and marketability of chives. Infestations cause yellowing, then subsequent browning of infected leaves. The irregular mazes of greenish-white mines are not attractive to consumers.

Can leaf miners be trained to carve out cute messages into leaves? Example "I Love You".

Nothing out of the ordinary until..

...imagine my surprise when I found my white chives with clusters of small white flowers! Was it good, bad; it definitely was not ugly. 

Upon enquiry, the first response received was that chives flower when they are under stress. My chives (local name: ti lonyon) under stress?! Was I misguided in believing that I maintain a happy garden? Not satisfied with that response, I consulted with the world wide web. In my online search I found that chives flower as per normal plant cycle. Most of the literature- written for temperate climates- states that chives bloom in May/June. However, in this tropical climate they are flowering in August. Consideration is also given to the fact that high rainfall consistent with the Rainy Season which officially begins in June has only just began, after a prolonged Dry Season. Either way, the dainty blooms are welcome.

They begin like this, shrouded in light veil of mystery:

,,,Then the light white sheath reveal closed buds:

...And then the buds open:

Beautiful bouquet

This source advises the removal of flowers after blooming to prevent the spread of plants throughout your garden. But what to do with all these blooms? The flowers are edible! They can be utilized in your culinary creations as garnishes, salads, flavored vinegar and other recipes available on the web.

The internet is rife with photos of purple chive flowers.No flowers have been observed with the purple chive variety as they were planted after the white chives. I look forward to a colour change in these flowers when they appear. 

Additional resources:

Chive Production Manual

Cornell University

Organic Pest Control

You have been attempting organic production. Land preparation and establishment of crops has been a success with Compost. In the process of scouting, you observe one caterpillar. Then two. And overnight you have two hundred on one plant! Abandoning your attempt at organic farming seems to be the follow-up activity in the sequence of organic farming practices. But wait, there is hope yet! At a training workshop held on Thursday July 24, 2014, the use of plants for biological control of pests was demonstrated.

L-R: Adelfa (red), Adelfa (pink), Neem

The plants selected for today's demonstration were:

1. OLEANDER: A fixture of the home garden, this plant has great POTENTial for organic pest control. You can identify the plant by the dull green, slender pointed leaves with clusters of flowers at the end of the branches. The flowers range in colour from white through cream, pink rose and red. Participants were cautioned of the toxicity of the plant. In handling the plant, one should not eat, drink nor smoke. So poisonous is this plant, that even food cooked on the wood is poisoned. Does this leave any doubt in your mind that the Oleander can be effective in pest control? It can be used to control ants, flies, caterpillars and other insects. Other names by which this shrub is known includes Adelfa, Rose Bay and Rosa Fancesca.
2. NEEM: The use of neem as a biological pesticide is known far and wide due to its commercialisation. The seeds are a more concentrated source of the pesticidal ingredient than the leaves. The seeds (kernels) are used to make neem oil. Neem is used in the control of pests such as beetles, termites, scale insects, mealy bugs and aphids.

   

   It's bubbling and it's not soup

METHOD: 

1. Crush and boil leaves, seeds or bark for 30 minutes
2. Let cool 
3. Pour into spray can
4. Add soap mixture (Grate one bar of blue soap and add to 5 gallons of water; Use 500mL to 1 spray can)
5. Spray!

POINTS TO NOTE:

• The Oleander can also be crushed and SOAKED  for 30 minutes (See Step 1). It is more poisonous when boiled than soaked.
• Neem is most effective under humid conditions or when the insect and the plants are damp.
• Cover the container when boiling (regardless of plant selection) to prevent the entry of light as light reduces the potency. The cooled extraction should also not be be exposed to sunlight.
• The boiled contents are only good for 48 hours.
• After mixing with soap, the solution is only effective for 8 hours.

This can be tailored to both large scale production and production for home use. For home use, I would recommend Adelfa as the better option as it is widely available and can be soaked instead of going through the boiling method.

Anthurium Adventure

Going by the book

All products come with the instruction manual? In this case it is the "Cultivation Guide Anthurium-Global Know-How for Growers aaround the Globe". However, I do not want to thoroughly read this 140-page book in one sitting on a subject that I will not be formally tested on. Luckily I have had the benefit of field trips of the St. Lucia Floral  Co-operative Society Limited during which I was privy to best practices. Also, mentorship has provided me with a live resource to refer to as problems require resolutions.  

Written guide

Getting down to work

The plants that I am responsible for are already planted but are in desperate need of some tender and devoted loving care to bring them to optimal productivity. Light work, I imagined....

New beginnings

Leaf Cutting

Did you know that old anthurium leaves use much sugar at the expense of flower production? Leaves are  therefore pruned to divert more of the plant's energy towards flower production. Too many leaves results in aborted buds, damaged flower buds and crooked stems. Regular pruning is also necessary for better air circulation which reduces problems of molds and bacterial infections. My ideal number of leaves is 4.

Weeding and Irrigation

"Weeds are flowers too once you get to know them" says Winnie the Pooh character, Eeyore. In the flower production business, weeds once identified have to be removed. Regular weeding of ferns and other weeds are required for its control. Chemical control of weeds in anthurium production is not recommended particularly  for newly planted crops and when new shoots are desired. If your production site is not near to a water source then your next labour-intensive task is irrigation.  Mostly I just hope and pray and watch the weather forecasts for rain to save me this task.  

So much to do...

Pests

Everything that can happen will happen. Slugs and snails feed on root tips and damage the leaves and buds. Caterpillars feed on the leaves.  The slug bait has been set and I am monitoring for progress. While white flies are present in the shade house they do not present much of a challenge. Butterflies lay their eggs on the underside of leaves and caterpillars when hatched feed on the leaves and flowers. While frogs are not a problem to the plant they do reduce my own life line every time one jumps from the coconut husks at me!  

One of  the better flowers

Ripe for the pecking

Do you have a backyard vegetable garden? Of course I am sure that you produce nothing less than prime produce. However, if you ever had the experience of insects and birds reaping the fruits of your labour, I have compiled a list of options tried and tested by home gardeners.

1.       Fruit sleeves. My stock is reused sleeves. However, they are not available locally. They are available on the internet-they are sold in wholesale quantities at wholesale prices and recommended  for commercial use.

2.       Halved dry coconuts and mounted on stakes in your garden. The expected outcome is that the birds will feed on this food source provided.

3.       Mounted clothes coat on a wooden frame to create a 'scarecrow'.

'Scarecrow' in cabbage plot

4.       Coloured Christmas tree ornaments placed on plants before the fruit gets ripe. The expected outcome is that the birds will tire from pecking these “false ripe fruit” and won’t return to peck at the real fruit when ripe.

Many backyard gardeners have opted for the use of netting of varying degrees of shade. The primary use of the netting is to reduce the impact of the sun on the plants. However, it also functions as a safeguard from birds. This material is costly as one square meter can be sold for approximately $70.00. Therefore before making this purchase decision one should seek expert advice as different crops favour different types of shade.

PPlease share your tried and tested tips for bringing more of the fruits of your labour to the dinner table.