What’s Up in the Central Indiana Gardening Community

HortusScope, an e-bulletin for the Central Indiana gardening community, is published the first of every month as a public service by Wendy Ford.

Mark Zelonis (right) presents a vase of flowers to Ruth Lilly at the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 2002, upon completion of Oldfields. The flowers were cut from the gardens at Oldfields, a Lilly family estate on the IMA grounds. (C) Photo courtesy Mark Zelonis

Indianapolis philanthropist Ruth Lilly, the only living heir of Col. Eli Lilly, founder of the pharmeceutical firm, left quite a mark on the gardening scene. She died Dec. 30, 2009, at age 94.

Her $2.2 million gift a few years ago endowed Mark Zelonis’ position at the Indianapolis Musuem of Art as the Ruth Lilly Director of Oldfields & Horticulture.

The thorough and meticulous restoration of Oldfields, the former estate of the Josiah K. Lilly Jr., grandson of Col. Lilly, could not have been possible without her direct involvement, Zelonis said.  ”Its gathering National Historic Landmark status is a tribute to the site’s significance and also to the quality of the work done. It also garnered the IMA an Award of Merit, the highest honor from the American Association for State and Local History.”

Zelonis, who has been at the IMA since 1997, is responsible for the management, maintenance and development of museum’s 152 acres of gardens and grounds, with special emphasis on the 26-acre historic property of Oldfields. Ruth Lilly and her brother, Josiah K. Lilly III, the children of Josiah K. Lilly Jr., gave the Oldfields estate to the IMA in 1966. In addition to managing the horticulture division, Zelonis is a project director for the IMA’s Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park.

Since the early 1960s, Lilly has given more than $20 million to the IMA, primarily for support of Oldfields. She is an IMA trustee and a member of the Horticultural Society, Zelonis said. In addition to the arts, Lilly also supports health education, youth programs, and historic preservation in the community.

“Visitors who stroll our grounds, ride bikes on our paths, play on our lawns, and tour our beautiful campus have Mrs. Lilly and her family to thank,” Zelonis said at the time of the announcement. “We’ve been given a wonderful gift to care for, and we aim to be the best stewards a property such as this deserves.”

Her family’s estate, “will live on as testament to their refined tastes and generosity.  The Indianapolis Museum of Art would be a completely different institution had she and her brother not given this magnificent 52-acre site to the Art Association of Indianapolis back in the late 1960’s.  The city and its people should be forever grateful,” he said.

“On a personal level, I will miss the opportunity to share in her birthday and Christmas celebrations at her home, ‘Twin Oaks.’  Two of my proudest possessions are compilations of her poetry and artwork. From the journals she kept as a young girl, I could tell she was a keen observer of nature, cutting out and saving images of birds, plants, and insects.  I’ll always treasure her Christmas card of a few years ago which featured an image of Oldfields she had recently created,” Zelonis said.

Here’s her obituary from the Indianapolis Star. One of her largest gifts, and maybe the most surprising, went to the Poetry Foundation a few years ago.

Christmas tree on last leg of holiday with trip to drop off recycling location. (C) Fotolia.com

People can drop off their Christmas trees for recycling at eight Indy Parks until Jan. 31, 2010.

The trees are chopped up and used as mulch in city parks and around street trees. Last year,  more than 15,000 trees were recycled.

Be sure to remove ornaments, lights, stands, plastic bags, nail or other extras. No artificial trees or materials will be accepted.

You can drop off your tree from dawn to dusk, seven days a week. Follow the signs in the park for the exact drop off location.

• Broad Ripple Park
, 1610 Broad Ripple Ave.
• Ellenberger Park, 
5301 E. Saint Clair St.
• Garfield Park, 2345 Pagoda Drive
• Krannert Park, 
605 S. High School Road
• Northwestway Park
, 5253 W. 62nd St.
• Riverside Park
, 2420 N. Riverside Drive
• Perry Park, 
451 E. Stop 11 Road
• Sahm Park, 
6801 E. 91st St.

Invest in the Future: Keep Indianapolis Beautiful volunteers plant a tree as part of NeighborWoods. Photo courtesy Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Inc.

Greetings for the holidays. Thank you for enriching my life with your questions, comments and interest in gardening. Here are some suggestions for New Year’s resolutions for sustainable practices in the landscape.

Always identify the problem in the landscape before applying a cure. It’s a waste of resources to apply an insecticide if the problem is a fungus disease or drought. To learn more about identifying plant problems, the University of Tennessee Extension can help. Also check out May Dreams Gardens’ review of What’s Wrong With My Plant and How Do I Fix It? by David Deardorff and Kathryn Wadsworth.

Remove invasive plants from your landscape, neighborhood, park or other natural areas. For tips on identifying and removing invasive plants and suggestions for alternatives, see the Invasive Plant Species Assessment Working Group.

Don’t let the first question be ‘when do I prune it?’ when buying a tree or shrub. Select the right plant for the right place and you may never have to prune. Measure the space where you want to plant and know if it is sunny or shady or has dry or wet soil. Match that information with the tree or shrub you are interested in, taking into account the plant’s mature height and width.

Indianapolis Winter Farmers Market bustles on Saturday mornings. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

Eat local, whether that is food from your own garden, the farmers markets or a restaurant. Here are tips for starting a vegetable garden.

Native plants are key to a healthy, sustainable ecosystem. They sustain native wildlife, which is hard wired to seek seasonal plants for food and shelter. Their beauty is an added benefit. To learn more about native plants, visit the Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society, www.inpaws.org

Learn something new about nature, gardening or the environment. Take a workshop about gardening, attend a lecture about plants or landscaping or sign up to be a Master Gardener.

Invest in the future and plant a tree. Or, support Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s NeighborWoods program

Find a local park to support by visiting, volunteering or making a donation.

Educate a fledgling gardener. Share your knowledge and experience with a child, neighbor or friend.

SOLD: Irwin Home & Garden in Columbus, Ind. Photo Kid-At-Art/The Imagination Factory

The Republic in Columbus, Ind., reports that a Columbus couple has purchased the historic Irwin Home and Gardens with plans to convert the property into a bed and breakfast.

“We hope to have rooms available to the public by February,” Jessica Stevens, purchased the home with her husband Chris Stevens, purchased the home for $1.2 million.”There will be a total of five rooms (or) suites that will be available for public use, and we’ll also make the gardens available to rent for special parties or events.”

The Irwin Gardens B&B Web site is under development.

Here’s the full article.

A bald-faced hornet’s nest dangles from a magnolia tree in December. © Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

Mother Nature has a way of revealing many of her secrets when the ground is bare and leaves have fallen from the trees.

Irvington reader, J.O., “I recently discovered a bee hive in the maple tree. Do the bees return to the hive and hibernate for the winter?”

Most likely, the nest belongs to bald-faced hornets (Dolichovespula maculata), a North American native insect that actually is in the wasp family, related to yellow jackets.

A bald-faced hornet’s nest can be as long as 3 feet with a roundish appearance. The entry and exit hole is toward the bottom of the nest, but usually off to one side. A nest may hold several hundred residents, which live in the familiar caste system of social wasps and bees: queens, workers, drones, new queens.

These black and white hornets are quick defenders of their nest and can get quite aggressive if disturbed, stinging repeatedly.

When the temperature reaches freezing, bald-faced hornets die. Recently fertilized queens hibernate under ground and do not return to last year’s nests.

“Bald-faced hornets do not return to the same nest; each spring female hornets that have survived the winter will find a new location and begin anew,” said Jerry Zimmerman, an experienced beekeeper and physics professor at the University of Indianapolis. “After the first hard freeze it should be safe to cut down the nest.”

If you can’t reach the nest, it will deteriorate naturally.

Here’s more info along with cool images of the bald-faced hornet.

Master Gardener classes to start

Karen Kennedy (left), Wendy Ford and Sandra Timmerberg evaluate the day's planting activity at the City Market. Kennedy and Timmerberg are Marion County Master Gardeners. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

Learn about wasp nests and more as a Marion County Master Gardener. Marion County Master Gardeners volunteered 15,569 hours educating others and beautifying communities, according to reports submitted by 182 volunteers during the past year. The dollar value of time contributed amounted to $315,272.25.

Afternoon or evening classes are set for 18 Thursdays, Jan. 7 through May 13 at the extension office, 6640 Intech Blvd., near I-465 and West 71^st Street. Afternoon sessions will be 1 to 4 p.m. and evening, 6 to 9 p.m. The fee is $95. Completion of the program requires 50 volunteer hours.

For more information, call (317) 275-9286, visit the Master Gardeners’ Web site, or e-mail Debra Schelske, dschelsk@purdue.edu

Snaps are still blooming in December. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

Pickin’s are definitely sparse in my yard.

A few scraggily snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) are all that I found still blooming outdoors.

'Angelina' and 'Blue Spruce' sedum show their winter colors. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

However, this time of year begins our first lessons in winter interest. Here, ‘Angelina’ and ‘Blue Spruce’ sedums (Hylotelephium rupestre) are taking a growth spurt, evidenced by the brighter colored tips of the low growing ground cover.

Purple leaf oxalis is still shooting blooms, albeit, indoors. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

Because Carol from May Dreams Gardens didn’t specific the plants had to be outdoors, I’m going to claim my lovely purple leaf Oxalis, which are still blooming in the pots on the kitchen floor. They await their trip to the basement, where they will be allowed to go dormant for winter. In spring, the pots get moved back to the light and watered. Within a few days, the growth starts anew.

'Henna' coleus has turn almost all green, but still looks nice with the 'Pinky Winky' hydrangea. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

I took a snip of the ‘Henna’ coleus (Solenostemon), which has turned almost completely green, but is still attractive.

Mary Ellen Gadski, a member of the Indianapolis Tree board, speaks at the IURC hearing in Indianapolis. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission has ordered Indianapolis Power & Light Co., to suspend its tree-trimming practices on private property until the state agency issues its final report.

The commission has suspended IPL’s “right to trim and remove trees located on customer’s property.” The commission filed its report Dec. 10.

The order of suspension comes after several public hearings the commission held this fall throughout the state to investigate consumer complaints about the tree-trimming practices of various utilities, including IPL and Duke Energy, formerly Public Service Indiana.

The commission agreed to investigate the issue following a complaint by Charles Goodman, an east side Indianapolis resident, and Jerry Baker, a Traders Point resident on the city’s northwest side.

“With the help of many, we have really achieved something here,” Baker said in an e-mail.

Pallina Vegan gloves do away with seams at the fingertips. Photo courtesy The Pallina

Structron tool at Sullivan Hardware and Garden. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

For the high season of gift giving, here are some suggestions for the gardeners on your list. They may not be glamorous, but Structron brand construction grade shovels, spades and rakes are tough. Structron, owned by Seymour Manufacturing Co. Inc., have a fiberglass core and sleeve, which make them among the toughest available.

I have snapped the wooden handles on many digging tools, usually within a year or two after buying them. My Structron shovel has been in steady use for seven years and is still going strong. The tools retail for $30 to $40 each and are available at several independent garden centers and home improvement stores.

Precipice fountain from Campania International. Photo courtesy Campania

One of the attributes I’d like to add to my landscape is a water feature that’s something beyond the static birdbath. Fountains come in all sizes and shapes, but one that caught my eye first in a catalog and then at Rosie’s Garden, a north side Indianapolis garden center, is Precipice from Campania International. Made in the USA, the cast stone fountain is strikingly contemporary and available in 12 patinas. It is 50 inches long, 15 inches wide and 32 ½ inches tall. Expect to pay about $1,100.

If that’s too rich for your blood, consider Wild Bird Unlimited’s The Water Wiggler. Operated by two Size D batteries, the 5-inch round device looks a bit like a space ship with its long legs, which stand in a birdbath and gently wiggle the water

Water Wiggler from Wild Birds Unlimited.

to attract birds. The movement discourages egg laying by mosquitoes, too. No plumbing or wiring required. Cost: $37.

Gardeners usually can’t have too many pairs of gloves and this year, I’ve been trialing The Pallina’s Vegan Gloves. They are comfortably made with Kevlar, Spandex, Velcro and terry cloth and with a design that does away with annoying fingertip seams. I worked in these gloves several times, including on several Fox 59 Home Work features, such as planting bulbs and fall cleanup. Available in men’s and women’s sizes for $30.

There are many more sustainable holiday gift ideas at Indiana Living Green.

Just a few holly berries can be deadly toxic to humans and pets. (C) Fotolia.com

As we bring nature indoors during the holiday season, we need to be cautious in how we use it, especially if children and pets are on the scene.

It’s easy for kids to think the berries on mistletoe or holly are candy, so keep them out of reach. The Wisconsin Poison Center says as few as 20 berries from holly (Ilex) can kill a child. Pets, too, are at risk if the berries fall on the floor where they can be gobbled up.

American bittersweet is poisonous, so use care when decorating with leaves and orange berries, seen here climbing on a gray dogwood (Cornus racemosa), which has white berries. Photo courtesy wildflower.org

The leaves, berries and stems of American or oriental bittersweet (Celastrus), native mistletoe (Arceuthobium pusillum), European mistletoe (Viscum) and Jerusalem cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum) are poisonous, as are the red berries of yews (Taxus).

Every year, it seems like we need to remind people that it’s an urban legend that poinsettia is poisonous. Although the plant is not meant to be eaten, it is not poisonous. There might be some throat irritation, but you’d have to eat hundreds of pounds for there to be a toxic effect.

If you think a person or pet has ingested a poisonous plant (or any toxin), contact the Indiana Poison Center immediately, (800) 222-1222.

While we are on safety, chocolate can be deadly to dogs. Coffee and tea also are not recommended for dogs or cats because of the caffeine. Other foods that should not be fed to our pets: mushrooms, grapes, raisins, onion, garlic and Macadamia nuts.

Resources:

• Indiana Poison Center, emergency phone: (800) 222-1222
• Purdue University’s Holiday Greens
• Clemson University’s Decorating with Fresh Holiday Greenery
• The Human Society of the United States’ Poisonous Plants

2010 Hosta of Year is ‘First Frost’

Hosta growers name 'First Frost' the 2010 Hosta of the Year. Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

The American Hosta Growers Association has named ‘First Frost’ as its Hosta of the year for 2010. This plant has thick, clean blue-green foliage edged in a creamy white. It gets about 24 inches tall and wide and has lavender flowers.

You may be able to find this hosta in garden centers this spring. It is available mail order from Great Garden Plants, Plant Delights Nursery and Van Bourgondien.