Interview with Chris Strand, Winterthur’s director of garden and facilities:

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20120210/NEWS/202100339/Bright-spring-blossoms-come-early-Winterthur?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Local

Photo gallery:

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=BL&Dato=20120208&Kategori=LIFE&Lopenr=202080804&Ref=PH/Winter-beauty-Winterthur?odyssey=mod|defcon|img|Home

I don’t usually use this word for horticulturists at Winterthur. I think it can bring to mind a misinterpretation of what we do here in the garden. But in Susan’s case the basic definition of the word fits to everything she does in Azalea Woods. Care Taker.

With eight (count ‘em folks 8) acres of azaleas, rhododendrons, small trees, big trees, big shrubs, small shrubs, ground covers, perennials, and turf in one of the most visited areas in the garden, the care she renders to all the plants in Azalea Woods throughout the year culminates in the beautifully massive display seen in the spring and early summer.

Did you guys realize that Susan spends hours in the autumn and early winter removing fallen leaves, often by hand, from every azalea there? Yeah, really. And there’s like a bazillion azaleas in there. Some of those puppies are nine feet tall and twice as wide. And the pruning…what?  

That’s not all. Mulch mowing, path maintenance, spraying, fertilizing, weeding (oh, the weeding there is!), mulching. Whew…makes me exhausted just thinking about it. No problem for this graduate of the Longwood Certificate Program.

With 10 years experience in the industry, a life-long love of horticulture, and five years caring for Azalea Woods, Susan charges in with energy, determination, and a smile on her face ready to take care of any possible challenges a day in Azalea Woods may present. Just to set the record straight…she would gladly welcome a volunteer or two.

(To lend a hand and work with the charming care taker, contact Winterthur’s volunteer coordinator, Margaret Jenkins at 302.888.4784 or mjenki@winterthur.org today! – kls)

For more info about Jasmine and Galanthus in the Winterthur Garden, please see Maggie Lidz’ blog entry: http://gardenblog.winterthur.org/2011/12/15/jasmine-in-bloom/

Be sure to come and walk in the garden soon. These crisp, bright, early winter days are perfect for an aerobic workout that satisfies both the mind and the soul.

What’s in bloom? Just a little bit here and there: forsythia, camellia, autumn cherry, and winter jasmine.

In berry? Winterberry holly, American holly, beautyberry, cotoneaster, and the Iigiri trees.

Idesia polycarpa (Iigiri Tree) near Pinetum and Dawn Redwood

One of the definitions of chestnut I have found is “a stale joke”.   Another is “something, as a story, lacking freshness or originality”.  Perhaps I should put down the dictionary before it’s too late.  The chestnut that I would like to refer to in this writing is under the definition of “a tree”.

Chinese chestnut trees (Castanea mollissima), although there are none growing in the Winterthur garden itself, are found scattered amongst the estate. One location is near the old Winterthur creamery by the dairy barns, another by the golf barn along Chandler Road as well as a couple others located on the Biederman golf course.

In late summer the fruit of the Chinese chestnut tree, which is edible to humans, begins to drop. The nuts themselves are enclosed in a spinney or prickly pod-like structure that splits open when ripe. Sometimes the nuts will drop from this casing before the pod falls. Other times the pod falls with the nuts still enclosed. If one wishes to open a pod that contains a chestnut or two, be sure to wear some thick leather gloves for the spines are very fine and also very sharp! The nut of the Chinese chestnut is very tasty when roasted but I have found that of the ones that I have personally collected, about 50% of them are either rotten or have a worm in them. I suppose that cultivated trees are probably sprayed with something to prevent these things from happening. Also, since squirrels, deer and other wildlife also enjoy the taste of these nuts there tends not to be many left for a person to find on the ground especially when, as in the case here at Winterthur, you’re only dealing with a small number of trees from which to harvest.

Our native chestnut (C. dentata), as you probably know, was decimated by the Chestnut blight in the early part of the 20^th century. An estimated three billion trees were lost due to this disease. The American chestnut was a dominate tree species in it’s time and supplied a vast number of wildlife species such as deer, turkey, bear and the extinct passenger pigeon with a food source. It was also collected for human consumption not only by Native Americans but by early colonists, settlers and immigrants. Since the American chestnut’s demise, crosses of what remains of the species have been made with the Chinese chestnut and the Japanese chestnut (C. crenata). Progress is being made to produce a tree that is not only resistant to the blight but one that has the height and habit of our native chestnut.

While I’m on the subject of chestnut trees, the common horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), which is a Native of southeast Europe, produces large fruit but unfortunately it is not suitable for human consumption.

One last comment that I would like to make of the Chinese chestnut is that if you are considering planting one on your property be aware that when in bloom, the fragrance of the flower is considered by most to be unpleasant.

So like the song goes, Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…

Also, take a walk in the garden to see

• Glossy abelia (Abelia grandiflora) near the Dorrance Gallery attracting butterflies and bees.
• Fabulous combination of bright pink Autumn crocus (Colchicum), yellow fall daffodils (Sternbergia lutea),  purple beautyberry (Callicarpa dichotoma) and golden globes of Hardy Orange (Poncirus) on Oak Hill
• Bright coral red Begonia benariensis in Enchanted Woods and the Box Scroll Garden.
• Purple-speckled Toadlily (Tricyrtis formosana) in the Glade Garden.
• Goldenrod (Solidago) throughout the Winterthur Garden.

Here are some good resources on the tree:

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=OXAR

http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=61

http://www.winterthur.org/pdfs/CurrentWinterthurGardenBloomList.pdf

Heptacodium (Seven-Son Flower) by Winterthur Post Office

This Sunday, Winterthur’s 1927 Rolls-Royce will be on display at the Hagley Car Show from 10a-4p. It will be exciting to show off the Empress’ new black leather trunk, recently fabricated to historical specs. Look for us among the 500+ antique autos on display! http://www.hagley.org/event-car-show.html

By Kevin Braun (Arborist Intern)

As some of you who frequent Woods Road and Chandler Woods may have noticed, John Salata (Arborist Supervisor) and I have been working on an ongoing invasive species control project. What you may be noticing are rings carved into certain trees all over the woods. Our target species is Norway maple (Acer platanoides) and the rings are a technique called girdling.

Norway maple is native to Europe and often “escapes” from landscapes into the surrounding forest. Norway maples create dense shade due to their broad leaf surface and rounded crowns. Between the maples dense shade and shallow root systems (which means high competition for water and nutrients at the surface of the soil) native species have a very difficult time becoming established, which decreases biodiversity in our forests.

Norway maples are also prolific seeders, in that they produce ample amounts of samaras (seed), which helps in the quick spread of the species. There are numerous ways to control invasive species, but the technique we have chosen to use is called girdling.

Girdling is a well-known technique that involves using a chainsaw to cut into a tree’s trunk. We cut two parallel rings all the way around the trunk making sure the rings completely encircle the trunk and connect. Each ring is recommended to be ½” to 1” (inch) deep depending on the diameter of the tree and the two rings should be around 2” to 5” apart vertically. These rings disrupt the flow of water and sugars from the roots to the canopy and vice versa. When the cuts are made the cambium, phloem, and xylem are being severed.

The phloem is responsible for transporting carbohydrates (created during photosynthesis) from the leaves to the roots and xylem is responsible for transporting water from the roots to the leaves. If just the phloem is severed (if the cut is not deep enough) then the tree will take much longer to die because trees have large stores of carbohydrates in their roots. When both the phloem and xylem are severed the tree dies quickly because of the lack of carbohydrates and the tree suffers from dehydration. All of this ultimately leads to the death of the tree, which is what we want!

As we eliminate this species from Winterthur’s forests we hope to help preserve the biodiversity and uniqueness of our forest type on the property. So next time you are walking on the beautiful wooded paths in Chandler Woods see if you can spot any of the invasive species control project (shouldn’t be hard)!