The Genetics of Seed Saving

In order for us to discuss  seed saving of specific vegetables, we first need to learn a little terminology and plant genetics.  While you might think it is not the most interesting of subjects, there’s lots to be learned and it will ultimately make us better seed savers.  You don’t have to delve to the level of the authors plant-geekdom (and study Mendelian genetics in radishes as your high school senior project), but a little basic knowledge will help.

A tomato flower is made to promote self-pollination. (Photo: Felagund commons.wikimedia.org

Self-pollinated plants are self-fertile, which make them prime candidates for saving seeds that are “true to variety,” which means that the resulting seeds will have most of the characteristics of the parent.  Self-pollination is also referred to as natural inbreeding. In some cases, such as beans and tomatoes, pollination often occurs even before the flowers fully open and the flower’s shape discourages insect pollination.

Cross-pollination can also be referred to as natural outbreeding.  Cross-pollinated plants require pollen from another individual plant for successful pollination.  The most common modes of pollination are wind pollination and insect pollination.  These plants are harder to save seed from, since they are less likely to produce “true to variety” offspring.

Some cross-pollinated plants are perfectly happy crossing with individuals of the same variety.  However, some do exhibit inbreeding depression, which refers to reduced vigor and fitness in a population that arises from inbreeding.  If a species with inbreeding suppression

Hybrid vigor refers to improved vigor and fitness of individuals that rise from the crossing, or hybridization, of two genetically diverse varieties.

So What Does All this Mean?

Basically, this means that some seeds are easier to save than others.  In a nutshell, here are the take-away lessons:

Legumes (beans and peas) and solanaceous crops (tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants)  are by far the easiest crops to save, since they
are self-pollinated.  There is the potential for cross-pollinating if you have hungry pollinators (I’ve seen bumblebees rip open bean flowers).  Peppers and eggplants also have the potential for cross-pollination, so if you want to maintain a specific variety they need to be separated by at least 500 feet or have flowers bagged.  Lettuce is also relatively easy to save.

Most of the other common garden vegetables have a high hybrid vigor and are natural outbreeders, meaning that they cross- pollinate readily.  Members of the Cucurbitaceae family (squash, pumpkins, melons, gourds), Apiaceae family (carrots, dill, fennel), Amaryllidaceae family (onions, chives, leeks), and some members of the Brassicaceae family like the cruciferous radish exhibit little inbreeding suppression, meaning that you can easily cross a variety with itself if you isolate it from other varieties.  Corn (Poaceae) and cole crops like cabbage, broccoli, and kale (Brassica oleracea) have a higher level of inbreeding depression, meaning that crosses with members of the same variety result in seeds that are less vigorous.

How do you isolate plants?

Plants that easily cross can potentially cross with other varieties in the garden or the neighbors garden.  Insect pollinated plants are typically pollinated by bees, which can have a travel range of two miles or more.  Home gardeners would have trouble separating their varieties that far, so it would be easier to isolate individual flowers or plants.  Covering a plant with fine mesh netting or bagging flowers are popular choices.

For cucurbits, flowers have only one gender, so this is easier.  Before blossoms fully open, removing male flowers and using them to pollinate female flowers is the general practice.  The female flower is then wrapped in a bag until the fruit begins to form.  For other plants, using netting and hand pollinating may be the option.

Of interesting note is the case of some of the cucurbits and cole crops.  All of the cole crops (broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower, etc.) are all the same species and will easily cross.  There are instances of crosses of broccoli and kale, sprouts and flowering cabbage and others.  Likewise, many members of the cucurbit family are the same species.  It is not uncommon to get crosses of pumpkins and zucchini (a puccini, anyone?) and others.

Spring time blooms (lft to rt) Iris: Stitch Witch, World Premier, Gay Parasol, Swingtime, & Clarence.
What’s blooming in your yard?

What’s blooming in your spring garden?

Some Early Days in Extension

Donald Tapio recalls some early days at WSU Extension and how the Master Gardener program began.

I welcome the opportunity to share some history of Extension prior to the Development of the Master Gardener program. I cannot think of anyone more appreciative of Master Gardener volunteers than I, since I was involved with Washington State University (WSU) Extension prior to the development of the Master Gardener program.

My career with WSU Extension actually began in the summer of 1969 when I was hired as a summer work-study student in the Pierce County Extension office in Tacoma, WA. I was assigned to work with a horticulture agent who was very pleased to have me in the office to take the hundreds of calls that came each week from home gardeners. WSU was well aware of the demand for home gardening information and soon installed a “Dial a Garden Tip” service with daily messages on seasonal pest problems and options for their control.

Answering Hundreds of Gardening Questions Per Day

After graduating from WSU, I was hired by WSU Extension as a Horticulture Program Assistant in Seattle. Home gardening calls coming into the King County office averaged over 100 per day. Most days I never got off the phone for more than a short lunch break. In addition to the incoming calls, there were dozens of letters and plant samples delivered to the office on a daily basis. A year later Mr. Johanson retired and I was asked to work in the Pierce County office in the mornings and the King County office in the afternoons.

WSU made it clear that I would never receive agent status without an advanced degree. Just as I was leaving for graduate school, a young woman came into the office and after a long discussion made the remark that she thought my job and extension work would be so much fun. That individual was Sharon Collman and she was hired by WSU to fill my position. (You will read more about her in another blog post. She was one of the first teachers in the new Master Gardener progam.)  After completing my graduate degree I was hired as the horticulture agent in Snohomish County.

While I was gone, WSU hired Dr. David Gibby as the horticulture agent for King and Pierce counties. He was a true visionary in recognizing that in many respects Extension was simply “bailing out the ocean.” The demand for home gardening questions and information was so great it was nearly impossible to do any programming beyond answering the telephone. WSU Extension in King County at the time had 8 incoming telephone lines and we had one individual who was a switchboard operator to direct calls.

Master Gardener Program Trains Volunteers to Teach Others

Soon after his arrival, Dr. Gibby made his historic trip to Puyallup where there were discussions with a number of specialists and agents on the idea of training volunteers who would then conduct diagnostic plant clinics in the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area. I am convinced that no one at that time was aware that the Master Gardener program would become what it is today with thousands of volunteers throughout the state or nation-wide. The concept of training volunteers to teach others seemed to be the answer to addressing the need for home gardening education and the program was quickly adopted throughout the nation.

Master Gardener training in these early days was much different then. There was no charge and no textbook for the classes. However, I vividly recall as an instructor, lugging around boxes filled with publications for the class. (Many agents were assigned station wagons during those years since we hauled so many publications to various meetings. Both the springs and shock absorbers on these vehicles were usually shot from the weight of the publications!) At the end of training, an individual from the Washington State Department of Agriculture would come in and give a closed book exam. Those passing the exam became licensed pesticide applicators, which qualified them to provide recommendations for pesticide use. We quickly learned that many, many volunteers had great anxiety over taking a closed book exam and did not do well.

The evolution of the Master Gardener program continued as more and more counties throughout the state adopted the program. Those of us involved as instructors would schedule our training so that we were presenting in a different county each day beginning with Whatcom, by the Canadian border, and ending in Clark, on the border with Oregon. Once trained, most counties utilized their newly trained volunteers to staff plant clinics. As more and more volunteers became trained, volunteers were able to expand their educational outreach through presenting programs, writing news articles, and developing demonstration gardens.

Appreciation for the Work of Master Gardener Volunteers

I know that I speak for many agents in saying we simply cannot imagine Extension work today without Master Gardener volunteers. The amount of time invested in training and managing volunteers is paid back more than a thousand fold. I continue to be in awe of how innovative, enthusiastic, and dedicated Master Gardener volunteers are in carrying out the mission of WSU Extension. I am convinced that Washington State University will continue to be recognized nationally for the impact and success of the Master Gardener program in making our communities better and more beautiful places.

Donald D. Tapio
WSU Extension Regional Specialist
Grays Harbor/Pacific Counties Extension

“Reprinted with permission from the July 2009 issue of Seeds for Thought, the newsletter of the Master Gardener Foundation of Washington State.”  Parts of this have been abridged with permission from the author. To see the entire article go to: http://mastergardener.wsu.edu/mgfws/files/2012/12/907Seeds.pdf?9d7bd4

Celebrating National Volunteer Week – NVW13

Seaman Knapp ‘Father of Extension’?

Kicking off the week with an NVW “how-to-get-involved” announcement, we saw many Extension Master Gardener programs across the country gearing up to celebrate National Volunteer Week. We asked for examples of how local programs were celebrating or volunteering during National Volunteer Week, and we found some great responses which we turned into blog posts:

• Exploring our Roots: A Short History of Extension and the Master Gardener Program is a captivating history (as noted in the comments section) of how our nation’s extension education system has met the needs of communities for over a hundred years, and how Master Gardeners continue that mission amidst the environmental and horticultural challenges of the 21st century.

Thanks to Bob Kellam, president of the North Carolina Extension Master Gardeners Volunteer Association for sharing his article, originally posted in their association’s newsletter.

• Extension Master Gardeners During National Volunteer Week.  What did Master Gardeners do during NVW13, April 21 – 27, 2013?  Programs across the country contributed pictures and stories to share here, including examples of recognition in their counties, and volunteer activities they participated in during NVW13, Earth Day, and Arbor Day.

Volunteer Recognition in Sacramento, County, California

Master Gardeners and other volunteers participate in Phenology celebration via the Tucson Phenology Trail

 National Earth Day and Arbor Day Inspired Blog Posts

One could say every day is earth day for Master Gardeners, as they are literally working with the earth, a lot.  But, Master Gardeners are pretty passionate about trees, too, thus the following posts were inspired in celebration of April’s National Earth and Arbor days:

• Rake and Take Master Gardener Project Coordinates Fallen Leaves into Gardeners Gold.  This volunteer project is both Earth Day and Arbor Day inspired as it helps coordinate an abundance of leaves from one person’s yard to another person’s yard where it can be used as mulch or compost.
  
• Earth Day in the Garden – 10 Ways to Be an Earth Friendly Gardener - John Porter share 10 wasy to being an ‘earth friendly gardener’ with links to ‘how-to’ resources that can help succeed in your earth friendly gardening pursuit.
• Creating an Eco-System in Your Own Backyard - Connie shares her own experience creating a backyard habitat, including some of her favorite resources and a helpful video for implementing these own backyard eco-system.
• Here’s Why Trees (Doodle Animated Video) -Convinced of the value of trees, but not sure if others are? Share this short video on the value of trees – especially with those in urban areas, as it might just spark discussion about how invaluable they are and how to care for them in your community.

April Wordless Wednesday

This month, we admired the tiny treasures in the garden, how the Chihuahua desert bloomed on less than 5 inches of rain (in 1 1/2 years!) , and Trees and Master Gardeners.

Tiny treasures

Claret cup cactus

Volunteers plant trees

Gardening Webinars and Online Modules/Courses

• New! eLearn Urban Forestry Modules - 10 new modules are now available for Master Gardeners or others interested in urban forestry to either consult as a resource or to be complete in full with requirements for certification.
• Upcoming Webinars:
  • May 17th, Webinar: Protecting Gardens from Moles, Voles, & More…
  • June 6, Webinar Gardening for Pollinators – details soon to be posted at eXtension Learn

For more upcoming and recorded Webinars on a variety of gardening and non-gardening subjects, see: eXtension Learn

Until Next Month

Until next month, please join us and share your gardening or volunteer experiences with us in the following spaces:

Here – Extension Master Gardener Blog: http://blogs.extension.org/mastergardener/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/extensionmastergardener
Twitter: https://twitter.com/eXEMG
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/emastergardener/

-Karen Jeannette

-Editorial Reviewer
Linda Brandon, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Coordinator
NC Cooperative Extension/Guilford County Center

Visit Your Local Public Garden for Free!

On National Public Gardens Day, Friday – May 10th, you can get in free to many of public gardens for free thanks to Better Homes and Gardens and Rain Bird.

Submitted and photos by Sylvia Hacker
Doña Ana Co. Master Gardeners (On Facebook)
Texas Master Naturalist
Las Cruces, New Mexico

New Mexico soils

New Mexico soils

New Mexico soils

New Mexico soils

New Mexico Soils

New Mexico soils

A view from my kitchen window – April 15th (Photo: Carla Albright)

When spring arrives each year, I note the changes in my garden journal. I know I am not the only one who does this. In fact there is a whole science based on the relative changes in nature called phenology.

In formal terms, phenology is “the study of how the biological world and its naturally occurring events are timed with seasonal and annual variations taken into account.”  But this is a longer way of saying its how natural things relate to each other and to the climate surrounding them.

Recording Changes in Plants Can Traced to the 8th Century!

When we stop to think about it, we know that throughout history people have been studying natural relationships. Ancient tribes of North America, for example, would schedule their crop plantings according to a variety of signs in nature, be it the phases of the moon or the leafing out of the maple trees. Other early cultures worldwide knew of the signs that indicated that the plants and animals were taking their cues from the local climate. Think of the cherry blossom festivals in ancient Japan and China whose dates can be traced to earlier than the 8^th century. Vintners in Europe have been keeping climate records for over 500 years, which gives them a nice, long baseline to work with.

The father of Modern Phenology is considered to be Englishman Robert Marsham when, in 1736, he started systematically and precisely recording the signs of spring on his estate in Norfolk. This tradition of meticulous record-keeping continued for generations in his family until 1958 when Martha Marsham died. As you can imagine, a long-time record that spans 200 years would be really helpful in a lot of crop plans.

Garden Journaling Helps Me Grow My Garden

Epimedium ‘Bandit” makes an appearance  in the early spring garden. (Photo: Carla Albright).

In our current times of climate upheaval, a science like this would also be advantageous in noting specific changes.

In my own small way, I have been doing this for about 10 years in my garden journal. Ten years may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to the dedication of the Marsham family, but it has been useful to me just in my garden plantings as well as interesting to see the year-to-year progressions. I know when the Hellebores start to fade in March, the Epimediums will start to sprout and the hosta will poke through the soil.

What to record?

Traditionally, the three main factors in the study of phenology have been sunlight, temperature and precipitation, all of which – of course – are the basis of climate.  These are the factors that work together in determining the timing of natural events. One example would be the bird migrations that base their flying times on the amount of daylight, leaving their wintering grounds as the days become longer. In a reverse order are the bloom times of poinsettias, which cue in to shorter days.

It helps me to record low and high temperatures in my journal as well as rainfall. This way, if in mid-summer certain plants aren’t doing well, I can look back and see what might be a factor in that failure to thrive. Perhaps it will even allow me some insight to correct for that factor next year.

Get Recording With Citizen Science Projects or Your Own Garden Journal

There is now an organization dedicated to phenology. It offers gardeners and amateur scientists an opportunity to record data and have it compiled with the data of other researchers. It is called the United States National Phenology Network and can be reached at www.usanpn.org/ . I kind of liked their description of phenology as being “Nature’s Calendar.” The website offers lots of ideas of keeping records and is looking for volunteer record-keepers from around the country so a larger cache of information can be gleaned. But even if you are not interested in joining other gardeners in keeping track of nature, keeping a record for your own use can be invaluable.

Because the world around us changes so quickly in April, it is the perfect time to begin record keeping. Birds are migrating, leaves and buds are swelling on the trees, perennial plants are poking through the soil, bees are out on warmer days, frogs are singing. Of course the first robin is a good climate indicator. But summer, fall and winter bring their own changes, with flowers blooming and leaves changing colors and eventually dropping.

Project Budburst, Project Feederwatch, or Frogwatch USA are also some good citizen scientist programs to check out. Find them through your online search engine. For a first-hand experience from other Master Gardeners, check out Edy and Pat’s story in their Nature’s Notebook and Master Gardener A Tool for All Seasons blog post  from this past January at to see how valuable a notebook can be. Then get yourself a garden journal, make one from a 79 cent notebook, a three-ring binder, or keep records on your computer, and become an amateur phenologist.

Do you keep a garden journal? What kinds of things do you record?

Would you like to compare notes with other Master Gardeners this fall? It might be a fun way of creating our own MG phenology research guide for our own geographical areas.

My Garden Journal (Photo: Carla Albright)

~ Carla Albright, Tillamook County Oregon Master Gardener

After I have worked for a public garden I think of it as mine.  I think anyone who has spent time and energy on a parcel of land understands this.  Once I have dug in the earth and spent a year watching the seasons that place becomes a part of me.  I know the spots  that dry out first, the places where the rain runs off and where the garter snake lives.  These were my gardens for a little while.

• Chicago Botanic Garden – Glenco, Illinois
• Reiman Gardens – Ames, Iowa
• Longwood Gardens – Kennet Square, Pennsylvania
• Taltree Arboretum and Gardens- Valparaiso, Indiana
• Charley Creek Gardens – Wabash, Indiana

 

Chicago Botanic Garden

 

Chicago Botanic Garden Fruit and Vegetable Island – Photo credit Foy Spicer

My first public garden was Chicago Botanic Garden where I was an intern for Alana Mezo in the Fruit and Vegetable Garden. After this internship I knew I wanted Alana’s job. I wanted to be a horticulturist when I grew up.

The great part of gardening on an island they didn’t come back! Also bonus, no deer!  Although the raccoons would swim over and tear down the grape arbor to get a midnight bunch.  

Reiman Gardens

 

Reiman Gardens Butterfly Wing – Photo Credit Foy Spicer

 

I was a intern at Reiman Gardens. This little gem is located right off Iowa State University’s Campus. It’s 16 acres of winding paths and many little garden rooms. This is a great place for home gardeners to get ideas. 

 

Reiman also has a butterfly wing conservatory that is an absolute treat. 

 

Little known fact: when they first opened up the butterfly wing there was a major problem. The acute angled roof confused butterflies and they would run into the glass committing butterfly suicide. There would be little piles of dead butterflies in the corners the entomologist had to clean up every morning before visitors could come in. The problem was fixed by hanging nets in the corners to keep the butterflies from out of peril. 

Longwood Gardens

 

Longwood Gardens Lily Pool – Photo credit Foy Spicer

I love internships. This was my fourth and final internship and it was a year long. Longwood is considered the premier public garden in America. It’s an old DuPont Estate in the southeast corner of Pennsylvania.

There are so many fascinating facts about Longwood. Here’s a good one: Longwood does a big Fourth of July lighted, dancing fountains and fireworks display all choreographed to music. It is impressive. But even more impressive is the staff wets down all the plant material the day before and even has sprinklers running over some of the more valuable specimen plants during the show because one year a very old hemlock bush burned from some way ward sparks. There are even a couple bushes with fire damage if you know where to look.

Another fun fact is there is a secret underground passage from the Longwood house to the conservatory so Pierre didn’t have to go outside in the winter to get to the green houses.

One more thing, in the above picture is me in the lily pond and as you can see the pools aren’t that deep.  To get a nice reflective surface for showing off the Victorian Hybrid Waterlilies developed at Longwood, they dye the water black so it looks dark, deep and opaque.

Taltree Arboretum and Gardens

 

Taltree Arboretum and Gardens – Railway Garden – Photo credit Foy Spicer

This was the first garden I have worked for that is actively growing. There are huge plans in the works. A model railway opened in 2011 and a Children’s Garden opened this spring (2013). Plans also include a visitor’s center. The arboretum continues to grow and new trails are opening through recently acquired land.

 

Fun fact: The Taltree Railway Garden show cases a collection of dwarf conifers. There are over 1000 varieties of plants ordered to go in this two-acre area. I’m learned a lot about dwarf conifers as I spent much time cataloging and tagging them. 

 

Charley Creek Gardens

 

Charley Creek Garden – Photo credit Foy Spicer

This summer I will be helping out at a little public garden called Charley Creek.  This six-acre oasis is a luxury for the town of Wabash, Indiana.  The patron of this garden has a love for plants and art.  Many sculptures can be found as you wend your way through.  

 

Fun Fact: Charley Creek is named after a Maimi Indian named Charley who lived on a reservation near Wabash County.  The creek that runs through the gardens was named for him.  His Maimi name was Kintunga which translates to sleepy.  

Visit Your Local Public Garden for Free!

 

On National Public Gardens Day, Friday – May 10th, you can get in free to many of public gardens for free thanks to Better Homes and Gardens and Rain Bird.  

 

Here is the list of participating gardens: 

http://www.bhg.com/bhg/pdf/bhg_parklist_revised2013.pdf

Here is the coupon for free admission:

http://www.nationalpublicgardensday.org/free-admission-offer/

Tip: Each coupon is good for up to two people to get free admission into the garden but you can print the coupon as many times as needed to accommodate everyone in your group.

Foy Spicer

Master Gardner for Wabash County, Indiana

Flower Philanthropy…An Idea I’d Love to See Grow

‘Flower Philanthropy’, as I call it, is an idea I’d love to see grow!  I am now enrolled in the Master Gardener course through our county’s Extension Office, where I have learned tons AND found a committed community of like-minded – okay, fanatic! – gardeners.  Who better than Master Gardeners to talk with about the possibilities of sharing a bounty of beauty.

The first project I was involved with this past summer grew out of wanting to share the gazillion flowers I grow.  I contacted our town’s community garden and asked if they could think of some way to use these blossoms and blooms.  There are many Master Gardeners involved with the Community Garden, still none of us could foresee how many, many people this sharing effort would reach, and touch.

Each Thursday throughout the summer, two dedicated volunteers, Jane and Ted Metzler, came to my gardens and cut baskets and buckets of flowers.  Sometimes Jane’s sisters Pat and Pam joined in picking, and even crafting the mini-bouquets of those flowers.

Jane Metzler with a box of mini-bouquets on their way to Meals on Wheels (Photo credit: Ted Metlzer)

Jane and Pat Cheney finishing mini-bouquets for delivery to Meals on Wheels recipients. (Photo credit: Ted Metzler)

Mini-bouquets for Meals on Wheels

Those bouquets were distributed locally to Meals on Wheels recipients. I don’t have words big enough to tell you how much those bouquets meant to everyone. The volunteers delivering the meals were touched by the recipient’s obvious pleasure.  Over 500 of these mini-bouquets were distributed in 2012.

Jane shared some of the responses to the flowers…

“Best comment from a client was a letter filled with praise for the kindness, beautiful colors, the smells, and dreading the day when the frost would halt the project. The men and women who delivered the meals with the flowers got as much reward from the project as the recipients. Our client who sent the letter full of praise said “ps I do like the meat loaf that you sent too but the flowers are the best.”

Dried Flowers Extend Flower Philanthrophy Through Winter!

We do have long winters here in Maine, so we knew how much folks would miss the blooms. Hmmmm… I dry enormous numbers of flowers all summer…statice, strawflowers, astrantia, celosias, ageratums, and so much more. We had planned to fill miniature pumpkins with dried flowers for each table at the Community Garden’s annual Harvest Supper, but oh! what Jane and Ted did with the remaining dried blossoms!!

Armloads of dried flowers soon to become mini-bouquets to help. Meals on Wheels recipients through another Maine winter  (Photo credit: Ted Metzler)

Flower Philanthropy, in this case, sharing the bounty of beauty, is an idea that could easily grow across the country.  I can’t imagine anyone better suited to this possibility than Master Gardeners, who are so generous in sharing their time, energy, expertise, experience, and love of all thing green and growing!

Do you participate in or know of ‘flower philanthropy’ type of opportunities near you?

Mary Webber
Master-Gardener-in-Training
Yarmouth, Maine
marywebb@maine.rr.com