Ned Jaquith

It is with sadness that I write this blog to report on the death of Ned Jaquith.  Ned was the founder and owner of Bamboo Garden in North Plains.  In the garden community, I think that Ned was known as the bamboo expert and someone that knew all things about bamboo and was always willing to share his knowledge.  I have personally known Ned for many years and he has been a guest on both my television and radio programs.  I frequently relied on Ned for bamboo information and he never failed to give me answers.  He is the person that originally got me started with growing bamboo in my own garden and the person that opened my eyes to the many types available and how diverse they can be.  Just several weeks ago, I visited the Bamboo Garden and the bamboo I brought home will be a reminder to me of Ned Jaquith.  Thank you Ned for so many things you have done for the horticulture community.  

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Indigo Rose Tomato

Salem gardener Harry Olson has been a guest on my program several times this spring and earlier this week I visited his garden.  Harry is known for growing superb tomato plants and I was interested in seeing how he was growing tomatoes and also his opinion of the new Indigo Rose Tomato that was developed by Oregon State and introduced this past spring.  The Indigo Rose tomatoes were a very dark purple, the darkest I had ever seen on a tomato.  The fruits were not large, but prolific.  This tomato has a very high amount of anthocyanin, which has been shown to fight disease in humans.  On the day of my visit (October 2), very few of the fruits had ripened which was a disappointment to Harry.  Visually the plants were beautiful with the portion of the fruit getting sun turning purple and the portion that was shaded turning red when ripe.   If we continue to have warm and sunny days, hopefully more will ripen and I'll get a report from Harry on the taste.  Watch for a future blog on his fantastic red tomato plants.

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Iochroma 'Royal Queen Purple'

We have many pots on our deck and I always like to try some new plants each year. This year I planted Iochroma 'Royal Queen Purple' and have been very pleased with it. In June, I started with three small plants in 4" pots and planted them all in a 14" pot. They began blooming in early July and have not stopped. The flowers are tubular and come in clusters at the end of the branches and are a deep purple. I have done some selective pruning to keep the plant from getting too tall and it has branched out nicely and is a nice compact shrub. It is in a full sun location and seems to like the heat. I doubt if it will survive the winter but regardless, it makes for a great summer blooming plant.

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Roots

You can hear my interview with Diane Morgan, author of "Roots" at the 9am hour of September 22. Diane is a local Portland author and has written a marvelous book about the many kinds of vegetables that grow underground. I certainly learned about new vegetables to try and some that I had never heard of. I have had the more common root vegetables like sweet potatoes, carrots and beets but never have I heard of nor eaten galangai, crosnes or burdock. The book not only gives recipes but information on the nutritional value and it surprised me that many of these root vegetables are loaded with antioxidants and other health benefits. Of the 29 roots featured in the book, 18 are grown in Oregon. Diane will be at the Beaverton Farmers Market on Saturday, September 29, from 8am-1:30pm. She will be giving demonstrations and signing copies of her book.

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