Mariposa In The News

Recently two articles have been posted about our nursery & the staff that works here.
To read them please follow the links below:

http://www.yourobserver.com/news/east-county/Front-Page/071420107116/Marine-rediscovers-green-thumb-at-Mariposa

http://www.yourobserver.com/news/east-county/Front-Page/061120106650/STORE-AROUND-THE-CORNER-Mariposa-Nursery-Garden-Ce

A Bamboo For Every Situation

A Bamboo For Every Situation

Bamboo is a very useful plant in your landscape. It can be used in a variety of ways to accentuate different aspects of your yard.

As an accent it can break up a monotonous hedge row or tree line. As a specimen it can give a powerful statement. Even as a simple hedge it can be used to block sound and wind from annoying roads and open areas.

When most people think of bamboo they think of fast paced, overtaking runners with no constraints to how far they can spread and how much area they can take over. When I think of bamboo I think of the clumping varieties that are easily controllable and yet still reach the height and thicknesss of their spreading brethren.

At Mariposa Nursery we ONLY carry CLUMPING bamboo.

To determine what type of bamboo you want there are a few questions you have to ask.

First - How tall is the maximum height that you want when it is full grown?

Second - What type of use are you putting it to? Are you using it as an accent, specimen, windbreak, etc...?

Third - Do You have the width/depth to handle the spread? Even though the base of a clumping bamboo takes years to spread out, the top does not. The tops are leafy & heavy so the shoots bend & lean over slightly causing the plant to look much fuller & take up much more space at the top.

Once you have determined that you have the right spot for a bamboo you can now begin to choose which type. These are the varieties that we carry because they seem to be the hardiest, most interesting & easiest to grow in your yard.

Golden Goddess - Bambusa multiplex 'Golden Goddess' - 10-15' That grows solid green with .5" culms. Great for screening

Alphonse Karr - Bambusa multiplex 'Alphonse Karr' - 20-30' That grows yellow with a green stripe with 1.5" culms. Another great screening bamboo.

Oldhamii - Bambusa oldhamii - 60-80' That grows solid green with 4-6" culms. Massive timber bamboo.

Textilis Gracilis - Bambusa textilis var. gracilis - 30-40' That grows green with 2" culms. Great specimen bamboo.

Blue Bamboo - Bambusa chungii - 30-40' That grows green with a blue powder coating & has 2" culms. VERY SHOWY specimen.

Dwarf Buddha Belly 'Wamin' - Bambusa vulgaris 'Wamin' 10' That grows green with large swellings at the nodes of the 3" culms. Great For Pots & Partial Shade. VERY SHOWY!

Asian Lemon - Bambusa eutaloides 'Viridivitatta' Asian Lemon - 20-25' That grows a peachy color when they first sprout then turn a yellow with a green stripe with 1" culms. New variety in Florida.

Mexican Weeping - Otatea acuminata aztecorum - 6-10' that grows a dark green with light green leaves on .25" culms. VERY SHOWY weeping habit that is a great accent or potted plant. Graceful movement in the wind.

Golden Hawaiian - Bambusa vulgaris 'Vitatta' - 35' That grows yellow with green stripes on 4" Culms. Great Windbreak. Very Sturdy. Not Cold Hardy Below 30

Angel Mist - Dendrocalamus minor amoenus - 35' That grows green with a white powder coating on the 3" culms. Great large specimen.

Black Timor - Bambusa lako - 30-40' That grows green then turns black as the 2.5-3" culms mature. VERY SHOWY. Not Cold Hardy Below 30

Sunburst - Bambusa variabalis viridistriata - 45' That grows yellow with a green stripe on 2.5" culms. Great cold hardy alternative to Golden Hawaiian variety.

A Fruit For You

I know many northerners miss their orchards from up north. Now you too can grow many of your favorite fruit trees in your yard. Stone fruit that requires low chill hours for Florida growth. Peaches, nectarines,

plums & pears.

All For Zones 9 & 10

These are self pollinating but are better producing with better flavor with 2 plants.

Peaches:

Florida Belle - High yielding variety with large red skinned fruit. Ripens in May

200 Chill Hours

Tropic Snow - Whitish freestone peach that has creamy white, aromatic fresh.

Showy blossoms. Harvest Mid-June.

200 Chill Hours

Plums:

Scarlett Beauty - Small, sweet red fruit. Heavy producer with an excellent flavor. Ripens early May.

250 Chill Hours

Nectarine:

Sunracer - Yellow fleshed, self-pollinating, large fruit. Small tree (3-4')

150 Chill Hours

Pear:

PineApple - A very old fashioned variety that is tried & true. Pest & disease resistant. Produces bushels of fruit once mature. Small yellow-skinned fruit that can be dotted. Sets fruit in early March & ripens in August.

150 Chill Hours

Persimmon:

Fuyu - A semi-deciduous tree that can grow to 25'. Wonderful tasting fruit that can be eaten right off the plant, as opposed other varieties that have to mature a little longer. Ripens mid to late fall.

Not ready for stone fruit in you yard? How about the old Florida tradition of citrus, avocados & mangos. We got all types and sizes of citrus for you to choose from.

Tangerine, Oranges, Tangelo, Grapefruit, Kumquats, Lemons & Limes.

JUST IN!!!

Florida Thornless 'Natchez' Blackberries

Upright to 3-4'

Produces Fruit In Late May To Early June. VERY TASTY!!!

Loquats

Great shade tree and scrumptious fruit. Cold hardy. Fruits Spring & Fall.

A Little Too Chilled Out

EVERY customer that walks through our doors seems to have the same issue this year, and understandably so. Plants are crispy critters after this winter's cold snaps. There are a few key things to remember as you look to refresh your yard's former glory.

First - Make sure the bottom of the shrubs do not already have green sprouts at the bottom . If they do not have signs of new growth after this next week or two, its probably time to rip out & replace.

Second - Check the top of each palm to see if there is green there. If so then you got a good chance it's coming back. If not make sure you tug on the center "spears"(The center shoots) and see if they come out or not. If they pull right out they are goners. If they are nice & firm give the palm a few more weeks to see if it doesn't green up once our weather warms up a little more.

Third - If you need to replace palms, trees or shrubs, take pictures & measurements of the areas and we will GLADLY help you design these with new plants that would be more cold tolerant.

Fountains & Statues

From the elegantly artful yard statues to the babbling water brocade that flows from the fountain finials; we are pleased with the new selection of yard decor.

Though we might have a large of supply of colorful & varying styles of pottery, we lacked a certain selection of yard statuary & water features. NO LONGER.

This new shipment has filled in all the gaps & has something for everyone.
So please come in to the store & enjoy perusing, what I feel, is the best selection of garden decorations that we have ever carried.

---Andy Thielen
Mariposa Nursery

A Fungus Among Us

Lately it feels as if the skies have been trying to make up for the past few years of dry weather. With all this rain and previous drought a lot of that water is sitting on the top few feet of the soil for a long time, before penetrating into the ground.

This is going to start fungal issues in your lawns & plants. If there is a fungus starting to develop in your garden you will notice black spots start to appear on the leaves and decaying plant material, that starts in the center of the leaf, in a circular shape & works it way outwards.

We carry both Fertilome Systemic Fungicide for Plants & Bayer Fungus Control Granules for your lawn. If you believe that this is an issue in your yard we urge you to cut off a sample of the questionable material & bring it to us at the nursery for our official diagnosis.

---Andy Thielen

Treat Your Sago Right

I was out in the yard today & noticed that the King Sago Palm by the poolside was blooming.

This is probably one of the most unique blooms that you'll see on a palm. There is no petals, stamens, or anthers that you can see. Just modified leaflets that will harden before the seedpods fully develop. While I was looking at the palm I noticed that there was a small amount of Cycad Scale starting to spread on the trunk. Its time to treat again.

Sago Palms should be treated with a Systemic Insecticidal Drench every 3 Months to prevent the scale from reoccuring. Even with the drench you still have small outbreaks of it every once in a while. The best thing to do is spray the leaves (topside & underside) & the trunk with Malathion Oil, Once A Week For 4 Weeks & treat the soil with the Systemic Insecticidal Drench.

This should keep your palms & even some of the surrounding plants Bug Free year round.

---Andy Thielen