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Edible Landscaping By Shawn Jadrnicek sjadrni@clemson.edu

In the recent past, communities gained immense value from the fruit and vegetables they grew.  Houses were known for the flavorful pomegranates, peaches, and figs gracing the yards.  Neighbors also traded vegetables, eggs and fruit while admiring the largest tomatoes on the block.  However, modern agricultural practices have consolidated food production and selected products that ship well but lack the taste and nutrition of homegrown food.  The average vegetable in the grocery store now travels 1,500 miles and loses much of its nutritional value during transport and storage.  Our busy lifestyles have omitted food from the landscape and replaced it with lawns, ornamentals and bi-weekly trips to the grocery store. 

Nothing can compare to the personal satisfaction of creating a landscape that is both productive and beautiful.  An edible landscape will take less time than caring for a lawn, especially if disease resistant perennials, shrubs and tree fruits are grown in the proper location.  When choosing an edible plant for the landscape the success of the plant will depend on many factors.  Here are a few suggestions.

1. Consider the amount of sunlight the location receives and the amount of sunlight the proposed plant needs.
1. full sun:  6 hours direct sunlight
2. partial sun:  4 hours direct sunlight
3. shady areas:  filtered or indirect sunlight


2. Consider the mature size of the selected plant and the space available for the plant.  If you don’t want to constantly prune your plants make sure the mature size fits the proposed planting site.


3. Consider the water availability at the plants proposed location and the moisture holding capacity of the soil.  For example, if the soil is constantly wet choose a plant that prefers a wet location.


4. Consider soil conditions at the planting site.  Be sure to get a soil test to determine the pH of the soil and available nutrients.  Once you know the pH of the soil you can adjust the pH to suit your plants needs or select appropriate plants for the existing pH of the soil.  Soil tests will also show you what nutrients are available and lacking so you can fine tune your fertilization program.


5. Determine the water needs of the plants and choose plants adapted to local water availability.  Next, develop a plan to irrigate your plants until they are established and during droughts after establishment.  Planting in the fall reduces the watering requirements of the plant the following year.


6. Determine the cold and heat tolerance of the plant and local climate information.  Check the USDA climate zone map and the American Horticulture Society’s heat zone map to determine how hot and cold your landscape will get.  Select plants that can tolerate the climate of your landscape based on climate and heat zone maps. 


7. Consider growing a diversity of plants instead of a monoculture to reduce competition between plants as well as limit disease and insect problems.  Experiment with different mixtures of plants to find out what works well together aesthetically and functionally.


8. Start small and expand the edible landscape slowly.  Also, place plants requiring intensive management close to the house to save time and energy.

Edible Plant, Permaculture and Food Forestry Plant List for the State of South Carolina in pdf and EXCEL format is included below:

Pdf Format: Food forest and edible plant list6.pdf

EXCEL 97 and 2003 format: Food forest and edible plant list6.xls
 
Caveat
Please do not eat any plant or plant part unless you are absolutely sure you have identified the plant.  Many of the plants listed serve other functions besides being edible and may be poisonous.  Some of the plants may have edible parts as well as poisonous parts or may need processing to remove the poisonous parts. 

Please read and follow all directions for use of edibility.  Many people have food allergies and may be allergic to new plants.  When consuming a new plant eat a small amount first to determine if you are allergic.  The plant list is not a complete list of edible plants for the region and many of the genus listed contain several edible species. 

The reader is encouraged to explore other sources including the Plants for a Future database on the internet.  Heat and Climate zones vary throughout the state and information is incomplete.  Heat and climate information in () indicates an approximation of based on plant distribution maps in Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas by Albert E. Radford.  If the plant listed does not have information regarding heat and climate zones please research this information or consider the plant experimental.  Microclimates vary and some plants can be grown outside of listed heat and climate zones in selected microclimates. 

For more information on the plants root patterns, soil requirements, medicinal qualities and taste ratings please refer to Edible Forest Gardens volume 2 by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier or the Plants for a Future internet database.

Brickell, Christopher and Marc Cathey. 2004. The American Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of
Garden Plants. New York, NY: DK Publishing.

Fern, Ken.  Plants for a Future Edible Medicinal and Useful Plants for a Healthier World. http://server9.web-mania.com/users/pfafardea/index.html

Jacke, Dave and Eric Toensmeier. 2005.  Edible Forest Gardens Ecological Design and Practice for Temperate Climate Permaculture.  White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing.

Radford, Albert E. et al. 1968.  Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas.  Chapel Hill, NC:  The University of North Carolina Press.

Tenaqiya, Rain. 2005.  West Coast Food Forestry a Permaculture Guide. Self published.

Wigginton, Elliot and students. 1975.  Foxfire 3.  New York, NY: Anchor Books.

Attack of the Killer Lawn By Shawn Jadrnicek

The American love affair with lawns began in England and France during the late 18th century.  In the cool moist climate of England, lawns flourished and became the vogue of the rich elite.  Early colonists and later the USDA, Golf Associations and garden clubs spread the lawn ethic throughout the country in an effort to transform the wild into the sophistication of the wealthy. 

Today our nation has 25 million acres devoted to lawns and the environmental catastrophe of the lawn is now rearing its ugly face.  According to the Environmental Protection Agency, lawns account for 30-60% of our residential water use.  Much of this water is applied to lawns when they don’t even need it, such as automatic irrigation systems watering during the rain, irrigation systems left on during winter, or over-watered lawns.  The problems with lawns don’t just stop with their thirst.

Eight hundred million gallons of gas are used annually to fuel our lawn habit.  This accounts for 5% of our nation’s pollutions.  The pollution a mower emits can be deceiving.  Even though the engine is small, lawn mowers don’t have the same pollution controls that cars do.  According to a study done in Sweden, mowing your lawn for one hour pollutes as much as driving a car 100 miles.

If a severe drought and a looming climate crisis aren’t enough to bid farewell to the lawn take a look at the statistics on fertilizers and pesticides.  Over 5.5 billion is spent on fertilizing lawns and 700 million coating them with pesticides.  Many of the pesticides and fertilizers find their way into homes, rivers, and aquifers with unknown risks to our health.

I’m proud to say it’s been over two years since I killed my lawn.  People continue to ask me, “What do you do without a lawn?”  Since I don’t have to maintain a lawn and a lawn mower I have an extra five hours of free time each week.  Five hours a week is equivalent to 6 ½ work weeks a year.   With this extra time I put in a pond, planted over fifty fruit trees and grow fish, fruits, and vegetables for my friends and family.  I’ve decreased the amount of produce that has to get shipped in from California or South America reducing my carbon footprint even more.  Let’s make the world a better place by killing one lawn at a time.

Shawn Jadrnicek is an agent with the Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service for Colleton/Jasper County.  To sign up for the next Master Gardener class call (843) 549-2595 ext.113.

Master Gardeners support scholarship program at Clemson

By Diane Palmer (864) 656-4741;
spalmer@clemson.edu

AIKEN - Aiken County Master Gardeners will be presenting a check for $9,000 to Clemson University's Horticulture Department in December to help support a scholarship program for students who otherwise cannot afford to attend college. This follows a $16,000 donation in April and completes a $25,000 commitment to establish a permanent endowment.

The Master Gardeners earned the proceeds from their Rent-A-Master Gardener program, gardening almanacs and
annual plant sales.  

In the Rent-A-Master Gardner program, three to five certified Master Gardeners will visit a homeowner in the Aiken County area for a $50 donation and help solve gardening and lawn care problems and take a soil test, if necessary. Each home visit lasts about an hour.

The gardening almanac is the culmination of five years of phone calls to Master Gardeners in the Clemson Extension office in Aiken.  The Master Gardeners got information from these calls and included the subject of the phone call, date and solution. Also, included were "what to do" and "what to watch for" topics, including insect and disease information. The almanacs sold for $10 each and were sold out in six weeks on two separate occasions.

The almanacs are being updated with a slightly different look and additional information. They will be available for sale in February of next year.

"Our annual plant sale continues to be a main fund raiser and continues to be supported by the community," said Bill Hayes, former Aiken master gardener association president. "We are four years ahead of schedule in this endowment due to the success of our projects."

The Master Gardener Program is a volunteer training program administered by the Clemson Extension Service.  Participants receive 40 hours of intensive horticulture training. 

After successfully completing the classroom portion, which involves passing a final exam, participants receive the title of Master Gardener.  They are then required to donate 40 hours of service in the Clemson Extension office or in the county by doing volunteer activities, which are coordinated through the local county Extension office.  Many exceed the expected 40 hours of service.

The Aiken County Master Gardeners Association consists of about 150 members.

For more information, contact the Aiken County Extension office at (803) 649-6296 ext 122.

A Valuable Weed Lurks in the Garden By Shawn Jadrnicek

Nature has the uncanny ability to take care of itself especially when left alone.  I first learned this by observing thistles growing in pasture.  When the pasture is overgrazed an army of thistles penetrate the pasture to ward off any teeth with their sharp spines.  It turns out that thistles like bare earth that is well fertilized a combination provided by overgrazing. 

A new miracle of nature showed itself to me this week.  While rummaging through weeds in my uncles yard I noticed a large crop of chamberbitter taking over.  Chamberbitter (Phyllanthus urinaria) is a peculiar weed with little flowers and fruit that hang down on the bottom of its pinnate leaves.  They usually show up in summer and continue until a hard freeze sends them to plant heaven or hell depending on how much you dislike them.

 
Like most weeds I encounter, learning everything about them tends to make them my friend.  As it turns out, chamberbitter is a potent medicinal helping human’s with urinary problems like kidney and gall stones as well as liver disease.  What surprised me was my uncle was having urinary problems and nature was providing him with an abundant cure in the form a chamberbitter growing in his flower beds.

I’m frequently asked what medicinal herb can be grown for profit.  Many possibilities exist but this week my answer is chamberbitter.  A search on Google found the herb selling for $12.00/ounce.  If you want to try chamberbitter for yourself, steep one teaspoon of the dried leaves in hot water.  Strain the leaves, drink the tea and be grateful you didn’t have to pay the pharmaceuticals for this medicine.

Shawn Jadrnicek is an agent with the Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service for Colleton/Jasper County.  To sign up for the next Master Gardener class call (843) 549-2595 ext.113.

Master Gardener Class Teaches Energy Saving Tips
By STEPHANIE JADRNICEK scsteph@hotmail.com

Summer sizzled out and frosty temperatures force fall gardens to sleep for the winter. While the plants lie dormant, Shawn Jadrnicek educates professional, amateur and aspiring gardeners with the latest research and techniques. From January 10 – April 3, Jadrnicek, Horticultural Agent for Clemson Extension Service, teaches a Master Gardening course on Thursdays from 6:30-9:30 pm at the Blue Heron Nature Center in Ridgeland.

Jadrnicek says the class serves several purposes. “We want to train Jasper County residents to be the best possible gardeners they can be while also gathering a volunteer force to better our area and help the extension service broaden its outreach.”

Having taught five courses throughout Walterboro, Edisto, and Jasper County, Jadrnicek has watched his classes transform. “Every class has improved from the last, I’m constantly refining and updating information and materials,” he says.   

Jadrnicek follows current world events closely, observing humanity’s impact on the environment. “Resources, such as water and energy, are becoming scarce,” he says. “And our food no longer has the nutrition it once had because of the long distance it travels to our table.”

With these issues in mind, Jadrnicek plans to emphasize a design system known as permaculture during his upcoming course. “Permaculture has the diversity, stability and resilience of a natural ecosystem,” he says. “It provides humans with all their needs such as food, energy, medicine and shelter.”

Jadrnicek practices permaculture in his own back yard by farming tilapia, growing edible plants, and using plant and animal wastes to fertilize as well as build habitat for birds and beneficial insects. His ponds absorb the sun’s heat during the day and release the warmth at night, allowing Jadrnicek to grow plants which usually do not tolerate the Lowcountry’s chilly winter temperatures.

Permaculture weaves a web of interconnectivity in the landscape, allowing nature to play its part. “I want to teach people how different elements of the landscape relate to each other and can work together to reduce human and fossil fuel energy,” says Jadrnicek.

The course covers everything from soil to basic plant biology. Master Gardener students will learn to identify plants, diseases, and insects while grasping the concept of landscape design and the factors of climate.
Jadrnicek hopes his students leave the course with an array of energy saving tips and the ability to grow plants and food easily, recognizing the resources available on their own property.

“People are always surprised when I tell them that you can reduce your energy bills from fifty to sixty percent by modifying your landscape,” says Jadrnicek.

Master Gardner training doesn’t end in the classroom, for certification students are required to contribute forty hours of community service. “Some people help by teaching what they’ve learned, others assist in the office, and some lend a hand in the county’s community gardens.”

During past courses, students have learned the proper way to prune trees, to diagnose plant disease, and install drip irrigation systems. “Working with the land is one of the easiest ways we can experience how connected we are with nature,” says Jadrnicek.

The thirteen week course costs $175. For enrollment or more information contact Jadrnicek at the Clemson Extension Service at 843-549-2595 x113.

Yellow Nutsedge By Shawn Jadrnicek

The mighty yellow nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus) finally wins. It has crept through my yard undeterred by chemical combinations. Whenever I encounter a backyard weedy opponent I learn as much as I can about my enemy before I attack.  The grassy triangular leaves of the nutsedge disguise themselves among the grasses occasionally poking an airy yellow seed head above the leaves.  Tubers the size of a quarter sit solitary throughout the soil and taste sweet compared to the bitter purple nutsedge. 

John W. Everest @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database

Yellow nutsedge is one of the oldest plants cultivated or grown for its useful purposes.  The ancient Egyptians made cakes out of the ground tubers to enjoy the sweet nutty flavor and vitamin packed oils.  Currently it’s grown commercially in Spain to produce a drink called horchata (pronounced or-cha-ta).  The name horchata comes from a small girl who gave the drink to a king passing by.  The king pronounced “or axa” or “gold cutie” referring to a taste as rich as gold. 
Mexican horchata differs from the Spanish horchata since it is made from rice. Many of the local Mexican restaurants and grocery stores offer this sweet rice beverage.  Mexican horchata is my favorite drink so I just had to try the Spanish horchata.  So how does it taste?  You will have to make some yourself, but I will say this - it’s 24 Karat. 
I’m now slowly turning my lawn into a horchata producing garden of eden by letting the yellow nutsedge take over.  Nutsedge resembles grass enough to fool passing cars and pedestrians into thinking I have a lush lawn.  By learning about my opponent “yellow nutsedge” I have turned the enemy into my favorite food producing friend. 
As an interesting side note: yellow nutsedge is being studied to produce a different kind of gold…black gold.  The oil rich tubers are used to produce an alternative fuel crop called biodiesel.  So it turns out this weed will not only fuel my taste buds but also fuel my car. 

Horchata Recipe using Yellow Nutsedge

2 lbs yellow nutsedge tubers
2 lbs sugar
20 cups water
1 cinnamon stick

1. Clean, rinse and then soak the tubers in water for 12-14 hours
2. Rinse the tubers several more times until the water runs clear
3. Blend tubers in blender with a small amount of water until smooth
4. Add water and cinnamon stick to mixture and let soak in fridge for 2 hours
5. Add sugar and stir to dissolve
6. Pass the mixture through a fine mesh filter and then a cloth to remove the particles and serve cold.

To Kill Yellow Nutsedge in the Lawn 

Halosulfuron (Manor, Sedgehammer) and Sulfosulfuron (Certainty) can be used in Bermudagrass, Centipede, St. Augustine, and Zoysia lawn grasses.
Imazaquin (Image) at a reduced rate and Bentazon (Basagran T & O) can be used in Centipede and St. Augustine grasses.

Shawn Jadrnicek is an agent with the Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service for Colleton/Jasper County.  To sign up for the next Master Gardener class call (843) 549-2595 ext.113.

Landscaping Challenges Screening the Unwanted Views
By Laura Lee Rose

Landscape design has got some very important challenges, and solutions will vary with the taste of the developer, designer or landscaper.  Many times the plants selected to screen the utility and service areas around our homes are hastily or poorly planned. 
Every home has its various elements which need easy access, but do not add to the attractiveness of the property.  These include HVAC or air conditioning units, pumps, tool, potting, or boat sheds.   The outdoor living spaces are called “garden rooms” and need the same design attention as the interior rooms of the house.
To begin a do- it- yourself design of the outdoor living or viewing  space it is easier if you have a plat of the property showing the footprint of the house and buildings.  The plat can be overlaid with a piece of tracing paper, and the walks, drives, trees, utilities, beds, and existing plantings can be drawn onto it with pencil.  Next we want to add views from inside the house that we enjoy and want to keep or enhance.  It is also important to note which views we want to lose or screen.  The dog run, the neighbor’s boat trailer, the compost bin are examples of these.  
The selection of fencing, trellises, pergolas and vertical elements can be chosen by the materials used in the house construction or those that would be in keeping with the neighborhood’s landscaping.   There are excellent plant materials available which will grow over and on them. Vines and vertical shrubs, small trees can be very effective when used as screening material.  Use of native plant material is advisable, because these are not only drought tolerant once they are established, but we can attract birds and butterflies to our yards, use less fertilizer and pesticides and still have beautiful seasonal color. 
Small Trees
Eastern Redbud
Fringe Tree
Red Cedar
Dogwood
Sassafras
Palms

Shrubs
Beauty Berry
Yaupon Holly
Osmanthus
Sparkleberry
Wax Myrtle
Yucca

Vines
Carolina Jessamine
Coral Honeysuckle
Trumpet Vine

Grasses
Sweet Grass
Cord Grass
Falkahatchee Grass
River Oats

This is just scratching the surface, but please keep native plants in mind for your landscaping enjoyment and that of your friends, family and neighbors.

I did not give scientific names in the article, because many of them are common and available at garden centers and from mail order nurseries.  Plant breeders know a good thing and have made selections of these and carry them commercially. 
Please check out the website of the SC Native Plant Society.  A chapter is coming to Beaufort County.  We should be able to grow and sell native plants to the community in the upcoming year. 

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