Turk's Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus)

Today we're adding a new perennial wildflower, Turk's cap (Malvaviscus arboreus), to the arboretum collection.

 

We ordered two small pots of Turk's cap from Almost Eden. It's a nursery in Merryville, located in southwest Louisiana on the border with Texas. This company has been in business for decades and grows many native plants that are suitable for our climate. 

Our plants arrived in perfect condition, in a long cardboard box, securely wrapped and taped. This box was built to accomodate up to four plants. We only needed two.

One leaf fell off during transit.

The other leaves help us confirm that this is Turk's cap. Although, when ordering plants, you shouldn't always expect to see leaves. Some plants will arrive as bare sticks, and that's okay, too.

But, it's nice to see the dentate leaves!

The nursery has provided a legible and informative tag. How helpful! Note: 'Big Momma' is spelled 'Momma', not 'Mama'. Dr. Greg Grant, a horticulturist in Smith county Texas, brought us this and other cultivars of Turk's Cap.

With the purchase of these two plants, we are hoping to add something extra pretty to the arboretum collection, so it sure would be nice if our two plants live up to their potential: "The deep scarlet red, 1-1/2" long, Turk's turban-like flowers are held upright and are produced in abundance from late spring or early summer until the first hard frost or freeze...."

Our two plants arrived taller than expected. The tallest measures two feet, and the other is 1 foot and 10 inches.

The 3.5" pots were packed with healthy roots that were ready for the earth.

The two plants were planted together near the southwest corner of Mickle Hall, behind one of our black, metal arboretum signs, and under a winged elm (Ulmus alata). The new plantings are inconspicuous in the winter landscape. Hopefully we will have bright red flowers and butterflies to appreciate while trudging up the hill this summer.

Native American Seed Co. classifies this as a good species for hummingbirds.

Dr. Greg Grant, the breeder who created Big Momma, blogs about his love for Turk's cap.

Almost Eden's page for this plant.

The USDA plant page for wax mallow. 

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center page for Malvaviscus arboreus.

Slope Maintenance and Bridge Replacement

 

Another exhausting session of work on the disturbed slope, with temperatures in the 35 to 45 degree range. The clay is thankfully drying out, which makes it easier to manipulate.

Things are looking better, but it will probably be a year or two before nature heals. Since the ground has been so thoroughly disturbed, we ought to have a multitude of volunteers germinate in this spot. It will be interesting to see what comes up.

Going further down the slope, we see that the new bridge is complete! Wahoo! In the arboretum catalogue, this is referred to as 'the long white wooden bridge that runs from Mickle to the Student Union Building'. It's not white anymore.

 

Ought we paint the bridge white? Another color? Or is the bare look of treated lumber pleasing?

The large pile of materials is gone; craftsmen have used it up.

Here we can see the under-structure of the new bridge, along with some new pylons made of concrete block and treated lumber.

The new bridge also makes use of the old pylons.

 

Slope Maintenance and Bridge Replacement (Part II)

This area is still a mess since the last time we worked on it. Projects like this must be repaired slowly, as the big chunks of clay are not easily moved, shaped, or broken up when they have any appreciable moisture content. Weather, uncontrollable and unpredictable as it is, can be a major inhibiting factor.

 

Leaves, on top and mixed into clods of clay, make for a very difficult work environment. It's hard to see what needs to be done since leaves can cover a gaping hole or simulate a mound of earth.

Leaves of the swamp white oak (Quercus michauxii) comprise the bulk of the leaf litter.

With the heavy leaf layer removed, we can see what needs to be done. Much of the gravel has been washed down slope, exposing roots.

 

 

Looks can be deceiving; it may not appear much different, but a lot of work went into leveling off these mounds of clay, smoothing out the slope, and generally re-sculpting the damaged terrain. Hopefully we have a few more days before another good rain soaks the ground, making the clay unmanageable.

In other news, a construction project is underway in the middle of the arboretum.

The long white wooden bridge that runs between Mickel Hall and the Student Union Building was completely removed, and carpenters are now in the process of building a new structure. See pictures of the old bridge here.

It takes a lot of material to build even the simplest infrastructure. Plenty of treated lumber is stacked nearby, waiting to be used.

The bridge spans the arboretum's drainage channel. Currently there is standing water in the stream, but this area dries out during the summer.

Some of the bridge's pylons are made of heritage brick. The rest are economical cinderblock.

This treated lumber will need to withstand quite a range of weather conditions: hot, cold, wet, and dry. The previous bridge lasted more than two decades.

We wish the workers a safe project and look forward to having a new bridge.

Winter Changes in the Arboretum

Although Winter officially began two weeks ago on midnight of December 21st, it is only today that we have experienced a real Blue Norther. Until now we have had warm weather. After a strong rainstorm and a stiff wind, temperatures have dropped forty degrees in twelve hours. Since the native species of the arboretum expect and even require cold temperatures for germination and other necessary biological processes, this is as it should be.

 

The arboretum is at a seasonal crossroads. Autumn leaves are still on the ground while temperatures are dropping into the 20s, and snow is predicted for the coming week.

 

This was a good afternoon for a walk before the weather turns cold and inhospitable.

 

Here we can see that we've probably had our final fall of leaves for the year. The tardily deciduous trees will keep their leaves until the new leaves force the old ones to drop.

 

Under these leafless (less-leafed?) conditions, you can see much more trunk and branch. Winter is the season to study and compare the different growth habits of trees and trunk bark.

Evergreen species stand out this time of year. In this photograph, we see big, green, cumbersome leaves of a Louisiana palmetto (Sabal louisiana).

Palmettos are numerous in the arboretum, and they are particularly thick in the arboretum drainage.

A redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) stands tall next to the Student Union Building. This evergreen species isn't native to Louisiana―it's an 'exotic'. In the summer of 2023, this tree was cause for concern because the top looked dead (blog post here). If you look at this photo closely, you can see that the top is still dead. Luckily the rest of the tree looks green and healthy!

In this photo, we see the the southwestern corner of the arboretum, which is the youngest area of the arboretum―the trees are smaller and there is more grass. During January and February, much work will take place here. We have many, many young trees to plant in this space, and winter is the time to do it!

Virginia Willow (Itea virginica)

 

There are several patches of Virginia willow (Itea virginica) in the arboretum collection. All are descended from two plants donated by Karen Boston's mother from the Beaumont area. The fall coloration is stunning; we really ought to spend more time cultivating this plant and hopefully increase the presence of this plant in the arboretum landscape.

 

These drooping leaves have a rich color palette.

The central rib remains a vivid green while the rest of the leaf turns varying shades of red.

 

 

 

Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera)

 An uncommon tree in our area, let's check in with the tulip poplar....

All the tulip poplars in the arboretum came from Jack Price. We are right on the edge of the natural growth zone for this species; it grows better further north and along the east coast.

 

In this photo, we see our youngest tulip poplar, a volunteer that germinated downhill from the trees donated by Price. This young tree needs to be staked―it is competing for sunlight, slightly leaning to the north, away from the nearby swamp dogwood (Cornus foemina).

What a bizarre shovel-shaped leaf.

Quite starkly yellow-and green, these have a certain charm.

It almost looks like someone took a bite out of these.

Or have a pair of scissors been at work?

 

 

Winged Elm (Ulmus alata)

This past week, the winged elm (Ulmus alata) at the southwest corner of Mickle Hall had bright yellow leaves.

 

The winged elm is pictured on the left side of the frame, converging in the middle with leaves from the red maples (Acer rubrum), which are mostly yellow this year, too.

These leaves will no doubt be falling soon, so enjoy them while they last.