SHARING SECRETS: So, What Vegetables And Herbs Are You Going To Plant?
- Jun 1
- 4 min read
Edited by Cathy Tylka, for Let's Talk Plants! June 2026.
Question of the month –
Do you have a plant or tree or other growing item, which you are babying and nurturing to get it to come to full life? If so, what is it you are doing?
Kathy Ascher responded…
I have a rare Wollemi Pine that was gifted to me. I planted it in a specific spot where it will not be blasted with heat, planted it in a raised box for drainage, and amended the soil for more acidic conditions. It requires lots of extra water too so I often soak it.
By the way, Wollemia is a genus of coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae, endemic to Australia. It represents one of only three living genera in the family. The genus has only a single known species, Wollemia nobilis, commonly known as the Wollemi pine, (though it is not a true pine) which was discovered in 1994 in temperate rainforest wilderness area of the Wollemi National Park in New South Wales. It was growing in a remote series of narrow, steep sandstone gorges (93 mi) northwest of Sydney. The genus is named after the national park.
The bark is very distinctive, dark brown, and knobby. The tree coppices readily, and most specimens are multiple-trunked or appear as clumps of trunks thought to derive from old coppice growth, with some consisting of up to 100 stems of differing sizes. The branching is unusual in that most of the side branches never have further branching. After a few years, each branch either terminates in one or a succession of cones (either male or female) for up to about 12 years. New branches then arise from dormant buds on the main trunk. As trees mature, side branches often turn erect and develop into secondary trunks, which then bear new sets of side branches, resulting in the multi-trunked trees in the wild population. The leaves are arranged spirally on the shoot but twisted at the base to appear in two or four.
Gerald D. Stewart of 92084 responded...
I am babying 3 cuttings of Ficus carica 'Jolly Tiger', an incredibly beautiful variegated leaf common edible fig. I was able to get cuttings of it after searching for a couple of years for a source of this rare plant. Now that it's warm enough, the now fully rooted cuttings that have been carefully babied through the winter in a southern window will be up potted to (1) gallon cans and set in the unheated greenhouse. I am anxiously waiting to see the typically quick growth of a long lusted-after plant cultivar.
Cathy Tylka of 92026 responded...
This year I planted two persimmon trees, I do not have anything else to say about this, except they are suppose to grow well in Escondido. I am waiting.
However, my Ambrosia Pomegranate looks like it's getting ready to burst. The strange weather we have had this year may be the reason. I cannot wait, but must for about 4 or 5 more months! Very easy to grow. Sometimes, I need to harvest before they are ready, as I have animals and birds watching out for the best time of year to harvest too!
Tony Gurnoe responded...
While I don't have much of a garden of my own, our company has recently installed a diverse orchard of mixed fruit trees including 'Hass' and 'Fuerte' avocados, pomegranates, apples, peaches, and a slew of varieties of citrus. Immediately after planting them we applied a thick layer of organic mulch to maintain as much soil moisture as possible. The mild and slightly wet weather has been fortunate as these trees require hand watering until we'll get the irrigation system installed later this week.
On another project site located at the Dr. Bronner's corporate headquarters, we installed hundreds of local native species leading up to Earth Day. Fortunately those plants are quite durable because irrigation meant dragging hundreds of feet of hose around steep and delicate slopes. Something great about installing plants well-suited to our natural rainfall is that once they get established enough to hold their own, we will walk away entirely and let them live their lives in peace.
Question for next month:
What is growing in your garden, or what do you plant in your garden, to attract native bees?
We learned much from the May Speaker, Dr. Molly Rightmeyer, about the need for natural habitat. Let’s see if we can use this important information.
The winner of the Hat Contest for the quarterly drawing from entrants to the Sharing Secrets column are:
Oreet Herbst and John Knott
Please contact Cathy Tylka for your prize.
(Example hats)
Cathy Tylka, RN, retired Emergency Nurse, found her love of plants and the SDHS merge many years ago. Cathy acted as Treasurer for the organization and volunteers for many activities. Now, she is more than happy to assist in gathering questions to ask you in the Sharing Secrets area of the Newsletter.
The funds garnered from this enterprise support our scholarships.
