Tomato Seeds That Go Beyond the Ordinary
QUESTION: Do you have a source for tomato seeds that the average vendor does not carry?
--D.B., Twentynine Palms
ANSWER: You bet. Tomato Growers Supply Co., P.O. Box 2237, Fort Myers, FL 33902, (941) 768-1119, sells an incredible 285 tomato varieties. Bob Ambrose, who puts together the Tomato Club newsletter (114 E. Main St., Bogota, NJ 07603, [210] 488-2231) told us about this source and is featuring it in the March/April issue. Included in the catalog are new and heirloom tomatoes with names like Bull’s Heart, Southern Night, Soldacki, Miracle Sweet and First Prize, and the company even offers a money-back guarantee.
Roots Can Be Pruned, but It Takes an Expert
Q: When we landscaped our backyard 45 years ago, we planted a row of liquidambar to remind us the maples of the Northeast. Now their roots are ruining everything, including a brick patio and the pipes underground. Can you tell us any way to stop or slow down the roots, short of killing the trees?
--R.S., Valley Village
A: Liquidambars have extensive root systems and many are near the surface in a clay soil (because roots need to breath and air doesn’t penetrate very deeply in a clay soil). Shallow watering (as for a lawn) also encourages shallow roots, and liquidambars have huge root systems. It’s not at all surprising that they’re lifting paving and disrupting the sewer pipes, but it would probably be cheaper to redo the paving and have the pipes reemed and cleaned on a regular basis than to remove the trees.
Roots can be pruned just like the tops of trees, but it’s not a job for the homeowner or for inexperienced tree crews. I’d suggest calling in a consulting arborist (to find one in your area, phone [303] 466-2522). Bob Hansen, a Santa Monica consulting arborist, says root pruning is tricky work if you don’t want to weaken the tree or cause it to topple.
Once the roots are pruned, a 12-inch or even 24-inch deep root barrier at the edge of the paving will protect the patio for quite a while, especially from mature trees like yours.
Evergreen Grape Is Available by Order
Q: One of the most rewarding and satisfactory plants I’ve ever grown is the evergreen grape, Rhoicissus capensis. How I would like to find it again, but any and all nurseries that I’ve tried are unable to find it. I have it on a split-rail fence on a hillside, and I want to repeat it in another location. Advice?
--M.Y., Beverly Hills
A: The evergreen grape is one of those plants that disappeared after a long popularity, but it shouldn’t have. It must look handsome along the rail fence, but it is also great at covering grape arbors. It is not as rampant as a true grape and not as dense, so it admits dappled sunlight. Old plants can cover a 30-foot-long arbor, and there’s no need to constantly prune, as with a true grape.
For those who dine under an arbor, inconspicuous flowers and no grapes means no yellow jackets or bees. The evergreen foliage is always handsome and remarkably grape-like, with the bonus of decorative reddish hairs along the new growth.
Randy Baldwin at San Marcos Growers also likes it and still grows R. capensis. A good retail nursery can order one for you.
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