July / August 1978
Los Angeles County Department of Arboreta and Botanic Gardens
Bonanza Sellout
IFTEEN THOUSAND five hundred F and ninety-five people, 3,500 in the first half hour, descended on the Arboretum last May 7th, buying or- chids, ferns, Arboretum plant intro- ductions, cycads, vegetables, pelar- goniums and just about every other sale-tagged plant in sight. The at- traction, of course, was the eighth annual Bonanza plant sale and, counting the 2,200 attending the preview the evening before, it set a new attendance record.
The photos on this and the fol- lowing pages will give some idea of the activity on what was an excep- tionally beautiful day. Some 30 visi- tors held the winning numbers for raffle prizes that included rakes, sponge rock, a tiller, plants, and five grand prizes: a lath house, garden furniture, an assortment of garden- ing products, a water color, and a greenhouse.
The California Arboretum Found- ation’s superb volunteer organiza- tion, Las Voluntarias, the Arbore- tum staff, Baldwin Bonanza chair- man Jean Atkinson, and Arboretum superintendent John Provine, can be proud of a job that was well planned and conducted. The pro- ceeds of the sale will go towards the & F OEE construction of the Hall of Environ- Where am I? Obscured by his purchase, a lush Polypodium aureum (hare’s mental Education. The amount will nest fern), this Bonanza patron makes his way to the exit with the assis- be announced in the next issue of tance of his equally obscured wife. About 3,000 ferns were sold, including Garden. Boston, staghorn, and some rare Platycerium cultivars.
Regional edition of Garden LASCA 1
Determined! This young woman, carrying about 15 pounds on her head as she strides through the edi- ble grape collection, has selected an Aechmea fasciata (bromeliad) and cymbidium orchids in a 5-gallon can. But the most popular and biggest sale items turned out to be the pelar- goniums — over 5,000 sold in seven hours!
All LASCA photos in this issue by William Aplin.
Here, a group of succulent enthusi- asts look over a collection of sedums. These and other patio plants were very popular. Miniature roses, fuch- sia baskets, and “living sculptures,” mostly bromeliads attached to pieces of driftwood, were all sold out.
bo
LASCA
All mine! This gentleman is pleased with his selection of cymbidiums. Over 2,000 were sold, mostly species plants, with buyers coming from as far away as San Diego and Santa Barbara.
Happy! These four ladies played major roles in making this 8th Bon- anza a success. From the left, they are Mrs. David (Joan) Malafronte, Las Voluntarias president; Mrs. F. Ralph (Patricia) Sewell, , Las Vol- untarias member in charge of the raffle; Mrs. John (Jean) Atkinson, Bonanza chairman; and Mrs. Le- land (Ruth Mary) Larson, presi- dent of the California Arboretum Foundation.
LASCA 3
Dr. Samuel Ayres, Jr.
Medal of Honor Award
ACH YEAR the Garden Clubs of America selects through its 182 member clubs throughout the coun- try a person on whom to bestow its prestigious Medal of Honor, “award- ed for outstanding and distinguished service to horticulture.” This year’s award was presented to Dr. Samuel Ayres, Jr. at the annual medal awards dinner in Birmingham, Ala- bama, last April 5th. Dr. Ayres, accompanied by Mrs. Ayres, was ere to receive the presentation from Mrs. Robert Homans, the club’s National Medal Awards Chairman.
Dr. Ayres’ name was submitted by the Diggers Club of Pasadena through Mrs. Stephen M. Farrand, the Diggers Club medal awards chairman. In listing his contribu- tions to horticulture, Mrs. Farrand was at the same time setting forth Dr. Ayres’ unique position in the field. As most Southern Californians with more than a passing interest in plants know, Dr. Ayres was large- ly responsible for the creation of the Los Angeles State and County Arbo- retum, selecting the site and leading
the citizens’ committee work neces- saty to persuade local and state authorities to purchase the land. For 35 years he has been collecting seeds from Hawaii, South America and Australia during vacation per- iods from his profession as a der- matologist, giving most of them to the Arboretum for testing and eval- uation as part of the Plant Introduc- tion program.
In addition, Dr. Ayres, together with Dr. Mildred Mathias, vice- chairman, at the time, of the botany department at UCLA, the late Ralph
ornell, landscape architect and avis, pub- California Arboretum Foundation, the Southern California Horticultural Institute, and Los Angeles Beautiful, undertook the publication of a series of booklets dealing with the many colorful plants that could be grown in South- ern California. This was a five-year project which resulted in the pub- lication of five colorful booklets. In 1974, the booklets were combined into a single publication, Color For the Landscape: Flowering Plants For Sub-Tropical Climates, fulfilling yet another of Dr. Ayres’ many proj- ects aimed at enriching the horti- cultural community for the benefit of the people.
Today, at age 84 and with no thought of retiring, Dr. Ayres con- tinues working both in his profes- sion and as an amateur horticulturist intent on helping to make Southern California and Los Angeles more beautiful places in which to live.
Mrs. E. W. Menninger
A’ HAS BEEN observed in these notes before, the Arboretum has been the recipient of many gifts in its 30-year history, and it is no exaggeration to say that its plant collections, library, and other de- partmental divisions have been greatly enriched by the generosity of a long succession of garden-lov- ing friends,
One of the Arboretum’s most dedicated friends is Mrs. E. W. Men- ninger, a close neighbor and one of the first ten members of the Cali- fornia Arboretum Foundation. On several occasions during 1977, Mrs. Menninger donated various books, research equipment, and plants to the Foundation which, in accord with legal requirements, requested the Board of Supervisors to accept them on behalf of the County for use by the Los Angeles State and County Arboretum. At a Board meeting held last January 31, the Board gratefully acted upon a mo- tion entered by Supervisor Peter F. Schabarum, accepted Mrs. Men- ninger’s gift with thanks, and ex- pressed its appreciation in a letter to her which noted that the items were valued at almost $30,000 and would “further enhance the many activi- ties at the Arboretum.
Retirement
I* THE FALL of 1956, a new tele- phone operator was hired at the Arboretum to operate a new switch- board in a new administration build- ing that was about to be dedicated. The operator was Marge Wood, a soft-spoken, good-humored lady with an infectious laugh who before long came to be known as the “voice of the Arboretum.”
Last March 30, after 22 years of service, Marge was the guest of honor at a retirement luncheon held in the Arboretum lecture hall. Among the 125 fellow workers and friends who attended were a num- ber of Arboretum retirees who came from all parts of the county. A highlight of the program was a re- corded take-off on comedienne Lily Tomlin’s famous switch board- operator skit. The proceedings end- ed with the presentation of a service pin and a number of gifts, including a large money tree that was grown especially for Marge, and a warm round of farewells for a lady who will be long remembered.
4 LASCA
(LASCA continues after page 36)
PLANT PORTRAITS
Tabebuia, the Trumpet Tree
Gary Cromwell
Tabebuia species are among the showiest plants of the New World tropics. Flowers of the one hundred or sO species vary from white to tints of yellow, red, pink, lavender and purple and virtually cover the trees during blooming periods, which usually last from one to two months. The flowers also have an attractive form, essentially trumpet- shaped, from which they receive their popular name of trumpet tree.
Trumpet trees are native to nearly every country of Central and South America and to certain islands in
in cultivation in around the globe having tropical and subtropical climates, such as India and Florida. In south-
to the nursery industry in 1964 by the Los Angeles State and County Arboretum.
Because of their beauty and wide- spread occurrence within their na- tural ranges, Tabebuia species are believed to have been familiar to highly-developed cultures such as the Incas, Aztecs, and Mayas. Rep- resentative genera of the family Bignoniaceae, including Tabebuia,
ave been reported growing near old ruins in remote tropical jungle areas. For example, these plants have been observed near the base of the Great Pyramid in the Mayan city of Chichen Itza, on the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. Flowers simi-
WV, 4. H ‘3 a 4 iS £
Se
byoOad?
Tabebuia impetiginosa
lar to those of tabebuias and other bignones occasionally also appear on ornate stone carvings and other art- work of ancient peoples of the Americas
Tabebuia species have been known by such exotic vernacular names as Ipe (Amazon Valley), Poui (Hawai- ian Islands), Ahan-Che, and Xha- Hua-Che. The last two names are thought to be examples of Nahuatl, the Uto-Aztecan language, and they
a
refer to Tabebuia chrysantha. Tabebuia trees vary from 15 to 100 feet high, with an average height around 30 feet. The whitish-gray bark has many small fissures which give the trunk a wrinkled appear- ance. The trees are prized as orna- mentals, and some species are recom- mended for shade. There are many open spaces between the equally- dichotomous branches, and the foli- age often is not dense, but the over-
LASCA 5
all structure lends itself to varied uses in the home garden. Addition- ally, tabebuias make good lawn or garden trees because they seem to be disease- and pest-free.
Leaves are opposite and vary from simple to palmately-lobed. Leaf margins may be entire or toothed, and compound leaves have three to seven leaflets, depending upon the species. Leaflets are yellowish- green to dark green and are periodi- cally shed from the trees.
The brightly-colored flowers of Tabebuia species occur in spike-like arrangements (scattered along an elongated axis) to large dense ter- minal clusters. Flowers of many species appear in spring, usually from March to May. They may de- velop on leafless trees or may coin- cide with small developing leaflets. The funnel-form corollas usually have five distal nearly-circular lobes and are more or less two-lipped. Each petal has a rough texture, and along its inner surface are shallow furrows and recurved hairs. There are five stamens, four fertile ones in pairs of unequal length and a fifth sterile one. The outer surface of the calyx of T. chrysotricha (Golden Trumpet Tree) is covered with a golden-brown pubescence compris- ed of microscopic star-shaped hairs. These flowers are visited by both ants and bees. Fruits are pendant pod-like capsules up to about 20 inches long and one-half inch wide. Seeds are numerous, winged, and lack endosperm (a nutritive tissue in many flowering plant seeds).
Because the white or brownish wood generally has exceptional beauty in both grain and _ color, some tabebuias are economically im- portant for their timber. Both T. pallida and T. avellanedae are val- ued highly as sources of cabinet wood. The wood of T. palmeri and T. guayacan is olive-brown, quite dense, and extremely durable, so much so in fact that the ceiling
Tabebuia chrysotricha
beams of an old church in Panama, made of wood from T. guayacan, are said to have successfully resisted weathering for nearly three centur- ies!
Trumpet trees tend to do best in full sun. They demand well-drained soils and will respond nicely to frequent watering and fertilizing. Plants may be propagated by seed, cuttings, or air layering, and they often begin to flower when only a year old.
Tabebuia is represented by sev- eral presumably different species here at the Arboretum. A handsome 30-foot specimen of T. impetiginosa,
one of the oldest (23 years) of our trumpet trees, grows just south of the tram waiting-area. A smaller but equally beautiful member of this species is located on the north side of Peacock Pavilion, and more specimens grow in numerous loca- tions on the grounds. Two dozen small trees of T. chrysotricha are planted on the west side of Baldwin Avenue along the south approach to the Arboretum’s Santa Anita De- pot. Plantings of this species also are growing east of the library build- ing, west of the administration com- plex near the African section, and on the south side of the research
6 LASCA
building. Specimens of T. chryso- tricha have been planted in Arcadia at irregular intervals along the Bald- win Avenue street island from the Arboretum south to Live Oak Ave- nue on the Arcadia-Temple City boundary. This species also occurs as a street and lawn tree in many other southern California communi- ties.
A large assemblage of tabebuias has been planted on the Arboretum’s Tallac Knoll, especially in an area
east of the aquatic garden. Here grow plants of T. avellanedae, T. umbellata, T. heptaphylla, T. pal- meri, T. impetiginosa, T. chryso- tricha, T. pallida, T. rosea, and an interesting specimen believed to be a hybrid of T. impetiginosa x T. chrysotricha.
Tabebuias are both fascinating and unusual plants which every visitor can enjoy. Perhaps not many people realize that some of our Tabebuia specimens were trans-
planted to their present sites after having attained nearly full size. Gar- dening staff here also have discov- ered that T. avellanedae plants may fail to flower until the plants have been excavated, potted, and re- planted. The operative physiologi- cal mechanism is a curious one.
Gary Cromwell is a biologist and plant taxonomist in the Depart- ment’s Research Division.
The New Polyploid Felicias
OST BLUE FLOWERS have a short
blooming season, are faded by the sun, and are difficult to grow in the home garden. The felicia, formerly known as agathea, is one perennial that is covered with non- fading blue blooms almost contin- uously. Its daisy-like flowers are held well above the low-growing foliage. Because it is naturally adapted to a Mediterranean climate, it is easy for the home gardener to grow and propagate.
The primary disadvantage of the original felicia was its sprawling growth habit. The author has de- veloped many improved varieties of felicias through modern genetic engineering and years of patient se- lection. These new felicias were distributed to commercial growers and are available now in nurseries throughout Southern California.
There are two commonly grown perennial felicias whose names are often mixed, Felicia amelloides and Felicia rotundifolia. The leaf of F. amelloides is narrow and oblong,
Paul L. Scott
about one-tenth of an inch wide, whereas the leaf of F. rotundifolia is broadly oval or rounded. This leads to the conclusion that the hybrid polypoid varieties were derived from F. rotundifolia because the leaves are oval.
The large-flowered polyploid va- rieties are the result of many hours of hand pollenizing and selecting seedlings derived from Felicia ‘Santa Anita’. This tetraploid variety originated at the Los Angeles State and County Arboretum when the propagator, Quinn Buck, treated a felicia with colchicine, causing it to double the number of chromosomes in its seedlings.
Because F. ‘Santa Anita’ was tet- raploid, it was assumed it could possibly produce progeny with larg- er flower heads than diploid strains. This proved to be so, but the rangy growth habit of F. ‘Santa Anita’ had to be improved upon by discarding all the straggling seedlings, working only with the compact ones.
Next, the problem of shrinking
flowers had to be overcome because as the size of the plant was reduced the flower heads also became small- er. Some very dwarf, compact seed- lings with small flower heads and short ray petals appeared. How- ever, it was decided that large heads with wide petals were most desir- able, so the selecting continued over many years.
A race with extra large flower heads and stems long enough for cut flowers also evolved but the plants were not as compact as the previous type. The effort was to de- velop desirable varieties of both the compact and the __large-flowered strains.
The first clone selected for distri- bution to commercial growers was F. ‘Jolly’ (plant patent *3017), whose light to medium blue flowers stay open at night.
Two felicias, F. “Martha Chand- ler’ and F. ‘Betty Marshall, with similar heavy growth and clear, me- dium blue flower heads were dis- tributed next. One of the most freely
LASCA 7
flowering seedlings, F. “Astrid Thom- as,’ blooms continuously in favorable weather. This felicia is like a large F. ‘Jolly’ and is so far the best com- mercial variety for potted plant culture.
Two other seedlings were dis- tributed. F. “Rhapsody in Blue’ has very heavy and compact growth but the wide-petalled, medium blue flowers roll slightly under at night. The other seedling, F. ‘Midnight’, has large flower heads of intense dark blue on long stems. Although it is not compact in growth and doesn’t stay open completely at night, the richness of the blue color makes it striking in a massed plant- ing. A beautiful dark blue felicia having good-sized flower heads on a vigorous, compact plant was intro- duced during 1977 under the name of felicia ‘Marilia Scott’. Also, two other good dark blue varieties intro- duced the same year and _ having compact plants were named F.
‘George Lewis’ and ‘Annie Oviedo’. Several strains have extra petals in the blue ray flowers and some have small petaloids growing out of the yellow disk flowers. This indi- cates that some day double felicias could be developed just as were the anemone-flowered marguerites. Because the most popular felicias in Southern California originally came from coastal South Africa, they grow best in the cool part of our year. They also prefer a neutral to slightly acid soil and are hardy to ut 28 degrees F. Felicias are easily grown in any spot with light, well-drained soil that receives plenty of sun. They should be clipped back after flowering to encourage new crops of flowers throughout the summer and Felicia seeds sown one-eighth of an inch deep during the spring or fall in a mixture of 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 Sponge Rok with enough dolomite to make the pH about 6.5
will germinate in 3 or 4 weeks in a night temperature of 50-55 degrees. Tip cuttings taken when the flower buds are developing will root in 3 or 4 weeks at 55-60 degrees night temperature when placed in Sponge Rok, preferably under intermittent mist during the day. If three plants are grown together in a six-inch pot, or six plants are grown together in a ten-inch pot, the results are more pleasing for commercial growing.
Felicias may be grown into stand- ard or tree specimens by staking the plants in a greenhouse during the winter; they can also be trained into cascading plants. A large container planted with short, stocky felicias makes a refreshing pool of blue on a sunny patio.
Paul Scott is an instructor in the Department's adult education pro- gram, a newspaper garden editor, a or many years an amateur hybridist.
LOS ANGELES STATE AND COUNTY ARBORETUM, Arcadia JULY 15, 16 — Sat. 1 p.m. to 5p.m Sun. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m
Begonia Show
Presented by Aimidltctik Begonia Society JULY vig is a.m. to 5 p.m
Fern
Presented t be Los Angeles International
nd ing a Tallac Knoll/Aquatic Section Dr. Leonard Enari, senior biologist SEPTEMBER 23, 24 — 9 a.m, to 5 p.m.
b Show Presented by Herb Society of America SEPTEMBER 30, OCTOBER 1 — 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bonsai § -siarveadhany oy Akebono Bonsai Society
DESCANSO GARDENS, La Canada
rice Axtman, Director Presented by Descanso Gardens Guild
CALENDAR
JULY, AUGUST, SEPTEMBER
JULY 2 — 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m Adult Swing Band of Pasadena City College Paul Killian, Director Presented by Denies Gardens Guild
JULY 9—10
George Lewis, superintendent
JULY 9 — 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m “Sweet Adelines” of Verdugo Hills Bobbette Gantz, -_ Morgan, Bonnie Sherburn, Directo Presented by Descaul Gardens Guild
JULY Pood d sale to 3:30 p n Afte rnoon with the Children’ s Pia ayers” ee Barlow, Director Presented by Descanso Gardens Guild
JULY 15, 16 — 3: oS La Canada Pla Presented by pease Gardens Guild SEPTEMBER 2, 3 — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bonsai Show Presented by Descanso Gardens Bonsai Society SEPTEMBER 10 — 10 a.m. Sunday Morning Walk Trees of Descanso Gardens George Lewis, superintendent SEPTEMBER 22 — 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Fund Raising Dinner Presented by Camellia Council and Descanso Gardens Guild
SOUTH COAST BOTANIC GARDEN, Palos Verdes Peninsula AUGUST 17-20 — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ahlia Show Presented oy Inglewood Dahlia Society
SEPTEMBER 10 —
Ed Hartnagel, assistant a nishansaiin SEPTEMBER 17 —
nts Jeffrey Hook, staff education assistant
8 LASCA