Narrator> Making It Grow is brought to you in part by Certified South Carolina.

This cooperative effort among farmers, retailers and the South Carolina Department of Agriculture helps consumers identify foods and agricultural products that are grown, harvested or raised right here in the Palmetto State.

Mcleod Farms in McBee, South Carolina, family owned and operated since 1916.

This family farm offers seasonal produce, including over 40 varieties of peaches.

Wesley Commons, a full service continuing care retirement community located on more than 150 wooded acres in Greenwood, South Carolina.

Additional funding provided by the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation and Farm Bureau Insurance and Boone Hall Farms.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> Well, good evening and welcome to Making It Grow.

We're glad you could join us tonight.

I'm Amanda McNulty, I'm a Clemson horticulture agent.

And, it's fun.

I get to come over here and have continuing education every week because we have really smart people like Katie Collins, who's filling in for Terasa and Katie you're our water resources agent in the Pee Dee District.

And I say water is the new oil.

I mean, water is going to be a critical resource, I think.

Yeah, it's something that we obviously can't live without.

And one recent program we have, that launched related to that is our Be Well Informed program.

So it's an online course, completely free and self-paced, people can sign up for.

So if you rely on a well for your drinking water at home, it will teach you about things to look out for, what type of equipment you have in your well, how to maintain it, and how to send in a sample to DHEC, to be tested for potability.

Amanda> And so how, just how would I search for it?

Katie> If you just go on the Clemson website and search, Be Well Informed, it'll come right up and you can just sign up and take it at your leisure.

Amanda> Well, I have a well and we love the water, so thank you so much for telling me that.

Katie> Yeah.

Amanda> Cool.

All right.

Paul Thompson is the horticulture agent, in York, Chester and Lancaster.

Paul, I remember being up in Rock Hill.

My daughter went to school up there and they had really cool urban street trees.

Is that something that the city's tried to do, to make it more interesting?

Paul> Well, they...they are a Tree City USA, so they have done a lot of planting.

They've got a city arborist and do a good job of promoting that.

We've had some events where we planted a lot of trees with master Gardeners and myself and other volunteers a few years ago.

But... yeah, they...trees are important to them.

Amanda> Yeah, well, they just make a town more livable.

I mean, yeah, look at the sidewalk, And there's something nice to look at Yeah...instead of a fire hydrant.

Not that... fire hydrant's are good, especially if you're your dog.

Right?

Anyway.

Well, we will move on to Hannah Mikell.

And you are an agronomy agent.

And you handle which counties?

Hannah> Clarendon and Williamsburg.

Amanda> Okay.

I was going down to Pawley's Island the other day via Sumter.

Hannah> Yes.

Amanda> And we went through Williamsburg.

I've never seen so much farmland in my life.

Hannah> Yeah.

Amanda> It's crazy.

Yeah, we have quite a bit.

Yeah, Right now it's perfect, too.

The fields haven't quite been planted yet, or they're really not fully grown up, I guess.

And...and it's turkey hunting season.

And so, like, all of this turkeys are out there.

I'm surprised to see of them.

But you can drive through that down through there and there'll be 20, 30 out in a field.

Amanda> Isn't that wonderful?

And...

I remember the first time I ever saw a wild turkey footprint and now they're just everywhere.

It's nice when something recovers so well, isn't it.

Hannah> That is true.

Amanda> It really is.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Something to rejoice in.

Okay, Bill Guess you are associated with B.B.

Barns, Northeast Columbia Nursery and tell me what you get to do there.

Bill> I'm a garden coach and I get to come out to people's yards and we will address any issues you might be having If you want...

If you having a problem with shrubs, you don't know what's going on, You don't know what kind of plants you have in your yard.

and you just want to know about them.

If you would like to redesign an area you want, really anything that you would like to accomplish in your yard, I can come out and help you out with that.

We could do some small designs and we'll help you with plant selection.

Amanda> Do people send you home with homemade jelly and stuff like that?

Bill> I've gotten some presents before.

I've got I've gotten muffins and banana bread and everybody likes to give me a cup of coffee.

It's great.

Amanda> Well, that just sounds like a glorious way to spend your day.

Bill> It's really nice to interact with everybody.

Amanda> Okay, well, thanks for coming...interacting with us.

Bill> Absolutely.

Amanda> Okay, Well, we're going to have some good segments for you.

We're going to have a visit to one of South Carolina Agriculture Department's chef ambassadors, Indigenous Underground up in Abbeville.

What a remarkable, fun day.

And then for you, water people Terasa went and visited with the Gills Creek Watershed and learned all the things they're doing to keep that watershed clean.

And it's a lot, it's really something what people can do when they put their mind to it.

So, at any rate, do we have some gardens of the week?

Katie> We sure do.

So some of the folks out there that follow the show have sent us photos of their lovely gardens for us to share with the audience.

Deborah says that the bees have been enjoying her cross vine that's sprawling along her fence, and she's waiting for the hummingbirds to show up any day now.

Pam sent some cheerful large flower daffodils that are...have bright yellow trumpets, so those are lovely to look at.

John sent a bed of purple verbena and lots in a pot of pansies as well.

So some variation there.

Theresa sent us her mom's hellebores and said soon it'll be surrounded by beautiful flowers from Star of Bethlehem.

And Angie has sent this lovely picture of a bed of very colorful tulips.

Amanda> How about that?

Okay.

It's a glorious time of year.

Katie> It is?

Amanda> Yes it is.

Okay.

Well, are there some non glorious topics that perhaps we should address?

(laugh) Katie> We have lots of topics to cover, glorious or not, today.

We actually will start out with a show and tell.

Paul has brought us a very handy tool to use in the garden that he can show off.

Paul> Yes, quite handy.

Katie> A little heavy too.

(Clears throat) Hannah> Watch out.

This is, this is a tool used for pulling up unwanted trees.

So invasive species or you just have a so you got azaleas and an oak seedling that's growing up through the azaleas.

Amanda> Yeah Pecan seedlings are impossible to pull up.

Paul> Yes.

Well, they're still impossible to pull up with this because they have such a deep taproot, it'll break it off before it pulls up.

But just about any.

Other.

Other type of plant that doesn't create that really deep taproot you can easily pull up with this plant.

But basically it's just a fulcrum and it works when you push the handle forward, like you're standing back here.

When you push the handle forward, it opens up the jars and this particular one will pull up a tree up to two and a half inches in diameter.

And then as you're pulling back up on the fulcrum, it's going to lift that tree and pull...pull it out roots at all.

And with some trees, you might get it up partway and then you rotate around and pull it up a different direction.

But I can easily pull up most trees with this, with very little effort.

The effort's is hauling it to the next tree because it's pretty heavy, but it really does a good job.

And this particular manufacturer makes all different sizes.

So if you don't...normally not pulling up big stuff you can get ones that are lighter weight and don't have as long of a handle and that kind of thing.

Amanda> What is this called?

What is this tree called?

Paul> Well, it's called a brush puller is a common name.

I like this one, it's got this ability to put pieces of wood on there in case the soil's soft you can put a big foot on there.

Amanda> That's a cool idea Paul> So you get that leverage without it pushing down into the soil.

So it's very versatile, does a very good job.

Amanda> So how would you know that you were looking at one that would allow you to put the piece of wood in it if you just put- Paul> -Well, you would see the plates, the plates on it with the holes.

And I think most of the brands have that.

Amanda> Okay.

Paul> And anyway, this particular brand, I chose it because the jaws actually grab right at the ground level, some of them grab it a couple of inches up the stem.

Amanda> And sometimes- Paul> -And so you're losing some of that pulling power when it does that.

But this one, as long as you've got enough, stump sticking up there to grab hold of.

Even if you've already cut down the tree, you can still pull it up.

Amanda> Whoa.

I guess you really feel like a He-Man when got that thing out of there- Paul> Yeah and it's good exercise.

Amanda> So how hard is it on your part?

I mean, is it designed so that with a. Paul> Well, there's sometimes.

Amanda> With a normal amount of effort you can get it up?

Paul> Well, I mean, you can also use your weight.

you know, and you can put another block underneath the foot.

<Amanda> Yes.

>> To, to get a little more nimble.

Amanda> Okay.

>> So it, you know, sometimes you're working at it with a really large one, but most of the stuff you're pulling up, you're...you're not waiting until it gets that big.

Amanda> Yeah.

Okay.

Paul> It makes it really easy.

Amanda> A brush puller, Paul> Right.

Amanda> Okay.

That's pretty cool.

But.

And it'll fit in?

It'll fit in your car?

Yeah.

Okay, that's good enough.

Gracious goodness.

Katie?

Katie> We have a question from Margo and Allendale, who's a real go getter.

And she wants to know if she wants to get her cotton seed out early.

When is a good time to plant that?

And what are some things she should take into account when planting early.

Hannah> Right.

So Margo is, I believe I'm familiar with her.

She actually is a cotton farmer, so she's out planting the cotton because we don't really condone planting one or two cotton plants in your flower beds.

Right.

Because we have some...some worry with carryover of different insects from year to year that could actually affect our cotton growing season throughout the state.

Right.

So cotton seedlings, whenever you plant them, we want the ground temperature to be just right.

And so around 64 degrees, ground temperature is going to be ideal for cotton.

You kind of can get an idea by going and you actually take a thermometer like you would put in a turkey and see what the temperature is.

Right?

You stick it in the ground about 2 to 4 inches and you can see what the temperature is.

Ideally, if you look at the nighttime, temperatures will get hotter during the day.

But during the night is really the coolest part.

And so that's going to be kind of a telltale sign.

When we reach higher temperatures at night, that's going to be a best way to tell.

We do that with corn.

A lot of other different crops that we grow as well because we want to get at the very front of that growing season, right.

Not only solar temperature for cotton, but North Carolina State University Extension service also has a cotton temperature calculator, a cotton planting calculator, and they're able to go in.

You can put some dates in and... and kind of go through that.

We we often will... will piggyback off of other extension services and universities to kind of find best practices for our growers.

And we found that works has worked well for them.

Katie> Thank you.

Hannah> You're welcome.

Amanda> So take the temperature.

That's cool.

Hannah> Yeah, (laughing) Amanda> But I mean, I mean, I live in a place where there are tons of cotton and it just seems like it kind of happens at the same time.

Hannah> It does.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Corn actually started planted not long ago, and when it reached 55 degrees for corn.

a lot of this is based off of heating degree units.

So, it cotton is a tropical plant and likewise the corn and and they really need that that heat during the winter or during the summertime in order to start that, that reproductive cycle.

Right.

So, as soon as it warms up, the pest haven't really moved in on this yet.

They get optimum weather.

It's not as stressful.

The water's there, so.

Amanda> Yeah.

Yeah.

So you want to get in and kind of as soon as you can, but you sure don't want to spend a whole lot of money going out there, planting and using all that fuel too.

Hannah> Yes.

Amanda> And then lose the crop.

Hannah> And being very conscious of a frost.

Some years we've had that lake freeze and that really messes up a lot of our grow.

And especially like out in the Midwest, I was listening to a podcast last night and they planted early.

They had a freeze like in June something It was in maybe the 90s and it wiped out a lot of their cotton.

I mean a lot of their corn.

Amanda> Whoa!

>> Yeah.

So you got to keep that in mind.

I think my grandfather used to say if it thundered in February, you'd have a late freeze or it's called a BlackBerry freeze or something like that.

Anyway.

Amanda> Farmer's Almanac.

Hannah> That's right.

Yes.

(laughing) Amanda> I have heard that if you're planning to have an outdoor wedding, that probably the best thing you can do is pick a date that the Farmer's Almanac says it's okay and at least you can feel like probably things are going to be okay and but you need it, but you need an indoor place just in case things don't work out.

Ah, Bill, Are we going to start over here.

There's something beautiful behind you... Bill> That's a Pieris japonica.

That one's called Mountain Fire.

The fire is that new growth coming out of there It's so beautiful.

The red new growth on it.

The bell shaped flowers in spring, it's just different than really any other plant other than blueberry.

It kind of mimics what a blueberry looks like.

It's a shade lover, fairly slow grower.

Amanda> Shade lover?

Bill> Shade.

I mean some sun but Some Morning sun to bloom.

But in full sun she usually won't do much.

She'll grow even slower.

So look how pretty, that is.

Imagine in the shade.

Bill> It's just gorgeous.

Walk by that.

It's a beautiful plant and it's long lived and you can kind of tuck it in somewhere where it's not going to grow really, really big.

You might get four feet out of it and it's I tend to forget about it.

It just kind of hangs out.

And then in the spring it blooms.

Oh, there it is again.

It's so nice.

Amanda> Have you ever seen, of course it's not native, but have you ever seen pollinators go to it?

Bill> Absolutely.

It's the time of year when there's not all that many blooms out there as far as like your weeds and that kind of thing.

So it's really one of those things where they will come too.

Amanda> Well, that's good.

Yeah.

Bill> Absolutely.

Amanda> Well, that sure is And that one's called Mountain- Bill> Mountain Fire.

Amanda> Yeah, because of new growth.

Bill> And there are several Pieris.

There's another one that has variegated leaves, so it shines in that shade environment also.

And then you get that same red new growth out of it.

So the.

Yeah... so many layers on that one.

Amanda> Okay.

That's really fun.

Well, the South Carolina Chef Ambassadors program is just wonderful.

And it started down with Jupiter, I think in Ridge Springs, anyway.

And it's just I mean, every year they pick some a couple of people and the food is outstanding and they usually have a great story that goes along with them.

And Indigenous Underground, What a cool name for a restaurant up there in Abbeville is no exception.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Amanda> I'm in Abbeville, South Carolina, speaking with Erica McCier at her restaurant, Indigenous Underground.

What a very different name.

Erica> Thank you.

Amanda> Let's start with how that happened.

Erica> Well, the name Indigenous Underground.

Let me kind of go backwards on that and tell you where the Underground came from.

When I took out the lease on this building, it was 2019 and a few months later we had the COVID shutdown.

So what I like to say is once the world opened back up, you know, people wanted to get out and they wanted to do some things.

So I went to the city of Abbeville and said, well, hey, you know, can I host events at this building?

You know, since I can't have a restaurant right now?

Can I hold some private events?

And they gave me the go ahead to do that.

So what I did, I contacted some of my former clients.

Amanda> Yes.

>> Because I had done a lot of personal chef and catering in the past.

So I contacted them.

I sent out an invitation, saying, hey, you know, would you like to come to a private dining experience, an underground dining experience?

Amanda> Underground Erica> In a secret, you know, non-disclosed location.

Amanda> Wow!

Erica> So that's where the underground came from.

The indigenous came from just my, my culture, you know, my cultural background, you know, it's just you know, we have a mix of so many cultures and us and my cultures are predominantly Native American and, of course, African.

Amanda> Yes.

Erica> And so I take the foods that my ancestors, you know, presented to us, and I put them together in my food and just kind of give them a little modern twist.

Amanda> Yes, they certainly do have that.

And then but you actually started out as a visual artist, an art teacher here.

And then I think you suffered a very grave illness and that kind of led to your learning how to cook.

Erica> Yes.

So I taught visual arts here in Abbeville County School District for ten years.

During my 10th year of teaching I developed kidney disease.

While, I went through a life changing moment during those times and actually went through a near life, you know, near-death, near-death experience.

I was on life support for four months, and after that I had to you know, go through rehabilitation.

I ended up on in center hemodialysis.

And while I was doing dialysis, I was just so bored with life, you know, I wanted something to do.

I wanted to find something that could fill that void.

So, I began watching Food Network, and I just started gravitating towards these shows on Food Network.

Thinking that...

I think that I can do that.

So I pulled out my phone one day and I just "googled" culinary schools near me.

And Greenville Tech popped up.

And I said well I'm going to visit, you know, the campus.

And let's just see if, you know, let's just kill some time until I get my kidney transplant.

Then I could go back into teaching.

So I started going to Greenville Tech, two days a week.

I'm doing dialysis three days a week.

So what turned into a hobby what was supposed to be a hobby, I'll put it like that What was supposed to be a hobby turned into a career.

Amanda> A passion.

Erica> A passion.

Yes.

Yes.

And I always tell people that I think that this was just my destiny and me going through that near-death experience- Amanda> -made you reevaluate your life >> Yes, it did.

I mean, I always tell people, it was so necessary for me to go through that phase in life to get to where I am now.

Amanda> I believe.

That you even came back here and taught culinary arts a little bit and some of your students have followed you and are here today helping you.

Erica> Yes, I did.

So the job teaching and the Abbeville County Career Center, I taught there for four years, taught culinary arts.

And at the time, that's when I also got the lease on this building.

So I'm teaching at the time.

I'm doing catering and you name it, I did it to try to build some revenue to build this place.

Amanda> Yeah >> My sous chef, who is Graham.

You guys met him.

Graham was actually one of my culinary students.

Very bright young man and I thought that he was going to end up going to culinary school.

And he came to me one day.

He said, Well, I'm going to be honest.

I really don't want to go to culinary school.

And I said, "You sure?

Because-" Amanda> -you've got a talent.

Erica> Yes.

He said, Well, you can teach me everything I need to know.

He said, If you would have me, I want to come work for you.

So Graham runs that kitchen for me a wonderful and- Amanda> And then you were honored to be, one of the South Carolina Chef ambassadors of the South Carolina Agricultural department.

And.. You know, we think of South Carolina as a tourist destination, but a large part of that, is our cuisine, and as you said, the different cultures that are present in our cuisine and then how they're tweaked locally.

And how you've managed to do that here is this wonderful space.

Erica> It is something about some good old Southern cooking.

(laughing) Amanda> And before we speak about the food, when I come in, it says that this is just a space for food, music and culture.

Erica> Yes.

Amanda> And when I looked around, you have very interesting art.

You have beautiful lampshades painted by friends.

It's just a tremendous sense of community when you come in here.

I think that's one of the things that makes this special.

It is a sense of community here in the little town of Abbeville and around here.

Erica> Community means a lot to me because when I was going through that era of when I was ill, this, this town really did come together.

And they, that's when I learned how to really appreciate being in a small town where they say, you know, I live in a small town.

Everybody knows everybody.

Why do you want to live in a place like that?

You know, it's like you have this big, huge extended family who looks out for you, who looks out for your children and even now, having this restaurant it's the same way.

They really look out for you.

Amanda> Well, you've looked after looked out after us because I think we have.

All kinds of wonderful treats.

And so let's talk about some of the things that do reflect your grasp of where you're from and the cultures that have influenced you.

Erica> Okay, so first of all, we have gumbo.

And unlike the traditional Louisiana style gumbo, Amanda> Well, we're South Carolina.

Erica> That's right.

(laughing) Erica> So ours is not just a seafood gumbo or chicken gumbo.

Ours is a black eyed pea gumbo (laughing) And instead of us having that rich, hearty, dark roux taste, ours is more of a tomato taste, has those "tomatoey" flavors.

So it's kind of funny because you could tell when I get customers that are from Louisiana, it's like they want to test me.

(laughing) So they'll be like, okay, how do you know how to cook gumbo like this?

Are you from Louisiana?

I've heard so many people say, Are you from Louisiana or are you from the islands.

I'm like, No, I was born and raised right here in Abbeville.

Amanda> But y'all do make an effort and about 70% of the ingredients in your food are local.

And so local seafood, South Carolina seafood is one of the things that you see in this black eyed pea gumbo.

We've got some great shrimp.

Erica> Right.

70% of our inventory is from South Carolina certified farmers.

Of that 70%, at least 50% is from farmers right here in Abbeville County.

Amanda> Isn't that just amazing.

>> It is.

And I've built a wonderful, wonderful relationship with those farmers.

Amanda> And you think about it.

I mean, the, the.

freshness is just so, you couldn't begin to reproduce that.

Erica> Right.

Amanda> And then some people.

are traditional and they want some kind of hamburger.

So this is a fancy hamburger.

Tell me what we've got here.

Erica> That is our bacon, pimento cheese burger.

And of course, the pimento cheese is made in-house.

Amanda> Yes, I'm sure.

Erica> And it's sort of like what we call a heat pimento cheese.

So it has a little bit of sweetness, has a little bit of spice.

Amanda> A little kick.

Erica> Yes.

It does And also the beef that we use here is from a local ranch in Newberry, South Carolina called Happy Hollow Ranch.

Amanda> Come on.

Local meat.

That's pretty remarkable.

Y'all really do try to eat fresh, eat local.

Erica> Yes, we do.

Amanda> And then, so here is something a little unusual.

Let's talk about this.

It's a beautiful dish.

Erica> That is our gator and grits.

So, of course, that is a deep fried alligator tail meat.

Amanda> Okay, the best part of the alligator Erica> And it comes with a cream crawfish sauce and it sets on a bed, on top of a bed of Atkin milling company grits.

And Atkin Millings is out of Honea Path, South Carolina.

Amanda> Again, always using whenever you can, a South Carolina provider.

Erica> Yes.

Amanda> I just think that is so much fun.

And so.

Are people a little nervous about trying gators sometimes?

Erica> They are.

I think it's...it's just that thing of thinking about eating a reptile.

(laughing) but once they try it, they love it.

Amanda> And then over here we have something that is called a soul roll.

And I don't know quite what all that means.

Erica> Okay.

Well, first of all, when customers come in and they looked at the menu and it says soul rolls, they think that is some type of bread.

Amanda> Well, a roll.

Sure Erica> Exactly, but when it comes out to the table it's actually a spring roll with seasoned collard greens and black eyed peas.

So I'm going to go ahead Let's, we're going to try this.

I want you to try the soul rolls Amanda> And the collard greens are from...?

Erica> The collard greens are from WP Rawl.

And the Black Eyed Peas are from Old Tyme Bean Company.

Amanda> Again, just all the things that make South Carolina so wonderful.

Erica> Right!

Look, we're going to take this.

We're going to grab this with our hands Amanda> Yeah, let's do that.

Erica> I'm going to let you grab that end.

Amanda> Okay.

Ta da.

Erica> Ahhh!

So you see that inside?

Amanda> I was.

Erica> Now, this is.

Amanda> Yeah.

Oh, okay.

Erica> This is our "housemade", Sweet chili sauce.

See those collard greens in there?

Amanda> Collard greens and black eyed peas, deep fried in a spring roll.

Erica> Yes.

Amanda> Now, that's a real amalgamation of cultures.

(laughing) Erica> So tell me how you like it.

Amanda> Mmm Mmm Mmm I think South Carolina is very fortunate to have you represent us as a Chef Ambassador with your hospitality and talents and wonderful sense of community because that's what South Carolina is all about.

It's about our friends and neighbors and being tight together and supporting each other.

Thank you for what you're doing here in Abbeville.

Erica> And thank you so much for having me on your show.

♪ >> We had a wonderful time up there.

And the soul rolls.

Mmm Mmm Mmm.

There are a lot of black eyed peas and things going on up there.

It's just a wonderful way to take the things that we think of as, you know, just home, good old soul food and do all kinds of fun things with it.

And Friday is Music Day.

Music nights, just another reason to go and visit with Erica at Indigenous Underground.

So, it's that time of year.

You know, asparagus used to be a huge crop in South Carolina.

My husband's grandfather grew a couple hundred acres and Momma would say, Lord, do we have to eat asparagus again?

Because they would eat all the coils.

And I'm so Cag Brunson, whom I think is a friend of yours... Hannah> Yes, from Clarendon.

Amanda> Yeah Clarendon County.

Boy, he's just doing it.

And, last year went and did a show with him And if you go to Making It Grow YouTube, asparagus, I guess you can find it.

But anyway, so that's what's out there now.

And I just thought these purple asparagus are just so much fun and I liked to... You know, everybody loves butter, butter, butter, but but actually, I think sesame oil.

Have you tried that?

Sesame oil to cook your asparagus is just to die for.

Hannah> I think they have a higher heat temperature.

Right?

So you can just sear it.

Bill> Burn point Hannah> Yes.

Burning point.

Amanda> Good.

They are just the best thing in the world.

So, South Carolina's asparagus is making a comeback.

Isn't that more fun.

I know lots of farmers are doing it, but Cag Brunson sure is a nice guy.

Isn't he?

Hannah> Yes.

Amanda> Okay.

All right.

Now I'm going to chomp They're going to get mad at me for chomping.

So we'll let you ask some questions and I'll try to finish up my asparagus.

Katie> Sounds good.

We have a mystery afoot, so we have a photo sent in of a mystery item that Susan from Chester found while she was working in her garden.

And I think we'll set Detective Paul to the case.

Paul> Well, I can bet that she was growing a tomato plant there.

What you have is a very large pupa from the... the horn worm.

Amanda> Ohhh!

Paul> And it's about two inches long.

And it's easy to recognize because of its size.

And then if you see up there at the head area, it's got that that little "J" shape that comes back and joins the body that little loop there, which I guess is going to be it's proboscis, but yeah, they're quite, quite spectacular.

And those worms get quite large and that's going to, the worm will actually go down into the soil to pupate after it's had enough of your tomato plant to eat.

And then, you know, in the spring, you know, late spring you have the, the Sphinx moth, which is the horn worm, adult stage will come out and they're night fliers they feed on night blooming plants.

And I had the, I had the experience of having some four o'clocks planted close to my vegetable garden several years back.

When I was out there in the evening, I heard fluttering going on and I watched the horn worm moth go to the 4:00 and get some nectar, and then it would fly over to the tomato plant and lay a single egg.

They...they lay eggs singly and then it would be back for more nectar and they'd go back to the tomato plant, and lay eggs.

But so, yeah, don't plant, don't plant night blooming plants near your vegetable garden is one way to help keep them away.

But I ended up picking off 63 horned worms off of one tomato plant that growing season.

Amanda> Come on.

Paul> I've never seen that many before.

Amanda> And sometimes you'll see the most like little grains of rice coming out.

And I think that is.

Paul> That's a parasitoid wasp.

Yeah.

And so you leave those alone because they're not going to develop and you want to let the wasp complete their lifecycle.

So that's the little pupal cases of the wasp on the outside of the worm.

The other trick though, for finding them, they're hard to see.

Even though they're big, they're kind of cryptic with their coloration, if you want to go out at night and use a UV flashlight.

They will glow in the dark.

So you shine them on the plant and they'll just, they'll just pop right out.

Amanda> Gosh.

Paul> So Amanda> That'd be fun for you to do with your kids to get something, you know.

Paul> So and those can be found in a lot of places.

Paul> So.

Amanda> Okay.

Paul> Good way to hunt for horned worms.

Amanda> Wow.

Isn't growing things fun?

(laughing) Okay.

I think you got something to show us.

Hannah> I do.

I do.

So during the growing season, we, we want to make sure our soil is prepped and we're ready to to have everything for the best case scenario.

And so in order to do that, we like to say that we're going to do a crop.

You might have to hold that one for me.

It's, these are this is a radish that...You can hold that one.

Amanda> I never can remember.

Is a "da-kon", a "die-kon" Hannah> "Die-kon" is what I say.

I was...

I was an agriculture major.

That doesn't mean I had anything to do with English that much.

So, daikon radishes, you can see how long the taproot is in some places you can see where they actually hit a hard pan and and kind of jay root on you.

So what they're doing is they're trying to break down that soil profile enough to make this root go down there.

So as this thing does, it can winter kill on us, but it gets too cold during the wintertime.

It will die back.

It won't survive like a super, super cold down to the teens throughout the night.

But if they do overwinter, they will come up and you'll see this nice yellow flowers out in the field.

This is just something that adds a little more biomass to our to, our soil profile.

So as it decomposes, it releases nitrogen, and some other nutrients that it's mined up from the lower part of the soil.

And as the plant then starts to grow, our desired plant like corn, cotton, soybeans, what have you, it will then absorb some of those nutrients and act as a like almost like a fertilizer.

Amanda> How about that?

Yeah.

And I'm sure the pollinators come.

Hannah> They do.

They like it.

Little, tiny little yellow flowers.

They've kind of closed up since I've picked them.

They can be yellow, white, what have you.

But they, they do.

They make a really showy field in the springtime.

Amanda> Isn't that just wonderful.

Yeah.

Hannah> It's one of several that we like to promote for cover crops and it might be a three way mix.

Maybe with, like, Austrian Winter Pea or like, wheat, or some people use wheat, oats even.

So yeah, we'll mix up, mix it up and have different types of plants to kind of create that diversity in our soil.

My friend Hank Stallworth just planted some crops to attract the deer Hannah> Clover.

Amanda> Food crops and this is what was in it.

And but the poor old thing, The deer will just eat the tops.

So that's I don't think it's gotten much bigger than that, but it's supposed to be they're feeding the deer and that's wonderful.

Hannah> Right.

Right.

And like any crop they do kind of recommend or I like to recommend that we put a little bit of nutrients out there early on after you plant it.

So it gives it some kind of- Amanda> -Because it's cold.

Hannah> -nutrients to live off of Right.

Amanda> Yeah.

Well, that is too much fun.

Thank you Okay.

Okay.

Well, I bet you've got something fabulous to show us, Bill.

Bill> I have a wonderful shrub and this is sometimes a substitute for, like, a variegated boxwood.

This is...its common name is a Serissa holly.

But holly is a little bit of a misnomer.

It's not actually a holly.

Serissa holly.

And he can go to maybe four or five feet.

Takes pruning really well.

You can shape it into whatever you want to.

But this in the spring, you get these beautiful blooms on it.

It's got really deep variation and it's used a lot of times in bonsai because when you prune it, it will become very densely- Amanda> You can see it is a very dense... Bill> foliage.

So dense and it just shows up really, really nicely.

I kind of...I haven't seen it for a long time.

I saw it a lot in some of the older yards in downtown Columbia and it sort of...I'm not sure if it just fell out of favor, but now it is fairly easy to get a hold of.

And I started ordering it on the regular because- Amanda> It's really attractive.

Bill> And it takes a fair amount of sun.

I wouldn't put it in a full sun environment.

If you could give it a little bit of shade during the heat of the day, that would be great.

But it could take morning sun and late afternoon sun, but a little bit of help in the middle of the day would be nice, but it needs some sun to maintain this really strong, variegation and to bloom well, but just, you know, to have a little shrub that's able to have all these little blooms on it, it really fits a lot of needs and it does well in a pot, too.

So if you want to have it as a- Amanda> Yeah.

Bill> As a potted accent plant in a container, it does really well.

Amanda> Well, that's really fun.

I've never seen it before.

Bill> Well, wow, that's great.

I'm so happy.

Paul> They actually... not the variegated form, but the green leaf form, At least, you know, last time I was over at Swan Lake, it was some growing there and there was a parking lot across the road from it.

Amanda> Oh.

Okay.

Well, if it's happy in a parking lot, it's happy with me Paul> Well it's not in the parking lot.

Amanda> I know.

But, you know (laughing) Bill> It also roots very, very easily.

So if you are trying to do bonsai or doing containers, you can cut any little piece off of this, pop it in another pot, and it will root.

Roots very easily.

Amanda> Okay.

And say what it.

Tell everybody what it is.

Bill> Serissa.

Amanda> Serissa.

Okay, that's quite a little plant.

Okay.

Okay.

And I think you've got another treat for us.

Bill> I have a Spanish lavender.

Amanda> -very different in color and form Bill> So the English lavenders, they sometimes have a hard time here.

We're a little hot and they can have different issues.

So we're seeing a lot more Spanish lavenders pop up with different flowers and- Amanda> This is beautiful.

Bill> Able to take the heat of the summer here a little bit better than some of the other ones.

This is called Primavera.

It will blame in the spring up in to like midsummer and it can have multiple bloom cycles but a tidy you know, they're very bushy lots of blooms on it and able to take some of our heat.

Amanda> Okay.

And I'll just say that even if it didn't last for ten years, you could enjoy it for a couple of years probably.

Bill> Absolutely.

Amanda> And you can always I mean, some things just going to be that way.

Bill> And you'll definitely enjoy it because.

Even sitting here, you can smell it from here.

It's very, very aromatic.

Amanda> So that's just a great bloom.

Bill> A feast for the eyes and the nose.

Hannah> When the bloom dries out, can you cut it off?

Bill> They would dry just fine.

But that's just a Amanda> Take one home for you kids to smell.

Hannah> Okay.

Amanda> It'd be fun for them.

Okay.

Well, always water, water, water, water.

And the Gills Creek Watershed has really been doing some wonderful work to try to protect that area.

And Terasa went over and spoke to them.

♪ Terasa> Throughout the state and across the country, you'll find groups of dedicated individuals who are working to conserve and protect our natural resources.

One example is the Gills Creek Watershed Association.

Today, we're learning more with their executive director, Bailey Slice Parker.

Bailey, thanks so much for taking a little bit of time to explain about the Gills Creek Watershed Association.

And before we get started, we really need to go back to the beginning.

What exactly is a watershed and specifically Gills Creek watershed?

>> I'm so glad you asked.

What is a watershed?

So simply put, we can think of a watershed as just a precipitation catchment where wherever it rains, the water all drains down into one single body of water.

Terasa> And we all live in a watershed?

>> We do.

So a watershed can be as small as your backyard or even as large as the Mississippi River watershed, which covers like 40% of the contiguous United States.

Terasa> What about Gills Creek Watershed?

Is it a relatively large area?

Bailey> It is relatively large, especially since it's based on a creek.

So the Gills Creek watershed starts up around the Sesquicentennial State Park area just north of that, and goes all the way down through Forest Acres, through the city of Columbia, into the Congaree River.

So it covers a lot of area.

Terasa> Now, we're at a very particular location.

This is a location of a restoration project, the Crowson Road Restoration Project.

What was the motivation behind this project?

Bailey> So initially, this project was in our watershed management plan.

So the Gills Creek Watershed Association came up with a plan of priority projects and places that could use restoration and this was in that plan and had been for many years.

But the particular thing that changed was the flood of 2015.

Terasa> Oh my goodness, such devastation in many places with that tremendous flooding.

And it really did have an impact in this local area.

But on the bright side of things, it has led to this improvement project.

Bailey> Yes, it really made this a priority, not just for the community residents, but for the Gills Creek Watershed Association, City of Columbia and Richland County.

They really championed moving this project to the top of the list and putting the funding behind it that was needed to make it happen.

Terasa> Fantastic.

So we know a little bit of the why.

Let's talk about the what.

So, you've shared some information with me.

I believe there's kind of five benefits or goals associated with this.

So we'll kind of run through those, starting with encouraging native vegetation.

Bailey> Native plants are so important and for so many reasons.

The native plants that we used in this project were plants that would have evolved here in this space over millions of years.

So firstly, they're equipped to handle being inundated under flood or to handle times of drought, extreme heat, as we can see today.

Terasa> Yes, I think we picked the hottest day of the year.

Bailey> We certainly did.

But also they evolved with the insects and the wildlife that depend on them for food.

So they serve dual purposes.

Terasa> You are right, lots of benefits.

And then another goal is going to be to stabilize the banks along the creek and the... there is a pretty decent sized slope here, and without protection, it's going to wash into the creek.

Bailey> So we use mechanical ways to stabilize and also the vegetation itself.

So nature based solutions are such an important aspect of this.

And one of those are the rocks that we're standing on.

So we incorporate rocks into the creek bank to slow water down and stop erosion, but we also use the plants themselves.

These native plants have roots that go deep into the ground.

The roots act as the rebar and they really stabilize the soil.

Terasa> How would a good analogy like the rebar within human built structure.

Bailey> Exactly.

They really serve same purpose.

Terasa> And as you mentioned, even though there are kind of five overarching goals, we're getting multiple benefits from the different things that have been implemented.

So these rock structures are also slowing down the water and that less velocity means less chance it's going to move that soil down into the creek.

Now, along with that storm water runoff, we see bacteria levels that become a problem.

In fact, bacteria pollution is the number one reason that our streams are impaired in South Carolina.

So what are we doing here to work on that?

Bailey> So here we have slowed the water down somewhat.

So in these particular rock shoots, we have these steps where the water hits each individual step and slows down.

But probably what the viewers can't see is that there are gaps and there are smaller rocks incorporated into the back sides of these steps.

As the water flows down, it is allowed to infiltrate into the soil where our soil, microbes and fungus and native plants can actually filter that water.

So it adds to the groundwater as pure, cleaner water as opposed to just going immediately into the creek and becoming potentially flood water and also polluted with bacteria.

Terasa> So we're helping helping those natural processes to occur, even though this is a man-made structure and slowing that water down, allowing it time to infiltrate, which is also going to have a benefit with reducing some flooding because we're not having that go directly into this creek where it could cause that water level to rise.

Bailey> Yes, As you as we talked earlier, we are in a developed urbanized spot.

So everywhere around us is covered in pavement and impervious surfaces.

Terasa> That's a fancy term.

We might need to talk a little bit about.

Bailey> Non-Porous So porous surfaces allow the water to infiltrate, allow it to seep in.

The impervious surfaces, just wash the water right off.

So it immediately goes right to the creek.

If the creek rises, we have a flood.

Terasa> Yes.

And that can be dangerous.

Bailey> Absolutely.

Terasa> Very dangerous for us.

So there are so many motivating factors that lead to a project like this that we also need to mention.

We want to encourage aquatic habitat.

Bailey> Yeah.

Terasa> So there are things that you have done to- There are some rock vein structures, I believe, that are kind of going to agitate that water, providing necessary oxygen for critters that live in the creek.

The rock veins agitate the water, so increase the oxygen level, but they also slow the water down and just having a little spot to hide behind for those macroscopic or microscopic little creatures just increases the diversity of the wildlife and the biology in our creek.

Terasa> And even though we might not see things today, this creek is a corridor along which various forms of wildlife might travel, and why is that important?

Especially in our urbanized areas?

Bailey> So we have so much space that's built up and urbanized and humans are taking up as much space as possible.

But within that urban space, we have the Forest Acres, the lakes, Arcadia lakes upstream of Gill's Creek, and then downstream of Gills Creek we have Congaree River and eventually Congaree National Park.

So the wildlife that could call these larger green spaces home can use Gills Creek Corridor as a way to travel safely without impacting humans or being impacted usually by humans in these spaces.

Terasa> Now this project is it's relatively small scale in the grand scheme of things but would be large scale for an individual citizen, but I understand you... there are actions people can take like your Watershed Champion program.

Bailey> Yeah, it can be overwhelming when you think about so many problems all at once.

So the best solution is to take small steps on an individual scale to make things better.

So we created our Watershed Champion program to show people exactly how to do that.

So for you and me, maybe we have already incorporated these healthy watershed aspects into our yards ourselves, the native plants, the impervious surfaces, maybe having a rain garden, and also providing food habitat and shelter for wildlife.

So the application to become a certified wildlife champion walks you through those steps and whenever you are certified, you can apply and get a sign that you hang in your yard and show your neighbors and your friends exactly what you're doing in your yard to help create a healthier watershed, and maybe they would be inspired to do the same.

Terasa> Fantastic.

It really is, it can be overwhelming.

But there are so many things just an individual person can do and then collectively their efforts really make a difference.

Thank you so much for giving us just a little glimpse of the Gills Creek Watershed Association.

It's been enlightening, learning about your endeavors, and I wish you the best of luck as you continue through the future.

Bailey> Thank you, Terasa.

It was an honor to speak with you.

♪ ♪ Amanda> It's really wonderful that people are finding ways to keep our waterways clean and protect all the things that rely on them for life.

Good for...good for Gills Creek Watershed.

So I think, do we have a question?

Katie> Yeah, we have another mystery item and a photo for Paul to identify.

So it looks like maybe an egg case of some kind.

Paul> That's what it is.

And that happens to be the egg case of our native Carolina Mantid, and it's...it's recognizable because it's much flatter.

It's also got that little white area across the very back and another one that you will see a lot of is the Chinese Mantid egg case.

So the Chinese Mantid has been here in the United States for a long time.

>> Why don't you put it down on the desk >> They get much larger.

>> and aim it towards the camera.

Thank you.

>> They get about twice the size of the Carolina Mantid and of course, they would just as soon make the Carolina Mantid another meal as anything else.

But you know, they, they seem to coexist.

But, you know, Mantids are general as feeders.

And so they're going to you know, it doesn't matter what it is.

It's not like they just only feed on the bad bugs.

They feed on good ones, too.

But they're certainly amazing insects.

It's about the only insect that can rotate its head about 180 degrees.

>> Whoa!

Paul> But, you know, the...Chinese Mantid egg case is a lot bulkier looking.

It looks like it's made out of foam, like spray foam.

But there's going to be several hundred eggs in it.

They hatch out when the weather gets warm.

I learned the hard way, though.

The first house we ever lived in, the first Christmas, and we went and bought, cut a Christmas tree.

I was putting it in the tree stand outside after cutting the stem off the base of the trunk off and I found a praying mantis egg case on one of the branches.

And I was a Clemson student at the time and I went inside and just spouting off all this knowledge I had.

And I said, "Hey, look, Daphne, this is a praying mantis egg case on our tree."

And she said, "You better get that out of here."

And I said, "Don't worry.

"They don't hatch until the spring."

And then about two days later, there were baby preying mantis all over the house.

Hannah> What if you have them in your pocket?

You just pulled it out of your pocket.

You had them.

Paul> No.

They haven't hatched yet.

(All laugh) But anyway, they're they're fantastic insects I always, you know, enjoy watching them and stuff the way they hunt their prey.

And, you know, they're still good to have around.

>> Oh, good!

Fun.

Fun.

Bill, we have about a minute left.

But this is so pretty.

Let's squeeze it in.

Bill> This is a variegated flax lily.

And it's deep shade.

He'll go down in the deep shade.

An evergreen.

And I use this, somebody's got a front door.

You got two containers on either side of the front door and a...and a and a roof over it.

And you're getting that deep shade.

This shows up nice in the darkness of that deep shade on your front step.

And having it be evergreen it can hold a pot by itself or have some ivy hanging out of the bottom.

And...and it does send up little flower spikes that have little sort of yellow and white butterfly flowers on it.

Amanda> Say the name again.

Bill> It's a variegated flax lily.

Amanda> Flax?

Like flax.

Bill> Flax.

Amanda> Okay.

Boy, that is so handsome.

And...and...and shade?

Bill> Shade.

Morning sun, but, it's nice that it shines in deep shade.

Amanda> Okay, well, thank you all for shining with us tonight.

We appreciate it so very, very much.

And I hope we'll see you all next week.

Bye.

Bye.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Narrator> Making It Grow is brought to you in part by Certified South Carolina.

This cooperative effort among farmers, retailers and the South Carolina Department of Agriculture helps consumers identify foods and agricultural products that are grown, harvested or raised right here in the Palmetto State.

Mcleod Farms in McBee, South Carolina, family owned and operated since 1916.

This family farm offers seasonal produce, including over 40 varieties of peaches.

Wesley Commons, a full service continuing care retirement community located on more than 150 wooded acres in Greenwood, South Carolina.

Additional funding provided by the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation and Farm Bureau Insurance.

And Boone Hall Farms.