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.

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

We're so glad you can be with us tonight.

I'm Amanda McNulty, and I am a Clemson Horticulture Agent.

And I'm here with my co-host, Terasa Lott.

Terasa, I just don't think I can do the show without you.

You bring so much pizzazz and you know how to do things so well.

And now you are a fancy administrator.

(laughter) Terasa> Thank you.

It is a pleasure to be here, to be part of the show.

And one of the most amazing things is to be out and about in the state and to have people come up to me and say how much they enjoy the show, our panelists, and of course, you and your hats, especially, (laughter) Amanda> Well, it is nice to think that we hopefully bring some joy to people's lives.

Stephanie Turner, you have come down here from Greenwood, and I'm always interested in what your artistic son is doing.

Stephanie> Oh, thank you.

Yeah, well, he's a sophomore now in high school, and he's doing an animation class.

Amanda> Come on.

He's very artistic.

<Yeah> And then, you've got, you had...

When we were doing things back in the day, we'd see your kitty cat walking all over your keyboard, and I think now you get an extra kitty cat.

Stephanie> Yeah, two kitty cats, and they were a big hit over trick or treating.

Amanda> Oh, they were?

Stephanie> Yeah, all the trick or treaters could see them in the window.

They were watching the kids, and the kids were watching them.

Amanda> That's fun.

Did you get a good many trick or treaters?

Stephanie> No, not as many as I would have liked this year.

Yeah.

Amanda> Aww.

But I think people are kind of going back to trick or treating a little bit, which is fun.

Stephanie> Yeah, I say trunk or treat is where it's at.

<Yeah> A Nice trunk or treat event, safe and everything.

Amanda> Hannah Mikell, and Hannah is unusual in many, many wonderful ways.

But most of the people who work with field crop agents, people who grow corn and wheat and all that are often, men and- Hannah> Of the older generation.

Amanda> Of the older generation, Yeah.

And, here you are.

We're so excited.

Hannah> Make it fun, entertaining.

Yeah.

It's fun, I like it.

Amanda> And, you, recently have taken Sean to see somebody who was doing some butter beans, I think.

Tell me about that.

Hannah> Butter beans.

After my maiden name, there's also a Watts Pea.

That's...

I guess brought over years and years ago and have been cultivated here by the Watts family.

Amanda> Come on.

<Yeah> Hannah> And then we did peanuts.

We've got a lot of stuff coming up, really good things.

Amanda> Yeah, we love it when you come.

And agriculture's the biggest part of South Carolina's economy.

Hannah> That's right.

Amanda> I think it's real important that you come on.

Hannah> Yeah.

We got to protect our farmers.

Amanda> Yes, yes, we, we most certainly, certainly do.

And then, from Boone Hall Plantation and Gardens, we have Katie Dickson.

You are the Director of Horticulture.

<Yes> Amanda> That sounds pretty impressive.

Katie> Thank you so much for having me today.

Amanda> And we love to come down and see you.

What you've done, and you do not just that one big, beautiful part in front of the house, but all over the place you're putting things in.

So everywhere you walk.

Katie> Thank you for mentioning that.

Yes, our horticulture is widespread throughout the 700 plus acres, so we stay busy.

But I have a team of ten full time, very dedicated horticulturists to get it done.

Amanda> And, also, I think that, it's wonderful that, that whole area, that whole complex is now on a conservation easement.

Katie> Absolutely Amanda> How fabulous.

Katie> That is such a blessing.

So it will always be there and be a jewel for Mount Pleasant.

<Yes> Amanda> So, we're gonna have some fun things for y'all to see.

We went to the Charleston Flower Show with Trish Bender, which started off with kind of a funny way.

Trish and I were kind of old hippies at the beginning of the show.

It was fun.

But also the things that people had done were just fabulous.

And then, you know, we've had so many trees that have been sadly, we've lost recently.

And, we're having Michael Murphy, who's a, National Certified Arborist, come on and explain how, if you should prune trees, if you do prune trees, how it should be done.

Unfortunately, often it's done incorrectly, making the trees more likely to fail.

So you don't want a tree to fall on your house.

I had one fall on my house, and it had not been pruned incorrectly.

It was just unfortunate.

Anyway, didn't do too much damage.

Thank you.

Goodness.

Anyway, so, Terasa always starts us off with something fun, and those are "Gardens of the Week" that our viewers have sent in to you, I think Terasa.

Terasa> You are right.

This has become so much fun.

It's your chance to shine.

Show us what you're doing in your yard, your garden, or one of South Carolina's many beautiful places.

Today we begin with Chanda Cooper, who sent us a captivating photo of a cotton field at Cooper Family Farms or, as she described it, "a landscape with high fiber content."

(laughter) Amanda> That's a hoot.

Terasa> Isn't that a good one.

From Pamela Talbert, Thanksgiving Cactus in flower, which, I know the panel is aware that's a personal favorite of mine.

From Jane Sanders, we have a fasciated sunflower, which was a volunteer.

And that topic of fasciation was something we talked about on a recent show.

From Cindy and Bob Lussier, we have great color contrast, with a monarch visiting some asters.

So that vibrant orange on top of the purple.

And last but not least, Debra Swagel sent us a fall wreath that she made from grapevine and incorporated some deer antlers.

How creative.

Thanks to all of you that shared your photographs, this is just a random sampling.

Additional submissions can be seen on the Making It Grow Facebook page, so I encourage you to visit.

And when you see a call for "Gardens of the Week," don't be shy, just post your photos right there in the comments.

Amanda> And I think, Terasa, you said it doesn't have to be something in your yard if you, if there's like a beautiful tree downtown or something that you see... sometimes people will send things like that, I believe.

Terasa> They do.

Really, the sky is the limit.

We call it "Gardens of the Week" but it could be something you've harvested and then made.

We've had people send in jellies that they've made.

It could be your harvest of produce.

It might be one of the, you know, beautiful places at like, a state park, downtown.

Anything that you find interesting and somewhat related to horticulture.

Amanda> Okay.

Thanks so much.

Well, being related to horticulture, is there someone who has a question?

And maybe we can help them.

Terasa> There is, our first question today comes in from Diane in Greenwood, who said, "I lost a large tree due to Hurricane Helene.

Can I use the wood chips in the garden?"

Amanda> Oh.

Well, organic matter is certainly good for, for the soil.

What do you think?

Stephanie> Oh yeah, so we lost a lot of big old trees with Helene- Amanda> But, you know, a little tree grows fast.

Stephanie> Yeah.

That's right.

Amanda> You don't have to go buy a real expensive one.

<Yeah> This is a good time to plant.

Stephanie> Yeah, it is.

This is the perfect time to plant a new tree.

Amanda> But what about all these wood chips?

Stephanie> If you have the wood chips and the materials not being hauled off, maybe you've got to stump ground or the wood chip, you know, drop in your yard.

They're, they make a good mulch, so you can use them in your perennial beds around trees and shrubs.

You can do two to three inches with that.

Amanda> Okay.

Stephanie> Yeah.

Of course, don't pile mulch up against the trunk.

We've always talked about that, no mulch volcanoes.

But you don't want to incorporate it in, in your annuals beds or your vegetable gardens.

Amanda> You don't?

Stephanie> No because that fresh mulch material, will cause, like, a nitrogen lock.

Amanda> Oh, because it's got to decompose Stephanie> It spreads, it's breaking down, it kind of sucks out all that nitrogen, Amanda> But it's fine to use it, you know, around your woody perennials and all that kind of stuff.

Stephanie> Makes a great natural mulch.

It'll break down, you know, slowly.

It won't interrupt anything.

And don't try to use the mulch as a fill for the hole, to go ahead and back, plant your tree.

I've been getting that question a lot.

Because that's organic material, it's going to break down.

So if you planted that tree in nothing but organic material, it's going to sink.

Amanda> Sink.

Yeah.

Stephanie> Right.

Amanda> It ends up like being... we had somebody who had, bought these real expensive trees.

They called one of the agents, and, he put, like, you know, $300 worth of stuff.

And then he bought expensive trees, and the trees were like, sitting in a bowl of cereal.

Stephanie> Aww.

There's no structure there.

Amanda> Yeah, yeah, yeah.

So, anyway, sometimes it's good not to, not to overdo it.

Stephanie> Yeah, It's not a good fill for, like, a landscape.

Amanda> And I think one thing, if people are replanting, we should remind them, that they should figure out where the root ball is and then not make the hole any deeper than that.

Is that correct?

Stephanie> That's right.

And in some cases, you know, you can even plant it up higher.

It's easier to plant it up higher than to go to deep.

Amanda> But better.

Stephanie> Yeah for sure.

Amanda> And I think sometimes you can tease the roots apart and be sure there are no encircling roots, and things like that.

Stephanie> You can prune the roots, you can root wash too and really see what's going on in that root ball before you install that tree.

That can help you find those circling or girdling or crossing roots those trouble areas.

Amanda> I think right now, with so many people, replacing trees, it'd be a good time Terasa, to to visit the Home and Garden Center.

I believe we probably have a fact sheet.

Terasa> We sure do, lots about, planting trees correctly, tree maintenance as well.

So, I mean, HGIC really is a wealth of resources.

If you just use your favorite search engine and look for it.

And also remind our viewers that you can reach, home horticulture agents at HGIC, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at (8-8-8) 6-5-6-9-9-8-8.

Amanda> Good for you.

<Yeah> I would have to write that- Terasa> I've said that just a few times.

(laughter) Hannah> A plus!

Amanda> Well, who else can we help, Terasa?

Terasa> Let's see who else is on our list.

We are going to move to the Bluffton area.

Amanda sent a question.

You know we're always talking about the importance of soil sampling.

And Amanda said "Is there a certain time of the year I should get my soil tested?"

Amanda> What do you think?

Hannah> You know, for our row crop growers, we like to take a sample right after harvest because if not we end up having a lot of, just debris on the field.

<Oh> If, if we just harvested then we can get in and easily walk and scout where our areas are.

And so with row crop growers, I know it's kind of... in your mind conceptualize in your garden where your most fruitful part of your garden was, right?

Well, we like to think of that as a variable rate.

And so we go out and we sample in areas we know are extremely profitable.

And we try to cross relate that to the soil type actually.

And we then can soil type maybe if we know we have a 60 acre field, 30 acres of that is super profitable.

And we can sample that and, apply fertilizer differently than we would to the other parts, right?

Amanda> Because you're going to get more return from it.

Hannah> Yeah.

Yeah.

So just in a garden, I'm guess, I'm assuming that's where she is in Bluffton.

But I would, I would sample your garden after your harvest.

You can do it early season too.

But going into, if we just finished maybe harvesting in August, September, go ahead and sample now.

You get your results back, you're not having to wait, as long as what you might be at the springtime, we have an influx of samples- Amanda> -it kinda piles up.

Hannah> And, your soil is still active and alive at that point when we get down below, like 55 degrees with our soil temperature, it kind of becomes, less active.

You can still sample them, but, water also will adjust that.

And generally we have more water, more rain during that time of year than our winter months.

So we've seen the pH can fluctuate with more water.

So when you take a soil sample, sample it after you get finished harvesting, your garden's kind of done.

And then when you get your results back, you can lime.

Takes a little while depending on your screening size of your lime, how large the particles are to break down and adjust the pH.

And then you can go in and fertilize just before you, you plant, maybe 30 days before.

I thought that was interesting, that question you had about the, the wood chips because you can, like with poultry litter, we apply a lot of poultry litter on our row crop farms.

So whenever we do that we would do it in enough time for it to decompose.

<Oh> So I mean, if I don't know, I can't speak to, you know, horticulture type stuff necessarily, but if I was using wood chips in any capacity, maybe as more of organic matter filler.

I'd want it to go through a heat, so it's not robbing that nitrogen I'm about to put out- Amanda> Oh, yes.

Hannah -Right?

But I would also incorporate it and do it well ahead of time.

Just like we do with poultry litter.

Amanda> Okay.

Stephanie> Just compost it.

Hannah> Yeah, yeah compost.

Amanda> And then, all the county extension offices have the bags for you.

And I think you can, find all the directions.

Hannah> Yeah.

They're $6, to mail off the sample.

A lot of them now because of Covid, we have a drop off sites.

So you could drop them off.

Just let them know you put it in the drop off box.

Some of these offices, and then you can have it mailed to you.

The results for $3.

Email's quite efficient though too.

Amanda> Yeah, yeah.

It's an invaluable service.

And I think Clemson offers it at extremely, discounted- Hannah> Affordable rate.

Yeah.

Amanda> We really encourage people to do this, and it's going to save them money because they won't waste time putting fertilizer that they don't need out.

Hannah> And if you're like our, our guest today, if you've got acres of roses, you can actually elect like what you're going to- Amanda> Of course.

Hannah> -want your results for.

Amanda> Well we do know, Katie Dickson, that roses are every, many people's favorite flowers, but, they are not the easiest of things to grow in the hot and humid conditions of South Carolina.

So how do you manage to get all these pretty roses down there?

Katie> Yeah.

So today I just wanted to kind of bring along, a smattering of both kind of old world antique roses, as well as some modern fun, durable hybrids that aren't quite so fussy and don't need so much, you know, product or manicuring per se.

So, Yeah, I just brought a couple here in front that I wanted to highlight with you.

Amanda, this guy in the middle right here, this is one of my favorites.

From the mid 1800's.

It's called Duchesse de Brabant.

Yes, my French is not good, but I'm doing my best.

But I do love that it has, like, the most pale, faintest pink kind of flush to it.

It's very fragrant.

Amanda> A little tiny bit more colorful as you get towards the edge.

Katie> Yes.

Kind of centered there.

And, it's very perfumed.

I wish the viewers could have "smell-o-vision."

Amanda> Can I?

Katie> Sure, yes there you go.

Yes, and because of its lovely perfume, and it's just so beautiful.

It was said that, President Teddy Roosevelt used to put a bud or a blossom in his lapel daily, so part of his kind of gentlemanly attire.

So I like that anecdote.

Amanda> That's really sweet.

Now these, there's a certain kind of rose that we kind of associate with Charleston.

The Noisette or something.

Katie> So yes, the Noisette class of roses classification, is really a feather in, Charleston's horticultural cap, if you will.

We're very proud of that.

Because, essentially it is a class of roses bred by, two French brothers, plantsmen, along with a farmer named John Champneys.

And they crossed, two roses and made this, wonderful kind of legacy of small flowered typically, dainty smaller flowered roses that have excellent, fragrance and, beautiful petal formation.

And, they're quite lovely.

And we have about seven or eight distinct Noisette varieties in the collection at Boone Hall.

Amanda> Well, let's go on to another one.

Katie> Certainly.

So, yes, this guy over here, is called Sombreuil.

Amanda> Well, I think if it's a rose, we're going to call it this girl over here.

Katie> I like that.

Yes.

This lady over here.

Amanda> Point to her again.

Katie> Thank you.

So, she is Sombreuil.

This is a beautiful fast climbing variety, <Ooo> that I specifically chose to scramble over a, rose tunnel that we've recently installed.

Amanda> You told us you were working on that.

We're so excited.

Katie> Thank you.

Yes.

So, you've highlighted that in the past, with us.

And, so it's doing really well, and it has this really lovely, almost like, peach cream, tone.

And it's very ruffly, almost cabbage like in appearance, I would say.

And a faint aroma as well.

Amanda> So you think it's just going to make its way up over this, artifice that you've constructed?

Katie> That is the hope.

It's a very popular spot for bridal portraits and, you know, family, engagements and all those big milestones.

And so we try to create these kind of, you know, moments for our visitors.

So so that's doing very well for us.

Amanda> And then this is just so pretty.

I've just been admiring it the whole time.

Katie> She is, very lovely and lush and vibrant.

That is Blossomtime.

And that is more of a modern climber.

And she came around in the 1950's, so introduced a little bit later, but, lovely fragrance.

The maybe only thing that I have to be careful of is she's extremely thorny.

It's like five alarm thorns on those.

I think it's worth it.

You know, roses have their thorns.

Amanda> We don't want anybody's bridal veil getting caught- Katie> -correct.

So she is actually... kind of set back in the garden where it's not an issue and it's not going to impale my guests, so.

Amanda> Oh, gosh.

Hannah> I wanna smell this one.

Amanda> Okay, and then I think you've got, maybe you said these are perhaps more modern roses.

Katie> Correct.

And so, I think the viewers can probably pick up on that, they're very vibrant, extremely vivid colors.

And the thought is that sometimes in more modern breeding practices, certain genetics might be sacrificed, for others, so- <fragrance> So these are not so perfumy.

A lot of times I, you know, I feel a little bad when a child leans in and sniffs and goes "waa-waa."

(laughter) It's a little disappointing.

However, they tend to be more disease resistant or everblooming or again, have this shocking color.

Amanda> You know, y'all have pretty, pretty great weather most of the year down there.

How often, are roses in bloom frequently during the year at Boone Hall.

Katie> I'm glad you asked.

We are very fortunate to have a nearly four seasons garden.

The climate is very balmy and, warm and forgiving.

And so, with two, I would say two, seasonal fertilizations in spring and early fall, we're able to just get a huge bloom window almost year round.

Even to the point on Christmas Eve day, I've gone in briefly to check, you know, irrigation or something and realized, wow, I'm surrounded by a fully blooming rose garden.

Amanda> So, one of my people who are helping us just said to me that maybe we should call it "Bloom Hall."

(laughter) Katie> I like that.

...need a little rebranding.

Amanda> More, more pressure on you.

Katie> Yeah, no pressure.

<Okay> But certainly, so, yeah.

And I just wanted to point out these are two that performed really well for us in particular above the rest.

The yellow is called Gilded Sun, and this is Sweet Mademoiselle.

So two favorites.

Amanda> Okay.

That's terrific.

Well, thank you so much.

Katie> Of course.

Amanda> Very nice little vases.

Katie> Thank you.

Amanda> Okay.

Terasa> I may have stolen one down here.

(laughter) Katie> She migrated.

Amanda> Oh, is that one of the fragrant ones?

Yeah.

Okay.

Well, this is perfect to segue into, the Charleston Flower Show with Trish Bender.

And the, theme was "Peace, Love and Flower Power."

So it was kind of a throwback to, the old times that I remember from when I was in college.

So let's watch and see what a fun time we had down there.

♪ ♪ Amanda> I'm in Ladson, South Carolina near Charleston, talking to Trish Bender.

And there is a flower show of great proportions going on here.

This is so exciting.

Thanks for letting us come.

Trish> I'm so glad to have you here, Amanda.

It's always a fun day with you around.

This is the Coastal Carolina Fairgrounds that we're in, and our flower show is sponsored by the Council of Garden Clubs of Greater Charleston, which are the 13 local clubs in our area.

Amanda> And you need everybody because this is such a big job.

Tell us about all the things that, there are different sections, things going on here.

Trish> This flower show is huge.

It's one of the biggest in the state of South Carolina.

So we have to co-sponsor this show by the Exchange Club, which is the group that runs the fair.

The flower show event this weekend is actually three events in one.

It is a flower show called "Peace, Love and Flower Power."

Amanda> All righty.

Trish> I know we got to love that one, right?

We're taking it all the way back to 1969.

The second show is a horticulture specialty show and that is called "Give Peace a Chance."

And there's going to be a lot of plants and fun stuff that, is involved on that side of the room.

The other event is "Can You Dig It" And is all the local plant vendors, gardening vendors and local mom and pop kind of Etsy growers.

that are going to be out in the parking lot all weekend.

Amanda> So, if somebody sees something that they love, they can go see if they can find someone who's got it.

Trish> Absolutely.

That's the plan.

Amanda> Yeah.

Great.

Trish> Takes about a year to plan this.

We come up with a theme that we know will be fun, exciting and invigorating to the public.

Because this whole point is to educate the public on what can grow and what you can do with what you can grow.

So the flower show on the design side has a whole bunch of wacky, hippie, groovy, titles.

Amanda> Well, let's get started on some of them.

Trish> Okay, well like the first one is called "Psychedelic."

And when you think of psychedelic from a designer's perspective, you're thinking of bright colors that are going to pop and a lot of movement and a lot of in and out.

So when the designer approaches something like that, they want to use components that are going to also do that, give it depth and give it movement and lots of rhythm.

A lot of times when people design, they design really flat.

And what we're looking for is sculpture.

<Yes> Which is movement.

And you want your eye to go through something and that does it very well.

Amanda> Okay.

And then what class is next please.

Trish> "Purple Haze."

All right.

You hear Jimi Hendrix playing in your head.

Yeah, well Purple Haze is going to be all about color.

Amanda> Yes.

Trish> And contrast.

And so you're not going to just show up with purple because purple doesn't show up really well.

You've got to pop it with like that yellow that you're wearing.

Amanda> Okay.

And what's the next one?

Trish> The next one is called "Flowers On the Wall."

And this one's really hard because a designer has to use a backboard and they have to design on the backboard.

So the design that you're going to see has lots of movement, lots of movement coming off that wall and spinning around.

Amanda> And then you got a teeny tiny little fix.

Trish> I know isn't that the most fun.

<It is.> That's called a petite class or a petite section.

And those are either 5 inch, 8 inch or 12 inch designs.

So the designer has to really think in small increments and proportion and scale.

Amanda> Because you can't use a great big flower.

So they have to have access or alter a flower sometimes for that.

Trish> Exactly.

So in the first couple of designs you want to go big and bold, and then you still want that bold, but you have to do it in miniature.

(laughter) Amanda> And I'm just going to say you've had some wonderful people making submissions.

I think it's been so much fun.

And after that we have another class.

Trish> We have Botanical Arts Division, and that takes flowers in a completely different direction and uses them as artistic media.

So you use them like to make jewelry or you make a headdress or they're more practical applications.

Amanda> Part of this is, we're down near Charleston where everybody loves to eat, and you've got things that are set up to be judged for picnics and having dinners and things.

Trish> Oh that's true, our table class and design division.

Yeah.

So there's one that's called "Here Comes the Sun."

So you have to make a little breakfast tray like you're taking it to your... Amanda> Sweetheart.

Trish> Yeah, there you go.

And it has to again, be in scale and has to be able to be carried.

<Yeah> And there's a little decorative floral design in there.

Amanda> And then, I think there's some where people got to bring out some fancier China.

Trish> Absolutely.

There's a romantic table for two.

<Yeah> And that's called "Love Story," of course.

So, it's like you're going to sit down with your sweetheart and propose.

Amanda> And then you have picnics, which when the weather's perfect, everyone loves to go on a picnic.

Trish> Everyone loves to go on a picnic, but most people don't really think about how they set up a picnic.

So this gives people great ideas on what they can do on their own home.

Amanda> And it's fun to see how they come up with ideas really look like, this is might be what you would have if you went on a picnic.

Trish> Exactly.

And that class is called "Daisy Jane."

So you immediately think you're going to sit down and put daisies for your hair like you love to do.

Amanda> Then you've got an educational component, I think.

Trish> Every flower show must have educational exhibits to teach the public more about horticulture, and what they can grow.

So there's a great one back here called "Monocot versus Dicot," which a lot of people don't know, but I'm sure you talk about on your program.

Amanda> Well, and also, when we think about Monocots, we think about grasses, <Right> Yeah and palmetto trees.

<Right> But this, there's one arrangement that is just a fabulous, wonderful arrangement.

And everything in it is a Monocot.

A great way to learn about things.

Trish> Absolutely, and that's what Flower Show is all about.

Fun and learning.

Amanda> And then even within the horticultural exhibit, you've got some things that little children did.

Trish> Youth involvement is very important to Garden Club.

And so we always try to get the kids to grow and show as much as possible.

We have some adorable fairy gardens from ages like four to twelve.

So they're beautiful.

Amanda> And then, who doesn't want a swimming pool on a hot day?

But these pools are, filled with plants.

Trish> Oh my goodness.

We had some commercial growers come in and do display gardens that are absolutely blow your socks off gorgeous.

Amanda> Well, I think this whole show has been great, great fun.

The way everybody pitched together to put it together, y'all are blessed to have such a wonderful group volunteers.

Trish> Thank you so much.

We are truly blessed to be able to grow and show in South Carolina.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Amanda> Trish and I had a wonderful time, and I asked her where she got all the props.

She'd had them at her house.

So she, apparently saves things almost to the extent that my husband does.

Thank God, not quite as much.

Anyway, we've had such a good time, and, you'll be proud to hear this.

The Master Gardeners down that way in a couple of counties come and do, a huge job helping them take the entries and getting all the forms filled out.

So it just once again shows you the, power of, all these people who've taken this course and have decided, you know, they've made friends and become part of the community.

I just think it's wonderful.

Anyway, so we did have a good time.

And then hats, hats, hats.

You know, we've recently talked about things you could use instead of those... they're not awful, but they don't do well down here, Leyland Cypress, And having mixed hedges.

And I just love wax myrtle and, you know, it's a native and it smells real good.

And, that's where the bayberry, you know, candle- Terasa> Scent from the candles, yes.

<Yeah> Amanda> Apparently you have to pick up, like, a 50 gallon bucket, to get that much wax.

But, and you can share it.

I mean, not share it, but you can keep it, you know, reduce.

And I believe there's some shorter cultivars now, so I just think it'd be a wonderful thing to use.

I haven't looked up Terasa, if it's a larval food source or not, but it is a great plant.

Terasa> Not something I know off the top of my head.

Stephanie> -the berries, birds will enjoy the berries.

Amanda> Yeah.

There you go, there you go.

And then, my brother is, you know, Edward and I fuss all the time, and my friend Elizabeth comes she says, "Ah, it's just like..." she said now, She said "y'all are just like old, like married people.

It just reminds me of what married people are like."

But my brother and his wife, don't do that or I haven't ever seen it.

And he loves her so dearly, so he put a rose garden in for her.

<Oh> And I went up to visit him, and she sent these roses home to Edward.

Because Edward loves roses too.

So I thought that was kind of a fun thing.

>> They're beautiful.

Amanda> Yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

Anyway, life is curious.

Yeah.

Okay.

So, Terasa, what's coming up?

Terasa> Well, you were mentioning the important work that Master Gardeners do, and we have some arts and crafts supplies in front of us.

I believe Stephanie's going to share an activity that the Lakelands Master Gardeners have done at the iMAGINE Lakelands STEAM Festival Amanda> iMAGINE Lakelands... Stephanie> STEAM.

Amanda> Okay.

Which is.

Stephanie> So you've heard of STEM, right?

Education for young ones, science, technology, engineering Well, you stick an A in there for art.

And before you hit the M for math.

Amanda> Okay.

Fun.

fun, fun.

Stephanie> And so it's a big event, uptown Greenwood, every fall.

And they have all the local, companies and nonprofits come and do activities with the children.

Amanda> What fun and well attended.

Stephanie> Very well attended.

I think this is our fourth or fifth year that we had this past year.

Amanda> That's so exciting.

So the Master Gardeners always have a booth, and they usually pot up a little plant for the kids to take home.

Well, the kids pot up a plant and they have some sort of other activity.

And so we thought we'd learn about leaves this year.

Amanda> Well, I think that's important.

Since leaves... Stephanie> Yeah.

So we talked about the parts of a leaf with the children and how leaves have veins.

And they may have, netted veins or parallel veins.

And I would ask the children and the Master Gardeners would ask the children, you know, "We have blood in our veins, what do plants have in their veins?"

Amanda> Oh my goodness gracious.

Stephanie> They would be stunned and think about it, you know, what do they drink?

And they'd say "water," and I'm like yeah, yeah.

So we'd talk about the leaves a little bit, and then they'd pick their color and make this craft.

Which would be a great one to do at home too, with your children.

Real easy.

Amanda> Okay.

Well, are we going to try it.

Stephanie> Yeah, yeah.

So I guess the key is, pick a leaf that you're interested in.

<Okay> All of you all have a preleafed clipboard.

Amanda> I got one of my favorite leaves.

Stephanie> I like to use the clipboard.

Amanda> I got a post oak leaf.

I think it is.

Stephanie> I like to use a clipboard because it holds the paper in place, and it will hold the plant in place.

You kind of clip your plant onto the clipboard.

<Okay> And then you smooth a piece of paper on top.

And you want to make sure they understand to hold their crayons sideways.

Amanda> Really?

Stephanie> So we're doing a rubbing.

Right.

It'll come out better.

The textures will come out better through the paper than if they scribble on it.

Amanda> Really?

Okay.

Stephanie> Yeah.

So you hold your crayon sideways and just drag it across the paper, and you'll see some of the more prominent veins will come out first.

Amanda> Whoa, look at that.

Hannah> Look at my fern.

Amanda> Dang.

Stephanie> And you can do, long ways and then do some sideways, because if you hit the veins in between, they kind of impede the crayon a little bit.

So you kind of do all different directions, just not up and down.

(swishing sounds) Amanda> This is really cool.

Stephanie> And you can do two different colors.

You can add extra leaves.

Hannah> Okay I believe... Thanksgiving time when all the kids need to get out of the kitchen with the fun Uncles.

They go outside and find them a leaf.

<Yeah> And they can make placemats Amanda> Wouldn't that be fun?

Terasa> It's so easy to do and you can really tie in so many different aspects.

You talked about the veins.

You can talk about the leaf margins and have them describe.

My leaf has, serrated margins so that you can really feel that texture.

And I think you have maybe a smooth... Stephanie> I have parallel veins.

Yeah.

Hannah> Oh a ginkgo leaf would be really pretty.

Stephanie> That would be lovely... Maples are really pretty, too.

A tulip poplar.

Hannah> Yes, I like that one.

Terasa> And you don't have to use fresh crayons.

So you talked about the importance of using it sideways.

So you can take all of the little nubs that you have.

And then you don't mind that you're peeling off the label.

Amanda> And these were just regular crayons.

Like you just get- Stephanie> Just regular.

Yeah.

Nothing special.

<Yeah> We used to take our leftover crayons and melt them and make little, like, rainbow crayons.

Yeah.

Hannah> We did that.

Stephanie> -Do rainbow crayons.

Katie> Very sustainable.

I like that.

Yeah.

Stephanie> Yeah, yeah.

Amanda> This has been so much fun.

(laughter) Stephanie> Let's, everyone do a little- Terasa> Let our viewers take a look at our masterpieces.

Amanda> -see what my leaf looked like too, if that's okay.

>> Ooo, yeah.

I mean, just curiosity... Stephanie> Yeah, definitely.

Terasa> You know, you could even, let's say you had a kids table if you had, like the craft paper covering the entire table, they could just do it as, a mural.

<A mural> Hannah> That's an easy clean up, too.

Stephanie> Yeah for sure, just roll it up.

Amanda> Or if you had an old bed sheet, I guess you could either do- Hannah> Yeah, I like that... Amanda> That is just so much fun.

And, you know, you could even get a tablecloth.

And if your kids are young like yours and yours, he's, He wouldn't want to be described as young anymore.

But, you know, you could say this is a, you know... from Thanksgiving and such and such and such and such.

Wouldn't that be kind of fun?

Hannah> We've made aprons.

We take, not aprons, you can do those, but the little tea towels.

<Yeah> And I'll take cookie cutters and, and do like, dip them and paint.

But we go outside to do all that.

But leaves I think would be much better.

<Yeah> I think that would be lots of fun.

>> I like that idea.

Amanda> I'm just so glad we got to do that.

Thank you.

Stephanie> It was a big hit at the festival, they loved it.

Yeah.

Amanda> Okay.

Well, that was, that was really fun.

Okay.

Well, Terasa, I bet it won't be quite as fun, but, maybe it's a problem, but if it is, we will try to help someone.

Terasa> You know, Hannah, recently traveled to North Carolina, to help out with some of the hurricane relief efforts.

So I was hoping she might share that with us and with our viewers at home.

Hannah> Yeah, yeah, it was really heartfelt.

But I got a chance to go on day six and seven with some actual farmers who have banded together, and they, this is, besides the fact of the livestock center that I worked at.

But the first trip I went on, we actually dropped supplies via drones.

Amanda> So excuse me a minute, you weren't taking canned food or things to people.

You were trying to get food to... ...animals.

Hannah> The first time I went, I did that with people.

The second time I did do it for animals.

<Okay> Hannah> Yeah yeah.

So it was really cool.

So the first time we went, we dropped supplies, and with drones, to people that we couldn't get to.

So early times, you know, they didn't have roads at all.

But now they've got some of our infrastructures back.

I mean, it's amazing what the communities have pulled together to do.

It's just, makes you feel like- Amanda> -in spite of sadness.

Hannah> Yeah.

Like humanity is, is rebuilding.

And they're finding like, their second wind and it's so encouraging.

And the strength of these people, I mean, these mountain folks are either they're transplanted or they've grown up there, all their life.

They've had, you know, a couple horses, maybe ten, twelve head of cows, flocks of poultry.

And a lot of their fences have been washed away, especially, you know, you have livestock in that bottom land, and there's all these little nooks and crannies in the mountains where we have some flat areas and it might have a ten acre pasture.

But when the water came through, all of the debris, gathered up and their fence posts and it just pulled them all out from the ground.

But with the help of the North Carolina Extension Service and other, like, Clemson has also volunteered.

That's how I had the opportunity to go.

They have these regional distribution centers, and I was at one of the largest, it was in Newland, North Carolina.

It's way up in the mountains.

And there was truck drivers bringing in some loads of hay.

Yeah, one morning I got there and three, and it made me want to cry a little bit because there's three Mississippi folks that pulled up.

You know, I'm from Mississippi.

I wanted to give them a big ol' bear hug, but they had, three tractor trailer loads of hay they brought.

Amanda> No!

Hannah> Yep.

Amanda> So these people from all over- Hannah> All over the country.

Amanda> Yeah, realized that, you know, all these animals, livestock animals and chickens and all, that they needed food.

Hannah> Yeah, yeah.

I talked to one grower, he had 200 bales of hay.

You know, they would have put it near the pond or not near the pond, but near their, their shed in that bottom area.

All the 200 loads got washed away, of round bales.

So that would have taken- Amanda> Whoa, round bales are huge.

Hannah> He had like 60 head of cattle that would have taken him through part of the winter.

And we have had a, you know, a dry summer.

So they didn't have as much hay.

So they would eventually bought some, but all of those were gone.

These are six foot, five foot bales, huge bales, all gone.

And so his dad actually came up, he was 85 years old.

He helped me throw sacks of feed 55 or 50 pound sacks of feed load up his truck.

He had goats and sheep and cows.

And I got to talking with him, He said, you know, my son is, he's got a bunch of cows and, and he hadn't had a chance to go and check on his other house up in the mountains.

But he's like right here where it was very strongly effected by the water.

<Yes> What are we going to do?

And I said, "well give me his number, we'll call him."

The National Guard's there, they volunteered to go and take the hay to him.

Amanda> So he wouldn't and these cows, wouldn't starve to death.

Hannah> No, no.

Their neighbor had banded together.

They couldn't get the hay to the actual location, they were able to get another farmer that was nearby to unload the hay for him.

I mean, you got to think- Amanda> Because maybe that truck was too big.

And so they had to put it in something smaller because the roads were still occluded.

Yeah, but they, they not only have the cattle producers been affected, but, you know, people who just had backyard poultry houses.

There was at least ten in a day that I would talk to that would come up and say "the roof was blown off" or "I don't have fencing anymore."

And not only did we have the poultry food, we were able to get specialty poultry in some cases for like wild, you know, like ducks and geese and that, but not geese, but turkeys and whatnot, rabbits, all types of stuff.

And we were able to help them fix, we didn't actually go and do it, but we were able to give them the supplies to rebuild their, the roof, their, you know, their little, compounds that they had, where all of their poultry would go out into the run.

And yeah, it was so heart warming.

And the amount of hugs that I got, it just, it was, it was wonderful.

Amanda> And that Clemson encouraged y'all and <yeah> made it possible for y'all to do this.

<Yeah> That makes me proud of our institution as well.

That we- Hannah> It is.

Yeah.

It was a, it was a wonderful time to to come together with not only like part of the National Guard, USDA was there, other extension services, across North Carolina and South Carolina.

Amanda> Well, good for you darling.

Hannah> Thank you.

Amanda> Whoa, I don't know what I'm sitting next to, but I guess we better examine it and talk about it.

Katie> Surely.

Okay.

Well, Amanda, I brought with me some fun crotons, that we display.

Amanda> Aren't they fun?

Katie> There's so fun.

We displayed, several varieties all through, our kind of harvest season for tourism, and for, various decoration throughout the plantation.

But I just wanted to point out a few of my favorite varieties.

So this is a croton called Magnificent, and I just love that it has.

Amanda> I think it deserves that title.

Katie> It's Magnificent.

It's got this kind of dappled, almost like splatter paint, patterning to it.

And some of the leaves are almost like hot pink, red, and black all at the same time.

So kind of fun there.

Amanda> And these are wonderful things to put out... We had somebody who came on the show and was showing how she was using them with pumpkins, to make fall displays, and I just thought it was the coolest looking thing in the world.

Katie> I agree with that.

Absolutely.

So this guy, is a croton, a very interesting texture here.

Nice kind of like, needle like foliage.

And it's called either Picasso or Paintbrush.

But very unusual texture.

Because I think, I think most viewers are probably used to the typical Petra croton.

<Yeah> Which is that- Amanda> which is still attractive.

<very attractive> This is the craziest looking thing I've ever seen.

Katie> This is a little otherworldly for sure.

To me, it almost looks like a sea coral or something.

Amanda> I mean, because individual leaves are different, I mean, they're it's not like one is...

I mean, within one leaf you've got orange and red and green.

Katie> Absolutely.

Kind of like sunset colors, purple, black and green, all in the same plant.

So you could, you know, invest in one or two of those for your fall porch and like you say, put pumpkins around.

But the important thing to consider, is that these are not cold hardy, in the least.

So I would encourage folks to maybe, bring them inside, you know, a warm sunroom or kitchen and overwinter them.

They are worth saving.

Amanda> This would be a nice hat, hat material.

Katie> Hey, there you go.

(laughter) Creativity right there.

Amanda> Let's put those back over here.

<Okay> So we can bring these up.

So you've got a, a house that you can put these in.

We are very fortunate to have a long, greenhouse that we can overwinter all of our conservatory tropicals.

And our conservatory is open to the elements in the air, if you will.

So, all of our kind of Brazilian, Mexican and, like, South American plants have to go inside, <Okay> before frost.

So, this is just a favorite of mine just because of the variegation.

I love variegated plants.

So this is your, you know, typical rubber plant.

But it's kind of a tri color.

Amanda> Yeah.

It's soft.

Katie> Yes, so she's lovely.

Amanda> I can see that in certain places it would be, you know, if you had a... you know, a fancy feminine bedroom.

Katie> Yeah, it kind of has- Amanda> Don't you think so?

Katie> -exactly kind of hues of pink in there.

So we're moving our rubber plants.

Certainly our ferns, bromeliads, cacti.

It's a pretty huge undertaking.

It's a team lift, for sure, to migrate that conservatory into the greenhouse.

And this is a fan favorite.

This is Anthurium- Amanda> Of course, everybody loves Anthurium.

Katie> They have this characteristic waxy leaves that almost don't look real.

This spathe and spadix, you know, kind of anatomy is really alien.

But, we have, you know, vibrant purples, pure white, this watermelon pink, red, etc..

So, lots of variation there.

But that's always on our November, December calendar just before- Amanda> No rest for the weary.

Katie> -frost comes.

Exactly.

So this has been our priority, is to save those tropicals.

Amanda> Okay, well, I'm so glad that you do.

And then when do you feel like it's safe to bring them back out?

Katie> So for us, down at Boone Hall, we are going to reestablish our tropical display outdoors, April 1st.

So that's, usually the target, is to have it reestablished.

Amanda> Okay.

Super, super, super.

Well, as you all know, we've had some pretty extreme, weather going on here and, loss of so many trees.

And, we have earlier, couple of years ago had a very, a very... well educated arborist who knew about how to, prune trees so that they would withstand hurricanes.

And I think you will find this information fascinating.

Amanda> I'm speaking with Michael Murphy, and Michael is a, board certified Master Arborist and from has been in the tree care business, I think, for close to 50 years.

The last part of your career was spent in Beaufort with Preservation Tree Care now taken over by Bartlett, and they're continuing the good work there.

But what is a board certified Master Arborist?

Michael> So, the board certified Master Arborist is the next level of certification that you can get above being a certified Arborist.

Amanda> All right.

Michael> And, there's only seven in the state of South Carolina, which, I'm a little disappointed.

I'm very proud to be one, but there should be more.

People should, take the test.

Amanda> Well, and I think all of us should go to certified, Master, certified Arborist before having anyone come to work on trees in our yard.

Because those people should be aware of the newest, best practices.

But sadly, there are people out there in the tree care business who are, giving people the wrong information.

And I was particularly concerned about the, we hear that we're going to have so many more hurricanes and stronger storms.

And gosh, I know in the low country, I can just imagine the devastation that y'all saw after hurricanes, it's bad enough in the middle of the state.

So what do we expect to happen with the hurricanes?

What are y'all hearing now?

Michael> Well, the projections are, not very good, and we know the weather is, really effecting our daily lives.

But Kim Coder from the University of Georgia, Warnell School of Forestry tells us that, there's going to be a 6.5%, a six and a half degree increase in temperature by 2035.

There's going to be 6% added to the wind loads from future hurricanes, storms are going to be moving 20% slower, and there's going to be 24% more rainfall.

And we can all attest to that.

And these are going to be larger, slower, wetter, more damaging storms.

And they're going to be in places that we really, never had tropical storms and hurricanes before.

So it's going to be really important to keep our trees, pruned properly.

And the standards have changed.

So it's important for you to know, as a homeowner, that the person that you're getting to prune your trees knows about the standards.

Amanda> So as we said, it used to be that they would tell you to get the interior.

And it kind of makes sense, take all those interior little branches out and all because you think that they would, you know, catch more of the wind and all but... You said that they've done some research and they had a... wind, a machine that could- Michael> A wind tunnel.

Amanda> -that could simulate a hurricane.

And they put trees that have been pruned in different manners in there and what did they find?

Michael> So they found out, and, they found out that the more you pruned out of a tree, the more you took away this so-called "sail effect" from the tree, the more hazardous the tree will become.

The more likely it would, it would have storm damage.

And so they did the research and they, pruned the trees, different, different types of trees.

They, had this, a wind machine, is, at down at the University of Florida.

it happened.

And, they were able to slow the video down with the with the, high definition photography that we have these days.

And they found that the, the trees that were over pruned were whipping around in the wind like a, like a whip.

They were just, yeah, flailing about.

And then the, the properly pruned trees, they were almost dancing- Amanda> -the ones that still had the interior.

Michael> The interior branches.

They were almost dancing, they were dampening.

And, and they were balancing each of the other limbs.

So all that interior crown turned out to be very important for the tree.

Amanda> So one thing that I'm thinking is as the ground gets, as the rain, we get more rain and it stays in a place longer, the ground's going to get soggier.

And so the trees more likely to, to fall over.

Michael> Correct.

So the less the tree moves, the less it, it can move those roots out of, out of the ground.

So this dampening, process that, that's created by the interior limbs, is very, very important to keep in there.

Amanda> So talk about how someone should come and look at your trees and what they should, what they now should do according to the new standards.

Michael> So the new standards, promote more of this interior live wood, retention.

And it's called the Natural Pruning System.

And, former standards had talked about crown cleaning a lot.

So, arborists, I think, got the idea that cleaning, if cleaning is good, maybe more cleaning is better.

So these, poor practices started to, kind of overtake the tree industry.

But with the new standards, they're telling us that we should have less than 20% of our live wood cutting should be on the interior of the tree and, 80%, or as much as 80% of the live wood cutting should be on the reduction of outside branches.

Because these trees, we need to make them, structurally healthy.

We talk about having a healthy tree in our yard, and we can't really physically make a tree, healthier, but we can structurally make the tree healthier.

And by bringing in, reducing elongated branches and retaining as much of that interior, growth as we can, these trees are going to be, stable, have, have healthy, stable, structures.

And that's as much as we can do for a tree.

Amanda> Well, I want to thank you so much for sharing this information with us, because I know that trees are the backbone of our ecology in so many ways.

The shade, the, the valued wildlife and, and then that if they do contact a certified Arborist, just go to the certified Arborist website.

You can find people in your area who have that training and get in touch with them, and have them come and help you with your trees.

Michael> Well, I hope, our listeners take your advice and they'll, they definitely will have stronger and safer trees.

Amanda> Thank you so much for sharing this information.

Michael> Well, thanks for having me today.

Amanda> I want to thank Michael for sharing that important information that I hope you can incorporate with your care of your trees.

Terasa whom else can we help?

Terasa> Let's try to help Danny in Greenwood, who reached out and said, "How do I get rid of this duckweed?

And how would it have gotten into my small garden pond?"

Amanda> Okay.

So what do you think, Stephanie?

Stephanie> Yeah, so this client reached out to me, and she has a small garden pond with just a few plants in it.

Amanda> It's like a little decorative thing.

Stephanie> Yeah, like a little decorative pond.

A little water garden, I guess maybe we call it.

And she just found this duckweed, and I just explained, you know, that, that comes in on animals, birds, frogs- Amanda> they came to drink some water and it's on their legs.

Stephanie> Yeah.

And so, two ways to kind of keep it from getting established would be to keep the water moving more in that little pond.

So a bubbler or a wavemaker or something that keeps that water flowing a little bit better.

Or using goldfish, they love to eat duckweed.

And so they'll kind of control that as well.

Amanda> Okay.

Katie> Definitely want to second what Stephanie said.

At Boone Hall, we have two, just kind of, I guess eco-friendly, self-sustaining ponds that occasionally have algae and duckweed build up.

And our robust koi fish, kind of keep that in check.

And by keeping the water surface disturbed with various bubblers and water features, it's been very, successful.

Amanda> Wonderful, wonderful.

Hannah> It's just a healthy balance.

Also soil testing, you know, at Clemson Extension offices.

You can also water test.

There's a variety of different tests that you can do.

Liming, fertilizing, all health, all key of a healthy water system.

Amanda> Goodness.

So how do you fertilize a pond and how do you put- Hannah> I've seen some growers that they'll take a pallet and submerge it about the third of the way in the water column.

They'll take a bag of whatever the pond water sample- Amanda> Sometimes they need lime as well.

Hannah> That's correct.

Yeah.

<Okay> If they're out spreading it on a Johnboat, they can submerge it under the water.

<Really> And cut it open and let it circulate.

Amanda> Goodness, it's a lot to keep ponds going.

And especially in, I love to fish.

Hannah> Me to.

Amanda> So I want to be sure that if I ever have a pond it's nice and healthy.

And I'm glad to know that Clemson can help you, can help you with that as well.

Okay.

And bubblers and all kinds of things going on.

Uh.

Terasa> Ponds are complicated.

I certainly, if someone is thinking about adding a pond, I would have them really mull it over.

It can be a lot of work because really naturally the ponds want to fill in, so.

Amanda> And also the shorescaping can be important so that if you have nutrients, your falling grass, you don't want that going into the pond.

Terasa> That's right.

That all feeds into potential problems with water quality and excess growth of unwanted vegetation.

Amanda> I think it also keeps those Canadian geese from going down there.

Cause they're scared that there might be something down there that might gobble them up, which is... well we could use a few of them being gobbled up, I guess.

But anyway.

(laughter) I want to thank you all so much.

This has just been wonderful.

And I've got wonderful roses to smell and, a bunch of fun crafts to do with kids.

Anyway, thank y'all.

So at home, we'll say good night, and we hope, that we'll see you next week.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ 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.