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.

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

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

I'm Amanda McNulty.

I'm a Clemson Extension agent and I get to come over on Tuesdays and be with my dear friend, Terasa Lott.

Terasa, you're now someone else is going to assume the mantle of shepherding the master gardeners, and you've got...you're district director stationed here in Sumter and with some surrounding counties.

>> Yes, I am still learning.

So bear with me when I think, I always look up.

So I try to kind of go geographically.

My...my Midlands district: Lancaster, Lee Kershaw, Sumter, Orangeburg, Clarendon, Calhoun, Richland, and Lexington.

>> So you've... >> I've got all nine.

So you've got some pretty rural places and then some places that are just booming with people coming in to them.

>> A mix, which really describes, I think, the state in general.

We have some very urban areas and very rural areas and a little bit of everything in between.

>> Yes.

And... Christopher Burt, where you are down there, the urban hort agent in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester.

Y'all are just seeing huge inputs of people coming out.

>> Yeah, it's... some of the fastest growing counties.

Obviously, Charleston is fairly urbanized, but Berkeley and Dorchester, I think, are on their way.

>> Yeah, and Berkeley County used to be very rural and just kind of out there, but not anymore.

>> It still is to a certain extent.

You leave Moncks Corner, Goose Creek.

It can get pretty rural pretty quick.

But yeah, it's...it's getting there quick.

>> Yeah.

Okay.

Well, and I think when you teach Master Gardener programs, do you vary where you're holding it each year, or is there one place that just has a great facility and you usually hold it there?

>> So I tend to do the kind of the bulk of the classes in West Ashley or Charleston proper.

Usually we can do it at the REC or somewhere close by because that's a little bit centralized.

It's hard to be centralized in the tri county area, but we do try to vary with some of our field trips.

>> Okay.

Well, good, good, good.

Okay.

And Carmen Ketron you're over there in Darlington and Florence.

And what are you busy with right now?

>> Oh, we're busy getting plants in, making sure everyone's happy.

All the lawns are coming in, so making sure everyone's doing a good lawn job.

Lots of yards right now that people are looking around and they want to spruce it up.

>> Okay.

Okay.

And Christopher, you and I went down recently and heard Doug Tallamy speak and he has a goal of we have, what, 44 million acres of turf grass.

And he has a goal of reducing that by half in an effort to kind of stop this decline in species that we're facing right now.

>> Yeah, he mentioned if you cut it by half, it's 22 million acres that you could turn into native habitat because obviously turf grass is not very biodiverse.

I mean, it's kind of just one species, a little bit ecologically dead.

So the idea is reduce that at least by half.

You still have a yard, but yet you're still helping your ecosystem.

And I think it's...I always said you needed enough yard when your kids were little to have a slip and slide because they're so much fun.

But most of us don't need acres and acres of turf grass or even a full acre of turf grass.

>> Exactly.

>> Yeah.

Yeah.

And I know you have some ideas about having your yard be green without necessarily having it all just be one species of turf grass.

So we'll talk about this.

>> Of course.

Yeah.

>> Okay.

All righty.

And we're going to have a wonderful, wonderful thing to show you tonight.

The Darnall W and Susan F Boyd Aquarium and Reptile Conservation Center at Riverbank Zoo and Garden.

What a tremendous facility it is.

I just can't tell you how fascinating I was, it was when we went there and I got to learn about all the remarkable creatures that are there, including an octopus, which is pretty cool.

Okay, well, Terasa, do we have some Gardens of the Week?

>> Yes.

Speaking of cool, I think all of our viewer photos are very cool.

This is your chance to showcase what's going on in your yard, your garden, maybe an indoor house plant that you like or perhaps you've visited a beautiful place in South Carolina.

We are going to begin with Libby Breitenbaugh, who sent her Ruby loropetalum that is absolutely bursting with color from Annette Barrett, purple and white hyacinths that she reports come back year after year.

That's always pleasant when you don't have to keep laboring in the garden.

From Allyson Hirsch White Iris under planted with yellow daffodils.

Susan Temple sent in their rescue dog named Yogi, posing in front of 'Ballet in Pink' hybrid Camellia that has semi-peony orchid flowers.

So absolutely gorgeous.

And last but not least, Vickie Hefner, a look inside her greenhouse.

Now you have to listen carefully, Amanda.

>> I'm listening.

>> She has a special planter that is composed of polka dot plant and mixed begonias such that the plants look much like a hat.

So it's kind of a bust planter.

And she says she has named it Amanda.

(All laugh) >> Well, I hope that it thrives.

>> It looks like it is very happy.

(Amanda laughs) >> Well, that's such a- >> Thank you all for sharing your photos.

There are many, many more on our Facebook page.

And if you haven't submitted, I encourage you to do so.

Just look for our call for Gardens of the Week, and that means we're putting photos together for the show and you can just post your photos in the comments.

>> And I just love that you do that for us.

Thank you so much.

>> You know, it wasn't my idea.

I can't remember whose idea it was, but it's such a fun part of the show to see those pictures come in.

>> Okay.

Well, I have some questions come in, Terasa.

>> They have.

We are starting in Jamestown.

A question from Beverly.

She said some individuals have carnivorous plants at my local farmer's market.

Can they grow here?

And how do I grow them?

>> Christopher, I think they're besides just the kind of unusual circumstances in which they grow there.

Some things we should keep in mind when we are thinking about getting some from people too.

You want to help us out on this?

>> Yeah, of course.

So I actually brought a few with me.

I'm potting up a Venus flytrap here, Dionaea muscipula, which is a really cool one.

And of course, this is with the pot came in on.

So...and I've got some sundews here, but there's actually several species of carnivorous plants that are native to the Low country, really, throughout most of South Carolina.

So it's a really cool area of plants that oftentimes people think of as tropical or subtropical.

But in reality, we've got several different types.

There's lots of different pitcher plants.

Of course, you have the Venus Flytrap, one of the most widely known, and then, of course, Sundews, bladderworts, things like that.

So it's a really cool area of plants to get into.

The big stipulation, of course, being make sure you are getting it from a reputable source.

So one of the things, you do not want to get it from, is from someone who's harvesting these in the wild.

It is illegal to harvest, especially the Venus flytrap, which is endangered.

You don't want to get from someone who's harvesting it in the wild.

You want to make sure it's from a reputable or licensed source.

Generally, when we're talking about a farmers market, you probably want to be relatively careful with that.

You want to really start to get into where are they getting it from.

>> And there are ways to propagate them.

And so the people who are doing it in a commercially sustainable way are doing that within their own facility or getting it from somebody.

Is that correct?

>> Correct.

And so that's where you would just want to start to dive into and figure out all right, exactly how are they doing this?

If you just see someone who has never sold them before, all of a sudden has them, some red flags would be rising out there.

That being said, they're not hard to grow provided that you give it the right situation.

>> Okay, Well, what situation can we try to mimic at home?

That would be kind of like where they were in nature.

>> So they naturally grow in fairly acidic soil.

So that's actually they...they can't really pull nutrients from the soil.

It's fairly poor soils and these soils stay relatively wet.

And so we're thinking about kind of a bog type garden.

Again, they're eating the insects for the nitrogen and other nutrients, so you do not want to fertilize them.

That's kind of the last thing you want to do.

And you want to make sure, of course, that the soil that they're planted in is fairly dense, but also fairly wet.

You never want it to dry out completely.

These are plants that grow in areas that tend to stay wet naturally.

Amanda> Yes.

>> And so oftentimes we're using things that hold the water pretty well, kind of the opposite of plants that need really well-drained soil.

You want to make sure the soil holds on to that pretty well.

You want to make sure it's fairly heavy.

And again, usually when you pick them up, they should have water almost with...around them pretty consistently.

>> Goodness.

Well, if you have them at home, how are you watering them?

And tell me about one of those, some of the pots, some of the changes you've made when you're planting these.

>> So, the...the sun dew that I have here, I actually took some cuttings from someone else's plant.

So obviously I would prefer to make sure it's as sustainable as possible.

The sundews are pretty prolific.

The Venus flytraps, of course I potted it up in a larger pot because I do want it to get bigger.

I'm going to make sure that this is going to stay fairly wet.

So this has drainage holes, but the drainage holes on the bottom, of course, are sealed off.

So the idea is, is if I need to let it drain out, if I notice it's holding water too much, I'll let it drain out.

But I also want to make sure that there is water at the bottom because again, you never want it to dry out completely.

And so this is a little bit deeper than I would prefer.

Obviously, these don't have massive root systems.

They don't need to, because they're pulling a lot of what they need out of the, from the insects themselves.

But when you do water them, you have to be careful.

Don't use tap water Tap water's got chlorine in it, fluorine in it.

It's got a lot of things in it that these plants are not going to prefer.

And so the best thing to do is either use distilled water, which you can purchase at most of your local stores, or if you're like me, you don't want to necessarily go buy the water.

You can always harvest rainwater.

And rainwater, of course, is one of the best ways to water these because it's very natural and of course it's what they're going to be used to.

Amanda> Okay.

But I would think that you wouldn't want to capture rainwater as it's coming off a roof because of things that might be in the... in the shingles and things like that.

So you'd want something kind of freestanding where you were collecting?

>> Yeah, oftentimes what I'll do is if I have an area with these because they don't need a lot of water, again, we're putting them in pots that hold that water pretty well.

You probably you're not going to use terracotta because terracotta will actually wick out water.

But, you know, put a bucket out, you know, five gallon bucket, let it fill up with rainwater.

Amanda> Yeah.

>> Usually that's a sufficient way.

That'll water the plants for the short period of time that you need to.

Again as long as you're monitoring them.

But these can stay outdoors all year round.

Oftentimes I will find a good location to kind of make them a little bit more of a permanent fixture.

I keep them in pots because I can't.

I need to have the soil be a little bit specialized.

I want it to be acidic and fairly, just nutrient poor.

I don't want to fertilize it all, but I'll keep it kind of outdoors permanently throughout the year.

>> Oh, well, isn't it fun to think that we are in one of two states where one of these is, just here?

>> Exactly.

It's...the Venus flytrap's really cool, because it only grows in South Carolina and North Carolina.

>> Isn't that something.

So we really do need to take special care of those areas.

>> Absolutely.

>> All right.

Thank you so much.

Okay,...Terasa.

>> Well, it's kind of funny.

That was...that question was prompted from a farmers market, as is this one coming from Madge in Blenheim And she says, I was at a farmer's market in North Carolina and someone had bunches of daffodils, but they look like they were just stems.

They looked like they had any blooms.

Why would they do that?

Amanda> Oh goodness.

Terasa> It does seem odd.

Amanda> That does seem odd.

I mean, well, flowers are so beautiful.

Carmen, what's what's the story on this, you think?

>> So normally with daffodils, you think of them in a backyard garden, but they're actually a really great cut flower that a number of flower farmers will sell.

And a lot of the times they will come just like this, where it has just the bud on it and it almost kind of looks like it's just the stem.

Some of these are actually probably more open than I would normally harvest them at, but it's really nice because you can actually have them displayed like this.

They won't be in water when they're sold, because they've stopped the blooming process at this point.

And then what you can end up doing is, as soon as you put them in the water, they will continue to bloom out.

So it's a really great way to kind of hold them until you're ready to have them flower for your event or your, your dinner.

And so it's kind of nice.

The only thing I would say is you got to remember, right, as soon as you get them, you want to cut those, the bottoms of the stems before you put them in water so you can ensure that they take up the water, to bloom.

Amanda> My word.

Well, would you take this paperish membrane off, perhaps just because it's not so attractive, or...?

>> Yep.

Amanda> Maybe >> I would go ahead...

I would snip that out... make it look real nice and pretty.

But yeah, exactly.

>> Oh, it just comes right off.

>> Just like paper.

>> Whoa, good gracious.

>> But it's a great way that a lot of people sell your daffodils this time of year.

That's wonderful.

But a lot of times it can look like.

Where are the flowers?

>> Yeah.

Yeah.

Well, and they're just, you know, unlike tulips, which I say tulips are wimpy because they don't like our heat, and the foliage usually dies before they've had a chance to replenish their bulb.

If I think that's kind of what happens down here, not daffodils, they say.

"Shoot, bring it on."

Heat, humidity, they're just fine.

And isn't it wonderful to ride around the roadsides and see them?

You know, there must be hundreds, you know, a hundred years old in many places where you see them, maybe where an old house was once.

>> Exactly.

And you just start to see a lot of people put them right under their tree.

And then the tree falls later (Amanda laughs) and then they just explode.

All of these have just been waiting, lying in wait.

It's just a great, a great group of plants.

Isn't it?

Okay.

That was really fun.

Thank you.

Well, Terasa.

>> This is such a common question, one that has become more common, I think, in recent years.

Chris in Summerville said, I see lots of different milkweed available in local nurseries, which should I plant and is there an issue with the tropical milkweed?

Amanda> Aha.

>> Well of course, the larval food plant for the monarch and which is in decline.

Christopher, um, it would be awful to put something out the wasn't the right thing that might actually might hurt, make the situation worse.

What recommendations do you have for us?

>> So tropical milkweed or milkweed, in general, is one of those plants that obviously we want to see as much of it grown as possible, especially in the wild.

That being said, in your home garden setting, and I oftentimes am very cautious about what I'm including, especially when it comes to milkweed.

So there are several native species of milkweed.

We have some really beautiful ones, orange, white, pinks.

The one you don't normally see in nurseries because it's easy to grow in containers is the tropical, and the tropical one is one.

I generally am going to be much more cautious with, primarily because it is causing a lot of issues specific to the parasite that is causing these monarchs to decline.

So, O.E., it's got a very long name to it, but just short for O.E.

Amanda>> Let's do that.

>> But it's a parasite that unfortunately causes them.

They'll...they'll still emerge from the eggs, They'll get into the cocoon.

But once they emerge, they will have deformed wings.

They'll look really rough.

They won't be able to fly and obviously, monarchs are very important, migratory butterflies.

And so if they can't fly, they can't migrate.

And when they can't migrate, they stay here.

They continue to release the parasite.

Puts on new ones.

Amanda> Oh, no.

>> We're seeing generations of them stick around.

And monarchs, of course, even though you'll have some stick around, the tropical ones do not go dormant quite like the native ones do.

And unfortunately, what's happening is, is we're allowing them to get into December and even January without cutting them back.

Those monarchs are sticking around that parasites proliferating, even the native ones.

We have to be a little bit careful with because often times you can start to get a build up of that parasite, especially in a very contained garden setting.

Amanda> Really?

>> You want to be very cautious.

And that's really the primary reason we're having issues with the monarchs, is that parasite specifically.

>> Well, how do you suggest someone incorporate them into their yard if they want to.

>> Sparingly?

So this is where if I'm going to have milkweed, I'm going to have it in a seed mix or I'm going to have it in a wildflower mix.

Amanda> Yes, >> I want it with lots of other plants.

I didn't want to just plant milkweed, and that be the only thing there I want it to be in a mixed species, which is where it's naturally going to grow in an open field setting.

It needs lots of sun.

It's going to grow next to every other plant known to man.

And of course, that is the ideal setting for your garden.

Put it in with mixed species.

Do not have it as a specimen plant and that way you're going to have lots of other things moving around when the caterpillars are, you know, releasing things, they're not releasing the parasite specifically on to the same plant.

Amanda> Oh, okay.

>> So, that's kind of the idea.

You want to have as much as possible kind of clump together if you're going to use it.

Again, just be cautious with it.

That's really the big thing to take on.

Amanda> Because a lot of times when we're talking about planting pollinator plants and things like native plants, we group them because it makes it easier for the pollinators to find them, but in this case, separate them.

>> Yes.

Well, as...as you likely know, caterpillars, butterflies, specifically when they look for their host plants, they're looking by smell.

And so they don't need to have it clumped together.

They just need to make sure they can smell it.

And of course, milkweed has a nice, distinct smell, even I can smell it.

So they're not going to have a hard time, even if it's in a mixed species.

>> Okay.

Well, thank you so much.

>> You're very welcome.

Amanda> I really appreciate that.

Well, Terasa, I'm always stopping on the side of the road and getting stuff for hats.

And I will tell you that our state... ...flower.

Is that our state flower?

Terasa> It is.

Amanda> You know, Yellow jessamine is a peculiar plant because it twines around everything and...and it's hard to pull it down from places sometimes it's all wrapped around all kinds of stuff.

Anyway.

But as you see it has, it's Gelsemium sempervirens, which means ever living because it is evergreen.

It keeps its leaves and then it has a very strong, although small stem.

It's very strong and it also has all sorts of seed pods on it.

And if you have it in your yard, it will clamber up through things, release the seed pods, and so sometimes you'll see a place where there is... it'll come up through all these people's shrubberies, you know, their bushes and everything and kind of...kind of get in the way a little bit.

But it's a beautiful thing.

It's perfectly gorgeous and can climb up trees like no body's business.

It's just remarkable.

And then I also have some wax myrtle, which is a wonderful native and where they get the Bayberry Candle stuff from, which means you just means you have to go pick 10,000 of these little things.

But this is a grand hedge.

I've used it for a long time.

And Christopher, you and I heard Doug Tallamy speak a while back, and some of the questions were, are cultivars of native plants as effective at supporting caterpillars and pollinators as others?

And I believe he told us that there were some times when it was okay, but other times to be kind of cautious.

>> Well, it's you want to make sure that you're kind of following the three big rules, which you want to make sure the foliage is the same color.

So no purple, no red.

You want to make sure it's green.

>> So if you have forest, don't... this is, of course, our wonderful redbud and you reminded me how good they are...to eat.

But it comes now and some in improved cultivars that have funky colors in the leaves.

>> Yeah, you'll see them yellow, purple, a bunch of different colors.

I do recommend if you're going to do a red bud, make sure it is the regular green redbud.

Amanda> Okay.

>> So the foliage has to be the right color.

You want to make sure it blooms at the right time.

So oftentimes we'll get plants that bloom weird times or twice a year or three times a year.

You want to make sure it blooms at the same time as the wild type does.

Amanda> Oh!

>> and then lastly, you want to make sure that the flower is a simp-...single flower, not a double blossom, because when it's double, it takes all the parts that release the pollen and make them into petals.

And so you have this very frilly looking, complex flower that's completely useless to pollinators.

>> Okay?

And red bud, which comes out early and is they talk about the blueberry bumblebee, which is a great blueberry pollinator.

And of course, blueberries are native to North America and the so this when the blueberry bumblebee comes out from her winter hibernation or sleep, I guess, Terasa, this is one of the first things she goes to, which I think is kind of fun.

I always wondered why they call it Redbud, when it's just as pink as it possibly can be.

>> "Pink-bud" or "magenta-bud", but this doesn't really flow off the tongue like... >> I sure don't see any red, in it.

I wouldn't (laughs) anyway.

But it is a beautiful thing.

It seeds down, so if you have one, you probably have some little babies that you can share with them to share with somebody else.

Since you like to fix flower arrangements, as I do, I have often...

I love redbud because every time it has a node it turns a little bit and nobody wants straight sticks.

We want, you know, things that have, you know, motion and movement.

And so one time I was doing some flowers for my cousin up north, wedding reception, and I was trying to find some sticks and I saw...

I had an apron in the car and I put it on and I got out of the big box store where they had red buds and just selectively found a few sticks on it.

Because if you wore an apron they'd think that you're there as part of the maintenance people.

And I certainly was very careful not to hurt anything.

So that's just kind of a fun thing to know about.

>> I don't know if you can see any on there, but redbud is really cool because it can produce the flowers that come like right out of the...stems.

Amanda> Yes >> So, it has...it has a name.

It's like cauliflorous.

Amanda> And some of the new ones have it all over the bark and everything.

Some of the Mexican species, I think, that are used in street trees sometimes.

Anyway, it's... it's pretty cool.

All righty.

>> It kind of.

Makes me think about people who well, we call it like plant blindness.

People just don't really know and they'll go outside they don't...and I'm like, "But it's fascinating."

I mean, the plants that, you know, are designed so they attract certain things for pollination or keep certain pests away.

And it's just amazing.

>> You don't have to take trips to Europe every year.

It's a pretty fascinating world outside.

>> It really is.

If we just take time.

If you start learning about it.

Don't you think?

Carmen, I think you're kind of like me sometimes.

I think I'm going to get somewhere right on time.

And then I see something and I end up having to turn around and go back, when it's safe, pull off the side of the road because I've seen something beautiful there.

Carmen> Yes, It really annoys my husband when we're trying to get somewhere, but I just love finding little treasures on the street.

And this one, these are a lot of my favorites right now in the mid season in the spring.

>> So we're talking about daffodils.

>> Daffodils.

And you wouldn't know they're daffodils because a lot of them don't look like the typical daffodil that you like.

>> The trumpet shaped.

Carmen> Yes, exactly.

And they really are I mean, 25,000 different cultivated varieties of your daffodils.

These are the ones that I like to find in the road right now.

If you drive across those big open fields and you see them just popping up, you get to see a lot of really nice varieties that have been there for generations.

And these are what I found at my husband's homestead.

So I just love them.

They...they are just so constant.

They come back every year.

>> And to think who in his family might have planted them?

>> Exactly.

>> A grandmother, a great grandmother.

Yeah.

>> Exactly.

And it's just a nice it's a nice gift to give the next generation.

So I just love that.

But I actually, in honor of that, have started to make a whole daffodil field in the front of the house- >> -Whew!

>> so that we can... and I wanted to trial a lot of the varieties that go good for the Southeast.

>> Yes.

>> So I wanted to come and show a couple of really nice types.

And they just like these all a little bit different, a lot of fun.

So we have some of our favorites that have done really well, but these are just a sampling.

There are a ton of great varieties that you can find on the Home and Garden Information Center.

They have a lot of great cultivars that you can go and look up the different types and then you can order them as well.

>> Now, if you're looking in a catalog, are they going to give you the zones that they live in so that you can say, well, that one is probably not going to work for me, because you said I believe your mother came from.

>> Yes.

My people are from Virginia.

>> Some of hers?

>> And we... and when my mom moved down here to Charleston she brought a lot of the daffodils from Gloucester, Virginia, and a lot of them don't work because they're not made for our zone.

Seven, eight.

Amanda> Okay.

Nine area.

These... so you want to look in the catalog for southeast varieties that go good for zones seven and eight.

And here are just a couple of really nice ones.

This one is a really nice white with green flag that's called the Obdam, Amanda> The what?

Carmen> Obdam.

Amanda> Obdam?

That's lovely.

Carmen> And that one's a really nice one.

A lot of these have really great Dutch names because the people who are cultivating them Amanda> Yes are from the Netherlands.

Now, this is your typical one that we would... that you kind of think of when you think of daffodil with that really nice tulip shaped corona, yellow and then orange center, and that is for fortissimo.

And this one gets really tall.

>> Oh, that's nice.

>> So if you're looking for a tall variety, that one's really great.

Now, this funky one we love, (Both laugh) we love these.

This is our Zaragoza and this is- A more common one is called the Tahiti.

But the Zaragoza is a really nice, just funky, small double bloom.

We love it.

And then, of course, we have here, this one is called the Orangery, even though it has...

Mine have a... Amanda> I don't see any orange.

>> Yeah, it's got a yellow center for me, but it can go to a yellowish orange.

And so that one also gets really nice and tall.

>> Okay.

So you can stagger them in your bed.

>> Yes.

And all of these are our mid-season varieties.

There are early daffodils mid-season and then a late daffodil.

Usually you get about three flowers per stem.

They come out different times and it is wonderful to have a nice rolling collection of early, mid and late for the whole season.

>> And of course, the paperwhites come out practically at Thanksgiving now.

>> Yes.

Oh, and those... >> And they are so fragrant.

>> And those you can do indoors.

We love...we love being able to force one indoors.

But fragrant, this one is my fav- I just have to hand it out for everyone to smell them... Chris you can put that Chris you can put that in your hair.

(Chris laughs) Enjoy.

And this one is an ava- This one is an avalanche and a large yes.

>> Avalanche?

>> Yes.

And it stays nice and short, so it's great if you were looking for a shorter variety or if you were going to put it in a pot.

These..this is wonderful and the scent just carries It is just lovely.

Amanda> Delightful.

>> Yeah.

And then if we were looking for that standard yellow, again, the beautiful standard yellow double, this one is a lovely golden delicious.

(Amanda laughs) >> A Golden Delicious?

Carmen> Golden Delicious We love that one.

That was a nice short one.

And then, of course, our last one, because you can get them looking in creams and beautiful whites.

But this one is Delnashaugh and it is gorgeous.

I hope we can just see that it has just a light cream just speckled around the center and it is so pretty.

Amanda> Almost, peachy almost.

>> So if you have one of those early spring brides, this is a great one to enjoy.

But once again, you can't go wrong with any of these.

And there are a ton more that we suggest at the Home and Garden Information Center.

>> What you can go wrong with is if you're one of those needy, tidy people and you just can't stand to have the foliage there and that people say, Oh, I'm going to tie it up in rubber bands, I'm so tired of looking at it.

So please tell people what they shouldn't do.

>> No, they...they shouldn't be tieing them and they definitely shouldn't be cutting them down.

We want to wait until they have dried out and all those nutrients have gone back into the bulbs.

And just to tell you that all of these overwinter and they come back year after year in our...in our area, you don't have to pull them up or anything like that.

Just leave them alone.

Just leave them alone to enjoy and let them spread.

That is the one thing is that every couple of years you might want to dig them up to thin them out and make a bigger daffodil patch.

>> Yeah, but as you say, we go to places where whoever put them has long since gone on to a heavenly reward and they're still coming up beautifully.

>> And you just get to appreciate it.

>> Okay?

Oh, what... what fun!

I'm so glad that you and your mother decided to make a trial garden and see which ones work so well for us.

We're going to take on a wonderful visit.

Now to the Darnall W and Susan F Boyd Aquarium and Reptile Conservation Center at Riverbanks, Zoo and Garden.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Amanda> I'm at Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens in Columbia, South Carolina, speaking with my friend, Susan Boyd.

Susan, we are here today celebrating another accomplishment of the Darnall and Susan Boyd Foundation, which is the refurbishment of the Reptile and Aquatic Center at the zoo.

And honestly, I think it's just fascinating because these are things that people see less and less frequently now.

You're making it possible for people to be up close and personal with things and to develop an appreciation of their importance in the natural world.

>> Well, it is wonderful.

And I have to say it, the reptiles and snakes and things are special.

There's so much disappearing and so important to have them stay with us.

>> Susan, I look forward to coming back and visiting with you more frequently.

We've been to Boyd Island and now we're going to have more things that y'all are involved in.

Susan, thank you for everything that y'all have done.

>> Oh, thank you so much.

Think of the fun we had doing it.

Amanda> Yes.

Susan> Yeah, it was great.

And I'm so glad to be here.

♪ ♪ >> I'm speaking with Sean Foley.

And Sean, you are the resident herpetology specialist at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden.

Tell us what herpetology involves.

>> So herpetology is basically the study of reptiles and amphibians.

>>Okay.

And we sure have plenty of those in South Carolina.

>> We absolutely do.

I've got a great abundance of reptiles and amphibians for people to see.

>> And when we first walk in, I think you highlight the ones that are from South Carolina.

Sean> Correct.

When you first walk into our building, you're going to see these floor to ceiling exhibits really large, with multiple species in most of those exhibits, and they are native to South Carolina except for our big alligator snapping turtle.

He is native to the southeastern United States, but not specifically to South Carolina.

But you'll see pine snakes.

You'll see Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes, you'll see canebrake rattlesnakes, Eastern glass lizards, all those are in one exhibit.

It's a really interesting exhibit.

You have lots of different species in there moving around.

So, and they all get along.

And it's, it's a really neat exhibit.

Amanda> And then what else do you have in that?

>> So then, if you go to the next exhibit, you'll see timber rattlesnakes, you will see copperheads, our most common venomous snake that most people see those in their lifetimes.

And then corn snakes, really pretty bright orange corn snakes.

Amanda> Y'all have a special one?

Sean> The color morph is Okeetee from Jasper County.

So they're bright pumpkin orange.

They have that black contrast.

So they're really, really pretty.

And then when you go to the next exhibit, you'll see the alligator snapping turtle.

It's the largest freshwater turtle in North America.

They can get up to 250 pounds.

So, a really impressive turtle.

And then you go to the last exhibit and you're going to see Eastern Cottonmouth.

So that's another one of our venomous snakes that people can see.

>> But then you've got some other wonderful exhibits.

So let's continue our tour.

Sean> So if you go to the right, the tropical forest area- Amanda>-Yes.

Sean> It used to be our desert gallery.

It's now tropical forest.

And so we transform that from desert to tropical exhibits and you'll see different tree monitors.

Those are from Indonesia, that area.

A lot of them are found on specific islands.

So like black tree monitors, you'll find those from Aru Islands.

The green tree monitors will be from mainland Indonesia.

Blue tree monitors are from their own specific little islands.

So it's really kind of cool.

And then you'll see in the center of that, you'll see a bushmaster, which is the largest pit viper in the Americas.

They get almost ten feet long.

Amanda> Gracious!

Sean> And then those are in with emerald tree boas.

So, up high, you'll have emerald tree boas.

Down low, the bushmaster and those colorful frogs that you'll see hopping around there.

So that's another really cool multi species exhibit.

Amanda> Well, let's continue going on around.

Sean> Okay.

So once you get through that tropical forest, you're going to end up in the desert biome.

And that used to be our tropical habitat, the Cayman Island Blue Iguanas.

We still have those.

The Galapagos tortoises, the juveniles.

You probably saw those.

We have those in there.

But then we got some new species, so we have some spiny-tailed agama, which is a small lizard from Africa.

They're new species for us.

Some of the desert rattlesnakes, we did not have that before.

So we have Western diamondbacks, Mojave rattlesnakes, Rock rattlesnakes, all these rattlesnakes.

There's over about ten rattlesnakes in this big exhibit.

It's really cool.

So then once you go through there, you'll get to our old tropical gallery, which we're calling Land to Sea, and that's transitioning into the whole aquarium area.

>> Y'all have a special animal that you are, have really learned a lot about, and y'all raise those here and share them with other zoos.

So let's talk about that.

Sean> So you'll get through all the aquarium area.

And the last thing you'll see is the biodiversity wall.

And there's 15 small exhibits in this wall.

A lot of them have leaf tail geckos and those are native to Madagascar, and that's one of our specialties that we've been doing for about 30 years now.

And we breed them here at Riverbanks.

We run the programs for those, so we send those animals to zoos all over the country and actually all over the world.

We actually sent 60 of them to the Chester Zoo over in England several years ago, and then they sent those to other zoos over there.

So we're trying to get those all over the world.

Amanda> I think one of the things that happens here, I hope, and I'm sure it does because of the skill that you all have in presenting these, is that you're getting people excited about these and letting people think these are things that we should care about and want to protect their environment.

Sean> Oh, absolutely.

We try to make that connection so they can see these animals, they can see the graphics that we have that explains what's going on.

We can explain what's going on with their habitats, because it's not just in South Carolina where their animals are losing habitat.

It's everywhere around the world.

Tropical rainforests are disappearing.

So these animals face a lot of challenges and we want people to be able to see these animals in naturalistic environments, and just to make that connection that, yes, these animals, you can see how beautiful they are, how an integral part of their community, they are in their environments.

And hopefully they can take that and just, you know, go out into the world and be good stewards of our environment.

Amanda> I've had a wonderful time learning all about these things, some of which we kept as children in our home.

And now I'm going to go over and learn about the aquarium.

>> Sounds good.

♪ ♪ ♪ Amanda> I'm talking to Kendra Bottini, who's the curator of the aquarium at Riverbank Zoo and Botanical Gardens.

And I think you've been here about as long as the Galapagos turtles.

(Kendra laughter) Kendra> I'm in my 17th year.

So, not quite.

(both laugh) >> But, but it's fascinating because you've been here to see so many changes.

And, of course, with the wonderful gift from The Boyd Foundation, Darnall and Susan Boyd, y'all were able to make dramatic changes and add so much diversity and educational material to the aquarium, I believe.

>> Yes.

The donation that the Foundation gave was really wonderful.

We've really gotten to be able to showcase some of these amazing things that zoos and aquariums are doing, the biodiversity that the oceans have to offer.

It's very exciting for our visitors to be able to see some of that new stuff that we have here.

>> It is stunningly beautiful too.

Gosh, Pete!

The displays are beautiful.

Y'all should be commended on your artistic talents, as well as keeping some of these animals alive because they can be a bit finicky.

But let's do talk about I'm going to call her Mrs. Boyd... (laughs) the new octopus that you have.

>> Yes.

So Susan is a Giant Pacific octopus, and we've been having her for a few months now, and we've started to learn her personality.

She's very inquisitive and is always trying to decide what you're doing in her home now, so.

Amanda> Tell me about her taking the cleaning brush away.

Kendra> Yes.

The one day I was actually up there with a very long scrub brush and I was scrubbing in the tank, and something that's interesting about Giant Pacific octopus is they tend to know who their person is.

And I am not her primary person.

I was, I was taking care of her for that keeper that day.

She was off doing something.

And so I was up there doing a little bit of work.

And immediately, she just grabbed on to that scrub brush (Amanda laughs) and I tried to pull it back and there was no way that she was giving this up.

And so then I just left it with her and shut the doors.

And because they're very curious and escape artists.

So we have very special doors up there that will keep her in.

And so I shut the doors and I walked away and set a timer and kept going back like every 15 to 20 minutes.

And she had that brush for 3 hours (Amanda laughs) and she finally let it go.

Amanda> And she's really just a huge mass of muscle, I believe.

Is that true?

Kendra> Yes, they are very, very strong.

The only hard part on their body is their beak.

And they have the beak and they have all those suckers and the eight arms, pretty large bulbous head, the very interesting ability to change colors and change their body texture.

They can change their skin texture too.

They do it to blend in.

But they, I feel they also do it to show emotions that they're having.

So, yeah, it's very interesting to watch them.

>> I've read, I don't know how they gave them a comparative test, but they were almost as smart as a cat.

Kendra> I can believe that.

Yes.

Amanda> It's just stunning.

And the octopus have a rather fascinating life story.

And so they come from a teeny, teeny, tiny egg that hatches into a teeny tiny baby octopus?

Kendra> Yes.

And they grow relatively quickly because they do have a short life span.

So actually, they're growing at about 3%, sometimes, of their body weight a day.

Amanda> Gracious goodness!

Kendra> So, we do weigh her regularly and adjust her diet accordingly.

So their exhibit time is very short, actually.

It's probably a year to a year and a half, really.

So, yes, the female octopus will lay her eggs and guard them and then shortly thereafter she usually passes.

So it's a...it's a short lived, but very full life that they live.

Amanda> And they're not endangered?

And so it will be easy to replace her?

You're not harming the species or anything?

Kendra> No, I mean, most marine animals, obviously, they have their concerns between climate change and overfishing.

And they do lay a lot of eggs and they do reproduce a lot.

And they're relatively common along that the western coastline and up into Alaska.

Amanda> Okay.

Well, I'm sure that it sounds like from everything you all are doing, Susan, is going to have a very, very, very happy life here.

Kendra> Yes, she'll have a full life.

She gets lots of enrichment.

Amanda> And then these moon jelly fish... >> Yeah!

...what a funny looking animal, and you said they really just kind of use currents to float around.

Kendra> Yes.

They have the ability to pulse and to swim a little bit, but for the most part, these are animals that are living in the open ocean and they are just at the mercy of the currents and kind of just float along and eat plankton.

And they are a food source for other animals.

So they're just filling that part of the food chain.

Amanda> I believe that y'all feed them individually, something crazy like that.

Kendra> So our exhibit, which is pretty large, >> It's big!

we do individually feed the moon jellies in there with a turkey baster and they're eating brine shrimp.

In the, the backup space, we do culture them because they are also a short lived animal.

And so we need to culture them to be able to keep them sustainable within our, in our zoo.

And so, we usually are broadcasting those because there's so many jellies back there.

Amanda> Ah!

Okay.

And then just a huge, wonderful, fascinating array of, I think, mostly things that are from colder waters.

Is that correct?

It's just stunning the things.

You have to talk about some of your favorites.

Kendra> Yes.

So in the same gallery as Susan, the Octopus, we have a wide array of cold water, marine animals.

And so most of these are going to come from that western coastline of the United States.

And there is one exhibit that is southern Australia.

So that's going to be our...our potbelly seahorses and our ornate cowfish that are from Australia.

And they're very, very fun to watch.

>> And which is the one that sticks out of the sand a little bit, that crazy...?

Kendra> That's in our coral reef area and that's called a garden eel.

They're very fun.

>> That's a very strange little animal.

>> Yeah, their faces look like Muppets, I think.

(Amanda laughs) Amanda> And you all are involved in a national project.

You were selected to do this.

Tell me about coral reefs.

And we know that they're important in protecting coastlines and things like that, but I think there's been a disease that's been harming them.

Kendra> Right.

So, on the Florida reef tract, which is in mid Florida, down through the Keys, there is something called stony coral tissue loss disease, which they're not 100% sure what exactly is causing it.

But what happened was in 2018, we came on to the project and there are about 20 other zoos and aquariums that are involved now throughout the United States, and we're acting as external nurseries for these corals, so- Amanda> -hoping that they can be reintroduced if and when it would be safe to do so?

>> Yes, a reintroduction.

There will be some breeding and spawning and then reintroduction of the offspring.

So, yeah.

Amanda> And coral is actually an animal.

Is that correct?

Kendra> Yes, it is.

Amanda> But they have a symbiotic relationship with something that gives them their color?

Tell me a little bit about this crazy stuff going on.

>> So, coral is an animal, but it also has symbiotic algae called zooxanthelle.

And that is going to be photosynthesizing.

And it's also what gives coral it's vibrant and different colors.

So different strains of zooxanthelle are going to show different colorations.

So not only is the coral getting the nutrients from the algae, but also it's getting nutrients from plankton that's floating along because most coral is also going to be eating.

So they have feeder tentacles that go out, they have little mouths, and each polyp is going to be able to take in food.

>> It's a strange looking animal.

>> It's very cool, though.

They're all different.

They're all different colors and shapes and they're beautiful things.

Amanda> And you do have an exhibit that is things that would be from our ocean, I believe.

Kendra> Yeah.

So we have a large Atlantic tank and then we also have a mangrove exhibit, and both of those are showcasing a lot of animals that you'd see more, more tropical, prettier things that you'd see in Florida and the Caribbean.

But there are also some animals that are in there that you would find on our coastline, like spadefish and look downs, burr fish, some triggerfish.

And then also that Atlantic tank will be the home for our sea turtle.

So, we have a partnership with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources where we head start a sea turtle, a green sea turtle, and every two years we release one.

So right now our sea turtle is not on exhibit because it's too small.

But here in a few months it will be on exhibit in that large Atlantic tank.

>> I think when we listen to the things you've said about what you're doing and realize that a zoo is not an observation site primarily, but along with that, equally important is conservation, and raising awareness of some of the ecological threats that we face.

Kendra> Yes, and near and dear to my heart is helping the state of South Carolina, and...our southeastern area.

So I'm really excited to be able to help with the sea turtle project.

I'm really excited for the coral reef work that we do with the state of Florida.

I think it's all very important stuff to be able to really hit home.

You know, this is this is what we have here on our soil and this is why it's important.

Amanda> Kendra, I think it's wonderful that the Darnall and Susan F. Boyd Foundation selected this as one of the projects that they're supporting.

It's just a tremendous educational opportunity and a conservation opportunity for South Carolina.

It's a wonderful venue to come to.

Kendra> Thank you for coming and seeing us today, Amanda, And we're happy to show you around and showcase this new Aquarium and Reptile Conservation Center.

♪ ♪ >> It's always a wonderful day to go to the zoo, the Riverbanks, Zoo and Garden.

So many things to see there.

A wonderful, wonderful collection of plants.

And now the fascinating animals in their new aquarium and reptile conservation center.

Just a great thing to do.

And also, I was riding back and forth.

And Christopher, I don't think we realized the extent of the spread of the Bradford pear until they're in bloom.

It's across the Congaree River Causeway now.

They're in the swamp as well.

And so I stopped at a place where one has been seeding down for years.

And, you know, when we first when it was first brought in, they said, "Oh, it doesn't produce seeds.

It doesn't fruit."

And it certainly does produced seeds.

And here they are.

And first of all, they don't smell good.

And now because they're cross-pollinating with some you're getting ones with horrific, horrific spines on them.

I mean just, well, I mean, if you wanted to, you know, punch your finger, if you needed to have... do a blood sample, just get close to one of these.

And it makes it very difficult to get in and cut them down.

And they're even worse than this.

And we're talking about, you know, trying to find diversity for pollinators and all this.

And these things just take over areas and crowd out everything possible, native.

And they seem to grow in swamps.

They grow on dry ground.

It's truly, I think, just one of the most horrible things in the world.

And I think they're going to start making them illegal to sell.

But this cat is, I think, out of the bag.

Don't you think so, sadly?

Carmen> Yeah.

I believe this October, you will no longer be able to sell them in nurseries in the state of South Carolina.

>> Anyway.

And some of the... David Coyle, our wonderful professor of forestry, has encouraged people.

And sometimes we have Bradford pear bounties.

But just because you're a decent person, if you have one that you can remove, please remove it.

And if you have some forested land in there, please remove it.

You will be giving a gift back to Mother Earth.

Terasa> Now we talked about how important diversity is, and with this displacing the native vegetation, you know, we lose that diversity and virtually nothing here will use it.

So it's not providing any ecosystem services.

>> And you have to you can't even use a tractor to go in and take it.

You have to get something with tight treads because it pokes holes in a tractor tire.

I mean, oh, la, la, la, la.

Well, anyway, thank you all so much and thank you all.

Please join us next week and we'll put a big smile on our faces, as we say goodnight.

♪ closing music ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ 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.