Readers of this column will be familiar with my fondness for nasturtiums. The sunny flowers and bright green foliage enliven garden spaces all summer long. The blooms make lovely little bouquets that exude a light and spicy, sweet fragrance. The flower petals and young leaves add peppery notes to salads, and the plump seeds are easily handled and simply pushed into the soil. I use nasturtium, and calendula, as edible floral highlights in the vegetable garden. Both flowers self-sow.
While this collection of virtues is a reality, every mention of nasturtium in a column elicits a deluge of emails from people who despair of growing the plants because of black aphid infestations that plague and mar them.
Last month, another email came with a possible solution. Beth Stanley, who gardens in Nanaimo, passed along this tip.
“I, too, love nasturtiums and must have them every year, even though the plants have always attracted black aphids as the weather warms. I have had very good results with putting fresh coffee grounds around the plants and changing the grounds every three or so weeks. Since I have done this, I’ve had very few aphids on the nasturtiums and in some years none at all.”
Beth has found local coffee shops to be good sources for the grounds. This simple deterrent is worth trying.
Runner beans revisited. Last summer brought an avalanche of mail complaining about the failure of runner beans to set pods.
It was the long, hot season and the fact is, runner beans, unlike common pole and bush beans, grow and produce best in cool weather. Heat causes the blossoms to drop. The plants also require ample water and pollination by bees or hummingbirds.
My explanation for this common runner bean problem brought a note earlier in the year from Margaret Bass in Duncan.
“Your article about runner beans and pollination reminded me of our experience last summer. Grown from our own saved seeds, the sturdy plants grew to the top of their support and were covered in red blossoms, with lots of insects buzzing around, but no pods formed. We watered the planting faithfully; lack of moisture wasn’t the problem.
“Then came September with the cooler weather. The vines bloomed again, and we had lovely fresh runner beans well into October.”
As we observe our runner beans developing, we’ll be anticipating the gourmet treat of freshly gathered, richly flavoured young pods. As the weather warms, keep the plants deeply watered and mulch to retain moisture. And if the summer of 2015 repeats the intense heat of last year, we may do well to adopt Margaret’s calculated patience.
GARDEN EVENTS
Rose meeting. The Mid Island Rose Society will meet this evening from 6-8 p.m. in the meeting room of the new Nanaimo North Library, across from Green Thumb Nursery on Hammond Bay Rd.
Native plant meeting. The Native Plant Study Group will meet on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Room D103 of UVic’s MacLaurin Bruilding. Erica Van Dyk, a graduate of the University of Victoria’s Environmental Studies program, will present “Putting Environmental Studies into Practice.” While pursuing her studies, Erica has engaged in many projects, among them managing ecological restoration projects and teaching elementary students about native pollinators. Non-member drop-in fee is $5. Parking cost is $2.50. www.NPSG.ca.
Birthright plant sales. There will be two Garden Babies for Birthright plant sales on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at St. Elizabeth Church, 10030 3rd St. in Sidney and at St. Patrick’s Church, 2060 Haultain St. in Oak Bay. Both sales will showcase rare plants with double flowers and unusual colours as well as perennials, flowering shrubs and more.