Episode 245: houseplant botany with Dr Scott Zona
Transcript
Subscribe to On The Ledge via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Player FM, Stitcher, Overcast, RadioPublic and YouTube.
Dr Scott Zona joins me to talk about his new book, a Gardener’s Guide to Botany, plus I get some feedback on Fluval Stratum.
Patreon subscribers at the Ledge End and Superfan level can listen to An Extra Leaf 101 where Scott talks about plant species that collect leaf litter. You can listen to the other episodes in the On The Ledge botany series here.
This week’s guest
Dr Scott Zona is a botanist, researcher, and educator with a focus on tropical plants: you’ll find him on Instagram as @scott.zona and on Twitter as @Scott_Zona. For 9 years he served as the curator of the Wertheim Conservatory and Greenhouses at Florida International University in Miami, where he directed the restoration of the conservatory and maintained their research plant collections. Dr. Zona has collaborated with scientists worldwide on plant ecology research and has taught graduate- and undergraduate-level courses on tropical plant taxonomy. He guides garden tours and workshops for students, garden clubs, and the general public. In addition, he was a palm biologist with the Center for Tropical Plant Conservation at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Florida. He also educates houseplant enthusiasts through his online course, The Botany of Houseplants.
You can also hear Scott talking about palms in episode 63 of On The Ledge Podcast.
Scott’s book A Gardener's Guide to Botany published by Cool Springs Press is out December 6 2022.
Dates for your diary
On December 2 2022, I'm taking part in a panel discussion on houseplants at the British Library, along with James Wong, Carlos Magdalena and Mike Maunder. Indoor Jungles: The Story of the Houseplant starts at 7pm, and livestream and in person tickets can be booked here.
Useful info while you listen…
The diagrams below illustrates phytomers, the repeating units of plants that are above ground: each consists of a leaf, a node, and an axillary bud as well as the internode. Scott uses the analogy of a lego set to illustrate how this works.
The fungi book I mention is by Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake. The book Scott mentions that explains the human microbiome is I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong.
Liebig’s law of the minimum is a really useful concept to understand if you are growing plants: growth is dictated not by total amount of resources available to the plant, but by the limiting factor - ie the resource that is most scarce.
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Frank offered up some information on Fluval Stratum as a substrate for houseplants in answer to Rowena’s question about this product in episode 240.
Frank says:
Rooting cuttings in it generally works very well. Astonishingly well, I’d say. What I usually do is to have a layer of leca in a small jar, and then stratum on top, with the cutting either stuck into or laying on the stratum. The water level should almost cover the leca, i.e., almost up to the stratum. I don’t think it works as a substrate for adult plants. Maybe it can also be used for growing (some kinds of plants) from seeds, but I have not tried that.
Examples of plants I propagated in it are Operculicaryas, Boston fern, och Brunfelsia. There have been more, like Scindapsus pictus, but those three I had been struggling with a lot until stratum came along.
Since it’s rather expensive, you want to use small jars for propagation. Also, the small balls it consists of crumble easily when it’s wet. Therefore, once a plant has developed roots, I usually just use a pin or the like to loosen the stratum around the roots, take the plant out, and then let the stratum dry out. Once it has done that, it (and the leca) can be removed from the jar and eventually be reused. That seems to work a few times until you need to use a new batch of stratum. Apparrently some people mix old stratum into their ordinary substrate to avoid wasting it, but I have no experience with that because I have not yet had any that could not be reused for propagation.
The Facebook group Frank mentions is called Growing in Stratum.
If anyone else has feedback of Fluval Stratum do get in touch!
Want to ask me a question? Email ontheledgepodcast@gmail.com. The more information you can include, the better - pictures of your plant, details of your location and how long you have had the plant are always useful to help solve your issue.
THIS WEEK’S SPONSOR
COZY EARTH
This week’s show is supported by Cozy Earth, the premium bedding company that helps you get the deep restorative sleep you need. Bedtime is literally my favourite time of day, so it’s really important that my bed is the most comfortable place it can be. I got to try out a set of Cozy Earth sheets and they really are so comfortable! Cozy Earth’s high quality bedding is responsibly sourced and made from soft and sustainable viscose that comes from bamboo fabrics. Bundle up in Cozy Earth pajamas made from ultra-soft viscose from bamboo this holiday season. Now available in holiday hues! Want to give the gift of a good night's rest with Cozy Earth? On The Ledge listeners can take up Cozy Earth’s exclusive offer today - get 40% off site wide at cozyearth.com using code LEDGE now.
HOW TO SUPPORT ON THE LEDGE
Contributions from On The Ledge listeners help to pay for all the things that have made the show possible over the last few years: equipment, travel expenses, editing, admin support and transcription.
Want to make a one-off donation? You can do that through my ko-fi.com page, or via Paypal.
Want to make a regular donation? Join the On The Ledge community on Patreon! Whether you can only spare a dollar or a pound, or want to make a bigger commitment, there’s something for you: see all the tiers and sign up for Patreon here.
The Crazy Plant Person tier just gives you a warm fuzzy feeling of supporting the show you love.
The Ledge End tier gives you access to two extra episodes a month, known as An Extra Leaf, as well as ad-free versions of the main podcast on weeks where there’s a paid advertising spot, and access to occasional patron-only Zoom sessions.
My Superfan tier earns you a personal greeting from me in the mail including a limited edition postcard, as well as ad-free episodes.
If you like the idea of supporting On The Ledge on a regular basis but don't know what Patreon's all about, check out the FAQ here: if you still have questions, leave a comment or email me - ontheledgepodcast@gmail.com. If you're already supporting others via Patreon, just click here to set up your rewards!
If you prefer to support the show in other ways, please do go and rate and review On The Ledge on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen. It's lovely to read your kind comments, and it really helps new listeners to find the show. You can also tweet or post about the show on social media - use #OnTheLedgePodcast so I’ll pick up on it!
CREDITS
This week's show featured the tracks Roll Jordan Roll by the Joy Drops, The Road We Use To Travel When We Were Kids by Komiku and Enthusiast by Tours. The ad music is Holiday Gift by Kai Engel.