Hello everyone.
Today we're at Southwest Aquatics in Central California, and today is
gonna mark the first episode of our aquatic plant discussions.
I have a very special guest for you to meet,
his name is Jim Purcell, and he's been running this facility and,
Since 1980, he's been providing aquatic plants to our industry.
He has a wealth of knowledge.
He was the president
of the International Water Garden Society not once, but twice.
We have so much to learn from him.
We're on about ten acres of property with three acres of aquatic plants.
So there's so much to cover, and we're going to pick his brain and
learn as much as possible.
Come on in and I'll introduce you to Jim.
Jim.
>> Hi, Eric.
>> It smells amazing in here.
>> It is amazing.
>> Fantastic.
All spring and summer.
>> 35 years, commercially doing aquatic plants.
>> Wow. That's a long time isn't it?
>> How did it all began?
>> Began in a pet store.
>> Pet store.
>> First pet store I even owned, I grew aquatic plants and
sold them and.
>> For ponds right?
>> For ponds, and pretty soon I got to be growing too many, and so
I started to wholesaling them.
>> It's because in the 80's that's where it all began for.
>> That is where it all began, absolutely.
>> How cool.
Well we have a lot to cover here, we have three acres of plants?
>> Yeah. >> Something like that?
>> Yeah we do. >> We have a lot of greenhouses to
cover today.
>> Yeah. >> You think we can
do it in one day?
>> No, I think you're going to need to come back.
But you'll also need to come up to our Oregon branch.
My partner Farina, Farina Liechti runs that one.
>> Okay.
>> She actually used to be plant production manager
at Maryland Aquatics for
10 years, before she came to be to be co-owner of Oregon Aquatics.
And then we opened this branch here.
>> And it's bigger than this?
>> It's way bigger than this.
>> How much time are we gonna to need up there?
A week.
>> A week, okay.
Well, you know where I want to get started.
I want to start right from the get go on night blooming water lilies.
Tropicals of course.
>> That sounds great.
Let's do it. >> Let's do it.
>> All right.
>> So this is maroon beauty, it's what we would consider a red.
It's a night blooming tropical.
>> She's a beauty.
>> She is a beauty, and
she is open in the daytime even though she's a night bloomer.
That's a misconception that most people have,
that they want a day bloomer because they get to see it in the day time,
when in fact they are usually at work when it's open.
>> Let's fix this misnomer right now.
>> Let's do it.
>> Lets talk about it.
>> Night blooming tropicals, their open in the evening when you can
enjoy them when you're sitting out there having a glass of wine or
a beer.
>> Okay, well let's talk about evening.
Cuz what's evening to you?
Evening means dark.
>> Evening is still light.
>> Okay. >> It usually starts opening
up before dark.
Is it at 4 o'clock, 2 o'clock?
>> No, it's late.
>> Five? >> It's late.
It's late in the day, so it's more like you know, an hour before dark.
Something like that.
>> Even in the summer?
Like if it's dark at eight it's going to come out around seven?
>> Something like that.
>> Okay. >> It'll start opening.
>> Let's just get clear on that.
So.
>> So you're gonna be able to- >> An hour before sunset.
>> So you're gonna- >> It starts to open.
>> Approximately.
>> Okay.
>> And it's gonna vary a little bit from cultivar to cultivar.
Some will open earlier.
Some will open a little bit later.
But they stay open all night.
They look great.
>> Smells great too.
>> When you up-light them with submerged lighting,
they look great all night.
And they'll stay open until 10 or 11 the next morning.
So you actually, for most people who work for a living.
They have an opportunity to enjoy it a lot more.
>> Sure. >> If it's a night bloomer,
than a day bloomer.
>> In the evening time when they get home, it's still light.
>> Yep. >> And they're starting to open.
>> Yep, and then- >> And in the morning.
>> While they're having their morning coffee or whatever.
>> Getting ready to go to work and they're still open.
>> Yep. >> Cuz the day bloomers,
they don't open until what, 10, 11 maybe?
>> Yeah. >> About the same time these guys are-
>> Same time these guys close.
>> Just closing up. >> So it's very,
very good to have these and day bloomers in the same pond.
So you've got all your bases covered.
>> Very cool. And you'd
probably see one closing while the other is opening at the same time.
>> Right. >> That's cool, crossover.
Do they call the leaf red?
It's kind of red, but it's more of a bronze.
>> Yeah, I would call this bronzy or reddish.
And what you'll usually find is that the darker the flower,
the darker the leaf color.
>> Oh, that's.
>> And with a green, with a green leaf you'll have a white bloom and
you'll have an intermediate on a pink, and
the darker it gets usually the darker the leaf is.
There's a couple exceptions to that.
But as you can see this is a nice bronzy reddish color.
It's got very venation on the back as opposed to a day bloomer.
Here's a day bloomer leaf you can see.
>> Yeah, it's almost like it's folding in.
>> And it's much softer, much less rigid, and
these have the serration on the edge, kind of like saw teeth.
>> Right.
>> So they're very distinct night blooming leaves.
>> It would seem that these guys are more buoyant, right?
You think that occurred naturally,
like they needed to have more strength underneath there?
>> Yeah. Probably more water action.
>> Or bigger frogs that land on them.
>> [LAUGH] >> [LAUGH] Right?
>> That could be too.
Yeah, I would say that there's, this is additional defense.
>> Yeah, cuz they're a little bit sharp.
>> The little spikes. >> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
So probably a little bit for predation, but the stiffness and
the venation is probably mostly due to heavier water action.
>> It's a super cool plant.
So, is it, this one probably doesn't occur in, naturally, right?
>> It does not occur naturally.
For the most part, we only have cultivars here.
Just like you would have rose cultivars in your garden rather than
the species, because we've developed hybrids that bloom more often.
That have larger blooms.
That have more intense colors.
Perhaps, that are less temperamental.
>> Okay.
>> All reasons why you would not sell species roses as a nursery.
Or own them as a homeowner.
>> Okay.
>> But you would have the cultivars.
It's the same thing with water lilies.
Now, this is Maroon Beauty.
That was I would say, an accidental hybridization.
In 1950, by Perry Slocum.
And, it came from a seedling of Harstick, which is another red.
But, needs more heat than Maroon Beauty does and
so this has become a much more popular plant.
>> Let's talk about that.
It needs more heat.
I mean, this, we're in a greenhouse, right?
>> We are.
>> We're not, but the plants are, so.
They want it more tropical.
They call it a tropical lily.
I mean, I'm in Southern California, so
a lot of times this plant will come back for us.
>> Yes.
It will generally be.
Winter-hardy and tropical, and in Southern California,
that's considered a fairly subtropical climate.
Night bloomers are actually pretty hardy when it comes to
winter hardiness even though they like the heat to become active.
>> Uh-huh.
>> The tubers will often remain viable,
dormant over the winter in a colder climate than a day bloomer will.
But they do like the heat to get started.
So it's not likely that if you winter them over that they're going
to come up early until the warm weather comes.
>> Okay.
>> Let me show you what size pot this is in.
Because this is actually a good sized lily for this size pot.
This is an eight inch wide by five inch, deep pot.
>> Okay. >> And that's what
we call a lily gallon.
And we grow them in a wide,
shallow pot because that's what the plants like.
They don't need the depth, it's easier for
them to oxygenate the soil if they're in a shallower pot.
Wider pots don't tip as easily.
But this is a good starter-size pot.
You can see all the roots that are coming out.
>> Yeah. >> It definitely wants to be
moved up in a larger size pot now.
Unfortunately, most people,
when they take these home, they don't put them in a larger size pot.
And that's like having a Rhododendron or
a palm tree in a one gallon pot and
never moving it into a bigger sized container in your yard.
>> Right. Well, here's the thought process,
a lot of times they take that one gallon pot, they take it home and
they stick it in the ground.
So there's no pot for them to even consider, right?
>> Right. >> Sometimes they'll do a patio and
they'll put plants in a pot, but
they usually move them up >> Right.
>> So in an aquatic plant, in a water lily.
>> They don't think about it.
>> Yeah, a lot of them they're just like, let's put it in the water,
it's going to be fine.
>> Or they do think about it and they say, oh, I'll do that later.
And guess what?
Once it gets in the pond, it stays in the pond.
>> Right.
>> It doesn't get fertilized, it doesn't get moved up.
The best thing to do is buy a 16 inch diameter by 7 inch deep pot
something around that size.
>> 16 by 7, that's the magic number?
>> Yep, 16 by 7.
>> And we'll get a full plant?
>> Buy the potting media, buy the fertilizer, and
you'll get a full size plant.
You will have basically constant bloom, and
you'll have much larger blooms, and you'll have what you want. Okay.
All right, that's good advice.
I'm gonna make sure we press this home to our clients.
Well take me to another red.
>> Okay. We've got one right down here.
A Red Flare.
It's the deepest red, and we should catch it before it closes.
All right.