 |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
To print this article, use the Print feature in your web browser program
| CAROLINA SILVER BELL TREE NOT SEEN OFTEN IN COASTAL SOUTH | |
| Published: October 25, 1997 | |
Serves as a good substitute where dogwood will not growQ:I have mailed my SASE for seeds of the Carolina silverbell tree offered in the Plant Exchange section of your column. I have never seen this tree and wondered if you could publish a picture or point out one in town that I could see.A:The picture that we have, which is from Ellis Fletchers collection, is of a silverbell (Halesia diptera) that is closely related to Carolina silverbell (H. carolina). The silverbell pictured is a medium-sized flowering native tree that is found growing on sandy slopes and river bottoms of the Gulf Coast.This tree has attractive clusters of white bell-shaped flowers that bloom during March and April on branches of the previous years growth. Young leaves and flowers appear simultaneously. It is usually found commercially only in nurseries that specialize in native plants. Carolina silverbell has all of the same good features as H. diptera, but grows larger. It is more cold hardy and is more prevalent in the upper range of the South. It is occasionally carried by local nurseries. It will be interesting to see how the seedlings that result from the plant exchange will respond to our south Louisiana climate. Diana Callahan, who is offering the seeds free, is sending basic propagation instructions with the seeds. If you missed the first offer, send a SASE with two stamps to Diana Callahan, 15102 Lindsay Dr., Abbeville, LA. 70510. Herb Garden open to the public at Greenhouse Senior CenterThe Acadiana Herb Society recently planted an herb garden at the Greenhouse Senior Center on Evangeline Thwy. Senior citizens, members the society and the general public, are invited to stop by often to view the garden.Interested persons are invited to attend meetings of the Herb Society at 7 p.m., the second Tuesday of the month, at the USL Greenhouse on Johnston Street across from Ground Pati. The saga of HBV seeds continuesFrom Ann:Janelle Arceneaux who offered free hyacinth bean vine seeds through Plant Exchange has now filled 705 requests, some from as far away as Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida, Georgia and Alabama. She has been addressed by many titles including Dear Hyacinth, Dear Carolyn (she lives on Carolyn Drive), and Dear Ann (Landers or Justice?).The Lafayette Post Office and Janelles mailman have been immensely helpful in trying to solve the mystery of why seeds are disappearing from envelopes in transit. The conclusion is that, although the seeds are wrapped, machine cancelling squeezes some of them out. A post office official jokes that next fall all the postal substations will burst into bloom from the HBV seeds that are being swept from their floors onto parking lots. Janelle will replace lost seeds. |