LightNews — News, ranked by scholars

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: October 2026, #2

Welcome back neighbors,

Our plant focus this week is an interesting one as it is a plant that is a fruit-bearing, non-native that most do not believe can be grown here in North Carolina. #Pomegranate

Yes, I realize I start quite a few TWHD episodes talking about things that should not grow here but, the plant in question is a Dwarf Pomegranate (Punica granatum var. ‘Nana’) and it is native to Afghanistan, northeastern Turkey, central Asia and, northern India. Keep in mind you can also grow full sized Pomegranate bushes right here in North Carolina just fine, but the Dwarf Pomegranate as its name suggests is easier to manage because in general it only puts on about a twelve to eighteen inches of growth per year. So let’s start with the basics here, Pomegranates are in the Lythraceae family which is commonly known as the Henna (Lawsonia inermis) family because Henna is just that popular. Pomegranate is best described as a woody deciduous perennial shrub that is hardy in zones in 8-10. Fayetteville North Carolina is in 8B thanks to climate change. Our area used to be 7b in 1990, then we moved to 8A in 2012, and now as of 2023 Fayetteville in specific is partially 8A and 8B. As such Pomegranates are perennial but will die back to the ground if we get a weird winter and the temperatures drop below 10° F.

The size difference between a Dwarf Pomegranate and a full size one can vary greatly, Full sized ones can grow up to 10-12 feet tall and up to 8-10 feet wide. Information for how big a Dwarf Pomegranate can get varies greatly online but according to the Santa Rosa County Cooperative Extension in Florida, they get 2-4 feet tall and 2-4 feet wide.

The problem with this is that my dwarf Pomegranate clearly didn’t get the memo, as it routinely reaches 8-10 feet tall before I give it an early fall pruning every year. All the included photographs are from that plant by the way and my farm does have a full-sized Pomegranate specimen but it’s not nearly as photogenic.

So growing one of these things is surprisingly easy as they are surprisingly drought tolerant and seem to not care what kind of soil they are grown in. An established plant doesn’t even seem to care if weedy vines are trying to smother it. But the one nasty surprise on dwarf Pomegranates is that they have Thorns hidden amongst the foliage. These thorns are not shaped like what you find on a Rose as they are straight and can be up to two inches long. Generally these thorns are not a big problem but it means that you should not plant Pomegranates near windows on your home that have screens as they are tough enough that the movement of wind can cause them to gouge holes in your screens.

About that fruit though, Dwarf Pomegranates still produce fruit, but it’s somewhere between 1-3 ounces and often has a diameter up to 2.5 inches. When compared to full size fruit which can weigh between 1.77oz to about 26.45oz and up to 5 inches in diameter dwarf Pomegranates seem tiny which is why they’re often considered ornamental. Despite this dwarf Pomegranates are edible but, you have to know when to pick them. Look for fruit that has a matte slightly rough skin that has reddish tinges in the skin. Some guides say that tapping the fruit makes a specific sound, but this isn’t a reliable method because anything can change the internal structure of a fruit. Thankfully you will have no problems finding the flowers or fruit as they both appear at the tips of new growth and the flowers as seen in the photographs look like no other plant’s flowers and have the added value of being very attractive to pollinators and Hummingbirds. As if that were not enough, the new foliage in the spring has a lovely bronze-red coloration and in the fall, Pomegranates have bright yellow leaves adding to your fall color. So, in short Pomegranates are a very viable option for your gardens in multiple roles and you get fruit out of the deal.

[Author's Note: This Pomegranate is very shiny and not yet ripe.]

October 9, 2026 at 12:45 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Speaking of local elections,
The CC BOE is trying to fire Irene Grimes. She does excellent work in explaining the BOE to the public and holding everyone accountable.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRVv...
youtube.com/shorts/e3WUx...
She's got a legal defense fund going:
fundrazr.com/f2mog6?ref=s...

Cumberland Co. BOE says change in NC law led to late results on election night

YouTube video by ABC11

www.youtube.com

October 7, 2026 at 10:09 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Good Evening Cumberland County,
This event is upcoming on the 20th of October in Fayetteville. If you want to know about your County Commissioners, hear their plans, and ask them questions then come on down to this event. The normal TWHD post will be tomorrow.

October 7, 2026 at 10:01 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Hey folks if you're in the Fayetteville, NC area check out this meet and greet with a local candidate for county commissioner at large. I know Mrs Stubbs from a few local organization actions over the years and it's worth it to go to this event.

October 4, 2026 at 12:45 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: October 2026, #1

Welcome back neighbors,

Our plant focus this week is a plant that I have a long professional history with but is a bit obscure out here in the southeast. #Rhododendron #VanVleckHouseandGardens #NJ #Montclair #Azalea

Today we’re going to talk about the other half of the Rhododendron family because while all true Azaleas are Rhododendrons, not all Rhododendrons are Azaleas and we’re talking about the non-Azaleas. Why are we covering these plants? Well the Southeast is the land of the Azaleas but every now and again their bigger more botanically numerous cousins poke their heads out of a hedgerow. It is perhaps a botanical irony that Azaleas get rarer the farther north you go because often they cannot handle the winter cold. Let’s start with what a Rhododendron is before we talk about the specific specimen I photographed for this article. Rhododendrons are members of the Ericaceae family which means they are related to Blueberries, Cranberries, Wintergreen and, Leucothoe, amongst many others. The name Rhododendron translated from its Greek roots comes from two words ‘rhodo’ and ‘dendron’ which mean rose and tree respectively and that name certainly fits. The most obvious difference between a Rhododendron and an Azalea is the leaves. Azaleas typically have soft somewhat fuzzy leaves that may shed in a cold winter. Rhododendrons on the other hand are broad leaf evergreens with tough leathery leaves that are elliptical shaped with a simple margin.

The Rhododendron’s branching pattern is alternate and generally their flowers can have many Anthers/Stamen, Azaleas by comparison only tend to have five of those. In the specimen we’re looking at in this post; a Pontic Rhododendron has ten Anthers/Stamen which is a crucial identification trait. Just in case some of you out there are wondering what an ‘anther/stamen’ is, the Stamen is comprised of two parts. The tip of the Stamen is the Anther, and the structure attaching that to the rest of the flower is the Filament, together they make up the ‘male’ part of the flower as they produce and release pollen. In the case of Rhododendrons they normally have about ten of these. The biological reason for this is two-fold; numerous stamens ensure that pollen transfer happens, but also its redundancy in case of physical damage.

The specimen pictured is known as a Pontic Rhododendron, but it is also called a Common Rhododendron. The scientific name for this plant is (Rhododendron ponticum baeticum) and it is a non-native species as it originates from Bulgaria, Lebanon and the Caucasus. The specific epithet ‘ponticum’ means ‘coming from pontus’ which is a region located on the southern shore of the Black Sea. Despite that Pontic Rhododendrons are surprisingly well-adapted to our climate and you can probably find one listed as a ‘Common Rhododendron’ at most garden centers and nurseries’. In Zone 8B, we’re roughly at the south most limits of the Pontic’s range though some sources suggest it can go all the way into Zone 9 with special care. What makes the plant special is its bloom time as it picks up after the Azealas are done. It’s normal for a Pontic to bloom between May and July, but also respond to a gentle pruning with another series of blooms as late as September. So while most things are scorched by our usual August heat, this shrub is producing some glorious color. The best part of this Rhododendron is that on average maybe six feet tall but is at its best if the prune it to four or five feet so it doesn’t get a leggy sort of appearance. Now about for that professional history I hinted at the beginning of this post? For most of a decade I worked at a botanical garden called VanVleck House and Gardens as part of the grounds crew. Here’s a link to their website:

https://montclairfoundation.org/

Take a guess in that four garden plants they specialize in, Chinese Wisteria, Japanese Wisteria, Rhododendrons, and believe it or not Azaleas. Even back then, those and a few other really interesting oddities were the norm for working there. Of course they had few Pontic Rhododendrons and a Few Pontic Azaleas as well. One of their more interesting features was that they had a Southern Magnolia the specific variety was ‘Edith Bouge’ and it was a mature full-size tree that was unfortunately sterile but it also was impossibly far north and living in a strange microclimate outdoors in-ground. The point though of mentioning this, is that from there I gained a very specific set of skills in caring for our main attractions and finding a Pontic Rhododendron poking out of a shrub row was a delight.

October 2, 2026 at 1:07 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Here's a transcript of the Mayor of Fayetteville NC being incredibly stupid on our local radio station WIDU with his favorite sycophant. A moratorium is not the same as a pause. Perhaps it's time we mailed the mayor some knee pads because he's doing a lot of kneeling for the data center people.

September 25, 2026 at 2:17 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Local Update!
Sorry for the short notice on this one the City of Fayetteville only posted this on their FB page a day ago. Yes, it's the normal "tell em late then when turnout is shit claim that the people aren't behind a moratorium" nonsense.
www.facebook.com/100068807816...

www.facebook.com

September 25, 2026 at 2:12 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: September 2026, #4

Welcome back neighbors,

Our plant focus this week is something that I think all of you ought to have in your garden. The plant in question is called the Marvel of Peru, and that is quite a dramatic name. #MarvelofPeru #FourO'Clock

Much like with Jewels of Opar or Bleeding Heart or even Mother-In-Law’s Tongue, some plants get names that are above and beyond your normal descriptive names. The Marvel of Peru is an old-timey southern garden classic that is native to Mexico and Central America. Though the name Marvel of Peru also carries a bit of misinformation as the country of Peru is located in South America so someone either failed at geography or they decided on a name that was intentionally dramatic. Common name aside, the scientific name of Marvel of Peru is (Mirabilis jalapa), but you probably know it under the name Four O’Clocks. The word ‘Mirabilis’ means wonderful while the word ‘jalapa’ according to some sources, is a version of the name of the state capitol of Veracruz, Xalapa-Enríquez in Mexico.

The other common name ‘Four O’Clocks’ itself comes from the plant’s habit of its flowers opening at 4pm to 8pm. This means that Marvel of Peru is effectively a night-bloomer and it is very aromatic at night. The main pollinators of Marvel of Peru are moths and Hummingbirds. Biologically speaking Marvel of Peru is considered a tender perennial in Zone 8B, but a perennial in USDA zone 9 to 10. Given its origins and natural range this plant can be called a technical native but historically Marvel of Peru is thought to have been cultivated by the Aztecs for both ornamental and medicinal purposes. Before I go into how they seem to have used Marvel of Peru as a medicine, folks I do not advise you try any of this at home. If you do try it please consult a qualified medical professional or someone certified in the use of herbs for medicinal purposes. While I’ve not been able to find information on the preparation process or even a truly credible source for this a number sources say the same things. The flowers are edible and can be turned into the base for a dye. Supposedly the dried flowers are used to treat headaches and the root is used to treat skin conditions in Brazil.

Peuvians supposedly use the juice from the flowers to treat herpes but juice from the root to treat diarrhea, syphilis and liver ailments. When you look this up you’re going to see a whole lot of mentions that this plant is used to treat the squirts and it’s probably for the best that you don’t use it like that. In your garden, Marvel of Peru is a perfect cottage garden plant for areas with partial sun, but it can tolerate full sun as long as it is given adequate irrigation. The plant I’ve photographed for this post has lovely solid pink flowers, but they come in white, yellow, and even a broken colors variety that has a mix of colors per blossom. The weird thing about Marvel of Peru is that the plants can suddenly go dormant. It is not uncommon to have a first year plant suddenly act like it’s dying in the middle of summer and then return like nothing happened next spring. Marvel of Peru has a tuberous root that can get pretty large with age and this allows it to go dormant when things aren’t going right. Because of their tuberous root, Marvel of Peru is able to survive drought or unfavorable environmental conditions that other native plants cannot. It’s wise to carefully mark where you planted Marvel of Peru so there is no chance of you accidentally digging up a healthy plant. The last thing about Marvel of Peru that you need to know is that it has really big seeds, which turn black when they are fully dry. These seeds sit in a little cup made of the flower’s Calyx and are easily handled and a great seed due to its size for teaching kids how to garden. So, what do you folks think about Marvel of Peru?

September 25, 2026 at 2:09 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: September 2026, #3

Welcome back neighbors,

I bet you’re wondering what happened to TWHD last week. Well there was a time crunch and TWHD did not get finished within the deadline so here we are a week later and with a interesting plant to talk about. #MalabarSpinach

This week it’s all about a semi-tropical food crop that you might find in the wild since it’s seeds do tend to survive our winters but the plants themselves otherwise do not. What is this plant you ask? Well, today we’re looking at Red Malabar Spinach (Basella alba ‘rubra’). The pictures I’ve included this week sum the plant up pretty well; it is a vine that has an alternate leaf arrangement. There are two types of Malabar Spinach though, the green one is not as common in the seed or nursery trade as the red one for the obvious reason. The bright red vines are pretty and give Malabar Spinach an interesting look. The large heart-shaped semi-succulent leaves give it a unique foliage texture that has no rival in the average garden. The best part about this plant is that under optimal conditions the vines can grow as much as thirty-three feet in a single season but, they need warm temperatures for the seed to germinate and suffer cold injury at the same temperatures that Sweet Basil does. Any temperature below 30 degrees overnight will obliterate Malabar Spinach plants while the numerous berries they produce and the seeds that come from those will be shaking their fists at the frost and planning garden domination for next year.

As far as I know this plant has no problems with pests and I’ve never even detected any in several years of growing it. Malabar Spinach vines don’t seem to have any obvious chemical defenses so it’s kind of surprising that only people munch on it. The only thing I can find that it has are tiny amounts of Oxalate crystals but they’re in small enough amounts that this plant in small quantities is still pet-safe. For you and me I still recommend that you eat the leaves fully cooked.

As for propagation of this plant you have two options, you can get some ripe berries from someone who has a plant in late summer or buy them online from a company like Bakers Creek who sells the red ones. A second option is to take cuttings as any stem that is at least five inches long stands a good chance of growing roots in water. You could also do air layering or place a loose stem under a rock so it’s in contact with soil and then leave it for a few weeks and it will have rooted. Thankfully Malabar Spinach is really forgiving and easy to propagate but be careful of what you wish for when growing it as it can be a tad aggressive. Certain parts of Hawaii and Southern Texas classify it locally as an invasive.

Now, back to the whole cooking and eating thing; the part you want to harvest is the leaves and avoid the vines because the vines can get a bit tough especially if the plant has started flowering. The leaves are always edible unless rendered into mush by a cold snap. The leaves have no particular flavor and can be used at a 1:1 ratio as a replacement for regular spinach in any cooked culinary recipe and chances are that no one will know the difference unless they are told. My favorite way to use the leaves is to sauté them with garlic, olive oil and use just a bit of chicken broth to make them a side for rice with baked chicken breasts. Of course there are dozens of Malabar Spinach recipes out there on the internet and you will have no problem finding what works for you.

September 18, 2026 at 3:25 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Sorry for the late notification but folks in Cumberland county North Carolina need to know about this upcoming event.

1000 Marches to the polls. The purpose of this event is to get people the information they need to encourage their communities to vote like it matters. This is because the midterms usually suffer from low voter turnout. This time around however may make or break the entire country and this upcoming election is critical. There are events scheduled all over the country, our local one will start with the event on the 19th of September at 7:00pm eastern time. The address is Crossroads United Methodist Church on 306 McArthur Road Fayetteville, NC 28311.

September 18, 2026 at 12:21 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

In the headlines, because DuPont/Chemours dumped their pollution in Fayetteville. We aren't the only place this happened but I know people who have had their health damaged by this so finally almost a decade later...

www.wral.com/news/investi...

North Carolina secures $455 million PFAS settlement, plus $135 million cleanup reserve

North Carolina has secured $455 million in payments from Chemours, DuPont and Corteva over PFAS pollution, along with a separate $135 million reserve intended to protect future drinking water and clea...

www.wral.com

September 10, 2026 at 10:35 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

I thought I'd show you this clip straight from the Fayetteville City Council meeting this week. Our Mayor Mitch Colvin (he talks off screen) is terrified of free speech and does whatever it takes to silence citizens. Did I mention he bends over for data centers? He Does!

September 10, 2026 at 1:38 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: September 2026, #1

Welcome back neighbors,

This week, despite the punishing last hurrah of summer in the form of multiple heat advisories, and through it frantic maintenance we have a bunch of flowers to cover. #Petunia #Cosmos #Coneflower

The first plant of interest is the ‘Pretty Grand Red’ Petunias which are a basic red flowered Petunia. You can get them at any Garden Center or Nursery and they’re usually sold in those little plastic multi packs for a few bucks. I got about two packs in spring and planted them in hanging bag planters and in two concrete planter urns. The idea was to place them strategically in the test gardens to attract Hummingbirds. As I found out when the Hummingbirds finally arrived, they ironically ignored them completely. Personally I find the idea that they snubbed my red Petunia offering pretty funny. If you believe the hype, red is the color to attract them, and Petunias should have the trifecta of what it takes. Petunias come in multiple shades of red, they have a trailing habit, they self-deadhead so no real flower mess and they provide nectar. Of course Mother Nature had other plans and the Humming Birds were clearly unimpressed by them or any other type of Petunia in the garden. I don’t even think they gave the time of day to the Million bells Calibrachoa. Normally I’d spot Hummingbirds during the summer, but the drought and other factors seem to have delayed their arrival. The Hummingbirds were finally observed in the gardens about two weeks ago in the morning and were more interested in the Chicory flowers, Black and Blue Sage blossoms as well as the Balsam Impatiens. Go figure, but this is how the gardening learning curve works, so next year no red petunias.

Speaking of Petunias, next we have the Firefly Petunias which were touted as special but were disappointing. Just in case you do not remember, Firefly Petunias are Genetically Modified Organisms; they have had a few genes from a fungus that is bioluminescent inserted in a lab so that the Petunia’s flowers and new growth can glow. The problem is that the glow isn’t all that bright, it is already described on the manufacturer’s site as similar to moonlight, and though I’m not sure what phase of the moon they’re talking about because moonlight is way brighter then this thing. Also problems arose with this plant needing a specific fertilizer with specific micronutrients. I was able to make my own version of what the company sells on its site and that worked for most of the summer but it became rapidly clear the plant was still a bit anemic. The picture I’ve included really doesn’t do the plant’s failures justice. This plant died roughly in mid-summer despite a reasonable amount of care. I tried moving it to a partial sun location where it only got morning sun and that didn’t seem to matter. In the end, Firefly Petunias were a bit expensive and didn’t really deliver on their promises, I would not recommend this one next spring when you see them in nurseries and garden centers.

Moving away from the nightshade family for our third plant is a member of the aster family, Cosmos. This is one of a few that I grew from seed that I traded to get. The test gardens have an odd history with Cosmos in that in all prior years they simply failed. I partially suspect this was due to the limitations of my irrigation system before I upgraded it but also poor quality seed and issues with soil quality. This year was no different as the stand of Cosmos was nearly demolished by a Raccoon or Possum deciding they were a good place to nap. Despite this a few survived albeit very crooked in stature and bloomed anyway. Now when it comes to these plants, as it turns out they can be very thirty, and given our summer and if we have more like it, you’re going to need to pay special attention to them for watering purposes. Cosmos thankfully do dramatically wilt telling you that your attention is needed. The one thing I did learn is that these are a plant best planted in the ground. The big yellow-orange ones will rapidly outgrow even large tree pots and then you have them in a state of perpetual wilt because there’s never enough moisture in the soil. Overall I’d be willing to try these again, but only the Sulfur-yellow types as they seem to have done the best.

Finally this week we have a ‘Purple Magnus’ Purple Coneflower, which is commonly just called by its scientific name Echinacea. The name ‘Coneflower’ comes from the shape of the central disc section that forms a cone. Each of the little pointy bits in the center of the flower are actually individual flowers each of which if pollinated produces a single seed. This tightly packed central cluster of tiny flowers is the chief identification feature for a member of the Aster family. Coneflowers are one of the easier perennials to grow as they just require a bit of irrigation and regular weeding around them to keep competition at bay. Coneflowers are quite tolerant of poor soil and drought once established and if they’re truly at home expect little coneflower seedlings nearby. If grown in good quality soil, Coneflowers will reward you with vibrant and numerous blooms attractive textured foliage and of course you’ll see a lot of pollinators.

September 4, 2026 at 4:06 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: August 2026, #4

Good Morning Neighbors,

This week I am not featuring any plants, well at least not directly. In today’s post I’m going to cover a pest of a very specific crop, the Figeater Beetle. #Fig #FigBeetle #Natural

This type of Beetle is also known as the Green Fruit Beetle or the Fig Beetle and it can easily be mistaken for the June Beetle (Coninis nitida) or sometimes the Japanese Beetle (Popillia japonica) which is no less voracious. The Fig beetle (Cotinis mutabilis) is a member of the Scarab Beetle family (Scarabaeidae) and its main habitat is in the southwestern United States which includes California, Mexico and into northern South America. As always, nature is illiterate and can’t read what I just wrote and so we get them here in the North Carolina. Fig Beetles are fairly large by beetle standard in North America as they are ¾ to 1 1/3 inches long, they are smooth bodied and lack any hairs like the related Japanese beetle. Fig Beetles will generally appear as Metallic Green with brown or tan areas along the margins of the wing covers over the abdomen. On the head of this beetle is a horn-like projection called a Clypeal Horn. The larva of this Beetle are commonly called grubs and are a dirty white or brownish colored and can be up to two inches long. They mainly live underground and feed on organic matter, the roots of plants and other organic detritus. There are four life stages for a Fig Beetle, egg larva pupa and the adult stage. In North Carolina, the adults mate white wrecking your fruit, then the females lay eggs beneath the surface of organic matter such as compost piles, lawn clippings, organic mulch and manure. The eggs hatch in about a week and they feed on rotting organic matter and develop through three instars where they basically turn into a bigger grub. In spring of the next year the larva mature and pupate in a cell made of soil particles. The adults emerge in late spring if not early summer and can be active through early fall if there are ample food sources. There is only one generation per year for Fig Beetles, and this is something you can exploit for controlling them.

Fig Beetles in Cumberland county start to appear on fig bushes in mid to late summer and can persist as long as there is fruit. Once the fruit is gone so too are they and potentially there goes a bunch of your harvest. The good news is that these hungry pests are only after your fruit and do no damage to otherwise to your fig bushes. In 2026, the Fig Beetles were much more numerous because of the drought and then sudden rains we got caused a mass-emergence of them but also which caused fruit to swell and burst during rainy periods which was like ringing a dinner bell for the beetles. Why do they go after figs though? Well this is because their mandibles are not strong enough to break into fruits with harder skins and as such they can also attack Peaches, Grapes, Pears and Tomatoes. Also those weak mandibles mean that Fig Beetles cannot break your skin if they bite you, they aren’t even aggressive if you disturb them. A Fig Beetle makes a lot of noise when flying but they are no danger to a human. Interestingly even with soft skinned fruit such as Figs, these Beetles prefer to go after pre-damaged fruit; this will include fruit that has swollen and burst, fruit that is damaged by birds, and fruit that is already damaged by other insects. If a Fig Beetle cannot locate already damaged fruit they have a structure on their head called a Clypeal horn that can be used to tear the skin of soft fruit so they can get at the flesh inside. The interesting thing though is that a little cultural care can make sure they are reduced in number right off. Fig Beetles are attracted to the scents of ripening and fermenting fruit, the former you can do nothing about but the latter is something you can change. Fruit at 70 degrees Fahrenheit can start fermenting in as little as two days, so when you add already ripe fruit and a bunch of summer rain you get the equivalent to the bat signal but for fig beetles. As an extra for cultural care, I often will pick over ripe, damaged, bad fruit..

and toss it in the compost or if that’s not practical throw it at least ten or more feet away from any nearby fig bush. Damaged fruit that say has been lightly pecked by a bird is harvested as normal but cleaned thoroughly and used in cooked fig recipes. This limits chance that fig beetles can trace it back to the source and gets me more figs in the long run. Now let’s take a look at these critters biology beyond the basics that I covered. Fig Beetles are diurnal which means they are chiefly active during the day. Unlike a lot of insects Fig Beetles are endothermic, meaning they generate their own body heat internally. They do this by generating heat metabolically by using their flight muscles. Even when the Fig Beetle is at rest and not out in the sun they can keep their body temperature at about 53.6 degrees Fahrenheit (12 Celsius) and when in fight in a range of 86 to 107.6 Fahrenheit (30-42 Celsius). It has to be mentioned that Fig Beetles are pretty clumsy in flight, they steer poorly mainly due to aerodynamics and will collide with you or other things. If this happens you can just brush them off you and move on. The color of the Fig Beetle is also interesting, that metallic Iridescence is due to light reflecting structures in the cuticle of the Beetle’s body. The cuticle in this case is the waxy outer shell of an insect, it exists to keep the insect’s moisture in, and to keep the bad stuff out. The Fig Beetle helicoidal fibrous chitin protein lamellae which are called Bouligand Structures that selectively reflect left-handed polarized light resulting in that green metallic color you see. Fig Beetles do have at least one natural enemy, the Fungus Metarrhizium anisophiae has no common name and attacks the Beetle during the third larval instar killing it. This fungus is considered a parasitoid of at least two-hundred of insect species. It’s so good at what it does it has been used to control Termites, Thrips, Mosquitoes, Roaches and Red Fire Ants.

[Author's Note: This is a picture of the White Ischia and Chicago Hardy/Celeste harvest before the Beetles showed up.]

The down side is that it has also been found to be a pathogen of Reptiles, but research continues and in the meanwhile you can use BT (Bacillus thuringiensis), a soil-dwelling bacterium to control populations but you have to make sure it’s the right one. A few sources suggest using BT galleriae which is in products like Beetle Gone for killing the grubs of beetles specifically.

As an end note, it’s been known that Fig Beetle body parts have been used in human jewelry production since ACE 50 to 500 by the Ancient Pueblo People. At least two necklaces have been recovered from the Bear Ears Monument in Utah that date back to 70-60 BCE which suggests even older uses of the beetles by humans. So that’s Fig Beetles in short, they’re an interesting pest at my Fig Orchard that is causing interesting problems that aren’t dangerous enough to do anything more than cultural care for. Most of the time Insecticides are overkill and have unintended effects that go beyond the crisis you see.

August 28, 2026 at 12:58 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: August 2026, #3

Good Morning Neighbors,

This week we have a singular plant of note for two reasons....(see alt text) #Okra #IraqiBamiaOkra #ClimateChangePlants

The first is that the pictures are spectacular as I got a few of the flowers which do not last very long and also some of the vegetable produced by today’s specimen. The second reason is that by now if you planted this sturdy and reliable vegetable plant then you should be harvesting the fruits of your labor by now. The plant in question is Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and the specific variety shown in the pictures is ‘Iraqi Bamia’. Okra has a lot of names such as Common Ivy, Gobbo, Gumbo, Ivy Gum Plant, Ladies Fingers, Ochro, Okro and, Nkruma. A lot is revealed about this plant from its scientific name, the word abelmoschus is neo-Latin that derives its meaning from an Arabic word which translates to ‘father of musk’. This father of Musk bit refers to the plant’s seeds having a sweet musky aroma when crushed. The botanical Latin word ‘esculentus’ simply means edible or fit for human consumption and Okra pods sure are. For clarity sake Okra is in the Hibiscus family, which means it’s related to Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa), Cranberry Hibiscus (H. acetosella), Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), South Sea Salad Tree (A. manihiot), Turk’s Cap (Malvaviscus penduliflorus) and of course those tropical Hibiscus with the huge flowers you get for the tropical look. There are many other relatives that you’ve seen and never given a second thought. Point is Okra is in a big and very horticulturally relevant family and some of its relatives such as Swamp Hibiscus (H. coccineus & H. moscheutos) are native. Okra is not native to the Americas; it was first noted to have arrived here in 1679 in the Colony of Virginia. Now how did it get to the Americas in 1697? It arrived via the Atlantic slave trade; which was going on as early as 1450. The first enslaved Africans are noted to have arrived at Old Point Comfort in Virginia on August 25th 1619. With more shipments of slaves came the few who carried the seeds of plants from their homeland and this is how Okra got to the Americas.

[Author's note: The pods start out light green then mature to white. Folks often mistake IB for 'Star of David' Okra. SoD wishes it was as cool as IB.]

The heritage of Okra can be traced back to the country we now call Ethiopia which is located on the eastern side of the African continent near just above the equator. In its native habitat Okra is a perennial but here in the USA we grow it as an annual because our winters are far too cold for it. According to our USDA hardiness zones it can be grown from zone 5 through 11 but does its best in 8-11. Interestingly Okra’s genetic heritage is uncertain; it’s an allopolyploid meaning it has more than two paired sets of chromosomes. The two plants that crossed to make the ancestor of modern Okra are uncertain though some studies suggest White Wild Musk Mallow (A. ficulneus) and (A. tuberculatus) a wild species native to India. Research is as always ongoing and new information may come to light as genetic testing methods improve. The specific variety Pictured in today’s post is unique because it’s a Middle Eastern variety, ‘Iraqi Bamia’ unlike a lot of variety names tells you where it’s from and what it is. The word bamia part just means Okra, which then with the other word is straight up stating it is an Iraqi variety. What makes this variety truly special is that it produces wide pods that are white and that matters especially with what Climate Change is doing these days. ‘IB’ Okra’s white pod coloration is a defense against the heat of harsh unrelenting sun, they don’t scorch, and they reliably produce numerous 3-5” pods.

The plant’s big leaves also cast good shade for smaller crops grown beneath the Okra. In this year’s case I grew Perilla and Catnip successfully under the Okra. I should note that the ‘IB’ Okra in this case is a second generation selection for brighter white pods and heavy branching. Normally Okra isn’t super bushy as the central growing bud keeps things focused. I intentionally selected for bushiness and productivity as well as color and ended up with an Okra variety that produces enough to meet a single household’s needs with just two plants. For the first time in test garden history I have so much Okra that the surplus is going to the farmer’s market for sale and this is from just two plants.

Growing Okra is fairly easy, the seed are about the size of a ball bearing and easy to handle, you want to plant the dark gray or black ones as they are likely to germinate easily. The seed does not need to be soaked or scarified but soaking can help germination with seed that is a few years old. You generally want to plant the seed a quarter inch below the soil’s surface and make sure the soil doesn’t fully dry out for the first 7-14 days or until you see the seedlings emerge. You want to plant the seedlings out in the garden as soon as the latest threat of frost is gone in spring though hardening them off for a week or two prior to planting in very large pots or the ground so that they do not stretch much and develop properly.

Once your Okra have some true leaves you can start with fertilizing using a half-strength liquid fertilizer weekly and a month in I suggest topdressing around the okra with something like composted chicken manure or composted cow manure. By the end of May usually my okra are about two feet tall at a minimum. I give them full strength liquid fertilizer once every two weeks and apply a 10-10-10 organic granular fertilizer. I don’t usually get Okra pods until roughly June and those are harvested with a pruner because trying to snap them off can damage the plant and limit later harvests. The granular is there to be a slow-release feed for the Okra so they can power through the high heat of June, July and August. Typically by September if not October depending on how the weather has behaved, I begin the process of allowing Okra pods to full mature and produce seeds for next year. A singular plant is chosen and allowed do its thing. Okra pods that have mature seeds in them typically have dried tips that have started to turn outward and will soon split further. You can harvest pods at this point and lay them out on a paper towel. Natural drying will open the pods and let some of the seeds roll out. You should allow the seeds to air dry for about two weeks before bagging them because any moisture can encourage mold.

Lastly for this post here is a link to a decent Gumbo recipe:
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/216888/good-new-orleans-creole-gumbo/

August 20, 2026 at 11:59 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

I thought I'd share this since you all need to know what's going on in Fayetteville NC. We are down here fighting the good fight against Data Centers. #CarrolOlinger #ActionNC #CorruptCityCouncil #MisbehavinMitch #MoratoriumNOW #CleanWater #NoDataCenters

www.fayobserver.com/videos/news/...

Watch as data center protester is escorted from Fayetteville meeting

Action NC organizer Carrol Olinger is removed from a Fayetteville City Council meeting as opponents of data centers pack the room.

www.fayobserver.com

August 14, 2026 at 1:05 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: August 2026, #2

Good Morning Neighbors,

Hopefully your gardens aren’t too heat scorched at the current time. It’s the second week of August and these pop-up thunder storms have been helpful at the test gardens.... #Verbena #Spiders #Peppers #Celosia

...though we are at that time of year where one starts to transition food crops towards fall foods of all sorts. There are only three more posts in the garden flowers series and then one or two left in the Fort Liberty Series.

This week the first plant we lead off with is what is called a ‘volunteer’ or as the great Bob Ross might have put it, “a happy accident”. The plant you see is a Celosia, but not just any Celosia, but the descendant of what was a Dragons Breath Celosia (C. argentea plumosa) that is showing both the traditional flower form in the background but the odd one up front is demonstrating what is called Fasciation, not to be confused with fascination, though it certainly is fascinating. Fasciation is what happens when a growing tip for some reason gets its growing instructions confused and grows out to make weird shapes. In this case the mutation is likely genetic as it appears with every generation that appears in that pot every growing year.

Author's Note: Perhaps the best part is how fake this flower looks. Nature creates some pretty wild stuff and then your mind goes 'nah can't be real' despite it being right there.

In a garden not everything pretty is a flower. Here we have a Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia), and admittedly at the current time this same spider is several times larger because it’s chosen to put its nest on one of my two prized pepper plants where it can get a whole lot of prey. Based on size it is more likely than not this is a female and it’s very common for spiders of this species to pick a spot and stay there for most if not all of their lives. The good news is that their venom poses no real threat to a person, they aren’t even aggressive. Yellow Garden Spiders are only a threat if you’re an insect and they make up a colorful part of a thriving garden biome.

Author's Note: It's critters like this that makes being mindful of their habitats and watching them grow over a summer that is the reward for not using pesticides.

Speaking of Peppers, here is a close up of two nicely formed Hybrid Lemon Drop Peppers.
Every year I toss out seed starting soil from the seed starting process in spring and by mid-summer I often have mystery tomatoes, peppers or other things coming up in the garden beds. These Hybrid Lemon Drop peppers are the result of that, I tried to grow a batch of saved seed two years ago. A good pepper plant with heat often takes two summers to produce anything of value and here is the result of that. The resulting fruit have traits of a Lemon Drop Pepper and a Sweet Banana Pepper. The plant is very bushy and vigorous and heavily productive while the peppers are that pretty shade of yellow that is like no other. Lemon drops are often about two inches long with a flattened oval horizontal cross section, a little tail and have a pale yellow color that is almost translucent. Sweet Bananas ripen to a bright yellow can four to seven inches long and are curved like a banana. The hybrid got all the best traits of its parents along with production vigor. The heat is still there and the flavor is stable.

August 14, 2026 at 12:38 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: August 2026, #1

Good Morning Neighbors,

This week we have another selection of photos from the trial gardens that should give you a few ideas on things you can plant this your or add to your plans for next year.
#Zinnia #MexicanPetunia #Fennel #Cucumber

Our first flower is a classic, an old school Zinnia. Zinnias are a native to Southwestern North America, Mexico and Central America. Zinnias are also in the aster family and are completely edible though in most culinary uses only the petals are used. This plant in particular is a volunteer, it sprung up in a pot where I planted Sweet Potatoes and has looked quite nice since it emerged. While this one is a basic pink color, Zinnias come in a large array of colors and are great for supporting pollinators.

Our second flower is a Mexican Petunia, as the name suggests they are native to Mexico, the Antilles/Caribbean Islands and parts of South America. The bad news is that in the United States Mexican Petunias have escaped cultivation and gotten the Invasive classification in places like Texas, Florida and Hawaii. For our purposes in North Carolina growing these is best done in a large container that has no contact with the ground so they cannot escape. Look for a variety called Purple showers which is sterile and produces no viable seeds. There is one other thing about this perennial, it flowers in the morning and often the flowers fall off by midday.

Today’s third plant is a Spacemaster Cucumber, which has small but pretty flowers. Cucumbers are a fairly easy plant to grow, and their only real complication are need for regular irrigation and the rare attack by Vine Borers. On that last one Vine borders do not prefer cucumbers probably because the stems are so thin but in the right circumstances they can and do attack these garden vegetables. The irrigation is more to ensure proper fruit formation as the other two causes (incomplete pollination, heat stress) cannot be helped. Regardless of this a trellis full of Cucumber vines in bloom is a sight that holes potential for harvests that are not far off.

Last on the list for this week is the second culinary herb, Green Fennel. While individually the blooms are ok, the full heads that this aromatic herb puts them out in make them showier in the same way Queen Anne’s Lace’s flowers are. Fennel is also a tall herb with some specimens getting up to six feet tall though they can take more than year to settle into the garden because they have a taproot that has to dig down for the moisture and nutrients. The fluffy green lace-like foliage is also attractive and this plant is semi-evergreen in zone 8B in North Carolina.

August 7, 2026 at 1:41 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: July 2026, #5

Good Morning Neighbors,

This week we have another selection of photos from the trial gardens that I think solid ideas for your gardens in late summer if not for next spring. #Sage #Thyme #Periwinkle #Tomato

Our first flower this week is one that might look a bit familiar. I know some of you out there are thinking this is Mealycup Sage (Salvia farinacea), and you would be half correct. This flower is Mystic Spires Blue Salvia, (Savlia longispicata x farinacea), a hybrid between two perennial sages to produce plant with interesting foliage and bigger more dramatic flowers. The flowers keep the waxy whitish coatings on the flower calyxes so it ends up looking like a Mealy Cup Sage on steroids. This plant has proven to be quite vigorous in the test gardens and the pollinators seem to love it. If you look carefully in the photo you can see there is a tiny pollinator on the flowers.

Our second flower is a case of something you probably did not know could flower as much as a gardening success story. The plant is a Golden Lemon Thyme (Thymus x citriodorus) which is at least four years old which is beyond the normal age limit for a Thyme plant in zone 8B. It’s accepted practice that Thyme Plants only live for 2-4 years on average and this one is doing really well despite being potted. The tiny light pink flowers only appear when the plant is very happy and this means spring, sometimes summer and gain in fall. Coupled with the gold margined leaves this plant can make for a showy display if it is care for as if it were a Basil. For those who don't know, Lemon Thyme is one of the three primary non-citrus, citrus scented/flavored herbs that you can easily grow. The other two are Lemon Verbena and Lemon Balm. I prefer the Thyme and Verbena.

Today’s third plant is a Tattoo Blueberry Madagascar Periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) which is often commonly called ‘vinca’ but bears no relation to the ground cover plant which is considered invasive. This periwinkle is considered an annual but may resow itself in places near stonework where the soil stays a few degrees warmer than zone 8B can naturally provide. Every year there is at least one flashy form of Periwinkle in the garden and Tattoo Blueberry was the top choice for 2026. These plants are easy to grow, the trick is to remember that they prefer hot temperatures and soil that is on the dry side. If their soil is wet for too long they get foliar and stem rot diseases. By the time we hit the heat wave and drought, these plants were totally digging the burn.

btw did you know an extract of this plant's sap is the basis of at least one Chemotherapy drug?

Lastly, this is technically a flower or the end result of one. The first large tomato harvested this year was a Cherokee Purple and what you see here is called ‘Cat facing’. Cat facing is a type of naturally occurring scarring of sorts, it is common in larger fruited heirloom tomatoes that helps make them misshapen and lumpy but otherwise does not detract from edibility or flavor. The term originated around 1901 and was used to refer to the cuts in pine trees to collect resin. By about 1931 the Department of Agriculture was using it to describe certain deformations in fruit such as Tomatoes. The Spot on the left side is a small amount of Blossom End Rot, which was defeated by a lime application that took effect before BER could do much. Regardless of that, there is something extra special, perhaps magical about home grown tomatoes. They're never perfectly round and you control the state of ripeness at which you pick them. The flavor is what it's all about of course, store bought will never even compare to these.

July 30, 2026 at 8:36 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: July 2026, #4

Good Morning Neighbors,

Welcome back folks, instead of talking about wild plants we will be talking about lovely things in the trial gardens. #Petunia #MountainMint #Oregano #Marigold

The first plant on display this week is one of my personal favorites, Headliner Dark Saturn Petunias. What a flower! I only managed to get two specimens for the garden as my favorite supplier was nearly out of them when these flowers caught my eye. The flowers vary a bit from the one in the picture but the super-dark purple centers that sort of bleed out into the white borders almost like a how a drop of black ink put in a glass of water will swirl, disperse and take on random shapes and patterns. The best part is that these flowers have a slight scent early in the morning and are pretty entrancing in the early morning light as new flowers have just opened. The best part is that the Pollinators love these Petunias and if you can get some I’m sure you will too.

Next up is Durango Red French Marigolds. As some of you know I have a standing bias towards Marigolds; I put them in every garden plan because Marigolds are a sturdy attractive addition to any garden. Durango Red though has that gorgeous fireball orange thing going on and each flower even on the same plant is a little bit different. At a few feet of distance it looks like the plant is producing little fireballs and the Pollinators seem to like them just fine. I did lose a few of these plants early on though, and I presume that is due to lack of vigor or perhaps overcrowding but when the heat of summer has arrived you can find no better a flowering annual.

This third plant is a curveball, it isn’t an annual and chances are you have no idea what could possibly produce flowers like this. This is the flower cluster of a particularly healthy Oregano plant. Oregano is a hardy perennial that is effectively evergreen in zone 8B, and forms dense weed blocking mats and the flowers attract serious pollinators of the butterfly and solitary wasp kind because it is in the Mint family. While there are purely ornamental Oregano varieties with fancier flowers out there, I prefer the regular type because it proves Oregano isn’t just a spice, it’s a critical asset to the garden ecosystem.

Finally we have another unexpected entry to this list, Clustered Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum muticum). Mountain mint is our native species of Mint and the scientific name means ‘blunt flower’ and the specific epithet means ‘blunt’. As a herb Mountain mint has a spearmint scent and flavor though it’s not nearly as pungent as a some of the more cultivated varieties of Spearmint. The tiny spotted pink flowers of mountain mint attract a wide variety of solitary wasp pollinators and it is a critical part of supporting the local ecosystem since it is a native plant. The best part is how the flowers have those dusty off-white leaves around them and form this flower canopy while the rest of the plant is a rich green color. The one big advantage to Mountain Mint is that its stalks are rigidly upright and it generally does not escape cultivation as much as other more cultivated mints.

July 24, 2026 at 2:38 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

Hi there folks, this week for TWHD there will be two posts and the first is to bring attention this weeks YouTube Upload which covers the topic of Sugar Cane.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7TT...

The full channel description for this video can be found on the blog:
bl2-litfm.blogspot.com/2026/07/the-...

LITFM - Sugar Cane

YouTube video by TKG

www.youtube.com

July 24, 2026 at 2:35 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: July 2026, #3

Good Morning Neighbors,

Welcome back folks, we’re going to take a break from the normal wild plants thing to show off a few lovely domesticated plants from the botanical trial gardens here in Fayetteville North Carolina. #SummerFlowers

Our first plant is called Japanese Basil (Perilla frutescens variety crispa). It is considered invasive in some areas and it’s toxic to most pets as well as to horses and cattle. Its big issue is that it produces a lot of seeds that survive the winter and one plant can be the parent of dozens if not hundreds more the next year. Perilla is in the Mint Family, but thankfully it only spreads by seed. For you and me its leaves are plenty edible and have an enticing aroma that goes well with a bit of pepper paste. I tried making a pesto out of it once, and uh, it was ‘enlightening’.

The second plant today is Digiplexis, its specific variety is Illumination Canary. Digiplexis is a cross between Purple Foxglove (Digitalis purprea) and Canary Island Foxglove (Isoplexis canarensis). It is a sterile hybrid meaning no viable seeds but, its flowers are something else. It has all the color of a purple foxglove with orangey-yellow tinges and some of the shape of Isoplexis flowers. This is a win-win perennial plant for your garden folks!

The third plant is ‘Denver Daisy’ which is actually a type of Black Eye Susan and thus (Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’). This plant was bred for and named after Denver Colorado to celebrate the city’s 150th anniversary. A few good sources indicate that this variety of Rudbeckia was made by crossing (Rudbeckia hirta) with the variety ‘Prairie Sun’. Even if this isn’t true, Denver Daisy is a short lived perennial in USDA zone 8 it is not sterile and has a good chance to resow itself from seed if you don’t deadhead the spent flowers.

Today’s fourth plant is a Petunia but not just any Petunia, this is called ‘Midnight Gold’ from the Jewel series. This one comes through BallFlora who are known for some pretty interesting plant offerings and ‘midnight gold’ is completely that. As far as care it requires the same as any other Petunia though I give it extra fertilizer because I do not want the double ruffle flowers to stop. Funny thing is I bought this as an accident thinking it was another type of Petunia which we will cover next week.

July 17, 2026 at 3:19 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: July 2026, #2

Good Morning Neighbors,

We’re back on track this week after a brief holiday break last week and we have one of the last plants in the Fort Liberty series. #Baptisia #YellowFalseIndigo

<Alt Text 1 of 3>
. Today’s wild plant is commonly called Yellow Wild Indigo but, a lot of the yellow indigo plants are also called that. Additional common names for this native perennial are Yellow False Indigo, Green Wild Indigo, Bush Pea or Yellow Wisteria. The scientific name for this member of the Fabaceae Family is (Baptisia sphaerocarpa) which tells you that it is related to the very same False Indigo that you can buy at garden centers and nurseries throughout the country. Also, I feel it’s important to mention that the last common name ‘Yellow Wisteria’ is a prime example of why you should often take common names of plants with a grain of salt. So what is a Yellow False Indigo? The Yellow False indigo is a native herbaceous perennial that can grow two to three feet tall with a spread of two to four feet. The foliage is a glaucous green color and each leaf petiole can have three leaflets that are roughly elliptical in shape.
<Alt Text 1 of 3>

<Alt Text 2 of 3>
Some of the petioles may have a reddish tinge in color but the angled branching on this perennial puts its branching pattern under the alternate classification. The thing that makes Yellow False Indigo special is its flowers, which are a bright yellow color that stands out against the normally muted colors of the forest floor. Yellow False Indigo flowers open from the bottom of the flower stalk upward and the blooming time is mainly in spring roughly from Late March through to the end of May if not into early June, depending on how the weather behaves in a given year. Much like the more common cultivated blue False Indigo, Yellow False Indigo is a fairly tough plant that can handle drought and poor soil with ease once it is established. It is known to be hardy in USDA zones 4 through 9 and its native range includes Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. This information would make it seem like the plants I spotted are quite a distance out of their native range.
<Alt Text 2 of 3>

<Alt Text 3 of 3>
How they got here is unclear but presumably someone or some animal moved the seeds and they are here now. Speaking of seeds, a few vendors carry this plant’s seeds but your best bet is Prairie Moon. Cultivating False Indigo from seed is fairly easy, you would start these in a seedling tray with bottom heat and normal amounts of illumination and germination of the seed takes about fourteen to twenty-eight days. Thankfully with these seeds there are no extra steps such as scarification or acid baths to get them to germinate. From germination it will often take a few weeks to a month or more before the seedlings start developing more than one set of true leaves. From the true leaves point it can take two to three years before a False Indigo is ready to produce any flowers. On this point alone, if you ever seen Yellow False Indigo plants for sale, it’s wise to get a plant that is several years old unless you prefer the patient route to stunning yellow pea blossoms. As a final bit of information the members of the Baptisia are called ‘False Indigo’ because their flowers or foliage can be steeped in water then allowed to ferment to make a indigo-like dye. True Indigo (Indigofera tinctoria), is also in the Fabaceae Family, and is a relative that is native to West Africa, Tanzania, South Africa Mainland Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent.
<Alt Text 3 of 3>

July 10, 2026 at 3:31 AM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: July 2026, #1

Good Morning Neighbors,
This weekend is a holiday weekend and TWHD is taking a break. Here are some weather safety links since it's going to be hot this weekend.
www.weather.gov/safety/heat-...
www.dph.ncdhhs.gov/blog/2026/07...
Please stay safe!

Heat Cramps, Exhaustion, Stroke

www.weather.gov

July 2, 2026 at 10:48 PM

TKG

@tkg-nc.bsky.social

The Wild Harvest Digest: June 2026, #4

Good Morning Neighbors,

Today, we have another wild plant found during the Fort Liberty excursion. This time it’s an American Persimmon. Persimmons belong to the Ebenaceae family which is known more commonly as the Ebony Family. #Persimmon #Native

<Alt Text 1 of 3>

If you didn’t believe the relation to Ebony was a thing, Persimmon wood is valued in the wood crafting trade because it is dense and shock-resistant, but comes with some difficulties that only experienced wood crafters can handle. For the rest of us, American Persimmons do two things, their foliage can be brewed into a tea, and of course those fruit. The flavor of the fruit is hard to describe, and I often liken it to a mix of honey, dark brown sugar with maybe a dash of UFO peach. In the case of the ones we saw at Fort Liberty, these trees were in full bloom though they appeared to be all male trees. American Persimmons (Diospyros virginiana) are dioecious, meaning the plants are either male or female with no hermaphrodites possible. American persimmons will form entire colonies of single-sex trees as they readily sucker from the originating plant’s root stock and those plants will be clones. This does mean that there is an advantage in using American Persimmon root stock, but that becomes problematic when the grafted persimmon dies or simply is overcome by the more vigorous root stock.

<Alt Text 1 of 3>

<Alt Text 2 of 3>

American Persimmon can grow up to eighty feet tall with a canopy that is up to thirty five feet wide. American Persimmons are native trees that are deciduous and found all over the United States but naturally they are mainly a southeastern sort of thing. The scientific name of American Persimmon is interesting as the first part ‘Diospyros’ comes from the Greek words ‘dios’ and ‘pyros’. The two Greek words directly translate to ‘Zeus’s Wheat’ but generally mean ‘divine fruit’. The specific epithet ‘virginiana’ means ‘of virginia’ or in some sources ‘virginian’. The common name ‘persimmon’ comes from the language of the Native Americans, specifically the Algonquin name for the fruit ‘putchamin’ which was phonetically anglicized. In our Fort Liberty hike it was found that the specimens as seen were smaller than the above noted size by a long shot; mostly being fifteen feet tall at best.

<Alt Text 2 of 3>

<Alt Text 3 of 3>

American Persimmons bear their leaves in an alternate arrangement and the leaves are roughly elliptical and have a pointed tip. The flowers are easy enough to tell apart, male flowers appear in clusters of 2-3 flowers and are smaller and have petals that tend to curl back. Female flowers appear individually and have less curled petals that are more pronounced. For comparison, on Japanese Persimmons, all the flowers are female and are parthenocarpic meaning they don’t need pollination to produce fruit. In our area you will find American Persimmons naturally in places like rich bottom lands such as areas near the Cape Fear River, at the margins of woodlands, in fields, rocky hillsides and if previously cultivated growing in former homesteads. On Fort Liberty we found the photographed specimens in Turkey Oak Scrub.

<Alt Text 3 of 3>

June 26, 2026 at 3:43 AM

Add to Home Screen

News, ranked by scholars

Sign in to LightNews

Sign up to start reading

Connect Bluesky

Connect with Bluesky