Gardeners, it ain’t over till it’s over! I know you know what I mean: we think that we are all done planting, and then someone tells us about or very kindly gifts us with another interesting gem to add to our garden collection, and out come the garden gloves again! Hurrah!
A dear gardening friend shared a kangaroo apple with us. What’s that? Well, sit down for a cup of tea, and let’s travel to the land down under to learn about this interesting plant.
The kangaroo apple, also known as solanum aviculare, originally called the southern part of the world home, Australia and New Zealand. It’s an interesting shrub that can grow twelve feet tall, and has delicate mauve blooms in a five-pointed star shape with yellow centres. The blooms look similar to potato blooms, which is what we should expect because the kangaroo apple is part of the nightshade family, which includes tomatoes and potatoes.
The plant enjoys full sun, and can take slightly heavier soil as long as it drains well. The plant likes to enjoy moist, but not wet, soil. It will bloom all summer with those lovely mauve flowers, which will later turn into bright orange fruits. While I was doing my homework, I read conflicting reports about whether the fruit is edible or not, and most articles said that if it is unripe, it is toxic, but if it is ripe, it isn’t. Since experience with this plant is minimal for most of us, and we likely wouldn’t adequately know what is considered “ripe”, please follow caution and do not eat the fruit from this plant. Just visually enjoy the bright beauty of the fruit!
We can try to grow this plant in a large container, or plant it directly in the garden. But we must remember that it comes from tropical climes, and so will not be able to tolerate any frost.
Another dear gardening friend gave us another new gem to try: the “Black Pearl” pepper. The plant is beautiful right now, with dark purple- black leaves; but when I did some homework about the plant I discovered that it will get even more striking as time goes on! The plant is a sun-worshipper, and enjoys a spot that gets full sun, but guess what happens then? The leaves will turn even darker in color! I can’t wait, it sounds so beautiful!
Now here’s another exotic aspect of Black Pearl: it will develop clusters of round peppers that are glossy and gorgeous and look like black pearls! The plant itself will become bushier, not like the upright growth of regular peppers, but fuller at the bottom than the top.
The plant likes full sun, is very heat tolerant, and doesn’t require a lot of care and worry in terms of water, fertilizer or pests.
As fall approaches, the black pearls will become red. The article that I read said that at this point the peppers are edible but are very hot. However, the gardener who gave the plant to us is extremely knowledgeable, and he said the peppers are not edible. His is the advice that we would follow with complete confidence; so once again, let’s just enjoy the beauty of the plant.
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society looks forward to meeting with our gardening friends again, although we don’t know when that will be. I’ll be sure to tell you what’s happening, and of course, you can check our website at www.yorktonhort.ca where the latest news will also be posted.
I long ago saw a quote that I love: “Gardening adds years to your life and life to your years.” I have always believed this to be true, and know many gardeners who, while they may have a certain age on their driver’s license, have an “enthusiasm age” that is decades lower and they are as youthful and free-spirited as spring! The eternal “looking ahead” of gardeners to the next season is what does it, I am convinced. During these unsettled times, the garden is a steady anchor, and to be out there in sunshine, getting exercise, and absorbing the peace and tranquility of nature is exactly what we need to keep things in perspective.
Thank you to our friends at Yorkton This Week for their amazing work! Let’s pray for good health for all, and have a glorious week in your garden! Be sure to wear a hat!
