The Biosphere Blog

This week I thought I’d follow up on the last paragraph of this older post that had been getting some recent attention, as well as my comment under that post. Fig. 1 below is the very same Lang referred to. This photo was taken on 19th October… more »

Rather than a post last week, we had threee guest comments under this older post — direct links are here, here and here — and a big thank you to Adrian and Airlie for sharing their experiences! I stupidly didn’t actually post those links publicly… more »

This earlier post lists the most important nutrients plants require to grow, flower and fruit. But barring a full laboratory soil or leaf analysis, most people only become aware of any deficiencies when their trees show poor growth and development. By… more »

Have you ever repotted a plant and wondered why the bottom of the potting mix is so incredibly saturated compared to the rest, despite the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot? You may have thought this was a sign of over-watering, but what you… more »

This post complements last week’s post on a Photo Journal of a Young Jujube Tree Coming Out of Dormancy, by getting up closer on the buds themselves as they come into life. The photographs below show a cluster of terminal (tip, end) buds on a… more »

All tree orders for this winter 2019 had been received by Tuesday 20th August, six weeks ago today. While these were being sent out, I deliberately kept a few over in the exact same conditions as those that were being shipped, ie packed in wood shavings… more »

Many hobbyist/backyard fruit enthusiasts prefer to plant their jujube trees in large pots either because of their soil type, the tree’s suckering habit, or both. Keeping a tree in a pot also helps control its growth and manageability. And pots of… more »

As last week’s post stated, manufactured fertilisers are reliably the same with every batch, and the same measured applications can be relied on to deliver the same amounts of nutrients every time. Manures, in contrast, are a natural product and… more »

Last week’s discussion of three differing fertilisers briefly mentioned that manures and manure-based products should not be thought of as complete fertilisers able to supply all nutrients in adequate amounts — and commercial suppliers of these do… more »

Last week we went over the six macronutrients and six micronutrients (trace elements) all plants need for good health. There are a variety of fertilisers put out by garden product companies with the backyard fruit-grower in mind. These have been… more »

The Jujube Tree Growth Cycle Jujube trees go through many stages over a yearly cycle. As they leave dormancy around August/September, the sap begins to flow, buds erupt, and leaves grow. Roots grow and branches appear. Flower buds begin appearing about… more »

Water leaves soil in three ways: evaporation from a surface; drainage; and movement through a plant. Evaporation is due to heat, drainage is due to gravity, and movement through a plant begins with root uptake and ends with evaporation through the… more »

Are you familiar with capillary tubes, the very thin rods with very narrow bores? When placed into water, the water is pulled into and up the tube, against gravity. This is capillary action. And the narrower the bore, the higher the column of water will… more »

Water on contact with a soil’s surface may do one of three things. Depending on the geography and soil, water may continue downhill, or pool on the surface, or soak in. Water that soaks into a soil is said to infiltrate it, and it follows that it… more »

As with soil, there’s more to water when it comes to plants (and soil) than is evident at first glance. Elsewhere in this blog I’ve mentioned water secondarily and where relevant, but now it’s time to give the subject of water the… more »