Online community for ornamental horticulture
-
Paul Rusnak
- Male
- Winter Park, FL
- United States
- Share
- Share on Twitter
- Share on Facebook
- Blog Posts
- Discussions (5)
- Groups (2)
- Photos (2)
- Photo Albums (2)
Paul Rusnak's Discussions
Pet Peeves
Replied Jul. 7, 2009
FLORICULTURE FIELD DAY IN GAINESVILLE FL MAY 14, 2009
Replied May. 11, 2009
Paul's Page
Gifts Received
Paul Rusnak has not received any gifts yet
Latest Activity
Paul, there is plenty of equipment available. The equipment seems to show up mostly in local classifieds. Now is a great time to buy. The task is in the willingness to be prepared to negotiate on a new or used piece of equipment. I have a friend tha…
Every time I turn on the TV, I'm bombarded by commercials featuring obnoxious car dealers spouting off about the great deals they have. The "Cash For Clunkers" program certainly has piqued America's interest in car shopping again.
Just curious if a…
I kind of like the DIY--but with technical support--approach to this. This kind of software allows clients to see potential in their landscapes, which is a great thing. The more realistic the interactivity can be, the better it will be in the long r…
Thanks for the replies everyone. To Adria's point, the majority of these shows are of the Southern California variety. It would be nice to spread the sites around a little and address climate differences. It also would be interesting to see how some…
I have to say that I can't stand those shows. As Paul mentioned, they are not realistic. They also don't make it clear that the climate they are working in may not be the same as the viewer's. They usually don't take into account what the landscape…
I agree with you Paul. I love to watch the HGTV's line up of landscape shows. they don't have enough of them!!
I am of fan of Yard Crashers. I am involved in a group that provides educational programs and a symposium every two years. I feel Yard Crashers is an interesting show and that it would be a unique approach to a horticultural symposium event. Travel…
Paul Rusnak's Photos
Comment Wall (6 comments)
- At 1:57pm on February 18, 2009,
Bryan Morris said… - Let me if you need any help with graphics software, I'm always glad to share ideas.
Bryan Morris
info@outofinc.net
- At 1:38pm on January 28, 2009,
Gary Roberts said… - Paul;
We no longer overhead irrigate, due to possible wind damage, power outages, etc... We have covered for years and this year just added an new element to our cold protection arsonal.... flooding. Having grown up in the Citrus belt I remember the groves flooding when cold weather approached. In fact we have used our artesian well for a few years to flood the cold senstive B&B Palms, as we set up the nursery so the B&B Palms could be flooded by the artesian well, which is a constant 72 degrees year round. It seemed to work for us in past cold weather. So after the series of hurricanes dumped water all over our property we invested in a high volume diesel tractor powered pump (5,000+ per minute) to pump water out of our nursery into the abutting canal. Remembering how long it took to empty the nursery, we got the bright idea, during this last cold snap, to pump water "in" starting late afternoon and see how much we could get. We filled up the nursery! Of course we also used the artesian well and our electric pumps to help as well. We figured out that we can actually pump water in within 12 hours and then drain the water out within three to five, allowing the plants not to sit in water during the day, and then pump in again for the next cold night if required. We learned that we had to be contuously adding water for the water to provide the coveted steam. On the covered plants that have water under them, the steam rises and seems to get some trapped and help raise the temps under the covers. If it sat without new water being added the water would cool down quickly and not produce any steam. We feel that it worked very well. We had a heavy frost for two nights and no frost settled where the water was.
Supplies needed:
- Canal or other large and deep water source where the water is warmer than the air. The warmer the better.
- high volume pump and off grid power supply
- a drainage and swale system within the nursery that will allow water to flow both directions at high volumes
and my favorite:
- someone committed to staying up throughout the night to monitor and run the process
It's not for everyone, but it is a do over for us.
Another trick I learned in the freeze of 89'. I had container plants that were too big to cover, with that artic clipper heading my way, and having seen how cows huddle together in cold weather, I thought that if I laid the plants down in groups with the foliage on top of each other that it might provide warmth. It did. And I still use that trick to this day for plants in containers too large to cover.
A trick I use for, say 2-5' Container or B&B Roebelinii Palms or Cardboard Palms, is to take an empty pot, say 25-45 gal, and put it upside down over the foliage. This stops frost from settling on the foliage and I believe may help keep it a hair warmer. I have not tested the temperature postulation.
Gary
- At 8:28am on December 18, 2008,
Deb Joneck said… - Hi Paul,
Might I be one of your friends? Deb
- At 10:58am on November 19, 2008,
Gary Roberts said…
- Paul,
How do I join the GROWER or LANDSCAPE group?
- At 10:57am on November 19, 2008,
Gary Roberts said…
- Paul;
- At 10:57am on November 19, 2008,
Gary Roberts said…
- I agree. I have never done any chat rooms or any such similar communicating. I'll be interested to see how it works. I probably won't have the time to check or intiate, but will participate when contacted, such as replying to you. Hope all is well and that the Staycation article is progressing. Ironically enough, we took a boat ride through the east to west coast lock system from Stuart to Ft Myers a week or so ago, and one home had a huge Pirate ship built in their back yard. We were too far past it to get a picture in time though.
Gary
© 2010 Created by Sara Tambascio.
