Pine needle mulch in Brooklyn/Manhattan?

[Tony]

Hi guys,

I plan on wintering over Dionaea and Sarracenia outside my apartment in Brooklyn, NY this year and am in need of a small quantity of pine needles for mulch... like maybe 5-10 gallons or so.

Anybody know where I can find it around here? How about an online nursery that might sell me that small of a quantity?

I've checked all the local places, from the hipster nurseries in Williamsburg to the Chelsea flower district and Home Depot in Manhattan and no luck (can't even find Peat Moss or Perlite here w/o added fertilizer). I've seen some available online, but the quantities are HUGE and my apartment is 700 sq feet <g>.

Of course I'm also open to any alternative, more readily available materials for mulching!

Thanks in advance,
Tony

[rsivertsen]

Hey Tony, I've lived in Brooklyn myself for several years with CPs and the VFT will do just fine on a window sill over the winter. Trying to overwinter them outside is risky because those nights when the temps drop below 20F, their survival rates are not very good.

Similarly with the Sarr's, if theyre dormant, just cut off the old pitchers, rinse off the old media, and wrap them up in a damp paper towel and store them in a zip-loc bag or container in the bottom drawer of your refig until March, and pot them up and put them outside again. I usually check in them about every 2 or 3 weeks to keep an eye out for any mold or mildew getting to them, and spray them with a mild solution of a fungicide if it does occur, and rinse them off again, and wrap them up, and back into the refig.

- Rich

[GregNY]

check out your inbox.... On a side note, I have readily available peat moss and perlite in a couple local nurseries around here if your interested we could work out something maybe....

[GregNY]

hey rsiversten, if the plants do not require light during winter months, do you think it would be suffice to place them in an outdoor enclosed storage container?? Temperature would drop naturally, but I would think the plants would be protected from extreme colds, snow, harsh winds, etc. and survive just fine. Your or anyone elses thoughts? I am located not too far from Tony and am in the same predicament as far as what to do for the upcoming winter months. Thanks.

[rsivertsen]

Hey Greg, I can't recommend putting any dormant Sarr's outside during winter, (in our zone) regardless if they don't need the light; it's when the temps drop to a killing 10F overnight (or into the single digits) that's the problem. A solid freeze like that and they're done. I either put them in my basement, and let them dry out a bit, or into the refrig like I posted earlier, which gave me a chance to wash out any bugs like pill bugs, sow bugs, millipedes, snail, slugs, etc. so I got to start them fresh next season. The VFT's go on some window sill, southern exposure if it's available. - Rich

[taz6122]

I'm with Rich. You would have to bury the pots in the ground and add at least 6" of mulch and even then there's no guarantee they would survive temps in the single digits. The only Sarracenia that would survive is purpurea. A cool window sill or the frige is your only choice if you don't have an attached garage, basement, attic or heated greenhouse available.

Milled compressed peat moss is sold everywhere but I'd have to agree that plain old perlite is getting hard to find. I bought the last bags they had at a local nursery and they are not ordering any more. MG has flooded the market and is charging less so naturally everyone is using it. Retailers don't give a hoot about the small number of people who can't use the stuff with fertilizer.

Good luck!
John

[meadowview]

Hi Folks:

If you are interested in pine straw to mulch your plants please contact me privately at [e-mail] to order some. This is an item we can sell you.

Our board member, Jim Robinson, grows Sarracenia in Chicago, and successfully overwinters outside. The key, as mentioned, is to put the pots in-ground and mulch with a thick layer of pine or grass straw (1-2 feet).

Sincerely,

Phil Sheridan
Meadowview

[Tony]

Thanks for all the information folks!
What I had originally intended on doing was overwintering the plants in a large, clear Rubbermaid bin, heavily mulched, and keep it either in the air conditioner cage in my second floor bedroom window or in the very sheltered cement back yard behind the scuba diving shop my landlord owns (directly beneath me).

I'd have easy access to the plants in the a/c cage and the ability to easily monitor temp/humidity with a cheap wireless probe; but it's north facing, and as it faces the street, I'd imagine it's open to some pretty fierce wind. I did think that since the container would be against my window, it would be subject to some radiant heat and probably not be as cold as the ambient temp.

The back yard is heavily protected against winds, as it's recessed and all cement, and has two 15' cement walls and two 15' wooden fences surrounding it. Also, as it's near the middle of the block, it's heavily buffered by everyone else's fenced and/or walled back yards. I'd also imagine placing the container by the wall of the building would provide some radiant heat. The down side is that I don't have easy access to it. I would have to ask my landlord's permission; and, although I'm pretty certain my landlord has seen 'em, the plants on my fire escape are technically illegal. I'm not so crazy about the idea of calling attention to them, and I would have to ask permission go through the back of the dive shop every time I wanted to check on the plants. Oh, and I would have to get through a few inches of concrete in my entirely cement back yard to get to any dirt to bury pots in <g>.

Looks like it'll probably be the window and the fridge for me. Luckily (?) for me, the landlord installed new windows in my place a couple of years ago and, of course, didn't seal them very well. VERY COLD! So I seal them with clear plastic sheeting and can probably fit all the Dionaea on one sill and also monitor 'em with a probe. The Sarracenia will go in the vegetable crisper.

I'm gonna leave them on the fire escape at least through October and make sure they get exposed to a few frosts to trigger dormancy (as per "Secrets to Growing Beautiful Carn's" from Saraccenia North West) before I do anything.

Before this explosion of easy access to quality information, I had killed countless VTPs and Pitchers with "kindness". Now by just stickin' 'em on the fire escape in trays with some quality water - something I used to believe they were far too fragile to tolerate - I have lovely, flourishing plants. So of course, the idea of wintering them outside is really appealing to me. I still am a bit concerned that the Dioneae will not get to complete a proper dormancy on the window sill, but if you guys have had vigorous, long lived plants doing this, that's what I'm gonna do.

Thanks again,
Tony

[quogue]

Oct 17, 2009 14:51:37 GMT Tony said:

Hi guys,

I plan on wintering over Dionaea and Sarracenia outside my apartment in Brooklyn, NY this year and am in need of a small quantity of pine needles for mulch... like maybe 5-10 gallons or so.

Anybody know where I can find it around here? How about an online nursery that might sell me that small of a quantity?

I've checked all the local places, from the hipster nurseries in Williamsburg to the Chelsea flower district and Home Depot in Manhattan and no luck (can't even find Peat Moss or Perlite here w/o added fertilizer). I've seen some available online, but the quantities are HUGE and my apartment is 700 sq feet <g>.

Of course I'm also open to any alternative, more readily available materials for mulching!

Thanks in advance,
Tony

For Peat & Perlite w/o Miracle Gro, try Jamali in the Flower District... it's on the North side of 28th towards 7th.
Been going there for years myself and that's where I get most of my soils and supplies.

As for Pine Needles? Take a trip out to LI... to the Pine Barrens!
You'll find all you need and there's some nice hikes around there as well.

[Tony]

[/quote]
For Peat & Perlite w/o Miracle Gro, try Jamali in the Flower District... it's on the North side of 28th towards 7th.
Been going there for years myself and that's where I get most of my soils and supplies.

As for Pine Needles? Take a trip out to LI... to the Pine Barrens!
You'll find all you need and there's some nice hikes around there as well.
[/quote]

Thanks for the info.. I'll definitely be looking into Jamali. As for LI or the Pine Barrens.. well, the pine barrens will have to be some time next year, but maybe I'll take the LIRR out to some likely place for Mulch. Although, really, with how warm it's been, I can probably wait until after Thanksgiving and hit up some of the local Brooklyn tree vendors if I decide to go that route.

Thanks again!
Tony