Fall A Diving Time For Landscape Plants

Too many gardeners are puzzled by seemingly contradictory directions regarding the proper time for the planting and dividing of perennials. They are led to understand that some perennials are best planted in the spring and others in the fall. But how can they distinguish them so as to re-member which are which? The more they read about them, the greater appears to become the confusion. And, especially if they read English gardening books on the subject, they are likely not only to be confused but to be led into serious errors.

This last statement, which may sound unpleasant to many ears, is actually based on the crux of the whole problem. Certainly no one in his right senses would imply that our cousins across the great water, who are justly famous for their gardening skill, do not know what they are talking about. However, the directions which they give, based on generations of experience, apply to England. In most parts of North America, however, very different climatic conditions prevail, and therefore. English practices when applied here must be modified accordingly.

The same fact holds true if one compares different sections of the United States. Not infrequently it is found that a procedure which is very successful in one part of the country leads to complete failure and loss of plants in another.

At this point, perhaps, the whole problem seems almost hopeless of solution. However, it’s by no means as grim as that. Indeed, all that is needed to clear up the mystery is to carefully consider a few fundamental facts governing the lives of plants.

The Life Rhythm of Plants

All plants, including those which grace our gardens during summer, show a definite rhythm of growth. But it’s rare that this rhythm can be represented by a simple curve, rising continuously from spring to summer and then falling off continuously from summer to autumn. Usually there is at least one distinct dip of variable length in the curve, followed by a rise, before winter closes in and causes the sharp and final drop in the curve. This more or less complete rest period, followed by a resumption of growth, especially root growth, which is represented by the drop and then the rise in the curve, is of the greatest significance.

It is during this period of rest that many plants may be moved and divided most safely, and it is up to the gardener to observe when the opportune moment has come. Different types of plants, naturally, behave in different ways. Certain early spring flowers, such as trillium and bloodroot as well as daffodils, tulips, the small anemones, and so on, wither and die down completely during early or late summer. These should be moved as soon as the leaves have turned brown”neither sooner, since the leaves are needed to store up reserves in the bulbs, tubers or rhizomes, nor much later, since two or three weeks after the plants have gone to rest most of them resume root growth even if they do not at once produce new leaves above the surface.

Some other plants, such as pulmonaria, primula, african violets, iris, Phlox subulata, etc., only remain at a standstill for one to three weeks after their flowers have faded before they once more begin producing new leaves and roots. These plants, therefore, should be transplanted and divided immediately after flowering. However, care of African Violets should be regularly done.

Still another group, to which the peony belongs, finish their growth after flowering and then retain their leaves without further development until the end of summer. These, from all outward appearances, present a simple smooth curve of growth; but this does not hold true if their root development is considered. During the latter part of summer, their roots are almost inactive, but, at the time their leaves begin to wither, root growth is resumed before winter closes in and checks it once more. These, therefore, are the plants which, under all circumstances, are most safely transplanted and divided during September.

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The Dirt On Fall Leaves

It’s a shame to see autumn leaves go to waste every fall. They are an excellent source of organic material and should be placed in the compost pile along with other discarded plant parts. When cleaning up the garden, don’t destroy any potential organic material that can be placed on the compost pile and eventually be returned to the garden as humus.

Before frosts occur, why not pot up some of your best annual and perennial flowering plants and have them grow and bloom for you during the next few months? Petunias and geraniums handle very well this way. If you have grown some mums that haven’t bloomed outdoors, pot them up and bring them inside. You can probably think of other flowers in the garden that would stand transplanting for indoor bloom.

If you follow frost warnings, it is possible to protect plants from frost damage by proper covering. Valuable vegetables like tomatoes, and many flowers like the orchid plant , can be protected with coverings such as blankets, newspapers, or polyethylene tents. Often a long season of warm weather, “Indian Summer,” follows a night or two of killing frosts. By protecting tender plants from such a hazard, their period of usefulness can be extended often for several weeks longer.

Mulches such as clean straw or hay protect many perennial plants over winter. It is important not to apply these mulches too early in the fall. Plants like orchid plant need to be subjected to a few nights of cool, frosty weather to induce certain chemical changes that put them in better shape to withstand the rigors of winter. One of these changes is the change from sugars to starches in the plant. The starches are stored in various plant parts – usually in the roots, or in modified root and stem structures. If the plants are not “prepared” properly, they are very susceptible to winter damage. One of the best visible indicators of these chemical and physical changes going on in the plants is the change of color in the autumn leaves and the gradual loss of these leaves on deciduous plants.

Mulches act as insulators and protect the plants from sudden fluctuations in temperature. Mulches also reduce frost heaving. Plants are more subject to drying out, and subsequent killing, because of this heaving.

Learn more of what Thomas Fryd has to share over at http://www.plant-care.com. And be the first to master the methods on orchid plant care.

August Demands By The Northern Garden

August in the North can be a fairly wet month or a very dry one; it can be hot and it can be cool: sometimes there is some of each kind of weather, a week or so of extreme heat and drought with cooling off periods of rain.

Except for routine care there are few other demands upon the gardener. Generally by this time flower beds adjacent to lawns will require re-edging because the grass, being more vigorous and competitive than garden plants will invade the garden and obliterate the clean, sharp edge. A neat, sharp edge reveals and emphasizes the design lines of a flower border and is much more important than many gardeners realize.

A sharp, square nosed spade is a good tool to use for edging, making a V shaped edge. Sod that is cut out in the operation can be placed in the compost pile where it will serve a very useful purpose in providing ideal ingredients for the production of a high quality compost. If not used in this way, the soil should be shaken from the sod and scattered over the edge of the bed in such a way that a uniform, neat shape is obtained. Re-edging at this time should be adequate for the remainder of the season.

Iris Planting Time

This is a good time to plant new irises or to dig up, divide and replant old ones that have become overgrown or have crowded other plants in the bed. Bearded irises generally need dividing every three or four years depending upon the vigor of the variety and the growing conditions. When a marked decline in the quantity and quality of flowers is apparent, dividing must be done, or when a clump has grown too large for the space allotted to it. Only clean, healthy rhizomes (root stock from the bottoms of which slender, fleshy, feeding roots grow) should be replanted. Each division should include a set of leaves which are to be cut back fan shaped to within about six inches of the base.

When moving irises outdoors, they need a porous but fertile soil which is well drained. To be sure of good soil drainage grow outdoor plants in slightly raised positions rather than in level or low places in the garden. The future of the plant and its flowering will depend upon the planting depth. Deep planting will result in bloom failure, and may make the rhizome more susceptible to rot. Proper planting depth is obtained when the rhizome is just barely covered with earth. The planting hole should be deep enough so that the feeding roots can be spread out in a natural fashion. Roots and rhizome should be anchored firmly in the soil.

Although irises will live in part shade they will not prosper and flower freely unless they are in a place where they will get at least one half day of full sun. The more hours of direct sun, the better they will grow and flower.

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Tips For Fall Tree Moving

During September, narcissus and many of the small flowering bulbs, such as snowdrop, crocus, grape hyacinth, and so on, should be planted. If you plan to naturalize daffodils, plant the bulbs in drifts. Make the holes at least 5 inches deep with a grub hoe or spade; then place a bulb in each hole, replace the soil and sod, and tamp it down with your feet.

Small bulbs are more easily planted if a light crowbar is used to make the holes. First make all the holes, or all the holes in one section, 6 to 9 inches deep. Have on hand some finely screened good soil to which bonemeal has been added”a 5-inch potful to each bushel of soil. Partly fill the holes with this soil and then tamp it down with a stick until the hole is 3 or 4 inches deep. Place a bulb in each hole and then cover with more screened soil and pack it down.

For lilies to be planted in the garden, make the holes 6 to 8 inches deep and put in a handful of sand. The bulb should rest on this sand. There are many lilies suited to fall planting. To name a few: regale, henryi, tigrinum, hansoni, auratum, speciosum rubrum, speciosum album and, of course, the favorite candidum or Madonna lily. If lilies arrive too late for fall planting, I pot them up and plunge them in a coldframe for planting the following spring.

Tree Moving

All evergreens and all deciduous trees and shrubs, with the exception of magnolias, can be moved now. The magnolias move best in the spring while in flower.

Begin tree moving by digging a trench around the tree or shrub, the distance from the trench to the tree being governed by the size of the tree and the amount of fibrous root to be considered. Dig the trench to the bottom of the root system, which will be anywhere from 12 to 18 inches down; then dig underneath to cut away as many tap roots as possible.

By using a garden fork the ball can be reduced in size without injuring the outer roots. Next the ball should be bound in burlap to protect it while in the process of moving. Most deciduous trees up to 4 inches in caliper can be moved without a ball, but with as many roots as possible. When moved without a ball it pays to cut the tree top back at least one-third to one-half.

When planting, with or without a ball, be sure to use plenty of water to puddle the soil around the roots, and water frequently and generously until frost takes over. Tall trees require staking after being moved, as a rule with wire and three stakes. Old pieces of hose on the wire where it goes around the tree will prevent injury. After putting the wires on the tree, drive in the stakes to tighten the wires. If the tree is small, a stake driven in alongside and tied, not too tightly, to the tree with soft string will do the trick. Too tight a tie will cut the tree.

If the new location does not provide good soil it is well to move in some good soil for around the roots. It will help give the tree a good start.

Preparations against frost. In late September frost is quite a problem. Better get all the tender pot and tub plants moved in to a frostproof building. The hydrangea plants, however, ripen better if they have a light frost before being stored: To make certain of having early flowering chrysanthemums cover them with burlap. In some favored places, near salt water or within the limits of a large city, it is possible to flower chysanthemums without protection, but if your garden lies in a valley that is a frost pocket, as mine does, covering must be quite thorough.

Lawns. When the grass in the new lawn is 3 to 4 inches high, go over it with a light mower, ordinary lawn sprinkler systems or even underground lawn sprinkler systems, and cut it back to about 1-1/2 inches. If it is not cut it mats and starts to rot.

Harvesting potatoes. All potatoes should be dug this month for storage. After digging, lay them out in a dry, dark, airy place for two or three days to dry them out, and to allow the skins to harden. After this put them; in the storage bin. It should be about 40 degrees. Do not expose them to much light at any time or they will turn green and will not be edible.

Gladiolus. Lift the gladiolus corms when the tops turn yellow, and allow the tops to ripen before cutting them off. An airy shed it best for this job. When the tops are dry, cut off the stem but leave on the sheath that is over the bulb. Store the bulbs in a cool airy cellar and during the winter give them a thorough dusting with an insecticide to kill any hibernating thrips.

Winter cover crop. As each section of the garden becomes vacant, dig it over and sow a crop of winter rye. Rye puts life into the soil. It has a strong fibrous root system that binds light soil and breaks down heavy soil, and it is an excellent soil conditioner.

If rye is not to be sown, then clean out the old crops, dig over the section and leave it in as rough a condition as possible so that the winter frost and snow can penetrate and help condition the soil.

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Growing Good Vegetables In Your Home

The best chance a gourmet has of getting delicious fruits and vegetables is to raise them himself and this is the best chance he has of keeping in good health too. Good home-grown vegetables are both aesthetically better and more practical in terms of use. These are the reasons people who want to raise vegetables they cannot buy and then cook them in ways that will bring out priceless flavor.

It goes without saying that, just as the most brilliant cook can do only so much with stale and tasteless vegetables, so the most delicious vegetables any man ever grew can be quickly spoiled by bad, or even by merely unimaginative, cooking. The usual fate of the stale vegetables we now buy is to be overcooked. In short, they never had much life, they lost in shipping most of the life they had, and the cook then cooks all the life out of them.

Now lets start your garden. Remember that the spot where you plant must have plenty of sun. You can build your own soil if you have to. But you can, not supply sunlight, except maybe by cutting a branch off a tree to let sunlight through or by taking down a board fence. If you live in a small town or in the open country and have a choice of sites, a good piece of ground is one that slopes just enough to drain easily.

If it slopes south or, better still, southeast so much the better. Dig a hole a foot deep and see what kind of soil you have. Normally the top few inches will be much darker and much more crumbly than what lies below. This is your topsoil: it is dark because it contains “humus” decayed vegetable matter. The subsoil below it may contain minerals but it lacks humus.

Put an ounce or two of each in a small container and find out from your County Agricultural Agent or from the Department of Agriculture in your state capital where to send them for analysis. The analysis you get will tell you whether you need the three elements plants need most, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Results of the analysis can also show whether fertilizer and rain are significant factors in your garden. Also it may be able to determine whether your soil is too acid and needs calcium. If it does, you should spread agricultural lime on it, not quicklime. Commercial lawn fertilizers and garden fertilizers are available which combine nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.

If you cant get your flower bed soil professionally tested, there are now on the market inexpensive “soil kits,” which are advertised in garden magazines and at Amazon.

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Watch Summer Insects In Vegetable Gardens

Since most evergreens have completed their summer’s growth by this time they may be transplanted successfully during this month, provided they are handled quickly with proper sized balls of earth and watered thoroughly in their new locations. If the weather is hot and dry and there is no particular reason for immediate planting, a delay of planting for a few weeks until the arrival of cooler weather is recommended.

Continue to cultivate the vegetable garden to keep down weeds and conserve moisture. If you want to be sorry, just allow a heavy crop of crabgrass to cover the potato patch. At digging time, which in the heartland of America is usually about the middle of this month, you will swear you will never let it happen again. Dig potatoes in the home garden at the first signs of sprouting or rotting.

To Get Seeds Started

If seeds are sown in the garden during this hot, dry weather they will germinate more evenly and quickly and the young plants will make a better start, when a trench is made in each row and the soil is well-soaked before the seeding is done. After the water has soaked in, pull the loose soil into the trench, sow the seeds, cover and firm the soil over the seeds. A thin mulch of peat moss over the seeds will help conserve moisture and protect the young plants.

Do not relax your campaign against insect pests and plant diseases. Watch for summer insects in the vegetable garden. Do not permit the straggling survivors of crops already gathered, such as radishes, lettuce, cauliflower or cabbage, to serve as hosts for feeding insects. Either pull out the old plants and destroy them or keep them well sprayed. It is good practice to remove such plants just as soon as they have become unpalatable and then prepare the ground for a successive crop. Neglected garden space which is intended for cultivation next year should be spaded and kept free from weeds.

Rose Pneumonia

Rose plant care tips: Spray the roses like the desert rose regularly to prevent defoliation from black spot. An abundance of good foliage at the start of the fall blooming period is essential for a nice display of flowers. Rose bushes weakened by summer defoliation from black spot go into the winter with a weak constitution and are apt to succumb to “rose pneumonia” before spring.

Pick up and destroy fallen rose leaves that are probable hosts for black spot. If the faded roses are cut, placed in a paper bag and burned, a larger number of the usual bloom-infesting thrips will be destroyed and also those small, dark-brown beetles that feed down at the base of the petals.

There is much more on desert rose plant care. Drop by today at http://www.plant-care.com/new-desert-rose-adenium-ice-pink.html.

To Do List For May Gardens

In Northern United States and Canada

There is still time to plant evergreens. As long as you do this before the new growth is excessively far advanced, and as long as they have a good root ball and are mulched and well watered after planting, they will live and prosper. May is a good time to transplant Magnolias and Tulip trees. Continue to make sowings of hardy annuals and vegetables. As soon as the weather is settled and the ground reasonably warm, make sowings of Corn, Cucumbers, Melons, Squash, Snap Beans and Lima Beans.

When danger of cool nights has passed, set out Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplants and green Dahlia plants. Geraniums, Heliotropes, Lantanas, Coleus, Cannas, Caladiums and Begonias may be planted outdoors late this month or early in June. Make successional plantings of Gladioli, Montbretias and Tuberoses. Don’t cut off the foliage of Spring-flowering bulbs until it has died completely.

If dry weather prevails, Peas, Sweet Peas and many other garden plants will benefit from copious watering. Remember especially regularly to water trees, shrubs and evergreens planted this Spring. Chrysanthemums, Summer Phlox and some other perennials that tend to grow excessively tall and lanky may be induced to bush out if the tips of their growing shoots are pinched out.

Peony flowers will be larger and more perfect if you disbud them by taking off the side buds when they are the size of small peas. Don’t delay the staking and tying of perennials. Toward the end of the month is a good time to sow seeds of perennials and biennials in a coldframe or sheltered seed bed outdoors. After they have bloomed is a good time to propagate by division Creeping Phlox, Arabis, Polyanthus Primroses and many other rock garden plants.

Thin out young plants of vegetables and annuals that are crowding each other, and keep the hoe and cultivator busy stirring the surface soil. Do whatever pruning is needed to Spring-flowering trees and shrubs as soon as they are through flowering. Poinsettias should now be brought out of storage and started into growth. Continue to feed both greenhouse plants and house plants which have filled their containers with healthy roots.

In the South

Fertilize Roses to stimulate new vigorous growth that will bear a second flush of flowers in early Summer. Mow lawns regularly and fertilize them lightly when the grass is dry. Water copiously if long spells of dry weather occur.

Fertilize annuals that seem not to be growing rapidly enough. Cut back Petunias and Sweet Alyssum that are becoming straggly to induce bushiness and fresh crops of flowers. Make successional sowings of hot-weather annuals. Dwarf Dahlias sown outdoors now will make a fine display of bloom later.

In the vegetable plot sow Soy Beans, Okra, Melons, Watermelons, Corn, Snap Beans and Lima Beans, Squash and Field Peas. Sow Tomatoes for late cropping. Stake Tomatoes, Peppers and Eggplants before they become so tall that there is danger of damage by storms. Apply a side dressing of fertilizer to these and to Cucumbers, Corn, Beans and other vegetables in need of extra nutrition.

On the West Coast

Don’t allow Fuchsias or Begonias to suffer from lack of moisture. Specimens that have filled their containers with healthy roots benefit from feeding regularly with dilute liquid fertilizer also try to know how to root lantana. Plants of Tuberous Begonias set out in May bloom freely from mid-July on. Remove old plants of Cinerarias, Primulas and others that made such a brave show earlier and which are kinds that are discarded after flowering. Replace them with such kinds as Tuberous Begonias, Impatiens, lantana and Fuchsias where the location is shaded, with Ageratums, Petunias, Zinnias, Dwarf Dahlias, Snapdragons and the like in sunny locations.

Fertilize Camellias, Rhododendrons and Azaleas after they are through blooming, and mulch the soil beneath them. Make succession plantings of annuals and vegetables. Prune Spring-flowering shrubs that need such attention. Keep plants staked, tied, sprayed and watered.

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Making Your Garden a Relaxing Outdoor Oasis

Whatever the season or month of year, it’s always nice to enjoy sitting out in the garden, spending some time relaxing and appreciating nature. But, once everything is all done and you’ve finished making your garden a beautiful oasis, you just may overlook one very crucial element, a special place in which to sit and admire your work.

For this cozy outdoor nook nestled away in the garden, regular patio furniture just doesn’t do the trick for most of us. The majority of patio furniture, unfortunately, doesn’t compliment most garden styles but many people think they have no other option when it comes to finding something perfect to sit in outside. If you need just the right piece of furniture for your own garden, an outdoor swing may be just the thing you need.

Most all of us have sat outdoors in a swing before, relaxing as a child with a grandparent or sitting on the front porch and reveling in the cool spring breeze. The comfort of a swing can be enjoyed by young and old alike and can be so much better for idling away the hours than the ordinary patio chair. And, what’s even better, outdoor swings are available in so many different colors, patterns, styles, and sizes so they’re simple to blend in with any type of garden.

Whether it’s for taking a nap in the warm summer sun, reading your favorite novel, or working on one of your hobbies, garden swings can be the ideal spot to sit and pass the time while being close to nature. And, even when you’re not using the swing it will still enhance the garden and add to its dcor.

The versatility of the outdoor garden swing is unrivaled as they can be found in an incredible number of materials including a variety of woods, heavy duty plastics, metal, and wicker. Despite all of these choices, the one material that continues to be a favorite is durable cedar wood.

Genuine cedar is naturally resistant to the elements as well as insect infestation and it also requires very little maintenance or effort from you to stay looking nice and new. Another great thing about cedar is that you have the choice to leave it bare, or paint or stain it in the colors of your choice.

When buying a swing, choose a supplier or manufacturer that sells or produces swings that are free of toxic chemicals and materials such as glues and paints and one that uses sustainable wood products. This is not only good for your health, but also for the health of the environment as well. Luckily, it’s not difficult to locate a manufacturer that creates outdoor swings made from cedar that are both durable and beautiful but also do not pose a risk to the world around us.

If it seems like there’s something missing out in your garden, it just might be a comfortable outdoor swing. If you’ve got nowhere to sit and admire your handiwork, a swing can be the ideal answer to your problem, so just take your time to look through your options and buy the swing that’s just right for you and your garden.

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Killing Common Indoor Bugs

Some of the commonest bugs we see indoors all over the world are flies, spiders, fleas and beetles. No-one likes to see insects in the house, so most people will go to just about any extremes to get rid of these common indoor bugs. The less common indoor bugs may be woodlice, earwigs, scorpions and millipedes or centipedes, although they are no less unwelcome.

It does not matter where you are in the world, it can be very hard to keep these common indoor bugs outside, unless you go to the extremes of keeping all your windows and doors closed all of the time, which is quite impossible. I live in Thailand and I know that this is not an option.

So, what on Earth can you do? Well, let’s deal with all the flying insects first, because of all the common indoor bugs, I find them the most obnoxious indoor bug. They are very annoying, buzzing around your head and mosquitoes and other flies can produce irritating sores and besides that, all flies spread disease. I hate to see them walking on food, knowing that they have probably just come off some dung heap somewhere and now they are spitting on my food to taste it with their grubby feet!

My first line of defence is fine-mesh door and widow screens. They are not dear and can be fitted retrospectively to any window. My window meshes slide, so they can protect only one half of a window at a any one time, but I do not think that’s a problem. You can still set up cross-winds, by opening two or more windows at opposing ends of a room. I just love to see the flies on the mesh trying to get in by day and the mosquitoes doing the same by night. At night, it is wise to turn on as little light indoors as possible so as not to draw these common indoor insects.

My second line of defence is natural predators – lizards, like Geckos (Jin Jok, in Thai). Some people don’t like them in the house either. I can’t say I’m all that keen on them indoors myself, but they are hard to keep out and they do consume hundreds, if not thousands, of indoor bugs every day. I like to see them lying in wait on the outside of the mesh, ready to jump on any bug trying to wriggle its way through the mesh.

My third line of defence is an indoor bug zapper. You know, the electric, handheld bug zapper that looks like a child’s tennis racquet. The come in two forms: battery and rechargeable kinds. They are brilliant at catching and annihilating any flying bug. The inset literally explodes and vaporizes on contact with the fully-charged wires of the indoor bug zapper. If you haven’t tried using one, you really should. They are most satisfying. These three defences will keep your house pretty much free of flies.

The creeping common indoor bugs are less of a problem really. Door screens on springs will keep 99% of them out and the Geckos will help too. Spiders can get in fairly very easily, but then, I don’t mind them too much as long as they keep out of my way, as they eat other bugs too. They are on our side to be honest. However, for those who can not bear to catch them and throw them outside, the handheld indoor bug zapper works a treat on spiders too.

Sometimes, Fleas can be a problem, if you have cats or dogs, but then if you wash or dust the animal once a month, you should be able to keep these common indoor bugs under control fairly easily. However, there are two final measures that we employ. Every week, before we go out for the day, we spray every room with fly killer and every six-months we spray any rugs or carpets with a bug killer containing permethrin, which will survive washing and vacuuming for that long without losing its ability to kill common indoor bugs on contact. If you follow these methods, you will be able to keep your home or office quite free of the most common indoor bugs and the less common indoor bug too.

Have you ever heard of an indoor bug zapper? If you haven’t, or if you are interested in getting an indoor bug zapper, just click one of the links to our web site or blog.

Watering Systems for Lawn & Garden: A Do-It-Yourself Guide (Paperback)

From Publishers Weekly
For years, one of the most popular features in Horticulture magazine has been the two-page “step-by-step” article that highlights a specific gardening task. Here, the complete collection-from 1987 through 1994-is presented in all its glory, including Sears’s handsome, well-targeted b&w line drawings. Constituting an exceptionally useful guide, the collection is organized by season rather than month, and is thus applicable for gardeners in just about any North (more…)

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