 |
Brought to you in cooperation with the Kansas State University Johnson County Research and Extension Master Gardeners. Each week we feature interesting topics for winter reading. |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
Get Our Free Newsletter
Home Videos new!
Bookstore
Rose
Tips
Books
We Love
Unsubscribe
|
Winter Wisdom
Any plant will take a period of time, sometimes up to 3 or 4 weeks, to become acclimated to the new indoor conditions of light and moisture. One way that plants have of compensating for the change is for the leaves to yellow and drop. The temptation is to water them profusely. Most plants have even more modest moisture requirements during the winter indoors. Don’t overdo the watering, and be sure that the plant drains well. If ambient temperature is high and humidity is low, some plants will benefit from misting or having an open water container near them. Another common complaint is that some insects and bugs such as gnats, whiteflies and mealy bugs accompanied the plants when they came indoors. It’s easier to examine the plant carefully and treat it before bringing it in, but in case you missed that opportunity, there are a number of insecticidal soaps and pesticides labeled for indoor use, available from your lawn and garden or hardware store.
The amount and quality
of available light is another source of concern. Depending on the plant,
most have requirements for continued growth and blooming that may present
a challenge to your lighting resources. Plants which require high levels
of light should be placed where they receive maximum amounts of sunlight,
but care must be exercised to avoid burning the leaves by exposure to full
winter sun near a south or sometimes a west window. “Grow lights” and
other artificial illumination need to be placed only inches
Several calls have been
received from persons who bought large quantities of tulips or other
spring bulbs at sale prices before Christmas, and for one reason or
another did not get them in the ground before it froze.
Articles submitted by Bill Latimer, Johnson County Extension
Horticulture Assistant and Dennis Patton, Johnson County Extension Horticulture Agent. * Winter Wisdom is an information service of the Kansas State Johnson County Research and Extension Master Gardeners. Research-based responses are provided by Extension Master Gardener volunteers weekdays from March 1 through October 31, from 9:00 am to 4:30pm . To telephone, call (913) 764-6306 or visit the Extension Office at 13480 South Arapaho Drive, Olathe, Kansas. Visit their website at www.oznet.ksu.edu/Johnson
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
© 1999 - 2008 Savvygardener.com, Inc. All rights reserved. If you wish to copy, transmit, or otherwise duplicate any of the material from our website please ask us first. Thank you. |
||||||||||||||||||||
Winter
Wisdom
We
continue to receive calls from persons who brought potted plants, bushes
and trees into their homes before cold weather arrived. Here are a few
tips and comments inspired by their questions.
It’s
a good idea to wipe the leaves of plants, particularly those with large
leaves, to remove accumulated dust. The use of spray products to produce
an artificial shine is NOT recommended. Most tend to clog pores and
ultimately hasten dust accumulation.
above
the plant to be beneficial. There is little or no evidence that more
expensive “Grow lights” provide measurably better results than ordinary
incandescent or fluorescent bulbs. It appears to be the proximity of the
light source to the plant rather than the spectrum range itself, which is
the important factor in promoting photosynthesis. Many home gardeners
prefer to use fluorescent bulbs in a shop fixture whose height above the
plants can be easily adjusted and that emit more light than the heat of
incandescent bulbs. Try to approximate the outdoor exposure as closely as
possible as far as light, moisture and growing conditions are concerned.
Avoid placing plants where they are in a draft.
The best
hope is probably to put the sound bulbs in vermiculite in a box and store
them in a cool dark place until the ground becomes workable. Those that
have already sprouted present more of a problem. A sunny spot that may
have thawed or a planter box may be used as a temporary home until the
ground in the permanent location is ready. The chances of spring bloom
this year are somewhat remote, but at least some may survive to bloom
another day.