January
17, 2001
Cactus,
Palms, Warm Sunny Days...
Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.
Actually I was in Phoenix this past weekend visiting my sisters and
attending the Phoenix Home & Garden
Show! Wow - What a show! We walked around for nearly
three hours and only saw a portion of the exhibits. We could have
easily spent 5-6 hours there! It was so much fun to see all
of the plants and flowers the landscapers used. Many were
familiar - geraniums, pansies, marigolds and petunias.
Others, like palm trees and cactus were not. I also saw some of the most beautiful rock
designs! What a care free garden (I hear rocks don't
require weeding). Not my first
choice, that desert look, but I must say I was drawn to several
exhibits and could probably live with that look if I were
gardening in Phoenix.
Well it is
too bad that it is not 60 degrees here but then again we are not
in Arizona. It is supposed to remain cold through the weekend
but the weather experts say we might get a chance at a warm up later
next week. Here's hoping they're right!
~
Shelly
Scheduling
Those Seeds...
Are visions of spring dancing in your head yet? It may
be a couple of months away but if you're like us seed starting is
on your mind. This year you'll know just when to get started
thanks to a nifty little table we've published called When
to Start Seeds Indoors. It's so helpful -
providing dates to get started, germination times,
temperatures and light requirements. Don't overlook this
one!
Reconsidering
Grow Lights...
When indoor sunlight is scarce many gardeners may be
attracted to the notion of "grow lights". These
pricey items are designed to emit light primarily in the red and
blue regions of the light spectrum. However, grow lights
actually give off less light than standard fluorescent
lights. A standard fluorescent unit containing two regular
40 watt fluorescent tubes or one cool white and one warm white
tube will provide adequate light for house plants and are much
more economical. Save your money for the plants!
Source
Melting
Snow, Lots Of Leaves...
OK, most or all of that December snow is gone -
finally. But in a strange twist on normalcy the melting
snow has revealed an abundance of leaves - the ones that were
falling as the snow was coming down. Well, they're not
doing your lawn any favors, especially as wet as they are.
Before it snows again make some time to get out and rake them
up.
Pot
Washers Needed...
Winter means we've got a little extra gardening time.
Since you can't do much outdoors take advantage of the spare time to get
some chores done. Start by inspecting your clay pots.
They're probably still dirty from last season. Clean them
with a soak in vinegar to help remove salt deposits. Then
soak them in a dilute solution of bleach (1 part bleach to 9
parts water) to kill micro-organisms. Now you're ready to
go when the weather warms!
Savvygardeners,
Sappy Trees...
If you have ever pruned trees in late winter to early spring,
you may have noticed that some weep sap from fresh pruning
wounds. Different species of trees vary in how easily and
how much they "bleed." Those that are most
susceptible to bleeding include maples (silver, sugar, amur,
Norway and hedge), black walnut, pecan, birch, mulberry, Osage
orange (hedge tree) and grape. Though bleeding may look as
if it would cause considerable damage to the tree, that's not the
case. Even if large amounts of sap are lost, there is no
apparent long-term damage. However, many people find the
appearance of this bleeding objectionable. Pruning during
the winter when temperatures remain below freezing will help
minimize sap flow. So if you have any of the
"bleeders" that need pruned, you might want to do it
while the weather is really cold.
Source
Winter
Wisdom...
So, what's bugging you? The cold weather means
that there should be fewer bugs outdoors come spring but there
are probably more indoors right now. We've got the
scoop on bugs in this
week's Winter
Wisdom...
A Better
Handle On Things...
Ever finish weeding and can't find that tool you just set
down? A bright color on the handle might have helped.
Take time now to paint wooden handles or wrap some colored grip
tape around plastic or metal ones. Your tools will be easy
to find even in the thickest of foliage!
Finally... "To
see a hillside white with dogwood bloom is to know a particular
ecstasy of beauty, but to walk the gray Winter woods and find the
buds which will resurrect that beauty in another May is to
partake of continuity." ~
Hal Borland, Journalist, 1900-1978 |