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September 19, 2001

The Healing Sun...
The weather of the last few days represents the way I have been feeling since last weeks tragedy.  The gloominess and the rain have me continuously thinking about how our lives have so drastically changed.  The sun has finally come out to warm our souls.  It gives me hope and makes me believe that we as Americans will survive this devastation and become a closer nation.  I want to thank all of you who shared your sentiments with me.  I enjoyed reading them and felt a very strong connection to you.  Now is the time to share our souls with our friends.  After all, the world is a changed place and we need to depend on one another.  This is a time of healing for all of us. We are God's plantings.  We need love, nurturing and a kind hand to make us grow.  Stay strong my friends and pray for our country. 

Speaking of a new start, I have to tell you about our lawn.  We planted seed Labor Day weekend and you should see it!  It is growing like crazy.  The only reason I mention it is because there is always such a small window of opportunity when re-seeding in the fall.  You could plant too early or worse yet too late.  But we were on the ball and planted just at the right time.  I seem to see a change in the way the yard looks daily.  How exciting!  Once again the lawn will display a beautiful show of green.  I should have been Irish! 

The future weather sounds as if it is going to be favorable for fall planting!  I am going to purchase some pansies, mums, a few hundred bulbs and get busy this weekend in the garden.  I often think that it is a good thing that there is not a garden center close to me.  I am afraid that my frequency of shopping might supercede many of my day to day tasks as a mother and wife.  Recently we received an Earl May flyer with fabulous discounts on fall goods.  I hope you received one too.  If you didn't, make sure you request to be on their mailing list the next time you visit them.  That way you are informed of what is going on in their stores year round. 

Fall arrives on Saturday.  Plant, plant, plant!

~ Shelly  

Organically Speaking...
At the end of the growing season, garden cleanup, lawn renovation, and leaf gathering provide excellent opportunities to add organic materials to garden soil without the time and space of composting.  You can add organic materials, till them in, and compost the organic materials right there in the soil.  In a few weeks, repeat the process.  Continue this into late November or early December when soils usually start to freeze. 

For best results, finely chop or shred organic materials by running them through a lawnmower and catching them in the bag.  No shredding is necessary for finely textured materials such as lawn renovation residue, but coarse leaves or garden refuse needs to be shredded. 

Add organic materials to a depth of about 3 inches and till the area well with a rototiller.  Make sure soil is not excessively wet when you till.  With the warm soils we have now, decomposition will begin to occur in just a few days. In about 2 weeks you can repeat the process by adding more organic materials.

Source

Garlic Lovers Get Ready!
Garlic needs to be in the ground at least one month before the soil freezes so now through mid-October is the ideal time for planting.  Start by planting the small cloves that are divisions of the large bulb.  The larger the clove, the larger the size of the mature bulb at harvest.  Do not divide the bulb until immediately before planting.  Although some people have had good luck planting the garlic from the grocery store, seedstock from a nursery or via mail-order is recommended.  

Garlic needs a full-sun site with loose soil rich in organic matter.  Adding compost to the bed is usually a good idea.  Plant the cloves (with their pointy sides up) three to five inches apart at a depth of two to three inches.  Add a light layer of mulch.  Allow 18 to 30 inches between rows or plant five inches apart in all directions if  you're using raised beds.  Next spring the garlic will push through the soil and mulch.  We'll wait until then to complete the directions through harvest.

It's Not Nice To Fool Mother Nature...
But it sure is fun!  Perusing the bulb catalogs one can't help but wish spring would come sooner.  Well, you can't rush the Vernal Equinox but you can enjoy blooms from your spring flowering bulbs while the snow is still flying.  Just start the process of bulb forcing now to get colorful and fragrant wintertime indoor blooms.  Everything you need to know is in "Forcing Bulbs Indoors" in our Features section.

 


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Mulch Ado About Trees...
Fall is a great time to plant a tree.  Keeping it alive is an all-season affair.  Mulching is so important for new trees but it's not as simple as dumping a bag of wood chips at the base of tree.  Here are some tips to help you avoid the most common mistakes: 

  • Don't pile mulch around the trunk.  This keeps the trunk wet, which can allow diseases and insects to invade.  Keep the mulch at least 6 inches from the trunk.
  • Don't put on too little or too much.  A 1-inch-deep layer doesn't do the job.  A settled depth of 3 to 5 inches gives you the full benefits of mulch, including good weed control.  Mulch depths of a foot or two are excessive and may smother roots.
  • Don't apply sour-smelling mulch.  If it smells like a litter box it's probably been stored on a waterlogged site.  The ammonia that builds in this situation can harm your tree.  Sour mulch is a rare occurrence, but your nose will give you a clear warning of it.
  • Don't use freshly chipped chips.  While the chance of disease transmission is small it's easy to go zero-risk by aging chips for six weeks or more before using them around your trees.

Source

A Sweet Surprise...
Cleaning out some planters last weekend yielded a nice surprise.  Deep under my sweet potato vines were - can you guess? -  sweet potatoes!  Whether you are intentionally growing them for eating or you get a surprise crop like ours make sure you cure them before eating.  Curing will allow any wounds to heal and increase the conversion of starches to sugar for a yummier yam.  

As most home gardeners cannot meet the demands of perfect curing conditions it's best to just let them sit in the warmest room in the house (often the kitchen) for 14 days.  After curing sweet potatoes can be stored for up to six months in a cool place with a minimum temperature of 50° F. 

What's Hot On The Hotline...
Autumn officially starts this weekend and Savvygardeners will turn their thoughts to bulb planting.  The pros at the hotline have given us a good primer on all manner of bulbs.  You'll find it in this week's What's Hot on the Hotline... 

A Dandy Time to Stop Dandelions...
So, all summer long you've been battling a few (or a few dozen) dandelions for control of your lawn.  Well, they say the best way to control dandelions and other broad-leaf weeds is by maintaining a lush, healthy turf.  But you've still got to knock out those pesky weeds that just won't go away and fall is a great time to do it.  Options are many but generally the most effective controls result with a liquid broadleaf weed herbicide sprayed under these conditions:

  • The weeds are actively growing.
  • Soil moisture is plentiful (never in drought).
  • Air temperatures are between 60 and 75 degrees F (never above 80 degrees).
  • Wind speeds are below 5 mph.
  • The lawn will not receive moisture through rain or irrigation for at least 24 hours.
  • The lawn will not be mowed for several days before or after the application.
  • The person doing the applying reads and follows herbicide label instructions carefully.

Source

Finally...
"But now in September the garden has cooled, and with it my possessiveness.  The sun warms my back instead of beating on my head... The harvest has dwindled, and I have grown apart from the intense midsummer relationship that brought it on."

~ Robert Finch, Poet

 

 

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