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November 5, 2003 |
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Fall-ing
Temperatures...
Brrr! Winter-like
temperatures have arrived and I am outside walking around dressed
as Nanook of the North. Have I told you that I am not fond
of the cold? Wearing a jacket is one
thing, but having to pull out the
winter coat, hat and gloves is pretty disconcerting
- especially to a person who is
happiest when the sun is shining and the temperature is 70°.
I guess the time has come for me to accept
that unless I am headed to Phoenix for the winter I better
prepare for what's
headed our way. I think the hardest part for me is letting go of
the garden. Brown is not my favorite color and
it is difficult knowing that there is little
I can do to change the coming color
scheme of my garden.
I trust everyone received a frost alert from
us in their e-mail this morning. By the time most of you
read this newsletter there will probably be a frosty sheen on the
garden. Just another service of Savvygardener.com!
Thanksgiving is right around the corner and before you know it
Christmas will be here.
Yikes! I hope that you will buy your
Christmas tree at
The Sweet Onion. Proprietor Andrea Neumann purchases her
Frasier Firs from North Carolina and
they arrive here freshly cut. Here in
the Marsh family we love Frasier Firs
and I will tell you that The Sweet Onion has some of the
prettiest in Kansas City. The trees
will arrive for sale Thanksgiving weekend so don't wait too long
or all of the good ones will be gone. If you can't get there
Thanksgiving weekend call ahead and have one reserved.
'Tis the season.
~
Shelly
Late Season
Seeding...
Last week we talked about the fact that
it's too late to put down grass seed. If you didn't get seed
down but need new grass you currently have two options:
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Dormant seeding can be successful in areas not
susceptible to erosion. Anytime after Thanksgiving and through
March you can lay grass seed with the expectation that it will
germinate and grow when spring arrives. Wintertime
precipitation coupled with the soil's freeze/thaw cycles will
aid in proper setting of seeds.
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Sod can be used successfully during almost any time of
the year that the ground isn't frozen. The trick is
getting it established. The secret is water.
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Keep it soaked the first week. It should be so wet that
you cannot walk on it.
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Keep it
wet the second week. It should be very squishy under
foot.
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Keep it
moist the third week. Water lightly every day.
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Make sure
it gets about an inch of water per week thereafter until it's
established.
Time For Trees...
As discussed by Shelly on KCTV-5 this
weekend, now is a great time to plant a tree. While the
visible part of the tree will be dormant, the roots will remain
active and growing through the winter. This assures that
the tree is well established and ready for spring and summer next
year. Need help? Just read our newest feature article,
Planting Trees...
Seed Saving Savvy...
After you have collected seeds from your favorite flowers and
vegetables be careful how you store them. The
two words that best sum up the right conditions are
"cool" and
"dry". A
seed is actually a living infant plant with a limited amount of
food to sustain it until it germinates. Warm storage
temperatures may let it consume too much food and damp
temperatures may encourage mold or bacteria to use some of the
food and kill the plant. Dry seeds in a paper envelope will not
trap moisture, and kept in a cool and dry place, will survive
well so you may plant them next year.
Source
Long Live Geraniums...
If you want to keep your garden geraniums
over the winter you would do well to treat them as houseplants.
Before they get damaged by frost cut them back to about half
their original size. Using only the healthy, insect-free
plants individually pot them up using dry potting soil.
Water them thoroughly and as needed to keep them somewhat moist
(not wet) through winter. Pinch back the tips of shoots
once or twice to promote branching and prevent weak growth.
Christmas Tree B & B...
It may seem a little early to be thinking about Christmas
trees but if you are considering a live, balled & burlapped tree
that will be planted after the holiday you should start planning
now. It's time now to choose the planting spot and, more
importantly, dig the hole for it. If you wait too long the
ground may be frozen by the time you think about it again.
After you
dig the hole fill it with leaves or straw to protect against any
early freezing. You
might also cover it with plywood if the hole presents an injury
or accident risk. Keep the dirt from the hole in a garage or
shed so you have some loose soil to use during planting.
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What's Hot On The Hotline...
Calls to the hotline include many
gardeners looking for advice on bulb planting. There
is still time to plant bulbs for next spring as long as the soil
can be worked. Great suggestions on
different bulbs and how to care for them are in this
week's
What's Hot On the Hotline...
Fertilizer Finale...
A November application of fertilizer is extremely important
to keep your lawn healthy and looking good this fall and next
year. Late fall Nitrogen promotes good root development,
enhances storage of energy reserves, and extends color retention
this fall. Most of the benefits from late fall Nitrogen will be
seen next spring and summer with earlier green-up, improved
density, and improved tolerance to diseases and other stresses.
Apply near or after your last mowing of the year, but while grass
is still green. Timing is not overly critical as there may be a
month or more between your last mowing and the time the grass
turns brown or goes under snow cover. Generally
Thanksgiving is a good target fertilzing date
but because it's so late this year we'll shoot for any time in
the first few weeks of November. Use
a soluble Nitrogen source such as urea, ammonium nitrate, or
ammonium sulfate and apply 1 to 1½ lbs. N/1000 sq. ft.
Finally...
"The real voyage of
discovery consists of not in seeking new landscapes but in having
new eyes." ~
Marcel Proust, Writer, 1871-1922 |
