Savvygardener.com


 

Visit Our Website
Previous Issues
Buyer's Guide  
Tell A Friend  

Donations

Send A Postcard!

Bookstore  
Magazines 
Gardening Catalogs

Site Search
Contact Us
Submit A Tip

Feature Articles

~ Houseplant Care
~ When to Start
Seeds Indoors
~ Seed Starting Indoors
~ Vegetable Garden Calendar
~ Seed Starting Tomatoes

~

Shrub Pruning Calendar
~ Pruning Clematis 
~ Gardening in the Shade
~ Summer-Flowering Bulb Care
~ Drought-Tolerant Flowers for KC
~ Preparing for a Soil Test
~ Changing the pH of Your Soil
~ Growing Herbs
~ All About Composting
~ All About Mulch
~ Worm Composting
~ When to Harvest Vegetables
~ Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
~ Organic Pesticides & Biopesticides
~ Cold Frames & Hot Beds
~ When to Divide Perennials
~ Dividing Spring Blooming Perennials
~ Forcing Bulbs Indoors
~ Overseeding A Lawn
~ Pruning Trees
~ Pruning Shrubs
~ Planting Trees
~ More...

Rose Tips
What's Hot... 
Nuisance of the Week
Turf Tips...
Winter Wisdom
Gardener's Glossary 

SavvyChat
~ On-Line Gardening Forum

Books We Love
Great Products
Web Resources
Event Calendar

Local Sponsors

~ Bradfield Industries
~ Family Tree Nursery
~ The Kelly Gallery
~ The Lawn Ranger
~ Missouri Organic Recycling
~ The Sweet Onion

Subscribe

Tell A Friend

Privacy Pledge

 

 

 

Great Soil and Compost!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 7, 2004

Chillin' New Year...
This week's weather is a far cry from last week's. It is hard to believe that the weather was so mild last Thursday and Friday and that I was outside poking around in the garden. What a great feeling! I finished my fall clean-up and actually planted some bulbs.  That's right... planted some bulbs! The ground was almost perfect for planting. It was a bit wet in some places but I found that I could work around those areas and still find plenty of dry ground for planting. What a joy!  Now it is as cold as cold can be and I find it hard to leave the house. I guess that I can't forget that it is winter after all and that those mild days we had last week were a special treat sent from Mother Nature.

There are lots of things for gardeners to do this time of year. Keep an eye on our monthly calendar and we will keep you up to date with events that are going on in the gardening community. If you have an event that you would like to see posted no need to e-mail us, you can go directly to our monthly event calendar and post the event yourself. An easy way to get the news out about your event.

Stay warm and dream about spring!

~ Shelly  

Belated Bulb Burial...
If you're like me you were counting on warmer weather in December to finish your bulb planting (I even talked about in on TV last weekend!).  Mother Nature had other plans.  I got lucky and planted some last week.  If you didn't get your bulbs planted before the ground froze, plant them now in individual peat pots and place the pots in flats.  Set them outside where it is cold and bury the bulbs under a thick blanket of leaves.  If we're lucky the ground will thaw again this winter and we can use the opportunity to transplant them into the garden.

Spring Dreams...
This frigid weather has us dreaming about spring! It seems like a long way off but guess what?  There are several flowers whose seeds can be started this month!  They include Begonia, Browallia, Geranium, Larkspur, Pansy and Vinca.  Check out When to Start Seeds Indoors for more details.

 


What Are You Reading
When You're Not Reading
Savvygardener.com
?

Great Gardening Magazines
Are Right Here!

 

 

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

Houseplant Help...
This month is a good time to remember your houseplants. If any of them are getting too big for their pots simply divide them and re-pot. While you are at it give them some TLC by doing the following:

  • Prune judiciously. A light trim is usually sufficient.
  • Check for bugs. Aphids and other critters can usually be eradicated with some insecticidal soap.
  • Make sure the low winter sun isn't hurting your plants placed near windows. You can relocate them or simply rotate them periodically if necessary.
  • A different window related problem may be the cold. Leaves don't like touching cold glass.
  • If your house is really dry (like mine) make sure you mist your plants occasionally.

 


Tell Your Friends About
Savvygardener.com!

You Could Win A $50 Gift Certificate

Details...

 

 

Boughs For Beds...
Many of our readers are disposing of a Christmas tree in the very near future.  Why not put that tree to some beneficial use? 

  • Evergreen boughs are great insulators and can be effectively used as a mulching material on flower beds. 
  • The whole tree itself makes a nice temporary protective habitat for birds.  Place it in the garden near your bird feeders.

Keep Off The Grass...
When temperatures plummet your grass will respond by moving water to areas outside the cells.  Ice accumulates in spaces between the cells and individual grass blades become brittle.  Walking on frozen turf will force the ice and cells together and can cause permanent damage to your lawn.  Do your best to avoid it.

Finally...
"I am writing in the garden. To write as one should of a garden one must write not outside it or merely somewhere near it, but in the garden."

~ Frances Hodgson Burnett, Writer

To change your e-mail address, delivery method, or to stop delivery please follow the "Update Your Profile"  link at the bottom of your e-mailed newsletter.

Organic Gardening Magazine

© 1999-2003 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.