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Randy's Lakeview 
Nursery & Bulk Supercenter

The one-stop-shop for
all your landscaping and gardening needs...
www.rlnbulksupercenter.com

 

 

 

 

The Kelly Gallery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

April 28, 2004

Here's To Gardeners!
We always end the newsletter with a quote and the one I chose this week speaks particularly about me. When I explain to people that working in the garden is one of my biggest joys, some of them look at me as if to say "Interesting". The response is neither good nor bad just a response. The fact of the matter is that there are many people in the world, just like me, who can think of nothing else other than being in the garden. It is about finding a piece of myself in everything I touch whether it's a weed, flower, shrub or tree. Heck, even a broom and a rake bring me great joy. Gardening is like any other loved hobby. At times it seems that there is never enough time for it. That is why this time of the year I try to seize every moment, knowing that the heat of summer will be upon me soon, waning my gardening spirit. Cheers to all of us gardeners - old, young, new and "trying to be". The world is a more beautiful place because of us!

Welcome to our new sponsor, Clearfield Farms. A magnificent nursery located in Baldwin City, Kansas. A place to spend the day taking in all there is to offer. So many unique and hard to find plants which makes it so appealing. There theme gardens are more than inspiring. Mark a date on your calendar to pay them a visit and make sure to tell them that you appreciate them sponsoring Savvygardener.com.

Thanks to all of you Savvygardeners who braved the cold, wet conditions for The Kelly Gallery event. Even though the conditions weren't ideal it was a good time and as always a pleasure to speak to all of you. Who says you can't have fun in the rain?

Windy, hot and dry conditions today. Feels a bit like summer. It looks as if this extreme warm spell is going to be short lived. More rain and cooler temperatures are forecast for the weekend. That's the good news.

~ Shelly  

It's Raining Worms!
According to our friends at K-State Research & Extension, they are being inundated with calls regarding tiny worms falling from callers oak trees. These worms are actually the larvae of a gall midge- tiny, delicate flies about l/8 inch long. The larvae come from eggs that adult midges lay on the flower clusters of pin oaks in early spring. Newly hatched larvae feed on the flower clusters and then move to the leaves as they unfurl. Eventually, the larvae drop to the ground in order to pupate. Adults emerge early the next spring to start the cycle all over again. Fortunately the midges cause no apparent damage
.

Source

Oh Say Can You Sow...
Savvygardeners all across the metro will be out this weekend buying bedding plants, vegetable seedlings, and all manner of transplants for the garden.  Keep in mind that some plants actually prefer to have their seeds sown directly in the garden.

  • Among vegetables these include: beans, beets, carrots, celery, peas, squash, and turnips.
  • Among flowers: alyssum, aster, bachelor's button, cosmos, marigold, morning glory, sunflower, sweet pea, and zinnia.

Buy the seeds, read the directions, watch them grow!

The Division Decision...
Division is a necessary chore in maintaining most perennials.  A few plants never like to be disturbed, and should not be moved or divided; Aconitum, Baptisia, Dictamnus, Eryngium, Helleborus, Limonium, and Papaver are good examples.  Most others will need division every three to four years or so.  You'll know it's time to divide when a dead center forms in the crown area with a ring of plants around it; blooms are fewer and smaller; or growth simply appears crowded. 

A general rule is to divide the plant in the non-bloom season.  Midsummer bloomers should be divided in spring when plant growth is two to three inches in height.  Fall bloomers are divided in late August or early September when plants are semi-dormant and temperatures are showing a cooling trend. 

Use a spade to dig the clump and cut off divisions.  If you don't want to divide an entire clump, divisions can be cut from the edge of a clump using a spade and trowel.  Some plants have tough, thick root systems that are a challenge to divide.  Hosta, Hemerocallis, and Astilbe fall in this category so don't be discouraged if you find the going a little tough.

Source

 


Tired of the Ordinary?

Visit Clearfield Farms

For
a vast assortment of
unusual and hard to find plants.

Valuable savings coupons
and directions are here! 

 

 

Hydrangea Helper...
Hydrangeas are wonderful.  Especially when they bloom.  You're not alone if you are sometimes (or often) frustrated by otherwise beautiful and healthy-looking hydrangeas that just won't bloom.  There are reasons for this of course.  Here are the likely ones:

  • Improper Pruning
    Some bloom on old wood, some on new season's growth.  For example, the popular 'Annabelle' varieties bloom on new growth and are consequently best cut back hard in the early spring.  By contrast, the Bigleaf hydrangea will grow in Kansas City but will not usually flower because the flowers develop on old (last season's growth) wood.  Since flower buds lack the cold hardiness of the foliage buds, they are often killed by our cold winters.
  • Too Much Shade
    While they will do all right in partial shade or full sunlight, too much shade could keep them from flowering
  • Too Much Nitrogen
    Fertilizing with high nitrogen fertilizers will limit blooms.  Try using a fertilizer with less nitrogen "N" and more Phosphorous "P".    

Source

Ants In Your...
Not your pants, but your peonies!  If you have peonies you no doubt have noticed a proliferation of ants scurrying to and fro across the flower buds.   Those ants are the source of many "old gardener's tales" that have been handed down over the ages.  Here's the deal:  The ants are there because of the nectar-like substance secreted by the peony.  Chances are that the ants you see on your peonies are already living in your garden - the peonies just draw them out of the soil and make them more visible.  In other words, peonies are not increasing your local ant population (which creepily number in the hundreds of thousands or more).  Some say that the ants actually help peonies bloom.  Most experts disagree but since they do no harm it's best to just let them enjoy your peonies as much as you do.

 


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What's Hot On The Hotline...
This week we dig into the hot topics from K-State horticultural newsletter.  In addition to "raining worms" mentioned above, there are quick tips covering powdery mildew in bluegrass, dandelion control, and earthworms in the lawn.  You will find them in this week's What's Hot On the Hotline...

More Growin', More Mowin'...
Most of us have fallen into the habit of mowing the lawn every week.  This time of year however the grass is growing so fast that you probably need to mow it a bit more often.  Remember that you don't want to cut off more than 1/3 of the height of the grass in any single mowing.  In our yard that means mowing twice per week.  It won't last long and the extra investment in time will yield a healthier more durable lawn when the summer heat sets in.

Finally...
"We belong to no cult. We are not Nature Lovers.
We don't love nature any more than we love breathing.
Nature is simply something indispensable, like air and
light and water, that we accept as necessary to living,
and the nearer we can get to it the happier we are."

~ Louise Dickenson Rich, Author

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