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September 8, 2004

Road Trip!
Over this past holiday weekend, Kevin, the kids and I took a road trip to Omaha. We thought it would be a fun weekend to get away. We spent some time at the Henry Doorley Zoo (along with a few thousand other people) and also took in Omaha's botanical center, Lauritzen Gardens. What a great zoo. The kids love it there. This was their second trip so now they've become experts on where everything is. It was fun for them to show Kevin around. He did not have the opportunity to go with us the first time so it was up to the kids to show him the sights. Very cute! I enjoyed the zoo as well but I bet you can guess what my favorite place was. If you guessed the botanical gardens you guessed right. What a magnificent place
(photos). Everything looked amazing. The Victorian Rose garden was so fragrant and so full of blooms. I could have wandered around for hours. Much to my dismay we spent only a couple of hours there. I would love to go back and explore the 100 acres at a nice slow pace. Not having any children along would be nice also. I highly recommend a visit to Lauritzen Gardens. Perfect for a little weekend escape.

I spent all day outside today, yesterday and Monday. We are preparing for a garage sale - a lot of work sorting through all of our treasured junk. The garden has been put on hold for now but will certainly be on the top of the list for next week. I will start by cutting back all of my summer blooming perennials. Most of them are finished blooming and even the ones that are blooming are doing so occasionally. I have already pulled several tired looking annuals. Once I have everything cut back and cleaned up I will start planting pansies and mums. Two of my fall favorites. Can't wait to get started.

The Kelly Gallery is having a huge End of the Season Inventory Sale. Decor for the home and garden at a discounted price. Sounds like my kind of place. Who doesn't love a great sale?

~ Shelly  

Totally Tulips (Part I)...
While there are quite a few weeks before you have to plant them, tulips should be purchased soon.  Wait too long and the interesting ones will be gone from the store shelves!  To help you out we publish this four-part series each year at this time.

One of the best ways to keep your spring garden blooming is by planting bulbs that bloom at different times.  The possibilities are endless.  In fact you can plant only tulips if you like and still have staged blooms.  This week we focus on some of the earlier blooming tulips.  Look for these in your favorite catalogs and at local retailers:

  • Single Early Tulips are among the earliest tulips to bloom.  The flowers, available in a wide range of colors, are produced on strong, 10 to 18-inch-long stems.  The flowers of several varieties have a sweet fragrance.  Single early tulips are excellent for rock gardens, beds, and forcing.
  • Double Early Tulips produce semi-double to double, peony-like flowers.  The flowers, measuring up to 4 inches in diameter, are borne on strong, short stems.  The color range of double early tulips is smaller than for most other tulip classes.
  • Greigii Tulips are noted for their brightly-colored flowers and purple striped or mottled foliage.  Plant height varies from 8 to 12 inches.  Because of their short stature, Greigii tulips are excellent choices for borders or rock gardens.
  • Kaufmanniana Tulips are long-lived perennial tulips.  In sunlight, the flowers open fully.  The open flowers resemble a star or water lily.  Flower colors include white, yellow, pink, and intermediary colors.  The foliage is bluish green or chocolate brown striped.  Kaufmanniana tulips are small plants with an average height of 4 to 8 inches.  Their compact size makes them good choices for border edges and rock gardens.
  • Fosteriana Tulips produce some of the largest flowers of the genus.  They also perennialize well.  'Red Emperor' is a widely grown variety in this class.  Fosteriana tulips are sometimes referred to as emperor tulips.
  • Species Tulips include wild species, horticultural varieties, and hybrids.  Most are early blooming, short-statured plants.  Species tulips are available in a wide array of colors.  They perennialize well and are excellent plants for rock and heirloom gardens.

Next week, the "middle" bloomers...

Source

Household Hazardous Waste...
Fall clean-up of your garage or other work areas may turn up containers of old pesticides, herbicides, and other lawn and garden chemicals.  These items are considered household hazardous wastes and should not be thrown in the trash.  Instead, Savvygardeners should dispose of them safely through their local government.  For more information simply click on the appropriate local government link below:

 


Fall is the Perfect
T
ime to Hardscape!

Choose the right product for your project at
Randy's Lakeview Nursery & Bulk Supercenter

With over 50 different types of decorative rock,
limestone, flagstone and pavers,
Randy's is the Supercenter with super prices!

Visit Them Now!

 

 

Squash Harvest Hints...
Don't be too hasty in harvesting all your winter squash!  For longer keeping let winter squash stay on the vines as long as possible.  Wait until the vines die back or there is danger of frost.  Check by pressing with your thumbnail, if the skin is easily broken they are not fully matured and may not keep well.  

When you harvest leave two to three inches of stem on the squash.  Allow them to cure in a warm, dry, well-ventilated place for a couple of weeks before placing them in storage.  Also, never wash your squash until just before using and never carry squash or pumpkins by the stem.

Source

The Sunflower Shake...
You don't have to be a Kansas Savvygardener to appreciate the beauty of sunflowers.  For those of you who want to harvest your sunflower seeds and don't know when they're ready just look for these tell-tale signs:

  • The flower's head is droopy and faces the ground.
  • Most of the petals have fallen off.
  • The birds are starting to enjoy the seeds.

Gently shake the head of the flower and the seeds will fall off.  Store them in a nice dry place for planting next spring!

 


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What's Hot On The Hotline...
Savvygardeners love peonies!  There are so many varieties and they're not too hard to grow either.  For the peony aficionado however there is certainly a lot to know about these beauties.  You'll learn more than a thing or two about peonies in this week's What's Hot On the Hotline...

Fertilizer Figures...
Savvygardeners with cool-season grasses (bluegrass, fescue, and/or ryegrass) should plan on three applications of fertilizer each year - one in spring and two in fall.  Fall is the most important time to fertilize as it really encourages strong root growth resulting in healthier growth next spring.  September is a great month for the first fall application followed by another in November.

You're going to need about 1 to 1.5 pounds of Nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of lawn.  That's the amount of actual Nitrogen, not fertilizer product.  The amount of actual nitrogen in a fertilizer product is indicated by the first digit of the N-P-K number on the label of a fertilizer bag.  The N-P-K number indicates percentages by weight of the nutrients nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K).  For example, a bag with a N-P-K of 20-4-4 has 20 percent nitrogen.  Therefore it will take 5 pounds of this fertilizer to provide 1 pound of actual nitrogen.

Finally...
"It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can do only a little. Do what you can."

~ Sydney Smith, (1771 - 1845), English Essayist

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