This week's gardening tips from the Savvygardener

 

Savvygardener.com

Missouri Organic Mulch, Compost, Bulk Soil
 

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
~ Deer Resistant Plants
~ Trees that Survived the Storm
~ Stump Removal Options for the Homeowner
~ 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

~ Family Tree Nursery
~ Missouri Organic Recycling
~ Prestige One Landscaping
~ Ryan Lawn & Tree

Subscribe

Tell A Friend

Privacy Pledge

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 14, 2005

Fall, Friends, Forty...
Could it be that fall has arrived? Although this year's autumnal equinox is officially on September 22nd the cooler temperatures we experienced this morning lead me to believe that we might be getting an early taste. The change in the temperature sure is welcomed. I am ready for days of jeans, sweatshirts, soccer games and football season. I look forward to the days of piddling in the garden preparing it for its long winter's nap. Planting new shrubs (or finding a place to plant new shrubs), dividing perennials that are long overdue for some much needed space, and planning my next big project. Welcome fall - I'm glad you're here!

Isn't it great to live close to friends and neighbors that share things from their gardens? We have both - Donald, Anna, Ryan and Brady Friend live across the street from us and tried their hand at growing some tomatoes this summer. We are delighted with their success and even more delighted that they chose to share their harvest with us. Cherry tomatoes, jalapeño peppers and banana peppers (photo). Yummy! Thanks Friend's for sharing your produce. 

Kevin turns 40 (finally) on September 19th. I know that he would love to hear from you so send him a note to let him know that 40 is not older but better. Happy Birthday to my better half!

~ Shelly  

Totally Tulips (Part 2)
One of the best ways to keep your spring garden flowering is by planting tulip bulbs that bloom at different times.  Last week we recommended some tulip varieties that would bloom toward the early part of spring.  This week we focus on those that will bloom after the early bloomers but just before the late bloomers.  Careful planning will pay off next spring with a continuously blooming tulip garden.

  • Darwin Hybrid Tulips are highly prized for their large, brilliant flowers.  Flowers are available in shades of red, pink, orange, and yellow.  Blooms are borne on strong stems which are up to 30 inches tall.  Darwin hybrid tulips often bloom well for several years, making them one of the better perennial tulips.
  • Triumph Tulips produce cup-shaped flowers on strong, medium-length stems.  Average plant height is 10 to 16 inches.  This is the largest class of tulips and offers the widest range of flower colors.  Triumph tulips are excellent for forcing.
  • Parrot Tulips have deeply feathered, curled, or twisted petals.  Flowers may be single or multi-colored.  Many varieties have a green spot at the base of their petals.  Parrot tulips are sensitive to poor weather and should be planted in a protected spot.

Next week, the late bloomers...

Source

Twig Girdlers In Trees...
If you've noticed small twigs laying around the yard chances are good that twig girdlers are to blame and the beetle Oncideres cingulata is the most likely culprit. Host trees include elm, oak, linden, hackberry, apple, pecan, persimmon, poplar, sour gum, honeylocust, dogwood, and some flowering fruit trees. Adults are long-horned beetles with grayish-brown bodies that are stout and cylindrical. The larvae are also cylindrical with small heads and shiny exteriors. Larvae can be up to an inch long and are light brown to brownish-gray.

While large infestations can result in a high percentage of girdled twigs reducing the vigor and appearance of the tree, the overall effect on the tree's health is not severe. Chemical control is impractical, so gather and dispose of fallen twigs in the fall or in the spring to destroy the larvae inside.

Source

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 a 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.

 


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

Great Gardening Magazines
Are Right Here!

 

 

Planting Perennials Properly...
Fall is here and that means we're planting perennials at our house.  By planting perennials now Savvygardeners will benefit from the plant establishing a strong root structure during the autumn months.  This in turn leads to a bigger, healthier plant next spring.

Perennials are generally sold in pots or bare-root. Here are the steps to follow when planting a bare root perennial: 

  1. Remove the plant from its package, and carefully remove all loose packing material (peat moss and sawdust are commonly used). 
  2. Soak the roots in a bucket of water for 5 to 10 minutes. 
  3. Examine the root system, and trim away any rotted, moldy, broken or elongated roots with a sharp knife of your pruning shears. 
  4. Dig a hole deep and wide enough to allow the roots to fan out from the crown at about 45° angle.  It sometimes helps to make a cone-shaped mound of soil in the bottom of the hole and spread the roots around it.  Remember, the crown of most perennials should be roughly level with the surrounding ground. 
  5. Cover the roots with soil and press down firmly.  Make sure all the roots — especially those under the crown are in contact with soil. 
  6. Water the plant well and add a layer of mulch.

Source

Continue Mosquito Control...
In case you haven't noticed, mosquitoes continue to be present in large numbers and will continue to pose a threat right up until our first hard frost. Limiting their breeding area is one of the most effective ways to keep their numbers in check.  Mosquitoes can breed in very small amounts of standing water, sometimes even in water collected on a plastic bag or under a small saucer under a plant. Change water in birdbaths and pets water dishes regularly - at least twice a week.

Coaxing Christmas Cactus...
This week a reader asked what steps should be taken to ensure a blooming Christmas Cactus this December.  Our buddy Ward Upham, at K-State extension offers these tips:

  1. Stop fertilizing in the fall (now). In order to form buds, only water enough to keep the stems from shriveling.
  2. Do not re-pot the plant at this time.  It is best to keep the plant a bit potbound. Move to a bigger pot in spring only when you haven’t repotted in several years and/or the current year’s blooms were fewer in number than the previous year’s.
  3. If possible, let the potted cactus spend each summer in a shady spot outdoors. Leave it there until frost threatens – which in our area will often mean enough exposure to 50° to 55° F nighttime temperatures for the plant to start producing flower buds.

For indoor-only plants (or those that must come in before forming buds), put the potted cactus in an unused room, in a cardboard box or under a dark cloth, to ensure that it has 12 hours of complete dark for 25 consecutive nights. Day and night, keep it at temperatures between 59 and 69 degrees. "

After bud formation, the cactus will need another nine to 10 weeks to complete their flower development and bloom, after which you can resume its normal feeding and watering.

Source

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° 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.

Finally...
"The breezes taste
Of apple peel.
The air is full
Of smells to feel-
Ripe fruit, old footballs,
Burning brush,
New books, erasers,
Chalk, and such.
The bee, his hive,
Well-honeyed hum,
And Mother cuts
Chrysanthemums.
Like plates washed clean
With suds, the days
Are polished with
A morning haze."

~ September, John Updike

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.

© 1999-2005 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.