This week's gardening tips from the Savvygardener

 

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October 5, 2005

Big Apple Weekend...
I've been wanting to visit New York City since I was a young teen. I remember seeing pictures of New York on TV, in magazines and listening to people talk about what a unique place it is. Well at the age of 42 I finally got my chance to visit the Big Apple. Kevin and I spent this past weekend there and I have to say that I can hardly wait to go back. We were there for such a short time but tried to see as much as we could. We visited The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Ground Zero, and the Empire State Building. We stayed in Times Square, walked through Greenwich Village, China Town, SoHo and spent most of the day Sunday walking around Central Park
(photos). There may not be a lot of gardening space in Manhattan but the shops, galleries, food and architecture are unbelievable! We did not have the opportunity or time to see a Broadway show but that will certainly be something we do the next time. It is everything I thought it would be and so much more. Truly a wonderful experience.

It sounds as if fall is going to make a grand appearance later today. The low temperatures on both Thursday and Friday will dip into the mid 30's so if there are tropical plants that you still have outside and tender annuals you want to keep around a bit longer you may want to bring them in or cover them up. You can use plastic (as long as it is not touching the plant), cloth sheets, pots and/or anything else you have available to protect your plants from a light frost. Don't worry if there are things that you still have not planted. A couple of light frosts will not freeze the ground. I have waited as long as November to plant bulbs and other items. Still lots of time to plant so no need to panic.

~ Shelly  

Storing Summer Bulbs...
It's time to start thinking about storing bulbs that will not survive Kansas City winters. The bulbs of gladiolus, caladium, dahlia, tuberous begonia, calla lily, and canna lily need to be dug and stored so they can be planted next year.

All of these plants should be dug after frost has browned the foliage. Allow them to dry for about a week in a shady, well-ventilated site, such as a garage or tool shed. Remove excess soil and pack them in peat moss, vermiculite or perlite. Make sure the bulbs don't touch, so that if one decays the rot doesn't spread to its neighbors. Dusting them with fungicide before storage will help prevent them from rotting as well.

Caladium should be stored between 50° and 60° F. The rest of the bulbs mentioned should be stored near 40° F.

Source

Squash Harvest & Storage...
Make sure you harvest pumpkins and winter squash before they get hit by frost.  Immediately after harvest, the fruit should undergo a ripening or curing process to harden the shell. A curing period of about two weeks at 75
° to 85° F with good circulation is desirable. Storage should then be at 50° to 70° F with humidity between 50 and 70 percent. Also, leaving a couple inches of stem will not only provide a "handle" for jack-o-lanterns but will improve storage.

TLC For Tender Turf...
If you are growing new grass from seed be sure to keep it wet - especially as the new, young blades shoot forth from the soil
.  This is when the grass is most vulnerable.  If it dries out, it dies.  No need to soak it.  Just keep it moist with a couple of sweeps from the hose spray nozzle several times a day.

 


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Tomato Rescue...
If you are rescuing green tomatoes from a frost and plan to allow them to finish ripening indoors, be sure to select fruits that have changed color from the darker green of immature tomatoes to the lighter color of the mature green stage. If picked before this color break, the tomato will rot instead of ripen. You will be on the safe side if you wait for a hint of red to appear.

Source

Evergreen Pruning...
Light pruning of both needle and broadleaf evergreens is recommended in late fall to encourage a strong framework to help the plant overcome any snow damage. Simply remove any weak or crowded branches with a pair of clean sharp pruners.

Look Who's Sleeping In The Garden Bed...
Many disease-causing viruses overwinter in the roots of perennial weeds.  Tomato mosaic virus overwinters in the roots of ground cherry, horsenettle, jimson weed, nightshade, and bittersweet; cucumber mosaic virus lives in the roots of milkweed, catnip, and pokeweed; bean mosaic overwinters in white sweet clover roots; and many cabbage diseases spread from wild members of the cole family.  A good fall cleanup is essential.  Don't wait!

Source

Time For Lime?
If the results of a soil test suggest that your lawn or garden needs an application of lime now is the time to do it.  Never had a soil test before?  Shame on you!  Resolve to get one done this month.  We've posted easy to follow instructions on the Savvygardener.com website. 

Finally...
"For my own part I am pleased enough with surfaces - in fact they alone seem to me to be of much importance. Such things for example as ... the bark of a tree, the abrasion of granite and sand, the plunge of clear water into a pool, the face of the wind - what else is there? What else do we need?"

~ Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire

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