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December 14, 2005

Happy Birthday to Me...
43 years ago today I was brought into this world. I had a wonderful day. I ran a few errands and then spent some quality time at home (actually at one point I deliberated on whether or not to go outside and rake). Ponderings like that are what make my life so wonderful. I received many calls from friends and loved ones. It is always so nice to catch up with friends who I don't always have the opportunity to stay in touch with throughout the year but are always in my thoughts around our birthdays and the holidays.

I like this age. A few years ago (maybe as early as even last year) I would make a big "to-do" about my birthday. I loved my birthday and thought that everyone else should love it to. Not the case today. I was perfectly content just hanging around by myself, reading a book, picking up the house and wrapping presents. I embrace getting older now. It was tough, I must admit, at 40 but 3 years later I am thinking that older is not so bad. I still believe that I am young at heart and that is what is most important.

I received "A Gardener's Bouquet of Quotations" as one of my presents and I have been leafing through the pages all day. Don't you love it when a book actually speaks to you? I find so many things in this book that appeal to me. The quotes, the messages, they inspire me to do so many things; not only in the garden but in life in general. I would highly recommend this book as a gift for the gardener in your life. Here's too many more fruitful years!

~ Shelly  

Deicer Damage...
When ice and snow pile up it's not unusual to reach for a deicing agent to help melt the frozen stuff away.  Deicers work by lowering the freezing point of water, creating a brine (chemical-water solution) and allowing water to evaporate. The oldest and most common deicing agent is sodium chloride (rock salt), but calcium chloride, potassium chloride and magnesium chloride are also used. The damaging effects of these materials on plants come from their reducing the ability of plants to take up water and the effects may not show up until late spring or summer when water stresses begin to prevail so don’t expect damage to be immediate.

Limited use of deicers and spreading the ice slush when scooping it away over a wide area will lessen potential damage. Heavy applications of water in the spring season can also flush salts downward through the soil. A new chemical deicing agent called calcium magnesium acetate (or CMA) is made from dolomite (limestone) and acetic acid (vinegar) and has very minimal damaging effects on plants, animals, or concrete surfaces.

Source

Goin' Buggy...
Most homes in winter become dry as bone meal.  Keep an eye out for spider mites on your houseplants - they thrive in that dry air.  Females lay about 200 eggs and the life cycle may be completed in just 7 days.  Do the math - it gets ugly fast!  

At the first sign of any insect infestation, isolate your plant.  Several thorough washings with soapy water (two teaspoons of mild detergent to a gallon of water) should bring them under control.

Guy-Wire Guidelines...
If you are using guy wires around newly planted trees make sure hose sections (or other protection) are still covering the supporting wires or ropes.  Without sufficient protection the recent windy weather could cause a young tree's bark to be stripped away by bare wire or rope.

 


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Two Out Of Three Wise Men Recommend...
The holiday season is full of traditions involving the plants we grow.  Wreaths, mistletoe, Christmas trees, the list goes on.  How about frankincense and myrrh?  What is that stuff anyway?  Well, they are both resins - dried tree sap - that come from trees of the genus Boswellia (frankincense) and Commiphora (myrrh).  The way that people collect the sap is similar to the way people collect rubber tree sap or pine tree sap.  Cutting the tree's bark causes the sap to ooze out of the cut.  The sap used to create both of these famous resins comes slowly and is allowed to dry on the tree.  Both in the time of the three wise men and today, frankincense and myrrh are most commonly used to create incense.

Pacing Your Paperwhites...
As the holidays near, you can adjust the bloom time of your forced paperwhites.  If they are coming along too quickly, place them in a cool room (50-60º F) and water less frequently.  If you need to speed them up a bit, place them in the warmest room in the house.  With a little luck they'll be blooming right on time!

Poinsettias Perfected...
From our friends at University of Missouri Extension here are some good tips to make your poinsettias last longer and retain their colorConsumers should consider several factors when buying a poinsettia plant, said David Trinklein, professor of horticulture. The plant should have bright bracts and healthy foliage that does not look wilted. Its cyathia, the true flower in the center of the bracts, should be tightly clustered and just starting to shed pollen. Once it is brought home these tips will keep it healthy and happy:

  • Place it in a brightly lit location away from cold drafts or hot air registers.
  • Color can be prolonged if the plant is kept at 60° to 72° with high humidity.
  • Don't overwater a poinsettia. Water only when the surface of the growing medium is dry to the touch.
  • If the pot containing the plant is foil-covered, be sure there is a drainage hole in the foil. Empty any water that might drain through the pot and collect in the saucer below.

Source

Sharpen Mower Blades Now...
Last week we talked about putting the mower away for the winter.  Now is also an excellent time to sharpen mower blades so they'll be ready next spring. Sharpening rotary mower blades is fairly straightforward. The following steps will guide you through this process:

  1. Check the blade for major damage. If you can't fix it, it likely will need to be replaced.
  2. Remove grass and debris from the blade with a moist cloth. Dry before beginning to sharpen the cutting edge.
  3. Remove nicks from the cutting edge, using a grinding wheel or hand-file.
  4. If using a grinding wheel, match the existing edge angle to the wheel. If hand-filing, file at the same angle as the existing edge.
  5. Grind or file until the edge is 1/32 inch, about the size of a period.
  6. Particularly with a grinding wheel, avoid overheating the blade as this may warp it.
  7. Clean the blade with solvent or oil for optimum winter storage. Avoid use of water as it will promote rust.

Following these tips can help you better prepare your mower for winter storage and also save you some steps this coming spring.

Source

Finally...
"To me, the garden is a doorway to other worlds; one of them, of course, is the world of birds. The garden is their dinner table, bursting with bugs and worms and succulent berries (so plant more to accommodate you both)."

~ Anne Raver, Nature and Gardening Writer

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