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Archived April 14, 2008

I am making a list of garden project to do before it gets really hot. You might want to add some of them to your list during this really magnificent spring.

APRIL

Clean out your bird feeders, and keep them well stocked. You might add some little bits of cotton and string to assist in nest building.

Move your houseplants outside for the summer. Is this a good time for you to repot them?

Look for perennials to come up now: hosta, begonias, etc, are just waking up from their long winter nap.

Fertilize summer -blooming bulbs for better blooms as the first shoots appear.

Many summer bulbs such as: dahlias, cannas, cladiums, and my favorite, blood lilies, can be planted mid month.

Add more nectar-producing plants for the Hummers. Consider bee balm, salvia, native azaleas, columbine, honeysuckle, redbud and tulip poplar trees.

Treat your hydrangeas to be blue, or a deeper blue . Use wetable sulfur or aluminum sulfate . Use both as a solution, not dry. Perennials and herbs can be divided and transplanted now.

Do this now: prune your warm-season bloomers that flower on NEW wood (crepe myrtle, pomegranate, vitex, buddleia, and althea. Don't forget that most hydrangeas bloom on OLD WOOD, so do not prune them now. Later this summer I will produce a list of things to
prune at that time.

Following are questions deserving answers:

WHAT IS THE BEST PRODUCT TO GET RID OF TREE STUMPS? Most products take a pretty long time to decompose a stump. The best answer is to hire a stump grinder.

I LOVE VINES, BUT MOST OF THEM GET OUT OF CONTROL. IS THERE A VINE THAT DOESN'T TAKE OVER YOUR HOUSE?

Oh, yes. I have the same problem. I love how vines look on the house, but they do overwhelm me, and I hate to cut them before they bloom. I have started planting climbing roses (New Dawn is my favorite for very little care) and I am growing Clematis pretty successfully.

Clematis needs the roots to be cool. The way I accomplish this is to plant the vine under a bush or my favorite is to take a 1/2 a broken pot and carefully place it over the stems going into the ground. This keeps the base of the plant a little cooler, and the top can happily climb away in the sun.

Last year I planted Morning Glory, and while I LOVED the beautiful blue color, it really got away from me, and so be careful in this climate because that can easily happen with such a long growing season. I am also growing a climbing fern that likes the sun. But a word of caution, that fern is really a pest, so I have it planted in a 1 square foot spot surrounded by concrete. I am constantly cutting it back in the summer, but the location keeps it from escaping into my woods.

Enjoy the weather - these non-humid, mild days are unusual. They will be a wonderful memory about July.

Archived April 1, 2008

Get Ready,   Get Set, G R O W!

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Oh ye faithful growers,   wait, have patience, just one more week until Easter.   That is the traditional date to set out annuals and other tender plants. Like you, I am skeptical. Easter is so very early this year.   I think, in my garden, that I will wait another week after Easter before I begin to add tender plants. Also, all of my winter annuals are looking pretty darn good about now.

So, what creative things can be done in the interim? (anything to get out of maintenance!)

1. Try creating a cone of succulents. I have a wire cone that looks like the top of an obelisk. I am going to fill it with sphagnum moss and somehow try to figure out how to add some soil then it will be the perfect place for hens and chicks and other succulents. I saw this recently in a magazine and it is very good looking, and   it shouldn't require much water. You could also try a wire ring.

2. This is a good time to think about those DIFFERENT plants you might want to try in your garden this year.   For starters:
Pots:
1. Diamond Frost Euphorbia. - it is heat and drought tolerant and has non-stop clouds of tiny white blooms. It's name, Diamond Frost, does not mean it will take freezing temperatures. Mine overwintered in the garage, and came out on those many non-freezing days. It has never stopped blooming!I   I love it.   It is a great filler, but beware, it grows pretty big for a pot plant.   I have had to cut mine back. Now, that is a problem that I like to solve!
2. Remember Cineraria?   The wonderful pot plant to brighten your winters? There is a variety called, Blue Pericallis Senetti hybrids. (also comes in Magenta and Mini true blue.   )    In the past you usually bought it with those white eyes.   I understand it will now rebloom in the garden after you have enjoyed it for many weeks indoors.
3.   Supertunia- a petunia hybrid. This is not 'yo mama's' old petunia.   These petunias are easier to grow, have more color and   are low maintenance. The NEW color this year is Bermuda Beach. A wonderful soft coral.   The down side might be   that it would grow less vigorously.

Why not try all three in the same pot.   I think I might.