Advice and tips to help you garden without the guesswork!
Poinsettias have long been associated with Christmas and add beauty and warmth to any home during the holiday season. Poinsettias are a tropical plant with long-lived bracts (vivid color leaves) and golden yellow flowers. To ensure that your poinsettia retains its beauty, keep these tips in mind. Place in a room with bright, indirect light. Avoid temperature extremes. This includes heat from registers as well as cold drafts below 50° F. Water plant thoroughly when soil surface is dry to …
Follow These Tips for Seed Starting Success! Start seeds 7 weeks before their normal planting dates. Example: Tomatoes and peppers are safely planted around May 30th; start the seeds around April 12th. Broccoli, cabbage and other cool season crops are usually planted the last week of April; start the seeds about March 15th. Follow all instructions on the seed pack. Seeds will vary in: Germination time Planting depth Pre-treatment requirements such as Soaking, Scarification (nicking the shell), and Stratification (chilling) …
Plant tags are your key to success when choosing and growing plants. If you don’t understand all the things you see on a label, you’re not alone. Unravel the mystery of plant label lingo – and take the guesswork out of selecting and placing plants in your yard. Plant labels may be different, but often they contain similar information. Here are some of the common words you’ll see on plant labels – and what they mean to you. When shopping …
Cannas add energy and excitement wherever they’re planted. These lush, tropical plants have big glossy leaves and exotic-looking flowers that are loved by hummingbirds. Cannas come on strong in late summer and fall when most annuals and perennials are starting to fade. Their bold foliage and brilliantly colored flower spikes keep gardens looking great right until frost. Cannas can be used to create a living hedge to define an entrance, hide an unwanted view or divide one garden area from …
Small space? Not a problem with Bushel and Berry™! Bushel and Berry™ plants are low maintenance and make for an easy, delicious addition to your garden or patio! Bushel and Berry is a unique combination of compact, ornamental and self -pollinating berry plants for the home garden. The berries are anything but dwarf and once the plants are established they will fruit reliably for years given the proper care. Grow in containers or in the ground. Blackberries and Raspberries available. …
Winter is a crucial time for the birds that remain in our area. They spend their time facing the elements of bitter cold and snowstorms. There are no insects to eat and the natural seeds are covered with snow; the berries and crab apples are gone. Birds need enough food to maintain their body temperatures and must search for food from sun up to dusk. Fortunately, for the birds, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 41 million Americans …
Have you ever wondered how roses get their names? The process of having a rose named is actually very simple. The real difficulty is in hybridizing a rose that’s worthy of naming! A very popular older Hybrid tea, the ‘Peace’ rose was introduced right after the end of World War 2. It was actually sheer coincidence that Berlin fell and a truce was declared on the same day as the naming of the ‘Peace’ rose. In naming the rose, this …
Garden Blight Remedy 1 level tablespoon of baking soda 1 level tablespoon of Epson salts 1 level tablespoon of miracle grow (tomato or veg. fertilizer) 1 level tablespoon of liquid dawn dish soap (reg. blue strength) 3 tablespoons of regular rubbing alcohol Mix all in one gallon of water. Spray everything in the garden every 10 days. This works really good on tomatoes and squash. Blight can possibly be avoided by not allowing leaves to come in contact with the …
Each season presents many questions regarding problems in the garden. Generally, these problems stem from light and water issues. Plant tags will include information regarding light and water needs. Other problems may include fertilization, insects and disease. Light – Always use plants in their favored light condition. Shade plants will dry out and leaves may burn in the hot midday sun. Sun lovers may become leggy and blooming will suffer when planted in too much shade. Water – Over and …
Common name Genus species Category Wenke Carries Aconite or Monkshood Aconitum spp Native and cultivated perennial * Alfalfa or Lucerne Medicago sativa Native groundcover Angel’s Trumpet or Devil’s Trumpet or Downy Thornapple Datura spp or Brugmansia spp. Annual * Arrowgrass Trifolium spp. Native groundcover Baneberry or Doll’s Eyes Actaea spp. Woodland perennial Belladonna Atropa belladonna Native plant Bird’s Foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus Perennial * Black Locust Robinia pseudoacacia Tree Bleeding Heart Dicentra spp. Perennial * Bloodroot or Red Puccoon Sanguinmaria …
