Garden Solutions - July 2011

Tip for the month of July—Sit Back and Relax!! For many of us, the 4th of July date marks the beginning of the entertainment season. And what a season it is! We plan, we phone, we shop, we decorate, we mow, we clean, we check supplies, we shop again, we cook, we carry lawn chairs and coolers outside, and we fret about the weather. When the guests arrive it all starts over. Pouring, serving, clearing, fetching, and recycling can fill hours, if we let them. So part of the planning needs to include ways to have some time for you to sit back and enjoy your party, too. Maybe an e-mail sent to everyone with one push of the button can replace two hours of phone calls. Making your event a potluck will eliminate much of the shopping and cooking. Be sure to have everyone bring their own beverages, table service and lawn chairs. And finally, don’t mow. Your lawn will do better with foot traffic if it is left a little bit longer. With all that settled, all that’s left for you to do is enjoy a good time! Now that we have talked about having parties and enjoying your yard and garden at home, let’s get down to other tasks at hand for July.

It’s not too late to plant shrubs, perennials and annual flowers, but you will need to give them a little TLC for the summer. If you haven’t been pinching back your garden mums all summer, cut them back by half as soon as possible and feed them. This task should not be done much after the 4th of July. This will help them to grow bushier and bloom in the fall when anticipated until Thanksgiving for late blooming varieties. Avoid applying weed killers, insecticides, fungicides and fertilizers to plants when the temperatures are above 90 degrees. Spray early in the morning when temperatures are below 85.

If Japanese beetles are attacking your plants, you have several options for controlling them, from handpicking (not my favorite) to trapping (the safest) or spraying them. Japanese beetle traps are readily available and do a fantastic job of eradicating the problem naturally. Remove infected leaves from roses and pick up fallen leaves. Continue fungicidal sprays as needed on these beauties. Keep deadheading spent annual and perennial flowers for continued bloom. Keep weeds from making seeds now. This will mean fewer weeds next year.

Hot, dry weather is ideal for spider mite development. Damage may be present even before the webs are noticed. With spider mite damage, leaves may be speckled above and yellowed below. Evergreen needles appear dull gray-green to yellow to brown. Spray with permethrin to control this critter. Sweet corn is ripe when the silks turn brown. Blossom –end rot occurs on tomato and peppers when soil moisture is uneven and the calcium level in the soil is not right. Liming the garden will help these issues next year.

Water conservation is of the utmost importance during our dry summer months. These following simple tips can save time and money. Water where it counts, water at the roots, not the leaves. Drip irrigation systems in landscape beds do wonders for water conservation. Drip irrigation systems are easy for the homeowner to install. Trees and shrubs would also benefit from a deep root watering this time of year. You can use a deep root feeder (without the fertilizer) for this purpose. Water them around the drip line of the tree for best success. Doing this every 2-3 weeks will keep your trees stress free. Water frequently enough to prevent wilting. When you mow your grass, cut it less frequently and at a higher level. Cutting it short promotes growth, and growth promotes water consumption. Longer grass blades shade the soil and conserve moisture. Plant drought tolerant, native plants where possible. Native plants are becoming more readily available in nursery settings.

Check your plant containers daily for water. Put your finger at least one inch down in the soil, if it is dry, water thoroughly. Hanging baskets will need a drink at least once a day, sometimes even twice a day, depending on the weather. Provide water in the garden for birds during dry weather and they will repay you with wonderful antics and bird song. Enjoy nature and your gardens this summer. You won’t regret it.

See you in the Garden,
Sandi Hillermann McDonald

Garden Solutions - June 2011

This month I will begin with a reminder that June is Perennial Gardening Month. Perennials are herbaceous plants that die back to the ground in the winter but return year after year to dazzle us with color.

The Perennial Plant Association’s “Perennials of the Year” (proven performance perennials that have been named since 1991) are usually great choices for anyone’s garden, as they are tried and true varieties. We are in planting zone 5, so it is always important to check that bit of information as well, on all plants you plan to leave from year to year in your yard.

Here are some quick tips to Fabulous Perennials: Begin by preparing the soil, then choose plants carefully, sun vs. shade, etc. Purchase plants that can establish in one season and space perennials to give them room to grow. Fertilize, mulch, control weeds and insects. Clean up your beds at the end of each season and enjoy!!!

Well, June is also the month of graduations, weddings, vacations, Father’s Day, and the beginning of summer. This is the month that we all begin to spend more of our free time outdoors, enjoying our gardens and the fruits of our labor from the last several months. If all of you have kept up with your tasks, then this month should be easy. However, if you are like me, June will be a month you get caught up.

The first task that we need to do this month is to get the spring flowering trees and shrubs trimmed. Flowering crabapples, serviceberry, dogwoods, magnolias, lilacs and viburnums all set their buds for next years’ flower on the new growth they develop this year. These plants should be pruned now to encourage new growth and therefore flower buds for next year. I recommend that you complete the pruning of these plants by early this month.

Here are other tips for the garden for June:
• Watch for the outbreak of bagworms on garden plants, especially junipers. Then spray affected plants with Permethrin sold under the label ‘Eight’.
• Deadhead bulbs and spring perennials as blossoms fade.
• Repeat plantings of corn and beans to extend the harvest season.
• Fertilize Zoysia grass now while it is actively growing.
• Renovate strawberries after harvest. Mow the rows; thin out excess plants; remove weeds; fertilize and apply mulch for weed control.
• Spray roses with a fungicide to prevent black spot disease and fertilize monthly.
• Continue pinching back your garden mums until July 4th to promote full, bushy growth and good fall color.
• Water turf as needed to prevent drought stress, and watch for fungus problems.
• Mow lawns frequently enough to remove no more than one-third the total height per mowing.
• Continue enjoying the antics of the wildlife in your yard and gardens by continuing to supply food and water sources for them.
• Change hummingbird nectar at least weekly to prevent fungus from growing. You can make your own nectar, 1 part sugar to 4 parts water---no food coloring please!
• Rejuvenate your older lilacs by cutting to the ground one third of the largest branches. This will create a fuller, lusher specimen.
• Orioles (if you were lucky enough to keep them around) begin building a gray woven nest; this takes about a week.
• Watch for birds carrying food to their young.
• Gray squirrels begin a second breeding.

Fully enjoy your garden; it is the only true place to connect you to Mother Nature.

See you in the Garden…
Sandi Hillermann McDonald

www.hillermann.com

Garden Solutions - May 2011

Times are changing and everyone is busier then ever; with kids to coach, meetings to attend and work to do. So “coming” home at the end of a day can be even more important to us then ever. Enjoy daylight savings time and extend your living quarters to your yard and garden. Think of your outdoor spaces as an extension of your home. And in doing so, consider the floor, walls, and ceiling per se. Outdoor firepits, grill and bar centers, rugs, clocks, décor and more are available to add a cozy room effect to outdoor living spaces. Adding resting areas is easy to do…hang a hammock in a tree, set a bistro set in the perennial garden, or put benches in your Hosta beds. Then invite friends over and have a cook out. Let the nature in your yard tickle your senses with the sounds of birds, smells of flowers, sound of running water, and splashes of color. Hardscapes can enhance your outdoor rooms by adding a “floor” to your area of enjoyment.

While you are enjoying your yard, and I hope that you are, here are some items to put onto your gardening checklist. Begin planting summer annuals to add color and spice to the landscape, and don’t just stop with the flowerbeds. There are many new introductions in annuals this year that will prove to be very exciting. One worth mentioning is the “NEW” Potunia. This new Petunia variety is a wonderful filler plant as well as a stand alone plant. It comes in a beautiful “orange” as well as red and yellow and they bloom all season long. It thrives in full to part sun. It has a bold beautiful colors.

Container gardening continues to be a trendy thing. The many choices, styles, shapes, and colors of containers make great accent pieces for inside or out. Let your imagination soar and express yourself. Use imaginative containers you pick up at flea markets and auction yards. Learn to mix annuals and perennials for great combinations. Try hostas with begonias and impatiens….or hydrangeas with groundcovers. These containers can make great accent pieces on the front porch, the back deck, in a flower bed, around the pool, or at the end of the driveway. And you can rearrange them as often as you wish. No room for a vegetable garden? Try one in a container. You can enjoy fresh tomatoes easily this way.

Take your houseplants outdoors once the evening temperatures will remain above 50`. Move sun loving plants (hibiscus, gardenias, mandevillas, etc.) gradually to sunny locations, as they have not had full sun in your home and will need to be acclimated to those conditions. Check out the many new varieties of tropical plants available this year.

Plant summer bulbs now and fertilize with bone meal or bulb food. Pinch hardy garden mums back now and continue to do so until July 4th to insure proper fall blooming. Treat slugs in your garden with organic diatomaceous earth. This is a powder product, 100% safe, and is good for the treatment of slugs, ants, fleas and ticks outside, as well as roaches and ants indoors. This organic product is very safe to use and a good one to have on hand. “Natural Gardening” with eco-friendly products is a very “trendy” and SAFE thing to do for your own health as well as the environment. Check out the chemical-free options available to you today. Then sit back and watch your kids and pets enjoy the beautiful outdoors.

Insect problems to watch for this month are pine sawflies, aphids, scale crawlers, cucumber beetles, and grubs, to name a few. Permethrin is the chemical product on the market today that is labeled for indoor and outdoor use. Permethrin will kill a large variety of insects on plants, in the soil, and in the home. It comes in many formulations and strengths. See a professional for questions of use of this product.

Other May tips include:
• Pinch azalea and rhododendron blossoms as the flowers fade.
• Fertilize azaleas and rhododendrons with an acid base fertilizer now.
• Don’t remove spring bulb foliage too early or next year’s flower production will decline. Let the foliage die back naturally.
• Plant hardy water lilies now.
• Begin fertilizing annuals now and continue at regular intervals all season long.
• Treat trees with borer problems now with Fertilome Systemic Insecticide Drench.
• Keep bluegrass lawns cut at 3” high, fescue lawns at 3.5” high and zoysia at 2” high.
• Apply post-emergence broadleaf weed controls to the lawn now if needed.
• Begin planting sweet corn, tomato plants, peppers and sweet potatoes as the soil warms up.
• Keep asparagus harvested for continued spear production.
• Remove rhubarb seed stalks as they appear.
• Don’t spray any fruits while in bloom, you may ruin the pollination process.
• Birds eat many insects so attract them to your garden by providing good nesting habitats.
• Herbs planted in average soils need no extra fertilizer. Too much may reduce flavor and
pungency at harvest.
• Watch for fireflies on warm nights. Both adults and larvae are important predators for garden pests.

Until next month,…Enjoy connecting with nature and….see you in the garden….

Sandi Hillermann McDonald
www.hillermann.com

Garden Solutions - April 2011

Vegetable gardening is making a comeback since food has made dramatic price increases over the past year. This is also because of the fact that more and more people are concerned with what they put on the family table. When you grow it yourself, you control what goes in the soil and on the plants, and you get to pick a much broader selection of vegetable varieties. The supermarket may have 2-3 varieties of tomatoes, where you can choose from dozens of varieties to plant yourself. Why are there more varieties available at garden centers? Tomatoes don’t ship well, and they taste a whole lot better home grown. In fact, a tomato from your own garden is the ultimate standard for taste. Some, who grow them annually, never buy them from the supermarket, because they pale in comparison to what they can grow in the summer.

If you’re thinking of growing a vegetable garden this year, you are not alone. If you’re a little timid, there is help available. Start small and expand as your interest and time permits. No summertime garden is complete without tomatoes, and the perfect accompaniment to fresh tomatoes on your table is basil. If your garden has anything this year, consider both. If you want a little more, some bush cucumbers will fit in small gardens, and so will the bush summer squash varieties. Most of these bush varieties can be planted in nontraditional garden areas like flower beds or as a small addition to the landscape. In short, a vegetable garden can find its way into every area of your home’s landscape. Whether it’s confined to its own area, combined into the annual or perennial gardens that you already have, or planted in containers on your deck or patio - it will provide the ultimate in fresh vegetable taste, and the safest vegetables you can produce for your family table.

The lengthening of daylight also seems to brighten peoples’ spirits and relieve some stress as we can now move outdoors and enjoy what Mother Nature has to offer. Therefore, I invite you to go outside and “dig in.” Here are other areas of consideration:
• Remove winter mulch now from your rose bushes. Trim out dead and diseased canes. Cut all other green wood to about 18” on Floribunda and tea rose varieties. A 24-30” height is good on shrub roses.
• Fertilize your roses with a slow release fertilizer and begin fungicide treatments to control black spot disease.
• When Crabapples are in bloom, hardy annuals can be planted.
• Transplant trees, shrubs and perennials early in the month for best success.
• Spots and bare patches in the lawn can still be over seeded if you did not apply a Crabgrass Preventer. During spring there are more issues to be aware of when seeding a lawn rather than in the fall. Talk to a professional about seed choices and procedures.
• Easter lilies can be planted after they finish blooming. Set the bulbs 2-3” deeper then they are in the pot.
• Liquid weed control should be applied this month to control dandelions, henbit and other broadleaf weeds. New grass from seed MUST be mowed 3 times to make it strong enough to withstand weed chemicals.
• Prune spring flowering shrubs after they finish blooming.
• Asparagus and rhubarb harvests begin. Keep your hoe sharp!!
• Start cucumber, squash, cantaloupe and watermelon seeds indoors this month.
• Shrubs such as Crepe Myrtle, Butterfly Bush, and Hardy Hibiscus can be pruned back to green wood this month. REMINDER—that these plants leaf out very late (early May) and should not be considered to have died or be replaced until after Mother’s Day.
• Termites begin swarming. Termites can be distinguished from ants by their thick waists and straight antennae. Ants have slender waists and elbowed antennae.
• Apply Bayer Advance Insect Control this month to control borers in shade trees and shrubs.
• Remove old tree wraps from trees planted last fall so you don’t make a place for insects to harbor.
• Mole young are born in chambers deep underground.
• Protect bees and other pollinating insects. Do not spray insecticides on fruit trees that are in bloom. Bees are in danger and it is very important to be careful around them.
• Ornamental Pear trees need to be sprayed “during” the flowering stage to prevent “Fire Blight” disease.
• Water gardens may be cleaned out and the water changed. Do not scrub the walls since this will remove accumulated beneficial bacteria. Begin adding additional bacteria and barley bales now to begin the natural cycle of pond clean-up.
• Hang out hummingbird feeders the first of this month. Use a solution of 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. Change the solution frequently to keep if from fermenting. Food coloring is not needed nor is it recommended for the hummingbirds.
• The last week of April is a good time to try an early sowing of warm season crops such as green beans, sweet corn, etc. Transplants of tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and sweet potatoes can also begin being planted outdoors.
• Container gardening is good choice for flower and vegetable gardening if space is in short supply. It can be done by anyone, anywhere, check it out!!
• “Natural Gardening” is a wave of the future………..keep your family safe and check out what organic options are available to you when gardening this year. There are many.

Well, time is running short…see you in the garden

Sandi Hillermann McDonald

Garden Solutions - March 2011

March welcomes ‘Spring’, and it will be met with open arms this year!! This is the month to open up the gardens and get things in shape for the new growing season, which means there is plenty that can be done. To name a few; mowing time is upon us; have you sharpened those mower blades? To keep that lawn looking fantastic, it is time to add Fertilizer with Crabgrass Prevention. Make sure to follow directions and do not try to skimp on the amount of product used, so you get great coverage from the Crabgrass Prevention. If you feel you need to over-seed the lawn, check with the professionals on proper steps for spring treatments.

Clean up those perennial beds and cut down all Liriope and Ornamental Grasses to about 3-5” above the ground. Once this has been done, it is time to re-mulch your shrub and flower beds. Top-dress these areas with a slow release fertilizer as well, such as Osmocote. Do not put mulch or fertilizer too close to the crowns of plants. You could cause either rot or burning of the plant crown.

Nesting boxes for Bluebirds and Purple Martin houses should be put out early this month. Purple Martins return to our area between St. Patrick’s Day and the end of the month. So now is

the time to be prepared. Are you considering doing some vegetable gardening this year? Well there is no better time than now to start those preparations. You can start seed in the house for plants such as tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. Plant or sow seed for peas, lettuce, radish, kohlrabi, collards, turnips, potatoes, spinach, onion sets, beets, carrots, and parsley outside this month. Set out broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and pansy transplants now. This month is also good to set out strawberries, blueberries, blackberries grapes and other fruiting plants. It is likely we will see an influx of home gardening this year. It can be done in containers on the patio, as square foot gardens, or large plot gardening. There is nothing better than a home grown tomato!! Check out our website for instructions on these items, www/hillermann.com.

Here is a fun project for the family to try --‘Taters in a Basket’. Have you ever tried growing potatoes in tough clay soil? The results are usually less than bad. However, here is the perfect solution for growing great potatoes. Grow them in a pot. Now, whether you’ve got clay soil, live in an apartment, or don’t have a garden at all, you can grow potatoes the ole’ yard boy way. And that’s in a container.

Here is what you will need:
1. The container, I like to use bushel baskets. They breathe well, allow for good drainage, and they look great! However, any container, plastic, wood or clay will work as long as it has good drainage and is at least 14-18 inches wide and at least 10-12 inches deep.
2. Soil-less potting mix works best. Use the good stuff for better results. If you have a compost pile, good compost will work too. Finely shredded is best. People have even used straw and ground leaves.
3. An all purpose garden food such as Osmocote is great.
4. Seed potatoes - these aren’t the ones you buy from the grocery store. They can be found at the garden center and are used specifically for growing potatoes. Do not use potatoes from the produce department at the grocery store; they have been treated with a growth inhibitor to keep them from sprouting.

Fill the bottom of your pot with 2-3 inches of soil-less mix or compost. Take a large seed potato, or a couple medium sized, cut up into pieces that contain the eyes, and evenly distribute those on top of the soil-less mix. You can plant 6-8-10 pieces with eyes per basket. If you’re not sure about the ‘eyes’, you can plant whole potatoes, or cut them in half and plant the halves. Cover with another 3-4 inches of soil-less mix, add the fertilizer and water in thoroughly, and place in the sun. Water as needed, thoroughly moistening the soil, then letting it dry before watering again. Once your potatoes start to grow, water regularly, being careful not to over water, which can cause the tubers to rot.

When your potatoes are growing, you have a couple options: 1) As the potatoes grow, keep adding soil-less mix or compost to the container, keeping about 4 inches of foliage showing. Continue this process until the container is filled to within 1 inch of the top of the basket. 2) Let the foliage grow until it’s approximately 3-4 inches above the basket, and then fill in around the foliage with your soil-less mix or compost unit the basket is full. Now you’re set for growing potatoes! Let your potatoes grow all summer. Don’t forget to keep them fed too. Come late summer or fall when the foliage starts to yellow, cut the foliage off, dump out your soil, and you’ll have a basket full of taters! It is that easy. Good Luck!!

Now it is time to go, so we will “See you in the garden!”
Sandi Hillermann McDonald