Wednesday, June 29, 2016

June 28, 2016, Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter    © Kim Willis

Hi Gardeners
Asiatic lily hybrid 'Black Eye'

I apologize for the newsletter being a day later than usual.  It may be just a hobby but I like to keep a schedule.  My husband was hospitalized over the weekend and my schedule vanished.  He’s home and doing well today. It’s amazing how life can change in just minutes.  We should always keep that in mind and learn to enjoy life.

The drought here in Michigan is starting to make plants suffer.  Even our back yard is brown now.  I have been spending lots of time trying to get water everywhere.  You water and weeds also grow but you don’t have time to weed because all your time is spent watering.  It’s a vicious cycle.  (There are watering tips at the end of the newsletter.) We may get rain late Thursday and early Friday but I am thinking the chances don’t look good for any good soaking rain which we really need.  And by mid-week next week temperatures are expected to get hot again.

In the garden my lilies are starting to make lots of color, the hydrangeas are beginning to bloom, beebalm is starting to bloom.  The blueberries are actually starting to ripen, which seems very early.  I also have raspberries almost ripe.  Blackberries however are just beginning bloom and setting fruit. The corn is knee high, at least.  Tomatoes are ripening well, getting several a week now. The catalpa tree is beginning to bloom and I see elderberries are blooming everywhere.

I love to take flower pictures and when my camera broke I had to get a new one.  I don’t like to use cell phones for picture taking.  My new camera is a more professional one and it has a nice large zoom feature which will let me take more pictures of birds and wildlife from farther away.  I am still getting used to it though.  I think the color of flowers looks different than with the old camera - I don’t know how that can be- but I will keep working with it.  It doesn’t slip in my pocket like the old camera but I’m hoping the other features will make up for that.  Here’s a practice picture of a starling eating mulberries.


I have had an epic fail in gardening this year.  I have planted lettuce- butter head and romaine 4 times this year and I still do not have lettuce.  I have never had trouble with lettuce.  Usually I have lettuce way before tomatoes.  I used seed from 3 different sources too, several varieties, all fresh. I planted in 4 different spots.  They just didn’t sprout.   The first batch was in a container in my little greenhouse, the rest in the garden.  I think the soil was too warm for germination but in all my years of gardening- and there are many of them- I have never had lettuce fail to sprout after 4 attempts.  It just goes to show you that gardening is always a gamble and even old timers can have garden failures.  I’ll try again in the fall. 

Snapdragons- Old fashioned Fun

Snapdragons are colorful old fashioned flowers that deserve a place in your garden. They make colorful bedding plants, and the trailing types make wonderful additions to containers and baskets. Snapdragons also make excellent cut flowers.  Grow a few rows of long stemmed varieties if you like flower arranging.

Snapdragons are favorites for children’s gardens.  If you pluck a flower off a snapdragon and pinch the sides of the blossom, you can make the dragon open its lips and snap.  Even the name delights children.

Snapdragons are really short lived perennials but in northern areas are usually grown as annuals.  In a protected area or when mulched, some snapdragons will surprise you and return for another year even in zone 5.

Snapdragons come in every color of the rainbow from white to almost black, and in every combination imaginable.  Most snapdragons have the familiar pursed lips look, but some newer varieties have open, funnel shaped flowers. There are also double flowered varieties. The flowers grow on spikes and the plants will bloom for a long time if they are prevented from going to seed.  The leaves of the snapdragon are long and narrow.

Growing Snapdragons

Snapdragons are easy to grow from seed.  You can sow the seed where you want them to grow or you can start plants inside for faster flowers.  Sow the fine seed in flats or pots about six weeks before your last frost is expected.  The seeds need light to germinate so they should just be sprinkled on the soil surface and pressed down lightly.  Snapdragons started inside should not be put outside until the danger of frost has passed.  Most garden centers sell snapdragon plants but a wider variety is available from seed.

Snapdragons are a cool weather plant.  They will survive light frosts and continue to bloom until hot weather arrives in late spring.  In most areas snapdragons will bloom in the spring and early summer, then as the weather gets warm, cut them back to a few inches.  In fall they should bloom again for a second show.  Cool summers will keep snapdragons blooming all season.

In the garden old-fashioned long stemmed snapdragon varieties may need to be staked so they don’t flop over. These types are the best for cut flowers, so you may want to go to the trouble.  Some pieces of brush can be stuck in the ground that the plants can grow up and through, which will help support them.  There are shorter, more compact varieties on the market for gardeners and even some dwarf varieties that make colorful bedding plants.  There are also trailing varieties of snapdragons for containers and baskets.

Plant your snapdragons in full sun.  Space plants about 8 ’’ apart for compact varieties and a little further for long stemmed types.  Snapdragons do best in light soil and suffer in heavy clay soil. Keep them well watered.  Fertilize snapdragons with a slow release flower fertilizer when you plant them, and if you want a second round of flowers after you cut them back, fertilize them again as new growth starts.  Keep the developing seed pods plucked off if you want a long season of bloom.  If you do let them go to seed they will often spread freely.

When selecting snapdragons for cut flowers use scissors and don’t tug on the plant.  The plants break off at the base quite easily and you may lose the plant.

Snapdragons may get aphids, which stunt growth and distort the flowers.  Look for small, fat bodied insects which hide in flowers and in leaf joints.  The leaves may look yellow and ants may be on the plants to feed on the aphid’s secretions.   Wash them off with insecticidal soap or use an insecticide.  Snapdragons can get several fungal diseases, especially in warm, humid periods.  Water only at the base of plants if possible, and always early in the day so plants dry quickly. If the problem is severe, cut back the foliage to a few inches and hope conditions have improved when the plants re-grow.

If you want to try and over-winter snapdragons, wait until the temperatures are falling to the 20’s at night, cut the foliage back to a few inches, and mulch heavily. Remove the mulch when the danger of hard frost is over in the spring, the plants will withstand light frost.

Some varieties

The Rocket series produces wonderful snapdragons for cut flowers in the home garden. Cascadia series produces the trailing snaps for baskets and container planting.  Sonnet hybrids have compact, wind resistant plants.  Frosted Sunset offers variegated leaves as well as a range of warm, vibrant colors.  Black Prince is an old variety with dark foliage and crimson flowers.  Night and Day has deep red-black lips and white outer parts.

How to Grow a Catalpa or Catawba tree

You may know it as catalpa, Catawba, Indian Bean, Cigar tree, or Fish Bait tree but chances are if you live in the United States, you have seen this unique tree.  Catalpa is a true tree of the people, surviving in all kinds of conditions from polluted cities to windswept prairies.  Native Americans utilized the Catawba long before settlers arrived in the New World.  But the settlers soon recognized the value of the catalpa and carried it with them across the country.  With catalpa’s ability to survive most conditions and grow rapidly, and it’s bonus of beautiful, fragrant flowers, it was the pioneer’s choice of trees to plant on a new homestead.

For fast shade in rough conditions, catalpa is a good choice.  Farmers plant catalpa for the wood, which makes strong, lightweight, rot-resistant fence posts.  It makes a nice specimen tree with showy flowers at a time few other trees are blooming.

There are two recognized species of catalpa or Catawba tree in North America, Southern Catalpa, C. bignonioides, and Northern Catalpa, C. speciosa.  There are only subtle differences in the two and they have both been planted far outside their natural ranges.  Both catalpas are hardy in Michigan to zone 4, both have large, heart-shaped leaves, fragrant white flowers splashed with yellow and purple, and long skinny seed pods resembling bean pods.  The Southern Catalpa is a slightly smaller tree, with the leaves growing in a whorled pattern rather than opposite each other as in the Northern Catalpa.  The leaves of some Northern Catalpas may be lobed.  Catalpa ovata, Chinese Catalpa, is a small tree, with lobed leaves.  The creamy yellow flowers are also a bit smaller, and produced later in the summer.  They are hard to find.


The white flowers of the Northern and Southern Catalpa tree are large, frilly and orchid-like.  They are marked with purple dots and yellow patches, no two seemed to be marked quite alike.  When catalpa trees bloom in June or July, the sweet scent of the flowers can be almost over powering.   Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds flock to the flowers.  It’s quite a show for a week or two, and then all of the flowers are shed, making the ground under them look like a summer snowfall has occurred. The flowers turn into purple, then green, and then brown narrow pods, up to a foot long.  They may hang in the trees all winter. In the fall or following spring the pods release hundred of flat seeds.  If birds do not eat them they turn into more catalpa trees in every corner of the yard.

The catalpa tree is slow to leaf out in the spring, but when it does, it produces a deep shade. The leaves of catalpa are large, up to a foot long in some cases.  Usually they are medium green, slightly lighter and downy on the underside.   Purple and golden leaved varieties exist. 

Growing Catalpa

While catalpas seem to pop up everywhere when you have a tree in the yard, the seeds seem to be a little tricky to germinate.  If you cannot find a small catalpa tree to purchase and have access to seeds, sow them in an outside bed of well prepared soil in late fall or very early spring, cover lightly, and let nature do the work.  Catalpas transplant fairly easily when small.  Catalpas will grow almost anywhere, in any kind of soil, but they need full sun and fairly regular moisture.  They will not grow in poorly drained areas.    They grow quite rapidly when young.   A catalpa tree in a good spot may add 2 foot of growth a year and trees bloom young, as early as six years of age.

Catalpa trees do have some disadvantages in the home landscape however.  The trees are messy, shedding flowers, large leaves, and seed pods abundantly.  Some people are allergic to the pollen of catalpa flowers and the scent really bothers some sensitive people.  In the south catalpas are also host to large green and yellow caterpillars in great numbers, the larvae of the Catalpa Sphinx moth, the reason for one of catalpas folk names.  Many a southern fisherperson has planted Catawba trees just to get the bait worms.  But for other folk these caterpillars are a big disadvantage, raining down green droppings and defoliating the trees.  They can be controlled with insect sprays when they first hatch.  These worms have not been a problem in Michigan.

Catalpa trees often become infected with verticillium wilt, a fungal disease that causes large parts of the tree to die.  Catalpas tend to shoot up suckers from the roots, and side shoots from the trunk, and few ever totally die, but they look unsightly and need constant trimming of dead areas.  There is no real cure, but fertilizing with a high nitrogen fertilizer helps the tree keep growing.   If you remove the tree, don’t replace it with another catalpa tree in the same area as the disease remains in the soil.

If people in the household frequently suffer from seasonal allergies, a catalpa tree might not be a good landscape choice, as the flower pollen is quite allergenic.  The roots of catalpa are poisonous.  The sawdust from working with catalpa wood can cause inhalant and skin allergy symptoms.  For that reason it would probably not be good to use catalpa wood chips or shavings as animal bedding.  The seedpods and seeds of catalpa contain a mild narcotic and sedative and should not be put in the mouth or consumed.


Diatomaceous earth in the garden

Diatomaceous earth is another product that like Epsom salt has gained almost mythical status, a magical product that is at once completely harmless and yet miraculously effective against a wide range of garden and home pests.  There are also claims that diatomaceous earth can perform human and animal medical miracles.  While diatomaceous earth is not a miracle product, unlike Epsom salts it does have some good uses in the garden and home.  It’s important to understand what diatomaceous earth is, and what science has shown to be effective use of it before using it.

What diatomaceous earth is

Diatomaceous earth is soft rock formed from fossilized remains of small algae called diatoms.  It’s mined and ground into various sized particles.  Diatomaceous earth deposits occur in many places around the world and each site may produce diatomaceous earth with slightly different mineral contents but all diatomaceous earth is about 80% silica, which makes it a close cousin to sand.

In commerce diatomaceous earth (DE) is given various labels depending on its particle size and whether it’s from freshwater or saltwater diatoms and whether it’s been exposed to high heat and crystallized.  When you are using DE around the home and garden you should always choose food grade DE.  This is DE that has not been exposed to high heat.

How DE affects other living things

DE is classified as a pesticide.  That means it works to kill or repel insects and some other invertebrate animals, it has no effects on disease or weeds.  For vertebrate animals such as humans consuming small amounts of DE is harmless. (Consuming a lot of DE can cause bowel blockage.) The USDA lets stored grain be treated with DE and any residual passed into products made from that grain is considered totally safe.

However breathing in DE dust can affect the lungs of people and other animals exposed to it.  The type of DE that has been exposed to heat and crystallized is the most harmful, that type is often sold for pool filters and should never be used in the home or garden.  But there are some crystals in all DE and over time or after heavy exposure to DE lung damage can occur from any DE.  When using DE one should always wear a face mask.

How DE works as a pesticide

DE works to dehydrate soft bodied insects and other invertebrates.  It does this by absorbing the waxy coating insects have on their bodies that prevents water loss.  There is also some mechanical damage by the sharp corners of the DE particles. Breathing may be made harder for pests by being covered in DE dust.  Most soft bodied insects, slugs, worms and caterpillars are also repelled by DE- they avoid contact with it.

Many hard shelled insects such as beetles have a larval stage that is soft skinned and so DE may work to control those insects too.  Gardeners should remember that DE is non-selective, that is it kills or repels beneficial insects and invertebrates as well as pests.  Pollinators, including bees, are often repelled or killed by the use of DE.  Using DE on blooming plants often decreases pollination and may decrease crop yields.

DE is much less effective as an insect killer or repellant in humid, moist conditions. It does not dissolve or soften in water but water coating it makes it less able to absorb oils from pests and critters with plenty of access to moisture do not dehydrate quickly. It also blows away from treated areas easily. 

DE that is applied to plant foliage has been shown to decrease photosynthesis and can decrease plant vigor and growth.  That is especially true if the DE has been mixed with things to make it stick to the plant foliage.

What are effective uses for DE

In the garden the best use for DE may be as a barrier.  A two inch band of DE around plants will help keep away snails and slugs although any on the plants when the DE band is applied probably won’t be affected.  Research results have been mixed on the snail/slug repellant or killer actions of DE on these pests.  If conditions are very moist DE won’t be as effective.

A band of DE could be placed around plants at the base to deter cutworms.  Bands of DE can be placed around fruit tree trunks to deter some caterpillars that migrate from soil to tree.  Tree trunks have been coated with a band of sticky material which is then coated with DE to deter climbing insect pests.  These bands on soil or trunks must be re-applied frequently. DE works best in dry weather and in humid rainy conditions will be of little use.

DE can be used as a dust on non-blooming plants to control some caterpillars and other insects like aphids.  It probably shouldn’t be used on blooming plants because it may kill pollinators attracted to the plants and if pollinators are repelled by DE it will cause a loss of fruit or seeds if that is desired from those plants.  It has been proven that the DE dust can be carried back to hives and nests on insects where it will affect immature stages of insects.  Once again DE as a dust works best in dry conditions.

Home remedies often involve recipes that mix DE with other substances to make it stick better to plant foliage.  While this could make it a little more effective these mixtures often inhibit plant respiration and photosynthesis.  And they are also likely to increase the chances of beneficial insects being killed.

In the home DE has been found to be somewhat effective in helping- in conjunction with other pesticides- to control fleas, cockroaches and bedbugs.  The DE dust is added to cracks and crevices, under rugs and mattresses to help kill and repel these pests.  It flushes them from hiding because they are uncomfortable and need to find water and makes them easier to kill with other pesticides.  It may kill some larval stages.  It takes a long time to decrease a population of fleas, roaches or bedbugs with DE and using DE alone has not been found effective to totally eliminate a population.

Stored food products such as grains can be protected from insect pests with DE and as stated before this use is safe for human or animal consumption.  The reason that DE works well to control grain insects is that these products are stored in very dry conditions.  If you dry beans and grains you may want to mix in some DE.  You can also add DE to stored bird feed to help prevent grain moths and other pests.  Seeds saved for planting can also be treated with DE.

The best uses for DE are often when they are combined with other pesticides such as pyrethrums. Of course this makes them no longer organic or natural but these mixtures can be very effective, working with a one-two punch, dehydration making the uptake of pesticides more likely.  Some mixtures also contain attractants like molasses or cornmeal to get insects to consume the mixture, and this can work well with flying pests to control adults as well as the larval stages.

What DE doesn’t do

DE doesn’t control or cure plant diseases.  DE is not fertilizer and does not help plants grow.  In fact as stated above it may inhibit plant growth.  It doesn’t work well mixed in soil to prevent things like grubs, because soil is usually moist.  Therefore it does little to control Japanese beetles and rose chafers.

DE does not control ticks, despite many internet claims; research has proven it is not effective.  It does not control mosquitoes.  It does not control ants – ants have evolved in sandy locations- and deal with dryness well. If fly larvae come in contact with DE they may be killed but the idea of feeding DE to animals so that there will be DE in their manure and that would kill fly larvae has been proven to be at the most, only marginally effective.

DE will not deter snakes, rabbits or deer any more than sand would.  Spiders are unlikely to come in contact with it or be deterred.

Here is another use of DE that is widely circulated and believed but has been proven not to be effective.  DE fed to animals or humans does not kill intestinal parasites to any appreciable degree.  Most scientific studies found only a slight difference or no difference between DE treated animals and control animals in the amount of parasites they had.  And DE is not very effective for controlling lice and mites on poultry or livestock either, unless it’s mixed with other pesticides.  And there is no evidence and no logical reason that DE can do things like lower cholesterol, cure arthritis, prevent baldness and cure disease.

When you consider using any product in the home or garden it’s important to understand the difference between scientific proof and testimonials.  Testimonials are people’s stories of something they used that seemed to work for their particular problem.  Whether the applied product was what caused a cure or change or some other factor was involved is rarely considered. If you had a headache and ate some strawberries and it went away it could be that the strawberries cured the headache but then eating any food might have helped.  Any number of other things could also have played a part in your cure. To then claim strawberries cure headaches is a big stretch and an invalid assumption.

Testimonials are often fabricated by companies selling a product and they also spread widely on the internet, often by people who have no experience using the product, just passing along something they read. Testimonials appear in many garden magazines and on line sites that seem responsible but once again, the articles are just passing along personal experience or worse repeating what they have heard from someone else.  Over time an effective simple use for a product gets misunderstood, mistranslated, exaggerated and has assumptions made about it and suddenly it’s magic!

So that you can do some research on your own and to support my own writing/ reasoning here are some links to research on DE.







Garden Watering Tips for a dry summer

For some of you reading this worrying about watering may seem like a joke. I am sorry if you are flooded out; you have your own special problems. But many parts of Michigan are experiencing a drought this summer.  Unfortunately there is an old saying that drought brings drought.  As weather systems pass over dry land they lose strength and little rain falls.  Your garden and lawn may be suffering and need supplemental water.  Here’s a review of best watering practices for home gardens.

Flower gardens

Even plants that are said to be drought tolerant are starting to suffer after weeks of basically dry conditions and high heat.  If you are on sandy soil your garden is going to suffer if you don’t have regular irrigation.   Even clay based soils will become very dry after weeks of inadequate rainfall.

If you notice plants wilting, you should water them.  Initially plants may only wilt in the heat of the day and then recover in cooler times of the day.  But when you see wilting it’s time to water.  Water with a sprinkler or by hand but give the garden about an inch of water each time. If watering is difficult you may want to give 2 inches so it won’t have to be done as often. Use a rain gauge or mark an inch on a small flat can to check for how long to run sprinklers.

Watering with a hose can be deceptive.  You think you have given the plant a lot of water if you stand there for a few seconds but only the top thin layer of soil may have gotten wet.  Try counting to 60 slowly as you water a larger plant, shrub or tree.  It will seem a lot longer than you normally water.  Then check the soil.  Is it wet at least 2 inches down?  If not count again and repeat until you know how long it takes.  Deep watering will not have to be done as often.

Perennial plants need a good soaking at least once a week.  Plants that are in flower may need more to keep up a good bloom show. Perennials that prefer moist areas will need watering more than once a week and when temperatures get over 90 degrees may need watering every other day.

Annuals need watering more frequently as a rule than perennials as their root systems are small and they grow faster and are constantly blooming.  In temperatures above 90 degrees they may need daily watering.  Since their root systems don’t go deep, frequent shallow watering is the most helpful for them.

Hanging baskets and containers will probably need watering every day, twice a day may be necessary to keep them fresh and growing.  Check before watering of course, because even in the heat some containers can be over watered.  When it is very hot, sunny and windy you may want to pull containers and baskets into a shady area.

Vegetable gardens

If you want food crops to grow they need water.  Try to avoid letting plants wilt, each time a plant wilts and then recovers weakens it.  Corn leaves roll up instead of wilt when water deprived.  Water content affects the flavor and quality of many vegetables, without adequate water many vegetables get bitter or less sweet.  Nutritional value also decreases.

Water vegetable gardens regularly if it doesn’t rain.  Try to give at least an inch of water to gardens in clay soil, 2 inches for those in sandy soil.  Mulch may help hold water, but make sure when you water dry mulch that water is getting through that stuff to the soil.  In some cases you may want to actually reduce the depth of mulch on gardens so that water you give plants isn’t soaked up by the mulch.

Lawns

If water is rationed lawns are the last place you should use it.  Cool season turf grass that we grow here in Michigan can go brown and dormant and survive.  However after a month when less than 2 inches of rain have fallen, you should water the lawn deeply at least once to keep the grass alive.  If you are on sandy soil or have little topsoil for the grass roots you’ll want to water at least every other week.  Give lawns an inch of water when you do water.

If you want your lawn to stay green through the drought, daily watering may be needed when temperatures are above 90 degrees.  When you walk on the lawn and you can see your footprints 15 minutes later the lawn needs water if it is to remain green.   You may be able to water every other day in hot weather if your soil is good.

Trees and shrubs

Trees and shrubs are often overlooked when we water other landscape plants.  Newly planted trees and shrubs need to be watered if they wilt or at least once a week they need to be soaked.  But even mature trees and shrubs suffer in drought and high heat.  Trees may yellow, wilt or drop leaves but sometimes they suffer silently and the drought damage shows up when they fail to survive the winter or grow poorly the next year.

Water stress in woody plants often leads to higher than normal insect damage and feeding insects bring diseases.  One way to water mature trees and shrubs is to lay a hose somewhere under the tree canopy and let it run at a trickle for several hours.  You can also fill a 5 gallon or larger container with water, put a couple small holes near the bottom and let it slowly water the plant.

Other considerations when watering

As far as harming the plants it doesn’t hurt to water in the middle of the day if that’s when you can do it.  You will lose water to evaporation but the leaves of the plants will not burn.  Try to water early enough in the evening so that the plants dry before darkness.  When plant foliage stays wet a long time in hot weather it’s a perfect set up for fungal disease.

Areas near pavement, rocks and buildings or fences that reflect light and heat need special consideration in watering.  You may need to water these areas more frequently than you water other places.

No matter what kind of water we give plants, well water or city water, it doesn’t seem as if it’s as good for them as rain. That may not be scientific, but many gardeners feel the same way.  Try to save any rain water that falls with rain barrels and use it to water your plants.  If you only have small numbers of plants to water run water into a tub or bucket and allow it to warm up before watering plants.  Cold water may be part of the difference between hose water and rain.

Try to water plants at their base if you can.  Soaker hose and drip irrigation systems save you money and water.  Aim sprinklers so that they water plants and not driveways and paths. Don’t let sprinkling systems run longer than they are needed, if water runs off the area or stands in puddles you are using too much water.  Consider diverting gray water if it is allowed in your area to water non- food plants.  Gray water is laundry and sink water. 

Don’t forget to top off water features and ornamental ponds with fresh water often and keep the bird bath full.

Hopefully Michigan’s weather pattern will shift and normal rainfall will return.  Until then give your plants a drink.

Keep watering, rain dances appreciate. Have a good 4th of July celebration.

Kim Willis
 “He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing” ― Cicero


Events, classes and other offerings
Please let me know if there is any event or class that you would like to share with other gardeners.  These events are primarily in Michigan but if you are a reader from outside of Michigan and want to post an event I’ll be glad to do it.

Do you have plants or seeds you would like to swap or share?  Post them here by emailing me. You can also ask me to post garden related events. Kimwillis151@gmail.com

An interesting Plant Id page you can join on Facebook

Here’s a seed/plant sharing group you can join on Facebook

Invitation
If you are a gardener in Michigan close to Lapeer we invite you to join the Lapeer Area Horticultural Society. The club meets once a month, 6:30 pm, on the third Monday at various places for a short educational talk, snacks and socializing with fellow gardeners. No educational or volunteer requirements for membership, all are welcome. Membership dues are $20 per year. Come and visit us, sit in on a meeting for free. Contact susanmklaffer@yahoo.com  Phone 810-664-8912

For Sale:  After the 4th of July I will have baby parakeets for sale, hatched this spring $15 each.  They are not hand fed.  Beautiful colors, lutino, (yellow) and shades of pale green, olive green, and sea green.  Some I can sex now, others are a guess.  You’ll need to bring your own cage.  Parakeets are active birds that are a lot of fun to watch.  Call after the 4th at 989-761-7609.

Also for sale after the 4th Muscovy ducklings, black laced, about a month old, fine to be without mom but you must buy at least 2.  Two for $20, each additional $8.  Can’t be sexed yet.  Call the number above after the 4th .  Muscovy are flying ducks, large sized and make good meat ducks.  They do not quack- and are very quiet.

2016 MKPC Pond & Water Garden Tour-Sat, July 16, 10am-5pm, The Village Workshop, 455 E Cady St, Northville, MI.

The Michigan Koi and Pond Club tour starts at The Village Workshop. Tour at your own pace. Rain or shine.  More info:  www.mkpc-se.com.

Master Gardeners of St Clair County Annual Garden Tour- Sat, July 16, 10am-4pm, Marysville, MI.
         
This tour sponsored by Master Gardeners of St Clair County takes place at 9 diverse gardens. Cost is $15. For more info: gina92pj@comcast.net.  Or 586-727-2563.

42nd Annual Troy Garden Walk: Poetic Gardens- Wed, July 13, 9:30am-3pm and  5pm-8:30pm, Troy Historic Village, 60 W Wattles Rd, Troy, MI.

Tour 7 private gardens and the Troy Historic Village for only $10. More Info: www.TroyGardenClubMI.com,  248-952-5938

Native Plants & Beneficial Insects, Tue, July 19, 6:30-8:30pm, MSU Tollgate Education Conference Center, 28115 Meadowbrook Rd, Novi, MI

Pollinator Preservation Strategies for the Home Garden: Native Plants and Their Unique Relationships with Beneficial Insects

Want to help out our native pollinators and other beneficial insects? Through plant selection, garden design and maintenance protocols, we can provide a haven not only for our beautiful butterflies and moths but also other critical beneficial species, from bees to beetles. Cheryl English, speaker, is an Advanced Master Gardener of Wayne County, Michigan; a Master Composter of Macomb County; the owner/operator of Black Cat Pottery/The English Landscape, a contributing writer to Michigan Gardener Magazine; a board member of the Wildflower Association of Michigan; she’s on the planning committee of the Detroit Garden Center; and is President Emeritus of the Master Gardeners of Greater Detroit. Cost is $25. More info: http://tollgate.msu.edu/events.

New- MSU Garden Day Sat, August 6, 8am-4:15 pm, MSU Horticulture Gardens, 1066 Bogue St, East Lansing, MI
At this conference you will be able to select your favorite garden-themed workshops and enjoy two keynote presentations by David Culp. Pre- registration is $86 until 7/25 Go to http://www.hrt.msu.edu. To see the class selections and register.


Here’s a facebook page link for gardeners in the Lapeer area.  This link has a lot of events listed on it.

Here’s a link to all the nature programs being offered at Seven Ponds Nature center in Dryden, Michigan. http://www.sevenponds.org/

Here’s a link to classes being offered at Campbell’s Greenhouse, 4077 Burnside Road, North Branch. 

Here’s a link to classes and events at Nichols Arboretum, Ann Arbor

Here’s a link to programs being offered at English Gardens, several locations in Michigan.

Here’s a link to classes at Telly’s Greenhouse in Troy and Shelby Twsp. MI, and now combined with Goldner Walsh in Pontiac MI.

Here’s a link to classes and events at Bordines, Rochester Hills, Grand Blanc, Clarkston and Brighton locations

Here’s a link to events at the Leslie Science and Nature Center, 1831 Traver Road Ann Arbor, Michigan  | Phone 734-997-1553 |
http://www.lesliesnc.org/

Here’s a link to events at Hidden Lake Gardens, 6214 Monroe Rd, Tipton, MI

Here’s a link to events and classes at Fredrick Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids Mi
http://www.meijergardens.org/learn/ (888) 957-1580, (616) 957-1580


Newsletter information
If you would like to pass along a notice about an educational event or a volunteer opportunity please send me an email before Tuesday of each week and I will print it. Also if you have a comment or opinion you’d like to share, send it to me. Please state that you want to have the item published in my weekly notes. You must give your full name and what you say must be polite and not attack any individual. I am very open to ideas and opinions that don’t match mine but I do reserve the right to publish what I want.
I write this because I love to share with other gardeners some of the things I come across in my research each week. It keeps me engaged with local people and horticulture. It’s a hobby, basically. I hope you enjoy it. If at any time you don’t wish to receive these emails just let me know. If you know anyone who would like to receive these emails have them send their email address to me.  KimWillis151@gmail.com


Tuesday, June 21, 2016

June 21, 2016, Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter

June 21, 2016, Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter    © Kim Willis


Hi Gardeners

Evening Primrose
Summer is here, it’s a fact now.  Last night we had the rare conjunction of a full moon and the summer solstice.  I hope you went outside and danced in the moonlight to keep the magic of summer alive.  If not better get out there tonight.

I celebrated solstice by changing my solar lights from multi-colored to purple.  I have several strands of these “fairy” lights which run on solar power and I love them.  I didn’t take my multicolored strands down, which I admit are kind of Christmassy looking, I just turned them off and added the lavender lights right in the same spot.  They will be my summer lights.

Last week we were lucky to have a good, soaking all day rain on Thursday and here at my house we ended up with 2.25 inches of rain through Wednesday and Thursday. I know many people weren’t so lucky.  I got to skip watering for a few days; I even had to dump water out of some pots.  But I was back to watering last night.  Hopefully we will get some more rain tomorrow night, maybe some showers later today.  It has been a dry June.

My evening primrose are blooming, the elderberries are in bloom, I have a little plant called nigella starting to bloom and some Asiatic lilies and day lilies are opening.  The clematis’s are going strong. There are a few blooms on one of the buddleia. Cannas are in bloom. Full garden color is just a wee bit ahead, but it will happen soon.  I consider it full color when the daylilies, other lilies, beebalm, hydrangeas, dahlias and phlox join the annuals in bloom.

The mulberries are ripening.  I don’t use them for anything but attracting birds, which they do in great number.  Flocks of cedar waxwings show up in the evening. Robins and orioles feast on the mulberries.  It makes a mess but its good bird watching.  I am still getting some strawberries and we are getting a few small tomatoes too.

Rose Chafer beetles are heavy around here this year.  There’s an article below about these buggers. 

Will we have more Monarch butterflies this year?  I haven’t seen any Monarch butterflies this year, although I have seen plenty of other species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service is considering listing the Monarch as an endangered species this year.  But there may be good news.

Studies done by our own MSU biologists suggest that when the weather in Texas in the spring is cooler and wetter than average more butterflies will make the journey north.  That’s probably because that type of weather promotes more milkweed and flowers, things that first generation of Monarchs need to reproduce and send more second generation butterflies flying north.  I know it’s been much wetter in Texas this spring- don’t know how the temperatures stand – so maybe we will see Monarchs this year.

Petunia exserta and the mistake I may have made

Petunias are the most popular annual flower grown in the U.S. I admit I have a fondness for them.  Even though I don’t have many sunny places to put them I always see some pretty new variety I have to have each spring.  It turns out that petunias are also a favorite of scientists studying plants; they are used for a wide variety of research projects involving plants. 

Petunia exserta last year and this year.
Scientists recently finished sequencing the genetic code of petunias and the results were just published in the journal Nature Plants.  Our domestic, common garden petunias (Petunia hybrida) are a cross of two wild species, a small, purple flowered one called Petunia inflata and one with a larger white fragrant flower called Petunia axillaris.  During domestication and years of breeding for all the colors and types of petunias we have today, more of the genes of the white flowered petunia remain.  Yet petunias are able to move genetic material around rather easily (something that makes them a favorite of researchers) and the 20 or so percentage of modern petunias genes that come from its purple ancestor are able to modify it in an astonishing variety of ways.

There are actually 34 species of petunias and they originate in South America.  Petunias are related to tobacco, tomatoes, peppers and other members of the Solanaceae family.  Calibrachoa (Million Bells) are also related to petunias, although there is a debate as to whether they deserve their own genus, and some species of petunias can cross with them.   However many species of petunias are incompatible with calibrachoa.

Last year I purchased a rare petunia species called Petunia exserta from Select Seeds. This petunia may now be extinct in its native habitat of southern Brazil. It was only discovered and named in the 1980’s. In 2007 only 14 plants remained in the wild. It is the only native species of petunia to have red flowers and the only one which is pollinated by hummingbirds. Petunia exserta has narrow tubular shaped red flowers with a star shaped flare at the top. The yellow stamens and pistil are modified to be pollinated by hummingbirds.  Research has determined that the red color in Petunia exserta comes from different anthocyanins (pigment producers) than the red that’s found in common petunias.

I had one Petunia exserta plant last year which I planted in a pot with another hummingbird attractor, Bouvardia.  Hummingbirds were attracted to it and in the fall I collected seeds from the plant.

The seeds germinated well and this year I have a number of plants.  However in looking at them as they begin to flower I am wondering if I allowed a hybrid to be created.  The nearest domestic petunias I had planted in the yard were about 50 feet away but that isn’t far at all for a hummingbird. I didn’t notice if hummingbirds were attracted to those common petunias, although some of them were red.  I have included a picture here.  In the picture labeled 2016 you will notice the flowers in the center and bottom seem to be broader than the flower in the 2015 picture, with a different shape to the petal margins. 

It’s hard to see in the picture but the reproductive parts in the 2016 plants seem to be the same as the Petunia exserta species, which are large and stick out of the flower. In common petunias the reproductive parts are smaller and down in the funnel of the flower farther. (Exserta is Latin for thrust out.) However after reading up on the Petunia exserta I found that it hybridizes readily with other petunias.  I think I made a mistake by growing the rare specimen I had anywhere close to common garden petunias.  It seems that growers who produce the plants don’t grow other petunias. I was unaware of its ability to easily cross with other petunias and I apologize to anyone who got a plant donated from me at a plant swap; you may have not gotten a pure Petunia exserta. But you did get something pretty and unusual.

A bit of a puzzle is that I don’t think hummingbirds frequent the common garden petunias that often.  I am going to observe more carefully because I have a lot of hummingbirds on the property.  Bees, butterflies and moths normally pollinate common petunias.  Many have scents that attract insects, but Petunia exserta is not scented. But maybe those insects visit Petunia exserta just enough to do the job.

Petunia exserta is a charming plant.  It blooms prolifically all summer and tolerates more shade than other petunias. It’s a vining, trailing type that will weave itself among other plants.  It was easy to grow from seed.  And of course, hummingbirds like it.  I have several pots of them this summer but I also have several different common petunias planted here and there in the yard.  If I want to save seeds this fall I may be able to see what kinds of interesting hybrids I encouraged this year.  But I’ll need to decide if I want to start over next spring with a new purebred Petunia exserta and pledge to ban all other petunias from the garden first.

Book review- Lab Girl- by Hope Jahren-released April, 2016

Hope Jahren was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people, and she has received many scientific awards.  This is the true memoir of her life, from her Minnesota childhood as the daughter of a dedicated scientist to her life as a respected researcher, now living and working in Hawaii.  Ms Jahren studies botany and earth sciences. Her writing is humorous, fascinating and poignant.  The book will satisfy those who like reading about plants, how our science is conducted today, women who overcome odds and fascinating relationships between people.

The book is a blend of fascinating botanical tidbits scattered through the author’s tales of finding funding to carry on her experimental work, her odd expeditions and experiments, her work as a college professor, and fighting her personal demon of a manic-depressive disorder.

It’s also a story about Bill, her long time lab partner and their odd fraternal relationship.  Bill, like Hope, has some personality disorders that make it hard for him to fit in.  While Hope marries and has a child and a somewhat normal life Bill floats in a world of his own, a man who seems to live for science, yet is unable to connect with most people.  Hope protects him and provides his income as they move from place to place, he’s her faithful sidekick and you’ll feel a little sad for him.  In the jargon of botany, they have a symbiotic arrangement.

I strongly recommend this book as a good summer read.  Learn about people as well as plants from this story.  It’s beautifully written and won’t disappoint.

How to grow elderberries for fruit and foliage

Elderberries are used for food, herbal remedies and as an ornamental plant. Folklore is filled with references to elders, depending on the culture and the century they were either the witch’s friend or her mortal enemy. There are native species of elderberries in Europe, North America and Asia.

Wild elderberry
There is a lot of confusion about the classification of elderberries.  While the European elder is classified as Sambuccus nigra, North American black elderberries are said to be a sub-species by some botanists Sambuccus nigra ( S. nigra ssp Canadensis); and by others as a separate species Sambuccus canadensis

While the leaves, flowers and berries are very similar the plants have different growth characteristics. American elders are more bush-like than European elders and sucker readily.  European elders look more like a small tree and rarely sucker.  There is a lot of variation even in North American wild plants however, as you can see by driving around the countryside and observing roadside elderberries.

Black elderberries, as the two species above are informally called, are the elderberries that we eat and make into herbal remedies.  Other species of elderberry exist and some of those have been turned into the many forms of ornamental elderberries that are available for the garden.

Elderberries have compound leaves with 5-7 leaflets with serrated edges.  In North America native elderberries are a multi-stemmed bush that can get to 20 feet in height.  The plants leaf out very early in the spring.  In June they are covered with flat lacy umbels of white flowers with a lemony scent and are loved by bees and butterflies.  The flowers turn into blue-black berries, also loved by birds.

Berries, flowers, leaves and roots are all used for herbal remedies but it is the berries that probably get the most use.  The plants are part of traditional medicines for both Europeans and Native Americans. In Europe berries and flowers are turned into wine, and jellies and pies are made from the berries.  It is important to know that raw elderberries are poisonous.  Chemicals in them are converted to cyanide in the human body and can make someone very ill or even cause death.  Cooked well however, they are safe to eat and delicious as well as very nutritious. Elderberry flowers are sometimes dipped in batter and fried.

Recently elderberries have been extensively studied as alternative medicinal plants and a lot of data is supporting claims of medicinal value.  Of course we are all aware now of the value of anthocyanins, those pigments in plants which have antioxidant qualities and support healthy immune systems as well as eliminating free radicals that cause cell death.  Elderberries are also sources of vitamins A and C and a good source of calcium, iron and vitamin B6. They also contain sterols, tannins, and essential oils.

Elderberry plant parts have stimulatory effects on the respiratory and circulatory system, diuretic properties and when used topically have anti-inflammatory actions.  They are used in digestive complaints for both diarrhea and constipation.  Currently they are being sold as a remedy for the symptoms of colds and flu.  (They do not cure colds or flu, they make you more comfortable).  Elderberry extract, teas, or lozenges are used to ease sinus congestion, sore throat and other cold and flu symptoms and the medical community supports this use.

Research is ongoing to see if chemicals derived from elderberries can lower cholesterol and inhibit tumor formation as well as help in several other medical conditions. 

If you want to grow elderberries for the berries several cultivars have been developed that have superior fruit production.  You can find them in many garden catalogs.  ‘York’, ‘Adams’, ‘Kent’, ‘Johns’ and ‘Nova’ are some varieties.  Like many fruits elderberries will produce much better if two different varieties are planted fairly close together for proper pollination.

Ornamental elderberry flower
Elderberries are being developed for beautiful ornamental plants both by selection and by crossing several species of elderberries.  When sold for ornamental use they are usually referred to as Sambuccus.  The varieties ‘Black Beauty’ and ‘Black Lace’ have delicate divided leaves of a dark maroon black as well as pink flowers.  They are often used as a substitute for Japanese Maple as they are hardier and will grow well in the sun.  There is a variegated green and white leaved Sambuccus known as  ‘Pulverulenta' but it’s often just sold as ‘variegated’.

‘Madonna’ and Aureomarginata' are Sambuccus with golden variegation of the leaves. 'Maxima' has very large flower heads of white with rosy-purple stalks that remain after the flowers drop. ‘Goldbeere’ has light green foliage and golden berries.   Selections of Red-berried elder, Sambucus racemosa, have produced the beautiful golden foliaged plants  'Sutherland Gold' and ‘Golden Locks’ which have red berries.

Sambucus caerulea- blue elder- has white flowers and powder blue berries and is hardy to zone 5.  There are some dwarf varieties on the market 'Tenuifolia' is one with fine fern-like leaves and a mounding habit.  It is important to remember that while some ornamental Sambuccus have edible fruit (if cooked) some do not.  Most varieties which have black fruit are edible, ‘Goldbeere’ fruit is said to be edible also, but pay attention to the description of the plant which should state whether the fruit is edible. 

Elderberry Care

Elderberries will grow in a sunny location in almost any soil, although they prefer a rich soil with a slightly acidic pH.   They will also do well in part shade or dappled shade.  While they need good moisture, especially in the first year of establishment, elderberries do not thrive in poorly drained areas.   They have shallow roots and you need to be careful weeding and working around them not to destroy roots.   The plants need some selective pruning to remove the oldest wood and keep the shape and size of the plant in bounds. They have few pests or diseases. Fertilizing with some 10-10-10 formula fertilizer each spring as they green up, about ½ pound to a mature plant, will increase plant vigor and berry production.
Even “wild” elderberries are attractive if you have room for a large bush and are very good at drawing bees, butterflies and birds to your property.  Elderberries are easy to start from hardwood cuttings so you may want to take a winter walk before they break dormancy and collect some cuttings to start your own elderberry patch.  

Planting and Care of Roses

Roses are one of the first flowers many gardeners want to plant.  Garden roses are very diverse, from modern landscape roses that require minimal care to hybrid teas which require considerable maintenance.  There are roses, however, that are suitable for every sort of garden and gardener.  This article is a brief summary of rose planting and care.

Even if your space is limited you can grow roses in pots or even in the house.  Every gardener needs a rose or two around.  While your selection of roses may be limited locally garden catalogs and on line stores will vastly increase your choices.

Rose types

Hybrid teas are the roses commonly sees in the florist shop.  They are generally grafted on to a hardy rose rootstock.  They will require spraying, fertilizing and deadheading at regular intervals to look good.  Hybrid teas come in a wide range of colors and sizes.  Some are fragrant.  They generally bloom for most of the summer.

Grandifloras and floribunda roses have smaller blooms than tea roses, usually born in clusters. The plants are more shrub-like.  They can be grown on their own roots or grafted.  They range from very hardy to not so hardy.  They require slightly less care than tea roses, bloom for much of the summer, and some are fragrant.

Shrub roses/ antique roses are generally a term for larger, older roses that bloom once, usually in early summer.  The flowers are generally small.  There are some new varieties too, based on older roses, and these too vary in hardiness.   Some are very easy to care for, with great disease resistance, but others require more care.  Read up on varieties and check zone hardiness before purchasing them.

Landscape roses generally refer to the new, disease resistant, hardy roses. They are generally shrub or ground cover like in growth habit.  They are generally easy to care for, bloom all summer and are great for beginning gardeners.  The flowers are usually small and most are not fragrant.  They come in a wide range of colors and sizes.  While they are disease resistant they sometimes do get rose diseases and they are just as prone to insects like rose chafer beetles and Japanese beetles as other roses.

Climbing roses vary in hardiness and care requirements. They of course prefer life on a trellis. Miniature roses are small replicas of all the other varieties and can be grown in containers or indoors.  They are often surprisingly hardy in the garden too. 

Choosing roses

Make sure the roses you want to buy are hardy for your planting zone if you are putting them outside in the garden.  Check the size listed too, to make sure it will suit your needs.  Some roses will get quite large, especially landscape types.   Then you can chose based on color, form, and scent to suit your pleasure.  Not all roses are fragrant and there are different scents attributed to roses, such as old rose, lemony, musky and so on.

Roses are sold as bare root stock in a dormant condition or as potted plants.  Most roses sold from catalogs are bare root plants.  You can get hundreds of varieties this way. Potted roses are generally sold in local stores and the selection will be more limited.

Bare root roses should be planted in early spring.  Buy them as soon as the stores put them out and keep them in a cool, dark spot until ready to plant.  Have catalog purchased roses shipped to arrive about a month from your predicted last frost. Bare root rose canes (stems) should look green and firm, not black and shriveled. Some places wax the canes and you may notice a white wax on them.  This is harmless and not a pesticide. It just helps prevent moisture loss from the canes.
 
A shrub rose that came back from the roots
of a grafted rose.
You do not want roses to begin growing in storage as bare root plants. If sprouts begin, rub them off with your fingers.  If they grow before the plant has roots in the ground in it will weaken the plant and decrease its chance for survival.  The rose will quickly replace the sprouts after planting.  Don’t choose the packaged rose in the big name store with long, spindly green shoots.

Potted roses can be bought at any time of the year.  If they have leaves and blooms be careful putting them outside if the weather is still going below freezing at night.  You may want to protect them each night, and remove covers in the morning.  Keep them well watered during establishment.

Even the small potted miniature roses given as gifts may be planted outside when the weather warms, either in the ground or in bigger pots.  Many are quite hardy.  If any roses are put in pots the pots should be sunk into the ground or otherwise protected for winter.  They can be stored inside in a dimly lit cool place just above freezing too.

Rose requirements

Roses should be planted in full sun. In the deep south some varieties may prefer partial shade but most roses do better in full sun.  Some varieties claim they do all right in partial shade even in the north but take these claims with a grain of salt. Generally roses are healthier and bloom best in full sun.

When the danger of a hard freeze is past, dormant roses can be planted outside. Light frost will not hurt them if they do not have leaves.  Remove all the packing material and soak the roots for an hour or two before planting.  If the rose is in a pot, remove any type of pot including paper or peat.  Leave the soil on the roots of potted roses as much as possible. Make sure to remove all strings and ties.  You can put tags on a separate stake near the rose.

Loosen the soil up to about eighteen inches deep when planting roses.  Roses prefer slightly acidic, fertile soil that drains well.  They will however, adapt fairly well to other conditions.  You can work some organic matter into the soil before digging a hole.  Do not add anything to the hole you dig for the rose, including fertilizer and never add Epsom salt. 

Roses that are grafted will have a swelling on the stem where the graft took place.   In areas where the winter temperatures are regularly below freezing the graft union should be planted two inches below ground.   In warm zones the graft union should be at ground level.

Non-grafted roses should be planted at the same level they were planted before in the pot or nursery.  On bare root plants this will often show as a darker ring on the main stems.   Refill holes with the soil that was taken out of them and water well.   You can add some slow release fertilizer to the soil around the rose or use a liquid fertilizer after planting.

Spacing for roses depends on what type of rose you are planting and what zone you are in.  In warmer zones roses will get larger and should be planted farther apart.  Thirty inches apart for tea roses and smaller floribunda’s is average.  Shrub and landscape roses should be planted about half their expected adult width from each other.

Care of roses

Keep roses watered if it is dry.  Try to water them at the base of the plant and not get the foliage wet to help prevent disease.  Mulching roses is a good way to maintain even soil moisture.  You can get roses too wet too.  This is something to watch when roses are potted.  Let roses in the ground go a few days between watering unless it is very hot, dry and windy.  Make sure pots drain well, they may need to be watered daily but check first to see if the soil is dry. 

Roses that bloom only once should be fertilized in early spring as growth starts.  Roses that bloom all summer should be fertilized in early spring, when bloom starts and then about every six weeks.  Stop fertilizing a month before your first frost is expected. Use a fertilizer labeled for roses or blooming plants.

The newer roses are more disease resistant and won’t require spraying.  Tea roses and some others, however, almost always need a preventative spray program to prevent fungal disease.  Roses may also need to be sprayed for insects.  Follow the directions on the pesticide label for mixing and times to apply.  Accept that if you want nice tea type roses you will need to do some spraying of pesticides.  Organic controls rarely do much good.  If you are a strictly organic gardener your best bet is landscape type roses.  Some shrub/older type roses will get their blooming done before insects and disease does much damage.

Insect pests that are troublesome include rose chafers and Japanese beetles.  These can be hand- picked but sometimes the population is so high the roses will be damaged anyway.  These bugs usually have a period of high populations and then subside and the rose foliage and flowers will recover.  Even pesticides won’t prevent all damage since the bugs may feed before dying.  But they do limit damage.

Tea roses and older floribunda roses may need to have dead flowers removed if you want them to continue blooming.  Newer landscape roses don’t require this.  You can leave some flowers to produce rose hips later in the season for the birds and for winter interest.

You can prune roses at any time in the growing season to shape them or keep them a manageable size but stop all pruning a month before the first hard freeze is predicted.  In Michigan that would be September in most areas.  This allows rose canes, (stems) to harden off naturally and they will be less susceptible to freeze damage.  Pruning encourages new growth that may go into winter before it is sufficiently hardy.

If you prune the roses back a lot you may lose blooms for a while.  Roses that bloom only once in early summer can be pruned back a lot right after bloom and will bloom fine the following year.  But don’t prune them back heavily in late summer or fall for best bloom the following spring.

Wait until growth has started in the spring before pruning your roses and the chance of a hard freeze is unlikely.  The dead branch ends that occur in winter protect the living tissue farther down the stem. If you prune too early and more cold develops the rose may die back farther than it would have if left unpruned until late spring.  When it’s obvious which parts of the stem are alive because you spot leaves or swelling green or red buds and the weather has settled, you can trim off any winter killed branches.
Knock out rose
 lzSometimes a rose will die all the way back to the roots after a hard winter. If the rose is a grafted one the rose may put out growth from its roots but that growth will not have flowers like the original grafted portion did.  Sometimes the flowers are pretty, but they are often one shot spring bloomers with small flowers.  You may want to replace them.  If a rose isn’t grafted, it’s sold as “grown on its own roots”. These roses will often come back and bloom as expected if they are killed to the ground.

Grafted roses will generally need some winter protection.  You can use special rose cones or make a wire cage around the rose and fill it with straw or chopped leaves.  Some gardeners also mound soil up over the base of the rose to about a foot deep.  Don’t take the soil from around the rose roots to do this.  Bring in additional soil. 

If you have trouble with landscape or other own root type roses dying back to the ground every year you may want to protect them too. This gets them off to a faster start and bloom in spring. You can trim the plants back a bit so they fit in winter protection but leave most rose pruning for spring, see pruning above.
After you get your roses growing and blooming don’t forget to stop and smell them!

For information about the herbal uses of the rose and recipes I suggest you read this article.


Rose chafer beetles don’t just munch roses

It’s June and in Southeast Michigan that means it’s time for the rose chafer beetle invasion.  If you live on sandy soil your garden may be particularly hard hit.  The name rose chafer is misleading.  While they are very attracted to rose flowers, they’ll eat the leaves and flowers on many kinds of plants.

Rose chafer beetles are tan, sometimes with a greenish cast, with reddish orange legs and short antennae.  They are about a 1/2 inch long when mature and are strong fliers.  In June they emerge from the soil where they have been pupating and begin feeding on everything in sight.  Plants are sometimes covered with the beetles.

Damage to plants is mainly cosmetic; the plants do recover when the beetles stop feeding and die, near the end of June.  But the loss of flowers and the sight of leaves with only the veins remaining make many gardeners ready to fight.  In June lots of chewed up leaves and flowers may mean a rose chafer invasion is taking place.

For those who grow grapes, rose chafers mean more than cosmetic damage.  Grapes are generally blooming at the time the rose chafer emerges and the hungry beetles love to eat grape flowers and buds, which means the loss of the grape crop.  If you want grapes you may have to use pesticides.

The life cycle of the rose chafer begins when adult beetles lay eggs in sandy soil in June.  Tiny grubs soon hatch and burrow deeper into the soil.  Unlike the European chafer beetle grub the rose chafer grub does not damage turf grass roots.  It grows all summer, and then goes deep into the soil to rest for winter.  In the spring grubs move toward the surface, eat for a short time then turn into pupae for a couple of weeks, before emerging from the soil in June to start the cycle over.

Since female rose chafer beetles prefer to lay eggs in sandy soil, higher numbers of the beetles are found in gardens planted on sandy soil.  But the beetles can fly quite a distance to feed.

To control rose chafers gardeners can hand pick the beetles, dropping them into a container of soapy water.  Shaking a plant lightly will often dislodge dozens of the beetles.  On sturdy plants a hand vacuum can be used with the dirt cup full of beetles emptied into soapy water.  

Common garden insecticides such as Sevin and malathion will kill the beetles.  But insecticides will need to be re-applied after each heavy rain and every 10-14 days.  Systemic insecticides, like those found in rose care products, will work but the beetle has to take a bite of the plant before it is poisoned, so some damage continues to occur. 

Whenever using a pesticide, read and follow the label directions for mixing and applying the product exactly.  Make sure the plants you want to protect and the insects you want to kill are listed on the label.  Different insects or different plants can have different application and mixing instructions.

Plants could be covered with row cover material while the beetles are heavy.  It must be securely anchored to the ground so beetles don’t crawl under it.  Grapes though, need to have visits from pollinators to make fruit so a row cover won’t work.  Pesticides may also kill some pollinators but are the best option for grapes if beetle numbers are high.

Some early studies by the USDA have found that spraying the kaolin clay based product called Surround® on grape vines helped repel rose chafer beetles.   That product could also be sprayed on trees and shrubs being eaten by rose chafers but be aware that it gives sprayed plants a whitewashed appearance.

There is a lure scent that has been developed for rose chafers that can be used in Japanese beetle traps.  If you use a product like this put it far away from the plants you want to protect.  Otherwise it will draw more rose chafers to the area which may feed on plants before entering the trap.

One thing you do not want to do is to encourage your chickens or other birds to eat the beetles.  Rose chafer beetles contain a toxin that can sicken or kill birds and small animals. That’s why they are so abundant and damaging; they are not eaten by other wild things.

The good news is that the invasion is short lived.  By the end of June/ early July in most areas of Michigan the adult rose chafer beetles are gone, leaving behind eggs for next year’s beetle crop.

Instructions to Gardeners for Summer

On a summer morning when the light is still soft and the dew glitters on your flowers, go outside with your camera to capture some summer memories. Pick a bouquet to bring inside while the flowers are fresh and perky. Perhaps a handful of blackberries or a juicy peach can serve as breakfast.

In the heat of the noon sun watch the bees busy with the anise hyssop and comfrey then find a cool spot to sip your tea, add a sprig of lemon balm for flavor.   Mid-summer days are meant to be slow and languid.  All too soon these days will pass; take time to savor a few.

In the shade of a tree, spend the afternoon reading a book you have longed to read for some time.  Take time to look up into the tree and wonder at the marvel of it.  Think of the thousands of gallons of water it is pumping from the ground up to the very top leaf.  Each leaf is a little green factory, laboring and sweating in the summer sun to produce food for the community of tree.  Its labor cools you beneath it as it releases its sweat upon the air.

Later in the day the pungent, clean scent of lavender and the strong, sweet smell of lilies drift on the heavy summer air. Make sure you dry a few sprigs of lavender to tuck among your stored sheets and other linens to keep the smell of summer lingering long into winter.

Pluck some golden and orange calendula or nasturtium flowers, some tender greens and slip some sun warmed tomatoes from the stalk.  Search until you find a tiny cucumber hidden in the vines.   Go to the house and make a salad that welcomes the tongue.  Chill it while you cook a bit of chicken with fresh rosemary and lemon thyme sprinkled on it. Get some water boiling and go back to the garden for a few ears of plump, sweet corn.  Then slip the ears into their bath for a few minutes, remove and drench with butter.  Add a dish of vanilla ice cream layered with blackberries and dinner is done. 

Just before the light is gone in the evening take a walk in your garden. If you have had the foresight to plant some woodland nicotiana, with its stately towers of fragrant white trumpets, you can watch the antics of the hawk moth. Like a burly hummingbird instead of a hawk, it hovers among the blossoms sipping nectar. If you have no moths to watch perhaps the swallows will entertain you as they dip and swoop over your head collecting mosquitoes.

The late night air is filled with the songs of crickets and the shrill of cicadas. A nighthawk adds its distinctive grating call as it swoops in the dark sky hunting moths. The glow of lightning bugs mimics the flashes of heat lightning on the horizon. Take time to sit on a porch after dark on a sultry night and enjoy the concert.

 Go on - dance in the moonlight

Kim Willis
 “He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing” ― Cicero


Events, classes and other offerings
Please let me know if there is any event or class that you would like to share with other gardeners.  These events are primarily in Michigan but if you are a reader from outside of Michigan and want to post an event I’ll be glad to do it.

Do you have plants or seeds you would like to swap or share?  Post them here by emailing me. You can also ask me to post garden related events. Kimwillis151@gmail.com

An interesting Plant Id page you can join on Facebook

Here’s a seed/plant sharing group you can join on Facebook

Invitation
If you are a gardener in Michigan close to Lapeer we invite you to join the Lapeer Area Horticultural Society. The club meets once a month, 6:30 pm, on the third Monday at various places for a short educational talk, snacks and socializing with fellow gardeners. No educational or volunteer requirements for membership, all are welcome. Membership dues are $20 per year. Come and visit us, sit in on a meeting for free. Contact susanmklaffer@yahoo.com  Phone 810-664-8912

New- 2016 MKPC Pond & Water Garden Tour-Sat, July 16, 10am-5pm, The Village Workshop, 455 E Cady St, Northville, MI.

The Michigan Koi and Pond Club tour starts at The Village Workshop. Tour at your own pace. Rain or shine.  More info:  www.mkpc-se.com.

New- Master Gardeners of St Clair County Annual Garden Tour- Sat, July 16, 10am-4pm, Marysville, MI.
         
This tour sponsored by Master Gardeners of St Clair County takes place at 9 diverse gardens. Cost is $15. For more info: gina92pj@comcast.net.  Or 586-727-2563.

New- 42nd Annual Troy Garden Walk: Poetic Gardens- Wed, July 13, 9:30am-3pm and  5pm-8:30pm, Troy Historic Village, 60 W Wattles Rd, Troy, MI.

Tour 7 private gardens and the Troy Historic Village for only $10. More Info: www.TroyGardenClubMI.com,  248-952-5938.

New- Native Plants & Beneficial Insects, Tue, July 19, 6:30-8:30pm, MSU Tollgate Education Conference Center, 28115 Meadowbrook Rd, Novi, MI

Pollinator Preservation Strategies for the Home Garden: Native Plants and Their Unique Relationships with Beneficial Insects

Want to help out our native pollinators and other beneficial insects? Through plant selection, garden design and maintenance protocols, we can provide a haven not only for our beautiful butterflies and moths but also other critical beneficial species, from bees to beetles. Cheryl English, speaker, is an Advanced Master Gardener of Wayne County, Michigan; a Master Composter of Macomb County; the owner/operator of Black Cat Pottery/The English Landscape, a contributing writer to Michigan Gardener Magazine; a board member of the Wildflower Association of Michigan; she’s on the planning committee of the Detroit Garden Center; and is President Emeritus of the Master Gardeners of Greater Detroit. Cost is $25. More info: http://tollgate.msu.edu/events.

25th Annual Grosse Pointe Garden Tour Fri, June 24th, and Sat. 25th  10am-4pm, Grosse Pointe Area.
The Grosse Pointe Garden Center, Inc.  is sponsoring tour of 8 beautiful private gardens, cost $20. Enjoy a garden shoppe. Tickets: 313-881-7511, ext. 206.

Genesee County Garden Tour 2016, Sun, June 26, 10am-5pm,
Master Gardener A association, Genesee County is sponsoring a tour through private gardens in Clio and Vienna Twp. www.GCgardentour.weebly.com.

“The Wow Garden Tour" certainly has some wow gardens. We have gardens to match everyone's taste. We have shade gardens, native gardens, country gardens, whimsically decorated gardens, simply pretty gardens. You will enjoy the relaxing country drive. For only $10, you can enjoy this self-guided garden tour. Tickets will be sold at each site and many local businesses. Information and driving directions printed on your ticket.
Buy tickets in advance or day of tour at:
Walker Farms & Greenhouse, 5253 Atherton Road, Burton (East of Center Rd).
Bordine Nursery, 9100 Torrey Road, Grand Blanc (North of Grand Blanc Rd., west of Fenton Rd.)
Willow Cottage Flower and Gift, 202 S Mill St, Clio, MI 48420 (Open Monday- Saturday)
Piechnik Greenhouse,13172 McCumsey Road, Clio
Bridge Park the day of tour (Corner of Linden/ Vienna Rd.)

Here’s a facebook page link for gardeners in the Lapeer area.  This link has a lot of events listed on it.

Here’s a link to all the nature programs being offered at Seven Ponds Nature center in Dryden, Michigan. http://www.sevenponds.org/

Here’s a link to classes being offered at Campbell’s Greenhouse, 4077 Burnside Road, North Branch. 

Here’s a link to classes and events at Nichols Arboretum, Ann Arbor

Here’s a link to programs being offered at English Gardens, several locations in Michigan.

Here’s a link to classes at Telly’s Greenhouse in Troy and Shelby Twsp. MI, and now combined with Goldner Walsh in Pontiac MI.

Here’s a link to classes and events at Bordines, Rochester Hills, Grand Blanc, Clarkston and Brighton locations

Here’s a link to events at the Leslie Science and Nature Center, 1831 Traver Road Ann Arbor, Michigan  | Phone 734-997-1553 |
http://www.lesliesnc.org/

Here’s a link to events at Hidden Lake Gardens, 6214 Monroe Rd, Tipton, MI

Here’s a link to events and classes at Fredrick Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids Mi
http://www.meijergardens.org/learn/ (888) 957-1580, (616) 957-1580


Newsletter information
If you would like to pass along a notice about an educational event or a volunteer opportunity please send me an email before Tuesday of each week and I will print it. Also if you have a comment or opinion you’d like to share, send it to me. Please state that you want to have the item published in my weekly notes. You must give your full name and what you say must be polite and not attack any individual. I am very open to ideas and opinions that don’t match mine but I do reserve the right to publish what I want.
I write this because I love to share with other gardeners some of the things I come across in my research each week. It keeps me engaged with local people and horticulture. It’s a hobby, basically. I hope you enjoy it. If at any time you don’t wish to receive these emails just let me know. If you know anyone who would like to receive these emails have them send their email address to me.  KimWillis151@gmail.com