October 2 , 2012 garden notes

I was really hoping for some rain today- hopefully it will still come tonight.  September is normally our wettest month of the year but we are down almost 2 inches of precipitation from average.  Now that it is October there is a 50% chance that we will have a hard freeze by October 11 and 90% chance that we will have one by October 30 in Michigan.  There are some very chilly temperatures predicted for this weekend so if you haven’t brought in the tender plants now is the time to do it. 

 Fall color is finally coming to Michigan.  It doesn’t seem as good as in previous years probably because some trees have dropped their leaves from drought and the maples, which make a big color splash, are really suffering from maple leaf tar spot, which causes drying and spotting of the leaves and early leaf drop too.

On my property two plants, staghorn sumac and Virginia creeper provide most of the red color.  On the fence surrounding the pond a Virginia creeper vine has covered a patch about 15 feet across and it is blazing red.  I have it in a few other places where the fall red color is so welcome. The sumac is heavy on the west property line and that is also brilliant red.

I have one red maple that doesn’t look very pretty this year and a silver maple that turns orange and yellow.  I have a few young sugar maples but they aren’t big enough to give much color.  The redbud is usually a pretty gold color.  But most of the trees on the property are evergreens, poplar, birch, aspen, walnut, oak, and catalpa which have pretty bland fall color.  This year the aspen, poplar and birch have lost most of their leaves already.  I am working to plant more trees that do have fall color.

 Don’t stop mowing

 This year mowing was at a minimum.  We are going to mow our lawn one more time at least though.  Grass should not be too long going into winter or it is more likely to get fungal diseases and die.  And the leaves that fall should be mulched with a mower and left on the lawn.  If they are in small pieces they quickly disappear and return nutrients to the soil.  You may have to rake them away from fences and out of some of your flower beds but don’t spend too much energy and time raking leaves when your mower will quickly take care of them. 

When I lived in the city I used to embarrass my son by making him go with me around the neighborhood picking up the bags of leaves people left out at the curb.  I would take them home and layer them on my gardens.  I had a low spot on the back of one of my lots that I used for a vegetable garden.  After 15 years of dumping leaves on that spot I actually raised the soil level higher in the garden than the rest of the lot and it was good rich soil.

Naked Gardening- (now that would embarrass your son)

 Abbey House Gardens in Malmesbury, England, is a public garden near the Welsh border drawing thousands of visitors each year.   It is known for its extensive rose collection, and lovely garden paths wandering through wild and cultivated areas.   On 6 days during the garden season clothing becomes optional and nudists are invited to stroll the paths.  About 600 naked gardeners visit on each of the special days.

The owners of the property, Ian and Barbara Pollard bought the property in 1994 and restored it.  They do most of their gardening in the nude, hence the naked gardening days for visitors.  Besides the owners I wonder if these nudists actually garden in the nude or just like to look at gardens in the nude. Gardening in the nude just doesn’t seem safe to me, and I get dirty enough even with my clothes on.  Add in mosquitoes and sunburn and I don’t know why anyone would find naked gardening comfortable.

 Hottest pepper in the world?

 
A recent issue of HortTechnology reports that studies have confirmed that a chile pepper (Capsicum chinense) of the tongue twister variety name, Trinidad Moruga Scorpion, tested at over 2 million units on the Scoville scale, a scale that is used to determine the relative “heat” in peppers.  Other really hot chile pepper varieties tested included Bhut Jolokia, Trinidad Scorpion, Douglah Trinidad Chocolate, and Trinidad 7-pot Jonah.

Preliminary favorite annuals

 MSU released their pick of the annuals in the 2012 annual flower trials.  MSU grows hundreds of annuals each year from different growers to see how they fare in Michigan.  The final results are usually released later in the year.  The pick of the crop so far include the sunflower ‘Dwarf’, salvia ‘Fairy Queen’, begonia ‘Dragone Dusty Rose’, verbena ‘Superbena Royale Iced Cherry’, pumpkin ‘Windsor’, petunia ‘Surfina Bouquet Denim’, ornamental millet, ‘Jade Princess’, and Calibrachoa ‘Superbells Lemon Slice’.

 Master Gardeners around the nation- and further

 The Maine Master Gardener class consists of 3.5 hr classes twice a week for 12 weeks.  The volunteer committment is 40 hours and class cost is based on income from $110 to $330.  In Kentucky the MG progrm consists of 13, 3.5 hour classes for a cost of $100.

 Did you know there are MG’s in Canada?  Their program is a little different from ours.  Three provinces have MG Associations that certify and coordinate the MG program.  People who wish to become Canadian MG’s can do so in one of three ways.  They can take 3 on line courses from the University of Guelph or on line courses from the Nova Scotia Agricultural College and present their transcripts proving they passed for certification.

 Or if the person has a horticulture related degree or extensive experience in a horticulture field they can take an exam offered 4 times a year in a supervised setting.  They have 2.5 hours to complete the exam and must score 70% or higher.  There is $100 fee for the exam.  If they fail they have one more chance in 3 years to re-take the exam.  A second failure means they must take the courses mentioned above.

A fall star performer

Asters are fall blooming perennials that can add last minute color to flower beds and borders. Perennial asters are easier to grow than mums are and more likely to survive the winter even when planted in full bloom in the fall. There are dozens of varieties of asters and there is sure to be a color and form of aster that will suit any garden.

Aster comes from the Greek word for star, and our wild asters may seem as numerous as stars sparkling across a dry meadow in the fall.  To read more go to;

http://www.examiner.com/article/how-to-grow-asters

 Got Grapes? 

Michigan is home to hundreds of small vineyards producing new and exciting wines but many Michigan homeowners also have table grapes growing in their backyard. If you don’t you can find them at the farmers market near you or you can even collect wild grapes that grow abundantly in Michigan.

Grapes can be canned or even frozen but both of these methods leave something to be desired. The best way to preserve Michigan grapes is to make grape juice and can that or to make grape jelly. One of the easiest jellies to make, grape jelly is a good beginner project in home food preservation. But grape jelly starts with grape juice and a bit of warning here is that you will need at least 24 hours to make grape juice correctly.

http://www.examiner.com/article/using-and-preserving-michigan-grapes

 

"The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its culture." - Thomas Jefferson