April 30, 2013 - Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter

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These weekly garden notes are written by Kim Willis, unless another author is noted, and the opinions expressed in these notes are her opinions and do not represent any other individual, group or organizations opinions.

Hi Gardeners

This newsletter is coming to you a bit later in the day than usual because my baby chicks arrived a day early and I had to get them settled this am.  What says spring more than baby chicks?  They are mesmerizing to watch too, you can waste a lot of time watching chickens.  Another sign of spring is all the baby calves on the farms around me.  They are so cute when they are tiny babies.

When I went out to feed early this morning I snuck in a quick trip to my pond.  The forsythia was starting to bloom out there and when I went into town to pick up the chicks I saw magnolias beginning to bloom.   My apricot will probably bloom tomorrow and the plums are not far behind. Tiny green leaves are starting to show up on some trees and shrubs, the coming warm weather should have them popping out like crazy.

I spent some time putting up new bluebird houses this weekend and was pleased to see a pair of tree swallows checking them out this morning.  They like the bluebird houses. I get them more than bluebirds but that’s ok they are so graceful and they eat a lot of bugs.  I have still not seen any orioles or hummingbirds but my feeders for them are out.

Work is progressing on my new vegetable garden.  We have three of the five beds filled with soil and I planted potatoes in one.  I also planted romaine lettuce, spinach and beets in a mixture for greens.  I have been digging up huge clumps of comfrey that had been growing at the fringe of the spruce that we cut down to make room for the new garden.  I want to get them dug out instead of just trying to smother them with wood chips or soil.  The roots of some of those clumps were 3 inches in diameter.  Talk about an invasive plant!  

Plant Shopping tips

I talked to my sister a few days ago and she was telling me she dug out all her iris, daylilies, coreopsis and other perennials in front of her house because she wanted just one simple thing in the whole bed.  I asked her what she replaced them with and she proudly told me bee balm, a garden shop employee had recommended it.  I asked a few discrete questions to make sure she really got beebalm and it seems she has.  She bought 4 small plants, which the same helpful employee told her would spread out and fill out the whole bed in no time.  You can guess that this sister is not much of a gardener by now.  I tried to gently suggest that she add some other plants and explained to her that while the bee balm would eventually spread, it wasn’t always the most attractive plant for a whole bed in front of the house.  I also told her about powdery mildew, which can make bee balm look pretty bad.  But she remained firm, the garden shop employee had given her his recommendations and that was it. 

The point of the story is that there are a lot of sales people in the garden shops and many of them are not too knowledgeable, especially those in big box stores.  As you are out and about in the greenhouses this spring selecting plants, remember to do your own research on plants you are not familiar with.   If you have a smart phone I see that many plant tags now have a code to scan that will give you more information about the plant. Try to pick up plants that have a tag, there is usually some general information on them and when you get the plant home you will have that information as well as a plant name. 

Also check the hardiness zone rating of plants that you buy.  I have noticed plants that aren’t reliably hardy in zone 5-6 being sold.  The zone rating is on the tag so they aren’t really cheating you, but many people just choose plants that have pretty flowers or pleasing foliage without considering whether the plant will over winter here.  And there are varieties of some common garden plants that are hardy in our zones while other varieties of the same plant are not.  Buddleias, roses, azaleas, lavender, perennial salvias are just a few plants that have hardy and not so hardy varieties.

April is considered a good month for planting trees.  Arbor Day is in April.  So for the last newsletter of April I am going to present some tree information.

The breath of trees

When you walk into a forest you immediately notice the smell, a woodsy aroma that’s soothing and invigorating at the same time.  That aroma comes from gases that trees give off and it’s most noticeable when trees are concentrated in groups, but all trees emit gases.  The gases contain biogenic aerosols -- particulate matter that originates from plants.(Tree poop)  When exposed to oxygen in the atmosphere these particulates cling to other particulates in the air, gradually growing larger, forming clouds that reflect the suns heat, cooling the earth and forming raindrops.  This function of trees emitting gases is helpful, and works to offset global warming, because as the world warms, trees produce even more gases.

In forested areas of the world gas emission by trees can reduce the effect of global warming by about 30%.   Rain falls more frequently and regularly where there are forests because of favorable cloud formation.  And even in urban areas where they are not as concentrated, trees provide a cooling effect as well as making your property more valuable and desirable.

But there is a bad side to the gases that trees emit also.  Trees emit isoprene, a chemical manufactured to protect leaves from oxygen damage and temperature fluctuations.  Isoprene is abundant in the atmosphere but it’s not helpful to humans. A study recently completed by  researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that isoprene unites with air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides emitted by cars and coal burning plants to form harmful particulates at least partially responsible for lung cancer, asthma, and other lung disorders.  These isoprene-nitrogen oxide combinations also produce smog and are damaging to the environment in other ways. It’s important to remember that without humans producing those nitrogen oxide emissions though, isoprene would be harmless.

And here’s some more news about the breath of trees. When trees are attacked by insects, particularly bark beetles, the trees produce chemicals to protect themselves and these chemicals are released into the atmosphere. The chemicals are predominately a monoterpene called ß-phellandrene.  This chemical is also part of unhealthy smog and haze and harmful to those breathing it.

It gets worse.  Researchers at  Queensland University of Technology in Australia found that trees produce electrically charged ions in their vicinity.  Charged ions are more likely to attract other molecules to stick to them and they are also more likely to “stick” to your lungs when breathed in.  One of the molecules that charged ions like to collect is radon. 

Radon is produced when rocks containing radioactive material gradually breakdown in the soil.  It is water soluble and radon is often found in ground water.  Radon emissions from the soil as a gas and from the ground water vary in concentration from one area to the next depending on the rocks underlying the area.   Michigan has some high radon areas, where radon seeps into basements.  Radon is known to cause cancer.

Here’s the connection between radon and trees.  Trees with deep root systems act as pumps for radon, bringing the radon in ground water and from the soil to the surface, discharging it attached to charged ions in their gas admissions when they transpire (or breathe).  Recent research suggests in areas with deep rooted trees, tree transpiration accounts for more than a third of the radon in the air.

How to plant a tree

I have been playing the devil’s advocate here, telling you about all the bad things trees do.  In fact there is more reason than ever to plant trees.  Trees help regulate the climate and they become even more important as our climate changes.  The small health risks associated with trees breathing are generally caused by our own pollution of the planet.  While trees may emit radon when they emit water vapor during transpiration they are also unlocking water stored in the soil and returning it to the atmosphere.  Without rain we couldn’t grow crops very well and our world would be a dry and barren place.

A real estate agent will tell you that large, mature, well cared for trees add value to your property and make it easier to sell.  And who can deny the beauty of trees as well as all the useful products they supply us with, including food?  It is said that you plant trees for your grandchildren.  All I know is that I continue to plant trees because I like them.  I have planted several this year, in part because I have had to remove a few.  One should always replace a tree that you have had to remove, maybe with a more suitable tree for the area, but always keeping the balance Nature is working to achieve.

Several studies of urban trees have found that more than 2/3 of the trees in cities were from natural regeneration, they grew from seeds floating in the air or carried in by animals and were not deliberately planted.  However the remaining third of trees in a city, those planted by us, had a somewhat higher survival rate and were healthier overall.  This is probably because they were more valuable specimens, and because if you plant something you tend to care for it.

So what is the best way to plant a tree?  First choose a tree suitable for the area you want to plant it.  You can find a tree that will grow in almost any situation.   Make sure you take the adult size of the tree into account as you choose and plant it, making sure there will be room for it when it’s grown.  How many of you have seen (or planted yourself) those beautiful young blue spruce trees planted up close to a house, in front of windows or too close to driveways?  After ten or 15 years of growth they have to be cut down or moved in a very expensive maneuver.   And look up and see if there are any overhead utility wires that will result in the power company wacking the top off the tree just as it gets beautiful.

Give your tree room to grow.  Leave enough space between trees so they aren’t distorted and crowded as they grow.  Those tiny twigs you plant look so small it’s tempting to put them too close together but consult a reference and give each tree the space it needs when it is an adult.

Next dig your hole twice as wide as it is deep.  It should be as deep as the root system of the tree you are planting.  However one of the biggest mistakes people make in planting trees is to plant them too deep.  Look for the top horizontal root, the root that goes sideways.  This root should only be about 2 inches below the soil surface.  This will allow the tree to form a “flare”, a wider base just above the roots that makes for a healthier and stronger tree.

Remove pots, even peat pots from the roots.  Remove at least the top half of the burlap in a balled and burlapped root ball.   If you do not see that top horizontal root gently scrape away soil until you do, so you can properly place it in a hole.  Often as trees are “balled” or re-potted at a nursery that primary horizontal root gets buried too deeply.  Removing peat pots and burlap also avoids the wicking away of moisture from the roots and lets the roots expand rapidly into the surrounding soil.

Refill your hole with the soil you took out, even if you think it isn’t very good soil.  Research has proven that this is the best way to get your tree growing well.  You can mix in some tree fertilizer with the soil but avoid throwing it in a heap at the bottom of the hole.  Don’t add peat, topsoil or other things to the soil.  This hinders rather than encourages root growth.

Water your tree after planting and keep it watered during its first year if conditions are dry.  Don’t put more than 3 inches of mulch around the tree and keep mulch from touching the trunk of the tree.  Protect the trunk of young trees from animals including humans with mowers and weed whips.  A mulch circle helps but you may need a circle of wire or a tree tube.  Tree tubes are great for small deciduous trees, especially valuable ones or those that are hard to start.  These are translucent fiberglass tubes with open tops that act as a semi-greenhouse, they protect trees from wind, cold and animals.  They need a stake to hold them in place but you won’t need to stake the tree.  They also encourage a straight, un-branched trunk until the tree is over the tube height.  Remove the tubes when the tree grows well above them, usually in a couple years.  I cut tree tubes in half to protect things like shrubs and vines.

One other tree planting tip.  Remove all tags, wires and strings from the tree after planting.  These will cut off circulation as the tree grows and kill a branch or worse the whole tree if the string is around the trunk.  If you want to keep the tag with the tree so you remember what you planted, put it on a stake near the tree.

Trees for small gardens

Love trees but have little room in the garden to plant them?  There are many small trees that won’t hit the power lines and are easy to fit into small spaces.  Trees add vertical lines to the garden and pleasing structure.  Here are some to consider.  Maples, some Japanese maple varieties and other maples ( Snake bark, (A. grosseri), Moose bark, A. griseum are good for small areas.  Redbuds, ninebark, magnolia, strawberry tree, birches, dogwoods, hawthorns, sand cherries ( purple leaf cherries),weeping cherries, weeping peach,  wisteria trained to tree form, crabapples( height varies, look for smaller types), Golden Chain Tree, cotoneaster, bristly locust, “Lace Lady” or “Twisty Baby” locust, purple smoke tree, witchhazel, Japanese stewartia.

There are also many dwarf or slow growing evergreens that can be added to the garden.  Narrow, columnar evergreens are also useful in the landscape.  Don’t forget that tub trees, (marginally hardy or tropical trees) can be added to the garden in the summer and stored in a suitable place over the winter.  These would include figs, pomegranates, citrus trees, bay laurel and olive trees.

Now everyone outside to plant a tree!

Kim Willis

Garden as though you will live forever. William Kent

More Information

How to help the flooded garden

An article by Kim Willis at Examiner.com

This spring has been wet in many parts of the United States and many homeowners are having trouble with flooding or water standing on the lawn and garden areas. While dry conditions can be harmful to plants conditions that are too wet can be equally bad if not worse for the landscape. Here are some tips to help you deal with landscape plants that have received a little more water than they like.  Read more by clicking on the link below.

http://www.examiner.com/article/how-to-help-a-flooded-garden

Ready to Plant: ‘Iron Lady’ Tomato Punches Out Blights

April 17, 2013  From Cornell University

ITHACA, N.Y. - If the name fits, grow it: "Iron Lady" is the first tomato to resist three major fungal diseases - early blight, late blight and Septoria leaf spot - plaguing New York's growers for years. For farmers, this new tomato dramatically reduces the need for expensive fungicide.

Iron Lady is available to both producers and home gardeners for the upcoming growing season.

Favoring the Northeast's moist, cool conditions, one or more of these diseases occurs yearly, prompting Martha Mutschler-Chu, Cornell professor of plant breeding and genetics, to create tomatoes that resist late blight and early blight.

However, since those plants could still be defoliated by Septoria leaf spot, Mutscher-Chu worked with research associate Stella Zitter and plant pathologist Tom Zitter to create Septoria resistance.

Experimental hybrids using these "triple blight resistant" tomatoes were successfully grown in trials in North Carolina, West Virginia, Virginia and New York, in a project supported by the Northeast Regional Integrated Pest Management Center.

"We have demonstrated that we have tomato hybrids with good medium fruit that will stand up to these diseases," Mutschler-Chu said. "In order to reduce the need for fungicides, you need to genetically control all three diseases."

Iron Lady, the cross of a "triple resistant" Cornell line and a late blight/early blight line from North Carolina State University, is the first of these hybrids to become commercially available, via High Mowing Organic Seeds. In addition to the strongest possible resistance to late blight -- provided by the combination of two genes, Ph2 and Ph3 -- tolerance to early blight and resistance to Septoria leaf spot, the plant also has resistances to verticillium and fusarium wilts, common to most modern tomato varieties.

Early blight tolerance is not as strong as resistance, so the need for fungicides may not be completely eliminated. But Mutschler-Chu teamed up with professor Tom Zitter to identify a complementary fungicide strategy with the lowest possible environmental impact. This led to a potential reduction of sprays from weekly application to once or twice a season. That information is available to growers via Cornell's Vegetable MD website.

"Tolerance alone is not enough, spray alone is not enough, but together there is good synergy," Mutschler-Chu said.

Iron Lady is suitable for organic production, and was tested by organic farmers as part of a federal Organic Agriculture Research and Extension-funded project coordinated by Cornell breeder Michael Mazourek. He said disease-resistant tomatoes were identified as a top priority for organic growers, who currently use copper to control blight, a solution that can be just as bad for the environment as chemical fungicides.

"This represents a really valuable tool for growers," Mazourek said. "And the tomatoes are head and shoulders above those you would find shipped to the grocery store."

Mutschler-Chu said she wanted to make Iron Lady available to growers quickly because of the real and immediate need. "We have even better lines coming along," she said. "We are testing second-generation hybrids now."

While breeding the new lines, Mutschler-Chu and her team created molecular markers that can be used to detect the presence of Ph2 and Ph3 in plants. "Use of markers cuts in half the number of generations it takes to breed," she said. "Development of a similar marker for the Septoria resistance gene is nearing completion."

Mutschler-Chu is sharing her discoveries with scientists and seed companies, so that the resistance traits can be incorporated into other varieties.

This project was supported in part by a New York Specialty Crop grant.