November 12,
2013 - Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter
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
Well we have
had our first snow fall. I had a light
coating anyway on the grass. And I just looked out the window and it’s snowing
again. Too early if you ask me. It got very cold last night and I think the
flowers will finally be done for. If you
had to drive last night or early this morning I feel sorry for you- it was icy
and people never know how to drive at the first time we get snow. It is supposed to warm into the 50’s by the
weekend so maybe that will be the last of the snow for a while.
I planted
some heather this spring and it bloomed beautifully then. Walking around the yard this weekend I
noticed that one of the heathers was in bloom again. Also still in bloom was the verbena variety
Lanai Twister Pink. It bloomed
prolifically all summer and was still in bloom Sunday. Most of the fall color was gone but the
barberry I planted in front of my chicken run was almost electric in color –
red and orange.
I have been
thinking about what did well for me this year in the flower and vegetable
gardens. I planted two new knock out
roses this spring – double pink and “Sunny” and both were outstanding bloomers. The cuphea, “Firecracker” was
outstanding. I have brought it inside
for the winter. The dahlia Gloria Van
Heemstede was just so prolific in bloom, early to start blooming too, and the
color was so sunny yellow that I highly recommend it. It’s an heirloom so you won’t find it just
anywhere. I got mine from Old House
Gardens.
I was not
impressed by the tomato Tigerella, but I am still wondering if I got what the
tag said it was. Despite other melons
and pumpkins having a banner year the melon “Fairy” did not do well for
me. I’ll review some other things later
on and if you have a plant that you liked or didn’t like this year why don’t
you send me a note about it and I’ll pass on your observations.
New onion won’t make you cry and may
help you lose weight
I love onions
cooked and raw. And onions are really good
for us, having anti-inflammatory properties and keeping blood from clotting in
your arteries. But I hate peeling and
chopping onions because of all the crying involved. I have tried every trick from holding food in
my mouth, peeling under water, and getting the onion cold before cutting. Sometimes I cry anyway. It’s not just the tears streaming down, it’s
actually very irritating to the eyes.
Scientists in
New Zealand have finally produced an onion that doesn’t have the protein that
causes eye irritation. In 2008
scientists identified the protein that causes the eye irritation when onions
are cut. Once the protein was identified
they worked to develop a gene “silencer”, a way to turn off that gene but leave
the health properties and taste of the onion intact.
They were
surprised to find that in the making of this onion that the genetic changes
also improved the onions ability to bust clots and ease inflammation more than
unmodified onions and even garlic. The
taste was just like regular onions and it can be cooked and used just like any
other onion. Since this onion has better cardiovascular benefits than garlic it
may be helpful to people who don’t like to take garlic capsules because of the
body odor it causes in people who consume it.
Then
scientists fed the tearless onion to rats and found that compared to control
groups of rats who got regular onions or no onions that rats fed the new onion gained
less weight on the same diet. They
appeared just as healthy as control groups, even healthier because they
developed fewer cardiovascular problems.
Study results were published in
last month’s Journal of Agricultural and
Food Chemistry.
The new onion
isn’t on the market yet. Because it has
technically been genetically modified it has to be approved by the FDA before
it can be sold here. I don’t see why it
won’t be on the market in a few years though, and I for one would love to try
it.
New Jersey tea cultivar
Last week I
talked about native shrubs and mentioned New Jersey Tea would make a great
plant to experiment with to make a better landscape plant. Well it turns out Proven Winners and Monrovia
are offering a new cultivar. Marie Bleu™ (Ceanothus x pallidus) is a hybrid of
3 native Ceanothus species. It has a
profusion of lilac blue flowers in early summer that are very attractive to
bees and butterflies. The flowers turn
into red seed heads that add late summer and fall color.
Marie Bleu™
is slightly less hardy than our eastern New Jersey Tea- rated hardy to zone
6. It makes a compact dense shrub 2-3
feet tall. It can be trimmed to shape after
blooming. It will grow in full sun to
partial shade and withstands dry conditions.
Marie Bleu™ makes an excellent filler plant for borders or even
containers and looks great in massed form.
Both Monrovia and Proven Winners are wholesalers; you’ll have to check
local nurseries and online sources to buy the plant.
Earthworms are an invasive species
reshaping the landscape
You may have
never seen an Ovenbird, a sparrow sized warbler that used to be common in
Northeastern forests. And most of us who
are of a certain age remember when forest floors generally had drifts of
trillium, sarsaparilla and Solomon’s seal.
Deer are responsible for some loss of vegetation but studies at several
Northeastern and Midwest Universities have found another culprit – the earthworm.
Earthworms
are not native to North America. They
were brought here from Europe and Asia, all 16 species of them. They arrived with the first farmers and
slowly spread across the country. Two
species night crawlers (Lumbricus terrestris) and redworms,( Lumbricus rubellus)
are mostly responsible for making drastic changes in forest ecology across the
country and may even be responsible for
increasing global warming .
Before the
arrival of earthworms deciduous forests in the northern and eastern states
always had a deep “duff” layer of leaves and other slowly decaying
vegetation. The decomposition of the
duff was done by various species of fungus.
The deep fluffy forest duff was the nesting spot for birds like the
ovenbird and home to salamanders, frogs, and other reptiles and
amphibians. Many forest understory plants germinated their seeds in the duff and
it protected their crowns in the winter.
The forest duff was a rich and diverse community of small organisms like
insects and snails which were eaten by larger things like reptiles, mice and
birds, which in turn were fed upon by even larger creatures. Then in some forests earthworms arrived.
As most
gardeners know earthworms quickly eat vegetation that falls to the ground. In agricultural setting earthworms are beneficial,
breaking down compost, aerating the soil and enriching it with their
droppings. But when the forest duff
quickly disappears so does the community of plants and animals that depended on
it. The forest landscape has changed
forever, since it’s almost impossible to rid an area of worms once they arrive.
Trees
sequester carbon in their wood and leaves.
When those leaves remain on the forest floor for a long time so does the
carbon, keeping it out of our atmosphere.
Worms, in the process of eating and digesting the leaves, release carbon
into the air. Since they also pull
leaves underground before eating them and cause the soil to form aggregates
that do trap carbon, researchers aren’t sure how great the loss of carbon
sequestration is. Research is ongoing
in the northern forests of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Vermont and other places where
there are still some places free of earthworms to compare with places that have
worms.
Earthworms
have caused the decline of Ovenbirds (and perhaps other birds), many species of
salamanders and other reptiles and amphibians as well as several species of
plants, including sugar maples, which like the forest duff to germinate and
grow in. Some state and national forest
areas prohibit the use of worms as fish bait or bringing any potted plants into
these areas in an effort to exclude earthworms.
Any forest
that has regenerated from farmed land has earthworms in the soil. Because earthworm eggs can be transported in
the treads of boots and machinery even areas that were never farmed or gardened
often get earthworms. When people move
close to old growth forests and bring in plants for the landscape or start a
garden they almost always contaminate the soil with worms. We probably have to accept that the forest
ecology that existed before European farmers arrived in North America will
probably cease to exist at some point.
The lowly earthworm has forever
changed the land.
Antelopes use overpasses
Wouldn’t it be
great if the deer had a way to cross the road without endangering people? Well in Wyoming antelope have learned to
cross highways on overpasses and tunnels. The Wildlife Conservation Society and
the Wyoming Department of Transportation collaborated on constructing 8 safe
crossing places for antelope on Wyoming highways last year. High fences along the roads funnel the
animals to safe crossing at overpasses or tunnels.
In fall 2012 the
antelope used the safe crossings somewhat suspiciously and reluctantly but this
year it seems they had accepted them and used them readily. The Wildlife Conservation Society helped find
the places where antelope had established crossing sites and both the WCS and
Wyoming DOT were pleased with the great reduction in car-antelope crashes. Now the antelope are a little different than
Michigan’s whitetail deer in that they move from summer grounds to winter
grounds in large migrating herds over established routes. But whitetails also have preferred routes to
cross roads. Putting up a deer crossing
sign helps somewhat if motorists pay attention but maybe Michigan should
consider overpasses or tunnels at sites with high numbers of deer-car crashes,
especially along expressways.
Deer and
other large herd animals will follow paths that others of their species use and
teach the safe passage way to their young.
Of course this would not solve all the deer-car crash problems because
there are too many roads and too many deer but it might help in areas where
colliding with a deer is more likely to cause death to a driver such as on
freeways. It probably won’t happen though
because of one major factor- money. Some
of these people who cry over hunters killing deer and get angry at humans who
hit deer with their cars should get together and fund a few safe crossings.
verbena Lanai Twister |
Another citizen science project you
can get involved in
At the
University of Oklahoma researchers are studying soil microbes to find “natural
products” molecules made by the microbes such as fungi that can be used to make
drugs and therapies to cure diseases.
One such compound, maximiscin, has already been found that is produced
by soil microbes from Alaska and has shown promise in curing melanoma, a common
cancer.
Researchers
believe that there are thousands if not millions of such microbe produced
natural products in soil. Soil microbes
are often specific to certain areas, even only a few miles apart. Your backyard or special spot may have the
soil microbes that can produce a substance that will cure a disease or produce
an astounding scientific advance. If only the researchers could sample soil from
everywhere! Well maybe they can, with
your help.
The
University of Oklahoma has launched a citizen science project to collect soil
from across the country. You can download
a form here http://npdg.ou.edu/citizenscience
to register to help. You can also email NPDG@ou.edu
with your name and mailing address or call them at (405) 325-2219 to request a
kit. You will be sent a postage paid soil collection box and instructions and
then can mail a soil sample to the researchers.
They’ll acknowledge your sample and you’ll then be able to track the
research on their website. You can do
this as an individual or it makes an excellent school, 4-H or cub/girl scout project.
Watch out for
deer!
Kim
Garden as though you will live forever. William Kent
More Information
Over wintering tender
bulbs
By Kim Willis- previously published on
Examiner.com
If you haven’t done it already it’s
time to get out there and dig up the tender bulbs before another Michigan
winter hits. Even though we have had
some frost and freezing weather if the ground isn’t frozen most of those bulbs
can be saved until spring and then replanted to bloom again. Tender bulbs include dahlias, cannas, calla
lilies, pineapple lilies, tuberous begonias, gladiolus and others.
If you are lucky, you’ll find your
bulbs have multiplied and you’ll have more bulbs to plant next year or share
with friends. But first you need to get
them safely through the winter.
Different types of bulbs require different care. Here’s some tips on how to keep them from
drying up or molding in storage.
Tuberous
begonias, callas, rain lilies and pineapple lilies
Pineapple lilies (Eucomis),callas, rain
lilies and tuberous begonias do best if they are put in pots and sunk in the
ground in the spring. Then after the
foliage dies but before a hard freeze, the whole pot should be lifted and
brought inside. If the bulbs were planted in the ground carefully dig them and
plant them in pots of good potting soil.
Don’t cut foliage off, let it die naturally. Store pots in a just above freezing location
in either a dark or dimly lit location.
Check the pots from time to time and add a little water if they feel
dry.
Tuberous begonias in pots can also be
brought inside before a frost, while still in bloom and in a bright window they
will bloom for a few more months. After
Thanksgiving however they should be encouraged to go dormant and rest by withholding
water and putting the pot in a cold but above freezing spot.
Some cane type- angel wing type
begonias also go through a dormant period.
Treat them like tuberous begonias.
About March the pots should be brought
into a warmer, sunny location and regular watering resumed once the foliage
begins growing again. Fertilize at half
strength. You can divide and repot them
once shoots are showing if desired.
Place outside after danger of frost has passed.
Cannas
and dahlias
Dahlias are one of the harder bulbs to
over winter successfully although they often multiply tremendously. Cannas are
a bit easier, they don’t seem to dry out as easily. When frost has killed the tops but before the
ground freezes carefully dig cannas and dahlias. Try not to cut through tubers or break them
off. Trim off any dead foliage but be
careful not to cut the main stem too close at this point. Leave the clump together and divide in spring
if possible.
Place the clump in a paper bag or open
bucket and cover with lightly moistened sphagnum peat, coarse sawdust, or wood
shavings. Store the containers in a cool dark location where they won’t
freeze. Make it a point to check the
dahlia and canna bulbs each month and moisten the medium they are stored in if
they look like they are shriveling. If
mold is seen, remove them from the medium they were stored in and replace it
with drier medium.
If you planted the cannas or dahlias in
pots they can be brought inside in the pots and stored over winter. Wait until frost has killed the foliage but
don’t let the pots freeze solid. Trim
off dead foliage and store the pots in a cool dark place. Water lightly if the soil gets very dry. This is a good way to store very rare or
valuable dahlias and cannas. In spring
threat the pots like those of begonias and rain lilies above. You can divide them then if desired.
In late March the dahlias can be taken
out and examined. Leave them in a bright
area for a week or so and see if you can see tiny buds, which generally look
reddish, around the old stem. You can
carefully cut apart the clumps near the top, making sure each group of tubers
has at least one bud from the stem area.
Plant the tuber clusters in good potting soil and get them started
growing in a sunny warm area. Plant
outside after frost.
Cannas will generally be showing buds
on tubers around late March also. You
can set them in a bright area with tops of the tubers exposed and buds will
become more visible. Each tuber that has
a bud can become another plant. Pot them
in good potting soil to get an early start on blooming. Put outside after any frost danger has
passed.
Gladiolus
Gladiolus corms are fairly easy to over
winter. Anytime after the tops have died
back but before frost they should be dug up.
They cling tightly to their old stems; don’t break off the stems,
carefully cut them off to avoid damage to the older, main corm (bulb).
You will generally find one large firm
looking glad corm with a shriveled corm below it and sometimes dozens of tiny
corms or several medium sized one. These
smaller corms can be saved and will bloom in a few years. The shriveled corm on the base of the large
corm can be carefully removed and discarded.
Let the corms sit in a sunny place
where they can’t freeze for a few days to cure them. Then gently brush off dirt and store them in
a bag of wood shavings. It’s best to
sort out the small corms so they can be planted in pots or a nursery bed in the
spring. Store the corms in a dark, dry
place until spring. They can be started
inside, but most are planted directly in the ground after frost has passed.
Make sure all your bulbs are stored
where mice and other critters can’t make a meal of them. Metal trash cans can be a good option for
bulbs that aren’t left in pots.
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