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Tuesday, August 28, 2018

August 28, 2018 Kim’s Weekly Garden Blog


Hi Gardeners
Hardy hibiscus
It’s steamy hot here today, and wet, wet, wet.  Finally, we are getting rain-everyday.  It’s like monsoon season but the gardens are loving it.  Everything looks so lush and perky.  The grass is green and thick again.  Its amazing how fast things recover after good rains.  I have had to dump water out of some pots but its still all good for me.  But it could get a little less humid and a bit cooler.
The hardy hibiscuses are in bloom, and the anemone, toad lilies and snakeroot are beginning to bloom.  The dahlias seem to have grown a foot this week and are loaded with flowers.  Woodland nicotiana is blooming everywhere now, it seeds itself around.  The jewelweed is full of flowers.  I have given up battling the morning glories and they are in bloom everywhere too.
I’m still waiting for the first bloom from my Hawaiian hibiscus.  It has buds but every day I have to remove Japanese beetles from them.  I don’t know why they attract them. The beetles were late arriving this year, but they are making up for that.
I am seeing few frogs this year but lots of baby toads now.  I have been hearing the tree frogs calling again after the rains and yesterday I saw one tiny green baby jewel of a tree frog on the ramp railing. Hopefully he will fatten up on mosquitoes before winter and won’t get on any plants I’m bringing inside.
Our duck has a nest in one of my flower beds, under some bamboo.  It’s close to the road so I don’t know how successful she will be, but if a coon doesn’t find it we’ll try again for baby ducks.  She doesn’t give up.
It’s hard to believe it’s almost September.  Where did summer go?

Time to think about those vacationing houseplants
If you have plants outside for the summer like I do you may have a month or more left before cold weather will force you to bring them inside.  But it’s time to think about that big move and do some planning. 
As it gets cooler we may forget about watering pots, do check every day and water when needed. You may need to water less now though, so don’t water without checking the pot.
The angle of the sun changes with the season.  Are any houseplants getting too much or too little sun now?  It may be time to change their position.  Usually a little more sun is tolerated now than when the plant was moved outside in spring because the plant has adjusted its leaf tissue and the sun’s strength is less now.  But if leaves look crisped or bleached move the plant.
If plants need to be taken out of the ground and potted do that now so they will have adjusted to pot living before being stressed by the inside move.  If the summer outside has caused plants to outgrow or even split their pots, you may want to repot them now.  However, it’s sometimes better to wait until spring to repot if you don’t want the plant to get any bigger during fall and winter because a tight pot helps restrict growth. And you may not have room for a bigger pot!

Plants often look very healthy outside at the end of summer but if they don’t, check them over carefully for signs of disease and pests. Treat them now so you don’t bring the problem inside and spread it to other plants.
If a plant needs pruning to shape it or so that it will fit through the door, do that now.  It gives the plant a bit of time to recover before being stressed by the move.
If you bought plants over the summer that you will be bringing inside have you thought where you will be putting them?  Will you need grow light bulbs?  Order them now.  Grow light bulbs lose efficiency after a year or two of use so you may want to replace them.  Will you need shelves, trays for beneath plants or hangers?  Get them now. A sudden change in weather may bring those plants inside sooner than you think.
Start paying attention to the weather.  Most houseplants need to be inside before nights regularly get below 40 degrees F, even if there is no frost.   Hardier plants like geraniums, rosemary, spider plants, and a few others can be covered to protect them from a light frost, especially if it looks like the weather will get warm again. But generally bring in plants before the first frost.  Fall weather can be very changeable, it can be 80 degrees one day and 30 the next so pay attention to weather forecasts.
I love it when the houseplants first come back inside because it looks like a jungle in here.  But I am considering the fact that I may have too many houseplants and deciding whether I need seven spider plants and 5 big jade plants and so on.  You may want to think about that too.  We could give them away, right?   

Borage- Borago officinalis
Borage is an interesting plant that you may want to consider for your garden. I have always admired it as an ornamental for the back of the border.  Borage has pretty blue edible flowers and leaves, some medicinal uses and will attract tons of bees to the garden.  Butterflies also visit it.  Other common names for borage include starflower, bee bush, bee bread, and bugloss. 
Borage is native to the Mediterranean region as many herbs are. It’s been cultivated for centuries; the Greeks and Romans wrote about it. It’s an annual plant but it freely self-seeds and will generally return each year to some spot in your garden.  In its native range it’s now being grown as a commercial crop, for the oil pressed from its seeds.

Borage flower faded to pink
Borage is a lanky plant about 3 feet high.  It may need staking in the garden if not grown among other plants that can support it. At the bottom of the plant the rough oval leaves can be 2 feet long, they are smaller near the top of the plant, and narrower. Leaves are arranged alternately on the stems.  All parts of the plant including flowers are covered with white bristly hairs.  These hairs may irritate some peoples skin and are the biggest drawback in consuming plant parts.
The flowers are usually a true blue, star shaped with 5 narrow petals.  The sexual parts form a cone shape in the center of the flower. Occasionally a plant has pink flowers but as the blue flowers age they may take on a purplish pink color, which some people may think was the original flower color.  There is a white flowered cultivar but why people would want that when the blue flower is so pretty is hard to understand. Flowers appear abundantly through the summer on clusters at the top of the plants.
Some people think the flower is fragrant, but I have never noticed that.  They do have a sweet nectar that children can suck from a flower, and which bees absolutely love.  Bees also take pollen from the plants.  The plants are self-fertile, you won’t need two plants to get seeds but like most plants they prefer cross pollination.  Small seed pods form on plants after they flower and if you don’t want the plant to spread seeds around the garden, remove pods while they are still green.
Bees make a specially flavored honey from borage some people really like but it’s debatable whether or not the honey may have some toxic properties.  In parts of Europe they are now testing borage honey for the percentage of PA ( see below) that it has, high PA percentage is not desirable.

Growing borage
Most gardeners will start this plant from seeds. It can be sown right in the garden after danger of frost or started inside about 6 weeks before the last frost.  Simply sprinkle seed on moist soil and cover it lightly.  Thin plants to about 18 inches apart in the garden.  Plants flower about 8 weeks after planting.
Borage likes full sun.  It tolerates most soil types. It can grow in dry conditions and does not like wet areas.  The more water it gets the floppier plants will be and when planted in moist climates or where regularly watered it may need staking.

Uses of borage
Borage is often touted as a companion plant or said to aide the flavor of tomatoes, discourage hornworms and other pests, improve the soil and all manner of garden miracles.  Most of this is bunk, old wives’ tales.  The one good thing borage does for the garden besides add beauty is to attract pollinators.  This could improve the yields of fruits and some strawberry growers start borage plants early so they’ll be in flower at the same time as strawberries, attracting those needed pollinators.
Borage has numerous culinary and medicinal uses.  The leaves and flowers have a cucumber like taste and both can be added to salads.  Flowers are often used as edible decorations on cakes and pastries and floated in drinks. It’s used as a flavor in gin.
Borage leaves are used in soups in Europe and in the German green sauce, Grüne Soße.  In Italy they are added to the fillings in ravioli and other pasta dishes. It is used to flavor some pickles.  Borage is used fresh, as the dried herb has little flavor.
Medicinally borage has a long history and many uses.  (However, borage does have some toxic chemical properties and should be used cautiously.)  Borage is used to cure depression by soaking flowers in wine and giving the wine to sufferers.  Infusion of the flowers is used for PMS and hot flashes, for gastrointestinal cramps and colic and for fever. It is also used for bronchitis, as a blood purifier and as a diuretic.
The seeds of borage are pressed to make an oil.  The oil has long been used for skin conditions such as eczema and for cosmetics.  However commercial production of the oil is now being done because the oil is high in gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), and other healthy fatty acids.  It is used as a dietary supplement and for every condition imaginable now.
If you are trying one of the wonderous miracle cures going around for the product, (supposedly cures RA, ADHD, alcoholism, diabetes, asthma, wrinkles, among other things) make sure the borage oil you use is certified PA free.  PA stands for pyrrolizidine alkaloids, which are found in borage seed oil and which are toxic to the liver and carcinogenic.  They can be removed to make the oil safer but there’s no scientific basis for most of the “miracle” uses.
Cautions
As mentioned above borage contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids as well as other substances that are toxic.  These toxins can harm the liver, cause cancer and birth defects and may cause bleeding disorders. You’ll see much argument on herbal sites about borage safety with many dismissing any harm the plant could cause.  This is foolish because the plant has been well studied and there is danger in using too much of the product, especially seed oil that has not been purified of PA.  Home herbalists cannot remove the toxin.
If you are using borage flowers and leaves in cooking, there is probably little harm done.  Still I would suggest pregnant women not eat it and small children’s intake should also be watched.
With seed oil and things like medicinal tinctures of plant parts great caution should be used.  Pregnant and nursing women should not use them. Keep them away from children.  Seed oil should be certified PA free and home pressed oil should not be consumed by anyone, although it may be used in modest amounts on the skin.  Even the purified oil may cause excessive bleeding during surgeries and may interfere with prescription and over the counter medications.  Tell your doctor if you take herbal remedies with borage in them.
Borage is an ancient herb with many uses and it’s a beautiful garden plant that pollinators love.  Try some in your garden.
 
Yellow jacket
Are you having bee problems?
In late summer many gardeners are besieged by bees and desperate to get rid of them.  Bees and wasps often get more aggressive in late summer and their populations have built up to large numbers.  If you are having bee problems click on the link below where there is an article I wrote previously on identifying and dealing with bees.
Tomato hornworms
Those big green “worms” you find eating your tomatoes in your garden came from a rather pretty moth that you probably didn’t mind in your garden.  The fat green caterpillars are known as tomato or tobacco hornworms.  These little buggers can go from eggs to tiny caterpillars to huge fat caterpillars 4 inches long and as big around as your thumb in a matter of 3 weeks.  To grow that fast they eat a lot of your tomato plant, preferring leaves and green fruit.
Tomato hornworms have a large curved spine or hook on the upper side of the rear end that can be either red or black, depending on the species.  The caterpillars start out a lighter, yellow green color but soon their green bodies are the same shade as tomato leaves.  Tomato hornworms are hairless, and the body is marked with a series of white v shaped markings and tiny black lines that look like stitches.  Along the bottom edge of the caterpillar are round spots outlined in gold that almost look like grommet holes.  To confuse predators there are two round markings on the hook or rear end that look like eyes.
Manduca sexta
The tomato hornworm life cycle
There are two species of moths that lay eggs on tomatoes that turn into the munching destroyers, tomato hornworms. Manduca quinquemaculata is the tomato hornworm, whose caterpillar has a black horn and Manduca sexta is the tobacco hornworn, whose caterpillar has a red horn.  Both types eat tomatoes. In some areas both species of moths and caterpillars of both hook colors are present. 
The moths that produce hornworms are often called sphinx or hawk moths.  They are large, up to 6 inches in wingspan, fat bodied, brown mottled moths, sometimes marked with brighter yellow or orange.  The adult moths do not eat tomatoes, they sip nectar from a variety of flowers.
Like many moths, hawk moths are generally active at dusk. They lay single pale green eggs on the undersides of leaves of tomato, pepper, eggplant and potato plants and weeds in the same family such as nightshade and horsenettle.  While the caterpillars occasionally eat these other plants, they prefer tomatoes.
Tomato hornworms are usually noticed about the first week of August and they generally feed for a few weeks before falling to the ground. The caterpillars burrow into the ground and turn into pupa.  The pupas are brown, hard, shiny, worm-like things with a curved “handle” on the front end, generally found buried in a few inches of soil.
In northern states there is generally only one generation a year, in the south there may be two generations. The tomato or tobacco hornworm over winters as a pupa.  Moths may come from warmer areas in the spring to lay eggs also.  While tomatoes are their favorite garden plant hornworms will sometimes eat peppers, eggplant and potatoes.  And of course, they also eat on tobacco plants in the south.
Finding hornworms
The first sign you might notice of the tomato hornworms presence is green or blackish green pellet-like excrement under and on plants.  There will be lots of bare stems and partly eaten green tomatoes, particularly at the top of the plant. Hornworms rarely eat ripe tomatoes. In the last week or so of the caterpillar stage their appetite is enormous, and the damage becomes very noticeable.  The caterpillars may have been on the plants for weeks.  Caterpillars do move from plant to plant if the plants are close.
It takes a sharp eye to spot the culprit as tomato hornworms are perfectly camouflaged as they lie on tomato stems.  Smaller hornworms may hide on the undersides of leaves. Stay still and quiet and you can sometimes trace them by their munching sounds. Usually they are found near the top of plants.
Tomato hornworms will not kill a tomato plant although the damage can look bad for a while.  They do destroy a lot of young fruit if left unchecked.   There are usually only a few tomato hornworms per plant.  To find the hornworms scout each plant carefully and look right above any piles of greenish-black caterpillar poop.   They are more easily found in the early morning or evening when they are most active
Control of tomato hornworms
Tomato hornworms have few natural predators although chickens sometimes eat them.  They are filled with tomato foliage, which is poisonous, although a chicken eating one or two doesn’t seem to have any problems.  Here are some ways to control hornworms.
Handpick them and squish them. If you are squeamish about handling tomato hornworms you may be able to pay a kid to look for them.  They do not bite or “sting” humans and the hook is harmless.
Use insecticidal soaps formulated for garden plants or use a Bt product.  These only kill caterpillars. Or you can use a garden insecticide safe for food plants.  Insecticides with carbaryl, spinosod, permethrin, or bifenthrin will work.  Read and follow label directions carefully.
Till the soil in the fall to bring pupa to the surface to freeze and rotate the area where you grow tomatoes each year.
If you notice a rather sluggish tomato hornworm with small white projections all over it leave it alone.  These are wasp cocoons. The Braconid wasp lays its eggs on living hornworms; they feed on hornworms, weakening them and then turn into the little cocoons which are on the caterpillar.  Each cocoon will turn into a wasp which lays eggs on more caterpillars, keeping their numbers in check.
Tomato hornworms are excellent fish bait.  If you are a fisherperson you may want to check the tomato plants before you head to your favorite fishing hole.
While tomato hornworms are startling and scary to some people they are easier to deal with than some other tomato problems.  Do not rip out your plants.   Gardeners will find that they can harvest plenty of tomatoes with just picking the caterpillars from the plants at the first sign of damage.

How to help a flooded landscape
I guess the recent rains here after a dry summer have me thinking about flooding. This year 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. And for some areas the worse part of the year for flooding- hurricane season is near.  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.
First try to drain the water away from your lawn, trees and ornamental plants if it’s possible.  You may have to dig a trench to a roadside ditch or another place to let water flow off.  If you have a place to safely pump it you can also use a sump pump, irrigation pump or even a fountain or pond pump to remove water.  Pay attention to where the water will flow as you pump or trench it off.  It’s not fair to send it to a neighbor’s property unless the neighbor agrees to allow it.
Try to drain off the water as soon as possible.  Even 24 hours of standing water can affect plants, some types of plants more than others.  If some part of the plant remains above water chances are better than if they are totally submerged, but root damage will begin in soaked soil soon after flooding.  Even if there is no water visible on the surface of the ground soil that is totally saturated will cause root damage to plants.  Roots need air spaces in soil or they simply drown.  If you dig a shallow hole in the soil and water pools there, your soil is saturated and needs draining.
Of course, there are cases when there is nothing you can do to get rid of the water but wait and hope.  In some cases, the plants will make it through, in other cases be prepared to replace some of your landscape.  If you have flood insurance, check with your policy holder to see if landscape damage is covered.


Lawn grass
Grass that is totally under water for more than 48 hours will probably die.  Warm, sunny conditions, while beginning to dry the ground, will hasten grass death if water can’t be removed.  Grass only partially submerged will last longer but totally saturated soil leads to rotting of the grass roots and if the condition lasts a week or so, the lawn may die.
Bluegrass, the most common Midwestern lawn grass, has some tolerance to flooding while perennial and annual rye is less tolerant.  Bentgrass, common on golf courses, is tolerant.  After you can get to the grass dig a small clump to check on it.  If you see firm white roots and bases of the leaf stems, (crowns) the grass may make it.  Black or brown mushy looking roots and crowns mean the grass is dead.
If silt and debris were deposited on the lawn during the flooding the chances of lawn grass surviving may be less.  A small layer, less than an inch, may not impact the lawn much unless it is heavily contaminated with harmful substances such as salt, oil and gas, but a deep layer of mud or debris will kill the grass.  Try to rake or shovel it off.
If the grass dies and you suspect contamination of the soil, seed a small area with annual rye grass, which will germinate quickly and grow if the debris isn’t contaminated.  Then you can seed with more expensive lawn grass.  If the ryegrass doesn’t grow well you may have to scrape off the contaminated soil down to the original soil, removing the dead sod, before re-planting.
If your grass seemed to make it through the flood it will benefit from fertilizing with nitrogen, especially if it is looking yellow or pale green.  Use a lawn fertilizer without any weed killers or insecticides for this.  Follow the label directions or use about 3 pounds per 1000 square feet.  Unless your soil has really dried out, don’t water the fertilizer into the soil as is normally done, it should dissolve in contact with wet soil.
As long as the soil is wet, limit traffic on the lawn so that the soil doesn’t get compacted or rutted.  You may even have to let it get a little longer than usual before mowing. If you do, only take off a third of the grass blade on the first mowing.  If it needs to be shortened further wait a few days then mow again.  Keep the grass blades about 3½ inches long.  Never use a weighted roller on the lawn when it’s wet to “flatten” it.  This will cause serious soil compaction and limit the growth of grass roots. 
Trees and shrubs
Generally, trees and shrubs will take a few days of flooding, if they are not totally submerged, without problems.  Shrubs and small trees that are covered by water will probably die if the water doesn’t recede in 2-3 days.  Some species may be harmed after 24 hours of submergence.  Species of trees that typically grow in wet or bottom land areas such as willows, river birch, black gum, red maple, black ash, cottonwood, swamp oak and so on will generally have few problems with flooding. 
Some species of trees will not do well if the ground remains saturated or they are in standing water for more than a few days.  Redbuds, flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), sugar maple, white oak, hickory, pine, spruce, cedar, junipers, and most fruit trees are examples of trees which really suffer from wet feet.   If you cannot drain off the water around them you may expect a weakened or dead tree. 
Trees that have had their roots too wet for too long will often begin to wilt, or will fail to leaf out, or drop their leaves.  The symptoms are similar to being too dry, because the rotted roots cannot transport water to the rest of the tree.  Trees that survive may appear yellow or pale green.  Use a wait and see approach for trees and shrubs that have been flooded.  Give them a little time to recover before deciding they are dead.  They may take longer than normal to leaf out if they were not actively growing before the flood.
Fertilizing surviving trees may help them recover.  Many nutrients are washed out of flooded areas and damaged roots have a difficult time efficiently collecting nutrients that are left.  And this seems like its counterintuitive, but if the weather turns dry later in the season water the trees and shrubs because their damaged root systems may make them more susceptible to death from drought conditions.
Toppling trees
In water-soaked ground only a small amount of wind may topple trees, even large trees. One side of the root ball usually remains in the ground with the other tipped up out of the ground.  With smaller trees you can sometimes wench the tree upright and stake it, if you can find solid ground to put a stake in.  If done right away many of these trees will recover.
If the tree is large or there’s no way to stake it, you should remove the tree.  Some species of trees will continue growing with part of the roots in the ground, but they will never be healthy trees.  You could try cutting the trunk off a few feet above ground and then pushing the root ball back into the soil.  Some trees will the regenerate from the roots, but not all species do this, and it will be a long slow process.  Uprooted shrubs that are hard to stake might benefit from this.
Ornamental perennials
There are, of course, some perennials that like wet conditions.  But most common garden perennials, mums, daylilies, iris, poppies, sedums, hosta, roses, lavender, peonies and so on don’t like waterlogged soil or being submerged.  If you cannot drain water away from them you stand to lose many of them in just a few days.  You may want to wade into the water and lift your favorites right out of the ground.  Pot them somewhere drier and wait for better soil conditions to re-plant them.
As with trees and shrubs use a wait and see attitude with your perennials after the water goes down and give plants a little longer to break dormancy if they were dormant when flooded.  Some may recover slowly from just a bit of live root system that’s left.  And like lawns and trees fertilization of flooded perennials may speed recovery.
If you suspect that flooding may occur again you may want to replace the dead perennials with plants better suited to wet conditions or install a drainage system.  Plants that are called “rain garden” plants usually survive short periods of flooding or saturated soil.
Vegetables and small fruit
Some vegetables that are flooded can be replanted after the soil has dried to reasonably moist conditions.  (If the soil crumbles apart after you clench a fistful of it and then release your hand, it’s probably ready to plant.)  Most mature plants will not recover if they have been submerged a few days.
Perennial vegetables like rhubarb and asparagus may need to be replaced if they were submerged in water for more than 48 hours or if there is standing water or waterlogged soil for more than 3 days.
Strawberries that are flooded for more than 48 hours will probably die and need to be replaced.  Raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and grapes will not stand being submerged for more than 4 days in standing water, maybe less.  As with perennials if you can get the fruit plants out of the ground and hold them somewhere until the water drains you may save them.
Any fruit or vegetables that were in contact with flood water shouldn’t be eaten as they may be contaminated with soil borne disease bacteria.   Stay out of the garden until the soil has dried out to avoid compacting the soil.  Raised beds will help prevent flooded plants in the future if your garden is in a low spot. 
After a flood the gardener should assess the landscape to see how likely a future flood will be.  Drain tiles, ditches to carry off water, pump systems, raised beds, or moving gardens to higher ground should be considered.  Too much water is usually just as bad for plants as too little and there is generally less time to deal with the situation.  Planning ahead is your best insurance.
Apple Scones
This is a good treat for after school or good for breakfast too.  As soon as it cools enough to bake I’ll be making a batch. Scones are like dense cookies. This makes 16 scones.  They can be frozen after they cool.
Ingredients
2 cups flour
½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons apple pie spice
1 large apple peeled, cored and finely chopped- Granny Smith, Honeycrisp or McIntosh work well.
½ cup pecans, finely chopped (walnuts can be used)
2 eggs
1/3 cup cold butter, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons maple syrup (artificial is ok)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or a copper or Teflon non-stick sheet.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine dry ingredients with butter in a food processor or mixing bowl and blend until crumbly. 
Add apple pieces and pecans and blend well. 
Lightly beat 1 egg.  Add egg, milk, maple syrup and vanilla to dry mix and blend just until combined.  Don’t overmix.
Divide dough in two and pat each portion out on the cookie sheet in a circle shape about 8 inches across.
Beat the other egg with one tablespoon water.  Brush tops of dough with egg mixture. 
Bake dough until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 15 minutes.
Cool scones and then cut each circle into 8 wedges.
Scones are excellent served with butter or apple spice soft cream cheese.

I hope your holiday weekend is fun and safe!
Kim Willis

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Tuesday, August 21, 2018

August 21, 2018 Kim’s Weekly Garden Blog


Hi Gardeners
Dahlias
It’s raining as I write today, a beautiful soaking rain.  All the plants are perky looking.  I’ve got a jam-packed blog here for you today, courtesy of the rain.
The end of the garden bloom cycle is nearing.  The hardy hibiscus is in bloom and the toad lilies and anemones are about to bloom.  Goldenrod and heath asters are blooming.  My annuals are for the most part, still putting on a good show. Zinnias, cosmos, marigolds, tithonia, garden phlox, dahlias, 4 o clocks, morning glories, salvia and nicotiana are just some of the things blooming away.
The crocosemia, tuberose, and peacock orchids still haven’t bloomed, but I’m excited because my Hawaiian hibiscus now has buds.  I got it as a tiny twig and now it’s 6 feet tall. It will have white dangling flowers.  However, another “hibiscus” I got this spring, Abelmoschus moschatus, also called musk mallow, has not bloomed nor can I see buds yet and it’s nearly as tall.  It’s supposed to have seeds that were once used in perfume making, with a flowery musk scent.  It’s an annual plant so it better hurry up.
We got a few small ears of sweet corn from the garden this week, but that harvest is essentially over.  I am going to cut down the whole patch because smut is developing, and the remaining ears are underdeveloped from poor pollination.  Some people actually eat corn smut like they do mushrooms, but I am not one of them.
I have been sorting through catalogs looking at fall planted bulbs and trying to make a decision. I made an earlier order for lily bulbs and a new peony but now it’s time to decide on bulbs for my enlarged front garden.  I love tulips but so do deer and the last 2 years they ate more of them than I expected them to.  They don’t eat daffodils and narcissus and I really should concentrate on those for spring color. Plus, daffodils are more likely to return and multiply each year. But my eyes keep going back to those lovely tulips.
I like Colorblends- a large quantity bulb catalog that caters to professional gardeners.  They have so many lovely pre-blended mixes of tulips and other bulbs.  Their bulbs are huge and healthy and the quantity prices very reasonable.  I always say I’ll just make the minimum purchase but always go over that.  (catalog links page below.) http://gardeninggrannysgardenpages.blogspot.com/p/have-youreceived-any-garden-catalogs-in.html
There’s an advantage of sampling small amounts of various bulb cultivars from regular catalogs, you get to see a wide selection of blooms, but they cost more per bulb this way.  Bulbs do look better planted in drifts or clusters and 100 daffodils is much more spectacular than 10.  But then when you buy quantities of 100 you have to plant 100, and I always buy more than one type so that’s a lot of planting.  Decisions, decisions.
Did you try to ID the plant I posted in the plant ID article last week? 
The answer was its Allegany vine, Adlumia fungosa.  Here’s a link to more information on the plant; https://gardeninggrannysgardenpages.blogspot.com/p/alleganyvine-climbing-bleeding-hearts.html
Helping Tired annuals
Annuals in containers and baskets may not be looking their best at this time of the year.  Depending on where you live they may have 4-8 weeks or more of bloom time before a hard frost kills them.  Annuals may need some trimming and deadheading (removing dead flowers), to keep them looking nice, especially those in containers. If they are looking really straggly shear them back a bit – 1/3 to 2/3 of the stem length depending on what the plant looks like.  Give them some liquid fertilizer, keep them watered and hope for a quick reboot. 
Don’t forget to keep containers and baskets watered as we get into cooler weather- unless we have a lot of fall rain.  Sometimes plants in poorly draining containers can get waterlogged and the roots will rot as the weather gets cooler.  Water doesn’t evaporate moisture out of the pots as quickly as before.  But sometimes when it seems rainy and cool, pots and containers may actually be dry.  There may not have been enough rain to penetrate the foliage or it was shed over the side of the pot by mature leaves. Feel the soil in containers and baskets before watering.
Annuals in the ground should be at their best right about now, if you have been faithful watering them, and are probably carrying the color in the late summer garden.  It’s fine to give them a fertilizer boost now. You can also fertilize tropical blooming container plants like hibiscus or mandevilla that you plan on bringing inside for the winter or leaving to die with frost.  
However, don’t fertilize perennials in the garden, even late blooming ones, as this often causes new growth which won’t harden off properly for winter.  Don’t fertilize foliage houseplants summering outside now either. 
If things are looking really bad because of drought, neglect or disease it may be time to simply rip them out and take them to the compost pile.  If you still want color you can pop in some potted mums.  Some garden stores may have other things in bloom, like pansies or calendula that like cooler weather that you can plant.
If you plant those potted mums in the ground early, and keep them watered if it’s dry, you have a decent chance of them returning next year.  Do not cut back any dead foliage in late fall, wait until spring. If you see new growth in the spring you can carefully trim off the old foliage then.



Should you use landscape fabric?
When commercial landscapers install a landscape they often use landscape fabric under mulch.  Home gardeners are also using it- but is it a good idea in either case?  There are uses for landscape fabric in the home landscape but in many places it’s not a good idea to use this fabric.
Landscape fabric is usually some form of perforated plastic or woven fabric that is sold in rolls. The theory is that the perforations or gaps in the weave will allow water and air to pass through but prevent weeds from growing.  The fabric keeps various mulches from settling into the soil and disappearing.  (In this article we are not talking about the rolls of plastic mulch used for vegetable and fruit production.)
While it sounds like it would be very helpful, landscape fabric is often neither helpful or appropriate.  Anyone who has ever tried to garden in an area where old landscape fabric exists will tell you about the cursing that ensues when trying to move plants, plant things or even weed.  After a few years the plants have grown and the tiny holes in the fabric where they were once planted no longer allow the plants removal without cutting, digging and cursing.  Weeds have grown on top of the fabric- easy to pull- and into the fabric- terrible to pull. The soil is impossible to amend, and time has clogged those little holes in the fabric that once allowed water and air exchange.
If you go through the intensive effort to remove old landscape fabric to make changes to the landscape, you’ll find that the soil under the fabric is compacted. Air, water and nutrients have been excluded or limited for a while and the soil is not very healthy.  And if you look on top of the bed you’ll see that weeds are still able to grow.
Landscape fabric is appropriate under a path or drive that is intended to be long term.  It can be put under stone mulches or patio stones to keep them from working down into the soil, if nothing is being planted there.  It can be put under porches or low decks to help suppress weeds.  While some weeds will still grow they will be easy to pull if they are promptly removed.  Landscape fabric is not a good idea under patio stones if you want moss or other tiny plants to grow between them. 
Landscape fabric does not work well under organic mulches such as wood chips.  These will break down and form a layer of compost on top of the fabric in which weeds will grow quite well.  Some of weeds will put roots into the fabric and will be difficult to pull.
Landscape fabric is never appropriate in beds where plants will be installed.  Your weeding will not be substantially decreased, and the fabric doesn’t allow the soil surface to “breathe” well.  The soil microbiota needed for healthy soil will decline under the fabric.  After a time, water doesn’t flow well through the fabric, which deprives plants of moisture.
Mulch is generally used to cover the fabric because it’s not very appealing looking on its own.  Mulch generally breaks down and the organic matter enriches the soil, if there is no fabric beneath it.  As more mulch is added year after year a layer of compost develops on top that supports weed growth quite well.  The soil compacts beneath the fabric, which makes it harder for the roots of the plants planted through it to survive.  
Placing stone mulch over landscape fabric and then planting through it is not recommended either.  You’ll have the same problems, if not more, with soil health being affected, the soil being compacted, and even weeds growing into it.
Most gardeners like to move plants around and plant more things into the garden. Dead and diseased plants need to be taken out. This is difficult when there’s a layer of landscape fabric under everything. 
Then there’s the critter problem.  Landscape fabric makes a nice place for mice, voles and other things to create homes beneath.  They have no problem chewing access holes.  Snakes go under the fabric looking for the mice and voles, or to make their own home.  Insects and slugs also appreciate landscape fabric homes.
A good gardener should not place landscape fabric under planting areas. It has its place under areas that you don’t intend to plant in for a long time but other uses cause soil problems and make gardening harder, not easier.
Growing cucumbers

Cucumbers are a great crop for a small garden because one plant yields a lot and because they can be trained to grow up a trellis so they take up vertical, not horizontal space.  You can use them fresh or turn them into pickles for storage.  There are some bush type cucumbers that can also be grown in a pot. 

Common, (monoecious), cucumbers have both male and female flowers on the same plant. They are the most productive types for growing outside in the home garden where you want a long season of harvest. There are two main types of these cucumbers.  One has white spines and is the variety best for fresh use. They are usually long and narrow.  The other type has black spines and is usually shorter and fatter.  This is the best type for pickles.  But either type can be used either way.  Catalogs will often label them as slicers or pickling cukes. 

There are some odd cucumber varieties such as brown, white or reddish ones and some that form a round fruit.  Gherkins are not really a cucumber but a related species. Baby cukes are just cucumbers harvested when small.

Parthenocarpic type cucumber

There are special varieties of cukes that are better for greenhouse production.  Many of these are parthenocarpic, that is they produce fruit without being pollinated. They are seedless or nearly seedless but must be isolated from other types of cukes. They generally have long narrow fruits with thin skin and are used as slicing or fresh cukes.  The seed or the plants are more expensive than other cucumbers.

Gynoecious cucumbers are varieties that have been developed that have all or mostly female flowers. They usually produce most of their fruit at one time, which may be good if you want to make pickles. But they need to have a regular cucumber or two which have male flowers planted among them to get fruit.

Cucumbers are a vine crop. Vines can get 10 feet long in some cases and have white bumps along the stems.  The leaves are triangular.  The whole plant has a prickly, sticky feel.  The flowers are yellow and are either male or female in the normal monoecious garden cucumber.  Male flowers don’t produce fruit.  Female flowers have a small cuke attached at the back.  Male flowers without the baby attached usually begin to bloom first, but in suitable weather female flowers will shortly follow.  Cucumbers are insect pollinated but you only need one plant to get cucumbers. 

Cucumber fruits can be bumpy or smooth on the outside depending on variety.  They are usually dark green, with paler striping on some when immature.  They turn yellow, white or brown when ripe.

Cucumbers are a warm weather crop and should be planted after all danger of frost has passed in your area.  They grow quickly from seed and can be planted directly in the ground where they are to grow.  Some gardeners will start seeds inside earlier or buy transplants to set out.  Small transplants are better than larger ones at quickly establishing themselves.

Plant cucumbers in full sun.  For best fruit production they require even, consistent amounts of water, as a cucumber fruit is primarily water. You can fertilize with a garden fertilizer at planting, but it may not be necessary in good soil. Many people plant cucumbers in a mound of soil with 3-4 plants in a 2 feet diameter mound but planting them in rows is fine too.  Space plants about 12 inches apart. 

If you are going to use some kind of trellis for the cucumbers to climb put that in place when you plant them.  A piece of wire fence between two poles is a good trellis. The trellis can be at an angle or straight up and down.  You may have to help the young plants vining stems find a trellis in the beginning but after that they should not need to be tied up.

Cucumbers can also be allowed to sprawl on the ground.  This works best with mulch underneath the plants to keep the fruit clean.  Each plant will take up a good bit of room this way, at least 6 feet.

Harvest cucumbers when they are young and small for the best fresh, slicing cucumbers.  Pickling cucumbers can be allowed to get a little bigger. A little yellow on the bottom is ok.  Most cucumber fruits turn yellow when they are ripe, a few turn white.  You don’t want them to get to this stage.  They will have large seeds and the flavor is poor.  But do pick any yellow cucumbers you see and feed them to the chickens or put them in the compost pile.  If you leave them to finish ripening, it’s a signal to the plant to stop producing fruits.

The most common problem of cucumbers is powdery mildew.  In this fungal disease the leaves get grayish, fuzzy spots that turn into a coating.  Leaves then dry up and fall off. It’s most prevalent in warm, humid weather but can pop up at other times.  Plants stressed by lack of water but in humid conditions are often affected. Shaded leaves and older leaves show symptoms first. The plants may put out new leaves at the end of the vine and continue to set a few fruits, but they won’t produce well. 

Downy mildew is a worse problem because vines will rapidly die. It is more of a problem when the weather turns cool, wet and cloudy and later in the season. The leaves will get yellow angular spots on the top between leaf veins and fuzzy grayish brown to black spots on the underside, then the whole plant quickly dies.  This fungal disease will also spread to squash, melons and pumpkins.

Fungal diseases can’t be cured, only prevented. They are often blown in on the wind. To prevent powdery and downy mildew plant resistant varieties and use a garden fungicide through the season as the label directs. Don’t water in the evening and don’t crowd plants.  Home remedies of baking soda and milk are not effective at prevention and certainly not as a cure. Epsom salt does absolutely nothing and may harm plants further.

Cucumber beetles are a pest of cucumbers.  There are striped and spotted varieties. They are long beetles, usually yellow with black spots or stripes. The spotted cucumber beetle will feed on all kinds of plants, but the striped cucumber beetle usually sticks to cucumbers, melons and squash. 

Spotted cucumber beetles lay their eggs on the roots of grasses and corn and the larvae feed there. Only the adults eat the cucumber plant.  Striped cucumber beetles lay eggs at the base of cucumber plants and both adults and larvae feed on them.  Feeding by beetles stunts growth, they may eat flowers and reduce yield and the beetles can carry bacterial diseases.

Cucumber beetle control can be helped by mulching plants with straw, which encourages predator insects, or using reflective plastic mulch which repels them. Using a hand vac to suck up beetles can help. Don’t plant cucumbers in the same spot each year because the beetles can overwinter. Gardeners can also use garden insecticides according to label directions.

Cucumbers are rarely bothered by animal pests, unless you count chickens left to roam the garden.

Chinese foxglove- Rehmannia angulate or Rehmannia elata
I remember this lovely plant from my grandmother’s garden and I remember she was proud of it for some reason, maybe because it wasn’t common or hardy in her growing zone.  It turns out it used to be grown more frequently in gardens until about the 1960’s and it’s a shame gardeners aren’t growing it more often now. It has been grown in American gardens since at least 1830.  I was able to get a small plant from Select Seed this spring and I am very happy with the plant, which now, after a couple months, is large and producing lots of flowers.

Chinese foxglove
There are two scientific names floating around for the plant, Rehmannia elata is probably the most common. It’s called Chinese Foxglove (common name) because its native to China and the flowers somewhat resemble the common foxglove.  It’s related to Rehmanniae radix, an important herb in Chinese medicine.
Chinese foxglove is not related to the common garden foxglove many gardeners are familiar with. It has larger flowers and blooms much longer than regular foxglove.  The foliage stays green through summer and turns red in the fall in colder areas.  In zones 8 and above it’s evergreen and may bloom through the winter season.
This pretty plant has a basal rosette of foliage at first, then sends up blooming stalks with alternate leaves.  The leaves are rough textured with fine hairs and prominent veins.  They have an irregularly scalloped edge and grow up to 10 inches long.  Plants average 2-3 feet high with bloom stalks but can get to 5 feet high in perfect conditions.  Plants have rhizomes as roots and spread quickly in good conditions.  My small plant has numerous daughter plants in it’s first year of growth.
The flowers of Chinese foxglove are tubular, with a flared lip of 3 fused petals and dangle downward.  They are about 3 inches long.  Most are a rosy, peachy pink with a yellow throat dotted with carmine.  Some nurseries have developed strains with deeper pink flowers and there is a rare white variety that’s hard to find.  It must be started by cuttings. The plants are free blooming, with stalks of flowers from spring to frost.  Bees and hummingbirds are attracted to the flowers.
Chinese foxglove likes rich, moist, well-drained soil but is tolerant of most soil types.  In the north it will grow in full sun if kept well-watered.  My plants receive nearly full sun.  Above zone 7 it should in partial or dappled shade. It’s biggest drawback, that I can see, is that it’s not hardy in zone 6 and lower and in zone 7 must be heavily mulched.  I intend to save seed and also to try and overwinter a young plant on the unheated porch.
Rehmania elata is fairly easy to start from seed and will bloom the first year.  It should be started inside 8-10 weeks before your last frost.  The seeds need warm soil to germinate and should be lightly pressed into the soil because light is also needed for germination.  It’s important to keep the seeds evenly moist until germination.  Gardeners can find small plants from specialty nurseries on line but it’s uncommon to see them in many retail greenhouses in the northern states.
In zones 7 and higher where the plant is hardy it can spread quickly and make large clumps and some southern gardeners consider it invasive.  The plants can be divided and started from cuttings also.

Look at all the small plants coming up at the base
In the US this plant has few insect or disease problems.  Slugs are said to eat it, although they don’t normally prefer plants with rough leaves like it has so I am skeptical.  I have seen Japanese beetles on the plants but have noticed little damage.
While Chinese foxglove is related to a commercially important herbal plant, little is known about this species herbal value.  It has toxic properties though and should not be experimented with.  I would consider it poisonous. 

Downy Mildew in Impatiens Update

Almost every gardener has grown impatiens ( Impatiens walleriana) in a shady or semi-shady spot in the garden.  Impatiens is known for long lasting color in the garden or in containers and until recently had few insect and disease problems.  A few years ago however, a new disease for impatiens, downy mildew, was causing great concern for growers and gardeners alike.  For a while it was thought that gardeners would no longer to able to grow impatiens successfully in the garden and they nearly disappeared from retail stores.  But things have changed, and impatiens are back in garden stores.

But just because impatiens are for sale again doesn’t mean the problem has totally went away.  The key to success is having growers treat impatiens in the greenhouse with certain fungicides.  If done correctly they will protect the plants after they leave the greenhouse until the growing season nears its end.  Plants that are resistant to downy mildew have also been developed.

But gardeners who start their own seeds and small greenhouses which want to remain organic or who don’t treat plants because of other reasons may still produce plants susceptible to the disease.  The disease can pop up at  any time of the season in plants that haven’t been protected by fungicide treatments in the greenhouse.  So, gardeners should be aware of the disease and what to look for.

Impatiens downy mildew, Plasmopara obducens, is a fungal disease that prefers cool, moist conditions.  Heavy dews and high humidity favor its spread.  It can spread by windborne fungal spores or by contact.  Gardeners can carry the fungal spores on their hands, clothes and tools.  You can bring it home from the nursery or it can turn up in your garden later, blown in on the wind.  Once it starts downy mildew kills your impatiens plants in a few weeks.  Once a plant gets downy mildew it can’t be cured.

Many other garden plants have problems with downy mildew, but each species of plant has their own forms of downy mildew and usually the downy mildew on one type of plant will not infect other types of plants.  Impatiens downy mildew will infect garden balsam, a close relative, and some wild impatiens species, but not cucumbers or roses for example. New Guinea impatiens and some new hybrid species of impatiens are very resistant to impatiens downy mildew.

Symptoms of downy mildew in impatiens

Gardeners should examine their impatiens plantings every few days, especially when the weather is cool and damp. It often occurs late in the growing season and even treated plants may succumb to the disease if the season is long. Here are the symptoms of impatiens downy mildew.

Stippled (little spots) upper surfaces of leaves
Yellowing leaves
Curling leaf edges
Wilted look
Dropping leaves and flowers,
Bare stems
Stunted look
White, fuzzy coating on the underside of leaves

The white fuzzy coating is fungal spores and they are not always present, especially if the weather has turned warm and dry.  But when the plants do have spores it is a good diagnostic sign.  You can rub off this coating with your fingers.

What to do when you find impatiens downy mildew

When the symptoms of downy mildew show up the plants infected, and those on either side, even if they look fine, should be pulled up. Plants cannot be successfully treated once the disease starts.  Try to get all roots and don’t leave any leaves or stems behind that break off.  Put the plants in plastic bags and tie them for safe disposal.  Do not put them in the compost pile or leave them lying on the ground.  Keep a close watch on the rest of the plants.  You can plant an alternative species such as coleus in the spot where you pulled out the impatiens but don’t re-plant impatiens plants.

One unfortunate thing about downy mildew is that it also produces a special type of spore that over winters in plant stems and roots and then it will re-infect new plants planted in the spring.  Once it settles in the soil and garden debris it can be in the garden for a long time.  At the close of the season gardeners should remove all impatiens plants, including the roots, even if they did not seem infected.  Put these plants and parts in plastic bags to dispose of them and do not compost them. 

Other things to help prevent impatiens downy mildew are listed below.

Inspect plants carefully before buying them.  Don’t buy plants that have any of the symptoms above.

Wait until the weather is warm and settled before planting impatiens.

Don’t water or irrigate in the evening, make sure plants dry off before nightfall.

Try to avoid overhead watering if you can, use trickle irrigation at the roots or water containers so that you don’t wet the foliage.

You may want to avoid mulch around impatiens as it can keep the soil surface moist and favorable for fungal spore survival.

Make sure to remove all impatiens plant parts, including roots, when frost has killed the plants, or you are ready to clean up the garden for winter. 

If you had downy mildew this year you will want to avoid planting impatiens in that spot next year.  Chose other plants such as coleus, begonias, or vinca for planting in the spot.  If the infected plants were in a container remove all the soil and dispose of it. Then wash the container inside and out with hot soapy water and re-fill it with clean potting mix.

Home gardeners who think their plants aren’t treated or are starting their own seeds might try protecting the plants using any garden fungicide registered for other flowers, although some products may not protect impatiens from downy mildew. The protection needs to start in the greenhouse or when home gardeners start seeds indoors or as soon as you bring transplants home.  Downy mildew and powdery mildew are two separate diseases and products that work for powdery mildew may not work for downy mildew.

If you love impatiens and like to use them for color in the shade, consider buying your plants from a greenhouse that treats the plants with protective fungicides. Most large wholesale growers that furnish plants to the big retail stores will probably be using fungicides.  Most knowledgeable local greenhouses will also treat plants, since problems with the disease can begin in the greenhouse and cost them money. 

Gardeners should realize that treated plants may still develop the disease at the end of the season, and if they do the procedures listed earlier in the article should be followed.  It still may be a good idea for gardeners to use impatiens in small quantities and rotate flowering species as bedding plants from year to year.

There’s no information on whether the fungicides affect pollinators after the plants leave the greenhouse, but impatiens aren’t heavily visited by pollinators in the garden anyway.  Fungicides are generally not as harmful to insects as other pesticides, but experts are still trying to determine what effect the various fungicides have on pollinators.  One thing is sure though, homemade concoctions like baking soda, milk, – or worse Epsom salts, will not prevent or cure downy mildew and may be harmful to pollinators also.

More reading on impatiens downy mildew

Making ice cream the fun way

Do you have kids at home who are bored waiting for school to start?  Need a fun project for camping?  Here’s a way to keep kids entertained that doesn’t cost much.  Kids love making their own individual serving of ice cream and even the small ones can be successful. It’s quick enough to hold their attention too. Here’s the plan.

You’ll need;

Heavy cream or half and half- plan on at least a cup per child, older children may want more

1 tablespoon sugar

Vanilla flavoring (other flavors can be used too, like maple or lemon)

Quart sized freezer bags- they must be zip lock or snap lock, not tie bags

Gallon sized freezer bags, zip lock or snaplock

Coarse salt, rock salt can be used but coarse sea salt or canning salt can be used and is easier to find this time of the year.

Ice, small cubes or coarsely broken chips are best, crushed can be used

Here’s what to do;

In the quart sized bag put up to 2 cups of cream, sugar and a ½ teaspoon of flavoring per cup of cream.  Tightly close the bag.  I always give each child their own bag.

Put the quart bag inside a gallon size bag.  Fill the space around the smaller bag with ice.   Add about a ¼ cup of the salt to the ice.  Close the gallon bag tightly.

Now have the children shake and flip their bag.  Tell them to make sure they don’t break open the inner bag with the cream, but any shaking and flipping otherwise is fine. They can do a happy dance holding it or simply sit and flip the bag over and over.  In about 5 minutes they’ll have a delicious serving of ice cream that they made themselves. When the ice cream seems firm enough remove the smaller bag and wipe off the salt water before opening it.  Provide a spoon and let them enjoy!


The very enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.

John F. Kennedy


Kim Willis

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