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Tuesday, April 30, 2019

April 30,2019


Hi Gardeners


Unlike some of you in the north country we didn’t get snow last weekend. But it did get down to freezing Sunday morning early, then it turned into a beautiful, sunny spring day.  That was nice because yesterday and today its been cloudy, chilly and rainy and it’s looking like rain is forecast every day for the rest of the week. There better be some pretty spectacular May flowers after all this April rain.

Flowers are beginning to bloom despite of the rain and chill.  I have hyacinths, grape hyacinths, windflowers, daffodils, early tulips, pansies, corydalis, and creeping phlox in bloom. Violets and ground ivy are blooming. The trilliums are about ready to bloom. The apricot tree and the honeyberry are in bloom. The clove current will be blooming in just a few days.  Rhubarb is almost ready to harvest.

The roses are leafing out as are the maples, willows, poplars, honeysuckle and barberry. A green glow is spreading through the landscape. I have seen butterflies and a few bumble bees but still no hummingbirds or orioles.  There are baby kittens in the barn, though so I know its spring now.

The spring rush is beginning, so much work to do in the gardens.  Good bye housework.  I got my two little water features up and the pumps running, those little solar pumps are amazing.  Still too cold to plant anything in the water though. I’ve been pruning roses and transplanting some daylilies and we have had to mow some areas between the rain showers.

Instead of starting my dahlias in pots this year I am going to plant them directly in the ground, hopefully next weekend. I plan to cover each tuber planted with a plastic dome. I’ve been saving various deli-type containers for this project.  I’m putting a few holes in them for heat to escape.  I am still working out how to anchor the domes.  Maybe I will slide them over the stake I put in by each tuber.
I’ll also be seeding some annual flowers next weekend, weather permitting.  I see some have reseeded themselves in my butterfly/cutting bed, but I wanted to add some different colors and types of flowers. They’ll be covered with my inverted v’s of fencing to keep the cats and chickens away.

And weeding- there’s always weeding, just like there are always dishes to wash.  And just like having dishes to wash means you have something to eat, weeding means you are lucky enough to have a garden.

Saturday, May 4th is World Naked Gardening day.  It’s celebrated on the first Saturday in May, although some people are advocating for it to be changed to the last weekend in October.  I’m sorry but it’s just too darned cold here in early May to go out naked and late October isn’t much better.  If I am to partake of this special day it better be moved to the first Saturday in August, when I might just be tempted to go out naked to the garden- after dark of course.

May Day and a special drink recipe

Tomorrow is May day.  The dance around the Maypole was once a pagan courtship ritual, and a celebration of fertility. Nature is deep in the cycle of courtship, nesting, birth and growth in early May. Renewal is everywhere. May day is when it was traditional in many European cultures for young men and women to choose dating partners. It’s warm enough to sneak away to the woods for a bit of afternoon delight.

Many marriages were also performed on the May first. Wreaths of flowers and baskets of goodies were once left on the door step of people you loved or admired. Wine was flavored with sweet woodruff flowers or in some places mugwort as a special drink to celebrate May. 

Here’s the recipe for May Wine.  It uses strawberries and sweet woodruff flowers. Sweet woodruff has a vanilla like taste. In my area neither of these are available locally yet but they may be available by you.  If not save the recipe.  A children’s or non-alcoholic version can be made using sparkling water and white grape juice.  Go light on the sweet woodruff for kids.

Ingredients- adult version
1 bottle Riesling wine (or any white wine)
1 bottle champagne
1 pint of sweet woodruff leaves and flowers, washed
1 pint of strawberries, washed and sliced

Directions

Remove the sweet woodruff flowers and set aside.  With a rolling pin or other heavy object crush the sweet woodruff leaves and then place them in a large bowl.

Pour the wine over the leaves and let it sit for 1-2 hours.  The longer it sits the stronger the sweet woodruff taste gets.  You may want to start with an hour and see how you like the taste.

Strain the wine mixture to remove the herb pieces. Pour strained wine into a punch bowl.

Next add the champagne, then the sliced strawberries.

Garnish with the sweet woodruff flowers.

A caution- Go easy with the sweet woodruff.  In large quantities it can cause vomiting and headaches.  (So does just drinking too much wine and champagne.)  People on blood thinners should not consume sweet woodruff, as it contains coumadin.

Sweet woodruff in bloom

Weeding as therapy

New gardeners are constantly asking “what can I put on my garden to kill weeds that won’t harm my plants”.  They are always disappointed to learn there’s nothing magical you can spray on a garden that will selectively remove plants you don’t like while leaving those you do.  While some pesticides do target either monocots or dicots it’s a rare garden that doesn’t have some of both. 

The best answer to the weed problem is to simply pull the unwanted plants. Before you sigh and complain about all that work try to change your thinking about weeding to make the time you spend on it become valuable therapy. Yes therapy, something all of us need from time to time.  Yes, you may be a very busy person, torn between work, parenting, and household chores but what better way to carve out some personal time than to get outside in the garden and do some weeding?

While weeding you can justify being alone outside, listening to nature and your own thoughts. (Parents of small children may need to make them nap or go to bed.) Pulling and digging weeds is mild exercise, enough to get those endorphins working and relaxing you.  The smell of the earth and flowers calms and refreshes you.  Weeding is an escape from real life.

If you are frustrated and angry take it out on the weeds, ripping and chopping them from the garden will quickly dispel some of the anger. Think of that dandelion as your boss as you pull and toss it.  You are in control here, deciding what goes and stays. 

If you need to cry, take it to the garden.  Let the rhythm of weeding and the sounds of nature sooth you.  Plants don’t judge and they don’t gossip. Pour your heart out to them, they’ll listen without comment.

If you need to think clearly and do some planning, go to the garden and do some weeding. Weeding keeps your hands busy but lets your brain do its own work.  Weeding stimulates creativity and encourages deep thinking.  All the clutter of conflicting thoughts begins to sort itself into what’s important and what’s not.

If you are bored and lonely, go do some weeding.  Weeding will give you a sense of accomplishment and pride.  You may be alone, except for the birds and bunnies, but soon you won’t feel lonely. And having that neat, weeded garden may encourage you to invite others into it.

If you are tired and depressed and feeling overwhelmed, get yourself to the garden and do some weeding.  Weeding can let you decompress from a busy day, taking you from frenetic activity to a slower calmer pace.  Being in nature lifts the spirits and makes you feel less pain, it’s a proven fact.  And fresh air and exercise will make you sleep better, and sleep cures many things. 

Don’t look at weeding as work, look at it as garden yoga or nature therapy.  Put on comfortable clothes, take off your bra if that is applicable. Put on mosquito spray so you won’t feel assaulted. Turn off the phone, no one leaves their phone on during therapy.  Forget housework, housework will always be there.  Put the needs of your kids and significant other on hold for just an hour or two.  Weeding is therapy time for you and therapy time is vital. You’ll be a better person when you return from weeding the garden.



Is Organic fertilizer better?

When you have a headache do you go out to find some willow bark and brew a tea from it or do you open a bottle of aspirin and take some?  If the doctor tells you that you are iron deficient do you blend up some liver and drink it raw or do you buy an iron supplement?  Do you take a daily vitamin?

Some of you may opt for willow bark and raw liver but the majority of us will trust the aspirin and iron supplement to help supply our needs. That’s why it’s hard to understand why gardeners are so distrustful of commercial fertilizers and insist on only organic fertilizers.

Commercial “chemical” fertilizers are simply plant nutrients created in a factory by combining chemicals just as aspirin is a synthetic version of willow bark.  The nutrients are exactly the same when they are taken up by the plant roots and help the plant in the same way whether they come from a “natural” source or a “chemical” source.  Plants cannot tell the difference between organic and synthetic sources of nutrients, just people.

Natural or organic is defined in a number of ways. Organic technically means there is carbon in the product, but in general use it is meant to signify a product that came from something once living. Manure, blood meal, bone meal, and seaweed are generally things people consider organic fertilizers.  Bone meal and blood meal aren’t complete fertilizers. Blood meal furnishes mostly nitrogen and bone meal furnishes phosphorus and calcium. Compost is not fertilizer, although it can add some nutrients to soil. 

Other things like coffee grounds, Epsom salt, banana peels, wood ashes and egg shells are also considered to be organic fertilizers although they aren’t very good sources of plant nutrients and usually supply only one nutrient.  In the case of Epsom salts that nutrient (magnesium) usually isn’t needed and can be harmful if too much is used.  The calcium in eggshells is released very slowly, over years and won’t quickly fix a calcium deficiency, if one even exists.  These things are best added to the compost pile, except for Epsom salt, which just shouldn’t be used, period.

There are both good and bad things about both chemical and organic fertilizers. Both are equally bad for the environment if they are applied when they aren’t needed and/or allowed to run off into surface waters or seep down into ground water.  Organic fertilizers can be even more dangerous than chemical fertilizers as a pollution source because they can harbor organisms that cause illness such as E.coli and salmonellosis.  In fact, organic fertilizers such as manure are generally the cause of food borne illness outbreaks caused by consuming fresh fruits and vegetables.

Chemical fertilizers are less bulky than organic fertilizers.  It will take several inches of manure to equal the nutrient value of a sprinkle of commercial fertilizer.  It’s hard to store organic fertilizers correctly but relatively easy to store commercial fertilizers, and they take up far less space in storage.

All fertilizers have some odor, but organic fertilizers can make your neighbors very unhappy. Manure is of course, the worse offender, but rotting seaweed and bloodmeal or bone meal that get wet are also smelly.  Organic fertilizers may have restricted times when they can/should be applied, most should not be placed on soil growing food crops after the crops are planted. No fertilizers should be placed on frozen ground.

But the biggest drawback to organic sources of plant nutrients such as manure or sea weed is that you don’t know what you are getting. Commercial fertilizer products let you know exactly what plant nutrients you are getting and in what ratio.  You can calculate exactly how much to use to get the most benefit, especially if you have had a soil test to work with. Using natural products is always a guessing game, unless you have expensive testing of the matter done. 
Manure is a lot of work

Organic materials can also be contaminated with undesirable things like arsenic, lead or pesticides. Banana peels are often loaded with pesticides. Some manure is contaminated with herbicides that animals have consumed with pasture or hay and which remain active in their manure. Weed seeds are often brought into gardens with organic fertilizers.   

Natural products like manure vary wildly in actual nutrient content right from the beginning. One batch of cow manure does not have the same nutrient content of the next. Most manure cannot be applied fresh as it will burn plants but how long it needs to be aged is a guess.  These products lose nutrients rapidly and if they are aged too long their only worth is as soil organic matter. Chemical fertilizers and blood meal can also burn plants if too much is applied.

The one benefit of bulky organic fertilizers like manure and seaweed is that they do add organic matter to the soil, which feeds soil microbes, improves soil structure and aids in retaining soil moisture.  Compost is almost always good to add to soil even though it doesn’t furnish a lot of nutrients and its nutrient content also varies.  Compost can and should be added to gardens if you use commercial fertilizers to help improve the soil. 

Organic fertilizers may add micro-nutrients that commercial fertilizers are missing.  However, some commercial fertilizers are now adding micro-nutrients and like the major nutrients the amount and type of minor nutrients are on the bag and you know what you are getting. And with “raw” organic fertilizers you never know what micronutrients are actually in it.

A drawback of commercial fertilizers is that they are almost always somewhat acidic.  Over time that can lead to acidic soil that may not allow plants to take up some nutrients, especially if the soil tended to be on the acidic side naturally. It is not usually a major problem in home gardens though. If a soil test indicates the soil is too acidic, lime can usually correct the pH.

Many manufacturers now make fertilizers labeled organic that are in bags and which have been tested and labeled as to their nutrient contents.  They are generally a bit more expensive than chemical derived fertilizers but they are a good alternative for those who like organic products but who also like to know what nutrients they are adding and prefer products with convenient storage and handling features.

Remember all plants don’t need fertilizer if they are in good soil, just like we may not need a daily vitamin if we eat a healthy diet.  Fertilizer isn’t plant food, because plants manufacture their own food.  Fertilizer replaces some soil nutrients plants need to make food and stay healthy that may get used up over time.  What nutrients get depleted depends on the soil type and how the plants in question use those nutrients.  A soil test is always wise before adding fertilizer.
 
So, are organic fertilizers or chemical fertilizers better for plants?  Plants don’t care how they get their nutrients. It’s you, the human caretaker that must weigh the pros and cons and decide what form of fertilizer to use.  Hopefully you will base your decisions on science and not myths.  It’s my firm opinion that neither type of fertilizer is better, just use what the plant needs and what you can easily obtain and  get it done.

Leave the babies alone

It’s the time of year when gardeners may come upon baby animals and birds as they go about their work. There may be a fawn in the shrubbery or a nest where you want to prune. There may be a nest in the pumpkin patch or planter. You may find a nest when mowing, hopefully before it’s mown over. What you do when you encounter these babies can make a difference as to whether they live or die.  Although it may go against our instincts to help the helpless, leaving these babies alone is usually the best thing you can do for them.

Many animals such as deer, rabbits and most birds do not remain with their babies constantly, so not seeing parents around is not a sign the babies are abandoned.  Deer leave young fawns in a protected spot except for a few times a day when they come to nurse them. Rabbits also leave their bunnies alone in the nest for most of the day.  Other animals may generally stay with their young but may leave them alone from time to time to hunt for food.  Some animals leave their young when humans approach hoping to draw attention away from them.

Many species of birds need to be on the go constantly looking for feed for their nestlings and won’t be present when you find a nest.  Other birds will leave a nest or babies on the ground to try and draw you away from them.   Birds encourage fledglings to disperse, so that animals are less likely to find all of them. That’s why you may find one that appears to be separated from its siblings and parents. Leave it alone unless it is in danger.

When you find babies, or a nest do not handle them if possible.  It’s a myth that human scent will make parents abandon their babies but handling babies may hurt them or draw attention to them from other hungry animals. Most of these babies have very little natural scent and nests are designed to blend with the surroundings. Human scent may draw predators or disturbing the location may make it more visible to predators.  Don’t leave food or try to feed the babies.  The scent may attract predators.

Baby groundhogs
wikimedia

Don’t pet babies because they are cute or pick them up to get pictures with them. This can be harmful to both you and the baby and could be illegal in some cases.  That selfie with the baby fawn might get you a big fine but if a fawn bleats when you handle it, its mom may rush out of hiding to defend it and she can do some damage. The selfie with the bear cub might get you killed.  Taking pictures without touching is fine, if it’s done quickly and then the babies are left alone.

Children should be taught not to pick up baby animals or birds they find but to notify an adult if they think the creature needs help.  Children can be harmed by baby animals or their parents and they can also get diseases or fleas and ticks from some animals.  They may harm babies unintentionally and may not remember where the baby was found if they move it.

If pets were with you when the babies were found, make sure they cannot get back to the nest or babies when you are not there. If your kids are with you don’t let them hold the babies, no matter how cute they think they are and tell them they are not to show or tell friends where the baby is.

Sometimes a baby or babies must be moved to save them from the mower, traffic, pets, or other harm.  In this case don’t worry about your scent on them.  Even a baby taken from a dog is not likely to be abandoned by its parents if it isn’t harmed.  Cats almost always harm babies if they find them so in this case other things must be done, and I’ll discuss that later.

A fawn can be moved if a dog or kids have found it or it’s in some other danger, to a safe place for a few hours and then returned to the spot it was found or close by it when the danger is over.  Make sure it’s there by early evening. Leave it alone in that safe spot while waiting to return it and don’t handle it any more than necessary.  This is not the time for the kids to bring their friends over and everyone get a selfie with the fawn.  A young fawn will usually settle down quickly where you put it if it is healthy and not an orphan.

When babies must be moved move them only to the closest spot that they will be safe.  If you were going to mow or prune where a nest or baby is, consider just leaving a patch of vegetation around the nest or baby.  It/they will probably be gone in a few days and you can mow or prune. If you did mow over the nest and the babies or eggs aren’t harmed just leave it.  You may want to lightly cover the nest with some pulled weeds or branches for shade and camouflage.

Mothers can usually find their babies/eggs if they are near where they left them. Animals may move the babies if they are disturbed and I have even seen birds roll eggs to a better spot. Babies are rarely abandoned if disturbed but eggs may be.

Baby birds can be returned to a nest if they fell out, or a whole nest returned to a spot near where it came from.  Fledglings, baby birds just starting to fly, should be put in a tree or other high spot away from pets and children, but near where you found them.  The parents will return and care for them.

Baby birds that are like chicks (called precocious) and running around on the ground should be placed on the ground near where they were found if you know the parent is somewhere nearby.  They will call and the parent will answer if they are nearby.  Leave if this happens so they can reunite. If no parent answers the calls after fifteen minutes or so, you may want to take the babies to a wildlife rescue.
 
Baby ducks and geese should not be returned to water unless you see the parent there with other ducklings.  Some ducks and geese will accept babies from other parents if they are about the size of their own but try to reunite these babies with their own parent.  If a parent or potential foster parent can’t be seen, you may want to bring the babies to a wildlife rescue. Baby ducks and goslings can’t survive well in water on their own.

When a cat gets a bird or animal and the skin is punctured either from a tooth or nail, the animal or bird will almost always die of infection without treatment, even if the damage is minor.  These babies require a decision, taking them to a rescue or vet for treatment or destroying them humanely.  Do not place them back in nests or release them if you care about them living.

Injured babies and babies you are certain are orphans should always be brought to a wildlife rescue.  How can you be sure they are an orphan?  Experts estimate about two-thirds of baby animals thought to be orphans and brought to rescues weren’t orphans.  When babies are moved far from where they were found it may be impossible to return them to their poor mom. 

If you find babies leave them alone.  Careful observation from a distance may reveal parents or it may not, even if they are there.  If the babies do not appear to be in distress check on them the next day. If they still seem fine leave them alone, if they are gone, problem solved.  A fawn is usually moved to a new resting spot every day or two by its mom but may stay in the general area for days.  Twin or triplet fawns are usually hidden in several different places, so if you find one there may be others nearby.

Baby animals that are true orphans may cry and make food seeking movements when found. Baby animals that remain still or try to escape are usually not abandoned. Baby birds may do this too, but it usually just means they are responding automatically to stimuli resembling a parent’s return to the nest and doesn’t mean they are abandoned.

Baby animals may feel cold and shiver if abandoned, but trembling can also be from fear. They may be found wandering aimlessly and crying and be less afraid of humans than normal. If they are too young to be out of a nest or den naturally it’s a good sign the parent is missing, but this can also be a sign of disease. Fawns that are really orphans may cry and follow pets, farm animals or humans.  Ones that stay still when you find them are rarely orphans.
Do not try to raise baby wildlife unless you are trained and licensed. Baby animals and birds can carry disease and parasites.  They may have exacting needs you don’t know about or can’t provide. It’s not as simple as pushing worms down a baby birds throat or giving a bottle of milk to a baby bunny.  You have to know the right formula to feed and how often, and what assistance the baby needs for elimination for example.  Babies must also be raised so that they are not too dependent on and attached to people so they can be returned to the wild.

Baby animals like raccoons can make adorable pets when young but can turn aggressive and dangerous as they become mature.  In fact, baby coons are notorious for this.  Even fawns have been known to turn on people who raised them.  Hand raised babies have no fear of humans which can put their lives in danger when they can’t be kept as pets any longer and are released into the wild.

It is also illegal to keep most types of wildlife and native birds as pets, even if you are just trying to save a baby. Wildlife belongs to the state, even if it was found on your property, that is the law. No one may care if you keep a baby starling, but if you keep a baby owl you may be in for a big fine.

Call your local animal welfare shelter or animal control if you cannot find a wildlife rehab/rescue.  The DNR office may also be able to refer you to one.  Some rescues specialize in certain animal’s, but they generally know where to refer you with a species they don’t accept. Most vet offices won’t take abandoned wildlife although some may treat injured babies.  Zoos and pet stores also rarely accept baby wildlife.

Wild babies are cute, but they are the safest when observed and not touched.  Babies are always best raised by mom, as she teaches them what they need to know to survive in the wild. Leave those babies alone.



Shoots and sprouts ID continued

If you are trying to identify what’s coming up in your yard take a look at these pictures.  You may want to look at the last 2 blog posts also for additional pictures.  Click on pictures to enlarge them.

Jacobs ladder in center, some Jacobs Ladders have purple
or solid green foliage

Astilbe, some astilbe have more green to the leaves

Lamium can be golden variegated too or purplish


These are red violets, most violet flowers are blue or purple

Garden phlox

Canadian or wild ginger

Asiatic lilies center

windflowers

Trillium


“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.”
— Margaret Atwood

Kim Willis

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And So On….

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I write this because I love to share with other gardeners some of the things I come across in my research each week (or things I want to talk about). It keeps me engaged with people and horticulture. It’s a hobby, basically. I hope you enjoy it. If you are on my mailing list and at any time you don’t wish to receive these emails just let me know. If you or anyone you know who would like to receive a notification by email when a new blog is published have them send their email address to me.  KimWillis151@gmail.com


Tuesday, April 23, 2019

April 23, 2019


Hi Gardeners
Sarracenia 'Judith Hindle'

Yesterday was a beautiful warm sunny day after last weeks cool rainy weather and the warmth was most welcome.   I thought I could accomplish a lot outside, but the wind was terrible. I hear and read about a lot of people complaining that we have more wind than we used to have, and I’m inclined to believe them, although I haven’t looked up any statistics. Two tasks I had planned to do were to put up some camouflage netting to hide my garbage cans and to cut down the dead bamboo stems from last year.

When spring comes, we move our trash cans from up close by the back door to out further in the yard, behind my water feature.  Until the plants grow up behind the water feature the trash cans spoil the view.  So, the last few years I had this flimsy reed fence that hide the cans.  It composted itself this past winter. I purchased something called woodland camouflage netting that I intended to suspend from posts to hide the cans. 

I got the posts up just fine put trying to stretch the netting out in the wind was an exasperating effort I eventually gave up on.  It was so lightweight it blew into everything nearby and the netting caught on it and had to be untangled.   And I knew from past experience that if I started cutting that bamboo when it was so windy it would end up at various neighbor’s homes.  It is so light that it literally flies in the wind.  Once the dry leaves are stripped off the canes don’t fly but it takes more time to do that as you cut them down instead of later.

So yesterday I decided to just do some cleanup and transplanting.  I worked on cleaning up my water feature, which is a disguised horse tank, and checking out my solar pumps.  I had forgotten about the little pump in the tank in the fall and it got frozen under the ice all winter.  I didn’t expect it to work but it did, and quite well too. So did the floating solar pump from the tiny water feature in the front yard, which I had remembered to bring inside.  I love those solar pumps. 

I transplanted some daylily divisions from a back flower bed to my new beds in front and in the process had another frustrating experience.  I lost my favorite hand trowel.  I was sitting on the ground using it to dig holes in the soil near the edge of the new bed.  When I started to get up to move to another part of the bed, I looked for the trowel immediately and couldn’t find it.  It was right there. I had just used it.  Tell me how it could have disappeared. 

I sat there for 15 minutes feeling around for it as there is some leaf litter and mulch in that area. No dice. I went back after I used an old trowel to plant the rest of the tubers, still no trowel.  There was no one else around, even the dog was inside. I even dumped out the mud in the bottom of the bucket the daylilies were in. I went out this morning and looked again.  Can’t find it.

I tell people all the time to paint the handles of tools a bright color.  It used to have a bright color on it, but it has worn off.  It will probably show up eventually but it sure is a mystery.  Has that ever happened to you?

But I am glad I got out in the sun yesterday since today its cloudy, rainy and cooler.  And we still have that awful wind.  Things are really starting to bloom though.  The early daffodils and species tulips are blooming as the larger crocus are finishing up.  Corydalis, hyacinth and grape hyacinths are blooming, and I see the trilliums and wild ginger coming up.  The barberry by the barn has leafed out and I see leaf buds breaking and flowers on many types of trees. The grass is very green, and my husband got the mowers running Sunday and mowed a little.

Saturday it was pouring rain here, but I went to the local greenhouse anyway and bought a flat of pansies, which I planted Sunday.  I made some hanging baskets and planted some in various bare spots around the front garden.  I do love pansies and it’s really hard for me to pick which colors and types I want.  It was a bit easier this spring because I only picked from those displayed under the awning at the greenhouse so I wouldn’t get drenched.



But while at the greenhouse I did have to look at the other plants inside.  I saw many things I liked but decided to let the greenhouse care for them for a couple more weeks.  Even the perennials were a little too developed to plant now without worrying about cold damage.  But back at the water plant display I did see something that I decided I must have now.  It was a pitcher plant, a Sarracenia hybrid named ‘Judith Hindle’.  There were only 2 of them so I snatched one up.  It will stay inside under grow lights for a few more weeks, then I hope to put it in one of my little ponds in shallow water.  It’s not winter hardy here so it will remain potted. ( See Photo above)

Since it’s not real nice outside I did write quite a bit this week – hope you have time to read further.

Have you put your hummingbird feeders out?

I put one hummingbird feeder out this weekend when I read that hummers have been seen in Michigan. The rest are washed, and I made up a batch of sugar water and froze it.  When I see the first hummers approach the one feeder, I can quickly thaw my nectar and fill the others. I always make large batches of nectar up and freeze it for quick refills.

It’s been proven that hummingbirds return to areas where they fed at nectar feeders the previous year.  Put your feeders in the same location each year so they can quickly find them.  Take any yellow bee guards off feeder ports and paint over any yellow around the feeder ports as yellow color attracts bees.  You could paint those guards red and re-install them.



But hummingbirds do not need red nectar or even a lot of red color to find and use your feeder.  Skip the dyed nectar.  The best sugar solution for hummers is simply white sugar and water.  Bringing the water to a boil and stirring the sugar into it to dissolve it destroys some microbes and makes the solution last longer before molding.  Use 1-part sugar to either 3 or 4 parts water.  Different “experts” have different recipes that they offer. 

Many flowers have nectar that has sugar content that is more like 2 or 3 parts sugar to water so I don’t think a stronger solution will hurt hummers. I use the 3 parts water to 1-part sugar recipe.   Hummers use the sugar water for energy to catch insects. 

Discard sugar solutions that aren’t used after 3-4 days and refill the feeder.  I seldom have to worry about nectar getting old.  Keep your feeders clean, the mold that sometimes grows on the feeders actually doesn’t harm the hummers, but its presence indicates that other harmful microbes could be present.  If the nectar starts smelling like wine, it’s also time to replace it.

If you are putting up your first hummingbird feeder you may want to use a bright red artificial flower on the pole or top of the feeder.  After they find the feeder you can remove it.  Feeders should have some red on them, but it doesn’t need to be a lot. There are all kinds of feeders, make sure the ones you chose are easy to fill, because that’s the important feature.  I don’t think it matters how many ports a feeder has because more than one hummingbird rarely feeds at the same feeder at the same time.

Place several feeders around your garden but put them at least ten feet apart.  The birds will still fight and protect feeders, hummingbirds are not social creatures, but more birds will get a chance to feed and not be driven away by a dominant bird.

Ants and bees will find your feeders.  Do not put anything greasy like Vaseline on feeders or poles to strop ants as this can harm the hummers if it gets on them. Water moats can be used at the bottom of poles to prevent ants.  I don’t think there is any way to totally keep bees and wasps away from a hummingbird feeder.  Cover any yellow on the feeder as it attracts them, but they will eventually find the feeder. Keep feeders away from the house or sitting areas if you or someone in the family is allergic to bees. Some people don’t mind bees using the feeders as they need food too. 

Hummingbirds also like a bird bath with a mist or a drip feature.  I have had them fly through and play in the spray from a hose and I have seen them enjoying garden sprinklers, but I have never seen them bathing in a plain, still water bird bath.

Make sure at least some of your feeders are where you can sit and watch the hummers at their antics.  They are active from early morning until almost dark. Keep your feeders up from early spring, when flowers first start appearing but hard freezes have passed, until early fall.  When you haven’t seen any hummers for 2 weeks or a hard freeze is predicted take the feeders down.

Here are a couple links to track the hummingbirds moving north.


Jerry Baker just won’t die

Jerry Baker is dead of course, he’s been dead many years, but his brand of nonsense voodoo gardening lingers on.  You wouldn’t know he’s dead from the catalog I received again this spring touting his “all new” book.  There’s Jerry’s face peering out from the pamphlet advertising his “new” book and quotes like; “After nearly 50 years of working magic in my yard and garden I’m still discovering lots of new tricks…” Wow, discoveries from beyond the grave and since most of the discoveries are scams it’s obvious Jerry must be somewhere too hot to garden.

I wonder how Jerry’s neighbor recently called him to find out how to cure his prized tomatoes of blossom rot.  Did he contact Jerry through a séance? Jerry says he’d love to visit each and every one of you.  I don’t believe in ghosts, but if you do, maybe you can invite Jerry to visit.  And Jerry guarantees his books 3 ways.  One of the guarantees says he stands behind his books for life.  Well I guess that guarantee is over.

Now it isn’t the fact that the publishers of this book aren’t honest enough to admit that Jerry Baker is dead that aggravates me.  Many books get sold after an author dies. I’m aggravated that this type of gardening nonsense advice hasn’t died with him.  And I’m aggravated that somebody must be combing the internet for more nonsense to add to the books in Jerry’s place.

Please don’t use Jerry Baker books for gardening advice.  Jerry started his career pretending to be a gardener as an undercover cop and then he was an actor pretending to be a gardener on some local news shows.  Jerry branded himself as “America’s Master Gardener” but he never took a Master Gardener course.  He had no formal education in botany or horticulture and obviously he didn’t even remember his high school science classes.

I met Jerry Baker many times in his early career, when he was a spokesman for Kmart garden products.  He didn’t know a petunia from a pansy, and I mean that literally. Jerry knew almost nothing about gardening. He was a great actor to convince gullible people that he was a gardener and that his good old-fashioned garden advice wasn’t simply made up.

Some of the rubbish that is given in this latest advertising pamphlet as garden tips just makes me wonder how stupid some people can be if they believe those remedies and tips work.  Oatmeal sprinkled on the ground won’t help plants thrive, it will attract ants and mice.  Sprinkling Epsom salt on the soil after planting bulbs won’t give them a dose of nitrogen because Epsom salt contains absolutely no nitrogen.

Pouring weak tea on your lawn won’t “strengthen” it. Scotch and dishwashing soap won’t perk up perennials.  Sugar, bone meal and Epsom salt won’t make things flower. A hard- boiled egg planted beneath your cukes won’t make them fabulous, instead it will probably get them dug up by a coon going after the egg.  Apple juice can’t be used as fertilizer and it won’t make your plants bloom faster.  Instead it will probably attract deer to eat them.

All of Jerry Bakers so called tonics are nonsense.  Some may even harm your plants. Any remedy that he suggests you make up from your kitchen or bathroom cabinet and the liquor shelf is useless. There’s some odd thinking that if you use ingredients you buy from the grocery or drug store to mix up home remedies that you are frugal. Time after time people have proven that more effective products formulated for plants will actually cost less, ounce for ounce.  Even oatmeal has to be purchased, just because you didn’t buy it for the garden doesn’t make it free.

And there’s the idea that if you buy it at the grocery or drug store its safe and chemical free.  Are you kidding me?  Look at the ingredients in mouthwash, laundry and dish soap that Jerry tells you to use.  And even ingredients that used alone and for the uses they were intended, can become hazardous when combined or used in ways they aren’t meant to be used.  There are no studies to show if some of those remedies would have unintended affects when used in the garden, such as killing pollinators or soil microbes.

If you want to use some of Jerrys gadget tips, like using a clothespin to hold a thorny rose cane or taping sponges on your knees with duct tape, you are probably not going to do any harm.  If you run out of oil to grease your mower blades maybe peanut butter will suffice. I might even try a denture cleaner tablet in my hummingbird feeder some time.  Stick to the gadget tips and ignore Jerry’s plant tonics and plant remedies and you’ll be fine.

Earth day musings

Earth day was Sunday April 21.  It’s a time to think about how you can help the earth.  Planting something is always a good start, especially if you plant a tree.  Even though earth day has passed it’s still a good way to help the earth.  If you don’t have room to plant another tree on your property maybe you could plant one on public property (get permission first) or a friend’s property.   Or donate a tree to a school community service project.

Your conservation district may have a spring tree sale.  Check with them to see.  You can often get very good deals on seedling trees for large projects and some districts now sell fruit and ornamental trees too as well as other native plants. The trees sold by the conservation district will be ones that grow well in your area and people there can often give you advice on trees and how to choose them.

My conservation district also rents equipment for tree planting and sells things like tree tubes to protect trees from deer and rabbit damage. Check your soil conservation district out this year.

Don’t worry about using non-native plants

The native plant thing deserves a word here too.  There’s no doubt our climate is changing rapidly now.  Native plants may no longer be ideal choices for changing conditions and people must keep this in mind as they plan for the future. In just 20 years your climate may be too warm for some natives or unsuitable because its wetter or drier than what it is now.  Some native plants won’t adapt and will be replaced by other species by nature.  You should consider doing the same.

Having a variety of species in your landscape, both native and non-native, may be the healthiest situation for our landscapes.  If some things can’t survive others will.  This is especially true for things like trees and shrubs.

I already urge people in planting zones 5 and higher to stop planting those pretty blue spruces, and in fact most spruces. Spruces are trees of cold climates and they suffer in warm, humid ones. Spruce decline is a term coined to cover many problems spruces are facing in planting zones 5 and above now. Insects and diseases are destroying trees weakened by unfavorable climate conditions and it is just going to get worse.

Many pines are also being decimated by warmer climates but there are pines that can stand warm, humid climates.  Cypress and cedar also withstand heat and humidity better than some other evergreens.  When purchasing evergreens, carefully research first, to see what species can handle heat and humidity well.

It’s not just large plants that are slowly being pushed beyond their comfort zones. We are going to need to be more open minded about accepting non-native plants into our landscapes and even natural areas if we want a healthy thriving ecosystem that is achieved with diversity.  Nature doesn’t recognize human boundaries.  For nature it’s native if it’s a species on earth.

Buy it canned or frozen

Other things you can do to help the earth include recycling and trying to minimize waste, including food waste.  I read that sales of canned and frozen fruits and vegetables are down, more people are buying fresh.  That may seem great to some people, but fresh produce is the biggest source of food waste and transportation of fresh produce from one end of the country to the other certainly isn’t the greatest thing for the environment.  Fresh produce is also the largest contributor to the food borne disease problem.

Canned and frozen produce is far less likely to be wasted by consumers.  Fruits and vegetables are usually processed near where they are grown at the peak of freshness.  Many fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables are more nutritious and actually taste better than the fresh versions, which may be picked green and ripened artificially.  They are often less expensive too, even though they are ready to eat and don’t require peeling and other processing at home. And they are certainly far less likely to give you food poisoning.

If you can’t buy it in season and locally, consider buying your produce frozen or canned.  You are less likely to waste it and it’s environmentally friendlier than using fresh produce that isn’t grown locally.  And some local produce can be purchased frozen or canned for times when it isn’t available fresh.

Buy a shredder

Paper breaks down into organic matter, so most people don’t consider it a big recycling problem.  But if your house has an abundance of junk mail and catalogs as mine does, your trash may be full of paper or you may have piles of paper waiting around to be recycled. You could recycle paper at home, with very little effort and a lot of benefit though. Simply buy a shredder.

I bought my paper shredder for around $20.  It lets me turn that junk mail and all those unwanted catalogs into fluffy material I can use in the barn cat beds and chicken nest boxes.  And it can be used as mulch in less visible gardens, maybe the vegetable garden, and put into the compost pile, where paper in shreds breaks down quickly.  Use it as your dry, carbon material in equal ratios with green or wet materials.  Some people even feed it to their worms in bins to make worm casting fertilizer.

I can easily fill a garbage bag every week with shredded paper.  Unlike flat sheets of paper spread on the ground, shredded paper used as mulch lets air and water through and while it may not look as attractive as other types of mulch it’s free and breaks down quickly into compost.  Soak it with water after you put it down to keep it from blowing away.  When weeding toss your weeds on top of the paper to really compost in place.

You can use colored paper and light cardstock type paper in the shredder too. Almost all colored paper and printing ink is made with soy-based dyes and isn’t harmful. And most modern shredders let you put light staples right through the machine.  I rip apart those duplicate garden catalogs and feed them through my shredder to make something valuable out of them.  And experts say shredding all those offers of credit and other personal mail is a good idea to keep your identity from being stolen.

Let your lawn have diversity

Some people believe all lawns should be abolished to have a healthier environment but that isn’t true.  Having a mown, meadow like area around your home isn’t bad for the environment or wildlife.  If you don’t spray that meadow with pesticides and you allow “weeds” like dandelions and clover to share space with grass, then your lawn or meadow is just fine.  Lawns with weeds in them actually help pollinators and other creatures.

Lawns that don’t consist of a single species of grass, ones that have a wide variety of plants in them, are like a forest clearing or natural meadow.  Wildlife flourishes in this “edge” habitat.  It doesn’t have to be knee deep either. Keep your lawn about 3- 3½ inches long.  Try to mow every other week once the very fast growth period in spring has passed.

Don’t water your lawn unless you live in wildfire prone areas and it’s been dry.  A green space makes a good firebreak. Don’t mow too much space around your home if you have a lot of acreage, at least don’t mow a lot of it more often than twice a season.  If you don’t live in fire prone areas 100 feet of lawn around the home is all you need.  You may want to double that in fire prone areas.

Of course, if you live in a hot, dry area where grass isn’t a normal part of the landscape you don’t need a lawn and shouldn’t waste resources on one. Earth Day is just one day of the year but it’s a good day to review your treatment of our home and think of ways you can help keep it healthy.

Staking Trees- should you do it?

It’s the time of year when many trees are being planted so let’s talk about staking trees.  You see it all the time but it’s usually NOT a good cultural practice.  Many a tree has been killed by improper and unnecessary staking. This often comes from the wires or ropes tied around the trunk rubbing or cutting into the trunk and girdling it. But it can also come when the trunk snaps after the stakes are removed or the tree is tipped over when poor root systems fail in wet and windy weather.  Even when staking might be indicated the stakes are generally left on far too long.

When a tree moves in the wind it strengthens the trunk and root system just like movement strengthens the muscles of animals.  Trees that have strong trunks and root systems actually survive wind storms better than staked trees.  If you do stake a tree it should staked loosely, so that it will still be able to sway in the wind.

Most trees do not need to be staked when they are planted.  Small, immature trees almost never need staking.  Small is trees with less than a two-inch diameter trunk and less than 8 feet tall.  Dormant (trees without leaves), deciduous trees normally don’t need staking, even larger ones.  Larger evergreens and some large deciduous trees in full leaf that are planted in windy locations might need temporary staking until they reestablish a good root system.

Some dwarf ornamental trees, particularly those with umbrella or weeping forms may need staking the first season.  Some of the most fragile of these may need staking for a longer period of time.  Sometimes dwarf fruit trees that bear heavily may need propping or staking.  Let them grow without staking for the first few years when they aren’t bearing heavily. 

Sometimes a tree that has been uprooted on one side, or tipped over, by a severe storm can be pulled upright and staked to re-establish itself.  But if this has happened the growing area should be examined carefully to see if there is a reason the root system failed.  Often there is either a high-water table that keeps roots from going deeper, or some kind of hard barrier such as bedrock, concrete, or very compacted sub soil.  This must be corrected, or the staking of the tree won’t do any good.  Do not leave the stakes on a tree that’s been pulled upright for more than a year.

When a tree is staked it should not be made immobile.  The best stake systems involve rings around the trunk that are several inches wider than the trunk.  The support wires are tied to the rings or the tie clips on a stake.  Inside the ring the tree trunk will be able to move a little with the wind.
 
Tree Mate by A.M. Leonard Co.
https://www.amleo.com/
Conventional staking usually involves three stakes placed equal distances around the trunk and about 6-10 feet (sometimes further if the tree is large) out from the trunk. Ropes or wires are then run from the stake and around the tree trunk.  Make sure anything that goes around the trunk is padded so it doesn’t cut into the trunk or wear a bare spot on the bark.

All of the stakes and ropes or wires must be removed after one growing season. The biggest problem with staked trees is that no one removes the stakes for several years. Or if they remove the stakes, they leave the ropes or wires around the trunk.  Many times, the tie wires or ropes may have actually grown into the tree and girdled it.  These trees will probably die. 

If you stake a tree in one of the situations where it might be necessary, put a notation on your calendar to remove the stakes and wires 6 months from when you staked it.  That’s enough time in most situations for the tree to be able to stand on its own.  And while a tree is staked check where the wires or ropes touch the trunk every week or so to make sure the trunk is not being damaged by the ties.

Staking tree should only be done in some special circumstances as described above and not done every time a tree is planted.

Shoots and sprouts pictures




Sedum


May apple (Podophyllum peltatum,)






The best fertilizer is the gardener’s shadow

Kim Willis

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I write this because I love to share with other gardeners some of the things I come across in my research each week (or things I want to talk about). It keeps me engaged with people and horticulture. It’s a hobby, basically. I hope you enjoy it. If you are on my mailing list and at any time you don’t wish to receive these emails just let me know. If you or anyone you know who would like to receive a notification by email when a new blog is published have them send their email address to me.  KimWillis151@gmail.com