Hi Gardeners
My moonflowers are finally blooming, in the third
week of September. But I keep forgetting
to go out after dark to see them. I love
the smell and look of moonflowers but because they are an evening bloomer, I
don’t get to see much of them. So late
in the season dark comes early, but with the mosquito/EEE scare it’s not the
time to linger outside after dark. I get
to see the wilting flower in the morning.
I bought well started plants to plant this spring,
and they have covered a large section of the ramp railing, they just took
forever to bloom. (This is the vine called moonflower not datura.) Maybe I’ll
remember tonight to get out there and get a picture of them. It looks like there will be several flowers
in bloom. If I get out there at the
right time, I’ll actually be able to watch them unfold.
We’ve had some good rain. I only had to water once last week. That was a good thing because I had cataract
surgery and I have been fighting with my vision. One eye no longer needs glasses, the other
still does. It makes my depth perception
bad, sight blurry at times and tasks are a bit difficult to accomplish. Plus, I am not supposed to bend over or lift
things. Next week they operate on the
other eye and eventually things will be better. I have to fit moving my
houseplants inside between surgeries. But I was able to write this blog!
Besides moonflowers there are many things still
blooming in the garden. Anemones, toad lilies,
colchicum, mums, roses, black eyed Susan’s, hardy hibiscus, ligularia, even one
persistent daylily. Jerusalem artichokes
are blooming. I can’t get rid of those things and every year they pop up
somewhere new. The golden glow that was
cut down has shot up again and has a few flowers. The Japanese spikenard, which I
grow for its golden foliage, is sporting a few of it’s odd ball shaped flowers too.
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The wild asters are spreading a froth of white in the
fields and paired with blue chicory and yellow goldenrod the fields are
colorful. Bees are busy out there and I
am still seeing a few monarchs and other butterflies.
Yesterday we officially began astronomical fall, with
the fall equinox. After the equinox the
days begin to shorten quickly. The sun’s
orbit declines in the sky toward the south and you’ll probably notice a
difference in the light. Since the suns light comes at an angle instead of directly
down on us it doesn’t feel as warm.
Start paying close attention to the weather because those in zones 5 and
below will soon have frost, if you haven’t already. You need to finish the harvests and move the
tender plants inside soon.
I think the hummingbirds have left for the season.
But it’s time to fill up those seed and suet feeders and get ready for a new
season of birds. If you don’t feed the
birds all summer, starting now with feeding will help some species fuel up for
the long flight south and attract those arriving from the north. You may get to see some unusual species as
they migrate through at your feeders.
Birds that use the northern US as their winter-feeding
grounds will be showing up at bird feeders soon. This includes white throated
and tree sparrows, junco’s, chickadees, Northern goshawk, snowy owls, red breasted
nuthatch, brown creepers, golden crowned kinglets, snow buntings, purple
finches, and pine siskins. While a few
of these species may have been around all summer most fly north to northern Canada
and the artic for the summer.
Gardeners beware of EEE
Eastern Equine Encephalitis or EEE is a mosquito transmitted
disease that is for some reason, experiencing an uptick in cases this fall. This
disease can be deadly and since gardeners are often exposed to mosquito bites,
they need to know what EEE is and how to avoid getting it. From now until a hard
frost kills the mosquitoes in your area gardeners need to be very careful of
exposure to mosquitoes.
Seven human deaths have been confirmed from EEE this
year. In 2018 only 6 cases of EEE and no
deaths were reported to the CDC. The latest figures for 2019 are 20 cases
reported in 6 states, with Michigan (7) and Massachusetts (9) in the lead. Other states with cases are New Jersey, North
Carolina, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.
While EEE is generally a disease found east of the Mississippi, it has
cropped up occasionally in some western states.
The cases reported to the CDC are probably only the
tip of the iceberg, so to speak. Many people infected by the virus have no symptoms
or mild symptoms. Only about 20% of people infected will develop serious
illness. About half of those will have serious
brain injury or die. People under 15 and over 50 are more prone to serious
illness and death. Immune compromised people are also at higher risk.
In some people the disease presents as a flulike
illness, with high fever, chills, headache, joint pain, and vomiting. This can
progress to seizures, disorientation and encephalitis (brain swelling). About 1/3 of the cases that progress to
encephalitis will die. There is no cure, just treatment of symptoms.
People almost always get the virus from a mosquito
bite. It is not transmitted from human
to human or from other animals to humans, with one exception. Emus, who get
bloody diarrhea with EEE, can infect humans and other animals that come in
contact with the bloody feces.
Besides humans, birds, horses, deer, llamas, alpacas,
cats and dogs are known to get the virus. 10 cases of EEE in horses and 5 in wild
deer have been reported in Michigan as of September 19. Other states also report animal cases. When large
animals get EEE death is common. Cats and dogs rarely experience serious
illness from EE. Many animal deaths go unrecorded, however.
EEE has been around a long time and it’s not known
why there are more cases in horses and humans in some years than in other
years. The virus requires mosquitoes and birds in its life cycle. A mosquito species called Culiseta
melanura, that carries the virus infects songbirds when it feeds on them.
It feeds on birds almost exclusively.
But other more generalized feeding species of mosquitoes, such as Culex
species, then feed on the infected birds and can transmit the virus to humans
and other animals when feeding on them.
Gardeners should empty all standing water around the
home, especially as we enter a wetter time of the year. If you can’t empty
water, treat it with Bt products designed to kill mosquito larvae. Mosquitoes
need water to lay their eggs in and under the right conditions it takes just a
few days for the eggs to hatch, and the larvae to turn into mosquitoes.
Being outside at dawn and dusk and on cloudy days when
mosquitoes are more active should be avoided. Wear mosquito repellant containing
DEET when outside. DO NOT rely on homemade and herbal mosquito remedies for
protection. Wear long sleeves and pants when working in the garden or sitting
outside. It is especially important to protect children playing outside.
There is an EEE vaccine for horses that every horse
owner with an unvaccinated horse should get immediately. Horses are very
susceptible to EEE and almost always die from it. There are no vaccines for
humans yet, although some are being tested.
In Michigan and some other states health officials
are urging that school sporting events and other activities scheduled for
evenings be cancelled or rescheduled for daytime. Gardeners should consider rescheduling
outside work to the middle of the day also but do wear mosquito repellant as a backup.
Bottom line; consider mosquitoes a deadly
predator. Afterall mosquitoes have
killed more people than all other animals combined.
More reading
Should you divide perennials in the fall?
As it gets cooler and gardeners head back out into
the garden ready to tackle garden chores they often encounter full, mature
perennials. It may look like these
plants could be divided into several plants.
Sometimes gardeners want to divide plants to swap with others, gift to
others or repopulate other parts of the garden. But not all plants can be
successfully divided, and fall is not the best time for many perennials to be
divided.
Despite many misconceptions most perennials do not
need dividing to remain healthy. Many perennials will do great if never divided
and some plants will actually die if they are divided. There are very few garden
plants that need frequent dividing to remain healthy and blooming. If you feel
the plant has become too large and is crowding out other plants or if you want
to make many plants from one for any reason, some plants can be divided. But division often isn’t necessary, and it
should be carried out at the optimal time and manner when at all possible.
Gardeners should be aware that when they divide
plants it can take years before the plants recover and look mature and lush
again. Some gardeners never know what
mature, fully flowering plants can look like because they are constantly
setting them back to that “first year they creep” stage by dividing them. And
gardeners should also realize that some attempts at division will result in all
of the plant (s) dying. If you have a really
beautiful large perennial you should really think hard about whether you want
to divide it and take the risk of losing it.
Often gardeners will be coerced into dividing a perennial
by another gardener who covets the plant. Gardeners in general like to share
and be shared with but sometimes sharing is not in your best interest. There
are some hardy, common garden plants that can be divided and shared easily but when
you have rare and expensive plants or plants with great sentimental value to
you, you shouldn’t be afraid to say no to dividing them.
And when you do decide to divide a plant make sure it’s
at the best time for dividing it and that the divider knows the right way to
divide it. Not every perennial can be
divided and the best way to make divisions and when to make them, varies by
species.
Most perennials plants do best when divided in the
spring, just as they begin growing. This is the time when plant growth hormones
are high and primed to push out new roots and foliage. The foliage is small and
doesn’t take as much energy away from new root development. And usually spring is damp and cool which
aids re-establishment. Some vigorous
plant species could be divided almost anytime and reestablish themselves and
there are a few plants that actually prefer to be divided in fall if they are
to be divided at all.
Here are some plants that can be divided in the late
summer or fall. Bearded iris, every 3 -4
years, Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium), every 3-4 years, creeping phlox 3-4 years,
and Siberian iris- infrequently, as needed.
Peonies can be divided in the fall but only after
many years, when they have formed large clumps and it’s necessary only if you
want to propagate them. Dig the clumps up carefully and divide them so that
each section has several “eyes” or growing points. Be aware that peonies will
often stop blooming for 2-3 years after division.
Bulbs including tulips, daffodils, hyacinth and so on
are “divided” in the fall. In this case the original bulb isn’t cut up, (if you
cut them up, they won’t grow), instead the original bulb will probably have
produced small “bulblets”. Sometimes
they will still be attached to the bottom of the parent bulb. Other times the
new bulbs will even be fairly good sized and no longer attached to the parent
bulb. These bulbs can be dug in fall, carefully separated from the parent bulb
if still attached and replanted. Not all bulbs will have produced the
bulblets. The small bulbs can take years
to bloom.
Daffodils usually reproduce quickly and easily. When they are dug you may see bulbs that
appear to be 2 or 3 bulbs fused together at the bottom. These are called double or triple nosed bulbs
and they produce the best flower show. You can carefully separate the bulbs if
you want, but you’ll reduce flowering. Over several years a bed of daffodils
will generally have produced many new bulbs that you can dig and replant
elsewhere.
Lily bulbs consist of several segments all joined
together at the bottom with a basal root plate. These can be divided but it’s a
tricky maneuver. Each bulb scale (segment)
must have a piece of the basal root plate attached. This is done by carefully
cutting through the basal plate. You cannot just cut a lily bulb in pieces or
break off scales for new plants. These divided bulb scales can take a year or
more to bloom. Since lilies can take years from planting to reach their full glory,
it’s probably best to leave them alone and not attempt division. Leave that to expert bulb growers.
Some lilies send out horizontal roots which then
develop new bulbs along them. When those bulbs produce their own shoots above
ground, you could dig down and remove the new lily bulbs to plant
elsewhere. It can be difficult to dig up
lily bulbs without damaging them and even those independent bulbs can take
several years to reach full size and bloom.
Plants
that can’t be divided or that resent division
Plants that can’t be divided include anything with a
single, woody stem. That includes most trees and shrubs. I looked out one day
to see a woman approaching my front flower bed with a shovel. I didn’t know her. When I went out to ask her
what she wanted, she pointed to a caryopteris, (a shrub with blue flowers),
growing in the bed and said she wanted to just “get a little piece of it”.
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Leaving out the fact that she didn’t ask permission,
this was a shrub with a single main stem that just can’t be divided. Had I not
seen her with the shovel my plant probably would have died, or she would have
disappeared with the whole thing.
Needless to say, I made it plain to her that if she wanted something,
she needed to ask first or there would be consequences.
There are ways you can reproduce trees and shrubs
that don’t include division. You can layer some trees and shrubs, which
involves bending a branch down, covering it with soil and hoping it roots
there, you can start cuttings or start seeds.
If you want to reproduce any plant, research the right ways to do it.
If a tree or shrub produces suckers those new plants
can be dug in either the spring or fall and transplanted. Suckers are little shoots that pop up a short
distance from a parent plant from a root that the plant sends out horizontally.
These plants tend to form thickets if left alone. Some common shrubs that
sucker include lilac, trumpet vine, elderberry and forsythia.
Sever the suckers connecting root to the parent plant
and move the young plant either when the leaves are still small in the spring
or after it goes dormant in the fall.
This doesn’t hurt the parent plant.
Be aware that there are some grafted trees that sucker, such as
apples. In this case the suckers come
from the hardy rootstock that was used in the grafted plant. They won’t produce fruit like the top part of
the tree. Suckers from grafted plants should
be cut off at ground level – unless you want to grow them to create your own
grafted trees.
Most modern roses are grafted, have a single main
stem and cannot be divided. Dividing a rose that isn’t grafted also doesn’t
work in most cases, but there are a few older roses that grow on their own
roots that produce suckers that can be removed and grown as new plants. I have a Harrisons Yellow rose that suckers a
bit too freely and I have dug up numerous new plants to give away.
If a grafted rose produces suckers those suckers will
be from rootstock, and the flowers will not be like the parent plant. You’ll want to simply cut them to the ground.
There are also perennial plants do not care for
division and probably won’t survive it. Baby's
Breath (Gypsophila), Balloon Flower (Platycodon), Butterfly Weed (Asclepias), Cimicifuga,
Clematis, Evening Primrose (Oenothera missourienis), False Indigo (Baptisia), Flax
(Linum), Gentian, Lavender, Lupine, Monkshood (Aconitum),roses, rosemary, Russian
Sage (Perovskia), garden sage and yucca are some of them. These plants can be reproduced by other means.
Focus on climate change, not on invasive
species
Who really knows what an invasive species is? Long before Europeans set foot on North
America people from Siberia- North East Asia migrated here. Whether they crossed a land bridge on foot or
paddled along the coast to get here they undoubtably brought some form of
plants with them, and probably animals too.
It may have been intentional, as in stored seeds and fruits to eat on
the journey or unintentional as in seeds stuck to clothing and tiny insects in
the stored food. With thousands of years before Europeans began cataloging the
flora and fauna of the new world, there’s little chance we would know what was
here before human habitation and what was not.
Animals and plants are capable of moving great
distances on their own also. Spores and
seeds float on the waves and sail through the skies. Birds and insects migrate great distances.
They may carry other seeds and bits of plants with them. Animals swim vast
distances and explore coastlines. They
arrive on distance shores clinging to storm debris. Nature has always moved things around.
As our climate gets hotter and drier in some places
and desperately flooded in others, the flora and fauna in this world is going
to shift. There is no stopping
this. There is no holding on to once was
here and keeping all else at bay.
Survival of all the species on earth depends on allowing them to adapt
to changing conditions even if that means vacating their “space” and allowing a
more suitable species to thrive there. A
healthy ecosystem depends on species that can populate new areas.
We need to stop allocating time and money fighting
what we consider invasive species and spend time and money making sure a
diversity of species exists in all environments, whether they are “native” or not. We need to make sure there are trees,
whether they are trees that once grew in that location or not. We need to make sure there are plants
filtering flood sediment and protecting coastlands, whether they are native or
not. We need to make sure there are
plants holding the soil in dry areas, so it doesn’t blow away, whether they are
native or not. We need to make sure there are plants providing nectar and
pollen and fruit and seeds for animals, whether they are native or not.
We may need to control a plant or animal that
threatens our food supply or health. New species, as well as native species, of
mosquitoes need to be controlled, for example. But those invasive species battles
should be few and targeted. And we should be very careful we know what we are
doing before we engage in those battles. There is never a need to spend
millions of dollars on pesticides to kill a species that we humans decide
shouldn’t be there, just because it displaces other species that no longer
thrive in that environment. There are far greater and urgent needs to spend money
on if we are to survive climate change.
If every dollar and every hour of human labor spent battling
garlic mustard and Japanese knotweed was instead spent on planting any kind of
trees in the Amazon and other deforested areas the world would be better off.
Instead of spending money on eliminating phragmites let it grow to help
stabilize coastlines ravaged by rising oceans. If it works who cares if displaces
less effective plants. Crabgrass and dandelions - if we spent what we spend to
eliminate lawn “weeds” on building more solar panels and windmills our air
would be cleaner and our time left on earth longer.
What should be welcome in every environment is plants
and animals that can survive and thrive in the current conditions. While that could be natives it may not
be. Some natives will go extinct, that is
a given. While it may not be a happy
ending, we need to accept that we are not going to be able to preserve all
native species in environments that are no longer suitable for them due to a
changing climate. If we believe certain species should be preserved, then we
need to move them to an environment more suited to their needs rather than
eliminating competitors more suited to the environment they are now in.
Nature creates new ecosystems with invaders and survivors.
Plant and animal communities adapt when they are left alone or helped in the
right way. And the right way is not to fight for what once was, but to allow
change. Humans are arrogant and ignorant when they believe it is they who
should control what life lives where.
Humans, the ultimate invasive species, are also going
to have change how and where they live. Like plants and animals, we are going
to need to move to more suitable environments. We need to move away from the
coast instead of fighting the rising oceans. All the money wasted rebuilding
homes and businesses after every flood could be much better spent. We need to
shift crop growing areas north instead of trying to fight the growing heat and
drought. We may need to adapt to a different diet. We need to use less fossil fuel and stop
cutting down trees. We need to learn to
fully utilize the sun and wind that climate change is producing an abundance of.
If we don’t adapt, if we don’t allow change, if we
continue to waste money protecting species that are no longer suitable for the
environment, and continue to live where we shouldn’t, we make the coming battle
for survival much, much harder.
“How
beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days.”– John Burrows
Kim Willis
And So On….
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