Hi Gardeners
I just went for a walk to look at the gardens. I did some watering early this morning, but
it looks like I’ll be doing more tonight. Everything looks so dry. Last year we
had 5 and 4/10 inches of rain in June, this year just under 4 inches. So far,
it’s not too bad but there is no rain in the forecast for the next week. At
least the grass stops growing.
I was sitting on the deck last night and saw 5 deer walk down
the road. Two paused by the end of the
yard and looked like they were going to come on in, but I stood up and yelled
and they left. They are going to the farm fields across the way, but this is
the time last year, just when the Asiatic lilies started to bloom, when I had
quite a bit of deer damage. So, it makes me nervous.
The hen I have left is doing a lot of damage though. She scratched up several petunia plants this
morning and when I found them, they were very wilted. Yesterday she scratched
up some blooming sedum. A couple days ago it was a section of impatiens border.
She’s getting very close to being penned up.
The turkey may be helping, but he mostly tramples things, and
she scratches them up. You can see the turkey in the picture. He’s 10 years old, hatched here in a flower
bed. These birds are what is left of my old flocks. When I had more birds they
were always confined to the back side of the barn for the growing season or
penned up. But I thought the two of them wouldn’t be a problem. I may be wrong.
In the garden the daylilies are beginning to bloom, both the
common ditch daylily and some of my cultivated varieties. The clematis are
pretty right now. Some hosta are blooming. Both jasmines are still in bloom. Water
hyacinth started blooming and the calla lilies. The catalpa trees are blooming.
Speaking of clematis, Springhill nursery sent me a
replacement clematis (‘Beautiful Bride’). They had sent me a 3 in 1 buddleia instead
of the clematis I ordered. After I
complained that wasn’t a good substitute for clematis, they actually sent me
what I ordered. That’s pretty good customer service.
My corn is knee high and looking good. If the wind doesn’t
blow it over or the deer don’t eat it, I may have a good crop. I have green
peppers just about ready to pick and tomatoes beginning to ripen. The lettuce
is going to seed, however. I think there’s only been one year in the last 5
that I have had good lettuce at the same time as ripe tomatoes.
I learned something this week. I didn’t know common milkweed
was fragrant. I read someone’s praise of it’s smell and I thought “what smell?” I went out to the clump I let grow by the
deck and smelled it. It’s blooming now. And lo and behold it does have a faint
but nice scent.
I don’t know why I let that clump grow there. I don’t think
common milkweed is very attractive and we have a field with lots of it. I thought
it might attract monarchs and I could take some easy pictures of them and maybe
their caterpillars. But when monarchs come in the yard they seem to ignore that
milkweed clump and head for other plants, like zinnias.
I’m trying to get some orange butterfly weed growing again,
and a yellow one too. One year I had great big clumps of them. But they didn’t
overwinter. Every attempt to get some more to grow in my cutting/butterfly
garden has failed since then. The two I planted are hanging in there but aren’t
very vigorous. Maybe they will improve. It’s strange how some plants can just
defy all your attempts to grow them, even though you know conditions should be
right for them.
Dish
detergent and the garden- the bad news
I love Dawn dish detergent- for doing dishes. I do dishes
the old fashioned way, by hand and Dawn is my favorite dish soap for cleaning
them. But I don’t use Dawn dish detergent in my garden, I don’t use any brand
of dish soap in the garden, unless it’s to clean tools. There is a good reason
for that.
I just sigh when people eagerly advise others that for just
about any garden problems, insects or disease, they can whip up some homemade
concoction using Dawn dish detergent- or some other dish detergent. Don’t use “chemicals” they say – use this “safe”
mix. It makes me shake my head when the
same mash up of ingredients is suggested to kill weeds AND to spray plants for
pests. Weeds are plants. Does it kill
plants or not?
So, what about the avoidance of those nasty chemicals? You
want an organic garden right? Here’s a list of chemicals in one variety of Dawn
dish detergent. Each variety has
slightly different chemical ingredients. This is Dawn gentle on hands pomegranate
scent. By the way you need to go on line to get the full list of ingredients.
- Water
- Sodium
Lauryl Sulfate
- C10-16
Alkyldimethylamine Oxide
- C9-11
PARETH-8
- Sodium
Laureth Sulfate
- Alcohol
Denat.
- Sodium
Chloride
- Fragrance
- Sodium
Hydroxide
- PEI-14
PEG-24/PPG-16
- Phenoxyethanol
- Styrene/Acrylates
Copolymer
- PPG-26
- Methylisothiazolinone
- Red 33
The ingredients in the fragrance listed above;
- 1,3-Dioxolane-2-Acetic
Acid, 2-Methyl-, Ethyl Ester
- 2,6-Dimethyl-7-Octen-2-Ol
- 2-T-Butylcyclohexyl
Acetate
- 3a,4,5,6,7,7a-Hexahydro-4,7-Methano-1h-Indenyl
Acetate
- Butanoic
Acid, 2-Methyl-, Ethyl Ester
- Butanoic
Acid, Ethyl Ester
- Citrus
Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil
- Dipropylene
Glycol
- Gamma-Undecalactone
- Heptanoic
Acid, 2-Propen-1-Yl Ester
- Hexanoic
Acid, Ethyl Ester
- Hexyl
Acetate
- Linalool
- Methylbenzyl
Acetate
Let’s see, leaving out water that’s 27 chemical ingredients.
(Other varieties have about the same amounts.)
Now that doesn’t mean if Dawn is used as it’s supposed to be used- to
wash dishes- that any of those chemicals are harmful. In fact, I am sure that
the company- Procter and Gamble-made sure it’s safe. It may irritate your hands or cause you
problems if you drink it but if you use it as the label directs it’s pretty
safe.
But here’s the thing. That product was only tested for
safety for it’s intended use. No one
tested it to see if it was safe for plants, the microorganisms in soil, or what
happens when you mix it with vinegar or Epsom salts or any of the other things
added to homemade concoctions.
We know that when chemicals are combined, they often make a
product much more harmful than when they are used separately. I could go
through all those ingredients and see what happens when an acid like vinegar is
added but I won’t. Because I know a few things already, with just a smattering
of chemistry knowledge, that make me know Dawn isn’t good for plants.
I know that many of the ingredients are degreasers-they
remove oils, waxes and fats from a surface. Plants have a waxy protective layer
to protect their epidermal (skin) cells.
Detergents remove this protective layer.
This can make plants more susceptible to disease and insects.
I know some of the ingredients are what is called nitrosating
agents. When these ingredients are combined with forms of nitrogen, they form nitrosamines.
Nitrosamines are harmful to humans and other animals, about 90% of them are
carcinogenic or have other harmful effects.
In the garden we have many forms of nitrogen waiting to combine with the
ingredients of Dawn, from simple nitrogen in fertilizer and the atmosphere to
nitrates that plants produce.
We don’t know if eating plants coated with chemicals from
dish detergent is harmful. We don’t know if handling plants sprayed with
detergents or homemade concoctions is safe. We don’t know if the resulting
chemical compounds would be so diluted that they would be harmless or if they
accumulate over time. We don’t know if your skin absorbs the chemicals or if it’s
bad for your lungs. That’s because the product isn’t intended to be used this
way and no one has studied the effects.
The third thing I know about the ingredients of dish
detergents is that many of them are antibiotic. They kill bacteria and other
microorganisms. They don’t just kill bad bacteria, they kill all bacteria. Plants
need many kinds of good bacteria, just as we do, to be healthy. Dishes don’t
need bacteria of any kind.
And let’s not forget that these soap mixes only work if they
contact insects before it dries. They kill good and bad insects and any spray
that gets on the ground harms soil microorganisms. And they do not work on
plant diseases.
You cannot claim you garden organically if you are using dish
detergent in your garden. If you do want a safe for plants, organic method
of controlling pests use an insecticidal soap made for plants. They have been tested, found safe if used as
directed, and can be used for organic production. Here’s the ingredients of one
brand- Safer brand - Potassium Salts of Fatty Acids 0.75%, Sulfur 0.4% plus
some inert ingredients. See the difference?
If a large company like Procter and Gamble thought they could
sell more dish detergent by advertising that it could help in the garden and
they put that on the label, you could assume it was pretty safe. Do you wonder
why they don’t?
Stop using dish detergents in the garden. You aren’t
avoiding “chemicals” or stopping a big chemical company from making profits. You
are supporting them. And you are using a product that can harm plants and the
environment.
Squash Vine Borers
Watch out for squash vine borers as the moths are flying now,
at least in the Midwest and upper south. They may have emerged in May or early June
in the far south. A squash vine borer
moth looks a lot like a wasp. It has an orange lower body with black spots. The
moths lay eggs on vine crops which hatch into larvae (worms, caterpillars) that
bore into the vine’s stems and cause them to wilt. Squash vine borers also
attack pumpkins and to some extent melon vines, but rarely cucumbers. If your
vine crops are wilting look at the vines near the base of the plant for a hole
with some “sawdust” (called frass) possibly under it.
 |
| Squash borer adult moth Photo credit canr msu.edu |
Once the larvae are in the vines they may or may not kill
the vine. But many gardeners will lose their whole squash crop in a bad year. The
larvae that look like a plump white or tan worm, eat the inside of the stem,
cutting off nutrients beyond their feeding point. In a hot dry summer, the
vines suffer more because the damaged stems can’t supply enough water.
Garden pesticides that contain carbaryl, permethrin,
bifenthrin or esfenvalerate and that list control of squash borers on the
label can be used. Start using them in late June or when you see borers,
whichever is first. Apply the pesticide on the stem base and along stems,
especially anywhere the stem touches the ground. Follow label directions. Make
a second application in 7-10 days. Once the larvae are in the stem it doesn’t
help to apply pesticides.
Spinosad is another pesticide that can be used. It is
similar to a bt product but formulated to last longer. It must be applied at
night because it’s toxic to bees. Follow label directions. Diatomaceous earth
sprinkled on the stem base may help but it doesn’t work if it gets wet and must
be reapplied after each rain.
One suggested home organic control is to paint a bucket or
bowl yellow including the interior and fill it with water to a few inches below
the rim. The moths are attracted to yellow and many will drown in the bucket.
Put buckets out at the end of June or when you see the adult borers. Kill any
of the moths you see on the plants, they look like wasps but cannot sting you.
 |
| Squash borer larvae Photo credit umn.edu |
You can take a piece of wire and probe into the hole in vine
and try to puncture the larvae inside. Or
make a tiny slit with a sharp knife
lengthwise along the stem, find the worm and pull it out. Wrap a strip of cloth
or paper around the damaged site. Find several places where the vine is
touching the ground out beyond the hole and heap some good garden soil over the
vine. Some vines will then put out new roots there and the vine will recover.
Next year when you plant your squash cover the young plants
with a tunnel of lightweight row cloth, so the moths can’t get to the stems. It
can be removed in mid-July in most areas. This should give the flowers plenty
of time to be pollinated and make fruit for you. You can also hand pollinate
under the tunnel. This only works if there were no squash or pumpkin plants in
the same spot last year, since the moths emerge from the soil. If they were in
the vines last year, they went into the soil to pupate.
Another strategy if you always have trouble with borers is
to start the squash late, putting them in the garden in mid-July. This is
usually best with summer squash that are eaten when immature rather than winter
squash and pumpkins that need long growing seasons. Skipping the growing of any
squash or pumpkins for a year can also help control the pest.
What ancient
people smoked
New archeological research being done in Washington State
found that Native Americans 1,400 years ago smoked Rhus glabra, or
smooth sumac in their pipes along with a species of tobacco, N.
quadrivalvis. Speculation is that the sumac was medicinal, or it just made
the tobacco taste better.
A new method of analyzing residue from plants in ancient pipe
bowls and cooking utensils can help researchers pinpoint exactly what plant
species were being used. The pipe residue studies also found that after
European contact Native Americans were smoking a tobacco species grown on the
East coast N. rustica, indicating that there was trade between the tribes
in the far west with those in the east.
More reading
Pitting
and Preserving Cherries
Cherries are good tasting and full of healthy
antioxidants. They are said to relieve
arthritic pain. When they are in season you’ll want to eat as many fresh
cherries as you can. Cherry cobbler, cherry pie, cherry ice cream and even
cherry sauce over your favorite meat are some uses for cherries other than
eating them fresh.
Tart cherries are generally red but sweet cherries can be
any color from yellow to almost black.
Make sure cherries are ripe when you pick or buy them because they won’t
ripen after picking. Don’t wash cherries
until just before you are ready to eat them or use them in a recipe and store
them in the refrigerator.
Pitting cherries
Cherries have one teeny, tiny flaw in their design, the
stone hard pit. Bite down on one of them
and you can break a tooth. You can eat them whole and spit out the pit but for
cooking you’ll want to remove the pit, so no one gets a surprise. It won’t hurt you to swallow one or two pits
but eating a lot of pits could be a problem as each pit contains a small amount
of cyanide.
If you use a lot of cherries you can purchase an inexpensive
cherry pitter in the kitchen gadgets section of your local store. An olive pitter also works fine on cherries. This
makes the work a bit easier. If you are going to can or freeze a lot of
cherries you can buy cherry pitters with hoppers that will pit many cherries
quickly.
If you aren’t a gadget person and want to pit cherries by
hand here’s the technique. Wash the cherries well. Pull the cherry stem off. Poke
the tip of a potato peeler through the stem area, move it around the pit to
loosen it and pop it out. Some people use a nut pick, or a good long
fingernail. You can also use a stiff drinking straw to push the pit right
through the cherry.
Here’s another pitting tip. Stick cherries in the freezer
about 30 minutes until they are half frozen before you attempt to pit them. The
firm cherries are easier to pit. This tip is for using the cherries for freezing
or cooking right after pitting And no matter how you pit cherries, remember
that they can stain the hands and clothing.
Freezing cherries
You can only eat so many cherries while they are in
season. But you can eat cherries all
winter long if you freeze them. You can
freeze both tart and sweet cherries but for cherry recipes most people prefer
tart or pie cherries.
The very best way to freeze tart or sweet cherries is to use
a sugar pack. Cherries frozen in a sugar
pack look better when used in recipes later. It’s a quick simple process that
will give great results. For every 4 cups of washed, pitted cherries use 2 cups
of white sugar. The cherries can be whole or halved. Place the cherries and
sugar in a large bowl and toss gently.
Let stand 20 minutes.
The sugar draws out the cherry juice and forms syrup. If some of the sugar is still granular after
20 minutes don’t worry. Pack the cherries in freezer containers, date and label
the bags and freeze. Tart cherries may need additional sugar when they are
eventually used.
You can also freeze cherries without sugar for low calorie
recipes. After washing and pitting the cherries cut them in half and lay them
on cookie sheets. Place them in the freezer until frozen solid then combine
them in freezer bags or containers.
If you want frozen whole cherries, such as for garnishes,
without a sugar pack, you’ll need to blanch the cherries before freezing. You
need a pot of boiling water and a metal strainer you can dip into the pot, and
a bowl of ice water the strainer will fit into.
Wash and pit the cherries. Place them in the strainer; dip the strainer
in the boiling water, wait 30 seconds then dip in ice water for one
minute. Drain, arrange on cookie sheets
and freeze. Frozen whole cherries may
not look as red or as nice as sugar packed frozen cherries after thawing
Making
cherry pie filling
Here’s how to make some cherry pie filling or topping. The
filling recipe is from my canning book, Knacks
Canning, Pickling and Preserving and it makes about 6 quarts of
filling. What you don’t use up you can
freeze or can. In fact, it’s one of the best ways to can cherries.
You’ll need a colander or strainer and a large pot or two
plus containers or jars to can or freeze the extra filling. Clear Jel is found in the canning section of
stores. If you don’t use red food color
your cherry filling will be a yellow-red but will taste just fine. To make it a pretty red use a few drops of
food color.
Ingredients
6 quarts of pie/tart cherries
7 cups of sugar
1 ¾ cup Clear Jel
9 ½ cups water
2 teaspoons cherry or almond extract
½ cup lemon juice
Red food coloring (optional)
Wash, remove the stems and pit the cherries.
Fill your large pot with water and bring it to a boil. Fill your colander with cherries and lower it
into the boiling water. Leave the
colander 1 minute in the boiling water, then lift, drain cherries, put them in
a bowl and repeat this until all the cherries gave been dipped in the
water. Keep them warm.
Next put your sugar, Clear Jel, water and extract in a saucepan
and cook and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbly. Keep stirring so it
doesn’t scorch. Add the lemon juice and
cook for 1 more minute. If you want to add red food coloring to make the sauce
prettier, blend it in now.
Pour the hot syrup over the cherries and fold them into the
syrup. They mix with the syrup better if they are kept warm. You can use the
filling immediately, can the filling or let it cool to room temperature and
freeze it.
To can the
filling pour it into clean hot quart jars to ½ inch from the rim. Stir to remove bubbles, wipe the rims and add
your lids. Process in a water bath
canner 35 minutes from 0-3000 feet altitude, 40 minutes 3001-6000 feet altitude,
over 6,000 feet 45 minutes.
It is dry, hazy June weather. We are more of the
earth, farther from heaven these days.
-Henry David Thoreau
Kim Willis
All parts of this blog are copyrighted and may not be used without
permission.
And So On….
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THANK YOU for addressing the dish soap in the garden issue!
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