Hi gardeners
The weather is improving. It’s sunny here today and although
we got another inch of snow last night and expect another tonight, some of this
crud is melting. It’s actually 40 degrees and for once I am not dreading going out
to get the mail.
There’s only 5 days until the end of the month. I doubt I’ll
see snowdrops bloom this month because the snow is deep, but just maybe, maybe
I will. March begins meteorological spring and calendar spring is just 25 days
away. So it inches closer.
Last year we had red winged blackbirds return at the
beginning of March, so I am keeping my eyes and ears open. When I hear them
sing I know spring is near.
The deer damage here is terrible this year. My poor euonymus shrub has its leaves eaten off
6 feet off the ground. There are deer tracks all over the yard. The snow has
been too deep to check all the garden, so I don’t know the extent of the
damage. But it has probably hidden some
plants from damage too.
Inside I have geraniums, streptocarpus, begonias, fuchsia
and hibiscus in bloom. There’s a tiny petunia plant sticking out of the
drainage hole of a pot I brought inside. I’m going to ease it out of there and
plant it in a pot.
I haven’t started my seeds yet. It’s just too soon for me. I
admire some of you who coax along your seed babies for months inside. I prefer
to start mine just about 6 weeks before the last frost, so I don’t have to do a
lot of transplanting and I save room inside. I’m writing about that
transplanting of seedlings this week by the way.
But I am plant shopping online. I bought some new dahlia
bulbs this week. I think my stored ones have been ruined- it just got too cold
out on that porch this winter. And there are just so many pretty dahlias to
try. Things are selling out fast again this year so don’t delay your shopping.
If you need places to shop for plants here’s the link to my
list of online and mail catalogs.
http://gardeninggrannysgardenpages.blogspot.com/p/have-youreceived-any-garden-catalogs-in.html
Seed
starting- potting up.
A lot of you out there are already planting seeds indoors
for transplanting outside. And if you are starting this early you need to know
how to keep your seedlings growing robustly and not getting root bound and
stressed before it’s time to plant them in the garden.
There are many things that need to be done to keep seedlings
healthy indoors but one of the most important is keeping their roots healthy. That’s
what I am going to discuss here- how to keep your seedlings from becoming root
bound or developing root rot.
Beginning
Most gardeners start seeds in small containers, and that’s the
right way to do it. Some sow the seeds in a flat and then transplant tiny
seedlings into individual pots. Others sow directly into small pots. What you
should not be doing is sowing seeds into large containers hoping you will not
have to transplant them. This rarely works well.
If you are starting seeds in individual pots, the pots for starting most common garden seeds should be similar in size to that of commercial cell packs or about a two-inch diameter pot. You can plant more than one seed in a pot, but you must remove all but one as soon as there are true leaves. Most growers simply cut all but one plant off at the soil line.
Dicot seedlings
A sprouting dicot seed starts off with cotyledon or seed leaves,
these are usually rounded and don’t look like the normal leaves of the plant.
Dicots are what most common garden plants are, with the exception of corn or
other monocots like lilies and grasses. Monocots sprout with a single leaf that
generally looks like a regular leaf. After the seedling leaves of dicots are a
few days old, true leaves develop.
A few garden seeds are quite large. Examples are squash and
pumpkin seed. These seeds are best started in 4-inch diameter pots. And they
should not be started inside too early, they do not like transplanting as they
get larger. They are best transplanted into the garden when they have 3-4 sets
of leaves, so they should not be planted more than a few weeks before you can
put them outside.
Why not just sow seeds in large pots?
When we plant seeds directly into the ground we don’t worry
about drainage or wet soil, or at least we shouldn’t have to. Indoors though,
small plants in large containers often don’t work well. When you water the
water sinks below the roots of the small plant. The seedling dries out and
dies. Or you notice it wilt so you add more water.
Now the soil is very wet and the moisture at the bottom of
the pot is wicked up toward the surface where the seedlings roots are, constantly
keeping them moist, and the roots rot. The seedling dies. It’s very hard to
properly water a small seedling in a large pot.
If you are going to plant indoors a long time before the
plants can safely go outside you are going to have to transplant seedlings several
times if you want healthy plants.
Potting up as they grow
Once your seedlings in the 2-inch pots or cell packs reach 6
inches in height they need to be transplanted into bigger containers if they
can’t be planted into the garden. Transplant them into 4-inch pots. If the
plants are large and bushy 6-inch pots could be used.
Do not assume seedling roots will break through “dissolvable”
pots like peat or paper pots. If you see that many roots have penetrated the
pot sides already it may be safe to simply place that pot in the new container.
A few roots at the bottom are not enough. Otherwise, if you don’t see roots, remove
all types of pots when transplanting. This is true even when you are moving the
seedling into the ground outside.
A note here- eggshells should never be used to start seeds.
They are not large enough and they do not dissolve in the soil. It takes years
for them to break down. Plant root systems will be severely damaged.
If you are putting together hanging baskets of flowers several
6-inch-high plants could now be planted together in the basket. How many to a
basket will depend on its size and the flower species. Ten-inch baskets can hold
3-4 plants. 12–16-inch baskets can hold 6-8 plants.
Once most garden plants are 10-12 inches high, they need to be transplanted into 6- or 8-inch pots if you can’t get them into the ground. Hopefully by this time they can be transplanted outside before you need to transplant again.
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| Tomato in 6 inch pot |
If you are trying to achieve large blooming plants such as
tomatoes inside before transplanting them outside, you’ll need to transplant
them additional times. Do not let them bloom in small pots, this will greatly
stress the plant and it will not produce well the rest of its garden life. A 2
feet high tomato needs at least a gallon sized pot, a 2 gallon would be better.
At 2 feet in height most plants won’t be harmed by putting
them in much larger pots. If you are going to use containers and not plant in
the ground, you can put these larger plants right into the container you will
be using outside.
A few plants may need supports once they reach a foot high.
Vining flowers and tomatoes, maybe some peppers may need this. Bigger pots will
give you room to add a stake or trellis.
How fast plants grow and need to be transplanted into larger
pots will depend on the conditions and species of plant. What you are trying to
avoid are root systems that are packed into tiny pots in a matted mess. Pots
filled with roots don’t hold water well and seedlings will wilt quickly. These
roots may stay like that once transplanted into the ground and they don’t make
healthy plants.
If you slide the seedling out of its pot and you are just beginning to see roots at the bottom and sides of the pot that’s the ideal time to transplant into a larger pot. If you don’t see any roots its fine to leave it for a bit longer.
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| No roots are showing so this plant can stay in it's pot |
For more about seed starting, you can read this group of
articles.
http://gardeninggrannysgardenpages.blogspot.com/p/seeds-germination.html
Marigold Magic
and Myth
The old idea of planting marigolds in the garden to deter
pests and help other plants grow is, for home gardeners, largely a myth. Gardeners
are told to either surround their vegetables with a row of marigolds or to
plant marigolds among their vegetable plants.
All kinds of benefits are attributed to this practice, from repelling beetles and
other insects to keeping away deer and rabbits and to improving soil health to
make plants bigger and more productive.
While marigolds are beautiful annual flowers and that’s
absolutely a good reason to plant them, most of the magic assigned to them is
false. Whenever myths get started one can generally find a bit of truth or a
scientific study that has gotten massaged and manipulated into something far
from truth.
One click bait garden site or social media page publishes
some poor information and many others use it as a reference, simply repeating
and building on false information. And of course, there are old wives’ tales
and folklore to fall back on too.
This may be partly that people do not know how to interpret
scientific studies or that they feel something they can do at home is equal to
the conditions in a scientific study. And because someone you know has planted
marigolds in garden and it seems like they had less trouble with pests does not
mean the marigolds were responsible.
Because a chemical can be obtained from a plant, purified
and concentrated or combined with other ingredients to make an insecticide or
repellant does not mean growing the plant in the garden will have the same
effect. There are studies that show extracts of various chemicals from
marigolds which have been concentrated and refined do have insecticidal
properties. But that’s vastly different from planting marigolds around other
plants.
Here’s what marigolds can and can’t do.
First, marigolds do not deter most insects from your garden.
Researchers at Newcastle University (UK) found that planting French marigolds
among tomato plants in a greenhouse kept whiteflies away from them. Marigolds
release limonene vapors – a chemical also found in citrus peel - and limonene
repels the flies.
Now before you get excited remember that this research was
done in a greenhouse, where scents would tend to remain and not be blown away
in the wind. It focused on one indoor pest- whitefly. Other research on
marigolds in greenhouses has shown some effectiveness of marigolds as trap
crops. There still is no research that proves planting marigolds in your
garden beds outside would be effective in keeping common outside pests away
from plants.
Bees like marigolds and aren’t repelled by limonene. A great many insects aren’t repelled by limonene in the outside environment. Cabbage moths, hawk moths, flea beetles, bean beetles, cucumber beetles, and many other garden pests pay no mind to marigolds. While some insects might not want to munch marigolds, they don’t mind climbing or flying over them to get to plants they do like.
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| Bee on marigold |
Marigolds also do not repel mosquitoes, slugs, snails,
snakes, spiders, rabbits, groundhogs, or deer. Rabbits and deer may not prefer
to eat them but have been known to do so. And they certainly don’t keep bunnies
from eating the carrots next to them.
Research has shown that interspersing flowering plants
attractive to pollinators among other plants may help pollinators find those
less attractive plants and increase production. Marigolds may also attract
insects that prey on harmful insects eating your garden plants.
But the counter to this is that some harmful insects, like
thrips and spider mites, and some of those moths and butterflies that have
larvae that eat your plants, are also attracted to marigolds. Japanese beetles
are attracted to marigolds. They may end up on your vegetable plants or other
flowers nearby. You may be better off planting the marigolds somewhere away
from the garden, so bugs are attracted to them instead of the garden.
And marigolds certainly do not kill weeds or keep weed seeds
from sprouting. A vigorous thick planting of marigolds may help keep weeds down
by competing with them but then they also compete with your veggies or other
flowers. Marigolds do not improve the soil by adding nitrogen or any other
nutrients- unless you compost them.
Down to the roots of the marigold
The idea that the roots of marigolds repel or kill root
nematodes is complicated. Nematodes are tiny worms that feed on the roots of
plants like tomatoes, beets and carrots. Some types of marigolds release a
chemical called alpha-terthienyl, which is a very toxic poison, from their
roots. This can kill nematodes by preventing their eggs from hatching. But
studies in the field have found that interplanting marigolds among other plants
did little to control nematode populations in the roots of nearby plants.
Marigolds don’t repel all nematodes; they attract some of
them. These nematodes enter their roots, but then they cannot reproduce after
feeding on marigolds. So, they could work to reduce the population of some
types of nematodes by working as a trap crop. But some nematodes are also not affected by
marigolds.
The key is you have to know what type of nematodes are in your soil and you have to have the right type of marigolds for there to be any benefit. Usually older varieties of African marigolds, Tagetes erecta) and French marigolds (T. patula) are used. The varieties often mentioned are ‘Single Gold’ and ‘Crackerjack.’
 |
| Butterfly on African type marigold |
It’s possible by growing marigolds as a cover crop for 6-8
weeks in the spot where you want to plant veggies before you plant– and then
pulling them up and disposing of them- may help eliminate nematodes from the
soil. This would probably work best in a raised bed- where it would be harder
for new nematodes to invade the soil.
Most northern gardeners do not have time to do this if they
want a crop to mature before frost. But
in the south and in tropical areas marigolds are sometimes used as a cover crop
to control nematodes. They are planted very densely and then are rototilled
into the soil just before planting another crop.
Bottom line
The bottom line is that marigolds make the garden look nice
and they can attract pollinators and beneficial insects. But they may also
attract pest insects. They may help prevent nematodes in some areas if grown as
a cover crop before planting other crops. They don’t repel mosquitoes or
snakes.
For more reading about marigolds and pest prevention.
PLOS ONE, 2019; 14 (3): e0213071 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0213071
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ng045
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285189207_Companion_planting_and_insect_pest_control
Ten
minute chocolate cake from scratch
This is a microwave recipe I just tried and it’s great. You
can have a delicious chocolate cake from scratch in just minutes using your
microwave. I was surprised that this cake was moist and the texture just like a
cake baked in the oven. It’s not like a brownie.
It makes a single layer cake- about a 9-inch microwave safe pan
works well. It’s very rich dark chocolate flavored. I didn’t frost mine but
frosting or ice cream would be great with it. You could use less cocoa powder
if you don’t like dark chocolate.
Ingredients
¾ cup flour
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup baking cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 egg yolks
6 tablespoons butter,
1 cup water
½ cup baking chips or nuts optional- I used Reeses peanut
butter chips
Cut butter in pieces, place it and the water in a microwave
safe pan, heat for about a minute. (Use a 8-9 inch pan.)
Remove from microwave- stir to melt butter. You may need a
few more seconds to melt it.
Blend together dry ingredients in a bowl.
Test the water in your pan, it should feel warm but not so
hot you can’t touch it. You don’t want it to cook the egg yolks. Let it sit a
minute or two if it’s hot.
Add egg yolks and vanilla stir briskly for a few seconds.
Add dry ingredients and baking chips or nuts, stir until all
are blended well.
Microwave on high for about 5 minutes. Center should be dry
when tested with a knife.
You can cool it to frost it or just add ice cream or cool
whip and gobble it down.
-May Sarton
Kim Willis
All parts of this blog are
copyrighted and may not be used without permission.
And So On….
Find
Michigan garden events/classes here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/118847598146598/
(This is the Lapeer County Gardeners
facebook page)
Newsletter/blog
information
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match mine, but I do reserve the right to publish what I want. Contact me at KimWillis151@gmail.com
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