I have been moving some plants I bought last week in and out of my car every night and I am getting a little tired of it. We have had frost almost every morning and more is predicted tomorrow. Yes, I know I should have waited to buy plants. But there were some things I wanted to get before Mother’s Day, when they were still available. If you wait you sometimes don’t get those odd, special things you crave. I knew better than to plant them in the ground though. I haven’t bought the bedding annuals yet or veggie transplants, next week for those. Hopefully the cold spell will be over.
I have noticed damage to some hosta, while others are unfazed
by frost and freezes. We got down to 28 degrees on 2 nights and 32 on a couple
others. A climbing rose I planted last
year was leafing out, but now the leaves have been killed by the cold. I hope it tries again. I am worried about the
apple blossoms, only time will tell if they were ruined.
My akebia vines (chocolate vine) are both blooming this year. It takes two different kinds to make fruit. That only happens every few years. Last year the one vine didn't bloom. I'm afraid the frost may have nixed the chance of any fruit again this year. When I do get fruit it's very interesting and tasty.
 |
| Akebia flower |
The early tulips and daffs are done, but the late daffodils and tulips are still going strong. Grape hyacinths and creeping phlox are blooming. Alliums are just about ready to bloom. I can see color on the lilac buds now. The redbud, flowering quince and clove currant are still in bloom. Barberry is blooming, it’s another plant people like to hate, but bees love it. Most trees have leafed out, with the exception of the catalpa.
Wild currants, wild cherry and dogwood are in bloom in the
woods. Cottonwood fluff is already starting to drift around. Autumn olive is
blooming and that is making the native bees extremely pleased. The bushes are
buzzing. I have seen the hummingbirds checking them out too, I don’t know if
they can get nectar from them or not.
Rose breasted grosbeaks are back this week and I saw baby
Canada geese this week. When I was mowing, I saw baby rabbits, I don’t think I
hit any. I know many birds are already nesting and some are feeding young
already.
This week my plans are to finish filling the grow bags for
my veggie garden, get some of them planted, put up a new screen around my trash
cans, do a lot of weeding in the front beds and get my cutting garden/butterfly
garden cleaned up. And hopefully I’ll be
able to plant the plants I bought last week so I can buy more. My farmer tan is
developing, but hopefully I’ll be able to get more sun next week.
I hope all of you get a chance to garden this week and are finding all the plants you covet. Forget housework and grocery shopping, it’s planting time!
Cicada reminder
Despite the hoopla in the media not everyone in the eastern
half of the US is going to see a big cicada hatch. Parts of Ohio, Indiana and a
bit of Michigan, parts of Maryland, the DC area and Pennsylvania, along with a
few other states will be where the hatch occurs, probably soon. If your area is due for a hatch, you’ll
probably know it.
The cicada will not harm plants to any great degree, and its
mostly trees that will see any damage. The only thing that needs protecting is
young recently planted trees, they can be covered with netting for a few weeks.
The female cicada can damage them by laying eggs in twigs.
Cicada do not bite or sting, are not poisonous, and they are
greatly appreciated by many birds and animals.
They can be noisy and messy, but the problem only lasts a few weeks. Then
they are gone for 17 years.
Cicadas are not the locusts of the bible and other memorable
plagues. They don’t fly in swarms or fly any great distance and they don’t
devour everything in their path. No food crops will be in danger. Your flowers
won’t be harmed. Relax and take some pictures.
For those who are suffering through another chilly spell be
patient about buying new plants. If you are buying perennials hardy in your
zone, but they are far ahead in growth than perennials outside and maybe in
bloom, you’ll want to protect them or bring pots inside if the temps are going
close to freezing- 34 degrees F at night.
Even a hard frost can damage them.
Of course, most annuals and tropical perennials cannot be
exposed to even light frosts without damage or death. They must be covered or
brought inside. Don’t forget hanging baskets. Watch the weather reports
carefully this time of year.
Remember when it is time to plant, both perennials and annuals
should be watered after you plant them. Even things you dig up and move in the
garden should be watered after planting. Even if it’s supposed to rain that
night, water. Sometimes the rain doesn’t
happen. That first watering is crucial to planting success.
You must keep drought tolerant plants watered until
they get established, or unless it is raining frequently, and the soil is very
wet. Trees and shrubs also need watering when planted and if it’s dry, keep
watering until they get established, usually for trees and shrubs, that’s the
first season you plant them.
Dahlia, calla and canna tubers should not be planted until after danger of frost has passed and the soil is above 60 degrees F. You can pot these up to get them growing and blooming sooner. Use potting soil, not garden soil and get it barely moist. Set pots inside in a warm bright spot. Don’t water much until you see new shoots. Wet soil will rot the tubers. Keep them in bright light and don’t start them more than a month before your expected last frost.
 |
| Dahlias |
Remember to harden off plants you start indoors – move them
outside into full sun gradually, over a couple days in their pots before
planting them.
When you plant things that will need staking, like most
dahlias, put the stakes in when you plant. This will avoid damage to the tuber
later.
Make sure to mark things that are small or that are just
seeds or bulbs in the ground, so you don’t accidentally damage them – or pull
them thinking they are weeds.
Seeds for flowers like zinnias, cosmos, marigolds, nasturtiums,
four o clocks, tithonia, calendula and other annuals can be planted directly in
the ground. Plant around the time of your expected last frost. Keep the planted
area moist until the seeds sprout. You may want to protect the seeds and young
seedlings with a tunnel of wire fencing or netting supported up off the
seedlings.
Thin the seedlings to the recommended distance between
plants- check your seed packet. You can transplant the ones you remove if you
are careful.
Veggie
garden tips
It’s time now to plant at least some of the vegetable garden
in planting zones 6 and lower. You can safely plant peas, lettuce, kale,
spinach, cabbage, beets, radishes, onion sets and possibly potatoes now in
zones 5 and higher.
But don’t get too impatient to get warmth loving plants
outside, like tomatoes, sweet corn, beans, peppers, eggplants, pumpkins,
squash and melons. Your soil temperatures should be 65 degrees or more and
nights should not be falling below 45 degrees F, even if there is no frost.
Many people think covering their plants when frost threatens
is all that’s needed, and it may keep them alive. But many times, when plants
are put out early, when the soil is still too cold and nights get chilly, they
may pause growth and sometimes they can be permanently stunted or become more
susceptible to diseases. Peppers are particularly susceptible to long term
damage from cold.
Two identical tomato transplants, one planted outside at six
weeks when soil temps are 55 degrees and covered on frosty nights, and one that’s
6 weeks old planted 3 weeks later in 65-degree soil will probably be the same
size 3 weeks later and will mature and bear fruit at the same time. Everyone
always wants to be the one with the first ripe tomato but planting too soon isn’t
the way to meet that goal.
You can use larger transplants – healthy ones grown in large
pots, not elongated spindly ones in tiny pots, to get earlier fruit.
Fortunately, tomatoes, peppers and eggplants don’t get a large setback when they
are large at transplanting time, if they are planted correctly. The variety of tomato
also makes a difference, if you want early fruit, pick an early maturing
variety.
If you direct seed cucumbers, squash, pumpkins and melons
in the ground, wait until soil temps are at least 65 degrees F for best
germination. Fast germination usually signifies a healthier plant for its
lifetime.
Another tip for those vining crops is not to use large
transplants, if you don’t direct seed in the ground. Vine crops should only have 2-4 true leaves for
the best transplanting success. Larger plants tend to suffer more transplanting
shock and pause growth for a while.
Potatoes can be planted when soil temps are 45
degrees F or more. Soils should not be too wet – especially if they are still
below 55 degrees. Tubers may rot in cold wet soil.
Yes, you can plant sprouted potatoes from the grocery store and get a crop but buying certified disease-free seed potatoes is better and you can get some of the rarer types of potatoes when you purchase them from a catalog or local grower. It’s interesting to taste some of these uncommon, delicious potatoes you can’t buy cheaply in the store.
Most larger seed potatoes are cut into pieces before
planting, each piece should have at least one eye or sprout. Let the cut pieces
sit for a day or two for the cut surface to dry and “scab” over. This helps
prevent rot. Small seed potatoes can be
planted whole.
Onions can be planted as seeds, seedlings or small bulbs
called sets. Soil temperature should be 50 degrees for these, and they will
tolerate light frost, but not a heavy freeze. Sets can be tucked in spaces
around small plants and harvested for green onions before the plants get large.
Sets will make small onion bulbs but are best for green onions. If you want
large slicing onions buy seedlings to plant or direct seed into the garden.
Sweet corn is planted after farmers plant field corn.
The more wrinkled the kernel of corn is the warmer the soil needs to be when it’s
planted. Sweet corn needs at least 65-degree F. soil temps for germination and
should be planted after danger of frost has passed.
Beans, bush and pole types, are another crop that
does better direct seeded into the ground rather than transplanted into the
ground. Soil temperatures should be 65 degrees and danger of frost has passed.
Beans will get off to a better start if you buy inoculated seed. The inoculated
seeds are coated with beneficial bacteria specific to legumes which is perfectly
natural and harmless to people.
If you cover cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli with cheap
butterfly nets from the dollar store or with a lightweight row cover material, those
pretty white cabbage moths won’t be able to lay eggs on them and you won’t have
wormy crops.
To save money cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower can be
direct seeded in the ground when the soil is about 50 degrees. They will take
just a couple weeks longer than transplants to mature.
Wait to mulch warm weather crops until the soil temps are 70
degrees or higher. Make sure the soil is moist before mulching crops. Try to
keep mulch from touching the stems of plants.
Houseplants
in the spring- tips
If you want to move your houseplants outside for the summer
wait until there is no danger of frost and nights don’t dip lower than the 50’s.
You must harden them off by gradually exposing them to sunlight, even if they
have been in a sunny window. Move them outside into the shade first. Only a few
houseplants can go into full sun outside, even after gradual exposure. Most
will need light shade or even moderate to deep shade, depending on species.
Spring is a good time to fertilize houseplants and repot
them if it is needed. Don’t forget about them as you jump into outside
gardening. You may need to water more or less than you are used to, so check
pots first before watering.
Check houseplants in south and west facing windows. While they
may have done great there in the winter, spring and summer may find them
suffering sunburn. Leaves may be reddened, bleached out looking or crispy on
the edges. Usually moving them a foot from the window is all that’s needed but
some plants may need to be moved further.
Lawn or
no lawn?
How much lawn should you mow? Should you have a lawn? How about a meadow instead? Should you
fertilize a lawn and treat for weeds and insects?
Lawns have become some what of a hot topic here in the US with
many people arguing for their elimination. But others still want that perfect
green carpet and will do anything to get it. There is a middle ground however,
and most gardeners would do well to take it.
If you don’t like the time and expense of mowing, mow less
lawn. An acre of lawn is about the sensible limit to a lawn and most people can
do with much less. Put some of your lawn area into flower or vegetable gardens
or just let it revert to a “wild” state. But don’t stop mowing entirely.
You don’t have to have a plush carpet of one species of grass, you can let ground ivy, clover, violets, dandelions and other short weeds mix into the grass but do keep it mowed to about 3 ½ inches high around the house. Mowing around your home and important outbuildings does several things; it creates a fire break, it helps keep ticks and mosquitoes at bay, it eliminates hiding places for rats and mice (and the snakes that hunt them), and it makes a good area for entertaining and playing.
Just stopping mowing or trying to start a wildflower meadow
around your home often doesn’t end well. You may get a ticket since many places
have laws about controlling vegetation around dwellings. And you may also end
up with ticks or a rat problem. And quite frankly, most of these experiments make
your home look like has it has been abandoned, to put it kindly.
It doesn’t mean you can’t use the front yard for gardens (if
your municipality allows it). You can plant native plants if that is your thing.
Just keep it neat and tidy, have paths and defined borders and do keep noxious
weeds like ragweed cut down. Your backyard and other areas can be more informal,
but a mowed, mulched or paved area close to the home is a wise plan.
Certainly, if you are one of the people who deplore lawns as
a waste of time and energy you don’t need to fertilize or weed the lawn. Don’t
rake clippings, mulch them back into the lawn. If you keep the lawn 3 to 4
inches high, some of the friendly insects will be able to find things in bloom
in your lawn. And there’s no need for
pesticides unless you do get a severe insect problem, such as fire ants or
fleas. Mowing will take care of most weeds.
Don’t water large areas of lawn. You may want to water 50-75
feet around your home enough to keep things green if you live in a wildfire
prone area. Or you may want to keep an area green that you use for entertaining
or as a playground. Otherwise let your lawn go dormant in dry weather, except
for “mercy” watering if there is an exceptionally long drought.
Mowed areas are not unfriendly to wildlife either. It’s
called edge habitat, mowed areas surrounded by trees and shrubs and taller
vegetation. Rabbits, frogs and toads, and even deer like to spend some of their
time in areas with short vegetation. Many species of birds that are found in
urban and suburban environments, actually prefer areas with mowed lawns. Mown
areas help them spot predators and find insects on the ground.
Robins, song sparrows, chipping sparrows, killdeer, juncos, brown
thrashers, gray catbirds, flickers, grackles, indigo buntings, bluebirds,
cardinals, meadowlarks and red-tailed hawks are just some of the bird species
that like edge habitat, with short vegetation.
Lawns don’t have to be environmentally unfriendly, even if
they are mowed. A pesticide free, unfertilized, multi species mown area, lets
call it a natural lawn, is good for many animal species. There’s a place for
wildflower meadows and “let it go wild” areas, but it’s probably not up against
your house.
Hummingbird
facts
Hummingbirds are some of the most intricate and charming
birds in the bird kingdom and everyone who loves birds should do what they can
to attract them. It’s easy to put out a feeder for these little birds so you
can encourage them to nest around your home and entertain you with their epic
territorial battles.
In the eastern half of the country, the Ruby Throated
Hummingbird is the species you are most likely to see. Other species occasionally visit but those hummers
tend not to linger. Ruby Throated
Hummingbirds start appearing in late April, following the bloom of flowers and
the spread of warmth northward from their winter homes in
Here’s an interesting fact to ponder. Bird banders have
banded about 170,000 ruby throated hummingbirds in North America. It is thought that ruby throated hummingbirds
live about three years and we see them migrating to Central America and back
every year. But despite efforts no one has ever captured a banded ruby throated
hummingbird in Central America where they winter.
Both sexes of the ruby throated hummingbird have shiny
bronze-green plumage, with the male being a slightly brighter green, on the
back. The male has the ruby throat, the
female’s throat is white. The sides and belly are buffy gray, and the wing tips
and tail are a darker purplish black. Females are slightly duller colored,
larger and rounder than the males and the tail has white tips. Hummingbirds
have tiny feet and very long narrow beaks. Ruby throated hummingbirds average
about 3 ½ inches long and weigh less than half an ounce.
If morning temperatures are low hummingbirds may need to
bask in the sun for a short period of time before flying. Hummingbirds need to
consume their own weight in food each day and they eat frequently throughout
the day since they use energy at a rapid rate. They flap their wings at about
60 times a minute, fast enough to blur them in your eyesight. Hummers rarely
bathe in bird baths or puddles, preferring to bathe in light rain or a light
spray from your garden hose or sprinkler.
Hummingbirds do little vocalizing. You will hear them making an occasional tiny chirping sound and angry little shrill “screams” as they chase intruders. And you will hear the whirr of tiny wings as they whiz by your face in those aerial battles. Hummingbirds are extremely territorial, not only will they chase other hummers but even birds much bigger than themselves. Not only do they defend nesting territory, but they also defend feeding sources.
Hummingbird males stag elaborate dives and aerial stunts
when courting females but when the fun is over the sexes go their separate
ways. Female hummingbirds build tiny nests using thistle down, dandelion down,
pieces of bark and other fibers and they use spider webs to hold it all
together. They then stick pieces of lichen on the webs to disguise the nest. The
nests are usually on the top of a tree limb or sometimes on a porch ceiling
ledge in a protected spot about 8-15 feet off the ground.
Two tiny white eggs are laid in the nest, which hatch in
about 13 days. The female hummingbird incubates and rears the young all on her
own. They are ready to fly in about 20 days.
Babies are curious and a bit clumsy at first. They may come to check out the flowers on
your shirt or the red cup in your hands.
Hummingbirds leave for their arduous flight to their winter
home in late September in northern areas. They will eat furiously for a few
weeks prior to leaving to put on fat for the journey. They need a lot of fat
for that long flight. They do make stops along their route to refuel and people
in southern states may get huge flocks of hummingbirds passing through in the
fall.
Feeding and attracting hummers
To feed hummingbirds naturally plant a variety of flowers
with red and orange blooms, particularly those with trumpet shaped flowers. Favorites
of Hummingbirds include honeysuckle, trumpet vines, nicotiana, hibiscus, salvias
and buddleia. They also like comfrey flowers, although the blooms are very
small. It’s one of the reasons I leave some comfrey growing, even though it’s
horribly invasive.
Hummingbirds may be attracted to other flowers with red
blooms like roses or zinnias, but those plants have little nectar to offer
them. Although red and orange are favorite colors, they do visit flowers with
other colors.
Hummingbirds also eat small insects, including spiders, and
the sap of some trees. However, if you see a preying mantis near your hummingbird
feeder you should move it some distance away. Preying mantis have been known to
capture and eat hummingbirds.
Hummingbird feeders are easy to find on the market. They
usually consist of a red colored globe that holds sugar water and has tiny
holes in an attached base for the hummers to sip from. Feeders do not need to
be solid red, red around the feeding vents is all that’s needed.
It’s better to choose several small feeders than one large
one. Since Hummingbirds are very
territorial a lot of fighting occurs around a single large feeder. It is better to place several small feeders
around the garden.
Unfortunately, bees, wasps and ants are also attracted to hummingbird
feeders. They are attracted to yellow, so choose feeders without any yellow
colors on them or paint over yellow-colored areas to lessen the attractiveness
to bees.
Hummingbirds are the only species which can hover like a
helicopter when they feed. But feeders
with tiny perches are very welcome and I think hummers prefer them.
To keep ants out buy feeders with moats that hold water. You
can put a cone near the bottom of the feeder pole with the INSIDE of the cone
smeared with a sticky substance. Never put anything oily or sticky on poles or
wires that a hummer could come in contact with.
If they get it on their feathers, it can kill them.
Making nectar
It’s easy to make your own nectar for feeders. Use 3 parts
water to one part sugar such as 1 cup sugar to 3 cups water. Never use
anything but plain granulated white sugar to make nectar, no honey, no
fruit juice, no artificial sweeteners. Bring the water to boil and stir in the
sugar until it dissolves. Then remove from the stove and cool before filling
the feeder. You can make up a lot of nectar at one time and freeze the excess in
bags of the amount needed to fill each feeder.
Do not add food colors and avoid packaged nectar mixes with
chemical colorants. If your feeder is colored red or has a red base where the hummingbird
sips, that is sufficient to attract them. Keep your feeders full, especially
early in spring and late in fall when flowers are in short supply. It may take hummingbirds a few days to find
new feeders. Remove the feeder and clean it, then refill with fresh nectar once
a week.
You can remove your hummingbird feeders for the year when
you haven’t seen them for a few days. This is usually some time in September
for planting zones 6 and below and a bit later in the far south.
Ruby throated hummingbirds are not considered endangered
yet, but their numbers do seem to be going down. They are a bird that you can
really help by feeding nectar, birds around well supplied feeders raise more
young. Also tolerating plants like trumpet vines and buddleia helps them
survive. Do your part – put out a
hummingbird feeder or two.
-Peter Loewer
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
If you have a comment or
opinion you’d like to share, send it to me or you can comment directly on the
blog. Please state that you want to have the item published in my weekly blog
if you email me. You must give your full name and what you say must be polite
and not attack any individual. I am very open to ideas and opinions that don’t
match mine, but I do reserve the right to publish what I want. Contact me at KimWillis151@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment