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Tuesday, May 11, 2021

May 11, 2021, hey, where's spring?

 I planned to do some work in the garden this morning, but the cold (54 degrees) and mostly cloudy conditions drove me inside to write on this blog. The strong wind doesn’t help. My old joints don’t like this weather. When will spring arrive for good, instead of just a tease?

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.

 Flower garden tips

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 Central America.  West of the Rockies more species of hummingbirds like calliope, rufous, broad-tailed, and black-chinned hummingbirds can be found.

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.

 


 May and June. Soft syllables, gentle names for the two best months in the garden year: cool, misty mornings gently burned away with a warming spring sun, followed by breezy afternoons and chilly nights. The discussion of philosophy is over; it's time for work to begin. 

-Peter Loewer

 

Kim Willis

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