Hi Gardeners
I know I will be watering later today if it doesn’t rain. We
get lots of clouds and gloom but no rain from it. There’s a chance of
thunderstorms this afternoon and I hope we do get rain and not just some
drizzle.
On a brighter note, we are now eating tomatoes from the
garden. Some Septoria leaf spot is beginning on the plants but so far, it’s
manageable. My cucumbers and pumpkins have powdery mildew, that could be a
major problem soon. My one surviving marihuana plant is nice and bushy. It’s
growing well.
The flower beds look quite nice right now. The oriental
lilies and martagon lilies are blooming along with the Asiatic. I wish there
was a way to space out their blooms so they didn’t all bloom at once. The
oriental lilies used to bloom a few weeks later than the Asiatic but over the
years their bloom time has advanced.
I had a heck of a time trying to stake the tall oriental
lilies this week. They had 3-foot stakes but they towered over them and began
to droop. They are so beautiful but hard to see when they flop into the ferns.
Next year I am going to get some kind of taller supports in there early in
spring.
Shasta daisies, daylilies, lavender, anise hyssop and a few
roses are in bloom. The rocket ligularia and astilbe are also blooming. Lots of
annuals of course are in bloom. The tithonia is blooming at only 3 foot high- I
think it’s the lack of rain. Zinnias are
short too.
I finally started seeing some monarchs. I was watching some
flitting around high over the zinnias when a barn swallow swooped down and
snatched one up. I like monarchs but I like the swallows better. They do
something useful, like eat bugs. I also got to see a little tiny baby
hummingbird just learning to fly this week.
There are quite a few butterflies of various types around
right now. The horse farm across the road now has empty pastures and they are
filled with black eyed Susan’s, and various weeds in bloom, which I think
attracts the butterflies.
Our grape vines are loaded with grapes, so I am keeping a
close eye on the Japanese beetle situation. So far, I’ve only seen a few, but I
have noticed damage here and there. I know from social media that lots of
people are having major invasions of the bugs. They can make gardeners cry;
they are so hard to manage, and damage can be severe.
Below I have a link to an article about Japanese beetles and
their control. It’s been revised a bit
this week with some newer information.
 |
| Japanese beetles mating frenzy |
Japanese
beetles
In some areas of the country Japanese beetles are becoming
numerous. From now into late August, you can expect to see at least some beetles
and damage in most of the country. Like most insects they are more numerous
some years than others. You can have terrible damage one year but someone a
mile away can have little damage.
The larval stage of Japanese beetles is a grub in your lawn.
They turn into beetles in July and emerge to eat everything in sight. Japanese
beetles eat over 300 species of plants. And the beetles attract more of their
kind as they feed, releasing a pheromone so they can find mates. Early intervention helps keep numbers down.
Now is the time (July) to treat lawns for grubs to control
them. Also new research shows that leaving your grass 3 inches or more long
discourages the adult beetles from laying eggs in the soil there. These things
won’t help with this year’s beetle crop but will help reduce numbers for next
year.
The good news is that the beetles feeding rarely kills
plants although it can make a gardener cry. The beetles can be hard to control.
For control options, and a list of plants that attract and don’t attract
Japanese beetles I have an article on my blog you can read. It has been newly
revised.
https://gardeninggrannysgardenpages.blogspot.com/p/japanese-beetles_13.html
Neem oil
is not a magic potion
I am alarmed by how frequently people are turning to neem
oil for every perceived problem of plants, as if the product was perfectly safe
but also magically able to solve every plant problem. First let’s make some
things clear. Do not use any pesticide unless you have identified the problem.
Then check to see if neem oil is helpful for that pest or disease before
applying it.
Just because neem oil comes from a plant, does not make it
harmless or totally safe. Neem oil is a registered pesticide in the US and
it is considered a chemical. Neem oil must be used according to label
directions- only- that is the law. There are different formulations of Neem oil
products, and some include other chemicals. You must read the label and follow
directions.
Neem oil is a non-selective pesticide. That is, it will kill
both good and bad insects. But it does not work on all types of insects. It
does not kill spiders (Arachanoids) or ants for instance. Before using,
identify the insect pest that’s bothering your plant and then check the label
of any product you buy to see if it controls them.
Insects are killed by neem oil by ingesting it, not by it
touching them. If a pest isn’t eating the plants, it won’t be killed. If you
don’t spray flowers bees probably will not be harmed. If neem oil contaminates
pollen or nectar, bees could be killed. But even some pests that do eat leaves covered
in neem are not killed and continue to damage leaves. And it may take days for
some pests to die. Some insects are just
repelled by neem oil- they leave but do not die.
Neem oil has some limited use as a fungicide. It does not
help with every fungal disease, blackspot on roses, for instance, is not helped
by neem oil. It’s not a very effective fungicide, there are many better
products. It cannot cure any fungal disease, only protect new foliage. And it
requires frequent application to work.
Neem oil does not help with viral or bacterial diseases.
Neem oil is relatively safe for mammals, but it can make you
sick or harm your eyes if you do not use it correctly. Cats may sometimes have
adverse reactions to neem oil, including seizures. Once again read the label for precautions.
Wear gloves when applying neem oil, don’t eat, drink or smoke while doing so.
Do not get it near your eyes. Wash off any produce sprayed with neem
products before eating.
In animal studies, neem oil was found to decrease fertility
and it decreases fertility of some insects also. It also caused deformity of
offspring of mothers exposed to neem oil. No studies have been done in humans,
but researchers suggest pregnant women should not be exposed to neem oil.
Continuous use of the product would probably be more of a concern, so like with
most pesticides, use neem oil only when absolutely necessary.
Some plants are sensitive to neem oil application, and it
will burn their leaves. Read label directions about temperatures and sun
exposure when applying products. Different products, with different additives,
may need different handling.
Neem oil products have a very short effective period- often
as short as 2 days, even if it doesn’t rain. That makes it costly and labor
intensive to use them. Check label directions for how often to apply.
Don’t spray neem oil products every time you see an insect
on your plants or detect a yellow leaf or believe your plant has a disease. It
is only good for certain insects and diseases. Treat neem oil as a pesticide-
which it is- and follow label directions for using.
Additional reading
https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/bp/bp-69-w.pdf
Renaming
the gypsy moth
Gosh I hope I can use the word gypsy without being put into
FB jail. But it’s now a thing- we have
to rename bugs, plants and birds so that the names are politically correct. The
gypsy moth must be renamed because gypsy is a slang word used to describe the
Romani people that some of those people find insulting. There’s also an ant
called the gypsy ant and it’s going to be renamed too.
I don’t mind renaming when it comes to common names. There
are often numerous ones for the same creature circulating anyway. And if it
offends a group of people change it. So, no more gypsy moth. But I think
renaming when it come to scientific names, which is also proposed, is just
silly.
Certain scientific names are given by using the name of the
person who discovered it. Now if that person ever owned a slave or was involved
in a battle with Native Americans or any number of things not considered
politically correct it seems we must remove his name from some worm living in
the jungle floor.
Most of the scientific names being considered for removal
are names the average person has no knowledge of. That is until troublemakers
start circulating some odious biography of the discoverers life and demanding
the name of the cockroach he discovered be changed. Come on – who really cares?
Changing scientific names just causes confusion. That’s supposed to be a name
that all countries can recognize – the one true name to use to keep everyone on
the same page. It’s in Latin anyway.
As I said I don’t care if common names are changed that an
aggrieved group finds particularly disturbing. Sports team names for example,
who cares if they change? Cities and rivers and other landmarks- hmmn- that can
be a problem. Common names for plants and animals – fine with me.
So, what should the gypsy moth, (Lymantria dispar), be
renamed? Munching monster moth? Filthy pooping moth? Demon moth? I don’t know why they got the name “gypsy”
anyway. They don’t really wander – as if
all Romani people wander anyway. The moths came from France- why don’t we call them
French moths? (Nope, probably offensive.) Maybe the common name of the people
the moth was named for should be changed instead.
It’s funny how the context of words changes over time
anyway. For example, gypsy doesn’t mean a wandering thief to most people
anymore, instead it brings up an image of a colorful and eccentric person, and
not in a bad way. The word gay was once used simply to mean happy and cheerful,
then somehow became a slur and now is used as a name to describe gender
identity and is not considered offensive in most contexts.
So gardeners, when using common names for plants and
animals, be careful. Wandering Jew is also an unacceptable name for the vining
houseplant many people have. Inch plant is another common name for it that
shouldn’t offend anyone. What should we rename the Indian paint brush? Maybe
just drop the Indian?
Are there any common names of plants that offend you? (I
don’t think there is a “Karen” plant.) Feel free to comment on plant names that
offend you.
“I drifted into a summer-nap under the hot shade of July, serenaded by a cicada lullaby, to drowsy-warm dreams of distant thunder.”
― Terri Guillemets
Kim Willis
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And So On….
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