Spring????

One of my favorites is the common violet. A little bouquet is so sweet.

Weigela "Red Prince" is ready to bloom.

It sure looks and acts like Spring around here - sun, warmth, wind, storms...

In talking with the owners of Red Barn Nursery, they were amazed the number of people already buying and setting out tender annuals. #1, most nursery plants are not very big or tempered off. #2, we could still get frost (it's predicted for Tuesday night here).

It's been such a wonderful Spring. I don't remember things blooming this early or this lush. Since I've been keeping my "all things gardening/weather" journal, it shows we are almost a month ahead of typical.

Since I'm having a group over this evening, I did plant my outside front-of-the-house pots. I'll either move them in the garage for the night or cover them come Tuesday.

The only things I have planted in the garden are rhubarb and asparagus, neither will be harmed by the cold. I'm babying some cabbage plants but they should also be alright. Those that plant early, should see no problems with onion sets and some other early vegetable seeds.

Tomatoes need warm soil and no frost. I would venture tomatoes set out now will not beat the neighbors in production because they simply will hunker down and not thrive until it warms.

You can plant tomatoes in pots and move them inside and out as the weather allows. If you buy a little tomato set now and do not plant, it will eventually get really leggy and it will have to be pinched back and planted deep (which kinda negates the whole buy early thing.)

Enjoy this beautiful Spring and all our famous Midwest bounty. Cut some tulips, bleeding hearts, sprigs of forsythia, bouquets of lilacs and fill vases all over your home.

Take a drive to admire the trees and bulbs blooming in other gardens. I often wonder why we don't have scenic drives in the Spring instead of just in the fall. Washington State has figured that out with their Cherry Blossom Festival and a few others around specific flowers. Locally, yards blooming with all kinds of flowers are certainly just as beautiful.

As they say in the restaurant business when they set a plate of gourmet food in front to you: Enjoy!

It's Show Time!

Illustration of an old 1912 "Miss Jessie M. Good" catalog cover featuring a bouquet of dahlias.

I’m not sure why we don’t see more annual bulbs, tuber plants and flowers around this area. I admit they’re work to dig up every year but then they do increase and you don’t need to buy each year. They're some of the most tropical, bright and largest flowers and leaves you can have in your garden.

Today, I’m going to focus on the beautiful show stopper from Mexico, the Dahlia (part of the Compositeae family.) Named after Swedish botanist, Anders Dahl, there are thirty-six species and thousands of varieties. They come in most every color and shade except black, green and blue. Blooms are patterned, single, or double, & from 2 ins. to 1 ft. The plant is from 12 in. to 8 ft. tall. The petals come in a variety of shapes.

Dahlia plants are used as food plants for the larvae of the Angle Shades, Common Swift, Ghost Moth and Large Yellow Underwing.

It is said, “If you can grow tomatoes, you can grow Dahlias.” As with tomatoes, plant Dahlias in well drained humus rich loose soil after danger of frost. They prefer full sun. Stake tall varieties.

Dahlias are heavy feeders, especially in pots. A good water-soluble flower fertilizer about a month prior to blooming and each month thereafter should help.

Dahlias bloom from the middle of summer up to frost. For the finest cut flowers, cut them early in the day, when they first open. Cut Dahlias will last from 5-7 days.

Dahlias often become more beautiful as the weather cools. They should be deadheaded to increase blooming. Pinch back when they are one foot tall to prevent them from becoming “leggy”.

Pests: Watch for slugs, snails and Japanese Beetles (pick these off or use an insecticidal soap.)
Gently dig and store after the first frost. Brush (no water) off as much soil as possible then cut stems back to six inches. Set in a cool dry place for a couple of days. Dust with fungicide and pack them away in vermiculite or sand. Check during the winter throw away any that rot.

There are Heirloom Dahlias or new hybrids introduced every year. The “box” stores have them fairly cheap or the more unusual and spectacular ones are more expensive. Either way, it will be Show Time!

“But each spring a gardening instinct, sure as the sap rising in the trees, stirs within us. We look about and decide to tame another little bit of ground.”

-Lewis Gantt

Happy Birthday Earth Day

Photo from "Everyday Wildlife Champions" Facebook page.

Earth Day turns 40 years old today.

NORAD and USNORTHERN Command says about the environment, "We need to conserve water, energy, and take good care of our environment for the benefit of all human beings not only for our generation but also for other succeeding generations ahead of us."

WQAD's meteorologist, Anthony Peoples, termed it "conserve and recycle" day.

Everyday Wildlife Champions quoted, "It's doing simple tasks, little by little, to make a huge difference."

For myself, I view saving the planet issues much like I do my political issues: "I'm not a Republican and I'm not a Democrat." I read and then decide which side of an issue to stand.

The learning process: I was enthusiastic about this one well-known conservation group to the point I gave them money. Then I learned to read the "fine print" and found out they used their money in ways they don't put out front in the advertising and in ways I didn't agree. Now, I always read the fine print.

I really do care about this earth and I feel I'm responsible for not only making it a better place but insuring it's a better place for future generations. I don't tie myself to a tree over the loss of a mosquito but I do try to educate myself and practice sound ecological measures in my own gardens. I also use my little bit of visibility to help educate others on what they might do in their own backyards.

I've certainly been Blessed by living in America. Daily, I wake to a beauty and bounty my imagination could not have dreamed. I praise and encourage our local farming communities and swell with pride that those very families have chosen to feed the world. I stand by the window at night and look at the vast sky and know I am a minority who are able to do this from the comfort and safety of my abundance. I'm grateful for those who choose to tackle the bigger environmental issues around the globe.

I'm not so happy with organizations, foundations or institutions who have gone off the mark by using environmentalism as a cover for political or financial gain.

Do we, as just one little citizen in one little town, have a responsibility: Most certainly; in each of our own ways and abilities. Now go have yourself a "Happy Earth Day"!

A Sad Surprise

I was reading one of my favorite on-line publications and catalogs, Old House Gardens http://www.oldhousegardens.com/ when I saw the following:

"Bankruptcy Stuns Fans of Wayside, Park Seed, Jackson and Perkins. The economy is picking up, but it's still a tough world out there. On April 2, (2010) three of the oldest and most highly respected plant suppliers in the country filed for bankruptcy protection. According to a spokesperson for the three, "The horticulture industry is challenging and highly seasonal in the best of times. As the general economic situation declined starting in 2008, demand for luxury, non-essential purchases dropped sharply. . . . Seeking court protection and restructuring is clearly our best option for returning to a position where we can focus on delighting our customers."

There are few among gardeners who haven't received a catalog from one of the above; many have ordered from them. Jackson and Perkins also supplies many nurseries with roses. J & P was founded in 1872 and is currently owned by "outside investors".

Park Seed has been around since 1868. Wayside (started in 1916) was purchased by Park Seed in 1975. I'm not sure, but it looks as if all three are now owned by the same outside investors. Whether it's the economy or the outside investors' business management that proved to be the problem, the end result is not a good one.

Loosing these three respected large suppliers would affect American gardening in a negative way. Let's hope the restructuring will help them through this period until they can again be financially secure.

Bestow the Fragrance

Lilac Common Purple

Lilac Common White

Lilac tree "James Macfarland"

Lilac "Sensation"

Seriously, have you ever smelled anything that filled your house with a more lovely fragrance than lilacs? I have a bouquet in my home and can smell it two rooms away.

I have several different kinds and the most fragrant is the old fashioned, Common Purple Syringa Vulgaris.

The Common Purple can be seen on the lots of most old homes in the Midwest. Growing to about 10 ft and spreading by suckers. A deciduous shrub, it survives routinely to minus 35 degrees. It does not survive where there is no significant frost in the wintertime. We may not have oceans and beaches up here but we do have the most wonderful fragrant lilacs in the world!

Another old lilac is white and has a faintly spicy sweet smell. It's called Syringa vulgaris Common White or "Alba". The Common White wilts quickly when picked.

Among the hybrids, the French lilac Syringa vulgaris "Sensation" is a best seller. Purple with white edges and little fragrance, it is best known for it's pretty looks. It keeps well when picked. I have another lilac "James Macfarland" that is pink, blooms late, and has very faint fragrance. It is dainty and sweet.

My children gave a tree lilac to me a few Mother's Day's ago. Called Syringa reticulata Japanese Tree Lilac "Prince Charming", it blooms late and certainly looks like a tree. The blooms are lilac/pink and the individual flowers are small. The fragrance is lightly sweet. It has done quite well and is covered with lilacs every year. This tree does not require trimming and makes a good specimen plant.

Other than acquiring the common version, you may want to buy only hybrid that have resistance to mildew (common amoung lilacs). If you choose to plant those without that caveat, it is sometimes best to plant lilacs where they will be background green the rest of the year and not where they will be seen up close. The mildew doesn't kill the plant; only makes it unsightly.

Lilac bushes can be trimmed to return them to a full bushy look by trimming one-third down to about 5 inches every year for the three years. The thirds insures you will continue to have blossoms every year until trimming cycle is completed. If you trim the entire bush down (do not trim tree lilacs down), it will not kill them but you will not have blooms for another two years because they bloom on the previous year's stems.

Pick bouquets every day that the lilacs bloom and let them beautify and infuse the entire home with their one-of-a-kind fragrance.

“Flowers leave some of their fragrance in the hand that bestows them.”

Chinese proverb

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Advice says to hammer the cut stems of lilacs before putting in water. This helps them absorb water.

Gardeners who can no longer garden usually enjoy a gift of flowers from your garden. It allows them to enjoy the fruits of your labors and brings memories of times past. Put the lilacs in a an old mayonnaise jar, wrap with a pretty ribbon and brighten their day.

Garden Art Awards

It's important for gardeners to be supportive of other gardeners' designs.

It's important that we don't impose our own taste as the only "good" designs.

It's important we don't become so judgemental of the efforts of others, we stifle creativity.

That said, I may do all of that and more when I feature some garden "objects" that defy my own sensibilities for garden design. I do realize for every one of these, there may be a person out there who says, "Gee that's really cool, I think I'll get one."

And the award goes to:

I call this my "personal favorite" for the "Are You Kidding Me Award". It was called the Black Tick and was made of "found objects." Let me say this, "some objects should not have been found and should not have been made into a black garden tick."

This little number, called Robot was listed for $28. My thought was if it was given to Mom or Grandma, then put it in the garden until the kids grow old enough to be embarrassed and then remove. It gets my "Simulated 3rd Grade Art Class Award".

This was listed for $130 and the artist said it was fine art (which allows the artist to do something totally odd and say it has deep significance to sensitive types). He called it "Dove Hands" which has now received my "Huh? Award".

This one is from Bruno Torf's sculpture garden, called Tree Figure and I actually kinda like it. It receives my "Warning - May Scare Little Children Award".

This little number, called Three Eyed, sells for $75 to the hunter who has everything and wants to expand his dead room into the garden (you know who you are). This one gets my "You're Creeping Me Out - Now Stop It Award".

These are a handful of garden objects de' art I found this morning on the net for your viewing pleasure - there were thousands to choose from on e-Bay, Etsy, and some garden blogs.

The trick with using garden art: If you can't resist going totally over the top, then be prepared for critiques, complaints or to be forced to install a tall privacy fence. The good thing about some of this, it sure does allow a sense of humor to laugh out loud and that's not all bad.

Darned If I Remember

This is the time of the year when I look at my beds and think:

A. It looks like some of my tulips have stopped blooming.

B. Boy, I sure wish I had planted more Spring flowering bulbs last Fall.

C. I'm sure I'll remember this Fall to fill that space with some bulbs.

In the Fall, I look at my beds and think:

A. Now where were those tulips that have stopped blooming?

B. Darn I hate planting bulbs when it's already turned so cold.

C. I have no idea where it was I wanted those bulbs planted.

I can state the above because I've done this routine almost every year I've gardened. BUT, this year I have a new plan.

After I've put down my newest layer of mulch, I'm taking a can of yellow spray paint and making a circle of where I want bulbs. It's not like there will be thousands but too often all the remains of a summer's worth of flowers hides any traces of where I might plant.

I don't want to dig up good bulbs or put in places that don't show well in the Spring. I figure yellow won't be too noticeable through the Summer and Fall foliage yet will still mark the spots.

I've noticed several of my tulip patches aren't producing or have slowed. Tulips are considered a short lived perennial and this is to be expected. I've tried digging and replanting and fertilizing but eventually they just stop putting on flowers.

Have you ever noticed buying 100 daffodils in the Summer sounds reasonable but in the Fall you seriously think you've lost your mind?