And the Games Continue~

Posted on April 21, 2013 by twigsber

It’s been a couple months since I updated our latest adventure with dirt and I need an excuse to sit for a while today so here’s a mostly visual update to the garden on the hill. 

A picture is worth a thousand words and my head’s too clogged up to feel clever so here are a few pics.  A lot can happen in a couple months with bull headed determination and a very much appreciated extra set of hands. 

Rory split some cedar logs to make steps so the transition between the terraces is deliciously civil.  Of course we had to plant roses, crepes and some ornamental grass to complete the paths.

Rory split some cedar logs to connect the terraces and of course, I had to plant a few roses, crepes & grasses

 

The larger of the ponds is almost full and the back side of it’s dam is quickly filling up with strawberries.  

strawberries on the dam

 

I felt a patio was needed between the 2 ponds, but it only took me & Coop a few hours to lay & sand it in.

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 The smaller pond is surrounded with raspberries, figs, roses, bee balm & scented geraniums to keep the mosquitoes at bay.  Happily, frogs & tadpoles have settled in nicely.

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The hugels have been planted with onions & lady peas, which seem to be pretty happy.   We have organic tomatoes, eggplant, herbs & peppers propogating, which we’ll fill the lower terraces with in a couple weeks.  Gotta love spring!  M.

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Let the games begin~

Posted on February 20, 2013 by twigsber

Without question, I look forward to each day that I head to the nursery and can’t get enough of the gang there and chatting about dirt with any and everyone that pops in or calls.  There is an equally important extension of my dirt digging away from the nursery and I thought I’d begin sharing my latest dirty adventure.

About 1.5 years before we opened Twigs, we installed an orchard down in the hole where we live and finally became certified organic.  Now don’t get me wrong, I like trees and berry bushes, but the bulk of the time they do their own thing.  They are on a rather flat piece of land and with the summer droughts’ impending death to unattended plants, we put in a dedicated well and irrigation system.  Yes, the problem was solved and now the system does it’s thing, the trees/bushes do their own thing and I just needed another…..thing.  Happily there was this BIG hill.

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I began searching and reading about water conservation, land manipulation, mulches, hugelkultur, swales and the list goes on and on.  I was determined to find a way, using this wonderful rolling hill, to take advantage of water run-off and make a series of contours or terraces in such a way as to make this virtually self sufficient as far as water goes.  I was also set on putting a pond(s) at the top of the hill, where there’s a boggy spot, should the need arrise where irrigation would be done with gravity, not electricity.

We spent an afternoon, after a day of rain, with flags and mapped out what, where and how this would lay out.  Then my new best friend came with a bulldozer.  The first order of business was damming up the back of this area where 3 sides were naturally slopped into a single bottom.

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A few short hours and one big piece of equipment with a skilled operator and a pond was framed.  It’s about 20′ across and 8′ at it’s deepest point.

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Next to this pond, we installed another smaller “frog” pond with the overflow directed to the larger pond.  With the normal & generous spring rains, these should fill up and stop a lot of water from washing away the annual veggies that will be planted below.

Below these ponds, the remainder of the hill was terraced.  Next month,  2 of the bottom terraces will house a 14′ X 72′ high hoop house to allow us to propagate organic veggie starts/slips as well as direct planting (into the dirt vs into pots) cole crops for early spring and late fall Harvest.  The 2 terraces above the hoop houses will be the true experiment.  We will be incorporating hugelkulturs and swales again to attempt to make the planted beds of veggies self sufficient as far as watering goes.  Hugelkultur take advantage of the fact the wood holds 10X their weight in water – Big ditches will be dug, filled with fallen logs, branches and limbs covered with dirt and planted.

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As we progress when the weather co-operates, I will continue to update our successes and failures.  Hopefully more of the former.

Happy Spring Planning!!
Marianne

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YOU’RE TILLIN’ ME!

Posted on February 13, 2013 by twigsber

Oh, to till or not to till; to build a raised bed or simply raise a bed.  Everyone I see this week is brewing up a wonderful batch of spring fever, just in time for the snow expected on Saturday.  It’s Februrary and I don’t care that WMT & HomeDepot are peddling, some things shouldn’t be anywhere other than a greenhouse at this time of year.  Scratch that itch by getting your beds ready or by planning to put in a bed or 2.  I get loads of questions about raised beds, tilled beds or no-till beds.  Although it is a personal preference, there are solid reasons to pick your preference.  Keep in mind that over time, tilling/no tilling beds may merge into one in the same.

 

I’ll use our kitchen garden as an example. 

 

Being in southern VA, we don’t have dirt, it’s a brick maker’s heaven aka orange clay.  I love herbs, use a ton of herbs and wanted herbs the 1st year we were here.  Raised beds were my answer for immediate gratification for these Mediterranean natives.  We built 2 raised beds that flank the walkway.  They are 10″ tall, 2′ wide and 15′ long.  I happily dumped in peat, dirt, sand and compost, tilled it to death while filling it up, making sure to abuse the clay beneath, allowing it to co-mingle with my additives.  Voila – a very happy bed packed with very happy herbs.  Knowing it would have taken at least 3, if not 4 years to adjust this clay into the water wicking soil that herbs love, wasn’t worth the time nor the effort.  The bulk of my herbs are perennial and I have no intention of changing anything about these beds.  Those are the only traditional raised beds we have and the only traditional raised beds we intend to have in any of our gardens.  That is the best reason for a raised bed in my opinion.

Follow the baby boomers’ wants & needs and today=raised beds.    I have tons of customers that have built or bought raised beds, placing them on top of weed barrier fabric.  They feel it will make growing veggies easier.  Each year they add compost and fertilizer and are certain that is the way to comfortably grow their groceries and I don’t disagree.   It is easier to sit on the side to weed or pick your produce and it’s a quicker water, in that contained area, although you must water more often.  There’s nothing wrong with it. There is; however, something (again, my opinion) missing from the taste and texture of these annual veggies and I feel it’s the wonderful acid in our clay soil that sets our produce apart from other parts of the country.

 Our garden has 2 distinct parts: (1) herbs, berries & flowers with a separating “wall” of espalier pear trees (2) our veggie beds. The traditional tilled garden bed is how our rows of veggies are/were grown.  The beds are 5′ wide (that gives me an easy reach from either side as I’m short) X 15′ long with 3′ grass paths in between each row.  We deep cut the edges and they are mounded in the center, making a notable arch.  Again we started with this horrible, but wonderfully acid rich, clay. We put a ton of peat, compost, straw and manure on each and tilled away…again & again.  Each winter (pointless to attempt any fall root crops in the beginning) we layered peat then compost, then manure & straw and let it rest all winter.  In the spring we threw on what compost was left and tilled before planting/seeding.  For the past 3 years, this was our habit.  Finally, we have deep black dirt.  There is an impressive micro-rich  community in these beds and there is no need to disturb any of this with tilling.  We will not use a cover crop for the winter (that has to be tilled in) on these beds as they are filled with crops & appropriate companion plants for 9 months of the year (see blog 01-23-13 – Grandma…).  Our intention is to just top these rows with compost and plant away.  We have finally reached the no-till heaven of gardening! As long as you combine plants that naturally put nutrients back into the dirt and use compost or another amendment – no need to stir that pot so to speak.  Our garden plots have become somewhat self sufficient and our time to tend them has gone from  hours and hours to literally minutes per day!!! 

Now comes watering – again shortening the time dedicated to our veggie beds.  There are some really cool ways to conserve water usage, I will post our larger conversion later, but I’ll stay focused on our small garden rows in the kitchen garden.  As I mentioned earlier, we “cut in” around each bed.  In a couple of weeks, we’re going make a ditch, around each of these beds, exaggerating the cut.  In those ditches, I’ll put soaker hoses and cover with a thick layer of straw to stop evaporation.  Remember that our beds are only 5′ across, so the only concern is that the soaker hoses/ditches provide water for 2.5′ inside of each bed.  I have great appreciation for collecting rainwater, but I have no desire to fill up barrels for later, hands-on use.  I plan to use an open system aka gutters to barrels (with nozzle always open) to soaker hose to fill up the ditches.  Remember we have a clay base here and I did not amend any dirt in that part of the garden other than the planting beds.  Now clay wicks water very slowly, by taking advantage of the clay lined ditch to literally fill up with water during every rain, it will slowly leech into my beautiful loamy planting beds over time, watering only the roots (which is the perfect way to water) until the next rain when the ditches will fill again. Should we have another 2 week stretch with 100 degree days and no rain, I can simply fill up the ditches if they are bone dry and let nature take care of the rest. 

Hope this is food for thought~

Marianne

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Heirlooms & Hybrids & GM O-MY!

Posted on February 1, 2013 by twigsber


What’s in a name? Well in this case a lot and I feel the need to get specific about heirlooms, hybrids, GMOs and I’m throwing in organics as well. Keep in mind, organic ONLY describes how the plant was grown, what amendments were added to the dirt, what was used as fertilizer and pest/weed control. In addition, the approved list of allowable natural additives, for Certified Organic, is very limited and very specific.

THE SEED
Heirloom is the simpliest, untouched version of all seeds. No alteration on any level and if you harvest the seeds of any heirloom plant, be it flower, fruit or veggie, you get the same plant as its parent. Granted that seed may be harvested from a garden regularly pelted with toxic things like 7-dust, but if seed is harvested from the parent plant, it will in fact reproduce the same flower or veggie. Personally, I plant plain ole heirlooms and grow them in my kitchen garden with no chemical herbicides or pesticides and am comfortable eating what is produced. Here’s the HOWEVER: the plants I grow in my certified organic plots for sale can only be from “Certified Organic” seed stock but DO NOT have to be heirloom.
In addition, when a seed package state “Certified Organic”, do not assume it is an heirloom unless you clearly see that verbage on the package. Organic only speaks to the way in which the plants are tended, before and during seed harvest.
Gets a little confusing, eh?

Hybrids have gotten a dirty name and they don’t deserve it. A hybrid is simply a cross between 2 plants in the same plant family. Roses are some of the most common examples. Most of them are a hybrid and that is a result of a deliberate crossing of 2 different strains of rose. It often brings out the best of both in 1 plant. Face it, we all know a couple, (that’s a human kind of couple) both of whom are really ugly, yet they have the most incredibly beautiful child – yup, that’s a hybrid. As a matter of fact, all of us are hybrids today. An example in the veggie/fruit catagory is the BetterBeef tomato. Someone, decades ago, took a cotton swab, rolled it in the blooms of 2 different tomatoes, harvested the seeds from the female, planted them and presto a tomato which is big, round and well, beefy. Lots of veggie hybrid seeds are produced to simply make a more disease resistant strain. Here’s the HOWEVER: the seeds harvested from a hybrid will NOT reproduce its parent. You have to purchase those seed every year to get that specific plant. If that hybrid is the size, flavor, easier to tend and what you want – go for it. It’s just a tomato blended with another tomato.

GMOs aka Geneticly Modified are a different story. Picture a mad scientist with a big scope slicing DNA stands from 2 very different things and smooshing them in 1 stand. My favorite example is a strawberry that is so cold tolerant it can grow in Alaska. Some genius took a strawberry DNA strand and an Artic Char DNA strand(Arctic char – Wikipedia, Arctic char or Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) is a cold-water fish in the Salmonidae family, native to Arctic, sub-Arctic and alpine lakes and coastal waters) and you got it, an artic strawberry. I don’t know about you, but that thing isn’t going in my mouth. I should mention that I live in the south and can easily raise strawberries, so maybe if I was teleported to the artic I’d be thrilled.

I doubt, unless you are farming 100s or 1000s of acres you’ll ever cross paths with the GMO seed, but if you purchase groceries, odds are good you’ve already enjoyed their product.
Most of the studies on the effect of GMOs conclude by stating long term effect are not yet known. Enough said!

If you’re buying seeds keep in mind that you’ll have the following options:

Heirloom – old strain of seed that will reproduce itself from its seed, generation after generation of growing.

Hybrid – a cross of same variety of plant but will not reproduce itself from seed. (also keep in mind that many of the hybrid seeds are crossed to ensure that the plant’s seeds are sterile and won’t produce a thing). It will NOT state so on the packet.

GMOs – you probably will never see seed packets. Unfortunately, you currently will not see a label on fresh produce stating if it were raised from such a seed. I will also note, that the USA is one of the very few countries that does not DEMAND packages be marked as such.

Organic – the way the plant was raised that produced the seeds. If the package states “Organic” only, it’s probably a hybrid. “Organic Heirloom” seeds are from heirloom plants grown in a certified organic setting.

Bottom line – if you are growing veggies this year, read the package so there are no surprises. If you purchase your produce, know your farmer, know the people running the store you buy from or read the fine print; moreover, make note of what is not printed.

Cheers to safe growing and please raise a little hell about the FDA properly labeling our food.

Marianne
If you want to help keep an artist warm this winter, check out www.thebackroadsmarket.com

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Oh yeah, Grandma did know best!

Posted on January 23, 2013 by twigsber

There’s a good reason grandma always had a row of flowers in her veggie garden!

I’ve spent the past few days really getting organized for spring planting and thought I’d share a couple of things that may be helpful. Many of us have stopped using chemicals and I heard about last year’s frustrations with garden yields as well total loss of veggies as a result of bugs etc.

Mother Nature has her own pest control & fertilization method and I‘m going to put as many out there as I know. The buzzword for this is “Companion Planting” and that’s the perfect descriptor.

Flowering Pest Management:

Most of us know that marigolds are an insect repellent, but there are plenty more that you should consider adding. Cosmos, chrysanthemum and nasturtiums do as good of a job and personally, I’m a big fan of nasturtiums in the garden as well as on my salad, so that one’s double duty in my book.

If you hate Japanese Beetles, you gotta love geraniums! Hard to believe that those beetles that munch their way north every summer taking out roses, crepes, berries, fruit trees and anything else they care to inhale are actually deterred by the geranium. Plant them around trees, in your veggie garden, near your roses or fill up pots and planters everywhere so you can saturate any area quickly with these beautiful blooms that beetles avoid. I’ve long given up the beetle traps as I think they bring in more than they destroy. I plan to fill every pot with at least some geraniums and my preference is the herbal “scented geranium” as it also keeps away mosquitoes.

Anise is an every king of bug deterrent as well as a perennial in our zone 7.

Friends with Benes

The following are perfect companions. They deter detrimental bugs from their partner(s) plant as well as gifting the dirt with nutrients that their partner(s) love. Perfectly paired!

Asparagus with tomatoes, nasturtiums & parsley
Basil with tomatoes
Beans with strawberries, petunias, rosemary, savory & potatoes (I’m going to underscore beans & potatoes together as an important pairing as potatoes discourage the bean beetle and the bean discourages the potatoes beetle and we all grow lots of each)
Beets with onions
Broccoli with chamomile (I prefer German), zinnias, mint & chives
Brussels Sprouts with chamomile, zinnias & mint
Cabbage with rosemary, sage, thyme, chamomile, zinnias & mint
Carrots with chives, tomatoes, peas, lettuce and almost every herb EXCEPT DILL
Cauliflower with zinnias and mint
Celery and leeks
Chard and onions
Chives with carrots, broccoli, lettuce and peas
Corn with beans, cucumbers, squash, potatoes, radishes and any berry
Cucumbers with corn & radishes
Garlic with berries, lettuce
Lettuce with carrots, chives, garlic, radishes, strawberries, zinnias
Parsnips with beans, poppers, potatoes and peas
Peas with carrots, chives, garlic and radishes
Potatoes with beans, corn, flax dead nettle
Pumpkins LOVE corn
Squash with nasturtiums, corn, geraniums and borage
Strawberries with beans and lettuce
Tomatoes with most herbs, onions, asparagus, carrots and if we keep having weird weather, cabbage

NOT FRIENDS, EVER
The following aren’t helpful for one another; moreover, they are actually harmful and fight for the same nutrients in the dirt and will quickly deplete your soil. Keep them in a separate bed all together. If you rotate your crops, keep in mind that one should never follow the other in the same bed.

Beets and beans
Broccoli and strawberries
Carrots and dill
Cauliflower and strawberries
Chives and beans (yes, I know peas & chives love one another)
Garlic and any bean, pea, ok legumes
Onions and peas, beans
Parsnips and carrots, celery & caraway
Peas and onions
Potatoes and squash, tomatoes, sunflowers
Pumpkins and potatoes
Strawberries and cabbage, broccoli, Brussels, cauliflower
Tomatoes and potatoes, cabbage

The only non-plant deterrent I’m going to add is the swizzle stick or any small sipping straw. Those cannot be beat when stopping the cutworm. As you put your veggie starts/slips in the ground, before you pat it down, push in a swizzle stick touching the stem of your plant. If you’re growing from seed, as soon as the stem of your plant is up a few inches, insert the stick, again touching the stem. If the worm cannot wrap completely around the stem, it can’t cut it and won’t do any harm. Sweet~

I hope this helps; it’s a list I keep handy as I begin to layout what and where for the spring. If you have something to add – please send it along!
Granted it’s not as much fun as playing in the dirt, but planning your attack is the next best thing, especially when is only 22 degrees outside!

Marianne

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Sometimes, Santa just needs a little help

Posted on December 1, 2012 by twigsber

Hard to believe that it’s already December. Weather’s unseasonably warm and I’m wishing for snow to stop all of the nuttiness that my trees and plants are displaying. My flower beds are full of the yard’s leaves, veggie beds are still gifting me with cabbage, spinach and broccoli while garlic, onions, leeks and radishes are busy underground. When we have 60 degree days like today, I’m antsy and want to dig something, somewhere. My shrubs that need to be moved to a different spot are not dormant yet so I thought I’d share some seasonal fun stuff to keep my hands busy.
While I always want my home to be oozing with the smell of pine this time of year, I wanted most of all, for the magic of Santa to envelope my kids when they were still believers. My wonderful parents invested all of Christmas Eve, after we were snug in our beds, decking out the house and putting up the tree. We went to bed Christmas Eve with not even a candle on a window sill and awoke to a house busting with ribboned garland and a tree exploding with ornaments, strands of pearls and colored lights – MAGIC! Without question, they were more generous than I, dedicating a sleepless night to wrap us wonderment.
They did gift me with a feeling that I wanted my kids to experience, so I worked hard each year to come up with something to let them know there is magic in the air on Christmas morning. Here are a couple things I did over the years that may be fun for you or at least start your wheels turning. One constant was the thank you note to Santa that they wrote and put next to his milk and cookies. That was their only letter to Santa as I personally didn’t care for the Dear Santa “I want” letters. We also left a paper plate with shaved carrots and celery for Rudolph.
One year, after they were in bed asleep I grabbed a potato, cut it in half, then notched out an edge until it looked like a hoof print. I rubbed that in the ashes from the fireplace, grabbed a ladder and made ash/prints on the ceiling as though Rudolph was walking on the ceiling around the fireplace to just above where they left the carrots and then back again. MAGIC! It brushed right off with a broom the next day.
I knew that one would be tough to beat, but the next year I took pinecones, whipped up egg whites, got a dollop on my finger, ran it down the sides to make a small “snow” deposit on the edges, sprinkled with crystalized sugar (for some nice sparkle). Once again, the kids wrote their “thanks for remembering us and coming” notes along with a plate for Rudolph. This year Santa wrote them back, with gold ink of course. He thanked them for their note, telling them that not many kids remember to thank him and that Rudolph made them a little something for thinking about him too. He hoped they could find it. Of course they searched everywhere and finally found these North Pole never-melting-snow covered pinecones all over the tree. MAGIC~
The next year I was popped once Christmas rolled around and gave myself a bit of a break so again Santa wrote them back with his magic gold ink, thanking them for the wonderful goodies but he was running late and had to dash. I had a square of red felt, glued on some cotton, tore it on the edges and stuck it on the inside lip of the fireplace as though Santa, in his hurry, tore his coat edge. MAGIC! I think my kids held on to that for a few years.
The following year was easy. We had just gotten a puppy. Once again, the same annual drill. This time, I turned over a couple lamps, flipped an ottoman over and threw a couple pillows on the floor. Santa’s note was simply “I didn’t know you got a dog!!!! He met Rudolph!” I woke up that morning to watch my sweet son quickly straightening up the den and whispering to his sister about the mess made; they forgot to warn Santa about Fred, the dog. They giggled about that one for weeks, knowing that they had done a great job cleaning up. MAGIC~
The most important part of this fun, was realizing how much more pleasure my kids got from this intentional fantasy and fun. The presents under the tree were, by comparison, unimportant. MAGIC!
We thank all of you for the MAGIC you bring into our lives.
Merry Christmas~~
Marianne & Cooper

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DON’T RUN WITH SNIPPERS IN YOUR HAND~!~

Posted on October 3, 2012 by twigsber

Ahh, Fall Fever.  It’s always energizing to walk outside, take a deep breath and make a task list that you actually look forward to doing.  With the drought laden, heat oppressive months of summer behind us and a lot of “too hot to do” things staring us in the face, slow down before you whack and hack this fall.  Odds are good if you madly trim up & tidy up all of your plants, you’ll do more harm than good.

The recent break in the hot weather has inspired trees, shrubs and perennials to send out new growth and a lot replacement leaves.  Before you go running around with snippers happily shaping and removing the wild looking shoots, keep a couple things in mind:

  1. When’s the first frost and what kind of winter will we have?  This is one of the most important things and should dictate when & what you do.  Yes- squirrels are doing more gathering than eating, yes- late corn had double husks, yes-horse, cow & donkey coats are already getting thick, yes- there were a lot of foggy morning in August, but most importantly the Almanac says we’ll have an impressively cold winter this year.  This is what you must keep in mind before you open a wound on any shrub, commonly called trimming.  Usually it’ll take a good 3-4 weeks for a limb to harden off.  If you’re not sure, don’t cut as an opened freshly cut limb is a roadway for frost and may kill the limb if the frost runs down it.
  2. Are the summer blooms already set?  Will I trade no blooms (or berries) next summer for a neat shrub now?

Here’s list of some common plants and the time to cut them back:

Fall Winter Early Spring Summer
New Wood Hydrangeas Butterfly Bush Knockout Roses Japanese Holly
Butterfly Bush Grasses Japanese Holly Old Wood Hydrangeas
Most Perennials Blueberry Bushes Lilac New Wood Hydrangeas
Spiraea Spiraea Perennials Deutzia
Abelia Blackberry and Raspberry
Grasses Barberry

 

To clarify a couple of things – the seasons are used loosely.  For example, hydrangeas are listed in both fall and summer – please note that “New wood” is speaking to the “wild hairs” that hydrangeas may put out when it turns cooler.  Not a big deal to cut SELECTIVELY to trim back those crazy long branches; do not do any shaping as hydrangeas have already set the summer blooms and if you cut them back in total, you’ll not have blooms next year.

Fall notation on perennials especially bulb perennials:  Please leave them alone until the flowers and the leaves are brown.  They put important nutrients back into the bulb and to cut them while there is still green, is robbing the bulb of important stuff.  I do not cut back any perennials until early spring; I have never had any problem with their performance the next year.

The only thing I’m going to add to the fall trimming are black & raspberries. If you didn’t remove the canes that produced last summer, go ahead and cut them back.  Berries are produced on new canes so if there’s time before a frost cut them almost to the ground.

Lastly I’m again going to say the most important thing of all – MULCH!  Doesn’t matter if it’s leaves, grass clipping or mulch, but cover those beds.  I blow leaves into our beds, a deep wonderful layer of leaves.  After a couple of weeks, I’ll dust the top with shredded hardwood for appearance and to weight the leaves so they don’t blow back onto the yard and driveway.  Leaves are a great additive to the soil and with wet, cold winters, they’ll breakdown and feed the dirt.

Cheers to Fall Fever – enjoy it as I know in this area, our first frost is expected in just a few weeks.

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There’s no Spring in my step, I’m Fall-ing!!

Posted on August 29, 2012 by twigsber

This summer gifted us with a couple of extremes: constant heat and lack of rain. I’m happy that only 1 small tree died; I am responsible for it’s death – I ignored it.  But there’s a bright spot: I wasn’t crazy about it, so I’m taking advantage and changing that whole area in a couple of weeks when the weather settles into a consistent fall pattern.

There’s plenty to do before then, so I thought I’d throw out some do’s and don’ts that are very important this year as plants have suffered. First and foremost, it’s not spring – you should not treat plants the same way you did 6 months ago, literally.  Yes we are all excited about the weather & so are our plants.  New growth has blasted out in the last few weeks, not to mention blooms on things that shouldn’t be blooming, new leaves popping out to replace dried out brown ones and the wonderful color of refreshed green.  I know you want to reward them with a good blast of fertilizer, but don’t do it.

Rule #1 NO FERTILIZER ON PLANTS (only grass)!   

They don’t need and certainly don’t want that boost.  You’ll do damage in the long run.  If you want to help them along, strip off any dead leaves to make the new ones come out easier.

RULE #2 – clean it up.

Remove dead branches and most importantly dead ends.  There’s time for branches to put out new growth and harden off before the cold weather arrives.  Dead branch ends will be a pathway for frost to kill deeper into the branch, so cut it off now so it will heal.

If you know me, you know I do most everything in the garden & our yard by the signs or phases of the moon.  If you want to remove branches to discourage future growth, like suckers on a crepe or to shape hedges etc., do it on the 30th of this month or the 21-23 of September.  If there’s a dead end on a branch, cut it off, just above a living bud on the 1st or 2nd of Sept. to promote new growth.   It’s time to clean up & shape your plants.

RULE #3

The one thing I do not cut this early are perennials.  I don’t lob them down to the ground until they are completely brown aka after a good frost.  You want every vitamin/mineral etc to get into the tuber, bulb or root stock, like sap running in a maple, before you remove the foliage.

RULE #4

Mulch.  If you mulched in the spring, it’s already beginning to break down.  That’s perfect as it’s replenishing the dirt.  It’s time for a new layer that will protect the roots during the upcoming cold & snowy winter.  The weight will help the old layer to breakdown a little faster.  Remember to never mulch up to the trunk of your shrubs & trees, leave a few inches so the bugs looking for a cozy home for the cold months won’t be invited to dine on the bark and infest you plants.

RULE #5

Fall garden time has arrived.  Last week-end I pulled up everything in our kitchen garden except a couple tomato & pepper plants that are still giving a few fruits.  We put down a thick layer of peat moss and good sprinkle of mushroom compost and tilled it in.  I’ve begun the initial plantings and seeding.  Although our kitchen garden is just for us, I still plant in waves so we have months of fresh veggies rather than feast then famine.   Here are some dates:  transplant (slips etc) Sept 1, 2, 6, 7,10,11.  Seed beds 10, 11, 16, 18.  Root crops (leeks, carrots, onions etc) 1, 2, 6, 7, 10, 11.  Our perennial veggie beds got a good weeding and mulch.

RULE #6

If you’re not going to replant a veggie plots, bed them down for the winter.  Clean out everything then rake them clean.  I don’t want any fungus growing from rotting plants in those beds – that’s for the compost pile. We then make a “lasagna” for lack of a better word.  Layer of peat, layer of manure, layer of straw, repeat.  We leave it alone until spring, then till.

RULE #7

Best time for grass replacement and food.  I’m no good at growing grass but many of you are as your lawns are beautiful.  I do know it’s time to lime or fertilize, aerate and re-seed.

RULE #8

Take a stroll.  Now is the best time to grab a drink and just walk around.  Take note of areas that you want to change, want to trim up and want to pamper.  Fall is my favorite time for planning, planting and making changes.  Only at that time do I know where everything is vs. the spring when I’m taxing my memory as to perennial locations etc.  I think fall is my favorite season; it’s calmer than the electricity of the spring eruptions of plants & flowers. I’m certainly fall-ing!

Hope this helps.

M.

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Satan Called – He Wants His Weather Back!

Posted on July 7, 2012 by twigsber

On a day like today, you will not be bothered by bugs; they are too wise to be a part of this heat. That’s the only positive I could come up with as I moved the hose again. I’ve had a lot of calls about “sick” plants; they all seem to be suffering. I’m only outside for 5 or 6 hours a day (not straight) and it‘s miserable. Anything that’s out there all day every day is suffering.

So let’s talk about watering in this heat or the upcoming heat. Pots are easy as long as you keep in mind that the first watering you give them may run through pretty fast and give you a false sense of a good watering because you see the puddle under the pot. You have to keep in mind that it’s running through quickly because the dirt’s too dry to absorb it. I work in 3s – watering each of 3 pots until the water runs through and then I go back and do them again. I’ve put my fingers in the water running through the bottom of a pot and the water is hot – it‘s much cooler after the 2nd watering! If nothing else, that lets me know how uncomfortable the roots are – they are cooking. I soak my pots at home early in the morning and on a day like today, or the past many for that matter, I do it again at night. They are still doing well and putting out new blooms. It’s worth the extra effort for me to see something so beautiful and colorful sitting around the edges of my dried out brown grass.

Shrubs and trees are harder to manage, (unless they are close enough and small enough to enjoy the benes of a soaker hose) they are certainly stressed, even the old ones with tap roots that go down forever. I am overcome on occasion with the “I want it now” plant insanity. Last Sunday, I did put in 9 raspberry bushes, yes it was almost 100 degrees and has stayed there since they were installed. They all look like hell, but that root system is getting a slow soak every day and I’m seeing new leaves coming out; the root system is happy so I’m happy. My only concern is the health of their root system. Matter of fact, that always my primary concern with any perennial flower, shrub or tree. You have to think about whatever you’re doing and it’s effect on the roots. It’s their core, just like our body’s core. With this weather, you will see plants not give energy to something as unimportant as a leaf if the “core” will suffer as a result. When watering any shrub or tree, holding a hose or pouring a bucket of water around them may actually do more harm than good. Think about it. If you were to dig a hole big enough to plant a shrub – the dirt in the bottom of the hole is cool, even on a day like today. If you do not really deeply soak any shrub or tree that you are watering, the water will only penetrate an inch, maybe 2. The roots will go to the water even if that means moving closer to the surface and it’s hot on the surface. They now are in deeper shock. Water slow, long and deep. I simply drop the hose a few inches from the trunk, turn on a slow drip and leave it, for about an hour (bigger trees get 2 hours) then move to the next one that looks unhappy. Even with these temps and no rain, I water each unhappy plant deeply only once a week (except for newly planted) and they are fine. We have a lot of plants and the hose runs everyday. It’s not a big deal to move from one plant to another every hour when you’re home. I hate the cost of running our pump, or more importantly the cost of town water, but either way, it a lot cheaper than replacing the plant(s).

Some other maintenance: Got dead leaves? We’ve had several plants that somehow didn’t get watered at the nursery for a few days and the leaves were brown & crunchy. I strip the limbs of them, literally. I hold the limb with one hand and quickly rake my other hand from the trunk end to the other, removing the dead leaves. New leaves emerge quicker when they don’t have to dislodge another to get out.
Got dead limbs or limb ends? CUT THEM OFF, or cut off the ends. I plan on whacking my raspberry bushes down to about 5” on the 10th of this month when the Almanac suggests is the best time to “prune to promote growth”. Trim then if you want to help your plant replace what‘s been lost.

My last recommendation is mulch – I put it everywhere, in my pots, veggie garden and landscaping. It’s not just icing for a finished look, but a deep (3-4 inches) helps stop evaporation as well as keeping down the weeds.

I hope this helps – I know how frustrating the weather’s effect is on your hard work and plant investment; I‘m right there with you. Now that I’ve chatted about watering during this dryness, I feel certain it’ll rain.

Stay cool~
M

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