Hello again,
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post we will be letting you know what we are doing or what we hear is going on out there in our local gardening world.
We will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!
If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post.
We would LOVE any tips OR questions from you.
May 16:
More questions and answers today via email at info@skillins.com! We welcome any feedback you may hve to any of our answers!
Question from CM: What kind of evergreen shrubs (small) can I plant out here in Bowdoinham that won’t attract deer? We have a lot of deer around most of the year. I know they love yew, and arborvitae, is there anything they don’t like?
Answer: I am checking out our list of deer resistant shrubs on our online nursery catalog at www.skillins.com and I am seeing Colorado Spruce and Dwarf Alberta Spruce . The Albertas stay small. Boxwood is also an idea—that is a small evergreen shrub.
If you need a good deer repellent we usually recommend Liquid Fence and if their directions are followed you need only apply that monthly.
Milorganite is a natural granular fertilizer that also discourages deer.
Question from JR: We purchased a Butterfly Magnolia from you 3 seasons ago. It has had no dead branches and has sent out good growth last year and the year before. Last year there was not a single flower and this year it shows no promise of a flower either. Is there a nutrient requirement for this tree to produce flowers?
Answer: I also have a butterfly magnolia which is alive but has not flowered for the 3 years I have owned it!
Some articles I have read indicate that it definitely can take a few years for the butterfly magnolia to send out flowers. I am going to try a product this year by Organica called Flower Booster which is derived from Sea Kelp. Kelp is an awesome organic supplement for plant material and the kelp will encourage better root development and flower development.
I encourage you to try this product too and let’s see how our butterfly magnolias do. Maybe in another year we can exchange photos of some handsome flowering magnolias.
Question from SB: We had a tough year with our front lawn and wondered what you would suggest for a lawn that has a lot of moss on it and is mostly dead. We are going to put in a new lawn this year by tilling it but wondered what it costs for soil testing to see what it needs for nutrients. We thought we would till it up and mix peat moss with the loam and then lime it but we are not sure what is causing this. Would you have any ideas? Any help would be appreciated.
Answer: Lawns that have moss on it are quite often in very shady situations which makes for a great situation for moss and makes it tough for grass to thrive.
A soil test would be a great idea, we have soil test kits available right here at Skillin’s.
But again, I can guarantee the moss is there because the lawn must be quite shaded. Also lime will do fine with a pH that is acid so it is probably time to lime the lawn.
Can you limb out any low growing tree branches to let in more light? That would be a major help.
I would rake as much moss out as possible and I would recommend treating your lawn with a great natural product called Miracal by Jonathan Green (sold right here at Skillin’s). Miracal is a great source of calcium and calcium is quite often needed very much in our soils. Calcium is a great organic additive to the soil. Regular lime contains a great deal of magnesium which over time tends to compact our soils and moss and weeds do much better in compacted soils than grass.
For grass seed, I definitely recommend Black Beauty Tall Fescue by Jonathan Green. Black Beauty is a deeply rooting tall fescue grass that will carry a nice dark green color. The deep roots that Black Beauty sends out will help your grass very much in its battle against moss (when you have a shady lawn, you will almost always be battling moss to some extent.).
Finally, come see us this summer and we will get you started on Organica’s All Natural Four Step Lawn Program. Your soil is probably very much in need of some solid organic matter that will really help your lawn over time. We feel Organica’s All Natural approach is both easy to use, great for the environment AND will give you a very nice lawn with little monetary and time investment.
May 15:
Lots of questions and answers today via email at info@skillins.com and I would like to share some with you today! There will be more Q & A posted tomorrow and I welcome your questions and tips about any answers we give OR any questions that you may have about your garden!
Question from HG: What is wrong if forsythia just blooms at the bottom or not at all?
Answer: Flowering problems with forsythia can often be bad timing on pruning. Flowering shrubs (except for Nikko Blue hydrangea) should be pruned within just a few days after they flower. If you wait too long for any flowering shrubs you may well be pruning new growth that will hold next year’s flowers.
Sometimes too with forsythia, the bottom will flower and not the top if the buds on top of the plant get blasted by cold air at the wrong time (the bottom would be protected by snow cover). But I am not really sure we had those cold conditions that would have battered the forsythia buds like that.
Do you think the pruning timing could have been late in the year?
Followup from HG: We didn’t prune at all. We do live on a hill that is pretty windy when it’s cold. Others on my road look the same as mine.
Answer to Followup: The windy hill could be the problem. Sometimes late winter cold blasts can burn forsythia blossom buds that have expanded as winter weather starts to warm up overall.
It may make sense to prune your forsythia soon and then if you can, wrap the forsythia in burlap next winter OR another idea would be to spray your forsythia with Wilt Pruf on a relatively warm day in late February or March and coat the Wilt Pruf on your forsythia. The Wilt Pruf will give way as the weather warms in April and you should get good blossoming.
Question from KH: My yard is surrounded by woods, and the border has become very messy after years of neglect. Lots of scrub, burrs, and damaging vines. So my sisters and I have been lopping away to prune the trees and clear the undesirables. We're still raking out the debris and leaves. Now I have 2 - 5 feet of bare dirt under the big trees (and fortunately, a big compost pile from the cleanup). This is a long border - probably 100 feet involved. I would like to start planting some ground cover to fill in the bare dirt. I'm not interested in expanding the grassy part of they yard. I'm going to test creeping jenny and white clover. Do you have any other ideas for ground cover that can handle a lot of shade? I don't have much money to spend on this project, so plants that can start from seed or that spread are ideal. I don't mind if it takes a few years - patience is a big part of gardening.
Also, once the leaves drop, will it be impossible to rake the ground cover? Maybe the leaf blower will help.
P.S. Your advice about composting and fertilizing my rhubarb worked like a charm. It is ten times better this spring. I'm watering it more faithfully with a soaker hose. The only problem is that the stalks are a little slim. I may need to divide the patch a little. I bet by next year, it will be back to complete health.
An interesting tidbit - my family has been in this house since 1954. The woods surrounding the house were nothing but tall grass when I was a little girl. My theory (not confirmed) is that when the boys in the neighborhood (including my brothers) grew up and stopped setting grass fires, the trees had a chance to take over. :-)
Answer: I am glad your rhubarb is doing well. Also, the grass fire theory is probably “dead on”.
Ground covers can complicate leaf raking a little. One terrific ground cover for shady spots is called Sweet Woodruff. We sell that in our perennial section for $4.99 per pot. In our nursery section, we sell both pachysandra and vinca—2 great ground covers that can do well in shade or partial shade spots. Vinca is probably easiest to rake leaves out of and our nursery staff can show you that!
Question from AR: I was most interested to read your comments ( See post of 5/14 just below) about Messenger. Does this work to combat (or prevent) blackspot on roses? When we first moved down here we got enough Hansa rugosa roses to make a hedge on our property. We thought that we were getting some roses which would be resistant to blackspot. However, we get blackspot every year from the humidity at the coastline. We have hesitated to use some of the strong chemical products because of the environment etc. So we have had to put up with the blackspot in spite of feeding the roses regularly etc. We will check out the Messenger the next time we are at Skillins if you think this would help us with this problem.
Answer: I highly recommend Messenger for you as black spot disease is just the sort of disease that Messenger helps a rose bush combat. I also sprayed some newly leafed out lilacs that have struggled some in recent years, some upright phlox that is always attacked by powdery mildew and a very struggling Wichita Blue Juniper. I will apply again in 3 weeks and through the season and I am very curious about how the Messenger will work. I have talked with several customers who SWEAR by Messenger.
May 14:
Well, it has been a few weeks since I pruned my rose bushes back to near ground level. Now they are showing some nice healthy growth with many new leaves growing!
Now is the time to spray your roses (and my roses!) with an exciting all natural product named Messenger!
Messenger (sold right here at Skillin’s) is an all natural product (the active ingredient is harpin proteins) that once introduced to the plant fools the plant into thinking it is being attacked by disease and therefore triggers the plants own natural immune defenses. It breaks down quickly and it is environmentally safe—it does not pollute the ground or water.Messenger means stronger roots, increased vigor, stress resistance and increased flowering and fruit set for any plant that it is applied to.
Many of our customers use Messenger for their tomatoes and peppers as well as rose bushes and lilacs as well as fruit trees and other fruit plants like grapes.Messenger should be consistently applied every 3 weeks throughout the growing season.
I also plan to keep the ground around my roses fed monthly with Plant Booster Plus by Organica. This is a new product for Skillin's (but well known in gardening circles). As I have written before, the Organica products excite me because of their patented commitment to including natural microbes and bacteria with their all natural fertilizers. The presence of the natural microbes and bacteria (unique to the Organica products) means for a faster and more efficent breakdown of the natural nutrients found in the product AND a better biological environment for the roots of my plants!
May 13:
Pruning opportunities coming soon!
In most cases, the time to prune MOST flowering shrubs and even trees is within just a few days (SOON) after they flower. Well, if your forsythia is frolicking into wild shapes or your PJM rhododendron is puffing out some crazy growth, PRUNE them just after their flower buds drop. Why so soon?
Well, you DO want to show your plants that you are their boss right? In all seriousness, pruning soon after blossoming is the best time to shape your plant. Plants usually send out all kinds of growth after they flower. By getting your plants in shape before this new growth takes off, you are giving your plants a much better base to start from.
If you wait several weeks after flowering and start cutting lots of new growth that has happened after flowering you may well be cutting off new growth that will produce next year's flowers. This is the most common reason why usual sure bets like forsythia, lilacs, and rhododendrons do not flower--because they get pruned too late.
Also, NEVER prune a Nikko Blue Hydrangea. These shrubs blossom on old growth. Learn to love the shape of your Nikko Blue!
Also, pruning above ground growth sends a signal to your plant's root system to GROW! (This is the way plants are wired. Pruning top and side growth always jump starts a plant's root system).
Remember to clean up what you have pruned and put it into a compost pile. Insects and disease thrive in plant clippings left around the base of your plant.
Let us know if you have any pruning questions!
May 12:
It is time for Skillin's Moisture Meter!
New outdoor plantings (namely trees, shrubs, and perennials) require at least 1” of water per week. This can be provided by a steady soaking rain that provides a total of 1” of rainfall per week (preferably split into 2 or 3 rain events.) A steady soaking rain is a rain that does not pour down “in buckets” (most thundershowers). A steady soaking rain also is not a mere drizzle. The 1” required weekly rainfall can easily be measured by a simple rain gauge (sold right here at Skillin’s).
If we do not get the required 1” of rain in a week then we as gardeners must provide that water in the form of “quality waterings” I define a “quality watering” as a slow soaking of your plant’s roots. Try letting water run slowly out of a watering can or the end of your hose into each plant’s root system or use a soaker hose for several hours twice a week. If you are not using a soaker hose pause on your watering if the water starts to “run off”; let the water soak in and then begin to water again. Repeat this process several times and move onto the next plant. For larger trees and shrubs (and if you do not have a soaker hose) merely set a hose against the tree or shrub for at least 15 to 20 minutes and let the water almost trickle into the ground and down into the plant’s root system. Again if there is runoff, pause and let the water soak in.
This Past Week: We have received no rain this week and even though we received much rain in prior weeks it is crucial that your newly planted material receive their quality waterings as we describe above.
Therefore:
This Week’s Moisture Meter Readings:
Quality rain (0).
Quality waterings required by you this past week: (2).
If you have met the quality watering requirement for this past week, congratulations! If not, pay careful attention this coming week and beyond and make sure that your new plants get those required quality waterings!
Let us know if you have any watering questions.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Relationships by KCB
KCB is a professional gardener and friend who does wonderful work in the Greater Portland area. KCB is also an accredited Master Gardener by the Cooperative Extension Service and we are honored to have KCB as part of our Skillin's Garden Log family.
Greetings. It has been a while since I have written. In all honesty, it has been a while since I have sat in front of my pc without the total feeling of dread. You see, I have purchased a new laptop.
My old desktop was the senior year of 5 years-almost. It was purchased June of 2003 and left my life May 1st of this year. We shared many good times, some great, others, well, as in any relationship we had our moments of one half of the couple not performing up to potential or expectations. We’d reboot when the situation warranted, clean files to refresh and simply shut down for a while in order to take a break from the world. PCs are not unlike a beloved pet. The last year of my former Golden Retriever’s life he slowed down as well, began to need more attention and special care. He could not be over-loaded and needed to take many breaks. As long as Molson, my Golden, was able to get-up, have tail in pendulum mode and display that perma-grin, he’d be fine. When it was time, Molson did let me know. My pc did the same. For each I made the choice. The pc choice was easy and I looked forward to the Carefree life of wireless. Features more technically advanced with a fast pace that would even exhaust me. I have been known to dream, yet the first experience with my laptop was a nightmare.
The night ‘lappy’ came home with me I was much too exhausted to take him out of his secure box. With all my preseason stretching, my body still bore the pains of my gardening day’s efforts. Early to bed, early to rise for this woman.
Stomach Butterflies stirred before I could. It felt like Christmas. I had a new toy and I was going to play all day. Being a Saturday, a rainy one at that, I would not feel guilt as to not work on gardening that day. Just tea, my pc. Oh, Kayla, and me my rescued Golden one no doubt would need attention from time to time. Strange, as I relay this experience it comes to mind that Kayla and my new laptop are similar in the fact that they both have taken some getting use to. Each relationship is a work in progress with the hope in my heart all will be worth the effort. Kayla’s story will unfold in time.
From 6 AM to 2:45 PM I ‘played’. So often I wanted to give up, throw lappy away, or stomp on him as a much needed stress reliever. I pined for my slow Jurassic desktop. I started answering one client’s e-mail approximately 7:15 and 12 hours later, I finally hit send. The problem? The touch window that functions as a poor excuse for a mouse. I even missed the little red button the laptop of my corporate days offered. Had I made a monumental mistake? Was I too quick to give-up on a desktop that offered no spark yet a comfortable touch?
What does any of this have to do with Gardening? Don’t deny you have been asking yourself this question. Surely, by now you must realize as a gardener, everything has to do with gardening and as a writer, it is all material. On to the gardening part of the story.
By now the rain pelted with a wind that moved the still naked limbs of the trees visible through my office window. Escape. That was it. But where? My imagination wanted warm and tropical, would even settle for warm and local. Tropical on my budget was out of the question. I pre-spent my economic stimulus check and any potential offering that may be offered 4 times over our promised tax rebate. Local would not offer warmth of weather on this day.
Not all warmth is dependant on the weather. I will go to where everyone, well almost everyone, knows my name. A favorite family-owned Nursery. Rte 88 in Falmouth is just a little over 5 minutes away. The perennial shelves were filling daily; a friend of mine was to be working. Besides, it would not seem like the beginning of the Gardening Season without shopping at this gardening center in the pouring rain.
Customers were braving the elements when I arrived. The smiles of the workers were hidden by waterproof hoods. The activity warmed me. I did not visit the garden center for assistance with my problems but to be surrounded with passionate plant people.
Always with a story to tell, I began to unload my burdens of the day. Complete with hand motions I relayed my relent at typing and suddenly finding my words imbedded elsewhere on the page and so not on the line they were originally meant for. Would this relationship ever work, I lamented? When toiling on my knees I feel empowered. Working the weather of this day would be a welcome diversion over my struggles with lappy. What was I to do?
Answers and solutions are often found quite unexpectedly. DK, second day on the job grinning between the raindrops simply said ‘wireless mouse’. The rest is history.
Yes, lappy and I are still getting to know one another. Any relationship takes time. As far as established relationships, friends, clients, pets and that of a certain nursery and garden center are all to be cherished…………………….
KCB for Skillin's Greenhouses
May 12, 2008
Greetings. It has been a while since I have written. In all honesty, it has been a while since I have sat in front of my pc without the total feeling of dread. You see, I have purchased a new laptop.
My old desktop was the senior year of 5 years-almost. It was purchased June of 2003 and left my life May 1st of this year. We shared many good times, some great, others, well, as in any relationship we had our moments of one half of the couple not performing up to potential or expectations. We’d reboot when the situation warranted, clean files to refresh and simply shut down for a while in order to take a break from the world. PCs are not unlike a beloved pet. The last year of my former Golden Retriever’s life he slowed down as well, began to need more attention and special care. He could not be over-loaded and needed to take many breaks. As long as Molson, my Golden, was able to get-up, have tail in pendulum mode and display that perma-grin, he’d be fine. When it was time, Molson did let me know. My pc did the same. For each I made the choice. The pc choice was easy and I looked forward to the Carefree life of wireless. Features more technically advanced with a fast pace that would even exhaust me. I have been known to dream, yet the first experience with my laptop was a nightmare.
The night ‘lappy’ came home with me I was much too exhausted to take him out of his secure box. With all my preseason stretching, my body still bore the pains of my gardening day’s efforts. Early to bed, early to rise for this woman.
Stomach Butterflies stirred before I could. It felt like Christmas. I had a new toy and I was going to play all day. Being a Saturday, a rainy one at that, I would not feel guilt as to not work on gardening that day. Just tea, my pc. Oh, Kayla, and me my rescued Golden one no doubt would need attention from time to time. Strange, as I relay this experience it comes to mind that Kayla and my new laptop are similar in the fact that they both have taken some getting use to. Each relationship is a work in progress with the hope in my heart all will be worth the effort. Kayla’s story will unfold in time.
From 6 AM to 2:45 PM I ‘played’. So often I wanted to give up, throw lappy away, or stomp on him as a much needed stress reliever. I pined for my slow Jurassic desktop. I started answering one client’s e-mail approximately 7:15 and 12 hours later, I finally hit send. The problem? The touch window that functions as a poor excuse for a mouse. I even missed the little red button the laptop of my corporate days offered. Had I made a monumental mistake? Was I too quick to give-up on a desktop that offered no spark yet a comfortable touch?
What does any of this have to do with Gardening? Don’t deny you have been asking yourself this question. Surely, by now you must realize as a gardener, everything has to do with gardening and as a writer, it is all material. On to the gardening part of the story.
By now the rain pelted with a wind that moved the still naked limbs of the trees visible through my office window. Escape. That was it. But where? My imagination wanted warm and tropical, would even settle for warm and local. Tropical on my budget was out of the question. I pre-spent my economic stimulus check and any potential offering that may be offered 4 times over our promised tax rebate. Local would not offer warmth of weather on this day.
Not all warmth is dependant on the weather. I will go to where everyone, well almost everyone, knows my name. A favorite family-owned Nursery. Rte 88 in Falmouth is just a little over 5 minutes away. The perennial shelves were filling daily; a friend of mine was to be working. Besides, it would not seem like the beginning of the Gardening Season without shopping at this gardening center in the pouring rain.
Customers were braving the elements when I arrived. The smiles of the workers were hidden by waterproof hoods. The activity warmed me. I did not visit the garden center for assistance with my problems but to be surrounded with passionate plant people.
Always with a story to tell, I began to unload my burdens of the day. Complete with hand motions I relayed my relent at typing and suddenly finding my words imbedded elsewhere on the page and so not on the line they were originally meant for. Would this relationship ever work, I lamented? When toiling on my knees I feel empowered. Working the weather of this day would be a welcome diversion over my struggles with lappy. What was I to do?
Answers and solutions are often found quite unexpectedly. DK, second day on the job grinning between the raindrops simply said ‘wireless mouse’. The rest is history.
Yes, lappy and I are still getting to know one another. Any relationship takes time. As far as established relationships, friends, clients, pets and that of a certain nursery and garden center are all to be cherished…………………….
KCB for Skillin's Greenhouses
May 12, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Vegetable Garden Planning
It is time to discuss Vegetable Garden Planning. I will be borrowing a great deal from Barbara Damrosch’s “The Garden Planner” (sold right here at Skillin’s) in this discussion. She writes the following:
“Vegetable gardening is so popular that to many people it is gardening. When they parcel out the limited time, space and resources they have for gardening, the vegetable garden gets a mighty share; only lawns, on the average get more. In fact about half of the families in the United States have some sort of vegetable garden.
Why, with ample fresh produce available year-round in the supermarkets, is this tradition still alive and well? Sometimes the initial goal is to save money. If gardeners are efficient and diligent they often do so, but not, I would guess, very often. Usually I hear them joke in fall about the squash that costs them a dollar apiece to grow, or the peas that were fifty cents a pod after figuring the cost of the fence, tools, fertilizer and other aids, and the cost of their time. The following Spring, undaunted by these economics, they are back in their gardens again.
I grow my own vegetables for two reasons: the quality of the crops I can produce myself, and the quality of the time I spend doing it. There is no question that food picked from my garden tastes better than food that is picked six states away, rides in a truck, sits in storage areas, waits in display bins in the store, rides home in my car, then idles in the refrigerator until it is the right item for the menu. Vegetables ripened in the garden and eaten right away have many more vitamins, too. I also appreciate the fact that I can control what chemical fertilizers, if any, are used to grow my vegetables and whether they are sprayed with pesticides….And as I investigate the selection of vegetables available to me as a home gardener, I realize more and more how much better it is than that in the produce department. Supermarket vegetables are usually bred for ease of transportation and storage…and the ability of the crop to bear all at once for most efficient harvest. In choosing what to grow in my garden, on the other hand, I look for better flavors and nutrition, new and unusual varieties to try out and, quite often, a crop that does not mature all at once over a long period of time.
All these are benefits I have discovered during the course of growing vegetables, but they are not what motivated me in the first place. Initially it was simply the itch to get out there in the Spring, to smell the warm earth, and grub around in the garden in the sunshine, feeling fit and contented, watching my bounty ripen. The harvest was extra. I think there is a basic satisfaction in growing food for the table, and that most of us who do it enjoy the activity of gardening itself just as much as the result.”
Here are some more pointers about planning a vegetable garden that Barbara Damrosch goes on to discuss:
*What type of vegetables to grow? The first criterion should be your appetite and that of the people you live with. But do keep in mind a vegetable garden is a golden opportunity to try the new and unfamiliar.
*Take our climate into account. In the northeastern USA, we have no problems with cool-weather crops such as broccoli, peas, lettuce and cabbage. Ask your neighbors what grows well for them or check with us here at Skillin’s!
*How big a garden? The most common mistake made by new and old gardeners is that they plant too much. Either the upkeep overwhelms them and much of the garden succumbs to weeds, bugs or drought or the harvest is too bountiful, and they cannot keep up with the picking, let alone the eating and preserving. You will probably find it more fun and rewarding to start small.
*Choose a site that receives lots of sun and drains well. Trees can be cut to let in more sun and we at Skillin’s have plenty of natural products to help your soil!
*Try to start with a sketch of your vegetable garden plot to make the buying of seeds and starter crops and the ultimate planting more efficient.
We have just scratched the surface of planning a vegetable garden. We will discuss more aspects as the season progresses, but please let us know of any questions you may have!
Mike Skillin
Skillin's Greenhouses
May 7, 2008
“Vegetable gardening is so popular that to many people it is gardening. When they parcel out the limited time, space and resources they have for gardening, the vegetable garden gets a mighty share; only lawns, on the average get more. In fact about half of the families in the United States have some sort of vegetable garden.
Why, with ample fresh produce available year-round in the supermarkets, is this tradition still alive and well? Sometimes the initial goal is to save money. If gardeners are efficient and diligent they often do so, but not, I would guess, very often. Usually I hear them joke in fall about the squash that costs them a dollar apiece to grow, or the peas that were fifty cents a pod after figuring the cost of the fence, tools, fertilizer and other aids, and the cost of their time. The following Spring, undaunted by these economics, they are back in their gardens again.
I grow my own vegetables for two reasons: the quality of the crops I can produce myself, and the quality of the time I spend doing it. There is no question that food picked from my garden tastes better than food that is picked six states away, rides in a truck, sits in storage areas, waits in display bins in the store, rides home in my car, then idles in the refrigerator until it is the right item for the menu. Vegetables ripened in the garden and eaten right away have many more vitamins, too. I also appreciate the fact that I can control what chemical fertilizers, if any, are used to grow my vegetables and whether they are sprayed with pesticides….And as I investigate the selection of vegetables available to me as a home gardener, I realize more and more how much better it is than that in the produce department. Supermarket vegetables are usually bred for ease of transportation and storage…and the ability of the crop to bear all at once for most efficient harvest. In choosing what to grow in my garden, on the other hand, I look for better flavors and nutrition, new and unusual varieties to try out and, quite often, a crop that does not mature all at once over a long period of time.
All these are benefits I have discovered during the course of growing vegetables, but they are not what motivated me in the first place. Initially it was simply the itch to get out there in the Spring, to smell the warm earth, and grub around in the garden in the sunshine, feeling fit and contented, watching my bounty ripen. The harvest was extra. I think there is a basic satisfaction in growing food for the table, and that most of us who do it enjoy the activity of gardening itself just as much as the result.”
Here are some more pointers about planning a vegetable garden that Barbara Damrosch goes on to discuss:
*What type of vegetables to grow? The first criterion should be your appetite and that of the people you live with. But do keep in mind a vegetable garden is a golden opportunity to try the new and unfamiliar.
*Take our climate into account. In the northeastern USA, we have no problems with cool-weather crops such as broccoli, peas, lettuce and cabbage. Ask your neighbors what grows well for them or check with us here at Skillin’s!
*How big a garden? The most common mistake made by new and old gardeners is that they plant too much. Either the upkeep overwhelms them and much of the garden succumbs to weeds, bugs or drought or the harvest is too bountiful, and they cannot keep up with the picking, let alone the eating and preserving. You will probably find it more fun and rewarding to start small.
*Choose a site that receives lots of sun and drains well. Trees can be cut to let in more sun and we at Skillin’s have plenty of natural products to help your soil!
*Try to start with a sketch of your vegetable garden plot to make the buying of seeds and starter crops and the ultimate planting more efficient.
We have just scratched the surface of planning a vegetable garden. We will discuss more aspects as the season progresses, but please let us know of any questions you may have!
Mike Skillin
Skillin's Greenhouses
May 7, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
Garden Happenings! Week of May 5
Hello again,
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post we will be letting you know what we are doing or what we hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. We will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post.
We would love any tips OR questions from you.
May 7:
We are getting many, many questions about whether it is time to transplant annuals outdoors yet. In most cases, I believe it is still too cold to plant outdoors. There is still potential for frost or COLD WIND damage. Besides, the ground is still fairly cold—many of the warm weather lovers like impatiens, marigolds, petunias and vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, vine crops would simply not grow in the ground yet. That being said, it is an outstanding time to “harden off” the material I just described above.
With warm weather we look forward to planting outside, but night temperatures can still be quite chilly and frost in New England; this can be a danger until the end of May. A couple of weeks before you plan to plant, you will want to start hardening-off any plants that you have started indoors or that we at Skillin’s have only kept in our greenhouses.
To start, find a protected, shady place outside to place your plants for “hardening off purposes”. The first day, leave them out no more than a couple of hours. If after two weeks there is no threat of frost, you may leave them out all night. If frost or bad weather threatens, you will want to cover or protect them. Most important during this hardening-off period: do not forget to water your plants! They will dry out much faster outside.When it is safe to transplant (when the lilacs are blooming or after the last full moon in May), make sure your soil is properly prepared. Add soil amendments if necessary to make a light, loose crumbly soil, well supplied with nutrients. Use a plant starter to aid in early root development and to promote a greener, more vigorous plant.
Plants that can be planted outside include trees and shrubs and most perennials, pansies and snapdragons. Make sure the pansies and snapdragons are “hardened off” as discussed above.
May 6:
We're already hearing from our customers that the Lily Leaf Beetles are emerging from the soil and attacking their Asiatic and Oriental lilies. The lily leaf beetle, native to Europe, was discovered near Montreal, Canada in 1945. Its damage was limited to the Montreal area for decades, but recently it has spread to the south and west. The beetles are strong fliers and excellent hiders.
If you only have a few plants in your garden, hand-picking adults and eggs can be effective.
There are two types of garden sprays that can be effective. One is the "Merit" based products by Bayer Advanced. "Merit's" scientific name is Imidacloprid. Merit is a chemical and needs to be used according to the directions on the container. We feel that many people "overuse" this product, so again please use the dilutions and frequencies that Bayer Advance recommends. We do sell the Merit based products here at Skillin's so if you would like to use them please come and see us so we can give you the best advice. Don't necessarily trust the guy who was working in the Plumbing Department last week (if you know what I mean).
Many of us here at Skillin's will be trying the all natural K Neem by Organica for the lily leaf beetles. K Neem is the purest form of neem (an insecticide based upon extracts from the neem tree of India). Neem kills insect larvae and repels adult insects. Neem must be applied every five to seven days after egg hatch for best effectiveness.
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for some of this tip)
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post we will be letting you know what we are doing or what we hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. We will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post.
We would love any tips OR questions from you.
May 7:
We are getting many, many questions about whether it is time to transplant annuals outdoors yet. In most cases, I believe it is still too cold to plant outdoors. There is still potential for frost or COLD WIND damage. Besides, the ground is still fairly cold—many of the warm weather lovers like impatiens, marigolds, petunias and vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, vine crops would simply not grow in the ground yet. That being said, it is an outstanding time to “harden off” the material I just described above.
With warm weather we look forward to planting outside, but night temperatures can still be quite chilly and frost in New England; this can be a danger until the end of May. A couple of weeks before you plan to plant, you will want to start hardening-off any plants that you have started indoors or that we at Skillin’s have only kept in our greenhouses.
To start, find a protected, shady place outside to place your plants for “hardening off purposes”. The first day, leave them out no more than a couple of hours. If after two weeks there is no threat of frost, you may leave them out all night. If frost or bad weather threatens, you will want to cover or protect them. Most important during this hardening-off period: do not forget to water your plants! They will dry out much faster outside.When it is safe to transplant (when the lilacs are blooming or after the last full moon in May), make sure your soil is properly prepared. Add soil amendments if necessary to make a light, loose crumbly soil, well supplied with nutrients. Use a plant starter to aid in early root development and to promote a greener, more vigorous plant.
Plants that can be planted outside include trees and shrubs and most perennials, pansies and snapdragons. Make sure the pansies and snapdragons are “hardened off” as discussed above.
May 6:
We're already hearing from our customers that the Lily Leaf Beetles are emerging from the soil and attacking their Asiatic and Oriental lilies. The lily leaf beetle, native to Europe, was discovered near Montreal, Canada in 1945. Its damage was limited to the Montreal area for decades, but recently it has spread to the south and west. The beetles are strong fliers and excellent hiders.
If you only have a few plants in your garden, hand-picking adults and eggs can be effective.
There are two types of garden sprays that can be effective. One is the "Merit" based products by Bayer Advanced. "Merit's" scientific name is Imidacloprid. Merit is a chemical and needs to be used according to the directions on the container. We feel that many people "overuse" this product, so again please use the dilutions and frequencies that Bayer Advance recommends. We do sell the Merit based products here at Skillin's so if you would like to use them please come and see us so we can give you the best advice. Don't necessarily trust the guy who was working in the Plumbing Department last week (if you know what I mean).
Many of us here at Skillin's will be trying the all natural K Neem by Organica for the lily leaf beetles. K Neem is the purest form of neem (an insecticide based upon extracts from the neem tree of India). Neem kills insect larvae and repels adult insects. Neem must be applied every five to seven days after egg hatch for best effectiveness.
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for some of this tip)
(above photo from www.cornell.edu)
May 5:
Good birding friend Liz Cardinale reminds us that it is time to get fresh cut oranges outdoors to attract the migrating Baltimore Orioles! If you have never attracted Orioles to your yard you are in for a TREAT! You can nail the oranges to a tree or hang them in a caged feeder like a suet cage (we sell suet cages right here at Skillin's!). Also Liz has read that Orioles love meal worms and she is going to try some meal worms to better attract her Orioles. We do sell the meal worms here at Skillin's.
Also Liz urges us to get our hummingbird feeders set up in our gardens as the migrating hummingbirds will SOON be here. We have some great hummingbird feeders and all the nectar they will need right here at Skillin's!
Also, let us show you some of the plants favored by hummingbirds like fuschia, columbine, trumpet vine, bleeding hearts and other trumpet shaped flowers.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Garden Happenings! Week of April 28
Hello again,
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post I will be letting you know what I am doing or what I hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. I will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!
If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post. We would love any tips OR questions from you.
May 4:
Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited in Rockport tells us "as your asparagus shoots start emerging, harvest spears at least pencil width from asparagus plants that are at least three years old. Cut the spears at ground level with a sharp knife and eat them that day for the best flavor. For asparagus, select a well-drained site in at least part sun; full sun is not necessary. Eliminate all weeds by repeated tilling, loosening the soil to a depth of 12 to 15 inches. Mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost. Prepare the bed by digging trenches four feet apart. The trenches should be 12 inches wide and six to 12 inches deep. Soak the crowns briefly in lukewarm water before planting. Draw a hoe along each side of the prepared trench to form a mound in the center running the length of the trench. Set the crowns 18 inches apart on the mounds in the trench, draping the roots over the sides. Cover the crowns with a mix of one part compost to three parts topsoil , burying the crowns two inches deep. Water the bed thoroughly. After about a month, once shoots have appeared, carefully add more soil to the trench.”
This is excellent advice for planting asparagus. One point I may depart from is that I am not a fan of repeated tilling since that will raise havoc with the soil structure but you certainly want to rid your new asparagus beds of weeds. Another point I would make is that asparagus plants are ugly to look at as the season goes on so choose a spot somewhat far from your house if you have the option. I would also add scatter some Plant Booster Plus by Organica or Plant Tone by Espoma into the compost for some good natural nutrients. Later on in the season I would side dress the plants with one of these products for more nutrients.
Take advantage of the unexpected rain we received on Saturday to get out and pull "hard to pull" weeds that may already be prominent in your perennial beds or lawns. Even mature dandelions pull a little easier out of moist ground!
Many years ago now Jim Crockett of Crockett’s Victory Garden wrote about raspberries in his fine book, Crockett’s Victory Garden:
“Of all the delightful fruits for the home garden, none is more productive than raspberries. That’s a special bonus, because growing raspberries at home is about the only way to get them to the table in perfect condition; they are extremely difficult for the commercial market to raise and ship since they are so easily damaged in handling.
Ordinary raspberries ripen in midsummer on canes that grew the previous year.
I set the young bushes, which we bought in a local nursery, into our ordinary garden soil that had been enriched with cow manure and peat moss. (We would recommend planting with Shrub and Tree Mix by Jolly Gardener after pre watering the hole with a good root stimulator like Roots or a good natural fertilizer like Bio Tone by Espoma or Plant Booster Plus by Organica which both contain natural microbes for all natural root stimulation, both products sold right here at Skillin’s). After that feed twice yearly with a good all purpose natural fertilizer like Plant Tone by Espoma or the aforementioned Plant Booster Plus by Organica.
I don’t expect more than a handful of fruit from raspberry bushes in their first year, but after a year or two in the soil they’ll yield bountifully for many seasons.” We have a great raspberry selection here at Skillin’s!
May 3:
Don't remove foliage from fading spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils and tulips until it dies back on its own. The plant needs the foliage to manufacture and store food in the bulb in preparation for next year's bloom.Removing green foliage weakens the plant. Wait until the foliage yellowson its own in midsummer before trimming it back. In the meantime, hide the unsightly foliage by doubling it over and tying with rubber bands.
Now is a great time to feed your bulbs with a good natural liquid fertilizer like Fish/Seaweed fertilizer by Neptune's Harvest. The bulb plants will take the nutrients and micronutrients supplied by this great fertilizer and both store them and also use them to grow bigger and stronger for more flowering next year!
DK adds to this: "I hide my fading bulbs with other flowers: my tete-a-tete
daffodils/narcissus are petering out right now, just as my daylilies
around them are about the same height. Soon enough, you'll never know the tete-a-tetes are still there."
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for the first part of this tip!)
May 2:
Customer JM checks in with a question: I purchased a tree from skillins 4 or 5 years ago. It has never bloomed since planting it in our yard. What should I put on it for fertilizer? I'm hoping that I can do something now that will encourage blooms for next year.
Answer: Location is very important as your crab should be in a day long (6 to 8 hours for maximum flowering) sunny spot.
For best flowering I would recommend twice yearly applications of a good natural food like Flower Tone by Espoma. Also I would try a couple of liquid feedings of Fish and Seaweed fertilizer by Neptune's Harvest to get some more natural ingredients into the soil that are conducive to the long term health of your tree and therefore it's flowering.
At some point it would probably be wise to do a soil test around the area of your tree.
Finally, it may be good to give the plant at least a light trimming or pruning but do it right after similar trees have just finished flowering. You don't want to wait too long for that.
May 1:
I am sure you cannot help but notice the beautiful Forsythia shrubs that are in blossom all over Southern Maine!
Forsythia is an easy shrub to plant and grow! Occasionally we will hear that customers have trouble with them blooming but that is usually because they may have pruned them in the fall. Forsythia grows fast and loves to be pruned and shaped but the time to do the pruning and shaping is right after they flower (think later this month). This pruning timing is the case with so many plants. Fall pruning of forsythia will mean you are shaping your bush BUT you are also cutting off the growth that will result in next year's flowers.
Forsythia loves full sun and a well-drained soil. I usually feed them with Plant Tone by Espoma or Plant Booster Plus by Organica twice per year.
As you can see, they make excellent hedges, borders or foundation plantings! We have some greatvarieties here at Skillin’s and would love to show you them
Barbara Gardener checks in:
"Not too happy that the heavy rain beat down so many daffodils and giant hyacinths. A friend ordered 25 giant stargazer bulbs and then gave them to me because she didn't want to plant them. And naturally I was stupid enough to take them. Also a huge trash bag of pachysandra. Have no idea how to spell that and neither does spellcheck. That stuff is terrible to dig up. Couldn't find where the main root was so we just pulled. Some of it is a yard long. Should be a fun afternoon! "
Barbara already knows this but pachysandra is a classic groundcover for a partial shade area. I just love it!
April 30:
I was driving from Falmouth to Cumberland earlier today and I saw my first “mowed lawn”. One of the most important steps in organic lawn care is to NOT mow your lawn too short in the Spring and summer. A 4” lawn is best, a 3” lawn will do and folks I can guarantee that these heights are taller than most of us are used to. Why so long? Well, keeping a “taller” lawn encourages deeper root growth, discourages weeds by having tougher lawn roots and more of a grass canopy, and reduces watering needs in the heat of summer.
With a taller lawn it is vital that you keep your lawn mower blade sharp throughout the season. Also, another good step is to aerate your lawn once or twice a year to let more sun and air down into your soil. We sell Aerator Sandles here at Skillin’s that you can strap on while doing your yard work and lawn mowing. With the sandles you just keep poking helpful holes into the earth!
April 29:
Happy Birthday to my mom Brenda Skillin. She and her sister in law Sally Skillin (wife of my late uncle John Skillin) married two hard working gentlemen named David and John Skillin who dedicated so much of their lives to building Skillin's Greenhouses and to educating thousands of Maine gardeners.
Dave and John were away from home a great deal and my mom Brenda and my aunt Sally raised 3 kids apiece and made a lot of meals and were the backbone of the house while Dave and John were working.
What you have done for so many should not be forgotten!
April 28:
Now is the time to plant "cole" crops. "Cole" refers to any of various plants belonging to the Cruciferae or mustard family. Even though you might not be familiar with the impressive scientific name or enjoy eating mustard you are certainly familiar with other members of this family which furnish gardeners with many gourmet delights during the season. The mustard family includes cool season crops such as Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, broccoli, turnips and watercress. These crops should be planted about 2 weeks before your last frost date in soil amended with compost. Don't be concerned if the leaves turn red or purple. It's often a sign of phosphorus deficiency due to cool soils and will go away once the soil warms. Other crops to plant include lettuce and peas.” I planted some broccoli and red leaf lettuce the other day (just before all this rain!) Terry Skillin is worried that his pea seeds may have drowned in all this rain. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!
But sunny days lie ahead and with it great days for gardening!
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for this tip!)
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post I will be letting you know what I am doing or what I hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. I will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!
If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post. We would love any tips OR questions from you.
May 4:
Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited in Rockport tells us "as your asparagus shoots start emerging, harvest spears at least pencil width from asparagus plants that are at least three years old. Cut the spears at ground level with a sharp knife and eat them that day for the best flavor. For asparagus, select a well-drained site in at least part sun; full sun is not necessary. Eliminate all weeds by repeated tilling, loosening the soil to a depth of 12 to 15 inches. Mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost. Prepare the bed by digging trenches four feet apart. The trenches should be 12 inches wide and six to 12 inches deep. Soak the crowns briefly in lukewarm water before planting. Draw a hoe along each side of the prepared trench to form a mound in the center running the length of the trench. Set the crowns 18 inches apart on the mounds in the trench, draping the roots over the sides. Cover the crowns with a mix of one part compost to three parts topsoil , burying the crowns two inches deep. Water the bed thoroughly. After about a month, once shoots have appeared, carefully add more soil to the trench.”
This is excellent advice for planting asparagus. One point I may depart from is that I am not a fan of repeated tilling since that will raise havoc with the soil structure but you certainly want to rid your new asparagus beds of weeds. Another point I would make is that asparagus plants are ugly to look at as the season goes on so choose a spot somewhat far from your house if you have the option. I would also add scatter some Plant Booster Plus by Organica or Plant Tone by Espoma into the compost for some good natural nutrients. Later on in the season I would side dress the plants with one of these products for more nutrients.
Take advantage of the unexpected rain we received on Saturday to get out and pull "hard to pull" weeds that may already be prominent in your perennial beds or lawns. Even mature dandelions pull a little easier out of moist ground!
Many years ago now Jim Crockett of Crockett’s Victory Garden wrote about raspberries in his fine book, Crockett’s Victory Garden:
“Of all the delightful fruits for the home garden, none is more productive than raspberries. That’s a special bonus, because growing raspberries at home is about the only way to get them to the table in perfect condition; they are extremely difficult for the commercial market to raise and ship since they are so easily damaged in handling.
Ordinary raspberries ripen in midsummer on canes that grew the previous year.
I set the young bushes, which we bought in a local nursery, into our ordinary garden soil that had been enriched with cow manure and peat moss. (We would recommend planting with Shrub and Tree Mix by Jolly Gardener after pre watering the hole with a good root stimulator like Roots or a good natural fertilizer like Bio Tone by Espoma or Plant Booster Plus by Organica which both contain natural microbes for all natural root stimulation, both products sold right here at Skillin’s). After that feed twice yearly with a good all purpose natural fertilizer like Plant Tone by Espoma or the aforementioned Plant Booster Plus by Organica.
I don’t expect more than a handful of fruit from raspberry bushes in their first year, but after a year or two in the soil they’ll yield bountifully for many seasons.” We have a great raspberry selection here at Skillin’s!
May 3:
Don't remove foliage from fading spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils and tulips until it dies back on its own. The plant needs the foliage to manufacture and store food in the bulb in preparation for next year's bloom.Removing green foliage weakens the plant. Wait until the foliage yellowson its own in midsummer before trimming it back. In the meantime, hide the unsightly foliage by doubling it over and tying with rubber bands.
Now is a great time to feed your bulbs with a good natural liquid fertilizer like Fish/Seaweed fertilizer by Neptune's Harvest. The bulb plants will take the nutrients and micronutrients supplied by this great fertilizer and both store them and also use them to grow bigger and stronger for more flowering next year!
DK adds to this: "I hide my fading bulbs with other flowers: my tete-a-tete
daffodils/narcissus are petering out right now, just as my daylilies
around them are about the same height. Soon enough, you'll never know the tete-a-tetes are still there."
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for the first part of this tip!)
May 2:
Customer JM checks in with a question: I purchased a tree from skillins 4 or 5 years ago. It has never bloomed since planting it in our yard. What should I put on it for fertilizer? I'm hoping that I can do something now that will encourage blooms for next year.
Answer: Location is very important as your crab should be in a day long (6 to 8 hours for maximum flowering) sunny spot.
For best flowering I would recommend twice yearly applications of a good natural food like Flower Tone by Espoma. Also I would try a couple of liquid feedings of Fish and Seaweed fertilizer by Neptune's Harvest to get some more natural ingredients into the soil that are conducive to the long term health of your tree and therefore it's flowering.
At some point it would probably be wise to do a soil test around the area of your tree.
Finally, it may be good to give the plant at least a light trimming or pruning but do it right after similar trees have just finished flowering. You don't want to wait too long for that.
May 1:
I am sure you cannot help but notice the beautiful Forsythia shrubs that are in blossom all over Southern Maine!
Forsythia is an easy shrub to plant and grow! Occasionally we will hear that customers have trouble with them blooming but that is usually because they may have pruned them in the fall. Forsythia grows fast and loves to be pruned and shaped but the time to do the pruning and shaping is right after they flower (think later this month). This pruning timing is the case with so many plants. Fall pruning of forsythia will mean you are shaping your bush BUT you are also cutting off the growth that will result in next year's flowers.
Forsythia loves full sun and a well-drained soil. I usually feed them with Plant Tone by Espoma or Plant Booster Plus by Organica twice per year.
As you can see, they make excellent hedges, borders or foundation plantings! We have some greatvarieties here at Skillin’s and would love to show you them
Barbara Gardener checks in:
"Not too happy that the heavy rain beat down so many daffodils and giant hyacinths. A friend ordered 25 giant stargazer bulbs and then gave them to me because she didn't want to plant them. And naturally I was stupid enough to take them. Also a huge trash bag of pachysandra. Have no idea how to spell that and neither does spellcheck. That stuff is terrible to dig up. Couldn't find where the main root was so we just pulled. Some of it is a yard long. Should be a fun afternoon! "
Barbara already knows this but pachysandra is a classic groundcover for a partial shade area. I just love it!
April 30:
I was driving from Falmouth to Cumberland earlier today and I saw my first “mowed lawn”. One of the most important steps in organic lawn care is to NOT mow your lawn too short in the Spring and summer. A 4” lawn is best, a 3” lawn will do and folks I can guarantee that these heights are taller than most of us are used to. Why so long? Well, keeping a “taller” lawn encourages deeper root growth, discourages weeds by having tougher lawn roots and more of a grass canopy, and reduces watering needs in the heat of summer.
With a taller lawn it is vital that you keep your lawn mower blade sharp throughout the season. Also, another good step is to aerate your lawn once or twice a year to let more sun and air down into your soil. We sell Aerator Sandles here at Skillin’s that you can strap on while doing your yard work and lawn mowing. With the sandles you just keep poking helpful holes into the earth!
April 29:
Happy Birthday to my mom Brenda Skillin. She and her sister in law Sally Skillin (wife of my late uncle John Skillin) married two hard working gentlemen named David and John Skillin who dedicated so much of their lives to building Skillin's Greenhouses and to educating thousands of Maine gardeners.
Dave and John were away from home a great deal and my mom Brenda and my aunt Sally raised 3 kids apiece and made a lot of meals and were the backbone of the house while Dave and John were working.
What you have done for so many should not be forgotten!
April 28:
Now is the time to plant "cole" crops. "Cole" refers to any of various plants belonging to the Cruciferae or mustard family. Even though you might not be familiar with the impressive scientific name or enjoy eating mustard you are certainly familiar with other members of this family which furnish gardeners with many gourmet delights during the season. The mustard family includes cool season crops such as Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, broccoli, turnips and watercress. These crops should be planted about 2 weeks before your last frost date in soil amended with compost. Don't be concerned if the leaves turn red or purple. It's often a sign of phosphorus deficiency due to cool soils and will go away once the soil warms. Other crops to plant include lettuce and peas.” I planted some broccoli and red leaf lettuce the other day (just before all this rain!) Terry Skillin is worried that his pea seeds may have drowned in all this rain. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!
But sunny days lie ahead and with it great days for gardening!
(Thanks to Hammon Buck of Plants Unlimited for this tip!)
Monday, April 28, 2008
So Happy Together by KCB
KCB is a professional gardener and friend who does wonderful work in the Greater Portland area. KCB is also an accredited Master Gardener by the Cooperative Extension Service and we are honored to have KCB as part of our Skillin's Garden Log family.
First, I have to comment about the weather. Glorious. Just over a year ago was the now infamous Patriot’s Day Storm. The day’s ravages are still with us. Uprooted mounds where there once were mighty oaks, birch’s snapped like twigs, mismatched roof shingles reflective of those lost and replaced. Just a year ago this pas week I raked shards of glass from blown out sunroom windows.
On to the present and future! This will be my last installment of ‘Gardening 101’. My 3 previous installments are still posted here at the Skillin’s Garden Log. We’ve planned, prepared, tested and with all the walking are in shape. Now we are salaciously waiting to sow the seeds of our studies.
Right Plant, Right place.
Longing for the fragrance of lilac after a May rain yet wonder why they never bloom in your woodland setting? Dreaming of a tidy garden with tiny pinpricks of Gold and Lavender for color yet plant Nepeta (Catmint) and Rudbeckia (Black-eyed Susans)? Wishing for a colorful low growing border for the shady side of your house and decide on Joe-Pye Weed and Garden Phlox? You love the abstract form and texture of the Mugo pine with a vision of installing several along the northern foundation. You feel these sprawling evergreens will work well under the canopy of your crabapples. Will they?
What is wrong with these scenarios? I have many such stories of woe but you don’t need to.
My recommendation is simple. Too simple, really. Research.
Does this mean you have to investigate arm loads of gardening magazines? Spend countless time searching on-line or fill your library with gardening books?
What to do?
With the exception of People, Places and Plants (found at http://www.ppplants.com/) , gardening magazines are often geared to the Hardiness Zones with longer growing seasons. Internet sites are only as reliable as those who create them. I trust the sites of known local nursery and garden centers and various University Cooperative Extensions.
Yes, all of this research may sound too much like work. Do not fret, fun is on the way. I’ve saved the easiest and above all totally FREE suggestions for last………….
Read, ask, buy...
Speak with the staff at your favorite family owned nursery and take away their gardening catalogs. A wealth of information on both accounts. It may seem obvious why asking questions is significant to picking the right plant but why a catalog?
The Nursery Catalog holds the key. Along with the common and botanical name, of each plant, shrub or tree are notations regarding sun exposure; growth habits and other conditions of interest. Carry these with you as a reference when shopping.
I’m not done yet. For I offer you the Pinnacle Plant Syllabus. Drum roll please!
A simple plastic strip stating a plethora of points-----the plant tag. Oh, how I wish I could purchase my own set and collect them as children do baseball cards. I’ll trade you the 1998 Perennial of the Year for the 2007 Cary Award Winner.
As you admire the plant, read before you proceed to purchase. Light exposure, height, spread as well as bloom time in words and symbol are included. Imagine all this time a world of answers waited at your fingertips. One final warning, however. As much as I adore plant tags, I abhor them in beds and attached to shrubs. You wouldn’t expose the care instructions or maintain price tags on your clothing? Remove those tags; keep them if you must (I keep one of each) with your journal or file just not in your garden. Many botanical markers are available or create your own.
Gardening 101 is now at it’s completion. Your passing grade will be what you make of these suggestions. We welcome your thoughts and will be gleeful at your successes and offer a shoulder for those plans that went awry.
Next time……….reports from the field…………
First, I have to comment about the weather. Glorious. Just over a year ago was the now infamous Patriot’s Day Storm. The day’s ravages are still with us. Uprooted mounds where there once were mighty oaks, birch’s snapped like twigs, mismatched roof shingles reflective of those lost and replaced. Just a year ago this pas week I raked shards of glass from blown out sunroom windows.
On to the present and future! This will be my last installment of ‘Gardening 101’. My 3 previous installments are still posted here at the Skillin’s Garden Log. We’ve planned, prepared, tested and with all the walking are in shape. Now we are salaciously waiting to sow the seeds of our studies.
Right Plant, Right place.
Longing for the fragrance of lilac after a May rain yet wonder why they never bloom in your woodland setting? Dreaming of a tidy garden with tiny pinpricks of Gold and Lavender for color yet plant Nepeta (Catmint) and Rudbeckia (Black-eyed Susans)? Wishing for a colorful low growing border for the shady side of your house and decide on Joe-Pye Weed and Garden Phlox? You love the abstract form and texture of the Mugo pine with a vision of installing several along the northern foundation. You feel these sprawling evergreens will work well under the canopy of your crabapples. Will they?
What is wrong with these scenarios? I have many such stories of woe but you don’t need to.
My recommendation is simple. Too simple, really. Research.
Does this mean you have to investigate arm loads of gardening magazines? Spend countless time searching on-line or fill your library with gardening books?
What to do?
With the exception of People, Places and Plants (found at http://www.ppplants.com/) , gardening magazines are often geared to the Hardiness Zones with longer growing seasons. Internet sites are only as reliable as those who create them. I trust the sites of known local nursery and garden centers and various University Cooperative Extensions.
Yes, all of this research may sound too much like work. Do not fret, fun is on the way. I’ve saved the easiest and above all totally FREE suggestions for last………….
Read, ask, buy...
Speak with the staff at your favorite family owned nursery and take away their gardening catalogs. A wealth of information on both accounts. It may seem obvious why asking questions is significant to picking the right plant but why a catalog?
The Nursery Catalog holds the key. Along with the common and botanical name, of each plant, shrub or tree are notations regarding sun exposure; growth habits and other conditions of interest. Carry these with you as a reference when shopping.
I’m not done yet. For I offer you the Pinnacle Plant Syllabus. Drum roll please!
A simple plastic strip stating a plethora of points-----the plant tag. Oh, how I wish I could purchase my own set and collect them as children do baseball cards. I’ll trade you the 1998 Perennial of the Year for the 2007 Cary Award Winner.
As you admire the plant, read before you proceed to purchase. Light exposure, height, spread as well as bloom time in words and symbol are included. Imagine all this time a world of answers waited at your fingertips. One final warning, however. As much as I adore plant tags, I abhor them in beds and attached to shrubs. You wouldn’t expose the care instructions or maintain price tags on your clothing? Remove those tags; keep them if you must (I keep one of each) with your journal or file just not in your garden. Many botanical markers are available or create your own.
Gardening 101 is now at it’s completion. Your passing grade will be what you make of these suggestions. We welcome your thoughts and will be gleeful at your successes and offer a shoulder for those plans that went awry.
Next time……….reports from the field…………
KCB for Skillin's Greenhouses
April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Garden Happenings! Week of April 21
Hello again,
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post I will be letting you know what I am doing or what I hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. I will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!
If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post. We would love any tips OR questions from you!
April 26:
Hammon Buck from Plants Unlimited in Rockport Maine has a great store and website and with his permission we have passed on gardening ideas from his email gardening column before. Hammon has some great advice on perennial care:
"May is a good time to dig and divide later blooming perennials if needed, such as hosta, ornamental grasses, perennial geraniums, bee balm, daylilies, helen's flower, and asters. If left undivided, plants may become unproductive and overcrowded, often bare in the centers. Wait until after bloom to divide overgrown early-blooming perennials such as yarrow and evening primrose. Dig up the clump, and with a sharp spade create wedges. Then, divide the clump in half, then divide each half further. Leave large divisions if you want plants to look better, and bloom more, sooner. After replanting, water often and deeply to reduce stress on these new divisions. "
April 25:
Sometimes you get a 2-for-1: landscape plants that look good and provide you with edible landscaping, too! So it is with blueberry bushes and fruit trees.
We have a great selection of easy to plant and easy to grow blueberry bushes and fruit trees here at Skillin's. Come see our great selection and let us show you how these plants can provide great tasting and healthy food for you and your family PLUS we can explain how they add quality year round beauty and character to your landscape!
David Beaulieu at About.com Landscaping writes the following good advice about fruit trees:
"Who says that only ornamentals can be used in landscape design? Apple trees (Malus spp.) are as lovely in bloom as any strictly ornamental flowering specimen. But unlike ornamentals, apple trees will provide you with a delicious harvest of fruit. And because you’ll be able to enjoy that fruit fresh off the trees (when it tastes best), you’ll have added incentive to adhere to the old maxim about having one a day to keep the doctor away!
Nor are the aesthetic landscaping uses for apple trees limited by their blooming periods. A row of apple trees can act as an attractive privacy screen all summer and fall, while fully leafed out. Or perhaps you already have a privacy fence, but it looks too bare -– you’d like to dress it up.
Dwarf varieties of the apple can serve as the “clothing,” trained along your fence in an art form known as espalier. Dwarf varieties (5’-8’ tall) and semi-dwarf varieties (12’-16’ tall) are better plants for espalier than are standard apples (20’-30’ tall).
But don’t depend on dwarf varieties to be as hardy as semi-dwarf varieties and standards. For a homeowner living in planting zone 3, for instance, it’s probably safest to restrict your selection to standards. Those of you, however, who live in a climate suitable for dwarf varieties should take advantage: you won’t have to wait as long for a mature yield of fruit (a couple of years) after planting as with standards (five or six years). Note, however, that in addition to apple tree variety, the other factors that I discuss throughout this article have an impact on how long it will take for the branches of your new apples to start straining under the burden of a bumper crop.
Selecting Varieties of Apple Trees: Climate and Taste
Beyond the consideration of dwarf vs. standard varieties, the first thing you should do to determine the varieties of apple trees you’ll be growing is to ensure that you select the varieties that grow best in your region....(we can help you with that here at Skillin's!)
The following are examples of varieties of apple trees that are good at producing fruit for particular tastes:
For a sweet fruit: "Honeycrisp"
For pie-making: "Northern Spy," "Liberty" apple trees and "Golden Delicious"
Selecting Apple Trees – Varieties Resistant to Disease
But not all of us will want to let our taste buds make the decision for us; it’s ultimately our muscles we listen to the most -– as in avoiding sore muscles by adopting low-maintenance alternatives. In the latter case, disease-resistant varieties of apple trees may carry the day over varieties that require spraying -– regardless of nuances in taste. Four diseases commonly attack apple trees: fire blight, apple scab, cedar apple rust and powdery mildew."
Here at Skillin's we recommend Freedom and Liberty as two varieties that are very disease resistant.
We also offer some "heirloom apple" varieties including Roxbury Russett and Newtown Pippin (a favorite of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson!).
Check out our 2008 Nursery Catalog in PDF form at http://www.skillins.com/ for more descriptions of the varieties that we offer!
April 24:
Onions are so good and so easy to grow! The easiest way to grow onions is by planting onion sets. Onion sets are grown from seed one year, harvested early and stored under controlled conditions and then sold in the Spring. They are easy and foolproof and they are usually the first harvest of the season in your garden. Here is some advice on how best to plant onion sets from Jim Crockett of Crockett’s Victory Garden:
Plant the sets in mid to late April. First, work any good garden fertilizer such as Pro Gro by North Country Organics or Plant Tone by Espoma into the soil. Plant 2 rows, 2 inches apart, gently pressing the sets down into the soft soil at 2” intervals until the tips are just under the surface. This is a dense planting, but pull every other one to be eaten as sweet juicy scallions later in the Spring, leaving half the crop to mature into full-sized onions.
The deep snows of winter offer a perfect opportunity for mice, moles and voles to hide from cats and other predators. However, such rodents will often spend their winter under the snow gnawing on young tender recently planted trees. Now that the snow has mostly melted such eating can easily be noticed. Too much eating can cause girdling and be fatal to the tree. If you notice bark missing and parts of your trees gashed on the lower trunk areas we urge you to wrap your trees with a good quality tree wrap (sold here at Skillin’s). Wrap your trees to a point of 1 to 2 inches in the ground and extend at least 18 inches up the tree. Again, such eating may eventually be fatal but if your tree is to be saved, any exposed areas should be protected from sun scald or disease spores. Also always avoid using mulch within a foot of tree trunks because that mulch can be a haven for rodents. Let us know if you have any questions!
Question from customer MF: "This spring we are going to attempt to be more organic with our lawn and flower gardens. We need some advice as to the order in which to apply various products. Last weekend we bought the Organica 4 step program and also we want to put down a layer of compost. The products in question are:
compost
grass seed (to reseed some bare spots)
Organica Lawn Booster
Milky Spore
Organica Kelp Booster
Answer: "The Organica Lawn Booster is an excellent product but it consists of corn gluten meal and you should not put that down on the ground at the same time you put down the grass seed because corn gluten will stop any seed from germinating as the corn gluten breaks down into a gel and thinly covers the ground.
I just applied the Organica Lawn Booster to my lawn EXCEPT in areas where I just put down some Jonathan Green Black Beauty grass seed (which I highly recommend by the way). In that spot I would recommend putting down the Kelp (Step 2).
In early June when it is time to go to Step 2 of the Four Step Program I would put the kelp in areas that you did not seed and I would put the Lawn Booster (step 1) in areas that you did reseed and have now germinated. So after you have done all this you have put both Step 1 (Lawn Booster) and Step 2 (Kelp Booster) down just in reverse order where you seed.
Confused? Just let me know and I will try to “re explain”.
The Milky Spore can be applied anytime.
Are you putting the compost on the lawn? I would put the compost down after the grass seed is germinated and you have mowed that area once or twice. If you do this apply the compost VERY THINLY—maybe an inch. Very thin; you don’t want to strangle your grass."
Question from VB in New Jersey: A friend from Maine recommended your site for a question I have. I have a problem with cats doing their duty in my mulched gardens... any suggestions that would deter them from wanting to go in there? Any type of treatment or something?
Answer: Cats are tough because they mostly do what they want!
The key is to change the area that they do their duty in; you can do this by sprinkling animal repellents to the mulched area (most garden centers would sell Repels All by Bonide or Critter Ridder by Havahart).
Some people also put things in these areas that swing in the wind or clang a little. We also sell a device called the Scarecrow that sprays water when it detects motion in the area.
Just a few thoughts, if I get more I will pass them on!
Skillin's customers IF YOU HAVE ANY GOOD METHODS TO GET RID OF CATS PLEASE LET ME KNOW AT info@skillins.com OR DROP US A COMMENT AT THE END OF THIS POST.
April 23:
More lawn work: This morning before I came to work (good thing the sun comes up early now!) I put down Lawn Booster by Organica. Lawn Booster is the first step in Organica's All Natural Four Step Lawn Program and I am quite excited about it. Lawn Booster is corn gluten meal which naturally prevents weed seeds from germinating in your lawn. This is a good time to put it down to help prevent crabgrass seed. I love the Organica fertilizer products because through a unique patent they are able to combine their excellent organic fertilizers with natural microbes. This combination works with your soil to bring much better "biology" to your soil; the microbes help the fertilizer to break down more quickly and to bring a much healthier cell structure to your soil. The Organica Four Step Lawn Program is normally priced at $143; we are offering all six bags in the 5000 square foot program to you for $119. And then we will give you a mail-in rebate coupon worth $20 that once redeemed will bring your net price to just $99! So you can EASILY and NATURALLY treat your lawn for an entire season for just $99. That is awesome. Come to Skillin's so we can show you how! So, back to my yard: I put down Step 1 (Organica's Lawn Booster) this morning!
April 22:
Now that I have raked my lawn I put some grass seed down in some bare and hard to grow spots. I am trying some tall Fescue seed from Jonathan Green called Black Beauty that should set some nice deep roots (much deeper than typical Kentucky Bluegrass and ryegrass mixes). Tall Fescue should give off a nice green color and those deep roots should enable the grass to better withstand hot summer stretches (we have those) and cold cold winter temperatures (we have those too in case you did not know!)
April 21:
Customer BCT checks in with this great note. She took our suggestion a couple of weeks ago and planted peas in a container (while the ground was cold cold) and placed her container in the sun.
"I did plant peas two weeks ago in containers. I put them on my front steps in a pure southern exposure and they are about an inch high!!!! Great idea.......Now that I have tried it and it worked I will increase my attempt next year!!"
I just planted a second container early on a recent morning. If you have space in a sunny area for a vegetable garden NOW is a great time to plant seeds like peas, carrots, beets, radishes, and swiss chard.
We will have lettuce, cabbage, broccoli and brussel sprouts plants available for sale this weekend AND they should be planted as well.
All of these plants need lots of sun. They can be grown in the ground OR in containers.
Gardening is Happening in Skillin's Country!
In this post I will be letting you know what I am doing or what I hear is going on out there in our local gardening world. I will be updating this post with quick supplements all through the week!
So check here frequently!
If you would like to contribute just drop us a quick note at info@skillins.com OR leave a comment at the end of this post. We would love any tips OR questions from you!
April 26:
Hammon Buck from Plants Unlimited in Rockport Maine has a great store and website and with his permission we have passed on gardening ideas from his email gardening column before. Hammon has some great advice on perennial care:
"May is a good time to dig and divide later blooming perennials if needed, such as hosta, ornamental grasses, perennial geraniums, bee balm, daylilies, helen's flower, and asters. If left undivided, plants may become unproductive and overcrowded, often bare in the centers. Wait until after bloom to divide overgrown early-blooming perennials such as yarrow and evening primrose. Dig up the clump, and with a sharp spade create wedges. Then, divide the clump in half, then divide each half further. Leave large divisions if you want plants to look better, and bloom more, sooner. After replanting, water often and deeply to reduce stress on these new divisions. "
April 25:
Sometimes you get a 2-for-1: landscape plants that look good and provide you with edible landscaping, too! So it is with blueberry bushes and fruit trees.
We have a great selection of easy to plant and easy to grow blueberry bushes and fruit trees here at Skillin's. Come see our great selection and let us show you how these plants can provide great tasting and healthy food for you and your family PLUS we can explain how they add quality year round beauty and character to your landscape!
David Beaulieu at About.com Landscaping writes the following good advice about fruit trees:
"Who says that only ornamentals can be used in landscape design? Apple trees (Malus spp.) are as lovely in bloom as any strictly ornamental flowering specimen. But unlike ornamentals, apple trees will provide you with a delicious harvest of fruit. And because you’ll be able to enjoy that fruit fresh off the trees (when it tastes best), you’ll have added incentive to adhere to the old maxim about having one a day to keep the doctor away!
Nor are the aesthetic landscaping uses for apple trees limited by their blooming periods. A row of apple trees can act as an attractive privacy screen all summer and fall, while fully leafed out. Or perhaps you already have a privacy fence, but it looks too bare -– you’d like to dress it up.
Dwarf varieties of the apple can serve as the “clothing,” trained along your fence in an art form known as espalier. Dwarf varieties (5’-8’ tall) and semi-dwarf varieties (12’-16’ tall) are better plants for espalier than are standard apples (20’-30’ tall).
But don’t depend on dwarf varieties to be as hardy as semi-dwarf varieties and standards. For a homeowner living in planting zone 3, for instance, it’s probably safest to restrict your selection to standards. Those of you, however, who live in a climate suitable for dwarf varieties should take advantage: you won’t have to wait as long for a mature yield of fruit (a couple of years) after planting as with standards (five or six years). Note, however, that in addition to apple tree variety, the other factors that I discuss throughout this article have an impact on how long it will take for the branches of your new apples to start straining under the burden of a bumper crop.
Selecting Varieties of Apple Trees: Climate and Taste
Beyond the consideration of dwarf vs. standard varieties, the first thing you should do to determine the varieties of apple trees you’ll be growing is to ensure that you select the varieties that grow best in your region....(we can help you with that here at Skillin's!)
The following are examples of varieties of apple trees that are good at producing fruit for particular tastes:
For a sweet fruit: "Honeycrisp"
For pie-making: "Northern Spy," "Liberty" apple trees and "Golden Delicious"
Selecting Apple Trees – Varieties Resistant to Disease
But not all of us will want to let our taste buds make the decision for us; it’s ultimately our muscles we listen to the most -– as in avoiding sore muscles by adopting low-maintenance alternatives. In the latter case, disease-resistant varieties of apple trees may carry the day over varieties that require spraying -– regardless of nuances in taste. Four diseases commonly attack apple trees: fire blight, apple scab, cedar apple rust and powdery mildew."
Here at Skillin's we recommend Freedom and Liberty as two varieties that are very disease resistant.
We also offer some "heirloom apple" varieties including Roxbury Russett and Newtown Pippin (a favorite of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson!).
Check out our 2008 Nursery Catalog in PDF form at http://www.skillins.com/ for more descriptions of the varieties that we offer!
April 24:
Onions are so good and so easy to grow! The easiest way to grow onions is by planting onion sets. Onion sets are grown from seed one year, harvested early and stored under controlled conditions and then sold in the Spring. They are easy and foolproof and they are usually the first harvest of the season in your garden. Here is some advice on how best to plant onion sets from Jim Crockett of Crockett’s Victory Garden:
Plant the sets in mid to late April. First, work any good garden fertilizer such as Pro Gro by North Country Organics or Plant Tone by Espoma into the soil. Plant 2 rows, 2 inches apart, gently pressing the sets down into the soft soil at 2” intervals until the tips are just under the surface. This is a dense planting, but pull every other one to be eaten as sweet juicy scallions later in the Spring, leaving half the crop to mature into full-sized onions.
The deep snows of winter offer a perfect opportunity for mice, moles and voles to hide from cats and other predators. However, such rodents will often spend their winter under the snow gnawing on young tender recently planted trees. Now that the snow has mostly melted such eating can easily be noticed. Too much eating can cause girdling and be fatal to the tree. If you notice bark missing and parts of your trees gashed on the lower trunk areas we urge you to wrap your trees with a good quality tree wrap (sold here at Skillin’s). Wrap your trees to a point of 1 to 2 inches in the ground and extend at least 18 inches up the tree. Again, such eating may eventually be fatal but if your tree is to be saved, any exposed areas should be protected from sun scald or disease spores. Also always avoid using mulch within a foot of tree trunks because that mulch can be a haven for rodents. Let us know if you have any questions!
Question from customer MF: "This spring we are going to attempt to be more organic with our lawn and flower gardens. We need some advice as to the order in which to apply various products. Last weekend we bought the Organica 4 step program and also we want to put down a layer of compost. The products in question are:
compost
grass seed (to reseed some bare spots)
Organica Lawn Booster
Milky Spore
Organica Kelp Booster
Answer: "The Organica Lawn Booster is an excellent product but it consists of corn gluten meal and you should not put that down on the ground at the same time you put down the grass seed because corn gluten will stop any seed from germinating as the corn gluten breaks down into a gel and thinly covers the ground.
I just applied the Organica Lawn Booster to my lawn EXCEPT in areas where I just put down some Jonathan Green Black Beauty grass seed (which I highly recommend by the way). In that spot I would recommend putting down the Kelp (Step 2).
In early June when it is time to go to Step 2 of the Four Step Program I would put the kelp in areas that you did not seed and I would put the Lawn Booster (step 1) in areas that you did reseed and have now germinated. So after you have done all this you have put both Step 1 (Lawn Booster) and Step 2 (Kelp Booster) down just in reverse order where you seed.
Confused? Just let me know and I will try to “re explain”.
The Milky Spore can be applied anytime.
Are you putting the compost on the lawn? I would put the compost down after the grass seed is germinated and you have mowed that area once or twice. If you do this apply the compost VERY THINLY—maybe an inch. Very thin; you don’t want to strangle your grass."
Question from VB in New Jersey: A friend from Maine recommended your site for a question I have. I have a problem with cats doing their duty in my mulched gardens... any suggestions that would deter them from wanting to go in there? Any type of treatment or something?
Answer: Cats are tough because they mostly do what they want!
The key is to change the area that they do their duty in; you can do this by sprinkling animal repellents to the mulched area (most garden centers would sell Repels All by Bonide or Critter Ridder by Havahart).
Some people also put things in these areas that swing in the wind or clang a little. We also sell a device called the Scarecrow that sprays water when it detects motion in the area.
Just a few thoughts, if I get more I will pass them on!
Skillin's customers IF YOU HAVE ANY GOOD METHODS TO GET RID OF CATS PLEASE LET ME KNOW AT info@skillins.com OR DROP US A COMMENT AT THE END OF THIS POST.
April 23:
More lawn work: This morning before I came to work (good thing the sun comes up early now!) I put down Lawn Booster by Organica. Lawn Booster is the first step in Organica's All Natural Four Step Lawn Program and I am quite excited about it. Lawn Booster is corn gluten meal which naturally prevents weed seeds from germinating in your lawn. This is a good time to put it down to help prevent crabgrass seed. I love the Organica fertilizer products because through a unique patent they are able to combine their excellent organic fertilizers with natural microbes. This combination works with your soil to bring much better "biology" to your soil; the microbes help the fertilizer to break down more quickly and to bring a much healthier cell structure to your soil. The Organica Four Step Lawn Program is normally priced at $143; we are offering all six bags in the 5000 square foot program to you for $119. And then we will give you a mail-in rebate coupon worth $20 that once redeemed will bring your net price to just $99! So you can EASILY and NATURALLY treat your lawn for an entire season for just $99. That is awesome. Come to Skillin's so we can show you how! So, back to my yard: I put down Step 1 (Organica's Lawn Booster) this morning!
April 22:
Now that I have raked my lawn I put some grass seed down in some bare and hard to grow spots. I am trying some tall Fescue seed from Jonathan Green called Black Beauty that should set some nice deep roots (much deeper than typical Kentucky Bluegrass and ryegrass mixes). Tall Fescue should give off a nice green color and those deep roots should enable the grass to better withstand hot summer stretches (we have those) and cold cold winter temperatures (we have those too in case you did not know!)
April 21:
Customer BCT checks in with this great note. She took our suggestion a couple of weeks ago and planted peas in a container (while the ground was cold cold) and placed her container in the sun.
"I did plant peas two weeks ago in containers. I put them on my front steps in a pure southern exposure and they are about an inch high!!!! Great idea.......Now that I have tried it and it worked I will increase my attempt next year!!"
I just planted a second container early on a recent morning. If you have space in a sunny area for a vegetable garden NOW is a great time to plant seeds like peas, carrots, beets, radishes, and swiss chard.
We will have lettuce, cabbage, broccoli and brussel sprouts plants available for sale this weekend AND they should be planted as well.
All of these plants need lots of sun. They can be grown in the ground OR in containers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
