Ask Monty’s 4/3/11: Nettles, Onions, and Burrs, Oh My!

By Dennis on April 4, 2011

Weeds are everywhere this time of year.  They are in your lawn and obviously on your mind as our mailbag has been full of questions about them.  This week our Ask Monty’s segment is dedicate to all of those pesky, unwanted invasive species.

First, just for information’s sake.  There is no scientific definition or classification of a weed.  A weed, by definition, is any unwanted plant.  Therefore, any plant, even a rose or tulip can be a weed if it is growing in an area where you do not want it to be.  When commercial gardening stores and manufacturers talk of weeds they are generally speaking collectively about a group of grasses and plants that are commonly thought undesirable.  For example, consider dandelions.  They are the bane of my existence.  However, in the culinary world, people like the bitter, peppery flavor of dandelion greens in salads.  So, even though I cannot imagine it, some people actually cultivate them and there are even farmers who raise them as a cash crop!

All weeds serve a purpose, it is only when they violate our plans and living spaces that they become problems. So use care in eradicating all of them. They may be providing you with benefits that you are not aware of or could be helping to tell you a story about the condition of your soil. Listen to them, work with them when you can.

That said, I know how frustrating they can be and fight the good fight against some of them myself.  Here are some questions and answers that have been on your minds lately.  Oh, and if you have additional questions either post them in the comments section or e-mail me at pallan@montysplantfood.com .

Ask Monty’s:

“We recently bought 50 wooded acres in the country as sort of a place to getaway on the weekends.  It’s a great camping spot, but when I let our dogs out to run they came back covered in burrs!  I have never seen so many of them.  Is there a way to get rid of them?”

 Gayleen
American Fork, Utah

 Gayleen:

Meet the cocklebur, one of the most annoying, evasive weeds found throughout the entire United States except in Alaska.  Their most notable characteristic is their abundance of spiney burrs that have hook-tipped spines that easily attach themselves to clothing, fur or passing, happy dogs playing.  Often referred to as “hitchhikers,” that’s how they seem to spread so easily by attaching themselves to anything that moves.

However, these horrible plants do have to have the right growing conditions to thrive in areas that are washed out, wetlands, disturbed areas, drainage channels, or in unattended fields.

In addition, their seeds and seedlings are also poisonous.  Animals rarely eat them unless they get in their grazing paths, but children and young people have been made seriously ill and have even died from eating the seeds, which both look and taste like sunflower seeds.

The best way to get rid of these weeds is to apply weed killer in the fall and spring.  Your local farm store, extension service or larger nurseries will be able to advise you on what is the most aggressive product to use.

One of the things to try this season if you are looking for a total kill with a ‘round-up’ like product containing glyphosate is adding Monty’s NanoBoost.  It is an herbicide additive that dramatically improves the efficiency and kill rate of glyphosate and 2,4-D based herbicides.  This product is only available from our agricultural dealers at this point, but with Southern States Co-ops now on board it should be fairly easy to find in the Eastern third of the country. Or you can call toll free and order it direct.  Read more about NanoBoost, here.  Then call us at 800-978-6342 to order NanoBoost.

Ask Monty’s:

“Last summer I noticed I had a lot of strange, thick-leafed patches of grass in my lawn.  A friend told me that it looked like wild onion.  Curious of course, and because it was obviously unsightly and out of place on the lawn, I dug one up to discover it had bulbs like an onion.  Am I going to see more of this in the spring?  If so, how do I get rid of it?  Is it poisonous, as I have pets and I’m afraid my cat may mistake it for catnip?”

Riza
Nicholasville, Kentucky

 Riza:

Wild Onions are harmless weeds, but they do stick up boldly out of a manicured lawn, looking very similar to an onion plant.  They are found all over the world and grow wildly, although some species are treated as culinary delicacies.  Nonetheless, having them come up in unwanted areas does not redeem their weed qualities.  They grow in the fall to early winter and can be controlled through post-emergent broadleaf weed killer on individual plants.

 Ask Monty’s:

“I have a patch of stinging nettles sprouting up in the corner of my yard, an area that I just haven’t had the time to maintain as well as I should.  What’s the easiest way to get rid of these?  They aren’t bothering anything, but I think I should get rid of it.”

 Carly
Abbeville, South Carolina

 Carly:

Stinging nettles and common nettles are one and the same: vicious weeds that are not pleasant to come in contact with no matter what.  It’s a perennial like most weeds, so unless you get rid of it soon, it will spread and become an even bigger problem year after year with its finger-like roots.  It’s hard to believe that some people will harvest it and cook it for its nutritional value.  

When eradicating this weed you can either go after it with an all-over weed killer in the winter or early spring or manually remove them by cutting them to the ground with a hedge trimmer and then digging up their roots.  Once you get rid of the roots though spray a herbicide over the area for extra measure.

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One of the Worst Gardening Chores Made Easy

By Dennis on April 1, 2011

Most people, when you ask them why they don’t garden; or if they do garden if you ask what they hate about it will tell you weeding.  I am no different.  I hate weeding, that is one of the reasons i con my kids into helping me do it.  Well, my plan backfired on me.  My oldest child, my son, is now working a ‘real job’ and is graduating this spring.  So, I was faced with a thirty percent reduction in my work-force.

I happened to see a commercial on TV for a Mantis Tiller.  Now, with a background in media, I am naturally skeptical of ads; especially for over-hyped tv products. But, I was desperate for some other option other than chemicals or spending 1-2 hours a day out in my veg garden weeding. I finally gave in, if nothing else, to help me keep the morning glories at bay until my veg crops can get big enough to out-compete them.

This is not an endorsement of their product.  I do not sell them, Monty’s does not sell them nor are we suggesting you should buy one.  However, since I did purchase one  and since this blog is all about gardening, I thought I would share my experience.

I purchased the model that came pre-assembled.  All I had to do was pull it out of the box tighten the handles, fill it with a fuel/oil mix and go.  My garden is too small for this size tiller but I believe it will still come in handy for weeding/cultivating. I have not planted my garden yet because it is still a bit cold and way too wet so I decided to experiment with the new tiller in these flower beds. On this day I would be using it for two purposes 1) to renovate two flower beds 2) to edge my yard with the optional edger attachment.

The two flower beds were suffering from years of relative neglect and from encroaching Bermuda grass.  I love Bermuda grass.  It is hardy, it chokes out other weeds and looks good once it is warm enough to green up.  However, it has one problem.  It grows from rhizomes and refuses to stay where you want it.  It will invade everywhere and can be a real nuisance in flower beds.

You can see for yourself the job the tiller did on the front flower bed…total time, about 10 minutes.  The bed is a mixture of compost I have laid on top since last summer and native, moderately heavy clay soil.

After using the Mantis in this limited setting, these are my thoughts.

Starting – I have a gas weed trimmer and this is easier to crank than it.  Though, I recommend the quick-start option. If you let the tiller set and cool for even five minutes, you will have to re-prime it and use the choke to get it started again.  Otherwise it starts quickly.

Ease of use – Very easy, and very light.  It has a black handle by the engine and I was easily able to carry it where ever I needed it, one handed. (there is another grip if you want to use both hands. The speed controls are located on the right handgrip and easy to operate with your thumb and index finger. The thumb-controlled safety switch guarentees that you will no accidentally engage the tines.

Effectiveness – Very effective.  It chewed through everything:  Small roots, Bermuda grass rhizomes, thatch and compacted soil.  The trick is to keep it moving in a back and forth motion.  If you want to go deep, it will easily go down to about 7-10 inches.  The only drawback is that it does tend to pile up dirt behind it so you need to keep it moving.  This little tiller made the job of getting rid of the Bermuda grass and working my compost into the clay soil a snap.  I am looking forward to seeing what it does on morning glories in the veg garden this summer.

If you do have Bermuda grass, the rhizomes do tend to get wrapped around the tine axle. I had to clean mine off by disassembling the tines between flower beds.  However, that said, the cleaning process only required removing two cotter pins and took all of about 3 minutes.

As an edger – Okay, so maybe it was too much to hope for.  Once you start asking any product to do something other than that which it was originally designed, you run into some problems.  First, the optional edger attachment is easy to put on (see removing tines in the paragraph above).  It did cut through the soil and grass fairly easily and did establish a decent, if not perfect, edge.  In fact, it probably put a more consistent edge on my lawn than my weed trimmer does.    The biggest problems were in design.  It does not have a guide or a guard so it is hard to keep it next to the driveway/sidewalk without occasionally hitting the pavement.  I can see where this could lead to chipping and scarring the edge of the concrete, given time, and for some (me) that is unacceptable.  So If I were to give it a grade as an edger, I would say B-.

All in all, it is light, and it is effective.  It is a purchase that I am glad I made.  Though I would not count on it for heavy tilling or tilling extremely large areas (My garden plot is 150′ x 75).  I think it might be able to do it, but at only 9 inches wide, it would take forever.

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There’s a (M)App for that (seven of them to be exact)

By Dennis on March 30, 2011

I am at once a techno-geek who loves playing with the newest and best in the world of technology.  I am also a closet “tree-hugger” who dreams of one day living off the grid and supporting my fmaily from the crops and animals I raise.  The new buzzword for that is “homesteading.”

This season, I am bringing the two worlds together.  I will be writing later this week about mapping your garden and the importance of doing so, as well as hsaring my map for this season with you. However, as I am spending yet another rainy, cold, spring day locked in away from my garden, I went searching for apps for my phone to help with my plans for this year.

While, as with most things, there ar more apps for the iPhone and it’s derivatives than for the android (my personal phone) there are several for each.  What follows is a list of some of the better apps for the iPhone that I ran across.  They vary in cost from free to 10-15 dollars.  If you have a personal favorite, be sure to let me know.

1) Botanical InterestsBotanical Interests by Netframes

Of those who have reviewed this gardening application on the iTunes store, all have given it 5 stars. If you have a vegetable garden at home or are thinking of starting a vegetable garden, this app may be just the one you are looking for to help you with gardening success.

Learn “tips and tricks” for helpful advice for gardening successfully, create a list of your favorite veggies and plan your garden with nearly 300 different “botanical high quality varieties.” Get comprehensive growing and harvesting information on any variety and send questions directly to Botanical Interests, the company behind the application that is a producer of organic vegetable seeds.

I really like the interactive nature of this app and the fact that I have an expert at my disposal makes the price tag a little more bearable.

Cost: $5.99

2) Pocket GardenPocket Garden by At Media

Calling all vegetable gardeners! This app is ideal for identifying and tips for growing hundreds of types of vegetables in your garden. Quite literally from Artichoke to Zucchini, you can easily scroll through seed types to find the exact varietal you want to learn about and/or grow.

In the My Garden section of the application, you can keep track of all the vegetables in your garden, make notes on each varietal and monitor the expected harvest date of your veggies.

This app also has a free version you can trial before buying the ad-free version.

Cost: $0.99 (or Free with the Pocket Garden (Ad Supported)Ad Supported Version)

3) Garden ToDo - Gardening ApplicationGarden ToDo by Building Rainbows Software

I quit carrying a pen and paper about 12 years ago when I got my first palm pilot.  This app is for me because it allows me to take copious notes without carting around a pocket protector pen and pad. With this app, you can quickly organize gardening tasks by priority, time entered or even customize the order based on your own needs. Assign pics of your garden from your phone for specific tasks for the scroll wheel and cover flow options.

When entering new tasks, you can choose options from the scroll wheel or enter tasks manually, making this application great not just for your garden, but also for indoor tasks as well.

Cost: $1.99

4) Jeff HaleGardening by Jeff Hale

I am terrible about remember when my average day of last frost is, or when I see the “uber-gardeners” gettign their plants in the ground (I learn alot from spying on my neighbors 🙂 ) Additionally, i am alwasy lookinf for new plants.  For example, I was watching “Chopped” on the Food Network with Ms. Gardener this week ans we saw a vegetable that we want to try…it is a cross between broccoli and cauliflower. So, for people like me who really need help with new plants and who seem to always forget, this application keeps a database of plants along with instructions on how to care for them. This application helps with knowing how to plant your seeds or seedlings and average harvest time of each varietal.

You can add plants to your personal garden list and keep track of each plant until you harvest them. This application also allows you to create todo lists and keep a journal (along with pics) of your garden’s progress.

Cost: $1.99

5) iPlantiPlant by Lundgren Consulting, LLC

If you read this blog regularly, then you know I am a firm believer in working with your landscape not fighting it.  Sometimes, though, I don’t know if a new species in my yard is invasive, or if it may help me ward off some other plant or insect. So for all those times you wonder if the plant that just brushed across your leg was poison ivy (yikes!) or a blessing that only looks like a weed, this app helps you identify more than 300 different types of plants.

This application goes into detail about plants common, scientific (Latin) and alternative names along with descriptions, common usage and value (medicinal vs. food) and any warnings that might be associated with the plants.

This reference application would come in handy in the kitchen, on hikes and in the garden, and with more than 150 photos, it’s sure to be a breeze to find the plant you need.

Cost: $1.99

6 ) iGarden USA - Gardening HelperiGarden USA by NanoSoft, LLC

This is another application to help you plan and track your garden. It gives advice on the best planting dates for each US climate zone based on where your phone is located. You can also learn the best planting practices for each type of plant in your garden. After you’ve got your seeds planted, use the garden tracker to monitor your garden’s process and get ready for the estimated harvest date.

This application was recently updated, and the update includes lots of new features that make this application more informational and easier to use.

Cost: $4.99

7)   Finally, this final app is more for desktops but It is still beneficial in that it can help you actually plan out your garden by type and variety and help keep you on track once you head out and start getting your hands dirty. Last year was my first year for mapping and it helped tremendously.  I will share more on how to map your garden later this week.

Till then, enjoy the first week of spring.

http://download.cnet.com/Vegetable-Garden-Design/3000-18499_4-10665705.html

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Ask Monty’s for 9/30/10: Roses, Coneflowers and Organic Pest Control

By Dennis on September 30, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

“Do you know of any more natural ways to control garden pests?  I’m trying to stay as chemical free as possible, but some of my methods aren’t covering all the bases.”

Renee
Grey Eagle, Minnesota

Renee:

I applaud your approach and environmental dedication.  While chemicals can be quick, effective answers to warding off garden pests, sometimes some very easy proactive approaches can be just as effective.  Probably the number one garden routine to establish is taking that daily walk in the garden to look for any changes in plant leaves, stalks or flowers.  I’ve caught many “new developments” taking place in my garden on several occasions and warded off major damage with that daily check (Tomato worms can strip a plant in the blink of an eye – I swear!)  That said, it also might mean thinking like a pest or insect and searching for signs of where they hide under leaves.  My mother-in-law, who was a great fisherman, used to say, “If you want to catch fish, you have to think like a fish!”  Same advice applies.

Hand picking off pests such as snails and slugs and destroying affected leaves is important in staying ahead of the game.  Planting garlic, dill, fennel, carrots and parsley among your plants also encourages beneficial insects such as ladybugs to rid your garden of a variety of pests. 

If you’re planting annuals or garden vegetables, rotate where you plant them from year to year, as different plants require different nutrients.  Weeding is also very important so you control desirable habitat for those unwanted pests.  A couple of natural offenses for pests are insecticidal soap mixed with water or pureed cloves of garlic (2) to a pint of water and use as a spray.

Two last thoughts.  First, don’t assume that just because the insect are harming your plants that they are harming your garden.  that can be a tough pill to swallow.  However, think like nature thinks.  These insects prey on the weak plants first.  They are easier targets with less native resitance.  So destorying yoru plants may be doing you a favor in the long run.  The plants that they kill likely would not have produced much fruit and owuld have still taxed the resources like water and nutrients just like they were your best producers.  Additionally if you save seeds for next year from this season, the seeds you save, after the insect have moved through, are naturally resistant to that particular pest. Survival of the fittest can go a long way to giviing you years of improved gardening. Finally, along hte same lines, since we know that insect prey ont he weakest plants first, make sure you have as few ‘weak links’ as possible.  Water adequately and provide additional nutrients with Monty’s foliar applications. Personally, I treat my plants to an extra dose of Monty’s 8-16-8 or 2-15-15 (depending on the plants growth cycle) once a week.

Ask Monty’s:

“My coneflowers this year looked terrible.  They turned brown and looked wilted all the time.  I tried watering them regularly and even fertilized them and they still continued to look deformed and the flowers were sparse.  What happened?  I would rather have had them not come up at all, they were that unsightly.”

Coco
Clyde, Ohio

Coco:

Coneflowers thrive in hot, dry conditions so you may have over watered them in your efforts to revive them.  But when you mentioned the plant deformity and sparse looking flower heads I think your plants have succumbed to aster yellows which is a disease caused by phytoplasoma, a plant killing microorganism transmitted by aster leafhoppers which can often occur from over watering.  Aster yellows can create the bizarre symptoms you suggest, along with other plant deformities.  There’s no cure for aster yellows so my best advice is to dig them up and remove any and all affected plants from your garden and destroy them by burning them or bagging them for the trash. Don’t put them in your compost pile.

Ask Monty’s:

“What’s the difference between a Multiflora Rose and a Virginia Rose?  They look the same and their flowers look similar as well.”

Trudi
Stillwater, Oklahoma

Trudi:

The only thing they really have in common is the fact that they are both deciduous shrubs and thrive in similar zones.  You must have seen these plants either side by side in size or in a photo because these plants are completely different in nature.  Multiflora Roses can grow up to 15 feet tall and are extremely evasive, forming thickets in all kinds of habitat, choking out natural plants and becoming a farmer’s agricultural nightmare.  One plant alone can produce up to one million seeds each year!

The plant you really want is the fragrant Virginia Rose.  This fast growing shrub gets between four to six feet tall and makes for a good hedge or as an addition to a wildlife garden.  The rose hips provide food for wildlife, hosts the Mourning Cloak Caterpillar and even have pretty reddish canes in winter as an added attraction.

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Ask Monty’s for 8/30/2010 Rain Barrels, Tomatoes, and Herbs

By Dennis on August 30, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

“I want to put in some rain barrels at the bottom of my downspouts for all the right reasons.  I was wondering if it makes a difference as to what kind of material the barrels are made of.”

Lowell,
Clifton, Colorado

Lowell:

Welcome to one of the most rewarding and easiest forms of water conservation!  Your plants and garden are going to love your mineral rich rainwater, while slashing your water consumption by up to 40% depending on how much you use it.  Plastic or wood rain barrels are fine and are sold commercially.  The normally come in 25 to 100 gallon options.

Just something to keep in mind though as a note of caution, rain barrels that collect water from copper roofs or from roofs where wood shingles or shakes have been treated with chromated copper arsenate to prevent moss or algae growth should not be used on editable plants.  If you have treated your roof with any chemicals at all you won’t want to use that water either.

Two other notes on rain water collection barrels:

In your neck of the woods especially, you’ll want to empty your rain barrel when the weather starts to freeze over the winter.  If you don’t have a protected indoor area to store it, just turn it upside down and secure it to prevent animals from making a winter home in it or getting water accumulation in it which can freeze, expand, and potentially crack the barrel, especially one that is made of plastic.

Finally, make sure you keep a mesh screen over the top and that you clean it frequently.  The mess can collect debris which will interfere with collection and provide a place for mold and mildew to form.  However, without one all of those items will end up in your barrel and can foul your water.  Additionally, mosquitoes look for ponded, still water to lay their eggs.  An open rain barrel would make an ideal breeding ground for them.  Not only will that make time in your yard less pleasant, across the south this year there has been another outbreak of west nile virus. By eliminating standing water form your property you can greatly reduce mosquito populations for you and your neighbors.

If you are having trouble finding a barrel in your area, may we suggest you talk to one of our friends in Louisville?  This is the link to Naturally Horton’s  for those in the Louisville Metro, its in The Highlands.

Ask Monty’s: 

“When is the best time to harvest herbs?”

Carol
Aitkin, Minnesota

Carol:

The best time to harvest herbs is right before the flowers open.  This is when their aroma and taste in their essential oils are at their peak like thyme, basil and mint.  The preferred time to pick them is also in the morning when they are at their freshest and the most potent.  Never pick herbs in wet or humid conditions. Finally, Monty’s 2-15-15 works well to keep the plants in the flower cycle and may help elevate brix levels, which in herbs will increase the aromatics and flavors as well as improve shelf life.

Also, don’t forget one of our favorite places to visit and to visit virtually is Beagle Ridge Herb Farm in Wytheville, VA.  They are a great source for information for all things herbs, natural gardening, and GARLIC!  check them out here.

Ask Monty’s:

“I’ve read that instead of pulling out spent tomato plants, you can simply cut them back and keep watering them to encourage new growth and fruit.  Is there any truth to this?”

Mike
Norwalk, Iowa

Mike:

Depending on your weather cooperation, this is true and new growth will develop, along with a respectable new harvest.  Make sure you pick tomatoes often, keeping the weight off the stems and branches so they don’t break or bend.  It’ll also give your other plants more room to produce freely.

Once you prune them, you will want ot help encourage new growth as well as help the plant deal with the stresses involved with pruning.  Monty’s 8-16-8 should help with that, then once your plants have regrown and have begun to set blooms again, switch to Monty’s 2-15-15 to enhance flower set and fruit production.

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Anatomy of a Drought pt.1

By Dennis on August 23, 2010

The Optimism of Spring is quickly, cruelly crushed by the reality of Autumn.  — dpr    

 And with that quote, so begins my fall. All that I had hoped to accomplish this summer in my lawn and in my garden is now face to face with the reality of what happened this season.  My harvest has been acceptable, but just barely. I put up several quarts of cucumbers, I have tomatoes waiting in canning jars for some fall stews and pastas, my potatoes will wait in their earthen tombs until I get a hankering for them, but all in all the performance was lack luster. Sure, thanks to Monty’s my results were better than most in the area, but still not nearly what I had anticipated in those days of spring when I assaulted the earth with my hoe and seed packets. As for my lawn, the work I had done to rid it of weeds fell apart. Sure I was the only lawn without the plague of dandelions, and my Bermuda grass strengthened in the areas where it was already growing, but that is small consolation when you compare it to the bevy of crab grass clumps now growing where fescue once thrived.

I have talked the whole thing over with my county extension agent. Bottom line, my planning, optimism, and hard work were brought to naught by our drought. Again, small consolation, but I am in the same boat with everyone in the country except for New Mexico and Iowa, who, for some reason in the russian roulette called weather, received an abundance of moisture this season.

The only saving grace is that what we experienced this year can prepare us for next year, or the next time we encounter similar circumstances.

In order to do that, we must understand our enemy; in this case drought.

So here are some quick lessons about drought and plant response:

Drought- drought is defined as a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall particularly one that negatively affects growing or living conditions.  Sometimes drought symptoms occur because of a dry period, at other times you may be receiving normal rainfall, but are experiencing unusually hot temperatures.  So you are getting your traditional rainfall, just not enough to support the additional heat units. In this scenario, you may not be in a ‘drought’ climatologically but it is all the same to the plant. 

Drought is not death- Many people assume that if their lawn or plants turn brown that they are ‘dead’.  This is not necessarily, or even usually, the case.

Learn to speak ‘plant’ – Drought response occurs in stages and by understanding the stages we can determine how best to react to preserve our precious plants. Everything a plant does is telling us something, from “everything’s okay so I’m growing and producing like expected” to “I need some help, here.”  

Understanding your plants response to drought – The wilting and eventually browning that you see is actually a fascinating plant response aimed at preserving life in the plant. 

  • Curling – When the plant senses excess heat or a dry period, the first thing it does is to make itself as small as possible. This is the reason for the curling leaves on broadleaf grasses, cucumbers, corn, etc.  The more leaf surface that is exposed to the sun, the more the plant loses moisture to a process known as transpiration. Secondarily, the more sunlight the plant receives the more it generates a photosynthetic responses.  In the ‘mind’ of the plant it is ‘thinking’ “Look, I don’t have enough moisture to support the growth I have, why do I need to get any bigger or add any more leaves/fruit.”  So, the plant simply curls up to slow these two processes down. To our eye it looks as if the plant is dying, when in fact it is doing everything it can to survive and conserve moisture and energy. 

 

  • Wilting – Plants do need a certain amount of moisture to survive, and if it is not getting it from the sky or a water hose it will eventually start to cannibalize itself; that is, take the moisture and nutrients from it farthest extremities to make sure the fruit already formed and the core of the plant itself, survives.   When this happens, moisture and chlorophyll is withdrawn from the outer leaves first in the absence of liquid, the veins and capillaries collapse. Once these systems are no longer turgid, the leaves grow limp and wilting occurs. 

 

  • Browning –  In the absence of chlorophyll the green color leaves, leaving behind the yellow-brown coloration of the plants infrastructure. As a last defense, the plant closes down all of the pores from which it formerly ‘breathed’ and exchanged nutrients, moisture, and oxygen with the environment. As the pores close off, the plant becomes very tight, rigid, and brittle, this is combination is what causes the crunching sound as you walk across a drought-stricken lawn.

 

  • Death – If the drought is not relieved, the plant will continue to same process, working from the outside in until finally the last of the roots and the crown of the plant (the growing point just about soil level) also succumbs.  At this point, the plant is truly dead and there is no hope for revival.

 

  • A quick word about your soil – Similar reactions are also taking place within the soil:  the top few inches dry out first, a hard crust is formed to retain as much sub-soil moisture as possible, organic matter is forced deeper into the soil to survive and the soil cells, once plump with moisture and pliable are now hard, crusty, collapsed, and will eventually crack (depending on the volume of clay).  Those cracks are signs that the soil did all it could to hold out as long as possible, but eventually shrunk too much to hold its former shape and volume.

Fortunately, droughts do not happen all at once, neither does the plant respond immediately.   Because of that, with a basic understanding of what the plant is trying to accomplish, you can intervene until all but the very last stages and still salvage your lawns or gardens with some pretty basic steps.  In our next blog, we’ll discuss how to deal with drought and how to help your plants survive and resume production.

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Ask Monty’s for 8/23/2010 – Magnolias, Bulb Plants, Tomatoes

By Dennis on August 23, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

“I planted my iris, crocus and tulips when we first moved into our house almost ten years ago.  Although they have spread out quite nicely from their original site, they haven’t been producing the abundance of flowers they produced in the first five years or so.  Do they all need a good fertilizing routine – something I never really do?”

Ansel,                                                                                                                                     
Fredericksburg, Virginia

Ansel:

Fertilizer never hurts, especially if you’re not one who consistently does it.  However, I think what you really need to do to rejuvenate your old perennials is simply divide them.  Once you’ve dug them up, divided them and moved them, amend the old site with organic matter to replenish the oil.  You should see your plants revival in the spring once the have room to stretch out again.

Ask Monty’s:

“My pink Magnolia tree is in trouble!  I planted it in the spring and now the leaves are turning yellow and brown and dropping off.  I know it is late summer, but isn’t it a little early for the tree to start losing its leaves?”

Cassandra
Absecon, New Jersey

Cassandra:

Magnolias like moist well drained soil.  The symptoms you are describing indicates droughty and waterlogged soil.  Water the tree thoroughly when the soil at the base of the tree is crumbly and dry.  Then spread wood chips, shredded bark or mulch around the base of the tree to help keep the moisture in, the grass at bay and soil temperatures more even.  The best part about the mulch breaking down is it will nourish the soil to, so replenishing it should be routine.

Ask Monty’s:

“When you pick tomatoes is it better to put them in the refrigerator crisper or leave them out on the counter or a table?”

Ryan
Hopkins, Minnesota

Ryan:

Tomatoes that are not fully ripe will ripen best on a counter or table all on their own.  I’m not shy about picking tomatoes that aren’t quite ripe, so you shouldn’t be either.  From a taste standpoint refrigerated tomato flesh loses its softness and sweetness.  Do a concentrated taste test and decide for yourself.  I sometimes will put my very ripe tomatoes in the refrigerator if I’m not going to get to canning right away, but I even try to stay away from that if I possibly can.

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Ask Monty’s for 8/9/10: Raised Beds, Hostas, and Dragonflies

By Dennis on August 9, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

We put a small pond in our backyard this summer, along with quite a bit of appropriate landscaping plants and flowers around it.  It turned out nice and it is attracting a lot of wildlife to it.  I’ve noticed a lot of dragonflies particularly, something I’ve never really thought much about or thought would find the pond so attractive.  I don’t know much about them but I want to make sure they aren’t a type of bug that is going to cause me any trouble or damage to the plants.  Are they good guys or bad guys?”

 Sandra and Steve,                                                                                                                                                                         Ava, Missouri

 Sandra & Steve,

It’s all good!  Ponds and lakes do attract dragonflies and damselflies and you are the proud recipients! They have excellent eyesight and their aerial agility allows them to capture and eat vast amounts of insects that are smaller than themselves.  So they’re very interested in the uninvited “guests” that frequent your new environment like moths, beetles, mosquitoes, aquatic larvae and nymphs.  And with the food supply being so plentiful, they will court and lay their eggs here too.  They do need some vegetation to feed on so if you have planted such things as bulrush, cattail or water lilies you will encourage them to stay.  They also like blue flag iris, cardinal flower, red-twig dogwood and summersweet.  If you have to use any kind of insecticide, be conscious of the good insects and wildlife that may be living there and try to stay as organic as you can.

Ask Monty’s:

“I have two rather large raised garden beds that seem like they dry out very quickly.  I love the fact that I don’t have to bend so far over to maintain the garden, but it seems like I’m always watering it.  Why would these beds dry out so quickly?”

Marty,                                                                                                                                                                                           Seattle, Washington

Marty:

If you’re watering daily you may not be watering long enough or deeply enough. When you water make sure you’re soaking the soil at least five to six inches below ground level.  Another thing to look at is your soil content.  Having a lot of sand in your soil would contribute to why your soil is drying out so fast.  If that is the case the more organic matter, like peat moss and broken down compost, you can incorporate into the soil, the better.  It will help provide nutrients to the soil and help hold moisture.  Regardless of what kind of soil you have, mulch is a must for you as it will help insulate the soil and keep it moist.  Then once the growing season is over you just till it all into the soil for added nutrients as it breaks down over the winter.  Grass clippings and shredded leaves are great for this.

Ask Monty’s:

“I have staggered my green and variegated hostas throughout areas of my yard for creating some color and diversity.  The green hostas come up and do great every year, but my variegated hostas are always smaller and less vibrant.  Why do they look so shabby compared to the green ones when they’re in the same soil getting the same conditions?”

Pat and Lynne,                                                                                                                                                                    Leadmine, Wisconsin

Pat and Lynne,

 Green leafed plants take in more sun which they need to make chlorophyll, which feeds the plant.  Variegated-leafed plants just can’t produce enough food energy as a green leafed plant.  As a result, they can’t keep up with their green leafed neighbor.  But you do have the diversity you were looking for, so despair.

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Ask Monty’s for 8/2/2010 – Containers, Planters, and Tomatoes

By Dennis on August 2, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

“I have two flower boxes that face to the north that never seems to be able to have a plant survive in them.  I’ve tried impatiens, marigolds, coleus, petunias, but nothing survives.  What could be the problem?”

Gilda

Linton, Indiana

 

Gilda:

Let’s start from the beginning.  As part of my own personal spring prelude to planting, I clean and sterilize my planters every year, so I would suggest we start here. It’s just a good practice all the way around.  I dip my planters in a mild bleach solution and rinse them well before I put soil and plants back in them.  This is one way to just simply get off to a good start.  Bear in mind also that potting mix, by definition, is sterile which means that it will have no organic matter to speak of, so even mixing in a little bit of top-soil and sand (1:1:1 ratio) can help.  Adding Monty’s Liquid Carbon (4 ounces per gallon of water, applied to the soil until moist, not saturated), once the sand and soil are there can help the organic matter flourish.

You may be putting too many plants in one planter, so overcrowding could be the problem.  If these are north facing planters you may be putting plants in them that prefer sun, such as the marigolds, coleus and petunias you mentioned.  Your impatiens should be fine, as well as begonias, asparagus ferns and pansies.  You may even want to try a few herbs in these boxes for something a little different and useful in the kitchen, such as mint, pineapple sage, lavender, chamomile and even basil.  There are different variations of herbs that will thrive in shaded areas, so read the labels carefully before you buy these particular plants or seeds.

Ask Monty’s:

“My yard is too small to consider an actual garden, so I’d like to do some container gardening next year.  What vegetables thrives the best in containers?”

Dorinda,

Savanna, Illinois

Dorinda:

Carrots, lettuce, onions and radishes will do well for you, and tomatoes and peppers for sure.  With some staking or trellis implementation, cucumbers, squash, pole beans and eggplant will do terrific as well. Broccoli and kale are also attractive container plants too.

Don’t forget, also, that square foot gardening is a great option for those with limited space.  You can get more information about square foot gardening on this site, from your local county extension office, or by conducting a web search.  Square foot gardening is a technique that took root (pardon the pun) in third-world countries where space and water were both concerns.  It requires a much smaller footprint, makes a smaller impact on the environment, makes the most of available resources, is easier to tend, and still produces excellent results if managed well.

Ask Monty’s:

“I put my tomato plants in very early this year hoping to get a jump on their production as they are my favorite vegetable and they seem to take so long to grow.  However, my plants are not doing any better than any of my neighbors who were probably three weeks behind me in planting. As a matter of fact, mine even seemed like they stopped growing.  Any insight on why I’m not harvesting early this year?”

Shay,

Springhill, Louisiana

 Shay:

I know it’s hard to be patient when it comes to some of our favorite vegetables and the thoughts of biting into the first harvest.  Spring weather can be a real fooler to the anxious gardener with the warm sun breaking through, but the bottom line is that if the soil is still cool when you put your plants in it will actually slow plant growth.  The soil must be warm for best results when it comes to gardening, so waiting the extra few weeks to plant will help your plants get off to a better start. You might want to consider cold frames next year if you want to put your plants in early and help warm the plant and the soil around them. You should have better results then.

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Ask Monty’s for July 24, 2010: Cannas, Clematis, and Salting Asparagus

By Dennis on July 27, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

 “My cannas leaves seem to be having a problem opening and I’ve noticed that some of them have a rather sticky kind of stringy substance across them.  Not all the leaves are this way as some of the plants in other parts of my yard are looking very good, while others are not.  What could be causing this?”

Don and June

Buckhannon, West Virginia

Don and June:

The leaf roller is about the only thing that bothers cannas.  It’s actually a caterpillar that comes from the skipper moth and prefers to lay her eggs inside young cannas leaves, sewing them shut with that “stringy substance” to protect their larvae.  Once they hatch they will then start feeding on the actual cannas leaves.  You’ll want to gently unfold those young leaves where you can see they are being hindered and you’ll find the pests inside. When I can, I flip them the pests off into the yard where a bird can pick them up for a snack, but if you have a lot of cannas you’ll want to find an insecticide specifically for worm or caterpillars eradication.  If you have leaves that are heavily damaged, remove them and throw in the garbage, not in your compost pile. 

Another note:  After the frost completely kills the plants, remove all the foliage and bag and dispose of them separately so you don’t risk the chance of them over wintering and affecting next year’s plants.  This is particularly important in southern zones where cannas are perennials, as opposed to annuals in the northern climates.

Ask Monty’s:

“Every year I am amazed that my clematis comes up. They’re never spectacular, but they do put forth the effort to flower.  I know they like their “heads in the sun and their feet in the shade” and I have them planted appropriately so.  My problem is that this summer – mid July – the leaves are already starting to turn brown.  Isn’t it a little early for that?

Gayle

Brilliion, Wisconsin

Gayle:

Browning of the leaves is pretty normal particularly after the heat of the summer and once the plant is done blooming. Not too nice to look at, but you can safely prune away the dead leaves and continue to keep the plant well watered and well mulched to keep in the moisture.  If the plants are just beginning to brown, and you are set on reviving them, try applying Monty’s Liquid Carbon to the soil to improve moisture flow into the root zone and to reduce compaction which will allow the roots to spread out and access more moisture and nutrients.  Also start a foliar program with Monty’s 2-15-15. 

If you follow the advice here on our blog you may be wondering why I am recommending the 2-15-15 formula during a ‘growth time’ in the plant’s development cycle.  The reason is your plants are showing signs of stress from heat and drought.  The last thing we want to do is to encourage MORE top-growth when the plant can’t support what it has now.  So by applying the 2-15-15 formula you are signaling the plant to put its energy into developing roots; kinda babying it until it recovers. The plant is also about done for the season, so let’s help it store energy to get through the winter ahead, a high dose of nitrogen right now could keep it from entering dormancy normally and expose the plant to more winter-kill.

If the brown leaves or wilt extends to the actual growing tip and the vine itself becomes brittle or turns almost black, the vine is probably dead as well.  Prune the vine down to the closest living branch area so all the dead material is done away with. Again, if you keep the plant well watered and fed you may continue to see new growth as the summer progresses.

Ask Monty’s:

“I have heard that adding salt to your asparagus beds is supposed to help them.  I have a beautiful wild asparagus bed and would sure like to maintain it as best as I can.  Is there any truth to the salt advice?  Is it just table salt?”

Roland

Crossgate, Kentucky

Roland:

Some people will add sodium chloride rock salt (NaCI) to their asparagus beds after they are at least a year old.  It sounds like your wild bed is already well established – so you can do this.  Apply about two and half pounds per 100 feet either before the spears actually appear in the spring or around July 4 when you’ve already pretty well harvested your crop.  The salt prevents crown and root rot diseases caused by fusarium fungus and actual improves the plants overall growth.  Do not use iodized salt (your common table salt) or rock salt made of calcium chloride (CaCI).  Pickling salt is fine too.

If the thought of adding salt to your plants just sounds to chancey, you may consider using Monty’s Liquid Carbon in the spring and fall. Crown rot and fusarium are what we like to call ‘wet feet’ diseases.  That is, they tend to move in when the roots of the plants are kept excessively moist, either from a wet spring or from over watering. In Kentucky, most gardeners deal with fairly heavy clay soils, so the moisture you receive tends to hang around.  By applying Monty’s Liquid Carbon, you can change the structure of these soils so that they allow the moisture to move more freely through the soil profile which results in better drainage.  Once your drainage situation is under control you will likely see a marked decrease in many of these ‘wet feet’ diseases.

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