Helping Plants After A Drought

By nancyc on July 22, 2012

To meteorologists, “drought” is measured in at least two ways. The first is a measure of ground water and surface water as measured by the Palmer Hydrological Drought Index. The second is a measure of rainfall over the past twelve months as indicated by the Palmer Drought Index.  In either case, recent indices from July, 2011 through June, 2012, have shown the most extreme level of drought extending from Texas west to Nevada and California, north to Wyoming and into parts of the Midwest.

Palmer Hydrological Drought Index: Source, National Climatic Data Center

Source: National Climatic Data Center

In homeowner and gardening terms: Boy, it’s dry!

Let’s look at how you can help your plants recover once a drought ends.

During the drought, plants basically shut down and now need to be nursed back to health.  The pores on the surface of the plant closed to prevent moisture loss. The nutrients and water stored in the cells of the outermost leaves withdrew, causing wilt, curling, and shriveling. Finally, the chlorophyll withdrew so it could be used to sustain the “heart” of the plant, which is why it turned yellow, became turgid and brittle.  The plant opted to jettison those leaves and limbs to guarantee its ultimate survival.

A similar process took place below the soil line.  The plant at first attempted to grow additional roots, especially tap roots, but eventually the auxiliary root systems and the root hairs dried, withered and eventually died.

When moisture returns, baby the plants at first, and bring them along slowly. Our first instinct is to go outside and pour on the nitrogen, which, after a drought is absolutely the wrong thing to do. The plant cannot process the nitrogen without the leaf surface, limb structure and root hairs to take it in. Also, it can’t handle the added stress of being forced to grow with a limited root mass to support the additional growth.

Rather than using a high N (nitrogen)* fertilizer, use a high P & K (phosphorous and potassium)* plant food to start.  This will help build the root system so it can make use of the other nutrients and draw in the moisture needed to process the nitrogen. Monty’s Root and Bloom 2-15-15, a liquid plant food, is an excellent option.

Once you start to see vitality returning to the landscape, step up to Monty’s Growth Formula 8-16-8.  By this time the plants can support the robust growth that Monty’s will provide.

Remember the soil.  The drought has taken its toll on the soil as well.  All of the microscopic flora and fauna — including earthworms and arthropods — have likely died or moved on and need to be encouraged to return.  Soils most likely have collapsed during the drought, making moisture management a challenge and additional root growth almost impossible in the tight, compacted environment.  Using Monty’s Liquid Carbon Organic Soil Conditioner will aid recovery. While it is always a good practice to condition soils at least annually to maintain peak efficiency, reduce compaction and boost organic matter, in drought years it may be critical.

*Plant foods and fertilizers are labeled according to the percentage of each of these three primary nutrients in the formulation:
N (nitrogen), P (phosphate) and K (potassium, or potash).  For example, plant food labeled “2-15-15” contains 2% nitrogen, 15% phosphorous, and 15% potassium.

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It Ain’t Called The Volunteer State For Nothin’

By Dennis on August 2, 2011

When I was much younger, though not raised on a farm, I was raised by a momma who was. And that is the next best thing I suppose.  It was from her that I learned to speak “country’ with the ease of a local using words and phrases like “on the halves,” “mess of beans,” and “good soakin’ rain.”  While other kids were watching Saturday Morning Cartoons, I was up around daybreak and headed out to a local farmer’s field she had discovered that week to pick green beans, or whatever was in season “on the halves”…now for you city-folk that means that you pick the beans for the farmer for free, in return you get to keep half of what you pick.  It is kind of a rural barter system that has worked for generations. Then throughout the week, while other kids got to just watch their TV shows in the evening, my mom believed that our TV was somehow mystically powered by the sound of snapping beans, shelling peas, shucking corn or whatever else was in season at the time.  She would give us a bucket full of the crop d’jour and we could keep watching TV as long as we were working on those crops.  If we stopped, the TV was turned off…and we had to finish working our vegetables anyway.  I am sure that I complained about it, you’ll have to ask momma.  But I also know that I did it and looking back on it, it was not a bad existence.  The real pay off came not only from a good work ethic, but from the tastes and smells of our country kitchen right in the middle of a Dallas suburb.

In addition to pickin on the halves at area farms momma also always raised a small garden of her own.  It was from there that I learned the joy of “volunteer” crops.  Volunteer crops are plants that come up on their own.  You didn’t plant them, didn’t plan on them, they were just God’s little extras. 

As a general rule the science behind this phenomenon is this, you raise a crop in year one, say corn for example. At some point during the year one of the kernels fall off of the cob either through the action of animals or harvest and lays there on the ground all winter.  In year two, as spring comes and you work the ground you accidentally cover up the seed with soil.  That’s all it takes.  Soon as the soil warms in the spring, the seed germinates and VIOLA! You now have a plant that you were not counting on…a volunteer plant.  Mostly these volunteer plants came up roughly in the area where they were planted the previous year.  But sometimes crops would come up in unexpected places or even from plants that you had never planted.  Those were the mysteries, the ones that made you scratch your head and say, “Now where on earth did THAT come from?”

I didn’t understand it then, but momma was always so excited by these extra blessings. I saw them as a nuisance.  It was the corn stalk that I had to work around when trying to cultivate the beans.  And may the Lord have mercy on you if you uprooted one of momma’s volunteer plants cause it was “in the way.”

Flash forward 25+ years. Now I am the one with the garden out back, pickin on the halves, and teachin my kids the value of shuckin corn. And this year, I built a retaining wall to hold a new flower bed in the front of our house.  I planted perennials, annuals, and some ground cover so that it could grow and develop into a great flower bed and add some color to the front of our house and our otherwise unremarkable landscape.  The one thing I did not plant was a tomato.

Imagine my surprise, then, when in early June, a small plant began to emerge right next to one of my purple pansies. I was about to uproot it along with the other weeds when it occurred to me, “That looks like a tomato plant.” I honestly have no idea where it came from; apparently it was in the leavings as a bird flew overhead and left a deposit. I was about to uproot it, but then the guilt and shame and my momma’s voice rang in my head and I didn’t dare. 

I thought, “Okay, we’ll see what this does. Who knows, we may get four or five tomatoes off of it.  It will be a great conversation piece and I can teach my kids about volunteer crops.”

This is one plant; one volunteer tomato plant.

6 weeks later and a few applications of Monty’s as I was spraying my flowers and it now OWNS my flower bed!  What I expected to be a small plant about two feet tall and spindly has far surpassed any of the cultivated and staked tomatoes out in my garden. This plant is at least 10 feet long, about 6 feet across, and 2.5 to three feet tall.  It has grown from its place in the center of the flower bed to where it is over-spilling my retaining wall on three sides and hanging over my porch on the fourth.  It, quite simply is massive, and full of fruit. (mostly cherry tomatoes). 

This volunteer tomato plant has overgrown the boundaries of my retaining wall flower bed and is spilling over the wall an about two feet out into my yard.

I knew that Tennessee, my current home, is nicknamed the Volunteer State.  I thought it had something to do with the historical nature of the residents to volunteer for battle when the country needed it.  Now I am beginning to suspect it may be due to their vegetables.

This volunteer tomato plant is the most productive plant I have this season. It came up on its own and has been left largely alone, jsut to see what it would do. Who knew?

Whatever the reason, the biggest, healthiest, and most productive tomato plant I have this season is a little plant that somehow mysteriously ended up in my flower bed. It is just a little something extra for a gardener who is just trying to learn and to put into practice all of those lessons I was taught following behind my mom with a bushel basket as we picked beans on the halves.

The lesson here for the rest of you.  Listen to my mom.  If it “comes up volunteer, leave it alone;” nature may be waiting to surprise you.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am going in to add a fresh sliced tomato to my sandwich and enjoy my lunch with a little extra blessing on the side.

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Controlling Squash Bugs in the Garden

By Dennis on July 14, 2011

A friend of mine from high school just reached out to me on my personal FB account and asked for some advice on controlling squash bugs because he had seen some of my posts related to my vegetable garden. I wrote him a response back, but then thought some of you may have the same questions.  So, I am reposting the letter I sent to him in hopes that you may benefit.

Hey Don,

Yeah I garden.  Like a fool!  It is kinda part of my job and part hobby.  My kids accuse me of being one of those people who when asked what time it is, teach people how to build a watch.  So, forgive me if I get long-winded. 

First, I am not sure what stage your squash bugs are, if they are still in the nymph stage or are full blown adults.  If they are full grown adults, control with chemicals is difficult, if not impossible.

Either way it is going to be work AND tedious.

Controlling nymphs and eggs.  Get a bucket of soapy water.  2-3 drops of any household dish soap in a gallon bucket is sufficient.  Walk around to the plants and look under the leaves (particularly those with damage) and look for eggs/nymphs.  Squash the eggs with your hands; knock the nymphs into the bucket of water, they will die quickly.  This process is made a bit more difficult because the nymphs will tend to scatter quickly when threatened. At this stage, the bugs are easiest to control.

Controlling adults – Sevin (I use liquid Sevin, but usually only once a year when insects are at their peak, and it is my ‘nuclear option’ so I can control things as organically as possible.) will control some of them but it will also kill bees, lady bugs, and other beneficial.  For this reason spray only when the flowers are closed (early morning, late evening) to limit impact on pollinators.

The best control methods are:

  1.  Keep as much plant debris cleaned up, remove dead leaves from the plant and make the environment as inhospitable as possible for them.
  2. Lay a shingle or piece of wood next to each plant in the evening.  As night falls, the squash bugs will congregate under the object as a hiding/nesting spot.  Then in the morning you can go and turn the wood/shingle over and easily collect the adults and either squash them by hand (they will stink similar to stink bugs) or knock them into a bucket of soapy water.
  3. Keep the plants well watered and well fertilized (this time of year use a low-to moderate N fertilizer with higher levels of  P & K; Monty’s 2-15-15 or Monty’s 4-15-12 are excellent and easy options). This will accomplish several things:
  • Insects are opportunists.  If you have ever watch an animal show on the discovery network, you know that the lion will cut the weak or the lame out from the herd because they are easier to bring catch and bring down. Same thing. Insects will attack your weakest plants first.  I don’t know how they know this, but they do.  (This is also a chance to learn from the bugs, they are telling you stuff about your garden.  So keeping them well fed, and well watered will keep them strong and make them less vulnerable.
  • High Brix levels, the measurement of the amount of sugars in a plants also seem to deter insects.  Don’t know why, just know in side by side studies that I have done, those plants with higher brix have less insect damage.
  • Squash plants grow very quickly and can easily grow past any damage done by a squash bug. Making sure they are healthy, well fertilized and well watered will help this.

My favorite control method is to do nothing.  That’s right.  I said do nothing.  Here’s why.  Once the plants are up and growing normally (controlling the bugs in the early stages of plant growth is imperative), there is not much the bugs can do to stop them.  The bugs tend to feed on the leaves, not the fruit – especially until the end of the season when the leaves are starting to wilt naturally.  By then I have enough squash put up to get me through the winter anyway, so any fruit I harvest after that is just gravy. Squash plants grow so rapidly that the impact of any one or even several bugs is going to be minimal and is easy for the plants to keep up with. Squash bugs have sucking/piercing mouth parts. Because fo this, they do not eat away your leaves like caterpillars or beetles do. These wounds will kill the leaves in the immediate area, so they will look spotty, but unless your plants are very small or your infestation is extremely large they just can’t do enough damage to prvent the flow of enough nutrients to impede plant/fruit development. Basically, the work required for complete control, for the benefits, attained just isn’t worth it to me. 

So to summarize, your options are: 

  • Scout and control manually with a bucket of soapy water.
  • Lay out a shingle or piece of wood each evening, collect and destroy the adults in the morning.
  • Use sevin or other labeled control as a nuclear option, use it in the evening or early morning once the flowers have closed to limit the impact on beneficial insects and pollinators like honeybees.
  • Keep them well-fed (fertilized), watered, and generally healthy.

OR

  • Do nothing once your plants are matured.  They won’t eat much, really

BTW…I don’t know if you do this or not…but I have found out this season that the male flowers from the squash plant are delicious!  Harvest one or two this evening and enjoy a squash blossom quesadilla or dip them in a relleno batter and fry them.  (You can also stuff them like a stuff bell pepper, roll them and either bake them, or dip them in batter and fry them.

Happy growing, and enjoy the NM sunshine, I know your squash are!

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What To Do with Over-grown Summer Squash

By Dennis on July 12, 2011

I was SO mad at myself!  I had been looking forward to the simple buttery taste and texture of summer squash ever since I first planted the hills this spring. The plants had grown beautifully..with the help of Monty’s 8-16-8 and Monty’s 2-15-15. Then, I got distracted.  Then rain kept me out of my garden.  Meanwhile the squash kept growing.  Literally by inches a day.  I now have over a dozen behemoths like those pictured here.

The normal-sized squash and zuchini in the foreground are included as a reference and perspective as to how large these garden gargantuans actually are. They are over 12" in circumference and upto 20" long!

I was bound and determined NOT to waste these so I called the fount of all things useful: MOM.  Mom told me that I could cut into the big ones and see if they are still somewhat tender, read that “usable” and if the seeds were still small (a good indication that the flesh is not going to be grainy and mealy.) She also said I could dry these seeds so that I would not have to buy seeds next year.  Both were good suggestions, but would not help me use the sheer volume of giant squash and zucchini.

So I went on a search. Did you know there are very few web pages or other sources of information on what to do with overgrown squash?  But then, I finally found one.  Thank you to my new friends at www.veggiegardener.com !  Because of them, I now have a recipe for my over-zealous gourds and I wont have to waste them.  Check out the recipe, here.

As for the little fellows that I am now harvesting.  They have a date with my wife; tonight, we make squash pickles!  I’ll post that recipe later.

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Ask Monty’s 5/27/11: Asparagus, Crickets, and Calla Lillies

By Dennis on May 26, 2011

Ask Monty’s: “How do you know when to harvest asparagus and leaf lettuce, spring’s earliest producers?  I never have been quite sure.” 

Susan – Joplin, Missouri  

Susan: You can usually begin harvesting your asparagus spears when they are 6-8 inches in length.  Snap them off at ground level when picking them.  Stop harvesting them about 4-6 weeks after the first initial harvest so the plants can produce foliage and food for themselves. Once the asparagus emerge you can spray with Monty’s 8-16-8 for vigorous growth, additionally toward the end of the season, use Monty’s 2-15-15 to help them store energy in the roots so that they can propagate and emerge healthy next season.

Leaf lettuce is best picked when the outer leaves have reached about 4 inches in height.  Let the younger, inner leaves to grow further which will allow you to have lettuce through most of the summer if you pick it right and keep it well watered.  Don’t forget to spray it at least once a week with Monty’s 8-16-8.  This will stimulate vigorous growth.  As an additional benefit, if you are one who chosses to use pesticides or herbicides, they can easily be mixed with Monty’s products for no-fuss, one step application.

Ask Monty’s: “In early spring, if I don’t watch my garden or flower beds closely, young grasshoppers and even crickets almost strip my young plants beyond repair.  I have been using a regular insecticide on them, but is there an organic approach to repelling them?  It’s a reoccurring problem for me.” 

Dexter – Granite Falls, Washington 

Dexter: These little devils can indeed strip crops incredibly fast.  Grasshoppers alone are responsible for consuming 25% of the available foliage in the western half of the U.S. each year!  There is an organic product on the market that literally infects grasshoppers with a naturally occurring disease that is much like a bad case of grasshopper flu.  The disease is called Nosema locustae and it infects over 90 species of grasshoppers and crickets.  The best part is that pets, people, plants and other insects are not affected by it.  You can find this product in gardening catalogs and garden centers and it is sold as Semasporte Bait or NoLo Bait.  It has a very short shelf life of only about eight weeks, so if you store it in the refrigerator it will keep up to five months, so buy only what you need.  You can also talk to your local independent garden center, they may have some insecticidal soaps that will do the tricks.  A mild solution of JOY dish soap sprayed on the foliage helps with many insects, it may help with your crickets and hoppers as well.

One last thought,  evidence indicates that Monty’s foliar fertility products will elevate brix levels (the measure of sugar in a plant).  Anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that elevated brix levels may help deter insects.  We also know that insects tend to be opportunistic.  That is, they tend to prey on plants that are weak or stressed. Think of them like a cheetah, they cull the weak out of the herd and in an odd way by doing so they are protecting the strength of the overall herd of antelope. So one way to address the insect problem is to make sure your plants are the healthiest in the neighborhood, this will tend to cause the insects to move on to more susceptible prey. They key to plant health can be summarized in three words. Fertility, Fertility, Fertility.

Ask Monty’s: “I have a love/hate relationship with my Calla Lily.  Sometimes it looks fabulous and other times I just about kill it.  It seems like when it starts blooming, and I fertilize it, it takes an immediate turn for the worse.  I do not understand this.  Am I giving it too much, although I follow the fertilizer instructions to the tee?”

Tessa -Portland, Oregon

 Tessa: You should never feed a Calla Lily when it is in bloom, which is the opposite of most plants, I know.  A good quality, healthy Calla Lily just simply doesn’t need it.  If you just can’t resist, go with a low nitrogen, high phosphorous, high potassium fertilizer.  this will decrease the nitrogen available for growth and increase those nutrients needed to support bloom and root health.  We recommended Monty’s 2-15-15.

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Ask Monty’s 4/15/11: African Violets, Hydrangeas, and Selecting the Right Grass for your Lawn.

By Dennis on April 15, 2011

Ask Monty’s:

“I have a huge, beautiful African Violet that is very healthy.  How can I grow new plants from it?”

Irene
Forest Lake, Minnesota

 Irene:

It’s as simple as removing a healthy leaf with the stem attached and burying the stem in moist, well drained potting soil, leaving just the flattened round leafy blade above the surface.  Water it thoroughly and put it in a warm, bright location.  I even put the container in an open, clear plastic bag to increase the humidity level around the cutting to further encourage the stem growing roots.  I used to have an old neighbor lady with quite a green thumb who had incredible luck with just putting the leaf stem in a glass of water with the leaf hanging over the lip of the glass.  Once the stem started sprouting roots she’d then stick it in a small pot of potting soil and off they’d go!

A more aggressive approach would be division by carefully splitting apart the plant itself between the plant’s crowns, keeping the roots intact and then replanting them into individual pots.  Be prepared to see your plants suffer a little shock for awhile, but with good care they’ll snap back.

Don’t forget to either root dip your cuttings and/or water them in with Monty’s 4-15-12.  All you need is a weak solution (one-two drops per cup of water).  This will stimulate root development and almost completely eliminate transplant shock. (See more detailed information here)  After the plant has rooted well, you can start feeding with Monty’s 8-16-8, 4-15-12, or 2-15-15 – depending on the current growth stage of your plant.  One note for AFRICAN VIOLETS, the leaf surface and flowers are very susceptible to spotting. For that reason African Violets are one of the few plants we DO NOT RECOMMEND using Monty’s products as a foliar application.  Instead you can either wick feed or feed through the roots by mixing 1-2 drops per cup of water and pouring on the soil when you water. Check out our PDF on the care of African Violets, here.

 Ask Monty’s:

“I transplanted hydrangeas from pots into my flower beds two springs ago but I haven’t seen them bloom yet in their new home.  Is there any hope of their blooming this year or did I waste my time and energy?”

 Gwen
Owensburg, Indiana

 Gwen:

Patience is the key here and I think you have proven that.  Plants moved from containers to larger bedding areas will spend the first couple of seasons putting down roots and getting comfortable in their new environment instead of blooming.  Once established and no longer needing the excess energy to stabilize their root system, they will shift into a flowering mode.  Make sure you’re not using a fertilizer with excessive nitrogen, which can also retard their natural flowering attributes.

To explain this, let’s think like a plant for a minute. The presence of N tells a plant it is time to grow. So you can end up with a plant that has a lot of showy foliage and can become quite large, but never blooms. This results in what gardeners refer to as a ‘leggy’ plant.  This can also cause more than just aesthetic problems; the excess growth can lead to damage during heavy winds.  Your plants have natural cycles: germination, growth, reproductive, and dormancy. It needs to go through each of these phases to maintain good overall health.  By understanding this and allowing the plant to go through its natural ebb and flow you will get the best results.  That is why Monty’s Fertility products come in three “flavors”; each one is designed for specific needs of the plant during each one of these stages of development.  This season, try using Monty’s 2-15-15 at least once a week on the foliage.  I think you will be amazed by the results.  Check out our PDF on Hydrangeas, here.

 Ask Monty’s:

“There are so many different types of grass on the market.  How can you even begin to know what to choose for your lawn?”

 Joel
Mt. Airy, North Carolina

 Joel:

There are a lot of variables to consider when choosing the right grass for your lawn, and the top one evolves around where you live.  If you are newly landscaping or starting from scratch, it’s always best to drive around your area and see what lawns have the look you’re after and make note of it.  Your local nursery, a good landscaping company or your local extension office are going to be excellent, professional reference points for you.  Many larger towns and cities even have arboretums that not only feature plant variety, but label them for guests and lawn grasses are often incorporated into their design. 

Keep in mind though, if you want your lawn to look like a golf course, it comes with a price and a great deal of maintenance.  Grass grows best in the spring and the fall when it is cool, so keep that in mind when you’re looking at other lawns too.  Cool-season grasses are hardy enough to survive freezing winters and hot summers and include varieties such as fine fescues, perennial ryegrass and bluegrass.  Warm-season grasses are your tropical climate lovers and include St. Augustine, Zoysia, Bermuda grass and centipede grass.  There are also transition-zone grasses for hot summer climates and chilly winters that blend both your cool-season and warm-season grasses, but types a little more versatile include tall fescue or buffalo grass.

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Instant Green Thumb, Instant Savings!

By Dennis on April 4, 2011

Monty Justice, the founder of our technology, is turning 84. We talked with him about ways to celebrate his birthday and he wanted to have an online party, but here’s the catch.  You get the gifts!

From now until April 14th, you can get our Garden Trial Pack for nearly 50% off!

You can see the Garden Trial Pack, here.

But this special offer is only valid if you enter this exclusive code at checkout: MONTY84

Our Garden Trial Pack is a collection of our three most popular products,  Monty’s 8-16-8, Monty’s 4-15-12, and Monty’s 2-15-15, in convenient 8-ounce sizes.  If you have never tried Monty’s Products, this is a great opportunity to see how they can help you with your houseplants, flower beds, vegetable gardens, or lawns and landscapes.

If you have tried one product but not experienced the advantage of our exclusive feeding program designed to target and time specific nutrients to particular times in the growth cycle of your plants. This offer will give you a low-cost opportunity to try the other products as well.

This is an exclusive offer only available until April 14th, and only available to our blog readers.

Purchasing Monty’s is now easier and cheaper than ever before. But, hurry, this offer ends April 14th.

Click on this exclusive link, enter the coupon code: MONTY84  and enjoy the savings as we celebrate Monty’s 84th Birthday.

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Ask Monty’s for 11/21/2010: Dogwoods, Loropetulum, and Winter Lighting for Orchids

By Dennis on November 22, 2010

Ask Monty’s:

“I planted small dogwoods a few years ago and although they get leaves, they never bloom.  I’m fertilizing, mulching and watering them religiously, but still no blooms again this year.  What do you suppose the problem is?”

Finley
Dartsmouth, Maine

Finely:

The problem from what I can determine from your maintenance program is that all the plant’s energy may be going to forming roots instead of flowers.  Between your fertilizer and mulch they may be getting too much nitrogen which promotes leaf growth and actually discourages flowering.  Unusually cold winters can also prevent flowering too by killing the buds, which is also a consideration in your region.

Before the ground freezes this winter, I would suggest an application of Monty’s Liquid Carbon to the soil around your tree.  Apply it from the base of the tree out to the edge of the drip line.  Will help open up the soil and improve nutrient exchange between the tree and the surrounding soil.  If it is too late this fall already, then do this at your first opportunity this next spring.  Secondly, Monty’s offers two products that make fertilization a ‘no brainer’ and since they are liquid, they are very easy to apply.  First, at first leaf, start applying Monty’s 2-15-15, this low N, high P & K formula will work with the natural cycle of your dogwoods to give them the nutrients they need for vigorous blooming.  Then, as the blooms start to fade a monthly application of Monty’s 8-16-8 will encourage aggressive growth and the formation of new branches.  This action combined with a good pruning program will help develop the size and shape of your tree for years of enjoyment.  Both of the fertility products will be best utilized by the plant if you apply them directly to the foliage of the tree using Monty’s 100:1 applicator tip or by applying with a hose-end applicator from your local garden center.  Finally, these are just brief tips; for a more exhaustive discussion refer to this pdf from www.mymontys.com.

Ask Monty’s:

“I have a border of loropetulum along my yard. When I put them in, they were purple leafed but now they have turned green. I just got two new replacements which were purple and realized how much mine had changed. Does that mean that my soil lacks something? Can you suggest how I can keep the leaves purple? Both bloom very nicely –  that beautiful bright pink bloom.”

Ann
Anderson, South Carolina

Ann:

Loropetulum do best in a partly shaded, partly sunny area in zones 8 to 9, so you’re in the right region for this plant. They also prefer sandy loam, a little clay perhaps for soil requirements and they do better in an acidic ph. However, while their water requirements are normal to moist, they do demand good drainage. Depending upon where you have these planted they may not be getting enough sun or too much sun and too much water. Try planting one in a completely different area of your yard that has exactly the opposite lighting conditions and see how it does.  Be mindful of its soil needs and monitor its water intake too. They like southern exposures if that helps at all.

Ask Monty’s:

“My wife is looking for lighting for the winter months for orchids (the common kind that we can purchase here) phalaenopsis. She is looking for artificial light and wants to be sure that it provides light without providing too much light.”

Randy
Lake Charles, Indiana

Randy:

There are two types of orchids which will grow well, year round, under artificial lights: phalaenopsis (known as the moth orchid) and paphiopedilums (known as the lady slippers).

There are other orchids which will bloom under windowsill and/or artificial light conditions, but these orchids require more light. The minimum set-up for the use of fluorescent bulbs is two 40 watt tubes. A practical set-up would alternate Gro-lux or Vita-Lite wide spectrum lights with cool white fluorescent tubes. The lights may be left on up to 16 hours a day. Because fluorescent light produces no heat, they should be within 12″ of the plants.

The optimum light for phalaenopsis is between 1000 to 1500 foot candles. Paphiopedilums, which require less light than most orchids, thrive at 800 to 1200 foot candles of light. I’d recommend buying an easy- to-use light meter to measure the amount of light, just for insurance purposes. If a mature, healthy phalaenopsis does not flower in its appropriate season, the reason is very likely due to lack of light, either in intensity or duration, so keep that in mind as you go.

Also remember, as with most plants, orchids need a ‘dormant’ period – a time when their reproductive and growth cycles shut down.  This allows the plant to store up energy for it’s next reproductive cycle.  What you see as a beautiful bloom, the plant sees as an opportunity to attract pollinators and increase its chances for propagation. Keeping that in mind, we know that it needs energy to make the best bloom possible because natural selection only allows the most successful of the species reproduce.  SO, as you let your plant go ‘dormant’ do not forget it still has nutritional needs, especially if it is planted in a sterile potting mix. Monty’s 2-15-15 will give it the P and K it needs for a more vibrant bloom cycle next go round.  So don’t stop feeding your plants, just change the formula and give them what they need.

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Monty’s Rose Care Calendar: October

By Dennis on October 4, 2010

Continue maintenance program until hard frost or freeze occurs.  Meteorologicallly speaking, a hard frost is defined as temperatures at 28 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for at least four consecutive hours.   Apply Monty’s Plant Food (2-15-15)  to the leaves of your roses with minimal amounts of water for the soil. ( Click here to order) This product thickens the cells of the plants, and helps them retain elasticity, which may protect the canes from winter damage.  The more you can do now to protect your canes through the winter and to increase the likelihood that they will begin spring growth with little if any winter damage, the more likely you are to begin the new season next spring with larger more vigorous plants with little if any pruning needed. 

This is also an ideal time to remediate your soil.  Monty’s Liquid Carbon, if applied to the soil of your garden’s now will have time to start working before winter.( click here to order) This is important because Monty’s Liquid Carbon works in concert with your microbial populations and those little microscopic miners go dormant in soil temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit.  Additionally, the normal ‘heaving’ of the soil during the freeze/thaw cycle will allow Monty’s Liquid Carbon to penetrate deep into your soil profile.  Finally, any Liquid Carbon that you apply now will be there, ready to work, come early spring when often it is too muddy to get much accomplished.

For those of you who experienced the deep drought and extreme heat this summer that we did around our gardens this summer, be aware.  The drought most likely caused your soils to collapse as the moisture was evacuated by evaporation.  This means that you will likely have to deal with compaction this next season, even if compaction is not normally an issue for you.  Monty’s Liquid Carbon is a great help to gardeners fighting against compaction-related problems.

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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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