The “dog days” of summer are nearly upon us, and though we’ve had a pretty nice season (high heat has been offset, for the most part, by lower-than-average humidity), you know those dogs are going to start howling soon.
That said, there are several things you can do to make your garden more heat- and drought-tolerant. Read the rest of this entry »
The most common questions I’m fielding these days at the nursery involve lawn care, second only to “How late are you open?” Most of these queries focus on fertilizing, lime application, and weed control, so here’s my take on these three things:
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Recently, one day when the thermometer hit 70 degrees, a lady came into the nursery and demanded to know why we weren’t selling impatiens already — the plants, not the seeds. Not satisfied with pansies, she huffed out of the store and said she’d find them elsewhere. Good luck with that!
I know, I know, some people’s daffodils are out. The rollercoaster temperatures have tempted many bulbs to send up reconnaissance leaves to have a look around, but don’t be fooled: we can still get a couple more hard freezes between now and Mother’s Day. With that in mind, it’s time to take stock of your loyal houseplants, those stalwarts who have been cleaning your air all winter.
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Cyclamens are a good alternative to poinsettias during the holiday season. The lovely variegated foliage contrasts nicely with the blossoms – ranging from white to pink to lavender, to purple, to red – that seem to float like small butterflies atop slender, erect stems. I’d rather receive a cyclamen than a poinsettia during the holidays. (Then again, I’d rather receive a staph infection than a poinsettia.)
Now that the ground has started to cool off, it’s a good time to put in your bulbs for spring flowers. Most bulbs need between 12 and 16 weeks of continual chilling to produce flowers. Plant too early and they’ll sense warmer soil temps, get all confused, and break bud way too early on very short stems.
Remember, plant spring-flowering bulbs (e.g. crocus, daffodils, hyacinths and grape hyacinths, tulips) in the fall, and summer/fall-flowering bulbs (Lily-of-the-Valley, autumn crocus, most types of lilies, dahlias) in early spring.
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