Warren's Garden Club Newsletter Online
JULY-AUGUST 2002
Warren's Garden Club Newsletter Online
JULY-AUGUST 2002
CLOSED JULY 4TH
Shade Loving Flowers for Hot Weather
Hardy Perennials Easy to Plant Now
...is a very nice time of the year.
As I write this it is still a few days before summer officially starts on June 21st and it seems to me to be one of the nicest times in the garden. The trees and shrubs are freshly clothed with their new foliage, newly planted flowers are starting to hit their peak blooming time, and if you got your garden planted early the harvest is started with onions, potatoes, radishes, squash and several other good tasting vegetables.
I have a pond close to my house and it is not unusual to step outside and see mama duck and 8-120 little ones waddling single file up to my neighbor who feeds them. A Cardinal has a nest somewhere in my yard and eyes me suspiciously as she waits for me to leave so she can carry the worm to the next out of my sight.
It is amazing what some people call Mother Nature does all around us. I believe that a Divine Creator had a purpose and a plan for this world and even without bombing and the 911 event I believe his plan is still very much on time.
We should enjoy each sunset as if there might not be another but plan our lives for eternity. God has given us a beautiful world to enjoy, whether it is the little ducklings or a magnificent sunset he is the Creator and Sustainer of this world and all that is in it. (Jeannie Coley)
There is a song that goes something like this: "His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches over me."
I thank God each day for His beautiful world and the provision he made through His son Jesus for eternity.
I HOPE YOUR GARDEN GROWS BEYOND YOUR EXPECTATIONS AND YOU TAKE TIME TO NOT ONLY SMELL THE FLOWERS BUT ENJOY THE BIRD WITH A WORN IN HIS BEAK.
July gardening is not nearly as much fun as it is in April or May. It seems that if we aren't watering, we are mowing, or pruning or spraying for some insect, or redoing the pansy bed or trying to trap that pesky' gopher. At times like these we kind of lose a little of our gardening enthusiasm. There are several things that will make summer gardening easier.
With the cool temperatures some insect problems that are usually showing up are not yet evident. Insects are temperature sensitive and do not hatch out just because the calendar says it is a certain date. Usually by now bagworms are visible but because of the rains and cooler weather I have not noticed them as of this date in late June. It will be a good idea to check your evergreens once a week to see if any of the little bags are showing up. When they are less than a half inch long, almost any insecticide will give good control. If you spray early one spraying will be sufficient.
Spider mites are starting to show up and need to be checked with a piece of white paper held under a branch while you give the branch several good thumps. Observe what falls onto the paper, if several of the small dust like specks start to move you have spider mites. Kelthane or Cygon are the best controls. Spray at least twice a week apart. If you aren't sure bring in a small sample in a zip lock bag and we will check it for you.
Using a good mulch on newly planted trees and shrubs will be very beneficial. Also if you have some flowers that you haven't mulched yet, then you might want to put on a good mulch as it will save a lot of watering and will help control most of the weeds. Soil temperature can be thirty degrees cooler under a good mulch than with the sun shining on the bare soil. To be effective it needs to be at least one inch deep but 2 to 4 inches is best. You can use many materials for mulch; we stock several kinds of good mulching material.
CYPRESS MULCH is our most popular type because it has an attractive light brown color and is easy to apply and does not float out of the beds with heavy rains. It is also natural in its reaction to the soil; it does not change the PH, so it can be used on any plant.
COTTONSEED HULLS, have been used as a mulch ever since I have been selling plant. It stays in place well and helps to improve the soil. It is great for flower beds where it can be turned under each year. Turning this into the soil each spring and then adding a new layer of hulls for the summer will make your soil rich and loamy in a few years.
CEDAR MULCH is very fragrant with a reddish brown color. It is one of the most attractive mulches.
PECAN HULLS are acid and therefore good for acid loving plants like Azaleas, Holly, Magnolias, etc.
If you have trees that have been planted less than two years in wrapping of the truck from the ground to above the first limb with FORCE'S TREE WRAP is very beneficial. Start at the ground and spiral the wrap up the trunk until it is above the bottom most limb. It can be held in place with masking or adhesive tape. Don't use a string or wire as this can girdle the tree.
This shades the bark from the hot summer sun, helps to prevent damage from trimmers and mowers, plus helping to keep out borers. A wrapping of cloth or brown paper can also be used but it isn't as durable as the Tree Wrap. Don't use plastic.
All shrubs and tress that bloom in the early spring set bloom buds in the summer. You need to be sure all of the early bloomers like Azaleas, Lilacs, Dogwood, Forsynthia, Spirea, Saucer Magnolia, Quince, to name a few are not pruned after mid-July if possible. Any pruning done after this will usually cut off some of the bloom for next spring. Also it is very important to keep these types well watered through the summer. If they are dry at the time of bud formation blooms will be very sparse next spring. Dogwood and Saucer Magnolia are two that will not bloom next spring if they don't set bloom buds in July.
If you lawn is like mine and has a few weeds and is not quite as thick as I would like now is a great time to help it out.
This spring we have had a lot of humidity and rain that has caused some diseases to appear in lawns this spring.
Dollar spot shows up as numerous brown spots about one to two inches across. Mold shows up as either a gray mold or a sooty black mold. If you have either of these the best thing is to spray with a good fungicide such as FERTILOME BROAD SPECTRUM FUNGICIDE at least twice a week apart. These diseases will decrease without treatment as the weather gets warmer and dryer. Do not water late in the evening, as this will increase the chance of these diseases to grow and damage your lawn.
You can still do a lot to make a great looking lawn.
First put on a good application of FERTILOME LAWN FOOD PLUS IRON. Follow the directions as more than the recommended amount amount doesn't usually help.
Water with at least one to two inches of water once a week the rest of the summer.
The more you fertilize the more water you should apply. We have some big rain gauges that you can put out under your sprinkler to measure the amount of water you are actually putting on your lawn. If you don't have a rain gauge you can use something like a coffee can.
If your lawn still looks thin in thirty days put on a feeding of Ammonium Nitrate, no later than mid-August. This should get a good thick lawn if you apply enough water. Then about September 1st use the FERTILOME ALL SEASONS WEED PREVENTER PLUS FERTILIZER to prevent all those winter weeds.
If you want to seed a new area to bermuda grass early august is the latest this can be done, as later showings may not be rooted deep enough to survive the winter. Sowing in July is much better.
If you have a shady area that needs some shade grass wait until September or October to sow either the turf type fescues or rye grass. July and August are just too hot to get these to germinate and put down roots deep enough to survive our heat.
Any of the small blooming plants that are not looking good can benefit from some extra care.
If the plants are straggly cut longest limbs back about half way, then start feeding once a week with MIRACLE GRO or PETERS fertilizer to promote new growth and flowers or do as I do and use FERTILOME GARDENERS SPECIAL at least one half the recommended rate every thirty days all summer with good results. Be sure to water it in well after applying it.
Some plants like Marigolds, Snapdragon, Zinnias, may just need to have the old blooms removed to encourage a new set of blooms to start. This should be done as often as you can as the old blooms use up the energy of the plant and keep new blooms from developing.
August is a good time to divide Iris, Peonies and Daylilies so they will bloom next year. Most other perennials should be transplanted or divided in the cooler temperatures of October.
You can still plant a lot of flowering plants to fill up those last few spots. Periwinkle is one of the best heat loving plants for planting in the summer. Periwinkle or Vinca now come in a lot of unusual colors. There is red, purple, lavender, orange, white, white with red eye, apricot, pastel pink, and several other shades. These love the heat.
We have grown Supertunia for several years and think that they are great. They bloom all summer, all the way up to fall. We grew a lot of them and have put them on sale. If you haven't tried them this might be your chance. Use them in pots, hanging baskets, or just for spots of color in your flower beds.
PORTULACA or ROSE MOSS is great for a sunny hot spot. We grow the Sundial variety that stays open all day and comes in many separate colors.
PENTA are a plant made for Oklahoma. They love the heat and have no insect or disease problems. I believe they are a great substitute for Geraniums. We have these in red, pink, and white.
If you want a tough plant for a hot spot try some MELOMPODIUM for a lot of bright yellow daisy like blooms until frost on neat 12" high plant.
If you have a bare spot think about the ornamental sweet potato with deep purple, gold yellow or pink and white foliage. These are easy and cover a lot of space in a hurry.
SHADE LOVING FLOWERS FOR HOT WEATHER
CALADIUMS do best when it gets above ninety. We still have some nice plants if you have a bare shady spot.
TORENIAS are still unfamiliar to many gardeners, but they are very pretty with two tones of pink and blue on a neat 6-8 inch bushy plant.
BEGONIAS and IMPATIENS planted now will bloom all summer and into the fall.
We have many more pretty bedding flowers that need to be in someone's yard a lot of them are on sale. (Gary Guild)
Remember to trim back your mums by mid-July to have bushier plants. Use a half-cup of FERTILOME ROSE FOOD or GARDENERS SPECIAL after trimming back to promote new growth and lots of bloom this fall. If you don't trim them back you will have a few blooms all summer but not nearly as pretty a plant in the fall.
July is a great time to plant ornamental grass. The warm temperatures seem to be just right for the different grass types. We have about 20 different kinds ready to plant.
HAMLIN DWARF FOUNTAIN GRASS grows to about 2 feet tall and produces hundreds of flower spikes on a neat plant. This is a good variety to use in multiples in with other flowers.
CHINESE FOUNTAIN grass is one of the showiest of grasses with rosy colored spikes from late summer until fall and these will last all winter although they get a nice russet brown.
We also
have the BLACK FOUNTAIN GRASS that has black plumes of blooms in the fall.
SHENANDOAH SWITCH GRASS is a very upright grass to about 3 feet tall and only 2-3 feet wide. It has streaks of red all summer and reddish flower spikes in the fall. Very attractive all winter.
MORNING LIGHT MAIDEN GRASS is a very pretty variegated maiden grass that has pretty stripe of white along each blade. This is a favorite of mine.
We have several others like Mexican Feather, Little Bunny, Zebra, Tall Tales, are some of the pretty grasses we have. (Phyliss Lawson)
HARDY PERENNIALS EASY TO PLANT NOW
If you plant some of the heat loving perennials they will bloom some this year and be really established for next year.
GAURA is a Texas native that is very pretty and a heat lover. We have the original white flowering form that sometimes is called Whirling Butterflies. It has hundreds of small white blooms on a two feet tall plant. (Genie Lightfoot)
SIKYOU PINK GAURA is my favorite with bright pink blooms on wispy long stems. It is really outstanding.
If you like variegated plants, the CORRIE'S GOLD GAURA may be your choice. It produces its pretty white blooms over gold edged green leaves. It is pretty even when not in bloom.
LOOK FOR YOUR NAME IN THE NEWSLETTER
Look for your name in parenthesis and win a $25 gift certificate.
WE EXPECT TO HAVE AT LEAST THREE TABLES ON 1/2 PRICE.
WE HAVE A REAL NICE SELECTION OF ALTHEAS, CREPE MYRTLE, HARDY GRASSES AND LOTS OF OTHERS.
