Early Summer
More
Tips...
When it rains,
pull weeds.
A good soaking makes one of gardening's most unpleasant tasks easier. Allowing
you to dig out the entire weed, root and all, which will save you much
backbreaking work come summer.
Mulch on.
Our sodden soils make it prime time to mulch, to hold in all that moisture. Use
grass clippings as long as you're not mulching food crops with clippings that
have been treated with herbicides and pesticides.
Mow, mow, mow
your lawn, gently through the rain.
Finding a window between rain showers has made mowing quite a challenge this
spring. You're either slogging through the mud, or faced with foot-high turf.
Cut as frequently as you are able at the highest setting possible to make for a
lusher lawn this summer. Set your mower at 3 inches or higher.
Fuzzy berries.
Gray molds are infecting strawberry patches, so pick those berries often and
pitch those with any signs of mold. Rotting berries attract slugs and diseases.
Exclude
feasters.
Birds and bunnies, not to mention groundhogs and other thieves, are itching to
munch on your vegetable and flowerbeds. Fence and net your new plantings or find
your beds harvested for you.
Poison ivy
pointers.
Although systemic herbicides are a good control in the fall when the vine's
energy is going back to the roots, in the late spring and early summer the plant
is focused on growing and the herbicides are not as effective. It is possible to
pull out the young plants, ideally when the ground is sodden so the roots come
out easier. To accomplish this, we like to use latex gloves or plastic bags over
our hands to pull the weeds. Then carefully slip off the glove or bag, inside
out, with the poison ivy inside. Dispose of the weed in the trash.
Natural
dieback.
You can cut off the fading flowers on your peonies, iris and late-spring bulbs,
but don't touch the foliage. It needs to die back naturally to make enough
energy for next year's blooms.
Separate and
multiply.
As the flowers fade, iris can be dug up and divided. We recommend leaving two to
three fans on each division.
Pinch plenty.
Spend the rest of this month keeping all your fall bloomers from getting too
leggy. Pinch plants like chrysanthemums now to encourage bushier growth.
The Good, Bad, and Buggy
Don't lose your cool over summer
rain
Slug attack.
They're on our hostas and strawberries, relishing this damp spring. But there are also a number of organic remedies safe for use around food
crops.
Facts.
Did you know that slugs have both
male and female reproductive systems, so they can mate with themselves?
Each slug can produce up to 36 eggs, several times a year, which is a huge
number of new slugs, since they can reach adulthood in approximately six weeks,
and have a life span of several years. 200 slugs each season can eat up to 1 3/4
lb of plants.
Do you feel you are fighting a losing battle!
-
Fill a shallow bowl with beer and wait
overnight. The slugs love it. Dispose of the slugged brew by adding it
to your comport.
-
Another slug formula: 1 part ammonia to
3 parts of water. One squirt is all you need.
-
After eating your 1/2 grapefruit for breakfast put it into your
garden to make slug trap. Turn upside down after putting a small hole for
slugs to enter. They will gather there to eat the grapefruit and leave your
plants alone.
Collect the grapefruit and put into the compost bin.
Have any tips to
beat the enemy?
Garden Wisdom
Stake Tomatoes
