-
It's never too late to add nutrients to
the garden. Add straw, hay, green manure crops, sawdust,
kitchen scraps or whatever is on hand.
-
Where snow still covers the ground, add
your amendments, letting the spring thaw help break down
the additives. Till or spade in added materials during any
weather breaks.
-
Start cabbage and onion seeds for early
transplants.
-
February is ideal cold frame weather. The
sunny days sprout seeds quickly, forcing rapid growth. A
dark manure tea watered in every other week, gives ample
nutrients.
-
Work aged manure into the garden pea patch.
Plant peas as soon as soil thaws and is workable. Mulch
rows well and water weekly during dry periods.
-
Start Eggplant and Pepper.
-
Check stored vegetables for rot.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Do some pruning if you get the chance. Save
a few of the apple clippings for bloom-forcing indoors.
-
Prune grapes.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Check and repair winter storm damage the
first chance you can.
-
Tree and shrub pruning can be started.
Flower
Gardens
-
Check perennial beds for heaving from severe
frosts. Repair damage if possible, or mulch with straw or
evergreen boughs until soil can be worked.
-
For a good supply of chrysanthemums for
late-fall bloom, divide old plants, setting out new shoots.
Give new plants a mulch layer for frost protection.
-
Start petunia and begonia.
Houseplants
-
Force some spring bulbs for early indoor
blooms.
-
Extending life of Valentine roses by asking
if they were conditioned. If they were, recut stems on a
slant and place in cold water. If they haven’t been conditioned,
recut stems and place in hot water. The hot water opens
up conducting tissue which allows better water absorption.
Once water cools, then add floral preservative provided
by florist.
-
To continue poinsettia culture, water when
soil becomes dry, but also begin to fertilize with every
third watering with a balanced fertilizer. Continue this
culture through March.
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MARCH CHECK LIST
-
Remember when moving plants (trees, shrubs
and perennials), that excess irrigation can be as harmful
as too little irrigation. Moisture meters can help determine
the right time to irrigate.
Vegetable
Garden
-
Start transplants of tomatoes, peppers and
eggplant where mid-May is planting time. Use short-season
varieties suited to our area.
-
Put seedlings of broccoli, cabbage and Brussels
sprouts into cold frame.
-
Plant early potatoes on Good Friday, if
soil is workable. Potatoes can be planted through April
where growing seasons last through August. Light frost will
not kill new growth. Don't plant spuds on newly tilled grassland,
as wireworms abound the first summer. You can plant sprouted
potatoes 6 inches deep. Break off longest sprouts.
-
Clean up horseradish and rhubarb patches
and mulch with aged manure or compost.
-
Fertilize perennial garden plants with organic
or commercial fertilizer.
-
Harvest parsnips before they sprout, as
they’ll turn bitter afterwards.
-
Make up manure teas and compost teas using
2-3 shovelfuls of solids to fill a 5 gal. bucket with water.
Watering with these teas prevents transplant shock and is
a real boost to growth.
-
Cold frames can be started now. Use fresh
manures only as bottom heat, manure teas for nutrients.
Orchards
and Fruits
-
When temperatures get above 40 degrees,
and freezing temperatures are not expected for 24 to 48
hours, apply dormant oil. Apply before buds open.
-
Plant new trees as soon as the soil can
be worked.
-
Prune out old wood on gooseberries and currants.
-
Feed strawberries and apply a light straw
mulch to keep berries off the soil. A light crop with heavy
foliage indicates a lack of phosphorus.
-
Plant new raspberry crowns.
-
Feed all berries with aged manure and mulch
well.
-
If you are going to do some fruit tree grafting,
this is the month to attempt it.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Prune shrubs that have suffered winter damage.
-
When day temperatures get above 40 degrees,
and freezing temperatures are not expected for 24 to 48
hours, apply dormant oil. Wait till early April to apply
dormant oil to evergreens. They need warmer temperatures
than deciduous trees.
-
Apply fertilizer, so it reaches roots before
bud break.
-
Plant trees and shrubs. Take advantage of
bare root stalk available this time of year.
-
When purchasing new trees and shrubs, consider
their size at maturity for proper spacing. This helps prevent
unnecessary annual pruning to keep them a desirable size.
-
Harden-off newly-purchased perennials and
shrubs grown in the south, before planting out.
-
Continue pruning.
Lawns
-
Power rake lawn if needed. Soil should be
thawed and grass not greened up too much.
-
A good month to seed lawn.
Flower
Garden
-
Divide and replant perennial flowers.
-
Spread well-rotted manure or compost around
big feeders such as peonies, bleeding hearts, delphiniums,
chrysanthemums and perennial geraniums. Don't smother or
damage their delicate crowns.
-
Don't remove mulch until after blooming.
-
Fertilize perennial plants.
Houseplants
-
Start geraniums if you didn't start them
earlier.
-
Extend the life of Easter lilies by carefully
removing the orange pollen sacks as soon as the flower opens.
This prevents pollination and extends the blooming period
of flowers. Don’t get pollen sacks on clothing or other
materials. It is next to impossible to get pollen out.
-
Start tuberous begonias. Those overwintered
in pots, replace the top 2 in. of soil with fresh mix.
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APRIL CHECK LIST
-
Plant potatoes if not done earlier.
-
Till the garden when soil moisture is like
brown sugar, not mud ball wet or powdery dry.
-
Add soil amendments such as commercial or
organic fertilizers, gypsum, compost, sand, etc. Don't apply
fresh manures in spring.
-
General garden fertilizer recommendations:
10 lbs. of 15-30-15 per 1,000 square feet, or 30 lbs. of
5-10-5 per 1,000 square feet. This application will last
about one month. You will then need to follow up with side
dressing or a foliage applied water soluble fertilizer.
-
If you have problems with your garden soil,
have a soil test done.
-
If insects were a problem, incorporate DIAZINON
insecticide to eliminate overwintering insects.
-
Start vegetable transplants: April 1 - tomato,
pepper and eggplant, if not done previously.
Mid-April - cucumber, muskmelon, squash and watermelon.
-
April 24, plant hardened or conditioned
cool-season transplants.
-
Plant seed of very hardy vegetables. For
a list of these, request "Planting Dates" from office.
-
Cover newly seeded root crop rows with gunny
sacks to speed up germination.
-
Sweet onions good for the north zone are
sweet Spanish and sweet sandwich.
-
If you buy transplants from a garden center,
take two weeks in the cold frame to condition them to the
outdoors before planting, unless they are outdoors at the
store.
-
Rotate vegetables to different areas of
the garden to keep pests down.
-
Plant all hardy crops as soon as the weather
breaks, from severe to milder temperatures.
-
If severe cold weather returns, be prepared
to protect plants from killing frosts.
-
Plant asparagus and rhubarb plants.
-
Plant early peas when weather permits.
-
Harvest asparagus spears when they get 9"
tall, which keeps beds 50% more.
Orchards
and Fruits
-
Plant new raspberries, prune old ones.
-
Plant fruit trees and strawberries.
-
Prune out fire blight in apples and pears.
-
Spray apples and pears with streptomycin
when blooms first open, repeating every 4-5 days till 3/4
of petals drop.
-
Apply dormant oil to fruit trees if not
done last month, but prior to bud swelling.
Trees
and Shrubs
-
In early April, apply dormant oil spray
to evergreens when freezing temperatures are not expected
for 24 to 48 hours.
-
Apply dormant oil to deciduous trees if
not done last month.
-
Remove tree wraps.
-
Before lush growth appears, you can see
where new trees or shrubs may be desirable.
-
As soon as ground thaws, plant or transplant
trees and shrubs.
-
ARBOR DAY, the last Friday of April. Start
a great tradition...plant a tree.
-
If trees need fertilizer, apply as soon
as possible, so it reaches the root system by the time the
leaves break buds.
-
Finish up heavy tree and shrub pruning by
the end of April. Pruning is simpler before trees and shrubs
leaf out.
Lawn
-
Mid April apply pre emergent weed control
for annual grass weeds such as crabgrass.
-
You can fertilize the lawn the first part
of April, if you really want to. General lawn fertilizer
recommendations: 6-7 lbs. of 24-4-4 per 1,000 square feet
of lawn. Extension Horticulture Specialist Bob Gough, recommends
fertilizing around these holidays: Memorial Day, Labor Day
and Columbus Day.
-
If power raking is needed, do before grass
greens up a lot, to prevent excessive damage. Consider aerating
if too green.
-
Reseed bare patches, or seed a new lawn.
-
Make certain your mower is serviced and
ready to go, with sharp blades that cut cleanly rather than
tearing tender new growth.
Flower
Garden
-
In late April plant tender summer bulbs
outdoors, such as Dahlia, Gladiolus, Canna, Tuberous Begonia,
Tender Anemone and Ranunculus.
-
To kill overwintering thrips on glad bulbs,
soak in 1 Tab. Lysol to 2 qts water ½ hour before planting.
-
Pansies make an excellent ground cover for
bulb beds.
-
Remove mulch or other winter protection.
If you've mounded soil over rose crowns, remove before new
buds grow too much. They are easily knocked off.
-
Cut back dead canes on T-roses.
-
Start annual flower transplants:
April 1 - sow impatiens seed, but don't cover with soil,
as the seeds need light to germinate. Cover with plastic
till germinated.
April 1 - petunia, pansy, salvia, snapdragon and moss rose.
April 15 - ageratum, larkspur, annual phlox, alyssum, marigold,
stocks and zinnia.
-
Ideal time to plant, divide, or transplant
perennial flowers.
Houseplants
-
After your Easter Lily is finished blooming,
plant in the flower garden. Often these plants will bloom
again in August.
-
During April, let the soil of your poinsettia
become drier than normal. Your plant will lose some of its
leaves, but not enough that the stems wither.
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MAY CHECK LIST
Vegetable
Garden
-
Transfer warm season vegetable seedlings
(tomatoes, peppers & eggplant) to the cold frame to
harden them up for planting the 15th. Be sure to raise the
top during the day to keep temperatures down and check for
moisture needs often.
-
Make a succession planting of lettuce and
chard early in the month.
-
Keep planting cold tolerant vegetables,
such as beets, radishes and onions.
-
Continue planting hardened cool season transplants
(rutabagas, collards, kale, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels
sprouts, kohlrabi, turnip, broccoli). Be prepared to protect
from killing frosts.
-
Store leftover garden seeds in an air tight
container, in which you've placed two tablespoons powdered
milk wrapped in a tissue (secured with a rubber band), and
store in the vegetable crisper of the refrigerator.
-
Plant at least four rows of corn, and four
corn seeds at the end of each row for best pollination.
-
To increase pollination, plant carnations
and Sweet William in the garden, to attract bees.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Widen narrow crotch angles on fruit trees
by tying bags containing a handful or two of sand to vertical
branches.
-
To prevent mower injury to fruit trees,
clear grass in a 3-foot circle around each trunk. This also
eliminates lawn competition and is especially helpful the
first 3-5 years after planting.
-
Remove suckers and water sprouts as soon
as they appear.
-
Plant new strawberry beds if you didn't
get to it last month. Remove blossoms on newly planted strawberries,
mulch with straw.
-
If you had scab on apples last year, spray
with fungicides such as benomyl, captan, or maneb, from
bloom stage, every 7-14 days during cool wet weather.
-
When 3/4 of the blossoms drop, (or all blossoms
drop if bees are still around) start spraying for codling
moth and other insect pests. Continue spraying at least
a minimum of six sprays at 7-10 day intervals, or for maximum
prevention, up to two weeks before harvest for the most
pest free apples. Renew spray applications washed
off by rain or irrigation.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Spray hackberry trees in early May, with
Orthene to prevent Nipple Galls.
-
One of the most evasive of insects is the
scale insect. Oyster shell scale, abundant on shrubby dogwoods,
aspen, lilacs and euonymus, is best controlled during the
"crawler stage," from early May to mid June. Malathion
can be used in sprays about 10 days apart.
Lawns
-
If the crabgrass wasn't controlled with
pre emergence, use post emergence crabgrass controls such
as Ortho's Crabgrass Killer, Crabgrass & Nutgrass Killer
or other products labeled for crabgrass control.
-
For perennial grass weed control, spot treatments
with products such as Roundup are needed. Spray only grass
weed as these kill anything they touch.
-
General lawn fertilizer recommendations:
6-7 lbs. of 24-4-4 per 1,000 square feet of lawn. Extension
Horticulture Specialist Bob Gough, recommends fertilizing
around these holidays: Memorial Day, Labor Day and Columbus
Day.
-
Irrigate one to one ½ inch a time to deep
water, check for soil dryness 4 inches deep to determine
next irrigation.
-
Mow grass to a height of 2" to shade out
weeds and grow a dense lawn. Mow before grass gets too tall,
at about 3 inches tall, to remove no more than 1/3 of the
lawn’s total length.
-
To control dandelions, wait till you see
bright yellow blooms, then apply herbicides such as Ortho's
Weed-B-Gone, after lawn has been irrigated, then don't water
for 48 hours afterwards.
Flower
Garden
-
Harden up flower transplants the first of
May, for planting the 15th.
-
Pinch tips of leggy annuals to induce bushiness
before planting.
-
Divide and plant cannas the first of the
month, if not done previously.
-
Divide mums and other perennials in early
May before growth is too far advanced.
-
Stake delphiniums and tall perennials before
heavy flower heads weigh the stems down.
-
To get the biggest peony flowers, pinch
all but the central bud from peony stalks.
-
Pansies will bloom longer if you cut the
faded flowers often and head back straggling stems.
Houseplants
-
Move Norfolk Island pine to a north facing
window. It prefers bright, but a more indirect light. Dry
air and temperatures more than 75 will cause the lower leaves
to turn brown.
-
Repot poinsettias from last Christmas, into
a slightly smaller pot. Loosen the root ball and place in
a rich, coarse, rapid draining soil. Cut the stems back
to within 4-6 inches of the soil to promote vigorous shoots
for best coloring in the "flower" bracts.
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JUNE CHECK LIST
-
Slip! Slop! Slap! This is a progressive public
education campaign from Australia to prevent skin cancer:
Slip on a shirt, slop on some sun screen and slap on a hat
any time you go outdoors.
Vegetable
Garden
-
To extend your garden season with fall crops
of cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower,
direct seed or start transplants for mid-July planting,
the beginning of June. It's been proven that direct seeded
broccoli produced quicker than transplants.
-
Remove weeds and thin vegetable seedlings.
-
If some of your crops failed to come up,
you still can plant short seasoned varieties.
-
To eliminate cabbage worms from cabbage,
broccoli and cauliflower, cover plants with a shade cloth
type material, or even some old sheer curtains. If the butterflies
can't get to them to lay eggs, you won't get the worms.
-
If you do get cabbage worms, you can use
Sevin, Malathion or Diazinon insecticides. For a safer,
biological insecticide, use Bt kurstaki(Bacillus thuringiensis).
-
If Colorado Potato Beetles show up, use
Sevin or Methoxychlor to control. A home remedy is to sprinkle
plants with corn meal. The larvae love it, to the extent
they kill themselves gorging on it. A biological insecticide
for them is Bt san diego. You can also hand pick them.
-
Keep an eye out for flea beetles. They can
make plants look like a shot gun shoot out in no time. Spray
with Sevin or Malathion.
-
To eliminate morning glory or thistle by
clipping, in flower/vegetable gardens, allow weeds to grow
two weeks before cutting back. This forces the plants to
use up its food reserve.
-
When watering flower/vegetable gardens,
try to water deeply (1-2 inches a time), once a week. Avoid
light daily sprinklings which cause shallow roots.
-
If you have limited irrigation water try:
-
Providing wind protection such as snow fence
or corn planted on south and west sides.
-
Be sure to properly thin vegetables to decrease
competition.
-
Remove all moisture robbing weeds as they
sprout.
-
Cultivate soil shallowly with rake, hoe,
or tiller to provide a dust mulch. Hard, cracked soil allows
moisture to escape.
-
Mulch around plants and between rows with
straw, hay, grass clippings, plastic or compost.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Pick up and bury June drop apples. This
helps kill codling moth and other larvae, preventing them
from reinfesting trees later.
-
If after a natural drop, the apple crop
is still thick, thin apples to one per cluster, 4-6 in.
apart.
-
Continue insect control every 7-10 days,
renewing after washing rains.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
If lilacs have set seed, clip them off to
concentrate energy to foliage and roots.
-
Trim shrubs and hedges so that they are
wider at the base than at the top. This encourages a nice
dense growth habit at the base.
-
If you've planted young trees recently,
try to eliminate grass growth for at least 3 feet around
trunks for best effect. Maintain at least five years for
optimum effect.
-
Water trees and shrubs when needed, an extra
inch, after the lawn's been watered its inch.
-
If tent caterpillars start chomping away
at trees, use Diazinon, Sevin, Malathion, systemic insecticides,
or Bt kurstaki.
Lawn
-
Best mosquito repellents contain as much
DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), as possible. The stronger
the DEET the longer it lasts.
-
Water lawns at least one inch at a time.
Then check soil moisture to see when irrigation is needed
again.
-
Don't use grass clippings treated with herbicide
in the garden, for two full mowings.
-
If quackgrass is a problem, use spot spray
applications of Roundup.
-
If crab grass, or other annual grass weeds
are a problem, use lawn wide applications of products like
Ortho’s Crabgrass Killer, or Crabgrass and Nutgrass Killer.
-
If broadleaf weeds are a problem, use products
containing 2,4-D such as Weed-B-Gone.
-
Apply herbicides to lawns after irrigation
and 24-48 hours before mowing to give the weeds time to
absorb the chemical with as much foliage as possible.
Flower
Garden
-
Pinch mums after each four inches of growth.
Stop pinching on July 4.
-
Eliminate weeds.
-
When removing bloomed out roses or when
cutting roses for bouquets, cut back to a five-leaflet leaf
to encourage blossom buds
.
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JULY CHECK LIST
-
This is the month for maximum plant growth.
Enhance growth of plants with fertilizer. Use high phosphate
fertilizers, such as 15-30-15 for flowering or fruiting
plants. If high nitrogen is used on these plants, you will
over stimulate vegetation and decrease flowering. Be sure
to follow label directions and don't apply more often then
recommended. Organic fertilizers are slower acting, and
generally lower in total available minerals, but also are
less likely to burn.
-
This is the most active time of year for
aphids and mites. Check the yard at east every other day
to keep up with invasions.
Vegetable
Garden
-
Remove seed stalks from onions and garlic.
-
Keep up with weeds, especially before they
drop their seeds. Often it's the weed or two that got by
you last year that makes the weedy patch in the garden the
next year and for years to come.
-
As you harvest, keep track of what varieties
are doing well for you. This is especially true if you are
growing more then one variety of a certain vegetable. Write
results down on index cards and store by year in a recipe
box. Now you will know exactly what varieties to try new
next year, against the best performers you've discovered
so far.
-
If you are having problems with tomatoes,
squash or other plants, not setting on fruits, you can give
them a hand. You can use a water paint brush, pick up pollen
from male flowers, then spread it to female flowers. With
squash, you can pick the male flower, take off the petals
to expose the pollen, then rub noses with female flowers.
Female squash flowers always have miniature fruits right
behind the bloom. Male flowers just have a straight straw
like base, attaching them to the squash plant.
-
Harvest broccoli when heads are fully developed,
but before they start to bloom. If they bloom, you can still
eat them, you'll just have missed your optimum quality harvest.
Slice off the stem about 5 inches behind the head, then
watch for smaller side shoots to start producing.
-
If you haven't already, consider mulching
your garden to cut down on weed growth, moisture evaporation
and soil heat. It is an easy way to shorten your time in
the heat. If using grass clippings, be sure they haven't
been treated with herbicide. If so, wait till after the
3rd mowing to use in the garden.
-
Slug control, slugs feed mostly at night,
leaving a slimy trail as evidence. To control use products
like Sevin or baits that contain Metaldehyde (usable around
Fruits and vegetables) or Mesurol (which can be used only
around ornamentals). Be sure you have the right bait for
the plants you are treating. Organically you can scatter
diatomaceous earth around plants being attacked.
-
When garden plants are through producing,
remove plants and replant with a quick maturing variety.
-
Plant lettuce in shady areas of the yard,
like the north side of the house, or in the garden, like
in the shade of the corn patch, for fall harvests.
-
For fall peas, plant the heat resistant
Wando variety.
-
Mid-July plant transplants of cabbage, Brussels
sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower for fall harvests.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Continue spraying fruit trees for codling
moths, curculio worms, etc. every 7-10 days.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Are your maples showing signs of iron deficiency?
The symptoms are yellow leaves with green veins. As the
symptoms progress, the tree will decline in vigor and the
section will die out. Treat with chelated iron products,
preferably those with 10% or more iron. These are often
foliar or deep soil applied.
-
Remember to water trees and shrubs separately
from lawn watering. They have a much deeper and larger roots
system, and need more water than what lawn irrigation provides.
-
No high nitrogen fertilizer should be applied
after the end of July, as it promotes succulent growth which
is more susceptible to winter injury. Allow trees to slow
down and proceed with a buildup of needed carbohydrates
for winter. You can fall fertilize after trees go
dormant, or wait till first thing in spring for best results.
Insect
Alert
-
Elm leaf beetles will also be evident now,
causing considerable damage on elms. Apply Carbaryl (Sevin)
when caterpillars are evident. The organic product to use
is called Bt kurstaki. Repeat as needed as they will reproduce
all summer. Prevent elm leaf beetle with soil applied systemic
insecticides in the spring.
Lawns
-
If you are finding dead patches in your
lawn that don't seem to be insect or disease related, then
you may want to check your thatch thickness. If it's much
over ½ inch, your lawn is probably suffocating out.
Alkaline soils don't break down organic matter well, and
this buildup is a common problem in our area. Aerating and
power raking are two ways to physically fight back, but
when the thatch is over ½ inch, it's next to impossible
to pull out the thatch from under the grass without pulling
out the grass as well. It's often best (and fastest) to
simply remove thatch thick areas and rework and condition
the soil for replanting.
-
Mosquitoes breed and lay eggs in anything
that holds water, even a pop can raise a big family. Eliminate
any sources of standing water, car tires, etc. For slow-moving
water or standing ponds, there are biological mosquito control
products that contain Bt Israelensis, like Mosquito Dunks.
For outdoor picnics, etc, spray lawn with products such
as malathion, sevin or other labeled insecticides, several
hours before. These only last 1-2 days at the most. A product
which claims eight day mosquito control is Bonide's Mosquito
Beater, which is also not harmful to people, pets or plants.
Another organic product, very low in toxicity, would be
products containing Neem. For personal protection use products
containing DEET. The higher the percentage of DEET the longer
it lasts.
Flower
Garden
-
Remove spent flowers from plants, to encourage
more blossoms or to divert energy to roots rather than seed
production, unless you are naturalizing a variety.
-
Don't pinch mums after mid-July, as it will
delay blooms.
Houseplants
-
General purpose houseplant insecticide:
1 Tab. liquid dishwashing detergent (not for automatic dishwashers)
3 pints rubbing alcohol (most are 70% grade)
2 qts. water
Alcohol is a desiccant, sucking water out of living insect
tissues, interfering with nerve conductivity. White flies,
mealybugs, aphids and spider mites all succumb to this treatment
after only a short time. Best to test on a few leaves to
be sure no harm is done to sensitive plants. Use a spritzer
or mister for spraying. Repeat in six days.
-
To encourage denseness in your poinsettia,
pinch the terminal inch of each stem the first of July and
again the end of August. You may grow your poinsettia outside
in semi-shade during warmer months, using extra care to
maintain your watering and fertilizing schedule.
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AUGUST CHECK LIST
-
Trees, Shrubs and garden perennials are
busy packing away food energy (carbohydrates) for winter
survival. It is best to withhold pruning and nitrogen fertilizers,
since doing so will help prevent the stimulation of late
shoot development at the expense of stored energy.
-
To encourage hardening up for winter, avoid
frequent watering, which tends to encourage growth, except
for newly planted trees and shrubs, which should be watered
regularly till dormancy.
Vegetable
Garden
-
For general disease control, a great product
to have on hand is Ortho's "Multi-Purpose Fungicide."
It is not only labeled for vegetables, but lawns, fruit
trees, ornamentals and flowering plants.
-
August is prime harvesting month. Be sure
to monitor moisture needs in the garden during production
time. Mulching will help soils hold moisture longer during
the dog days of summer.
-
Cut the tip ends off cucumber, pumpkin and
squash runners to force late fruiting.
-
Keep potatoes well hilled to prevent sunburn.
-
Pull soil away from onions for larger bulbs.
Do not bend over onion tops. This does not speed up growth,
but slows it down as the tissue is pinched off to the bulbs.
When onions naturally fall over, it's a sign that they are
finished growing.
-
In early you August can still plant fall
peas, spinach and lettuce.
-
Water compost pile and new materials as
added to pile. Moisture is critical during the hot days
of August, to keep the compost pile working.
-
Keep fighting weeds. The ones that get away
will haunt you for years to come.
-
Practice your sweet corn harvesting skills.
The goal is to tell when corn is ready with your hands,
without pulling back the shucks. The silks must first be
dried and brown. Next feel ends of cobs to determine if
kernels have filled out there. If they have, then feel if
the cobs have filled the shucks completely. Check yourself
as you like, by peeling back the shuck and checking. A final
test is to pop a tip corn kernel with your fingernail. If
it’s watery and clear, it’s too young. If it’s watery and
milky it’s ready. If milky and thick, it’s overripe. "Practice
makes perfect!"
-
In late August garlic tops will have dried
up. Harvest the garlic, separate cloves and replant.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Keep watering apples while fruits are enlarging.
Moisture is very critical during this time.
-
Continue spraying fruit trees for codling
moths, curculio worms, etc.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
By mid to late August, trees will have stored
about 90% of the nutrient reserves it needs for winter.
Insect control after this point would help little. Spray
only if damage is extremely severe. The best treatment to
offset effects of insect damage is to provide deep irrigation.
-
Be careful when trimming around trees. Grass
and weed trimmers can damage young trees, even girdle them.
Lawns
-
Extension Horticulture Specialist Bob Gough,
recommends fertilizing around these holidays: Memorial Day,
Labor Day and Columbus Day. General lawn fertilizer recommendations:
6-7 lbs. of 24-4-4 per 1,000 square feet of lawn.
-
Don't mow grass too short. Set mower blades
to a height of two ½ inches. At this height weed seeds will
be shaded out and lawn will grow more vigorously.
-
Mow before grass gets out of hand. A good
rule to follow is to mow so you remove about 1/3 of the
grass blades. This allows remaining grass plants plenty
of leaf surface for fast recovery.
-
Keep fighting perennial weeds.
-
From Aug. 15 to Sept. 15 is one of the best
times for lawn grass seeding.
Flower
Garden
-
Continue removing spent blooms to encourage
more blossoms.
-
Between Aug. 15 & Sept. 15, all perennial
flowering plants should be divided and transplanted, or
new ones should be planted. This allows roots to establish
before winter.
-
This is the best time to lift, divide, and
replant perennial bulbs such as irises, tulips, daffodils,
grape hyacinths, etc. Dust the cut surfaces of the iris
with a fungicide powder to help prevent infection of the
cut surfaces. The plants should be well watered to prevent
winter desiccation.
Houseplants
-
To encourage denseness in your poinsettia,
pinch the terminal inch of each stem the end of August.
Be sure to return the plant to a warm window before nights
become chilly.
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SEPTEMBER CHECK LIST
-
If you don't have a compost pile, this is
a great time to start and use one.
-
September 22 is the average first frost
date. Killing frost to tender plants occurs when temperatures
reach 26-30 degrees.
-
If frost catches your garden, don't rush
to harvest frozen produce. It will only cause unnecessary
bruising damage. Let produce and soil warm before harvesting.
If produce turns black, it was beyond salvage anyway.
-
Apples, chokecherries, plums, gooseberries
and currants all continue to ripen after a frost, and actually
contain more sugar.
-
For root crops, let the ground warm a few
days to allow slow thawing. Potatoes & onions actually
store better after frosts kill back the tops.
-
If possible, cover tender plants to protect
them from frost, in the hopes that an Indian summer will
extend the growing season afterwards. Try to keep covers
off foliage, as frost will pass through them and into any
foliage that they touch. Always remove covers by mid morning.
Otherwise, plants may become burned as heat builds up.
-
If a light frost sneaks up on you, simply
sprinkle down the garden to prevent a too fast thaw. This
is best done before the sun hits the foliage.
Vegetable
Garden
-
Harvest potatoes after the vines have died
to the ground, often following the first killing frost.
After digging, allow tubers to cure out of direct sun, for
a day or so. This allows the skins to toughen and reduce
bruising. Wash in running water. Avoid using a bush, as
this will break the skin and invite decay. It helps to store
potato tubers at 60-70 degrees for 2-3 weeks, prior to winter
storage. They then store best at temperatures between 35-38
degrees, with moderate humidity.
-
When onions tops naturally fall over, they
are through growing. After digging, allow the bulbs to lie
in the sun for one to several days to mature the outer scales
to a papery state. The onions with thicker necks should
be used first, as they will not store as well as thinner
necked onions. Twist tops off of bulbs rather than cut,
as this helps seal the bulb from fungus. Store at 50-55
degrees in a dry location.
-
Other root crops like carrots & rutabagas
should be handled carefully to avoid bruising, not be scrubbed
to remove soil, the tops of these being cut about an inch
from the roots. Store at 32-34 degrees, with moderate humidity,
in the dark. Parsnips and carrots are often harvested later
(October) or mulched in the garden, as they develop higher
sugar levels with the cold temperatures of fall.
-
Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. can
take temperature down to 25 degrees.
-
After harvest is finished, add organic materials,
gypsum, etc. and till soil to not only expose overwintering
insects, but to get a jump on gardening next spring.
-
Harvest pumpkins and winter squash after
light frost, but before a heavy freeze. Cut fruit from the
vine with about a 3-inch portion of the stem attached. Cure
by placing in a heated, ventilated area at 75-80 degrees
for two weeks. This hardens the shell for storage. (Do not
cure acorn squash). Store pumpkin and squash at 40-50 degrees
after curing.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Don't remove fire blighted apple wood until
dormancy.
-
Remove bearing canes of raspberries after
last picking. Also, remove weak shoots.
-
Try to harvest apples if temperatures are
expected to get below 25 degrees.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Homeowners should refrain from watering
established trees and shrubs from mid September to mid November
(or when trees start turning their fall color). This helps
encourage dormancy. Heavy irrigation, nitrogen fertilizers
and pruning (except for dead wood) all can cause trees to
break dormancy and begin new growth, making them susceptible
to winter injury. If however the fall turns out to be long,
hot, and dry, irrigation may again be needed. Continue irrigating
newly transplanted trees and shrubs (up to three years after
being planted) as usual.
-
Put tree wraps on tender, dark barked trees,
to prevent sun scorch.
Lawns
-
Aug. 15 to Sept. 15 is one of the best times
for lawn grass seeding. If you need to do some re seeding,
try to get to it before mid September.
-
Continue watering lawns throughout the autumn
season. Fall, with its long cool evenings, favors the dense,
vigorous growth of Kentucky Bluegrass.
-
Continue mowing right up till winter sets
in. Long, matted grass invites winter disease problems.
-
Rake leaves off grass. If left on the lawn
over winter, these may suffocate the grass.
-
Extension Horticulture Specialist Bob Gough,
recommends fertilizing around these holidays: Memorial Day,
Labor Day and Columbus Day. General lawn fertilizer recommendations:
6-7 lbs. of 24-4-4 per 1,000 square feet of lawn.
Flower
Gardens
-
Divide crowded peonies, replant top buds
2 in. deep.
-
The month of September through early October
is the time to plant spring flowering bulbs. In our higher
elevation, it is recommended that bulbs be planted approximately
2 in. deeper than suggested on most bulb planting guides.
-
Dig gladiolus bulbs after the first frost,
cutting off tops just above the corm. Cure by spreading
out in a dry, frost-free location for 2-3 weeks. Remove
old shriveled corms by snapping off cleanly. These will
be attached to the bottom of the new corms which have developed
on top of the older ones. Dust with an all-purpose, rose
dust, store loosely in open trays, in a dark place at temperatures
of 40-50 degrees.
-
Dig dahlias after frost, by lifting the
clump of tubers with a spading fork. Avoid damaging the
necks of the bulbs, since here is where vital growth buds
are located. Shake off loose soil, cut tops a couple inches
above ground level. Don't divide till next spring. Dry the
clump well, but don't allow roots to shrivel. Place clumps
in plastic bags, including lightly dampened peatmoss or
vermiculite to prevent shriveling. Store in cool, frost-free
area at about 40 degrees. Inspect often for mold, opening
bags to allow drying if needed.
-
Handle cannas and tuberous begonias as dahlias.
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OCTOBER CHECK LIST
The biggest cause of winter kill is drought rather than
cold. Give garden perennials, trees and shrubs a good deep
soaking.
Vegetable
Garden
-
Clean up garden plants as soon as they are
finished producing, or freeze. Can use a lawn mower to chop
plants up for more even mixing with the soil.
-
Fight those seed bearing weeds this time
of year. A single foxtail plant can produce 34,000 seeds,
and lots of future headaches, so catch them before they
drop.
-
If you had disease problems, be sure not
to compost refuse, but dispose of it.
-
This is a good time to spread compost, rotted
manure, leaves, grass clippings etc. over the garden, before
fall tilling. Fall till if at all possible, to help kill
overwintering insects.
-
Oil wooden garden tool handles with a generous
portion of linseed oil to condition before storing.
-
If you are having a problem with perennial
weeds such as thistles, make some fall applications of Roundup
to start fighting back.
Orchard
and Fruits
-
Can prune dead wood, diseased or broken
limbs this time of year.
-
Cover strawberries with clean straw about
6 in. deep, or with a heavy row cover, about a month after
the first frost, end of October in Billings.
Trees and
Shrubs
-
Plant containerized fruit trees, and ornamentals.
-
Save fallen leaves to add to garden directly
or to compost.
-
Don't be alarmed if the inside needles of
your evergreens turn bright yellow and drop off. This is
a natural needle drop.
-
Can remove broken, diseased, or dead wood
in trees and shrubs.
-
The best time to transplants is spring,
just before bud break. It is however possible to accomplish
in fall if certain precautions are taken. Wait till after
the leaves have colored or fallen. Do not use the bare-root
method. Use bare-root seedlings only in spring. Be certain
to water thoroughly after planting to avoid winter desiccation,
especially evergreens. Pla
