Garden Stories
Garden.True.North is about gardening in Zone 3,
sharing thoughts, ideas and tips for all northern gardeners.
sharing thoughts, ideas and tips for all northern gardeners.
|
Do you want no raking, no removing debris, no hauling mulch and drastically reduced work in cleaning up your perennial beds this spring? The equipment you will need is your lawn mower and broadcast spreader. And the timing is just about now, well not quite now with snow and ice still on the ground. But pretty soon.
1 Comment
Read more to discover the Winter Sown method of seed starting. The pictures are of a milk jug seed container cut in half, then taped shut until the weather was warm enough to expose the seedlings to the elements.
 Picture Source: Amazon.com There are many systems for indoors that claim to do a great job delivering moisture for houseplants. But as gardeners we know that each plant has its own finicky needs and the challenge even for hand watering is how to provide just the right amount. Several winters ago, I tested a few systems prior to going on a two-week trip. While my neighbor has proven to be even more reliable than myself, it was time to find an alternative way to take care of the plants.
 My fall chore list has become shorter over the years as I have discovered easier methods of dealing with leaves on the lawn with frequent mowing with my mulching lawn mower. Leaves that land in the perennial beds are left there to provide protection over the winter. The only area that I clean up is the vegetable garden by removing dead material after the frost.
I have been taking pictures of my gardens all season long so I can reference them in the off-season. My camera is an essential garden tool to record successes and failures, to document what needs to be done next year, and to steal ideas from other gardeners.
 Believe it or not – it is almost time to start bringing in your houseplants from the summer vacation outdoors. Don't wait until the first freeze/frost warnings are posted for the fall. Many of our houseplants are from the tropics and get stressed when nighttime temperatures dip lower than 50°. I start by moving the houseplants to shadier spots in the garden around the beginning of September. This gives them time to acclimate to the lower light conditions in our homes.
Activities for September
August tasks are sparse, take time to enjoy the garden and harvest the edibles and flowers. The spring flower bulb catalogs are now coming in the mail, time to look them over and place your order for fall planting. I'll post later on when to plant those bulbs, usually in October after our first frost.
It seems the garden season has barely begun and already plants are crowding each other. So out comes my pruning shears and by-pass pruner. Pinch and prune can refer to a variety of techniques including pruning, deadheading, pinching stems or buds, or cutting back leggy plants to shape, form and trim. It is usually species-specific and based on common sense. Don’t worry about hurting your plants by experimenting. Useful tools include by-pass pruners, pruning scissors, and hand-held shears. Avoid anvil-type pruners that can crush stems. Different techniques call for specific tools, find the one that works for you and your plants. |
Subscribe to this blog and receive new posts by email!
Use the link below and follow the instructions. You will be asked to verify your subscription. If you do not receive the verification email, look for it in your social or spam folders. Programs Archives
March 2020
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
