Handy, Eco-friendly Garden Tool

This simple scoop is fashioned from a half-gallon plastic milk jug. It's great for distributing fertilizer granules or potting soil in tight spaces. To craft it, make two horizontal cuts on the sides adjacent to the handle, and two forward-slanting diagonal cuts in the other sides.

Breathing Room

Not for you, though that may be nice, I'm talking about breathing room for your turfgrass roots. The end of the growing season is the perfect time to aerate cool-season lawns, like Fescue and Bluegrass.

An aeration helps reduce thatch and compaction, and opens up the soil for better air and nutrient movement. During an aeration, a machine pulls cores from the lawn and deposits them on top of the soil. (These cores break down readily, so there is no reason to rake.)

Lawns with heavy clay soil are especially susceptible to compaction and should be aerated on a regular schedule. Likewise, if you cut a square in the lawn at least 6 inches deep, and the roots of your grass only extend 1-2 inches, it is time to aerate.

Fall Blooms

Dianthus from http://www.all-americaselections.org

Fall doesn't seem like a good time to plant new flowers in your beds, but it is actually a prime time for certain annuals. Snapdragons, pansies, ornamental cabbage and dianthus are commonly planted in the early spring because they have a tolerance for cooler temperatures. If you think about it, they should be great fall flowers, too.

Try planting them in your flower beds to add new color once your other annuals have bloomed out or become straggly. If you spread a light mulch around your pansies, they usually survive a mild winter to come back in the spring.

If you have a love for perennials, you may be disheartened when autumn falls unpon us, because most perennials are well past their bloom time once September arrives. If you want to add some fall perennial color, chrysanthemums, asters and solidago tend to bloom later in the year and add some great fall focal points to any perennial garden.

It may seem a little early to be thinking about fall, but I wanted to give you a heads up on these autumn gardening tips!

Planting Bulbs In Containers

Photo from www.bulbsdirect.com.au

Love this article about planting bulbs in containers from HGTV. It seems fairly simple, so I am planning on trying it out this fall/spring. I will have to post pictures of my results!

In the meantime, here is the article: http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/shows_sgn/article/0,,HGTV_3885_1506549,00.html

Brown Pine Needles

If you have ever wondered why some pines seem to grow poorly in the Midwest, you have already noticed the disease I want to highlight today--Tip Blight.

Tip blight is a fungal disease spread during spring rains. The disease only affects new needle growth, which turn brown, fail to develop fully and may form a "Shepard's Crook."

Tip blight is fairly easy to identify and treat. You will have to use plant protection products annually to keep the infection from coming back every year. If you do not treat, the tree will continue to decline and will eventually die.

The most common hosts of tip blight are Scotch pine and Austrian pine. Avoid planting these species when possible. If you already have some of these trees in your landscape, keep them healthy (this is the first line of defense). Water well during dry periods, including the winter season.

Sprinkler Systems

You have an automatic sprinkler system. All your watering problems are solved, right? Not necessarily.

Watering issues still result even with automatic systems. These issues include:
• Poor head placement, usually not enough heads or heads are too far apart
• Incorrect nozzles in rotors
• Improper setting of times for a zone or zones
• Watering at the wrong time of the day

Some of these issues can lead to too much or too little water in a portion of your yard. Improper design is usually the result of lack of experience by an installation company. Companies sometimes reduce heads to save money if the job was bid too low.

To be effective, sprinkler heads should spray to the adjacent head. This gives 100% coverage and avoids wet/dry, wet/dry spots across your lawn.

A major reason for new lawns to fail to come in well is improper coverage from poorly installed automatic systems. The second reason is not setting the controller correctly.

Summer Weed Control

http://extension.missouri.edu/

Weed control in the summer is more difficult than controlling weeds in the spring, because the growth rate during the hot, dry summer is considerably slower. When plants (including weeds) aren't actively growing, they don't intake weed control product as effectively.

Therefore, if you are going to treat weeds in the summer, be patient. It will take a few more applications to get the job done. Violets and nutsedge are particularly difficult to control.

Thankfully, once fall temperatures arrive, most weeds are finishing their life cycles and dying off. You may choose to apply a preemergent in the fall to prevent annual, grassy weeds (crabgrass) the next growing season. It is also acceptable to apply preemergent in the spring, before soil temperatures hit 55 degrees F.

Get Rid of Standing Water

Lawns need water, especially in the heat of summer. Effective watering keeps your lawn and landscape healthy and thriving. However, water standing in your lawn or landscape beds for more than 24 hours, is not good.

Allowing water to gather in your landscape may compromise grass or other plantings. Pay attention to your lawn next time it rains. If you still have standing water a day later, take note. The next step is determining what is keeping the water from draining.

It may be necessary to move some dirt around or install a french drain to take care of the problem. In the long run, it is worth it to do so, especially if water is standing in conspicuous areas.

Poison Ivy

Poison ivy is common throughout the United States, but many homeowners still have trouble identifying it. Let’s take a close look at identification, it’s irritating qualities and how to get rid of this pest.

The plant is a vine. It is very adaptable from dense shade to full sun. It can occur as a self-supporting woody shrub, as a thin trailing vine running along the ground, or as an aerial-rooted vine growing up trees, power poles or fences.

No matter the growing habits, all poison ivy has a distinctive leaf pattern of three leaflets occurring alternately along the stem. All forms of the plant are poisonous.

Poison ivy is irritating. The oil from the leaves produces an allergic reaction in many people that causes blisters and severe itching.

Poison ivy is spread through our landscape by birds eating the berries and passing them through their digestive systems. We often see small volunteer plants along fence rows and growing under trees. When you think about it, this is where birds like to congregate.

It is not hard to control poison ivy, especially when it is young. The best method is to spray the leaves with common broadleaf weed control products like Trimec or Weed No More. Use the regular spray rate. Poison ivy becomes more difficult to control when it becomes a thick vine. Cut or chop the thick vine close to the ground, then carefully pour a small amount of concentrated weed control product directly on the stump of the vine. Wait a few weeks or even a month. If there is no new growth from the stump, your plant is dead. If it sprouts new leaves from the stump, you probably need to use a brush control product. You can buy a small container of this product at a garden center or the lawn department of many chain stores.

Container Gardening

Photo from: http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/gt/container/container.html

It is a little late to start a container garden...but it is a great time to buy containers for next year!

Container gardening can be fun and a dramatic way to accent your landscape and add dramatic color. New containers are stylish and last longer than the clay pots of a few years ago. Many are light in weight. Using a potting mix (vs. topsoil) keeps weight down even more.

Before picking the flowers for your container, will it be in full sun or partial shade? For containers on the west and south side of your home, consider begonias, petunias, coleus, geraniums, marigolds, nasturtiums, snapdragons, zinnias and other heat tolerant flowers. In partial to full shade, consider impatiens, begonias, ferns and even tropical plants.

In the front of your home, use containers to accent and create attention around your front door. In the back yard, containers make great accents at the edge of your patio or deck.

Make sure your containers have drain holes in the bottom. A layer of pebbles in the bottom of the pot will keep the hole open so excess water can drain away. Purchase potting mix because it holds more water and weights less than top soil.

Use slow release fertilizer every few months or small amounts of quick release plant food every 2 weeks.

Enjoy the color!

Weeds! Weeds! Weeds!

Photo from: http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/PPDL/

Nutsedge is growing like crazy!

Yellow nutsedge is often mistaken for grass plants when it is young, but can be identified by it's triangular stems. If you roll the stem of the plant in your fingers, you should be able to feel the triangular shape. The leaves are light green to yellowish in color, and the plants outgrow turf, making them especially noticeable in summer.

A healthy, dense, stand of turf that can compete with yellow nutsedge and other weeds is the best control method. Encourage a dense stand of turf by following proper turf maintenance practices.

Herbicides may be required when large patches of nutsedge are present in the turf area. For homeowners, a herbicide containing methanearsonate is recommended for controlling yellow nutsedge.

Purdue University offers these tips on treating nutsedge with a herbicide:

1. Be sure to read and follow all directions on the herbicide label.

2. One day before making the herbicide application, irrigate the turf area to moisten the soil profile to a depth of 6 inches.

3. Treat the area with the proper rate of herbicide based on the recommendations found on the label. Do not apply the herbicide if the air temperature is above 85^oF.

4. Two days after the herbicide application, irrigate the treated area with enough water to moisten the soil profile to a 6-inch depth.

5. Seven days after the first application, repeat steps 2 through 4. A third and possibly a fourth application may be necessary for complete control.

Swamp White Oak

Photo from http://www.extension.iastate.edu

Another one of my favorite trees is the Swamp White Oak. It has relatively few disease and/or insect problems, and it grows relatively fast. The obvious downside is acorn production, but don't let that stop you from planting this wonderful tree.

Swamp White Oak is a medium sized tree perfect as a large shade or street tree. (It can grow up to 82 feet in height, so be cognizant of power lines.)

These trees are long lived, plant one today and it may be around in 350 years!

Of all the members of the White Oak group, the undersides of its leaves are the most white, forming a stark contrast with the dark green of the upper part of the leaf. The leaves are broad ovoid, and are shallowly lobed with five to seven lobes on each side.

Moles

Photo from www.fcps.k12.va.us/index.shtml

Moles and the tunnels they dig are an unsightly nuisance. Unfortunately, removal of moles from your property can be difficult.

To get rid of moles, you can try using caster oil on the mounds. The oil is supposed to drive the moles out of their tunnels. A few lawn pros I know swear by this method.

Another alternative to get rid of moles is through trapping. There are three excellent mole traps on the market. Each of these, if handled properly, will give you good results. All of these traps depend on the same mechanism for releasing the spring. The brand name for these traps are Harpoon, Out O'Sight and Nash.

Local pet control companies may be able to help you get moles under control as well.

There are few things you can do to keep moles out of your lawn. However, moles are attracted to water sources. If you have areas of your lawn that pool water, try to correct the grade and install a drainage tile if needed. This may help keep these pesky rodents off your property and out of your lawn.

Witch Hazel

Photo from foundinthefells.com

Vernal Witch hazel is a fragrant, early blooming plant. It's tiny, spidery flowers vary from almost yellow through shades of orange to almost purple-red. This shrub will be the first to bloom every year, adding color as early as January.

The blooms are also very hardy. They can withstand temperatures as low as negative 10F. If it gets a little chilly, the blooms curl up, then unfurl when temperatures climb back up!

Witch hazel not only adds color to a winter landscape; the flowers also carry a pseudo-gingerbread scent. The plant is readily available at nurseries.

Renovate Your Lawn

A renovation after the grass has been killed.

I am so sorry I didn't post yesterday! I am new to this blogging thing, so bear with me as I work it all out.

On to the topic of the day--seeding your lawn. It is a little early to seed now (much too hot), but before you know it, it will be labor day and prime seeding time.

So...why the post now?

If you are TOTALLY renovating your lawn, now is the time to start, believe it or not. By total renovation, I mean you are killing your existing lawn and planting a brand-spanking new one. If you are attempting to rid yourself of a Zoysia or Bermuda lawn, get on a good watering schedule and apply a product containing Glyphosate (such as Roundup) to the entire area to be seeded within the next week or two. (Why water? Because actively growing grass will take in Glyphosate better.) It will probably take a few treatments to kill the grass, which is why you need to start early.

Here is a great how-to on renovating a lawn from Colorado State University:

How to Renovate a Lawn

Follow these steps to renovate a lawn.

1. Kill existing grass and weeds using a non-selective herbicide. The most effective products contain glyphosate.
2. Glyphosate is only effective on actively growing grass and weeds, so the area should be well-irrigated to encourage plant growth before applying the herbicide.
3. Allow the spray to dry for one day following application. Resume watering for 10 days. Spot spray areas or weeds that are still green.
4. When the existing vegetation is dead, mow the site to 1/2 inch and remove the debris by hand raking or using the bagging unit on your lawn mower.
5. If there is an existing thatch layer (a matted layer of organic matter on the soil surface) thicker than 1 inch, remove it from the lawn (a sod cutter makes thatch removal easier).
6. A thatch layer less than 1 inch is okay, but the soil must be exposed.
• Core cultivating provides an excellent seed germination environment. Holes should be 1 to 3 inches deep and 2 inches apart in all directions.
• A power rake, set deep enough to expose the soil, can also be run over the lawn in two different directions. Remove loose debris by raking or using a bagging unit attached to your lawn mower.
7. Spread seed on exposed soil to allow for good seed to soil contact.
8. Seed at the label’s recommended rate with a drop spreader in two different directions. Follow with a light raking to work the seed into the soil. Adding topsoil or sand after seeding is NOT recommended.

You will have an awesome lawn in no time...even if your neighbors think you have no knack for lawn care when your grass "dies" in July!

***This post is specific to the transition zone between zones 5 and 6. For specific instructions on how to kill out lawns outside this area, leave a comment and I will provide guidelines for you.***

Budworms!

Photo from: http://ag.utah.gov/

I am on a worm kick this week. (Maybe because I am planning a little fishing this weekend.)

At any rate, not only do worms hang from trees, they hideout in our petunias and geraniums. I love petunias for a bright splash of color in the yard. This year, I am paying especially close attention to them, because I am on the look out for tobacco budworms.

If your petunias or geraniums aren't blooming like they should, tobacco budworms may be spending some time around your house. Budworms settle into the buds of these pretty plants before they fully develop. Hence, the first sign of an infestation is a failure to bloom. If the buds do open, they will appear ragged and chewed.

How do you find these little guys? Check the buds of the plants for small holes. Also, keep an eye on them at night, when budworms are most active. If you are more of a day hunter, check out the base of the plants, where the budworms like to hide.

If you find them, you can treat the plant with a product containing a synthetic pyrethroid, such as bifenthrin and permethrin. You could also try your luck with new plants in another area of your landscape. Just tell neighbors that you are sponsoring a budworm hotel in the case of the first plants.

Down the road, I am hoping for cultivars that are resistant to this uninvited guest. In the mean time, ivy geraniums appear less susceptible than traditional types and there are some petunias that are less susceptible as well.

Bagworms

I grew up in the country, and our junipers were just covered in bagworms. My skin crawled every time I walked by the trees. Bagworms are not something I would put up with today.

Bagworms attack and defoliate most evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs. However, they are particularly destructive to arborvitae, cedar, juniper and other ornamental evergreens.

You can take care of light bagworm infestations, particularly on shrubs and small trees, by picking the bags off. If you have taller trees, you may have to enlist the help of a tree care company.

Even if you can get over the creepiness of worms hanging off your trees, heavy infestations of bagworms are not good for your trees, so it is better to get rid of them.

Fringe Tree

Photo from About.com

If you are planning on adding to your landscape this fall, consider the Fringe Tree. Fringe tree is a beautiful, small tree that blooms in the spring, long after most flowering trees have finished their show. (As an added bonus, the flowers can be forced into early bloom indoors.)

The upright oval to rounded form of fringe tree adds dark green color in summer. (Dark green, glossy leaves emerge later in the spring than those of most plants.)

When not in bloom, fringe tree can be difficult to identify. One trick is to look at the size of the leaves. They are larger than most leaves and the veins are also very striking with a reddish stem.

Fringe trees are usually 10 to 15 feet tall in landscapes.

This is a great medium tree to plant if you are looking for a unique flowering specimen.