Soil and its Limiting Factors

I found this fascinating map while searching what kinds of soils are distributed throughout the US.  This is from a worldwide database that measures the suitability of soil for agricultural purposes.  As you can see from the map, most soils in the US are highly suitable, which is indicated by the green colors.  The numbers represent how many obstacles must be overcome before producing plants, so the lower the number the better.Although you may be in a less desirable area of -4 to -8, there is no reason why you cannot still garden, there just may be a few more steps in the process of creating a fertile soil environment.  Plant choice is always critical to successful gardening.

Those in areas of green soil will still need to pay attention to soil type (sandy, silty, clay), fertilizer needs, soil pH and plant choice.  There’s no getting away from those elements of gardening, no matter how great your soil is to start.

Those in the orange to red range will want to consider container gardening, raised beds with topsoil trucked in, or very careful plant selection.

Next, let’s talk about sandy soils.

Azalea Diseases-Leaf Gall

White, enlarged flesh of Azalea gall

Although daffodils may stand proudly in the midst of freezing, drizzly spring days, your azaleas may not appreciate the moisture all that much.  As we all know, there’s nothing on earth that loves damp, moist, wet, chilly, drippy, cool places as much as mold/fungi (I know that was repetitive, but I couldn’t resist all those adjectives!).   And what does mold have to do with azaleas?  Azalea gall is a fungus that looks nasty on your shrubs and can cause loss of bloom from season to season.  Molds are a kind of fungus, as you all know, which cannot produce their own food through photosynthesis so they break down whatever it is they live on to survive.  They spread through spores, recreating themselves as long as the food lasts.  If the food is your azalea plant, then that’s not so good.

Rainy, cool weather can help spread leaf gall on azaleas and rhodies, especially those in shady parts of the lawn or garden where rain is dripping from trees onto shrubs planted just below-what may be a beautiful garden design can be tricky when it comes to avoiding fungal transmission.  The spores of the azalea gall fungus can be spread like a human cold, through wind, leaves rubbing against each other or water dripping from one leaf to the next.  The fungus must be removed from the plant and surrounding area with care, like one might take leaves off a rosebush that has black spot.

Azaleas are most susceptible to gall when young leaves following bloom first emerge.  If the leaf galls are too numerous to remove by hand, a fungicide spray is recommended.  Here are some ag extensions with good resources and fungal spray recommendations.

http://msucares.com/newsletters/pests/infobytes/19990415.htm

http://hyg.ipm.illinois.edu/article.php?id=64

Let’s keep mold where it belongs-on a lovely piece of stinky cheese and out of the garden!

Primroses

Way more than what you see at the grocery store, these baddies can hang in there for years popping up just when you need a harbinger of spring.  Unfortunately, of all the primroses I stuck in the ground after they stopped blooming inside, the only one I truly hate has managed to thrive.  It’s a ghastly combination of strident red with a little parakeet yellow just in case the strident red was overlooked.

Yikes-do I give it space for sheet survival instinct or rip it out?  Wait to advise me until you’ve seen for yourself.  I will post a photo once it pops out of the soil.  Just don’t hold your breath-I live in Michigan so it could be a while before it’s seen.

Test Sunlight Before Planting Azaleas

Vibrant pink azaleas in the woods are part of the landscape at The Bayard Cutting Arboretum on Long Island.

Azaleas need at least 4-6 hours of direct sunlight to bloom properly.  I have read countless times that azaleas and rhodendrons are great “shade” plants, but this is a misnomer.  They’ll tolerate partial shade, but the more sun the better the blooms and foliage growth will be.

Figure out for sure how much sunlight with SunStick, a simple, inexpensive color changing device.  Compare different areas of your yard before you plant for the best results.  The sun is free, so make the most of it.

🙂

You Got Poison Ivy Where?

If there’s one thing I’m sure of in this world, it’s that no backyard gardener really knows for sure what poison ivy looks like.  And for good reason, there are as many different types of poison ivy leaves as there are personalities of Charlie Sheen.  And most of them are just as toxic.

However, before you rip out everything unknown to you with all the efficiency of an Ebola Hazmat team, take a look at the following perfectly harmless and common imposters:

Wild strawberry never hurt anyoneGrapes never hurt anyone on the vine

Grapevine

Virgina creeper looks suspicious, even with it’s 5 leaves

Virgina creeper

Last, but not least, the ubiquitous Pachysandra.

If you need another reason to always wear gloves in the garden, poison ivy is one of the best.  Not only is it toxic to the skin, but the oil can also irritate your eyes and elicit a response in some when inhaled.  Yanking it out by the roots even in the winter will give a nasty rash.  Here’s some other unsuspected ways to get it:

• your dog
• your clothing-like the bandana you wore to mow the lawn.  Think twice before wiping sweat from you-know-where..
• burning it-very bad idea
• weed whacking with shorts on (personal experience)-the cuts inflicted by the same weed whacker throwing out bits of gravel gave me an infection as well.  My tanned legs did not have the desired effect when combined with red, pus-filled welts (I was a teenager, of course).

Educate yourself about what poison ivy is and isn’t before you hit your untamed backyard. For motivation to be prepared, think how great it will be to say, “Oh no, mom (or whoever the overcautious, spoilsport, know-it-all in your life is) that’s not poison ivy, the children will be perfectly fine making dragon poison paste with those magic leaves all day long (hopefully it will be all day long).
Do take immediate action if you come into contact with PI.  Wash the area with soap, wash your clothing, pet, tools, etc and for more information:

A Time to Kill-Poison Ivy and its friends Oak and Sumac

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Keep the grocery store Azalea alive inside

I know they are always so tempting.  Who can resist the allure of all those blossoms tucked together, spilling over the sides of the pink paper?

But how to keep it pretty can be another story altogether unless you follow these steps:

Keep it in a cool spot in your house-these beauties grow in the wild mountainous hills of Tibet and China so think of a spring day where the sun feels warm on your face but the snow still won’t melt in your backyard.

Take it to the sink and water spray water over it until the soil is thoroughly drenched.  Let it drain while you make dinner and then pop it back in the living room, or wherever you keep it!

Pinch the blooms when they die-not only will it keep the plant looking much better, it also preserves nutrients and water for the plant to use for growth.

Plant outside whenever the ground thaws, after measuring your soil pH first.  Remember that pH is more important to these plants than fertilizer.

Columbines

The stunning Aquilegia, also known as Columbine

One of the sweetest transplants from the tough American west, specifically the Rocky Mountain area, this plant seems to defy gravity with it noddingly gracious petals.  An easy to grow and self seeding plant, this is a must for any partial shade area.  Requiring little but a modest push into the soil, these plants both spread and self-seed.  They like to keep their feet in mildly alkaline to neutral soil of 6.8-7.5, a plus for soils that tend away from acid, thus preventing other spring beauties like rhododendrons and azaleas.  Keep in mind that these are airy, delicate blooms that look best when massed together for overall impact.  Either start from seed or purchase 3-5 of the same variety.

This plant is found  in the northern hemisphere, from Asia and Europe and throughout the US and Canadian bluffs.  They’re easy to start from seed, or in a small starter pot ready-to-go from your local greenhouse.  Choose a well-drained area, ie, not near a pond or other standing water.  Atlhough they will tolerate shade, more sun will produce more blooms.  The foliage is just about as pretty as leaves can be, reminding me of Shamrocks.

A close-up of the Aquilegia or Columbine leaf

They do become tall-about 24-30 inches, so underplant them with a grass, or fern to provide some contrast to the upright stems and flowers.  Here’s an example:

The Columbines are tucked in the back behind the Siberian Iris.  The Dianthus (carnations with the purple pincushion-like flower in the foreground) would be great closer to the Columbine and I would suggest white Columbine for more contrast and pop with the wall behind.  Also, the Siberian Iris looks taller and might be better behind the Columbine.  I thought at first that the Dianthus were chives, which would be perfect as well.

Helping Boxwood, Azaleas and Rhododendrons Survive the Winter

A shrub all wrapped up for winter in ShrubJacket

This is what happens when winter takes its toll on a rhododendron

Pictured above are a rhododendron, azalea and boxwood that got burned.  These “broadleaf” evergreens are very sensitive to “winter burn” due to the large leaves they maintain throughout the winter while most other shrubs drop theirs and grow new ones in the spring.  Winter burn happens when the plant cannot get enough water.  The problem is caused when the ground freezes and all the water in the soil that normally would be available for a “drink” is gone.  So the plant shuts down areas of its system that aren’t vital (like hikers losing toes and the tip of their nose after getting lost in a blizzard!).

Guess what the plant considers non-vital?  Those pretty blooms for which you planted it in the first place.  A shrub will sacrifice buds and leaves in order to survive.  So, protect those plants that turn brown in the winter-it’s not normal or healthy.

A wrap that protects the plant from wind is necessary.  Keep in mind that snow is not damaging at all-just wind because it increases evaporation across the surface of the leaf.  In fact, just a 5 mph breeze causes a 200% increase in water loss to the plant than a non-windy environment.  Plumstone’s ShrubJacket, pictured below,

A shrub all wrapped up for winter in ShrubJacket

product is designed especially for keeping wind off the plant.  A side benefit is that it also keeps out rabbits, deer and UV rays that also damage.

By protecting evergreens and causing them less stress in the winter they will be able to maintain healthier foliage all summer long.  A shrub that blooms will have energy to put into blooms if it is not stressed in the springtime.

If you would like more information then here is a great link to an Ohio State University article.

http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3043.html

Just don’t root for the Buckeyes when it’s time for football (Go Boilers)! Email me a question any time.  If I don’t know the answer I’ll ask a horticulturalist for you.

Buckets of Peonies

Every peony website will mention how carefree and easy these shrubs are to grow but I have had struggles with them, I have to admit, and want to make sure all of you out there don’t repeat my mistakes.

1. Find FULL sun. This means that the sun must be shining on them for at least 6 hours every day. That’s a heck of a lot of sun for most yards in a suburban area. Make sure your house, garage, shed, trees, fence, etc. do not shade the plants during the day.
2. Watch out for peony blight. This affects my plants every year and once it starts it’s very difficult to get eliminate, although it can be done using a fungal spray. Ask your local lawn and garden experts (This is no time for a chain store-you need to find someone who actually knows what a peony is).  There’s a more than better chance that if your leaves look like the ones below in mid-June, you have a problem.

Peony Blight

Although by the time late September rolls around they might start to look like this due to frosts and the normal process of dying back for the winter.  Make sure those spots are not there on the foliage at the beginning of the year.

3. Do not plant them too deep. The “eyes” want to be covered in soil and left alone. Make sure to put supports in early-they really do help.

4. Did I mention checking your sunlight?  Don’t guess or be optimistic-check with SunStick if you’re not sure and save yourself a lot of frustration later on.

Make sure your info comes from a good source. All of the facts on my blogs have been checked against more than one University extension. For peonies, here are a few good links, starting with my Alma Mater, Purdue: http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/ho-76.pdf and north dakota at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/plantsci/landscap/h281w.htm

Winter Burn

Although the symptoms are the same, there are many different shrubs that can suffer in the wintertime, particularly what are called the “broadleaf evergreens”. As the name implies, these plants have large flat leaves, not needles, that can easily lose water to evaporation in the wintertime. When the leaves lose water it must be replaced from the roots in order for the leaf to survive, but if the ground is frozen the plant cannot get any water from the soil. Therefore the leaf dies and any blooms that were on that branch will shrivel up and fall off along with the leaves. This is the most common cause of failure to bloom in rhododendrons.
What to do? Wrap your plants in the fall and leave the wrap on throughout early spring when the plants start to photosynth again. Leave any wrapping open on the top if your area receives a lot of snow. The snow is great for your shrub and will nicely insulate whatever it covers up.
Do not worry about sunlight! There is a common misconception that plants needs light in the winter in order to survive. Not only will plants not use sunlight-they’re dormant- but bright winter light will only “burn” the leaves and stems even more.
A gentle breeze only 5 mph will cause the plant to lose 200% more moisture than they would without the wind.