What to do in your garden in late August

It's Sunflower Season!

 One of the most frustrating things about writing a gardening blog is that the time of year people are most interested (summer) is the time your are most busy with what you're writing about (gardens). It's also the time of year when my lovely daughter is home from school so I'm looking after her. She likes to help in the garden for a few minutes at a time. Maybe when she's older. 

I didn't mention seed saving but now's the time for that.
Green bean seeds, like these, are a great place to start. 

Anyways, now that she's back in school I have more time to write and I thought now would be a great time to update you all on my garden and what you can be doing in yours. After the awful cicada apocalypse, it  ended up being an awesome year for vegetables. Spring veggies were delicious and prolific. I've had more tomatoes, zucchini, green beans and melons than I know what to do with. So it's been a great year for my neighbors too. I think one of the leading reasons for this is my soil. My ground soil is terrible but my raised beds have been established for a few years now so the more organic matter I keep adding, the better the quality. I also invented a new fertilizer mix that I might share some time. 

How about you? We've had lots of rain this august so if you've got a lot of fungus in your garden, it's no wonder. You can find more information about dealing with that here.  If your plant is no longer producing fruit and is covered in fungus, then remove the whole plant from your garden. Unfortunately, unless you are a composting expert who keeps track of compost temperatures, then you shouldn't compost your diseased plants as the fungus will linger and spread. I throw them out in the trash. If you've gotten a decent harvest from a plant already, then don't feel bad about loosing the plant. All plants die eventually, it's just part of the garden. Clearing out the plant can make room for new things...

It's also canning season which is not my favorite gardening 
task but I do love the canned goods later!

This leads me to the next thing you can do which is plant fall leafy greens. It's probably too late for carrots or peas but you can still start lettuce, spinach, and kale from seeds and have delicious greens for the rest of the year! Just keep the seeds well watered in this hot weather. 

As the garden starts to wind down, it's also  a good time to plant cover crops. This is my first year trying this out and I'm planting crimson clover. It's a legume that should add nitrogen to the soil. When it starts to flower, I just weed whack the tops off and the plant will die down on the soil creating a natural mulch to keep weeds down and add organic matter. I'll update you all on that later. 

Finally, if you can't stay on top of the weeding, at least snap off the seed heads of the weeds to help prevent spreading. Your future self will thank you. I'd love to hear updates from your garden in the comments below!

Figuring Out Why Your Plants are Sick

 Everyone who has a plant for any length of time will have to deal with it being less than perfect. Even the most experienced gardener will have to deal with plant problems. Most home owners are busy and just want a quick fix to make their plants all better. Here's what you need to know when your plants change color, loose leaves, wilt or make other signs of distress. 

Powdery Mildew on Zinnias

First, you must accurately identify the plant. Not all evergreens are pines. Red raspberries and black raspberries grow differently and can have different problems. Be sure you know what plant you're working with. 

Second, make a lot of good observations. What is the overall situation of the plant? What kind of light and water does it get? What is the soil like? What, exactly, is the problem? How long has the problem been going on? Is it affecting the plants around it? What time of year is it? You may want to take a picture of the plant and the problem as well. 

Third, do some diagnostic work on your own. Search online or get a good book on plant problems. 

It's helpful to know that, statistically speaking, plants suffer far more from abiotic problems then from biotic ones. This means there's a really good chance that you don't have a bug or pathogen problem but the plant is in the wrong spot or your just not taking care of it well. Once you know what kind of a plant you have you can learn all about what it needs to be happy and determine if it's getting it or not. 

It's also helpful to know that if you have a pathogen of some sort, statistically speaking, it's probably a fungus. Fungal problems are far more prevalent than bacteria or viral infections. That's good because they're easier to treat. Viral problems usually mean destroying the plant. 

Fourth, if you can't determine the problem on your own, then reach out to your county extension office. They are there to help you. Just know that there are so many potential problems out there that no one knows all of them right off hand and it will require a bit of investigating for anyone. 

Finally, always try the least toxic, most environmentally friendly solution first. A broad spectrum insecticide will probably kill your Japanese Beetles but it will also kill your pollinators and other beneficial bugs. 

I hope that's helpful. Right not it's February so we're not dealing with any of this now but before you know it, Spring will be here and we'll be busy in our gardens again. Do you have any tips for diagnosing plant problems? Feel free to comment below. 

What You Need To Know About Pesticides

 There are a lot of opinions about

Powdery Mildew on Zucchini

pesticides out there. There is also a lot of information about a lot of different kinds of pesticides. Just walking into the pesticide aisle at a hardware store can be daunting. If you have a problem with a pest and don't know what to do, here is some basic information you need to know. 

First, the best thing you can do to fight any problem is grow happy healthy plants. A tomato growing in full sun with good soil and consistent moisture is going to do much better at fighting off any problems then the same plant in partial shade and bad dirt. So be sure you know how to make your plants desirable. 

Second, be sure you accurately diagnose the problem. You can dump all the insecticide in the world on your plant but if the problem is fungal, then it's not going to solve your problem. In the meanwhile, you've wasted your time, money and energy and probably killed a lot of nice pollinators. Identifying a problem can be tricky. You can do some research on line or contact your county extension office for help. 

Third, use the least toxic solution possible to solve your problem. All pesticides have a trade off. Organic and narrow spectrum treatments will have a lot less side issues than more toxic options. For instance, you can use BT, an organic bacteria, to kill caterpillars and it won't hurt pollinators like a more conventional pesticide might. Assuming, of course, that caterpillars are your problem. 

Tomato Horn Worm - Yuck!

Fourth, if you buy pesticide, you must read and follow the instructions!!! I know it's not fun but absolutely necessary. If you put too much on, it can be toxic and damage plants. If it's too weak, it might not work. So be sure to read the instructions and follow them carefully. 

Fifth, 95% off all pesticide injury (to people) is from skin damage on hands and arms. So, if you wear safely gloves and a long sleeve shirt, your in pretty good shape. However, wear eye protection if the chemical in use recommends it. Don't skimp on safety. 

Finally, be a good observer. Is the pesticide working well? Are there bad side effects? Keep an eye on your plants and always be learning. 

Do you have experience with pesticides? Feel free to share your stories and questions below. 

Wind

One of the most disregarded forces influencing your garden is air. Perhaps because we can't see it, or because we can't really change it much anyways, we tend to ignore the impact it has on our plants. However, even if you can't control the air, you can understand its effects on your garden and plan accordingly. 

First, most plants in your garden don't want to be wet. Moisture on plants can attract fungus and mold which can kill them. Air circulation is essential to keep plants dry and help prevent these problems. You can improve air circulation in a few different ways.

1- Space you're plants appropriately when planting. I am notoriously bad at this so do as I say and not as I do. Most plants have spacing information on the seed package or plant tag. 2 - When you water your garden, water the soil, not the leaves. The more you can avoid getting the plants wet, the better off you are. 3 - Some plants that are particularly susceptible to mold or fungus, such as grapes or tomatoes, can benefit from selective trimming of the foliage. The more you can let light and air into the middle of the plant the healthier the plant will be.

Second, air means temperature. I'm writing this in July when the air is bringing so much heat to the plants that many of them look droopy in the afternoon. However, in spring and fall, air can mean freezing temperatures that can kill plants. If you know what the weather forecast is, then you can cover your plants as needed.

Third, air can mean wind. It can be incredibly windy where I live. High winds can topple plants. Keep an eye on your taller plants and reinforce them as needed. Things like sunflowers can be staked to keep them standing upright.

Finally, in some places, air can mean pollution. Unfortunately, you generally can't change the amount of pollution in your air. However, being aware of the circumstances can help you select appropriate plants. Some plants will tolerate  air pollution better than others. It's best to ask at your local garden center for recommendations.

As you can see, air plays a big role in the success of your garden. With some research and planning, you can utilize it to best support your plants.

Reclaiming an Overrun Garden Bed

Before

We've all done it. Life gets busy and before you know it, it's June and one (or more) of your garden beds is completely overrun by weeds and who knows what else. No worries! I'm here to walk you through how to reclaim your garden area.

Step 1: Determine what you want to save. We kept the two azalea bushes, despite their sickly appearance and transplanted some daffodils and bleeding hearts to another spot.

Step 2: Rip out everything you don't want. In this case, we tore out lots of weeds, dead leaves, rotted logs and two snakes. (They were tiny, no problem!) Of course, when pulling out weeds, get as much of the roots as possible.

Step 3: Be sure to outline your bed the way you want. We just used spades and, at the end, a string of rocks from the woods. However, you could also use any number of different edging from your local hardware store.

Step 4: Add any plants you want. We were going for a Japanese inspired look so in addition to the Azaleas, we also added small hostas. (Azaleas and hostas are from Japan)

Step 5: Baby any of the plants that are original to the bed. If the plants have been over run with weeds and forgotten, odds are they are going to need a little TLC. I pruned the Azaleas, fed them with an organic fertilizer and treated the plant with a fungicide. (If you interested, it's called Green Cure and you can order it here.)

Step:6: Lay down cardboard between plants. This will repress the weeds. You will thank yourself later.

After

Step 7: Mulch over the cardboard. In this case, because we are going for a Japanese look, we used rocks but you can also use wood chips.

Step 8: Water if needed. Be sure any new plants don't dry out.

That's it. I did the pictured garden bed in one afternoon with some help. Don't give up on a garden because it's over grown. The feeling of accomplishment is so worth the effort of cleaning it up. You can do it! If you'd like more information on Japanese gardens, then check out the links below.

The Elements of the Japanese Garden

9 Traditional Japanese Plants

Get Rid of Garden Pests Part 1

One of the biggest problems I get asked about is how to get pests out of the garden. Whether it's squirrels hiding snacks in your window boxes or fungus destroying you zucchini, pests can be so frustrating that many a gardener has thrown in the towel all together. Don't let this happen to you! If you can follow some common sense gardening practices we'll get into and embrace nature (i.e., things being less than perfect) then there is no reason to stress about a few pests.

I'm going to break this down into three posts. First, we'll talk fungus and disease. Second, I'll get into bugs. Finally, we'll tackle animals - squirrels, voles, rabbits,, dear, etc. As with all things gardening, no one person knows everything so I'll include a few links to further reading at the bottom of every post. If you have any questions, be sure to pass them along by emailing me or touching base on social media.

What is more frustrating than watching your garden die? Not being able to see the culprits because they are so tiny. Fungi, bacteria and disease can reek havoc with your plants. The shear magnitude of specific plant plagues that exist in the US alone makes addressing any one particular infection impossible but here are some great tips to protect your garden from disease in general.

First, buy healthy, disease resistant plants. Plant nurseries are generally pretty good at labeling which plants are naturally more disease resistant. Believe me, I would gladly pass on bigger, prettier flowers or vegetables that supposedly produce a higher volume of food in order to get the disease resistance. Also, and most nurseries are good about this too, check over any plant for signs of disease or insects (wilting, yellowing, spots, actual bugs, etc)  before bringing them home.

Second, provide a healthy garden environment for hardier plants. A cucumber plant growing in good soil with a nice layer of mulch and plenty of sunlight is going to be able to fight off disease much better than a cucumber trying to eek out a life in dry, scorched soil. Compost, mulch, water and light are your best friends.

Third, don't plant too densely. I am so guilty of this. Having limited space, I will cram in far more plants then I should. However, fungus loves damp, enclosed areas so thinning is essential. You really want the sun and breeze to penetrate into your garden so it's well aired-out.

Finally, rotate your plants every year. Quite often, specific disease will only thrive on one kind of plant and it can sit in your soil all winter just waiting for you to plant the same thing in the same place in the Spring. Don't indulge them! Come up with a plan to rotate your garden on at least a three year cycle. For those of you with extremely limited space, you may want to consider growing something different each year with the small garden you have.

If you've found other ways to get rid of harmful fungus and disease in your garden, I would love to hear about it in the comments below. For further reading, check out these links:

Understanding Plant Disease

Organic and Biological Treatment of Plant Disease

Treating Plant Diseases Naturally