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Honey Bee Crisis

TheGardenLady received this question from Joy:

Are you aware of the honeybee crisis and do you think that it will have an
effect on gardening and domestic plants?

The Garden Lady has been hearing about the bee crisis for a number of years.  The Garden Lady has noticed fewer and fewer bees on her property even though she never uses pesticides nor herbicides; both can harm beneficial insects like honey bees.  Alas, my policy of not putting toxic poisons on the ground is a rareity. Most people prefer lawns without “weeds” like clover. Clover to TheGardenLady is welcome in her lawn. Clover is a honeybee attractant. The GardenLady also tries to plant flowering plants that will attract pollinators. The oregano and mint area of my garden is one spot that is filled with nectar sipping insects that are pollinators.

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Global Warming and Gardening

 

TheGardenLady received these questions from Jen:

Are there any plant related reasons to worry or any precautions to take about the unseasonably warm November and December we’ve had on the East Coast so far this year? Is the weather going to mess up the natural cycles of native trees and plants? I’m mainly concerned because I see buds on some trees already.

As TheGardenLady wrote, this issue is of major concern to scientists.  TheGardenLady is interested in what scientists are saying and will periodically report on this topic.

The other day a Rutgers professor was quoted as saying that in NJ gardeners are to expect more flooding because of more major rains yet he said there will be more droughts.

Today there is a 3-day symposium  at the New York Botanical Garden called “Gardening in a Changing Climate,”  This is open to the public.  In this week’s New York Times  there was an article by ANNE RAVER about some problems entitled Must Tulips Wither as the Climate Changes?  It is about nursing plants through new highs and lows in a changing climate.

Here is a website to check on the impact of  climate change in all areas including agriculture in your state is EPA Global Warming by State.

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Window Gardens – Planting in Windowboxes and Containers

                                                                            

TheGardenLady received this question from Karen. 

I am planning on moving to Florida this year, and I would really love to grow a window garden in the warm weather.  Coming from Alaska and having no prior experience with gardens, I’m not really sure where to start.  What kind of window boxes are available that are low-cost?  Are window gardens really high maintainance?  What sort of flowers should I choose that will thrive in Florida’s enviroment?  

Welcome to the East Coast. After the short growing season of Alaska you may think you have arrived in flower heaven when you reach Florida. After all Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon who  first saw Florida on Palm Sunday, April 2, 1513 thought he had so he named the state “Pascua de Florida,” meaning “Feast of Flowers.”  The state has a nickname that is The Sunshine State.  Sunshine is great for growing flowers. However the state  has unique growing environments. 

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When to Plant a Vegetable Garden

                                                               

TheGardenLady received this question from Jenna - 

When should I start planting my vegetable garden?…I live on the east coast of the United States but we’ve had unseasonably cold weather this spring.

Different vegetables need different times to be planted.  Depending on where you live on the East Coast will determine when you will plant the vegetable seeds.   There are what are referred to as warm or cool season crops which refer to the necessary weather conditions for growing the vegetables. Warm season crops require soil that is warm when the seeds are planted and then need long days and high temperatures to ripen fruits. For warm season crops you will have to know when the last killing frost will occur in your area.

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Vegetable Gardens

                                                                

TheGardenLady received this question from Bob –

Does a vegetable garden want more acidic soil or less? I was going to put lime in should I?

TheGardenLady has no idea where you live. Different areas of the country can have soil with different soil requirements.  Check out this site.

When starting a vegetable or any garden, one should first have a soil test taken of the area that you want to use. This way you are not guessing about the wants/ needs of your garden. You will know what the ph of the soil is. To test the soil, you can buy an inexpensive ph kit in your local garden center or you can go to your local Master Garden extension office and purchase a soil kit.

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Lady Apples

                                                                        

TheGardenLady received this question from John:

I live in the Texas hill country, and have started some lady apples from seed. I am not sure how well they will grow, but how can I give them the best chance, and what are their growing habits.

                                                                         

The Pink Lady apple is from Western Australia and likes weather in the US that is South of the Mason Dixon Line- zones 6 through 9. It grows 9-11 feet in all types of soil. It doesn’t need another tree to pollinate – it is a self pollinator. It needs full sun and takes 3 to 5 years to bear fruit.

If you read TheGardenLady’s column on raising apples from seeds, you will understand that you probably won’t get good apples from the little trees that are growing for you.

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Vermicomposting for everyone – even in classrooms

TheGardenLady received these questions about vermicomposting from Ashley –

I have recently started a barrel composter. It is a modified 55 gallon foodsafe drum/barrel that is working nicely. Can I add worms to this? Because it is off the ground they will not enter natually, and I have been hearing so much about the benifits of worms. I would just love to join in on all the fun. I have yet to read or hear of someone trying out this method; though I’m sure there out there…any thoughts?

Worms are a benefit to composting, so congratulations for wanting to start this excellent endeavor. Some schools are now teaching students how to do Vermicomposting. There are many excellent sites on the computer to learn Vermicomposting. Two sites for teachers that you can use to learn how to start this type of composting are here and here.

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Apple Trees

                                                                                    

TheGardenLady received this question from Lisa –

 It seems hard to find a staymen apple tree at the local nurseries anymore (DC area) and planting the apple seeds has never worked no matter how many times/ways we’ve tried.  Do you have to plant the whole apple for the seeds to sprout?  Any other ideas on how to get a staymen apple tree to sprout/grow for our yard?  Thanks for any suggestions!

You can start an apple tree from a seed. But to get an excellent fruit tree, nurserymen usually graft the tree to good root stock. Grafting takes a certain expertise that the Garden Lady cannot teach. So you are probably best off buying a tree from one of the numerous fruit tree specialists that are listed on the computer. Local nurseries might night carry all kinds of fruit trees because they have the plants they think will sell to most of the people who are shopping there. And fruit trees are not that popular to plant in small gardens. Deer love the fruit.  Also, fruit trees often have diseases that are too involved to treat for the average home gardener.

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Preventing Herbs from Getting Leggy

TheGardenLady received this question from Sarah:

My daughter and I planted 3 herbs from a pretty herb kit we got as a gift –
basil, parsley and thyme.  They’ve come up, but are pretty spindly.  Are they
just not getting enough light?  Or, is there anything else we can do?

                 

The Nov. 13th column on Indoor Herb Gardens stresses the need for sun. It says that herbs need a minimum of 4 to 5 hours of sunlight.  But a maximum number of hours of sunlight is preferable for the herbs to really thrive. More information on raising herbs can be found on this website. Many herbs are native to Mediterranean countries where the sun is bright for their growing season. Thus when you keep a plant indoors, you try to give the plant what it likes best. So if you have a sunny southern exposure, your herbs will be happiest.

To get the herbs to grow bushier, you should pinch off the terminal bud of the plants and pinch off any flowers you see. The more you snip off these buds, the better.

Herbs, native to the Mediterranean where it is dry, don’t like their roots to be too wet; so make sure the soil is well drained. You can let the soil dry between watering.

Let TheGardenLady know if you and your daughter can now coax your herbs to grow bushier.

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Composting and Worms

TheGardenLady received emails from two people asking questions that are similar. I will try to answer both together as well as saying a few words separately to each.

Laura King wrote:

I wanted to know more about composting and what kinds of things I can put in it. I heard so many different things, I know what not to put in but not everything I could be adding.I also want to know if I can add my used tea bags to my rain barrel? Thanks for your help.I just found your web site, so tomorrow when the ids are gone I’ll be back.Thanks for a great site. Laura your friend in dirt.

                                                                         

Jay wrote:

Heard that putting worms in garden makes the garden grow better. true? How about in flower pots or boxes? inside?

                                                                                              

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