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Too Much Water Kills; Improper Spraying Won’t

Before getting into the horrible details of death and decay in local gardens this week, I’ll begin with a positive accent: the Heatwave Sparkle Sage. It’s a garden plant that rarely is highlighted in gardening publications, bears hot pink flowers that really do sparkle, and is an instant favorite with hummingbirds. This super hardy plant with the ability to survive the cold damp winters in the mountains of Arizona makes it a ready choice for local gardens. A compact size, extremely low water demands, and blooms from early spring through late fall, all make it a must for local landscapes in need of more summer sparkle. The local crop of this dependable perennial is showing bold colors and at under $15 per plant is an excellent value.

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Now, on to the troubles plaguing local gardens. Notice the humidity is off the charts? Oh, yeah, the mountain monsoon season is in full swing. Increased monsoonal humidity plus afternoon rain signals one of our best times to plant. Warm soils, afternoon rains, and heavy humidity all increase a gardener’s success rate, but care must be taken not to overwater. But, overwatering happens so we have experienced an epidemic of drowned plants being brought to the garden center. This is especially so from areas with hard clay soils that have difficulty with water perk.

Here’s the problem: Watering schedules were increased to get plants through the dry heat of June and early July, but on these irrigation programs plants now are drowning. The soil is not draining fast enough with all the water from irrigation systems along with what nature has been so kind to douse on our region. So, cut back on the water! Personally, I just cut the water to my backyard flowers by 42%. I will monitor the gardens closely over the next two weeks, but it looks like nature will more than subsidize any reduction in irrigation.

I also increased the number of days between watering my trees, shrubs, and vines. With a new vineyard and bramble patch added to my gardens, irrigation was set to cycle every 4 days. Since the monsoon hit, I changed drip irrigation to cycle every 6 days. This not only reduces my monthly water bill, but also caters to overall plant health. Each garden is different so there is no watering cycle to fit all landscapes. Just keep n mind that it really is critical to monitor watering of plants growing in mountain landscapes. Plants DO NOT like to sit in wet soggy soil.

Landscapes with many new plantings should be watered twice a week. For best health and optimum growth plants must breathe between water cycles. In landscapes with a mixture of established and new plantings, automated irrigation can supply one of the water cycles, monsoon rains can provide the second watering, and ‘newbies’ can be watered by hand as needed.

Stop in at the garden center and ask for a local watering guide. This professional chart shows how much and how often to water; it also charts seasonal adjustments. Let’s save as many plants as possible while saving on our water bills.

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This is the season when all that fertilizer we put down in spring reflects in how our plants look and bloom. However, without a summer feeding plants will not continue to perform well. It really is important to feed mountain plants at the beginning of the monsoon season. I blended an all-natural food perfect for summer landscapes. “All Purpose Plant Food” is an excellent granular plant food that works with our mountain environment. Because of the organic nature of this special blend there is no risk of burnt plant foliage or the fear of over fertilizing.

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Garden Alert! Aphids have taken over many gardens. Never have our mountain gardens been inundated by so many of these havoc-wreaking insects. Telltale signs of aphid invasion are wet foliage, glossy ground beneath an infested plant, flowers that once were beautiful but now refuse to bloom, and black ants crawling all over a plant. These are sure signs that a garden has aphids. (Remember that ants reduce the flower count on edibles thereby reducing the harvest.)

I’ve found aphids not only on my petunias and pentas, but also sucking the life out of my squash, cucumber, kale, and collard plants. My usual weapon of choice on my edibles is “Home Harvest Insect Spray”. This all-natural spray is effective if applied directly on the aphids and can be used up to the day of harvest without worry of harmful chemical residues.

Unfortunately, the aphid problem is so bad in my garden this year that I’ve resorted to “Multi-Purpose Insect Spray”, a harsher anti-aphid defense. The spray’s main ingredient, permethrin, is especially lethal to aphids, but it also takes out spiders, scorpions, ants, and grasshoppers. This killer is not organic, so additional care is necessary when using it.

Aphid-fighting tip – Aphids are allergic to the sun so they hang out at a plant’s base and underneath its leaves. Consequently, no matter the insecticide used, your time and energy are wasted if the top of the plant is sprayed. Focus spraying to the base of the infested plant and to the under side of its leaves.

Until next week, I’ll see you in the garden center.

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Blooms to Show Off Garden Parties

As we approach Independence Day and the garden gatherings that follow throughout the summer season, we worry that our gardens can look tired and heat stressed. That is unless we’ve planned ahead for summer-loving plants to take center stage. Because hot weather plants look empty and dormant in spring, not really coming to life until temperatures begin to soar, many gardeners miss out on these heat-loving gems when visiting their garden centers in spring.

With soil temps finally warm enough to nudge these plants onto a garden’s center stage, it’s time to get them into the ground. Below are some of my “Best of Summer” bloomers for Arizona mountain gardens. I guarantee that they will uplift any garden party setting with their bloomin’ bling!

Showy Jasmine – This evergreen shrub is a lazy climber for wire fences or low walls. It also makes a fine landscape plant with fragrant blossoms that can spread out over a large area. Great for tops of banks, on slopes, or anywhere it can sprawl. Its handsome arching profusion of late spring through summer blooms also looks great in raised beds where evergreen foundation plants are needed. A large plant will be under $40.

Chicago Apache Day Lily – Every landscape should have at least one day lily. Animal proof, low water user, and easy care describes this perennial bloomer. Effective in containers and raised beds, it also lends itself to massing in the border or naturalizing at woodland’s edge. Its large blossoms are suitable for cut arrangements. Feathered friends are drawn to it for its bright red flowers with vivid yellow throat and slightly ruffled edges. For less than $30 you can find a large bush with dozens of promising buds.

Etoile Violette Clematis – One of the showiest flowering vines, striking pinwheel-shaped flowers from elegant elongated buds cover this vigorous plant. It’s one of the best for warmer climates as the flowers begin appearing in midsummer and can last through fall. It withstands full sun as long as its roots are kept cool and well insulated with some extra shredded bark. Because it grows to a height of 10’, it really looks good against an iron trellis, archway, or arbor.

Confederate Rose Mallow – Because of its rapid growth and generous six-foot height, it serves as a great makeover plant for gardens. This fast growing plant is used as a foundation shrub to quickly cover walls, create an airy screen, or instantly soften the corners of buildings. The red flowers are HUGE and make a big impact in borders and beds. It’s good for creating a tropical garden around pools and water features, but equally effective when cast as a cottage-garden plant amidst traditional perennial flowers. Best of all, it will bloom in clay soil where most other plants suffer. A big plant should cost under $40.

Scarlet Flower Carpet Rose – There is no other low-growing shrub that is covered with so many brilliant scarlet flowers from May through November. It’s an easy to grow undemanding rose; even the glossy dark green foliage is resistant to mildew and black spot. An exceptional choice for lining a walk or driveway, banks, slopes, and for erosion control, it also is an ideal plant for borders, pots, and hanging baskets. Showy two-gallon sizes are only $29.99.

Petite Plum Dwarf Butterfly Bush – With spectacular fragrant flowers that bring butterflies into the garden and up close to the house, it is perfect to use in side yards where flowers are held up at window level. At just 5’ tall it is shorter and easier to grow than other large varieties of butterfly bush. It is ideal for breaking up long runs of fence, and particularly attractive along picket fences and latticework where its airy open character is a good fit at bloom time. Yes, butterflies do love it!

Stars & Stripes Sun Parasol® – Gardeners are going crazy for this newest introduction, and it’s no wonder: Large flowers, the size of a child’s hand, are star shaped with unusual white stripes that streak through each red petal for non-stop blooms from spring through fall. Decks, patios, and courtyards are the perfect backdrop for this vining, ever blooming plant that catches the eyes of birds as well as those of human admirers. Right now it is available in a large instant party size that’s covered with dozens of flowers.
The point of this list is that garden centers are loaded with summer blooming plants that will drive the summer doldrums out of any landscape and deliver heat loving drama to any garden party.

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Garden Tip of the Month – To get our summer plants off to a good start while keeping water usage to a minimum, just sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of ‘Soil Moist Water Crystals’ at the base of each planting hole; then top dress the root ball with a three-inch layer of shredded cedar bark. This little trick should cut your water usage in half. A word of caution: If you water more than twice a week these plants will not be happy … even in the hottest summer sun.

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Take a gardening class! Every Saturday morning @ 9:30 I host one of my summer series gardening classes. Today’s class is entitled ‘Gardening for Newcomers’. Next week’s class, on July 2nd, is ‘Containers Sure to Please’. Classes are free, informative, open to all, and a lot of fun.

Until next week, I’ll see you in the garden center.

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Creating a Flowerbed

Starting a flowerbed from scratch is not that difficult an undertaking; it just requires some planning. You can plant a flowerbed any way you like – big or small, curved or straight, raised or flat, even in large containers. Flowerbeds can be changed over time so don’t worry about planting THE perfect collection of blooms on your first try. There are many types of flower gardens, no two are the same, and they can adapt as they evolve.

The first planning step is to take a stroll through the landscape to choose the best location for the bed. Get a feel for the shape and size of the yard where you’ll be putting the bed. Take note of available light, nearby structures, the location of any underground utility lines, and the nearest water source.

You can use a hose, spray paint, or kitchen flour to mark out the potential shape of the new flowerbed. If building a raised bed, determine the type and amount of edging material. Once you’ve decided on the location, type, and shape of the bed, you are ready to prepare the soil.

Most mountain soils are a horrible mixture of clay and rocks. Consequently, the bulk of your money and work towards a new bed will be spent on prepping the soil. It’s almost impossible to get too much composted mulch into a new garden plot, but a 3-inch layer turned to one shovel’s depth is a good start.

While turning the soil for any new bed, work in three more amendments in addition to the mulch. Use a good 7-4-4 “All Purpose Plant Food”, bone meal, and ‘Soil Activator’ to really get those plants growing. The food will bulk up the plant, the bone meal will intensify blossoms, and the ‘Soil Activator’ will ensure better root development of all new plants. For really hard soil, consider adding the largest bag of ‘Perlite’ you can find. Perlite is the name of the white bits you find in a good potting soil, but it also works by itself to improve garden soils.

If the soil in your potential garden is really bad, consider using raised beds. In many mountain gardens a raised bed is aesthetically appealing and makes for greater ease in planting, weeding, and tending. To guarantee proper root development, raised beds should accommodate a soil depth of at least one foot.

Now comes the fun part: Choosing the plants! Select plants that are healthy and green. Don’t pick plants with fading blooms or browning leaves, and, when possible, select plants with buds. Perennials usually need to be two years old before they bloom so try to purchase mature plants of these varieties.

With plants in hand, get out your shovel and hand trowel, then head for the garden site. Before you dig, place every plant on the garden’s surface where you think you might like to plant it; then move it around until it’s where you think it looks best. Once placement is decided, you’re ready to plant. The top of the planted soil plug should be just above ground level, not sitting too high or too low in the soil.

Mulch your flowerbed with shredded bark, wood chips, or pine needles. Mulch keeps the weeds down, helps to contain moisture, and creates an attractive, finished look. Also, as it breaks down it delivers additional organic nutrients into the soil.

Water requirements vary for every plant, but generally a newly planted flowerbed should be watered a couple of times per week. If you’ve created a rock garden or planted extremely drought hardy flowers you may need to water only once a week until the plants are established and then only rarely after the first growing season.

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Bean Advice – This week I planted beans in my garden. Beans grow very well at the higher elevations of Arizona. There are two secrets that guarantee they will come alive: One – plant beans after the last expected frost date. Second – coat any bean with granular inoculate. Sold as ‘Fix-N-Grow’, these beneficial soil bacteria allow a bean’s roots to soak up more nitrogen from the soil, thereby increasing the plant’s production. These all-natural bacteria greatly reduce the amount of plant foods needed in the soil. One package is good for all garden beans, cow-peas, limas, soybeans, and sweet peas grown in a garden.

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Facebook question of the week – “My lawn still has a lot of dead grass in it. I fertilized it about a month ago with a heavy dose of nitrogen, but it still doesn’t look as good as my neighbors’ yards. What should I do?”

Answer: A cool-season lawn should look green most of the year, but lawns need more than nitrogen in spring. Here’s my secret. Starting in March rotate applications of “All Purpose Plant Food 7-4-4” with applications of “Soil Activator” every other month. This combination will produce incredibly green results and reduce the need for aeration and de-thatching. I use the first weekend of each month as my cue for this routine. I start with my “All Purpose Plant Food” and water it in well. The following month I use the “Soil Activator”. Be prepared, though . . .your lawn mower will need to be really sharp to take on your lawn’s luxuriant new growth!

Until next week, I’ll see you at the garden center.

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The Effects of Gardeners’ Hearts & Labors

J. M. Barrie, the author of Peter Pan, said: “Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others, cannot keep it from themselves”. Surely, he must have been a fellow-gardener because gardeners create spaces where peace and beauty reign. Their sanctuaries are not just for themselves but are spaces they gladly share with others.
The colors and textures we gardeners splash upon the ground are soaked up by all the birds, butterflies, and passersby in our neighborhoods. But more important is that you and I, gardeners, are the stewards of our small patches of earth, and are among the millions who are helping to heal a wounded planet, one garden at a time.

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When 60 people, of all ages, many of them first time gardeners in the area, attend one of my garden classes on how to garden locally I ask myself: “Why?” First, I find there is a curiosity among gardeners of all ages to trace the history of where our food originated, and to be good stewards of this earth entrusted to us. Secondly, there is renewed interest among younger families wanting to learn about locally growing all things edible. There is an undeniable calling from this next generation to be friendlier to our environment, and new gardeners’ strong inclination to organics is the reason my garden center is a source for purely organic fertilizers, as well as disease and bug controls.

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Most people pigeonhole work and play into separate ‘boxes’ of their lives. The hours of earning a living are in one compartment, other ‘boxes’ are for carting the kids to swim practice or dance class, weekday evenings are for watching episodes of television favorites, and weekends dedicated to long afternoon hikes or kayaking on Watson Lake are to be found in another compartment.

Gardening is difficult to fit into only one ‘box’. Pulling weeds and digging holes can hardly fit in the compartment for recreation, but gardening doesn’t fit neatly into the ‘work box’ either.

What term should be applied to a pursuit that takes so much out of us yet rewards us many more times over our investment? We lose track of worries, stress, and time when working in our yards. Getting out of the car after a long day with brain frazzled, body drained, we find that we can’t wait to lose ourselves tending tomatoes, transplanting zinnias, that new spicy oregano, or those newly introduced geraniums. Although at day’s end we may be left with sore muscles and more weeds to pull, we also find that our souls have been nourished and our spirits rejuvenated. To a gardener, in the hierarchy of all things important, gardening is very near the top.

One reason for its importance is the awe of gardening passed along to our children. It’s the reason I do so much with our local schools. Rachel Carson put it clearly: “If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share his experiences, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.” My grandparents shared with me the magic of their gardens. Together we planted radish and carrot seeds; they got as excited as I did when the seedlings poked out of the ground. We later shared the pleasure of eating what we had grown. In some ways gardening brings out in each of us the inner child and that level of wonderment experienced in childhood.

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Last week at the garden center I spoke with an experienced gardener who had just had a hip replaced. When I asked why she was so active in the garden so quickly after her surgery, she quickly responded, “I’m not letting this hold me back; I’ll be dead before I stop playing with the plants.” Hers are the heart and passion of a gardener.

Experienced gardeners may pull fewer weeds than years past, or find their neglected shrubbery swallowing large chunks of the landscape, but they walk through their gardens with a grace only a lifetime among the bees, butterflies, and flowers can endow.

Gardening is important because it teaches us the joy of nurturing and the rewarding responsibility of caring for a seedling depending on us for light, water, and life. Deep pockets aren’t essential to a gardener’s enjoyment, although sometimes even I am surprised at how much I can spend on a new garden. A couple of 4-inch pots of pansies and a tomato plant can deliver the same exhilaration as a gardener’s most expensive prized rose acquisition!

My dermatologist says “no more sun”. So gardening gives me an excuse to wear a silly hat that keeps the sun off my neck, and to hang out with other really cool gardeners to compare notes on our expensive new shears, colorful bushel basket, or stylin’ gloves.

Gardening is important because it can be part of the life cycle. When our gardening days are finally behind us perhaps some young couple will discover one of our long-neglected gardens. As they cut back the overgrown shrubbery they might encounter some fragrant treasure sowed so many years ago. That treasure may kindle in them something they pass along to their children, and so the cycle continues.

Until next week, I’ll see you at the garden center.

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Springtime Landscape Trait is Freshness

Our spring yards should appear touched by the freshness associated with the season. They should boast fresh new foliage gracing the garden, fresh new bulbs emerging from the earth, and/or fresh new flowers accenting the vitality of spring.

Each year every landscape should have strategic new plants added to it. This will bring a fresh look to the yard and spruce up our neighborhoods. Each of us has neighbors that haven’t added a new plant to their yards since moving in . . . maybe 10 years ago. Now their junipers are barky and splayed open, their roses haven’t bloomed in five years, and their lawns were rocked over after the kids moved away. I actually can drive through many neighborhoods and date the homes simply by the old and tired landscapes in the front yards. I won’t even go into the unfinished back yards.

A landscape should be remodeled for the same reasons a bathroom or a kitchen occasionally is remodeled, to bring a pick-me-up to its surroundings. Without the occasional “facelift”, a yard or garden quickly becomes overgrown and woody without that invigorating show of vibrant new plants.

This is especially true for business and commercial properties; most owners don’t have a clue how run down their businesses look from a customer’s perspective. McDonald’s restaurants made famous the routinely spiffed-up commercial landscape. McD’s thinking is: “If our landscapes are fresh and clean as customers approach our drive-through windows, then they are more likely to consider our food as fresher then our competitors”. This holds true not only for businesses but also for all of us who entertain family and friends on our back porches and patios.

Even in my garden center landscape I plant with a running time in mind of no more than 4 years. For instance, at the parking lot entrance I plant with the expectation that in 3 or 4 years I will cut down a tree or two, dig out shrubs and over-grown grasses and replace them with fresh new plants. This presents a consistently “fresh face” to our customers.

Whether you are new to a home or old to a home, consider adding fresh new plants to spruce up the landscape. It will make you feel better, show off your home, update your part of the neighborhood, and show you care about how the yard looks.

Many examples of tremendously damaged plants have been brought to the garden center; they are evidence of the burning and killing power of a harsh winter. Whether you replace or add one or more new plants, at the very least feed everything in the yard. In spring evergreens should be robust, rich colors. If those in your landscape have lost their vitality and color, and just look sick, they need a good feeding. My mountain specific “All Purpose Plant Food” is just what evergreens need. Although yellow evergreens are hungry to flush vivid new spring growth, everything in our yards is hungry right now and will benefit from a spring feeding.

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This week’s featured plant is the Purple Twist Plum. It is in bloom around town, with profuse pink flowers preceding its deep purple foliage. A really showy landscape plant, this small purple-colored tree is ideal to plant between evergreens. It is large enough to use as a front yard tree in city lots or as a well-behaved street tree. Other effective design uses for these blooming beauties are as matched pairs to flank gateways and driveways or in orchard-like rows to screen out unsightly views. They are available in three different sizes, all good for planting now.

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Mothers, daughters, and gardens seem to go together. So, with those components as the theme, Watters Garden Center and The Daily Courier are sponsoring a photo contest. Submit your favorite mother-daughter garden photo and if your picture is chosen you will win one of many prizes, the top award being a $150 Watters gift card to use for anything you like at the garden center.

Earlier in the week I let my 630 Facebook fans know about the contest, and while I must confess that I love these first entries, I can hardly wait to see what the notice in today’s article brings! It really would be nice if one of the readers of this column were to be the winner. Enter electronically by looking for Watters the next time you are in Facebook. I also posted the entry form on the front page of my web site at www.wattersonline.com .

Until next week, I’ll see you at the garden center.

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Edible Gardens

imgAt the start of the recession any and all edible plants were of interest to my customers. Now there’s no doubt that victory gardens are back and more popular than ever! As an older gardener I am most encouraged by the number of younger customers visiting the garden center wanting to learn how to put in a vegetable garden, plant a fruit tree, start a vineyard, or grow their own herbs. This is an opportunity for our next generation to become interested in the marvels of gardening.

Gardening is one of the most sociable hobbies. New gardeners cannot interpret all the Google garden talk so they are very receptive to neighborly advice from more experienced gardeners. While gardening truly is learned by ‘hard knocks’, killing a few plants is to be expected, but as you figure out your unique soil, shade, sun, and wind influences, fatalities can be minimized from the wisdom of experience. So, let those of us with more gardening hours under our trowels help these newbies increase their gardening successes, neighbor-to-neighbor, friend-to-friend, family-to-family.

My personal gardening interest started when gardening with my grandparents on their farm and in the backyard. It peaked with edible things from the garden. To pick a fresh cucumber from the summer garden, with salt shaker in hand, made me almost giddy. It seems to be that way with many folks. Gardening interests seem to be sparked by edible plants, spreading quickly to flowers, then landscaping in general.

It’s too early to plant tomatoes and peppers, but I did get in the first crop of cool season plant starts this week. Cabbage, broccoli, brussel sprouts, lettuce, seed potatoes, onions, garlic, and more should all be planted this month. Also ready to go into the ground are blackberries, raspberries, grapes, and blueberries.

Blackberries and raspberries have proven themselves in local gardens by producing amazingly well in our mountain landscapes. I highly recommend starting with at least a 1-5 gallon -sized berry plant. It will flush new growth this spring and begin to set new berries in May. The typical one gallon size plant costs between $10 and $15 and will live for decades. Planting berry bushes while they are dormant will reap huge rewards in spring and summer.

Where you plant berries in your garden is fundamental to their success. These fruiting wonders produce best when they have at least 6 hours of sun. Most will produce even more fruit in full sun locations.

Over the years I’ve picked a lot of blackberries and I’ve always ended up with scratched arms. Thankfully, there is a new variety that is my absolute favorite because of its extremely large fruits and lack of thorns. It is the ‘Black Satin Blackberry’, a prolific producer of the tastiest fruits that begin arriving in midsummer. The plant itself is a beauty with small soft pink flowers that fade to white as they precede fruit formation on erect, thornless canes. There is a new raspberry plant being introduced, the ‘Canby Red’ that also is thornless. Both of these varieties allow for pain-free harvesting without the picker’s arms looking like survivors of a cat fight!

Grapes are surprisingly easy to grow. As with berries, because this is the time to plant, selection is plentiful right now. Whether you like table grapes, seedless, or wine grapes, there is only one secret to choosing the best plants: Buy the tallest, leggiest plants available. I look for the tallest plants, preferably with single stems. Plant each shrub as deeply as possible. Put the plants in with soil right up to the first branches starting to form on the main stem. Grapes are one of those odd plants that will root up and down the length of the stem, and in a dry climate this characteristic produces superior grapes. I have planted grapes in two-foot deep holes. This technique is not for berry plants, but it works every time with grapes.

Blueberries can produce very well, but they take a little more care then other berry plants. I just created a new handout specific to blueberries, so if growing blueberries is your passion, ask for this handy, informative guide to producing the absolutely best blueberries ever.

Better yet, this Saturday’s free garden class is ‘Grapes, Brambles, & Berries for Life’. I plan to hand out the new guide to everyone at the class. You will be surprised at how many types of these fruiting beauties are grown locally. By the end of the class you can be an expert on all things edible. The great thing about using a large greenhouse as a classroom is that rain or shine the weather is perfectly regulated for both plants and people. Join us at 9:30 every Saturday during spring for informative, enjoyable, gardening classes.

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If you follow me on Facebook or visited the garden center this week you saw Lisa, my wife, with her arm in a cast. Yes, she fell on the ice and broke her arm just above the wrist after that last storm. Surgery will be this Wednesday to set the bones properly with an implanted plate. The bionic gardener, here she comes! Seriously, we thank you for all your encouragement in the way of kind thoughts and prayers.

Until next week, I’ll see you at the garden center.

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Bailey Compact Amur Maple

BaileyCompactAmurMapleLatin Name: Acer ginnala ‘Bailey Compact’

Description: Bailey Compact Amur Maple has dark green foliage throughout the season. The lobed leaves turn an outstanding crimson in the fall. The flowers are not ornamentally significant. It features abundant showy red samaras in late summer. The rough gray bark and brick red branches are not particularly outstanding.

Size: Ht 10′ x 10′