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Things to do in your yard in May

15-Minute Gardening– Save coffee pods for seed starters. Empty grounds, rinse, fill with damp starting soil, sprinkle seed and cover with a thin layer of mix. Place in a clear plastic container in which holes have been punch for a green house. Use a permanent marker to write the name and planting date on the handle of a plastic fork or knife.

For a child’s plant starter, super glue the bottoms of two pods, poke holes in the ‘bottom’ of one pod, draw a face on the other, thread a pipe cleaner through for arms, and plant.

Mother’s Day – Gardening is a healthy form of exercise. Share your love of gardening without sharing disease. Order certificates, plants, containers, and/or tools for Mother’s Day or special friend. Many online and local nurseries are having weekly spring discounts

Garden – Weed. If the ground is dry, water the day before. Pinch the weed at ground level and gently tug.  Taproot weeds need to be dug out or torched. Use a small propane torch to wilt the foliage that will dehydrate the roots killing the plant. If it is not killed in a few days, repeat.

Houseplants – Still too cool to cold to leave houseplants out overnight. If not too burdensome, take out each day that will be in the 70s, place in a wind protected area and bring inside each night, or cover with a sheet.

Lawn – Mow a different direction each time you mow. Mow in late afternoon and no more than 3 inches off the grass blades each time to reduce stress.

Carolyn Roof, the Sun’s gardening columnist, at carolynroof02@gmail.com

Caring for Roses

It seems as though for the past few years, spring has snuck up on most of us – it is not supposed to happen in January or February, and then it is catch up time the rest of the year. Daffodils were gorgeous, but came two to three weeks early, followed by all spring flowering bloomers and weeds at the same time while avoiding coronavirus.

Coronavirus has had a major impact on gardening and the flower industry, from spring planting to social events (proms, weddings, Mother’s Day, etc.), just as it has been shut down just as so many other imports have.

If you want to give Mother and other ladies cut roses for their special occasions, it may be too late by now. Don’t despair, however; present her with a Patio, Miniature or other container rose instead or along with a single rose(s).

We just are cool enough that bare root roses can be planted (40-60 degrees). Dig the planting hole using a pointed spade, dig the hole deep enough that a small mound of soil/compost/well-rotted manure can form a mound in the center. In the meantime, soak the roots several hours to one day to rehydrate. Place in the hole so that the new growth is just at the soil level, fill, water and add more mix the next day if needed.

Prepare the planting hole for container roses the same way. Remove the rose by tapping on the container edges, cut into the root ball and roots starting to girdle, splay out and place on the mixture mound.

Patio and Miniature roses may be grown in appropriate-size decorative containers one to two sizes large that the rose’s container. Line with moist moss and ‘plant’ in the decorative container. A friend gave his wife a Patio rose for Mother’s Day and put a new bow on it each Mother’s Day. She loved it.

In the Arboretum – Spring Comes Early

Last fall, Mrs. Wallis’s Rose Arbor was repaired and painted by garden club members as they tried to avoid the decidedly thorny canes. They didn’t always succeed but agreed that the ‘New Dawn’ rose variety, originally planted in the 1940s by Mrs. Wallis, will show off its pale pink blooms against the pure white of the arbor. New Dawn is one of the easiest and most vigorous climbing varieties. Termed rambunctious by some, it also is one of the easiest for a beginner to grow.

Spring has come early this year.

While it is early for roses, the Autumnalis cherry trees (Prunus pendula) are in full bloom announcing that spring is here. Early blooming Tulip Magnolia (Magnolia soulangeana), Star (M. stellata), and the yellow hybrids Elizabeth and Butterfly (M. acuminata and M. denudate respectively) are at their best. Butterfly announces spring with its usually late winter to early spring blooms followed by Elizabeth’s normally early to mid-spring. It is unusual for both to bloom at the same time, giving visitors a lovely show. The wildflowers are peeping up, including bloodroot and Virginia bluebells. Daffodils and tulips are in bloom scattered throughout the back gardens.

Due to the Coronavirus-19 group events many have been cancelled or postponed, but not the splendor of this spring. Take advantage of the plants in bloom and visit the Arboretum, 616 Pleasant Street in Paris KY, or take a walk around the neighborhood or Bourbon County Park, admiring what is in bloom. Enjoy nature’s beauty.

Gardening Tips – April

15 minutes– Install a rain gauge and keep record of the weekly amount of rain in your garden journal. It is a great project for school children. Most plants need at least 1” of rain a week, more during droughts.

In Your Garden

  • Many spring flowers are early and dying due to heat. Deadhead by cutting back to a leaf bud.
  • Daffodils – Cut daffodil stems (for the flowers only) to the ground and allow foliage to die back to 2/3rds and yellow before cutting. Do not fold or braid the foliage as flowers die; the foliage is producing buds for next year.
  • Order spring bulbs for fall planting. A good sources are brentandbeckysbulbs.com and scheepersbulbs.com.
  • Prune back last year’s perennials. If more than 2/3rds of the plant is dead, remove and plant replacements. Sow morning glories.
  • Prune roses back to live canes, remove winter mulch, and fertilize established plants when leaves are 2” long leaves. If black spot was a problem last year, remove any dropped leaves and start black spot spray program.
  • Install soaker hoses and cover with mulch to hide the hoses and keep the ground moist.
  • Make a list of gaps that need filling with shrubs, perennials and bulbs. Take you ‘need list’ with you when visiting your nursery or ordering online. It will save you time and avoid mistakes.
  • Purchase bedding plants that are compact, typical foliage color and with a few flowers to indicate flower color. Plant tags are not always accurate.
  • For Your Lawn: Mow at the highest setting when the ground is dry enough that the mower wheel do not leave impressions in the soil.

Trees and shrubs

Do not prune boxwood until after last change of a hard freeze. Late April check foliage for leaf miner and spray with an insecticide if adults are present. Treat larvae late June with a foliar insecticide.

Dispose of cedar-apple galls on junipers before they produce a jelly-like sticky orange spore-producing substance. The galls are not harmful to junipers but do spread rust disease to apples and other apple family members.

Vegetables – Planting by Phenology

Instead of planting by the calendar, use phenology (plants whose activities usually coincide):

  • When lilac leaves are the size of mouse ears,  plant peas and lettuce.
  • When dandelions are blooming, plant spinach, beets and carrots.
  • When daffodils bloom, plant peas and direct plant Swiss chard, sweet corn and mustard.

Cancelling the 2020 Convention

After consulting with several of you and hearing your concerns about the COVID-19 virus, I have made the decision to cancel our 2020 GCKY convention in Paducah.  West Virginia has already postponed its convention. I’m waiting to hear from Patrica Arndt, our SAR Director, to hear what the plan is for the SAR Convention.
Please express my apologies to all of the members you know who have already worked so hard to make our convention interesting, educational, beautiful and fun!
I would like to wait a few weeks and see how this national health problem develops before we make a plan for future meetings.
Stay safe,
Donna

Garden Tips – February

Ice and Snow and cold

  • So far, we have experienced one of the lowest winter snow accumulations, but we still have two months of possible snowfall. If we get enough snow to weigh down branches, remove it by using a broom underneath to repeatedly but gently lift the branches. If branches are weighted by ice, allow the sun and temperature to melt the ice to avoid snapping the branches. It may take a while for the branches to recover, but they will.
  • Open coldframes when the temperature is over 45 degrees and close at night.

Garden 

  • Look for ‘February Gold’ daffodil to emerge by mid-month, along with other early blooming spring bulbs.
      • When a freeze is predicted, cover with a loose layer of leaves or a light-weight sheet overnight.
      • Pull back matted leaf mulch to check on spring bulbs. If its foliage is white to pale, remove the leaves to expose the new foliage to the sun.
  • Cut back last year’s perennial stems.
  • Remove ivy from brick structures as it damages the mortar. Repair trellises and other support structures.
  • ROSES: Order bare-root roses to plant mid-March to mid-April. Add 3” woodchip mulch to roses to keep the soil warm.

Houseplants

  • Take cutting of geraniums for planting in May. Continue to mist and check for insects.
  • Cut back poinsettias to 4-6”.

Trees

  • Order northern-grown deciduous and evergreen plants to guarantee hardiness. Plant when the ground is workable.

Vegetables

  • Thomas Jefferson’s initial planting of English peas was February 1, with harvest mid-May. Successive seeding gave him peas to mid-July.
  • To know when to seed, check the seed packet that notes the number of days from seeding to planting out. Count back from mid-April, our last average frost date, to determine when to plant indoors.
  • Mid-February, plant spinach.

GARDEN TIP

When using a potting soil that contains sphagnum moss, wear gloves or wash your hands often, as the moss carries a fungal disease that enters the skin through cuts and scratches.

Let’s Grow! How clubs increase their membership

‘Let’s Grow!’ is the theme for this administration, and we have grown!  GCKY has 15 clubs that have grown in membership over the previous year and we have gained a new club!

Some of the clubs have shared why their club has increased in membership.

  • A few new members have come from inquiries on our GCKY website and then local clubs reaching out to them.
  • No doubt word of mouth about the programs and activities is one of the best ways to gain members.
  • Invite potential members and then follow up repeatedly with invitations to meetings by e-mails or calls.
  • Club meeting attendance has even improved when current members have been contacted as well.
  • By placing information in local papers about meetings, activities, and emphasizing that the meetings are open to everyone is another good way to get potential members.
  • Having a flower show in the district brought in two new members who were interested in entering the flower show with their designs…they loved floral arranging.
  • Another new member wants to help their club with a webpage.

Our federated clubs have so much to offer!  There is a ‘hook’ for many potential members.  We need to keep letting everyone know about us and how we can impact our communities in such positive ways!

Congratulations to these clubs who increased their membership!

  • Audubon District
    • Gateway GC
  • Blue Grass District
    • Boone Co. GC
    • Gardenside Green Thumb GC
  • Dogwood District
    • Audubon Park GC
    • Beechmont GC
    • GC of Elizabethtown
    • Rambler GC
    • Warren East GC
  • Limestone District
    • Fleming Co GC
    • Four Seasons GC
    • Millersburg GC
    • Paintsville GC
  • Mountain Laurel District
    • Green Thumbs GC
    • Middlesborough GC
    • Rockcastle GC
    • Appalachian Roots GC (new club!)

Botanical Names

The Arboretum is not just a pretty garden: it is a botanic garden that trials new and old varieties. Some flourish and so do not. They are not failures, but demonstrate that certain plants do not survive here.

Botanical Names

‘A rose is a rose is a rose’ according to author Gertrude Stein. While a rose continues to be a rose, that is not so for the botanical names of many other plants, thanks to research into DNA. Botanically, coleus is no longer Coleus blumei, nor Solenostemon scutellroides, its 2006 name change. As of 2012 it is Plectranthus scutellroides. Not to worry, coleus as we know it still is available at the nursery.

Portrait of Carl Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus

We owe official plant naming to Carl von Linne´(Linnaeus) who, in the 1700s, developed a binomial nomenclature to reduce the confusion of plant names (sometimes as long as 20 words!) or the same name given to several different plants. His Latin binominal classification was based on flower structure.

Over the centuries, plant names have changed. Since the development of DNA, botanists are busily reclassifying according to chromosomes. Reclassification has created new genera, divided others into smaller genera, and moved some plants into established genera. For example, Aster’s 600 species were divided into 11 different genera; Liliaceae keeps lilies, but lost onion; asparagus got its own genera; and autumn crocus joined colchicum in Colchicaceae.

For gardeners, the botanical name assures us that the plant we wanted is not another that has a similar or the same common or regional name. Catalogs beautifully picture their plants, but with so many looking alike, the only way you know for sure is checking the botanic name that is listed after the common or variety name.

The chrysanthemum is an example of a large genera. Ask for Chrysanthemum indicum for a florist mum, C. leucanthemum for ox-eye daisy and 24 other species, or C. ismelia for tricolor mum, its only species.

For a specific plant, use its botanical name. But if you just want to add beauty to your yard, enjoy it and don’t worry about its botanical name.