What to do in the Garden this Month

By Jean Gerow 

The "dog days" of summer are here. The Romans called this time of the year the "dog days" because the star Sirius rose right before sunrise at this time.  Sirius is the brightest star of the constellation Canis Major ~ the large dog.  As time has passed, the rotation of the stars has shifted and we no longer see Sirius rise before sunrise during summer.  However, the name stuck.  

The Romans sacrificed a small brown dog at this time to keep Sirius happy.  A mad Sirius caused hot, dry weather: a happy Sirius gave the Romans a nice, tolerable summer.  Rather than sacrificing a small brown dog, let's just give thanks for the bounty of our gardens and the beauty they provide.  Take time during your day to send appreciative thoughts out to your garden and the stars.  Who know, maybe Sirius will bring us wonderful weather!

What to do in the garden this month:

• Keep watering your new woodies.
• Weed, weed, deadhead and weed some more.
• Scout local nurseries for great bargains and talk to your gardening friends and trade plants.
• When planting new perennials, water the planting hole before you plant, then water again after planting and mulch your new plant well.
• Use the hot dry weather to tend to garden structures that need paint, repair or staining.
• Continue to photograph your garden and individual plants, recording in your journal what you love and any ideas you have for next season.
• Water and fertilize your container plants.  Pinch petunias and other flowering plants back to encourage more blooms.
• Later in the month, install trunk protectors on trees to keep bucks from rubbing their antlers on them in the fall.
• Harvest tomatoes regularly.  Visit your veggie garden daily to harvest, weed, and look for pests.  Squash, pole beans, cucumbers all respond from regular picking by producing more produce.
• Day-neutral strawberries may produce another crop if regularly watered.
• August 10 is the target date for your last planting of broccoli and cauliflower transplants as well as seeding of lettuce, spinach, and turnips. 
• Late August, pinch melon and winter squash vines back after they have set all the fruit that can mature in time.
• Early potatoes can be harvested.  If early blight is nearby, definitely harvest now!
• Check your fencing and make repairs as necessary.  Your gardens should look fabulous both to you AND to the deer, rabbits and groundhogs nearby. :)
• Turn your compost pile (or at least keep adding to it!!)

Ahhh, keep your tools sharp and your mulch pile growing - enjoy the bounty of your garden.  

Plant Sex, And Why It Matters

By Pat Curran

Q:  I’ve heard that holly plants are either male or female.  Can you explain this?

A:  Holly plants are indeed either male or female.  The term for this is ‘dioecious.’  The female holly needs pollen from the male holly’s flowers to fertilize her flowers to produce fruit.  (An occasional ‘perfect’ flower, i.e. with all the reproductive parts, may produce a fruit.)  The most common evergreen hollies we grow are the hybrid ‘blue’ hollies, developed by Mrs. Meserve in NYS.  They are hardy to zone 5 and prefer an east or northeast exposure.  This winter, my ‘Blue Princess’ holly experienced leaf browning to an extent unprecedented in 20 years.  However, vigorous new growth is emerging from the dormant buds under the bark.  If you are uncertain whether a branch is dead, scratch the bark gently and look for the green that will indicate life.  Dormant buds take time to develop, however, so don’t give up hope too soon.

common winterberry
Ilex verticillata 
Fruit(s)
Photo by Rob Routledge

Other woody species may also be dioecious.  Bayberry, spicebush, and fringetree are three dioecious native shrubs.  While their fruits are very attractive to birds, it is difficult to buy a shrub of known sex.  Winterberry is a native deciduous holly with red fruits on leafless stems in late fall and winter, often in wet areas.  On a recent garden trip in southeast PA, we observed winterberry in bloom.  It was quite easy to distinguish the sex of the flowers – no hand lens needed.  A quick visit to the nursery may be in order, if the potted shrubs are mature enough to flower.

So what is the purpose of the dioecious condition?  Well, just like with people, it insures that genetic recombination happens, rather than self-pollination.  The male and female plants are genetically different in many more ways than their sex.  Genetic recombination of traits is an evolutionary safeguard.  As growing conditions vary, some plants will be better adapted than others.  Vegetative reproduction may be more efficient, but it is riskier when growing conditions change.

lily
Lilium spp. 
Flower(s)
Photo by Lesley Ingram

Plant sex is much more varied than animal sex.  Plants may have ‘perfect’ flowers with all the reproductive parts, or they may have separate male and female flowers, but on the same plant.

There are also other mechanisms to prevent self-pollination.  Male and female flower parts may mature at different times, but even if they mature at the same time, self-pollination may be prevented.  Apples, for instance, need not just another apple tree, but a different apple tree, for pollination to occur.  Not all apple or pear varieties pollinate one another, either.  Always check the pollination requirements before selecting fruit plants.

Ask a Gardener appears weekly in The Journal during the growing season. For answers to other garden, lawn, landscape and pest questions, call Cooperative Extension at 607-272-2292 or email: growline1@gmail.com. This article was written by Patricia Curran, horticulture program manager at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County.

What to do in the Garden this Month

The Holidays are in full swing!  Break out the pumpkin pie (made from your own pumpkins), mashed potatoes, corn, peas, carrots - all from your garden!!  If you brew your own beer or wine, it's time to uncork a few bottles and toast the season!

Who wants to work in the garden in the snow?  Not me!  If you've followed our posts throughout the year, you should be ready to take a break and enjoy the indoors this month.  Here is a list of items concerning Holiday plant care for you instead of garden care.

• Give holiday plants such as poinsettia adequate light and water. In general, keep plants away from drafts and heat sources.
• Maintain even moisture and remove the decorative foil or plastic pot covers that can cause root rot. Water over the sink and let the water drain out completely.  You then can replace the decorative covers.
• To ensure your Christmas cactus will flower again next year, keep it dry and at a temperature of about 55 degrees for the next two months.
• Real mistletoe is fatal for pets - beware.
• You still can force bulbs.  Place them in a cold place for 2 months then pot them up.
• If you have a live tree for the holiday, dig the hole it will go into now before the ground freezes.  It's best to only keep the tree inside for one week then plant it outside.
• Cut the boughs off your Christmas tree (after the holiday, of course!!) and use them to mulch your perennial beds.  

 Poinsettia are very popular this time of the year.  Here are few poinsettia facts for you:

• Keep them moist but not wet.  A dry plant will lose it leaves quickly and a wet plant will rot.  Test your soil daily.
• They like temperatures between 65- 70 degrees during the day and no lower than 60 degrees at night.
• Place them in a sunny window.  South facing is best.
• If you want to keep them year round and force them to bloom the following year, here is a link to a fact sheet from Ohio State on how to do this.  Generally, these plants are composted after the holidays and new purchased the following year. 

What to do in the Garden this Month

Indian Summer is upon us!  We never know if or when a blast of warm weather will hit, but we love it when it does!  Don't worry, frost will be here and the leaves will change all too soon.  I love to start new hardscape projects this time of the year.  My enthusiasm for gardening has not dropped off but harvesting and maintenance has, giving me time and energy to build a new fence or put in a new bed.  There's always a bed to dig up and re-do ~ it's a wonderful time of year to dig!!

Here's a list of tasks for the garden this month.  Enjoy!

• Dethatching your lawn is a great task to do early this month.   
• Rake leaves and add them to your compost pile.
• While you are at it, turn the compost pile.
• Dig up tender herb plants such as rosemary, thyme and transplant in containers to bring indoors.  These plants need a rest period so keep them in a cooler area of your house over the winter.  Enjoy adding them to culinary dishes throughout the winter.
• Brussel sprouts, kale, and kohlrabi are cold-tolerant veggies and best harvested in cooler weather. 
• Plant garlic cloves for next season.  
• Beets, carrots, leeks and turnips will survive into early winter if mulched with straw or leaves. 
• Continue to add spring flowering bulbs to your gardens.
• Cut dahlias back and dig up the tubers after the first heavy frost. Brush off dirt and air dry.  Share some with your friends.  Store tubers in a cardboard box between layers of vermiculite, peat moss, saw dust or wood shavings.  The bulbs can also be potted in a soilless mix and stored in the cellar or heated garage.  Do not water until mid-May. Store at 35 - 45 degrees.
• Canna bulbs must be dug up once a heavy frost hits.  Cut back the stalks, dig up the bulbs and store them in an airy container with peat moss or rice hulls to help maintain bulb moisture.
• Transplant trees or shrubs now. Water them well.
• Gather fallen leaves, twigs, fruit and debris to keep disease at a minimum. 
• Remove spent annuals from your garden.  Compost them. :)
• Cut back spent perennial foliage to 3" or so.  Compost the stalks.

What to do in the Garden this Month

Whew!  Fall is right around the corner and we find ourselves busy harvesting, canning, freezing and generally enjoying the bounty of another great year in the garden.  As you prepare for the upcoming Labor Day celebrations, take a few minutes and walk through your gardens.  Enjoy the beauty you have created (with a little help from Mother Nature!!) and actually smell some flowers.  Roses are my favorite but any will do.  Watch out for small bees and crab spiders: it's a busy time for them as well!!!

Here are a few tasks to do this month.

• Cool nights and ample precipitation mean it is time to fertilize your lawn.
• Early September is an excellent time to sow grass seeds.  Be sure to water the area seeded frequently so it grows in well.
• If broadleaf weeds (dandelions or plantains, for instance) are a problem in your yard, herbicides can be effective if applied now and in accordance with product recommendations.  Alternatively, hand weeding in moist soil helps - be sure to get the taproot!!
• Pick your warm season veggies before frost hits.  This includes squash, melons, tomatoes, eggplants and peppers.  
• Pumpkins and gourds should be ready now.  Store in a dry, cool cellar after washing with a weak bleach solution to retard mold.
• Pick herbs on a cool, dry morning for drying or freezing.
• Sow lettuces and mixed greens for harvest later in the season.
• Turn your compost pile.
• Begin planting spring flowering bulbs in your flower beds.
• Divide your day lilies and give some to your friends. 
• Divide and plant spring blooming perennials now, especially if they haven't been divided in 3 or more years.  These make fabulous gifts for your gardening buddies!
• Remove spent annuals.
• Houseplants that have been kept outside should get a good washing before bringing in the house.  Check their pots for ants, spiders, or any insect you do not want in your house. 
• Later in the month, begin planting your garlic for next year.  

What to do in the Garden this Month

The "dog days" of summer are here. The Romans called this time of the year the "dog days" because the star Sirius rose right before sunrise at this time.  Sirius is the brightest star of the constellation Canis Major ~ the large dog.  As time has passed, the rotation of the stars has shifted and we no longer see Sirius rise before sunrise during summer.  However, the name stuck. 

The Romans sacrificed a small brown dog at this time to keep Sirius happy.  A mad Sirius caused hot, dry weather: a happy Sirius gave the Romans a nice, tolerable summer.  Rather than sacrificing a small brown dog, let's just give thanks for the bounty of our gardens and the beauty they provide.  Take time during your day to send appreciative thoughts out to your garden and the stars.  Who know, maybe Sirius will bring us wonderful weather!

What to do in the garden this month:

• Keep watering your new woodies.
• Weed, weed, deadhead and weed some more.
• Scout local nurseries for great bargains and talk to your gardening friends and trade plants.
• When planting new perennials, water the planting hole before you plant, then water again after planting and mulch your new plant well.
• Use the hot dry weather to tend to garden srtuctures that need paint, repair or staining.
• Continue to photograph your garden and individual plants, recording in your journal what you love and any ideas you have for next season.
• Water and fertilize your container plants.  Pinch petunias and other flowering plants back to encourage more blooms.
• Later in the month, install trunk protectors on trees to keep bucks from rubbing their antlers on them in the fall.
• Harvest tomatoes regularly.  Visit your veggie garden daily to harvest, weed, and look for pests.  Squash, pole beans, cucumbers all respond from regular picking by producing more produce.
• Day-neutral strawberries may produce another crop if regularly watered.
• August 10 is the target date for your last planting of broccoli and cauliflower transplants as well as seedings of lettuce, spinach, and turnips. 
• Late August, pinch melon and winter squash vines back after they have set all the fruit that can mature in time.
• Early potatoes can be harvested.  If early blight is nearby, definitely harvest now!
• Check your fencing and make repairs as necesary.  Your gardens should look fabulous both to you AND to the deer, rabbits and groundhogs nearby. :)
• Turn your compost pile (or at least keep adding to it!!)

Ahhh, keep your tools sharp and your mulch pile growing - enjoy the bounty of your garden. 

Learn About Growing Hazelnuts in NYS

 

Can hazelnuts (filberts) be grown in as a commercial crop in New York State? Visit the rural property of Dawn and Jeff Zarnowski in McGraw, Cortland County on Saturday August 3 and learn about the possibilities. The Zarnowskis have been growing hazelnuts for some fifteen years and they will explain the basics of hazelnut growing and give a tour of their hazelnut plantings.

 

This full day program is sponsored by the New York Nut Growers Association and will feature presentations by leading horticulturists and plant breeders from Cornell University, Rutgers University, Minnesota and Oregon. These presentations will introduce new cultivars of hazelnut that are resistant to disease and freezing. They will report on successful steps taken to mechanize hazelnut planting and harvesting to allow for larger scale commercial production.

 

The full program agenda is below and also available online at www.nynga.org. The program is free and open to the public but registration is requested. There will also be a buffet lunch served on site for $15.00 – registration is required for this to help plan for the buffet lunch. Registration forms can be obtained from the NYNGA website along with driving directions to the Zarnowski property.

 

For more information, contact John Wertis, NYNGA Program Coordinator at (607)387-4331 or at bwwfarmtoday@aol.com 

 

 

   Agenda

8:30-9:00	Sign in, Snacks, and Chat
9:00-9:30	Welcome and Hazelnuts 101 Talk (Jeff Zarnowski)
9:30-10:00	Genetic Diversity in Hazelnut Research (Megan Muehlbauer, Rutgers)
10:00-10:30	Ongoing Hazelnut Research at Rutgers/Hazelnut Consortium Activity (Dr. Tom Molnar, Rutgers)
10:30-12:00	Walk-About and Talk-About: Z's Nutty Ridge LCC, Hazelnuts and Otherwise (Jeff and Dawn Zarnowski)
12:00-1:00	Lunch and Time to Chat
1:00-1:30	NYNGA Meeting
1:30-2:00	West Coast Hazelnut Cultivars in the Northeast (Dr. Tom Potts)
2:00-2:30	Cornell's Dilmun Hill Planting of Mark Shephard Wisconsin Hazelnuts (Prof. Ken Mudge and Cornell Students)
2:30-3:00	Commercial Hazelnut Growing Opportunities in Southern Ontario and Optimism for Hazelnut Plantings in the Future (OMAFRA Literature and Speaker TBA)