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Picking herbs: Pick herbs in the morning after the dew has dried. You can also harvest them in late afternoon. Just remember that the sun’s heat causes the amount of essential oils (the herb’s source of flavor) to lessen. Harvest FLOWERS as soon as they blossom and are still only half open. Harvest STEMS AND LEAVES just before the plant flowers, when herbs’ essential oils are strongest. Harvest SEEDS when they have hardened slightly. |
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Fertilizer principal nutrients: For healthy growth, all plants require three important chemical elements: NITROGEN for foliage, helping branches, stalks, and stems form, PHOSPHORUS for strong root systems, and POTASSIUM for flower and fruit vigor, promoting size, number and color. That’s always too much for me to remember, so just think LEAF (nitrogen), ROOT (phosphorus), FRUIT (potassium) when you see those three numbers on the box and are trying to decide which fertilizer to use for what. |
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Before pruning your roses, grab your barbecue tongs! By holding branches with the tongs, you can prune branches without a thorny mess. |
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Kill poison ivy without expensive toxic chemicals . . . pour 3# salt into a gallon of soapy water and spray on leaves and stems (the soap in the water allows the mixture to cling to the leaves). |
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Reseeding annuals don't germinate until mid- to late-May -- but don't get discouraged when you don't see any shoots! They make up for a slow start by continuing to bloom until we get a really hard freeze. |
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Edible Flowers... Try ornamental blossoms from your garden for a surprising array of tastes. Be sure to pick them just before you’re ready to use, or wrap in dampened paper towels and refrigerate for several hours. Gladioli are lettucelike, and tulips taste like asparagus or peas. Clover reminds some people of honey, while daylilies have a chestnut flavor. Nasturtiums have a peppery bite, borage is reminiscent of cucumber, and dianthus tastes like cloves. |
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DO EAT... |
DO NOT EAT... |
Borage |
Anemones |
Clover |
Azaleas |
Gladioli |
Buttercups |
Bee Balm |
Clematis |
Chives |
Daffodils |
Daylilies |
Delphiniums |
Dianthus |
Foxgloves |
Hollyhocks |
Hydrangeas |
Lavender |
Irises |
Nasturtiums |
Lily-of-the-Valley |
Pansies |
Monkshood |
Roses |
Oleanders |
Scented Geraniums |
Sweet Peas |
Squash Blossoms |
Wisteria |
Sunflowers |
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Tulips |
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Violets |
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Do you have spots in your garden where you should have planted spring bulbs? Go ahead and transplant blooming bulbs after they've bloomed (or while in bloom if you're adventurous!) -- just make sure you keep them well-watered. |
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Transplant tonic... |
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| 1/2 can beer |
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| 1 Tbsp. baby shampoo |
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| 1 Tbsp. instant tea |
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| 1 Tbsp. ammonia |
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| 1 gallon water |
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Mix all ingredients together. Use 1 cup of tonic to get transplants off to a super-fast start. |
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Ever wonder what that "thing" was that looked like a hummingbird but wasn't? It's the sphinx moth. |
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Best times to fertilize your lawn . . . think EMIL -- translated it means Easter*, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day. |
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* mid-April |
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Wondering if you should cut your iris foliage back? If your foliage appears healthy and you aren't going to divide them, there's no reason to cut them back. But if the foliage is spotted or yellow, or if you're dividing them in the Fall, cut the foliage back (usually in a fan shape) to 6" or so. |
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Plants that deer don't like... |
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| Artemesia |
Dead Nettle |
Lily of the Valley |
| Astilbe |
False Indigo |
Marigold |
| Barberry |
Fern |
Mum |
| Brown-eyed Susan |
Forget-Me-Not |
Oriental Poppy |
| Butterfly Bush |
Forsythia |
Petunia |
| Chinese Forget-Me-Not |
Geranium (per.) |
Russian Sage |
| Cleome |
Gloriosa Daisy |
Salvia / Sage |
| Coneflower |
Grape Hyacinth |
Sedum |
| Coralbell |
Grasses |
Snow-on-the-Mtn |
| Cosmos |
Iris |
Spirea |
| Daffodil |
Joe Pye Weed |
Zinnia |
| Daylily |
Lamiastrum |
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Growing mums: Mums thrive in full sun and well-drained soil. They can be planted in Spring or Fall, but Spring plantings are much more likely to survive Winter. Set plants 18-24 inches apart. Fertilize once a month through July, pinching new growth to remove 1/2" to 1" of a stem back to a leaf. Do this every 2 weeks through June. |
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What's in a name? Latin botanical names may seem complicated, but they simplify gardening, letting you identify plants precisely. |
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Latin... |
Meaning... |
Alba |
White |
Aurea |
Golden foliage |
Elata |
Tall |
Grandiflora |
Large flowers |
Grandifolia |
Large leaves |
Japonica |
From Japan |
Lutea |
Yellow |
Maculate |
Spotted |
Nana |
Dwarf |
Odorata |
Scented |
Pendula |
Weeping |
Purpurea |
Purple |
Repense |
Creeping |
Rugosa |
Wrinkled |
Scandens |
Climbing |
Sempervirens |
Evergreen |
Stricta |
Upright |
Sylvestris |
From the woods |
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