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We’re getting new neighbors

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On January 1st the home next door will have new people living in it. Renters … not sure how I feel about that.

Sofie, my former neighbor (and stalker) and owner of the house, had a stroke last February and she’s now living with her youngest son. The family tried to sell the house in the Fall but it didn’t sell so they decided to rent until the housing market is a little better.

So … come January 1st a lady with two kids and a young boyfriend will be moving in. The kids are 6 and 9 years old or so we’ve heard. We haven’t met the new people, but in talking with our former neighbors son it sounds like the people gave them an “iffy” feeling. I hope they turn out to be ok neighbors.

Our former neighbors on the other side of our house had a kid, but we have a high fence on that side so we only had to deal with the occasional toy thrown into our garden.

The side of the house that the new neighbors will be on has a shorter chain link fence and some of our roses and other plants tend to hang over or creep over to their side of the yard.

I hope that the kids are well behaved and don’t start pulling on my plants or damaging them come Spring and Summer.

In the Spring Chris and I will take a good look at the roses and Rose of Sharon that’s growing on that side of the yard and give them a trim in order to make sure that they aren’t going into the neighbors yard.

If you have neighbors with kids or possibly bad neighbors have they ever gotten into your garden or damaged your plants? Yes I know, some of you will probably have horror stories of wars with neighbors.

I’m just asking since I’m used to having older neighbors around rather than young kids. I also have some poisonous plants in my garden (monkshood, Datura etc) and that’s another reason why I hope that the new neighbors kids are good and stay in their own yard.






Growing Hydrangeas

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Hydrangeas are a favorite shrub of many gardeners because of their eye catching blooms.

The majority of Hydrangeas originate from Asia and North America.

Hydrangea in October Hydrangea Macrophyllia (Mophead and Lacecap) are common in the Atlantic border states. They have big leaves, and their blooms come in colors of blue, lavender, pink and white. Other common hydrangeas are Paniculata or panicle hydrangea (PeeGee and family), Hydrangea arborescens (Annabelle) and Hydrangea quercifolia (Oakleaf). There’s also Hydrangea anomola-petiolaris (climbing hydrangea). You can find this last hydrangea growing on the northern side of buildings. Depending upon which variety you purchase, you could have blooms from Summer to Autumn.

If you’d like to have a garden that almost always has something in bloom, plant hydrangea near rhododendrons, azaleas and or forsythia and you’ll have blooms and color from spring through to fall. I also have my hydrangea growing near a lovely clump of peonies.

Some species of Hydrangea, the Macrophylia in particular, will bloom either pink or blue depending upon the PH of your soil. Acidic soil will produce blue or violet flowers, while a slightly alkaline to neutral soil will give you pink or white blossoms. Hydrangea blooms can range from 5 to 10 inches in diameter depending upon the species.

How to grow Hydrangeas:

  • Hydrangeas prefer light to medium shade, although large leafed hydrangeas seem to be able to handle full sun if they are given enough water.
  • Hydrangea’s need moist well draining soil.
  • Hydrangeas don’t require a lot of fertilizer. A good feeding in the spring is often sufficient. Compost or manure mixed into the soil near the plant will often be sufficient. You might also want to try Liquid Seaweed extract. It’s an organic fertilizer.

Pruning:

Big leaved Hydrangeas flower on old wood (previous seasons growth) so if you must prune only prune about a third of the weakest growth in early spring. Otherwise, prune immediately after your hydrangea has flowered.

You can visit this site to learn more about the proper care of your species of hydrangea. You might also want to visit the Hydrangea Forum at GardenWeb and talk with other hydrangea owners and gardeners.

Spring tasks to get your garden growing

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It’s been a long winter

Many of us in the North experienced one of the snowiest winters that we’ve had in years. Cool temperatures are continuing even though it’s already officially spring. I’d say that this year we’re probably going to be two or three weeks behind on our normal Spring gardening tasks.

Normally the snow is gone, or just about gone, by this time in March. In fact I usually have crocus’ and snowdrops blooming by now. However, if you experienced the same winter I did your garden is likely still buried under snow!

Still … it’s time to think about Spring gardening tasks.

I’m sure some of you have already started cleaning up your garden and preparing for the season ahead. Those of us that are still unable to get out into the garden, well … we can at least make sure that our gardening tools are in order, oil and sharpen our pruners and purchase any supplies that we need so that we’ll be able to catch up once the snow finally melts!

Spring Tasks

  • As I stated above, this is a great time of year to maintain your gardening tools by cleaning, sharpening and oil pruners, having your lawnmower blades sharpened, buying new gardening gloves and any other items that you might need throughout the coming months.

  • Once the grass is no longer wet and the soil in your garden beds dries out begin your outdoor tasks by raking the lawn to get rid of leaves, twigs and other debris that has accumulated in your yard thanks to winter winds.

  • Rake the dead growth from your lawn.

  • If you have damaged or bare patches on your lawn purchase some grass seed and re-seed those areas. Be sure to scratch the soil with a rake first and then apply grass seed to the area. Lightly cover the seed with a thin layer of soil and be sure to keep the area well watered until the seeds germinate and new grass begins to appear.

  • If you protected your shrubs, trees or any garden plants over winter it’s time to remove the winter protect. As the air warms it’s very important that your shrubs and trees have good air circulation around them. Leaving burlap or other forms of winter protect on too long can lead to bark rot.

  • This is also a great time of year to plant new trees, shrub, roses and other hardy dormant plants. Also if you have any trees or shrubs that you’d like to transplant elsewhere in your yard do it before they begin to leaf out.

  • Many trees and shrubs benefit from a spray of dormant oil as this helps to control scale insects and other overwintering pests. Euonymus, magnolias, crabapples and other fruit trees should be sprayed when their buds are in swell.

  • Take a good look at your garden beds and if you notice that any of your plants have come up out of the earth to the freeze and thaw cycles at this time of year. Replant any heave-ho victims as soon as possible. Most will recover nicely if you find them and replant while it’s still cool.

  • Wait until temperatures are reliably warm before you begin to remove mulch and cut back plants such as roses, evergreen plants and shrubs. You can cut off obviously dead branches but don’t cut into live branches until there’s no chance of frost or a return of cold weather. If you aren’t sure what to cut then just wait until it’s a little warmer and your plant is showing obvious signs of growth. Once you do feel it’s time to prune it’s best to prune plants such as roses before they leaf out.

  • Clear your garden of the previous seasons dead plant material such as dead leaves and other debris as they can harbor molds and overwintering pests.

  • Ornamental grasses can be cut back at this time as well.

  • Don’t overwork your garden beds by digging too early. The soil structure is delicate and if you dig in it while it’s still wet you can damage it’s composition. Soil should fall apart when you pick up a handful. If it sticks together in a clump wait until it dries out a bit more.

  • Once the soil has dried out you can begin to dig garden beds, add manure, compost and prepare for the planting of new perennials, annuals and vegetables.

  • Weeds will likely be some of the first green growth you see in your garden. Pluck them out now while they are still young and their roots are shallow. It will mean less work for you later on!

  • Don’t forget to care for your houseplants. The winter months can be hard on house plants as the air is often dry inside the house due to forced air heating. The light levels have also been lower too. Perhaps take a few moments to pick off any dead leaves, top up their soil and lightly fertilize your houseplants so they too will have a great spring start.

Happy Gardening!

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