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Only gardening dabbling

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At this time of year (north of the Tropic of Cancer anyway) gardening usually slows down.  This is not without its compensations.  Keeping up does become less hectic.  Still, most of us do not want to really hibernate so what do we do to keep the show rolling forward?

For those of us with a large garden there is always something to do even it is just trying to keep it tidy by gathering up leaves and broken branches.  This is also the time of year to put most of any new spring bulbs into the ground.  For those of us with a small garden or a balcony a little thought can go a long way.  At this time of year we tend to be short of fresh items.  Growing a few herbs can do so much to liven up a meal without much effort.  Some of the hardier items can still be kept out of doors but others really must be kept indoors.  One word of caution, be very wary of bringing pots indoors if they have been left outside.  Insects tend to leave eggs in and around food that we like to eat.  Once the eggs come into the warmth they hatch and the resulting plague can be most unwelcome!  Of course going the other way has fewer problems and one really has to be wary of the frost in the spring.

One can have a splash of colour very cheaply by planting pansies, roses, gardenias or azaleas, in containers with compost out of doors.  These items can easily be obtained from your nearest gardening centre or even your local florist.  Throw in some cheap spring bulbs such as narcissus or daffodils and one can have a boost of colour just as the other plants are beginning to fade.

One can be a real enthusiast and start from seeds but if you are starting out it is more reliable to buy seedlings.  Nowadays just about every supermarket sells growing herbs such as parsley and basil which are beyond the seedling stage in pots.  If one wants the plant to keep on growing through the winter one should “pot up” into larger containers with good quality compost.  The plants should thrive on that for a few weeks if they are watered and have sufficient light but if you want them to thrive into the New Year and beyond you will have to give them some fertiliser.  Do harvest quite often as this helps the plant bring forth fresh growth.  Uncut and some of them will become a bit stringy.  With a bit of luck the plants will still be healthy at the end of spring and can be put into the ground outdoors for the summer!

Article written by London Florist – Flowers24hours.co.uk

 






Happy New Year Gardeners

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Happy New Year!

I’m hoping that all of my fellow gardeners and gardener wannabees are happy and healthy as we start this new year.

I know for many of you your gardens are now dormant since it’s winter and it’s too cold for leaves on our plants let alone flowers! However I’m sure many of you are making plans for Spring.

I haven’t done this for a few years, but this year, come February or so I’m going to set up my seedling trays and start planting seeds. If I remember correctly you have to start Asters, Impatiens and a few other plants quite early in order to have big enough plants for the end of May or early June planting. Of course, the majority of plants that I’ll start indoors don’t need to be planted until March ie Tomatoes.

Luckily I have a good stock of seeds in my cool basement storage. I hope that most of them are still viable! I also collected seeds off a number of my plants this year ie Cosmo, Cleome, Liatris etc so I’ll be planting some of those in little pots and others right in the garden beds ones the soil is thawed in the Spring.

I know that growing some of my own plants will cut our costs greatly. As I said I haven’t grown my own seedlings for a few years now … instead I’ve purchased annual flowers and some veggies at a nursery in late spring or early summer … but enough of spending money on things i can grow on my own! I just have to get started early enough.

Do you grow some of your own seedlings? If so – what types of plants do you start indoors during the winter?

10 ways to minimize slugs and snails in the garden

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I just received a comment on my main blog, Tricia’s Musings, from a regular reader and he said that he lost most of his Hyacinth flowers to slugs this year. What a shame! He must have a very heavy infestation of slugs. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a slug on my hyacinth nor most of my early Spring bloomers.

How do you know if you have slugs or snails in your garden?

Well if you notice that your plants leaves have irregular holes in them or perhaps slime trails on the soil and leaves you probably have slugs or snails. You might also see them crawling on your plant leaves in the evening after dark.

Slugs can do a lot of damage to young plants and seedlings. They can literally strip a young plant bare or even eat it down to the ground. You might try cutting a 2 Liter pop bottle and creating a collar to place around young tender plants if you have slugs in your garden as this will help protect them.

Slugs are particularly fond of Hostas and Delphiniums. However having said that I’ve seen them on about half the plants I grow in my garden so keep any eye out for signs of slug damage.

Some tips on keeping slugs at bay

  • 1. Stir up the earth in your garden beds in the spring. This helps to expose the slug eggs/ larvae and causes them to die from the exposure.
  • 2. Don’t put mulch down until early June (at least here in this Zone 5b area, might be earlier in your area)
  • 3. Add used coffee grounds to the soil or apply around the base of plants troubled by slugs.
    • Each year we make several trips to coffee shops and ask for their used coffee grounds. Most will give them away to the public as they are just throwing them out in the garbage anyway. Some will even take a bucket from you and fill it up throughout the day. We add the coffee grounds to our garden beds, especially around slug troubled plants like Hostas and we also add the coffee grounds to our compost container as they help make a rich compost when they break down.
  • 4. Crushed egg shells around troubled plants is said to deter slugs as they don’t like crawling over abrasive material. Sand, wood shavings, diatomaceous earth, hair or ash can be placed around susceptible plants as an abrasive barrier as well.
  • 5. Copper tape, used wet or dry, is one of the most effective barriers. When slugs and snails make contact with the copper, there is a toxic reaction, similar to an electric shock, which repels them. The minimum width for the copper barriers needs to be at least two inches; slug barriers sold in nurseries are often smaller and should be doubled or tripled when installed.
  • 6. Slugs and snails tend to feed at night so you can go into your garden at night and literally pick the slimy slugs off your plants and dispose of them.
  • 7. You also might try setting some bait for slugs in shallow containers. A popular slug trap is baited with beer, but people have also tried using yeast, damp dog food (dry pellets), and a potato cut in half.
  • 8. You might also try purchasing Nematode worms from a garden supplier. Nematodes also help to keep other garden pests from the garden too.
    • Nematodes aggressively search out and attack slugs. They enter the slugs body through a hole behind their heads (the pulmonary aperture that they breathe through to be precise). Once inside they release a bacteria which stops the slug eating. The nematodes then start to reproduce inside and within 7-10 days the slug is dead. The nematodes continue to reproduce as the body breaks down. This new population enters the soil and searches out new slugs to attack. This is a natural, non-toxic product that is safe for both users and wildlife. The nematodes stay active for 6 weeks so a single dose protects plants when they are emerging in the spring and are most vulnerable.
    • Nematodes can only be used in late spring and summer when the soil has warmed up (to above 5°C). On heavy, waterlogged clay soil, the nematodes can find it difficult to move, so Nemtodes can be less effective in these conditions.
  • 9. Use plants that slugs dislike to repel slugs – Ginger, garlic, mint, chives, red lettuce, red cabbage, sage, sunflower, fennel, foxglove, mint, chicory & endive seem to be less prone to slug attack. Plant them around the perimeter of your garden to keep them from infiltrating, and or plant them near troubled plants such as Hosta.
  • 10. Make your garden bird friendly by putting out a feeder. The birds might pick off a few slugs while they’re visiting your yard. Also if you have frogs or snakes in your garden they will often eat slugs and other garden pests.

And a bonus tip … Slugs love moisture, so if you want to minimize slugs in your garden keep your garden as dry as possible (without killing your plants), especially in the spring when there are slug eggs in the ground. Dry soil could kill them or at the very least cause them to move to an area that suits them better – ie your neighbors yard. That’s one reason why I suggested turning your garden soil several times in the spring, preferably before your soil temp reaches 5 Celsius, as you will likely expose slug eggs and they will die because they’ll dry out.

As you can probably tell I’m not into using pesticides to get rid of slugs and other bad bugs. in fact here in Toronto they’ve banned most pesticides and herbicides so it’s a good thing I’ve been gardening without chemicals anyway! LOL I have a lot of success with these methods – particularly the coffee grounds, turning the soil and hand picking slugs and snails off my plants and as a result I don’t have too many slugs in my garden beds.

May your garden be slug and snail free this year!

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