Archive for the ‘Lawn and Garden’ Category
5 Tips for an Outrageous Vegetable Garden
Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010
LOCATION
Choose the sunniest location in your yard. Most edible plants prefer 6 or more hours of sun. Placing a SUN STICK in your yard will help determine the best location.
SOIL PREPARATION
The key ingredient to a great veggie garden is soil. Put some extra effort into preparing your beds before planting and you will save time and effort in the future. Dig the bed up to break up compacted soil and add ORGANIGRO compost with VERMICULITE to improve drainage. Adding MAG-I-CAL with humates encourages microbial soil life and attracts and increases the population of earthworms. ACTINO-IRON is a biological soil additive that helps prevent early blight as well as contain iron to enhance root development and plant vitality.
CROP SELECTION
Base your selection on what your family likes to eat. For example, plant several varieties of tomatoes, one for munching (CHERRY), one for cooking (ROMA), one for slicing (BIG BOY) and one for conversation (ZEBRA). Don’t forget the some herbs (basil, oregano, cilantro & rosemary.)
WATER
Vegetables need a bit of extra care when it comes to watering. Consistent watering will produce successful results. If you have a large garden, you may want to consider a soaker hose. This will ensure that your plants get an even watering without getting the leaves wet. All you have to do is remember to turn on the hose!
SUMMER CARE
Fertilizing consistently with NEPTUNE’S HARVEST every 2-3 weeks will give your garden the additional boost it needs to ensure a bountiful crop.
Notes:
Low soil moisture combined with high humidity levels at the plant surface favors disease growth. BI-CARB OLDFASHIONED FUNGICIDE is an organic contact fungicide that disrupts the potassium ion balance in the fungus cell, causing the cell walls to collapse.
Spraying with FOLI-CAL Calcium will help prevent and treat plant disorders associated with calcium deficiency & complement good soil fertility by supplying nutrients directly to the foliage and fruit of crops during critical growth stages (blossom end rot on tomatoes, peppers & melons.)
Put some color in your Memorial Day weekend.
Tuesday, May 25th, 2010
Thayer container gardens provide “right now” color.
Okay, we know that June 21st is the official start of summer, but, really, we know it starts with the Memorial Day weekend. This is when the yard begins to come to life in earnest, when we carefully examine the damage of winter and see who made it through. We scrutinize the lawn. We frown. We buy new work and garden gloves, rakes, shovels, whatever we may have misplaced or thrown away the previous year. And we start to sweat.
We replace a shrub that just couldn’t take the northeast wind on the northeast corner of the house. We smile at those hardy types who are straight and tall and happy to be back. We get the annuals in if we can, and we perhaps a few more perennials here and there.
We rake.
We dig.
We mulch.
And our backs begin to hurt.
We’re satisfied, yet something is missing. We want bright bursts of color up front and visible. And we want it right now. Not on June 21st.
We want container gardens!
We want our pots of every imaginable shape, matter, and color, stuffed with colorful growing plants that are fragrant and full of personality spilling over on our stairways, ledges, walls, and walkways.
And we want them ready right now.
So at Thayer this weekend, we‘ve decided to set aside time and space all weekend to make your wish come true. Container gardens, right now. Just bring in your pots, buckets, barrels, containers, whatever pleases you, to have filled with flowers and green, and we will help you put it together.
Right now.
Two Brilliant Ways to Make Your Garden Pop
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010
Drift Roses!
The Drift® Roses have arrived at the nursery and while small, they’re the next big thing for small gardens.
From the producers of The Knock Out® Family of Roses, Drift® Roses are repeat-bloomers that are tough, disease resistant, winter hardy and virtually maintenance free.
Drift® Roses are a cross between full-size ground cover roses and miniature roses. From the former they kept toughness, disease resistance and winter hardiness. From the miniatures, they inherited their well-managed size and repeat-blooming nature. The low, spreading habit of Drift® Roses makes them perfect for small gardens and combination planters. They brighten up borders, fill in empty spaces, and spread delicately around your favorite established plants.
Come visit us and meet these hardy, new arrivals with the big personalities!
Peony Envy!
The perennial peonies, as well as some tree peonies, have arrived in the nursery and they are truly impressive.
Peonies are very easy to grow in full sun, and they are plants with a long life. The big fluffy old fashioned fragrant flowers are a favorite in wedding bouquets and in centerpieces.
Did we mention they smell great?
These peonies have made a huge impression on us. Let them make an impression in your garden.
Come meet them and take some home.
How To Make Healthy Compost
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
A compost pile is home to a living, growing community of organisms. Experts agree that home composting of organic kitchen and garden waste represents the lowest financial and environmental cost method of diverting bio-wastes from landfills.
Factors that contribute to the success of the composting process:
1. Temperature
Bacteria in a compost pile create heat as they work and grow. The best temperature for speedy composting is about 140* at the center. To maintain good temperatures, an ideal compost pile should be at least 3′x3′x3′. You can start a small pile and build as you go.
Check the center of your pile – is it hot?2. Oxygen
Aerobic, “oxygen-loving” organisms work quickly and without odors. If a compost pile does not have enough air, anaerobic organisms will take over and odors will develop. Encourage aerobic decomposition by turning the pile whenever you add materials.
Odor? Turn pile to add oxygen3. Moisture
All organisms, including those in a compost pile, need water for growth. A dry compost pile will decompose slowly. If it is too wet, the oxygen supply will be limited and anaerobic decomposition could occur.
Do the “Squeeze Test” – composting materials should be about as moist as a wrung-out sponge.4. Food
The creatures that do the work of decomposition view our waste as their food. Microscopic organisms need a mixture of carbon and nitrogen to grow & reproduce.
Generally: “green” materials are high in nitrogen (decompose rapidly), “brown” woody materials are high in carbon (break down slowly).
When Is Compost Finished?
Finished compost is a brown, crumbly, earthy-smelling, soil-like material. It takes between six months and one year for a pile to yield a finished product, depending on how much attention it is given. You should not be able to recognize the waste materials that went into the pile. Screen before using for finer compost & put un-decomposed materials back into the pile to break down further. Once the compost process is complete, you can work it directly into your garden improving the soil structure & soil biology. Sprinkling it on the lawn will keep it green & reduce the water needs of your grass.
The Benefits Of Compost:
- increases the organic matter in soil and helps build sound root structure
- balances the pH of the soil
- makes nutrients in soil more readily available to plants
- attracts earthworms, considered the “earth’s greatest recyclers”
- makes clay soils airy so that they can drain better
- improves the ability of sandy soils to hold moisture and resist erosion
- raises the vitamin and mineral content of food grown in a compost-rich garden
- reduces reliance on petroleum-based fertilizers
Compost recycling does indeed start in your own garden!
planting for the future.
-By Maggie Oldfield Thayer Nursery
Why Should I Start My Lawn on a 4 Step Program?
Sunday, April 18th, 2010
The key to creating a weed free lawn is having healthy soil. Healthy soil creates a healthy plant and a healthy plant resists weeds. Having poor gardening practices create an opportunity for weeds to become established. For example, lawns that are weed infested are usually thin with not enough grass plants per square foot and which are not very well fed. Cutting the lawn too short also allows weed seeds to germinate. If you feed the lawn properly, sow grass seed to thicken it up, cut the plants high enough to shade out the soil, your lawn will naturally resist weeds all by itself with only a little help from you.
But if you have been battling crabgrass in previous years, spring is the time to control it. A pre-emergent should be applied on lawns between March 15th and April 30th. Crabgrass starts to germinate when the soil temperature reaches about 55 degrees. A good indicator of when to apply the preventer is when the forsythia is in bloom.
Corn gluten is an all natural product, a by-product of corn milling that researches discovered that when applied to soils, it stopped the newly-emerged root from orienting & establishing itself. So, the seed tries to grow but can’t.
Spread corn gluten evenly, at a rate of twenty pounds per 1,000 square feet of lawn. Water it lightly into the soil in order to activate it. The corn gluten should remain effective for five to six weeks each time you apply it. A second application should be done in the fall.
On a lawn, it could take up to 4 years or so to get control of weeds. Remember that it doesn’t kill existing weeds; it only stops the new ones, so you have to remove the established weeds. Think of it as an incremental type of control – year one it will control a few – year two there will be fewer survivors and by year 4 or 5, you should have good control.
The only possible downsides to corn gluten is if it rains a lot in the first two weeks after application, it will be dissolved and it will be less effective. It also will stop grass seed from germinating so you can not seed and apply corn gluten at the same time.
We recommend using Organica Lawn Booster. Not only does it contain corn gluten for crabgrass control but it is a great spring fertilizer. It is slow release for continuous greening that feeds both the soil and the grass plant. It helps the grass plants absorb nutrients as well as strengthens your grass so it withstands foot traffic.
planting for the future.
-By Maggie Oldfield Thayer Nursery