Green Thumb Momma

In my last post I mentioned that I was going to write down some helpful hints when ordering plants from nursery catalogues.

The first thing to remember is that nurseries are businesses. They are trying to sell you something. They use all the typical marketing skills to get you to purchase . . . so, be a smart consumer. Before I order I always refer to the Garden Watchdog page on www.Davesgarden.com. These pages list hundreds of mailorder nurseries with customer reviews as positive, neutral and negative. Dave also has a list of the top 30 companies. This is a great resource!

On with my list:

1. Double check the growing conditions the plant requires with an outside source (like the USDA Plant site http://plants.usda.gov) including USDA zone, and water/light requirements. Also consider the mature height/spread of a plant and the time it will take to achieve mature size. What other characteristics does the plant have? What's its shape? How do the leaves sit on the branches? Does the seed self-sow?

2. Be aware of great photos! Those great blooms featured in the catalogue photo -- it might take years (depending on the size of the plant you've purchased) to get. Often the photos are only of the plant bloom; what does the rest of the plant look like?

3. Be aware of short descriptions. What does the plant look like year round? Here's an example. I was at a favorite nursery (in person) in the off season just looking around. A Harry Lauder's walking stick corylus avellana contorta was on sale for half-price. I loved it until an older gentleman walked by and offered his advice. "The shrub has no leaves. If you buy it now, you'll put it in a prominent place in your landscape to rightly show it off. The problem is that Harry Lauder's is a very non-descript plant 7-8 months of the year. It's boring with leaves." I took it off my cart and gladly saved myself $50.

4. Do your research. My favorite resource for researching plants is The American Horticultural Society's A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Its thick and expensive . . . use the local library's copy or www.google.com the latin name of your plant for a reputable website.

5. Find a photo of the plant (especially shrubs and trees) with some kind of height reference like a ruler. That full page photo of the most beautiful flower may only be 2" in diameter!

6. Check on bloom length . . . What does the plant look like out of flower? If a plant looks great for the two weeks it blooms, and horrible the rest of the year, is it the right plant for you?

7. Beware of the name! I've seen companies use latin names in place of a common name to disguise plants with bad reputations. Invasive vines, prolific self-seeders, finicky plants have all be "renamed" to make them more appealing. Beware.

8. Other important considerations: What is the nursery's return policy? Shipping dates? How are the plants packaged?

Now, let me say that most companies have great reputations, and are willing to rectify any legitimate customer complaints. The onus is on the buyer to make sure that we are aware of what we are ordering.

caveat emptor -- adepto vestri manuum immunda (buyer beware -- get your hands dirty)

One of the milestones in the annual routine for gardeners is the arrival of fall catalogues. I just received my first in the mail today. I couldn't wait to get my 2-year-old to her nap, so I could peruse is peace. While I love looking at wonderful pictures, letting my imagination run wild, I've made some observations about catalogues that I will share in my next post. Stay tuned.

There is a general perception that spring is the best time to plant new goodies. But, for many plants early fall is the best time. It gives root systems a good long time to get established before hard winter sets in . . . come springtime they've got a jump start to perform much better for you in spring and summer.

So, I've ordered several things from www.bluestoneperennials.com. Bluestone's got a great reputation on websites like www.davesgarden.com, but this will be my first ordering experience with them. One of the perennials I'm hoping will be a success is a groundcover under the Latin name geranium macrorrhizum (not one of the annual geraniums used often in containers). This perennial geranium will hopefully be THE panacea for all my garden problems. A tough plant; it has a good rep as a weed proof barrier loving both wet and dry conditions as well as sun and shade. If only there were such a plant! Wet, dry, light, shade . . . I usually call these weeds . . . or ivy if you've read any previous posts! So the verdict is out on the wonderplant for now. Unlike preciously mentioned daughter who will jump from the stairs into my arms with wild abandon and absolute trust in my willingness and ability to catch her, I'm cautiously optimistic.

Since I'm on the genus species, geranium rozanne is the Perennial Plant Association Plant of the Year for 2008. I've planted two in the front yard. It has bloomed all summer! With beautiful purple-blue flowers, it's sprawling. I'm going to buy more, and try it in different locations. Check out past PPA winners on their website, www.perennialplant.org. I've got several past winners in my garden, and each is well-chosen.

I feel jealous of my friends' well-manicured hands, while mine are rough, cut up, dirty . . . wait, I've changed my mind. Go get some dirt therapy.

When I first started gardening I had no idea that there were actually vegetables that prefer to grown in cooler weather. I thought, "Since you grow tomatoes in summer, aren't all the other veggies grown then?"

This year I've learned a lot of vegetable gardening. Gas prices and food costs are so high; I've been trying to save some money by starting a veggie garden. Also, my son just turned 6, and is old enough to have his own garden spot. He thinks it's cool to grow something to eat, even though he won't let any of it near his dinner plate. (I need to get a copy of that cookbook by Jerry Seinfeld's wife-- where is gives recipes that hide veggies in kid-friendly foods, "Deceptively Delicious".)

So in the late winter I made my wish list of veggies to look into growing. Potatoes, spinach, onions, scallions (for this great pad Thai recipe I have!), broccoli (one L or two?), cukes, beans, snap peas, lettuces, etc. What I discovered was that most of list does not like the very hot summer in my Zone 7, mid-Atlantic garden. We are hot (90 degrees) and humid (90%). At those temps, green tomatoes won't even turn red!! Most of the garden goes into a dormant state in such conditions and stops producing. My sugar snap peas did. Consider your fescue-type lawn. When there is little rain and high temps (like July and August), you don't have to mow as often, do you? Your lawn has gone into dormancy. Shut down under the extreme conditions.

So now I get to have two (next year 3) seasons of veggies in my garden. How cool is that? I've got the broccoli, swiss chard and some bush beans in the ground now. Come early September in go the lettuces; butter crunch, mesclun mix, and red leaf.

I found the transplants at the local Southern States. While there prices might be a little higher than others, Southern States has a great selection of plants and gardening supplies. They do a great job of providing organic materials as well! In the local superstore or the local family-owned nursery, organics are still very hard to find!  I'm going this weekend -- need some organic fungicide!

Consider cool season veggies. You'll get a few more months of growth in the garden. Save more money, have more fun. Get your hand dirtier for longer! Sounds delish.

So my summer veggies did about fair. My sugar snap peas petered out, and my tomatoes developed septoria leaf spot (I identified this disease on the VA Tech Cooperative Extension page - see the links to the right!), but our mini-pumpkins and pickling cukes produced bumper crops. I think my soil be infected with nematodes that cause root galls, but apparently there's not a lot to be done about it organically except to plant french or african marigolds. The marigolds suppress the bad nematodes for a few seasons. I found this information about nematodes and other garden problems in Rodale's Vegetable Garden Problem Solver by Fern Marshall Bradley. Five Stars!

Are there people out there who think that gardening is boring? I'm at a loss, if there are . . . there's always something going on . . .

So, for the first time, I'm going to plant some cool season crops! I've got broccoli and swiss chard already in the ground, and lettuces on deck (literally it's sitting in the shade on my deck, but also figuratively on deck, like the baseball term meaning "the next person to bat." I'm laughing at my own joke, so be quiet about it already.)

We live in an area that gets frequent critter visits; deer, rabbits, raccoons, there's apparently a bobcat around as well. My hubby has a photo of a deer eating one of my tomatoes. Why was he taking photos and not chasing the deer away, you ask? Me too. I asked that question loudly and frequently when I heard about it.

I've been using a repellant product called "Liquid Fence"from Gardener's Supply. It smells like garlicy fox peepee - I'm a big garlic fan, but this particular combo may not be appetizing for some. The odor does dissipate fairly quickly. Although I wouldn't suggest spraying right before you host the neighborhood end of summer picnic in your backyard. Give it a day or two. Having noted the odor issue, the product does seem to work. I sprayed three weeks ago (with very little rain), and I've had no critter visits to note.

So, as my first venture into the world of cool season crops progresses, I will certainly keep you up-to-date. Go get your hands dirty!