Yarden maintenance for April

ssgardener and Holly

If I am recalling accurately, the nursery I worked at that specialised in tender tropicals for gardens around here, had me take cuttings of Persian Shield (strobilantes) along about now from the plugs we had been growing on since early Feb in our commercial greenhouses.

These tip cuttings were dipped in rooting hormone , stuck and placed on bottom heat mats in a warm greenhouse run no cooler than 65 degrees.

Persian Shields detest temps below say 60 degrees so definitely warm for them. we didn't send them out to retail sites until Memorial Day as 3 gal plants. Our recommendations were for morning sun or dappled shade (best color). A spot out of the wind seemed to keep leaves looking good, too. The cuttings went out in 4-6 inch pots arond Memorial Day, too.

Oh, definitely pinch back to create fuller plants.

HTH (hope this helps) Anyone else??

This message was edited Apr 25, 2012 7:00 PM

Gita. I wanted to tell you - Because I was so happy to have my own land finally, I went overboard on buying things at first. Soaker hose - triumphantly, I bought one at the end of the season. Used it the next growth season, and repositioned it regularly as I had so many new plantings. One day, as I was gently curling it around to carry it, the doggone thing tore in half. So, that ends my experience with soaker hoses.
Personally, I really dislike those "spitter-oscillator sprinklers." I admired them when young, when we drove past golf courses, I loved the sight and sound, but for the life of me, I can't seem to duplicate it at home. Nor have I seen anyone else duplicate it.
You are so right - that old-fashioned humble type of oscillator is more than worth its weight in gold. So too, my old-fashioned "back and forth" fan-type of sprinkler. Remember running through this type when you were little?

Thank you for the info on persian shields!

I saw them at the nursery today but didn't buy them. I'll wait a bit longer. :-)

Gitagal, I have a question about fertilizer.

Now that I have the new seed coming up, which I did use starter fertilizer at the time of seeding,which fertilizer should I put down now for spring?

marie---I would say--- NONE!

What plant seedlings are you referring to? Flowers" Grass? That would matter a lot.
Have these seedlings been planted out already? Good, rich soil is the first "fertilizer" they will need.

Over fertilizing seedlings can make them succumb and die. They just cannot process the ingredients.
Just keep them watered until they are well established. Then try to go easy....
I have never used a starter fertilizer on my seedlings--maybe only on grass seed. That is why i ask what?

Please do not try to "push" new growth and faster blooming by over fertilizing seedlings.
They need to get established first--before getting the "T-Bone Steak" dinners....:o) If you get the drift.....

Go gentle. Maybe some light, organic fertilizers first--like Seaweed--Or a very diluted MG liquid.

You live in NJ. I live in MD. You are a bit more North. Patience is the best advice I can give you.
WAIT! See how they are coming along. Use fertilizers VERY judiciously until they are full-size plants.

Any one else can chime in here.
I am NOT a GURU. Just using common sense. Gita

I meant my grass seeding...lol But thanks for the tip on new young plants.

marie---

OK! Grass seeding......

Do not fertilize new grass, growing from seed, until you have mowed it 3 times.
By then it will have hardened off enough.
Still--use an Organic type, slow release, fertilizer. I love all the "Tones" by Espoma.
Holly Tone---Plant Tone---Rose Tone---Bulb Tone---etc....
Maybe you can find it in some larger garden centers. HD has a limited supply, but please check.

We also have a product here called "Millorganite" which is VERY good for lawns.
It is a lot cheaper too. HD here carries it. $12.56 for a 36lb. bag. NPK is 5-2-0.
It is the end product of our local Sanitary Water Treatment establishment. Odorless, clean and VERY good
on Lawns. DO NOT use it on any edibles--as it does have Iron and some metals in it.

Here is what the bag looks like:

Are you saying I can use the organic stuff now or still wait?

marie--

If your lawn needs fertilizing--go to a HD and get a bag and put it on your lawn.
It is not a strong fertilizer (5-2-0) and completely Eco friendly.

If you have not yet fertilized your lawn--it would be a good idea.

Not sure your HD will carry it. it may be a local to Baltimore product--but you can call and ask.

Gita

One downside to Milorganite (which is from Milwaukee, hence the name) is that it smells prettty bad (or at least it used to -- I haven't used it in a few years) -- so don't apply it right before you plan to sit outside and enjoy your yard!

Happy---
I have not noticed any offensive smell to Millorganite.
If I stick my nose right into the bag--there is a musty aroma. But, GEEZ! You will just be
putting it on your lawn!
Again--I have never noticed a bad aroma of this product.

Besides--I think it is known to deter deer--maybe their noses are more refined--as this
product IS an end-result of a City's Sanitary Water Treatment Plants.....Think....F-L-U-S-H....:o(

Here is a link to Milorganite.....Check out all the links.....

http://www.google.com/search?q=milorganite+organic+lawn+fertilizer&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Somewhere--you can get to see just how it is produced......it was amazing!

Gita

I know that perception of smell is unique to each of us; I just wanted to caution that for at least some of us, the odor is pretty intense for the first few days, especially once the Milorganite is wetted. My family always complained when I used it. I hunted aroudn on the web, and we are clearly not the only ones who think so! See, for example, http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/banana/msg060055198336.html?22. If you can't smell it, be glad. But if you are using it for the first time, I beg you not to do so 24 hours before hosting a wedding on your lawn....

I was pleased with it generally, but we stopped using it because of the heavy metals in it.... at that time our kids were pretty young ... though there are differences of opinion on whether the heavy metals are a problem as well.

Oh yes -- the other thing to be careful of is that dogs love to eat it. Ours did. So we had to keep them out of the yard for the first few days.

On the other hand, deer supposedly hate it.

lol, Wonder if the Hippie Mulch company does weddings? Imagine, mulch and lawns in the brides colors....wouldn't take much more to do a scent for the day!

I absolutely LOVE Milorganite for my lawn!!!!!! I have noticed a slight scent, but for me personally, nothing major. You're right Happy, it must be a personalized thing, for each person's nose. I have never watered it in since ya don't have to, (and I am admittedly a very lazy gardener), so I haven't noticed any big difference when it's wet, but again, it's gotta be a personalized thing. I wonder if the processing has changed at all since the last time you used it? Are your kids old enough now that you wouldn't worry about using it again? Maybe you could give it another try and see how it goes now? Just a thought. One of the wonderful things about Milorganite is that it contains no salts, so you don't have to water it in, and you can put it down any time of the year, even in the dead heat of summer, and it will NOT burn the lawn. I tend to work outside a lot in the summer, including on my lawn, and have put it down in the summer, like in August, and have never had any burning.
I followed the google link that Gita provided, and there's a really cool site there that includes videos, one of which is how it's made. Here's a link to that page that has the videos: http://www.milorganite.com/en/Library/Videos.aspx Some really cool watching, and it's a short video, too. =)

speedie---

Thanks for the link. I had seen it before--but I enjoyed seeing some of the other videos.

They answered ONE question. I was not sure it is safe around edibles.
I had always heard about the heavy metals it contains. There was a chart comparing the
EPA approved amounts to how small those amounts are in Milorganite--in comparison.

Seems it is safe. Now I can tell my customers not to worry. Used as directed-- it is OK.

I will sprinkle some on my veggie beds. Gita

Anyone use "Chickety Do-Do?" I love it. Worth buying for the name alone - LOL! But, I am going to switch to Milorganite to help deter deer.

Gracye, I've never used it, but that name sure does bring on the giggles. :) Just thinking about the name would be enough to make any gardening experience a happy one! "Hey, whatcha doin' out here?" "Just sprinkling my Chickety-do-do around."
< =D LOL!!!!!!!!!!

Gita, I hadn't caught on to that, about the heavy metals, thank you for pointing that out, now I've learned something new for my customers as well! =) (and yes, I'll sprinkle some on my tomatoes when they grow up).

speedie---
I was not sure about putting it on edibles either.
In the article it said it was OK.

I copy/pasted the table from the article in the link you posted.

Exceeding EPA Standards

Milorganite is tested daily for the presence of heavy metals and pathogens. Milorganite surpasses the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) "Exceptional Quality" criteria (see chart), which establishes the strictest concentration limits in the fertilizer industry for heavy metals, allowing Milorganite to be used on food crops. Check out the MSDS page to view the Material Safety Data Sheet.

Milorganite holds itself to an even higher standard than the EPA requirement on polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), testing for an amount less than one part per million, a third less than the government requirement for a safe product.

Milorganite conducts 18-20 tests daily to ensure it is safe for use. No one else in the fertilizer industry tests this rigorously. Human health comes first at Milorganite and we systematically test more than anyone else to guarantee we put a safe product on the shelf.
Metals and Fertilizer Micronutrients - Milorganite vs. U.S. EPA Limits
Metals and Fertilizer

Micronutrients U.S. EPA Exceptional

EPA Quality Limits / 2010 Milorganite Average

Arsenic-- 41 mg/kg ------ 8.4 mg/kg
Cadmium-- 39 mg/kg----- 0.99 mg/kg
Chromium-- No limit ----- 236 mg/kg
Copper*-- 1,500 mg/kg------ 230 mg/kg
Lead-- 300 mg/kg-------- 70 mg/kg
Mercury-- 17 mg/kg ----- 0.52 mg/kg
Molybdenum*--40 mg/kg---- 10.7 mg/kg
Nickel--420 mg/kg---- 29 mg/kg
Selenium--100 mg/kg---- 2.5 mg/kg
Zinc*--2,800 mg/kg---- 520 mg/kg

*essential micronutrients

I found it yesterday at our Home Depot. It went down as soon as I came home.

marie--

Did you think it had a bad odor? Can you describe it?

we'll be needing a May thread, preferable from someone, unlike myself, who actually does perform maintenance

I guess I'm lucky, there are way more chickens on the Eastern Shore than there are people, although the chickens tend to not live nearly as long - LOL!!!!!! We have a chicken ranch across the road from us, so getting REAL chicken do-do is not a problem since they have a huge drying area and we can tow our little cart over there and pick up what we need.

It had a little smell but not bad. I have used top soil that smelled worse, it really smelled like cow poop. I remember many years ago we had a pet rabbit. Well I would feed the rabbit left over tomatoes. I noticed one day that the seeds of those tomatoes were coming up in his do -do. So I took those little tomato plants and planted them in the veggie garden. Well let me tell you, they were the best tomato plants I had. So do -do / poop is a really good fertilizer, just not your own...lol

Dear Sally, if I ask really nicely will you start a new May thread? I am not sure that I know how to do that, and the old brain being what it is, especially this early in the day and on a Monday to boot, I am not up for it. I will owe you one. I like hearing about what folks are doing.

I only have four days a week that I can do any gardening and I was a bit upset with having rain on both Saturday and Sunday this past weekend. Today I have a doctor's appointment and a shopping errand, so not much maintence taking place here either. It looks as though it could start raining any time again this morning...so we will see.

Even though I got a bit wet late yesterday afternoon, I still got out and did an hour or so of garden work. I see that once again our front bed has a rather large section of sedge grass which is really bothersome. We actually purchased a sedge grass killer last year but have questions regarding it killing the plants around where we will treat, so are holding off for now. I got a bit muddy pulling up the weeds I could but have made progress recently in terms of not being so bothered by weeds. Most of the plants are at a point where they are now hiding most of the weeds, and so I guess what the old saying about out of sight, out of mind is true.

Anyway folks....keep up the good work. It will all pay off in the end.

Ruby

Sure Ruby!
Yeah I too had no time at home for garden, and today is gusty and not appealing to be out.
$ ^P
Hope your hands are healed up from the prickly pears.
Look for this pic to start the next thread- hope my attention span holds out to let me link them.

go to
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1256874/

This message was edited May 7, 2012 3:55 PM