Josh Kilmer-Purcell's Blog, page 107

Preparing the Spring Garden, Part 4: Pruning & Soil pH

[image error]

 

Is it safe yet?  Can I really start inching my way to the garden shed in anticipation of spring?  A few inches of snow on the ground won't stop me.  A foot?  Nahhhhhh.  Spring fever has a way of distorting reality.

If like many gardeners, you are scared about what might have happened to the gardens after a long winter, do what I do.  Take a deep breath and march boldly out to your garden and face it like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz – before he gets a heart.  You might be pleasantly surprised to find the damage is not as bad as expected.  It's sort of like when my teenage son called me from school the other day to tell me he was in the principal's office.  I took a DEEP BREATH, braced myself, and asked why.  Much to my delight, it involved helping out with a special community servce program.  EXHALE.  Even as I write this blog, I think I can see the tips of my Lenten Rose making their way through the warming soil, despite the challenge of a soccer ball sitting on top of it from my son's misplaced kick last fall.

Turning to something more uplifting, let's continue with my spring to-do list in the garden.

Cut back the following perennials in early April: Lavender, Montauk Daisy, Russian Sage, Hypericum and Mums.

pH isn't phooey. I used to think pH was only something that Master Gardeners, professional landscapers or chemists had to be concerned with. To explain, I will use the KISS approach (Keep It Simple, Silly). pH affects a plant's ability to take up nutrients from the soil. If your soil's pH is not in the optimum range, then your plants can become anemic, weakened, prone to disease and stunted in growth. Allow me to use my son's love of macaroni and cheese as an illustration. I could put a huge bowl of that awful, fluorescent orange, boxed macaroni and cheese (his favorite) in front of him and tie his hands behind his back so he couldn't (theoretically) get it into his mouth. All of that 'good stuff' is right there next to him but he is unable to partake. Same thing with nutrients and your plants' roots. You could put a lot of sweat equity into working organic amendments into your soil and if the pH is off, you are not seeing the results of your hard work. And if like many, you try to make up for the garden's lackluster appearance with fertilizer, you would just be wasting money as the fertilizer also bypasses the roots.

Soil pH is measured on a scale from 1-14. Seven is considered neutral. Anything above 7 is alkaline (also referred to as basic or sweet). Anything lower than 7 is acidic. Most perennials, annuals, bulbs, shrubs and trees prefer to be in the 6.0 – 7.0 range. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule, as my teenage son reminds me. Acid loving shrubs like Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Mountain Laurels, blue Hydrangeas, Blueberry bushes, and Japanese Andromeda prefer a pH between 5.0 – 5.5. Swinging to the other side of neutral are Lilacs, pink Hydrangeas, Clematis, Dianthus, Delphinium, Lavender and Lenten Roses. These enjoy 7.0 – 7.5. If you choose to do you own pH test, follow the kit's instructions carefully. Some require the sample to be moist, others dry. There are also pH soil probes available. You simply put the probe in the soil and read the meter.  Or you can take your sample to a regional Cooperative Extension office or soil testing lab.

Prune many summer and fall flowering shrubs in late winter or early spring before they set flower buds.  At this time the plant is still 'asleep'; it doesn't even see you coming. But before you race out with your hand pruners or loppers, understand that there is a common misconception that all shrubs must be pruned every year, as if this is a golden rule. Not. Just because you plant a flowering shrub doesn't mean the pruners must come.  Reasons for pruning include:

To remove dead, damaged or diseased wood.


To maintain a shrub's size and proportion. Don't try to manipulate a larger shrub into a smaller space by severe pruning. It's better to buy a shrub that matures to, or close to, the size you ultimately want.


To promote a healthy, more vigorous shrub by thinning out older wood and allowing younger wood to replace it. This typically encourages more blooms since the plant's energy is channeled to fresh blooms instead of supporting older wood.


To rejuvenate older shrubs and bring them back to a healthy state.


To remove branches on shrubs that bloom on old new wood while the plant is still dormant. This way it doesn't waste energy directing food to limbs that will be cut off.

 

If a summer or fall flowering shrub fits one or more of the above criteria, then have at it.  Shrubs falling into this group include Rose of Sharon, Panicle Hydrangeas (H. paniculata), Spirea, Potentilla, Blue Mist Shrub, Butterfly Bush, Summersweet and Bush Clover.

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471

 

Learn more about preparing your garden for Spring.  Click here

Preparing the Spring Garden, Part 4

[image error]

 

Is it safe yet?  Can I really start inching my way to the garden shed in anticipation of spring?  A few inches of snow on the ground won't stop me.  A foot?  Nahhhhhh.  Spring fever has a way of distorting reality.

If like many gardeners, you are scared about what might have happened to the gardens after a long winter, do what I do.  Take a deep breath and march boldly out to your garden and face it like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz – before he gets a heart.  You might be pleasantly surprised to find the damage is not as bad as expected.  It's sort of like when my teenage son called me from school the other day to tell me he was in the principal's office.  I took a DEEP BREATH, braced myself, and asked why.  Much to my delight, it involved helping out with a special community servce program.  EXHALE.  Even as I write this blog, I think I can see the tips of my Lenten Rose making their way through the warming soil, despite the challenge of a soccer ball sitting on top of it from my son's misplaced kick last fall.

Turning to something more uplifting, let's continue with my spring to-do list in the garden.

Cut back the following perennials in early April: Lavender, Montauk Daisy, Russian Sage, Hypericum and Mums.

pH isn't phooey. I used to think pH was only something that Master Gardeners, professional landscapers or chemists had to be concerned with. To explain, I will use the KISS approach (Keep It Simple, Silly). pH affects a plant's ability to take up nutrients from the soil. If your soil's pH is not in the optimum range, then your plants can become anemic, weakened, prone to disease and stunted in growth. Allow me to use my son's love of macaroni and cheese as an illustration. I could put a huge bowl of that awful, fluorescent orange, boxed macaroni and cheese (his favorite) in front of him and tie his hands behind his back so he couldn't (theoretically) get it into his mouth. All of that 'good stuff' is right there next to him but he is unable to partake. Same thing with nutrients and your plants' roots. You could put a lot of sweat equity into working organic amendments into your soil and if the pH is off, you are not seeing the results of your hard work. And if like many, you try to make up for the garden's lackluster appearance with fertilizer, you would just be wasting money as the fertilizer also bypasses the roots.

Soil pH is measured on a scale from 1-14. Seven is considered neutral. Anything above 7 is alkaline (also referred to as basic or sweet). Anything lower than 7 is acidic. Most perennials, annuals, bulbs, shrubs and trees prefer to be in the 6.0 – 7.0 range. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule, as my teenage son reminds me. Acid loving shrubs like Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Mountain Laurels, blue Hydrangeas, Blueberry bushes, and Japanese Andromeda prefer a pH between 5.0 – 5.5. Swinging to the other side of neutral are Lilacs, pink Hydrangeas, Clematis, Dianthus, Delphinium, Lavender and Lenten Roses. These enjoy 7.0 – 7.5. If you choose to do you own pH test, follow the kit's instructions carefully. Some require the sample to be moist, others dry. There are also pH soil probes available. You simply put the probe in the soil and read the meter.  Or you can take your sample to a regional Cooperative Extension office or soil testing lab.

Prune many summer and fall flowering shrubs in late winter or early spring before they set flower buds.  At this time the plant is still 'asleep'; it doesn't even see you coming. But before you race out with your hand pruners or loppers, understand that there is a common misconception that all shrubs must be pruned every year, as if this is a golden rule. Not. Just because you plant a flowering shrub doesn't mean the pruners must come.  Reasons for pruning include:

To remove dead, damaged or diseased wood.


To maintain a shrub's size and proportion. Don't try to manipulate a larger shrub into a smaller space by severe pruning. It's better to buy a shrub that matures to, or close to, the size you ultimately want.


To promote a healthy, more vigorous shrub by thinning out older wood and allowing younger wood to replace it. This typically encourages more blooms since the plant's energy is channeled to fresh blooms instead of supporting older wood.


To rejuvenate older shrubs and bring them back to a healthy state.


To remove branches on shrubs that bloom on old new wood while the plant is still dormant. This way it doesn't waste energy directing food to limbs that will be cut off.

 

If a summer or fall flowering shrub fits one or more of the above criteria, then have at it.  Shrubs falling into this group include Rose of Sharon, Panicle Hydrangeas (H. paniculata), Spirea, Potentilla, Blue Mist Shrub, Butterfly Bush, Summersweet and Bush Clover.

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471

Simple Kale Salad

 

[image error]

 

It's no surprise that kale is one of our favorites.  A green hearty enough to last a mild winter welcome roughage in a season dominated by starches and proteins.

On a recent visit to the farm, a friend whipped us this easy salad, and we fell in love (with both the salad and the friend).

 

Raw Kale and Avocado Salad

Ingredients

6 cups of kale

1 tsp Grey Celtic Salt (or any large grain salt you have on hand)

One large lemon

2 avocados

 

Instructions

Shredded or chopped or whole leaf, place kale in a bowl and sprinkle with the salt

Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the kale (this helps soften the leaf)

Using your hands, massage the kale with the salt & lemon

Dice the avocado into half-inch pieces and then massage into the kale until pieces are pulverized, allowing the fats to coat the kale leaves

VARIATIONS

add a pinch of cayenne pepper (my favorite)

add a pinch of cumin (can be combined with cayenne)

add chopped tomatoes

 

If you come up with interesting variations of your own, please let us know in the comments section below

Preparing the Spring Garden, Part 3: Dividing & Edging

[image error]

 

I'm getting less relief from spring fever by staring at my terrarium and silk flower arrangements. I've thought about setting up my lawn chair inside Faddegon's Nursery's (www.faddegons.com) lush greenhouse filled with orchids, tropicals and houseplants but I'm afraid I'd be asked to leave, especially after unwrapping my open-faced Limberger, liverwurst and onion sandwich.  I could always sit next to the flowering Imperial Fritillaria bulbs that smell like skunk and see if that helps me blend in better.

To distract myself, I'll continue sharing spring tips for creating masterpiece gardens.

April and May are terrific months to take a no-nonsense attitude towards many perennials that have overstepped their bounds. Thuggish perennials can swarm their neighbors, resulting in messy looking beds as well as lackluster flowering from too many roots per square foot competing for limited nutrients and water.  Why does Black Friday come to mind?  A majority of perennials (summer and fall bloomers) can be divided in spring after plants poke their heads above ground.  By whacking them now, gifting or transplanting large sections elsewhere, and applying a fresh mulch to cover your tracks, you will create a lovely, tidy garden.  And so you won't fret about the possibility of fewer flowers after downsizing clumps, sprinkle some Plant-Tone (a time-released, organic fertilizer) in each hole when replanting divisions.  This will supplement the bloom pump for three to four months, super-sizing the floral display. If the thought of 'plant purging' bothers you, think of how wonderful it looks after you've tidied up your teenager's room and everything is in its place.  There is a floor after all!

Another simple way to give gardens a seasonal facelift is to get an edge on them now, literally!  A neat garden edge is like a beautiful frame enclosing a picture. It finishes the look. Edging defines a garden. Popular edging choices include stone, wood, aluminum, steel and brick. Plastic bender board is relatively new and is made from recycled or engineered plastic.  It is more flexible than aluminum or steel and is available in brown, black or green.  Strips can be anywhere from 16" to 20' long.  Before selecting edging, consider if you want it to be flush with the ground (so a lawnmower's wheels can glide along its surface) or raised (requiring a weedwacker to finish the job).  You could also go 'au natural' – nothing between grass and garden except a clean sliced edge. If you vote for this approach, save your back with one of the great lawn and garden edgers available. Sometimes called a sod cutter, the heavy duty machine rolls on four wheels and encloses an adjustable steel blade. It's easy to push along a bed and makes a noticeably different cut than lighter weight edgers. Troy-Bilt and MTD are two manufacturers.

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471

 

Learn more about preparing your garden for Spring.  Click here

Preparing the Spring Garden, Part 3

[image error]

 

I'm getting less relief from spring fever by staring at my terrarium and silk flower arrangements. I've thought about setting up my lawn chair inside Faddegon's Nursery's (www.faddegons.com) lush greenhouse filled with orchids, tropicals and houseplants but I'm afraid I'd be asked to leave, especially after unwrapping my open-faced Limberger, liverwurst and onion sandwich.  I could always sit next to the flowering Imperial Fritillaria bulbs that smell like skunk and see if that helps me blend in better.

To distract myself, I'll continue sharing spring tips for creating masterpiece gardens.

April and May are terrific months to take a no-nonsense attitude towards many perennials that have overstepped their bounds. Thuggish perennials can swarm their neighbors, resulting in messy looking beds as well as lackluster flowering from too many roots per square foot competing for limited nutrients and water.  Why does Black Friday come to mind?  A majority of perennials (summer and fall bloomers) can be divided in spring after plants poke their heads above ground.  By whacking them now, gifting or transplanting large sections elsewhere, and applying a fresh mulch to cover your tracks, you will create a lovely, tidy garden.  And so you won't fret about the possibility of fewer flowers after downsizing clumps, sprinkle some Plant-Tone (a time-released, organic fertilizer) in each hole when replanting divisions.  This will supplement the bloom pump for three to four months, super-sizing the floral display. If the thought of 'plant purging' bothers you, think of how wonderful it looks after you've tidied up your teenager's room and everything is in its place.  There is a floor after all!

Another simple way to give gardens a seasonal facelift is to get an edge on them now, literally!  A neat garden edge is like a beautiful frame enclosing a picture. It finishes the look. Edging defines a garden. Popular edging choices include stone, wood, aluminum, steel and brick. Plastic bender board is relatively new and is made from recycled or engineered plastic.  It is more flexible than aluminum or steel and is available in brown, black or green.  Strips can be anywhere from 16" to 20' long.  Before selecting edging, consider if you want it to be flush with the ground (so a lawnmower's wheels can glide along its surface) or raised (requiring a weedwacker to finish the job).  You could also go 'au natural' – nothing between grass and garden except a clean sliced edge. If you vote for this approach, save your back with one of the great lawn and garden edgers available. Sometimes called a sod cutter, the heavy duty machine rolls on four wheels and encloses an adjustable steel blade. It's easy to push along a bed and makes a noticeably different cut than lighter weight edgers. Troy-Bilt and MTD are two manufacturers.

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471

The Perfect Clarity

[image error]

 

I'm not a huge fan of most flavored vodkas, but I will admit a soft spot for pear vodka, which manages to capture a ripe crispness that actual pears so often do not.  This saketini variant is great for the winter because it preserves the simplicity of the drink's idea  with just a little spiciness.  A float of sparkling wine gives it a little bit of lift.

The Perfect Clarity

In a shaker:

1 1/2 ounce pear Vodka

1 ounce sake

1/2 ounce honey syrup

Add ice and stir for 1/2 minute.  Strain and serve up, either in a cocktail glass or a flute.

Top with:

Prosecco (optional)

Honey syrup:  Dilute 1 cup honey (use a light bodied one if you have a choice) 50/50 with warm water.

 

Eben Klemm is a freelance beverage consultant based in New York City.  Yes, people pay him to invent cocktails.  No, he is not invited to speak at many high school career days.  He grew up on a small family farm in Sharon, five miles from the Beekman Mansion and is proud to say that the first cocktails he ever consumed were rejected from his body, at very high speed, not far from its shadow. His book "The Cocktail Primer: All You Need to Know to Make the Perfect Drink" was published in 2009 by Andrews McNeel.  He'll be creating signature Beekman 1802 elixirs once a month

The Victorian Kitchen TV Series

[image error]

 

Since so many of you enjoyed viewing our compilation of the 1988 BBC series "The Victorian Kitchen Garden," we thought we'd put together a page for the sequel series, "The Victorian Kitchen." In this eight part series, we meet a cook named Ruth Mott, who, in her youth, was a kitchen maid in a prominent English household. She's given the task of restoring a historic Victorian kitchen for the sake of recreating meals that would have traditionally been served. Like its predecessor series, it's a fascinating display of how much effort went into sustaining such opulent households, and a reminder of how much homemaking knowledge we've lost over the years.

Back to help Ruth is charming gardener Harry Dodson, from "The Victorian Kitchen Garden" . The interactions between Ruth and Harry are sweetly nostaligic, and a highlight of the series.

Again, the series' DVD doesn't seem to be available for purchase in the U.S., so the following links are to YouTube.

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 1: Introduction

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 2: Breakfast

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 3: Luncheon

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 4: Afternoon Tea

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 5: Dinner

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 6: Supper

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 7: The Dinner Party

 

The Victorian Kitchen, Episode 8: Picnics

Preparing the Spring Garden, Part 2: Grasses & Roses

[image error]

 

At this point, I am just itchin' to get my hands in the dirt – excuse me, I mean soil (dirt is a no-no word in a gardener's vocabulary).  Are the pages of your garden magazines and catalogs becoming worn and tattered as they wear out their effectiveness for substituting for the real thing?  You're not fooling me.

Before donning our Muck boots and springing into another season, let's continue to review some tips that will make a noticeable difference in both the beauty of your gardens as well as their maintenance requirements.  Now I've got your attention.

In late winter cut back ornamental grasses.  Larger varieties can be whacked with electric or hand-held hedge trimmers.  To reduce the mess, first tie twine or bungee cords around the grass to hold it together, then cut it down to approximately six inches. Weed-wackers come in handy for smaller grasses.  Some folks swear by chain saws but even I draw the line at certain power tools in the garden.  Use gloves and caution when dealing with some of the larger grasses – their blades can be razor-sharp.  If you really want to have beautiful grasses this year, after cutting them back, burn the remaining brown stubble to the ground.  This will permit new blades to emerge without obstruction.  Smaller grasses like Blue Fescue, Carex, Black Mondo Grass and Blue Oat Grass can be cleaned by simply hand pulling brown grass blades from within the clump.  If the grass' girth has expanded beyond its allocated space, this is a great time to divide it.  But be forewarned.  The taller the grass, the mightier the effort on your part.  Double up on your spinach before grabbing an axe, saw, machete or sawzall.  No explosives please.  You might want to catch this memorable activity on video for future chuckles and to remind yourself, where there is a will, there is a way.

Prune roses in late winter except for those that only bloom once in late spring or early summer.  Many antique roses fall into this category and should be pruned immediately after blooming.  For all other roses, watch for green leaf buds to break from stems and prune back canes right above outward facing buds.  I prune shrub roses back by at least one-half their height to maintain more compact plants.  This may seem drastic but it works.  My roses are covered with flowers each summer.  If pruning makes you nervous, wait until you've had a bad day at work, with the kids, or in traffic, and then grab pruners and go at it.  Remove dead or broken canes as well as those that rub against each other.  Also cut out branches that are growing towards the center of the bush.  These steal energy from outward facing, flower producing stems, plus they reduce airflow through the plant.  Good air movement is important for reducing fungal diseases.  As far as when to prune, in general, when you see Forsythia in bloom, let the games begin.

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471

The Chatter for February

[image error]

 

We've lobbied really hard for Garrison Keillor to give up life in Lake Wobegone and move to Sharon Springs,  but thus far he has not answered our letters or returned our calls.

Sharon Springs has beautiful people and above-average children, too, so on to Plan B.

What is a small town village without a small town paper to keep track of what everyone is doing?

Leila Durkin, proprietor of The Village Hall Gallery, is now editor of our own little paper.

Each month you can check back here for a new issue and follow the lives of the real village people.  If you pay a real visit, you  may even want to submit a story idea of your own!

You may not live in small town, but at least you can pretend.

See below for the February 2012 Issue

 

Prepping the Spring Garden, Part 1: Weeding & Feeding

[image error]

I've got a bad case of the winter blues.  Even enchanting flower gardening magazines and catalogues aren't helping.  At this time of the year I feel like a ship's captain scanning the horizon for land – except I am searching for small green shoots.  The minute I see something green I'll scamper out for a closer inspection; head down, rump up.  If it is a weed, I'll pull it out in disgust but, ahhhhh, if it is one of the survivors from our crazy winter, then I'll give it a thumbs up and whisper "Carry on".

I expect a lot from my gardens.  I practice tough love, refusing to pamper 'prima donnas', and you should too.  By taking some simple steps in spring, I can have healthier, better-behaved gardens the rest of the year.  Below are two of my tried-and-proven tricks for jump-starting beautiful gardens.  My next four blogs will share additional high-payback tips.

As soon as the snow melts and the ground warms up I do two things, weed and feed….and I'm not talking Scott's chemical Weed and Feed product.

Early spring is the perfect time to get a jump-start on weeds.  You've probably heard the saying, 'A weed in time saves nine', but this truth is 'exponentially increased' if weeds are 'subtracted' before their 'multiplication factor' kicks in.  Depending on how fast warm weather arrives, late March is when perennial weeds start waking up and annual weeds begin germinating from nasty little seeds.  Attack while you have the advantage.  Hand weeding is easier while the soil is still moist from winter snows. A stirrup hoe (or circle hoe) can also be used to sever green tops from their roots.  With either method, try to disturb the soil as little as possible.  The more soil turned over, the more dormant weed seeds that are brought to the surface, germinating as reinforcements.  If you want to use a post-emergent weed killer (organic of course) then Burnout II, Nature's Avenger and EcoSmart Organic Weed and Grass Killer are good choices.  Just be sure not to spray any 'good guys' (perennials, bulbs, etc.) or the result will be the same, dust to dust, so to speak.  Organic pre-emergent weed killers that target seeds usually include corn gluten.  Popular product lines are Concern, Espoma, Bradfield Organics and WOW.  In your enthusiasm to eliminate weed seeds, remember that corn gluten does not distinguish between a crab grass seed or a flower seed….they are both toast.  Whatever your method for early weed eradication, afterwards apply a nutrient-rich mulch such as aged compost, manure or finely shredded wood, to keep weeds at bay.

Fertilizing gardens in spring makes a huge difference.  I am quite frugal when it comes to fertilizing.  Most plants really don't need the constant feeding that many advertisers suggest.  But as with children in a growth spurt, supplemental nutrition as plants break dormancy, can make a noticeable difference.  The fuel required to generate new stems and leaves is stored in dormant roots, the result of the prior fall's photosynthetic activity.  As temperatures rise in spring, plants surge into new growth.  A gentle, organic supplement at this time can create head-turning results later in the season.  This is especially true if last fall the gardens were stressed by lack of water, abundant weeds that robbed ornamentals of nutrients, or an untimely shearing (cutting gardens back too early thereby sabotaging next year's food reservoir).  When applying granular fertilizers in spring, be sure none settles on leaves or they may burn.  The fastest and easiest way to put down fertilizer is when it's about to rain. That way any granules that landed on leaves will be washed off to waiting roots below.  Follow package directions for application rates.  Some good organic fertilizers include Espoma (www.espoma.com), Gardener's Supply Company's All Purpose Fertilizer 5-5-5 (www.gardeners.com) and North Country Organics (www.norganics.com).

 

Kerry Ann Mendez is a lecturer, designer, writer, consultant, and the owner of Perennially Yours, a business specializing in low-maintenance perennial gardening and landscaping.  Mendez also recently published two top-selling gardening books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens. To learn more, please visit www.pyours.com or call (518) 885-3471