Q&A: Plants For Beginner Gardeners

Wondering what kind of plants to plant with your kids?Here is a great article on simple plants
that one can grow with their children from ArcaMax.com titled Plants For Beginner Gardeners.

Question: What can I plant with my 5-year-old that is easy to grow and low-maintenance?

Answer: Choose things that are quick to germinate and grow or that have sensory delights for children. Radishes germinate easily, mature quickly (about 20 to 25 days), and kids seem to love to pull them out of the ground. There's an 'Easter Egg' blend with round radishes in an assortment of colors. Sweet peas are extremely fragrant and pretty. (Soak the seeds in water overnight for easier germination.) Sunflowers and hollyhocks are magical. You might want to use some transplants also.

Try bedding plants such as lamb's ears (which are soft and wooly), pansies, and Johnny jump-ups (their little faces are fun). Chocolate mint is an easy-to-grow herb. In fact, all mints are so easy to grow and invasive that they are best planted in containers submerged in the garden (unless you want them to take over). Marigolds and cherry tomatoes are other good choices.

Grow Yourself a Grapevine!

Here is another great how-to article from my good friend Mike McGroarty on grapevines.
Grow Yourself a Grapevine!

Most grapes are really easy to propagate, and middle
of the winter is an ideal to do it.

1. Cut some vines from the parent plant. You can cut
these vines as long as you want, I've worked with vines
12' long.

2. Cut the vines into cuttings. Start at the thick end of
the vine. (the bottom or butt end). Notice the bumps on
the vine. Those are bud unions, and on grapes they can
be as far apart as 6 inches. Make a cut right below, but
not into a bud union. Then skip a bud union, then make
a cut right above the next bud union. The second cut can
be as much as one inch above the top bud union. Each
cutting should have three buds. Top, bottom and middle.

3. Remove any side branches (curly cues) from your cutting.

4. Take your finished cuttings out to the garden, dig a
trench about 8 inches deep and place your cuttings in the
trench, leaving the top bud sticking out of the ground about 2".
Pack loose soil around your cuttings.

5. That's it you're done! If you have some rooting compound
for hardwood cuttings you can dip the cuttings in rooting
compound before placing them in the trench, but you really
don't need it. They'll root without it.

6. Water them as needed when it's dry, but don't keep them
soaking wet.

7. Some grapes are typically grafted, but you can still try
rooting them this way, it might work. Concord, Niagara and
Catawba for sure can be rooted this way.


(more personal stuff about Mike and Pam)
www.freeplants.com/stuff.htm
Have a great week!
-Mike McGroarty

P.S. The message board is here:
http://www.network54.com/Forum/519353/

Janurary Garden to do List

January Gardening To Do List




Zone 1
Order seed and nursery catalogues
Check dahlia and canna roots for plumpness, freedom from mold
Check house plants for mites, mealybugs, and scale
Cut back on feeding house plants
Protect bases of fruit tree trunks against rodent damage with wire mesh
Plant living Christmas trees if ground is workable
Clean and oil garden tools
Plan flower and vegetable beds

Zone 2
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Water cymbidiums weekly until they bloom

Zone 3
Order seeds
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Water cymbidiums weekly until they bloom


Zone 4
Order seeds
Sow seeds indoors for hardy spring-blooming plants
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)

Zone 5
Order seeds
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming plants
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors

Zone 6
Order seeds
Sow seeds of warm-season annuals
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming plants
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Sow seeds for cool-weather vegetables
Sow frost-tolerant perennials indoors


Zone 7
Sow seeds of warm-season annuals
Set out summer-flowering bulbs
Plant fall-blooming bulbs
Plant balled-and-burlapped, container, and bare-root fruit trees
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees before buds swell
Spray apples, peaches, and pears that have been affected with canker problems
Plant bare-root perennial vegetables
Plant seedlings of cool-weather vegetables
Sow fast-growing warm-season vegetables
Sow seeds for frost-tolerant perennials
Sow seeds for tender perennials
Plant container and bare-root roses
Plant balled-and-burlapped, container, and bare-root trees, shrubs, and vines
Plant summer-blooming shrubs and vines
Plant frost-tolerant trees
Plant conifers and broad-leaf evergreens

Zone 8
Order seeds
Sow seeds of warm-season annuals indoors
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming annuals
Plant fruit trees
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Move living Christmas trees outdoors
Plant or transplant frost-tolerant perennials
Plant bare-root roses
Apply dormant spray to bare-root roses
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, and vines
Prune winter-blooming shrubs and vines just after bloom
Apply dormant spray to trees, shrubs, and vines
Plant bare-root perennial vegetables
Sow seeds for cool-season vegetables
Protect tender plants from frost


Zone 9
Order seeds
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming annuals
Sow seeds of warm-season annuals indoors
Plant summer-flowering bulbs
Repot cacti and succulents, if essential, once they have finished blooming
Plant bare-root fruit trees
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees
Plant citrus
Move living Christmas tree outdoors
Sow frost-tolerant perennial seeds indoors
Plant or transplant frost-tolerant perennial seedlings outdoors
Plant bare-root roses
Apply dormant spray to roses
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, and vines
Apply dormant spray to trees, shrubs, and vines
Prune winter-flowering shrubs and vines just after bloom
Plant bare-root perennial vegetables
Plant seedlings of cool-season and winter vegetables
Sow seeds for cool-season and winter vegetables
Protect tender plants from frost


Zone 10
Order seeds
Set out cool-season annuals
Sow seeds for hardy spring-blooming annuals
Plant winter-, spring-, and summer-blooming bulbs
Repot cacti and succulents, if essential, once they have finished blooming
Plant bare-root fruit trees
Prune flowering fruit trees while in bloom
Spray for peach leaf curl, peach leaf blight, and canker
Plant citrus
Protect citrus from frost damage
Cut back on feeding houseplants (do not feed dormant houseplants)
Move living Christmas trees outdoors
Plant bare-root roses
Apply dormant spray to roses
Plant bare-root shrubs and vines
Apply dormant sprays to trees, shrubs and vines
Prune evergreen shrubs
Prune winter-flowering shrubs and vines
Plant bare-root trees
Sow cool-season vegetable seeds
Plant or transplant cool-season vegetable seedlings
Sow warm-season vegetable seeds


Zone 11
.Order seeds and plants from catalogues.
Sow seeds of hardy annuals outdoors (larkspur, bachelor's button, poppy)
Set out plants of early-spring blooming perennials (primrose, calendula, viola, pansy)
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, vegetables
Check house plants for mites, mealybugs
Prune fruit trees if you have not previously done so
Apply dormant spray to fruit trees, roses

article courtesy of http://www.backyardgardener.com/article/zonejan01.html






 






 

Caring for Poinsettias and Making Them Re bloom

Here is another great article by my good friend Mike I would like to share.

Caring for Poinsettias and Making Them Re bloom


Poinsettias, a bright and cheerful symbol of the holiday
season, are often thought of as "throwaway" plants to be
set on the curb when their red blooms fade. Rather than
buying a new plant each December, with proper care you can
keep your poinsettias blooming for another holiday season.

Poinsettia plants enjoy indirect sunlight for at least six
hours each day while they are blooming. They prefer to be
slightly on the dry side and will not be happy if they are
overwatered. While the plant is flowering it should not be
fertilized, but after the plant has finished blooming an all-
purpose fertilizer may be applied..

To enjoy your poinsettia blooms for another holiday season,
it should be cut back to about 8 inches in late March or early
April. It can be fertilized about once a month, and by late
May new growth will begin to appear.

Once there is no more danger of frost and nighttime temperatures
stay above 55 degrees F, your poinsettia may be kept outdoors
for the summer. Fertilizing can be done every 2-3 weeks during
the summer, and the plant can be pruned to keep it full and
compact. In warm climates a poinsettia may be planted directly
in the garden but in cooler climates it is best to transplant
your poinsettia into a pot that is just slightly larger than
its original pot. This can be done in early June. Be sure to
use a well-draining potting soil.

As temperatures begin to cool in late summer, the plant should
again be brought indoors. Longer nights will cause poinsettias
to set buds and produce flowers during November or December.
To encourage your poinsettia to bloom for the Christmas holiday,
you must carefully control the amount of light the plant receives.

To bloom for Christmas, the plant must be kept in total darkness
for 14 hours each night during October, November and early
December, along with 6-8 hours of bright sunlight. This can be
accomplished by moving the poinsettia to a dark closet each
night, making sure that no light sneaks beneath the door. Or
simply cover the plant with a large box each night. No peeking!
Any stray light will upset the schedule.

During October, November and early December the plant needs 6-8
hours of bright sunlight along with 14 hours of total darkness.
The ideal temperature for your poinsettia is between 60 and 70
degrees. Warmer or cooler temperatures can also delay flowering.
Continue fertilizing monthly until the blossoms appear.

Follow this schedule of daylight and darkness for 8-10 weeks and
your poinsettia will reward you with a colorful holiday display!


(more personal stuff about Mike and Pam)
http://www.freeplants.com/stuff.htm

Have a great week!
-Mike McGroarty

P.S. The message board is here:
http://www.network54.com/Forum/519353/




McGroarty Enterprises Inc.
P.O. Box 338
Perry, Ohio 44081