Dwarf Mugho Pine is a common plant used in lots of landscapes. The problem has always been the fact that dwarf Mugho pine is almost always grown from seed. This makes even the best growers at the mercy of their seed suppliers.
Many seed sources are extremely variable in terms of growth rate, ultimate size and compactness. If the good seed source is in short supply the cheap suppliers fill the gap. Even under the best circumstances there is way too much variation to make designers happy.
Several years ago I found a grower in Oregon that grows Mugho pines from cuttings. This means that they are extremely uniform. It also means that we can pick a variety that grows the way people expect dwarf Mugho pines to grow.
The one we choose is one called Teeny. It has small needles, is compact and stays low and small growing. We only can get enough to last us for about 6 months and when we run out we are out for the rest of the season.
It is only one of the things we are doing to create better gardens for you!
Earlier I talked about nut grass control and focused on my efforts in controlling nut grass in my own yard. I have been hand weeding any shoots that come up with good success.
I also mentioned some of the new nut grass controls, especially Manage. At the nursery we have (or had) an area with masses of nut grass coming up. Diana, our nursery manager, decided to see if Manage would work on the area. She applied it in early summer with only fair results. After the second application though we are seeing zero regrowth so far.
It looks like Manage will be part of our arsenal with nut grass control. You do have to use it together with Herbicide Helper, which is a special sticker for weed control products.
One problem with Manage is that it comes in a dissolvable pack that makes one gallon of spray. And you have to mix new spray each application. At 16.99 a pack it seems expensive if you only have a small amount to control. But if it continues to control nut grass with only two applications it is worth it.
I will report again next spring to let you know how the nut grass does next year.
I have posted earlier about the fact that fall is a great time to plant.
What I would like to talk about now is the number of bulbs that are planted now with emphasis on bulbs that naturalize or keep coming back year after year.
We all know about the large daffodils, tulips and hyacinths that we see in all the gardening magazines. They are spectacular are do a great job welcoming spring.
Bearded iris, although not truly a bulb is very dependable here and we have a number of varieties that repeat bloom. Look on the boxes for information on which varieties rebloom.
Other bulbs to look for include the small flowered narcissus. That would include the Paper White types, Tazetta, Cyclamanius and the species types of Narcissus. Depending on the variety they bloom at 12-24" tall and make a great show.
Freesias, Sparaxis, Grape Hyacinth, Belladonna, Lily and Brodiaea, are some other types that you should consider.
If you want the large flowered types of daffodils, tulips or hyacinths, there are a few tricks that can help them come back for a few years. One is to plant them at the deeper end of the planting range. Most bulbs tend to divide faster if planted shallow. This often means that the bulbs get too small to bloom.
Second would be to place them where they get little or no summer water. Most bulbs come from a Mediterranean type climate, which usually means little or no summer rain. If they stay moist during the summer most tend to rot.
Third is to fertilize them. Most people forget to fertilize bulbs. Even if you fertilize the lawn and the flowers regularly we forget that bulbs respond to some extra fertilizer. I use Master Nursery Bulb Food at planting and Rose & Flower Food during the growing season
Spring flowering bulbs are something to look forward to during the cold foggy days of December and January. We carry the best selection around. So come in and check out what you can do for spring color.
Have you noticed the weather? High 70’s and low 80’s. After one of the hottest summers I can remember, at last some relief. Although we may get some more warm weather, as far as the plants are concerned fall is here. We will see plants starting to recover from the long hot summer.
The reason plants notice the fall even if the weather goes back up is because the nighttime temps are moving down and the amount of time it is hot is getting shorter. The reason plants show the stress is generally because they can’t replace the evaporated water fast enough. As we move into September and October they can.
What does this mean to you as a gardener?
1) Fall vegetable planting season. It’s time to plant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, Swiss chard, peas, turnips and lots of other cool weather vegetables.
2) Fall flower planting season. Now is the time to plant pansies, violas, snapsdragons, stock, primroses, sweet peas and cyclamen. (Note: If you have been having problems with flowers rotting out because of phythophera we have been getting good reports on a new fungicide called Agri-fos. It costs 15.99 and we brought in last spring. I have waited until we got some success reports before talking about it.)
3) General planting. Gardeners have always known about the advantages in fall planting. You get the plant established before the spring growing season, which means a lot more growth next year. In addition you have a better established plant that has less heat stress in the summer. Now is the time to plant shrubs, trees and perennials. In fact anything that is not cold tender.
4) Bulb planting time. Now is the time to plant fall bulbs like daffodils, tulips, hyacinth, crocus and lots of others. Check out our naturalizing bulbs for repeated bloom year after year. There are lots of bulbs that really do survive here year after year. They include the smaller flowered narcissus, crocus, brodiea. They are clearly marked in our bulb selection.
5) Lawn care season. Now is the time to fertilize your lawn using Masters Fall and Winter Food. If you have had an annual blue grass control problem Masters has come out with a new pre-emergent fertilizer combination with good control of annual Bluegrass, Crabgrass (when applied in the early spring), Spurge (when applied in the spring). If you have thin or bare spots now is also a great time to reseed.
In case you haven’t noticed now is a great time to get out in the garden and start getting it ready for the most glorious spring and summer. Come in and let us show you how.
