GardenFoundation LLC Garden Log Last revised: July 05, 2001.

February 2001 Log

Healthy Soil - Your Garden's Foundation
Most of us are not blessed with perfect soil. Most of us don't even know what's in our soil! If you ignore this most critical aspect of your garden, your soil, your "reward" will be poor plant growth, diseases, and insect pests. I intend to devote a few months touching on some things you can do to ensure that the foundation of your garden - the soil - is the best it can be.

WHAT IS IN THE SOIL? - Is dirt just dirt? No way! Rather than re-invent the wheel for this month's discussion of soil, I want to simply point you to an EXCELLENT article that explains all about what's in the soil. I sincerely hope that you will take the time to follow this link and read the information carefully. Pay special attention to the section on soil life, aka soil micro-organisms. Enjoy! What's In The Soil?

Bird Call
As February progresses, you will probably notice an increase in bird activity. In particular, you may notice that the birds seem to be a little more noisy than just a month ago, or perhaps they seem to be squabbling with each other more. What you are hearing and observing is the beginning of the nesting season! Right now the "boys" are trying to show off for the "girls", all in the hopes of attracting a mate. You can encourage the birds to conduct their courtship & nest-building activities in your garden if you put out some nesting materials for them. Naturally, the birds will be able to find their own nesting materials. However, by putting some especially attractive items where you can see them, you will have the ability to closely observe the different birds as they select just the right goodies to furnish their homes. The following items should be just what your neighborhood birds are looking for: short twigs, dried grass, human and/or pet hair, strips of fabric, moss, feathers, birch tree bark, mint leaves, and short lengths of yarn or string. It is very important that you not put out any hair, fabric strips, or yarn/string that is longer than 6 inches! Any longer than that and you run the risk that the baby birds might get tangled in it. Also, do not use fishing line, because it can cut into a bird's leg. You may want to put some of this material in a suet cage, and some of it you may want to place in a nearby shrub. As a final caution, do not use dryer lint if you use fabric softeners - there is something in the chemistry of fabric softeners that is very harmful to birds.

Wake Up Your Garden
It's that time of year - time to wake your garden up and give it some nutrients so it can start the growing season off strongly. I am not a big fan of super-duper, high potency commercial fertilizers, but instead am more enamored of the "gentler" fertilizers offered. In my garden, I use the Whitney Farms Lawn Fertilizer & All Purpose fertilizer, with excellent results. One reason I'm so fond of this kind of fertilizer is that it contains essential organic components which will enrich the soil, rather than simply feed the plants. An enriched soil will have more soil micro-organisms, which will make for a healthier lawn & garden overall. Unfortunately, many of the popular lawn fertilizers widely used today are not beneficial for soil micro-organisms.

What's That Plant?
One of the first flowering shrubs to bloom each year are the Flowering Quinces (Chaenomeles). This genus of plants belongs to the same family as roses. Many modern-day gardeners are not familiar with this plant anymore, although they probably see it when going for a stroll. Some of the plants are low growing, while others are taller. The flowers come in a variety of pinks, whites, reds, and oranges. Birds flock to this shrub, in part because of the spiny branches. This plant is also a very popular one for bonsai enthusiasts. Next time you go for a walk, keep your eye out for this lovely shrub. And if you are considering creating a barrier hedge in your landscape this year, make sure that Chaenomeles is on your list of possibilities. For further reading: http://arb.ncsu.edu/YearinTrees/List/Chaenomeles.html , Flowering quince rust , Flowering quince & other spring-flowering shrubs , http://www.botany.com/chaenomeles.html

Out! Out! Darned Spot!
Leaf spot diseases are all too common in gardens, especially in the Pacific Northwest. Black spot on roses, necrotic ringspot (shot hole) in flowering cherries - these diseases can devastate plants. This is the time of year to begin your battle. By starting early, you can control the diseases so that they don't get a solid foothold in your garden. To try and prevent leaf spot diseases, start using garden sulfur when you see the buds (flowers and/or leaves) starting to swell on the branches, but before they open. You don't need to cake the plant in sulfur, but do apply a decent dusting that coats all sides of the plant. I use a hand-held squeeze duster to apply sulfur in my garden. Other people like to use larger crank devices, and some prefer to mix sulfur in water & apply with a sprayer. Whatever method you use, just remember that you must start early, and you must reapply frequently. Generally, once you start the sulfur cycle, you need to reapply about every two weeks. In the case of flowering cherries, you need to apply when the flower buds begin to swell, again when the flowers start to open, again as the flowers are mature/fading, and just to be safe, apply two more times (minimum) after the flowers have fallen and the leaves are developing.

CAUTIONS: While getting a whiff of sulfur is non-toxic to humans, it is fatal to bees. You must do your best to apply sulfur only after the bees have gone to bed for the evening, or first thing in the morning before they have started their pollen rounds. Otherwise, you will be killing them. Also, it would be advisable to wear a mask or bandanna when applying sulfur, because you just don't want to inhale great lung-fulls of the stuff.

Slug Fest!

Many areas are plagued by slugs, especially here in the Pacific Northwest. This month I want to share with you a true revolution in slug control - iron phosphate! Up until recently, the only ways we gardeners had to control slugs were less than desirable, or weren't consistent in their efficacy, or were impractical - salt, ammonia sprays, diatomaceous earth, crushed egg shells, beer traps (GROSS!), chickens & ducks (or wild birds, which ARE desirable), copper strips (which DO work!), hand-picking (BLECH! BLECH! BLECH!), and noxious/toxic poisons which are very effective, but can harm pets, children, and wildlife. Folks, I have discovered something which is relatively new to the United States, but is AMAZING! There are three products now available of which I am aware: Worry-Free (pictured at left), Sluggo, and Escar-Go. All three products use iron phosphate as the active ingredient, with an irresistble bait as the inert ingredient. These products can be used around pets & wildlife. After eating the bait, slugs (and snails!) stop feeding, and will crawl away to a secluded place to pass to the Great Beyond. I have used Sluggo & Escar-Go for three years, and can attest to their effectiveness; this year I will use Worry-Free. I have watched as slugs detoured from their bee-line path towards my lettuce patch so they could scarf up the Sluggo & Escar-Go pellets. I used to have a major slug problem here in my little garden - I mean, I used to nightly find slugs 6 or 8 inches long in my garden, plus several dozen much smaller (each night!). I can now attest that my slug problem is practically non-existent, and I attribute this wondrous state in large part to these new products. This is the time of year when gardeners need to start their slug & snail control in earnest. I urge you to try these new products. You won't see little dead slug or snail carcasses around, but you will realize that your plants are no longer being munched to death. You also won't have to worry that Fido or Fluffy is going to be killed from ingesting the pellets, or that the birdies who peck a few pellets will end up poisoned. PS - If you choose not to use any baits for slug control, I have a little tip: hand pick the critters, and freeze them! I know, I know, this sounds totally disgusting. But what I've discovered is that birds will just go crazy for what I call "Piller Pops". I go out at night and collect any slugs and cutworms and grubs that I find, freeze them, and then the next day I offer the "popsicles" to the birds. I have witnessed the birds battle each other over these delicacies. CLICK HERE for some updated information on combating slugs & snails, including many links to slug-control products.

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© Copyright 2000 - Judy J. Crawford - GardenFoundation LLC
Last revised: July 05, 2001.