Low Maintenance Ground Cover for Steep, Sunny Banks This week we are featuring a beautiful groundcover that will bring color to your garden in mid-winter when almost everything else is still dormant and brown - Jasmine nudiflorum. Native to China, Jasmine nudiflorum, also called Winter Jasmine, was introduced in 1844. It is loved for its striking yellow flowers in wintertime and ease of growth - so much so that it was given The Royal Horticultural Society's prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM).
Masses of Bright Yellow Flowers For best results plant in early
spring in zones 6; early spring or fall in zones 7, 8 & 9. Prefers full sun; will tolerate
light shade. Plant 24 to 36 inches apart in
well-drained soil. Water regularly until established. Fertilize with
Plant-Tone and
Kelp Meal in late fall and early spring. Hardy in zones 6-9. From 1 gallon pots for $24.85 each.
Our Garden Worthy Certification means that
your satisfaction is guaranteed. |
||||||
November
18, 2005
|
|
|
Garden Club
Frequently Asked Questions Question: My beautiful ajuga bed has been poisoned with salt as per soil test when I saw ajuga dying. How do I get the salt out? Remove the soil? If so, exactly what type of soil should be put in so that I can plant ajuga which will flourish again? Answer: Sodium chloride salt can usually be removed by thoroughly flushing the soil with water. Then drench the soil with Super Bio beneficial microbes to "digest" the remaining salt. Drench once this fall and then every 2 weeks all spring and summer next year. (Start when the daffodils bloom). Do not replant until early fall next year.If you decide to remove the soil instead, remove the soil to a depth of at least 6 inches and replace with top soil mixed half and half with compost or potting soil. Question: I have always dug my calla lilies up before frost. My neighbor, whose callas are much more plentiful and bloom better than mine, says she does not dig hers up. Did I maybe plant mine to deep for they did not bloom very well this past year. They are close to the house and protected, should I leave them in the ground in this area? If I do dig them up, do I do this before or after frost? Answer: There are several varieties of calla lilies and they vary in hardiness. The white ones tend to be the hardiest. In a protected place, white calla lilies often survive outside in a mild winter and perish in a severe winter. My experience has been that calla lilies left in the ground bloom better than those stored dry over the winter. For storing indoors, calla lilies should be dug after the first killing frost. If your clump is large and white flowering, I suggest digging and storing half and leaving the other half in place to see if they survive. Separate the two parts with a spading fork and try not to disturb the roots on the portion that remains in the soil. Calla lilies bloom best in a moist, lightly shaded spot with rich, humusy soil. Question: This fall large numbers of orange and brown bugs were on the side of our house. On some days the siding was almost covered with these bugs. How can I get rid of them? Answer: You have boxelder bugs and on warm fall days they tend to gather on the sunny side of buildings and trees. They are harmless but they are obnoxious. There are two ways to remove them. One is by vacuuming with a vacuum cleaner and the second is by thoroughly spraying the bugs with insecticidal soap to the drenching point. If you choose to use the soap, test a small inconspicuous spot of your siding to be sure it doesn't damage the finish. Boxelder bugs feed mainly (but not exclusively) on the female (seed bearing) boxelder (Acer negundo) trees. You can reduce the population of boxelder bugs by removing any female boxelder trees that are near your home. Question: I know you recommend a major fall feeding with fertilizer and Kelp Meal of just about the entire yard and garden around Thanksgiving. In our area it has already turned really cold. Do you have to wait until Thanksgiving? We are going to be away Thanksgiving week. Can it wait until early December?Answer: Thanksgiving was chosen for fall fertilization because it is easy to remember and by that date the weather has usually been cold enough to assure that all plants have gone dormant. This is an approximate date determined by weather conditions and your convenience. The cold front that moved across the nation's mid-section into the east coast has driven almost all plants into dormancy. So you can start fertilizing now and carry on right into early December. One exception: experience has taught me that the lawn should be fertilized with Turf Trust as close as possible to the 3rd week in November.Question: I have several questions about the fall fertilization program that you recommend: 1. Do I need to dig or water in my fertilizer? 2. Can I sprinkle the fertilizer on top of the mulch or do I need to remove the mulch first, then fertilize and replace the mulch? 3. I have heard you suggest that shady lawns can be fed at 1/2 strength; does this apply to all three feedings or just the late August feeding? 4. If I use different fertilizers than you recommend, are the dates still the same? Answer: 1. There is no need to dig in or water in your fertilizers. They have the whole winter to work themselves down to the appropriate level, so that the nutrients will be available at root level in the spring when the soil warms up. My experience has been that you do more damage to the root system by digging in the soil than any benefit that you would achieve. 2. I usually do not remove the mulch, but instead sprinkle the fertilizer on top. Removing and replacing the mulch disturbs the root system and, quite frankly, is a lot of work. However, if you are planning on re-mulching for the winter, I would fertilize before I put down the new mulch.
3. Shady lawns require less fertilization than sunny ones. Thus in the
shade I do all 3 fertilizations at 1/2 to 3/4 strength.
|
|
|