Crab Grass BE GONE!

Image courtesy of goodbadandugly2.wordpress.com

Late August to mid-September is the perfect time of year to seed and feed your lawn for the winter and hopefully eradicate that horrid crab grass for good.

I usually seed in the early spring (early April) but have never really seeded in the fall. This could possibly explain why crab grass continues to blight my little lawn.

Look at your supplies and stock up on your grass seed...cause next week we are spreading some seed!

Happy Fourth of July!

Here are some pictures of plants that I will be discussing in the near future!



Hens and Chicks
I actually forget what these are called! Time to break out the information cards!

Geraniums

Lamb's Ear

Asiatic Lily

Hope you have a happy and safe holiday! Try not to eat too many hot dogs!

Mophead Hydrangeas

I have two different types of hydrangeas (Mopheads and Lacecaps) currently growing in my yard. They are both in bloom and the color is gorgeous!

The first ones to flower and bloom were the two I have in the front of my yard flanking the sidewalk. I never really care about what I am planting as long as it catches my eye. Here is a dramatic rendering of me at Home Depot/Lowes/Garden Center choosing plants:

ACT ONE

Enter stage left, me, slackjawed and overwhelmed my Nature's bounty before me, wandering aimlessly.

ME: "Thems is purty!", impulsively picks up flowers and runs to cash register.

ACT TWO

ME: Honey, I'm home! Look what I buyed at the flower store! Ain't they purty?

HUBBY: *SIGH* Where are we planting that?

ME: *sticks tongue out at him* Party pooper!

THE END

So I did a little research on the net via a couple of sites specifically hydrangeashydrangeas.com which has pictures (ALWAYS a plus in my book!) and I think I identified them as Mophead Nikko Blue Hydrangeas.

The great thing about hydrangeas is that you can typically change the color of them by messing with the pH levels of the soil around them. How do you do this? I have no idea, so let's find out. Hydrangeashydrangeas.com has such a concise explanation on how to change the colors that you would be best off going right to the source! Here is the link:

How to Change The Color of Your Hydrangeas

(Note: You can purchase both dolomitic lime and Aluminum sulfate at your local garden store!)

Interesting facts I learned from hydrangeashydrangeas.com:

1.It is easier to change a hydrangea from pink to blue than it is from blue to pink.

2.It's also easier to change the colors of a hydrangea that is in a container as opposed to in the ground.

3. Planting hydrangeas near a concrete foundation or sidewalk will often affect the color since the pH of the soil can be changed by the lime coming out of them, making it difficult to obtain blue. This completely explains why some of the flowers on my Lacecap Hydrangea are turning a purply pink near the sidewalk and the patio! I just thought I was a magical gardener!

Here is some basic information on the Nikko Blue hydrangeas:

Nikko Blue Hydrangeas

Zone: 6 to 9 (although I am in Zone 5 and I have never had a problem!)

Plant Type: Deciduous shrub

Height: 4 to 6 feet

Spread: 4 to 6 feet

Bloom Time: July - August (mine started in early June)

Bloom Color: Blue in acid soil; Pink in alkaline soil.

Sun: Sun to Part shade

Water: Daily, very thirsty suckers!

Prune: July, after blooms have faded

Tranplanting Established Plants

I know! What a boring title...but it is what it is.

I've transplanted a lot of things with no real adherence to any sort of rule and have never had any problem (*crosses fingers*). I was reading stuff recently about "making sure you transplant plants in the late afternoon to reduce shock" and some other rules I have never heard of. You may as well tell me to make sure you light candles and massage it to make the transition easier because Ms. Lazy is sooooooo not doing that. Besides by the "late afternoon" the only things I feel like doing are drinking wine and chasing the ice cream truck down the street (not necessarily in that order but it does make it more fun.)

Needless to say I didn't heed any of that advice.

However I do think there are some very basic things you should keep in mind with any transplant or new planting for that matter.

1. Try and look ahead to your local weather forcast. It probably isn't the best idea to be transplanting stuff on the hottest day of the year (for you OR the plant!)...look for a milder day. The day I transplanted this stuff was in the low eighties with little humidity. Of course the best time to transplant anything is in the spring or fall but Nature will not contain ME within those parameters. HAHA!

2. Make sure the area you are moving the plant to has the same amount of light/needs as the old home.

3. Prepare the new home for the plant first. No point in digging up the plant and having it sit out for an extended period of time while you are digging away. Besides it might start to mock your digging technique and then you might want to hit it with a shovel...what? plants don't talk to you? Hmmmmm...shame....


I HATE tearing up the ground. It's a HUGE pain in the butt and makes me wonder why I even bother. The best way I have found is to use an edging tool and make a grid pattern in the area you want to remove (not a great picture...sorry)and take out the grass in patches. This little area took me several hours to tear out to give you an idea of the time commitment. I wish I had people to do it for me...sigh...

Another tip that I have found useful is to get a large plastic tarp to put your refuse on. Also in the event that you don't get a chance to clean it up that day and it rains you can pull the tarp over it so it doesn't get wet. Because while clumps of grass and dirt suck, nothing sucks worse than WET clumps of grass.

Dig your hole to about 2 times as wide and deep as the root. Yeah, I realize you don't know the exact size of the root because it's still in the ground. So what are you waiting for? Go dig it up now!! Digging a hole won't take you that long.



4. Give yourself plenty of room to dig around the root/bulb of the plant so as not to damage the root/bulb. I kind of use a 6 inch rule from the root of something this size.




Dude, that mofo was HEAVY!! Heavier than my almost one year old son! I almost fell over when I tried to pick it up!!

5. Water that sucker like there is no tomorrow after you plant it! I would also recommend mulching but then again I am a mulch whore...I freaking love the stuff for making everything look "finished" plus it helps keep weeds down and holds moisture in....which reminds me...I need to go get more!!

I'm Melting....melting..... aka "Tulip Bondage"

Ok, not really melting but DYING a slow and horribly ugly death.

Of course I am talking about all the foliage from your spring bulbs...tulips, daffodils, you name it! Your neighbors are pointing and laughing at your pathetic little brown patch of flowers when 3-4 weeks ago they were swooning over the color and beauty. I say "screw them" regardless for letting their little darlings tromp all over your newly planted grass but I digress....

Options
Yank them out of the ground? No.
Cut them down to the ground? Not yet!
Plant other stuff around them so they will eventually be covered? Yes, but that comes with time!

Don't worry my nature challenged kiddos, this post is all about WHAT to do when faced with this dilemma!

There are actual reasons why you don't want to yank or cut the foliage down just yet. It's all scientific and crap so here is the short story: The withering foliage produces food for the bulb which helps produce more flowers next year. (Side Note: Tulips sometimes are a pain and don't necessarily appear after several years of blooming beautifully. Why? No idea. I haven't had this problem so I haven't looked it up yet. Will I? Don't hold your breath.)

Now if you have a huge yard you can probably disregard this advice because you can't see your flowerbeds beyond the moat, carriage house and orchards so who cares? But in my little yard several brown dying things stand out and that will not be tolerated. Bow to my will, Nature!

Alright enough drollness...to work!

Tools you will need:
Gardening gloves
Rubber bands or string

Step One

Identify browned foliage. Duh.


Step Two

Approach said foliage gently...it is very sensitive about how it looks. Laugh at how ridiculous you look tiptoeing over to the tulips--HA! (Insert groan here.)

Step Three

Starting at the top fold the flower stem down a little at a time until you have a nice little bundle. They should be pretty pliable but if you encounter any that start to break you may want to stop bending at that point and just bundle it there. Incorporate any leaves into the bundle as well.




Step Four

Using either rubber bands or string, loosely tie them around bundle.




Step Five

Leave it alone. In a couple of weeks you will notice that the foliage (stem and leaves) will lose all of it's green/pink color and become even more brown and withered. At this point you can actually pull the foliage out of the ground without ANY resistence (if you get resistence--stop pulling!) or you can cut it to the ground and throw it away. Your bulbs should be ready for next spring!

Wicked Witch image courtesy of allposters.com

The Basics, Bitch

When it comes to gardening there are some real basic rules and terms you may want to familiarize yourself with.

Terms
Annual: Plants that typically are only around for one year or one growing season.
Perennial: Plant that will grow year after year (unless you suck at gardening)

Rules
1. Try and observe your garden during the day to see what areas get sun and which areas are shaded. This way you can choose the appropriate plants for the appropriate areas. No need to set up a video camera to tape the yard (unless you want to of course...freak...)just take a look at it on the weekends especially around noon to 3 when the sun is at it's highest (and hottest) point during the day.

2. If you are planting anything like a tree you may want to see if you can find out where the major pipes are located in the yard. Because there is nothing like digging a hole to plant a tree, hitting a water line, and watching a geyser erupt from said hole....not that I know anyone who that happened to.

3. Read the information cards when buying the plant of your dreams. It will tell you everything you need know. I get the majority of my plants from either Home Depot or Lowes and they do have some gardening specialists on staff that you can ask. However they are not always there and are not necessarily the most helpful. If you really are stuck for information go to a local nursery and find their specialists...they are a wealth of information and love to talk plants and tips!

4. Find out what hardiness zone you live in to make sure what you have bought/planted will live. I have attached a handy little link in the upper right corner where you can type in your zip code and it will tell you your zone. However most of the local garden centers/home stores will typically only supply plants that can live in your zone.

5. Get some basic tools. I started out with a large spade (pointed end), garden rake, hand spade, pruning shears and a bulb digger. I later added a forked weeding tool which is awesome for getting to the roots of weeds and tearing those little suckers out and gardening gloves so I wouldn't ruin my manicure!

6. Water! The best times to water is either in the early morning or late afternoon.

7. If at first you don't succeed....there are always more plants out there!

Image courtesy of ehow.com