TRY SOMETHING NEW
Each year the seed catalogues
tempt their customers with new
varieties of old favorites as well
as exotic species. This year it’s a
green zinnia and a tomato tree.
Tuberous begonia seed offers the
adventurous the possibility of
developing something new himself.
And who knows? Maybe this year
you will grow the white marigold!
FRAGRANT HYACINTHS
“Hyacinths to feed the soul’ can
continue to do so year after year
if treated right. After the flowers of
your potted hyacinths have faded,
the bulbs can be planted in the
ground, about five inches deep.
Better wait until frost danger is
past, and try not to disturb the
bulbs in the process. Letthe foliage
die down naturally.
DISEASE-FREE PLANTS
To grow disease-free vegetable
plants such as cabbage, tomatoes,
peppers, and egg plants, treat seed
or buy treated seed. Then, grow
the plants in sterilized soil to control
soil-born disease organisms and
weeds, says Allen H. Bauer, ex-
tension plant pathologist at The
Pennsylvania State University.
WAIT AWHILE
Don’t let a few warm days rush
you into the garden while the soil
is still too wet to work, caution
extension horticulturists at The
Pennsylvania State University.
- Working wet soil puddles it and
when dried out, it stays hard all
summer.
The bumblebee is important as a pollinator because its
long tongue can take nectar from deep flowers which honeybees
cannot reach.
DANCING DAFFODILS
Use your pot of Easter daffodils
GREEN THUMB SECRET
Green thumbs which began itch-
ing with the arrival of the first
seed catalogues back in January
are now happily at work with
spring raking, digging, trimming
and planting. If you envy a friend
his “luck” with growing things,
chances are it’s because he keeps
the green thumb a good dirty brown
all through the growing season.
to brighten a dull or shady spot in
the yard. As soon as they finish
blooming, separate the bulbs and
plant them in loamy soil about
four inches deep. They’ll gain
strength during the summer, pre
paring for next spring’s flowering.
When you plant daffodils,
whether now or in the Fall, remem-
ber Wordsworth’s ‘host of golden
daffodils’. THEY SPREAD!
CRABGRASS CONTROL ON NEW LAWNS
Newly seeded lawns, planted this
Spring, can be kept free of crab-
grass with a chemical bearing the
common name of siduron.
Applied when seeding a new lawn,
siduron has given complete control
of crabgrass in two years of ex-
periments by the Agricultural
Experiment Station at Penn State.
Siduron was used at rates varying
from 4 to 8 pounds of active in-
gredient per acre.
While eliminating crabgrass in
newly seeded turf, siduron did not
injure bluegrass, stated William
G. Downs, associate county agent
in Perry County who carried out
the experiments as a graduate stu-
dent at Penn State. In previous
experiments, other lawn grasses
were not injured.
“These experiments open up the
possibility of successful Spring and
early Summer seeding of turf areas
where crabgrass has been a pro-
blem,” Downs affirmed. ‘Spring
seeding has not been a recommend-
ed practice, but when well estab-
lished, a lawn should remain
relatively free of crabgrass.”
Even when applied 13 days after
seeding, crabgrass density was re-
duced 70 percent. Lack of sufficient
moisture decreased the effectiveness
of the chemical.
In current tests, siduron has not
remained active in the soil from
one year to the next. The product
is available under several brand
names and sometimes comes ready-
mixed with comr.only available
lawn fertilizers. Ask your county
agent for further information.
Photo courtesy Allied Chemical.
EASTER LILY BED
Do you have an Easter lily bed?
If not, this is a good time to start
planning for one. Pick a sunny spot
with good drainage and room for
expansion, for you’ll want to add
to it each year, and the bulbs will
multiply.
When your potted lily loses its
blossoms, water it sparingly until
the foliage dies down. Then remove
the bulbs from the pot, separate,
and plant them, not too deep.
After a short rest, they’ll start
growing again and you can expect
more blossoms in late summer.
Next year they’ll bloom in mid-
summer, the normal time.
USE ANNUAL FLOWERS
You can find annual flowers for
almost any purpose. Annuals can
be planted to add summer color to
a spring-flowering rock garden,
cover up dying spring foilage, in
large beds, for edging and for win-
dow and porch boxes, suggests A.
O. Rasmussen, extension ornamen-
tal specialist at The Pennsylvania
State University.
HEALTHY VEGETABLES
Many home gardeners have
trouble raising certain vegetables
because of disease-infested soil.
Allen H. Bauer, extension plant
pathologist at The Pennsylvania
State University, suggests that a
rotation helps control short-lived
organisms, but in many cases re-
sistant varieties must be used.
LET FORCED TULIPS REST
Tulips forced into bloom for the
holiday will need a rest before
joining the outdoor garden. Set the
pot in a sunny spot and keep it
watered until the leaves die down.
Then you can put it in the cellar
until fall planting time, or remove
the bulbs and store them in a cool
place.
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