Spinach, Peas, and Lettuce, OH MY!

I am excited that I have been lucky enough to have a garden growing in all the weird weather that we are having! But strangely enough we are already eating from our garden and loving every bite!
I harvested a big row of spinach last week and came out with 9 bags of spinach to share and eat in delicious salads! We have also been lucky enough to get some peas and lettuce that is making my grocery shopping bill smaller and my smile bigger! In a few weeks it will be time to plant all the cole crops again that you want a second try at. I for one will be replanting peas for sure- I can't get enough of those yummy things....and mine struggled this season. I hope they do much better in a fall crop. I am still puttering and planting a few things here and there, pumpkins that I didn't get in yet and I re-seeded some of my corn that has come up spotty because of the weather.



Weed control time is here and we have the blisters on our hands to prove it! Get out those hoe's people and make sure your garden can be found among the many weeds popping up. The ever-bearing strawberry varieties are starting to produce, and there is nothing sweeter. Keep them moist and they will give you a great reason to go into your garden. With the heat in the afternoon I find it most helpful to spend my hours in the garden in the early morning 5:30-8am and in the evening (with a good bug spray on for mosquitoes) 7-9:30... This time of year I can still see to work until about 9:45 at night.... amazing! You gotta love the long summer nights. Don't forget to thin carrots, beets, and turnips for best results.



I hope you are enjoying your garden food and looking forward to more ahead while our tomatoes, corn, beans, and squash are growing happily. Remember to water deep and infrequent, try to get the water to go down at least 6 inches. It saves water and makes for happier healthier plants.

Happy Gardening!
Adrienne

Annual Flower bed design

So I'll admit it, finally having nice weather I am having a hard time blogging. It is too fun to spend my time outside working and enjoying the still "cool enough to work" weather! I also have had to slow down a bit because I only have about 9 more weeks till my baby is born :) I apologize for the time gap but I thought I would post about one of the many things I have been working on outside lately....

Annual flower bed design! I have been inspired by many different places these past two years to start planting an annual flower bed or two each spring. It is so fun to find varieties that work well together and see the full splendor of summer annuals at their best. I used to not be a big fan of annuals until I saw the amazing ability they have to keep blooming all summer long. I have loved working with some more rare and tried and true varieties and trying something new each year.



I start by choosing a color scheme and think of the texture and spacing that I want. Some of the plants I like to use are flowering kale, purple basil, cardinal red salvia, cleome, gomphrena, profussion zinnias, imagination verbena, and black eyed susan. there are many other varieties you can experiment with, but those are a few of my favorites for zone 5. Look for plants in your nursery that are small and not too overgrown and lanky for the flat. The small plants do better because they are not so root-bound in the container. I really try to pack my annuals in the bed, the more color and texture the better. I count up how many flats of flowers I need for my space and place them by gently throwing the plants onto the ground and where they land is where they are planted. (please don't plant in cute little rows! there is nothing natural about it!) I try to copy nature as much as possible and random placement seems to be more aesthetically pleasing in my opinion.



Make sure you prepare the soil in your area well by adding plenty of organic matter and tilling before planting if possible. I also like to add some all purpose fertilizer to get things started well. I usually plant on may 15 but this year because of weather we are about a month behind schedule. My plants just went in about a week and a half ago and I am babying them until they get settled and start to do their thing!

They actually don't look like much now but in a few weeks will be beautiful as ever bursting with color and texture! I look forward to the enjoyment of it! I hope this will inspire you to try something new with the many amazing annuals that we have!

Happy Gardening

Adrienne

Trees that will take your breath away!

We're in the full swing of things and I finally dragged myself inside to blog instead of weed, and plant my garden. The nursery's are buzzing with people and our yards are starting to take a good share of our Saturday. It's really hard to get plants off your mind this beautiful time of year. I have been thinking a lot about trees this week because this spring we have planted 5 new trees in our yard. Here is a list of my favorite ornamental landscape trees for zone 5 and why... Not in zone 5? Check to see if these trees will grow in your area! Trust me you won't be disappointed!

1. Crabapple (Malus baccata) this tree has many beautiful flowering varieties and does well in most any location. They will even grow where I live with a high water table area and look gorgeous! Very low maintenance tree and amazing color in spring, and beautiful small edible fruits in the fall. Attracts birds, and kids to eat them :)

2. Zelcova (Zelcova serrata)- want a beautiful large shade tree with a lot of disease resistance? Zelcova is the answer! One of the prettiest shade trees I have found for our area! An amazing example of this is located on the Provo BYU campus next to the Wilkinson Center. I loved to walk by this tree and enjoy it's never-ending beauty.

3. Saucer/star Magnolia (Magnolia x soulangiana, or stellata for star)-This amazingly beautiful tree has blossoms the size of your fist and it just happens to bloom on my birthday every year! Spring bloom and beautiful shrub-like shape! Believe me it is breath-taking when it blooms and has large attractive leaves the rest of the season. The only down side is that it is very slow growing. (It's well worth the wait!)

4. White Fir, or Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga sp.)- One of my favorite evergreen trees with soft needles and an amazingly beautiful shape. The dark green needles next to it's white bark is very aesthetically pleasing in any landscape!

5. Tri-color Beech (Fagus Sylvatica)- Or any Beech tree for that matter! Beech wood is beautiful and so are the leaves of this amazing tree. I love the tri-color, weeping beech and even the common beech has amazing form and beauty. This tree does well in Utah, the most beautiful I have seen are on the grounds of the Logan Utah Temple.

6. Weeping Cherry (Prunus sp.)- Need a beautiful focal point in your yard? This tree will draw your attention all year round. Beautiful blossoms in early spring and stunning form all year round. Even winter months it is fun to look at! (just watch to make sure it is pruned to stay within the weeping graft!)

7. Red Oak (Quercus Rubra)- a beautiful shade tree that has nice leaves in spring/summer but really puts on it's show in the fall with gorgeous fall color. It grows well in Utah with few problems!

8. Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hipocastanum) This tree will always remind me of my grandpa! A huge hard wood shade tree with amazing blooms in the spring. Get ready to be amazed every time it blooms. I have literally stopped in traffic to see a mature horse chestnut bloom here in Utah. They are amazing enough it is one of the only trees that is going to be preserved with the remodel of the Ogden Temple. It has a brown round seed that drops off in the fall (great fun for kids to play with, but a little messy!)

9. Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) Another evergreen worth noting! This tree has linear soft flat needles and they turn yellow, orange before falling off in the fall. (Yes is is deciduous!) Likes to be planted near water! Beautiful choice for zone 5!

10. Lastly I would say any tree that is sentimental to you for any good reason is a great choice (as long as it does well in your area!). Trees evoke emotions that nothing else can and it is worth planting the tree that brings back good memories of a person or time of life!

Remember when planting your new treasure to dig the hole three times the size of your root ball. Plant only as deep as where the roots start to flare on the trunk! Do not plant it too deep! Place a hose near your new planted tree just dripping over-night to get a good deep watering and allow the roots to go deep into the ground.

Stop and enjoy the trees around you and notice all that they are accomplishing in the spring time!

Also, just for fun read this great article on Gardening with kids- here

Happy Gardening

Adrienne

Video Info: How to Plant Tomatoes

Here's a very good video link for instructions how to plant tomatoes as you are getting ready to plant your gardens this year! Enjoy!



Thanks to Jerry Goodspeed at the Utah State Extension for posting this on the website!

http://ogdenbotanicalgardens.blogspot.com/

Happy Gardening!

Adrienne

Summer Garden Crops

The peas, spinach, carrots and lettuce are sprouting and it's getting close to that summer planting time again in zone 5! The last freeze date in Utah is May 5th. However I may wait till the 15th or so this year because of the very wet cold spring we have had... I can hardly wait to plant my green beans, tomatoes, corn, squash, melons, peppers and a whole lot more delicious vegetables and fruits! Depending on how much you have to plant, I usually plan a couple of weekends to do the job. Seeds go in first, and then the plants that I always forget to grow from seed; like tomatoes, squash and peppers. For more info on specific crops and how to grow them look here.



Don't forget this year to think about Weed control. We are trying a few different things this year to help with our garden. We plant a pretty big space so each year we try something new to find the best way to control weeds and get the best yield. First, we are using black fabric for our squash, melons, and anything that is perennial or takes up a large amount of space. (Our only issue with this so far is that you need to stake it down pretty good so the wind doesn't blow it around. Also consider putting something like wood chips or mulch on top to keep it down and make it look better.) For row crops we are going to try to lay newspaper down in between the rows. You place 2-3 sheets on top of each other and water it down so it sticks to the soil and put compost, mulch on the top. I have heard this can keep the weeds down for 1-2 months. I have never tried this so I will let you know how well it works for us! The newspaper and mulch/compost breaks down and is a good soil amendment and you get less weeds win/win right?

Irrigation- This is also something we have worked on each year to improve and make less work for us each year. Also trying to be conscious of not using more than needed is important for our environment! If you live in a place where watering is not needed I am incredibly jealous. Watering is a lot of work in Utah and your plants suffer a lot if you mess it up! We have a small orchard, grapes and blackberries that we are working on putting in a drip system for. Set to a timer they should be pretty stress free once in place. We have tried flood, furrow irrigation, sprinkler and drip and for us a combination is needed to cover all the different watering needs we have. Consider the plants you have their requirements and supplies you already have to work with.

We really try to "train" our plants to have deep roots by watering them deeply (at least 8 inches) and infrequently (once every 5-7 days depending on weather). This makes your plants healthier than if you water daily and all the roots stay right on the surface of the soil! And it's better for our Mother Earth!



A few more spring tips:

*The next few weeks are also a great time to plant your annuals and containers! More to come soon about annual flower bed design. If you live in Weber County there is an amazing annual plant sale at the extension, free classes etc. look here for more info.

*Don't forget to break up your thatch layer in your yard by aerating each spring for a healthier lawn. For more tips on spring lawn maintenance look here.

*I like to add compost to my flower beds each spring from a local green dump to make my soil soft and amazing! A little each year makes a huge difference!!

*Enjoying your spring bulbs? Make sure the bulb stalk turns yellow and dies down to the base of the stalk before taking them out. Bulbs need all the energy from the leaves senescence to be able to bloom next year. When you can easily pull the stalk and it will gently snap off of the bulb it is the right time to take the stalks out and leave the bulbs in for next year!!

Happy Gardening!

Adrienne

Landscaping for Dogs

If you are like me and love a dog (or two) - there can be some gardening drama! Here are a few ideas about how to design your yard to be dog, and gardener friendly! We all know it is a hard trick to establish with a chewing, digging, eliminating animal in your yard. Find a way to enjoy your yard space together with that puppy in your life.

Tip #1- Establish a "dog area" in your yard! Make sure it is a large enough area the dog can roam free a little and find some fun things to add to make it a comfortable place for your dog to be. Make sure the area has shade for your dog house and a place where they can drink (a fountain or small pool for drinking/swimming depending on what your dog likes is fun to try). My dogs are both Labs as you can see, so I plan to add a small pool/water feature that they can swim and cool off in the hot Utah summers. I let my dogs out of the dog area at least once a day to run/play or go on a walk but the main area for pottying is in the dog area! You can also place a water outlet in the area with a lick-spout attached for clean fresh water. There are so many good drinking ideas!! Another, if your dog is really posh is to place a mister on your hose (on a timer) that will mist the dog area a few times a day in the hottest hours. What more can a dog really want?

Tip #2- Does your dog love to dig? Make a place in the dog area your dog CAN dig without getting in trouble... Add a pile of dirt and even bury a bone or treat every once in a while to show the dog where she is allowed to dig. It also helps in training them, if you catch them digging somewhere else to bring them to that spot and say "dig!"

Tip #3- Create stepping stone paths in the naturally worn paths your dog makes (usually along the fence line of your home). This will eliminate unsightly dog paths in the lawn and help your dog keep their natural territorial instincts without getting into trouble.


Tip #4- Make sure you don't have poisonous plants in your yard that could harm your dog. For a list of poisonous plants check the link below.
http://landscaping.about.com/od/poisonouslandscapeplants/tp/poisonous-plants.htm

Tip #5- Find suitable ground cover for your "dog area." A lot of dog owners use wood chips or heavy mulch instead of lawn because of the damage dog urine does to your turf. I use a combination of both because I don't mind re-seeding a few spots every spring... Use your preference- but please find a way to make it look attractive. Add a cute fire-hydrant planter, some hardy perennials, or some flowering shrubs. Landscaping for dogs can be a lot of fun!!

Happy Gardening!

Adrienne

Backyard Composting

I know you've seen it... that rich, dark, soft soil- easy to weed and will grow the most beautiful plants in the universe? Now that can be yours with a few easy steps to building your own compost pile.

Spring is a great time to start a compost pile that will help you naturally amend your soil into something magnificent! Your soil is a living organism that constantly needs to be fed and amended to get best results from your gardening experience. From my many college soils classes I have taken I always heard that the MOST important and beneficial thing you can do for your soil is to add organic matter. Organic matter is simply decomposed materials such as kitchen scraps (fruits and veggies), grass clippings, leaves and weeds, manures, coffee grounds, wood chips, bark etc. I can't tell you enough the benefit it adds to your garden and the results you get from it! It is SO worth it!

What is composting?
Composting according to Utah State University Extension is the aerobic, or oxygen-requiring, decomposition of organic materials by microorganisms under controlled conditions.

I had read about it for years and finally had the space to make my own compost bin in my back yard. Little did I know you can also do the same in a small space if you are willing. Here are some steps to get you started and know how to make some successful compost GOLD!

Step 1- Find a container! If you have space for a larger compost bin it can be made inexpensively with poles and chicken wire, wooden bins, or open sided cinder blocks. I made mine out of wood pallets that I got for free from a local store. You only need three sides so you can build the pile inside of it. (keep in mind you need something you can get wet, and will circulate air through easily) If you have a small space you can but a compost turner, or simply start with a bucket under your kitchen sink of scraps that can be put directly into your garden soil. (kitchen scraps decompose very quickly)

Step 2- Select the site! For the perfect composting location you need at least 6 hours of sunlight, a convenient location for adding and removing compost, and available to water. You might also think of a place that is inconspicuous in your landscape for aesthetic purposes.

Step 3- Gather suitable materials- any of the above mentioned organic materials CAN be added to your pile- things that are not acceptable are as follows: meats, bones, large branches, dairy products, synthetic products and plastics.

Step 4- Making the pile work- Structure the compost pile with layers that will help the pile decompose correctly. Mine went something like this- Plant waste, fertilizer, soil, plant waste, fertilizer, soil. You must add nitrogen fertilizer every 1-2 feet to decrease the Carbon to Nitrogen ratio. A 1" layer of soil from your yard will increase microbial activity in your pile. Build the pile 3-5 feet tall with an equal circumference so it will heat enough for good composting. Turn the pile every 2-4 weeks (or more often for quicker composting) and keep the pile moist to speed composting.

Remember- if your pile starts to stink- you need to turn it. Adequate oxygen and moisture will eliminate unpleasant odors.

Another good thing to do if you live in the country is to make sure your pile is secure from roaming animals- I think last year we fed quite a few neighborhood dogs, a snake, and a skunk with our delicious compost before I was smart enough to keep it covered! At least my kids got to see a real live skunk right? (they named him stinky face)

The compost is ready when it starts to look like real soil and has no more recognizable materials. It usually takes a few months to get to this point.

Give it a try! Compost added to any flower bed or garden space will be SO beneficial!

Happy Gardening!

Adrienne

Click here to learn more about composting and see my reference for this post.