Think About It Gardening by the Yard : Episode GBY-1007 -- More Projects »
Running your garden on auto pilot? Master gardener Paul James reveals why it's time to take control of those routine garden tasks."Some chores we do in the garden seem almost instinctive--things such as weeding or maybe even mowing the lawn," says James. "They don't require a whole lot of thought or advanced planning, but certain other tasks do." Here's what James recommends we think about:
 |
Picking the right kind of rose can make the difference between relative ease of care....
|
| |
...and dealing with issues like blackspot.
|
|
Something as seemingly simple as planting a rose might not be so simple. What kind of rose will you plant? After all, there are all kinds of roses available, nearly all of which are beautiful. But some roses are easier to care for than others. Some roses--particularly hybrid teas, floribundas and grandifloras--can be a royal pain to care for because they are often ravaged by fungal diseases such as blackspot, rust and powdery mildew. Dealing with those diseases may require frequent spraying, perhaps as often as every seven days throughout the growing season. But there are other roses, such as rugosa roses and species roses that are extremely disease-resistant and virtually carefree. "Moreover, these roses tend to bloom over a longer period of time, and in my opinion they smell much sweeter," says James. And the decision to plant a tree requires some planning. Sure, you can just buy a tree, dig a hole and stick it in the ground, but the fact is that there are all kinds of things you need to think about first. How big will it get? Is the spot you picked for the tree so close to the house that individual branches or the entire tree may ultimately pose a threat to the house during high winds or ice storms? It's all right to plant relatively small trees such as Japanese maples fairly close to the house, but most popular shade trees will get not only tall but extremely wide in time. Plus, will the mature tree get too close to a power line? Using a product that contains both a pre-emergent herbicide to zap the weeds and a fertilizer to feed the lawn may not necessarily do the job you intended. James warns that unless you time the application properly, you may soon wonder whether you did anything at all. There's a fairly critical window of opportunity for using these combination products. If you apply them too early, you may get the benefit of the herbicide but little to no benefit of the fertilizer--especially if the grass is dormant because it can't absorb the nutrients. If you apply too late--that is, when the weeds are already up and growing--you get the benefit from the fertilizer, but no benefit at all from the herbicide. So make sure to time the application of weed and feed products very carefully, or better yet, consider viewing weeding and feeding as two separate tasks all together. On the subject of scheduled tasks, do you water on a schedule, and if so, why? "Most gardeners I know, including many who should know better, water according to a strict schedule as in every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the lawn and landscape and every Saturday for houseplants. Well, that's one of the absolutely worst things that you can do," James says. "The reason is simple--all plants have different watering needs, and rarely do they coincide with your schedule." Instead, water when the plants need to be watered. "The last two things I want you to think about are especially important because they pertain not so much to the health of your plants but to your health," says James. When you use any gardening chemical, whether organic or synthetic, make sure you read the directions word for word, especially what to do in the event that you accidentally inhale, ingest or absorb the chemical, and follow directions to the letter. Mix chemicals exactly according to the instructions. Don't assume that if two tablespoons per gallon are suggested, four are twice as effective. And whatever you do, don't mix chemicals because that can lead to disaster. Finally, make sure you store all your chemicals in a safe place. "Lastly, I want to remind you to think about where you dig, especially if you're digging deeply to set posts for a fence or deck." Your landscape may be filled with all kinds of underground utility lines, gas, water, sewer, etc. And severing one of those lines can cause anything from a slight inconvenience to a serious emergency. So before you dig, call the appropriate companies or service and have them send someone out to locate underground lines.
| |
![PHOTO](javascript:popup("http://img.hgtv.com/HGTV/2005/03/24/gby1007_1a_e.jpg",350,450))
![PHOTO](javascript:popup("http://img.hgtv.com/HGTV/2005/03/24/gby1007_1b_e.jpg",350,450))
