Sanhedrin Nursery – Garden Blog

• Tomatoes are the most popular summer vegetable. Choose from the many varieties available now so you can enjoy delicious home-grown flavor.

• Petunias can be planted now. Their bright flowers will bloom all summer in hot, sunny locations and they will take a light frost.

• Plant an herb garden in a container near the kitchen door for convenient fresh spices like basil, oregano, parsley and thyme.

• When you plant your vegetable garden, why not grow a little extra to donate to the food bank this summer.

A Year for Plant Diseases

Any plant can be attacked by disease organisms. During wet spring weather, plant diseases are very common. Bacterial infections, fungi and viruses may be attacking some of your plants, so keep a sharp eye out for problems.

If soil is waterlogged, plant roots may deteriorate rapidly, largely due to the lack of oxygen in the soil. Waterlogged soil also favors the development of diseases such as damping-off and root rot fungi. Stems of annual and perennial flowers and vegetables, may darken and get soft, causing the plants to die. There is no cure for this problem.

Leaf diseases can be due to either fungi or bacteria. Powdery mildew, fungal leaf spots, and rusts are fungi which are spread by rain. You can’t remove the problem from the leaves it is on, but you can protect new growth and uninfected leaves by spraying with a preventative spray. Neem oil is a non-toxic spray that has proven to be quite effective.

Peach leaf curl is a fungus that infects the leaves before they open in the spring. The puckered and blistered leaves turn bright red with a white powdery layer over the leaf surface. Affected leaves will drop prematurely and a second set of leaves will come out that are usually not affected. Preventative spraying must be done during the dormant season and in severely wet springs, such as this, it may not be very effective. Remove the curled leaves, preferably before the white powdery spore layer develops, and dispose of them.

Bacterial leaf spots are very common in wet weather. These black or dead patches may be surrounded by a yellow margin. Usually when the weather dries out, the new growth will be unaffected, but it is a good idea to remove infected leaves and clean up dead leaves under the plant.

Bacterial canker often affects plum and cherry trees. Typically, a tree will push out new growth in a normal manner, then suddenly the leaves wither and die. The plants cannot pull up moisture into the leaves because the canker has girdled the trunk or branch of the tree. There is not much you can do about this condition, except prune out affected branches in the summer.

Viruses can also affect plants. Many viruses do not harm plants, such as those that cause variegation on leaves or flowers. But some can distort leaves or fruits, and the only control for these is to destroy infected plants and wash hands and tools so that you do not spread the problem to other plants.

If you see a disease problem that you need help with, pick several leaves in different stages of development, seal them in a plastic bag, and take them to your local nursery for identification and help. You may find some unusual plant problems in the garden this year.

• Mother’s Day is the perfect time to give a gift of a living plant. Roses, lilacs, hanging fuchsias and ivy geraniums or even a delicate African Violet will be sure to please her.

• Gladiolus make wonderful cut flowers throughout the summer. Plant some every two weeks for continuous blooms.

• Plant the vegetable garden this month, but remember that late frosts can still nip tender young plants.

• Colorful Gerberas with their large, daisy flowers are a standout in containers. Water them infrequently and give them plenty of sun for flowers all summer.

• Wisterias are large, vigorous vines that are blooming right now with their long clusters of purple, pink or white fragrant flowers. Give them a strong arbor to climb on.

Delicious, Homegrown Tomatoes

There are still a few things in the world you cannot buy: one of them is the full flavor and juicy texture of a vine-ripened tomato. Perhaps this is why the tomato is the most widely grown vegetable in American gardens. There are varieties which will grow wherever there’s at least 6 or 8 hours of warm sunshine a day.

Admittedly, Willits isn’t the best tomato-growing area, but by choosing the right varieties for your situation, you can count on delicious, juicy tomatoes by late summer. We have a short growing season here because spring frosts can occur through May, and a killing frost usually arrives in October. In addition, the summer nights are generally cool, with temperatures often falling into the 40’s, which slows down the growth of warm-season crops like tomatoes and peppers.

For these reasons, short-season varieties like ‘Early Girl’, ‘Champion’, ‘Heartland’, ‘La Roma’, and ‘Oregon Spring’ are popular. You can always try a few of the longer-season varieties like ‘Beefsteak’, ‘Beefmaster’, ‘Brandywine’, ‘Cherokee Purple’, and ‘Giuseppi’s Big Boy’ if you have a good, warm spot for them.

Then there are the midseason favorites like ‘Ace 55’, ‘Better Boy’, ‘Big Beef’, ‘Celebrity’ and ‘Park’s Whopper’. Planting several different types will give you lots of delicious fruit for fresh-eating and canning.

Tomatoes are divided into two types. Determinate varieties grow on strong, stocky bushes that don’t need staking. All the fruits on a plant ripen at about the same time, making these good canning tomatoes. ‘Ace 55’, ‘Celebrity’, ‘Homestead’, ‘Heartland’, ‘La Roma’, ‘Patio’, and ‘Oregon Spring’ are determinate varieties.

Most tomatoes grow on vines, and these varieties are called indeterminate, which means that they would keep growing indefinitely, if frost didn’t kill them. They need strong stakes or cages to hold the plants up off the ground.

For variety, be sure to include yellow and orange tomatoes in your garden. Many of them are low in acid, which some people prefer, and all of them are colorful in salads. ‘Golden Jubilee’ is the standard, low-acid tomato. But try ‘Lemon Boy’ for its bright, lemon-yellow fruit and ‘Hillbilly’ or ‘Pineapple’ for a red-and-yellow slicer that is sweet and fruity.

“Cherry” tomatoes are nice in salads. Try ‘Yellow Pear’, an heirloom variety with small, pear-shaped fruit, and ‘Sun Gold’, a golden cherry-type with delicious flavor. ‘Black Cherry’ is sweet and rich-flavored, and ‘Juliet’ and ‘Jelly Bean’ have grape-shaped fruits with sweet flavor.

One of the most common tomato problems is “blossom end rot.” It leaves a hard, brown splotch on the bottom of the fruit. It is caused by sudden changes in soil moisture, or lack of calcium. Watch your watering practices and be sure to throw a handful of bone meal in the bottom of each hole at planting time.

Tomatoes are subject to two serious diseases: Verticillium wilt and Fusarium wilt. They cause the leaves to yellow and drop off from the bottom up. The best way to avoid problems is to “rotate your crops” by planting your tomatoes in a different part of the garden each year. If you have had trouble in the past, look for disease-resistant varieties, designated by the letters V and F after the variety name.

Try planting 3 or 4 different varieties of tomatoes this year. Plant mostly the “tried and true” varieties and then try something new. You just might find that perfect tomato this year.

• Flowering dogwood trees are blooming now to help you choose a beautiful small tree for a focal point in your garden.

• “Topsy Turvy”®Tomato and Pepper Planters are a fun and convenient way to enjoy these popular vegetables hanging right outside your kitchen door.

• Enjoy the bright yellow colors of goldfinches outside your window by putting up thistle feeders for them.

• Prepare for planting season! Turn in cover crops and do a soil test if your garden had trouble last year.

• Flower seeds can be sown directly in the garden now. Cosmos, marigolds and zinnias will give you beautiful flowers all summer.

Spring Houseplant Care

Spring is a time of growth for houseplants. Plants start to wake up from their winter rest, and begin to grow faster as the day-length increases. This is a great time to catch up on needed plant maintenance, such as repotting, fertilization, and propagation. Here are some tips on spring houseplant care.

As houseplants begin to show increased growth in the spring, you can start fertilizing them more frequently. Do this slowly at first then increase the frequency and dosage of fertilizer as the weather warms. Be sure to follow directions on the container, as each type of fertilizer works differently.

Re-potting is best done during the springtime, so that plants will have the opportunity to grow into their new pots. When repotting, choose pots that are only an inch or two bigger than the existing pot. Choosing one that is dramatically larger will result in a large volume of soil that stays wet for a long time when you water, because it is not full of roots to take up the available water. This may encourage root rot, so smaller is better.

Houseplants may need to be watered more frequently since they dry out faster when light intensity increases. During this cool, damp spring they may require less water, depending on house temperatures, but as daytime temperatures increase, watering needs increase as well. Keep an eye on your plants, especially those unforgiving ones like Nerve Plants, orchids and ferns.

Spring is also a great time to take cuttings, and to propagate some of your favorite houseplants. Take 4 to 6 inch cuttings from vigorous, healthy shoots. Cut just below a node (where a leaf is attached) with a sharp, clean knife, and root in water or moist vermiculite.

Some plants may have become leggy over the winter and now is a good time to give them a trimming. This will encourage new growth so that they can fill out and be more bushy and attractive.

Give your plants a thorough grooming by removing dead and dying foliage. Take this opportunity to look for insects, especially if the leaves look mottled or pale. Treat plants for any problems you discover.

Most houseplants will benefit from being moved outdoors during the summertime. They should be placed in a semi-shady place where they will be protected from wind and sun. They will need more frequent watering outdoors, so check them daily in hot weather. Fertilize them monthly, and check occasionally for insects or diseases that may attack them outdoors. Remember to move them indoors by mid-September before the cool weather returns.

House plants make a beautiful addition to any indoor space, adding color and texture to the room. As you gain experience caring for your houseplants, you will enjoy them more and more.