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Settling Into Summer
Greetings!
 I joke that now that I've raised three kids, I should have at least three more because I've finally figured out how to do it right.
One thing I've gotten down is getting my children to do chores. As a farm kid, I probably have an inflated sense of the importance of work, but who can argue that persuading a child to help with the weeding, watering, and harvesting is a bad thing?
Here's a recent photo of 13-year-old Will. He's supposed to be deadheading the Siberian irises, but the colony of millipedes he found under a rock nearby suddenly was far more engrossing. Hey, I didn't say I'd taught my children to do their chores quickly!
Happy gardening,  Veronica Lorson Fowler |
Lend Some Support
 This time of year, perennials and other plants are reaching their full height. And in many cases, that means they're starting to flop a bit.
There are many different ways to stake and support plants to prevent flopping, but one of my favorites is to simply to go the brush pile and dig out a well-branched small limb.
Cut off one end on it's easy to insert into the ground. Trim the other end a bit so you have a neatly branched support. Some of my supports are Y-shaped. Others, like the one shown here supporting a false indigo, have multiple little branches on top.
Then insert alongside the flopping perennial to add a natural-looking support that costs not a penny.
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Our Plant of the Moment
Stella de Oro daylilies, blooming now in rich gold, are indispensible for the Iowa garden. They're smaller than traditional daylilies with grass-like foliage that gets just 12 to 18 inches high. Then, in late June through mid-July, for a few weeks (a long time for a perennial), they cover themselves with bright flowers.
After bloom time, deadhead them and they continue to contribute to the garden with their neat strappy leaves, which turn lovely yellow-gold in fall. With few pests or diseases, they're practically the perfect plant.
Best of all, they're easy to divide after a couple of years, so you can eventually have many of them to use in a long strip as an edging plant. I've used them in my little courtyard garden, shown in the photo, to edge a gravel path and patio.
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Tuck In Your Label
 Plant labels are great, but they're not especially attractive in the garden. I mean, we don't let our clothing labels show. Why should we let our plant labels show?
When planting, I like to do this trick: Instead of inserting the label with the top half showing, I bury almost the whole thing in the soil so only the tiniest sliver shows. That way, when I want the info, I know where it is but it doesn't detract from the attractiveness of the planting, either.
Bonus: In Iowa's harsh climate, burying the labels protects them from the elements and helps them last longer.
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Garden Quote
"A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken."
-- Journalist and cartoonist James Dent |
Have Tough Garden Questions?
The Iowa State University Horticulture Extension Answer Line gives great, free advice! 515-294-3108
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Ted's Garden Center, Cummings
Saturday, June 18
Natural Methods for Nasty Pests
10 a.m.- noon. Go green and learn about natural organic products to take care of pests and diseases. Also includes a talk about natural organic fertilizers. Free.
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Garden To-Do List
For a printer-friendly version of this list, click here.
 Go ahead and buy plants on clearance, but buy only those plants that look healthy. Avoid runty, dried out, or otherwise tired-looking plants. They're unlikely to rally.
Weed, weed, weed! Get them now while they're small and prevent big problems later. Click here for tips on how to wipe out max weeds in minimum time.
You can move and divide perennials that bloom in spring now, as needed or desired. Hold off on dividing those that bloom in late summer or fall. For them, it's too close to show time!
Deadhead flowers on annuals, perennials, and some shrubs. It keeps your garden more attractive and in many cases, it will encourage more flowers longer.
Continue to plant container-grown or balled-and-burlapped trees, shrubs, and roses now. However, avoid planting bare-root roses and other bare-root plants. This late in the year, they'll struggle to get established.
Time to practice tough love. If a tree or shrub is still struggling with winter damage or overall sickness, with significant amounts of dead wood, it's almost certainly time to dig it up or cut it down.
Remove the browning foliage of tulips and daffodils once it pulls away easily. Until then, the plant is using it to rejuvenate for next year.
Pinch mum buds and until the 4th of July. This helps them produce larger, bigger flowers on stronger stems.
Harvest early and often for the most tender, sweetest produce and to keep plants producing well. Pick zucchini, for example, with the yellow flower still attached.
Check out the bulb catalogs and on-line sources. Ordering now assures the type and quantity you want this fall, when supplies run low.
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Upcoming Garden Events
Saturday, June 18
Polk County Master Gardener's Tour
9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Seven home gardens and one public garden. . $10-$15. 515-957-5760.
Saturday, June 18
Garden Tour/Garden
Art & Plant Sale
Mineral Point, Wisconsin 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Eight private gardens. A fundraiser for the Shake Rag Alley School, which emphasizes rustic arts and nature crafts. $12.
Sunday, June 19
Des Moines
Botanical Center
Father's Day
Free admission for all fathers!
Saturday, June 25
Marshalltown Garden Club's Annual Tour
For information or tickets, call 641-752-2458.
For more upcoming Iowa garden events, click here.
Have a garden event or events that you'd like featured in The Iowa Gardener? Click here and send us your information. . |
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