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Andy Wedel

All Star Award
 And A Gold Star Goes To...
 
  Gold Star!
Sue Bos. Sue was the first to submit the correct answer to our May Trivia Question: "What is the world's smallest country?" The correct answer is: "Vatican City."

Sue won a $15.00 Wedel's gift card and you could too! Just be the first to respond with the correct answer to our monthly trivia question.

Congratulations, Sue!! 

(ed. note - We would like to ask contest winners to pick up prizes within 90 days to avoid forfeiture.)
 
June
Shopping List 

Fertilome Weed Free Zone  
Grass seed
Starter fertilizer
Bird seed
Pruners
Pruning sealer
Plant labels, stakes, twist ties, cages
Lawn and garden fungicide
Rain gauge
Garden seeds
Repellex Mole and Gopher Repellent
Lawn spreader
Suet
Gift card
Hummingbird feeder
Hummingbird nectar  
A Thought
From the Garden
   
Beautiful Bud

"On this June day the buds in my garden are almost as enchanting as the open flowers. Things in bud bring, in the heat of a June noontide, the recollection of the loveliest days of the year - those days of May when all is suggested, nothing yet fulfilled."

- Francis King
 
Mom's Home Cooking
Mom Tested And Approved

Green Bean
Casserole Dish
6 Servings

What becomes of the onions and peppers? They frequently disappear, leaving marvelously seasoned beans. This dish is great for the hostess who cooks her own dinner.

String:
1 pound green beans
Peel and chop:
4 medium-sized white onions
Remove the seeds and veins from:
2 medium-sized green peppers
Chop the peppers. Butter a baking dish. Place in it alternate layers of the vegetables, beginning and ending with a layer of beans. Sprinkle each layer with:
Salt
Paprika
Dot each layer with:
Butter
Cover the dish. Bake the vegetables in a moderate oven 350 degrees for about 1 hour or until the beans are tender. Before serving cover the top with:
Buttered Bread Crumbs

Buttered Crumbs
Saute':
1 cup bread crumbs
in:
1/3 cup hot butter or bacon drippings
You may add:
Chopped, minced bacon
Minced onions
Chopped parsley
Chopped nutmeats

The Joy of Cooking
(Copyright 1946)

Enjoy!
Look Sharp
Feel Sharp
Be Sharp
Did you know that you can have your blades sharpened at Wedels?!

Take a look at these prices! 
  • Pruners - $5.00
  • Loppers - $5.00
  • Lawn mower blades - $6.00 (sorry, no reel mowers)
  • Mulching mower blades - $6.00
  • Hedge shears - $5.00  
  • Electric and cordless hedge shears - $10.00
  • Hoes, shovels and trowels - $3.00 
  • Larger items - we will quote a price 

(We don't sharpen chain saw blades.)  

 
Did You Know?
 
1. Aphids are born pregnant and can give birth 10 days after being born themselves.
       
2. The blood of mammals is red, the blood of insects is yellow, and the blood of lobsters is blue.

3. The buzz that you hear when a bee approaches is the sound of its four wings moving at 11,400 strokes per minute.

4. You're more likely to be a target for mosquitoes if you consume bananas.

Wedel's News

Volume 9, Number 3                                                             June 2016  

Sweet Corn_

Nothing says summer like fresh corn from the garden, so sweet you can eat it right off the stalk. Corn of any kind (sweet, popcorn, ornamental, or dent) can be easy to grow if you have sun, plenty of water, and rich soil. Having an understanding of corn pollination helps, too.

Like other grasses, wind, rather than insects, pollinates corn, so it needs to be sown in blocks or parallel rows rather than single rows. This planting technique, along with some wind, ensures the pollen from the tassel will reach each and every silk on the ear. The tassel grows from the very top of the stalk and eventually opens, releasing pollen at about the same time the silks are emerging. This magical timing of tassel and silk emerging to shed and accept pollen is called "nick", as in, "in the nick of time" (the exact instant at which something has to take place.) Each silk, when pollinated, forms an individual kernel on your soon-to-be succulent ear of corn. If every silk is not pollinated, you'll see some holes or skips on the ears. To ensure that each silk is pollinated, you can always hand-pollinate. Once the silks emerge and the tassel begins dropping pollen, snap off the tassel and brush it on multiple plants' silks, and voil�!-pollination has occurred. Sweet corn will be ready to eat about 3 weeks after the silks appear. Look for brown silks (not dried) and, plump ears. Then you can pull back a small portion of the husk to see how things are progressing. Sweet corn is at its peak when the liquid in the kernels turn from clear to a milky color.

Even among sweet corns there are several types. Here is some handy information, which can help you choose the right fit for your palate: Sugary (su) sweet corn is the original type of sweet corn with higher amounts of short-lived sugar than flint or dent corn. Sugary Enhanced (se) sweet corn has higher amounts of sugar and is more tender than su types. Shrunken/Supersweet (sh) sweet corn seeds are smaller or "shrunken", and are even sweeter, holding their sweetness the longest.

I don't stop at sweet corn! I am not one to follow convention, and every year I also add corn to my flower beds as an ornamental; their big strappy leaves add lush texture, and the Striped Japonica variety adds big flare with its striped pink, green, and white leaves. Once I am done using the beautiful Strawberry and Dakota Black popcorn ears for autumn decorations, they get put into the popcorn pan, popping up into traditional snowflake-shaped popcorn. Our newest popcorn is Robust Pop 400MR, a variety that pops up into little mushroom-shaped popcorn, the kind you use for kettle corn. The kids really get a kick out of pulling the jewel-like kernels off the cob and popping them over the stove. I can just about smell the kettle corn now.

Wedel's carries a full line of Botanical Interests seeds. Stop in today and, in just a little while, have some delicious sweet corn, from your own garden, on your dinner table!

Striped Japonica Buttergold Robust Pop

Time's Flying
But It's Not Too Late!
by Kay Wedel



It is not too late to plant! If you are feeling guilty about not being able to plant flowers, herbs, peppers and tomatoes, don't. There are still plenty of growing days left to plant tomatoes and peppers and enjoy harvesting them later this summer. Don't forget your Espoma Tomato Tone!
 
Plant a few herbs in your vegetable garden or plant some in a pot on your deck so they are close by for fresh use when you are grilling this summer. You may also want to plant some flowers in pots/containers to decorate your deck so you will be ready for your outdoor party. (July 4th will be here sooner than you think!)
 
Don't let the weather discourage you. Shop on a rainy, cloudy day so you can be ready to plant on a sunny Sunday. As a matter of fact, stop by Wedel's, no matter the weather, and have a look at what might be just the right idea for your garden or container. You still have time to make sure there are some delicious meals in your future. Happy gardening!
Garden Natives 
 
Nannyberry
Viburnum lentago
 
Talk about versatility! This month's Garden Native, Nannyberry Viburnum lentago is a large shrub or a small tree; you decide. It is also known as Sheepberry or Sweet Viburnum.
 
Nannyberry Flowers Clusters of whitish or cream white flowers appear in mid to late spring against dense, dark green foliage. The flowers are non-fragrant and are arranged in flat-topped clusters approximately 4 � inches in diameter. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and are about 2 to 4 inches long and about � to 2 inches wide, wedge shaped and rounded at the base. The leaves turn to red or red-orange in the fall.
 
Nannyberry Fruit The flowers are replaced in the fall by blue-black fruit that is small and fleshy with thick skin and central stone containing the seed. The fruit is sweet, juicy and edible. It can be used eaten off the bush or be used to make jams and jellies. The fruit persists from fall well into winter and is attractive to birds and other wildlife although deer seem to be disinterested especially if tastier vegetation is available.
 
The name Nannyberry was coined because it appears nanny goats enjoy feeding on the ripe berries whereas billy goats are less interested in them.
 
Nannyberry Shrub Nannyberry is a versatile addition to your landscape. It can be set apart in your yard and allowed to stand alone, used as an anchoring accent for flower beds, planted in groups to provide privacy or, in large areas, planted in mass, providing both an anchor and focal point. This is an excellent choice for full shade or full sun, dry location and moist locations and for a range of soil types and pH.
 
Click here for more details about Nannyberry Viburnum lentago and plan to stop by Wedel's with any questions if you'd like to consider this month's Garden Native for your landscape.
Mark Your Calendar  

Wednesday, June 8
Time to Apply Lawn Fungus Control

Tueday, June 14
Flag Day
Fly the USA Flag Proudly

Wednesday, June 15
Feed Roses This Week

Sunday, June 19
Father's Day

Monday, June 20
First Day of Summer
 
 
Store Hours  

Monday - Friday
8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Saturday
8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Closed Sundays
 
To Do In June
  
Apply Weed Free Zone for lawn weed control.
Feed roses, fertilize flower beds.
Stake plants.
Inspect plants for 4-line plant bugs and aphids.
Inspect vine plants for vine borers.
Apply Preen Weed Preventer.
Prune early spring bloomers e.g. forsythia, lilac.
Prune evergreens.
Keep food supplied for nesting birds.
Still ample time to grow crops from seeds.
Deadhead spent blossoms of bulb flowers. 
Just for Grins...
and
Groans 
Don't waste kindness on a rotary engine - they never reciprocate.
 
Hed Moteur 
wkzo
Saturday Mornings
  

Birdwatch 8:07 a.m.

with host Roger Taylor answering all of your birding questions 
Call in at 382-4280 or 877-382-4280. 

Over the Garden Fence 9:07 a.m.
with host Andy Wedel answering all of your landscape and gardening questions
Call in at 382-4280 or 877-382-4280.

Visit our web site at www.wedels.com for archives of previous Birdwatch and
Over the Garden Fence
programs!
 
 
Note from the Editor   

"And what is so rare as a day in June?" Though only 3 days old, June has been beautiful so far as it usually is every year.
 
How does your landscape look? I'll bet there's something new to find every day. The blossoms on our peonies seemed to appear all of a sudden a few days ago. Buds had been there awhile and it took no time for the ants to find them. The buds grew slowly, day by day and then one day there was an explosion of color and fragrance. Our most fragrant peonies have very full, pink flowers that smell like roses. We have some deep red ones that were here when we moved to this house in 1988. My wife has some from her family home that had been there for years also.
 
The oldest peonies we have are the pink ones. A boss my wife had gave them to her 25 years ago. His mother had given them to him and she had gotten them from her mother. These plants were about 80 years old at the time my wife received them. They have blossomed for us every year and never fail to amaze us by their wonderful scent. Peonies make a wonderful addition to any landscape, in my opinion, and are always so good to see follow closely behind other spring bloomers such as tulips, daffodils etc.
 
Have you been able to stop by Wedel's recently? Take a walk around your yard to get an idea about how everything is, or soon will be looking and then come out to the garden center. There is always room for some bright and colorful new annuals and maybe even for a few perennials in your flower beds. Of course, you'll have to wander through the nursery. It is hard to not find something there that could add just the right touch or point of interest. I could recommend you consider some peonies but I think I might have already done that.
 
Whatever you do, enjoy this spring. Enjoy your yard (or outdoor living area, as it has come to be known) every chance you get. That includes a lawn chair and a tall, icy glass of tea or lemonade after whatever work you need to do is done. Spring will be with us for only a couple of more weeks or so and then summer will be upon us...another season to enjoy. Have fun and do plan to stop by to see us. Bring some photos. We like to see what you are working on. That's how we enjoy spring and summer! 

Ready for another trivia question? Here we go! "On what vegetable did an ancient Egyptian place his right hand when taking an oath?" The first reader to respond with the correct answer will win a $15.00 Wedel's gift card. The gift card must be picked up here at the garden center and remember, you are eligible to win once every 90 days. Good luck and have fun!   
  
'Til next time,
Jim    


"And what is so rare as a day in June?
Then, if ever, come perfect days;
Then Heaven tries earth if it be in tune,
And over it softly her warm ear lays:
Whether we look, or whether we listen,
We hear life murmur, or see it glisten."

- James Russell Lowell, The Vision of Sir Launfal