Cricket
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Cricket last won the day on May 14 2014
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We lawn vac our leaves, especially large and tough leaves like catalpa and oak...Those tend to mat and choke out oxygen to an area, then in early to mid spring hold to much moisture.... We rake a pile of leaves along garden beds, run over the ple with a mower and blow it into the beds 2-3" deep...Or lawn vac an area and empty that on all beds, veggie and ornamental...Give mulched areas an overspray with the hose to keep mulch in place...When leaf matter is smaller, soil critters have access to oxygen and moisture to break down materials that enrich soil over the winter....Of note: When soil is ready to be worked in spring our leaf layer has generally been reduced by half.... In naturalized areas leaves do fall to earth and remain as fallen....While that works for a forest floor with native plants that practice may not be ideal for perennial beds....Something to research....
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Is there a need to prune your oakleaf?.....2013 bloom buds are set on stems the plant has now.....dead or damaged stems can be pruned out and blooms headheaded anytime....I prune out older stems in the interior of the plant after leaf drop and a hard frost...Easier to see and work without damage to healthy stems then....When I cut blooms for drying I try to take those on older stems...
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Best to move ornamentals to another location.........Avoid the temptation to chop out tree surface roots...Unless the tree is of no value to you...In which case consider removing the tree...Tree roots always win in competition...Especially in the mositure game....Not to mention that many plants don't like growing among evergreen roots....
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Try severing random root growth below the soil using a straight edge spade - Cut straight down with the spade and pull straight up to sever and remove the root with attached leaves. If you get a bit of neighboring plant roots in the process that shouldn't be problematic..... My lilac is next to my compost pile and I often find lilac suckers making a home in the compost pile - I've found the sever method works without disturbing perennial shade bed plant roots that have encrouched under the lilac and likely under the compost pile as well .... Keeping above ground lilac growth removed may go a long way in die back of the roots and is a safer/more organic way of root removal.........
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If you are referring to Rose Rosette Disease - that is a sporadic disease, spread by a tiny mite, that first infects wild multiflora roses and can then spread to other multi-stemmed roses like Knock-out and Shrub roses. .... Unless you know for a fact this is the disease referenced in your post and presence of the disease has been reported and confirmed in your area you are safe to plant roses as you planned. Even if the disease is present this year it doesn't mean you can't plant roses next year.
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With the severe drought of late - my gardening opposite decided it was the perfect time to stick some shrub trimmings in the ground to root - and what better spot to do this than under a spruce tree row He is devoted to watering "his sticks" - and also "making the day" of every bird in the neighborhood.... Had to chuckle when I observed him walking along with the hose so intent on watering he didn't notice being shadowed by robins, flickers, sparrows and a pair of cardinals - looked like an organized avarian parade....
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Dsmith 74 - Do you have friends/relatives living in the southwest or along the pacific coast? If they have sedum - and almost every garden does in those areas - they can break off a sedum rosette with root attached - pop it in a $1 USPS mailer and send it to you. I have a 5 year old sedum living wreath with some fantastic sedums that relatives/friends in Colordao, Arizona, Califorina and Washington have mailed to me - The longest a sedum on the wreath has gone before flowering is three years - Some flower annually - Much more variety this way then the small selection at most nurseries that can cost upward of $5..... Another place to watch for "free" sedum is along parking blocks in parking lots - I found a prostrate sedum that grows rather like a groundcover using that "source"......
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I purchased/planted 6 impatients in late May at one end of my house - In mid June I purchased/planted 6 more impatients at the other end - The first six obviously had downy mildew as they not only stopped growth but shriveled away to the point I could not find them when I returned home from an extended visit - The last group planted are growing and flowering as they normally do in that area........ After reading the downy mildew alert I did some "ground level" sleuthing and found remains of three of the diseased plants - what I found was a single stem that resembled a stem of poorly preforming moss rose, even the leaf that is trying to grow is pointed and rounded like a moss rose - Those 3 I can dispose of - what is the recommendation for the thriving impatients at the other end of the house border as I have marigolds and walleraina that are in the same bed but not presently infected???
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The same technique is recommended on the label for installing soaker hoses....Works for new garden hoses as well - lay out straight in a sunny area - important to do if the hose will be stored on a reel or hose cart....
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Does your property have sewer hook-up or septic?.......... Heed the full spread at maturity of each tree you're considering - avoid planting a tree where, when mature, it will cast shade on sun loving perennial beds.... Sell the wood from your apple tree if you don't have a firepit or fireplace - keep some wood to soak and use when grilling......... Choose a variety of tree not present on adjacent properties or in the woods..... The 'Tree and Shrub Gardening for Michigan' book has wonderful color photos of tree leaves, bark and fruit - it's a good starting point for choosing a tree to fit your space - check a bookstore or library for a copy........
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Unfortunatly, removing a blossom stem won't prevent sedum rosette die off - it's the nature of the plant - some sedum varieties take two to three years to bloom.........
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Squirrels (?) have all but destroyed my containers planted with cordyalis and annuals - An ongoing dilemma since mid-May..... Several mornings good root sized verbena were literally tossed from containers onto the ground - Have resorted to placing small coated stakes in containers and pinning row cover around the stakes each evening and removing in the AM - For a more permanent solution I tried pieces of row cover cut to cover soil at container edges - then pieces of gutter wire covers cut to fit soil - both of which prompted the critter to simply move farther into the middle of containers to dig..... Plants have either been uprooted or roots exposed so often I hold out little hope for them to thrive - This morning I removed the row cover barriers, went to the store for a newspaper and upon return a critter had been in each pot, soil littering the ground, flipped out a big geranium and in the process of digging left a number of oxalis bulbils laying on top of soil.... Any suggestions from forum readers? - Please, no depreciating humor - this is way beyond being laughable......
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Probably did as much damage removing the snapped off crown as the actual happening caused... The crown is totally gone - tree kinda looks like an opened umbrella or a weeping cherry now... Will consider the ideas you offer as we assess what's left of our tree and wait for signs of new growth....
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Total BUMMER I paid $9 for 12 oz. and they fall at your feet... Biggest crop ever and I didn't get to roast a single one! We've experienced the usual bumper crop of Admiral's this year - along with new additions of eastern and black swallowtails, and a first - one ragged looking great spangled fritillary that spent the better part of an afternoon flitting in the violet patch - hopefully laying eggs...
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Returning home following the winds of last weekend I wondered aloud as to why our dwarf (a misnomer) Japanese maple suddenly looked so full - Akin to having two crowns... Along with having what seems to be the requisite frost damaged shriveled brown leaves all the rage this year- the top third of the tree snapped off and landed in a crook within what was left of the foliage. ARRRG !!! Am at a loss as to how to even begin to address the condition of the tree....