Home & Garden Radio with Michael Crose

House Plant Care

2009-11-07T05:06:00.001-08:00

http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/plantsci/landscap/pp744w.htm

How to make your generic earthbox for under $10.00

2009-08-22T05:22:00.000-07:00

http://www.josho.com/gardening.htm

The Rose Garden

2009-07-26T18:01:00.001-07:00

By
Angela Brightwell

Okay, here it is. Everything you need to know about making a rose garden. You asked for it! If you don’t want to read this rather long statement about rose gardening, hit the delete button now…

First: location, location, location!!! Most gardening failures in general are because the gardener has not selected the proper location for the amount of sun or shade that plants like. Roses require 8 to 10 hours of unbroken sunlight. Period. No exceptions. I used our north-facing front yard for my garden, as there are no trees to block sun from morning ‘til evening each day. DO NOT plant a rose where your house or any other house will provide shade…..no trees either.
Next decide how big you want it to be. I have about 30 bushes in my rose garden proper, and then another 15 or 20 planted elsewhere, but the real show happens when they are grouped together in a formal arrangement. You can make a square garden like the Biltmore House rose garden or a round one like the Brightwell House rose garden. Allow about 5 feet of space for each bush you plan to plant, as you will need to get in and around them to spray and dead head. I come out of my garden looking like I just came from a war zone sometimes broken and bleeding…roses seem to attack and defend their space. I don’t know how much space you are going to allot for your garden so you will have to stake out your space to determine how many bushes you will need.

There are several types of roses to consider. Size does matter!!! Don’t let anyone tell you differently!! You will notice that all roses are tagged by species. The tag will say: grandiflora, floribunda, hybrid tea or climbing.

Grandifloras-the tallest and most stately of all bushes. Mine are at least 8 feet tall by June (I prune in December or January to about waist height, so it takes them until then to get back to their full size). If you are going to make a large garden in a square or rectangle, the grandifloras are a good choice for the back, as they tower over all other types of roses. They are prolific bloomers, usually three per stem, and will bloom all season provided they are fertilized properly and dead headed. They are well resistant to disease as well.

Hybrid Tea roses-for a second tier in a rose garden these are excellent choices as they never get as tall as a grandiflora. They come in a multitude of different colors (and bi-colors) and some have wonderful scent. These are the roses most often used in a floral arrangement as you will have a single rose on a single stem. Most other roses have more than one per stem. These are great for cut flowers, although I can’t bring myself to cut a single rose in my garden, even if there are thousands blooming. They are not disease resistant, although the tag will say that they are. It doesn’t really matter how resistant any of them say that they are…you will still have to spray them all anyway.

Florabundas-are usually not more than 4 feet tall and are very bushy, and have hundreds of smaller blooms, multiples on each fragile stem. One thing to consider though, some are single (that means only one layer of petals on the flower) and some are “doubles” which means there are multiple layers of petals. They bloom in waves…you will have hundreds on each bush, then just a few, then hundreds again. They tend not to get black spot as badly as other roses…more on (dastardly) black spot later.

Climbing roses do not climb-they just get real tall and need to be tied up to something. Some are ever blooming and some only bloom once in the spring and that’s it for the year (BOOOO!) I do not recommend climbing roses unless you have a trellis to tie them too because they need all the sunshine that the others do and what ever you tie them too, has to allow for the sun. I have several of them, and not especially ecstatic about any of them.

A new rose on the scene the past couple of years is called the “knock out” rose. It looks like a floribunda and is absolutely the ONLY rose that will not get diseases!!! My own objection to this is that the flowers are usually single and only come in red. I am sure that within the next few years they will breed them in other colors and I have heard that they now have doubles, but I haven’t seen them yet. When they come in other colors I will probably get some…as it is, I have enough red ones, and not especially crazy about single petals, either.

You can buy bare root roses (they come with the roots wrapped in plastic) or container roses that come in a pot of dirt. I have bought them both ways. I always buy my roses at WALMART! I have ordered expensive Jackson and Perkins roses from Oregon, and have been so disappointed with their performance. Most roses come from Tyler Texas and are cheaper and heartier than the ones from the Pacific Northwest!!! Also, Wal-Mart and Home Depot get them from local growers. Just make sure whatever roses you pick have at least 3 hearty canes and are leafing out (esp. this time of year).
Now that I have this out of the way, you decide on the color, size and scent. Pick out how many of them you need.

What you will need:
Wheel barrow or large bucket
Post hole diggers
1 bag of organic compost for every three roses ***you said that your soil is heavy clay. If you dig a hole, can you poke your little finger into the side of the hole? If you can’t make a dent in it, you are going to need to compost, and probably should at any rate.
Boxes of PENNINGTON ROSE FOOD!!!! Do not use Miracle Grow!!! You will have beautiful leaves and NO blooms. Pennington comes in a 4 pound box and you will need about a handful per rose, per month. I have tried many other kinds of fertilizer and NOTHING produces massive amounts of blooms like Pennington.

Mulch-I have tried every kind of mulch on the market except the rubber stuff that they sell now that is hideously expensive, but will last forever and look like shit forever. DO NOT USE ANY PINE PRODUCTS!!!!NOT PINE STRAW OR PINE BARK!!! Pine carries a white fungus that will ruin your roses and the rose sprays won’t save them, even though they say they will. Use hardwood mulch. I gave up the whole organic mulching stuff and laid down landscape fabric and covered that with pea gravel. It is much neater and never needs replacing and does not have any hidden disease causing organisms. I will send you a picture.

Dig holes 5 feet apart, about 2 and ½ feet deep, and at least 2 feet across. Don’t skimp on the size and depth of the holes. After removing the sod, mix the remaining soil with the compost. This will loosen up the soil and keep it that way. Packing hard clay around a new rose is like wrapping a newborn baby in duct tape!!!!. They simply can’t move and put down their tender root systems in hard packed clay.

Now!! If you bought bare root roses (the ones in plastic wrap), unwrap them and put them in a bucket full of water for at least an hour prior to planting. Put the dirt compost mixture in a mound in the center of the hole and spread the roots around the mound then fill in with dirt/.compost mixture.

If they are already in a pot, Gently Gently Gently pull the rose out of the pot (I just turn it upside down and let it fall out…I catch it of course) and run water over the root ball to separate the roots a bit. Measure the root ball by the depth of the hole…you do not want to cover the “knees”of the rose with dirt. Better to have it too shallow than too deep, so fill in the hole with compost/dirt mixture until the root ball is level with the rest of the ground. Fill around the root ball with dirt/compost mixture until it is level with the ground. Water. The dirt/compost will sink somewhat, so add dirt a little at a time until it no longer sinks after the water soaks in. So far so good. Repeat for all roses.

Now that you are drop dead exhausted, you need to consider mulch. Hopefully you will have brought the mulch home with you when you bought the roses. Weeds and grass will grow up around your roses and ruin the look of your garden. My pea gravel works so well and until I finally gave up and did it that way I was spending probably a hundred dollars a year just on hard wood mulch (I have a big garden). It becomes part of the dirt after just one year, and you have to re-do it. Also, if you have Bermuda grass or any grass that is particularly invasive, the landscape fabric below the mulch will keep maintenance down.

So now you think are finished?
You will need:
2 gallon sprayer
Ortho rose disease control liquid concentrate
SEVIN liquid insect killer

They make a 2-in-one liquid concentrate too, but it doesn’t work as well as mixing your own. Roses get aphids (little white insects that eat the buds and ruin the blooms). Roses get Japanese Beetles, usually not until July, but will ruin a crop of roses like locust in a wheat field. Roses get the dastardly BLACK SPOT, which kills off the leaves and is contagious like the flu…one gets it they all do. Roses get powdery mildew. So be prepared to run outside after it rains, and once a week otherwise, to re-spray the roses.

You must dead head the spent blooms or your roses won’t re- bloom properly. I go out into my garden with a Wal-Mart bag on my arm and my nippers. I cut the stem at the first 5 leaf junction. This will encourage re-growth and re-bloom. I do this about 2 times a week. Also, even if you spray and spray you will occasionally have a leaf that gets a (dastardly) black spot on it, which, if not removed, will then turn yellow, then fall off. Pull off any leaf that has a black spot on it. No, it won’t go away and it will infect other leaves on the same plant and the other rose bushes in your garden. Put any infected leaves in the Wal-Mart bag along with the dead blooms.

So there!! If this hasn’t ruined all desire to make a rose garden nothing will ever stop you!! SO GO FOR IT!!!

That’s all I have to say about roses.

Organic Lawn Care

2009-07-26T17:42:00.001-07:00

L. E. Trenholm

There is a renewed interest today in organic lawn care and a trend among many homeowners to consider long-term environmental concerns in their lawn maintenance programs. The term "organic" can cover many different aspects of lawn care, including fertility and pest management. There is also a certain amount of confusion and misunderstanding over the concept of organic lawn care and what it entails, and as to whether products are beneficial or fall into the "snake oil" category.

What is Organic?
By definition, an organic compound must contain carbon. Other than that, organics may be naturally occurring or synthetic compounds, and they may be fertilizers, pest control products, or biostimulants. More generally speaking, an organic care program would be expected to include integrated pest management (IPM) practices and recycling, and would emphasize a more naturalized and less manicured environment.

Organic Fertilizers
Organic fertilizers fall into two main catagories: natural organics and synthetic organics. Natural organics are products such as manures, dried blood, bone meal, sludge, or other plant or animal products. These products generally contain between 3% and 10% nitrogen. Benefits from using natural organics are that they become slowly available to plants over time due to breakdown by soil microorganisms. Due to the slow-release properties of these materials,
natural organics are less apt than are water-soluble fertilizers to leach from the soil, to burn turfgrass, or to cause rapid growth spurts. This may reduce the ground- or surface-water contamination sometimes seen with synthetic fertilizers. However, there are also some drawbacks to the use of organic fertilizers. Because they are dependent on microbial activity, soil temperature and pH can play a large role in plant uptake of organics. Use in cool climates or seasons may result in less plant response, and because they are generally low-analysis fertilizers, plants often require them in large quantities. They may be bulky to handle and store, they may have an objectionable odor or appearance, and they are generally more expensive than synthetic fertilizers. Regardless of these pros and cons, a turfgrass plant is not concerned about the source of its fertilizer and ultimately will use the nitrogen and other nutrients for growth and metabolic functioning regardless of the fertilizer's origin.

Compost
Compost is an organic (carbon-containing) product that has undergone a period of decay. Compost may come from a variety of sources such as vegetative material, sewage sludge, cottonseed meal, peat, etc. When nutrients are contained in adequate supply, compost may be marketed as an organic fertilizer.

Applying organic matter such as compost to the soil will supply simple and complex sugars, proteins, and amino acids. This will provide a nutrient source for both the turf and the microbial population, will improve nutrient uptake through greater cation exchange capacity, and will reduce leaching. Compost may be added to the soil prior to planting or may be topdressed over existing lawns. If topdressing, it may be necessary to screen out some of the larger material before applying. Apply approximately ½ to 1 inch of material. Nutrient content of compost will vary with the source of the substance. Further fertility, either from natural or synthetic sources, may be necessary for best health and vigor of your lawn. If buying commercial compost, look for the nutrient analysis label, which will tell you what nutrients are supplied. If you make and use your own compost, you may want to have it tested periodically to determine what nutrients are being provided. Compost will always supply carbon and nitrogen, but an additional source of nitrogen may still be necessary. You may also need to supply other required plant nutrients.

Humic Substances
Another source of natural organic matter for soils is humic material. These products are similar to compost in that they are decomposed organic matter, but they generally have been decomposing for thousands of years and may come from deposits of peat, lignite, coal, or marine algae. These all contain humic acids in addition to carbon and nitrogen. They often also contain plant hormones or biostimulants, which are substances not required of fertilizers, but which the plant itself produces. Sometimes the addition of supplemental hormones may provide benefits; for example, the plant hormone cytokinin is often found lacking in turfgrass that has suffered a root dieback or decline. Application of cytokinin can offset the resulting stress from the root decline. Application of humic substances provides benefits beyond those offered by compost. In addition to supplying nutrients, increasing soil nutrient availability, and improving soil structure, humates have been shown to enhance photosynthesis, protein synthesis, root functioning, and seed germination. They are especially beneficial in soils that are low in organic matter, such as sandy soils.

Organic Pest Control
Organic pest control may fall into various categories: use of natural, organicproducts such as corn gluten meal, use of natural predators and biocontrols, and use of proper cultural practices to relieve pest pressure (integrated pest management). Often a combination of these methods will provide the most effective pest control. In addition, the use of new cultivars developed for resistance to insects or diseases can greatly reduce the overall need for pest control.

Weed Control
The best way to combat weeds is to maintain a healthy, vigorous turf. This is best accomplished through combinations of proper fertility, mowing, and irrigation practices. One new natural weed control product has been shown through university research to suppress growth of certain weeds. This product is corn gluten meal, a substance commonly found in dog food and cooking oil. It is now commercially available through different companies and has been labeled for use on many warm-season grasses

Insect Control
It has been shown that many insects that plague our lawns have natural enemies in harmless insects. The use of nonpest insects to reduce populations of problem insects is gaining favor in all sectors of the turfgrass industry. Examples of this include nematode species that have been shown to be predators of mole crickets and sod webworms.

Disease Control
The primary factors needed for a disease to develop are a susceptible host, a pathogen, and a conducive environment. Use of species less prone to disease and proper cultural practices are the most effective ways to reduce disease on your lawn. As mentioned above, proper fertility, irrigation, and mowing are all essential to disease control. Use of compost or other organic fertilizers may offer disease suppression as well.

How Do You Know a Product Will Work?
Before you buy a product that claims to be organic, natural, or effective against a particular problem, ask these questions to determine if the product will be useful to you:

1. Are independent (i.e., university) test results available? Many companies make claims that testing has been done on their products, but it is important to ask who did the testing (their in-house lab or an unbiased university?) and what the test results showed. The information that testing has been done does not imply that the product showed a significant advantage over another product, but that fact may be omitted in advertising.

2. Are test results consistent? Are repeated tests validating the results being advertised? Will the product work under different environmental conditions?

3. Are there any problems with application of the product? For instance, if a product claims to provide natural control of a specific insect, are there any other characteristics that would deter your purchase of the product, such as toxicity to the lawn or strong odors.

4. Does this product address a problem that applies to your particular situation? For example, it is great to have a natural predator for an insect, but is the target insect one that we see in Florida, or does it only frequent colder climates?

5. Are the costs justified? Is the response going to be worth the money spent on the product, or is there just a slight or short-lived improvement in the situation? Can you comfortably live with the problem, or use another type of control, rather than correcting it? An example of this would be manually pulling weeds or eliminating the environmental condition making the turf conducive to weed growth, rather than buying a product claiming to naturally eliminate weeds.

What is Diatomaceous Earth?

2009-07-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

By Michael Crose

This is a question that constantly comes up on my radio show. The Home & Garden Show With Michael Crose on the Busniss Talk Radio Network. It all started about ten years ago when someone called my show and asked about the use of diatomaceous earth (or D.E.) as a natural pesticide. I had heard of D.E. as something we used in our swimming pool filter, but I had no idea what it was made of or what it's uses were. This was soon to change. It did not take long for people from all over the world were sending me information about this wonderful mineral. Diatomaceous Earth in it's natural state is s soft rock like material consisting of the fossilized remains of little dead microscopic singlecelled plants of fresh and salt water called diatoms. They look like snowflakes in stone. Billions and billions of these delicate, lacy shells form whole mountains of this lightweight, white to golden colored mineral we now call Diatomaceous Earth. The D.E. that is in use today has been fossilized and preserved for millions of years. Diatoms live in salt and fresh water, although the D.E. that is used by many organic gardeners for controlling pests and soil conditioning is the fresh water lake bed mined material. It is a golden or tan color.
D.E.'s Many Uses Diatomaceous Earth is used for many things in many parts of the world. In the west near many of the salt bases D.E. mines it is used in the manufacture of concrete. This salt bases product is also used for the filtering product that many of us use in swimming pools. Before it is sold to the consumer it is crushed then heated to very high temperatures. This make the product very fine and fluffy. It is ideal in this state for filtering water and many other liquids. In it's natural state the fresh water lake bed mined Diatomaceous Earth has many uses that organic gardeners and others who are more inclined to use natural products enjoy. Soil conditioning is one use that is popular as well as using D.E. as a natural form of pest control. In both of these uses the preferred product has been crushed into a fine powder but NOT heated. It is hard to find Diatomaceous Earth in this form but it is worth it as it's effectiveness can not be beat. Diatomaceous Earth As A Soil Conditioner Diatomaceous Earth is very effective in breaking up hard pan. conditioning heavy clay soils and amending over-worked land. In addition D.E. absorbs up to three times it's weight in water. This alone will conserve and better utilize irrigation and require less water.

D.E. TIP 1. Add Diatomaceous Earth to your potting soil. One of my listeners from Detroit tell me that she mixes one part D.E. to four parts of her favorite potting soil. She is watering much less. Containing up to 14 minerals Diatomaceous Earth also activates, fortifies and helps to revitalize the soil, resulting in much healthier plants.

Diatomaceous Earth As Natural Pest Control

One of the more popular uses of D.E. is as a natural form of pest control . Because of the many tiny sharp edges on each spec. of D.E., when it comes in contact with insects D.E. absorbs the waxy coating that covers the insect causing a laceration of the exposed tissue. This is aggravated by the insects writhing. The insect dies from dehydration, usually within a few hours. Since I first began talking about Diatomaceous Earth coast to coast on my radio show years ago it has become a very popular form of natural pest control. As a matter of fact I learned last year at a pest control trade show I attended that professional pest control operators from all over the country were using D.E. as an important aspect of their regular service. All that I talked to were very happy with the results they achieved for using this natural product on many insects. Here are some of the tipsthe professional's are using.

D.E. TIP NO. 2. ROACHES Dusting your attic is very effective in stopping roaches from entering your house. If you have a crawl space you will want to dust that area as well. The difference in using D.E. for this porpoise as opposed to a chemical pesticide is that with D.E. you can re-enter the area without the fear of coming in contact with a chemical. D.E. is actually more effective,
lasts longer and will not hurt people or pets.

D.E. TIP NO. 3. Remove all switch plates in your home and using a hand duster or a plastic ketchup bottle, shoot a small puff of dust into the wall area. This only needs to be done one time. Puff some D.E. under your appliances and under the sinks, near the pipes. Look for cracks and crevices to apply the dust to. Any where roaches my hide is a good place to puff some dust into.

D.E. TIP NO. 4. ANTS Ants can be a problem that we all have to deal with on occasion. A pest control operator from Tampa told me the he applies the dust right on the mound. It takes a day or so to work but it is very effective. On a 12 inch mound he uses about two to three cups of D.E., right on top. The nice thing about using this product is that you are not hurting the soil or ground water supply.

D.E. TIP NO. 5. SNAILS The brown garden snail is a destructive and annoying pest to many gardeners through out many parts of the country. Building a half inch barrier of Diatomaceous Earth around the garden will keep these pests out as well as condition the soil.

D.E. TIP NO. 6. TREE BORERS Making a paste with D.E., water and any liquid soap and applying it to the affected areas of the tree is very effective at controlling most borers that affect trees.

D.E. TIP NO. 7. BAG WORMS I talked to a pest control operator from Texas who sprays trees affected with any caterpillar or worm. He uses a hose attachment sprayer and in the jar attachment he fills it half way with D.E. them adds 3 ounces of liquid soap and the rest with water. He shakes it up to keep it in suspension and sprays the foliage of the tree or shrub.

D.E. TIP NO. 8. APHIDS Using the same mix as stated in tip no seven, spray as needed. Usually about 7 to 10 day apart.

D.E. TIP NO. 9. ON VEGETABLES Apply as a dust or mix one part D.E. and three parts water with a small amount of liquid soap and spray. Use only when you have a target pest as some insects are beneficial.

D.E. TIP NO. 10. FLEAS On pet bedding and even in small amounts, right on the pet, many people (including myself) have been very happy with the results we have seen. In the home I am sorry to say that Diatomaceous Earth may not be the best thing to use. Tests conducted at the University of Florida's entomology department has shown that D.E. while useful on controlling adult fleas, will not control the larva stage of this insect. If you can not control the larva you can not control the infestation.

In Conclusion

Let me say that I think Diatomaceous Earth is one of the most innovative, newest, "old things" around. It is a simple, back to basic answer for many needs we have in the past used chemicals for. They say that left alone, nature has a way of taking care of it's self. I believe that D.E. is just one of the natural solutions that was blessed on us. Let us take full advantage of it and use the gifts we were given.