February in the garden, perennials, pruning fruit trees, pruning grasses, pruning hydrangeas, pruning tips

February in the Garden

I?m waiting patiently for the buds on my pink flowering currant to start lengthening a bit more. I wasn’t counting on the recent snow and cold snap but the buds are showing color and are doing fine. Although still small at this stage I?ve assured my hummingbird population that they?re on their way. When I was out pruning last week I didn?t touch this plant otherwise I?d have cut off all those potential flower clusters loaded with nectar. This is what I did do in my garden.

To stimulate new growth I trimmed woody evergreen shrubs like abelia and loropetalum. The Mexican bush sage and artemisia were cut to within a few inches of the ground. I don’t use this approach on lavender or ceanothus, though. Lightly prune those after blooming later in the season and don’t cut back to bare wood inside the plant.

Between rain storms I?ll prune my fuchsias back by a third and remove dead, crossing branches and interior twiggy growth. The hanging fuchsias will be cut back to the pot rim. Fuchsias bloom on new wood so even if your plants didn?t lose all their leaves cut them back.

I cut back all the hydrangeas stems that bloomed last year and will apply a soil acidifier soon as I want the flowers as blue as I can get. Although aluminum sulfate is the traditional favorite for quickly acidifying soil it?s not as kind to beneficial soil microorganisms. Coffee grounds, pine needles, peat moss and cottonseed meal are better for your soil.

Don’t prune spring flowering shrubs like lilac, weigela and spirea or flowering trees such as cherry, plum and crabapple now. These and plants with buds like rhododendron, azalea and camellia should be pruned after they flower. You can cut some branches while they are blooming to bring into the house for bouquets.

Even if you have already pruned your roses be sure to remove old leaves still clinging to the plant. Those will most likely develop fungal spots and diseases later if you don?t. Rake up any debris beneath the plant and discard to eliminate overwintering fungus spores

Roses are super forgiving and you can trim them up again using the following guidelines. The goal is to produce lots of roses not just a few of exhibition size. Aim for a vase-shaped bush with an open center.

Prune old garden roses that bloom once in the spring after flowering. Climbing roses require little pruning. Cut out extra stems if there are too many and also cut back long established canes to about the place where they are slightly thicker than a pencil. Then cut each side stem down to several inches. This will cause the cane to flower along its complete length for a beautiful spring display.

Wait to prune back perennials that may have their new foliage damaged in a late frost. Same goes for shrubs that might have gotten hit by frost. That damaged foliage can protect the plant from further frost damage. Mid-March is the estimated date of hard frost in our area or at least it used to be. We gardeners are always betting Mother Nature will go our way and our efforts will not have gone in vain.

Prune fruit, nut, shade trees and deciduous vines like clematis.

Cut back ornamental grasses if you live where you rarely get frost. I?m pruning California fuchsia, salvia ?Bee?s Bliss? and hummingbird sage now. They look okay but I want the encourage new, compact growth.

And now I?m making myself a cup of tea and watching the chipmunk action in my garden. All of nature is getting ready for spring.

dormant spray, fruit tree diseases, fruit trees, organic gardening

How to Control Pests & Diseases

I love it when a nice reader takes the time to call me to suggest a topic they?d like to see me write about or remind them what needs to be done at a certain time of year. Take Helen, who lives in Spring Lakes in Scotts Valley, for instance. Helen told me she grows tomatoes in the summer and has 4 fruit trees including a satsuma plum, an espaliered apple and a tangerine. Helen battles peach leaf curl on her plum and coddling moth larvae inside her apples and would like to know exactly what to use and when to control these problems. So this column is for you, Helen.

Spray dormant fruit trees now for fungal and insect control. Coddling moth control is in March or April.

I know we?ve had a lot of rain which makes gardening and spraying difficult. You can prevent or control many diseases and overwintering insects by applying a dormant spray this month. This can be the most effective spray of the season. Fungal diseases such as peach leaf curl, fire blight, scab and anthracnose as well as insects including aphids, San Jose scale, bud moth, leaf roller, whitefly larvae, mealybugs and mites can all be controlled.

There are several types of dormant sprays and all three types are considered organic. Lime-Sulfur or copper can be mixed with horticultural oil which smothers overwintering insects and eggs. This spray is good for all fruit trees except apricots which should be sprayed in the fall with copper and this month only with horticultural oil.

Apply dormant spray when the temperature is above 40 degrees. Make sure you cover every nook and cranny of each branch and trunk until the tree is dripping and spray the surrounding soil. Spray only plants that have suffered from pests or disease. Sprays, even organic, can kill beneficial insects as well. Even though they?re organic, dormant sprays can be irritating to skin and eyes, Wear long sleeves and gloves and eye protection.

Spinosad has been shown to suppress fungal diseases. Do this when the buds swell but before they open. Do not spray 36 hours before rain in predicted. Be sure to spray the ground around each tree.

Coddling moth control requires a different approach. The larvae of this particular moth is one of the few caterpillars that are likely to be found inside pear or apples. University of California Integrated Pest Management website has complete information about controlling this pest.

The website is http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7412.html

The bottom line for coddling moth control is the timing of insecticide spray applications, especially with newer, less toxic pesticides like spinosad. The coddling moth overwinters as full grown larvae within thick silken cocoons under loose scales of bark and in soil or debris around the base of the tree. The larvae emerge as adult moths mid-March to early April. To be effective your spray application must be timed for when when they are active.

Starting three to four weeks after bloom, check fruit at least twice a week looking for the first ?stings? or any mounds of reddish-brown frass. If you scrape the frass away you will see the tiny entry hole where the newly hatched larvae has just entered the fruit. Spray the tree as soon as you see the first sting after removing any fruit with stings as the insecticide won?t kill any larvae that have already entered the fruit. Coddling moths can have three or four generations per year.

According to the website, for most backyard situations, the best course of action might be to combine a variety of non chemical methods and accept the presence of some wormy fruit. Be sure to cut out the damaged portions because they might contain toxins generated by mold.

Oh and by the way, Helen told me she is 88 years young so if Helen can do it, you can too.

bare root plants, fruit trees

All About Bare Root Fruit Trees

I may not live where I can grow fruit trees but that doesn?t stop me from dreaming. Looking over the availability lists of bare root fruit trees at our local nurseries I see several new varieties that I?m hoping to find eventually at the farmer?s market.

A new fruit combining the sweetness of a cherry with the zing of a plum

How delicious does a Sweet Treat Pluerry sound? This is a first of its kind combination with the sweetness of a cherry and the zing of a plum resulting in colorful fruit that hangs on the tree for over a month. Or how about planting a Cot-N_Candy White Aprium from a bare root? This white flesh apricot-plum hybrid fruit tree has incredible very sweet and juicy flavor.

A friend of mine has a fruiting mulberry tree. The first time I tasted one of these juicy blackberry-looking fruits I was hooked. Black mulberries were grown near ancient temples for fresh eating in Asia, Europe and the Mideast., where the trees thrived in the heat, poor soils and drought. They can be grown as a tree or large shrub making them perfect for smaller gardens.

A sweet & juicy apricot-plum hybrid

Shop now for bare root plants while they are still dormant. Even if you want to add fruit trees or other edibles to your garden and the weather has interfered don?t delay. Once leaves emerge or flower buds start to swell the tree roots have already started growing. You want your tree to start developing permanent roots in their new home- yours. Stone fruits such as apricots, peaches, plums and cherries are going to start waking up first so they are best put in the ground soon. Fruit trees like pears and apples wake up later so you can wait a bit longer to plant those varieties.

Don?t plant in heavy saturated soil with a high clay content. If your soil drains poorly it?s best to place your new bare root tree at an angle in a trench, cover with soil and water in. Then wait to plant until the soil is crumbly and friable with plenty of pore space. Digging in waterlogged clay soil is one of the worst things you can do for your soil?s health.

What?s the correct way to plant a bare root tree? According to research amending the soil is no longer recommended. Mountain Feed & Farm Supply in Ben Lomond has a great web site with all the information you need to get your new fruit trees off to a good start including pruning, staking, mulching and care as they mature.

What fruit tree varieties can you grow here in the mountains? Well, almost everything. Most of us get 700-1200 chilling hours where the temperature is 45 degrees or less during the dormant season. You can find out how many hours of chilling your area gets by going online to www.getchill.net and use the WunderMap from Weather Underground. You can give a fruit tree more chilling in the winter but not less. Those in coastal Santa Cruz, for instance, can grow Fuji apples as they require only 300 hours of chilling but not Red Delicious. We can grow both.

What if you don?t get full sun where you?d like to grow fruit trees? Apples, pluots and plums are good choices for an area that gets some sun- at least 5 hours- every day during the growing season. The ideal is full sun but these trees will still set and ripen some fruit in partially shaded conditions. With peaches, nectarines or apricots it?s a different story. These fruits need hot sun to develop sweet, tasty fruit. Too little sun and they will not deliver anything close to what you have in mind.

Don’t miss the opportunity to add a fruit tree or other edible to your garden this winter.

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