Tag Archives: pests

bulbs, pests, sustainable gardening

Squirrels Control for Sustainable & Interesting Bulbs

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My resident squirrels are busy burying acorns for the winter. On the go from first light in the morning until dusk they scurry up the oak trees to collect this prized food source and then deposit them in the ground and in the pots on my deck where they will surely forget where most of them are. Their antics are frustrating because I want to start planting bulbs sooner than Thanksgiving this year. I usually have to wait until later in the season when the squirrels have finished loading up their pantry to get them in the ground. Daffodils and narcissus are safe but what would spring be without  all the other gorgeous bulbs to welcome in the season?

This year I’m going to try some different varieties of bulbs and to foil the squirrels I"m going to plant them really deep in areas that have excellent drainage. Squirrels rarely dig far under the surface so they aren’t likely to reach the bulbs. If you have less than stellar drainage, your bulbs will rot if you plant them deeply, so use chicken wire cages or gopher baskets when you plant them. Next year when they emerge from the soil, if the squirrels start eating the tops of the stems, spray the buds daily with hot pepper spray. All mammals except humans hate hot peppers. I’ve also heard that paprika and egg shells deter them.

I love those huge, showy tulips as well as the new colors of daffodil and narcissus coming out each year. Can’t live without them. But I want to add to the show next spring. Maybe I’ll plant Spring Starflower or Ipheion. Their starry white flowers bloom over a long period in spring and they naturalize easily. Spring Snowflake ( leucojum vernum ) will also naturalize in the garden. The flowers are small and bell shaped, white with a green or yellow spot and have a slight fragrance. And I want to include some species tulips. They will rebloom year after year just like they do in the wild in Europe, North Africa and Asia.

Another bulb I’ve wanted to grow for a long time is Ixia viridiflora. They need to be completely dry in summer so planting in pots will be perfect for this most striking and unusual bulb. Few plants can beat it for sheer brilliance of flower. Each flower is a brilliant turquoise green with a purple-black eye in the middle. The dark eye is caused by the deep blue sap of the cells of the upper epidermis. The green color is due to the effects of light being refracted from the cell wall and granules embedded in the pale blue cell sap. Amazing flower.

I think tucking several huge allium bulbs among clumps of summer-flowering perennials will make quite a statement next year and the deer generally avoid them as they are in the garlic family. The flowers from in clusters and are best known in the round pom-pom form, but they can be star or cup-shaped or nodding pendant-shaped. They look great with foxglove, monarda and hardy geraniums. The flower heads can be left on the plant to dry as they look attractive in the garden and can be cut for arrangements.

A bulb native to our area that I’m also interested in trying is Tritileia or Triplet Lily. There are several species of this brodiaea bulb found here in grasslands and serpentine soils. They are undemanding plants and make good cut flowers, lasting for 7-10 days in water.

Other interesting bulbs that I want to try include  hyacinthoides, hermodactylus tuberosa and bellevalia. All of them are beautiful. Don’t let October and November go by without planting a few bulbs to enjoy next spring.
 

pests

How to Combat Moles and other Critters in the Garden

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There’s a gentle guy among us with a beautiful garden in Scotts Valley who’s a serial killer – a killer of moles, that is. "The first one’s the toughest"  he said while showing me around the other day. Caddyshack has nothing on this determined gardener and from the look of his landscaping he’s definitely winning the battle.

This mild mannered vegetarian started planting trees 20 years ago when he moved to the property but says he became serious about gardening only 5 years ago. He has created lush-looking, low water landscaping in his extremely sandy soil, watering some areas only once per summer. And oh, did I mention, he shares his garden with deer, too?

Many of us battle some of these same issues. How does he win the war while watching his garden grow? He used to have gophers, too, but after using cinch and Macabee traps for the past couple of years there are not too many left on the property. The moles are a different story. They have the ability to learn testing our mental prowess in the process.

He has found that one of the best ways to keep moles from destroying his garden is to install perimeter fencing around the beds. Gardening by exclusion he calls it. Cinch traps are successful, too, and he’s killed 16 so far this year. It’s not that the moles eat the plants but their burrowing dislodges roots and the plants will die the next time it gets hot. He digs down 24" and sinks a gopher wire barrier, one area at a time.  Paths are left bare so he can see if they are encroaching. Moles can tunnel 17 hours a day and ruin an area in just a couple of hours so he has become ever vigilant.

Deer control comes from plant selection and a product he gets on the internet that contains a bittering agent found in antifreeze, anti-nail biting and cleaning products among other household items.  Having used other taste and smell repellents containing rotten eggs, garlic, blood meal, citrus, ammonia, hot pepper and coyote urine, he swears by this product. His garden contains many plants he considers "bullet proof" like lambs ears, lions tail, hot lips salvia, breath of heaven, tagetes, armeria, asteriscus, carnations, dietes, Little John callistemon, mimulus, westringea and society garlic to name just a few. He plants "what works".

What hasn’t worked with his deer population is vinca that used to grow under the oaks. Wandering jew has successfully taken over and he’s OK with that. "Why fight it?" is his mantra. Plants he protects with Bitrex are daylily flowers, star jasmine, correa, penstemon, some sedums and the flowers on the aloe. He grows lots of different aloes, yucca and agaves, rescuing many from garbage piles and propagating others. He has 4 acres to cover.  There’s also a huge Angel’s trumpet under the oaks that he started from a cutting 4 years ago.

In one garden a huge Breath of Heaven has grown 9 ft tall. Nearby is a handsome small tree from So. Africa, Podocarpus henkelii or Long-leafed Yellow-wood. Eventually it will grow to 25 ft but is only half that size now. The foliage is distinctive and dense with heavy, shiny, dark green drooping leaves, giving it a weeping look. It is truly a specimen tree. His euphorbia collection includes a variety that looks like an azalea with chartreuse flowers. A very large stand of crocosmia was started from a 4" pot. Fortunately it’s planted in the right spot.

So much to see, so little time. Everywhere I looked was another beautiful vignette- accenting a dry river bed in one area, a fire pit with log seating in another. I learned so much from this gentle, determined gardener.

composting, perennials, plant care, sustainable gardening

Snails, Perennials,Compost & Caterpillars- Oh my!

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It’s no secret we live in paradise. No hurricanes or tornadoes wreak havoc in this beautiful place we call home. We’re spoiled and we know it. Enjoy every minute when you go into the garden. This month there are a few garden tasks you might consider doing while you’re out  "smelling the roses".

#1 Slug & snail fall population control drive
Slugs and snails turn into egg-laying machines in fall. That’s because they know they may not survive the long, cold winter and therefore, need to lay lots of eggs now that will hatch in spring. They want to ensure that there will be plenty of offspring to carry on the important work of devouring our plants. Snails build up populations faster than slugs because they reproduce more often but both are good at adding to the population.

In fall, the average snail can lay up to 85 eggs and each slug can lay up to 100 at a shot. Apply one of the safer
slug and snail baits containing iron sulfate. You’ll never get them all, but applying bait now should help reduce the number of slugs and snails that will hatch and make your life miserable next spring.

#2 Economic stimulus package for perennials
If flowers on perennial plants such as aster, campanula, calla lily, daisies, daylily, rudbeckia (black-eyed Susan) and yarrow were smaller than normal this year or your plants are just too big and crowded, it’s time to divide them. Dig out each clump so the rootball come up intact. This will take a little muscle but think of all those calories you’re burning in the process.. Gently shake off or wash off excess soil and divide with a sharp knife, pruning shears or a shovel I like to use an old serrated bread knife for this. Each division should have leaves and plenty of roots Replant each immediately. You’ll increase the number of your plants and save a lot of money, too.

#3 Plant debris makes good…
As summer flowers and vegetables give way to new plantings, add old, disease-free plants and debris to a compost pile or bin. Compost only pest-free weeds, fallen leaves and fruit. Also mix in kitchen vegetable and fruit scraps, coffee grounds and grass clipping. Chop up large pieces so they break down faster. Keep the pile moist like a wrung-out sponge. Depending on temperature , the size of the material in the pile and whether you use a barrel composter or an open pile, compost can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months to mature.

Diseased plant debris should be put in your compost can where the hight heat of a commercial compost operation will break it down. Cleaning up fallen, leaves, fruit and other debris will reduce the number of sites that harbor insects and diseases over the winter, too.

#4 Caterpillar wars
Don’t let the caterpillars get to your cabbage first. If you see small holes in the leaves or if the new growth is chewed on your cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli plants, they are probably being attacked by caterpillars. Search leaves and pick off and destroy or spray with organic BT ( bacillius thuringiensis) or spinosad  ( Capt. Jack’s Deadbug Brew )

#5 Enjoy Indian Summer. Winter will be here all too soon !