Give A Weed An inch And It Will Take A Yard!
Well another Butter Tart Festival behind us and it was busy as usual and lots of fun! Congratulations to the winners of the Butter Tart contest and yes, although it took me some time, Cathy Simmons one of our winners, I did recognize you. It was so good to see all our regular attendees that faithfully come to our market and then also meet a few new to the area and also some visitors from around the province and even a few from Alberta.
The weather at 7 AM looked not as favourable as initially forecast but by opening time and throughout the celebration it was perfect. I as usual did not get a chance to buy any Butter Tarts as again they were all sold out mid festival, many were happy to have gotten their share.
The car show was also very busy and the music provided was wonderful.
It also is now officially Fall and we can expect some frost in our area soon. Some have seen smatterings of frost in their yards but so far no damage done. It is now time to do any fall planting and transplanting that you would like to accomplish before winter. This will allow a period of time for the roots to get established to protect the plant from winter kill. If you are planning to add or transplant Peonies it is imperative that it be done now as planting Peonies in spring can cause the plant to delay flowering for an additional year. Division of plants that have out grown their places can be divided at this time, however it is recommended that plants that bloom after mid-June should be left till spring allowing them the optimum amount of time to re establish.
Signs that you need to divide an established plant are dead centres, decreased flowering, weed infestation and overall poor condition. Ensure to give the new plantings some good compost and some bone meal and work the soil around the plant well to allow for root development.
Garlic should be planted using the best cloves as this will ensure a hardy large bulb nest year at harvest. Tulips, Daffodil, Crocus, Fritillaria and Hyacinth should be planted now as they need a good 6 weeks before a deep freeze to ensure success.
Plants and trees that you put outside for the summer should be brought in now too to ease the transition from outdoor to indoor conditions. I find that giving my Hibiscus trees a good haircut before I bring them in forces them into bloom again.
Be sure to examine them for any bugs that may be brought into your house although this year has been quite good for infestations of Aphids and Whitefly as gentle soap and water spray as a proactive measure can save a lot of grief later.
I usually wait until a good frost to lift my bulbs like Gladiola, Calla and Cana Lily and Dahlia. Other plants that will be left outdoors for the winter should be deadheaded and cleaned up. Some seed bearing plants that can help feed our bird over the cold season can be left as is.
Otherwise adding compost and general cleanup should be underway. Save your leaves that are now starting to fall so you can offer the maximum amount of protection for your perennials this will also help with freeze, thaw events and it also looks neat and tidy when done as well as suppressing weeds. Continue to water your trees and shrubs to prevent winter kill.
Hopefully the rain that has been forecast will happen and will add to the protection these plants will need after such a dry Summer and so far Fall. Lawns will also need some attention at this time of year and I will cover that in my next article as it is an art in itself although you wouldn’t know it by mine.
This coming Saturday is the last Lumby and District Public Market for the season so do stop by and enjoy the day. If anyone is looking for case lots of 10 or 20 lbs of Roma Tomatoes please give me a call. I am selling these at 1.50 a pound and do have plenty available for those who wish to do some canning.
Happy Gardening!
Samantha Nason
BS Ranch & Greenhouses
250 547 6567
sam1nason@gmail.com
