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It's the July 4th weekend - well, sort of!  Looks like many folks will be able to enjoy a four-day weekend, and if you are one of them, have a great time!  If not, that's okay.  Enjoy the weekend and then enjoy the 4th.  Of course, July 4th means time to celebrate our independence and the freedoms that we all enjoy.  Picnics, music, fireworks, fellowship with friends and family - what more could you ask for, Melrose? Happy 4th of July!

(By the way, the garden stores will shift to their summer hours starting Sunday.  11-5 Sunday, 9:30-6 Mon. thru Sat.  July 4th hours will be 9-3.)

[The mind is a bit like a garden.  If it isn't fed and cultivated, weeds will take it over.  -E.G.Hall]

*Whether it's the weather - Once again, do not let showers moving through lead you into believing your yard has had plenty of rainfall.  Monitor the rain gauges, check the soil moisture, and then make a decision.  Looks like warmer temperatures are moving in, so watch those newly planted plants.  And remember, if they wilt during the heat of the day, then recover that evening or by the next morning, it's strictly a matter of the plant not being able to supply enough water to replenish what's being lost through the leaves.  DO NOT over water these plants.  Just make sure they have even moisture to take up.  That's all you can do (or put an umbrella over them to shade them during the heat of the day!).

[Hey Megan, what's the difference between roast beef and pea soup?  Anyone can roast beef.]

*What's bugging you? - The ant populations seem to have settled down at the Wilson household, which is a good thing!  I hate seeing those big black ants moving across the floor.  Interesting week at 'Mom' Wilson's house.  Her yard has been absolutely run over with moles.  Being the good son that I am, last fall I took over an 'Easy Set Mole Eliminator Trap', and several bags of Bonide's MoleMax(mole repellent).  Needless to say, neither have been effective, but to their defense, there is a reason why.  You have to use the products for them to work, and I haven't taken the time to go use them!  (I know, I'm a bad son.)  Anyway, last week, Mom was finally fed up with all the mole damages (and fed up waiting on me to do something about them), and went on a mole rampage, putting together a trapping schedule, a repelling program, as well as developing her own little mole mania program of finding the most recent mounds of soil, and then flushing out the mole with the garden hose and lots of water.  Well, let me tell you this, my friends.  To date, between the trap and the water hose, 'Mole Mom' Nell has successfully eliminated 7 moles, repelled an unknown number of them, and word is spreading quickly amongst the other moles that she means business and they'd better hit the trails to someone else's yard!  As a matter of fact, after filming our Local 12 gardening segment in her yard yesterday, I watched 'Mole Mom' go into action, flush out a mole, and then had me eliminate mole victim #7!   Better be careful Tom Schmidt (The Mole Man).  'Mole Mom' is taking over, and she means business!             Oh, I almost forgot to mention keeping an eye open for those bagworms.  I found some yesterday on a white pine, and they were only 1/4 inch long.  Very hard to see, but they were all over the pine.  So keep watching!

This week, Buggy Joe Boggs (OSU Extension) is reporting adult grub time (Japanese beetles, masked chafers and European chafers), heavy foliage damages from gypsy moths in central Ohio, other summer caterpillars showing up including tussock moth caterpillars (which have stinging hairs and are no fun when kids pick them up!), the American dagger moth caterpillar, and the ever popular  yellow-necked caterpillars, lace bugs everywhere, bores having a boring time, including banded ash clearwings in ash trees, scaring folks into thinking they have Emerald Ash Borers, and billbug damage on lawns is starting to show more in the drier weather.  Joe is also reporting sightings of 'dodder' growing in ornamental plants, and yes, it's 'skeeter time' in the backyard.  Joe reports massive sized 'skeeters in his own backyard, large enough to carry him away.  Sounds like Buggy Joe had his buggy beer goggles on again!
-Catch the 'Buggy Joe Boggs Report' Saturdays at 8:42am on 55KRC radio.

[Bogy phobia - fear of the bogeyman, or Joe Boggs, whichever shows up first.]

*Question mark and the Mysterians - Here are a few gardening questions from this weeks emailed news bag:

"Mr. Wilson - loved your little summer songs at the beginning of last weeks newsletter.  You went back in time, but you forgot to go 'forward' with summer songs, for us 'younger generation gardeners', like the rappin' summer song from Will Smith - "Summa summa summa time, you can sit back and unwind, summa summa summa summa time, you can leave your cares behind." Signed, your 'not as musically inclined but tries' daughter, Megan."     -You're absolutely right Megan, I do need to remember that there are gardeners of all ages out there reading this newsletter!  So, you really do read these newsletters, eh?  "Peace out" - "cool beans" - "word to your mother".  How was that?

"I used to deadhead my knockout roses, but was told I didn't have to.  My first flush of flowers has ended and the spent blooms look rough."   -Technically, they are self-cleaning roses.  But if you have the time and want to, feel free to snip those old blooms off.  Do it just below the old flower head.  It definitely makes them look better, but either way they will continue to flower all season long.

"I am having problems with cutworms in my garden.  What can I do at this stage?"   -Spraying or dusting the plants and soil around them (do this late in the evening) with Rotenone, Sevin, or Eight may help a bit.  You can also try sprinkling diatomaceous earth around them, which may help to dehydrate them.  Or try cornmeal around them.  They eat cornmeal and sometimes eat so much, it kills them!  (and as we now know, this is a good organic fungicide, too!)  Or try putting barrier collars (3 inches high) around the plants using  milk jugs or cartons, window screening, etc.  If you'd like, you can even force them out of the ground by pouring a solution of soap and water around the plants.  They hate that, crawl out, and become yours for the picking!

"I have toadstools growing out of our mulch!  I dig them up and they're back the next morning.  What's the best way to get rid of them?"   -Quit digging - mushrooms are a natural part of the decomposing process of organic matter.  As your mulch breaks down, or as anything in the soil breaks down, there’s a good chance mushrooms may appear every now and then when the weather is right.  And, there’s no spray or chemical control for mushrooms.  Fluff the mulch, kick the mushrooms, hit them with a stick, get out the 9 iron and practice your golf swings (they are teed up and ready to be hit!), but that’s it.  By the way, if you have shredded hardwood mulch, just a reminder that you rarely see mushrooms in pine bark, cypress, cedar, etc.

"My husband says we cannot plant annuals in a tulip bed.  I thought you could, as the bulbs are planted deeper than annuals are planted.  Solve our dilemma!"   -Although it can be done, it can also be a very tricky situation.  As my bulb expert friend 'BLEE' tells us, "it can be done, but be careful to find the spaces between the bulbs, and be sure to plant tough annuals that do not require gobs of watering.  Bulbs don't like additional summer water.  I use Profusion zinnias, salvia and marigolds.  Great combination and require little care (and water).  One last thing, go easy on the fertilizer - excess nitrogen during bulb dormancy can contribute to rot."  Thanks, Mr. Bill!

"I have got honeysuckle everywhere and just can't get it under control. Any suggestions?"   -Here's our tip sheet for invasive honeysuckle.  Stick with it and you'll get it under control, but remember it will keep coming back from seed, so keep after those seedlings as they pop up.       Fact Sheet -Did you know there’s a list of the top 10 most invasive non native plants for the state of Ohio?  There is, and chances are at least one of them is growing somewhere in your yard!  Especially bush honeysuckle.  Take a look in wooded areas as the leaves have fallen from the trees, or along creek beds, or fence rows or non-maintained fields.  Even in your own landscape.  See the large bushes with the leaves still on - the ones with the bright red berries?  Or see the ones who came out early in leaf in the spring, later flowering with the yellow and white fragrant flowers.  Those are bush honeysuckle, they’re everywhere, and they’re spreading quickly.  They spread by the berries, which are eaten by birds, mice and other rodents, and then re-distributed wherever the animals go.  Once bush honeysuckle gets started, its invasive actions take over, and actually eliminate any other low growing shrubs and vegetation trying to grow around it.  And if you’re asking what’s so bad about that, well as they eliminate the other natural plants, they’re actually changing the natural environment.  Where they take over, it’s all honeysuckle and nothing else, besides larger trees and that’s not a good thing.  So, it’s important to make everyone aware of this problem, so we can all work to help get it into check.  There are 3 basic ways to get rid of bush honeysuckle:

1.)    Physically dig them out.  Younger plants, with good soil moisture, will pull out fairly easily. Honeysuckle roots are generally close to the surface of the ground.  Or, take a sharp spade and dig them out, making sure you remove the center crown of the plant’s roots.  If you get rid of this crown, typically they won’t re-grow from the remaining roots.

2.)    For larger plants, simply cut the plant off at ground level and immediately treat the freshly cut stump with concentrated Roundup, straight.  Do this as soon as you make the cut, or the stump will seal over within a couple hour period.  If next year it sends up sucker growth, spray immediately with Roundup.

3.)    Try using The Honeysuckle Popper.  This tool was developed here in town, specifically for popping out the center crown of the honeysuckle.  It uses leverage action to exert over 1500 pounds of upward force under the root crown, and pops the plant right out of the soil, thus the name Honeysuckle Popper!  If you would like more information about the top 10 invasive plant list, bush honeysuckles, or the Honeysuckle Popper, visit www.misterhoneysuckle.com.

[How do crazy people get through the forest?  They take the psycho path.]

This week's Success Tip for your garden - I've already started to have reports of Japanese beetles showing up in the gardens.  If so, these foliage eaters can be very frustrating for gardeners. Here are our thoughts on dealing with Japanese beetles in your yard:  Controlling Japanese Beetles (Adults) -What do Japanese beetles look like? – Adult Japanese beetles are metallic green color, oval, and about 3/8 to ½ an inch long, and about ¼ inch wide.  The wing covers are copper brown, and their abdomen has a row of five tufts of white hairs on each side.  - Where do Japanese beetles come from and what will they do? – Japanese beetles are the adult stage of grubs in the soil (one of many types of grubs).  They emerge from the ground and begin to feed on plants sometime in June.  They feed on over 400 species of leafy plants, eating leaves, flowers, and sometimes the fruit. They are most active during the warmer parts of the day, and especially active on warm, clear, sunny days. Activity usually lasts about 4-6 weeks, after which the beetles gradually die off.  (Individual beetles live about 30-45 days.)  After mating, females lay their eggs in the turf, which hatch into grubs, and feed on turf roots in the soil until cold weather drives them deeper into the soil.  They move back to the top when temperatures warm (spring), and emerge as adults the following June.  One beetle does little damage, but they usually feed in groups, starting at the top of a plant and working down, and group feeding can cause severe damage.  Early arrivals release a hormone, which attracts other adults to the plants.  Females also release an additional sex pheromone to attract males.  Odors released from beetle-damaged leaves also assists in attracting beetles to a particular plant.  And, although Japanese beetle damage looks devastating, their feeding rarely kills plants.     Note:  Although adult beetles typically only make short flights as they move about to feed or lay eggs, they are extremely mobile and have been known to fly as far as 5 miles.  How do I control Japanese beetles? – Cultural Controls:  Don’t plant trees and shrubs that Japanese beetles like.  Japanese and Norway maples, birch, pin oak, rose of Sharon, sycamore, ornamental apples, plums and cherries, roses, willows, lindens, hollyhock, sassafras, grapes, filbert, even poison ivy are a few of their favorite plants.  If you do, just be prepared for ‘possible’ Japanese beetles.  Physical Removal:  Removing them by hand, keeping lower populations, and not allowing beetles to accumulate (beetles attract beetles) will help.  Hand picking, hosing them off, or shaking them off the plant early in the morning when the insects are sluggish works great.  Shake them into a bucket of soapy water.  Highly valued plants could be covered with cheesecloth, grow covers, or fine netting during the peek of beetle activity.  Mechanical Control –Trapping:  There are several types of Japanese beetle traps, with both a floral / food lure and a sex pheromone lure, and can draw in thousands of beetles each day.  Research has shown these traps actually attract more beetles than are caught.  And, susceptible plants may be along the flight path of the beetles, and could suffer more than if no traps had been used at all.  If using traps, place them well away from gardens and landscape plants.  Chemical Controls:  Many insecticides are labeled for use against Japanese beetle adults.  If you take this route, 1.) Thoroughly treat foliage and flowers  2.) Use spreader sticker to increase duration of effectiveness  3.) Repeated sprayings may be needed (check labels)  4.) Do not spray when bees are active  5.) Insecticidal soaps will kill adults hit by the spray, but provide no residual protection  6.) If spraying edibles, check labels for any restrictions.  Insecticides for adult beetles include Eight, Sevin, Orthene, Rotenone / Pyrethrum sprays, Merit (if applied to plants 3 weeks in advance, and it will need assistance with other foliar sprays in heavy populations), Insecticidal Soaps, and Neem Oil (very limited success).   Natural Control:  Birds such as grackles, cardinals and larger birds will feed on the adult beetles.  Note:  Because beetles are attracted to favorable plants from a considerable distance, controlling grubs in the lawn will not protect landscape plants from adult feeding.

[If you don't know where you're going, when you get there, you'll be lost.  -Yogi Berra]

*From the Garden to the Kitchen / Hey Rita, what's cooking? - Yardboy, I’ve got some match-making going on in my herb garden. I think the Greek oregano married up with the Italian or Turkish, or even your favorite, that little hot & spicy oregano.  All I know is I have an offspring of two of these that is quite different, a bit spicy, and not as tall as most oreganos that I grow.  All of my oreganos are already flowering so I’ve cut them back about a third so that I get a new flush of tender and tasty growth.  So what to do with all those cuttings? Make my favorite July 4 salad, of course.  It never fails to be the first on the buffet to go, even though it has a long (and bit weird) list of ingredients. And yes, Yardboy, you can use lower fat ingredients and even turkey bacon, if you like.    

So Good Corn Bread Salad  -Here is what you'll need: 1 pkg, 8.5 oz, corn bread/muffin mix, 1-2 jalapenos, chopped, or 4 oz canned green chilies, chopped, 3/4 teaspoon cumin, 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 3/4 teaspoon dry, A couple sage leaves, minced or a pinch dry (opt), 1 cup ea: mayonnaise and sour cream, 1 envelope Ranch salad dressing mix, 2 cans favorite beans, drained: I like black and pinto, 1 pound frozen corn, thawed, or equivalent canned, drained, 4-5 medium tomatoes, chopped, enough to make a layer, 1 bunch green onions, sliced thin, 1 bell pepper, chopped, 1 pound bacon, fried and crumbled, 3-4 cups shredded Mexican blend or cheddar cheese.    NOW, Prepare corn bread according to directions but stir in chilies, cumin and oregano. Pour into sprayed 8x8” pan and bake at 400 for 20 minutes.  Cool.  Meanwhile, combine mayo, sour cream and dressing mix.  Crumble half the cornbread into a 13x9 pan.  Layer with half of each of the ingredients.  Repeat layers, ending with cheese.  Cover and refrigerate up to a day before serving (if you can wait that long!) Serves 12-15.

-Rita Nader Heikenfeld, CCP / Macy’s Regional Culinary Professional / Herbalist / Author / Local TV and Radio Cooking Expert / Adjunct Professor U.C. Clermont College / Community Press Papers /  [life@communitypress.com attn: Rita or www.abouteating.com]

[You don't stop laughing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop laughing.]

*Yardboy's plant to ponder - This week, I want you to ponder an 'evergreen perennial', that is often overlooked when a groundcover is needed under established shade trees, or for helping to prevent erosion, or when a low grassy-like mass or border is needed.  This plant is called "Liriope", or commonly known as "Creeping Lily-turf".  It's tough durable grass like foliage can reach 12-18 inches in height, has white to lavender flowers in the summer (on stalks which hold them upright), and its stoloniferous habit forms a thick mass that crowds out even weeds and grass.  Liriope can be grown in sun or shade quite well, although the best growth occurs in light shade and evenly moist, fertile soils.  Prepare the bed before planting liriope, keep it watered and fed, and watch it fill in like crazy!  Variegated and green leafed Liriope is available, with the green leafed varieties probably performing the best.  (Although considered an evergreen perennial, Liriope foliage will usually brown over the winter, which is removed in the spring with a string trimmer or actually using a lawn mower, and mowing it off.)

[The cardiologist's diet: If it tastes good, spit it out.]

A little bit of this and a little bit of that - Did you notice that we've added a new 'sidebar' at the top of this newsletter?  It's Mrs. N's Container Recipes!  She's back, thanks to your requests.  We will add her to our headliners in the newsletter next week.  Welcome back, Mrs. N!  "Lookin' Good!"

Pinch those mums one last time to keep them shorter, fuller, and ready to flower for the fall season.  Same goes for asters and Montauk daisies.  Annuals getting leggy?  Feel free to pinch them back as well.  This helps them to become fuller and results in more flowers.  Takes about 2 weeks to recover, but well worth the wait! 

[I was married by a judge.  I should have asked for a jury. -Groucho Marx]

Classes, Seminars, and upcoming Special Events - "Best Bloomin Yard in Mason"  Nominate an outstanding Mason yard - Six winners chosen / six categories - Deadline for entries is June 30, 2006 - go to www.masoninbloom.com for more details.

Meyer Aquascapes is sponsoring a Water Garden Walk in Northern Kentucky / Cincinnati on July 22 and 23.  Tickets are $10.  There will be 30 plus ponds on the tour, some with waterfalls and streams.  Tickets are available through Boone County Extension, by calling (859) 586-6101.

Kinkead Ridge Estate Winery will be doing two vineyard tours this year (weather permitting) at Kinkead Ridge Vineyard, 4288 Kinkead Road, Ripley Ohio, on July 1 and 3, and September 2 and 4.  The winery (904 Hamburg Street 937-392-6077) is open Saturdays from 11am-5pm until Labor Day, as well as July 4th from 11-6pm.  (www.kinkeadridge.com)  This is an award winning winery!

[It does not matter how slowly you go, so long as you do not stop. -Confucius]

That's it for this week.  Now, do yourself a favor.  Go out and have the best weekend, AND the best July 4th, of your life.  See ya.  RW, the Yardboy.

[Catch Natorp's own grown yardboy Ron Wilson during the week:  -55KRC The Talk Station 'In the Garden with Ron Wilson' every Saturday from 6-9am  - Satellite Radio / XM TalkRadio 165 every Saturday from 6-9am  -610 WTVN (Columbus) every Saturday from 10-12pm  -Friday mornings at 8:06am on 55KRC's 'The Morning Show' with Jerry Thomas and Craig Kopp  -Thursday and Saturday mornings on Local 12 News (WKRC) Homeworx Team   -Garden expert for 'HomewoRx' with Gary Sullivan on Local 12, Sunday at 11:30am.  Be sure to listen to 55KRC The Talk Station for the best in talk radio! (Home of multiple programming director Tony 'Big Dog' Bender, and the original Joe Pro, executive producer Joe  ("without Joe, this show just wouldn't go") Strecker!

[Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly.  -Tony Bender's words for the day.]