Whether It's The Weather
Just when you thought spring weather was moving in, cooler temperatures return, reminding us that spring is not here yet, but coming soon!  Yes, there are plenty of things to do outside without pushing the season, so be patient and work your way through the next few weeks as the weather allows.  By the way, Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow this year, which meant spring weather was right around the corner.  With our duke's mix of weather we've had since then, was he on or off this year?  Of course, who's going to argue with a groundhog?  I wonder if he would even listen.  Or even cares.

What's Bugging You?
Not much bugging us yet, but it won't be long.  We did see Buggy Joe Boggs last week (looked pretty rough after his winter hibernation), so he has pupated and will be giving us his weekly update beginning the first of April.  In the meantime, don't forget that now's the time to take care of over wintering bugs and diseases (on fruit trees and other plants where you've had insect problems in the past) by spraying with Bonide's Horticultural oils or Lime Sulfur spray, before the plants begin to leaf out.  If you have fruit trees and want to begin a regular spraying program, check out Bonide's Complete Fruit Tree Spray.  Insecticide, fungicide, and a chart suggesting times for spraying.  Makes it pretty easy, huh?  By the way, if you see any bagworms hanging around on your evergreens, pull them off and destroy them.  You know why.

Questionmark and the Mysterians - a few emailed gardening questions answered here!
"Hey Ron, can you send me the new tip sheet on gardening with straw bales?  I want to give it a try."    -Nope, sorry.  It's not finished yet!  Next week.  (Got your attention, huh?)

"How do I know when the right time is for putting down the crabgrass preventer in our lawn?"   -Crabgrass seeds begin to germinate when the air and soil temperatures reach a consistent 50-55 degrees.  We aren't there yet.  But here's 2 great ways for you to know.  1.) Keep reading future newsletters, and 2.) make sure the crabgrass preventers are in place before the forsythia are in full bloom.  Now, if you miss that time, it's okay.  The crabgrass seeds don't all germinate in one day!  They germinate over several months.  And, if you want to make sure you don't miss the mark, put it down now.  Easy enough, wouldn't you say?  (I like to wait a bit so it lasts longer into the season.)  Check the tips section.  It's all about pre and post emergents.

"Loved you garden at the Home and Garden show!  What was that large leafed succulent type plant you had potted in the yellow pots?  That was very interesting!"    -Didn't you just love those?!  It's my new plant for containers (although it's been around forever).  Kalanchoe thyrsiflora, or commonly called "Flapjacks" or "Desert Cabbage".  Big thick round leaves, and that maroon coloring on the edges intensifies in the summer sun.  Great in containers outdoors, and great as a houseplant indoors.

"Is it time to prune back my roses yet?"   -NO!  Let's wait a couple more weeks before we start cutting back roses.  I can say that it looks like the extended early winter weather followed up by the sudden extremely cold snap (with snow and ice) we had definitely has created a little more than usual die back on rose canes.  Looking at the Knockouts yesterday, they are showing some pretty serious winter die back.  But, that shouldn't be a problem; just a little more pruning for us!  Those Knockouts will recover quiet nicely. Nevertheless, let's wait a little longer before we get into the rose pruning.  (I think we're going to see a lot of winter die back this year on many plants, due to the delayed warm weather and sudden deep freeze!  It may also cause a few plants to be slow breaking out this spring, so be sure to give them plenty of time to break out new growth before doing anything drastic like removing the plant!)

Success Tip of the Week
With spring right around the corner, 2 buzz words you hear a lot of right now are pre emergent and post emergent herbicides, and when is the right time to use them.  Well, let me first explain what they are, and then tell you the right timing for their use.   Pre emergent herbicides are herbicides that are applied to the soil BEFORE weed seeds begin to grow in the spring.  There are several pre emergents to chose from, and are labeled either for the lawn or for the landscape and flower beds.  (With exception to the organic pre emergent Corn Gluten, which can be used in both.)   So make sure you read the labels.   Remember they stop seeds from germinating, so be careful when using them around areas where you'll be planting seeds.  In the lawn, if you have dormant seeded, or are planning to spring seed, be sure to choose the pre emergent that can be used on newly seeded lawns.   Timing for pre emergent herbicides, especially for those wanting to control crabgrass in their lawns, is to have the pre emergents in place before the soil and air temperatures reach 50-55 degrees consistently.  That's when crabgrass seeds begin to germinate.  An easy way to know when that time is - having your pre emergents in place before the forsythia are in full flower.   

Post emergent herbicides are applied to already growing unwanted grasses and weeds.    And these are generally applied a little later on, when the weeds and grasses are actively growing, and the temperatures are a bit warmer.  Again, many post emergents to choose from, depending on the situation.  Lawn weed killers, Roundup - they all fall into this category.  Now, there is one post emergent herbicide that can be used earlier for those cool temperature weeds, and that's Bonide's Weed Beater Ultra.  Works at 45 degrees, and covers a lot of weeds including chickweed, henbit, and wild onions, which are growing now.   

Not to confuse matters, but there's also new technology for the lawn, from Greenview, where they've combined the pre and the post emergents together, and this product is applied to the lawn in mid spring.  Stops weed seeds that haven't already germinated, kills weeds that are already growing, and feeds the lawn in the same step.   Head still spinning?  Just email me and I'll help answer your pre or post questions!  

From the Garden to the Kitchen

Sorry, no recipes from Riat this week (yes that is a typo, and yes I do call her Riat because of my constant typo), but I have spoken with her and she is chomping at her parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme (sing along everyone) and is anxious to get started next week - unlike our cohort Buggy Joe, who needs until the first of April to get his wings dried and ready before he can start reporting! 

Yardboy's "Plant to Ponder"
Just as we're all itching to start planting a little color in the garden, some cold tolerant plants begin to show up in the garden stores, ready for your early spring planting.  Oh sure, you'll see the pots of spring bulbs, and a wide assortment of violas and pansies (by the way, the National Garden Bureau has declared 2007 the year of the Viola and Cabbage and Kale), a few Primrose, and of course, gaining more popularity every year, Lenten Rose, which has been around the perennial gardens for years, but finally getting the recognition it deserves.  But then, amongst all these other cold tolerant colorful plants, we see something that we've never seen before.  Bright green lacy foliage, compact plant, with an assortment of all types of flower colors, and the flowers, well, they resemble and orchid flower!  You say to yourself, "schizanthus, that's pretty cool!"  And then someone says to you, "You're right, that's Schizanthus.  Loves the cooler temperatures (doesn't like extreme cold, so cover if it gets close to or below freezing) and will flower all spring and into the summer."  By the way, if you forget the name, or don't immediately say "schizanthus" when you see it, the common name for this annual is "Poor Man's Orchid".

 A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That
Sorry, nothing to report here.  Remember, this is just a test of the Natorp's In the Garden emailed newsletter.  Had this been an actual newsletter, we would have written something here!  :)