Garden centres are displaying colourful illustrations of bulbs in bloom over bins filled with the same. Don’t be deceived by bargain prices. The simple rule has it that the bigger the bulb, the better the flower next spring. The big box stores are far too fond of pathetic packages of the bulb equivalent of shrunken heads.
“There’s something about August going into September where everybody in Washington gets all wee weed up,” opined President Barack Obama. Was he implying they wet their beds? Not according to the
Times of London, which quotes David Gefland as saying it has nothing to do with bed wetting. Instead “it is ghetto lingo for being stoned out of one’s mind on pot.” The phrase originated in Nigeria where one of the words for cannabis is ‘wee.’ Ah, the things one learns from gardening.
It may not have been the greatest of seasons for relaxing in the garden, but it was perfect for pathogens. It didn’t take long for the pansies to succumb to powdery mildew, which then migrated to susceptible begonias. Summer phlox is taking a beating as, inevitably, have the lilacs. Maple leaves are showing black blotches descriptively known as “tar spot.”
Planting “heritage” tomatoes was a recipe for disaster as late blight, known more ominously as “black death,” gleefully swept all to perdition. Despite mass media stories, the blight is not a fungus. It is related to the Irish potato blight of the 1840s, correctly known as a
phytophthora. But try pronouncing that after a reviving glass or three of wine. Modern varieties of tomatoes are less susceptible to this affliction, although not alas totally immune.
The best way to avoid or at least reduce such disease disasters next season is by practicing hygiene this fall. Many a pathogen – and pest – overwinters on infected plant material neglected to be gathered and disposed of in the fall. Not consigned to the composter, either. Temperatures there will not reach high enough levels to assure they are eliminated. Let the municipality take care of it.
This applies to every last fallen leaf. Ignore jeers from the neighbour who proclaims he is going to wait until the wind blows them away. “I don’t mind if my plants sulk, but I suppose I’d rather they not die. (I feel the same way about a number of people),” wrote Michael Tortorello in a recent The
New York Times column.
Why they come packaged in even numbers is another one of the great mysteries of retailing. A basic rule of gardening is always to plant odd numbers for best effect. Another principal is to plant bulbs in tight groups, not spread out, one here another there.
Choose scented specimens for planting next to front doors and frequented walkways. Apart from the beloved Dutch hybrid hyacinths, muscari and some narcissus are reliable performers in this respect. Smaller, very early-blooming bulbs should also be installed in such highly visible locations.
Never mind the (yawn) tulips. For that “something special,” go for lilies. Every bit as easy and, better yet, reliably return year after year if left undisturbed. A great new website from friend Sally Ferguson is just a click away at
lilydossier.com.
Is there any sure-fire way to protect such an investment against the tree rats also known as squirrels? Many and ingenious are the suggestions submitted but one and one only seems to work under all circumstances: a layer of chicken wire. Peg down over the plantings and remove when the first green tips emerge next spring.
A cardinal error of novice gardeners is to take cuttings from every tender tropical still decorating the garden. Experienced propagators select only the very best performers as “mother” or “stock” plants. September is a perfect month for assuring an adequate supply for next season. It also means younger, smaller plants to carry through the winter, thus warding off wails from the spouse: “Where are you going to find room for them all?” Another error is failure to identify each pot. Ever mindful that a dollar saved is a dollar available for more plant purchases, cutting plastic labels from empty plastic bleach bottles is an option. Mark up with a chinagraph crayon for assured permanency.
We doff the garden hat – but nothing else – to actress Alicia Silverstone and her distinctively decorative mode of gardening. She chooses to do so in the nude, she recently told
Health magazine. “I’d be out there, and it would be scorching hot, so I would take off all my clothes and garden. And then I would jump in the pool and swim – and I always get in the pool naked.” The comely Californian vegetarian (33-24-34) is reported to be much more shy on the set. Imbd.com reports she refuses to appear nude in any of her movies using, where necessary, a body double. This does not extend to supporting the cause of PETA. A couple of years back, television viewers in Houston, Texas were treated to a 30-second commercial of the lovely lass emerging in a state of nature from a swimming pool to extol upon the advantages of being a vegan. “I wasn’t always a vegetarian, but I’ve always loved animals,” the then 30-year-old actress said in statement add that, “Physically, the effect has been amazing.”
