What's in this Issue:

#2 Lynne's Backyard Gardening Tips

#3 New Gardening Product of-the-Month

#4 Odd & Strange Gardening News

#5 Great Plant of the Month

#6 Invasive Plant of-the-Month

#7 Garden Pest of-the-Month

#8 Plant Disease

#9 Feedback - Anonymous

Pruning Shrubs & Trees

What are reasons for pruning?

• To promote plant health
• To control growth & improve appearance
• Encourage growth
• Stimulate flower & fruit formation

Note: Pruning in the wrong manner or at the wrong time can do more harm than good. Each type of shrub or tree has different needs so just follow the directions of the nursery or garden center for specifics.

Prune diseased or damaged wood at any time. If you're cutting off a diseased branch, make sure to cut back to uninfected wood. You can usually tell by the color of the wood and bark what's healthy and what's not. Choose the place to cut carefully. Cut just above a new bud, and don't leave stubs or stumps which can serve as entry points for disease.

Clean cuts, slanted away from buds on branches, or flush to the branch or trunk on larger limbs, heal quickly. In most cases, your goal is to encourage the natural growth patterns of the tree, shrub, or vine that you're pruning.

The late dormant season is best for most pruning. Pruning in late winter, just before spring growth starts, leaves fresh wounds exposed for only a short length of time before new growth begins the wound sealing process. Another advantage of dormant pruning is that it’s easier to make pruning decisions without leaves obscuring plant branch structure.

Watering Tips

Properly condition your soil - Water does not easily penetrate clay soils and water passes too quickly beyond the root zone of plants in sandy soil. Adding organic matter to clay and sandy soils will increase the penetrability of clay soils and the water holding capacity of sandy soils.

Extra Watering Tips:

* Do not water after the sun goes down: This can lead to problems such as mold, fungus, and other diseases.

*Remember, light & frequent watering will result in shallow roots.

* Mulching cuts down on water loss due to evaporation. A two-inch layer of mulch or compost is recommended. Apply mulches to shrubs, trees, annuals, vegetable gardens, and even containers.

* Discourage water competition from weeds by keeping them under control.

Bug Habitat

This small insect habitat is suitable for general insect use. It is double chambered, with the top having varying sized canes and the bottom being constructed of solid bored timber. This construction gives excellent insulation over winter for Ladybirds and Lacewings.

It is ideal for hanging in a sheltered garden or house wall. The holes may be used by solitary bees such as Mason Bees or Leafcutter Bees, which are non aggressive and excellent for pollinating in the garden, helping to increase fruit yields. Constructed from FSC supplied wood, this is a very environmentally friendly product all round. 11x21x13.5cm high. Approx Weight 1.5kg

I found this product surfing the internet at the following web address: http://www.petplanet.co.uk

Welwitshia - a living plant fossil

Most desert growths are small. Welwitshia is more like a tree, which has been driven underground, to avoid sandstorms and the heat. The taproot is a trunk, which goes down 18 metres or more to draw water from old riverbeds, under the sand. It can attain a circumference of 4 metres.

Welwitshia has been called the "desert octopus" because of its huge heap of long leaves. It exudes a thick, sugary resin, without intending to trap victims. It is in fact a submerged relative of the pines.

Welwitshia survive and seem to thrive in these dry parts where rainfall is never more than 25 mm a year and where rainless years are no exception. The plant has only two leaves springing from the outside of its core. These may be 3 metres long. The leaves catch the sea mists that spread over the desert coast. Both leaves grow though out the plant's life and are never shed.

So as far back as 1916 already, the Welwitshia had to be protected. Anyone who injures, uproots or destroys a Welwitshia, without a permit, may have to pay a hefty fine, or spend some time in prison.

Lavender

There are hundreds of lavender varieties around the world with perhaps 50 regularly found in commerce. They vary in many ways. Colors range from deep purple to blue, pink and white. They can be as small as 12 inches high to as large as 3 feet in diameter. The earliest ones bloom in late May in our region while the latest don’t show their flowers until the second week of July. Leaves can be quite green or almost silver.

Most gardeners enjoy the lush beauty of lavender but do not know that the genus lavendula comes in many different shapes, sizes, and degrees of hardiness. Lavender thrives in full sun and well-drained soils with a pH of 7.0 to 7.3. The hardiest varieties have no trouble surviving in zone 4 while many of the tender species will not withstand a frost.

Essential oil of lavender has antiseptic and anti-inflamatory properties. It was used in hospitals during WWI to disinfect floors, walls and other surfaces. Lavender is soporific, and added to bath water or sprinkled on pillows aids relaxation and sleep.

Bearded Creeper

Based on its Mediterranean origins and close relationship with other highly invasive Asteraceae species, Crupina vulgaris (Bearded Creeper)was declared a Federal Noxious Weed shortly after its discovery in Idaho in 1968. Despite this expansion, no-one knew how this unlikely invader with its large seed was moving long distances or how it had escaped detection entering the country.

Distribution of Bearded Creeper

Mediterranean countries of Europe and Africa, eastern and central Europe, through Asia minor, the Middle East, to southwest Asia; also in Australia, Argentina, Zambia, United States.

Habitat of Bearded Creeper

Dry south slopes, grasslands, forested areas, pastures, roadsides. Adaptable to different climates and soil types.

General information on Bearded Creeper

Crupina vulgaris is a winter annual herb, up to 1 m tall. Because this species is unpalatable to cattle, it forms dense stands in disturbed rangelands, reducing forage area. It apparently does not, however, grow in cultivated fields. The achenes are spread by livestock, birds and water.

Winter Moth

NOTE: Wet summers combined with mild & moist autumns make for favorable conditions to increased winter moth populations.

Winter Moths like to especially go after ornamental, orchard and forest trees like oaks and maples.

Contact your local County Extension Agent or Master Gardener to get ideas on controlling Winter Moths. You may find an adequate answer at your local garden center as well. Additionally, There are parasitic flies that trick winter moths into eating their eggs by placing them near recently munched on leaves. As the egg hatches inside the winter moth, it literally eats the moth inside out.

Fusarium head blight

Many fear that the disease will continue to be the cause of major crop losses in the United States and beyond, with the potential to put a major dent in the world's food supply during the years to come.

The first symptoms of Fusarium head blight occur shortly after flowering. Diseased spikelets exhibit premature bleaching as the pathogen progresses within the head. One or more spikelets located in the top, middle, or bottom of the head may be bleached. Over time, the premature bleaching of the spikelets may progress throughout the entire head.

The major toxin produced by F. graminearum in association with FHB in wheat and barley is deoxynivalenol (DON). DON is sometimes called vomitoxin because of its deleterious effects on the digestive system of swine and other monogastric animals. Humans consuming flour made from wheat contaminated with DON will often demonstrate symptoms of nausea, fever, headaches, and vomiting.

If you suspect a Fusarium head blight problem contact a local County Extension Agent or local Master Gardener for advice.

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