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

Honey Bees Disappearing

For some reason there are vast numbers of Bees disappearing in the United States and no one knows why. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that bees are vanishing in 22 states. The immensity of this mystery is heightened when you understand that bees are essential for pollinating some 90 varieties of vegetables and fruits (including apples, blueberries & cherries).

This scary phenomenon occurring in the United States has been dubbed “Colony Collapse Disorder” or CCD by scientist. Basically, the bees leave their hives and simply do not return. There are no signs of the bees, no dead bees anywhere, just gone.

Usually when there is a problem it is a known killer such as the Verroa Mite, an external parasite that attacks honey bees and can wipe out a hive. Usually when a hive begins to decline predators seeking honey will attack the hive and competing bees and parasites will take over the hive. With what’s happening now, all other bees and parasites are staying away which suggest that some toxin or chemical is keeping them away.

The finger of suspicion is being pointed at agriculture pesticides such as the widely-used neonicotinoides, which are already known to be poisonous to bees. Other countries have had these issues in the past in some form. France saw a huge fall in its bee population in the 1990s, blamed on the insecticide Gaucho which has now been banned in the country.

Heirloom Plants

Heirloom plants are naturally open-pollinated cultivar that were commonly grown during earlier periods in human history. Before the industrialization of agriculture, a wider variety of plants were grown for human consumption.

Today, most food crops are grown in large mono-cultural plots. To maximize consistency, few varieties of each type of food crop is grown. These are selected usually for these reasons:

• Consistency
• Productivity
• Ability to travel to supermarkets
• Tolerance to drought
• Tolerance to Frost
• Tolerance to pesticides

Nutrition, flavor, and variety are a secondary thought to production considerations. As a result, heirloom gardening can be seen as a reaction against this trend. Heirloom growers are motivated by some of these reasons:

• Increased flavor
• Historical interest
• Preservation & increasing the gene pool
• Preserving tradition

To be an heirloom, a plant must be "open-pollinated", meaning it will grow "true to type" from seed. This excludes nearly every hybrid. Open pollination allows the same cultivar to be grown simply from seed for many generations.

Typically, heirlooms have adapted over time to whatever climate and soil they have grown in. Thanks to their genetics, they are often resistant to pests, diseases, and extremes of weather.

Many gardeners consider 1951 to be the latest year a plant can have originated and still be called an heirloom, since that year marked the widespread introduction of the first hybrid varieties. Some heirloom plants are much older, some being apparently pre-historic.

Garden Spray Hot Sauce

Here’s an interesting concept that falls under the topics of organic/natural, creative and dual function. It is both a hot sauce for your food and a repellant.

Dave's Gourmet Hot Sauce & Garden Spray is not only for spicing up food, but it's also to prevent deer and rabbits from eating your garden.

The product literature actually says, "We created this sauce to be a delicious addition to your food and a way to keep deer and rabbits from eating your roses and carrots."

And it comes in a spray bottle, which perhaps makes it the first "edible" pepper spray.

Living Stones – Lithops

Lithops are small succulent plants that resemble pebbles and stones. They were discovered by John Burchell in 1811 who thought he was picking up an interesting looking stone but turned out to be a plant.

They can blend in so well that grazing animals looking for plants to obtain moisture don’t see them. Even experts in the field have difficulty location lithops for study because of their stone-like camouflage.

In the wild, lithops inhabit the vast dry regions of South Africa. There is one species of lithops that depends on mist and fog to provide its primary source of moisture. Lithops are masters at storing water. The leaves are thick and can store enough water for the plants to survive for months without rain.

In periods of drought (almost all the time) they shrink below the soil level. Some researchers have concluded that living stones develop "contractile" roots, which they use to pull themselves down into the soil.

Lithops have intricate markings and come in the colors of gray, brown, rust, green and pink. A great choice for plant lovers looking for the unusual blend for their gardens. There are 145 varieties and 36 species of lithop – flowering stones identified.

In cultivation, living stones require well-drained soil, much the same as cactus. They grow slowly, thrive in bright full sun, tolerate temperatures from cool to intense heat, and require very little water.

Irish Moss

Irish moss (sometimes called Scotch moss) is a great ground cover and is one of the best for covering bare spots, and filling in crevices between bricks and stepping stones. Irish moss is low growing, has tiny leaves that form densely matted / moss-like clumps 2-4 inches high. This great ground cover is from northern Europe and is hardy to 30 degrees below zero.

Irish moss spreads very quickly (borders on invasive if not controlled), takes foot traffic very well, and seldom needs clipping. One of the best things about this ground cover is that it stays green all year long. An extra bonus is that Irish moss will produce delicate white flowers that bloom from mid-spring to early summer.

ADDITIONAL

• Hardiness: Zones 4b to 10b
• Sun Exposure: Sun to partial shade
• Water: Average, water regularly
• Soil: 5.6 to 7.5 (acid to neutral

Cheatgrass

Cheatgrass is a winter annual in the grass family. It forms small tufts 8-24 inches tall with slender stems and flat leaf blades. It grows densely and invades rangelands, pastures, prairie fields, roadsides and eroded sites.

Cheatgrass will grow in almost any type of soil and will thrive most in precipitation climates of 6-27 inches of rain per year. This invasive plant is also known as: brome, drooping brome, thatch bromegrass, broncograss, military grass, downy chess, early chess, soft chess, and wild oats.

Many of the ecosystems that cheatgrass invades are substantially altered to the point where natural vegetation is no longer supported. Cheatgrass can maintain dominance for many years on sites where it has established itself. Note: When mature, the spikelets of break apart and the sharp-pointed areas can injure grazing animals by working themselves into the nose, eyes, ears or mouth.

CONTROL OF CHEATGRASS

Manual – You can reduce populations by fire, mowing, grazing, and tilliage.

Chemical – There are herbicides available but talk to a local Master Gardener or County Extension Agent to find out the best answer in your region.

Biological – Rabbits, mice and migratory grasshoppers will feed on cheatgrass. If infestation is heavy you’ll need to rely on a combination of the above methods for effective control.

Asian Longhorned Beetle

Adult Asian Longhorned Beetles can be seen from around May to October. These invasive pest lay up to 70 eggs before dying and depositing each one in its own site just beneath the bark.

When the larvae hatch, they eat their way through the tree, girdling stems and branches and causing structural damage. After the larvae pupate, they tunnel out of the tree, leaving a hole (3/8 inch and larger) when they exit. Eventually, this damage kills the tree.

Asian Longhorned Beetles attack many hardwood trees including:

• Maples
• Horse Chestnuts
• Birches
• Williows
• Elms
• Poplars
• Green Ash
• Black Locust

Since the beetle spends most of its life inside the tree and out of our sight, it is difficult to spot. Look instead for signs of its presence:

• Unusual die-back of branches & limbs
• Oval or round shallow pits in the bark (these are egg sites)
• Oozing sap
• Piles of frass (looks like sawdust) around the base of the tree or in the crooks of branches
• Round holes (3/8 inch in diameter or larger) on the main trunk or branches

The only way to destroy the beetle is to cut down, chip, and incinerate the infested tree. Do not attempt to dispose of infested trees yourself! Instead, contact the Department of Agriculture in your state. You can start with your local Master Gardener or Local County Extension Agent to get you going in the right direction.

Honey Fungus

Honey fungus is a genus of parasitic fungi and lives in dead and decaying roots, tree stumps and other woody items in the soil. It grows out from these in the form of black root-like rhizomorphs ('bootlaces').

The rhizomorphs grow relatively close to the soil surface and invade new roots, or the root collar (where the roots meet the stem) of woody plants. An infected tree will die once the fungus has girdled it, or when extensive root death has occurred. As a forest pathogen, Armillaria can be very destructive. It is responsible for the "white rot" root disease.

Trees affected include:

• Fruit Trees
• Birch
• Cypress
• Lilac
• Pine
• Walnut
• Willow
• Privet
• Etc...

The fungus also spreads from root to root where they are in close contact. The fruiting bodies of the fungus are mushrooms that grow on wood, typically in cestipose clusters. The honey fungus 'fruiting body' or toadstool appears in the autumn, if at all. Airborne infection by spores from the toadstools is rare.

Honey fungus can be prevented by removing tree stumps or other dead woody material such as roots from the soil, for example by mechanical stump-grinding. Killing stumps chemically is often not sufficient.

If the presence of honey fungus is confirmed, all dead or dying woody plants should be dug up and any roots or stumps removed. If removal of a stump is impossible, the stump can be ground, or chipped, by a contractor. The resulting woodchips should be burned or disposed of outside the garden, not used as a mulch. As a last resort, a stump can be treated chemically. NOTE: Without host plants the fungus will eventually die out.

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