Think House Plants For Winter Decoration

From southern Illinois northward frost can be expected anytime after late September. Try to save the Swiss chard and New Zealand spinach by protecting them with small, movable coldframes. Your reward will be a plentiful supply of fresh greens until late autumn.

Don't let early frosts catch the pumpkins and squashes on the vine. Cut them carefully about a week before the first frost is expected and allow them to dry in the sun before storing. If the onions are not yet ready to dig, bend over their tops so that they will ripen faster.

It's not too late to sow winter rye in the bare spots in the vegetable garden. It will germinate and develop, even during winter thaws.

Planting narcissus and other spring-flowering bulbs - Daffodils that have just arrived from your nurseryman should be planted before October 1. Also, bulbs that have been growing in your garden for years and have become too thick can be moved now. If possible, reset them the same day they are dug.

Minor bulbs such as scilla, muscari, chionodoxa, crocus and camassia should be popped into the ground as soon as they are received. Prepare the soil in advance, if possible, so that it has time to settle.

Digging and storing gladiolus - As soon as the gladiolus foliage loses its greenness, the corms can be dug up. Dry them in a cool, airy spot for a week or two. Before storing, treat them with a fungicide to ward off disease.

Moving peonies and other perennials, shrubs and evergreens - When should peonies be moved? According to one authority, 9:00 A.M. on September 15! Timing isn't really that critical, but after this date, the sooner the job can be done, the better. Most perennials have completed their growth by now and can be moved towards the end of the month.

If a great many shrubs have to be moved, a few can be transplanted now ahead of season if their leaves are first stripped. However, it is a better practice to wait until frost drops the leaves.

In most parts of the Middle West early September is the preferred time for moving evergreens. Be sure to mulch the soil heavily after thoroughly soaking it. If this is the last time the hose will be used this fall, drain it and hang it in a dry, cool place for the winter.

Caring for the lawn - If the lawn has spots that need leveling, there's still time before the middle of the month to correct the condition with a top dressing. By next spring the grass will have grown through the new soil and the turf will appear more even.

Continue mowing the lawn until heavy frosts stop growth. Don't yield yet to the temptation of giving the lawn-mower a vacation.

If snow mold was a problem to your lawn last spring, spray it now with a good turf fungicide. Be sure to apply it before the ground freezes.

Cleaning up weeds in the vegetable garden - If bindweed or Canada thistle infests the vegetable garden, it can be cleaned out when it's cool and the soil temperature drops to 55 degrees. Check the soil temperature carefully, spraying when it is below 55, but before the foliage is blackened by frost.

Buying, identifying house plants and potting up herbs for winter decoration"Now, before the last-minute rush which begins when the weather turns cold, identifying house plants and buying new plants to decorate the house. They seem to do better if they have a chance to become acclimated before the oil burner or furnace starts up.

Grow some herbs in a sunny window to supply winter flavorings. Pot them up now, cutting off the old tops to force young growth. Chives, sweet basil, thyme, rosemary and marjoram should be especially welcome.

For a greater understanding on the subject of identifying house plants. Drop by today at http://www.plant-care.com/pothos-not-syngonium-good-info-wrong-houseplant.html.

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Soaking And Growing Grass Seed

May is the time when the air is still cool enough to make digging a pleasure in Mid America, yet warm enough for all seeding and transplanting.

In the northern parts of the Midwest May is about the last chance to plant magnolias. In areas along the Ohio River it is already too late.

Bare-root nursery stock should be planted before the middle of the month. Later container-grown stock can be, planted. Bare-root roses set now should be mounded with several inches of soil. As the bush is establishing itself, wash the soil away gradually with the hose; by the time the stems leaf out, the soil should be level with the surrounding area.

Grass seed can still be planted safely in northern areas near the Canadian border, but farther south special care is necessary to get a good stand. In the more southerly areas first soak the seed overnight; then rinse it until the water runs clear and dry on a sheet in the sun for four hours. This seed, after drying, can be sown immediately; it will germinate weeks ahead of seed that hasnt been soaked.

Regional climatic differences this month are greater than at any other time of the year. The following operations should be performed May 1 along the Ohio River, May 15 along the latitude of Chicago and Cleveland and May 30 near the Canadian border:

Seed all hardy and half-hardy annuals, beets, carrots, peas, sweet corn, lettuce, herbs, parsnips, parsley, Swiss chard, radishes, New Zealand spinach; also put in onion sets.

Dont delay seeding perennials, if you want to grow your own. The English custom of starting perennials in June should not be followed here in the Midwest, where spring and summer are too hot for good seed germination.

Another planting of gladiolus should go in now. Also set out dahlia tubers, unless spring is wet and late. It is now almost too late for lilies, unless your supplier has unsprouted bulbs in storage. The following operations should be performed May 15 along the Ohio River, May 30 near the latitude of Chicago and Cleveland and June 10 toward the Canadian border:

Set out seedlings of tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. When i was a child i always ask the question what happens when a seed germinates? This timing is later than usually recommended but enables the garden to escape an attack of aphids, which transmit disease. By this date the aphids natural enemies have reduced the population considerably.

Seed all warm weather crops, unless spring is unusually early and warm. If you are in the habit of digging your tulips each year, dig them now, while foliage indicates their position; heel them in somewhere in the vegetable garden. The beds can now be replanted with annuals and other bedding plants.

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