THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 5, 1994 TAG: 9406030110
SECTION: HOME PAGE: H4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Robert Stiffler
DATELINE: 940605 LENGTH: Medium
\ PRUNING TIME\ Lots of rain in early spring, followed by a warm April, produced lush growth on shrubs and trees. That all needs pruning now. Get it done now before plants get out of bounds and you have to butcher them.
{REST} \ RACCOON WATCH\ If you've planted daylilies recently, check them every day. I planted a bed of the Irish Elf variety, only to discover three days later that raccoons had dug up every one and left them to dry out.
\ MIDLIFE GARDEN CRISIS\ Although new ideas for gardening books are dwindling, Patricia Thorpe has come up with a dandy. ``Growing Pains: Time and Change in the Garden'' (Harcourt Brace, 1994, $22.95) is praised by Publishers Weekly as conversational, thorough, witty and grounded in landscape history. The book is the first to describe what actually happens in a garden after the first few years, when fantasies of re-creating Giverney in our back yards begin to dim.
\ WHAT'S HOT FOR HANGING\ New Guinea impatiens are rapidly replacing ivy geraniums as first choice in hanging baskets, reports Tom Lavagetto, general manager of White's Nursery & Greenhouses in Chesapeake. New Guinea impatiens can take full sun and are available in a wide range of lustrous colors. To appreciate the size of the Chesapeake operation, consider this: On any one day, White's has more than 185,000 mums in its greenhouses.
\ GADGET FOR GROWING\ The Israel Institute of Technology proved that magnetically treated water grows fruit and vegetables more successfully than untreated water. The method produced plants that were greener, larger, tastier and more abundant. A California company has now developed a small water treatment device for home gardeners using the Israel principle. Cost is $29.95. For more information, write D.M.M. Corp., P.O. Box 1829, Sonoma, Calif. 95476, or call (800) 624-6381.
\ MOSQUITO SHIELD\ Now that mosquitoes are out in full force, the 3M Co. tells us we need 3M Insect Repellent, with a controlled release of DEET. This repellent cream has proven effective against mosquitoes for up to 12 hours, and the spray repellent lasts up to eight hours. It's also effective against chiggers and ticks. It should be available at your drug counter.
\ MULCH TOMATOES, PEPPERS\ Tomatoes and peppers benefit from mulching. It helps reduce plant stress and blossom end rot, the brown spot that forms on the ends of many of your first-picked tomatoes. You can mulch with bark, grass clippings, pine straw or ground-up leaves. They all help.
\ MAKE CUTTINGS NOW\ It's time to take cuttings of camellias, azaleas and rhododendrons as well as photinia and cottoneaster. Use a sharp knife or clippers to take cuttings of growth that has just begun to mature. Place them in a good rooting medium (half peat moss and half vermiculite is recommended). Water and cover with plastic so they don't dry out, and put them in the shade. In six weeks they should be rooted.
\ REMEMBER TO FERTILIZE\ Don't forget that vegetables that produce all summer, such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and eggplant, should be fertilized every six weeks and watered thoroughly afterward. Use 8-8-8, 10-10-10 or a special vegetable fertilizer.
\ MOWING FESCUES\ As hot weather draws near, raise the blade on your lawn mower if you have a fescue lawn. Three inches is recommended height for newer fescues (Shenandoah, Rebel II, Titan, Greenscape, Southern Belle), but for the old favorite, Kentucky 31, a 4-inch height is recommended. Do not fertilize fescue again before fall.
\ ALLERGY ALERT\ You might be immune to poison ivy, but don't be surprised if lantana makes you itch. Victory Gardener Jim Wilson reported to the Botanical Garden Society that he has to use Cortaid after handling lantana. Other people have reported a similar allergy to it.
by CNB