THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 25, 1994 TAG: 9409230068
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G2 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: GARDENING REMINDERS
LENGTH: Medium: 97 lines
Fall planting is ideal for perennials, and many are on sale now. Here are some that love the sun and are long-blooming. Horticulturists at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden recommend: Achillea (yarrow) Coronation Gold and Moonshine; Artemisia lactiflora; Aster x frikartii (Wonder of Staffa); Rudbeckia fulgida ``Goldsturm''; Coreopsis verticillata ``Moonbeam''; Veronica ``Sunny Border Blue''; Monarda didyma ``Cambridge Scarlet''; Echinops ``Taplow Blue''; Heliopsis helianthoides, Centaurea montana; Perovskia atriplicfolia and Thalictrum rochebrunianum.
The last listed may be hard to find, but it's worth searching for, because the tiny purple flowers resemble purple baby's breath. When dried, the flowers have a wonderful fresh color that displays well against dark green or silver foliage. It blooms until frost.
The Perovskia is more often called ``Russian sage'' and has been named Perennial Plant of the Year for 1995. PULL THE GARLIC
If you grow garlic, it's time to pull the bulb and separate it into sections. Wash and dry the larger cloves to cook with and then replant the smaller ones.
If you've never grown garlic, it's easy. You can use the garlic bulbs you buy at the grocery store, but separate them into individual cloves before planting.
Tahiti or elephant garlic is the largest and mildest. It makes large blooms like allium, which many flower arrangers like to use. Italian and creole varieties are smaller and have a stronger flavor.
Plant 1 inch deep and 6 inches apart in a row. Fertilize with 8-8-8 or 20-20-20 and side dress with nitrogen in March, April and May. CONTROL PESTS NATURALLY
Brooklyn Botanic Garden publishes good booklets at very low prices. Their latest is ``Natural Insect Control.'' The Brooklyn Garden uses a variety of writers, one for each chapter. The booklet says, ``Pick a pest and you can almost surely find a natural control for it - one that won't poison you, your kids or pets, won't cause cancer and won't wreak ecological havoc.'' Cost is $6.95 at the Norfolk Botanical Garden shop or you can order by mailing $10.70 to BBG, 1000 Washington Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11225 or call 718-941-4044, Ext. 272. DROWNED IN OIL
Reader Thomas R. Jones writes from Suffolk that any cooking oil works very well for drowning Japanese beetles and is less dangerous to use than gasoline. STOP THE SLIME
Slug season is nearly over, but if you still see their slimy trails on your sidewalks, here's a solution. Chief horticulturist Joe Freeman of Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven, Fla., says to use diatomaceous earth along the walkways. Slugs find this material very scratchy and tend to avoid crossing it. It's effective as long as it's dry. A long-term control to stop slugs is lining the walks with a copper strip. Copper is toxic to slugs and they won't cross it. COMING UP ROSES
The Garden Club of Virginia will hold its 58th annual rose show in Berryville on Oct. 5 and 6 at the Clarke County Parks and Recreation Center. Thirty awards are offered to amateur rose growers. Admission is free. Call 422-6470 or 425-0763. LIGHTS OUT FOR POINSETTIAS
If you want your poinsettia in flower again for Christmas, they will need 13 or more hours of darkness at night. Starting now, be certain the plant is not exposed to light at night. Each evening at sunset, put the poinsettia in a closet or under a frame covered with dark cloth. During the day, place the plant in a warm, sunny location because bright light and temperature are important for it to bloom. Temperatures should be 70 to 85 degrees during the day and 65 to 70 degrees at night. SHIFT WITH THE SUN
With the sun changing position in the sky, move your hanging baskets and deck and porch containers to different locations. You'll be surprised at how much that can help the plants during these waning days of summer. PROPAGATING PERENNIALS
One of the best learning sessions of the year is expected to take place Wednesday when David Smith of Whiteflower Farms conducts a workshop on ``Propagating Perennials.'' The workshop is at 10 a.m. at the Norfolk Botanical Garden auditorium. Cost is $7.50 to botanical garden members; $10 to non-members. Call 441-5839. TIME FOR FALL VEGETABLES
If you like fall vegetables, it's time to get cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and spinach plants into your garden. Also time is growing late for reseeding your lawn with fescue. Don't delay.
Robert Stiffler by CNB