About Green Coach s

WELCOME!

This TIPS Page offers a variety of information and helpful hints for taking care of your GreenSpace through out each season.  Each month you will find a general list of tasks along with other tidbits, terms and photos.

Monthly Tasks – there is a lot of info this month, so please browse

- the pics will follow in the next day or two, please check back often throughout the month

May – Zone 5

-         based on weather conditions, of course.

• - don’t forget to visit notes or terms, found at the end of the month
  

Coming in June – more container plantings, garden work

Green Coach Services are keeping me happily busy, consider scheduling today!

A typical small session takes about 3 hours and may proceed like this:

• I meet with the client in their yard
• We discuss problem areas, and I offer suggestions.
• We visit a local nursery to look at plants and materials both those I have suggested and those which draw the client interest
• I email the client some notes about our discussion and discoveries
• The client proceeds at their own pace, but is always welcome to contact me for further information or other seasonal sessions.

………………………………………………as promised…Hosta Division….this blog program is a little persnicity and I am a little new at this, so please forgive the odd layout

1.  Choose the best natural separation point within the Hosta stalks, while trying to include 2-3 stalks per cut section.and 2.  using the folding saw cut almost straight down, taking to cut into the fleshy body and not cutting off the stalk.  3.  Have a bucket with some water in it, and after cutting place the section in the bucket to keep it moist until planting.  4.  Plant ASAP either into a container or the ground. Hostas like moist soil, but well draining, with plenty of peat and hummus and a little compost.  see notes below for a little more info on this soil.

……….Prune

• AFTER bloom
  • Spring flowering trees & shrubs
• Needled evergreens with new growth
• BEGIN trim & training of espaliers & topiaries & climbers
• Pinch back chrysanthemums, asters, catmint
• Dead-head bulb spent stalks – BUT LEAVE THE LEAVES until yellow/brown.  I know this can be unsightly but the leaves after bloom send valuable nutrients to the bulb which ensures more vigorous blooms next season.  So RESIST – please.
• Wipe down pruning tools with a watered down alcohol solution to prevent disease.  This should be done often during the pruning process, especially when changing from deciduous to evergreens and vice-versa as each can act as hosts for disease.  Don’t forget to re-lubricate tools after wipe-down

Fertilize

• Needled evergreens with balanced OF – post pruning
• Remember, compost is your friend, it is the perfect addition to any soil, or plant

Spring Clean up

• Continue weeding, dividing summer and fall-blooming perennials,
• Continue planting bed clean-up, discard diseased trimmings – compost the rest
• Edge beds
• Continue to prepare annual beds, remove debris, add compost
• Clean out containers, adding last seasons soil to the compost
• Sanitize containers  a mixture of bleach and water*

Plant Outside

• Annual cool weather lovers  – snapdragon, pansies, English daisies
• Plant and transplant trees, shrubs, groundcovers, perennials, lily-of-the-valley (* see notes), hybrid lily, daylily

Don’t forget to feed the birds-local and travelers still depend on food and water

Lawn

• Complete major lawn work early May – IF you missed the Spring window, wait until Mid-September and try again.  Sept 15 into early Dec is a GREAT time!
• Consider using a mulching mower or blade when cutting the lawn, the small bits of grass are full of nitrogen and supply and extra boost which helps keep grass blades healthy and green.

On the look out

Well, now that weather has turned nice, everything comes out in full force.  Weeds, disease, pests. YIKES!   Here are some to look for during May.

Disease                 Weeds                            Pests

Anthracnose          Dames Rocket       aphids,bagworms

Black spot             bindweed               black vine weevils

Mildew                            violets                lace bugs,leaf beetles

Rust                      lamium                  leaf miners

-                           thistle                    mites, sawflies

-                           -                           scab, scale,slugs

-                           -                           tent caterpillar

-                           -                           hemlock wooly adelgids

I will post pics as I encounter these.  Please take advantage of our great resource – the Michigan State University Extension Office and website.  Many counties in Michigan have an ext office.

Plant

• Containers…BUT watch those temps – newly planted perennials and annuals need temps above 50 degrees – day or night.  If the plants cool off too much it will send them back into protective dormancy, which could delay blooms and further growth for weeks and even months!
• Bareroot plants, container grown perennials, ground cover, trees & Shrubs and annuals – IF temps permit.
• Edibles – again watch those temps.

NOTE:  on plant buying.

Many of the gardens I have refurbished suffer from similar troubles.

The wrong plant in the wrong place.

Plants draw us in, they are beautiful and colorful and displayed in great form and it is easy to fall in love.  But keep in mind, plants grow.  All of them do – some faster than others.  Read the tag provided, there is a wealth of info there.  Know what growing conditions the plants need before you impulse buy; it can save labor, expense and frustration later.

Mulch

A topic which deserves some coverage.  Yes it may be dry reading, but mulch is really an important addition to any green space.  The main purpose of mulch is to help regulate soil temps and moisture and help prevent weeds.  NO mulch totally blocks out weeds.

• Choose a natural mulch made up of multiple sizes – fines, small pieces, medium and larger.  Avoid chunky, large, one-sized mulch unless you already have a nice layer of multi-sized mulch in place.
• Mulch which  too large or chunky leaves wide in-between spaces which allow easier weed growth.
• Some of the new recycled rubber mulches can be affective, but again make sure there is z variety of sizes in the product.
• If you choose a stone mulch make sure to put landscape fabric  – NOT plastic down BEFORE adding stone.  This ensures drainage and keeps the stones from working their way into the soil over time.
• If you already have stone mulch and it looks a little tired, rake sections with a wide-tong iron rake.  This does two things – turns some of the stones over bringing the ‘pretty’ side up, and displaces the little soil particles which collect over time.  These little spaces become mico-containers, perfect for weed seeds to settle and prosper.
• Mulch should be maintained at about a 3 inch depth.  The length of your pointer finger tip to the knuckle of your hand is 3 inches.  DEEPER is NOT better.  Keep mulch away from the base of the plant, mulch should not touch the plant – this can cause rot.

And speaking of mulch, now is a great time to mulch those acid lovers such as:  holly, hydrangea, azaleas, rhodies, laurel and pieris with…acid mulch.  Pine needles, or oak leaves.  Don’t forget to topdress with some compost – first

Tools & equipment

-         Inspect and ready for use:  Sharpen, lubricate, clean.

-         Wipe tools with a watered down alcohol solution after use to prevent spread of disease

-         Activate the irrigation system

NOTES:  Lily-of-the-valley can be invasive, especially to woodland areas, so plant responsibly choosing contained areas

TERMS

Annuals – those soft tissue plants which grow, flower and die within one season

Corn Gluten:  a bi-product of the corn industry, it was discovered to effectively prevent many weed seeds from germinating http://www.hort.iastate.edu/gluten/?

Deciduous – plants which loose their leaves, including evergreens

Dormant – roots active, but branches aren’t obviously producing blooms or leaves. Buds are firm and not active

Friable – frost-free and not soggy ground.  Test: squeeze a handful and if water runs out it is soggy.

Manure or Compost Tea – take a  5-gallon bucket, and 1 shovel full of manure of compost.  Add manure or compost to bucket, fill with water, let steep up to 7 days.  Stir once-and-a-while.  Then transfer to a watering can and water plants. Try counting to 25 as you pour.  If the mixture stays rather lumpy, you may want to strain it prior to filling your watering can.  Can be used on any plant, at any time for instant nutrition.

NPK – N-Nitrogen, P-Phosphorus, K- Potassium

N -foliage

P-roots & flowers

K-overall plant health

Perennials – those plants which live from season to season

Sanitize:  10% solution.  mix 1 part bleach to 9 parts water or and alternative :  mix 1 light squirt of castile soap with 1 pint of vinegar and spray the pot inside and out, let dry, then spray all with straight peroxide, let dry.  Rinse.

Sharp Sand – Coarse textured sand can often be found in bags in the concrete products section of the store.  Yes, you can probably use the sand from weighted sand bags ( as long as it is coarse – the kind used for winter traction in the back of a pick-up truck.

Mixing coarse sand with the soil helps create a more balanced texture – it helps prevent soils from compacting and sinking back into the low spot, and also slows the sand from entering the ground and soil from washing out during heavy spring rains.

April – Zone 5

based on weather conditions, of course.  Refer to March if you are just beginning outside work.

Many spots in the Midwest have experienced an early spring – but don’t let this fool you, there is plenty of time for it all to change.  Continue with tasks, but with a little caution.

~~~Coming in May – how to divide Hostas, ornamental grasses and beginning container plantings~~~

* see notes or terms

Prune

• Finish dormant pruning on shrubs
  • -If it is an early spring bloomer, prune only dead wood, misshapen branches – NOT branches with buds
• mower on highest setting, mow ground covers to remove winter damage
• Shear-cut Nordic Holly
• Hydrangea – ONLY dead wood.  Most hydrangeas bloom on buds set last season.  If you are unsure, wait until the hydrangea has leafed out and then remove dead branches
• Wipe down pruning tools with a watered down alcohol solution to prevent disease.  Perform this  often during the pruning process, especially when changing from deciduous to evergreens & vice-versa as each can act as hosts for disease.  Don’t forget to re-lubricate tools after wipe-down

Annabell Hydrangea blooms on this seasons blooms,

Lemon Wave Hydrangea blooms on last seasons.

Fertilize

• Emerging bulbs and perennials with manure tea* or a balanced, organic fertilizer
• trees and shrubs with organic fert 5-10-5 (NPK) or dehydrated manure
• Remember, compost is your friend, it is the perfect addition to any soil, or plant

Spring Clean up

• Begin weeding
• Begin to dig & divide summer and fall-blooming perennials,
• Begin planting bed clean-up, discard diseased trimmings – compost the rest
• Edge beds
• Prepare annual beds, remove debris, add compost
• Clean out containers, adding last seasons soil to the compost
• Sanitize containers  a mixture of bleach and water*

Plant Outside

• Annual cool weather lovers  – snapdragon, pansies, English daisies
• Plant and transplant trees, shrubs, groundcovers, perennials, lily-of-the-valley (* see notes), hybrid lily, daylily

Lawn

• De-thatch
• Aerate *  do this BEFORE turning on irrigation system, then if any lines were nicked repair can take place prior to the dry season
• Fill in low spots with a mixture of 50/50 ( compost & top soil) and sharp sand *
• Top dress all lawn area with compost
• Fertilize with organic fertilizer (OF)
• Apply corn gluten* ( 1^st app of the season) for weed control – it also contains a little Nitrogen (N)
• it is best to apply the 1st app while the Forsythia are blooming

!!…On the look out…!!

The munchers are out ie:  rabbits, deer. ..Time to treat or spray with repellent products
Watch for early signs of pests & disease
You may notice square-ish small holes in rows on some trees, especially Sugar Maple
These are probably caused by the Yellow-Bellied Sap Sucker bird, and should pose no threat to the tree

allaboutbirds.org/guide/yellowbellied_sapsucker/lifeshistory

WEEDS–YIKES!

weedalert.com has good example photos and some general info on weeds

Removal…..

did you know that straight white vinegar makes a great weed killer for a lot of weeds?  CAUTION, though, as it can also kill favorable plants near by – so select this method carefully.

It also helps to apply vinegar on a hot sunny day – the sun will aid with ‘burning’ the weed – as long as the sun is shining on the weed you are trying to kill!

Red/Purple Dead Nettle -Lamium purpurea

as far as weeds go this one is friendly.  It offer a spot of color early spring, and although it can ‘take over’ it is easily eradicated by hand pulling or by hoe

Bittercress – Caradine hirsuta

This weed is trouble as each flower head produces thousands of seeds and of course there are many flowers per plant

hand pull, hoe and douse with straight white vinegar.  If you are infested, at least cut the flowers off

Creeping Charlie or Ground Ivy – Glechoma hederacea

This weed is also tricky to eradicate.  The best method is diligence.  REALLY.  Hand pulling.  The problem is that parts that break off during pulling can grow again.  You can try to treat it with vinegar or something stronger, but it will take multiple treatments and these plants wind themselves all over, often within the planting bed or lawn.  Of course this makes getting rid of it extra hard. If you decide to try a chemical method, remember that every plant this weed touches can also then be chemically treated and may succumb and die, while the Creeping Charlie lives on.  Diligence.   Really.  Hand Pulling.

Tools & equipment

• Inspect and ready for use:  Sharpen, lubricate, clean.
• Wipe tools with a watered down alcohol solution after use to prevent spread of disease
• Activate the irrigation system

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NOTES:  Lily-of-the-valley can be invasive, especially to woodland areas, so plant responsibly choosing contained areas

TERMS

Annuals – those soft tissue plants which grow, flower and die within one season

Corn Gluten:  a bi-product of the corn industry, it was discovered to effectively prevent many weed seeds from germinating http://www.hort.iastate.edu/gluten/?

Deciduous – plants which loose their leaves, including evergreens

Dormant – roots active, but branches aren’t obviously producing blooms or leaves. Buds are firm and not active

Friable – frost-free and not soggy ground.  Test: squeeze a handful and if water runs out it is soggy.

Manure or Compost Tea – take a  5-gallon bucket, and 1 shovel full of manure of compost.  Add manure or compost to bucket, fill with water, let steep up to 7 days.  Stir once-and-a-while.  Then transfer to a watering can and water plants. Try counting to 25 as you pour.  If the mixture stays rather lumpy, you may want to strain it prior to filling your watering can.  Can be used on any plant, at any time for instant nutririon.

NPK – N-Nitrogen, P-Phosphorus, K- Potassium

N -foliage

P-roots & flowers

K-overall plant health

Perennials – those plants which live from season to season

Sanitize:  10% solution.  mix 1 part bleach to 9 parts water or and alternative :  mix 1 light squirt of castile soap with 1 pint of vinegar and spray the pot inside and out, let dry, then spray all with straight peroxide, let dry.  Rinse.

Sharp Sand – Coarse textured sand can often be found in bags in the concrete products section of the store.  Yes, you can probably use the sand from weighted sand bags ( as long as it is coarse – the kind used for winter traction in the back of a pick-up truck.

Mixing coarse sand with the soil helps create a more balanced texture – it helps prevent soils from compacting and sinking back into the low spot, and also slows the sand from entering the ground and soil from washing out during heavy spring

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

March TASKS -    Zone 5

This task list is intended to offer a guideline.  Factors such as weather conditions may affect the time line, for instance: if there is still a lot of snow cover tasks may shift to later in the month or even into April.

MARCH  – First Half

Prune

• Lily-Turf ( Lirope)
• Butterfly Bush ( Buddlea) the earlier the better – before bud-break
• Finish dormant* pruning on shrubs – IF the plant  is an early spring bloomer,
• prune only dead wood, misshapen branches, NOT branches with opening buds
• Ornamental Grasses – cut back to 6 inches
• Grape vines

• careful that you don’t prune away this friend

  Praying Mantis Egg Case

Fertilize with Organic Fertilizer ( OF )

There are several different kinds of Organic Fertilizer, here are a few suggested ones. You will  want to look for those organic products which offer balanced fertilizer, which means the THREE components NPK*are present, unless specified otherwise. Read the plant tags and product labels, there’s a lot of good info there!

• Peonies, Iris, Clematis – OF 5-10-5 (NPK) or bonemeal
• Blueberries with – blood meal or cotton seed meal or oak leaf compost
• Emerging bulbs with manure tea or a balanced OF
• Deciduous* and  needle evergreen trees with  bonemeal or  cotton seed meal.  Make sure to choose high Nitrogen (N) fertilizer
• Ground covers and shrubs with OF 5-10-5 (NPK) or dehydrated manure
• Acid lovers: Azalea, Rhododendron, Holly ( all broadleaf evergreens) with oak-leaf compost or cotton seed meal ( only if you DIDN’T feed last fall)
• Grapevines, cane berries, Rhubarb and Asparagus with balanced OF – before signs of new growth

SAFE IDEA~~Wearing an appropriate mask during applications of dusty or granular products is a safe idea.  IT DOESN’T necessarily mean the product is hazardous; but wouldn’t you rather breathe only fresh air?.

TIP OF THE WEEK

Don’t forget the birds – both resident and travelers.

They still depend on food and water.

March  – 2nd Half  TASKS

– depending on weather, temps and soil friability, these may move to April

Make sure soil is friable* before you try to work it,  begin careful clean up of planting beds and watch your feet…try not to trample emerging bulbs and other tender shoots. Don’t worry if  new snow covers them, it won’t bother the bulbs at all.

• Plant Outside…
  
• Seeds of cool season annuals – scatter seeds for Snapdragon, Chervil, Calendula, Sunflower, Sweetpea, Poppy, Larkspur
• Transplant evergreen or deciduous trees or shrubs – only while they remain dormant and the ground is friable
• Bareroot grapevine, fruit trees, asparagus
• Dig & divide Rhubarb if necessary
  

  snapdragon

~~~~~ON THE LOOK OUT~~~~~

Warmer temps mean signs of pests and disease.

When temps remain above 40 degrees for several hours,

apply dormant oil spray on scale, fungus or insect egg nests

~~~       ~~~       ~~~     ~~~

• Plant Inside…
• Sow cool season veggies, spring & summer annual seeds and herbs
• Fertilize veggie seedlings with water-soluble fertilizer

NOTES & TERMS -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  - 

Deciduous – trees and shrubs  which loose their leaves, including evergreens

Dormant - roots active, leaf buds or flower blooms are firm and closed but present

Friable – soil.  Frost-free and NOT soggy ground.  Test:  squeeze a handful and if water runs out, the soil is soggy.

NPK – N-Nitrogen,  for foliage ;   P-Phospherous, for roots & flowers ;     K-Potassium, for overall plant health