Kills 'em dead! There was some question as to whether or not it affects beneficial microbes as well, but I don't see it having a lasting effect. Ammonia breaks down to nitrogen, and at this dilution it should not do harm. I did it this AM because it was overcast, so as not to chance a burn.
I also screened about 1/3 of a yard of compost and mixed in a bit of lime to "sweeten" it up, for Holly to use in the bed she is working on. I need to do a whole lot more for the veggie garden. It has not been amended for a couple of years.
Yardening Midatlantic Late april 2015
Interesting. I always see slugs around but not sure if they are harming any plants. What are some indications of slug damage? We don't have a single hosta in the yard, perhaps they are only most damaging to them?
They eat foliage, copious amounts of foliage.https://www.google.com/search?q=slug+foliage+damage&client=ubuntu&hs=Llm&channel=fs&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=tztJVbv2OMOXyAS164GwBw&ved=0CB4QsAQ&biw=1024&bih=611
Wow, I guess so. I've never seen damage like that in our yard although I have seen lots of slugs. Maybe it's because we don't have any 'foliage' plants. I don't even try growing marigolds though because the slugs love them so much.
I got 1 bloom cluster on my dbl white lilac from Hart this week, and it smells so good I'm going to keep being patient with it.
Hardy hibiscus are late to emerge. nothing on mine yet.
Sequoia, I did the same with some dahlias last year, planted in dollar store plastic baskets filled with potting mix. drilled big holes in the bottom, figured roots could grow down as well as through side holes. They weren't big achievers, but I failed to pamper them properly I think.
Jill, were they first year tubers? A lot of times first year tubers can be hit or miss as to how well they perform. Did you dig them out for winter storage? If so, how easy was it using that method?
Our Hibiscus at work have been slow to wake up this year as well, and we had them in the (unheated) greenhouse to overwinter. They have only just begun to leaf-out the past week or so, but even now the leaves aren't yet completely unfurled.
Is anyone's Salvia 'Black and Blue' up yet? I've seen a few leaves, but none over an inch tall.
My hardy Begonias are just starting to surface.
So far, there aren't any green shoots in my Canna 'Australia' patch; I think it's still alive though. I can't remember when it normally comes up. Holly, I'm going to dig up a chunk for you even though it's still dormant.
Muddy if they aren't ready don't worry. How nice that you can let them in the ground all winter.
I've never grown salvia 'Black and Blue.' I might give it a try this year.
I haven't seen any signs of hardy begonias or cannas yet.
The noid brug I overwintered is growing from the roots only. I'm still happy that the roots survived!
I was wondering myself about my cannas today- no sign yet here.
Same deal on Brug, ssg- watching for some action at the base
As for Black and BLue- some is going to town, but one huge clump that I moved first seems stalled. Weird.
Sequoia, yes the dahlias were first year tubers. Some didn't last the summer, but the ones that did were indeed easy to just yank out of the ground. I stacked them together in a corner of the garage and put them out just the other day (when it was starting to rain). Most are already sprouting. I may trying burying them a little deeper this year by filling the baskets to the top with potting mix rather than their current 2/3... I was thinking they'd grow in 6 inches of mix and put roots through the basket for more room, but I don't think they reached beyond their baskets last year.
Black and Blue isn't hardy for me but the one I bought at the nursery a couple weekends ago is about to bloom ;-P
Critter, did you store your dahlia tubers in peat moss or anything?
Sequoia, I just left the tubers in the baskets with their peat-based potting mix. Several have sprouts, so that seemed to work out.
Lucky you. You must have a nice environment for winter storing them. Different things work for different folks I guess.
I'm new to dahlias... maybe I just got lucky? I do OK overwintering caladiums and other dormant stuff in pots this way.
Yeah it's certainly an option and if works, keep doing it! I haven't tried that but that's mainly because I've found another method that works for me and I don't have that much room to dedicate to dahlia storage.
Seq, what is this other method that works for you? Always interested in how others over-winter their bulbs.
When I was out playing this past Wednesday, I finally potted up my Caladiums from last year. I'd brought them in last Fall, laid them out on dry towels on my work table in the basement, left them there to dry for 3 days, then hung them up from the ceiling in a mesh bag over winter. None of 'em were squishy or rotted, all nice and firm, so praying they will do something pretty again this year.
I store most of my caladium bulbs in cardboard shoe boxes, some get left in the pots to over winter, too.
I completely forgot about two hellebores that I had transplanted to make room for a shrub. They didn't get watered for two weeks and now look dead. :'(
I can't believe I forgot to water them. I didn't see them because they were hidden by daffodil foliage, and out of sight out of mind. They were mature clumps that looked fantastic this spring.
Sigh... I'll keep watering them and see what happens. But their leaves are now crispy and white.
Ouch, Happened to me a few times, too.
Having a great day outside getting some of the Swap plants in the ground.
It's all about the roots... crossing fingers for ya that those hellebores return!
btw, I still haven't found those 2 potted Dicentra I thought I had for you... hmm. Hoping they're just lost in the crowd and getting enough water!
Holly, I can see how easy it would be to forget something in your garden, since you have a large property and there are so many separate sections. But all I need to do is make a big circle and I still forgot! lol
Critter, isn't it strange how plants sometimes grow legs and run away from us?? :D
I have a request!
If you see new growth from your hardy passion fruit/maypop, could you post pictures? Do they always have those trilobed leaves? I want to make sure I know exactly what to look for.
If mine doesn't get its act together soon, I'm going to replace it with a clematis! I think 3 tries is plenty...
I found it! Getting water but not enough light... under the potting bench in the basement. *blinking* I'll see if it survives...
I'm beyond irritated that I had to water the annuals I planted yesterday. What's worse is I soaked them right before planting them so they'd hold up. It's so dry in the soil, the water is just getting sucked right out of whatever is watered. I'd so much rather have drought in summer than spring. It's tough with all these little freshly planted babies.
What's worse is I tripped over a baby rabbit while watering and killed it :-( It was so young its eyes weren't open yet. How on earth it got to where I tripped on it, I'll have no idea. It writhed in pain a couple minutes and died. I hate that it happened and felt really bad.
The flurry of planting, it is easy to leave a pot and forget it.
Oh Jeff, there there....
We found a baby squirrel last year. It's one thing to shake your fist at the grown up pests, and another to have a innocent young beast in your hand at your mercy.
Aaawwwww, it'll be OK Jeff, you didn't mean to do it!! =( ((HUG!)) Right now it's hopping happily around in God's gardens, munching away on everything it wants! :)
That's cute Speedie, thanks guys.
((Jeff)) That baby out of its nest wouldn't have lasted long in this heat... I know you feel awful about how it happened, but it was probably a faster and less painful fate than it might have had otherwise.
Jim mowed over a rabbit nest Sunday... saw 1 squirming baby but couldn't even look... came in and got me, instead. Luckily, none of the 5 babies were hurt. They have fur but their eyes are still shut, so maybe a week old? I was hoping mama bunny would move them, but after a couple of hours they were still there. No way was I going to evict them on Mother's Day! Joyanna and I made a little shelter of branches over the nest and put a bright pink flag there also so nobody would step on them or anything.
I don't think any planting will happen today, but I sure need to get out there with the hose! Yesterday morning, Meghan helped me put in 18 hostas and 5 ostrich ferns (thanks, Muddy!) in just an hour... she is a hard worker, and we make a good team out there.
Yeah I guess you're right Jill. Oh well. I still have no clue how it got to where it was. There were no bite marks or talon marks on it so it was quite a mystery how it got to where it was.
It's possible that 1) the mom took it out of the nest because something was wrong with it or 2) a snake or similar predator grabbed it and dropped it when the mom intervened.
Life can be tough on babies of all kinds. I'm hoping that neighbors' cats don't get the bluebird and catbird fledglings.
Along the lines of what Sally said, there are adult critters I'd rather not have around (like mice in my basement), yet I don't want their babies to starve to death if I happen to trap and relocate their mom, so I'm holding off on trying to trap them and hoping the mouse deterrent works.
" Along the lines of what Sally said, there are adult critters I'd rather not have around (like mice in my basement), yet I don't want their babies to starve to death if I happen to trap and relocate their mom, so I'm holding off on trying to trap them and hoping the mouse deterrent works."
You can't win a war being overly kind to the enemy, you know...
I visited a coworkers yard today. WOW. 1/4 to 1/3 acre, no more, but high shade and natural moisture, epimedium and giant hostas out the wazoo, it was amazing. I brought home a non native Arisaema (Jack in the Pulpit), some kind of Epimedium, and some Snakeroot Cimicifuga. Her Calycanthus floridus Sweetshrub is ten feet tall! I missed the Azalea peak.
I got some swap things planted, but others are better off if I take my time and keep them cared for in pot right now.
Today I will be watering everyone, putting up the couple extra tomato cages that I brought home yesterday, feeding everyone, and installing some new babies I brought home yesterday. (the addict strikes again!). Just had to give in to the Columbine begging me to bring her home, and her little Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart buddy. And the 4-cell pack and 6-cell pack of annuals for the hanging basket. And the 3 Alyssum rescues. =)
Found this beauty on my way out to work yesterday morning. Good thing I took the pic when I did 'cause DH mowed before I got home and now she's all layed over. :( She is at the front of the bed and I think he got a little too close. Also thinking I really need to widen that bed! =)
Speedie that is just beautiful and love the color combo.
That's a bummer to have that iris display laying over :-( It was pretty windy yesterday though, maybe that contributed.
That sounds like a nice yard to visit Sally. Did you snap any pics? And you're right about being nice to the enemy, but mercy is part of what separates us from the animals...LOL
I use stakes on the iris that lay over I have a bunch of them right now 3 of them are holding up Peony stalks. I use the wire ones that have a loop at the top. I have a thing about floppy flowers. LOL
Thank you Holly, and me too (about the floppy flowers), drives me bananas. And I don't like bananas. I actually tried to put a tomato cage around my Paeony earlier... guess I should have done it when the eyes were first sprouting 'cause now, at over 4' tall and 3' wide it just ain't gonna happen. =P I've got some of those hoop-on-a-stick things, but the stems are too darned long to reach far enough to NOT be visible in an ugly way. Gonna see if I can get DH to cut them down by about a foot, that should do it! (darned clay/rocky soil!)
Speedie, you can use this method at any point of the season, making your hoop from a variety of materials, then just add metal legs at the desired height.
http://allthingsplants.com/ideas/manage/view/1836/
Pretty much all of my yardening time has been spent on watering.
I didn't get any of the passing showers that the region got in the last couple of weeks. Everything is dry and dusty. We're in desperate need of a good soaking rain.
Sally, I can't wait for my hostas to get giant sized. They're so impressive when they get huge.