| Welcome
to Doc Bos's Flower Power
Welcome to our newsletter! Bos Greenhouse
and Farm is pleased to bring you seasonal tips for your gardening
pleasure. If you have a specific question for Dr. Bos, please email
ASK DR. BOS. We will make every effort to answer
your question in an upcoming newsletter. Or drop by, and our friendly
staff will help you directly.
Sincerely, Wm. Bos, Jr.
TOPICS THIS ISSUE:
• Getting Your Beds
Ready For Spring
• How to Tell a Good Plant from the "Bad and the Ugly"
• The Secret to Great Containers
• The Bounty of a Butterfly Garden
Q: Dear Dr. Bos, Are there things I should do before
buying bedding plants once you open in April?
A: You bet. Great gardening is 99 percent preparation,
one percent inspiration!
At Bos, late winter and early spring is like getting ready for Opening
Night on Broadway. We're staging and rotating, preparing soil and
checking the PH, starting seeds and otherwise coaxing our seedlings
into starlets to dazzle your garden in spring, summer and fall.
For your part, here are tips on getting your beds whipped into shape
to become a good home for our plantings.
1. Plan your additions -- Think of where
you'd like to add some color in your garden, or plan a new bed.
Make sure you allocate enough space for the plant's mature size,
and that you consider companion planting for pest and disease reduction.
For example, chives and garlic will reduce aphids in a rose garden,
while nastursiums, are a good, overall planting to reduce this pest.
Euphorbia planted throughout your garden will dissuade gophers from
coming around. You'll also need to assess the available light and
select your plants according to their light preferences. Mark on
a map the areas where you need good shade growers, and where you
can plant for full sun.
Also, you will want to consider bloom times to ensure that there
is a continual bloom afoot in your flowerbed. Cool colors such as
red, blue and pink will create a soft effect, while orange and yellow
flowers create a brightening effect.
Another consideration is what types of plants you plan to use. Perennials
come back every year, while annuals make a single season showing.
Biennials are often confused with perennials because they self see.
A good plan is a balanced use of the different types to ensure a
season-long showcase. A little research at the planning stage will
bring you delights this summer.
2. Prepare your beds -- In early April,
use a high phosphorous or balanced nitrogen fertilizer on your existing
perennials and bulbs to promote strong root growth. Dig and divide
any perennials before new growth is four inches high. Move any landscape
plants now while they're still dormant to give them time to reestablish.
And prune any blooming vines (such as Clematis) to promote vigorous
new growth.
3. Prepare your soil-- It's best to improve
your soil before planting in order to promote strong, healthy transplants.
Add organic material such as straw, grass clippings and leaves throughout
the seasons or when it's time to overwinter. In spring, till compost
(and possibly fertilize with nitrogen) into the soil to a depth
of 16 inches to ensure strong root development. You will also want
to weed your garden thoroughly before growing season is in full
force. You may protect your soil with a thick layer of mulch, which
helps prevent weeds and retain moisture.
4. Solarize to kill disease -- In a bed
where disease has struck previously, you may wish to use a technique
called solarizing to destroy remnant disease. Purchase a sheet of
black landscape plastic, cover the suspect area, and secure with
rocks or soil. Leave the plastic on for at least two weeks and no
more than two months. The heat from the sun will sterilize the soil
and destroy disease. Now your soil in this area is good as new!
5. Know your soil type -- Sour or Sweet?
If you don't know your soil type, this is also a good time to have
a soil analysis done at a private lab or using a home test kit.
To get a good sample, dig several holes 6" deep and take a
thin slice from each wall. Mix the samples together and let the
soil dry. Now it's ready for testing.
The most important thing is the pH level, and the nutrient level
such as nitrogen and phosphorous. If your soil is acidic or "sour",
the readings will be lower than 7. When the pH level is higher than
7, the soil is considered to be alkaline, or "sweet."
Some plants have preferences;, so try to either match the plant
to the soil type or condition your soil with products such as lime
and bone meal.
Q: Dear Dr. Bos, I know you have great bedding plants,
but confess that sometimes I pick up a few quickies up at the supermarket
tent. Even if they look great, I get them home and they're dead
in no time. Is there a way to tell a good bedding plant from a bad?
A: We don't like to see a plant or a few dollars
wasted, wherever it came from.
One of the reasons you can trust Bos for quality plantings is because
we understand the importance of consistent and accurate watering.
Often, particularly for the kind of temporary nurseries that you
see suddenly spring up each year, the plants are bought wholesale
and transported for hours unwatered. They're not actually grown
by the operator. Then they sit on hot asphalt, wilting, and a vicious
cycle sets in. The plant that has been resurrected a few times from
stressful transport or inattentive staff becomes weakened and more
vulnerable to disease and pests. It might look good at the moment,
but it will not perform as well. So never, ever buy a wilted plant.
Better yet, buy all your plants at Bos, where your satisfaction
is guaranteed! Trusting your grower is paramount.
Wherever you buy your plants, there are things you can do to prevent
untimely deaths in the garden. Check for bugs, who love to feast
on tender bedding plants. Watch fuschias and verbena baskets for
aphids. Check for disease by turning over leaves and checking the
joints. You are looking for white mold or slimy brown mildew. Also
look at the growing tips. Leave the plant behind if its demonstrates
any of these symptoms.
Ideally, you will want to select annuals that are less than 4 inches
high to ensure they've had proper management and have not gone spindly.
Another thing to remember is to reduce the transplant stress on
the plant as much as possible.
That means the following:
• Make sure the car ride home is a quick and cool as possible
-- do not leave plants in a closed car on a hot day
• Harden off your plants a bit for a few days before planting,
increasing the time outside incrementally
• Plant in a light rain or overcast day (never in intense
sunlight)
• Plant the root ball at the same depth as it was in the pot
• Ensure the planting hole is both watered yet well draining.
(Mix in gravel or sand at the bottom if you're unsure, and add compost
or a little manure to the soil you place around the root.)
• Protect the new plant with mulch to retain moisture and
reduce weeds
Q: Dr. Bos, your containers always look great. What
is your secret?
The secret of great containers is partly the quality of planting,
the compatibility of the plants, and giving them custom care. We'll
help you get container gardening down to a science at our Spring
Container Planting Workshops. You ca custom create the look you
want for a summer haven populated by great containers and window
boxes.
The secret to success in container care is watching your watering
pattern. ONLY water a container plant when it is dry or light to
touch (lift it, if you can, to tell the weight). When you do water
it, make sure to soak it thoroughly so that at least a quarter of
the water runs through the container. One pitfall to watch for is
that container soil enhanced with vermiculite will sometimes pull
away from the sides, tricking you into thinking the water is running
through when in fact, the soil itself is not drenched. To remedy
this condition, water slowly off and on over several hours to expand
the soil.
In addition to carefully customized watering, you will also need
to feed your containers for maximum growth and vivid flowering.
That's because proper watering quickly flushes soluble nutrients.
A weekly solution of water-soluble house plant food is recommended.
Q: Dr. Bos, I want to plant a Butterfly Garden but don't
know which plants I'll need.
A: A Butterfly Garden is a beautiful addition to
any home and a great pastime for families. But before you begin,
you must understand that you cannot use any pesticides on the plants
in your butterfly garden, as they are fatal to all stages of butterly
development. You also need enough plants to serve as hosts and for
nectar to support the butterfly life cycle. Here are some candidates:
Host plants: Butterfly weed; Daisy; Dill; Holyhock; Lilac;
Milkweed; Mallow; Nettle; Snapdragon; Thistle
Nectar plants: Ageratum; Bee Balm; Butterfly bush; Coreopsis;
Daylily; Heliotrope; Lilac; Nasturtium; Petunia; Phlox; Salvia;
Sedum; Snapdragon; Spirea; Viburnum
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