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Gardens bursting with life thanks to warmer weather
By Tony Tomeo
You have probably been noticing increased activity in your garden with the warmer weather. Many species, such as geraniums and marguerite daisies should probably be tip pinched if the new growth is too vigorous. Removal of the dominant apical shoots will promote development of side shoots and a bushier structure. Weeds, which also enjoy warm spring weather, need to be removed before setting seed or crowding out other annuals.
Because lawn grasses are very active now, this is the best season to aerate and dethatch established lawns--and to reseed bare spots. Healthy lawns will quickly conceal any evidence of these corrective measures. If you like, high nitrogen fertilizers may now be applied to lawns. With or without fertilizer, mowing will be required more frequently than at any other time of year. If you are in need of new lawn, spring is the time to install it, either from seed or sod.
Last autumn, I described a process of propagation that utilizes semi-hardwood cuttings. In the spring, the same process is useful for softwood cuttings. Cuttings are taken from 2 to 6 inches of tip growth on new shoots. The leaves should be removed from the lower half of the stem. Application of rooting hormone to the cut end of the cuttings will encourage rapid root growth. The cuttings may then be "stuck" in moist sand or potting soil, usually with several to each small pot or flat. Root development will be indicated by new growth on the cutting, at which time, it can be planted in a larger container.
Some plants which root easily by this procedure are marguerite, daisy, lavender, ivy, fuchsias, chrysanthemums, carnations and dianthus. Chrysanthemums may also be propagated by removing already rooted side shoots from the base of established clumps. Geraniums and pelargoniums may also be grown by softwood cuttings, but should be left out for a day or two to dry cut end; geraniums require no rooting hormone. In fact, geraniums root so easily, that they are best stuck in the exact spot where you would like them to be planted. This would save the trouble of transplanting later.
If you compost organic matter from your garden, it will begin to break down more readily as the weather warms up. It is advisable to water the pile if it begins to dry, and to turn and mix it every few months to incorporate recently added material. Well-composted material can be used as summer vegetables are planted.
I am pleased to say that the first of two open house events at Bay Laurel Nursery was a great success. It was nice to meet some of you there. If you missed this first event, but would like to attend the next, it will be held on April 24; call (831)438-3999 for more information.
I also recommend St. Luke's third annual Los Gatos Spring Garden Tour on May 15. Several of the most impressive home landscapes will be open for this tour with a reception in the courtyard of the church on University Avenue where guests can enjoy music, light refreshments, a plant sale, raffle, and a boutique featuring gardening items. Each garden is unique, so guests are sure to find something of interest and leave with new and exciting ideas for their own home and garden. For information or reservations, call 248-8715, or 354-2195.
Plant of the Week: Andromeda
Andromeda, Pieris japonica, which is sometimes called "lily of the valley shrub" or simply "pieris," was much more common back in the 1950s. However, it has been increasing in popularity along with rhododendrons and azaleas. The cultural requirements are similar for all three of these ornamentals which have long been regarded as specialty plants.
Like rhododendrons and azaleas, andro-meda prefer rich, moist and well-drained soil, and some shelter from direct or reflected sunlight. Fertilization encourages healthy growth; but too much can cause salt burn. Pruning is done annually by snapping off the spent blooms. Structure pruning can be employed to remove unwanted growth, but andromeda should never be sheared.
Because of their compact structure and their tolerance for light shade, andromeda are useful for understory or foundation plantings. They also do well under conifers where many other ornamentals cannot survive.
Andromeda not only produce showy flowers, but showy bronze to bright red new growth with or shortly after the bloom cycle. The foliage eventually matures to glossy dark green leaves less than 2 inches long. There is one variegated cultivar. The plants are usually less than 6 feet tall, but Pieris forrestii can get up to 10 feet tall. Flowers are usually white, but may be pink, or pink buds may bloom as white flowers. The flower's buds are in dense pendulous clusters which appear in autumn and bloom as late as May. Various cultivars produce more or less pendulous clusters. I cannot say why andromeda has not been more popular in the recent past; but it is worthy of the recent interest it has been gaining in nurseries and among garden enthusiasts.
Horticulturist Tony Tomeo can be contacted at 358-2574.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
