May 6 , 2010
Finnish greetings, cool new plants, why yellow leaves, ladybugs on patrol
Hei Austinin puutarhurit ! Aurikoiset terveiset keväisestä Suomesta.(Hello gardeners of Austin . Sunny greeting from spring - like Finland . )
That ’s the well-defined sky at Kukka & Jukka Lehmusvirta ’s star sign in Vantaa , Finland ( a Helsinki suburb ) as the vent in Iceland shut down all travel for day . With bags packed for their inaugural trip to Texas to meet fellow Lehmusvirtas ( me & Dad ) , their Nokia ( Finnish caller ) phones got a workout with their travel federal agent . After days on understudy , they finally headed to the drome . They had to bypass Austin after all , but made it briefly to Dallas , where we joined up with them for a quick Sunday visit . Here ’s Kukka , Dad , and Jukka .
Nyt on aika leikata omenapuita ja puna- ja mustaviinimarjapensaita . Lumikellot ja krookukset alkavat kukkia Etelä - Suomessa . ( Now it is time to cut orchard apple tree Tree and violent and black currant bushes . snowbell and crocuses are beginning to bloom in southerly Finland . )
It was still freezing in Vantaa when they came to balmy Texas . Their veg and bloom horticulture season is light : from June to September . I rather envy them . Here ’s what it was like at their household not so long ago .
When my garden attain 10º this winter , it would have seemed a bit mild to Kukka & Jukka . My cycad ( sago palm ) express mirth at all our concern , too . I cut it back a month ago , and lookie here !
This was the first winter my star jasmine suffered . When I disregard back all the deadened branches , I never expect such a quick recovery or flower this spring . Boy , was I incorrect . By serendipity , I ’ve been training it as a bush as an entering to the terrace cove . The kid on the other side should catch up in two years to “ formalise ” the patio cove .
I love the cycles of color in my garden . Now , we ’re into white . Here’sPenstemon cobaea .
Salvia greggiinext doorway .
Rusty blackhaw viburnum ( Viburnum rufidulum ) enshroud our computer memory moult from Amelia ’s backyard prospect .
Last Sunday , I clean up and lop like unbalanced . just made a gouge , so round two this weekend . The big chores are easy thanks to the Fiskars pruners that Kukka & Jukka brought .
Oh my gosh , are they fabulous ! Lightweight , and wanton to rig with one mitt . I did n’t bring in that Fiskars was establish in 1649,Finland ’s oldest ship’s company .
This week on CTG , meet some fabulous hired man - on gardeners , along with gravid ideas for your garden ! With their passion for plants , Christine and Bill Reid openedReid ’s Nursery in Maxwell , just minutes from Austin and San Marcos . Along with their constitutive frame of mind and personal advice to every gardener , they promote various and interesting plants . And they even betray expand shale , which is concentrated to feel .
Tom and Iwere hypnotized with their selections for CTG . If you ’ve got specter , you must try Job ’s Tears ( Coix lacryma - jobi ) . Nature designed its beautiful round stone - like semen for jewellery ! Each seed has a perfect hollow for threading . Would n’t that be a playfulness one for kids ( and for you , of course ) ?
OnCTG ’s site , get their arrant tilt for must - haves(including Christine ’s detailed information about each plant ) . Reid ’s also host free seminars throughout the twelvemonth . On May 16 , they host Sara Holland of Wimberley Herbs . On May 23 , check out their shop on butterfly plants .
Every year , so many gardenersdestroy the ladybugsthey covet or even bear for ! This week , Trisha bring extra invitee to CTG , including a ladybug larva that consume aphids right on cue .
Yellowing leaves?Daphne give way the good explanation of N vs. iron deficiency that I ’ve ever hear . We thankviewer Ramona , who sent us this picture of her daylily !
Daphne trust that the stria mean mostly an Fe deficiency , but she would recommend a well - balanced fertilizer with micronutrients .
need to scat cats from using your garden layer as litter boxes?Here ’s a big witness tip!Vicki and her husbandmoved into their first theater , which the neighborhood cats had already claim . Vicki tried everything to keep them from over - littering their fresh planted garden .
One sidereal day , her husband saw some pruned prickly branches left on a curbside . They scattered them around , and so far , they ’ve had great winner ! No clue what the prickly branches are , but this is a great crest . Perhaps thorny roseate prunings would also break the use . Thanks , Vicki , for this great peak !
Until next week , Linda
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