USDA Hardiness Map- we are zone 6B!!

Very Important New Garden Info!

We have a new USDA Hardiness map! This is big news for gardeners. Why, you ask? Because gardeners base their plant choices on zone hardiness. (Oh, that magnolia is only hardy to zone 6b and I’m in zone 5b. It’ll never last the winter!)

Why are zones important?

It determines what plants we, the avid gardeners and professionals, can use and where.

Why did this map change? Global warming?

Actually, it’s not reflecting global climate change. The last revision was 1990. Since 1990, the amount of new information and technology available is staggering. The USDA is very adamant that this is a new set of data, with new parameters, that is more accurate than the “long term predictions” in the old map. Huh?   “The increase in our computing power today allows the research team to build into their algorithms things they knew were important factors in 1990, but couldn’t include,” said Catherine Woteki, Chief Scientist and Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics for the USDA.

Also, they've now taken into account how close an area might be to bodies of water, the slope and elevation of areas and other microclimates that occur. This may not sound like much- but it is staggering! We have suddenly been rated as Zone 6B. For the past 20 some years, we've been mostly rated as Zone 5B. That's a major temperature change. They've taken into accounts all the valleys (Clinton Lake, the hills of the Wakarusa Valley and other factors I'm sure). Follow this link to get to the new interactive site: USDA map. You can find the Kansas map here. If you enter your zip code, you will get to see close up all the little microclimate deviations within our state! I love this.

How will this change how you garden?

We still need to be cognizant that many/ most of our plant issues happen with exposure to wind (in Kansas) and freeze/ thaw issues. This will not even begin to address those issues. It just gives you the median lowest winter temperatures. So for me, while I will try to place my delicate, sensitive plants in protected areas, I will worry less about winter freeze temperatures. I think the thing that may kill those delicate Magnolia, cute Japanese Maple and the like are the rapid temperature fluctuations. These allow the plant to thaw out, come to life and begin to grow (the cambium begin to generate and grow). Then the temperature rapidly drops and freezes the new growth. I think this very mild winter will see more winterkill than normal for just that reason.

Galanthus or Snow Drop

Also, Punxsatwney Phil just saw his shadow. This incredibly decisive, fact-based predictor AND the predictions of the Farmer's Almanac confirm, for me, that we will be getting three big ice/ snow events this month and March. Whaddya think of that?

Lawrence Landscape and Midwest Custom Pools will be making an appearance at the Lawrence Home Show, Feb 10-12. It is being held at Crown Toyota this year! Leave a comment on our blog or on our Facebook page for free tickets. Include your name, email and any preferred way to contact you.  Good Luck!

Bulbs....

Bulbs!!

Why Bulbs?

Lots of bang for your buck- or lots of return for not much initial investment. They are fairly cheap- the more expensive bulbs can run you $12 for three. Commonly you can buy 50 bulbs for $30! You plant in the fall, when the weather begins to cool AND the ground is cool. And they return every year, in the spring when most other garden flowers are still asleep. Bulbs are unfussy (when you choose hardy ones)!

How do I make them look, uh, good/ right or natural? 

Naturalize! In gardening, naturalizing often refers to an informal-looking, unplanned plantings of bulbs. Naturalized areas will flourish when planted with self-propagating and spreading bulb species (like crocus, daffodil, grape hyacinths, snowdrops, Glory-of-the-Snow, squill)- choose varieties that will spread freely in fields, meadows, lawns, and along wooded paths. Choose varieties that require little to no care after planting time! YES. (Not tulips, folks.)

Plant under established trees to achieve an effortless “meadow” look! In time, these plantings will redesign themselves, rearranging themselves into a natural, native pattern with nearly no effort on the gardener’s part!

Plant large quantities- not just three or four, think 10 or 25.

Choose varieties that will make you happy (obviously) but keep in mind bloom time- think early, middle, late and make sure you plant varieties that bloom in each period. I simply let the package description guide me- approximate size, early-middle-late bloom time and color. (Also- choose varieties that

How do I actually plant them??

One- get a bulb planting tool. This makes planting en masse much easier. Lots of people use regular hand trowel/ spades. Not me! I have my handy dandy old-lady cone shaped, tin can planter!

Two- out line your planting area (I use marking paint, lots of people use hoses). Choose areas that are not boggy and are not in deep, evergreen shade. Early spring tree shade (from deciduous trees) is usually pretty light- trees will not have leaved out yet. Make a natural, rounded shape- I always design beds with soft serpentine curves to mimic natural shapes and also make mowing and edging easier. Keep shapes minimal (not too many curves here).

Three- scatter bulbs (a mixture of sizes, varieties and bloom times) around areas. Adjust your spacing to reflect the size of the bloom. Check out the chart and make sure the bulbs are spaced far enough away from each other! Largest bulb/ blooms will be your focus, so plant those first and put all the other small bulbs around them. Put a few outside your planting area to make it seem really informal!

Four- kneepads and digging tool time! Make sure you pay attention to the size of the bulb. This tells you (as does the packaging) how deep to plant the bulb. 3 times the height of the bulb- rule of thumb. (little bitty 1” grape hyacinths are planted 3” below the surface) Leaves holes open, as you will be adding fertilizer and compost on top. Choose Bulb Fertilizer or high phosphorus fertilizer as it won’t leach into soil and is available to the bulb roots. Always plant bulbs with the tip up! This is where the stem comes from; don’t injure it when you are putting your soil back on top.

I like Bulb Tone- a natural fertilizer (not synthetic) that has some bone meal and blood meal BUT includes alfalfa meal and seaweed. Seems to help enrich the clay soil….

My choices for cool naturalizing bulbs:

Chionodoxa

Drumstick Allium

Fritillaria

Galanthus

 

 

Daffodil, Narcissus, Jonquil

Grape Hyacinth

But I love Tulips? What to do? They keeps petering out….

Tulips take more work in Kansas… we have tough clay soil. It is rich with nutrients but it’s all bound up in the clay! So to get a successful tulip stand started you just have to turn over and amend the entire bed. Mark it out, turn it over (tilling usually) then work in great compost. This needs to be the rich stuff- it can include manure but Choice Compost, Cotton Burr work best. They include alfalfa meal, hay meal and the like. I don’t usually use peat moss but you can… this adds more acid, at least temporarily, to the soil. 

 In other news:

October 15, 2011 Tree Farm Grand Opening/ Field Day

Kid friendly, family time: pumpkin painting, trebuchet. Lunch in our kitchen!

50% off all container stock, in stock cash/carry, no warranty.

25% off crabapples and pear trees. Limited stock of red maples!

8 a.m.- 5 p.m.