Over the years, pictures of my gardens and the incredible plants in them have appeared in many large gardening magazines, in newspapers and even on several television shows. Plants from all over the world – with their bright colors and long-lasting blooms have lived quite happily in my gardens. These are plants you don’t often find in specialist garden centers and you never find in the big box stores. The sweet, fragrance of mignonette drives visitors crazy for more and so will the search for plants or seed at the local garden center. The long-blooming Japanese Asters or unique Lion’s Mane flowers are simply not available very easily but they and other rare flowers like them have been the reason my private gardens have been so successful and unique over the years. I give my best friends a massive color show and a shot of fragrance they don’t easily forget.

And if you can imagine the chin-dripping tastes of your grandparent’s vegetables, you’ll know why I save my own seeds from the old varieties. Modern vegetable breeds taste pretty much like cardboard when compared to those luscious fruits of yesterday.

Serious gardening friends swear by the taste of tomatoes they’ve been growing for years and that are no longer available through the big box seed companies.

You see, these companies work with a few big greenhouse growers to supply the big box stores and farms with the same bland tasting vegetables. The big guys want plants and fruit that ship well, that last well on the store shelves and that don’t bruise easily. This means they want vegetables that have skins close to the consistency of concrete.

And taste is of no concern to them.

And we know that sprays are used routinely on these plants. Sprays to stop weeds, sprays to stop insects – good or bad the big guys want them all dead. They want plants that ripen on the same day so the fields can be machine harvested. These are plant factories.

Compare that with the lush fruit you grow yourself. Fruit so sweet and soft when you hand-pick it at the peak of freshness that it literally melts in your mouth and gives you a flavor you can’t find in the store.

What these flowers and vegetables have in common is the fact they both grow from seed. As a gardener, you can easily collect and save the seed from these amazing plants so your garden will be a thing of unique beauty.

Your garden will be more like mine, something different than a big box store garden and something that will knock the socks off visitors.

Your garden doesn’t have to be the biggest one around nor the showiest but when visitors ask what smells so good, you’ll have the answer.

When they ask why this tomato sandwich is the best they’ve ever tasted, you’ll have the answer.

I saved that seed myself.

Once you know the tricks, there’s not all that much to saving flower and vegetable seed and even the most beginning of gardeners can easily learn the secrets of a master seed saver. This is not rocket science and if you follow the simple recipes for success, you can easily save your own seed and create a unique garden.

Mayo Underwood (a great friend of mine) owns and runs Underwood Gardens – a certified organic seedhouse. This amazing gardener has produced two videos that describe in great detail how to collect and save seeds of all the common vegetables and flowers. She shows you how to cut the fruit to get the most seed; she also shows you how to wash the seed and how to decide if the seed is dead or savable.

From picking the fruit or flowers off the vine or plant to putting the dry seed in a proper storage container, Mayo uncovers the secrets to saving seeds.

If you can’t save seed properly after seeing these professionally produced, hiqh-quality videotapes, you simply weren’t paying attention.

These tapes would make an excellent Christmas gift for the gardener on your list.

Mayo sent me copies of these tapes and I was thinking of using them as prizes for a contest. But I’m not going to. I’m keeping them to share with my kids and friends as part of my lending library. You’ll have to get your own – that’s how good I think these tapes are.

I can guarantee you that you will not be disappointed with these tapes and that after watching them, you’ll be able to successfully save your own vegetable and flower seed using the simple methods used by Mayo. These gardening secrets will make your gardens a thing of unique beauty.

The important part of this is that Mayo only has a few of these tapes left and she’s been in a moving mode and wants to clean out the last box of tapes from her office closets. While they originally sold for $35/each or both for $60.00 (in the last few months she’s been selling them for $17.95) – she has agreed to sell the few remaining tapes to my readers for only $6.95 each. There’s a tape on saving flower seed and one on saving vegetable seed but you can get both for only $9.95

I agreed to send this newsletter out to the thousands of gardeners on my lists and to send them all at the same time so no list would get an advantage. The videotapes will be going out as first come, first serve.

They won’t last long at this incredible price.

And there are no more left when they are finished.

I hope you’ll check out the videotapes and Mayo’s supply of certified organic seeds. You won’t be sorry and neither will the delighted person you give them to.

Click on this link to save money saving flower seed.

Click on this link to get your own copy of the saving vegetable seed video

And click here for amazing savings on both tapes for somebody you care about this Christmas.

Doug

p.s. they really are in short supply and they really are first-come, first-serve on this great video. Don’t be one of the disappointed gardeners – order now.

With U.S. Thanksgiving coming up and Christmas right behind that – I would like to invite you to join me in an extraordinary venture.

How would you like to help somebody make a difference in their lives? Not with a handout – not with charity – not with meaningless platitudes – not with big government - but really, really make a difference?

As we celebrate here in North America – with all we have to be thankful for – there are some folks in other parts of the world who are struggling along to create a life for themselves. They are small farmers and business folk – creating real businesses – creating real lives for themselves and others – improving their lives in simple ways like trading cattle so they can open a butcher shop – producing more vegetables for market – opening a medicine shop – dairy farming. All things we take for granted in our wealthy world.

I’m not asking you for a handout – to send some charity money.

I’m going to ask you to consider becoming a partner in a successful business.

I’m asking you to investigate this url. Click here to make a difference

How would you feel if you had truly helped somebody today?

Doug
p.s. I feel pretty darned good.
http://www.kiva.org/index.php

Want to ask a question? Click here to ask a gardening question.www.gardening-tips-perennials.com/askagardeningquestion.html

Your Questions Answered

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How well does "scoring" work in order to propagate hyacinths? And when should this be done to the bulb in reguards to putting the bulb back in the ground? Is this something you start in spring and plant in fall or can it all be done in the fall? Thanks for the help!

A: Scoring is a technique of propagating the tunicate bulbs (bulbs that form protective tunics around the bulb) and it is sometimes used on hyacinths because they are slow to propagate naturally.

Want a Better Lawn than the Neighbors?

A bulb is dug in the spring after flowering and deep cuts over the basal plate are made. This cut is right up past the basal plate into the bulb itself. Traditionally three cuts across the bulb are made to divide the plate into six zones (six equal pieces of pie). This actually destroys the basal growing plate and forces the bulb to make a bunch of new babies.

Once the cut is made, the bulb is planted basal plate up – in warm dry sand. Or kept in a very humid, warm environment without planting. The mother bulb will normally make a dozen to two dozen baby bulbs. These can be separated from the mother bulb and planted into the garden in the fall.

They will usually take 3 years to build enough strength to flower.

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Can I plant the J.P. fern outside in a big deep plastic pot over the winter? It would be in a corner that is somewhat protected from wind. I could cover it as well, but I wasn't sure if it had to be planted in the ground (which freezes anyway). If not, how about bringing it indoors over the winter. I have other perennials which come back every year and they winter in plastic pots. Just wondered about ferns. Thank you! Roxane

A: If this were mine and I lived in Illinois, then I’d be tempted to bury the pot if I wanted to keep the plant alive. Sure – pot it up and then “plunge” the pot into the soil. That should keep it alive. Or plant it directly.

Yes, you can keep the Japanese Painted Fern alive in the house over the winter. Do understand that it will take a dormancy period and sit there doing nothing for a while. Keep it cool and in a sunny window for best results.

I note that if you leave your perennials in pots over the winter, then you can expect to lose some and win some – depending on the winter and the perennials you pot up.

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Doug, We hope you can un-confuse us. We've talked to 2 local nurseries and got 2 different answers. We live in Southwestern PA and have two 25-30 yr. old Snowball Bushes that were started by cuttings from the original bush. They've grown to about 7 ft. tall & are loaded with snowballs in the Spring, but are more like a tree than a bush. We have 2 questions: 1) We want to move 1 bush to another spot (still a full sun area), when is the best time to move it--after the blooms are done in the Spring or in the Fall after the leaves have completely fallen off? 2) If we cut them back, will they bush out, when should they be cut back and how much? We would sure appreciate any advice you offer! Bonnie

A: OK – here’s answer #3. There are two plants known as “snowballs” – a Hydrangea and Viburnum. Luckily they’ll respond much the same way.

Moving a mature bush of 25-30 years old is not for the faint of heart. That root ball is massive. If it were mine, I’d move it first thing in the spring *before* it leafs out. I’d cut it right back almost to the ground and then pop it out of the ground (“pop” being a rough term for getting a backhoe to dig this baby up or a 4X4 and chain) and move it.

Do NOT move it after it has leafed out. That’s asking for trouble.

Alternately, you can move it now – it should be dormant and the leaves falling off. Again, prune hard.

Both of those shrubs should throw new shoots if you cut them to the ground so I’m not worried about pruning hard. There’s always the chance it won’t but my money is on a whole new crop of shoots after a hard pruning. Again, if it were mine, I’d probably leave about 8” of woody shoots to tell me where the plant is and then let it regenerate new shoots that I can prune and trim the way I want. But having said that, if you take enough of a rootball (half your backyard) you can get away without pruning at all. The smaller the root you take – the more you have to prune the tops of the plants (tops and bottoms have to balance out).

Getting as many of the roots as possible is the key to a successful move. Good luck with your backs.

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I will be moving in the middle of the winter and am wondering if there is a way I can dig up my daffodils, daylillies, perennials and store them now to avoid digging then and for ease of moving when the time comes. Please advise. I have been collecting plants for years and don't want to leave them behind. Thank you.

A: I got this question this week and it’s an interesting one because of the timing. The writer is in Ohio US. I had dug all my perennials up the last week of Sept and put them in a friend’s vegetable garden to overwinter. I dug them and replanted them on the same day – heeled them in so the roots were well covered and the crowns not so covered. I accept I’ll have losses because of this cavalier treatment.

This is the end of October and the timing is not on your side. If you move the plants, you’ll likely have high death losses – if you leave the plants, you’ll lose your collection but make another homeowner very happy. (make sure by the way that the plants are able to be moved if you are selling your home. If they are not excluded as part of the deal – they are part of the deal and you have no right to move them.) Alternately make a deal with the new owner to come in the spring and take cuttings/divisions.

If you move them – do so immediately and replant immediately. Mulch heavily to protect those roots as they won’t have enough time in Ohio to reestablish before winter sets in.

Can you pot them up and expect them to live? If you don’t freeze the roots solid – this is the way I’d be tempted to go. You do have to keep them dormant and without freezing (hold them in the 30-low 40 range all winter) and don’t allow them to dry out. But you can’t pot them and freeze them and expect them to live now.

Having said that – if you’re talking iris, daylilies, and hosta – you can likely succeed. If bulbs like daffodils (don’t move them) forget it – they’re cheap to buy/replace. If tender perennials – better to leave ‘em and see if you can make a deal to return in the spring and get a division or slip.

Good luck

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I have a Martin Frobisher rose. The buds seem to have a mildew and only half of them open. There are tons of buds and lots of folige. The leaves are also yellow to light green. It has been this way since I got and planted it 4 years ago. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance, Mary-Anne Peleshaty P.S. I think it has now spread to my Morden Fireglow and Morden Centennial roses although we had two quite wet years and I am not sure if it is the same problems

A: I suspect a multiple problem. 1) The light green leaves tell me there’s no nitrogen in the leaves – this is either a feeding problem (you aren’t feeding your greedy roses) or you have a soil problem (likely a drainage problem and the ground is far too wet for this plant) or you have a serious lack of light problem.

The buds aren’t opening because of this soil problem – the stress is taking them out.

And then in their weakened state – they get botrytis, a common fungus that will stop buds from opening. Or they get powdery mildew – another common rose problem – particularly in wet soils and not enough sunshine.

So – you’re going to have to improve your soil (see all the articles on the sites about compost) and you’re going to have to make sure your soil drainage is good or move your roses. And you’re going to have to control for powdery mildew and/or botrytis as per the instructions on the websites.

I include this question folks because often what we see as the problem in our gardens isn’t the underlying problem. A plant gets a fungal disease because – 1) it gets a fungal disease or 2) there’s an underlying condition that weakens the plant making it susceptible to the problem.

What’s the cure here?

While you can spray all you like (and most folks think that’s the solution) the real solution is to figure out why your plant is ill in the first place. Solve that problem and your garden will improve. In this case, we’re looking at light green leaves as the symptom of poor feeding, poor drainage, poor lighting or any combination of the above. Fix those and the plant’s increased health will not attract fungal problems. If you don’t fix those, you’ll constantly be fighting plant disease and wondering why you can’t grow roses.

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I planted some bulbs about 3 weeks ago and we had a warm spell now it is frosting at night but i have bulbs comming up that are not supose to until spring what do i do to protect them so they will come up in the spring??

A: This is a real crapshoot again this year. I haven’t had a killing frost yet on Nov 3 and I live in Canada. What’s with this? (thank you very much global warming) The same environmental conditions that are melting the north pole, bringing us hurricanes and floods are bringing us bulb failures.

The only thing you can do in a case like this – and you’re not alone – is to mulch very, very, very deeply with something like peat moss or straw. I’m talking 18-24 inches here. Extremely deeply.

Once those bulbs start to come along – once they emerge from their protective cocoons, and start growing, a freeze will pretty much wipe them out. Your job – should you decide to accept it – is to mulch deeply enough to stop the ground from freezing solid in that area. They’ll take cool weather and frost but not a solid freeze.

This is the same kind of problem for those who’s shrubs are blooming again right now (lilacs etc). Enjoy those blooms now because while the plants will live, those buds are done for and you won’t see a heavy bloom next spring.

This is weird weather.

Next year in my new garden I’m not going to plant any bulb until the end of October. Never mind the old rules on when to plant, I’m going to push the envelope the other way and hope I don’t get caught with a too-late planting. Too many of us are getting caught on normal planting dates now (and losing bulbs in the process).

From My Garden To Yours

Back yard vegetable gardens have been on my mind lately. You see, I just bought a new property with about an acre of garden space and am quite thankful the previous owners didn’t garden very much leaving me an almost blank slate to work with. My small tomato patch this year rekindled my enthusiasm for growing vegetables and filling my very small freezer with my own tomato harvest was worth the effort. So, here I sit dreaming of next year’s garden.

I’ll need a fence. There’s a herd of deer that consider this property to be their own grazing ground. While I don’t want to discourage their presence, I do need to protect my prized plants. The deer will be welcome to the common stuff but the prized plants will be safely hidden behind a solid six-foot wooden fence. Yes, they could jump this fence but with a bit of electric fencing on the outside and no view in or over the fence, I suspect the deer will wander around the fence rather than jump inside it. So the fence is a given I’m afraid or the deer will be takers.

The real challenge comes in laying out this new garden and I rather like the idea of a series of raised beds (no grass allowed!) inside the fenced off area. If the area is a rectangle, then there will be one bed around the base of the fence for some climbing plants. I can train my cucumbers and peas up a trellis for ease of harvest and care. I’ll likely put a tender fruit tree or three on the sunny interior fence along with some climbing roses so the deer can’t browse on the bark. They’ll have to be happy with the wild apples outside the fence. This means I’ll have to espalier these trees to maximize my space. I’ve never done this but I’m looking forward to the challenge of growing some of my favourite fruit against the fence in this way.

The growing beds themselves will all be raised beds. I have a few railroad ties left over from the farm and I think I’ll use these to create a series of raised beds for growing my vegetables. I confess I’m shuddering a little when I think of all the double digging I have to do next spring to get the beds all done. But I saw this year how double digging and compost tea created an excellent garden soil in a single year so I’m trying very hard to see all this work as an opportunity rather than a chore. It will be an opportunity to get some sunshine and a free workout at the same time.

The question in my mind is whether I go with a classic design or a more practical design. Conventional walled gardens have a cross shape or square shape with pathways forming the cross or defining the square. These would look rather nice from the back porch but might be more work to maintain than a system with a smaller pathway system and more garden area. I get to dig more beds or maintain more pathways. What an interesting choice!

One thing that is definitely part of my planning is a cold frame. I truly want a place to germinate seeds and handle tender plants. I’m not worried about light levels in overwintering tender potted bulbs or starting perennial seeds so using fiberglass as a covering is excellent, as it won’t break as glass will. I can see my bulb collection starting to expand again next summer. A few extra spinach and leafy greens for late fall salads can be left in the cold frames until a very hard freezeup kills the plants.

The only question in my mind is whether the cold frame is a simple one that sits on the ground and only twelve inches tall or whether it turns into a walk-in unheated greenhouse. I confess I’m leaning towards the unheated greenhouse so I can grow a full range of plants and even play around a bit with alpines and flowering plants such as the hardier camellias that may survive without heat in such a building.

Do You Want to Grow Lavender?

But this all begs the question of what you’re doing for next year. Having just finished up your gardening season, you know what you like or don’t like about your garden. You know if you wanted to sit outdoors or whether you need a shade and bug gazebo. You know if the garden looked good or whether you need to add some flowers for next year. Where the flowers fragrant enough? Were they showy enough? Was the lawn too weedy or do you need to put on some corn gluten to stop the quack grass?

These questions, and more, are fresh in our minds right now. The planning for next year starts right now as well. If you’re like me, you’ll likely want to make some notes for yourself. Not that you won’t lose the notes (I will) but at least you’ll have a better chance of remembering next year if you write the changes down now. Writing your plans on paper will help keep them written in your memory for your trips to the garden shops next spring.

So my notes call for a wooden fence to protect my plants from the deer and I may just get to that sometime around July when the deer start munching on my tomatoes and prized Hosta and Geranium plants. But I will get around to it because I’ve written it down - right here.