Hey welcome back to winter! Those poor forsythia and bulbs in my front garden just got a shocker. The rains of last week took all the frost from the ground and the freezing this week has pretty much put it back. It will be interesting to see how many blooms these plants produce when spring finally gets here.

But I refuse to be pessimistic about spring coming (or not). It will be here and I'll love it when it comes and I'm looking forward to seeing how many of my perennials are going to survive yet another transplanting and what color the lilacs are around the house (white lilac fragrance is more erotic according to the literature than the purple or hybrids) :-).

Spring is coming - the questions are flowing again and all we Northerners can do is envy you Southern gardeners who are in full swing.

Our turn will come.

New Articles for You

Here’s the data on cooling temperatures and length of cooling time for forcing hyacinths. http://www.flower-garden-bulbs.com/forcing-hyacinth-bulb.htm

If you’ve never grown this member of the lily family, you really want to do yourself a favour this spring. http://www.flower-garden-bulbs.com/eremurus.html

Here’s how to make potted tulips last a little longer in the house. http://www.flower-garden-bulbs.com/potted-tulips.html

Here’s a few tips on putting a good looking flower garden together (it’s not a long article) http://www.gardening-tips-perennials.com/flower-garden-ideas.html

And if you’re looking for some thoughts on designing a cutting garden, here’s my take on it. It won’t please some designers but hey- this is my experience. http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/cutting-garden-design.html

A few notes about windowsill herb gardens are here: http://www.vegetable-gardening-tips.com/windowsill-herb-garden.html

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

Your Questions Answered

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

A rabbit has chewed off about 1.5 feet of bark, all the way around, on my Cortland apple tree. The tree is 10 years old and stands 15 feet. Is there anything I can do to help this tree survive, or will it die?

A: Oh, oh! For those who may not understand what just happened – right under the layer of bark is a thin layer of cells that provide a highway for nutrients to run up into the tree and energy to be transported back down to the roots. If the rabbit ate “just the bark”, then there’s an outside chance the tree will survive. But the odds are the pest ate down into this transport area and this spells bad news for the tree.

If the tree were younger and thinner around, you could do a series of bridge grafts. That is, you plant trees around the older tree, cut their tops off and graft them onto the older tree to provide nutrient uptake. If you don’t know how to graft, this isn’t the place to start though. Plus it would be just as expensive to buy several trees and graft as it would to buy a good semi-dwarf that should fruit in a few years (if protected).

There’s no “gunk” you can put on the tree to heal it.

I have heard of two “solutions” to this problem (always assuming the inner layer is intact). The first is to wrap damp peat moss around the damaged area and then cover this with black plastic. If the transport layer is not damaged a new layer of bark will form. The second system involves only putting the plastic on and not covering the damaged area with peat moss.

To be frank, I’ve never done either. I have no idea which is best for this situation but I’d lean toward the one without the peat.

But if that inner layer is chewed up – the tree will not recover no matter what you do.

The tree will leaf out this spring (the energy to produce those initial leaves is wintering in the buds) but then it will likely go brown and die off a few weeks later.

Sorry.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

Hi Doug, I love your newsletter. My question is regarding Hellebores. I have had mine for about 4 years and wonder if I am suppose to cut the foliage in the fall or spring. It stays green all winter. The leaves are fairly large compared to the flower. Thank you for your reply. Sandra

A: I find that Hellebore look pretty ratty around here by spring if I leave them to overwinter. That old foliage isn’t pretty so I tended to cut them back in the fall and the new shoots would throw blossoms without the brown leaves to detract from the show.

But it’s really up to you. You can do it either way.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

I love you news letter so much! My question is; how do i force amarylis using just water? i've seen them growing like this and love the effect. I've some lovely glassware i'd like to use for this purpose.

Thanks...

A: Follow all the same rules for growing the bulb. Simply place it so the bottom roots are in constant contact with the water in the vase. You can also place the bulb on stone in a vase and fill the vase with water – same thing.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

I have a potted bay plant that I bring indoors each winter. It does great on my deck but this winter it has many leaves that have turned brown (from the edges inward). I have examined the leaves under a magnifying glass and didn't detect any sign of insects. The main stem does appear to have "bumps" (scales?) on it though. I sprayed it with a soap solution. Can you tell me what the problem is? Thanks!

A: Browning leaf edges are usually a sign of irregular watering and temperature swings although a mottling of the leaf could indicate spider mites. And those scale will have to be removed for sure.

Do You Want to Grow Lavender?

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

I planted a Lilac bush about four years ago. It was doing well until two springs ago where my lilac only produced one bloom and last spring nothing. I read the article about pruning after it blooms. When I mentioned my problem to a friend of mine, also a gardener, she told me that maybe it has to do with the soil condition. What's your opinion? I was out in the garden two days ago( the weather has been warmer than usual here in Ontario) and noticed buds like at the ends on my lilac shrub. Does that mean I'll be getting blooms? I did not prune my lilac last year.

I really enjoy reading your news letters and saved everyone of them.

Thanking you in advance.

A: Lilac blooms are interesting. I often hear of plants that were root bound in their nursery pots producing flowers. Then when planted, they spend the next few years growing new roots and developing strength to produce flowers. But they do take a few years off between.

The length of time they take off depends on how perfectly situated they are – full sun, good soil, well-drained but adequate moisture and decent fertility but not excessive.

I never prune the lilacs because they’re simply too big a shrub to spend the time on. I let the old buds wither away and while they’re a little unsightly for a while, we both relax and enjoy hassle free gardening. If you must prune them, you do so immediately after they bloom.

Soil. I don’t know what kind of soil you have, and how you treat your plant so I can’t comment on this.

The big fat buds at the end of branches are a sign of blooms within the bud.

Weather has been a big factor in shrub performance the last few years. I’ve seen late fall in our area produce lilac blooms in October. And once this happens, the buds won’t flower in the spring. I’ve also seen the buds start to swell in the fall and be winter killed by a week of -40F temperatures later in the winter.

This shrub is young yet. Don’t prune. Compost and keep it watered during the summer. Full sun and relax. It will bloom on its own time.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

What kind of crop can I grow in a mild Utah winter to come up in spring as green manure compost that I can turn over in the soil? Am I too late for this year? dave

A: A green manure crop to come up green will have to be a perennial grain of some sort – something like a winter wheat.

I’m not sure why you’d want it to come back up in the spring. It is far easier to allow the frost to kill the green manure and let Mother Nature do that work. You’ll find tilling in a live plant is far more difficult than tilling in a winter-killed one.

And in that way, you get a much wider choice of plants that will fight weeds and add nitrogen to your soils (buckwheat/barley/oats etc)

There’s an article coming on green manures for home gardens – stay tuned.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

I didn't know lemon trees would grow where it is so cold like up in Canada. Is your sun porch heated? I assume the lemon tree is potted? Will you ever be able to plant it outdoors year around? I have two lemon trees started that are about 8 - 10 inches tall. How large do they have to be before they bloom? I also have an orange tree about 3 feet tall but never expect it to have fruit. Also a grapefruit tree 8 feet tall and had to cut the top out to bring it indoors this Fall. All were started by just pushing a seed down into a pot of potting soil.

Delores

A: My lemon and lime tree are indeed potted and will never winter over outdoors. The sunporch is part of the house but is quite cool at night – usually less than 60F. The pots go outdoors after all danger of frost and cool nights have passed.

Both of my citrus are potted plants bred for the purpose. They bloom at 2-3 years old and the shape of them depends on the pruning. I have the lime pruned upwards into a 4’ standard while the lemon continues to be a shorter bush-type plant at 24” tall.

Planting seeds will definitely give you plants but as you indicate, you’re now growing some unidentified plant that will take its own sweet time to flower and grow.

*** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** * **

I have never gardened, but want to learn. I have been getting books at the library as well as checking out info on the web. My question is this: when you refer to planting perennials in drifts, what exactly do you mean? Do you plant 3 plants right next to each other? All of the instructions that I have read say to leave 6" or more between plants; I am very confused! thank you!

A: Good question. Planting in drifts means planting 3-5 plants side by side. BUT leaving the appropriate spacing for the size of the plant. In other words, a 3-plant drift of Hemerocallis might take up 48-60 inches because you’re going to plant each plant approximately 12-18 inches apart. But a 3-plant drift of Dianthus might only take up 24 inches at 6” centers. If you wanted the same 48-inch drift of Dianthus, you’d have to plant 6 plants.

There is no hard and fast fixed rule of how many plants to install to create a drift. Think of it in terms of blocks of color (different sizes versus same sizes – depends on the design) rather than numbers of plants.