Magnolia Landscape Supply Blog

Tips

Tue, 21 Jun 2016 18:15:49 GMT

Planting- Bulbs such as iris and daylilies can be divided even when they are blooming. This would be an opportune time if you have different colors and want to work with them for the current season. Simply cut off the existing flowers and cut the leaves back, dig and divide and replant as soon as possible, or you can tag the colors for later dividing. When you purchase container plants, check the root ball and loosen the roots if they are tightly wound in the pot. You need to keep as much dirt intact on the roots as possible as this will help the roots to acclimate to their new location. Whether it is your accent plants or your focal point for your yard, many people prefer to buy trees and shrubs while in bloom to make sure the colors are what they like such as the Hydrangea, Crape myrtle, Oleander or Magnolia.

Fertilizing - Don’t miss out on the opportunity to fertilize your plants. Not just for the health and growth of your plants but also for your blooming plants to help produce more and better and ater well after fertilizing.

Azaleas and camellias should be fertilized right after they have finished blooming and roses after each bloom time. We carry fertilizers specifically for your blooming needs.

Container gardens are a beautiful addition to your patio or porches but they will need additional attention such as fertilizer. You can give them regular doses of a water-soluble fertilizer or try a slow release granular fertilizer that will release a little every time you water.

Watering/Irrigation - Most professionals will recommend that watering be done in the morning for the most benefit including helping to slow down evaporation of the water. But if you find your plants/lawn are drying out due to an extremely hot summer and/or drought time, go ahead and give them more water perhaps in the early afternoon. Also, check your container plants, they will dry out quicker.

Mulch is a good addition to your flower beds and plantings, it helps to shade the soil and keep it cooler which helps retain moisture during the hot days.

If you have irrigation, keep an eye out for broken sprinkler heads. This will help you avoid dry areas and wasted water. Consider having a “Rain Check” control added to your system. This helps reduce over watering by not allowing your system to water after a rain shower. As the plants grow they may interfere with the sprinkler so keep things trimmed back.

It is a good idea to water slowly and deeply. This will encourage your plants to grow deeper roots. That can make them more stable and keeps the roots away from the upper drier soil.

Pruning and Maintenance - It is possible to have roses, and some perennials re-bloom. The best way to encourage it is to “dead head” your plant by removing the old blooms. Annuals can also be deadheaded and re-bloom most of the summer. Your hanging baskets will benefit as well with a good once over for dead blooms and shaping.

Pinch back any of your plants that seem to be getting leggy and out of shape. Whether it’s an annual or perennial, pruning your plant helps make it healthier and look better. Most evergreens benefit from pruning. The optimum time would be around June and July.

For maximum flavor of your herbs, pick or harvest just before flowering as the leaves have the most oil content.

Miscellaneous - To help you keep up with what you have planted, where it is, and info on the plants, try keeping up with this in a notebook or on your computer. This information can save you time and money. You can look back and see which plant needed what fertilizer, when and so on.

Avoid the heat and humidity of our hot summers by working in the early a.m. or later afternoon into the evening makes the time you spend working in the yards a little easier.

While you are out in the yard working in your lawn and gardens, involve your kids or grand kids. Have them help you weed, plant or most anything. It is good exercise, and helps them to learn that sense of pride of a job well done. Being outside, helping, is time spent with you they will never forget.

Speaking of weeding, if you weed in your flowerbeds on a regular basis it makes that chore a little easier to deal with. Ground cloth or mulch is good for weed prevention also. If you put mulch around woody plants don’t pile it on close around the trunks. Just a couple inches deep starting a few inches away is plenty.

If you have a compost heap or bins, remember the heat of the summer can also dry them out. Moisture is the key and it should also be turned regularly to aide in the natural decomposition.

Stake tall flowers to keep them from blowing over and tie up your climbing roses or other vines for a more secure plant. Make sure any plant or tree you have ties on are loose enough so as not to cut into the stems.

Pests - Is there something eating at your plant’s leaves/stem/bloom? Do you have a white/gray/black residue on it? You should always research your problem to identify what is actually going on with your plant. This will lead you to the best solution but you will need the most information of the problem. It is wise as well, to chose the lest toxic solution and follow the directions completely.

Roses are prone to mildew, black spot, aphids and other diseases and insect. Identify and take action. The sooner you identify the problem and take action, the better your plant will be.

It seems that the ever so vital honeybee, maybe suffering from the pesticides sold on the shelves as well as the pest they were designed for. Just a couple tweaks in our pesticide application habits will aide in the promotion of their population. Try using a liquid pesticide instead of a dust and try applying later in the afternoon/evening when the bees are mostly heading back to the hive.

Here at Magnolia Landscape Supply, we have a large selection of pesticides, we can help you identify the problem and find a solution.

Lawn - If your lawn seems compacted, hard for water to absorb or have a nematode problem, you may want to aerate your lawn. We have an aerator for rent here at Magnolia Landscape Supply.

A good rule of thumb for mowing is to cut off no more than 1/3 of the grass blade at each mowing. If your grass is “growing like a weed”, try more frequent mowing to maintain better grass. As for your St. Augustine and Zoysia grasses, they would be better off at a mowed height of around 3”. This helps to shade the soil and saves the moisture in the soil.

To prevent the ragged cut of a grass blade, keep your mower blades sharp.

You should consider leaving the trimmings, if there isn’t an excessive amount due to overgrowth. The trimmings will make their way to the soil, returning nitrogen of the grass back to the soil.

If you have an area that is too shady for grass, try using ground cover plants or a mulch.

One secret to having the appearance of a professionally mowed lawn, is to keep a nice clean edge around the flowerbeds, sidewalk, driveway, etc. so pull out the edger or grass shears and keep it neat and tidy.

TIDBITS

Thu, 28 May 2015 18:47:20 GMT

TIDBITS

PLANT- Plant red or orange flowers to help attract the hummingbirds if you want them to come. There are many annuals, perennials and woody plants they like. Just to name a couple, begonia, zinnia, impatiens, lantana, bottlebrush, hibiscus, and honeysuckle.

Start planting out warm season annuals such as impatiens, marigolds, petunias, sunflowers, zinnia, lobelia, and allysum. Finish planting summer flowering bulbs like tuberose, gladiolus, dahlias, and callas.

Hydrangea is a plant that is not only a great gift by its self, but also transplants well into your yard for added interest. Hydrangeas are a plant that it’s bloom color is dictated by the soil PH level. If you have an alkaline soil you will most likely have Pink flowers or you can work lime into the soil to encourage Pink blooms, and vice versa if you have an acidic soil you will most likely have Blue flowers or work aluminum sulphate into the soil to encourage Blue blooms. If you have a white hydrangea, it won’t be affected by the soil PH. They prefer a well-drained soil with full sun to partial shade.

FERTILIZE – Start feeding your potted plants every two to three weeks with liquid fertilizer at half the strength. You can fertilize most everything right now except the spring flowering shrubs like azaleas, camellias, and rhododendrons until they have finished blooming. You can use an acid based fertilizer. Apply a high nitrogen fertilizer (a good mix would be 16-4-8) to your summer lawn (St Augustine, Zoysia, Bermuda and Centipede) to encourage a healthy looking yard. Roses have a need for feed; they want to be fertilized regularly. Use a high nitrogen fertilizer ever 4 to 6 weeks as the new growth starts after they flower. If you are finding moss in your lawn, try adding Lime as your soil’s PH level is low.

*Quick tip: on your fertilizer bag there will be 3 numbers printed such as 10-10-10 or 15-0-15. These numbers represent the Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium proportion of each in the fertilizer. I read somewhere (loosely translated) this cute way to remember what they are for: N (nitrogen) for the green; P (Phosphorus) is for the bloom; K (potassium) is for the roots or all over body of the plant.

PRUNE – Don’t forget, prime time to prune your azaleas, camellias, and all other blooming shrubs, are when flowering is finished before new buds are set on. Prune spring-flowering shrubs and trees when they are finished blooming too. Once new growth begins on your trees/shrubs, cut back any twigs damaged by the frost, to the green wood. Cut back ornamental grasses right before new growth and your evergreen grasses can be trimmed to remove the brown leaves and leaf tips. Remove any sucker growth from your fruit trees as they appear.

WATER – Everything loves water, especially your potted plants if they are sitting in the sun on the patio/deck/porch. The pot retains the heat of the sun, and the soil will dry out faster than the ground would. Regularly feel the soil for dampness to make sure you don’t over water. Consider purchasing a hose end shut-off valve. This way you can shut it off when you move around the yard and also you won’t have to leave the water running as you walk to the hose bibb to shut it off.

PEST CONTROL – You can use a strong stream of water (or a safe soap product) to wash away the aphids from your plants to keep them from taking over your plants. Begin watching roses for black spot fungus disease (black spots on the leaves that get worse. You will need to use a fungicide, as recommended for the your product, about every 7 to 10 days a good spraying should control it.

LAWN – Replace any dead or damaged spots in the lawn with plugs or pieces of your existing grass type. Keep your lawn watered well if the weather is dry, you can safely apply ¾ to 1” of water at each watering as needed. Watch your grass. If the blades fold in the evening you should water the next morning, usually between 4am and 9am are ideal times when the season temps have gotten hot (over 80 degrees). You shouldn’t need to water more than twice a week. If the season temps are milder (less than 80) water about once a week. If you have a new lawn installed, water frequently but lightly for the first two weeks. You can gradually decrease to a normal cycle once it has begun to take root. If you have uneven areas, try using sand to fill in right over the grass, being careful not to completely cover the grass blades (no more than an inch at a time). Resist the urge to cut your grass low, this only exposes more of the soil/roots to the sun and that opens up the possibility of weeds popping up and increases the water evaporation causing more dryness to your grass. Consider moving your St Augustine at about 2” to 3”, or Centipede at about 1 ½”. Recycle your grass clippings by allowing them to stay where they lay. If you remove the clippings and don’t allow them to decompose back into the soil, you are removing some of your fertilizer as it is in/on the blades you cut. Regular grass cutting doesn’t cause a thatch to build up, as you aren’t cutting off 3 and 4 week old long blades.

MISC – Keep your weeds under control. Most weeds are an annual and will go away if not allowed to go to seed. Mulch or pine straw help to discourage weed growth, so consider them for your flowerbeds. Remove any spent blooms if you don’t want to save them for seeds, to aid in your plants health as it consumes the plant’s energy. In some plants it aids to promote more blooms for the season.

With all the pruning, plucking, picking, and weeding you will have an abundance of resources for your compost pile. If you haven’t begun one, now is a great time. Turn it frequently and keep it damp to promote the breakdown.