 |
 FALL PLANTING SEASON
Planting Season Arrives
to the Desert Once Again. Mother Nature offers us a much better attitude this
fall, with warm days and cool nights. It is the perfect growing season. We are
in that weather roller coaster mode, daytime temperatures hover around the 90
degree mark, then dip to the 70s and back to the 80s. Winter rye pops up as the
Bermuda grass goes dormant for the winter. Planting beds are prepared, now it is
time to get the planting party started!
A quick note about your lawn;
many HOAs and golf courses have already seeded their green belts. Not to fear,
you have plenty of time. Reseeding weather continues through midNovember as our
temperate climate allows the seed to germinate late into the fall season. Click
on the link for directions on reseeding and watering practices. Link to reseeding. We suggest you plant annual color
once your lawn has been reseeded and the garden is back on a normal watering
schedule. |
 Irrigation
What is the normal watering schedule
this time of year? The target temperature for a once daily watering is
consistent 90 95 degrees. This time of year the daily temperature bounces all
over the place. Skip a water day when temperatures fluctuate much below the 90
degree mark, established gardens will enjoy the day off. Keep in mind that newly
planted material will require daily water for the first two weeks after planting
to establish strong roots, especially shallow rooted plants. As the temperature
drops to 85 degrees and below, you may begin alternate water days but remember,
we are looking for consistent temperatures before committing to alternate water
days. It's a lot to remember..Mollers is here to help.
It is crucial this
time of year to walk through your irrigation system and make certain everything
is working properly. Its a good idea to take a look at the system yourself even
if you have a landscape maintenance team working with you. Become friends with
your time clock, learn how it to set it and how to manually start your water
stations. Check that the time clock is set to the correct time of day. Be
certain the station run times coincide with the type of irrigation you are
using. (Sprinklers and bubblers vs drip irrigation.) For those who use drip
irrigation, be sure your system is set up with either gallon per hour emitters
or adjustable emitters, but not both. They distribute water differently so they
should not be used on the same line. Heads can get broken or clogged through the
summer; verify the water is being distributed where it is meant to
land. |
 Fertilizer
Fall
is one of those critical times to fertilizer. If you are one who feeds the
garden only occasionally, this is one of the times you should absolutely
fertilize. Cooling temperatures offer the perfect growing environment for your
plant material fertilizer (and an appropriate water regimen) keeps them growing
healthy. As you know, we like the organics.Dr. Earth or Foxfarm fertilizers. It
is important to choose the correct product for the plant material you are
fertilizing. Rose food would not be great for palms. Gardenias require different
nourishment than citrus trees. We are here to help; let us know what you need to
fertilize and we will set you up with the appropriate formula for the
job. |
 Flowers,
Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs
The last two weeks of October and first
two weeks of November provide a premium window for planting annuals, herbs and
vegetables here in the Desert. Petunias, pansies and begonias were the limited
color options of days gone by. Today, annual varieties number in the dozens. The
choices are many but the formula is simple. First, determine the light exposure
for the areas you wish to plant. Think about the height you can use in the
space. What is your color scheme? Are you looking for drama, textural variation
or just a pretty flower bed? Perhaps you want to change what you always
do.....head on down to Moller's where we will assist you as you make your
selections. If you don't find what you are looking for or if you need large
quantities, we are happy to order it in. Our inventory changes daily this time
of year.
COLOR
OPTIONS: coleus, pentas, lobelia, guara, begonia varieties,
stock, phlox, bacopa, salvia varieties, lavender varieties, million bells,
African daisies, New Guinea impatiens, Santa Barbara daisy, nemesias,
plectranthus, malacoide & English primrose, kalanchoe, cyclamen, foxglove,
echinacea, snap dragons, pansies and of course petunias. CONFUSED? Don't be, the
Moller's sales staff is here to help you choose the best color material for the
area you are planting.
 Herb, fruit and vegetable choices
are bountiful this time of year. Thyme (lemon & English), oregano (Italian,
Hot & Spicy), basil (sweet, Italian or Thai), parsley (curly & Italian),
chives (garlic & onion) are but a few of the choices you must make when
putting together your herb garden. Mint varieties are abundant – from
chocolate to apple, spearmint and peppermint. (We suggest you use mint in pots
or as a ground cover, as it can take over your garden.) Tomatoes offer
alternatives in size, color and age. Lettuces, arugula, broccoli, eggplant,
peppers - sweet and hot, cauliflower, artichokes, kale, Swiss chard and
strawberries are among the edible offerings we stock this time of year. Once
again, we are happy to special order anything for you. |
Container Planting & Pots
Pots and planters allow home gardeners
to do just about anything in the garden. Seasonal plantings of annuals in small
patio courtyards provide depth and color to otherwise plain spaces. Pots
themselves sport colorful glazes; rich blues, greens & oxblood red planters
frame cactus and succulent combinations to create a dramatic statement for a
particular space. Larger sculptural specimen cacti act as art when thoughtfully
placed in your garden. Texture is a big trend now; specific greenery and
succulents merge to provide interesting contrast. Pots can break up monotony and
create continuity. Planted containers provide the answer to problem spaces where
nothing else will grow. Pots allow flexibility to create new looks every season;
they act independent of permanent landscape and hardscapes in the garden.
Irrigate your planters as often or as little as the material you choose will
allow. |
Thoughtful
Thoughts and Common Mistakes
There is a lot of information in this newsletter; there is a lot to do in the
garden this time of year. Irrigation can be especially confusing. We have done
our best to cover major garden issues. Bring any questions or issues you may
have down to Mollers and we will do our best to solve the
problem.
We say it all the time........ Be sure your
water is on long enough to fully saturate the plant you are watering; then allow
the material to dry out before the next application of water. Newly planted,
shallow rooted material such as herbs, vegetables, ground covers and bedding
plants may require a second dose of water the first few weeks after planting if
temperatures push that 90 degree mark. The same goes for freshly planted shrubs
and trees. As roots have a chance to become established, once a day water is the
rule. If you dont get to planting the material you have purchased for a few
days, dont forget to water...sometimes twice daily water is necessary, depending
on the product and the temperature. We often see plants come back to the Nursery
simply because they did not get enough water before they were ever
planted.
Newly seeded grass requires multiple water times as the seed germinates but only
for a few weeks. The rest of the garden should be watered just once a day. When
the new lawn reaches about 2 inches, (about 2-3 weeks), resume once daily water
for your lawn. Cut the grass after one month and fertilize just after the first
mowing.
One more thing about turf.....when you first stop watering the
lawn to force Bermuda into dormancy, take care you do not cut water from
surrounding planter beds, hedges and other plantings. It can be too warm for
anything other than turf to endure more than two days without water. Questions?
Please feel free to ask the sales team at Mollers.
 Drip
irrigation requires a commitment. Use either gallon per hour emitters or
adjustable emitters, but not both. We often find garden maintenance crews
replace these two hears interchangeably. Doing so will provide way too much
water for some plants yet not nearly enough to others. Water stations with drip
heads (gallons per hour) must run 30 minutes or more, depending on the heads
used. Adjustable emitters generally run 8 10 minutes, the same as
sprinklers..they simply localize where the water is distributed.
When it
comes time to plant anything in your garden, think about the sun exposure as you
choose your plant material. Remember the sun can change in the garden through
the course of the year. What is a shade area now may transition to full sun
exposure come next May. Shade tolerant plants will burn severely when the sun
hits them in the spring. Conversely, plant material that requires full sun will
suffer under constant shade.
Planting mix is NOT fertilizer. It is a soil
amendment meant to enrich the soil not nourish the plant. Planting mix holds
moisture in the ground, cools/warms planting beds and curtails weed growth.
Fertilizer nourishes the plant to promote new growth and create a healthy root
structure Use planting mix at the time you plant. You may also apply organic
fertilizer at the time of planting and then monthly throughout the growing
season. Just remember: planting mix = soil; fertilizer = plant
material.
 Pests
cannot be managed with a one size fits all pesticide. It is important to
properly identify the problem and choose the right protocol to correct the
problem. The Internet offers a lot of great information but it can still leave
the reader to guess what the problem is. Not all pesticides are available in all
states. Oil-based pesticides are effective but will quickly kill plant material
if used at the wrong time of year here in the Desert. Certain weeds are active
on a different time table here than they are in other parts of the country.
Bring in a leaf sample of what ails you, the Mollers team will help find the
cure.
 Pots
& Saucers. In a perfect world, a saucer collects water as it drains from the
pot after the planter has been watered. Automatic irrigation may distribute more
water than the saucer can hold, especially when pots are watered daily.
Proportionately larger saucers may help the issue, but water spilling over is
almost always an issue when using drip irrigation on pots. Please keep this in
mind as you look to protect your terrace from water damage. A little water goes
a long way with container gardens. Often pots are much deeper than the roots
they hold. The rules of irrigation are the same for pots as they are for the
garden. Water enough to saturate the roots and allow the material to dry out
before the next water application. |
Questions?
Be sure to come in and visit us at Moller's Garden Center, Inc.
We are always
happy to help.
Visit us online at www.mollersgardencenter.com
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment