by Anita Smelley

Earlier this spring I decided it was time for a refresher for my yard.  I’ve lived in this house for ten years now and did all the original work myself.  In those ten years came retirement, a little arthritis and a lot of back-breaking digging in the dirt.  Don’t get me wrong, I love digging in the dirt (even though mine is mostly clay) I’ve always said it was my therapy, garden therapy and good for the soul.  I have a small plaque in my garden with the saying “You’re nearer God’s heart in a garden than anywhere else on earth” and I do believe that.

The first thing that had to happen was to clear out the over-grown mess of umbrella palms, Asiatic jasmine, elephant ears, wood ferns and mint that had taken over.  Enter Teresa and Darrel Johnson otherwise known as The Plant Lady and Johnson Horticultural Services.  This project would not have happened without them and their crew!  At this point in life I am just not able to spend the hours needed kneeling in the sun to do the job.  Never again will I plant invasive species and spend countless hours pulling them up when they spread to literally every square inch of my garden.  There is nothing at all wrong with any of these plants, if you keep them contained… which I did not do.

Now I am all about keeping it simple, not over-planting and selecting hardy plants that will give me years of enjoyment rather than require constant attention.  I still love annuals, but will use them in pots and containers for seasonal color.  At least I can sit on a stool at my potting bench and not sacrifice my back in the process.  I am even using some potted plants in the garden beds to add interest and color.

We extended my front flower bed and while I kept my Shasta daisies and drift roses, we included three micron hollies, a crimson fire lorapetalum and a sunshine ligustrum.  Right now it looks a little bare, but as they grow they will fill in the spaces and not be over-crowed when they do.  We also did a mailbox make-over with a red mandevilla, two more lorapetalums and a ligustrum.  I must say I am very pleased with the front yard’s new look.

In the back yard two flower beds were completely cleaned out and got new plantings.  I have a lion’s head fountain there and on either side we planted a camellia sasanqua October magic and in front of those we planted bloom-a-thon pink azaleas.  This is where I improvised with some potted plants.  Along the back privacy fence I have a large, concrete celtic cross.  Now sweet olive trees, blue plumbagos and yes another sunshine ligustrum.  I think that may be one of my favorite shrubs.  It is a light green shrub and very airy-looking.  It just makes me happy to look at it!

Now that the transformation is complete I patrol daily looking for sprouts of the before-mentioned invasive plants and either pull them up by the roots or spay with a herbicide.  I hope the next ten years (and beyond) I will enjoy my beautiful landscaping.  It is the first place I go every morning.   I have my breakfast along with my cats each morning on my patio and just soak in how lovely everything looks.  I have another plaque on my sun porch that says “All gardeners live in beautiful places because they make them so.”  Can I get an amen?

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Here is the direct link to the on-line registration form for the Alabama Master Gardener Fall Conference 2015.

TCMG site statistics for today:  We’ve had 1,619 unique visitors in the last 30 days!  Thank you for visiting Tuscaloosa County Master Gardeners!

TCMG local news:

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TCMG website stats: 1,699 visitors in the last 30 days.   You can visit us, too at mg.aces.edu/tuscaloosa/

June garden tips for the Southeast:

Water―Pay attention to hanging baskets and containers, because they dry out more quickly with the warmer temperatures. Irrigate plants at dawn and dusk to reduce water loss from evaporation. As you make additions to your garden, you will need to water them more than established areas.
Houseplants―Place houseplants outside in a shady location to enjoy the fresh air and rejuvenate. Water regularly, and feed with an all-purpose (20-20-20) water-soluble fertilizer to encourage growth.
Mulch―Apply extra pine straw or shredded bark mulch around newly planted trees and shrubs to better transition these plants into your garden. The extra mulch will reduce water loss and heat stress to the new roots.

Do you have a summer gardening tip to pass along? Leave us a reply.

The Birmingham Rose Society presents its annual Rose Show on Mother’s day weekend at the beautiful Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

The judging is Saturday morning, but the festivities are all weekend! There are all sorts of categories ranging from “novice” to “experienced exhibitor” and also “artistic arrangements” and, a photography division.

Open Saturday 1-5 and Sunday 1-4.

By Bethany A. O’Rear

From The Jefferson County Extension Service

Q. I want to include herbs in my garden and need to know more about requirements for growing them. I’m also interested in attracting pollinators, especially honeybees. Which herbs will provide food or habitat for them?

A. With spring in full swing, honeybee populations in decline, and herbs gaining status with a variety of gardeners, this is a very pertinent question. Let’s break the answer into two parts, one to address the herbs, one for the honeybees.

Herbs have many attributes that contribute to their increasing popularity in gardens and landscapes. Their historic use, from primarily culinary and medicinal, to the 21st century has expanded the role of herbs. Today, we grow herbs (or “‘erbs”) for aesthetic reasons, for use in cooking (culinary), as medicinal, aromatics, ornamentals, household/industrial, and wildlife habitat.

Herbs are considered one of the easiest groups of plants to grow, and once established, most are considered low maintenance; they do very well with little water or fertilizer.

Requirements for growing herbs, regardless of reason, need to be considered before planting them in the ground. And, while herbs are adaptable to a range of soil and growing conditions, most don’t do well in poorly drained soil. Another limiting factor is the amount of sun available to them; if the site receives less than 6-8 hours of sun a day, look for another site or consider herbs that can handle light shade. The sun/shade factor is especially important for pollinators, including honeybees, since most of them are attracted to plants that flower in full sun conditions.

One other point to consider is soil; heavy clay is a challenging environment for most herbs. Make their life easier and more productive by planting herbs in raised beds or amending existing soil with well-composted organic matter to improve its porosity.

Herbs are a solution to the need expressed by many beekeepers; to increase nectar availability in an area. Herbs are versatile, blooming the same year they’re planted in many cases. With sufficient variety, an herb garden can have plants in bloom 10 months of the year, providing nectar and pollen sources for honeybees. However, not all herbs attract honeybees, so gardeners should pay attention to variety. Herbs such as basil, bee balm, hyssop (anise), mints, sage, and thyme are examples of bee favorites.

Local News:

Local grower, H and N Tomatoes is having their annual Heirloom tomato plant sale starting this Saturday, April 4 and will continue every Saturday and Sunday in April, from 9 until 4.  They are on Facebook under H and N tomatoes.  To see a list of the available varieties and the location of the sale click here.

@ShawnaCoronado follows @TuscCoGardeners on Twitter, do you?

Companion Planting: How To Deter Pests and Encourage Beneficial Insects

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Posted By Andrew McIndoe @ 9:15 on March 23rd 2015

From:    My Garden School

Flowers among the vegetables are more than just a colourful addition. They attract pollinating insects to fertilize the flowers of beans, peas, tomatoes and all those crops that depend on pollination to produce a crop.

In some cases they may act as a decoy or a repellent to harmful insects such as aphids. Some are beneficial to and attract predatory insects such as ladybirds (ladybugs), wasps and hover flies. These are particularly useful in controlling pests naturally without your intervention.

Some also act as soil improvers: either by fixing nutrients in the soil or acting as green manures if dug into the ground at an early age. Some just look pretty, attract the bees and provide some lovely blooms for cutting for the house.

1. The hardy pot marigold, calendula looks at home in the vegetable garden or alongside vegetables in raised beds or containers. The petals can be used as a lively addition to salads.

Bees and other pollinators will visit for the nectar and pollen. Grow single flowered varieties and allow it to seed itself. It is a hardy annual so will pop up year after year on most soils.

2. Nasturtium always looks at home amongst vegetables, especially later in the year. Both flowers and leaves are edible, as are the seeds which are sometimes used pickled as an alternative to capers. Visited by bees it is also a magnet for caterpillars, so a good indicator plant.

3. Poached egg flower, Limnanthes douglasii is the ultimate flower to grow anywhere around crops that need pollinating.

It forms a low cushion of feathery foliage smothered in shining flowers. Bees swarm to it, as do hoverflies which will prey on those pests.

4. Practically all simple daisies are highly attractive to bees, butterflies, hoverflies and predatory wasps.

Camomile fits in anywhere in the open ground, raised beds or containers. You can use the flowers to make a fragrant, sleep-inducing infusion.

5. I’ve mentioned the prairie flower giant hyssop, agastache many times for its spikes of blue flowers in late summer. It is not often recommended as a flower for the vegetable garden, but it is a magnet for bees and looks lovely with orange and yellow marigolds.

6. French and African marigolds are used to deter aphids, they contain some natural pyrethrins. They are also pungently aromatic and are supposed to repel nematodes in the soil.

They attract hoverflies which prey on the aphids and the single and semi-double varieties seem to be popular with bees.

7. Phacelia, sometimes called scorpionweed, can be grown as a green manure; in other words you dig the green plant into the soil as a fertiliser.

If left to flower it is highly attractive to pollinators and its soft lilac flowers are highly attractive too.

8. Clover is a legume, in other words it is in the same family as peas and beans. This means it has nodules on its roots which contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria.

These fix atmospheric nitrogen providing food for the plant. Used as a green manure, or if the roots are left in the ground it feeds the soil. Clover is widely used in organic farming.

Red clover looks lovely and its prevalence as the nectar source for honey is testament to its attraction to pollinators.

9. Cosmos is an easy hardy annual to grow with feathery foliage and beautiful single or semi-double blooms that are superb for cutting.

Bees, other pollinators and butterflies love it and it is particularly useful later in the season to attract pollinators to your runner beans and tomatoes.

10. In the shadiest corner of the vegetable plot grow comfrey. You may need to contain it but it does make great ground cover.

If you have fruit trees, grow it under them. The flowers are a good nectar source and the leaves a great addition to the compost heap. Organic gardeners will brew comfrey tea: as a fertiliser for the plants.

There are so many more subjects I could include here. Why not give me your suggestions in the comments below? Which flowers do you grow with vegetables?