For winter and spring color, here are current choices in pony packs: semperflorens begonias, calendula, candytuft, Canterbury bells, carnations, cineraria, coleus, columbine, delphinium, dianthus, dusty miller, English daisy, foxglove, Iceland poppy, lobelia, pansy, petunias, phlox, primrose, ranunculus, Shasta daisy, snapdragons, stock, sweet alyssum, sweet William and violas.
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"The pedigree of honey
Does not concern the bee;
A clover, any time, to him,
Is aristocracy." — Emily Dickinson
Say It in Red
Red in spring? We think roses.
Red in fall? How about burning bush and Sango kaku?
Sango who? Welcome to the wonderful world of maples! Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku' is a vigorous upright tree with yellow fall foliage. But in this author's opinion, the red bark is reason to have this tree in your landscape. This tree is often called 'Coral Bark Maple,' because the twigs and branches are a striking coral red in the winter. The bark is smooth and fiery red, making a great photo opportunity-- especially when there is a gentle snowfall on the branches. A perfect tree for a patio planter that is sure to be the topic of conversation.
Burning bush - it's on fire? No, but the name and appearance might lead you to that conclusion. Euonymus alata compacta 'Burning Bush' is a deciduous shrub that gives an impressive fall color. The dark green leaves turn flaming red in the fall. A dense, flat-topped shrub with horizontal branching, Burning Bush (sometimes called Winged Euonymus) can grow to 6 feet tall. This plant is low maintenance, often used in commercial sites where water isn't as available. Plant it as a hedge for a burning effect or against dark evergreens for greatest color impact.
Both the Sango kaku and the burning bush are rewarding plants in the fall, and their value in the spring and summer is to provide texture and leaf color contrasts to the everyday garden.
1. Plant all types of permanent landscape plants other than bare-root and tropicals.
2. Plant trees, shrubs and vines.
3. Choose and plant for permanent fall and winter color.
4. Continue to shop for spring-blooming bulbs.
5. Plant lilies as soon as you get them home.
6. Buy daffodils, grape hyacinths, ranunculus, anemones and Dutch irises; keep them in a cool, dry place until planting time.
7. Purchase hyacinth, tulip, and crocus bulbs and prechill them in the refrigerator.
8. Plant cool-season flowers for winter and spring bloom.
9. Plant cineraria for late winter and early spring bloom.
10. Plant wildflowers.
11. Plant cool-season lawns; this is the best time of year for this job.
12. Overseed Bermuda grass with annual winter ryegrass if desired.
13. Plant cool-season vegetables, year-round vegetables, including carrots and some perennial vegetables.
14. Thin out sweet peas and pinch them back to force branching.
15. Divide, trim, and mulch plants that tend to grow in a clump and that need to be divided, including Kahili ginger, clivia, iris, daylily, moraea, bird of paradise, gazanias, and perennials like Shasta daisies.
16. Cut back zonal and ivy geraniums; finish pruning Martha Washingtons.
17. Divide hardy water lilies.
18. Divide belladonna lilies.
19. Dig up, divide and replant perennials, or mulch them.
20. Cut off runners from strawberries, gather them in bunches, and prechill them for November planting.
21. Feed fuchsias.
22. Continue to treat blue hydrangeas with aluminum sulfate.
23. Stop fertilizing chrysanthemums and enjoy the blooms.
24. Fertilize poinsettias with a complete fertilizer high in bloom ingredients.
25. Feed roses early in October; don't fertilize in November.
26. Water deciduous fruit trees more sparingly in fall.
27. Water roses with up to 1 1/2 inches of water twice a week, unless it rains.
28. Finish pulling out faded annual flowers and cleaning pots and beds for fall.
29. Make a ball-shaped basket of malacoides primroses.
30. Thoroughly clean up the vegetable garden; pull up the last of the summer crops and compost the remains (if you have had fungus or disease problems, skip the composting and get rid of them instead).
Fall Vegetable Planting
It's time to put in the winter vegetable garden or, if you already have begun, to continue the job.
First, pull up and throw out or compost the remains of your summer garden. A thorough cleaning now really pays off in fewer bugs and diseases later.
Dig up the soil deeply with a spade, turning it over, aerating it, and breaking up the clods as you go.
Then use a garden fork to mix in organic amendments such as Kellogg Earthrich.
Add a good vegetable fertilizer according to package directions; work this into the top 6 inches of soil. If you're an organic gardener, use instead blood meal, cottonseed meal, bone meal or bagged organic vegetable food (we recommend Whitney Farms Vegetable Food).
Then use a garden rake to level the ground. Use a hoe to make furrows between rows in heavy soils.
Plant tall crops to the north, and short crops to the south. Full sun is best for all winter vegetables.
Recipe of the Week: Make Ahead Breakfast Bake
What you need:
6 slices bread
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
3/4 pound ham, thinly sliced
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced and sautéed in butter
8 ounces diced green chiles
2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese
6 eggs
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. onion salt
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
Step by Step:
Butter 6 slices of bread and place buttered side down in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Sprinkle with 2 cups cheddar cheese.
Place ham on top of cheese and then layer with mushrooms and chiles. Top with Monterey Jack cheese.
In a bowl, beat eggs and add milk, salt, paprika, basil, onion salt, pepper and dry mustard.
Pour over ingredients in dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 325º. Uncover casserole and bake for 50 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes to set before serving.
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