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Downtown Landscape Exhibits Spur Ideas For Home Gardens

One of the most popular activites of the the Leesburg Flower Garden Festival is marveling at the creative genius of the various landscapers, who have built garden designs to show customers just what they could achieve, with the right ideas, materials and focus.

It takes a huge amount of planning and work—and expense—throughout the year to come up with the perfect design, a fact that’s often lost on vistors as they survey the finished products.

Last year, people marveled over Jason Dengler’s “take-you-back-to-the-farm” charming chicken house, complete with live chickens, surrounded by a tiny garden. Dengler and his Wildwood Landscape team won Best Overall Presentation, with the judges and public alike agreeing the chickens stole the show.

Dengler, for whom this will be the seventh year of the landscape contest, has placed in the top three each year. He’s won four times and also the People’s Choice award several times.

Last year’s award for Outstanding Technical Craftsmanship went to West Winds Nursery, from Sudley Springs. The Outstanding Creativity Award went to River’s Edge Landscape, of Bluemont, for its sophisticated and elegant display. The company also won the People’s Choice award, in which the public decides to whom it will award the palm.

For many, the landscape design exhibit is the focal point of the festival and a source of visual pleasure as well as a mine of information, ideas and practical advice on how to design a garden, how to intersperse different plans, shrubs and trees and how to blend them in a harmonious whole with water and hardscape features, such as fountains, pools, trellises, gazebos and stone walls.

For the landscaping team, the effort and expense pays off in the exposure to some 40,000 people and resulting orders down the road.

An added side attraction—at least for downtown residents of Leesburg, is watching the gardens slowly emerge from bare pavement.

“It’s the best free show on earth,” according to one resident, who in previous years watched the evolving sight.

When the landscapers first move in at 6 p.m. Friday night, the intersection of King and Market streets is filled with fork lifts, dump trucks, piles of dirt, sand, mulch, stone and brick, various trees and shrubs and hoses snaking across the tarmac.

But then, slowly, order begins to emerge. First, the outlines of the garden appear—a dry stone wall rises from the pavement, a huge boulder is levered onto a corner of the garden, or a gazebo is lowered carefully onto the small plot, and a large tree positioned near it with its branches drooping over. Maybe a fountain is placed in the center of the plot. High walls, maybe ivy or wisteria covered, suddenly emerge, and slowly the garden takes shape. A wrought-iron or wooden bench appears—destined to be sunk down onto gratefully the following days by weary festival goers.

Finally, the plant materials are set in place—colorful bulbs peeping out from shrubs and trees—and covered with a pungent smelling blanket of mulch. A last water, and the weary team members wrap it up and call it a day—a long day, that in many cases last well into the night.

The next day, landscapers are on duty at their exhibits, patiently answering the questions by the public, who get a great free horticultural design education.

Doug Fulcher has taken over management of the design competition this year. Awards will be given for Best Overall Presentation; Outstanding Technical Craftsmanship; and Outstanding Creativity.

The cash award of $750 for Best Overall Presentation is given to the landscaper whose garden has scored the highest number of criteria points as determined by the judges’ site visits and discussions.

The Outstanding Technical Craftsmanship award of $500 goes to the exhibitor whose garden shows the finest quality of materials and workmanship as defined by the criteria.

The Outstanding Creativity award, also worth $500, is given to the landscaper whose garden exhibits the most originality and features elements that are unique, provide human interest or humor, and/or convey an identifiable mood or theme as defined by the criteria. Entrants may only win one of the three landscape awards.

Judging happens Saturday morning and the results are posted at the main entertainment stage in the early afternoon. The popular People’s Choice, in which the public gets to agree, or more frequently, disagree, with the judges’ verdict, is posted on Sunday morning.

How to deter badgers

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Has your once beautiful lawn been dug up by badgers? Hannah Stephenson investigates how to deter them

Walking up my garden a few weeks ago, I discovered great clumps missing from my lawn, and that the resulting holes had been used as some sort of animal toilet.

I live in a fairly rural area, and was soon told the likely culprits were badgers, territorial creatures which have no problem digging under fences to forage for food in my – and many other people’s – prized grass.

“They are the JCBs of the animal world, built for digging,” says Jack Reevey, media adviser of the charity Badger Trust (www.badger.org.uk). “It’s very difficult to deter them. If you try to fence them out, it would have to be a very strong chain link fence rather than chicken wire and you would have to dig it 2ft down because they can burrow under fences. The fence also needs to be higher than 3ft or they’ll climb over it.”

Pungent scents such as Olbas oil or citronella can deter them, he notes, but such scents will have to be re-applied regularly because they evaporate or rain simply removes them. If you are fertilising flower borders, avoid adding fish, blood and bone to them as its scent attracts them, along with the rich, loamy soil which is a haven for worms.

“Although badgers are timid creatures, light doesn’t particularly worry them and they get used to other distractions such as scarecrows or sonic devices,” he notes. “Noise doesn’t worry them either. I’ve heard of setts being made under train tracks and of one instance where a sett was found under the runway of an RAF airbase.”

If you have a particular patch of lawn where the badgers are feeding, you can place a piece of chicken wire on the offending area, pegging it down strongly, and let the grass grow through it. It should deter the badgers, who don’t like getting their claws caught in the wire mesh.

Lawns in good condition, particularly if they are well drained and free of moss, are also less likely to suffer, the Trust says.

The RHS advises replacing damaged turf by re-sowing with grass seed or laying turf in April. They add that improved aeration and drainage of a lawn will reduce the insect larvae burden too. Also the removal of moss and overhanging vegetation which both contribute to damp areas. Generally well drained and well aerated lawns are less attractive to insects as an egg laying site so less larvae result.

A badger’s diet consists of around 50% worms and the rest is made up of leatherjackets, which are larvae of the cranefly, chafer grubs and other insect larvae, the majority of which can be found in lawns and short grass.

In the vegetable patch, they love carrots but I’ve heard they don’t like parsnips or beetroot which you can plant to keep them away, and some gardeners put out peanuts (which they are fond of) in the hope it will distract them from more precious garden crops.

They will also eat flower bulbs, fruits and vegetables, and seasonal availability of these foods will often mean badger activity fluctuates with the time of year – my own badger problem tends to happen in winter and spring, with Reevey says is common.

With all this advice in mind, always seek advice before taking any action. Many badger conservation groups have a lot of experience in dealing with problems caused by badgers and your local group may be able to provide advice.

Some gardening tips and plants that have become ‘deer-licious’

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The weather is practically perfect for gardening enthusiasts in Lincoln county, however, the night-time temperatures are still cold enough to zap any prematurely planted vegetation unless proper precautions are taken.

Maria Lerma with Season’s nursery said it is still too soon to plant most plants due to risk of another hard freeze.

“Last year Ruidoso had a hard freeze on May 25th,” she said. “It is best to wait a few more weeks for most plants at least.”

Lerma said the only plants that can be planted right now and be OK are snapdragons, dianthus and pansies.

Jeanie Secor, with Zia Scapes Landscaping and Nursery, said right now is the best time to be starting seeds and amending, tilling and feeding the soil. Plants should be planted deep in the ground in case of more frost so they have a better chance of surviving. Secore recommends doing the following now.

Soil preparation

• Tilling

• Adding coco or peat moss to help hold in moisture.

• Adding earthworm castings to draw in necessary microbes and other worms, which helps keep soil healthy, turned and from getting packed in.

• Steer manure

Start seeds

• Start seeds; can use a seed starter kit

• Keep seeds near a light source

Protect plants

• Plants not ready to be planted can be put outside during the day but need to be brought in at night.

• Place a cut plastic jug over small plants or use plastic covering if left outside or already planted.

Drought conditions, lack of food and pure curiosity are shaping the local deer’s acquired tastes for plants that were once considered deer resistant.

“Deer resistant does not mean poisonous.” Secor said, “Deer are browsers and like to taste things. Deer also travel in herds, so when one tastes the rest of the herd take a taste as well.”

Secor said the using a deer repellent spray is the best option to keep deer away. Secore said repellent must be sprayed weekly, many repellents are made from natural sources and the smell of mint and peppers tend to deter the deer as well. Lerma said right now the deer are looking for water sources and food, which means they will consume what they need to just to survive. Lerma said there are still a few plants that are holding strong to their classification under “deer resistant.” These plants also are low-water plants meaning they require less water once established.

Deer resistant and low-water plants

• Marigolds (snnual)

Perennials

• Agastache

• DustyMiller

• Lamb’s ear

• Lavender

• Purple coneflower

• Shasta daisy

• Snapdragon

• Valerian — red

• Vinca

• Yarrow

Shrubs

• Apache plume

• Autumn sage

• Butterfly bush

• Barberry

• Cotoneaster

• Red yucca

• Russian sage

Local photographer offers tips to Four Season Garden Club

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John Bamber with the Four Seasons Garden Club

Local photographer John Bamber explains smartphone techniques to Four Seasons Garden Club members during their April meeting.

Posted: Tuesday, April 22, 2014 1:22 pm
|

Updated: 1:26 pm, Tue Apr 22, 2014.

Local photographer offers tips to Four Season Garden Club

With a program entitled “Nature Photography: Photographing Birds, Bees and Butterflies and Goodbye Digital Camera, Hello Smartphone” local professional photographer John Bamber held the attention of the Four Seasons Garden Club on Tuesday, April 8, as he shared his knowledge about the latest technology in his field. Fourteen club members and two guests, most holding smartphones or other cameras, gathered around the garden area in front of the Rhea County Courthouse where the club maintains the plantings. He explained features of the cameras and used tulips that happened to be in bloom to show various shooting techniques. Some of his tips follow:

• Remember that the camera is not in the center of the phone’s back but in the upper left corner, along with the flash and exposure sensor. The camera can be used even when the phone is in lock mode by swiping up on the camera icon on the screen. The phone’s volume up button is the point and shoot button for the camera.

• A square appears in the view screen where the camera will automatically focus; to change the focal point put a finger on another area. There is a tic-tac-toe square grid available for use in composing the shot and aligning horizontals or verticals. The most interesting picture composition uses the “rule of thirds,” placing the subject near the intersection of two grid lines, not in the center, thus causing the eye to move around the image.

• There are edit buttons used to crop, adjust red-eye and auto-enhance the image. There are also filter effects which can be applied either at the time of shooting or afterwards. In HDR (High Dynamic Range) setting, the camera makes three exposures simultaneously and merges them, resulting in better detail in a high contrast scene.

• For wide angle shots hold the phone horizontally. Panorama mode allows the photographer to pan up to 240º around a scene and include the entire area in a single image. Macro, or close-up, mode is ideal for photographing flowers, as Bamber demonstrated by shooting the tulips. When using macro be aware of the background and emphasize the subject by keeping the background out of focus.

• Remember to Save!

Bamber also demonstrated shooting with a “traditional” digital camera which, although not quite as convenient, provides better photo quality, especially in low light situations, because the sensor is larger — reading more detail.

By using the display screen rather than the view finder on a traditional camera, unusual shots can be achieved by positioning the camera on the ground or other support; the photographer can frame the subject without needing to hold the camera near the face.

For extra convenience an Eye-Fi SD storage card can transfer photos wirelessly from the camera to a computer, phone or tablet. The AirDrop app from Apple allows wireless sharing of photos with other phones or iPads nearby.

When the photographers lost the late afternoon light everyone regrouped at Cafe Pascal where Bamber continued his instruction. On his iPad, he showed images of tulips which he had just photographed minutes earlier and transferred via EyeFi. He encouraged everyone to take the time to experiment, try unusual angles, learn from mistakes and have fun. He recommended Instagram as a good social site for the garden club to share photos — it allows for a closed group, if desired.

Reliable print labs include Millers Professional Imaging (mpix.com) and Apple (order directly from iPhoto on the Mac). Bamber has a fondness for traditional film photography and prints and said that a carefully handprinted black and white print will outlast any other print.

Bamber received hearty applause for sharing his expertise with Four Seasons. An assortment of Pascal’s delicious desserts and a brief business meeting brought the evening to a close.

Hostesses for the meeting were Linda Blevins, Kathy Griffin, Katie Trotter and Faith Young.

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Tuesday, April 22, 2014 1:22 pm.

Updated: 1:26 pm.

Tips for a Bountiful Backyard Garden

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Ariel Skelley

Tips for a Bountiful Backyard Garden

Hispanic mother and son gardening

Posted: Sunday, April 20, 2014 11:00 pm
|

Updated: 1:13 pm, Tue Apr 22, 2014.

Tips for a Bountiful Backyard Garden

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(Family Features) The benefits of having your own backyard vegetable garden are plentiful, and can include significant lifestyle impacts, such as healthier eating habits, money saving perks and more.

A Relaxing, Healthful Hobby

Looking for a hobby that allows you to contribute to the health of your family? Take up gardening. Beyond producing nutritious foods, it can help you teach your family about local agriculture, all while basking in the tranquility of the great outdoors. Though starting your own home garden can be intimidating, there are a few simple steps to get you started. Once developed, it can yield fruits and vegetables from early spring and into the fall.

1) Do Some Research

Find out what vegetables grow best in your area and when is the right time to plant and harvest. Many local university extension programs have this information readily available online. For each plant, consider the amount of water needed, how much sunlight is required and if it should be started from seed or a transplanted seedling.

2) Choose a Good Spot

Keep in mind vegetables need at least six hours of sun each day, so plant away from the shade of buildings, trees and shrubs. Planting close to your house may make you more likely to bring your harvest right into your kitchen, and will help you remember to weed and water. Including rain and irrigation, your garden needs at least one inch of water per week. Make sure you can easily access a water supply nearby. Some products, such as an Ames NeverLeak hose reel, provide convenient hose storage and can easily reach all parts of your yard. Be sure to choose a level area of your yard so when watering it will not pool in lower areas.

3) Clear the Area

Use your garden hose or a string to mark the area for proper placement of your garden. Use a sod lifter or garden spade, keeping the area level and removing as little topsoil as possible. Next, use a round point shovel, such as the True Temper True American Round-Point Shovel, to dig into the soil about 12 inches, breaking it up and removing clumps. To encourage proper drainage and escape light freezes in early spring and fall, construct a raised bed by creating a border with wood slats and filling in with soil.

4) Prepare the Soil

Use a rake to create a smooth finish and remove debris or stones on the surface. You may want to add manure, compost or soil additives to provide additional nutrients in the soil.

5) Plant Your Seeds

Determine if you will be starting your plants from seeds or transplanting small seedlings. Be sure to research how much room each plant will need and plot the layout of your garden. Dig V-shaped furrows using a warren hoe or the edge of a garden hoe. Carefully distribute the seeds in the furrows evenly and in accordance with the instructions on the seed packet. Cover the seeds and pat down gently, then water thoroughly.

Use this information for a fruitful harvest this gardening season. For more tips, visit www.AmesTrueTemper.com or www.Facebook.com/TrueTemperTools.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images (Mother and Son)

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Sunday, April 20, 2014 11:00 pm.

Updated: 1:13 pm.

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Home & Garden: Tips for planting trees in Colorado’s Grand Valley

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Trees that develop roots on the surface of the soil can be a major nuisance, especially when they are growing in the lawn. These roots make it very difficult to mow the lawn let alone walk across the it without tripping.

The shallow development of roots is partly genetic, but is mostly due to the oxygen and moisture content of the soil. When the soil oxygen level is insufficient, roots tend to develop closer to the surface than they otherwise would. This problem can be aggravated by watering too often and not giving air sufficient time to move back into the soil.

When a tree is planted it is often “guyed” by driving T-posts into the soil next to the tree, placing a wide nylon strap around the trunk and holding it in place with wire attached to the T-post. The purpose of guying a tree is to keep the root ball from moving. The trunk of the tree must move in order to develop diameter and taper guys should not be needed to keep the tree upright; if the tree is too weak to stand up by itself, it should not be planted. If you use the T-posts and guy technique, these should be removed within one year. Guys left on too long cut into the tissue and can cause tree death. When T-posts have been left too long, roots develop over the wings at the bottom of the post. When the T-posts are pulled out of the ground, roots are torn which is damaging to the tree. T-posts left in longer than a year should be cut off at ground level and not pulled out. If you guy a tree using this method, it should be done no higher than 18 inches from the soil surface.

The best way to guy a tree is to drive stakes through the root ball into the underlying soil to hold the root ball in place. One advantage of guying the tree in this manner is the stakes can be left in place forever. This method also allows the trunk to develop better taper and diameter as the trunk. The stakes are cut off even with the top of the root ball so they don’t protrude, eliminating a tripping hazard.

A lot of the trees and shrubs I have looked at are exhibiting very poor annual growth. The amount of growth a tree or shrub puts on each year is delineated by the circular scars on the shoot. The circular scar is the remnant of the terminal bud that develops for the next year’s growth. These buds are wrapped in protective scales and a scar encircling the stem remains when that bud begins growth the next year. Some of the trees I have looked at exhibit less and less annual growth over the last three or four years. Without adequate growth there are inadequate leaves to produce the food necessary to feed the plant and the tree or shrub suffers accordingly. Fertilizing trees and shrubs is an important maintenance requirement. In most cases one pound of nitrogen applied per one thousand square foot area around the tree or shrub is adequate.

In some instances the growth increment has been so poor I have been recommending two pounds nitrogen per one thousand. When you fertilize trees and shrubs the fertilizer should be watered in or it can be injected into the soil. Most likely your lawn care company or tree care professional can do this for you.

Fertilizing trees and shrubs should be done after leaves start to emerge, but no later than Aug. 1-15. To ensure your trees and shrubs are getting the appropriate fertilizer elements, ask your tree or lawn care company if they can do a soil test for you. Some companies offer soil testing to their customers to ensure your lawn, trees, shrubs, and other plants in your landscape are receiving the nutrients they require.

GJ Free Press columnist Dr. Curtis E. Swift is a retired horticulture agent with the Colorado State University Extension. Reach him at Curtis.Swift@alumni.colostate.edu, 970-778-7866 or check out his blog at http://SwiftsGardeningBlog.blogspot.com. He owns Swift Horticultural Consulting and High Altitude Lavender.

State landscape panel honors Clarence firm for Lockport community garden …

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LOCKPORT – Richard M. Tedeschi, owner of Jacrist Gardening Services, the Clarence firm that helped design the community garden on Washburn Street in Lockport last year, said last week that the firm’s efforts have brought it a statewide award.

Tedeschi said the New York State Nursery and Landscape Association has awarded Jacrist its Environmental Beautification Award for 2014 in the category of commercial properties under $25,000 for the Washburn Street garden.

Tedeschi also is the executive director of Imagine Community Gardens, a not-for-profit organization that converted three vacant lots into a vegetable garden.

The 25 gardening plots each produced at least $300 worth of produce.

“What an absolute honor it is to have had a part in transforming these city lots into a site residents can be proud of and that has had such a positive impact in their lives and the surrounding neighborhood,” Tedeschi said.

The city has approved a second garden for this year at Ontario and Hawley streets.

Youth to pitch business ideas

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Hamilton Spectator

Inner-city youth eager to start their own businesses will make their pitches Wednesday.

Mentors in Greater Hamilton Teaching Youth (MIGHTY) is a partnership between the Industry-Education Council of Hamilton and Innovation Factory.

About a dozen students from Cathedral High School, Parkview, Delta and the Strengthening Hamilton Aboriginal Youth program will pitch their business concepts to a panel of judges.

Among the business ideas are photography services, an organic body scrub, landscaping and a mobile car-detailing operation.

The panel will make a choice and attendees at the by-invitation event will also make a people’s choice, said Cesare DiDonato, executive director of the IEC. The hope is that more community members will offer mentorship to the students, he said.

During about 13 weeks of the program, participants were taught the basics of starting their own business through a series of workshops with alumni of McMaster, Mohawk and Redeemer and IEC staff.

All the participants have applied to the provincial government’s Summer Company program.

This was the first year for the program, which is meant to encourage inner-city youth to explore entrepreneurship as a viable career option. The IEC has received provincial funding to run the program again next year.

The Hamilton Spectator

South Bend City Cemetery preservation project gaining momentum – WSBT

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There’s a renewed effort to clean up South Bend’s City Cemetery, one of the most historic sites in Michiana.

The headstones are engraved with familiar names, like Studebaker, Sample, and Colfax, people who helped create the South Bend we know today.

But look closer and you might think their contributions have been forgotten.

Many headstones are toppled over and parts of the cemetery are in disrepair, but a growing group of volunteers, genealogy geeks, history buffs, and people who just want to see a change are hammering out a plan to restore dignity to City Cemetery.

They have a lot of work to do as evidenced when someone asked during a preservation project group meeting Tuesday night if the cemetery is even safe to visit.

“I think you need to be cautious,” said Steve Nemeth, who oversees the cemetery for the South Bend Parks Dept., “I would recommend you go with another person, but I don’t think it’s horrible.”

Their goal is to someday treat the space like a park. Yes there are graves, but it’s one of the larger green-spaces in town.

They envision new trails, plaques, benches, and nicer landscaping, among other ideas.

“It will help revitalize that area,” said Oliver Davis, South Bend Common Council member, “using the graveyard to bring back life to the whole area is a very interesting concept, but it really does.”

Right now they’re just trying to figure out what needs to be done and how much it’ll cost.

Ultimately much of the work will fall on the shoulders of volunteers and donors who see so much potential in South Bend’s past.

What’s Appening: iScape

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BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) –

Want to do some new landscaping around your home? The landscaping design app iScape can help.

Here’s how it works: You simply take a picture of your house or yard. The app then lets you place pictures of various plants, trees or landscaping features on top of your own picture.

You can see what all your landscape ideas would look like before you ever dig a hole or even buy a plant. The lite version of iScape is free for Apple and Android devices.

If you like it, you can buy additional packages that give you more options.