To prevent unpredictable weather mucking up your plans, don’t slavishly
follow the calendar for each sowing. Instead, time the follow-on sowing when
the seedlings of the previous sowing are just emerging.

More gardening ideas from this series:

How to grow your own
fresh flavours

Garden
structures: how to create arches and pergolas

Make
your garden patio an ideal retreat

Unearth
Your Summer Garden homepage

Waitrose Garden:

For even more ideas and tips, as well as advice on how to get the most from
your crops, visit waitrosegarden.com

W e have been getting a lot of questions about vegetable gardens lately. If your garden is not doing so well, bring in a sample or perhaps the answers below may help.

Q: My tomatoes look horrible with leaf spots, distorted leaves and some leaves have only the main vein left.

A: The average tomato cannot tolerate Florida summers. The heat keeps the flowers from forming into fruit. Cherry tomatoes may survive the heat, and other cultivars are being developed but the cultivars you grew up north usually will not survive. Frequent rains will also cause fruit that does set to swell and crack, allowing rot to set in and ruin the fruit.

The high temperatures and humidity also cause tomatoes to get leaf diseases that cause spotting, browning and leaf drop. There is little you can do to prevent this without frequent fungicide applications. Leaving space between plants and training the vines to allow good air circulation will help the leaves to dry quickly when wet and discourage leaf diseases.

You can prune tomatoes to thin the number of branches and allow better air circulation but be sure you have an indeterminate cultivar. Indeterminate means it will keep growing taller and flowering/fruiting as long as conditions for growth are right. Determinate means that it will stop growing and flowering after a certain period. “Patio” cultivars are often determinate because they are selected to be small enough to fit easily on a patio.

Distorted leaves are probably caused by leaf miners. The larvae of these insects tunnel through the middle of the leaves, leaving whitish tunnel lines that cause the leaves to curl and be distorted. Because the insect is protected by the leaf, there are no contact insecticides that can be used and a systemic insecticide would not be safe on a food crop. There are beneficial insects that will kill the leaf miners, so it is best to encourage a diversity of insects in the vegetable garden.

If your tomato plant is looking like it only has stems left on it, you have a caterpillar eating the leaves. The tomato hornworm looks so much like a tomato stem that it is hard to find on the plant. When you start to see stems and no leaves you need to carefully check the whole plant and pick off and destroy any caterpillars before they eat all the leaves. An insecticide dust can be used, but it is most effective when the caterpillar is small. Always follow label directions.

Q: My sweet potatoes and beans have holes all through the leaves. How can I stop this?

A: There are many insects that eat holes in leaves. Plants can stand to have bits of the leaves removed and still thrive and produce a good crop. It may look unsightly to you, but the plant is still fine, and using too many pesticides to try and keep everything looking perfect may cause other unforeseen problems with beneficial insects. Unless the leaf canopy is seriously affected (greater than 50 percent), you are probably better off to live and let live.

Q: I bought some beautiful ornamental sweet potatoes. Will I still be able to eat the tubers?

A: The tubers on the ornamental sweet potatoes are edible, but they won’t taste very good. The plants have been selected for their good looks, not their good taste. When the plants die back in the winter, the tubers will remain unless dug out, and regrow in the spring, but may or may not be the same ornamental color.

Q: Clouds of small white moths fly up when I brush the foliage of my eggplants. What are they and are they a problem?

A: It sounds like whitefly. Whiteflies attack many plants. These pests will suck the sap from the plant, causing the plant to be less vigorous, but more importantly they transmit diseases. The adults resemble small whitish moths, and the immature insects look like clear greenish scales on the undersides of the leaves.

My favorite control in the vegetable garden is sticky yellow traps. The insects are attracted to yellow and the sticky coating catches them. You can purchase ready-made traps, or make your own with a yellow plastic picnic plate coated with Tanglefoot (a commercial brand of sticky goo) or sprayed with a thin coating of STP oil treatment. Keep it a thin coating — too much and it will run off.

Hang the traps at canopy level and within the leaf canopy to catch the whitefly as they fly around. You will need to change the traps frequently because they are not effective when covered.

Visit the Discovery Gardens and our plant clinic with your plant problems and questions from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays, at the ag center, 1951 Woodlea Road, Tavares.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Thrillers, fillers and spillers.

No, we’re not talking about the latest horror flick — those words actually refer to plants.

Susie Bachman from Bachman’s Floral explains how they will help to make the perfect container garden.

First, your container needs drainage, so make sure a couple holes can let the water flow through. Then, toss in good potting soil.

The thriller goes in the back and is the statement. Filler goes around the edge, and then you want a spiller that cascades over the side of the pot and adds flair.

Get Daily discounts and offers on sporting events, plays, concerts, museums and other events around town

Our unusually cool spring weather has slowed down our gardens a bit, but lawns are looking pretty good. However, once hot weather arrives, a few problems probably will start appearing. Here are some tips on how to keep your summer lawn healthy and looking good:

When the temperatures climb, dry spots in lawns often appear. Investigate the causes rather than increase the frequency of your watering. Possible causes include poor sprinkler coverage, compacted soil, buried objects like rocks or construction waste, or hydrophobic conditions.

Sprinklers: To check coverage, place empty straight-sided cans inside and outside of the dry spot. Run the sprinklers for a set amount of time, and then compare the amount of water in the cans. If there is less water, determine the cause and fix it.

Soil: Stick a long screwdriver into the soil to check for compaction and buried objects. If compaction is a problem, aerate the area with core aerating equipment.
Hydrophobic: It means the lawn or soil resists wetting. This can be caused by excessive thatch that has dried out or a soil that is hydrophobic. Check for thatch. If the thatch is greater than one-half inch think, power rake next spring.

To help water penetrate in areas of the lawn that are resisting wetting, core aerate to physically open the grass and soil. Then apply a horticultural wetting agent, which is a nonionic surfactant chemical that breaks the surface tension of water and helps the water penetrate the hydrophobic thatch or soil.

Monterey Lawn Garden sells a wetting agent mixed with fertilizer for lawns called Perc-O-Late Plus. Scotts company offers Lawn Builder and Wetting Agent, which also has fertilizer and a wetting agent.

Mowing: With warmer weather, a lawn won’t grow as fast as earlier in the season. It’s still important to mow regularly at the recommended height, which, for bluegrass (or mixes with bluegrass) lawns in our area, is 2 to 2.5 inches. It’s also important to mow using a sharp mower blade.

When you don’t mow often, you will “scalp” your lawn. Scalping is the result of removing more than one-third of the grass height. This injures the grass and causes it to use stored food reserves for new growth. Repeated scalping weakens grass, leading to thinning grass and invading weeds.

When a dull mower blade is used, it tends to shred the tips of the grass. If the blade is dull, the lawn probably will have a whitish cast to it. This is aesthetically unpleasing and damages the grass, making it susceptible to drought and disease.

Another cornerstone to keeping a lawn healthy is watering correctly and encouraging deep roots — but that’s a topic for another day.

— Marianne C. Ophardt is a horticulturist for Washington State University Benton County Extension.

Vegetables to plant in June: cantaloupe, cucuzza, eggplant, luffa, okra, peanuts, hot peppers, pumpkin, Southern peas, sweet potato (slips), watermelons and heat-tolerant tomatoes. Although squash and cucumbers can be planted in June and July, production is difficult during midsummer due to pest problems.

Safety is important when mowing your lawn: Don’t use a power lawn mower when children are in the yard, even if they are well away from you. Mowers can throw objects considerable distances with great force, even into neighbors’ yards.

Prepare trees for hurricane season: Prune all weak, rotting or dead branches. Remove dead or rotten trees that might blow over in high winds.

Heat stroke isn’t fun: Adjust your gardening schedule to take advantage of cooler times of day. You know the drill, but it never hurts to have a reminder: Wear a wide brim hat, apply sunscreen often and don’t forget the mosquito repellent. Remember to drink plenty of water before, during and after you work.

Your dishwasher, sink drain and garbage disposal do the major dirty work in your kitchen, and you can keep them smelling fresh and running efficiently with a few easy steps.

If there are spots or stuck-on grime on the dishes when they come out of the washer, or if the sink has an unpleasant odor even after you clean it and run the disposal, it means these hard-working appliances may need extra attention.

“Dishwashers and drains battle kitchen waste and activity daily, which can take a toll on the appearance and performance if not cleaned correctly,” said Chris Salatino with Kenmore Major Appliances.

DISHWASHERS

Electric dishwashers have a filtration system that requires regular cleaning, especially if you don’t scrape or pre-rinse dishes.

“The maintenance on a dishwasher depends on how you treat it,” says John DeSilvia, host of DIY Network’s Rescue My Renovation.

If you’re not a pre-rinser, he recommends cleaning the filter once a month. Just look at the bottom of your dishwasher, find and remove your filter, then scrub away debris with a soft brush. Rinse and reinstall.

“Don’t be scared, it’s really easy,” says DeSilvia.

If in doubt, check your owner’s manual on how to find and remove the filter. Can’t find the instructions? Log on to your manufacturer’s website. Or online tutorials at sites such as DIYNetwork.com and YouTube.com can help you through the process.

The interior of your dishwasher may also appear filmy at times. To get rid of that buildup, Salatino advises waiting until the washer has finished a cycle and cooled. Then make a paste with powdered detergent or use liquid detergent on a damp sponge to wipe away mineral deposits. Follow up by running a normal cycle.

If you’re in a hard water area and wiping with detergent doesn’t remove all the film, run a normal cycle with 2 cups of white vinegar in an upright glass on the lower rack. Salatino advises turning off the “heated dry” option during the cycle.

There also are commercial cleaners marketed especially for mineral buildup in dishwashers.

Consumer Reports recommends replacing worn or rusted dish racks, and using care when loading dishes and silverware so you don’t damage spray arms. Inspect the arms to make sure they aren’t clogged with debris, which could affect water pressure. Use pipe cleaners to dislodge blockages.

For cleaning the outside of your dishwasher, Salatino says all you need is a soft, damp cloth or sponge and mild detergent. If you’ve got a stainless steel cover, you’ll need a special cleanser.

SUPER SUDS

Phosphates, which help control water hardness, were eliminated from dishwater detergents a few years ago over pollution concerns. Since then, some consumers have complained that dishes don’t seem as clean.

Lucinda Ottusch, with Whirlpool’s Institute of Kitchen Science, says one mistake people make is buying cheap detergent. She says the all-in-one packets by name-brand companies really do help your dishwasher perform best.

She also recommends a rinse aid, which promotes drying by allowing the water to sheet off dishes.

Loading your dishwasher properly also can aid cleaning. Find tips at www.instituteofkitchenscience.com/kitchen-101/dishwashers

And, you don’t have to wait until the dishwasher is full to run a cycle. Ottusch says many newer models sense the size of a load and how dirty the dishes are, and work accordingly.

Tony Fulmer

Summer Flowering Tropicals
June 13, 6:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
June 14,10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Chalet Landscape, Nursery Garden Center
3132 Lake Ave.
Wilmette
www.ChaletNursery.com

Tony’s Tips:

Now’s the time to remove spent flowers from bulbs that bloomed earlier this year. Keep the foliage and fertilize to ensure even better blooms next year.

Got slugs? Apply earth-friendly baits to stop slug damage on Hostas and other plants.

If you’re having problems with Pachysandras, it could be damage from last year’s drought. Fertilize lightly and make sure they’re getting enough water now.

Many gardeners are finding that their flowers and plants were damaged from this season’s cold temperatures. If it’s severe enough, plants should be replaced now.

It’s fruit and vegetable time, and there’s nothing better than a lunch picked straight from the garden. 

It’s also a very healthy choice. Blogger Julie Schwartz wrote recently that Americans have been advised for years that fruit contains too much sugar — and yet we find excuses to splurge on cake and ice cream! Now is the time to make the change to healthy — and delicious — habits. Read the rest of her blog here.

Now you know what you should be doing, but if you have a family you know that encouraging kids to make healthy choices can be challenging. Blogger Jada Edwards shared a few tricks recently on getting the whole family on the same page. According to Edwards, getting kids involved in growing the food instantly creates the desire to eat it! Read the rest of her blog here.

If you struggle with pests in your yard or garden, did you know that cornmeal will actually get rid of ants? Amazing, right? Blogger Kasey Hurst has a few tips on being ant-free in the great outdoors. 

If you’re looking for some recipes that incorporate fresh fruits and veggies, try these:

• Veggie Grits Casserole with Mesquite Smoked Spicy Pork Chops
• Soft Serve Strawberry and Pistachio Ice Cream

Finally, if you don’t have a garden of your own or a bed in a community garden, stop by Washington Farms for some fresh-from-the-farm strawberries! Read more here from food blogger Melissa Crane. 

If you have tips, recipes or anything else garden-related you would like to share, start your own blog! It’s quick and easy. 

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