September 26, 2007
A couple of Reminders
Don't forget, this Saturday, Sept 29 is the Lake County Extension Foundation's Fall Gardening Festival. This is a great opportunity to shop for quality bulbs and fall plants. The Lake County Extension Foundation helps to support the programs of University of Illinois Extension.
The deadline to turn in your application for the 2008 Master Gardener training is October 9. See the 8/27 blog entry for more information or call me at (847) 223-8627 to receive an application.
Posted by Sharon Yiesla at 4:20 PM | Permalink |
September 25, 2007
Finally... a little rain
We are finally getting a little rain today in Lake County; the stress bring on the word little. Some of the rain showers are moving through the area quickly and may be giving us less rain than we think.
The best way to know how much rain you got in your area is to have a rain gauge in the yard. This is an inexpensive tool to help monitor rainfall. As an example, a good rainstorm just passed through Grayslake a little while ago. After the storm passed I went out to check the rain gauge. We only got four tenths of an inch; not nearly enough considering that we haven't had any rain in about 2 weeks.
If you don't already have a rain gauge, invest in one. Knowing how much rain is coming down each week can help you use water more wisely in the garden. Ideally, we would like about 1 inch per week. If we get less than that, then it is time to think about some additional water.
Posted by Sharon Yiesla at 2:49 PM | Permalink |
September 19, 2007
A Better-looking Fall Garden
Ever notice that the garden starts to look a little tired about this time of year? There is a way to make it look a little fresher, while making fall garden clean up a little less tedious. Look at the garden closely. Notice that many plants still look great, while a few of them are turning brown or looking tattered. Go into the garden 2-3 times a week and cut down the things that don't look great anymore. Because it is usually just a few plants that have gone downhill, each trip to the garden will take only a short amount of time. Removing the tired plants will make the garden, as a whole, look better. This also eliminates the need to set aside a large chunk of time to cut back the perennial garden in fall, because you did it in smaller chunks over a longer period of time.
I do this in my own garden as well as at the demonstration gardens at the Extension office. My schedule is very busy and this method allows me to do small amounts of work that really make an impact. It is also a good way to take a break from my computer and the work piled up on my desk.
Give it a try and keep your garden looking better throughout the fall.
Posted by Sharon Yiesla at 2:45 PM | Permalink |
September 10, 2007
Help for Gardeners, Help from Gardeners
Help for Gardeners
As we enter the late part of the growing season, gardeners may still find themselves with gardening questions. The Master Gardeners in the Lake County office are still available to help with gardening advice. You can call them Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The MG information service will be open during these hours through the end of October. The phone number is (847) 223-8627. Reduced hours begin Nov 5 and I will announce those in a later posting on this blog.
Help from Gardeners
As I announced in the Aug 27 entry for this blog, we are now accepting applications for the 2008 Master Gardener training. This is a chance for gardeners to learn more and then share their knowledge with others by volunteering for the Extension office. See the Aug 27 entry for full details.
Posted by Sharon Yiesla at 4:13 PM | Permalink |
September 5, 2007
The Gardening Season is NOT over Yet
It has been a tough summer with lots of hot days and way too much rain in August. The cicadas have visited, the mosquitoes are attacking in record numbers and itch mites are dropping from the trees on to unsuspecting gardeners. It makes you want to go inside and escape from nature.
It's really too early to give up. We could still be gardening for at least another six to eight weeks. Late summer and fall are good times to install new landscape plants. Even though the air temperatures will soon cool off, the soil temperatures don't. That allows for good rooting, so think about planting trees, shrubs and perennials now (wait until spring to plant evergreens and roses).
Wake up the garden with some color from mums, pansies and flowering cabbage, all available at local garden centers. These plants will help freshen up the look of our late season gardens.
This is also the time to plant spring flowering bulbs (see Aug 30 entry). Gardeners will always plant bulbs with the knowledge that spring brings a new gardening season!
Even if you don't plan to install any new plants right now, you can still spruce up the garden by deadheading annuals, getting rid of weeds and cutting back perennials that look less than sensational. Even these regular maintenance items can make a big difference in the look of the garden.
So spray on the repellant and head back outside. The pleasure of gardening awaits you.
Posted by Sharon Yiesla at 3:23 PM | Permalink |
