Can spring be far behind when, just like the robins singing their "cherrily, cheerily," the telephones are ringing their own song at the Master Gardener desk at the Extension Office? As the early spring flowers such as snow drops and crocus raise their brave little heads, gardening questions are on the rise.

One of the questions we received was from a homeowner who was concerned about an expanding "brown patch" in the lawn. Lawn problems may be due to many causes, ranging from fertilizing, water, soil, mowing or even the wrong grass for the location. Eliminating possible causes is a must for finding the solution.

The sample that was brought in had been very carefully pulled from the soil with roots intact. Luckily for this homeowner, he didn't have a fatal lawn disease, but an encounter with zoysiagrass, which is a grass that spreads rapidly, browns early fall and is late turning green in the spring. It is low growing, very dense and produces much thatch. Zoysiagrass is a warm season grass and remains dormant for long periods, making lawns in this area unattractive with "brown patches".

The most common turf grasses in this area of the Midwest are Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass and fescue. Preparation of the soil and learning the varieties of grass that will work well in your area help improve the overall appearance of your lawn.

Another question we received concerned "when" and "how" to fertilize a lawn. Grasses, especially under shade trees, may have to fight for nourishment or much needed sunlight. Soil testing is a good way to help make decisions regarding fertilizing. Too much fertilizer is as damaging to turf as too little. The goal is to have an attractive lawn that is healthy and able to tolerate the circumstances of its use.

If your lawn does require fertilizing, consider the minerals needed for growth and development, the natural soil fertility and the type of fertilizer. Read the label carefully and follow the directions. Adding too much may injure the grass and make the lawn susceptible to other problems or disease. Other factors to consider when fertilizing is the type or species of grass, the environmental conditions and the time schedule for applying the fertilizer.

If the lawn has too much shade, it may be necessary to trim the tree to allow as much sunlight as possible to reach the soil. Shade tolerant grasses such as the fescues should be used. Less fertilizer is required in shaded areas. Too much nitrogen can damage a shaded lawn. Shade loving weeds compete with grasses and it might be wiser to consider growncovers.

Spring is a perfect time to take stock of lawns and gardens.

- Maxi Fitzjarrald

Moultrie-Douglas Extension Office

Cost is $2 per session

Summer Flowering Bulbs - April 18 at 1 p.m. or April 20 at 7 p.m.

Expand your garden pallet with summer-blooming bulbs like Asiatic lilies, oriental lilies and crocosmia.

Uncommon, Unusual and Underrated Plants - May 2 at 1 p.m. or May 4 at 7 p.m.

Tired of burning bush and ash trees? Try something different like a fothergilla or hepticodium. Learn how to add interest to your landscape with these unusual plants.

Shade Gardening - May 16 at 1 p.m. or May 18 at 7 p.m.

Learn about the many different trees, shrubs, flowers, vegetables and grasses that have adapted to shade conditions.

Please call our office at 543-3755 to register.

Do you like to watch birds but they just aren't coming to your feeders? Try tempting their taste buds with their favorite food.

Sunflower Seeds

This seed is at the top of a birds wish list. Black oily, white striped or medium cracked sunflower seeds are all relished by finches, chickadees, nuthatches, grosbeaks, cardinals, jays and some types of woodpeckers. However the bully birds, such as the starlings, blackbirds and grackles like sunflowers too! To keep these guys away, use feeders that allow only the small birds to enter or perch at the feeder.

Nyjer Seed (Thistle)

If you love finches, this is your seed. It is a tiny black seed that some people call thistle. It is best served in a special tube feeder that has tiny ports (holes) to keep the seeds from pouring out. Chickadees also love thistle.

Safflower Seeds

Cardinals, grosbeaks, mourning doves and house finches enjoy this seed. Best of all, squirrels do not like safflower seeds.

Suet Cakes

Birds that eat suet cakes are woodpeckers, nut hatches, chickadees and titmice. Pure suet is best as birds eat it to get energy, so any added extras are useless.

Wild Birdseed Mixes

It's usually just a mix of millet, cracked corn and very few sunflower seeds. The problem with this seed is that it usually attracts undesirable birds and night critters such as rats and raccoons.

To improve your chances of seeing more birds in your feeders and less pests, why not pick up the following items:

10 lb bag of sunflower seed

5 lb bag of nyjer seed

1 suet cake and cage

1 hopper feeder with squirrel baffle

1 birdseed tube feeder

1 nyjer seed tube feeder

- Vicki Clark, Master Gardener

Asparagus is a hardy perennial. It is the only common vegetable that grows wild along roadsides and railroad tracks over a large part of the country. Although establishing a good asparagus bed requires considerable work, your efforts will be rewarded. A well-planned bed can last from 20 to 30 years. For this reason, asparagus should be planted at the side or end of the garden, where it will not be disturbed by normal garden cultivation. Asparagus is one of the first vegetables ready to harvest in the spring. Asparagus is native to the Mediterranean and was eaten by the ancient Greeks. To learn more on growing asparagus and other vegetables, visit: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/asparagus1.html

From the Extension website: Watch Your Garden Grow

Flowers, Herbs, Vegetables and Small Fruits

March

• Even if your garden soil is not dry enough for planting, peas are an exception. Just poke the peas in the ground. It's properly called "mudding in."
• Prune your bramble fruits and grapes now. Be sure to remove all dead and diseased wood.
• Start more seeds indoors. After seeds have sprouted, remove any covers to allow better ventilation and avoid damping-off.
• Plow and till the vegetable garden as soon as the soil is dry enough. Never work wet ground. You turn the soil into brick.
• Cut perennial ornamental grasses that have stood all winter to four to six inches before the new shoots emerge.
• Put wire mesh covers around the flowers and leaves of your emerging spring bulbs. This will protect against rabbits, and if fastened down well, against deer.
• Clean up debris from your asparagus and rhubarb beds before the plants emerge. Apply a light dressing of balanced fertilizer and compost around the plants.
• As soon as they begin to show new growth, put a top dressing of compost and balanced fertilizer on your perennial flowers.

April

• Pull the early weeds before they grow and while the soil is soft.
• Sow seeds of beets, carrots, radishes, New Zealand spinach, leaf lettuce, peas and turnips directly in the garden.
• Start cucumbers, cantaloupe, summer squash and watermelons in peat pots indoors for transplanting later in the garden.
• Asparagus and rhubarb, our only perennial garden vegetables, will be ready for first picking this month.
• Sow marigold seeds directly where you will want them to grow in your flowerbeds. Sow a bit heavily and thin later.
• Remove winter mulches from roses and prune promptly. Fertilize established roses once growth is two inches long.
• When crabapples are in bloom, hardy annuals may be transplanted outdoors.
• Plant some early green beans and summer squash and remove mulch from your strawberries.

Lawn, Shrubs, Trees and Tree Fruits

March

• Spray fruit trees with dormant oil to control insects. This must be applied when the temperature will stay above 33°F for 24 hours.
• Prune shade trees if necessary. Elms and oaks should be pruned only during the dormant season.
• Over-seed thin spots and bare patches in the lawn.
• Trees, shrubs and perennials may be planted as they become available.

April

• Apply pre-emergent crabgrass killer when forsythias are in bloom.
• Shrubs and trees best planted or transplanted in spring rather than fall include butterfly bush, dogwood, Rose of Sharon, Black gum (Nyssa), redbud, magnolia, tulip poplar, birch, ginkgo, hawthorn and most oaks.
• Study your landscape for gaps that could be nicely filled with bulbs. Mark these spots carefully and make a note to order bulbs next August.
• Ground covers can be mowed to remove winterburn and tidy plants up. Raise mowers to their highest settings. Fertilize and water to encourage rapid regrowth.
• Protect bees and other pollinating insects. Do not spray insecticides on fruit or ornamental trees that are blooming.

March 25 - Potpourri of Gardening, Decatur, IL (Fee $10)

Pre-enrollment is required for this one-day workshop featuring topics on growing grapes, herbs, hardscapes, landscaping, and organic waste. Contact the U of I Extension Macon Unit for more details at 877-6042.

March 26 - Chasing the MAGIC of Spring, Danville Area Community College (Fee $30)

Enjoy locally famous speakers such as Judie Fair for a day of gardening and landscaping topics. Lunch and vendors will be available. Contact: (217)477-0603 for registration

March 26 & 27 - WCIA Home & Garden Show, Assembly Hall, Champaign, IL

140 home and garden exhibitors will be present along with prizes and a grand prize giveaway. Event runs Saturday and Sunday.

April 1-2 - Prairie Gardens Spring Open House, Champaign, IL

Enjoy your choice of 16 seminars and many guest speakers at this two-day event. Prizes will also be given away and food sampling will be available. Pre-registration is required to attend seminars and registration will be taken on a first-come basis at the Prairie Gardens information center.

April 13 - Gardening is More than just Planting Seeds, Edgar County Fairgrounds, Paris (Fee: $3)

Classes include: "What's new in the garden?", "Digital Photography", and "Artistry of Gourds".

Contact Edgar County Master Gardeners at 217/465-8585 to register.

May 27 - Butterflies and Blossoms Bus Trip, Chesterfield, MO (Fee $60)

Sponsored by the Macon County Conservation District, this bus trip will travel to Chesterfield, MO to visit the Butterfly House and then on to the St. Louis Botanical Gardens. For more info, please call 423-7708.

May 28-29 - 18th Annual Whiteside Garden Rumble, Charleston, IL (Admission: $6)

Numerous speakers and vendors plus a leisurely tour of a unique 5-acre garden highlight this event, sponsored by the Coles County Historical Society. Contact: Dan Hockman at 217/345-3171 for more info and directions.

There are currently seven active Master Gardeners that serve Moultrie and Douglas counties. They are:

Vicki Clark of Arcola, Jo Derby of Newman, Maxi Fitzjarrald of Arthur, Pat Jurgens of Arthur, Winona Saathoff of Arthur, Ann Short of Sullivan and Lawrence "Slats" Trower of Arthur.

Others who volunteer their time and expertise with the master gardener program are Doris Atteberry of Arcola, Marny Elliott of Lovington, and Bill Rich of Sullivan.

Visit our website at http://web.aces.uiuc.edu/moultriedouglas/hort_env.html . You'll find lots of seasonal gardening information. Here are just some of the topics you can read about:

• Illinois Tree Selections - Buying a tree is a major investment. Here's help in choosing the best tree for your location.
• Lawn Challenge - Test your lawn care knowledge in this interactive eight lesson self-study course.
• Lawn Talk - Learn what grass varieties are best for your lawn, how to deal with shady areas, when to fertilize your lawn & more!
• Soil Testing - Need to test your soil? This site provides locations of soil testing labs.

Do you know that there is no such think as a "Shamrock" plant? The word shamrock comes from the Irish word, seamrog, meaning "little clover". What is the Original Irish Shamrock? Here is what some respected authorities have to say:

The true Irish Shamrock, as identified by Nathaniel Colgan, c. 1893, is a clover. It is not one of any or many clovers, it is one species, collected from a majority of counties at that time and with the exception of a very few plants, the majority were Trifolium repens or a form of the plant Whiteclover also known as Dutch Clover.

White clover (T.repens L.) in particular was held in high esteem by the early Celts of Wales as a charm against evil spirits. Saint Patrick used the plant to illustrate the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Shamrocks have been considered by the Irish to be good luck symbols since the earliest times.

Identifying a real four-leaf clover is that the fourth leaf is usually smaller than the other three leafs.

The leaves symbolize faith, hope, love and luck.

You can preserve a four-leaf clover by pressing the clover between pieces of paper placed in a book, or you can press it between wax paper and go over it gently with an iron. You may also seal the leaf in a small jar of alcohol or attach clear adhesive laminate over it and affix it to a card.

Submitted by Vicki Clark, Moultrie-Douglas Master Gardener

- Vicki Clark