Do not fertilize trees at this time as the fertilizer can delay dormancy. Semi-dormant trees can suffer severe winter damage if cold weather arrives early.

To prevent damage from maggots on apple trees, spray the fruit and leaves every two weeks with an insecticide.

Japanese beetles make their appearance in July. If you have just a few, pick them off by hand. It you have many, spray the plant with Sevin. Spray in early evening after the bees have "retired for the day", so that the bees will not be harmed.

We have had a moderate drought and are many inches behind in rainfall for the year. Be sure to water your established trees with at least an inch of water per week...one good soaking is best. While your trees may not look stressed, they will be affected by this dry spring and perhaps will be more subject to disease.

Shrubs don't need any more fertilizer as they have finished most of their growing for the year.

Blueberries and raspberries are ready for harvesting . Pick them as soon as they are ripe before the birds get them. You can also cover the shrubs with netting to keep the birds from eating the berries.

Trim yews and junipers.

July is not a good time to plant shrubs as they can suffer from the heat and have a tough time making new roots.

Roses are woody plants, but the flowers and leaves are mostly water. Lacking enough water, roses become hardened off–flowering decreases and the flowers become smaller. Make sure your established roses receive an inch of water per week.

Roses resist certain diseases, repair injuries more quickly, and produce more flowers if they are kept growing vigorously. In addition to watering them, feed them again this month with a granular 10-15-10 or 10-10-10 (1 handful per plant) or 2 cups of Miracle Gro solution (1T Miracle Gro per gallon of water).

Roses which are subject to Black spot, fungus, and insects, can now be protected with a three in one drench from Bayer. It is supposed to last 6 weeks. If your roses already have Black spot, it may not work as well...but it is worth a try.

Your perennial plants that are not yet in bloom can stand another shot of fertilizer. Apply a high phosphorus fertilizer such as 10-30-10 or 10-15-10 at 1 pount per 100 square feet.

Cut back yarrow, columbine , dianthus, catmint and they may rebloom. Removing spent blooms of your clematis vine may produce more blooms in August or September. Cutting back the foliage and blooms of those perennials that have bloomed makes a much neater plant and garden. Shear your Alchemia Mollis, and in two weeks you will have a fresh set of leaves. Always remember to water well those plants that you prune heavily as an extra drink makes new growth easier.

About July 15, plant zucchini and cucumbers for fall harvesting.

Spray, dust and pick off cucumber beetles and squash borers on summer squash, cucumbers, and melons. Watch for white cabbage butterflies; spray with BT to control the larvae.

Hostas respond better to water than to fertilizer–so keep your hostas well watered.

- Kathy Crawford

By mid-summer, most herbs have grown sufficiently to provide an ample supply for fresh use. In order not to waste any of this readily available bounty, July is a good time to harvest herbs for drying so that they can be used for that added touch in the winter stew.

The harvesting process is simple. Select plants that are just ready to bloom - this is when they have their best flavor. Wash the plants with a garden hose the day before you plan to harvest them. This removes the majority of debris such as dirt and insects that might be clinging to the plants. The next day, after the moisture has dried from the plants but before the sun's heat begins to naturally release the oils from them, cut the stems using either scissors or pruning shears. You can remove one-half to two-thirds of the plant's stem. This pruning process will stimulate the plant to put forth new growth, thereby allowing you to repeat this harvest process later in the summer.

Bunch the cut stalks together, about a dozen stalks at a time depending on thickness, and tie them with string or a rubber band. Hang them upside-down in a warm and relatively dark location with good air circulation. Rafters of a garage work well. The leaves are dry when they easily crumble between your fingers, usually in one to two weeks depending on the herb. Store the dry crumbled herbs in tightly closed containers, preferably in the dark on your pantry shelf or in a dark colored bottle. They are now ready to use at any time to add zip and zest to your everyday cooking.

Whiteflies can be a serious pest on plants grown indoors. These tiny insects look like miniature white moths and can congregate in large numbers on the undersides of leaves where they suck plant sap. The larvae are particularly damaging to the plant. Whiteflies are attracted by the color yellow. One easy way to control them is to put out yellow cards covered with a sticky substance. You can buy such commercial traps, but the sticky substance on these tends to dry out quickly and then the card is no longer effective. To make a re-useable trap take an old pane of glass and spray one side with bright yellow paint. When the paint is dry, spread a very thin coat of motor oil on the unpainted side. Now place the piece of glass with the oil side up near infested plants. The Whiteflies attracted by the yellow color will get stuck in the oil. Every month or so, wipe the glass clean and apply a fresh coat of oil.

Bonsai Club - Meetings are changed. I will contact anyone who contacts me. Call Lee Tolzdorf at 347-7380 for info.

Herb Guild - Meetings held at the Womens Club, 301 N. Madison, Peoria
Info? Call Kris Plunkett, VP, Peoria Herb Guild, 382-1067

Orchid Society Meetings- Every first Sun. at 1:30 pm at the Lakeview Museum. Contact Jane Jones, 383-4022 or Elliot/Pam Fox, 689-0733.

Peoria Evening Garden Club - Call Kris Plunkett, Peoria Evening Garden Club, 382-1067 for details.

Peoria Garden Club - Meetings are every third Thurs. from Sept to May, at 12 noon at Lakeview Museum. (Membership is required after first visit...$20/yr.)

West Peoria Garden Club - Meetings are every third Mondat at 7 pm, West Peoria City Hall, 2506 W. Rohmann Ave. Contact Pat Sharp, 676-5751

Pekin Garden Club: The Pekin Garden Club will host Flower Bingo on Tuesday, June 7 at the Miller Center in Mineral Springs Park in Pekin. The Bingo cards have plant names on them instead of numbers and prizes include plants, garden gifts, gourd birdhouses, snacks and more. Doors open at 6:00 pm and the fun begins at 7:00 pm. Bingo cards are $6 for 1 or 2 cards for $10, etc. This is a non-smoking facility and you are welcome to bring your own snacks. For more info, please call Suzanne at 346-6619.

How to Have Better Tomatoes: Apply starter fertilizer when transplanting. Hoe or cultivate shallowly to keep down weeds without damaging roots. Mulching is recommended, especially for gardeners who wish to maintain their plants for full season harvest. Black plastic or organic materials are suitable for mulching. Delay application of organic materials until after the soil has warmed completely in early summer so that growth is not retarded by cool soil temperatures early in the season. Water the plants thoroughly and regularly during prolonged dry periods. Plants confined in containers may need daily or even more frequent watering. Side-dress nitrogen fertilizer (ammonium nitrate) at the rate of one pound per 100 feet of row (equivalent to 1 tablespoon per plant) afte the first tomatoes have grown to the size of golf balls. (If ammonium nitrate is not available, use 3 pounds of 10-10-10 fertilizer.) Make two more applications 3 and 6 weeks later. If the weather is dry following these applications, water the plants thoroughly. Do not get fertilizer on the leaves.

Many gardeners train their tomato plants to stakes, trellises or cages with great success. Not all varieties, however, are equally suitable for staking and pruning. Tomato cages may be made from concrete-reinforcing wire, woven-wire stock fencing or various wooden designs. Choose wire or wooden designs that have holes large enough to allow fruit to be picked and removed without bruising. The short, small, narrow type often sold at garden centers is all but useless for anything but the smallest of the dwarf types. Most modern determinate tomatoes easily grow 3 to 4 feet tall and indeterminates continue to get taller until frozen in the fall, easily reaching at least six feet in height. Use cages that match in height the variety to be caged and firmly anchor them to the ground with stakes or steel posts to keep the fruit-laden plants from uprooting themselves in late summer windstorms. Trellis-weave systems have recently been developed for commercial operations and can work just as well in a garden planting. Tall stakes are securely driven into the tomato row about every two or three plants in the row. Make sure the stakes are tall enough to accommodate the growth of your tomato varieties and make sure they are driven very securely into the ground to prevent wind damage. (The woven rows of tomatoes can catch much wind.) As the tomatoes grow upward, strings are attached to the end posts and woven back and forth between the supports, holding the tops of the plants up and off the ground. This operation is repeated about as often as the tomatoes grow another 6 inches, until the plants reach maturity. The fruit is held off the ground as with staked or caged plants; but the foliage cover is better than with staked plants, and the fruit is more accessible than with cages.

Tomatoes should be firm and fully colored. They are of highest quality when they ripen on healthy vines and daily summer temperatures average about 75°F. When temperatures are high (air temperature of 90°F or more), the softening process is accelerated and color development is retarded, reducing quality. For this reason, during hot summer weather, pick your tomatoes every day or two, harvest the fruits when color has started to develop and ripen them further indoors (at 70 to 75°F). On the day before a killing freeze is expected, harvest all green mature fruit that is desired for later use in the fall. Wrap the tomatoes individually in paper and store at 60 to 65°F. They continue to ripen slowly over the next several weeks. Whole plants may be uprooted and hung in sheltered locations, where fruit continues to ripen.

Tomato hornworms are large (2 to 3 inch long when fully grown), green caterpillars with white stripes on the body. A horn protrudes from the top rear end of the worm. Tomato hornworms feed on the leaves and fruit. Several worms on one plant can quickly defoliate it and ruin developing fruit. Because their green coloring so closely resembles tomato foliage and stems, they are difficult to see. Handpick in cooler parts of the day or use suggested biological insecticides. If you see hornworms with small, white cocoons protruding, leave them alone. These structures are the pupae of parasitic insects that help control the hornworm population and the individual wearing them is already doomed. Verticillium and fusarium wilts are soilborne diseases that cause yellowing of the leaves, wilting and premature death of plants. These diseases persist in gardens where susceptible plants are grown. Once they build up, the only practical control is the use of resistant (VF) varieties.

Early blight is characterized by dead brown spots that usually start on the lower leaves and spread up the plant. Upon close inspection, you can see concentric rings within the spots. Although early blight is most severe on the leaves, it sometimes occurs on the stems and can cause severe defoliation. Certain varieties (Roma and Supersonic) are more tolerant of early blight than others. Septoria leafspot is characterized by numerous small black spots on the leaves. The centers of these spots later turn white and tiny black dots appear in the white centers. The disease starts on the bottom leaves and may become severe in wet weather.

Blossom-end rot is a dry, leathery brown rot of the blossom end of the fruit that is common in some seasons on tomatoes. It is caused by the combination of a localized calcium deficiency in the developing fruit and wide fluctuations of soil moisture. The problem is especially bad in hot weather. Soil applications of calcium seldom help, though foliar calcium sprays may minimize the occurrence of the problem. Make sure the formulation is designed for foliar application or severe damage could result. Pruning causes stress to the plants that may increase the incidence of blossom-end rot. Some tomato varieties are much more susceptible to this condition than others. Mulching and uniform watering help to prevent blossom-end rot. Once the blackened ends appear, affected fruits cannot be saved. They are best removed and destroyed so that healthy fruit setting later can develop more quickly.

Poor color and sunscald occur when high temperatures retard the development of full red color in tomatoes exposed directly to the hot sun. Sunscald occurs as a large, whitish area on the fruit during hot, dry weather. It becomes a problem when foliage has been lost through other diseases such as early blight or on early varieties that normally have poor foliage cover as the fruit ripens.

Common Tomato Questions:

Q. What causes the lower leaves of my tomato plants to roll up?
A. Leaf roll (curling of the leaflets) is a physiological condition that occurs most commonly when plants are trained and pruned. It should not affect fruiting or quality.

Q. What causes the flowers to drop off my tomato plants?
A. During unfavorable weather (night temperatures lower than 55°F, or day temperatures above 95°F with drying hot winds), tomatoes do not set and flowers drop. The problem usually disappears as the weather improves.

Q. What can I do to prevent my tomatoes from cracking?
A. Cracking varies with the variety. Many of the newer varieties are resistant to cracking. Severe pruning increases cracking. Keep soil moisture uniform as the tomatoes develop and plant resistant varieties to minimize this problem.

Q. What causes small, irregular, cloudy white spots just under the skin of my tomatoes?
A. These spots on green or ripe fruits are caused by the feeding of stink bugs.

Q. What causes the young leaves of my plants to become pointed and irregular in shape? I notice some twisting of the leaves and stems after spraying the plants for the first time.
A. Judging from the description, it seems likely that your tomato plants have been injured by 2,4-D or a similar growth regulator weed killer. Never use the same sprayer in your vegetable garden that you use for weed control in your lawn. Drift from herbicides originating 1/2 mile or more away also can injure your tomato plants. For this reason, use extreme caution when applying lawn care chemicals near vegetable or fruit plantings.

Q. What is a tree tomato?
A. The treelike plant sold as a "tree tomato," is a different species from garden tomatoes. It is a woody tree that grows 8 feet or taller and bears after two years. The tree tomato is a tropical plant and does not overwinter outside anywhere the temperature drops below freezing. The fruits are small (1 to 2 inches in diameter) and are used primarily in stews or preserves rather than in salads. Some of the common, vigorous, indeterminate garden tomato varieties that are suitable for training and pruning (such as Ponderosa) are also sold as climbing or "tree tomatoes" by some seed stores.

Q. What is a "potomato?
A. Although both potato and tomato plants can be integrated, the "potomato" (sometimes called "topato") commonly advertised is simply a tomato seed inserted into a potato tuber and planted together, producing both a tomato plant and a potato plant in the same hill. The results are not likely to be particularly successful.

Q. My grandpa grew a heart shaped, dark pink tomato that was thick and meaty, yet juicy with great flavor. Grandpa's gone and I can't find a source for the seed. What can I do?
A. Fortunately, there are a number of seed exchanges like Seed Savers Exchange, RR#3, Box 239, Decorah, IA 52101, which have been finding an rescuing old varieties. More old and heirloom varieties are also available from conventional seed sources these days. Perhaps, by doing some homework and contacting one or several of these sources, you can find a variety that is exactly (or very nearly) like those you remember from your grandfather's garden. As a guess, the variety sounds like one called Oxheart, which used to be fairly common and has recently become rare.

Many times for busy gardeners, the evenings are our only free hours to "stop and smell the roses." A wonderful way to enjoy this time is to make a special effort selecting plants that show off well in the twilight hours or under the light of the moon. In a flowering garden at night, the most visible blossoms are those with the lightest colors - white, cream, or shades of yellow. Among the annuals are a wealth of choices from the low growing alyssum, impatiens and petunia to the tall stately spider plant, nicotiana, and cosmos. If it is perennials you prefer, look for white phlox, lilies, shasta daisy, iris. gas plant, lily of the valley and yucca to name a few. In addition you might consider a vine such as moonflower or the white form of cup-and-saucer vine. Foliage has color as well, so don't neglect to include plants that are grown primarily for their grey or yellow green leaves. These would include the grey dusty miller, lamb's ear, and artemesia, the variegated or gold leafed hostas, and lime green coleus. And finally the addition of some evening scented plants will provide a fragrance that can be enjoyed long into the night. Night blooming stocks, four o'clocks, hosta plantaginea, and oriental lilies all release into the nighttime air a heavenly perfume. After a busy day at the office, the evening garden can be a refreshing haven for relaxation and rejuvenation.

Zone 5, but...
Gardening in Zone 5 in Illinois has its own challenges. Winters can be arctic with high winds from Canada and far less snow cover than more northern zones. Summers can be tropical with high humidity and monsoon-like downpours. Abrupt weather changes are the norm. The saying about Illinois weather is, "if you don't like it, just wait five minutes." For the last few years, both summers and winters have been more moderate than average, so if the pattern holds, you may get to ease into the climate a bit.

The Rain on the Plain
Our average rainfall is 40" a year, the same as London and Seattle, believe it or not, but can be delivered 2-3" at a time in torrential summer thunderstorms. Late summer and early fall can typically get dry enough that unwatered bluegrass goes dormant.

Prairie Winds
Winds are predominantly from the west and southwest. If you live outside the shelter of a town, you find yourself humming "where the wind comes sweeping down the plain" a lot and buying only really heavy garden furniture that won't end up half a mile away in your neighbor's field. Out in the country, there is such a thing as a day when it's too windy to garden. Gusts to 35mph and higher are not uncommon during the windy season. Country gardeners are familiar with the "prairie effect" felt in exposed locations. Expect your country garden to lag behind city gardens by 2-3 weeks.

What Swarms
If you are moving from an area that isn't beset by Japanese beetles, you'll be in shock during your first June here. In some years, populations are low and damage is light. In a bad year, their favorite food plants - birches, linden, roses, among others - can be left with skeletonized leaves. Entire mature trees can be left stripped. Asian lady beetles feed on soybean aphids and were first introduced as a beneficial insect. A wet growing season that favors aphids, also encourages lady beetles population. After the harvest, they seek winter shelter in your house. White houses on a rise are particularly vulnerable, apparently reminding the beetles of the white cliffs of their ancestral home in Asia. Some years they are barely noticable. 2004, a very wet year, was their best (and our worst) year yet. Octagenarian farmers remembered nothing like it in their lifetime. Homeowners were vacuuming them up by the thousands.

Black Dirt
Illinois' black topsoil is among the richest and the best in the world, a product of wind-blown deposits of loess and tallgrass prairie that covered most of the state after the glaciers receded. Deep silty clay loams rich in organic matter predominate in our area. The clay is a so-called "swelling" clay. Drainage can be a problem in some spots. Because of the high clay content, our garden soils are very prone to compaction due to puddling of the clay if worked when too wet. The quality of your garden soil will depend a lot depend on what area of town you are moving to. Older neighborhoods tend not to suffer the same problems as the newer subdivision where developers carted off the topsoil and sold it, leaving the hapless homeowner with a few inches of topsoil on top of nasty, badly compacted, rocky clay subsoil.

- Karen Fletcher