Category Archives: Gardening Tips

Gardening: Prepare for Winter

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In the Rogue Valley, fall is a good time to plant perennials, shrubs, trees and bulbs. Just bulbs.jpgremember to keep new plants well watered until winter rains begin.

Plant Spring Bulbs: Plant daffodils, tulips, crocuses in October and into November until the ground freezes.

Watering: Cut back watering established perennials, shrubs and trees to prepare them for winter. (Remember to continue watering new plants until rains begin.)

Deadheading & Clean up:  To provide food and habitat for pollinators & birds throughout the winter, Do Not cut or remove perennial stems and flower heads until the spring.   NOTE:  If you must have a prim garden, then cut back perennials stems to 6-8 inches on plants that have finished blooming for the season.

Leaves: Rake and remove leaves from the lawn, use leaves as mulch in your flowerbeds, or compost them to make leaf mold.  Shredded leaves break down faster and are easier for worms to turn into compost. Placing shredded leaves in flowerbeds over the winter helps protect plants, suppresses weeds, and will provide nutrients by late spring.

Dig Bulbs.  Tender bulbs such as dahlias and gladiolus should be dug up in cold winter areas.  When foliage begins to yellow and die, cut back foliage, dig up bulbs, and store them in a cool, but freeze-free, area like in an insulated garage, under your house or in an spare refrigerator.   When digging be careful not to damage the bulb.  In lower elevation areas of the Rogue Valley you can cover tender bulbs with 6-8 inches of mulch for winter protection.  

Mulching with leaves, hay, or even evergreen boughs can provide an extra layer of protection for tender perennials. These mulches will catch and hold snow which helps insulate them.

Feed Plants. Fall is a good time to feed perennials by working in a 4 to 6 inch thick layer of compost in your beds. This compost slowly breaks down over winter providing nutrients to the plants and improves soil structure.

Article by: Carlotta Lucas

 

Planting Veggies in July!

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In Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley, you can plant the following veggies in July and August for fall & winter harvesting:

agriculture biology close up color

Photo by Fancycrave on Pexels.com

Brussels sprouts – all month through August
Chinese Cabbage – Until August 10th (later is better to help mitigate cabbage maggot damage)
Late (purple) broccoli-  To over-winter and harvest in March/April

Direct Seed:
Winter beets – after 7/15 through 8/15, plant in 1-2 week intervals
Late broccoli (purple) – Can be direct seeded, too.
Chinese Cabbage – all month to 8/15 (later is better to help mitigate cabbage maggot damage)
Kale – 7/15 through 9/20 for October and winter harvest
Turnips- August all month for late September-October harvest
Bush Beans –  For September – October harvest
Winter variety carrots – 7/15 – 7/31 – harvest in October and all winter ( not Nantes )
Cauliflower –  to 7/15
Mid-season Leaf Lettuce – all month
Parsnips– to 7/15 to dig after hard frost and all winter
Enation-resistant Peas – all month, mulch to keep plants roots cool
Rutabaga – all month, for September harvest
Scallions – to 7/15 to pull all winter.

Transplant:
Fall Broccoli – 7/15 -8/10
Late Cabbage– 7/15 – 8/31
Late Cauliflower – 7/15 to 7/21

Information from: Gardening Year ‘Round , Month by Month in the Rouge Valley, A guide to Family Food Production by the Jackson County Master Gardeners Association

Rogue Valley: June Garden Chores

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Average minimum temperature: 49.1 F
Average maximum temperature: 79.4 F
Average Precipitation: 0.89 inches

Sow Seeds for transplanting:
Fall and winter Brussels Sprouts – all month though August
Chinese Cabbage – 6/1-7/15
Fall Broccoli – 6/15-6/30
Late cabbage – all month

Direct Seed:
Bush Beans – All month through July, for September/October harvest
Mid-season Cauliflower 6/15-7/15
Dill – All Month through July
Parsnips 6/15-7/15
Scallions – All month to 7/15, will hold in ground all winter and multiply
Summer Radish – 7/15
Bolt-resistant Lettuce- 2 week intervals through July
Kohlrabi- 6/20 for September though November harvest

Last chance to Direct Seed:
Pole Beans – 6/15
Beets – 6/15
Spring Carrots- 6/15, Fall variety after 7/15
Corn- All month
Cucumbers – 6/10
Leeks- 6/7 to overwinter for spring
Pumpkins (6/15)
Squash (6/15)

Last Chance to Transplant:
Cantaloupe (6/15)
Celery & celeriac (6/15)
Eggplant (6/15)
Peppers (6/10)
Tomatoes (6/15)
Watermelon (6/15)

Information taken from:
Gardening Year ‘Round, Month by Month In the Rogue Valley – A Guide for Family Food Production –  Jackson County Master Gardeners Assoc.

April Gardening Tasks

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April 14th is National Garden Day!

  • Use a soil thermometer to help you know when to plant vegetables. Some cool Pansy_Redseason crops (onions, kale, lettuce, and spinach) can be planted when the soil is consistently at or above 40°F.
  • Spread compost over garden and landscape areas.
  • Prune gooseberries and currants; fertilize with manure or a complete fertilizer.
  • Fertilize evergreen shrubs and trees, only if needed. If established and healthy, their nutrient needs should be minimal.
  • If needed, fertilize rhododendrons, camellias, azaleas with acid-type fertilizer. If established and healthy, their nutrient needs should be minimal.
  • Prune spring-flowering shrubs after blossoms fade. Early-spring bloomers, such as lilac, forsythia, and rhododendron, bear flowers on wood formed the previous year. The best time to prune them is late spring — immediately after they finish blooming. If pruned later in the growing season or during winter, the flower buds will be removed and spring bloom will be decreased.
  • Fertilize cane berries (broadcast or band a complete fertilizer or manure).
  • Remove spent flowers of large-flowered bulbs, such as tulips and daffodils, as soon as they fade. This  channels the plants’ energy into forming large bulbs and offsets rather than into setting seeds. Allow foliage of spring-flowering bulbs to brown and die down before removing.  Do not remove bulb foliage while it is green; the green leaves nourish the bulb and next year’s flower buds, which form during summer. Cut or pull off leaves only after they yellow. Do not braid leaves to get them out of the way. Braiding reduces the amount of sunlight the leaves get and hinders growth.  Allow smaller bulbs (like: muscari and puschkinia) to set seed, so they self-sow and form ever-larger drifts.
  • Cut back ornamental grasses to a few inches above the ground, in early spring.
  • Prune and shape or thin spring-blooming shrubs and trees after blossoms fade.
  • Plant gladiolus and hardy transplants of alyssum, phlox, and marigolds, if weather and soil conditions permit.
  • Fertilize Lawns. Apply 1-pound nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of lawn. Reduce risks of run-off into local waterways by not fertilizing just prior to rain. Also do not over-irrigate and cause water runs off of lawn and onto sidewalk or street.
  • April is a good time to dethatch and renovate lawns. If moss was a problem, scratch surface prior to seeding with perennial ryegrass.
  • If necessary, spray apples and pears when buds appear for scab. And spray stone fruits, such as cherries, plums, peaches, and apricots for brown rot blossom blight.
  • Plant balled-and-burlapped, container, and bare-root fruit trees.
  • Plant container and bare-root roses.
  • Prepare garden soil for spring planting. Incorporate generous amounts of organic materials and other amendments.
  • Divide and replant spring-blooming perennials after bloom.
  • Plant fall-blooming bulbs.

Article by:
Terra Gardens Nursery & Bark
Salem, OR

Winter Gardening Chores

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Here are a few thing you can do in the garden while waiting for spring to arrive….

  1. Check yard for damaged plants
  2. Check newly planted and newly staked trees to see if they are still stable
  3. Sharpen gardening tools
  4. Organize & clean greenhouse and/or garden shed
  5. Recycle pots you are not going to use in the spring (see AGC’s article on where to recycle pots in the Rogue Valley)
  6. Clean bird feeders and continue feeding wild birds
  7. Check stored fruits and vegetables
  8. Spray stone-fruit trees with copper or lime-sulfur
  9. Check yard and garden for drainage issues
  10. Check house, yard (and autos) for rodent activity
  11. Read gardening books
  12. Shop seed catalogs, and order your seeds for spring, summer, fall and winter planting

Sun, Shade, Partial Sun, Partial Shade – What does it mean?

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Often these terms are confusing even for a seasoned gardener, so below are some 20170502_182451guidelines to shed light on the subject, and help you plant with confidence.

Full Sun: 6 hours of direct sunlight anytime during the day. It could even be 3 hour in the morning, then 3 more in the afternoon, but 6 hours total is the minimum.

Partial Sun: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight, but provide some relief from hot afternoon sunshine.

Shade: Less than 6 hours of sunlight, is considered a shady area.

Partial Shade: 3-4 hours of morning or early afternoon sunlight, then shaded or getting indirect light in the late afternoon.

Dappled Sun: Similar to partial shade, some sunlight makes it through the branches of deciduous trees.

 

Full Shade: Lessen than 3 hours of sunlight. Morning sunshine is the best, then receiving some dappled sun or filtered light during the day.

Shade Tolerant: Plant prefers more sunlight, but can be planted in partial shade. Possibly deceiving statement, because plant performance could be substandard if planted in partial shade.

 

Note:  Some plants listed for shade gardens in USDA Zones 7-8 may perform better in full sun in Zones 4-5.

Submitted by: Carlotta Lucas