Rodd's Seeds of Wisdom Horticultural tips and tricks from Rodd Moesel

Christmas is only 20 days or just under three weeks in our future.  You have probably already started your Christmas shopping and decorations.  You may have already been to a Christmas party or broken out your Christmas sweaters and ties.  In the horticultural world nothing says Christmas, like poinsettias.  We often decorate our kitchen tables, living rooms, offices, businesses and churches with poinsettias to help establish a festive environment to celebrate the joy of Christmas.  There are many other winter potted plants that add color and excitement to our inside spaces to help celebrate the holidays like cyclamen, cineraria, calceolaria, kalanchoe, pot mums, amaryllis and paper white narcissus but none say Christmas like poinsettias.  Poinsettias are available in hundreds of varieties and many colors.  Red is by far the most common and most traditional but there are also white, pink, orange and speckled or multicolored poinsettia varieties to add diversity and interest to your interior decorating.  The real flowers are not very exciting and are actually at the center of the colored leaves or bracts which most folks think are the flower.  The bracts are upper leaves that turn colors with short day lengths and provide the colorful “flowers” people expect from poinsettias.

Poinsettias are commercially available across Oklahoma from small pixie style four inch pots up to large size plants in fourteen and sixteen inch pots.  The most common sizes are grown in six, seven, and eight inch diameter pots.  Some growers also raise poinsettias in hanging baskets or in combination pots with other foliage or flowering plants.  Modern poinsettias are grown in two main styles, as pinched plants where one plant is pinched during production and produces three to five side shoots, each with a separate bract to top each branch or single stem style where there is one larger set of bracts at the top of each stem.  The fanciest and most costly poinsettias will be three to five single stem poinsettias in a single pot with the larger bracts on the top of each stem.  When I was growing up poinsettias were often three to five feet tall and would only stay in prime color for two or three weeks.  The new varieties are naturally shorter and respond well to growth regulators and are more tolerant of cooler temperatures than the older varieties.

Breeding improvements have given us poinsettia varieties that are not only shorter, easier to handle and give us more decorating options but the bracts will often stay colorful even up into March or April of the following year with a little basic care.  Poinsettias are relatively heavy drinkers, for a houseplant, so water them well when their soil is dry to the touch, usually every five to ten days depending on the pot size, plant size, vent locations and temperature you keep the room.  They do not like to stand in water so make certain the pots can drain and are not standing in a pot cover holding water.

The more light poinsettias get from a window or even nearby household lights the better they will hold-up and the longer they will add to and extend your holiday cheer.  We regularly enjoy the poinsettias in our home from early December, through Christmas and even past Valentines and St. Patrick’s Day.

Don’t forget the joy and scents of adding fresh evergreens to your Christmas décor as swags, rope or wreathes.  It is still hard to beat a cut or live Christmas tree and many folks decorate Norfolk Island pines or small spruces for extra ornament displays and holiday decorations.

We have been blessed with an extended growing season this year and a stretched out season of fall color on our deciduous trees and shrubs.  Some trees have dropped most of their leaves already while others are just starting to turn or are transitioning to bright reds and oranges.  You want to keep the fallen leaves from covering new tall fescue or rye grass plantings and growing crops like pansies, kale or cabbage.  These fallen leaves still hold a lot of stored food and you can collect them to put in a compost pile to make your own compost or mulch for use later to add to the soil to provide more organic matter or to mulch around your vegetable or flower beds next spring and summer.

We are still blessed with a lot of nice days at this time of year which provide you great opportunities to plant new trees and shrubs in your yard.  Container grown or balled and burlapped trees transplant well until the ground is frozen and these fall plantings require less extra watering and allow these new permanent plantings to start to root into their new soil home.  The roots will grow through the rest of the fall and winter and will be better established before the sizzling heat and drying winds of next summer.  Don’t forget to dig your planting holes about half again as big as needed, mix organic matter like sphagnum peat moss with the soil from the hole, place the plant at proper depth, with mix under & around it, then water in your new trees and shrubs periodically throughout the winter if we don’t get regular rains to help prevent dehydration and winter damage.  With less drying pressure through the winter a good rain or watering every four to six weeks will dramatically reduce winter damage and is particularity important for tree and shrub plantings in their first to third years until they are rooted deeper into the soil.

As we bid farewell to all of our warm season crops when we do receive a hard killing freeze, we begin to focus and look forward to the first flowers of next spring. One of the most cheerful announcements of spring are the bright, colorful, even enchanting flowers of our spring bulbs that must be planted soon.  The little crocus are amount the first flowers to announce spring and they work great as a border or scattered across the lawn to provide a mysterious and fun kickoff to spring.   I remember Dad having us throw crocus bulbs like Johnny Appleseed and then we would go and plant the crocus where they landed.  Tulips are often considered the most elegant or royal of the floral bulbs while hyacinths provide a tower of flowers plus enchanting scents.  Dutch Iris, grape hyacinth, alliums and many other lesser known bulb crops will give you a different look and add new excitement to your spring flower bulb show.  My favorite are the daffodils or narcissus, not just for their mesmerizing trumpet shaped flowers of yellow, orange, white or gold but because they do the best job of naturalizing and coming back year after year.  We have a stand on our property, planted by the previous land owners in the nineteen thirties that still come back spring after spring, since they are planted in a well drained area.  Daffodils are apparently not as tasty to deer and gophers and these colonies of daffodil will slowly grow over the years with just a little attention where most tulips and hyacinths put on a great show the spring after planting but rarely make a show in the following years.  If you have already purchased spring bulbs and they are still in bags or boxes in the garage, get them planted.  If you have not purchased your bulbs yet, go shopping at your local nursery or garden center and then get them planted as soon as possible so they can root in and grow underground through the winter ready to pop out of the ground with color next spring.

As gardeners we get to witness many blessings all through the year.  As we prepare for Thanksgiving week please take some extra time to reflect on the many blessings in your own life, your family, our great state and country and in your gardening activities.

We are into bonus gardening time across central Oklahoma as we have now passed the average date for our first freeze, without a freeze, and we are still enjoying many of our warm season crops and vegetables.  Many of our gardening friends in far Northwest Oklahoma and across the northern border of our state have already experienced their first freeze and given last rites to their most tender crops. Enjoy your warm season plants as long as possible.  When it does look like a killing freeze is coming you have several choices.  Cut as many cut flowers as possible to make bouquets to enjoy throughout your home and to cheer up your workplace.  Harvest as many “green” vegetables as possible.  Tomatoes are particularity important to save for frying as green tomatoes or to set on the counter or a windowsill to color up for later eating.  Another choice is to try and extend the season through several light frosts until we get a really hard killing freeze.  You can get three to ten degrees extra protection by covering your tender annuals or vegetables with cardboard boxes, sheets, burlap, blankets or a commercial frost protection cover like Reemay or Insulate on really cold nights.  You can dig up plants or bring your container gardens inside your home, garage or greenhouse to save until spring.

This is prime season for planting pansies, viola, ornamental kale and cabbage to provide color in your fall and winter garden as the tender crops say farewell and prepare to become compost.  Most garden centers still have a supply of spring flowering bulbs, even though your selection may be more limited than a few weeks ago.  Plant these tulips, hyacinths, crocus, Dutch iris and other specialty bulb crops now so their roots can grow all winter.  Then they will burst out of the earth early next spring with vibrant colors to announce the arrival of a new growing season.  If you are going to plant a lot of bulbs get a small earth or bulb auger to use with your cordless drill to make bulb holes easy and quick.  Add a little Bone Meal for phosphorous to promote blooming and/or Blood Meal for nitrogen to promote healthy foliage and stems then cover the hole back with soil and look forward to a cheerful spring surprise from each bulb hole.

If you planted fescue or rye grass for a winter lawn you should to fertilize before it gets much colder.  Keep dropped or composting tree leaves from building up on your winter fescue or rye grasses as they will limit photosynthesis and growth as they block sunshine.  If you have winter weed problems in your lawn you can apply a post emergent herbicide or weed killer to control these winter weeds.

If you compost, this is a great time of year to collect leaves or the physical remains of your warm season crops to add to your compost pile.   If you haven’t composted in the past this is a great time of year to start.  Do not compost plants that were sick or diseased even after they freeze.   Throw away any sick or diseased plant parts.

This is still a good time to plant container grown or balled and burlapped trees or shrubs as long as you will water them periodically through the winter to protect them from dehydration.  Like bulbs, their roots will grow through the winter to help them get off to a quicker and stronger start next spring.  You can also prune dead wood and branches or prune to shape your trees and shrubs throughout the winter.

Enjoy your bonus gardening time, until it freezes, to partake of the autumn color on our trees, the beauty of your flowers soon to pass and to plant your pansies and spring bulbs.

Welcome to autumn in Oklahoma with beautiful warm afternoons and crisp cool mornings.  We are about two weeks away from the average date for our first light freeze in central Oklahoma.  Enjoy these last days with your annuals, snap pictures and capture memories of the bright colorful flowers and vegetables you want to remember as you plan your future landscapes and container gardens.  We often end up with some “Indian Summer” weather after the first light freezes and tender plants in protected areas or that you cover and protect with row cover, sheets or boxes may survive these first bouts of cold weather and still perform for up to another four to eight weeks until we get really hard freezes down in the low to mid twenties.  Your cool season veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, some root crops and leafy green crops and many cool season flowers like pansies, and viola will  keep growing and flowering for many weeks or even though most of winter depending on the weather ahead.

The star of fall gardening is the show of color from our deciduous trees and shrubs as they change color and then fall to the ground ready to become compost.  Some trees are certainly more exciting to watch than others and conditions vary from year to year depending on the soil moisture, humidity, daytime and nighttime temperatures and sunny days versus cloud cover days leading up to fall color season.  Day length is the main trigger for leaf color and leaf drop as the trees and shrubs sense the shorter days and lower intensity of sun for fewer hours each day.  These light signals trigger the tree to start storing sugars and carbohydrates for winter and to start reducing photosynthesis or food production activities.  Photosynthesis is powered by the sun but chlorophyll is the secret sauce that powers the conversion of solar energy, water and nutrients, inside the plant cells to produce sugars.  As the basic green of the chlorophyll is removed from the leaf, the other colors become visible.  Carotenoids product the yellow, orange and brown colors we see in fall leaves.  These are the same colors we see regularly in corn, carrots, bananas, marigolds and daffodils.  Anthocyanin is the plant pigment that results in red, blue and purple color tones.  We regularly see anthocyanin at work in red apples, cranberries, blueberries, strawberries, plums and grapes.  Anthocyanin is generally produced in the fall in response to excess sugars within the leaf cells and is water soluble and is actually in the liquid of leaf cells.  Chlorophyll and carotenoids are present throughout the whole growing season but the green color of chlorophyll dominates or hides the yellow carotenoids until the long nights of fall as the chlorophyll wraps up its work for the season.

In our region, poplars produce the most yellow fall foliage while oaks produce red, brown or russet colors, some maples with higher sugar levels like red maple, Caddo maple or sugar maple produce orange red or even scarlet foliage.

The veins that carry fluids from the roots into and out of the leaf gradually close off as the days get shorter and a layer of cells form at the base of each leaf that leads to falling leaves. These clogged or stopped off veins trap sugars in the leaf and the amount and type of those sugars and pigments determines the fall leaf colors.  If there are enough sugars trapped, that will promote production of the anthocyanin and the more dazzling orange and red colors.  We get the best color with warm sunny days and cool, crisp but non-freezing nights as the chlorophyll winds up its work for another growing year.

Enjoy the fall color in your yard and neighborhood, local parks like Will Rogers Arboretum in Oklahoma City or plan a family trip to forested areas like the ever popular Talimena National Scenic Drive though the Ouachita National Forest of Southeast Oklahoma.

Don’t forget to be buying and planting pansies and violas to enjoy all winter and spring flowering bulbs like daffodils, tulips, hyacinths and crocus so you can enjoy their color early next spring.

Fall is for planting!  You can and should plant trees, shrubs, hardy mums, ornamental kale and cabbage, pansies, asters and many kinds of perennials now.  This is also a great time to sow tall fescue or ryegrass lawn seed to establish a green lawn through the winter.  Shop now for the best choices in spring flowering bulbs like daffodils, tulips, hyacinth and crocus.   Plant these bulbs later this month and next to produce a spectacular flower bulb show in your yard to start next spring off with the thrill of flowers.

One week from today will be the Oklahoma Horticulture Society Annual Garden Tour for Connoisseurs between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm.  It is certainly one of the premier, if not the very best, garden tour in central Oklahoma.  The tour opens the gate for you to see special gardens in different parts of the city each year.  This year features gardens in the Edmond and Guthrie area with the purchase of a single ticket.  You can buy advance tickets at the following local garden centers: Cultivate Garden Market, Marcums Nursery, Precures Nursery and Garden Centers, TLC Nursery and Greenhouses, Tony’s Tree Plantation, Wild Bird’s Unlimited and Wilshire Garden Market.  The advance tickets are Ten Dollars each for active members of the Oklahoma Horticulture Society and Twelve Dollars each for non members.  Tickets can be purchased on Saturday, October 17^th, the day of the tour at any of the six gardens for Fifteen Dollars each.  Children twelve and under get to enjoy the garden tour for free.  All proceeds support the horticulture scholarships and educational programs sponsored by the Oklahoma Horticulture Society.  This tour is a wonderful way to see great gardens in our own community and to get ideas on plant material and landscaping you can use in your own yard.

You can explore the classical English Garden of Bill and Cindy Stewart in Edmond, full of garden ornaments and water features and even a box wood “Knot Garden” that were all recently featured in Garden Gate magazine.  Visit the Tudor estate in Edmond designed by Joseph Coffin and planted by Total Environment that features pools, playhouse, rose gardens, raised vegetable garden, koi pond and a private garden off the master bedroom.  This design creates a series of outdoor rooms.  Enjoy Grandeur on the Golf Course at Oak Tree designed by Mike Lindsey of Scapes Landscaping (You will have to have already purchased a ticket in order to enter Oak Tree).  The Robert and Debbie Daniels home features colorful Japanese maples, large hollies and conifers, flowering shrubs and lots of amazing stonework.  The home of Van and Sammy Bumpas features a low maintenance garden designed by John Fluitt of Garden Design Associates.  They have replaced much of their turf with gazebos, gravel, pavers and decorative container gardens.   The fifth Edmond garden is home to Mike and Judd Cross and was designed by Shaun Doering of TLC.  It is designed for year round color and interest.  The gardens feature terraces, winding ramps and steps through plantings of dogwoods, azaleas, redbuds, Arizona cypress, abelia, roses and crepemyrtles as well as many perennials and shrubs.   The sixth garden is the home of writer and blogger, Dee Nash, near Guthrie and features a one and a half acre English cottage style garden full of annuals, perennials, shrubs and grasses.  Dee has two vegetable gardens, a perennial garden and the garden will feature hardy mums and asters in full fall bloom.

You can find more details and garden addresses on line at www.okhort.org.  Please consider a fun tour of these great Oklahoma gardens next Saturday while you help support horticulture education.  These visits will inspire you to return home and do more of your own fall planting.