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

There is just no sugar coating it. This is a hard, challenging summer to be gardening in Oklahoma.

It does give us a chance to observe what plant material really holds up and performs in the heat and some do. Most of our plant materials from vegetables to trees are showing stress and are having an adverse reaction to our persistent, grinding and punishing heat. These conditions make the importance of water all too obvious. The deeper a plant is rooted into the earth, the better it can fend for itself as it can draw moisture from deeper underground that does not dry out as quickly or as completely as moisture near the soil surface. That is why most trees and shrubs are more tolerant and take longer to show stress than vegetables, flowering annuals or newly planted crops that are not rooted as deep in the soil.

These annuals and newly planted trees or shrubs can show extreme stress at missing regular watering for just a day or a few days depending on your soil and the type of plant. The drought has persisted for so long and is so severe that we are now seeing serious stress on even mature, long established trees and shrubs that are not benefitting from human intervention and supplemental watering. Many trees are dropping significant quantities of leaves to try to get in balance with the water they can access so that they can survive this “natural oven” of heat and hot dry winds.

Other trees, shrubs and plant materials are displaying lots of yellow leaves or dullish gray foliage as they turn down their photosynthesis and respond to the lack of water, Many of these trees and shrubs were already stressed and fighting to regain their energy after a very tough winter where parts of the state got down to -40° and all of us had unusually hard freezes. They are now getting serious heat stress before they have fully recovered from the rough winter. Make sure you are walking your yard, hopefully with a water hose in hand, to look at your trees, shrubs and flowers. Make sure you are giving our living friends the water they require.

Some folks have decided to throw in the towel and quit watering their vegetables or select flowerbeds just as cotton or corn farmers have been forced to walk away from crops that are too stressed to save. Those are annual crops and you can start again this fall or next spring after we are blessed with new rains. Please don’t give up on your trees, shrubs and long term plantings. A little attention now will save many years of growth, investment and allow a future for these “foundation” plantings.

We often hear the weathermen comparing this heat and this drought to the Dust Bowl of the 1930’s. There is no comparison horticulturally as we benefit from many more trees and shrubs, that break the winds, provide cooling and create microclimates. Many of those were planted in response to the Dust Bowl through conservation programs and more recently in beautification efforts and by individual landowners. The big difference is water distribution. Thanks to city water departments and rural water districts and thousands more wells we now have water if we are willing to invest the money and time to apply it. Horticulturally that option puts us light years ahead of the Dust Bowl, if we will pick up the water hose, spread the mulch and install the drip lines.

Pray for rain. We are now one day closer to a cool, life supporting rain!

Columbus, Ohio was the scene this last week for the nation’s largest gathering of greenhouse growers as they reviewed Spring 2011 and begin planning for spring 2012. It was a great opportunity to see all the new varieties of annuals and perennials that will be available for gardeners next year.

The big gardening trends are color, whether it be from flowers or foliage; container gardening and the skyrocketing popularity of herbs, vegetables and other edible crops. We have more breeders at work on ornamental crops than at any time in my lifetime and are seeing literally hundreds of new annual and perennial plants each year. In fact, many commercial growers are complaining that they hardly learn to grow and produce one variety and it is being replaced by the newer and better genetics of the next variety.

As gardening is driven more by colors, splash and design as compared to the story of a particular plant it is becoming more like the fashion or auto industries with new varieties, designer colors and new models or varieties available each year.I prefer a longer term view and urge you to watch what is doing well in your yard, your neighbor’s yard and area businesses and parks.  When you spot plants from trees to bedding plants or vegetables that are doing well here and that you like, consider adding those to your garden or landscape this fall or next spring.

Hopefully your yard enjoyed a little rain this last week but that doesn’t last long with hot drying winds and temperature above 100°. Remember that most of your flowers and vegetables need at least 1” of water per week and many need more at these hot temperatures. It is best to soak your flowers and vegetables at least a couple of times a week, but hanging baskets and smaller container gardens may need watering almost daily. Consider mulching the top of your beds with bark or hulls or installing drip irrigation to reduce water use.

Be on the lookout for crop damages from bagworms, red spider mites, grasshoppers and other pests. Consult your nurseryman for help in selecting the right controls for your pest problems. They can provide you with both organic and traditional pesticide control options for most problems.  They can also provide you with solutions for ticks, fleas, mosquitoes and the like that may be bothering your family and your pets.

The crepe myrtles and many of our color annuals are spectacular right now. Plan a walk, a party or some meditation early in the morning or late in the evening to enjoy nature’s  beauty in your yard or neighborhood. 

Happy Birthday America! We are so blessed to live in this big, diverse and imaginative country that has set an example of self government and led the world for over 200 years in most areas including agriculture. Our country faces many big and new challenges but if we follow the example and display the courage and will power of our ancestors we will confront these challenges, accept the responsibility, find solutions and make the commitment to keep our country strong and leading in an ever changing world.

Horticulture and agriculture have been critical to the development and growth of our country since the beginning. The first settlers at Jamestown were dangerously close to failure until they got aid and instruction from the Indians who were already familiar with this land, the crops and growing conditions. These true native Americans helped the settlers grow enough corn, beans and other crops to survive and grow the colonies. The settlers learned they got much greater harvests operating their own independent farms than with the original collective style production. Over time they discovered new crops, new varieties, new cultural practices, figured out ways to harness water for irrigation and dramatically increase production. These breakthroughs allowed folks to specialize in other trades with fewer required to produce the food crops. This made possible the industrial age, manufacturing growth and even the information age as fewer and fewer were required to produce the food we eat and more of us could focus on other areas of manufacturing, distribution or service.

Today we can farm or garden by choice rather than because we have no other choice, a challenge still confronted by many in developing countries. When our country started it was all about locally grown, because they had no other choice and organic, because they had no or limited access to inputs for fertilizer and pest control. Today you have the freedom to choose locally grown, grown in the USA or grown most anywhere in the world. You have the freedom to choose many different styles of organic production or what we now call traditional production aided by fertilizers, insecticides and fungicides. The breakthroughs in varieties, equipment and crop inputs are what has allowed such efficiency that so few in our country can feed so many and yet we have the freedom and distribution channels that you can decide what type of food production you want to eat. You can eat only what you grow in your own yard, what is found at the local farmers market or the full smorgasboard of vegetables, fruits and grains available at the full line grocery store.

Nothing beats the beauty, joy and satisfaction of growing your own food to feed your stomach and body or the flowers to feed your soul and delight your neighbors. If you can’t or don’t want to grow your own, how blessed we are that you can hire someone else to raise you food and flowers in your own yard, on farms in your community or you can access the safest food in the world as close as a neighborhood grocery.

Those of us who are gardening locally need to be especially attentive to the water needs of our plants in this intense summer heat. Soak your plants regularly, consider mulching the top of planting beds with bark or hulls and think about installing drip irrigation to battle summer drought and to nourish your plant’s. Insect pressure is also greatest at this time of year so be watching for pest damage and consult your nurseryman for assistance.

Tomorrow will be the longest day of the year as we enjoy the summer solstice and the official start of summer. Temperatures flirting near 100°this last week have already introduced us to the summer season.

Watering is the most important garden activity of summer and can make the difference in how much vegetables and flowers you produce or taken to the extreme can be the difference between life and death for your plants. Your plants are not particular about whether they get the water from rain, overhead sprinklers, the water hose or drip irrigation. Plants just know they need water to grow and support the life processes of photosynthesis. The more light that is available the more water the plant can use to keep their “leaf factories” operating at full capacity. The irony for Oklahoma gardeners is that we enjoy the brightest natural light for the most hours each day at this time of year and have the least rainfall or water to go with all that light. Being diligent with your watering and not over stressing your plants through drought can pay big dividends in plant growth and yield. If you have not mulched the tops of your flowerbeds with a 1” to 2” layer of hulls or bark mulch, please consider this natural “comforter” for your flowers to reduce watering, weeding and to keep the soil temperature cool. If you have not experimented with drip irrigation yet, this is a great season to install some and get comfortable with this water saving concept that also produces even better crops.

You can plant most all container grown trees, shrubs, annual and perennial flowers all through the summer as long as you are committed to get them regular watering as needed. Remember the new plantings will require more water , more often until they are rooted into their new environment and their roots get deeper in the soil to access the more consistent water at deeper depths.

Not only do the plants grow faster with light and water at this time of year but so do the insects. They have more sex, more often, produce more eggs and more little bugs in much quicker cycles with the hot weather. These quicker generations with many more, sometimes thousands more insects per generation can make it seem like they are exploding in population. Most insects love this time of year and are in a party mood ready to hit the plant world smorgasbord, often on the veggies or plants you love the most.

Be on the lookout for scale on euonymus, bagworms on junipers, aphids, whiteflies, mealy bugs, thrips, leafminers and red spider mites on many of our soft tissue plants. Worms of many types are attacking the veggies and watch for webworms in your trees.   There are a number of good chemical and organic methods to help control these pests if they start to take more of your crop than you want to share. Take a sample of your pest or disease problem to your local nurseryman or garden center and they can help you select the proper product to solve your problem.

School’s out, hopefully the tornado’s are history for this year and we can feel the heat of summer coming. There are a number of color plants which thrive, actually grow and look their best in the heat of summer. We still have over 5 months left in this growing season so you can still plant most everything but these are a few of my personal favorite annuals for summer color and excitement.

“Olde time” summer favorites I remember enjoying in Grandma’s yard and from other experiences in my youth include celosia or cockscomb. These are available in many colors but nothing beats the impact of the bright or dark red plumes or combs. They are spectacular in a sunny spot in your yard or in competition at the state fair flower show. They often reseed and may come back on their own. Zinnia and marigolds are other impressive old timers but are now available in varieties producing lots of small flowers or fewer big significant flowers. There are short border varieties and varieties that grow 2 to 4 feet tall. Verbena, petunias and periwinkle are other old timers with lots of new varieties, colors and growth styles.

Some of my favorite summer plants used to be seen mainly in public gardens like the beautiful Oklahoma City Parks landscapes of the famous Henry Walter and Chuck Sparks. Penta and lantana were used in combination with their Canna plantings in neighborhood parks across the city. They are grown from vegetative cuttings and are now widely available and can be used by all of us. They grow rapidly, flower like crazy and are great in containers or for the middle or back of your flowerbeds. Recent breeding has dramatically expanded the choice of colors available in both the penta and lantana which produce stunning flower heads which are actually clusters of many individual florets. Oriental hibiscus are another great plant that grew out of these public plantings and are now a great choice for large containers by a pool or patio or for height in your flowerbeds. Their bright flowers in reds, pinks, oranges and yellows will transport you to Hawaii or a pacific island.

One of the hot garden trends is landscaping with plants that have colorful foliage. Plant sweet potato vines in green, lime and burgundy as a fast growing ground cover, border plant or to cascade from containers. Crotons are widely used as colorful shrubs in Florida and Caribbean islands but are spectacular here as annuals in their rainbow of red, green, orange and yellow colors in containers or in flowerbeds. Copper leaf plants and coleus have been used since Great Grandma’s time but many newer varieties have brought more excitement and color to these plants. Coleus used to be only for shade but many new varieties do well even in the sun. Shade areas can spring into color with wax begonias, salvia or impatiens. Many of the newer begonia varieties will also do well in the sun.

With increasing heat and hot, dry winds you will need to be more diligent in watering your plants. Mulching with bark or hulls will cool your roots and reduce your watering.