Frost protection through the Winter

Hopefully the worst is behind us with the frosty weather. Mother Nature may have other ideas, however, this site will provide assistance to be prepared and minimize future damage:

http://www.garden.org/subchannels/care/techniques?q=show&id=403&page=1

Staying warm and looking at seed catalogs,
Lyn

Cold and Salt Damage to Plants

Hope everyone had a great holiday. On to a new year and some very cold temperatures and precipitation that flew through the Atlanta area this past week.

If you salted your walks and drive, I have gathered some information that may be of interest:

Avoid the use of rock salt for de-icing, to prevent injury to plants. Use Calcium Choride as a substitute, or better - sand or cinders.

If you have already used rock salt, adding water will not help, as the salt absorbs the water, robbing the plants and putting them in a drought-like state.

Buds and new twigs are especially at risk and can lose their hardiness against future cold spells. The effects on nearby plants from using rock salt late in the winter are even greater, as plants are emerging from dormancy and are the most susceptible to injury.

If your plants are already exhibiting frostbite, leave them until we are closer to being past extreme freezes. When they show signs of new growth in April and we are past frost (usually April 15 in Atlanta), you can prune the old, dead growth to encourage new shoots.

A few months yet of winter, but let's hope that was the worst!


Lyn

Gifts of Nature

Preserving our natural habitats, retaining wooded areas and perennial plants in our landscapes and utilizing plants in commercial settings all give back to the quality of life on our earth.
From cleaning our air of daily pollution, to providing a haven for birds, bees and wildlife - our landscapes enhance and provide a greater well-being to us in countless ways.
Give the gift of nature, whether you plant a new tree or shrub this winter, champion environmental causes, or just leave a wooded area instead of adding a bigger lawn. You will be repaid, many times over.

Merry Christmas,
Lyn

Leaves, leaves everywhere!

What to do with all those leaves? Don't just blow them away.  They are the main ingredient in a natural,  quality compost that will provide you with fantastic soil in the Spring!

All organic material eventually decompose; how quickly depends on the amount of moisture, air circulation, size of material and temperature. A warm, sunny location is best for speeding things along, but it works in shade, just much slower.

Here was my formula for filling a 4' wide by 2' deep and 20' long 'low dip' that I wanted to even up:
1) collect 6" of mulched leaves (go over them with your lawn mower) or just the whole leaf - definitely ok if they are dry.
2) add light sprinkling of water (use the shower setting, very briefly)
3) throw in your lawn clippings and one bag of soil
4) cover with leaves a few inches thick

Keep a pile of leaves and any lawn clippings collected in another area and repeat above one to two times over the winter as each layer decomposes. I was able to fill almost the entire area with 'created' soil between October and March. That's a lot of free, quality soil!

Cooking in the garden,
Lyn