Friday, May 24, 2013

By Abigail Higgins
Published: February 26, 2009

Polly Hill Arboretum (PHA) has scheduled another blueberry pruning workshop at the Murphy blueberry farm in Chilmark on March 7, from 10 to 12 noon. Please call 508-693-9426 to register.

In the February 12 edition of Garden Notes, I mentioned the sighting of turkey vultures. At least one of those sightings, I now believe, was of immature eagles, immense and dark, with a flight profile superficially similar to that of turkey vultures. Would a turkey vulture take one of our hens while we were out on a walk, leaving poultry unguarded by dogs?

Visit Polly Hill Arboretum to observe a variety of plants for winter interest. Known also as hair or thread grass, Nassella tenuissima is in a perennial bed with other ornamental grasses at the arboretum.
Photo by Susan Safford

Gardeners restlessly awaiting spring manifest many impatient behaviors. The maples are well into spring mode already this year. I took off a three-inch branch confident that it was too soon (February 13) and too cold for the sap to have risen, only to see next day the telltale flow of bleeding sap below the cut. Must mean sugaring time is here. Lack of a sugar maple (Acer saccharum) should not be a deterrent. A rural West Tisbury legend has Tom and Eleanor Waldron sugaring all sorts of maples years back, not only sugar maples but also swamp (A. rubrum), Norway (A. platanoides), and silver maples (A. saccharinum).

My method nowadays, to counter that yearning for spring, is to plant more for fall and winter interest. That is when I am home and can enjoy the effects and my own premises. I have been out in my back area, checking the Sarcococca (S. hookeriana var. humilis, also known as Christmas or sweet box), repeatedly hoping to catch a hint of the scent that the name implies. These are low-growing evergreens, almost groundcover, with slim, pointed, shining leaves. Stems have a yellowish cast that the small flower buds in the leaf axils repeat. Flowers are unspectacular though the scent is special - but not yet. Plant some in a location with high shade and add organic matter to the soil.

A further disappointment is that some felon, maybe my own poultry, has been carefully harvesting each and every tiny pink bell of the heaths, Erica x 'Furzey.' Loaded with buds in December and January, by now they ought to be early bee forage. Instead they are picked clean, though otherwise undamaged.

To do list

The impatient behavior to be wary of for gardeners is jumping the gun. Pay close attention to seed packets' sowing dates relative to "weeks before last frost in your area." Young, vigorous plants are better than older, root-bound ones. Vegetable seedlings started on windowsills very quickly need lots more room and light to continue their growth unchecked. They must be moved on to larger modules or pots, requiring larger shelf space, and in very good sources of light to prevent stretching and becoming spindly.

Seedlings to start early, those needing about 12 weeks, would be celery, leeks, parsley, and maybe some perennial herbs. Give peppers about 10 weeks, and tomatoes, eggplants, and basil, about eight. Lettuce, cabbage family, and spinach grow quickly; start them later. Use soil-less seed starting mix. It is a great asset to have a cold frame to move seedlings into to harden them off.

Pulling back mulch or leaf litter prematurely to clean around the crowns of perennials can expose them to freeze-thaw cycles that may be more harmful than staying solidly cold until spring is farther along. On the other hand, there are jobs that are pleasant to do now, and some that must be done now.

Prune fruit trees in February. Look to eliminate or shorten back whippy growth that lacks the characteristic stumpy bud pattern called a spur, where flowering buds originate. Rubbing or crossing branches are candidates for removal. An open canopy, creating light and good air circulation, is the goal. Twigs, shoots, and branches that are heading into the center of the tree must be thinned or redirected. A word of caution: removing too much in any one season causes the tree to madly grow replacements, called water sprouts. Make a mental schedule, where about a third of the necessary pruning is performed per season, until the tree is shaped up.

After pruning, dormant oil sprays are applied but only when temperatures remain above freezing for 24 hours, or there is risk of damage to the tree. They are applied to control harmful insects' over-wintering larvae and eggs. Fruit trees and hemlocks afflicted with hemlock woolly adelgid benefit from this low-tech, low-risk method. Small amounts of oil and an emulsifier (soaps/detergents) are mixed with water to make the spray, which lays a fine film on twig, bud, and pest alike. The oil penetrates the insect's case and suffocates it, but if correctly applied it harms neither twig nor bud. Be sure to follow all directions on the container.

The flowing blond tresses (photo) in the perennial border at PHA are Nassella tenuissima. The advice that follows notwithstanding, I would leave it for as long as it continues to look good. Otherwise, cut back many of the larger ornamental grasses (miscanthus, pennisetum, panicum, eragrostis, etc.) now. They no longer sway gracefully, having been broken by snow and ice load and beaten up by windstorms. In many cases there is already a considerable amount of downwind debris to collect.

Finally, lawn clean-up and raking is perfect garden work for February, making gardeners feel useful. Lawns respond readily and look great. Save everything you rake for the compost pile; lawn rakings are a choice element in any program to recycle organic matter.

Whippoorwill Farm CSA

Shares for the coming season are available now. Members can choose between 5-, 10-, or 24-week shares. Each share includes one bunch of flowers each week, and includes some specialty items such as strawberries and watermelons when available. Contact Whippoorwill Farm CSA at 508-693-5995 or whippoorwillfarmcsa.com.