inside this issue: shade gardening - boyle county · shade gardening if you have shaded areas in...

Fall 2016

Shade Gardening 1

KY Barn Owls 2

Managing Fire Blight 3

Characteristics of Poison Ivy

4

Regrow Your Kitchen Scraps

5

KY Proud Recipes 6

Upcoming Classes 7

Kid’s Corner 8

Trowel and Error 9

Plant Spotlight 9

Inside this issue:

Boyle County Extension Office

99 Corporate Drive

Danville, KY 40422

(859) 236-4484

[email protected]

Volume 4, Issue 1

Shade Gardening If you have shaded areas in your landscaping, count your blessings. These areas can pro-

vide some of the most beautiful gardens to behold. Also, during the hot, humid summertime here

in Central Kentucky, the cool freshness of working in the shade is very enjoyable. Once thought

to be a challenge for gardeners, the shade garden can be the answer to many landscaping prob-

lems. For example, it is a fact that grass will not grow under dense trees and heavily shaded areas,

therefore landscaping with shade-loving ground covers can be a solution.

Areas that receive less than 4-6 hours of sunlight can be considered for a shade garden.

Filtered daylight is desirable and woodland areas can also be used. It may be advantageous to use

raised beds if roots are near the surface of the garden spot you desire.It is best to determine if the

shade garden’s soil is dry or moist most of the year, and then choose plants that are best-suited

for those areas.

Deciduous woodland shade provides conditions of shelter, light shade, and humus rich

soil suitable for many perennials. In cool dry areas grow ground covers such as Lilly of the Valley,

or Solomon’s Seal. It is best to group plants of one kind in drifts and intermingling at the edges or

in substantial clumps. Ferns in particular thrive in a woodland setting and add architectural inter-

est when planted in bold swaths.

Below is a partial list of many suggested shade garden plants that will perform very well.

~Curtesy of North Carolina CES

PERENNIALS MOIST DRY

Japanese Anemone X

Columbine X

Astilbe X

Bleeding Heart X

Helleborus X

Coral Bells X

Lungwort X X

Campanula X

Virginia Bluebells X

GROUND COVER MOIST DRY

Bugleweed X

Dianthus X

Woodland Phlox X

Sweet Woodruff X

Periwinkle X X

Primula X

Trillium X

Hepatica X

Mondo Grass X

The Boy le Co. Thymes Vo lume 4, I ssue 1

Managing Fire Blight


Although fire blight is typically a spring pest, now is the time to be thinking about how to manage it for next

year’s growing season. Fire blight is a bacterial disease of many plantings in the rose family, including apples,

and pears. Symptoms of this disease include rapid death of blossoms and

shoot tips. Blighted shoots appear to brown suddenly and develop a

‘shepherd’s crook’ at the tip. Infection occurs when conditions have high

relative humidity or rain, and temperatures are between 65F and 70F. Un-

der these favorable conditions bacterial cells can double every 20

minutes. This means one cell can become one billion cells overnight, with

each capable of causing a new infection.

The key to managing fire blight is to prevent infection. For home owners the best practices are cultural ones. If

thinking of planting a new tree, look for resistant or tolerant varieties whenever possible. For established

plants, avoid over fertilizing. Rapid growth of young succulent tissue caused by over fertilization makes tissue

susceptible to infection. Bring in a soil sample, and apply fertilizers in the fall based on the recommendation.

In late winter, prune trees to improve air circulation and pro-

mote rapid drying of foliage. You will also want to be prun-

ing out any infected branches or leaves still on the tree dur-

ing the dormant stage. DO NOT prune during warm weath-

er, or you risk the chance of further spreading the bacteria.

However, it is recommended that you flag or paint the in-

fected branches before the tree drops its leaves, in order to

more appropriately prune during the dormant season. Blight-

ed twigs should be pruned at least 6-8 inches below infected

areas. It is very important to remove and destroy any pruned

material to eliminate sources of bacteria. I recommend prun-

ing into a cart, or directly into a bag to make sure no branches are left on the ground.

For severely infected trees, in addition to the cultural practices, homeowners may want to apply a bactericide.

Copper Sulfate is recommended for application during late winter to active cankers, twigs, and branches to

help reduce overwintering populations of the fire blight bacterium. Multiple applications may be needed dur-

ing periods of favorable conditions.


Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans), a deciduous woody vine, grows all over in the USA, except Hawaii,

Alaska and arid areas of south west. It can be found in the woods, home gardens and parks. It is considered an

obnoxious plant due to the severe allergic skin reaction of sensitive people to the urushiol oil. Poison ivy con-

tains urushiol in any plant tissue.

Identifying Poison ivy at early stage of their development, when

plants lack of flowers, fruit and its very distinctive aerial hairy

roots, might be puzzling. All that is available is foliage (Figure

1) that can be similar to those of many other species that share

the same habitat (Figure 1).

Moreover, Poison ivy’s leaf morphology is variable, for instance

leaf margin can be smooth, serrated (saw-like) or lobed. So we

must take a close look to its leaves to avoid going wrong. Poison

ivy leaves are trifoliate, this is, a leaf is made up of three leaf-

lets; one on the top and two opposed to each other at the base

(while rare there can be 4 to 7 leaflets). Leaf stem is long for the

terminal leaflet and leaf and very short and reddish for the basal

leaflets (Figures 2A and 2B). The leaf insertion to the stem is

very distinctive, leaf stem or petiole base is wide and surrounds

a large portion of stem perimeter (Figure 2C). V-shaped scar is

visible on the stem when a leaf drops. Leaf arrangement on the

stem is alternate, they arise anywhere on the stem, but never

face each other.

Leaf color in the spring is bright red, turn green in summer and

in the fall they become yellow,

orange and deep red before they

drop off the vine (Figure 3). Small Poison ivy plants are bush type, and turn

into vine as they grow, and climb straight on the support.

Juvenile plants similar to Poison ivy

Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is also a woody vine that is dis-

tributed in eastern and central North America. Poison ivy and Virginia creeper

have similar habit and seasonal color change. It has five leaflets per leaf, or

three on rare occasions (Figure 4). The major differences are the presence of

hairy stems and tendrils, a specialized thin stem that has a terminal adhesive

disk for attachment.

Characteristics of Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans)

Zenaida Viloria and Win Dunwell

Figure 1: Poison Ivy (Red Oval), Virginia Creeper (Yellow

Ovals), Wild Grape (Blue Oval). Photo: W. Dunwell


Lettuce

You can grow a variety of head lettuces, Bok Choy and cab-

bage from your kitchen scraps. After cutting, simply place the base of

the head in a bowl with a little bit of water in the bottom. Put the bowl

in an area that gets good sunlight, and mist the leaves every few days.

In about 3-4 days you should begin to notice roots and new leaves ap-

pearing. You can then transplant your new lettuce into soil.

Ginger

Ginger is a very easy plant to grow, and it doesn’t take much

to provide all your ginger needs. Ginger is actually a rhizome,

which is a modified stem, rather than a true root. All you need to do

to grow it is put a small piece into potting soil with buds facing up.

In about a week you should see new shoots. You can continually

use it as long as you save a piece and replant it.

Lemongrass

It can often be difficult to find fresh lemongrass in stores, so why not simply re-

grow your own. You just place the root that is leftover into a glass jar with enough water

to cover it, then sit it in sunlight. In about 7-10 days you will see little grass shoots . At

this point you can pot up your new lemongrass. Remember lemongrass is an annual, so

planting it in a pot is recommended.

Pineapple

You don’t have to live in the tropics to grow your own pineap-

ple plant. All you need to do is cut the top off and use toothpicks to suspend it in a con-

tainer. You want the top to barely skim the water, and it is important to keep the water lev-

el consistent. Put your container in direct sunlight, if it is warm out put it outside on the

porch. You should begin to notice small roots in about a week. After the roots are formed

you can transplant into potting soil.

Basil and Cilantro

For these herbs you just need a stem about 4” tall. Place the stem in a

glass of water, making sure water does not get on the leaves. Leave the glass in a

bright area, or window sill. Within a few days roots will begin to form. Once

they are a couple inches long, transplant them into soil and you will begin to see

new sprigs form.

Re-Grow Your Kitchen Scraps


Upcoming Classes and News

Classes are subject to cancel if not enough people call to regis-

ter. Please call ahead!

Boyle Co. Bee Group: 6pm 8/15/16

Garden to Table Brambles: 6pm Cost $5 8/18/16

Learn how to get the most out of your blackberry and raspberry class,

while also enjoying some delicious new recipes!

Garden to Table Apples: 6pm Cost $5 9/15/16

Growing apples can be difficult with our KY weather. We will talk

about good cultivars, pruning techniques, and fertilizing for a maximum

crop.


Plants With Fall Color: 6:30 9/22/16

Want more fall color in your garden? We will talk about the best plants

for fall color, including a variety of KY natives.

Bulbs: 6:30 10/13/16 FREE BULBS

Learn about new varieties of spring bulbs, and how best to care for

them. Those that pre-register by OCTOBER1st will leave with a variety of

bulbs for planting.


Horticulture Council: 4:30pm 10/17/16

Garden to Table Garlic: 6pm 10/20/16 Cost $5

Garlic can be a tricky crop to grow, but with a little information,

you too can grow more garlic than you could ever eat! Attendees will leave

with a variety of garlic bulbs to plant in their home gardens.

Holiday Cactus: 6:30pm 11/3/16 FREE PLANTS

Learn how to make your holiday cactus bloom! We will discuss new

varieties and those who register before OCTOBER 13th will receive free

plants!


Dragonfly

I hope you enjoy this coloring page!

Trowel & Error : Quick Tips


Plant Spotlight!

Start your fall garden now! Most plants with shorter growing seasons can be grown in the fall and often produce

better results. Allow a little more time to mature than the seed pachage says as cooler nights and shorter days can

slow growth.

If you have serious grub problems apply controls in early August. The

larvae are much easier to control while small.

Monitor evergreens for spider mite damage. Drought stressed plants are

particularly at risk. If you see signs of browning, shake the branch over a

white surface. If you see tiny moving red specks you likely have mites.

Minor infestations can be treated with a daily spray from the hose.

If your late blooming perennials (Asters, Goldenrod, Butterfly bush, Mums,

etc.) are already tall and threatening to flop, prune them back to 1’ in height.

This weill result in a fuller, sturdier plant that will bloom slightly later than nor-

mal.

Fall Webworm are beginning to appear. Consider Bt insecticides for heavy in-

festations.

Joe Pye Weed By Deborah Crandall

Many beginner gardeners perceive Eutrochium (Joe-pye weed) to be nothing more than a roadside weed and they have

never seriously considered its outstanding ornamental attributes. In today’s home landscape design, gardeners are including Joe-

pye weed as a “Right Plant in the Right Place” of their garden.

Eutrochium is a member of the Aster (Asteraceae) Family. A showy plant, few perennials can com-

pare with Joe-pye weed’s ability to create an imposing presence in the landscape. The plant is

known by other common names and is sometimes called feverweed or Queen of the meadow.

Commonly found in open meadows and marshes in eastern North America, the Joe-pye weed

attracts butterflies with its large flower heads. There are three species of Joe-pye weed as listed

by the United States Department of Agriculture including, eastern Joe-pye weed, spotted Joe-pye

weed and sweet-scented Joe-pye weed.

The plants are hardy from USDA Zones 4 – 9. Reaching heights of anywhere between 3 and 12

feet, they offer a great focal interest with their purple to pink flowers. An added benefit, the flow-

ers have a light vanilla fragrance that becomes more intense when crushed.

Joe-pye weed is America’s tallest perennial herb. The plant was named after a Native American

called Joe-pye who used the plant to cure typhus, or typhoid fever. In addition to its medicinal

properties, both the flowers and seeds have been used in producing pink or red dye for textiles.

Joe-pye weeds in the garden prefer full sun to partial shade. They also like to be kept somewhat moist in average to rich soils. Joe-

pye weed will also tolerate wet soil conditions, but not overly dry sites. In areas that experience hot, dry summers, plant these or-

namental beauties in partially shaded locales.

Cultivars to try include: ‘Chocolate’, ‘Gateway’, and ‘Little Joe’ that will only reach about 4ft tall.

If you’re like me than fall has snuck up on you too! However, I would be lying if I

said I wasn’t excited for sweaters, pumpkin pie, and fall gardening! Especially since

it will be the end of this heat! I hope your summers went well, and your tomatoes are

still thriving, I know mine have been pretty happy this year. I hope you enjoy this

issue, and remember to always keep calm, and trust your horticulturist!

Alexis Amorese

Boyle Co. Horticulture Agent

Like our Facebook for weekly updates on what your

cooperative extension is up to!

https://www.facebook.com/boyle.extension

Boyle County Extension Office

99 Corporate Drive

Danville, KY 40422

Working in the garden gives me

something beyond the enjoy-

ment of the senses…

It gives me a profound feeling of

inner peace.

~Ruth Stout

inside this issue: shade gardening - boyle county · shade gardening if you have shaded areas in...

Documents