gardening Archives - Page 9 of 10 - Proper Landscaping Inc.

Dec 09

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Crazy about gardening: Des Kennedy

By Vas Sladek | Books, Company News, gardening, Reviews | No Comments

Crazy about gardening

Sometimes you get lucky. Sometimes. Walking back to my car after returning bottles for deposit, I noticed a used bookshop sign. Closing, Final day, 70% off all used books. Aha. A very pleasant detour on my way to discovering Des Kennedy.

Half an hour later I walked out with the BC garden writer’s book. At $1.30 it was a steal. Kennedy is an award-winning writer and it shows. “Crazy about gardening” is a funny book. It’s subtitled “Reflections on the sweet seductions of a garden“. So we know this isn’t a technical manual. The lessons are subtle, mixed in with jokes and stories. If you let him, Kennedy has plenty to teach you.

There were also many spots where I almost reached for my dictionary. I also enjoyed the odd poem:

Life’s a short summer, man a flower.

He dies-alas! how soon he dies.

Obviously, just like stand-up comedy, your enjoyment is directly related to your age and experience. If you are an experienced gardener, you will definitely be entertained. If you are new to gardening, read and learn. Your vocabulary will also improve.

Some highlights

Kennedy hires a water diviner to find water on his property. A water witch. I find this fascinating because my own grandfather did this with outrageous accuracy just outside Prague. As a little city kid, visiting the country, I found it amazing. Grandpa would pick a branch, slice one end in half, grab one end with each hand and walk. Once he hit water, the top uncut end of the branch would dip down towards the ground. Success. Grandpa also made money by digging wells. The hard way.

Dog days droop. Kennedy makes fun of the late summer period when what was beautiful is all of a sudden dreary and desiccated. Pests multiply. April energy is long gone. The gardener temporarily loses grip.

Lawns. We know they use water, fertilizers, herbicides, and require time and effort to maintain. It’s a bizarre fetish. Once the lawn is nicely cut Kennedy admits to feeling a “bizarre little thrill of satisfaction, of emotional well-being.” I concur. There is something to this.

At $1.30 this book was a steal. Des Kennedy is worth whatever Amazon charges for his books. Give him a try.

Nov 11

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Believe in Bergenia cordifolia

By Vas Sladek | gardening, Landscaping, Plant Species Information | No Comments

First contact

My first encounter with Bergenia cordifolia was several years ago with my manager. She bent down and furiously started rubbing the leaves to demonstrate how the plant got its common name ‘pigsqueak’. And so we all rubbed the leaves to learn our lesson. Some no doubt turned their thoughts to bacon.

2016

Fast forward to 2016. Out on a site walk with my boss and the garden liaison, I was shocked when the lady asked us about removing a huge clump of Bergenia. What? Really? One person decides on a large landscape edit? They obviously had not flowered yet and they were in a perfect location close to a sidewalk. Bergenia form nice clumps but don’t spread quickly. Luckily the lady got side-tracked with other projects.

Then, at home one day in summer, seeking happiness by de-cluttering, I ran into a clipping from March 2008. It was a Garden West magazine article by Carol Hall. In it she correctly defends Bergenias. Finally, one person that made sense. Let the pigs squeak. Forever.

Plant details

Siberia and Himalayas native, this early-blooming perennial is tough as nails. Once it is established, it requires very little maintenance. I remove any brown leaves before liaisons get upset; and I remove spent flower stalks. That’s it.

Hall thinks that Bergenia’s lack of popularity stems from being stuck in 4 inch nursery containers. To fully appreciate the plant you have to see it established in your garden. I believe she is right. See my pictures below.

Other than situated by sidewalks, Bergenias are also good for front border definition and as year-round accents in mixed landscaping. You can also mass them under deciduous trees.

A salvaged specimen on my patio. Not much of a show but I love the leathery leaves.

A lonely single plant with flowers

Much better in a clump. Note the only real maintenance: snip out spent flower stalks and remove any brown leaves.

A high-profile church location with Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ above

Give Bergenia cordifolia a chance in your garden.

Nov 04

0

Landscape maintenance mistakes, vol.3

By Vas Sladek | Edging, gardening, Landscaping, Lawn Care | No Comments

Here is volume three examining basic mistakes made in landscape maintenance. Learning from other people’s mistakes is much easier. It speeds up our progress. And to become landscape professionals we must progress. That’s mandatory.

A) Re-fuelling like pigs

Sure, accidents can happen. But unnecessary fuel spills cost money, they pollute the environment and they look awful. Imagine if you park your truck in the same spot once a week. It becomes an eye-sore and a potential source of complaints.

Gas up on tarps. (Stay away from grass as it burns and turns yellow.)

B) Don’t leave deep edging chunks behind

Proper deep edging requires a 90 degree edge. Nothing else will do. As you deep edge you will most likely generate some turf chunks. When you clean up, remove all chunks. Finesse the bed like a pro.

Inadequate clean-up; note weeds and chunks

Much better!

C) Mower collisions with trees

This is horrific. One collision may be fine. The tree will be forced to spend precious resources on fixing the damage, instead of on growing. Repeated collisions will kill the tree as water flow is interrupted. Keep your mowers away from trees. Period. Put up tree guards.

A tight fit. To stay on the curb, the mower deck collides with tree bark. Weekly!?

D) Stepping on frosty lawns

If you can help it, stay off frosty lawns. When the lawn is frosty, the grass blades have little oxygen and water inside. That means they can not bounce back the way they do in summer. They get crushed.

Stay off frosty lawns if possible

With little water and oxygen inside frosty grass blades they can’t bounce back and get crushed.

E) Mohawks

Mohawks result from improper overlap. When you finish mowing a line, pivot on the back wheel as you turn. Do not move the back wheel, just spin it around. That should get you nicely lined up.

Mohawks also result from failure to mow straight in laser lines. It takes some practice. The mohawks must be fixed because one week later they will be really noticeable. Practice mowing until you eliminate mohawks forever.

A huge Mohawk. Practice!

Have fun in the field.

Oct 21

2

Rhododendron pruning 101: rejuvenation

By Vas Sladek | Education, gardening, Landscaping, Tips | 2 Comments

Three pruning actions on rhododendrons

There are three pruning actions associated with rhododendrons. One is the removal of spent flowers (trusses) and any diseased or dead wood. Most rhodos produce seeds and you can get your rhodo to concentrate on growth by removing the spent flowers. Do this soon after flowering before the new buds get big and set. I prefer hand pinching. Just be careful so you don’t injure the buds below. Use hand snips if you are worried.

Trusses still on

Trusses pinched off

The second pruning action is for shape. Just follow the branch down to the last whorl of leaves you want to keep and cut just above those leaves. This is what I recommend to clients who wish to keep their rhododendrons from getting too big.

But what if your rhodo is too big? Now what? In this case we employ pruning action three: rejuvenation, which sounds better than renovation. This involves bravely making large cuts and significantly reducing the plant size. This works because rhodos are special. Examine their bark and look for tiny pink dots. Those are latent buds. Always aim to cut above these buds. Best case: cut above a cluster of latent buds. Then watch.

One example

Here is one example from my work site. This rejuvenation pruning was done at a corner unit where there was a problem with vehicle sight lines. Drivers couldn’t see properly when turning. So out came the saw as soon as the request was made. This was the result.

Not much to look at right after pruning. Reduced to 30%.

A few weeks later…..

Latent buds popping

Latent buds in action, a cluster of four buds below the cut

Much better after a few weeks

September 2016

September 2016

Rhododendrons are forgiving plants. Pinch off flower clusters (trusses) soon after flowering and prune for size. Bravely make big cuts if rejuvenation is required.

References: Fine Gardening, issue 86.

Oct 17

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Notes on urban agriculture

By Vas Sladek | gardening | No Comments

Strata garden plot

There she was. A lovely mother of two busily tending to her community garden plots. It was a sunny morning and the plants were in need of water. The two plots are small but her strata council has approved the construction of one more plot. It wasn’t easy, nor quick, but there will be more space for growing stuff. Not every strata council is this accommodating. Most condo patios are either too small or don’t receive enough sunlight for serious growing.

There is a water barrel for watering. All members take turns watering and taking care of the plots. The harvest is shared among them. Community.

This is a humble strata complex garden plot

Globe article

Soon after meeting this lady, I opened up my Globe and Mail newspaper. I was immediately grabbed by Ian Clarke’s article “The future is inefficient, and it tastes just fine” (The Globe and Mail, Wednesday August 10, 2016)

It is clear that there is more and more interest in these gardens. A mother of two is happy to know that her vegetables are organic, she can save a bit of cash and use the plot to teach her kids about food. This is nothing new. Michelle Obama famously planted a kitchen garden at the White House to promote the value of urban agriculture.

Several years ago I had a community garden plot in the Burquitlam area of Coquitlam. Busy at the time and annoyed with one of the garden directors, I gave up. Now I wish I hadn’t.

As The Globe article mentions, during the world wars, the government encouraged people to plant food gardens in all available urban spaces.

Urban agriculture

From tiny backyard plots, community and school gardens to larger commercial farms, the urban agriculture sector is expanding. It will never replace rural farms. But check out the benefits. It can:

reduce the carbon footprint of our food
create resilient cities and food systems
reduce the urban heat island and air-conditioning costs
reduce demands on city infrastructure
create jobs

Urban agriculture is:

smaller in scale
usually more biodiverse
responds to local tastes and demands
technically inefficient as it uses local workers who make more cash
it is very efficient at producing good food and jobs

I can’t wait to see how the third garden plot develops.

Sep 23

0

Develop your landscape eye

By Vas Sladek | gardening, Landscaping, Tips | No Comments

Landscape eye

Developing your landscape eye is a critical skill. It takes time to develop but your landscape, bosses and clients will thank you for it. Basically, landscape eye refers to your ability to read a landscape and figure out what’s missing, totally wrong or just slightly off. This usually comes with experience once workers are fully proficient on all equipment.

I started landscaping at a prominent Lower Mainland landscape maintenance corporation we don’t need to name. There, the in-house seminar on “Developing your landscape eye” was delivered by the company owner. Not managers. The owner. That was no accident. Workers with good landscape eye can make corrections which leads to sharper and healthier landscapes. This seminar was a platform for the company owner to train his workers to see the landscape the way he does.

Some obvious examples are weeds, shrub spikes, walkway obstruction, flower deadheading, broken tree branches, tree branches touching buildings, missed blade edging, lawns that don’t look lush, dead plants, garbage, debris, cedar pruning lines, shoddy clean ups, etc.

Examples

Obvious weed problem

Ask yourself: how were these weeds allowed to get this big?

A broken Acer circinatum branch: remove ASAP

Pinus mugo half way across sidewalk: prune back

A broken branch on Liquidambar styraciflua in a high-profile location

Dead cedars

Yucca flower spike can be removed

Mulch volcano: we can’t cover with mulch anything above the root flare or the tree suffers

Very poor tree cuts: the cut below was correct

Hardscape hazards

Tree collisions: to stay on the curb, mowers collide with this tree weekly. Put up a tree guard and instruct workers to avoid all collisions. Repeated abuse kills trees.

The deep edge is fine (90 degrees!) but we can’t leave the chunks. Very poor clean up.

This is common: tree branches touch the building

Remove low branches on trees; we can’t have branches develop this low

Remove suckers off tree trunk (above) and ivy (Hedera helix) below

As you move and work through your gardens and landscapes, pause to take a good look. Does it all makes sense? Is it all healthy and beautiful? Work on developing your landscape eye.

Aug 12

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Garden Days.ca freestyle

By Vas Sladek | Education, Events, gardening | No Comments

As reported in the CNLA Newsbrief (spring 2016, vol.25 issue 2, page 4) Garden Days are Canada’s Annual Celebration of Gardens and Gardening. It all starts with National Garden Day, always the Friday before Father’s Day. June 17-19 this year. That’s easy to remember for fathers.

This is basically a three-day freestyle celebration of gardens. People can visit their favourite gardens, work in their own gardens or stop by a garden centre for some inspiration. Some businesses organize barbecues, fundraisers, festivals or special sales. Lovers can enjoy a walk through botanical gardens.

This is what I did with my kids.

We watered and checked our patio plants, a mix of annuals, perennials and plants that are being “parked” for the time being. The most interesting pot is a mix of wildflowers I received as a gift from my kids. I simply dumped the seeds out into a new pot and waited.
When my son showed me his Minecraft house creation, I helped him improve the landscaping by adding more flowers. Virtual gardening. I said this was freestyle.
On the way to soccer we walked by the Port Moody recreation centre and identified local trees, like cottonwoods which have a tendency to self-prune by dropping branches.
Instead of my usual “fake” bedtime story, I told the kids about my audiobook “Lab girl” by Dr. Hope Jahren. In it she mentions resurrection plants; plants so brown and dead it’s hard to believe that with moisture they come back to life. They are the only plants that have figured out how to grow without being green!

Wildflower mix, a gift from my kids.

Extras from work: Begonias and Geraniums

A salvaged Bergenia

I always wanted to have my own Rudbeckias

We added more flowers to my son’s Minecraft creation

Did you get a chance to celebrate Garden Days?

Aug 01

0

Nematodes vs. European chafer beetles

By Vas Sladek | gardening, Landscaping, Lawn Care, Tips | No Comments

One of my clients on the Westwood Plateau in Coquitlam loves his lawn. When his lawn got ripped up by animals searching for European chafer grubs, he was shocked. He installed an irrigation system and hired me so his lawn could receive good, consistent care.

Damaged lawn by animals looking for tasty grubs

Repaired lawn

Once I repaired the damaged lawn, my client decided to try a nematode application. He pre-ordered the nematodes in June. $80 cost plus my labour.

June is a busy month for the European chafer beetles. As they mature, they emerge out of the lawn and fly off to nearby trees to mate. Then they look for new lawns to lay their eggs in. If you’re lucky, they pick your neighbour’s lawn. Cutting your lawn higher means it’s more difficult for the beetles to stick their back ends in to lay their eggs.

Europen chafer beetles ( the bottom 3 are playing dead!)

The recommended nematode application window is from the third week of July. This is what we did once the nematodes arrived. They were kept cool in a fridge.

A) Cut your lawn short and water it really well prior to nematode application. The microscopic nematodes require water to penetrate into soil. There they seek out the grubs. Important: get a municipal water permit.

B) Because the nematodes are photo-sensitive we waited until there was no direct sunlight hitting both the front and back lawn areas.

C) We prepared a 4L bucket of water. The we opened the package and soaked the sponges in the water. Also soak the plastic bag holding the sponges. Carefully squeeze each sponge ten times. Then stir the solution well. Discard bags and sponges.

D) Carefully fill up your hose end sprayer. We used a funnel. Don’t forget to stir the solution before every re-fill.

E) Turn on water and spray methodically. Use sticks, tools or tape if it makes it easier for you to keep track of where you’ve sprayed. We soaked the worst damaged spot.

F) Water your lawn after application.

Pre-order nematodes in June (NemasysG “seekers are best)

Hose end tank and 4L bucket for nematode solution; funnel and stir stick

Soak the nematodes in your bucket, squeeze several times, also wash the plastic cover just in case

Hose end applicator $17 tax included

If everything goes well, the chafer larvae will get eliminated by the nematodes. Two problems with nematodes is that they might have to be applied annually and they eliminate all grubs they find in the soil. In the meantime, the lawn will receive better care.

Jul 29

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European chafer beetle battles: more lawn, really?

By Vas Sladek | Education, gardening, Landscaping, Lawn Care | No Comments

So your lawn has been damaged by animals looking for European chafer beetle grubs. Now what? Do nothing and look at the mess? Get more grass? Or give up and go for alternatives?

I have clients on the Westwood Plateau who last year witnessed black bears digging through their back yard lawn looking for chafer grubs. Their lawn was weak: areas covered by trampoline were mossy, there was no regular irrigation or fertilization. Chafer beetles laid eggs in it the previous June.

Heavy animal damage as they look for tasty grubs

I came to install mulch and prune their evergreens. Could I fix the damage? Yes, of course. Do regular lawn maintenance? With pleasure.

Client wants more grass

There are home owners who love, LOVE, their green grass. This particular home owner wanted more grass. He installed a new irrigation system, paid for my fix and ordered nematodes. The lawn will be cut bi-weekly and higher than in previous seasons.

Step 1: cut the lawn short and remove lawn chunks

Step 2: power rake the lawn, rake up the debris and mow it again

Step 3: install good lawn and garden soil and rake it in

Step 4: overseed, gently rake in seeds, add starter fertilizer, roll it with a pin to level any bumps and to ensure soil-seed contact; and water

Step 5: check for germination after 7+ days and overseed any obvious open spots

Step 6: order nematodes in June and apply them to the lawn in late summer/fall

Step 7: cut higher, irrigate and fertilize as required

Mid-July 2016 lawn fixed, regularly irrigated, nematode application pending

Clients who love their grass can repair their lawns, maintain them well, and apply beneficial nematodes in the third week of July. There are no guarantees with nematodes but this home will be a good test site. More on nematodes in a future blog.

Jul 25

0

July colors rule!

By Vas Sladek | gardening, Landscaping, Plant Species Information | No Comments

Summer color

Summer colors rule! It’s a lot of fun working in July landscapes. These are the days I dream of on cold November days. Those dark wet days when I have miles of cedar hedges to prune and the only source of heat is the gear case on my shears.

Mass-planted Rudbeckias are very warm and hard to miss; lilies are everywhere; and Liatris spicata demand attention. My favorite silk tree, Alibizia julibrissen, smells so great I get close enough for its silky flowers to tickle my nose. I even snipped off a few flowers, sealed them in a bag and brought them home so my kids could enjoy the scent.

Below are plants I encountered while working in the landscape. The Hosta flower picture is my first ever. Until now I never photographed an individual Hosta flower.

Plant identification

Summer is the best time for plant identification work. As you move through your gardens and landscapes look around. Can you name some or all of the species? When you encounter your favorite plant, look it up. Most plants have their own stories and interesting details.

Can’t name some? Take a picture and research them. Better yet, buy some plants and plant them in your garden. That’s the best way to remember them.

Plant tag thief

When I install plants I always keep the tags. When I find discarded plant tags, I keep them. I also take pictures of tags in clients’ gardens. I try to stay away from garden centres because, inevitably, some tags of plants I didn’t know will end up in my pocket. That’s when teenage garden centre assistants roll their eyes and search for the manager. Lesson is over. I head for the exit.

What are your summer favourites?