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Category: Summer

Pin Oak Looking Yellow?

Pin oak trees can be a beautiful asset to the landscape. Their pyramidal form, pendulous lower branches and reddish or bronze fall color are striking. Unfortunately, most pin oaks planted in the Midwest are plagued by a yellowing of the leaves known as chlorosis. Other landscape plants are also susceptible to chlorosis, including rhododendrons, river birch, holly and sweet gum. Chlorosis gets its name from the lack of chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for healthy plants’ […]
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Harvest Winter Squash This Summer

This summer’s heat wave is bringing the vegetable garden to maturity a bit earlier than usual in some areas. So many of our typical fall-harvested items may be ready sooner than you’re expecting.   Winter squash is so named because it is harvested in the mature stage, when flavor is rich and the rind is tough, making it suitable for winter storage. Summer squash is harvested in the immature stage, when the rind is still […]
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It’s a ‘Berry’ Good Time To Clean Up the Strawberry Patch

The strawberry harvest may be over, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to forget the plants. Post-harvest care is an important part of keeping your patch healthy and productive. With yearly renovation, strawberry plants can remain productive for 10 years or longer.   Ideally, you should renovate the strawberry bed immediately following the last harvest. The work can still be done now, though it would be best to finish up before the end of July. […]
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Ornamental Grasses Add Beauty and Texture

Although many gardeners think of grass as that plant that has to mowed every week, there are many species of grass that rival any garden flower for beauty and grace. Many ornamental grasses have attractive form, foliage, flowers and color-or even all of the above. Grasses can be used as ground covers (that do not have to be mowed), specimen plants, hedges, perennial borders, naturalized plantings and even rock garden plants. Perennial grasses that are […]
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Cold Weather Affects Vegetable Plants

It has been quite a year for Indiana gardeners already, and it has only just begun! We’ve had just about the whole range of possible weather from drought to flood and late frost to blazing heat. Recent cold weather has frustrated many vegetable gardeners. Plants such as tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, cucumbers and melons must be successfully pollinated in order to produce their fruit. Extreme temperatures, below 55 F or above 90 F, will dramatically […]
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Doing Battle With Weeds

No matter whether the weather is cool or hot, wet or dry, gardeners must do battle with weeds. By definition, a weed is any plant that grows where it is not wanted. Despite having a number of weapons to conduct this battle, the weeds seem to win as least as often as we do! The best weapons for the home garden and landscape include tools, such as the hoe and rototiller. There are quite a […]
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Transplanting in Summer Not the Best

Today’s mobile society often lands gardeners in the predicament of moving away from their beloved gardens at a time of year that is less than ideal for transplanting. Devoted gardeners just hate the thought of leaving all of their beautiful flowers behind. Ideally, the time to move most perennials is either spring or early fall. The hot, generally dry weather of summer is about the worst time of year to move any plant. But, sometimes, […]
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Prescription for Pooped Posies

Are your posies looking peaked? Anemones anemic? Daisys in the doldrums? These are the dog days of summer and though our temperatures haven’t been all that stressful, most areas have had substantially more rainfall than usual for this time of year. While, for the most part, the moisture has been helpful, heavy rains can wash away much of the available nitrogen, making it unavailable for plant uptake. A bit of supplemental fertilizer, applied alongside the […]
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Treated Lumber in Raised Beds

Gardening in raised beds can be just the answer for would-be gardeners, who would love to grow their own vegetables and flowers, but lack the space or physical ability for a traditional garden. However, recent controversy regarding chemical wood preservation treatments has left many gardeners wondering about the safety of treated lumber. Many gardeners have made use of treated lumber in their raised beds, fences, benches, gazebos and other landscape structures. Up until about 2003, […]
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The Fall Vegetable Garden

Fall is an excellent time to grow many vegetable crops in Indiana when the gardener can take advantage of cooler temperatures and more plentiful moisture. Many spring-planted crops, such as radishes, lettuce and spinach, tend to bolt (produce seed) and become bitter in response to long, hot summer days. Fall gardening helps extend your gardening season so that you can continue to harvest produce after earlier crops have faded. Some vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower […]
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Page last modified: October 26, 2016

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