The following news stories are written by Rosie Lerner, Extension Consumer Horticulture Specialist, and are distributed to news media around the state by Agricultural Communication Service, at Purdue University.
Rosie Lerner, Purdue Consumer Horticulture Specialist Released September 24, 1998 One of the toughest things about growing your own grapes is beating the birds to the harvest! Could it be that the birds know something we don’t? Netting can be placed over a grape arbor to keep the birds away from the fruits. But don’t be too hasty in cutting the fruits to one-up the birds. Make sure your grapes are ripe before you harvest….Read more about Harvesting Grapes[Read More]
Ah, the beauty of Mother Nature’s palette coming to life in the fall color of our forest and landscape plants. For some, this marvel is overshadowed by the chores of raking and disposing of fall leaves. What’s needed here is an attitude adjustment! Autumn leaves don’t have to become trash. On the contrary, they easily can be turned into valuable soil-enhancing organic matter. For many urban dwellers, who already have their yard waste picked up…Read more about Much Ado About Leaves[Read More]
If you’re looking for a plant that is winter hardy throughout the Midwest, excels under shady conditions and has fabulous foliage as well as attractive flowers, then Hosta is the plant for you. Also known as plantain lily, Hosta performs best in partial to full shade, although some have been able to survive full sun conditions if given a cool environment with plenty of moisture. The leaves will tend to burn or turn sickly yellow…Read more about Hosta Has Much To Recommend It[Read More]
Summer is not the preferred time to prune landscape trees and shrubs, but it is a great time to prune many annual flowers. Plants such as petunias, impatiens, zinnias and marigolds tend to get leggy and produce fewer blooms by mid summer. Pinching these plants back about halfway will encourage more branching and, in turn, more flowers. The plants may look a bit raggedy initially after being cut back, but with a little water and…Read more about In a Pinch![Read More]
Nothing beats vegetables picked fresh from the garden! But to ensure the best quality, flavor and appearance, proper harvesting at the right stage is essential. Once you harvest, proper storage will help maintain that home-grown freshness. It helps to group vegetables by similarity of storage requirements: Cold And Moist (32-40 F, 90-95 percent relative humidity) Beets-Begin harvest when beet is 1 inch in diameter. Beet tops at this time make excellent tender greens. Begin main…Read more about Timing is Critical to Harvest Vegetables at their Peak[Read More]
Homeowners assessing tree damage caused by recent storms will want to make a few important decisions soon. Small trees with minor damage can probably be taken care of by the homeowner, but large, mature trees likely will need the help of a professional tree service. It can be hard to decide whether trees with severe damage should be completely removed. Homeowners often are reluctant to cut down a tree, either because of sentimental attachment or…Read more about Coping with Storm-damaged Trees[Read More]
You’re an eager home gardener who has lovingly nurtured a tomato patch from seed to fruit. But alas, just as your mouth waters for the first ripening gems, a black, leathery spot appears at the base of the fruit. Blossom end-rot is thankfully a frustrating disorder and not a disease of the fruit. The black scar tissue is caused by a deficiency of calcium in the developing fruit, usually brought on by extreme fluctuations in…Read more about Blossom-end Rot of Tomatoes Likely This Season[Read More]
The National Garden Bureau wants to see everyone’s home blossom with geraniums. Each year the bureau selects a flower and a vegetable to promote, and in 1998 the geranium is the flower they will spotlight. Geraniums include a diverse array of garden flowers from the highly double-flowered hybrid annual types that give season-long color, to ivy geraniums noted for their cascading growth habit, and scented geraniums grown primarily for the remarkably fragrant oils contained in…Read more about 1998 is the Year of the Geranium[Read More]
Each year, the National Garden Bureau selects a flower and a vegetable to promote, and in 1998 the veggie spotlight will shine on the tomato. Tomatoes are native to the Americas, in the Andean mountain region of South America. The Aztecs of Central America are thought to be the first people to cultivate, eat and name the plant tomatl or xtomatl. The tomato was brought to North America by colonists as an ornamental plant, and…Read more about 1998 is the Year of the Tomato[Read More]
Amaryllis is a popular holiday gift plant but may have the lucky recipient wondering about its proper care. Amaryllis is a tender bulb that won’t survive outdoors even in the mildest of Indiana winters. But it can be grown indoors to provide a dramatic show of color during dreary winter months. The showy flowers range from crimson, scarlet, rose, lavender, white or bi-colored combinations. Although each plant may produce only one cluster of 2-4 blooms,…Read more about How to care for your amaryllis[Read More]