Greetings from your gardening friends at Stadler Nurseries!
Garden Tips:
- You can imagine what is first on our gardening to-do list: water! While we had a
bit of rain recently, it barely penetrated the hard, dry ground. The excessive
heat has really baked all of the moisture from the soil. The plants that are most
vulnerable are evergreens and any plants planted within the past few years.
Evergreens (spruce, azaleas, laurels, etc) do not show signs of being too dry, such as wilting, so by the time you notice something is wrong, it is often too late. Don't assume your evergreens are fine - they need water, too.
- Many annuals are looking faded and sad because of the heat. Remove all of the
dead flowers and fertilize regularly to encourage new flowers. Some plants,
such as impatiens, do not open their flower buds when the night time
temperatures are too warm. These plants will start to bloom again once it cools
down.
- Vegetable plants are also affected by the extreme heat. Many varieties,
especially tomatoes, will not produce flowers during heat waves. The flowers will
start to set again as soon as the temperatures are not so hot.
- So far, we have seen little to no Japanese beetle activity. Hurray! Keep an eye out for caterpillar damage, however. If you see caterpillars on your plant, please identify the variety (Google Images is very helpful.) Many varieties of caterpillars are butterflies and moths and should not be killed with pesticides. Using pruners, simply remove the branch on which it is feeding, and put the branch elsewhere in your yard, away from the host plant.
It's Almost Time to Redeem Your Stadler Dollars!
Bring your dollars to the Nursery July 15-31st.
Cool New Plants:
"Lo and Behold Blue Chip" Butterfly Bush is a new dwarf variety of butterfly bush. This variety grows only 2' tall, making it perfect for containers and the front of perennial gardens. Blue Chip is covered with dark blue flowers summer through fall. Hummingbirds and butterflies are attracted to the sweetly fragrant blooms.
"Invincibelle Spirit" Hydrangea is the new pink form of the ever popular "Annabelle." Huge, light pink flowers bloom summer - frost and make excellent cut flowers. The plant grows 3-4' tall.
Unadvertised Specials
Click here to see our unadvertised specials.
Until next time... happy gardening!
