-Baxter County Master Gardeners-
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January Gardening Calendar

1/23/2015

 
This article is based on the Co-Op Extension Service January Gardening Calendar.
 
Getting Your Garden Ready Inside And Out

If you still have some some spring flowering bulbs you haven't gotten around to planting you still have time but you need to get to it soon. They should still be fine if you get them planted.  Don’t try to save them for another season, or they will dry up and be wasted.

Snow actually can act as a great insulator of our plants during cold weather, so the pansies, violas and flowering kale should have fared fine if the weight of the snow didn’t damage them. As the snow melts, it also adds moisture into the ground.  Consider adding a boost of fertilizer to your winter annuals on a warm day.

Check your winter vegetable garden—if you planted one.  Broccoli, kale and bok choy look fine even after a snow.  If you over seeded with greens, even if they got zapped, they will rebound and begin to grow again. Snow  is a good buffered from the severe cold weather.  Later this month you can start planting English peas and it won’t be long before you can begin to plant other cool season vegetables.

Once the holiday decorations are down, the house looks drab.  Add some color with amaryllis bulbs and paper white narcissus.  Bromeliads can give you months of color with little care and the left over poinsettias should last for months. Bringing color with flowers into the house makes the dark days of winter seem not so long.

Amaryllis Bulbs Paper White Narcissus Bromeliads                                                                                                  All pictures are free stock photos
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Amaryllis Bulbs
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Paper White Narcissus
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Bromeliads
Clean Up
Clean up is always in order.  Remove debris, replenish mulch and monitor for winter weeds. I always mulch during the winter there days where it's warm enough to get out into the beds if they ever dry out. It also gives you a head start in spring, your beds will look great as everything starts to come up.  In flower beds and vegetable gardens, use good sharp hoe to remove the weeds then mulch.  In the lawn, you can spot spray with a broadleaf herbicide or hand pull.  Try to keep them from growing larger and blooming, since the bigger they are, the harder they are to kill and if they bloom, they set more seeds for next year. 

Indoor Plants
Houseplants indoors grow much more slowly in the winter months, so don’t over water one of my biggest mistakes.  New growth is slow with shorter days and lower light levels.  You may have to move your plants to a south window for the extra light. I also find I have to turn my plants every week or so that way they grow balanced.

Catalogs
While it is a slow gardening month outside, this can be a good month to plan.  Seed catalogs are arriving regularly and vegetable gardening is gaining in popularity.  Cool season gardens are always easier to grow, since we don’t have to contend with insects or diseases.  So consider building a raised bed garden or even start some plants in pots.   If you know you need to re-landscape some areas, begin researching ideas for new plants.  Plot your yard on a sheet of graph paper and look at your options.

Submitted by:
Tamara Carl

February Gardening Calendar

1/14/2015

 
In this week’s article I want to mention some things gardeners need to be considering for February. The following is a garden checklist:
  • Soak roots of bareroot trees overnight and then plant the following day. Do not fertilizer the first year after planting.

  • There are no real advantages to pruning back the canopy of ornamental trees after planting. Detrimental effects have been found from this practice including the inability for new roots to grow until shoot growth has recovered. Unless diseased or broken branches exist, leave the plants alone.

  • This winter, remove bagworm bags from shrubs which were infested this past summer. Eggs were deposited within the bags by female worms, shortly before they died. Physically removing and destroying the bags will reduce or eliminate problems this summer.

  • You still have time to control weeds in your bermudagrass lawn. An herbicide containing glyphosate can be used on dormant bermuda lawns in February when temperatures are above 50 degrees Fahrenheit for winter weed control. Make sure your bermuda lawn is completely dormant or you will damage it.

  • September to October is the optimum time to establish tall fescue lawns. If you missed that window, an early spring seeding (late February through March) can be a reasonable second choice. Tall fescue is the only choice we have for a shady lawn grass.

  • Base any fertilization on a soil test. Take samples from several different spots within a particular area and mix it together. Bring a pint sample of dry soil in plastic sandwich bag to Cooperative Extension office for processing. Samples are mailed to the University of Arkansas Soils Lab in Marianna, Arkansas. Free test results will be mailed to you within three weeks.

  • Mulch strawberry beds now with straw. Keep the straw off the crowns. The straw will keep fruit from touching the soil and rotting.

  • Remove the dead stubble off of ornamental grasses before they resume growth.

  • Locate the garden near a source of water. Carrying buckets of water can be a real turnoff to even the most passionate gardener. Remember, a vegetable garden needs at least six hours of full sun each day.

  • Azaleas get hit hard every year with lacebugs. These sucking insects can wreak havoc on an otherwise easy care plant. Without care, the leaves can become bronzed by late summer, and a few plants have been killed by these insects. Lacebugs don’t become active until April or May-depending on the spring we have. You can begin to monitor for them, and spray as needed, but a newer product may take away any worries. Imidacloprid applied in February or early March, can give you full season control.

  • Late this month or early March prune summer flowering shrubs and hedges. Spring blooming shrubs such as forsythia should be pruned immediately after flowering.

  • One last point I want to let you know about is the Baxter County Master Gardener Seminar on March 7 at the First United Methodist Church Fellowship Center in Mtn. Home. Seminar topics and speakers are: "Invasive Plants" – Janet Carson, "The Balance of Nature" – Lucinda Reynolds, "Soils and Composting" – Ellen Chagnon, "Edible Native Plants and Their Preparation" – Dr. Tamara Walkingstick and "The Xeriscape Garden – 20 Years of Experience with Sustainable Landscapes" – Patrick Byers. There is a fee of $25 per person to attend the seminar and this includes lunch. Attendance is limited and pre-registration is required. To register mail name, address, phone number, e-mail (if available) and check payable to BCMG to: Kathrine Gilmore, BCMG Seminar, 275 Sharon Dr., Mtn. Home, AR 72653.

Submitted by : Mark Keaton


University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension office at 425-2335.
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    Mark Keaton Baxter County Extension Agent

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  • About Master Gardeners
    • National Mission Statement
    • UAEX - Univ of AR Extension Service >
      • Baxter County Extension Office
      • The UA Cooperative Extension Service
      • UAEX Master Gardener Program
    • Baxter County Gov't >
      • County Extension Council
      • County Extension Service
    • Our Structure, Rules & Guidelines >
      • 2023 Organization Chart
      • Bylaws
      • Standing Rules
      • Duties, Projects & Events
      • New Member Orientation
      • Continuing Education & Training
      • Member Status
      • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Events & Outreach
    • Calendar of Events
    • Join Us At Our Meeting
    • Radio Program
    • Annual Plant Sale
    • Spring Seminar
    • Farmers Market
    • Fair Horticulture Room
    • Public Education Booths
    • Hatchery Outdoor Adventure
    • Scholarship
  • Garden Projects
    • Fairgrounds Garden
    • Bull Shoals
    • Clysta Willett
    • Cooper Park
    • Fish Hatchery
    • Extension Office
    • Memorial Gardens
    • Library Pollinator Garden
  • Gardening Tips
    • NATIVE PLANTS
    • Seminar 2025
    • Bringing Nature into your Garden >
      • Native Plant Finder (research by Doug Tallamy, PhD)
      • Creating a Landscape With Native Plants
      • Native Drought-Tolerant Plants
      • Well-Behaved Natives
      • Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants
      • Invasive Non-Natives
    • Seminar Horticulture Table
    • DIY Projects
    • Miscellaneous Gardening Projects
  • Members Only
    • Enter Your Hours
    • MG Roster
    • Forms