It appears that ash has a good dose of calcium. Calcium is part of the lime that we sprinkle on our plots to sweeten up our acidic soil, effectively making the nutrients more available to plants. The results are very happy plants indeed. Keep your eyes open come spring and let’s see if my memory serves me correctly.
Speaking of the Cooperative Extension Service (800-478-5824), it publishes an excellent book, “Landscape Plants for Alaska,” publication no. HGA-00035. If you read this column with any regularity, you will know that I have mentioned this book several times. Maybe a gazillion times actually, and with good reason. It is an invaluable source against making expensive mistakes.
The subtitle is: “A list of trees, shrubs, vines, and groundcovers for Alaskan landscapes.” That really says it all. The time is here to be making plans as to what you have in mind for the coming growing season. The seed and plant catalogs are pouring in and they are tempting you with zone 4 and 5 lovelies. We are, to be safe, zone 2 and 3. By “safe” I mean that if you want a plant to thrive with little attention you will stick with these zones.
There certainly are areas of Homer that can offer safe harbor for plants in zone 4; the whole area up against the bluff out East End Road up to Fritz Creek, for example. Look around your own property for microclimates that will provide optimum growing for something that you really feel you cannot live without. An apple tree for instance. If fruit trees are what tickles your fancy, sign on with the Lower Peninsula Fruit Growers Association. Give John Bittner a call at 235-7264 for membership details.
A logical place to look for a microclimate is against a wall and out of the wind. At my in-town location and elevation of 396 feet, you would think I could grow anything. Wrong. The wind is a relentless westerly. I have planted azaleas and rhododendrons on the east side of the house, very much out of the wind. The wind is a major factor, do not underestimate it.
If you are new to gardening here in the Far North, please respect the zones. Your gardening efforts will be well rewarded if you use plants that really and truly want to be here.
All that said, I am forever grateful that I went ahead with not one, not two, but three mockorange shrubs. Zone 4 and proud of it, they grace this windswept third of an acre and bring joy to my heart. Pick your fights.
Something that we need to be aware of is late blight disease of potatoes and tomatoes. This past summer the Matanuska Valley — that area of Alaska that can really and truly be considered farm country — where potatoes reign king, was infected with this disease. On advice from the Cooperative Extension Office do not ever plant potatoes that you have bought from the grocery store. These are not certified free of blight. Seed potatoes should be grown in your local area and tested at a lab in Palmer. They publish a fact sheet (PMC-00338) that we would all be wise to have on file just in case we here on the Kenai Peninsula should find ourselves with this most nasty of diseases.
One step I shall take this spring is to plant the tubers farther apart. I have a tendency to crowd all of my plants, but that is proving fatal to potatoes. They need air to circulate freely around their foliage.
Another horrid thing about blight is that it stays in the soil for seven years. To quote the fact sheet: “There are many different fungicides available that effectively control late blight disease, including some that are acceptable to organic producers. However, to be effective, these fungicides must be applied prior to disease development.”
Potatoes have been the most reliable crop for Alaska gardeners. What a shame if we lose that dependability through carelessness. Now is the time to give this some thought.
On to more positive thoughts. The time of year for garden shows is fast approaching. The Northwest Flower & Garden show in Seattle, will be held Feb. 8-12. I have been to this show several times and I can vouch for the fact that you will be transported to another world. Just the smell is worth the trip. Landscapers go to great lengths to show you just how fabulous your garden can look. There are fountains and streams and 40-foot cedar trees. Amazing. The Portland Home & Garden Show in Oregon is Feb. 22-26 and last but certainly not least is the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show March 15-19.
This column has given you several things to mull over while the wind howls and the snow drifts. Enjoy the process.
Rosemary Fitzpatrick has been gardening with gusto in Homer for 28 years.
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