Now, when have you ever read that before?
But it’s true. Shirley Forquer’s garden is in full blown magnificence and we are not to miss it. Homer Garden Club’s official garden tours do not start until June 25, but Shirley’s spring garden has outdone itself this year and she has invited us to take a good look. Meet at City Hall parking lot at 2 p.m. Sunday for directions and to car pool.
Mark your calendar: June 4, June 25, July 30 and Aug. 20 are the garden tour dates.
But, let’s not forget our very own humble gardens. You may not want a gazillion people taking a look-see at your place, but what about your circle of friends and neighbors? Keep it simple but share what you have been doing. You just may inspire someone to start gardening.
More news from the Homer Garden Club: The club’s plant sale is at 10 a.m. Saturday in the parking lot of City Hall. Ample parking and, needless to say, excellent plant material make for a winning combination. There will be volunteers on hand to answer questions (about plants, not life in general, at least I don’t think so, you could try ...).
We are, once again, enduring a hot, dry spring. I cannot tell you just how much our plants hate this. The spruce are now under attack by woolly aphids and spruce needle blight. The best defense is water. At least five gallons a week will keep the tree strong enough to thwart these unfortunate circumstances.
I thought this was going to be the year that our trees — seven spruce, five mountain ash, one amur chokecherry, one Shubert’s red and two Siberian larch — would make it on their own and find their own water. We are fortunate that we have 55 gallons a day that we reclaim from our sump. This water is usually pumped into a drainage ditch. In the summer we divert it to a barrel with a little motor and a hose. All ornamentals get this water, which is just neighborhood runoff. I am reluctant to use it on food.
The beauty of using this water is that it is free. Here in the city, we pay for water and sewer. Even though the garden water is not running through the sewer system, we pay for the privilege anyway. You can have a meter installed that will monitor just what you use on the garden. If you do a lot of watering this may be the way to go for you.
I suggest that you water in the morning. Our water is cold, be it city water or from your well, cold it is. Applied in the morning, while the plants are still cool (OK — cold) the shock factor to the plant is minimized. It also allows the plant to dry out before nightfall, going to bed dry is preferable to going to bed wet, think about that.
I took a good look at my two columnar apple trees, Northpole, and lo, there are bud clusters just right there, looking back at me. I planted these unusual trees one year ago and have been wondering why all winter. Obviously, I want a few apples. I do NOT want bushels of apples. And I want to be able to eat them raw, not juiced or sauced or pied. I just want to bite into an apple that almost bites back. We shall see.
These trees reach about 10 to 12 feet in height and the apples are produced on spurs along the trunk. They are ideal for a small space. Now let’s see if they make apples.
The artichokes are in the ground. Last year’s plants, even mulched, did not make it through the winter. I have decided to stop trying. I know there are those of you who can make this happen, but, apparently, I am not one of you. These plants are so easy to start from seed. They make such a beautiful plant that produces scads of artichokes. I have decided to be happy with what I have. Small successes are to be celebrated.
The bush green beans are in a bowl on the kitchen counter soaking in preparation for planting. They are going to be fabulous, I already know this, and if you don’t, then pay attention: You need to be planting green beans. There is a soil thermometer in the cold frame. It is reading a steady 60 degrees, the perfect temperature for planting the seeds that will produce such a quantity of beans that I am forever dazzled by the abundance.
The sugar snap peas, lettuce, radish, spinach, carrots and chard are all up. The asparagus is fat and gorgeous and, yes, I ate it for dinner tonight.
The tomatoes are set on the vine. At least the Sungolds are. The Brandywines, our favorite, got off to a slow start but have buds. There will be BLTs after all.
The basil has been harvested for one batch of pesto. I just cut this back and it will regrow to produce yet more pesto. I keep two pots of basil going in the greenhouse. I tried it outside in a raised bed last year but the success rate was not as high as in the greenhouse.
It looks like summer is here. The window box is planted, the three or four containers that I can’t seem to shed are loaded and looking promising. I am watering, made the first compost pile of the year and I’m weeding.
All is well.
Rosemary Fitzpatrick has been gardening with gusto in Homer for 27 years.
There is a lot to be learned from wandering around in someone else’s garden: the plant combinations that you may not have ever thought of, the tending tips, the overall layout of the garden. The host gardener is more than willing to answer any and all questions. These are all things that you can take home with you to either implement on the spot or file away for a coming season. Garden tours are the best.
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