My Butterfly Diaries

I have two other blogs besides this one so am finding it hard to keep up on all three. So, I am going to take some time off from this one even though I love gardening and the many people I have met here.

However, don’t let that discourage anyone from leaving a question or answer on the permanent page located on the header bar or sidebar. Look for “Questions & Answers.” Be assured that when I am notified of such an entry, I’ll respond as soon as I can.

Happy gardening!

I have known for a long time that the trick to getting new blossoms is about removing those that are already dead or very close to it. And, so this morning, I was out in both my front and back gardens, deadheading. Both my rose bushes and Stello D’oro day lillies were needing some tender loving care and that included not only removing blossoms that were clearly finished but pruning the stems that no longer had buds or blossoms on them. I find that by doing that it encourages the plant, particularly the lillies, to sprout again within a few weeks.

I have never really thought about why deadheading works, why it ensures that we will have even more blossoms in the weeks ahead — well into the fall, even in Northern climates. Read this piece. It explains the whole process in very easy language. For example, the article states:

“Deadheading, the removal of spent blossoms with the aim of forcing a plant to rebloom, is our technique for tricking the plant into thinking it has failed in this reproductive process. By removing the blossom before it has had a chance to fully develop a fruit, the plant sends out regrowth hormones, produces a new bloom, and tries again.”

It also explains how deadheading conserves plant energy, provides circulation and removes places were nasty insects can hide. Here are two other excellent sources on the topic as well. (Link) (Link) Leave me a comment and tell me how you deadhead. By sharing techniques, we can always learn new tricks.

It always seem to take so long to get here — to summer that is — and then it’s gone before we know it.  Gone before we know it — a comment that was obviously spoken by someone on the far side of sixty. Like life in general.

When we were young, we thought we had all the time in the world. And, I suppose in a sense we did, within the limits of a life cycle of course. But, what we didn’t realize then was that each and every day that went by, was one that would not come again. Yet, it is only when we get older that we realize even those lazy days of summer were moving along far too quickly.

Summer and gardening are excellent metaphors for life. There is rain sometimes, something all living things need. Like stress. We actually do need some stress to, not only survive, but thrive. Because a life without stress is usually a life not worth living. Good stress, happy stress (like when I found out my granddaughter and grandson-in-law were expecting their first child, my first great-grandchild, at the end of this September), is like the rain. We really do need it to stimulate our personal and professional growth. Then, of course there is food and air. And, like our gardens, we need just the right amount.

So, as you go out to your gardens this week and next, think about how it connects us to the earth and to our life cycles. First there is the seed or small plant. Then, it grows and matures and, if a perennial, creates other plants just like it. And, we help it during all those cycles.  Then, at some point, it gets old and withers and we plant another seed in its place — like that great-grandchild of mine that will soon join the world.

Perhaps that is why we love gardening or going for walks in the outdoors so much. It is about supporting and caring for living things and the environment around us. It is about creating and watching new life. And, it is about nurturing plants and life to full growth and beauty.

Summer is half gone already! Time to enjoy the time left before the leaves fall and winter is once again upon us. Of course, I live in Canada and winter means different things to me. It has a beauty as well. I love it when the snow collects on all the sleeping plants. Which is what it must be like right now throughout the southern hemisphere — as in Australia and New Zealand — in the midst of winter looking forward soon spring.

Where ever you are, enjoy the days ahead!

I love hummingbirds, so when regular reader Cathy asked about her hummer feeder under “Questions and Answers,” I decided to do some further research on the bird. We occasionally have them buzz in and around our garden but they don’t stay very long. And, buzz is the correct word. They look and sound like giant bees, buzzing this way and that as opposed to flying.

Here is a site, titled “hummingbirds.net” that is dedicated to the birds and well worth the read. The headings on the header bar are self-explanatory: Answers, Species, Science, Community. The site also lists all the flowers, both perennial and annual, that gardeners can put in their gardens to attract hummers.

One scientific fact I found particularly interesting is that apparently hummers don’t have a sense of smell. Which might explain why they gravitate to bright colours, particularly the colour red.

On that topic, a suggestion to Cathy to scroll to the bottom of the page of “hummingbirds.net” where she will find a neat tip that she might want to try with her hummingbird feeder. Apparently, hummingbirds are sensitive to ultraviolet light. So, if she buys some fluorescent surveyor tape and adds a couple of strips to her feeder, they might come to check it out. it is certainly worth a try.

[...]

Officials are calling it “Colony Collapse Disorder.” But no matter what anyone is calling it the honey bees are disappearing. And, as they continue to disappear, scientists are frantically looking for the cause so they can find a solution. But, so far the unexplained destruction of millions of hives continues — with estimates of the loss of bee populations being from 30% to 70%.

Let’s make no mistake about this, it is a huge problem. It doesn’t matter what our politics are, or where we live in the world, farmers (and ultimately we the consumers), depend on bees to pollinate the flowers that produces our fruits and vegetables.

True, there are still butterflies and numerous species of wild bees to pollinate. But, there are simply not the numbers to make up for the honey bee populations — partly because honey bees are not fussy about the pollen they eat and they can be transported around the country.

As Elizabeth Kolbert writes in a New Yorker article, out of all the various types of bees there are:

“Only perhaps two dozen have been successfully raised by humans, and only one—Apis mellifera, commonly known as the western honeybee—accounts for nearly all the bees maintained by beekeepers in Europe and North America.

Apis melliferais a floral generalist—the technical term is “polylectic”—meaning that it will feed on just about anything that is blooming. This trait makes honeybees essential to modern agriculture, which has itself evolved to depend on their services.”

Here also is a BBC report on the issue. Note however, that before the piece on the bees and Colony Collapse Disorder, there will be a few seconds of news headlines followed by the report itself.

Here are some other excellent sources on the topic:

• An article by Michael Doyle in Scripps News.
• New Hampshire Public Radio with Laura Knoy
• Jennifer Cutraro in Science News For Kids.
• New York Times Science article by Alexei Barrionuevo
• Barbara Amiel in Macleans.ca
• Michael Reilly in New Scientist Environment

C/P at Crux-of-the-Matter.

Pest control is an issue for every gardener. Some insects, be they still larvae, creepy crawly or of the flying variety, are not necessarily a problem because they eat other pests. But, far too many simply do no good whatsoever and munch everything in sight leaving holes and/or brown spots on flower petals and everything that is green. And, of course there can also be mildew and fungus problems.

So, when I got my regular online mail out on the topic of natural pesticides
by Plantcare.com, I  decided to dig into the topic for myself and my readers.  Their recommendation was to use “Neem Oil,” a natural product that Wikipedia reports (paraphrased) is: 

1. a vegetable oil pressed from the fruits and seeds of Neem (Azadirachta indica), an evergreen tree;
2. a bio-pesticide that can be used for organic farming, as it repels a wide variety of pests including the mealy bug, beet armyworm, aphids, the cabbage worm, predatory nematodes (which  are quite different than the variety that eat the larvae of Japanese beetles);
3. not known to be harmful to mammals and birds as well as many beneficial insects such as honeybees and ladybugs;
4. a household pesticide that can be used to control ants, bedbugs, cockroaches, houseflies, sand flies, snails, termites and mosquitoes both as repellent and larvicide; and
5. also controls black spot, powdery mildew, anthracnose and rust (fungus).

Plantcare.com provides information on where Neem Oil can be purchased, although I would think any natural environmental company would sell it. And, Wikipedia proves a formula for using it as follows:

“For use as a bio-pesticide, pure Neem oil should be diluted at the rate of 1 teaspoon per quart, or 4 teaspoons per gallon of water (metric: 5.2 millilitres per litre).

While I plan to purchase some Neem Oil this week, I’d love to hear from readers on the topic of natural pesticides as well. In other words, if there are other really good natural products for ridding us of garden pests, I’ll do an update in a few weeks.

Mind you, I have also talked about Japanese Beetle traps under “Questions and Answers” should anyone want to look at that option as well.

Update: Putting comments on moderation.

Southern Ontario, in Canada is getting drenched in rain — particularly the Niagara Region where I live. It has been nearly non-stop for a week now — in what has already been a very wet season. And, by rain, I mean the heavy downpours that hammer and flatten everything in its path — what is often referred to as a male rain. But, when you combine the rain with very threatening thunderstorms that drive most pets under a bed or sofa, your gardens (and you) have a problem. As I write, it has started again, albeit this time it is a female rain, a gentle rain.

It’s true. We gardeners, like farmers, never seem to be happy about the weather. We either complain about not enough rain, cold summers, cold winters and now, too much rain. And, I am fully aware there are parts of western Canada and the U.S. south and south west where people, animals and plants are suffering severe drought, where the lack of water is becoming a huge problem, as is the threat of forest fires.

But, what I find surprising is in only a few days of non-stop rain, I have lost nearly every container plant I had on my deck, apart from a fern, which seems to love the humidity and moisture and a single hanging pot that is able to drain with ease. 

So, I decided to do a google search for information on too much rain which brought me to the website for the Van Bourgondien family and the Bulb Lady, Debbie Van Bourgondien. And, she covered the topic extremely well, far better than I ever could. For example, she writes:

“Watch those plants that cannot be moved carefully for signs of mildew or other bacterial infections. It may be worth your while to prune roses and other shrubs so as to open up the inside of the plant and increase air circulation. The better the air can circulate through plants the less prone they are to fungus problems.”

“The same applies to perennials. If they are too crowded, they can also develop foliage diseases. Foliage diseases flourish in damp conditions. About 85% of them are caused by fungi, which produce reproductive spores that allow the fungus to disperse and reproduce. They can be carried for miles on the wind. If they stick to the leaves of plants, the fungi do reproduce on the plant – especially if it is wet.”

“Most fungal diseases require anywhere from 12-24 hours of uninterrupted moisture to infect a plant.“

When you have finished reading about the effect of too much rain, check out the Van Bourgondien family history, which started back in Holland with tulips and bulbs. Apparently one Karel C. Van Bourgondien travelled to the U.S. in 1904 to sell his bulb crop and, like so many immigrants, stayed in the U.S. However, since there are two addresses listed on the website, I don’t know if the nursery and business is located in Arlington, New Jersey or Virginia Beach, Virginia.  Perhaps someone can let me know in a comment.

Of course, last but not least, don’t miss The Bulb Lady’s own website. Debbie has endless tips and information and you can sign up for a regular newsletter which I intent to do as soon as I finish writing this post. I am also going to add the Bulb Lady to my list of “Favourites.”

While I had never heard of this family, their business or their website until today, I would recommend readers visit the website, not necessarily to buy anything, but to get further information.

[...]

Take a look at this World Clock. It includes statistics – some world wide and some U.S. specific — for such categories as population, death, illness, environment, energy, U.S. crime and food. Just click on the subject you are interested in.

H/T to regular reader Cathy. 

A regular reader who uses the handle “West Coast Teddi” sent these five photographs. He lives on the Saanich Peninsula on beautiful Vancouver Island, just a short distance from Victoria, the capital of British Columbia.

The photographs are of areas where he regularly walks. Photo One is of Mount Baker in Washington State north of Seattle and Photo Two is near the fish plant by the sea.

Photos Three, Four & Five, are at Butchart Gardens – the sunken garden, the Italian Garden and a hanging basket.  Visitors: once you click on the link, wait a few seconds and you’ll be able to view a lovely slide show of the gardens.

If anyone else would like to share sites where they live and enjoy the outdoors, e-mail them to me in jpeg format.

I would like to explain, again, how the ”Questions and Answers” process will work. To begin with, note the duplicate locations where the permanent ”Page” headings can be found. The first is at the top of the right side bar and the second at the very top of the main page. For now, just go to Questions here. 

What I hope to do is add questions and their answers on a monthly basis. Then, towards the end of each month, I’ll copy and paste the whole entry into a post so it can be archived. 

So, as the instructions say, visitors can leave a question in a comment at the bottom of the question page or e-mail me (Sandy) at mybutterflydiaries@live.ca

I will then copy and paste the readers inquiry to the Question Page — in alphabetical order based on the content of the question. If readers have opinions about an answer, they can respond with others comments under the original one. In addition, people can e-mail me photos which I can copy and paste to the Question Page.

But, the main thing I will do here is research the issues in each and every question and try to answer them with links to professional and information sites. As I have said all along, I am not a horticulture expert. I am simply a gardener who has a lot of experience doing research and writing. I know I will be learning a lot of new information and I look forward to that.

So, while there will be commentary and news at My Butterfly Diaries, I suspect a lot of what goes on here will come from the interests of my readers, not necessarily from me. In fact, given a recent question from Janette about little white worms eating up her radishes and the problem possibly coming from her composting, that topic will no doubt be a future topic.

[...]