As summer fades, choose these brightly colored plants
What looks beautiful in late August
Ive been wandering through the garden thanking plants My flower gardens specifically planted for cutting amp arranging a few flowers in a vase starts my days with joy Here are some great ones for latesummer color All of these were new to me this year but have joined the list of garden keepers
Crocosmia comes as a corm amp a small solid plantable unit sold dry without roots or stems that develops roots and leaves once planted the most familiar corms are crocuses...
Rodents dig Laguna West
The critters came in April The few that debuted favored the bushes near a backyard fence in the Laguna West area of Elk Grove
In the months since then however Sarah and Roger Bales and some of their neighbors say there has been a population explosion of what city officials identify as meadow voles also known as California voles or meadow mice
The rodents are little larger than house mice and they abound in a field that borders the properties not far from Interstate 5
But the problem is not unique to Elk Grove This year voles have been sighted in larger numbers from Galt to Placerville...
The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
Jim Garner and Susan Hitchcock both share a love of all things historic Ms Hitchcock holds a masters degree in historic preservation with an emphasis on landscape history and Mr Garner has a lifetime interest in old houses and holds a masters degree in horticulture After living in Midtown Atlanta for many years the two decided to leave the hectic pace of the city and live one of their dreams together by buying an old house and restoring it
Mr Garner and Ms Hitchcock researched properties as far away as Virginia but couldnt find the right combination of location price and style...
Production Tips for Vegetable Gardens
April 25
Production tips for summer garden mainstays such as pumpkins cucumbers summer squash winter squash muskmelons watermelons and tomatoes can be found on a University of Illinois Extension website according to Maurice Ogutu a U of I Extension horticulture educator based in Cook County
Home gardeners can find this information at wwwurbanextuiucedu47veggies and wwwurbanextuiucedu47vegproblems he said
Ogutu reviewed some guidelines for the popular garden plants home gardeners may now be planning for the season...
Bring Outdoor Plants In
If geraniums were growing in pots bring them in cut them back by onehalf and store the plant in the pot in a cool dark area he said Keep the soil on the dry side only watering sparingly to keep the stems from shriveling but not enough to cause leaf growth In the spring bring the plant out trim it back water well and it should resume growth
Hanging geraniums upside down in the basement or crawl space does work he noted but success depends on providing the right conditions
When houses had cellars they were usually cool and damp he noted These are perfect conditions for storing geraniums...