Question: I want to grow Beans this year but I’ve been told to treat the soil with some sort of “inoculant”. Is this necessary? I will be planting the beans in an open garden bed and I worked in a lot of compost last fall, so it should be in good shape.  I’m not one to add stuff I don’t have to and I don’t garden with chemicals.

Answer: Peas, beans, sweet peas and other legumes are more productive if nitrogen inoculant is added to the seeds at planting time, especially if planted in an area where legumes haven’t been grown before or where the soil is poor.  The inoculant contains a harmless bacteria that helps the legumes form nodules on their roots. These turn nitrogen gas from the air into nitrogen fertilizer available for use by the plants. The increased yields are noticeable for soils with low organic content and low pH levels. One package of inoculant will treat up to 5 lb. of garden legumes. Pour a small amount of the inoculant directly onto the dampened seeds and stir. Plant the seed immediately without letting the inoculant dry out.

Inoculants are only viable for one year and must be replaced regularly. When you have harvested your crop this year, don’t pull up the plants. Instead, till or fork them into the soil. That way the nitrogen they used in the soil will make the garden even richer for next year.

Source: Terra Edibles/Park Seed.

Question: What can and cannot be grown on the leach field of a septic tank?

Answer: Don’t plant trees or shrubs over the leach field (mound) of a septic system: their roots will interfere with its

operation. Keep trees at least 20’ from the edge of the leach field-and at least 50’ if you plant a fast-growing tree that’s

known for seeking water, such as willow, poplar, maple or elm.

Don’t grow edible plants and avoid plants with deep and extensive root systems.  Pick non-woody, ornamental species

that tolerate dry soil.  Grasses are good because they provide year-round cover and their fibrous roots hold the soil in

place. Prairie wildflowers are also a good choice.  Liatris, wild geranium, prairie smoke, butterfly weed, and pasque flower

are some that would work.  You can also plant low-maintenance flowering perennials such as peonies and daylilies but

plant them densely to prevent soil erosion.

Source: Gardening How-To magazine, May/June 2004 issue.

Question: Where can I find out about insects that really bug me?

Answer: Problems Identifying Bugs?  Check out this site:  http://bugguide.net/node/view/15740. It’s a keeper!

Source: I Can Garden website, August 2005

Question: What is the best way to overwinter cannas and dahlias?

Answer: Lift dahlias and cannas and store them in a frost-free area. Fork up tubers after the frost has blackened their foliage, cut down the old stems and clean off the soil from the tubers to let them dry. Place in cardboard boxes or paper bags and cover with peat moss or vermiculite. In the spring, plant them back into the soil at least 4” deep.

Source: Gardener’s World, August 2005.

Question: How can I stop cats from doing their business in my garden?

Answer: Sonia Day offers these tips to repel cats.

ü        Cats like dry, easy to scratch soil and like plenty of open, bare space. Be sure to place your plants close together and keep the soil moist so it doesn’t resemble a litter box.

ü        Cats loathe the smell of citrus so scatter orange, grapefruit, or lemon rinds about the soil. Replace the rinds every couple of weeks.

ü        Create a ‘bed of nails’ with bamboo skewers broken in half and pushed into the soil every 4” or so, with the pointy ends up.

ü        Spread anything prickly on the soil, such as roses, thistles or holly.

ü        Use some of the cat repellents available on the market but avoid those which contain any kind of pepper as these can cause blindness.

ü        Try planting the annual Coleus canina which is usually sold under the name of “Scaredy Cat”.

Source: Sonia Day, www.soniaday.com

Question: How well does “scoring” work in order to propagate hyacinths? And when should this be done to the bulb in regards to putting the bulb back in the ground? Is this something you start in spring and plant in fall or can it all be done in the fall?

Answer: Scoring is a technique of propagating the tunicate bulbs (bulbs that form protective tunics around the bulbs) and it is sometimes used on hyacinths because they are slow to propagate naturally.

A bulb is dug in the spring after flowering and deep cuts over the basal plate are made. This cut is right up past the basal plate into the bulb itself. Traditionally three cuts across the bulb are made to divide the plate into six zones (six equal pieces of pie). This actually destroys the basal growing plate and forces the bulb to make a bunch of new babies.

Once the cut is made, the bulb is planted basal plate up in warm dry sand or kept in a very humid, warm environment without planting. The mother bulb will normally make a dozen or two dozen baby bulbs. These can be separated from the mother bulb and planted into the garden in the fall.

They will usually take 3 years to build enough strength to flower.

Source: Doug Greens Garden, www.simplegiftsfarm.com.

Question: I see these orange and black fuzzy caterpillars roaming around some of my plants.  Should I be concerned?

Answer: What you're seeing is the all-time predictor of the winter to come  - the Wooly Worm, also known as Fuzzy Bear, Hedgehog Caterpillar or Woolly Bear (approved name by the Entomological Society of America).  Try not to touch them as some caterpillar types secrete an irritant on their "hairs". This is the larval stage of the Isabella Tiger Moth.   Although they do eat a variety of plants (birch, maple, elm, aster, sunflowers, spinach, cabbage grass and plantain), most varieties are not considered to be serious pests. In fact, in Vermillion, Ohio, citizens honour this caterpillar with a special annual celebration - the Vermillion Wooly Bear Festival - and determine it's seasonal predictions.  The festival includes a parade, a caterpillar race and the examination of a number of the woolly bears for the town's official prediction for the coming winter.

It's the largest one-day festival in Ohio. Residents claim this woolly critter is always close in his predictions.

Source: Find out more about this caterpillar in the News In Bloom November 2005 issue.

Question: What causes white crust on pots and potting soil?

Answer: When the tops of your indoor or outdoor containers are coated with a crust, it is a sign that salts have built up—sometimes from minerals in your water but primarily from chemical fertilizers. Leaves touching the salt-coated soil or container will rot and fall off. What’s more, the salts eventually acidify the soil, making it an unhealthy environment for plants and friendly bacteria and fungi. The easiest way to dissolve salts from clay containers is to soak the pot (minus the plant!) for about 15 minutes in warm water. Regularly watering your plants generously enough so the excessive salts flush out the bottom is one way to solve the problem but the BEST way (can you guess?) is to switch to organic fertilizers!

Source: UpBeet Gardener, Marion Owen, www.plantea.com

                Toronto Star, Sonia Day www.soniaday.com

Question: Can you put urine into the garden and compost pile?

Answer: Not only YES, but you SHOULD! Before you wrinkle your nose, read this: According to the article in Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org), the online encyclopedia, urine is sterile and contains large amounts of urea, an excellent source of nitrogen for plants. Recommended dilution: 10-15 parts of water to 1 part urine for application during the growing season. Urine is also a good source of phosphorus and potassium and is widely considered as good as or better than commercially available chemical fertilizers. Urine is also used in composting to increase the nitrogen content of the mulch, accelerating the composting process and increasing its final nutrient values.

Source: UpBeet Gardener, Marion Owen, www.plantea.com

                Toronto Star, Sonia Day www.soniaday.com

Question: How can I make my Clivia (houseplant) bloom?

Answer: According to Mary Patterson of Toronto, one easy way is to seal the non-flowering Clivia in a green garbage bag for 10 days, along with an apple. “I did this and my Clivia promptly sent up two stalks. The period of complete darkness may have had something to do with it but I think the ethylene gas released by the apple was what triggered the flowering.”

Source: UpBeet Gardener, Marion Owen, www.plantea.com

                Toronto Star, Sonia Day www.soniaday.com

Question: How can I keep my indoor narcissus from flopping?

 Answer: The tall flower stalks and leaves flop over easily and even though they can be propped up with sticks and plant ties, their excessive height can be a nuisance. New researchers at Cornell University have found a way to keep these plants within bounds. They forced the bulbs in pots filled with gravel and a 4-6% alcohol solution made by mixing 7 parts water with 1 part 80-proof alcohol, such as gin, vodka, tequila, or rum (not beer or wine—these are refined bulbs, after all). It doesn’t matter which type of liquor you use, as long as the concentration of alcohol is the same. Continue adding this solution as needed while the bulbs grow. 

It’s important to use the exact amount of alcohol because in a 10% solution, the plants grow and flower poorly.