Glenstone in May

How to Mow Less: Growth Regulators

There are some people out there who really enjoy mowing their lawns. They take great pleasure in spending hours meticulously spacing their passes, edging to perfection, and blowing the clippings off of sidewalks and walkways. Then, there are the rest of us, who are determined to mow less.

For those of you reading this who would rather spend time with your family, golfing, hiking, doing ANYTHING else, keep reading about Plant Growth Regulators (PGR’s) and find out how to reduce your mowing.

How they work

There are two types of Plant Growth Regulators.  One type works by actually halting the vertical growth of the plant itself. They contain a product that interrupts cellular division in the plant. This can be detrimental to the plant health, causing it to decline.

The PGR that we use for our clients works differently. It inhibits gibberellic acid (GA), which is responsible for cell lengthening in plants. Simply, it shortens the vertical growth of the stems and cells in the plant itself. This means the plant to continue to grow, but the growth will not be quite so “vertical.” This allows the turf to continue to fight off certain diseases and maintain overall health.

What are the benefits

So, why have a PGR applied to your property? Here are some great reasons…

Obviously, Less Mowing!

The less a plant grows vertically, the less mowing you have to do. Some PGR’s have shown 30% – 50% reduction in the number of times you need to mow while the product is working.

While you might have to mow less frequently, you will also likely have fewer clippings. Cutting the lawn while the grass isn’t as tall leads to fewer clumps, better mulching, and less thatch.

If you’d like to get your weekends back, you should consider this option.

Turf Density

All that growth in the plant isn’t stopping all together. The grass is still going to grow. But that energy needs to be sent somewhere! So, lawns with a TGR program tend to grow thicker. In essence, you’re trading vertical growth for lateral growth.

Studies have shown that turf actually grows thicker and healthier when PGRs are applied.

Shady Conditions

Homeowners with shady lawns should also consider using PGR on the turf. It sounds crazy at first – slow the growth of an area that is already thin and spotty? What are you thinking?

Think about the above point, though – it helps the lawn spread out. If you have an area that is thin, encouraging the existing turf to spread sideways will help it fill it.

This practice is something many professional turf managers will use for sports venues. Say a football or baseball stadium is hosting a concert. An application of PGR prior to covering the field (to prevent damage, or for stage set-up) will help the turf recover more quickly. Because it encourages lateral growth, it helps offset damage caused by lack of sunlight. This allows the field to be recovered to safe use for athletes more rapidly.

Better Color

Of course, there’s an aesthetic benefit to this, too. When PGR’s are applied to your lawn, the color improves.

Here’s an analogy. Let’s say you have 24 ounces of Coca-Cola Classic. You also have two bottles – a one-liter and a two-liter bottle.  You have a task to fill both bottles to full.  But, you only have 24 ounces, and a liter is a little over 33 ounces.

If you fill the bottle with 24 ounces of Coke, and had to fill the rest with water, which bottle is going to appear darker? The smaller, more compact bottle, obviously. And why? It’s the same amount of Coke in the bottle, it’s just less “spread out” or less “diluted.”

It’s not a perfect analogy, but you get the gist – smaller cells mean more chlorophyll in a smaller space. A higher concentration of chlorophyll in a smaller area equals a darker color.

Reduced Watering

A further benefit of having PGR applied to your lawn is improved drought resistance. Basically, Growth Regulators improves the way the lawn uses water. This can allow you to water less if you have an irrigation system. This is helpful if you live in a place with a water restriction, or if you’re simply worried about the water bill.

Frequently Asked Questions

We tend to get some questions about using PGR’s on a lawn. Here are some of them…

Do I still have to fertilize?

Yes, you still need to fertilize your lawn when using a PGR. The fertilization does NOT necessarily cause explosive plant growth. What it does is keep the plant healthy. Temperature, rainfall, and grass species are far greater factors in determining when and how much grass grows.

Proper fertilization and weed control are still vital with Growth Regulators. The plant didn’t stop growing; it is simply growing sideways instead of vertically. This means it still needs fertilizer to maintain plant health.

Will it wash off?

No, it should not. Many PGR’s will adhere to plant material quickly. The products we employ are rain-fast within one hour, meaning they will not “wash off” in a rain event.

Will it hurt my other plants?

No, it will not. Any overspray might affect the color of the flowers on your trees or shrubs. The GA-inhibitor will simply cause the plants to grow denser, but will not harm them. In fact, many nurseries already use these products to display plants that are more compact and attractive looking.

 

If you have questions about using a PGR on your lawn, we’d love to speak with you.  Please Contact Us for more information.

The post How to Mow Less: Growth Regulators appeared first on Tomlinson Bomberger.

from Tomlinson Bomberger http://bit.ly/2KcFxa3

MoMa Rooftop Garden by Ken Smith – Crime of the Century?

Gardening know-how at a crossroads

Check-out line garden design? Ain’t happening!

The Olive Garden of Eden, with Raised Beds

My Dad’s Garden

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It’s hard to say this, but I’ve been guilty of taking my Dad for granted. But, in all honesty, it’s his own fault. He has made it awfully easy. He always went to work. Always provided. Always took care of anything and everything. And did so without seeking any favors, attention, or gratitude. My advice to anyone who does not want to be taken for granted: Once in a while, create some drama. Trip people up. Be unreliable at a crucial time. Or disappointing somehow. Or terrifying.

Or, almost drop dead from an aortic aneurysm. Dad pulled this one last month. 80 years old but healthy as a horse, he dropped to the floor and was rushed to the hospital by the paramedics. Against pretty lousy odds, he survived, thank God, and he’s recovering with surprising swiftness.

In the discombobulated days following the surgery, my sisters and I (with much appreciated assistance from Aunt Marilyn and others) scrambled to re-order previously scheduled, excessively busy lives to visit Dad, shuttle Mom to visits, fetch groceries and prescriptions, and whatever else. Tasks and times that help to re-set priorities a bit for a little while.

But one nice thing that came out of this is that I had some quality one on one time with my Dad. He’s hard of hearing. When the whole fam damily is together and creating a cacophony similar to warring factions of chimpanzees, he can’t follow the conversation. Everyone needs to repeat everything. When he tries to speak, it’s often over someone else and jarringly off subject. It’s awkward and frustrating for us. For him, it must be maddening. But, just the two of us in a hospital room, we could talk. He could hear me, the conversations had a narrative, strayed into all kinds of topics, and were fun and interesting.

Another nice thing is that I spent a Saturday doing a March cleanup of his garden, and—even at that horticulturally butt-ugly time of year–was reminded of just how good a gardener my Dad is. As a kid, I loved the small rock garden he fussed over in the backyard, and in the summers I helped tend the vegetable plot we rented. At least until puberty hit and I was temporarily side railed by sex, drugs, and rock & roll. When Mom and Dad shockingly decided to move from our childhood home to a “condo,” my first question was, “What about the garden?”

Well, no worries there. Turns out, the “condo” was a free-standing unit that is half surrounded by a woods, and his first order of business was to get on the HOA beautification committee and receive approval to plant a garden.

So on a berm backed by a mixed forest, he laboriously hauled in trunk load after trunk load of limestone rocks from various road cutouts and built another rock garden. In wet winter and humid summer Ohio; in high pH, heavy clay soil; in tree roots and half shade, with deer, etc., etc., etc. Anyone who knows anything could have told you, “There ain’t no way!” This was a textbook recipe for disaster! And, yet, not one of those “experts” would have been right. Dad’s rock garden is ridiculous! Innovative and artful in design, nimbly flexible in application, populated with some true alpines but also backfilled with suitable look-alikes.

As he gardened his way across the landscape, he enhanced things with a pond. Then another pond. As the garden wrapped around the side of the house and into deeper shade, he added one helluva woodland garden which contains as good a collection of shade plants as you will find in the area.

It was a treat to spend some alone time working there in March and this past week to re-visit. With this deadline looming and other article ideas still reluctant to progress out of the “half-baked” stage, I thought I’d take the easy way out and share his garden with you. Should have waited until closer to Father’s Day, but, hey, it’s May and I’m freakin’ busy! And, by the way, so is my Dad. Gardening already.

So in summation, don’t take loved ones for granted. If you yourself are feeling taken for granted, schedule a day for drama of some kind on your calendar. I recommend you do so quarterly. Get yourself checked if someone in your family has had an aortic aneurysm. Spend more one on one time with loved ones. Don’t be distracted by sex, drugs, and rock & roll in your youth. Just stick to gardening because you’re going to come back to it anyway. You can successfully put the wrong garden in the wrong place if you’re really good. Build your first pond big so you don’t have to enlist your son to come dig a second one. And, finally, if you have a blog to write and no time to write it, go with something from the heart. It flows steadily. It’s honest. And it feels right.

 

 

 

 

My Dad’s Garden originally appeared on GardenRant on May 15, 2019.

from GardenRant http://bit.ly/30oyDE3

Come Rain Or Shine: A Garden For All Weather

How the Iconic Public Spaces of 4 European Cities Came to Be

Concrete Rose

Again with the species tulips

Plant and Pest Introductions

A Near-Miss in my Search for the Perfect Watering Can

Back in 2015 I wrote about my two perfect watering cans and one that I deemed “flawed,” according to the caption (above).

I declared cans to be perfect thanks to two features I always look for – balance, so that you can carry them without spilling (which the flawed one couldn’t do), and a large enough opening for a nozzle. (Namely, the Dramm One-Touch I love because it stays on, instead of requiring constant hand pressure to keep it on.)

Turns out, neither of my perfect cans made it through the winter, thanks to my negligence in emptying them and storing them correctly. Both the metal and the blue plastic one came apart at the seams a bit, making them unusable.

So after some research I bought a Bloem 2.5 gallon one (right) online at Home Depot for $21.47. The details shown on the site include this important info: “They feature a wide mouth for easy filling.”

But also there’s this boast: “Easy to handle and grip” and which is SO not true, and the first commenter online nailed it: “Handle has sharp edges underneath, difficult to carry when full.”

Making me wonder if the design team ever thought to ask a human being to fill the can with water and then pick it up because they would surely have heard the human say something like “Ouch, this thing hurts my hand!” I plan to unceremoniously wrap the damn handle with duct tape to protect my hands.

Other than that near-miss, I love this can!

Watering Can Recommendations Online

In my research I found that at Houzz, their “Most Popular Contemporary Watering Cans” are a surprisingly pitiful bunch! And they’re selling the can I just bought for $22 as a set of 6 for $125. Now who needs a set of 6 of them?

Next, I found the “Best Watering Cans of 2019: on The Spruce, apparently a content mill, so let’s look at what they produce for Google to find and give them links.

Their top choice is this pink thing. How to fill and pour it? And their “Best Galvanized”
has a handle that looks even less comfortable as my near-miss. And my question about their “Best Multipurpose in lime green is wtf?

(A note to manufacturers of garden products – some of us prefer that our plants catch the eye, not your hot-pink watering can or bright green garden hose. Water Right hoses come in subtle colors like olive.)

But back to watering cans, does the New York Times’ publication Wirecutter do any better at choosing them?

Their favorite is another Bloem can (right), and I can’t tell from the photos whether a nozzle would fit in the fill hole or not but the reviewer writes that “The twin handles—a fixed one on the side and a hinged one on top—make filling, carrying, and pouring exceptionally easy,” so I’m curious to try sometime. Just $17 at Amazon.

And my perennial question about balance was answered by the reviewer: “I experienced absolutely no leaking, spilling, or sloshing while filling, carrying, or using the can.”

Their somewhat pricier “upgrade pick” ($40 at Walmart) doesn’t look like something I’d ever want to use, despite the reviewer calling it “a standard among professional gardeners for years.” He writes that “Water sprays upward and then arcs downward, falling as gently as rain.” But why?

Still, I appreciate the Wirecutter reviewer telling us that among the features he looked for are balance, a large fill hole, a comfortable grip, and “high-grade molded plastic for longevity.” Good stuff.

But how about the product specs provided by manufacturers? They typically do NOT answer my top questions about watering cans – about balance and the size of the fill hole, neither of which can be discerned by the images they provide.

That’s my watering can rant, for 2019 at least.

A Near-Miss in my Search for the Perfect Watering Can originally appeared on GardenRant on May 3, 2019.

from GardenRant http://bit.ly/2ZQraxD

You Don’t Want to Miss the Spring Train to Serendipity