CG's March / April 2009 'Click It'
'Click It' features are special supplementary articles accompanying stories featured in each issue of Carolina Gardener magazine. These articles and features are only available online.
Check back here often for updates and new content.
View past 'Click It' features and topics below.
December 2008: Build your own hoop tunnel, cultivating viburnums, selecting plants for indoors, hollies, outdoor art.
February 2009:Start your own butterfly garden, Davidson Arboretum Guide, Pearlstine Healing Garden (Medical University of South Carolina), Comfort Plants.
Grow a Rainbow with Your Kids!
Get your kids to eat their veggies this summer by making it fun from the start with a colorful garden. To view this special online-only article, Click Here.
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| Iris cristata. Photo by Rekha Morris. |
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Tips for Planting Bulbs in the garden this Spring
Planting depth and spacing: To provide winter protection and to reduce mechanical damage in the flower beds, most flower bulbs that perennialize must be planted either 5 inches (12.5 cm) or 8 inches (20 cm) deep to the base of the bulb (Table 1.). Two systems are available to accomplish this.
Conventional planting system: This system requires that the planting area be dug out to the required planting depth for the bulbs. Subsequently, the bulbs are spaced properly (Table 1.) and then covered with the removed soil. Since a mulch of 2 to 3 inches (5-7 cm) is advised, this amount should be calculated in the planting depth.
Modified mulching system: In recent years, a planting system using pine bark mulch has been developed for heavy, poorly drained soils. In this system, the site is rototilled 4 inches (10 cm) deep, the bulbs are spaced properly (Table 1.) and they are subsequently covered with 5 to 8 inches (12.5-20 cm) of 1/2 inch screened pine bark mulch amended with lime at the rate of 5 pounds/cubic yard. The mulch provides winter protection. This system also takes into consideration that most flower bulbs produce contractile roots. These roots will position the bulbs at the optimal depth for subsequent growth and development.
Interplanting bulb types: When the garden design is created using two or more bulbs in the same site, be certain to plant the large bulbs at the 8 inch (20 cm) depth and the small bulbs at the 5 inch (12.5 cm) depth. They should be spaced properly at both depths based on the garden design.
Moisture and mulches: To properly root and grow, most flower bulbs require a soil that is moist, but not wet. Thus, consideration must be given to conserving soil moisture, especially during periods of drought. Therefore, it is advisable to use 2 to 3 inches (5-7 cm) of an organic mulch after planting. Mulch also aids in providing protection against extreme cold and heat and in controlling weeds.
Source: North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service
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| Pine Knot Select. |
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An Inside Look at Pine Knot Farms
By Bobby J. Ward
Pine Knot Farms, a staple for Carolina Gardeners, hasn't been around as long as you might think. It all started less than 30 years ago in 1982 as a way for Dick and Judith Tyler to move back to Judith's family's farm and find a way to turn what used to be a tobacco farm into a working farm for today.
Returning from eight years in Canada where Dick had been a building contractor, the Tylers built their house and outbuildings on a former tobacco farm that had been in Judith's family for six generations. Because much of the land was covered in deciduous forests, they concentrated their nursery on herbaceous perennials for shady gardens. In time, hellebores became their specialty and obsession.
The majority of hellebores are found in the Mediterranean in the countries around the former Yugoslavia. To see hellebores in the wild, the Tylers have traveled to Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Hungary. Their guide is Will McLewin, an international authority and fellow addict who lives in Stockport, England, and operates Phedar Nursery.
Early on, Judith began a hellebore breeding program with the Lenten rose (Helleborus x hybridus, formerly known as H. orientalis but distinct from a true species of that same name). She found the color range of flowers in the Lenten rose to vary considerably, from dusty rose-pink to green and yellow, some speckled with dark spots, and all reflecting the complex of commingled genes from different species that comprise Helleborus x hybridus.
None, however, had the pure, gleaming white of a Virginia snowfall that she wanted to replicate. Looking for seeds, divisions and seedling stock material for the breeding program, the Tylers took frequent trips to distant nurseries in the United Kingdom, to Piccadilly Farm in Georgia and Northwest Garden in Oregon, "stretch[ing] our credit card as far as the plastic allowed," Judith recalled. Her earliest success appeared in a seedling that was called "Our Best White," which became the basis for further breeding.
Today Pine Knot Farms is well-known for its many different varieties of hellebores, a special find for any gardener looking to expand their selection.
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Branch Out In Composting
Looking for great composting ideas for your organic garden? Check out our online articles on Vermicomposting and Mushroom Composting. Click Here.
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