Starting Plants From Seeds

Seedlings at Wiese Acres

With heavy clay soil that is so slow to warm in spring, and in an area with a relatively short growing season (about 120 days), there are some plants that need a little head start.   I’m ok with that, because it gives me an excuse to putter in the dirt a little earlier.

Most vegetable seedlings are large enough to transplant into the outside soil with about six to eight weeks growth, so mid-March is when I begin planting in earnest.  Sometimes I start earlier, if I want to grow some of the flowers or the few vegetables that need a bit longer.  I usually don’t start a lot of my own flowers.  I find that if I add up the costs of  the materials, the electricity for lighting and air flow, and my time, it is just as cheap or cheaper to buy plants from a garden center. 

I start my own vegetables, though, because I have a much larger variety selection from which to choose. I like the North Dakota State University tomato introductions Cannonball and Sheyenne for their hardiness, taste, and productivity in our climate.  I can’t find those in garden centers, so I grow my own.  Likewise for bell peppers, such as King of the North, which is a great producer here but rarely ever is sold as a transplant.  Megaton cabbage, Belstar broccoli, and Graffiti cauliflower are a few more examples of seeds I can buy but rarely find transplants.  So, I grow my own.   Well, that and the fact that there is just an immense satisfaction in watching those seedlings push through the top of the soil and advance from seed leaves to the first couple sets of true leaves, to a nice healthy transplant ready to go in the garden.

The first key to success in seed starting is to use good  seed.    There are a lot of different places to find seed.  You can buy locally from garden centers, big box stores, or you can order from catalogs.  You can save your own or trade with a gardening friend.  When purchasing seeds, prices range from a few cents to a few dollars.  Number of seeds per packet also can vary greatly from one brand to another.  The quality of the seeds, however, if purchased from a vendor, is no different.  The minimum acceptable percentage of germination and seed purity is governed by law. 

The newer hybrids and unusual varieties are generally more expensive than the more common varieties you find in a big box store.  Organic and heirloom seeds also tend to be more expensive.  

And here I need to take a little bit of a detour from seed starting.  It’s important to know what you are paying for and why you want to pay for it.  Heirlooms are great and certainly some people swear that an heirloom variety tastes better than the newer hybrids.  They are also more disease prone and in general, just a lot more finicky than the hybrids.  The goal of hybridizing is to take the best features of each parent plant and leave the not so desirable features behind in the creation of a new variety.  If you are willing to put up with the not so desirable features in exchange for something you do find desirable about the heirlooms, by all means, plant heirloom seeds.

If you are prepared to organically raise your seeds from start to harvest and storage, then by all means use organic seeds.  But, if you are going to spray the grasshoppers with malathion or give the plants that little shot of Miracle-Gro when things are looking a bit puny, then you are not going to harvest an organic product.  So, just go ahead and buy the less expensive seeds.

In general, smaller packets of seeds are more expensive on a per plant basis.  That said, it is wise to not purchase more seeds than you are able to use up in two to three years.  Each seed has a living plant embryo that must stay alive in order for the seed to germinate.  The longer seeds are in storage, the more plant embryos die and you end up with seeds that won’t grow.

If you do have excess seeds, you can store them for the next year.  Store the seeds in an air tight container in a cool dark place.  I use empty, washed and dried medication bottles with tight fitting caps for my storage containers.  I ty to save the small silica packets that come in various items and stick one of those in the bottle to absorb any humidity that might get inside and cause molding or sprouting of the seeds.  If I don’t have enough silica packets, I take a small piece of tissue, put about a teaspoon of dry powdered milk in the center, tie it shut and drop it in the container with the seeds.  It will work nearly as well as the silica packets.

My mom started a commercial greenhouse when she and Dad retired from the farm.  She’d always started all her own plants and enough for all of her kids’ gardens, but with retirement, she thought she had time to do more.  So, Wilma’s Greenhouse was born.  Mom always started her seedlings in flat beds made out of old milk cartons.  She would soak the milk cartons in a solution of 10% bleach for about a half hour, rinse them well, and let them dry.  When they were dry, she would tape the pour spout closed with masking tape, cut the top off the long side and fill them with her homemade potting mix.  Then, she’d place the seeds in the carton and wait for them to grow.  Once they had their second set of true leaves, she carefully teased each one out of its milk carton home and transplanted it to a peat or plastic pot, or a six-pack.   Mom never used a four pack – she just couldn’t imagine why anyone would waste their time with just four plants.  For plants that were sold as individual items, she saved pudding cups, washed them well, poked holes in the bottom for drainage and planted away.  I believe Mom was the first Queen of the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle movement.  People never cared that she didn’t use the fancy nursery systems.  As many of them said “we come to Wilma’s Greenhouse because we know they are the best plants in the state”.    She ran that successful greenhouse until she was nearly 80 years old.  She never had an employee.  It was just her and Dad most of the time, and if she was really in a bind, she would recruit whichever of us kids or grandkids had time to come help for a little bit.

She also mixed 100% of her own potting soil and sterilized it in the ovens before planting.  This always led to a real “earthy” aroma permeating the house as she heated and stirred that soil until there were no pathogens or weed seeds left alive.  We all tried to avoid visiting during “dirt cooking time” – Peeuuw.  Her frugality and willingness to “make do” and re-use allowed her to sell her very healthy greenhouse stock for less, which led to a very loyal customer base who to this day, when I come back to my home area, will tell me “we sure miss your mom’s greenhouse”. 

I've taken some shortcuts with my seed-starting, since I work full time and do my greenhousing as a hobby.  I also do not have the patience to be as gentle as I need to be when teasing those tender roots apart or moving them for transplanting.  For most plants, I use plastic containers that fit into a solid tray lined with a water absorbent mesh.  For plants that resent transplanting, like watermelon and cantaloupe, I use peat pots that I can just set into the planting hole without touching the plant roots.   I plant my seeds directly into good quality potting soil in a large enough pot that they can live in one home until they are moved to their permanent garden location. 

I know most sources recommend using the soilless seed-starting mixes because they are lightweight, with a “fluffy” texture and porous nature that is well suited to seed germination.  I have started seeds in seed-starting mixes and really have not seen any difference in germination and growth from this type of mix to a high quality potting mix.  Or my mother’s homemade potting mix, for that matter, which, now that I think about it, was probably a lot higher quality than anything I can buy today.  Using the seed-starting mix means that you will absolutely have to transplant seedlings into potting soil and may have more of a challenge keeping them adequately watered and nourished in the meantime.

 A word of caution, though, with directly sowing into regular potting mix.  Make sure that the soil is never allowed to dry out.  It will pull away from the sides of the container and may damage those fragile roots, or it can develop a hard crust on the top,  which will not allow the seedling to break through.

I re-use my plastic containers and trays from year to year.  I sterilize them before re-using them with the 10% bleach solution that Mom used to sterilize her old milk cartons.    I start the planting process by emptying the bag of potting mix into a large, flat container.  I use a “calf-sled”,  a plastic bin that is about three feet wide by five feet long by 18 inches deep.  It’s called a calf-sled because that is its original purpose.  When a newborn calf needed to be moved, the calf was loaded into the calf-sled, Momma Cow was allowed to sniff the whole contraption, and then the sled was attached to a small tractor, a four wheeler, or a couple of strong arms, and transported to a location of safety with Momma Cow following docilely behind.  Or, at least, that’s how it’s supposed to work.

 Anyway, the calf-sled as a soil mixing tub is a lot more consistent about acting the way I want than those momma cows ever were.  I like the shallow depth because it is so much easier to get the entire mass of soil mixed.  I pour the potting mix into the tub, remove any large pieces of bark and break up any large clumps. I sprinkle water on the surface, mix it in with my hands, sprinkle a little more, mix a little more, and keep repeating until the potting soil is all nicely moistened but not wet or soggy.  Then, I gently pack each plastic container about two-thirds full of potting soil, place the container in the tray, and set the tray aside to plant.

If I am using fresh seeds, packed for the year of planting, I will only plant one or two seeds per container.  If I am using older seeds that may not germinate as well, I may put three seeds in each container.  To keep my hands from getting wet and having the seeds stick to them, I use a pointy tipped tweezer to grasp the seed and set it gently on top of the soil in the container.  When all the containers in a flat are planted, I mark each container with the name of the plant and the date planted.  I use old mini-blind blades cut to just a couple inches taller than the container and write on them with a permanent marker.  Then, I go back to my calf-sled full of potting soil and sprinkle additional soil on top of the seedlings to whatever depth is recommended for that particular seed.  If it is a seed that requires light to germinate, I cover it with a thin layer of vermiculite rather than soil.  The vermiculite holds the seeds and the soil in place while letting the seeds absorb the light they need to germinate.   If a seed requires complete darkness to germinate, I cover with soil and place the whole container in a dark bag. 

After the seeds are covered, I use a sprinkling water can to give them a gentle watering to settle the layers of soil together.  Then, it’s a matter of finding just the right spot to keep them nice and cozy for awhile.  Before the days of the greenhouse, I remember Mom having seed flats setting in front of every heat register where the warmth from the old coal furnace poured into the house.  As the seeds germinated, she’d move them to areas of more light as needed. 

One thing I don’t remember her ever doing is putting her newly planted flats on the windowsills.  She always said why would you put something that needs nice, cozy warmth in the coldest spot in your house?  Makes sense, I guess.  And I am certainly not going to argue with the woman who was widely believed to know more about gardening than any professionally trained gardener.

Mom covered the milk cartons with a thin layer of plastic to keep warmth and humidity bathing the seeds.  Once again, the Queen of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, figured out an environmentally friendly and economical way to make this happen.  She saved bread wrappers, slit them open to lie flat, and placed them over the top of the milk cartons, securing them with large rubber bands.   Nowadays, you can buy plastic domes that accomplish the same thing, but at a significantly higher cost.

Hot Frame - Wiese Acres

I am pretty lucky.  My husband is very handy, and while he doesn’t share my love for all things gardening, he does tolerate it.  A few winters ago, he asked me what I wanted for my birthday.  I produced a drawing and said “this”.  He went to work and built me a lovely “hot frame” for seed starting.  The frame is sized so that my planting flats set side by side.  It is heated with seedling heat mats on the floors of the shelves.  The top shelf is all enclosed to keep warmth and humidity levels stable.  The lower shelf is open for larger containers for starting dahlias, cannas, and other large plants. 

Seedlings on warming mats - Wiese Acres

I set the flats in the hot frame, turn on the warming pads, close it up, and check daily to make sure the potting soil isn't drying out and to see what might be sprouting.  It is critical to not allow the potting soil to dry out.  Doing so likely will kill any tiny emerging seedlings.

As soon as the seed leaves have emerged, I move the plants to the greenhouse shelving unit that sets far away from the garage doors.  Most springs, it is still cold enough that the blast of frigid air that comes in when the big garage doors open would not be good for the seedlings.  The shelves are on the far end of the garage and are protected by enclosed cupboards between them and the doors.    The air temperature in the garage is maintained at about 62 degrees.  

Light and air flow are as critical to successful seed starting as adequate (but not too much) moisture and warmth.  Windowsills seem like a logical place to provide enough light for seedlings, but there are a couple downsides to that.  As I mentioned earlier, the windowsill is the coldest place in the house, especially at night.  During the day, however, it can become scalding hot and dry out the soil quickly and even sunburn the plants.  Also, seedlings need 12 to 16 hours of bright light each day.  In spring, most areas don’t have that many hours of natural sunlight yet.  Finally, the sun coming in through a window hits the seedling from the side, rather than the top.  That encourages the seedlings to grow sideways, with crooked, weaker stems.  Light directly from above will encourage straight, sturdy stem growth.

Greenhouse shelves with lights - Wiese Acres

My greenhouse lights are nothing elaborate.  They are inexpensive shop light fixtures that hold two fluorescent bulbs each.  I use one warm blue-white or natural daylight and one cool white light tube in each fixture.  This gives the seedlings essentially the same light spectrum, at a much lower cost, of the specifically labeled “grow light” bulbs. 

The light fixtures hang on adjustable chains so as the seedlings grow, I can move the lights up, always keeping them about two inches from the top of the seedling.  The lights are on a timer set to turn on at 6:00 AM and off at 10:00 PM, giving the plants a full 16 hours of light each day.  It’s important to give most plants a period of darkness each day in order for them to develop properly.  Having the lights on a timer means that I don’t have to worry about remembering to turn the lights on or off.

Floor Fan - Wiese Acres

A floor fan to provides constant air movement around my seedlings.  This helps strengthen the stems and also keep humidity borne diseases like damping off at bay.  It runs on a low setting around the clock – except when I am out there working on my seedlings or other projects.  There is something about the sound of that whirring fan that is just not soothing to me…

When the seedlings are very tiny, I water them only from the bottom to protect the fragile new stems from the force of water hitting them directly.  As the seedlings grow, I water them with a sprinkling can that allows only a fine sprinkling of water.  This helps prepare the seedlings for the rains and harsher watering they will experience when they hit the mighty outdoors.  It is important to not leave standing water in the seedling trays.  Fungal disease (damping off) can quickly wipe out the entire crop.  The moisture mats in the bottom of my seed trays hold just enough water to keep humidity levels adequate and to keep moisture levels consistent in the soil.  If there is standing water on the mats when I finish sprinkling, I drain them. 

In addition to not overwatering and keeping air movement constant, I have found one other thing that seems to help prevent damping off disease in my seedlings.  I admit, I was skeptical when I first read about it, but I thought, hey, it’s cheap and it can’t hurt.  Watering with a solution of chamomile tea is thought to decrease the chance of fungal diseases.  I fill my one gallon watering can, dump about 3 tablespoons of chamomile in it, and let it steep overnight.  In the morning, I mix in fertilizer and water away.  Since I started this, I've had almost no loss to damping off.  I can’t say for sure it’s the chamomile, the watering technique, the circulating air, a combination of all of these, or just plain luck, but like I said the chamomile is cheap.

While the seeds are germinating, they do not need any fertilization.  The seed itself contains all the nutrients it needs to start that little sprout growing.  Once the true leaves begin to emerge, it is important to provide regular nutrition for seedlings.  I use quarter strength fertilizer in two to three waterings a week.  My preference is fish fertilizer because the likelihood of it burning the seedlings even if my “eyeball” measure is a bit off and my quarter strength ends up inching closer to third or half strength sometimes, is pretty low.  The seedlings seem to absolutely love this treatment.

Once the seedlings have developed at least one set of true leaves (the ones that actually look like the plant rather than the seed leaves that are almost always smooth blade like leaves), I cull the less desirable seedlings from any pot where more than one has germinated.  I use a cuticle scissors to snip off all but the strongest seedling right at soil level.  This effectively kills that seedling without disrupting the roots of the remaining desirable seedling.  

Sometimes I have more than one healthy seedling and just can't bear to destroy one of them.  I remove the root ball and carefully tease the roots of the two plants apart, being very careful with the tender roots and stems to avoid any injury.  This generally only works if there is plenty of space between the desirable seedlings.  If they are right next to each other, it will be nearly impossible to separate them without damaging and risking the death of both seedlings.  If I can get them apart, I immediately re-plant both into appropriate containers.

If the seedlings outgrow their original home, they get transplanted into a larger container.  I use peat pots, plastic drinking cups, Styrofoam cups – whatever I have on hand that is the right size.  I make sure there is good drainage and then place soil to cover the bottom of the container.  The seedling needs to be lifted out of its original container by the root ball. I use an old kitchen spoon with a very thin edge so I can slide it down the side of the container and edge it under the root ball at the bottom.  A little lift of the spoon usually brings the entire root ball right out.  Alternatively, you can place two fingers on either side of the seedling stem and tip the entire pot upside down into the palm of your hand.   It’s important to not put too much pressure on the stem or at the growing tip.  Pressure on the stem can crush it, and keep the seedling  from being able to get nutrition to the upper part of the plant, leading to its death.  Damage to the growing tip (the very top of the plant) will result in seedling death, as no new growth can be initiated without that tip intact.  Once the seedling is loose, I set it in the new container  with root ball completely intact and gently tap soil in around the plant.  With most seedlings, it is ok to cover a bit more of the stem than was originally in the soil, again being very careful to not crush the stem or growing tip.

Once the temperatures are not likely to drop down below about 25 degrees at night, I move the plants to my little portable greenhouse.  It’s a simple steel frame covered with plastic.  I can heat it some with an electric heater, but can’t keep it from freezing in extreme cold, so my plants stay in the garage until about mid-April, generally.  After that, they go out where they begin to get exposed to a little harsher conditions to prepare them for their eventual move to the gardens.  

Small, portable greenhouse - Wiese Acres

Seedlings need to be “hardened off” before being transplanted into the garden.  They've been protected from harsh winds, hot sun and high and low temperatures.  They won’t have that protection in the garden, so they have to be taken through a process to toughen them up.  This should start at least two weeks before transplanting to the garden.  It’s easier to do that in the greenhouse, where I can open and close the curtains that serve as windows.  I start by only opening the curtains an inch or two for an hour or so each morning.  I gradually increase the size of the window opening  and the length of exposure until the windows are open all day long most days. 

 Without a greenhouse, seedlings can be set outside in a protected area for increasing lengths of time, gradually moving them more and more into the open over the course of two weeks.  At the end of two weeks, they should be fine in the open until transplanted into the garden, unless freezing temperatures are forecast.  Even the most hardened off seedling will not survive temperatures below 32 degrees.

Once I'm through this process, it’s just a matter of waiting until the time is right to transplant into the garden.  That’s when I know the gardening season is officially upon us!

Kalanchoe daigremontiana aka Mother of Millions; Mother of Thousands

I love unusual houseplants, particularly if they are easy to grow.  Mother of Millions meets those criteria quite well.  That's why I put up with the mess of her million babies.

Mother of Millions is a succulent with very large, blue-green leaves on a large single stem.  The leaves are narrow and pointed and grow 6 - 7 inches long and 3 or more inches wide.  As the plant grows, it develops tiny rosette like plantlets along the edges of the leaves.  These rosettes fall off (thus the messiness) and will root very easily if they drop into a little bit of planting medium and moisture.

This plant is most commonly grown as a houseplant, however, it will thrive outside in warm climates where the temperature doesn't drop below 40 degrees or so.  It is not a desirable outdoor plant because each of those million "babies" have a tendency to take root and it can become very invasive.  Grown in a container, it is much easier to contain all those "babies".

Kalanchoe daigremontiana is very easy to grow in average indoor conditions.  Like most succulents, it does not appreciate soggy soil.  It is best potted in a porous container with good drainage holes.  I have the best luck using a sandy potting soil specially blended for cactus and succulents.  Water only when the top inch or so of the potting medium is dry to touch.

Kalanchoe daigremontiana is not a heavy feeder.  I add half strength 10-10-10 fertilizer to the water about once a month in summer months and once or twice over the winter months.

Bright light is essential to keep the plant doing its best.  In the winter, I keep the plant in the east bay window where it gets bright morning sunlight and bright indirect light in the afternoon.  I move almost all my houseplants outdoors during the summer months and this one goes out as soon as I don't have to worry about night time temperatures falling below 40 degrees (that's about as long as I want to tolerate her dropping "babies".)  They need to be acclimated to the outdoors gradually, so initially I place them in a very shaded location and then over time move them to their summer home where they get direct morning sunlight and partial shade in the afternoon.

Mother of Millions rarely blooms indoors.  In fact, I've seen several sources claim that they never bloom indoors and that the flowers are "insignificant".  This winter, my plant proved that never never applies and "insignificant" is most certainly a matter of opinion.  She has been blooming her heart out for the past six weeks.  The pale lavender blooms with bright yellow centers hang on the stems like bells.  The tall, majestic stem with those delicate bells makes a very striking statement.

Sadly, the "mother" will die after flowering but the surface of the container is already thick with nicely rooted babies.  Come spring, I'll transplant some of them to smaller containers, move them outdoors when conditions are right, and hope for another striking display of blossoms again next winter.

Apple Trees and Strawberries

After a few weeks in the extreme deep freeze, our famed "January thaw" arrived a couple days ago.  When I left work yesterday afternoon, the thermometer on my car said 39 degrees - ABOVE zero.  Today, it was 41 degrees when I went out for lunch.  I went back into the office in my shirt sleeves.

Even though I know it is a short term warm-up and winter will return with a vengeance a few more times before gardening season really starts, I couldn't help but start the process of ordering plants for spring.  Now, that really isn't as crazy as it sounds.  The nurseries have a finite amount of stock and they fill orders on a first come first serve basis, so I learned long ago that to be sure to get the stock I really want, I need to order sooner rather than later.  The nurseries are all gracious enough to hold my orders until the exact week in May that I ask them to ship, so I don't have to worry about getting things while the ground is still frozen solid.  So, I started shopping.

My first stop was the website for St. Lawrence Nursery in Potsdam, New York.  I need a couple more apple trees and some juneberries to plant along the west side of the new barn that will appear in the "west pasture" next spring.  (It's not really a pasture, but hey, I'm a farm girl at heart and I can dream).  The first thing I noticed on St. Lawrence's website made me very sad.  Right up front in big bold letters:   "2015 is Retirement Year".  Oh, no!  Now, I don't begrudge them retirement - they've been working very hard for a very long time.  But, I am going to really miss their wonderful, hardy, healthy fruit and nut trees.  Everything is shipped bare root, but I have never received a tree from them that didn't grow.   I haven't ordered thousands of things from them, but I have ordered a good number of apple, pear, apricot, cherry, mulberry, elderberry, juneberry, gooseberry, currant, and hazelburt trees, as well as grape vines,  and they are all thriving.  St. Lawrence Nursery sells only stock that is bred specifically to withstand the harsh winters we have in zones 4 and 3.  Given that this is my last chance to order, I did it up right.  I'll be busy digging tree holes come May.

I already have seven different varieties of apples.  I decided that,since this was my "last chance" order from St. Lawrence, I was going to add all my "I might need that some day" varieties to the orchard.  I ordered Dakota Gold, Hazen, State Fair, and Zestar apples.  

Dakota Gold apple (internet photo)

Dakota Gold is an extremely hardy apple that was developed by North Dakota State University, specifically to stand our erratic northern winters.  The peel of Dakota Gold is, as you would expect with a name like that, yellow.  The fruit is large sized and is good for eating fresh as well as cooking and baking.  Unlike many apple trees, Dakota Gold bears every year and is tolerant to fireblight, the bacterial scourge of orchards everywhere.   Dakota Gold ripens earlier than some others and also keeps well in storage so I will be able to enjoy my fruit well into winter. I've had a Dakota Gold tree for several years.  Unfortunately, just as it was about to begin bearing fruit (generally when the tree is about five years old), a huge branch of the plum tree that collapsed under the weight of the snow in the October 2013 blizzard, landed on my Dakota Gold tree and snapped it in two. So, I'll be starting over with this one.

Hazen apple (internet photo)

Hazen is a new variety for me.  This is another extremely hardy tree that produces nice sized red apples ready for picking in early to mid-September.  Hazen is a good eating apple, but the real reason I want this tree is that the apples are so juicy you can't keep the juice from running down your chin when you take a big bite.  Now, I don't much care about having a messy chin but I do love apple juice.  My dear husband bought me a sausage stuffer aka cider press for Christmas this year.  Since Hazen produces a good crop of fruit on young trees, generally within about three years of planting, I am looking forward to home pressed cider.  Another neat thing about this apple?  It was developed at North Dakota State University by a man named Hazen, but it was named after my hometown of Hazen, North Dakota.

State Fair apple (internet photo)

State Fair produces bright red apples that ripen uniformly throughout the tree early in the fall.  They flesh of the apple is a nice white and is very crisp.  State Fair apples are delicious for eating fresh and are also a good apple for juicing.  They aren't the best keeper, but because their crispness makes for such great fresh eating, this is a popular seller at fruit stands and farmers markets.

Zestar apple (internet photo)

Zestar was developed by crossing State Fair with Frostbite, another extremely hardy apple variety.  Zestar is a green apple, blushed with red.  It is another early season ripener, which is a nice feature in the uncertainty of autumn temperatures in our zone.  Zestar was bred in Minnesota and produces a crisp and juicy apple that can be harvested as early as late summer and still be nice and sweet.  Zestar produces huge crops once the tree is mature and the apples store for several weeks in a cool, dry storage area.


My next shopping excursion was to Nourse Berry Farm.  Thankfully, no nasty retirement surprises when I went there.  Nourse Berry Farm is located in Massachusetts and they have the nicest selection of wonderfully, healthy berry plants.  This year, my particular quest was for strawberries, but in the past, I've ordered strawberries, blackberries, lingonberries, and raspberries from them.  They give a wonderful description of the characteristics of each of the different kinds of berries, so it makes it easy to choose which variety will best meet your needs.  The third week in May, 125 strawberry plants in five different varieties will arrive for planting in the new strawberry bed.

I ordered two varieities of June bearing strawberries and three of day neutral or everbearing berries.  June bearing varieties bloom one time and produce a heavy crop within the early months of summer.  Day Neutral usually begin producing a bit later and then produce right through frost.  June bearing plants tend to have more foliage than day neutral because so much of the day neutral's energy goes into producing fruit.  A June-bearing strawberry plant will produce abundant crops for four to five growing seasons, while everbearing varieties generally have two good production years before the plants need to be replaced.

Annapolis is an early season June-bearing variety.  It is a large size berry that maintains its size throughout the bearing season, unlike many June-bearing where the berries become smaller as the season progresses.  The berries are firm with good flavor and freeze well.

Right on the tails of Annapolis' bearing season, I should be able to start picking the next June-bearing variety, Honeoye.  This is a mid-early season bearer of large, sweet, firm berries.  This is one of the best June-bearing varieties for freezing.  Honeoye has been around for over 20 years and is still as much a favorite of home berry producers as when it was first introduced.

Albion strawberry (internet photo)

About the time the June-bearers are winding up, the everbearing should be ready to pick.
Albion is a very large strawberry that is more conical in shape than round.  It has a very firm, crisp texture and produces abundantly throughout the season, as long as it has sufficient water and nutrition.  Albion is one of the best tasting ever-bearers and freezes well.

Mara des Bois is another great ever-bearing variety.  While the berry size of the Mara's is small to medium, when you bite into the berry, it is like an explosion of flavor in your mouth.  If you walk thtough my yard and think you smell strawberries, it is probably the Mara des Bois that you are smelling.  In addition to its wonderful flavor, this variety is great for freezing and makes absolutely wonderful jams.

Seascape is my final selection for the new strawberry bed.  They begin to produce a bit later than some of the other ever-bearings, but they produce right through light frosts.  In my old bed, it wasn't uncommon for me to be picking the Seascapes in mid October.  This plant produces large berries that have a firm texture, good flavor and freeze well.

Oh.  Nourse Berry Farms also sells the Jersey varieties of asparagus.  The Jersey varieties are very hardy, all male plants that produce abundant crops of thick, tasty asparagus stalks.  I'm a firm believer that one can never have too much asparagus, so I ordered another 25 Jersey Knight roots.

Yup.  It will be another busy spring.

Seascape strawberry (internet photo)

Mangave "Bloodspot"

Mangave is a relatively new find in the succulent world.  It is thought to be a hybrid of Agave macroacantha and Manfreda maculosa.  It forms rosettes that average about 12 inches tall and 15 inches wide. Leaves are about 1 inch wide and 8 inches long.  They are gray-green with small teeth along margin. Don't let the word "small" fool you, though.  Those teeth can pack a mighty bite if you get too close to them.  

The leaves are speckled with maroon spots,  which gives "Bloodspot" its name.  The leaf margins may also show some maroon tinting, especially if the plant is kept in full, bright, direct sunlight.

Mature mangaves may send up a flower stalk that can reach as tall as 6 feet.  The stalk displays lime green flowers.  Since this plant has only been in wide distribution for about six years, some of its characteristics aren't well known yet.  Plants of the agave family generally will die after flowering.  Manfreda family, also known as Texas Tuberose or Spice lily, can flower repeatedly without harming the parent plant.  It's unknown yet which of its parents the Mangave will take after when it comes to flowering.

Mangave is only cold hardy to zone 8, so here in our zone 4 winters, my Mangave needs to live indoors from about September through May.  Fortunately, it is a slow-growing plant that tends to stay in its compact rosette, without sending out new pups or suckers, so it is well-suited to container gardening.

The secret of successfully growing almost all varieties of succulents and cacti is to provide adequate light, keep them in locations where the temperatures don't drop below their hardiness level, and do not over water.  My Mangave seems to be thriving in the east facing bay window of the living room where the temperature is about 72 degrees during the day and about 68 degrees at night.  I water it every couple weeks, when the top inch or so of soil is dry.  It is planted in well-draining succulent potting mix so the water drains freely from the drainage holes after watering.  I empty the drip saucer about an hour or so after watering so the roots aren't standing in any water.  

This treatment seems to be keeping my Mangave healthy through the long, dark days of winter in North Dakota.

Flapjack Plants - Kalanchoe thyrsiflora

Flapjack plant (Kalanchoe thyrsiflora)  (Wiese Acres photo)

One of my favorite succulents is my flapjack plant.  It's also known as paddle plant or dog tongue plant.  All three of these common names are pretty descriptive of Kalanchoe thyrsiflora.  I prefer Flapjack plant because to me it looks most like a stack of flapjacks, with its large, thick, round leaves that are stacked in layers up the length of the stem.

 A mature flapjack plant can grow to heights of up to 2 feet tall and the individual leaves can grow as large as six inches in diameter.   It is hardy outdoors in zone 9 and higher, but here in our zone 4 (which, by the way, is feeling much more like zone 3 with these ridiculous below zero temps in mid-November), flapjacks need to be overwintered indoors.  I move my flapjacks into the garage when the outside nighttime temperatures start dropping into the 40's.  I leave them in the garage for a few days to check for hitchhiking insects, then give them a good strong spray with the garden hose to knock off any pests that I see and even some that are lurking in places where I might not see them.

Flapjacks are generally pretty pest resistant, but may be susceptible to aphids, mealy bugs, and scale insects.  Aphids are recognized by "honeydew", the sticky secretions they leave on the foliage.  Mealy bugs look like miniature cotton balls clinging to the leaves and stems.  Scales look like brown dots lurking on the undersides of the leaves and on the stems, especially where the leaves attach to the stems.  Aphids can generally be knocked off with a sharp spray of water.  Mealy bugs are best removed with a cotton ball soaked with 70% rubbing alcohol.  Scales generally need to be scraped off with a fingernail or a sharp knife edge.

Once I know they are pest free, I bring the flapjacks indoors and set them in a south or west facing window.  Flapjacks do best in bright, direct sunlight.  They may tolerate a little shade, but really need several hours of bright sun to do their best.  

Flapjacks also do their best in locations where the daytime temperatures are around 65 to 70 degrees with slightly cooler night time temperatures.  Since this is in the general range where most of us like our home temperatures to be, flapjacks generally adapt quite easily to their time indoors.

Like most succulents, flapjacks do not like wet feet.  I water them only when the top couple inches of the soil are dry.  Overwatering will lead to root and stem rot and the death of the plant.  

Rose colored edges of flapjack plant (Wiese Acres photo)

Flapjacks are not heavy feeders, doing very well on three to four light feedings a year.  Growth is very slow in the winter, so I don't fertilize them at all while they are indoors.  In early April, I will give them a dose of half strength 10-10-10 fertilizer to give them a head start for the summer.  Then, when temperatures are staying above 45 degrees day and night, I'll move them back outside to the bright sunshine.  That bright sunshine is what will give the edges of the leaves back their rosy hue that slowly fades away over the winter.

Mature flapjacks will send up a tall, leafy flower stalk after their third or fourth year of growth.  The stalk  will have small, dense clusters of yellowish-green flowers.  The foliage of a flapjack is really more dramatic than the flowers.  Sadly, the mother flapjack gives her all in sending out the flower stalk.  Once the flower stalk dies, the mother plant will also die.  Flapjacks develop small plants as offsets, and these can be planted to keep the flapjack plant alive after the mother plant has died.  

Flapjacks can also be propagated vegetatively, either by leaf or stem cuttings.  To propagate with a leaf cutting, take a sharp, sterilized knife and cut a leaf off right where it attaches to the stem.  Set the leaf aside for a week or so to allow a callous to form on the cut edge, then stick the cut edge in a container of moist sand.  Place the container in bright, indirect light and keep the soil moist but not overly wet.  When the leaf develops roots, move the container into bright sunlight and care for it as the original plant.

Stem cuttings are generally best taken while the plant is semi-dormant between late fall and early spring.  Take a three to five inch stem from the mature plant and remove the lower leaves.  Plant the stem up to the remaining leaves in a pot of moistened sand.  Place the pot in bright, indirect light and mist lightly as needed to keep the soil slightly moist until roots develop.  Once rooted, move the stem cutting into bright direct light and continue to provide mature flapjack care for it.

With a little bit of TLC, flapjacks will provide enjoyment and dramatic foliage, both summer and winter.

Flapjack plant (Wiese Acres photo)

Overwintering Tender Succulents

Succulent garden in summer

I fell in love with succulents a while back.  They come in such a variety of shapes, colors and sizes.  They are very low maintenance, and with proper care, they can live for many, many years.  You can't beat a deal like that.  I even built a raised bed and filled it with very sandy loam so that I could keep Hens and Chick alive.  They don't like our heavy clay soil, so after about the 4th time Mom gave me "chicks" from her patch, only to find them dead the next spring, I decided to take action.  They love that sandy loam and bloom heartily and produce many chicks each year.

 That challenge mastered, I decided I needed yet more succulents.  Well, other than many sedums and the native pasture cacti (from which I have already picked enough  stickers out of my feet and hands and have no need to grow them in my garden, thank you very much), there aren't a lot of succulents hardy enough to survive our winters.  So, I created movable gardens - they move outside in the spring and inside in the late fall.

The tricks to overwintering them successfully indoors are really the same as growing succulents anywhere, anytime - don't over or under water them; fertilize as needed; and give them the right amount of light and warmth.

Succulents need a good deep watering about once a week while they are actively growing.  While they are in dormancy, they should be watered when the soil is dry to the touch.  For the containers I store in the cool garage, that means about once a month.  For those in the warmer house or garden house, it means once every week or two.

I begin preparing the succulents for the winter in late summer to mid-fall.  I feed the succulents half strength all purpose fertilizer (10-10-10) every couple weeks during their active growing season.  I give them one last feeding about the last week of August, just before they begin to respond to the cooler nights and shorter days by going into dormancy.

My hardier tender succulents spend the winter in the garage, which is maintained at about 50 degrees.  Succulents will survive on just three to four hours of indirect light while they are dormant, so they are perfectly happy setting in front of one of the garage windows.  A word to the wise about garage overwintering in North Dakota - you do need to set your succulents far enough away from the big overhead doors so they don't get that blast of frigid air every time you drive your car in and out.  I have mine set behind some storage cabinets that separate the car parking area from the storage area.  Any kind of a screen will be effective, though, as long as you don't leave that door open too long.

When I water the dormant succulents, I add water until it starts to drain from the drainage holes in the pot.  It is important that you water them deeply, but far less often, in the winter.  I use rain water that I've saved and stored over the winter, but you can also use de-chlorinated tap water.  Simply fill an open container with tap water and let it set overnight before using it.

Each time I water, I check the succulents carefully for any signs of bugs or rotting stems.  Rotting stems is an indication that the plant is too cold or too wet.  Trim the bad stems off;  reduce the watering; and check the temperature to make sure it isn't getting below 50 degrees.

The most common insect pests are aphids or mealy bugs.  Aphids are known by the "honeydew" they leave on the plant stems and leaves.  Mealy bugs look like little white cotton balls, found mainly in the stem junctures and under the leaves.  If you see signs of either of these, you can wipe the foliage with a cotton ball or rag soaked in 70% rubbing alcohol wherever the infestation is evident.  An easier way to accomplish the same thing and even get rid of those pests who are lurking where you can't see them, is to fill a spray bottle with three parts 70% rubbing alcohol and one part water and spray the entire plant with the mixture.

Infested plants should be separated from healthy plants to control the spread of the insects.  I believe in prevention, so I will generally give a good spray to even those plants which aren't currently showing active signs of insects - mealy bugs especially like to hide where you don't notice them until they've become pretty pervasive.  Then, I check all the plants weekly and repeat the treatment as needed.

As the days being to lengthen, generally in about mid-March to early April, I start to prepare the overwintered succulents for the move outside once the temperature remains 50 degrees or above.  I place them under grow lights, for increasing hours each day, until I get them from the three to four hours per day to which they've become accustomed, to the twelve to fourteen hours they'll receive once they are back outside for the summer months.  If you don't have grow lights, you can accomplish the same conditioning by moving them to a sunnier spot and the increasing day length will take care of itself.  Just be careful not to move them into too much too soon, whether that is warmth or direct sunlight.  They will be pretty tender after spending so much time in the darkness of winter.

Next week, I'll begin talking about the various types of succulents that I've found to do well in containers.

Warm Dry Autumn Days Might Equal Stressed Plants

Autumn at Wiese Acres

Last year, we had our first snow storm on October 4.  This year, it is October 25 and we are outside in our short sleeves.  High temperatures during the day have been in the 70's and even up into the 80's.  That's good for us.  Unfortunately, it can be pretty stressful for the trees, shrubs, and perennials, especially when those warm temperatures are accompanied by low humidity and no rain.

Any non-dormant plants, especially trees and shrubs, should be kept well watered going into winter.  Usually, cooler October temperatures mean that if you gave them a good soaking, either with rain or irrigation in mid to late September, they will be ok for the winter.  Not this year, though.  They will need additional water until they are fully dormant, or air and soil temperatures are below 40 degrees.  Watering should be done early enough in the day so that it has time to soak in thoroughly before temperatures drop below freezing at night.

Newly planted trees are most susceptible to winter drought injury. Trees can take several years of growth to establish a good, deep root system.  The larger the tree when it is transplanted, generally the longer it takes to become well established.  A general rule of thumb is one year per inch of trunk diameter.  Most shrubs and perennials can be considered well established after one full year of growth.

It is especially important to assure that evergreen trees and shrubs are very well hydrated going into winter.  They are very prone to dehydration in the harsh, drying winds of winter.  The more moisture in the needles going into winter, the better they do.  

A good thorough watering for trees means that water is allowed to soak into the soil slowly to a depth of about 12 inches. When watering trees, water should be applied throughout the drip line area of the tree, that is, wherever the tree casts a shadow when the sun is directly overheard.  The larger the tree, the more water will be required.  A good guideline is to apply ten gallons of water for every inch of trunk diameter, so if your tree's trunk is 3 inches around at a level approximately six inches above the ground, it will need 30 gallons of water at each watering. 

Newly planted shrubs should be given 5 gallons of water twice a  month until the ground freezes. Small established shrubs, those 3 feet tall or smaller, need 5 gallons of water monthly. Larger established shrubs should be given about 20 gallons on a monthly basis. Shrubs should also be water within the dripline of the shrub and around the base of the shrub.

Herbaceous perennials usually are well established by the end of a growing season. Bare root plants take longer to establish than container plants and late fall transplants take longer to establish than spring plantings. Fall planted perennials, bare root plants, and perennials located in windy or southwest exposures should receive one-half to one inch of water whenever the first one to two inches of soil feels dry, until the ground freezes.

And, finally, the lawn grass is still green and growing.  Lawn grass needs continued watering until it goes dormant for the winter.  Grass should also be cut a bit shorter for its last cutting of the season to keep the longer blades from being matted by the heavy snows of winter, which can cause diseases and mold.

Sooner or later, cold and snow will arrive.  For now, though, it's pretty wonderful to walk outside and enjoy greenery and warm sun, even if it does mean a little more garden work for the season.

The End of Another Growing Season

Once again, the bittersweet time of year arrives.  I hate to see the beautiful flowers go to bed for the winter and no longer have the selection of fresh picked fruits and vegetables to put on the dinner table.  On the other hand, it is nice to look forward to more relaxing days and evenings.

I realized this summer that blogging really does need to be a winter time activity for me.  There just isn't enough time in the day to work on it in the summer.  Plus, I must admit, that blogging requires me to be inside at my computer and being inside while the weather is nice is simply not something I can do very easily.

I also noticed that I work a lot slower than I used too.  :(  Part of the reason for that this year was because of a foot injury that caused me more than a little bit of misery this summer.  I am currently recovering from bone and tendon reconstruction surgery in that foot and am looking forward to a much better season in 2015.

We did construct a new pond this summer to replace the one damaged in last year's freak October blizzard and planted nearly 50 trees to replace those destroyed in that storm, as well as adding a row between us and the highway which has become a major traffic artery to the Bakken oil field.  We also began construction on my long-awaited barn.  It's been busy!

I'm sharing a few photos from this year at Wiese Acres.  Because of the pyridine poisoning in the sheep manure we placed on the vegetable garden, that was not as fruitful this year, but where the soil was good, the crops were phenomenal.  The perennial gardens were spectacular because of cool temperatures and ample moisture.

We also added some new members to the animal kingdom of Wiese Acres.  The last week in June, Callie, a very pregnant calico female cat arrived and took up residence in our garden shed.  On July 2, she blessed us with four cute as a button, healthy kittens.  I am angry that someone is mean and thoughtless enough to abandon an animal of any kind, but especially a pregnant one.  Unfortunately, we find abandoned animals frequently because we live so close to a main roadway.  We always try to find them a good home and hope that someday the ignorant person(s) who dump them learn a life lesson about caring for animals.  Callie, along with Boots, Mittens, Traveler, and Squeaks, have become a part of our family, but not every abandoned animal is that lucky.  We have a number of cats and dogs in our pet cemetery who didn't survive being dumped along the busy highway.

But, on a happier note, here is a mini tour through Wiese Acres 2014.

The new pond

The pergola and new planting area around the pond

Moonshine yarrow, lilies, and baptisia

Hostas, Lady in Red Fern, Ligularia, and Cranesbill

Screening the air conditioner unit

The firepit area in the Sun, Moon, and Stars garden

Callie and her babies

Boots is quite the little poser

The purple is "grafitti" cauliflower - my favorite cauliflower for looks and taste