New Jersey Native Plants

Have you ever thought about gardening with native plants?

 There are so many resources for learning about these plants and one is The Native Plant Society of New Jersey.  This group works to promote, study and preserve our native plants.

 Using native plants has so many benefits.  First, you know that they are more likely to survive here.  Many are resistant to native insect and animal pests.  They won’t take over and displace native plants like many introduced species such as the Japanese Knotweed or Purple Loosestrife.

 They may not be as showy as some of the plants from the garden center but their beauty is more subtle.

 For more information, visit their website at http://www.npsnj.org/

Types of Gardens

You may think that a garden either contains flowers or vegetables, but there are so many more options.  Use your creativity to make your yard amazing.

 Here are just a few ideas

Flower gardens:  Planted for beauty, aroma and enjoyment.  Who doesn’t love a flower garden?

Butterfly gardens:  Also called a pollinator’s garden will attract and support beneficial insects.

Container gardening: Not all plants have to be planted in the ground.  Container gardens are great where space is limited or if you need to bring the plants indoors when cold weather sets in.

Vegetables, fruits & herbs:  This is one of the most common types of gardens and one that provides you with goodies that you can eat.

Rain garden:  These are typically planted in areas where there is a lot of runoff and potential for erosion.  These plants like to have “wet feet” and will hold the soil in place.

Water gardens:  Imagine waterlilies, lotus and other aquatic plants.  These are great for ponds and lakes.

Fairy garden:  Attract fairies, elves and gnomes with a cute garden containing not only plants, but little houses and other adorable items.

Children’s garden:  This is a fun place for your kids as well as a learning opportunity.  Use plants that are tough in case the kids forget to be gentle.  Show them how to grow things.

Formal garden:  This is usually very structured with well-groomed plants, benches, fountains, and paths.

Zen garden:  Enjoy the peace and come here to meditate. 

There are so many ways to garden. Use your imagination.

Your Extension Service

Have you ever heard of the Extension Service?  This is an amazing resource offered by your county government and most services are free.

Here in Morris County, the Extension Service is supported by the Rutgers University School at Cook College.  They have programs for 4-H, agriculture, natural resources, family & community health and ongoing professional development.

Agricultural services offerings include:

• Educational Sessions and Workshops

• Consultations with their Master Gardeners to assist you with your outdoor problems and general questions

• Stewardship and Conservation training for environmental problems in their communities.

• Fact Sheets and Bulletins online database

• Newsletters & Blogs

• Plant, Insect, and Soil Testing Services

• Undergraduate Courses

 Be sure to check this out.  It is an amazing resource.

The new vegetable gardener

You may still be working from home or not working and you’ve decided to plant a vegetable garden.  It’s not quite as simple as digging a hole and throwing in some seeds or buying some plants from your local nursery.

First, decide on what plants you want to grow.  Remember that those tiny plants will get big and you need to space them out.  Usually instructions will tell you to keep them a foot or more apart.  That will probably limit how many plants and varieties you can fit in the garden.  And don’t forget that there has to be room for you to walk in-between the plants to weed, water, fertilize and harvest.

Select where your garden should go.  Factors to consider are:

• How much sun do you get in that area?  Most vegetables like a lot – at least 6 hours per day.

• How much rain does it get?  That may sound strange but sections of your yard may be protected by trees or buildings.  The opposite issue would be a location where water sits.  Your plants would probably not survive.

• Do you have wildlife or neighbor’s pets that will damage your garden?  Deer, rabbits and woodchucks can decimate a garden in a very short time. Neighborhood pets may like to dig up your tender plants or even eat the vegetables when they’re ripe.

• If you put up a fence, will there be zoning or association restrictions on the location, height or style of your fence?

Remove any sod and weeds.

Next, check the quality of your soil.  You can take a sample to your local county Extension Service and ask them to test it or you can get a mail-in test.  Amend your soil as needed with top soil, compost or lime.  Get some fertilizer specific to the plants you’ve chosen.  Remember that too much fertilizer can kill your plants so read the instructions.

Many plants require stakes or trellises.  Be prepared!

If you’re growing plants from seed, it’s often best to start them indoors in February or March so keep that in mind for next year.  This year, get some potted plants to put in the ground.  Buy them from a reputable seller to ensure they are healthy and free of parasites.

Get your plants in the ground and water them well.  Once they are established, be sure to keep them watered without overdoing it.  The top of the soil should be a bit dry before watering again.  One suggestion is to put down a soaker hose before installing your plants.  Then (if your town allows it) you can just hook up your hose and let the water soak in for an hour or two.

Take care of your plants and you’ll have some great additions to your meals in a couple of months.

Mason Bees

When I started writing this article, my aim was to show you how to build a mason bee house.  After the epidemic of colony collapse disorder in honey bees, we find that some of the 300 species of mason bees are stepping up and filling the void in pollination.

However what I found was somewhat shocking.  Mason bees are also in trouble and the one major killer of mason bees is man-made mason bee houses.  We all want to help “fix” problems that we see but sometimes our fix is really just adding to the problem.

The bees need to live in a clean environment, free from mold, fungus and parasites.  Certain materials encourage the presence of those problems.  Bamboo absorbs moisture and doesn’t dry readily making it a perfect environment for mold, fungus and pollen mites.

Inserting paper straws and replacing them periodically after larva has grown helps to keep the living spaces clean.  They should also be disinfected without leaving toxic residue that will kill the bees.

What NOT to use

Grouping that many bees together makes the house a perfect target for predators. Mason bees are normally solitary so this is an unnatural situation for them.  Insect-eating birds will love this buffet.  Using a small wire mesh such as “hardware cloth” may keep the birds away if it is placed properly.  Location and how the houses are mounted are also critical.

Ultimately, the bees are simply better off finding their own homes. Other things you can do to help is stop using weed killer and insecticide, let you grass grow and don’t rake your leaves until warm weather has set in during springtime.

Honey Bees

They may sting but they are oh, so important!

Farmers and growers of all kinds rely on them for pollination of plants to produce crops. And don’t forget the delicious honey that they produce.

For quite some time now there has been a die-off of bees and we’re finally figuring out some, but not all of the reasons why.

According to Wikipedia “Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is an abnormal phenomenon that occurs when the majority of worker bees in a colony disappear, leaving behind a queen, plenty of food, and a few nurse bees to care for the remaining immature bees.”  This is a world-wide phenomenon.

When there are not enough native honey bees, the farmers have to rent bees.  Have you ever heard of renting bees?

It’s a huge business but again, there are large costs associated with this practice.  First, it is expensive and results in a significant increase in price of food crops for sale to us.  Second, it exhausts the bees
and causes more die-offs of controlled bee populations.

I was fortunate to attend a presentation on bees at the Sarasota Honey Company in Sarasota, Florida. They do not participate in this practice.   Renting bees has become a part of large-scale farming.  Bee hives are loaded on tractor trailers and taken to their next “job.”  The hives are set out and the bees find the local crops and pollenate them.  Once they are done, they are moved on to their next job. 

The issue is that in a normal situation, the bees pollenate the local crops (fruit trees, food crops, garden flowers, etc.) and then there is often down-time.  Plus the extent of their flying ability limits how many plants they attend to.  When they travel artificially, there is an endless amount of flowers to pollenate and the bees won’t stop until they’ve collected all the nectar they can.  They become weak and exhausted and become susceptible to parasites, weather and disease. When they travel, there is potentially more exposure to local
parasites, diseases, molds and fungus.

We have come to rely partly on Mason bees who have picked up some of the work left by the honey bees. Read next month’s article on Mason bees.

Ajuga

Years ago I told someone that I had a ton of Bugleweed growing in my yard.  They asked me why I didn’t get rid of it.

Having the word “weed” in a name doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad plant.  If I’d known better, I’d have called it by its proper name “Ajuga.”

Ajuga is a gorgeous ground cover and very hardy.  It sends up spiked flower stems in mid to late spring.  The foliage is dense enough to deter many weeds.

It comes in quite a variety of colors in both foliage and flower.  Foliage ranges in color including deep mahogany, burgundy, pink, maroon, “black” and all shades of green and some have variegated leaves.  Blooms come in shades of purple, blue, pink and white on spikes up to 12”.  They can handle just about any conditions except for foot traffic.

Wikipedia lists 64 varieties. Here are a few:

• Artic Fox

• Black Scallop

• Blueberry Muffin

• Bronze Beauty

• Burgundy Glow

• Catlin’s Giant

• Chocolate Chip

• Dixie Chip

• Golden Glow

• Jungle Beauty

• Mahogany

• Pink Lightning

• Purple Brocade

• Purple Torch

• Silver Beauty

• White

  Don’t forget to include this beauty in your garden.

Hinoki Cypress

This gorgeous cypress tree can be either fast- or slow-growing depending on your requirements.  The half-inch cones add to the appearance without creating a mess for the homeowner.

There are several varieties including compact and ones with golden foliage.  It is often used as a bonsai plants.  It is also drought-tolerant.

The larger varieties are often used as a privacy screen.  The tree can vary from 5-120’ tall and 5-20’ wide depending on the variety.

The foliage seems to grow in spirals, giving it an ornamental appearance.

If you need an evergreen in a sunny area, there will be a variety that works for you.