Blog | The Dirt Diva | Tailoring your garden to your needs!

March 14, 2020

Spring Haircuts and Pre-emptive Pruning

If you’re getting stir crazy and you just have to do something in the garden, I have a job for you! Gather your cutting tools and go out to shear your herbaceous (non-woody) perennials and prune your deciduous woody shrubs. Don’t worry, i’ll tell you how. A couple weeks back I wrote about pruning fruit trees. Like pruning fruit trees, an early spring ornamental shrub pruning can satisfy the itch to spend time in the garden when you can’t dig or plant yet, (or there is still 2 feet of snow on the ground).

What you’ll need: A pruning saw like this one, loppers and hand pruners, (razor sharp and oiled of course) for pruning your woody shrubs.

Pictured below, hedge clippers are for giving haircuts to your herbaceous perennials, or for selectively shearing off leggy shoots on your woody shrubs to keep them neat during the growing season. (I discuss why toward the bottom of this post, with the illustration showing Conventional Shearing vs Sustainable Pruning.) Shearing herbaceous perennials is pretty straightforward. Its like giving a buzz cut to the plant. At the end of the growing season, or before the start of the new one, shear all the remaining stems back to the base of the plant, to allow new leaves and stems to poke through.

Pruning your beloved shrubs takes some bravery. Many people are intimidated by this chore, thinking that cutting = killing. Not so! It is quite the opposite for most woody shrubs. Prepare to be shocked!

When exactly do you prune any given flowering shrub? A good rule of thumb is: allow 3 months between pruning and the flowering time of the plant. The dormant winter months don’t count. So, a March or early April pruning allows enough time for a summer-flowering shrub like Hydrangea to set new flower buds. You can prune spring bloomers like Forsythia, Rhododendron and Lilac right after they flower, and they’ll have enough time to set new buds and flower the following spring.

Spirea stems being cut back to the ground

How much are you supposed to cut off the plant? This photo shows a Spirea shrub in the process of being cut (“stooled”) all the way to the ground using hand pruners. See the pale beige-ish round stem ends by the blade? The stems are now about 3 inches long. Are you shocked yet?

Rosa rugosa recovers nicely from its Spring pruning.

Look how nicely this Rosa rugosa recovered. This photo was taken later in the season when I stool-pruned in early spring. Stooling means cutting all the stems back to 3-6″ above the base, before the shrubs leaf out. The response will be a spray-like fountain of new growth full of flowers.

The following deciduous shrubs can be pruned (stooled) anytime from late March to about the 2nd week of April, without sacrificing this year’s blooms.

Abelia

Barberry (grown for foliage)

Buddliea aka Butterfly Bush

Burning Bush (grown for foliage)

Caryopteris aka Blue Beard

Cornus stolonifera (aka Redtwig Dogwood-grown for its bright red stems in winter)

Cotinus aka Smokebush

*Hydrangea paniculata (the “cone shaped” flowering type)

Potentilla

Rosa rugosa

Spirea japonica

To prune Hydrangea paniculata and Rosa rugosa, which all flower in mid to late Summer, first cut out the oldest (thickest) stems, dead stems and crossing stems all the way to the ground, then cut back the remaining ones to between 12-18″ from the base, leaving at least 2 pairs of buds on each stem remaining. The result will surely look like you’ve killed it and its never coming back. Don’t despair! Your shrubs will reward you with renewed vigor, glossy new leaves and flowering buds.

*A note about Hydrangea macrophylla- (aka Mop head or Lace cap Hydrangeas and the blue- flowering varieties) These flower on 2 year old wood, so you have to prune differently. Rather than pruning all the stems back to 2 sets of beds, prune only those that are weak, damaged or still have old flowers attached to them all the way to the ground. Shorten the remaining young (1 year old) stems back to about 2 feet.

Conventional Shearing vs Sustainable Pruning: Whatever you do, resist the urge to shear the outermost growth of your shrubs. All this does is promote twiggier branch ends, which result in light not reaching the center of the plant, which eventually = plant death. So leave the shears sheathed and sharpen your loppers and pruners instead! See pic below for the difference between shearing branch ends, and pruning them.

Shearing (on the left) vs. pruning cuts (on the right), and the result of each. Image credit: Caring For Perennials by Janet Macunovich

Along with pruning, I like to sprinkle a balanced fertilizer around the base of the plant at pruning time to stimulate growth of flower buds. Go the extra mile and give your plants a top dressing of home made compost too, to enrich and condition the soil to benefit all the micro organisms living in the soil.

What are you pruning now? Do tell!

[If you can’t see the comment box below, click on the title of this post.]

February 16, 2020

Spring Pruning How-To, and upcoming workshop

If you’re getting stir crazy and you just have to do something in the garden, I have a job for you! Gather your cutting tools and go out to shear your herbaceous (non-woody) perennials and prune your deciduous woody shrubs. Don’t worry, i’ll tell you how. Previously I wrote about pruning fruit trees. Like pruning fruit trees, an early spring ornamental shrub pruning can satisfy the itch to spend time in the garden when you can’t dig or plant yet. Thanks Judy for suggesting this topic btw :).

What you’ll need:

Pictured above, a pruning saw, loppers and hand pruners, (razor sharp and oiled of course) for pruning your woody shrubs. Pictured below, hedge clippers aka garden shears are for shearing to your herbaceous perennials, or for selectively chopping off leggy shoots on your woody shrubs to keep them neat during the growing season. They aren’t meant for pruning. (I discuss why toward the bottom of this post, with the illustration showing Conventional Shearing vs Sustainable Pruning.)

Garden shears. Look at those rusty blades! Very naughty.

When exactly do you prune any given flowering shrub?

A good rule of thumb is: allow 3 months between pruning and the flowering time of the plant. The dormant winter months don’t count. So, a March or early April pruning allows enough time for a summer-flowering shrub like Hydrangea to set new flower buds. Spring bloomers like Forsythia, Rhododendron and Lilac are best pruned right after they flower, and they’ll have enough time to set new buds and flower the following spring.

How much are you supposed to cut off the plant?

An overgrown Spirea getting its March haircut, all the way to the ground.

The above photo shows a Spirea shrub in the process of being cut way back (“stooled”) using hand pruners. See the pale beige-ish round stem ends by the blade? The stems are now about 3 inches long. Are you shocked yet?

Rugosa Rose in July after an April stool-pruning

Look how nicely this Rugosa Rose recovered from the same pruning. This photo was taken later in the season. Stooling means cutting all the stems back to 3-6″ above the base, before the shrubs leaf out. The response will be a spray-like fountain of new growth full of flowers.

The following deciduous shrubs can be pruned way back (stooled) anytime from late March to about the 3rd week of April, without sacrificing this year’s blooms.

Abelia

Barberry (grown for foliage)

Buddliea aka Butterfly Bush *after you see new green buds appear at the bottom of the plant, cut above those new buds.

Burning Bush (grown for foliage)

Caryopteris aka Blue Beard

Cornus stolonifera (aka Redtwig Dogwood-grown for its bright red stems in winter)

Cotinus aka Smokebush

*Hydrangea paniculata (the “cone shaped” flowering type)

Mock Orange

Potentilla

Rugosa rose

Spirea japonica

What about Hydrangeas?

To prune Hydrangea paniculata, which flower here late July- September: first cut out the oldest (thickest) stems, dead stems and crossing stems all the way to the ground, then cut back the remaining ones to between 12-18″ from the base, leaving at least 2 pairs of buds on each stem remaining. The result will surely look like you’ve killed it and its never coming back. Don’t despair! Your shrubs will reward you with renewed vigor, well placed stems, glossy new leaves and flowering buds.

Limelight Hydrangeas just before an early April pruning

The same Limelights in Augst. I’d say they recovered nicely!

Conventional Shearing vs Pruning

Shearing herbaceous perennials is pretty straightforward. Its like giving a buzz cut to the plant after its finished for the year. If you didn’t cut back your perennials in the fall, you can do it in the spring! Shear all the remaining stems back to the base of the plant, to allow new leaves and stems to come up. Shrubs require a slightly different tactic. Try to resist the urge to shear the outermost growth of your shrubs, unless you’ve got unruly stray stems poking out. All this does is promote twiggier branch ends, which result in light not reaching the center of the plant, which eventually = weaker plants. So, leave the shears sheathed and sharpen your loppers and pruners instead! See pic below for the difference between shearing branch ends, and pruning them.

Illustration from the book **Caring For Perennials** by Janet Macunovich

Along with pruning, I like to scratch in a balanced fertilizer around the base of the plant at pruning time to stimulate growth of flower buds. Go the extra mile and give your plants a top dressing of home made compost too, to enrich and condition the soil to benefit all the micro organisms living in the soil.

Pruning workshop in our area coming up, and one-on-one instruction

If you want some hands-on instruction from a pro and you’re up for a trip to New Paltz, consider attending Lee Reich’s Fearless Pruning workshop March 28th. The variety of fruiting trees and shrubs he has on his “farmden” is truly amazing, like WonkaLand for edible plants. Click here to see all the details and to register. If that doesn’t suit you or its too far, I offer one-on-one instruction at your home as part of my Dirt Therapy service. That way, your trees and shrubs get pruned and you get to take part and learn how to do it! Contact me to schedule. Have questions? You can post them in the comments section and I will answer as quickly as possible. Happy pruning!

February 9, 2020

Valentine’s Day Roses, an Ecuadorian Connection

Ecuadorian roses at Rose Success farm awaiting shipment in the cooler.

Greetings from Ecuador! The little South American country is a flower gardener’s paradise, and rose production powerhouse. In the US, some of the best roses come from Colombia and Ecuador. The high altitude, closeness to the Equator (year-round sunshine), and nutrient-rich volcanic soil help to grow beautiful flowers (but especially roses!) I learned to appreciate this thorny primadonna of the flower world on a recent trip to Ecuador this past January, where part of our itinerary included touring a rose farm in the height of the season.

A worker selecting graded roses for packing.

Rose Success rose farm to be exact. Located in the Cotopaxi valley, a couple hours drive south of Quito, its considered a “medium” size farm in terms of output. Since we were there a couple weeks before Valentine’s Day, the farm was in high production mode, cutting and packing 60,000 stems/day! Their usual output is said to be around 20,000/day. Not too bad, ay? We learned that after bananas and petroleum, cut flowers are one of Ecuador’s main exports. 99% of roses produced in Ecuador head straight to the US, Peru, Panama, Italy and Russia. The 1% that remain behind are sold in country, and can be bought in shops or roadside stands for about $2/dozen. We saw lots “garbage” roses for sale, and as decor in hotels, restaurants and churches, but to our untrained eyes they were still beautiful and blemish free.

While there, we saw the entire process from farm to shop. This farm employs around 100 people at the height of production, all from the local community, including many Indigenous Ecuadorians.

Bunches of cut roses awaiting their treatment bath before heading into the warehouse.

One of several Rose Success greenhouses. Look at how tall and straight they are!

As we drove around the country south of Quito, flower farms dotted the landscape. You can easily pick them out by their greenhouses, packed together like sardines on any relatively flat or not so flat bit of terrain. Ecuador’s geography consists of volcanoes and impossibly steep valleys, all at high elevation perfect for capturing the sun’s rays. Since its on the equator, (hence the name) the temperatures hover around 50-75 degrees year round. There are no growing seasons. That in itself blew my Northeast-trained gardening mind. Vegetation was bursting out of every crevice, from impossible angles, everywhere I looked. Foxgloves, roses, yucca, carnations, geraniums, brugmansia etc are all blooming at the same time, and are huge compared to our winter-limited versions. So, to say something blooms in the spring, or summer is irrelevant. I suppose among a gardener’s main tasks here would be to constantly be dividing and transplanting, constant deadheading or seed collecting, and lots of weedwacking to maintain access. I did hear a weedwacker going just about anytime we stepped outside if we were in the countryside.

A view from high up in the Cotopaxi region. Can you see the flower greenhouses way down there?

So, maybe this Valentine’s Day you’ll give or receive some roses, and there’s a good chance your bouquet came from the little mountainous nation cut through by the equator. A world away from the frigid Northeast, but hopefully now a lot closer in your minds and hearts than before!

January 18, 2020

Seed Talk: Decoding Organic, Heirlooms, Hybrids and GMO’s

A mature head of lettuce

If you’ve found your way to my site, you know pesticides, herbicides and synthetic fertilizers are all things you want to avoid in your garden. But now your awareness goes deeper. You see “heirloom” and “organic” a lot on labels for your favorite food products, and at the same time are learning that GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms) are something you want to avoid, but may not know how or why. When you open a seed or plant catalog, you’ll see the terms “heirloom”, “hybrid” & “organic”. For the gardener who wants to grow organically, how do you navigate these terms and choose the seeds or plants that are right for you? This article will hopefully clear up some of the fog surrounding these labels.

Q: If I want to grow an organic garden, does that mean I have to plant only heirlooms? Are hybrids and GMO’s the same thing and to be avoided?

A: Organic gardeners can choose heirloom and hybrid varieties, but never GMO’s. Here’s how they differ:

Hybrids are seed varieties resulting from the cross pollination of genetically different parents, done in a controlled environment by a plant breeder. Hybrid varieties can be Certified Organic, but they can also be conventionally grown. That depends on the growing conditions at the farm or garden where the plants were grown. Chances are you’ve bought hybrids if you’ve purchased seeds or veggie seedlings from a garden center, as hybrids are often bred for the mass market.

Heirlooms are a subset of open pollinated seed varieties that have been saved by gardeners and farmers, and passed down from generation to generation, usually a long-time family favorite desired for its taste or appearance. Heirlooms can also be both Certified Organic or conventionally grown- again that depends on the conditions at the farm or garden where the plants were grown.

Q: How do you know if a seed or plant variety is a hybrid, heirloom, Certified Organic or conventionally grown?

A: The label accompanying the plant, or description in the catalog should tell you this information. Sometimes in place of the word “hybrid” you’ll see the code F-1 or F-2 in the description. This is just another way of referring to a hybrid variety.

Here’s a simple diagram to illustrate how a hybrid comes about:

This is showing pollen being transferred (aka cross pollinated) from the flower of a yellow bell pepper plant to the flower of a red pepper plant, and the offspring (the plant that sprouts from that seed) is the hybrid, a totally new variety that exhibits the most desirable traits of its parent plants!

Psst! The action is all in the flowering stage- that’s when a plant is getting ready to make its seeds. If you are a seed breeder or a seed saver, you’ll watch your plants like a hawk before, during and after the flowering stage, so you can get busy hybridizing or seed saving.

Q: Why would I want a hybrid vs. an heirloom variety?

Short A: I will ask you more questions! It depends on what you need from your plants. Are you a backyard gardener just feeding yourself or do you need heavy yields to bring produce to market? Do you want a tomato for canning sauce or for snacking? Maybe you love Romaine lettuce in summer but last year your plants bolted too early and got bitter? How important is uniformly looking produce to you?

Long A: The whole point of hybrids is to create new varieties that exhibit certain desirable traits. Think of the dog world for a minute. A LabraDoodle is a new breed resulting from crossing a Laborador Retreiver with a Poodle, so you get a dog that has the best characteristics of both breeds. In the vegetable world, a plant breeder’s goal is to improve varieties for reasons like: uniformity in size or color, better shipping quality, earlier ripening, resistance to bolting, or higher disease resistance. Hence the hybrids.

Heirlooms are kind of like purebred animals of the plant world. People who “breed” heirlooms are actually just saving seed. When a dog breeder finds a breed they like, they breed it with another member of the same breed who has the desirable characteristics they are looking for. With heirlooms, a gardener looks for varieties they like and in order to maintain those same characteristics year after year they’ll save seeds from certain plants. ( I have a favorite paste tomato variety I have been saving seed from for 5 years now) Taste, unique visual appeal, plant vigor, disease resistance, ripening time are all things a gardener would be looking to perpetuate upon by saving seeds from open pollinated plants.

You’ll notice some other vocab above in relation to hybrids and heirlooms, and these are open pollinated and cross pollinated. Don’t worry too much about these now. I’ll talk more about these in a future post about seed saving.

Now, for the GMOs. GMO stands for “genetically modified organisms” and are living organisms (seeds, plants and animals) whose genetic material has been artificially manipulated in a laboratory through genetic engineering, (G.E.). This relatively new science creates unstable combinations of plant, animal, bacteria and viral genes that do not occur in nature or through traditional crossbreeding methods. Source: nongmoproject.org

GMO’s exist because it is believed that farmers need to “feed the world” in our global economy. The resulting system of mono-cropping (planting 100’s or 1000’s of acres of the same crop) has given rise to problems like drought, plant disease, water, air and soil contamination from heavy reliance on herbicides and pesticides. Multinational corporations like Seminis/Monsanto, Bayer, Cargill, and Syngenta have invested millions to develop plant varieties and animal breeds using GMOs, claiming they can: increase yield, reduce pesticide use, control disease, deliver more nutritious foods or help with climate change. These same companies however, manufacture the pesticides and herbicides that are used in conventional agriculture. I could write a whole post exclusively dedicated to the myths and truths about GMO’s, but I don’t have to. Instead I can recommend a fabulous new report, called 10 Questions about GM Foods, from the authors of GMO Myths and Truths. Its like the Cliff Notes of GMO Myths and Truths and you’ll come away knowing a whole lot more on the subject.

To avoid GMO seed while catalog shopping,

look for a disclosure in your catalogs or on the websites that they either do not purchase seed from multinational seed corporations that produce GMOs, or they alert you to which varieties they sell which do come from these companies. I can recommend 2 reputable seed companies who supply organic as well as conventionally grown seed, hybrids and heirlooms, who are located in the Northeast and disclose such info. Fedco Seeds, and High Mowing Seeds. If you want to support a company that specializes in open pollinated and heirloom seeds, and is growing nearly 100% of their seed locally and organically, visit the Hudson Valley Seed Library to purchase seeds.

Now, your questions. Are you more confident in your seed buying strategy this year?

January 15, 2020

Winter reading for Ecologically-Minded Folks & Gardeners

Just some of the reads I’ve devoured so far this winter.

Winter gives me a much needed break from physical work and time to catch up on everything else in life: family visits, dinner parties with friends, TV binge watching, blog writing and of course reading! I am a voracious reader when I have free time, and have been plowing through books since closing up shop around Thanksgiving this year. Since I rely on recommendations from other folks to narrow down the millions of choices of what to read, (Judy and Kim you are both invaluable for this!) I thought I’d share with you some of my fave reads so far. One is garden related, most are not. (Yes, I have other interests ;)) Disclaimer, the links will take you to my Amazon Affiliate page where I’ll earn a lil something if you purchase, but of course it’s not necessary to buy, just read on!

My good friend Christine recommended I check out the work of Amanda Palmer, a street performance artist, 1/2 of the early 2000’s Boston punk-cabaret duo The Dresden Dolls and solo artist as of late, who wrote her memoir The Art of Asking: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help (2014, Grand Central Publishing) I ordered the book after watching her TedTalk (over 11 million views) on the subject of trusting strangers, asking fans for help, and the controversial phenomenon of crowd funding an album. I was hooked. I’ve never heard her music or her name before now, but after watching her talk and reading her memoir I am a huge fan of her life philosophy! I have yet to check out her music, but plan to check out the free playlist she produced to tie in with the book.

Speaking of memoirs, have any of you read local author Jason Tougaw’s The One You Get:Portrait of a Family Organism, (2017, Dzanc Books) yet? It was strange to read the personal story of someone I know in my own community, and that definitely heightened the emotional factor for me. I mean, when you write a memoir you make yourself vulnerable to the world of readers, an act of bravery to bare it all for an audience, known and unknown. Jason, I didn’t put your book down until I finished it! Well done!

The 3rd memoir I devoured this winter was Sarah M. Broom’s The Yellow House, (2019 National Book Award Winner, Grove Press). Thanks Judy for turning me onto this author, she’s a new fave! The author and I share a birth year (1979), but that’s where the similarities end. Born and raised in East New Orleans and the youngest of 11 children, the author’s story takes you through the generations of her family history, starting with her grandmother’s generation, which is the furthest back she can trace given the reality of the slave trade in America. The story revolves around the family’s relationship to its house and home, to the city of New Orleans, how their circumstances shaped each generation, and when a house no longer exists, how a family is supposed to stay anchored to a place and what that does to a family’s identity.

I devoured Elizabeth Gilbert’s The Signature of all Things , (2014, Riverhead Books) a fascinating 528 page novel set in 18th and 19th century Philadelphia about the Whittaker family, headed by Henry Whittaker, a poor-born Englishman who makes his fortune in the South American quinine trade to become the richest man in Philadelphia. His daughter Alma (who inherits both her father’s money and his mind), ultimately becomes a botanist who falls in love with mosses, the mysteries of evolution, and a man named Ambrose Pike. Alma is a clear-minded scientist; Ambrose a utopian artist—but what unites this unlikely couple is a desperate need to understand the workings of this world and the mechanisms behind all life.

If you liked Signature of All Things, you will love Lily King’s The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate-Discoveries from a Secret World (2016, Greystone Books) Officially I am still reading this book, gifted to me at Christmas in 2018. What I’ve read so far has changed how I view the forest ecosystem, at home and beyond. It has made me relate to trees as if they were other human beings. The author Peter Wohlleben is so thorough in his descriptions of the intimate relationships of trees to each other, their environment and the ecosystem, that I can’t just plow through the pages like I could a work of fiction. Each page blows my mind to the point that I have to re-read them over, just to be sure I’ve read correctly. You will never view a tree the same again after reading!

Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore (2019, Milkweed Editions) Is a deep dive into selected coastal communities affected by rising seas and recent storms of 2017 & 2018. Author Elisabeth Rush travels to and interviews residents of Staten Island, NY, Isle de Jean Charles, LA, and Pensacola, FL to learn how the changing coastline has affected the human communities established there, while analyzing the effects of human interference and climate change on the ecosystems in some of the most populated places in North America: New York City, the Gulf Coast, Florida panhandle, Bay area of California. Its heavy and emotional, and is best digested in parts so the words can be absorbed.

Lastly, something for the Permaculturist or ecological gardener: Gaia’s Garden (2009, Chelsea Green Publishing) Over the last few years I’ve seen a significant rise in the demand for “ecological” or “native habitat” gardens, which fall under the umbrella of Permaculture. Traditional landscaping (reliance on pesticides herbicides, fertilizers, foreign plant species and gasoline) is resource and labor-intensive and I believe Permaculture principles/ecological gardening will be the way to bring our landscapes back into balance. Knowing what I know, I cannot continue to use chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides, and I strongly encourage my clients not to give in to the fake promises of these damaging products. The book has beautiful photos of landscapes rescued from desolation, lots of helpful illustrations to highlight Permaculture methods so even a novice can implement them on a scale that makes sense for their property. In the words of Toby Hemenway (author of Gaia’s Garden): “Ecological gardens meld the best features of wildlife gardens, edible landscapes, and conventional flower and vegetable gardens. They are based on relatively new concepts such as Permaculture and ecological design, yet use time-tested techniques honed to perfection by indigenous people, restoration biologists, organic farmers, and cutting-edge landscape designers. These gardens combine low environmental impact, low maintenance once established, and high yields with elegant aesthetics.”

What are your favorite books lately? Have you read any of the above? Do tell!

January 1, 2020

Honoring Jane Blake: Gardener, Client, Friend

When someone in my life dies unexpectedly, my default mode is to fixate on all the things that I could have/should have done for them while they were still alive. This is probably a pretty common reaction. I’ve been meaning to sit down and write this post since my friend Jane passed away December 13, and now that the new year has dawned I can’t procrastinate anymore. The reason I’m writing about her here is that she was my first Dirt Diva client, way back when I started doing garden projects on the side while still employed by Silver Heights Farm in 2007. I’d like to honor her by telling you all about what an special person she was, and what she taught me.

**Jane in 2012 with some exceptional parsnips from her garden**

Jane was 82 when she passed away, so she had just turned 70 when we started working together. I had known her previously from my stint as volunteer coordinator at WJFF Radio in Jeffersonville, where she kept the books once a week. On the days she came to work, I remember a lot of laughing in the office. Jane had the most contagious laugh, the hilarity of which was amplified for me by her Norfolk, England accent. She referred to her cats as pussies! Not in an ironic way either. She was an excellent judge of character, didn’t take any crap from anyone, and as long as I knew her, she lived alone in her little country cottage in the Beechwoods area of Callicoon.

Veggie garden renovation 2007

Image 1 of 11

Her gardens looked like they were transported from the English countryside. I can’t imagine anyone else ever living in her home, even though it predated her. Her gardens were so extensive that she had a separate company (Garden Creations, Damascus PA) maintaining her flower gardens, while I was assigned to the edible landscaping in the veggie garden and orchard. She of course spent as much time in her gardens as she could between being a grandma to her 4 grandsons, working in her painting studio, and commuting to her book keeping jobs in NYC and Sullivan County.

I admired her independence and how she defied my ideas of what an “old woman” was supposed to be able to do. Each year from 2009-2014 my husband and I, along with a rotating cast of farmer friends included Jane in our annual strawberry picking outing to Thompson Finch Farm in Ancram, NY. Thompson Finch is one of the few Certified Organic pick your own fruit farms in New York State, a good 2.5 hours from Callicoon. Jane usually out-picked the rest of us, even the year it was 90 degrees, despite having a 40-50 year age jump on us! A good amount of those strawberries were turned into jam for her son and grandsons to enjoy.

**Jane picking strawberries at Thompson Finch Farm 2010**

**Post strawberry picking picnic lunch, Thompson Finch Farm 2011**

She traveled to England and Europe pretty regularly, either solo or with a girlfriend or two. She was a well known artist in the region and NYC, and was creating new work up until last year when her health began to decline. It wasn’t until then that I realized Jane was “getting old” and needed more assistance. This is where I wish I had been more present beyond my scheduled garden visits. Although a good friend stepped up and became her caregiver, and her son checked in as much as possible, I knew I should have set aside more time to just be in her company. So, going into 2020, I will try to be more present for the humans in my life, since that’s what makes life worth living! Cheers Jane, and I hope wherever you are, there are strawberry fields forever!

**John and I with our haul, Thompson Finch Farm 2009**

December 19, 2019

Oh Christmas Tree…

Believe it or not, I’ve never put up a Christmas tree as an adult. Never in my 21 years since leaving my parent’s home have I ever really felt the desire to, until this year. Now I’m kind of obsessed. As I write this, I still haven’t cleared the floor space or gone out and bought one, mainly because I want a potted live tree and not a cut one. In this scenario, there are other considerations besides will-this-tree-fit-in-my-house-and-look-amazing-with-my-ornaments. True, a potted tree won’t make quite the statement that a cut live tree will, because it will always be smaller, but if carefully handled and replanted in your landscape, it will last for years and grow into a full size tree. If I’d had the forethought back in September, I could have easily picked up a potted spruce, fir or pine at any of the local nurseries, (probably with an end of season discount too) kept it outside till now, and be setting it up inside this week. I also would have had the chance to dig the hole for it, in anticipation of planting post-holiday time. But, I did none of those things and here I am embarking on a search a week before Christmas, with nary a potted tree to be found! Thanks to Derick from Queens for suggesting this topic by the way :).

A young Serbian spruce potted up for the winter holiday

Logistics of the potted tree scenario

What kind of evergreen is suitable for my property? How big is it going to get? How do I keep it alive till I can dig that hole in the spring? Am I cool with having a small tree for my holiday decoration? These are some of the questions you’ll be asking yourself if you are considering a potted tree. For the purposes of this article, I’m focusing on the needle type evergreens aka conifers, aka the dark green pointy upside-down ice cream-cone-shaped trees that smell, you know, like Christmas!

Here’s what Joe Lamp’l , the host of Growing a Greener World has to say about sourcing, acclimating (so important!) and caring for a live potted tree after the holidays are over.

And here’s what the Brooklyn Botanical Garden has to say about acclimating and keeping a potted Christmas tree until planting time. *Note the later planting time they suggest here. I’d go with their springtime planting suggestion over Joe Lampl’s wintertime one.

Species of Evergreens suitable for our region.

Now here’s where some extra research will pay off. Many of you have probably noticed the evergreens in our area are having a hard time. Maybe you have a dead or dying evergreen tree on or near your property that looks like this. Chances are what you’re looking at is a Colorado Blue Spruce suffering from Cytospora canker. This heinous disease also affects Norway spruce but to a lesser degree. Climate change exacerbates the spread of this disease, since it thrives in warm, humid environments, and these trees historically need drier, bitter cold winters to thrive. According to Michigan State Extension, alternatives to Colorado and Norway spruce include Concolor Fir, Dawn Redwood, Korean Fir, Korean Pine, Scots Pine and Serbian Spruce. All of these are hardy to our zone, which is 5 going on 6, and perform the function that we expect a conifer to do: provide year round screening and greenery in our landscapes. So, go to your local nursery equipped with a list of these trees and see if you can score one!

Where to find potted evergreens in our area.

Check out these nurseries for their selection of potted evergreens. The best selection exists during the growing season (May to October), but you may be able to find a tree as late as December if you’re willing to travel further afield and make some phone calls. If all else fails, you can always find a live cut tree or an artificial one last minute to fulfill your holiday decorating needs, or you could dress up any other house plant with decorations in a pinch. Its your house, get creative!

Todd Price Nursery, Canadensis PA

Delaware Valley Farm & Garden, Callicoon NY (currently sold out of potted evergreens)

E.P. Jansen Nursery, Florida NY

Bold’s Florist & Garden Center, Honesdale PA (currently sold out of potted evergreens)

Manza’s Family Farm Nursery, Montgomery NY

Monticello Farm Home & Garden, Monticello NY

Friendly Acres Farm, Cochecton NY (mostly deals in cut live trees and cut- your-own, but has limited quantities of potted evergreens for sale after Thanksgiving)

November 3, 2019

Dirt Diva’s Recommended Gifts for Gardeners

If you’re stuck about what to get for your gardening friends or spouse (or yourself ;), as gifts, look no further! I have created a list of my favorite must-have-use-constantly tools and garden gear, which I and my crew use throughout the year to take care of our 50 + gardens.

Disclosure: the links will take you to Amazon’s site and I earn a lil’ somethin if you buy through my links below.

Happy holidays, and happy shopping!

Cape Cod Weeder by AM Leonard. This amazing weeding tool has upstaged all my other weeding tools for its effectiveness and ease of use. I’ve been using mine for 6 years now, and have bought one for each member of my crew. It’s lightweight and easy to hang onto. It gets into tight spaces with ease, and works by cutting roots off just beneath the surface of the soil when they are small, and the hook is also great for catching those pesky runners of quack grass and sheep sorrel, so you can pull up a whole mass by the root. Tip: paint the handle a bright color so you can spot it if you leave it laying around, or accidentally dump it in your compost pile. I added a lanyard too, so I can wear it around my wrist.
Wheeler Monroe leather gardener’s tool belt. I coveted my flower farmer friend Tannis’s for a whole year before hinting enough times out loud when my husband was in ear shot, and I received one of these beauties for my birthday this year! It is very well made, comfortable, keeps the most commonly used tools within arm’s reach and is definitely the sexiest part of my whole get up. There are several models, but this one is my fave, since it holds my Felco pruners, Cape Cod Weeder, pocket knife and cell phone, plus the belt aspect helps hold my pants up! Here’s a pic of mine in action:
For a less expensive, non leather tool belt option, consider the Dickies Work Gear 5 Pocket Single Side Apron
Internet’s Best Open Top Electricians Tool bag. This is the tool bag I and each member of my crew have to keep our smaller hand tools organized, as well as those odds and ends like zip ties, plant labels, Sharpies and tool sharpeners in one place.
AM Leonard Waterproof Kneeling Pad with handle-this one is the right size and thickness, bright orange color is easy to see, and when you’re on the move from one spot to the next, its easy to grab by the handle and bring it along with you. Keeps your knees dry on wet ground and protected from sharp rocks or tree roots as you dive down to get those weeds!
Atlas Nitrile lightweight work gloves. These are my go-to gloves for any almost every warm season garden task (not pruning thorny shit though!) because the grippy palm means less blisters for my hands and breathable mesh back means my hands aren’t getting all sweaty and gross. Plus, they aren’t bulky so I can tie my boot laces or use my phone’s touch screen without having to take them off. Even Kirsten the glove hater occasionally dons these when working in challenging soil. Throw them in the washer when they need it. They come in plain old black too, but I find they get too hot on sunny days.
Tub Trugs Flexible (large 10 gallon capacity) bucket. These have been an invaluable addition to our tool kits, because the large open mouth and flexible nature of the bucket means you can carry tools like a satchel, pour water like a spout, and haul and dump debris or soil while in the garden. They make great harvest containers too. I like to have a variety of sizes in my kit, from Medium to Extra Large.
Mini Shovel. Forget the little digging spade for planting stuff in our rocky-ass soil. This 20″ long mini shovel allows you to dig holes for transplanting your perennials and veggies while on your knees, much more easily than using a full size shovel.
Felco Classic F-6 Pruner for Smaller Hands. Yep, the classic Felcos but made for smaller hands, means your wrists won’t tire as quickly as they would otherwise with the full size hand pruners. Totally worth the money, since when the blades or springs wear out, you can buy replacement parts instead of replacing the whole pair. Just be sure to not leave them sitting out in the garden where they get rusty (or run over by the mower)
Good old woven plastic tarp, 8 x 10 size-yes you can get these at any hardware store, but here it is. The gals and I use these to sled weeds, limbs, leaves and other garden debris from the garden to the dump spot, and of course they’re great for covering that leftover soil or mulch pile you had delivered that would otherwise sprout a forest of weeds if it weren’t covered.

March 7, 2019

How to be a Better Wildlife Gardener

Greetings from the 25th ELA conference in Amherst, MA! ELA stands for Ecological Landscape Alliance and I consider them the Northeast’s authority and best resource for landscapers who aren’t following the conventional methods of business as usual, aka pesticide, herbicide and chemical fertilizer reliance. They are based in Northern Mass, but pull folks like myself from all over the Northeast, Canada and parts of the Midwest for their 2 day conference. I was particularly inspired by a lecture I attended yesterday, given by a scientist who studied the relationship between native plants, birds and pollinators, like bees, butterflies and moths. Her talk was titled “The Chickadees Guide to Gardening” and talked about the scientific research that went into studying the relationship of a population of chickadees in Washington DC with the urban trees there. (Chickadees are one of my favorite songbirds, and are the first bird call I learned to imitate as a kid)

Screenshot of the plant finder feature on National Wildlife Federation website *nwf.org/plantfinder*

Basically, the talk blew my mind. Its refreshing to spend several hours in the presence of scientists and engineers who can elaborate on the mantras I’ve adopted as an ecological gardener: natives good, non-natives bad/ pollinator-friendly gardens are good/pesticides kill bees etc etc. The above screenshot is from a reference the speaker gave, a website that was the outcome of her research with Doug Tallamy of Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware. The National Wildlife Federation has created a native plant finder feature which you can search by zipcode, and learn what species of plants ( perennials and trees, shrubs and grasses) are native to your area, and get this: it ranks them in order of the number of moth/butterfly species they support! The little butterfly symbol next to the plant photo contains a number. That number is the number of moth and butterfly species that particular plant supports. Goldenrod, which is at the top of the list of perennials, supports 126 different kinds of moths and butterflies! I will never curse this “weed” again, knowing what an important role it plays in our landscapes. Goldenrod, btw, gets a bad rap as the cause of people’s seasonal allergies. While it blooms in abundance and is easy to spot, the real culprit is the nasty ragweed, which blooms at the same time, is inconspicuous with its green flowers, and sprays its pollen into the air (and into our nostrils and lungs). The deal with Non-native species is that they do not attract and support our pollinator species, at least in numbers that support other wildlife, like birds. So, they are basically ignored, like statues in the landscape.

Why care about how many species of moths/butterflies a plant supports when you’re just trying to garden to attract birds? Well, it turns out that songbird’s primary food source are caterpillars, which are the larval stage of moths and butterflies, and without a food source nearby, the bird populations starve and crash. In the DC study, it was found that the chickadees favored oaks, then cherries, then willow species growing among the high rises and residential neighborhoods. It turns out that those tree species (in order of # of caterpillar species supported) are host to moth and butterfly species, which provide the food source so essential to the songbirds.

Chickadees favorite food are caterpillars, a protein rich snack which they gorge their babies on for their 16 day nesting period

The big takeaway for me, as a garden designer, was a better understanding of why I should seek out and incorporate native plant species into my gardens, and the National Wildlife Federation’s Native Plant Finder tool, which I can use as a resource when considering what plants to add in client’s gardens and on my own property, or which “weeds” to leave alone and let them spread!

November 26, 2018

Kenoza Lake Pond Landscape 2016-2018

This project took place in phases starting in September 2016 through June 2017. As of the summer of 2018, the gardens are filling in nicely, attracting pollinators and in some cases, are already needing to be divided. Native plants like Joe Pye (Eupatorium), NY Ironweed (Vernonia), Bluestar (Amsonia) and Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis) were chosen to form the backbone of the terrace garden, and River Birch, Gleditsia and Catalpa trees were chosen for their hardiness and suitability as fast growing wetland plants.