Is it okay to plant Encore Azaleas (Autumn Sangria) in November in Dallas or do I need to wait until Spring?
Here is the answer from the spokespeople from Encore Azalea to this question:
Fall is a great time to plant, allowing the roots to get established during the winter before they concentrate on growing and blooming in the spring. But Encores can be planted at any time of the year, so long as you keep a watchful eye on young plants during the heat of the summer. During their first year in the ground when the root system is developing, azaleas are more thirsty than when full grown. Young plants will die quickly if the soil dries excessively.
TheGardenLady received this question from Courtney.
I have a marigold plant outstide in a large planter that is still flowering (I live in Brooklyn, NY and it’s been in the high 50s-60s degrees lately). But I would like to transplant this plant to a pot so I can keep in inside during the winter…will this work? How deep of a pot would I need? I don’t have a ton of sunlight in my apartment. Please advise.
If you want to save the marigold plant you should bring in your marigold before it freezes. Not knowing how many plants you want to save, when you dig the plants out of the planter, get a pot large enough. Put them into soil that is at least twice as deep as the root mass but don’t plant the flowers lower than they were in the planter. The extra soil will be for both for the roots to grow down and the plant’s need of nutrition from the new soil. Give the plants some soil around the sides. Tamp the soil around the marigolds so that they are firmly in the soil and water them. Marigolds really do need a lot of sunlight- so find your sunniest location, a south window is best, or get grow lights. But don’t be discouraged if the marigolds die.
TheGardenLady thinks you might have more success by planting the seeds of the marigold plants in pots and bringing the pots indoors. The seeds will send up plants. Hopefully you will give the plants lots of sun to flower. Originally marigolds come from very sunny areas like Mexico and you want to try to duplicate the environment where the plants came from.
My recommendation would be to collect the seed and save the seeds in ziplock bags or envelopes labeled Marigold seeds. Then sow the seeds outdoors next spring when the soil is very warm. Let your marigolds be your summer flowers in the planters and for the winter get flowering plants that really thrive indoors. Plants like African violets are pretty.
Thanksgiving - Action de grâce by cyanne43 super slow speed
On Thanksgiving Day, this GardenLady likes to not only enjoy the feast with family and friends, but she likes to think of the day as a day of giving thanks, of sitting around the dinner table and sharing with family and friends the things that are meaningful for which each person is grateful.
Asticou Azalea Garden with Buzz and Orton by jblester2002
TheGardenLady wants to share with her readers as if each one of you is sitting at her table and to tell you all that she is so very grateful and give thanks for all the wonderful public and private gardens, arboretums and public parks that are open for her and the public to visit and enjoy. She is grateful for the vision people had to create these magnificent gardens and to keep these places and open these places for everyone to enjoy.
Mt. Cuba Fall 2009 by rwa757
How wonderful it was/is that people of wealth created such beautiful places and now allow everyone to share in their creations. For example, in Deleware who wouldn’t thank the Duponts for making so many beautiful gardens available to us to tour, gardens like Mt. Cuba and Longwood Gardens. Or in Maine, a big thank you to the Rockefellers who have supported gardens in places like Mt. Desert Island for visitors to enjoy, gardens like the Asticou Azalea Garden or Thuya Gardens and if you can get an appointment on the right day, to visit the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden. I had the great pleasure of visiting all three this summer. Or places abroad that open gardens for visitors, like the National Trust for Gardens and Parks (see here).
Thuya Garden by prettie77
And how wonderful that even people of modest means who create private gardens often open their gardens thanks to garden club tours or the Garden Conservancy that started in 1995 and opens to the public what they call the ” best private gardens” (see here) for people to visit; or the garden conservancy in England that has open day garden visits.
I am grateful for all the wonderful Botanic Gardens or Arboretums in this country and around the world: Places like the US Botanic Gardens; the National Arboretum in Washington, DCÂ ; Garvan Woodland Gardens in Arkansas; the Orto botanico di Palermo in Sicily, Italy; or Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam.
Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam by billandkent
And I am grateful for the wonderful gardens at colleges and universities that are open to the public, gardens like those at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania; Princeton University’s magnificent arboretum and gardens in Princeton, NJ; Wellesley College gardens in Wellesley, Mass. and Berkeley’s Botanical Garden in Berkeley, California to name just a few.
Berkeley Botanical Garden Pond F1280 by CoastRanger
And I am grateful for politicians or wives of politicians who had or have the foresight to create gardens. A loving thank you to Lady Bird Johnson who did so much to promote wildflowers in her state and around the country and who created The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Texas.  See here.
lady bird johnson wildflower center by TexasValerie
And a heartfelt thanks to Mayor Daley of Chicago who encourages plantings and gardens all over that city. He has an annual program called Mayor Daley’s Landscape Awards that recognizes Chicago gardeners, both resident and businesses, who make Chicago greener by planting gardens. All cities and towns should have these Awards- and many do, like Cape May, NJ that give awards for gardens.
1999 Mayor Daley’s Landscape Award – First Place, Single Family Residential, Region
And I am grateful that so many nurseries now have show gardens that are a delight to see, nurseries like Russell Gardens Wholesale with their hosta garden or Matterhorn Nursery in New York (see here) that has wonderful show gardens like their Formal Garden that is based on the Renaissance Garden at David Austin Roses in the United Kingdom or Cricket Hill Garden in Connecticut that has a seven acres terraced woodland garden they call Peony Heaven.
David Austin Roses Visit, June 09 by www.cherrymenlove.com
I am grateful for all those professional gardeners, landscapers and garden workers as well as all the volunteers who help in so many public or private gardens or even create their own gardens for people to see and visit. Professionals and volunteers help plant gardens, care for gardens, save and protect old gardens. There are the wonderful projects for volunteers like Garden Your City or The Trust for Public Land or Master Gardeners who have shown gardens in the US, Canada and now starting in New Zealand and England and there are even people who love plants who have adopted a small island on the street in front of their homes and planted them with flowers.
I can not thank everyone on this short post. But to all of you mentioned above and all of you whom I had no space or time to mention, on this Thanksgiving, TheGardenLady wants you to know how much I appreciate what you have done for me and how much more beautiful and healthier a world you have helped to create and what a wonderful, joyous environment you have made for all of us. There are not enough words in my vocabulary to express how much you and your plantings have done for me. I cannot thank you all enough what what you have given me. And so this post of Thanksgiving is for you. A simple Thank you will have to suffice.
Thanksgiving is almost here again. And one of the favorite sides for this Garden Lady is the cranberry sauce. The cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) is said to be one of three fruits native to America (this includes blueberries and the Concord Grape), so the original colonists were smart to learn how to use cranberries from the native Indians. See here. The plant lies so low to the ground and the fruit is so small, I imagine that children must have been the gatherers. Fortunately for us, improved harvesting methods today make it much easier to collect cranberries today.
High Bush Cranberries by ebergcanada
A tour of the cranberry bogs, cranberries grow in swamp areas, is an interesting outing for groups and/or families. Visiting the cranberry bogs and attending the cranberry festival during The Chatsworth Cranberry Festival was an eye opening experience for TheGardenLady. This is located in what is called the New Jersey Pinelands and this area in itself is interesting to explore. See here.
In NJ, Massachusetts and Wisconsin the harvest is usually done in October or early Nov., but check in your area to see if there is still some harvesting going on and if it is too late this year, plan a trip next fall. See here.
Since today scientists have discovered antioxident properties of this fruit (see here), it is an added bonus to eat cranberries.
I just planted a Burning Bush this summer. It did turn a beautiful red but I noticed this morning it looked a little limp. When I returned from work, most of the leaves were on the ground and the bush is almost bare. Is this supposed to happen? If not will it come back next year or did it die?
Burning Bush, Euonymus alatus, is a deciduous shrub. Deciduous means that a shrub or tree sheds all its leaves in the fall. This happens every year. The leaves will return in the spring. See here.
Send a photo of your burning bush when it’s a beautiful red. TheGardenLady would love to show it on her site.
Winter Palace, Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia. aPICT0136 by VicWild
TheGardenLady received this question from Odmaaall the way from Mongolia.
I am writing this from Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar. My country is in Asia, between China and Russia. Winter is harsh and lasts more than 4 months. I am intersted in planting room plants and help people to have them in their homes. I have more than 15 different room plants in my rooms. I am not a specialist in this area. Could you give me an advice to begin my business? During winter in my contry it reaches minus 30-35 degree centigrade. We who live in houses and apartments during this time do not face cold because we have central heating system. So room temperature is usually between 17 to 30 centigrade degrees.
How exciting to know that TheGardenLady.org column is read around the world in Mongolia. Though I have never been to your beautiful country, a good friend spent her summer vacation visiting Ulaanbaatar and other parts of Mongolia. I enjoyed viewing her photographs. Much of her vacation was spent on horseback.
and then winter came (II) by Arriving at the horizon
I have read that Ulaanbaatar is the coldest capital city in the world. But your indoor temperature is perfect for certain plants.
TheGardenLady also has been interested in Genghis Khan and recommends a book called “Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World” by Jack Weatherford. He was a fascinating person.
TheGardenLady does not really know that much about starting a business venture and is not quite clear on the type of advice you are seeking.
My suggestion would be to study as much horticulture as you can. See what plant books are available in your libraries or book stores. Or go on line to read as many gardening sites about the plants that you are interested in growing.
In Eastern Ulaanbaatar there is a botanic garden, The Botanic Garden of Mongolia. See here.
TheGardenLady received this question about planting Autumn Coral Encore Azaleas:
I’m planting Autumn Coral Encore Azalea in Zone 5, St. Louis and will follow suggested mulching program this fall. Has anyone had success with this or other Encore varieties in Zone 5? It’s hard to believe that this evergreen azalea wants 4-6 hrs of direct sunlight. St. Louis summers are brutally hot and very sunny overall. Standard evergreen azaleas usually perform best here in eastern or northern exposure or under large shade trees. Any thoughts on amount of sunlight?
Autumn Coral Encore Azalea
The response to this question is comes directly from Encore Azalea.
For More Cold Protection
Mulch well (about 4 inches deep) in the fall. Reduce water for a month or so before the first frost. Then, after a couple of hard freezes, water well to provide moisture. This will help the plants to go dormant, or “harden off”.
As you would with any outdoor ornamental plants, Encore Azaleas may need some extra protection during sudden freezes and extremely cold weather. Sudden, drastic drops in temperature are more damaging than a gradual decline, especially to newly planted shrubs.
Burlap, old blankets, or sheets (any cloth material) can be used to cover upper plants. It is recommended that you drive stakes in the ground around your Encore and drape the cloth cover over stakes. Foliage in contact with the cover can be injured, so try to minimize cover contact with plant.
You can also try Encore Azaleas in containers, so that you can bring them inside in extremely cold weather.
I suggest one of the hardier varieties for zone 5. Try Autumn Amethyst , Autumn Cheer , Autumn Royalty , and Autumn Ruby and Autumn Twist . You also want to plant in spring or early summer.
As Encores mature and get more established in their environment, they will be better able to withstand cold temperatures. Young plants are more susceptible to sudden, drastic drops in temperatures, and sustained cold weather (25 degrees or below).
Encore Azaleas will thrive in your zone 5, although they will need a bit more protection. Encore Azaleas also need to receive at least receive at least 6 hours of sunlight per day in zone 5. Since all 24 varieties of Encore Azaleas have been bred to bloom in three seasons, they need extra sun to do so.
Posted on
For those of you who responded to the Michigan State University potential budget cut because of TheGardenLady’s column, a big Thank You. Michigan State University extension was spared the budget cut this time.
But readers, please still remain vigilant in Michigan- as well as in all states.
MSU extension spared the budget ax, this time
from American Vegetable Grower e-magazine- MSU Extension Spared In Budget Cuts – For Now Last week we reported that Michigan State University (MSU) Extension was jeopardized by a potential funding cutoff. Governor Jennifer Granholm spared the program by including funding in the state’s new budget. But what happens if MSU Extension is eliminated a year or two from now?Read more
YELLOW TRANSPARENT APPLE TREE LOADED DOWN by MIKE QUICK
TheGardenLady received this question from Donna.
My dad has a yellow transparent apple tree he has had for 30 years and the last
few years it has started growing a differant kind of apple along with the
transparent apples . He also has another yellow transparent that started
doing the same thing. What causes this?
TheGardenLady suspects that your father’s yellow transparent apple tree was grafted onto another apple rootstock and that it is sending up suckers with different apples.  Suckers are branches that grow from the base of the tree – up to 4 foot off the ground -and can come from the grafted root. But to do it after 30 years is unusual. You don’t want suckers so you should prune off any suckers.  See here.
However to be absolutely sure about what is happening to your father’s apple trees, send a photograph to Stark Bros. Nursery, a nursery that has been in business for 200 years and are authorities on the subject of fruit trees. TheGardenLady wrote this post about the nursery. You should send them a photo of the two different apples on the tree. Send the photo or photos by email to info@starkbros.com or to Stark Brothers P.O. Box 1800, Louisiana, Missouri 63353 and write a note about the problem you want solved. Or call them at 800.325.4180 to see what other information they need.
