March News Letter

2006 JANUARY - FEBRUARY - MARCH - APRIL - JUNE - SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER NOVEMBER

2007 JANUARY - MARCH - APRIL - MAY - JUNE - SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - NOVEMBER

2008 JANUARY - FEBRUARY - MARCH - APRIL

QUICK LINKS Downtown Bed Thank you Bus Trip Need your Help Project & Tips

Column in the Windsor Star Yard Sale Butterfly Garden Back Yard Tidbits

The Great Sunflower Project Quips in April UPCOMING EVENTS

The Essex Thymes

The Essex & District Horticultural Society Newsletter for May 28^th, 2008

Remember to Lug A Mug

Downtown Bed Planting is scheduled for this Thursday and Friday, May 29^th and 30^th. Please plant to come and help if at all possible. Times and further instructions available at the May 28^th meeting at the Kinsmen Field House, Fairview Avenue, Essex.

Hello Everyone,

May, beautiful May is finally here. I have to say though, it hasn’t really led up to my expectations this year. Its always my favourite month of the year but this year every day I’ve had off work that I could actually get out in the garden has ended up being very cool, windy or rainy. Sort of disappointing. The upside of this is the cooler temps have allowed the tulips and our early Spring flowers to last much longer and this truly is a bonus. Here in Essex County all too often we go straight to 90 degree weather and those flowers are done in about 3 days. I am so enjoying the tree peonies this year, they are usually so short lived but this Spring they are amazing. I visited Doris Parr’’s garden this week and she has a white one with probably 50 blooms, what a beautiful sight to behold. Each flower was the size of a dinner plate, what a treat to see.

Thank you one and all for supporting our bake and plant sale at the Train Station a few weeks ago. It was a fun day and the weather was perfect - not too cold, hot , windy or rainy. Just what we needed, finally a perfect day for it. Thank you for bringing in all your plants and the baking was just awesome. Keep track of those volunteer hours - we will be needing them at the end of the year to send in. Even the hours you spent digging and potting up plants for us should be kept track of, and all the time you spent there helping out. Baking time too. We had a great variety of plants and as usual the early bird got the worm and a lot of people went away very pleased with their acquisitions. There were some treasures to be found.

June brings our bus trip. Please pay for your seat by this May meeting. I do have a waiting list so we need to know right away if you can’t make it. It is going to be a very fun day. Lots to see and lots to do. I know you will love it.

We are almost ready to plant the downtown beds. We need your help to do this and I hope many of you will consider taking on an adopt a bed for the summer months. It really is not hard to do, just check on your bed once a week or so and pluck out the weeds if any pop up. You don’t have to water, which makes it very easy to care for and we would really appreciate it . It will keep Essex looking great, makes our club look good (and worthy of a grant) and gives you a great feeling of achievement. Please see Kathy if you have not taken a bed yet.

Let me end by saying how much all your volunteer efforts are appreciated. This club could not operate without all of your help. The only way this club even exists is because of all the great people working together to make it a fun place to be. Every tiny bit of help or time you provide makes a big difference. Pat yourselves on the shoulder, you deserve it. Enjoy what’s left of the month May and we’ll see you in June. Take time to smell the roses - they will be here next month!

Sandy ^TOP^

Marie Tiborcz’s Found Project #5 Nestle an old tricycle in your garden; balance a large terra cotta pot on the seat and start building a human looking rider with more pots, stacking as you go. Use the handle bars for balance for the arms, the foot pedals as balance for the legs, finishing off the head with a potted plant!

Dorothy Vriesacker’s Found Timely Tips, Month 4: The best skunk deodorizer recipe you will ever find: In a bucket mix 1 quart of FRESH hydrogen peroxide, ¼ cup baking soda and 12 teaspoon liquid soap. The mixture will bubble. Thoroughly wet the victim in this mixture, taking care to keep it out of the eyes. Wash the victim with the mixture as if it were shampoo while it is bubbling. Rinse and repeat. Be careful not to contaminate the rinse water. The soap breaks down the oil in which the odour is suspended and the hydrogen peroxide and baking soda neutralize the scent. Do not premix the solution or store in a bottle as the bubbling will cause it to explode.

The following appeared in the Master Gardener Question and Answer Column in the Windsor Star May 17, 2008. It was written by Juliette and Albert St. Pierre and they have graciously allowed us to reprint it here.

Question: I bought a beautiful orchid at one of the local box stores and I’m not sure how to water it. I have been watering it from the bottom and have been told that the proper way is from the top. Can you advise me on the right way?

Answer: Orchids are special plants and most of them will grow in fir bark, coconut husk or sphagnum moss and not in soil. They should be watered from the top as this helps to leach out the salts that accumulate in the growing medium from the water. Pour a couple cups of tepid water through the growing medium, collect it and pour it on the plant again a few times. The best time to water is early in the day so the leaves have a chance to dry. Avoid getting water on the crown of the plant. In the summer water more often, once or twice a week and in the winter every 7 to 10 days. Check the humidity in the pot by sticking your finger down about an inch. If it feels dry, water. Orchid plants should not be left sitting in water for long periods of time as the roots will rot. A safe way to know when your orchid plant needs water is by the weight of the pot. If the pot feels light, water it. ^TOP^

Yard Sale at the O’Hagans Saturday May 31, 2008, starting at 8am. Location is the O'Hagan house, 2818 County Rd 12 aka The Gesto Road,and also another yard sale close by at 2840 County Rd 12. Numerous items and something for everyone. Rain date is June 07.

Butterfly Garden Tips submitted by Tim O’Hagan

1.Butterflies use two different types of plants. Those that provide nectar for adults and those that provide food for larvae and caterpillars. You need to have both types in your garden to keep the beauties around all year.

2.Plant your butterfly garden in a bright locations with at least 5-6 hours of sunlight every day and keep it moist.

3.Do not use chemicals in your garden.

4.Provide a source of water such as bird baths or mud baths and keep them moist.

5. Arrange taller plants at the back or center and lower ones to the outside.

6.Remember the host plants are there for the caterpillars to eat so expect to see half eaten plants.

Here is a list of some of the best annual nectar and host plants.

Nectar Host

Cleome Dill

Flowering maple Fennel

Fuchsia Flowering Cabbage and Kale

Lantana Licorice

Nicotiana Scarlet Milkweed

Petunia

Verbena

^TOP^

BACKYARD TIDBITS

Though prolific in the United States, the wild leek plant is a protected species in the province of Quebec.

There are 761 species of butterflies in North America.

There are about 20,000 species of bees.

Mourning Doves can fly in bursts as fast as 60 miles per hour.

The blue jay is a member of the crow family.

Baltimore Orioles prefer to nest in elms and willows.

A butterfly’s eyes allow it to see in all directions, except directly beneath its own body

....most of these tidbits were taken from the WETRA May-June newsletter - (Windsor-Essex Therapeutic Riding Association)

Among conventionally grown fruits and vegetables, apples, berries, cherries, grapes, peaches, and pears contain the highest residues of petroleum-based pesticides and fertilizers - www.idealbite.com

FROM THE GREAT SUNFL OWER PROJECT

On the bee news front Quinn McFrederick, just published a study showing that pollution may cause the scents produced by flowers to deteriorate quickly making it much harder for bees to hone in on flowers. Bees follow what we call "scent trails" to a plant. Some of the chemicals produced by flowers can create a scent trail that extends for almost half a mile. What a different way to encounter the world!

Quips in April from Master Gardeners around the province;

Discourage beetles destroying lilies by spreading coffee grounds. Lilies like the acidity in the soil caused by the coffee grounds, but the bugs in the soil are disturbed when the coffee grounds are poured on top and move on. This works around Soloman's Seal, Asiatic and Oriental lilies, Japanese maples and evergreens.