August 2023
Pickaway to Garden
Flower Power
By Paul J. Hang
We garden for
flowers. Either because we like to look at and smell them or because they turn
into something we like to eat. The Poet William Wordsworth asked, “How does the
meadow flower its bloom unfold?” What causes a plant to flower?
In his book
“Plant Science for Gardeners,” Robert Pavlis gives many of the requirements.
First, a plant must reach a certain level of maturity. It must grow large
enough. Second, the plant must be healthy and receive enough light. “Anything
that prevents a plant from growing to its full potential may prevent
flowering.” Even when all these criteria are met, plants need certain triggers
to flower. Once we understand these we may understand why some of our plants
aren’t producing flowers.
Plants sense
the duration of darkness and so are able to measure time. Plants are in one of
three categories: long night, short night or night neutral. Chrysanthemums are
long night plants that need at least 12 hours of darkness for a length of time
before they bloom. They bloom in the fall or can be “tricked” into blooming in
a light controlled greenhouse. Poinsettias and Christmas cactus are other
examples. Roses are night neutral. They begin to grow in the spring and when
they are big enough they flower. Some only bloom for a few weeks while others
bloom until frost. Bloom duration is controlled by genetics.
Fruit trees
bloom in the spring when there are about 12 hours of darkness and 12 hours of
light. This also happens in fall but they do not flower then because of a
factor called vernalization. They need two things to bloom a long night and a
period of cold. Plants requiring vernalization require a period of cold long
enough and a temperature low enough. This varies from plant to plant. Many
bulbs require vernalization and this can sometimes be accomplished in a
refrigerator. Rainfall can also be a trigger event. Desert plants often do not
bloom until a certain amount of rain has fallen.
We also know
that the accumulation of heat, measured in growing degree days, must be reached
for plants to bloom. The amount varies with each plant species. Plants’ ability
to monitor darkness can be interrupted by light from street lights and home
lighting and interfere with blooming. If your light level is high enough and it
is the right wavelength, your Christmas cactus will be the coal in your
stocking. There are many things that cause a plant to flower or not. Wordsworth’s
fellow poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson sums it up:
I hold you
here, root and all, in my hand,
Little
flower—but if I could understand
What you are,
root and all, and all in all,
I should know
what God and man is.
Things to do in the garden:
August is
Tree Check month. Water if we don’t get at least an inch of rain each week.
Water at the base of the plant and do it in the morning. Water trees and shrubs
planted in the past two years or if they look distressed. If you see lichen on
your trees, rejoice it’s a sign of clean air.
You can still
have a fall garden. Plant healthy looking broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage plants
early in the month. Direct-seed beets, spinach, turnips, and snap peas
mid-month. Other vegetables that grow well in cool weather but should be
planted a little later are lettuce planted through August and September,
carrots and radishes in September. Count
the days before the average frost (mid-October), veggies that have that many
days to harvest can still be planted. Check the seed packet. Given our milder
winters don’t be afraid to experiment. Keep the seeds and soil moist for best
germination.
Harvest vegetables
and herbs in the morning for best results. Dig potatoes if the vines have died.
Harvest onions when the tops fall over and cure in the sun for a few days. The
more you harvest the more you will get. Consider donating excess to the food
pantry.
As plants die
back or stop producing in the vegetable garden remove them so bad insects and
disease don’t have a place to over- winter. Some landscape plants, such as
coneflowers and those with hollow stems, also native ornamental grasses, can be
left alone for insects and for seeds for wintering birds or for visual winter
interest. Put the debris of healthy plants in the compost bin, diseased plants
in the trash. Pull crabgrass and other weeds before they go to seed.
This is the
time to renovate or build a new lawn. Do your research at ohioline.osu.edu.
Start cuttings of coleus, begonias, geraniums and impatiens for growing indoors
this winter. Move houseplants to a shady spot to prepare them to move indoors. Disbud
and fertilize your dahlias for bigger blooms. Fertilize (side dress) peonies and
roses with a balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10 or 12-12-12. Order garlic and
spring flowering bulbs, plant biennials. Divide, transplant or give away perennials
that are overgrown and plant new container grown ones. Add new mulch where
needed. Pull weeds before they go to seed.
By the end of
the month consider disbudding your tomato plants. Remove the growing tips of
each branch and pinch out all the blossoms that bloom. It takes six weeks from
blossom to fruit. This results in bigger tomatoes and prevents those marble
size tomatoes that never reach the table. Experiment! Try this with melons and
winter squash.
Consider picking
tomatoes before they are completely ripe. They will ripen off the vine if they
show a blush of green on an otherwise red, purple or yellow tomato. Totally
ripe tomatoes still on the vine can burst with a glut of water from rain or the
hose. They can be sampled by birds and mammals. Follow this advice and you will
enjoy more and better tomatoes.
Monitor for
pests. Check under the leaves. Use organic methods first. Remember, 97 percent
of insects are either good or neutral. Use the digital method, in this digital
age, to eliminate some bugs. The two-step stomp technique can be quite
effective. Or, just flick them into a
cup of soapy water. No bug species has developed a resistance to these tactics.
Need
gardening advice? Call the Gardening Helpline at the OSU Extension Office
474-7534. Other resources are ohioline.osu.edu and Buckeye Yard and Garden Line
(bygl.osu.edu).
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