Remodels are Important
By Ken Lain, The Garden Guy

It will be fun to watch plants burst forth with new growth following this week's rains. Any new plants, especially summer bloomers, really respond to the moisture in the ground. This makes for a great time to plant new shrubs, flowers, and trees and to add new plants to vegetable and herb gardens.

This spring all garden growth has been delayed by about 30 days. Cool nights and thrip damage have caused plants to experience delayed spring bloom. Even summer plants have leafed out later than usual. Any plants that look rough, or even dead, I will feed with a granular food to stimulate any spark of life that might be in them. If within a few weeks of feeding them I don't see new growth, I'll replace them.

Most homeowners recognize the need to remodel the insides of their homes, but don't realize that landscaping also benefits from an occasional remodel. A front landscape covered in junipers and rock screams out "Look how old and outdated I am!". Remodeling your landscape is quicker, easier, and cheaper than remodeling any other part of your home, and updating it is important because the landscaping is the first and last impression guests and neighbors will have of your home.

Landscape plants occasionally need to be trimmed, shaped up, or cut down. For example, hedges are meant to accent your home, not hide it. Now is a good time to cut back overgrown hedges. Cut them back by a third if necessary. They'll be shorter and looking kinda ugly but will grow back quickly. Give them a good plant food right after pruning them and bright new leaves will emerge within a few weeks.

My loose definition of a weed is any plant in my yard that I don't want in my yard. That goes for trees, shrubs, flowers, and ground covers. Remodeling a landscape refreshes the outside appearance of a house, and it's surprising how much better the gardener feels, too. For example, just recently I got a new hose reel at Prescott's True Value. I wanted it mounted at our front hose faucet, but a hedge was growing too close to the faucet. Well, let me tell you, my wife was alarmed when she saw one of her beautiful euonymus hedge plants flying across the front walkway as my truck and chain yanked it out of the ground! Yeehaw! Nothing brings me more pleasure than pruning with a chain saw or remodeling with one end of a strong chain tied around the base of a plant and and the other end tied to the bumper of my truck.

Plants that were small and cute when planted five years ago but now hide the house should be thinned or removed altogether. I like to plant a fast-growing shade tree such as a willow or a cottonwood close to the house for quick shade. At the same time I'll plant a classy, but slow-growing, maple, ash, or locust farther out in the yard where a large tree really ought to grow. While enjoying the shade from the fast-growing tree, the slower grower is maturing. Once the the slower growing tree is large enough to perform shade duty, I cut down the tree that purposely was planted close to the house for temporary shade.

When remodeling a landscape keep in mind that some plants can be used to highlight the yard, then changed, much like a florist's artistic creation. An excellent plant that fills this bill is the 2-3-foot high salvia greggii. It loves our summer heat and thrives with minimal water. Now through fall bright red tubular flowers continually adorn this plant and their sweet nectar attracts hummingbirds and butterflies. This salvia will happily take to the hottest spots in the yard and does well in containers, raised beds, and borders. Except for the hummers, it is not attractive to wildlife.

It's no surprise that the listening audience is growing for Gerald Rogers' radio program, "The Mountain Garden". This outstanding show airs each Sunday at 9:30 AM on KJZA at 89.5FM and 90.1 FM. If you'd like to offer suggestions for on-air topics, you may leave a message for Gerald at the station, 441- 1008 or via email at geraldrogers@cableone.net.

Until next week, I’ll see you in the garden center.

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