Newsletter4

I thought I�d try a different format this week. I�m going to touch on
different gardening subjects all in the same newsletter. E-mail me and
tell me if this is more useful for not.

I decided last year to try container gardening for the first time
because I had just come out of the hospital from a very life-threatening
illness and I had just moved, so I had no ground prepared for a garden.
I�m a very hands-on type of gardener, and like to do all the work
myself, so I decided container gardening was going to be all I could do
at the time. I tried starting lobelia from seed, no luck. I tried
petunias, no luck. But I was ok with that one, because I personally
don�t like petunias. Then I tried nasturtiums. Holy crow! They made the
most beautiful hanging basket I have ever seen! I put an outer circle
and an inner circle of seeds and one in the middle for good measure in a
12 in. pot and it was so full of flowers and just wonderful. Try the
bright solid colors of orange, yellow and red for the best show. I even
used straight top soil, didn�t have to use potting soil. The seeds came
up so well I made 3 more hanging planters of it and had a constant
display until the second frost when I forgot to bring them in.

I also found out that I had a major snail/slug population. I have many
that are 3 inches long. I recently heard from a neighbor that her friend
in Colorado has ones 8-10 inches long. Well, I still can�t consider
myself lucky because of the sheer magnitude I have of them. They were
everywhere! Slimy little things. I�ve read up on them, and from all the
sources I�ve found, beer is the best. I didn�t try it, but this year I
will. Put out pie tins of fresh beer every couple of nights and in the
morning it is supposed to be full of dead critters. Has anyone tried
this? Does it actually work? Let me know! I also heard wax pepper spray
can be bought and sprayed on plants, which will also prevent other bugs
and animals from eating them. I do have deer herds out back, but luckily
they haven�t found my gardens yet. Too much foliage in the woods for
them to notice, I guess.

This is the time to plant fresh bulbs! I�m going to try a mass planting
of gladiolas in specific colors this years rather than the typical bag
of 50 mixed colors. Why not try solid white, solid deep purple and a
white with purple tips glad mixture this year? Why not try planting
glads late June this year, using yellow, orange and burgundy? That would
make a nice fall display. Who said you had to plant bulbs only in the
spring? I do enjoy my daffodils and crocus this time of year, but I am
definitely one to go against the norm and plant what I want when I want.
What better way to make your garden all your own, right? When all your
neighbors bulbs are dying off, plant yours and be the only one in your
area to have tulips in July.

My last bit of advise this week is this. Have fun! Be creative and
unique. Put plants together that no one else ever thought of. How about
white flowering hosta and low growing white nicotiana? Or maybe Asiatic
lilies and white baby�s breath? I put persian zinnias and marigolds
together a couple years ago and it was gorgeous. Send me your best
combinations and I�ll post them!

Hope everyone had an enjoyable and relaxing holiday. Hope to hear at
least a little something from everyone so I�ll have lots of fresh ideas
to put in my next newsletter. Happy growing!

DBS