• Blog
    • General Gardening
  • Events
    • 2022 WNC Gardening Symposium
      • Vegetables & Fruits
      • Gardening for Children
      • Gardening Videos
      • Trees
      • Landscape Design
      • Insect Pests
      • Weeds
  • Gardening Videos
  • Resources
    • Gardening Guide
    • Online Resources
    • Speakers Bureau
  • Garden Helpline
    • Collecting Samples of Plants and Insects
  • The Learning Garden
  • About Us
    • About Us
      • How to Become an Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer
    • The Association
    • Contact Us
    • Speakers Bureau
    • Sponsors
      • Sponsors: 2019 Garden Tour
      • Sponsors: 2019 WNC Gardening Symposium
    • Donate
  • WNC Gardening Symposium
Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteers of Buncombe County

General Gardening

Nostalgia Blooms Brightly in My Imperfect Garden

April 10, 2022

“These store-bought flowers are okay. But they are never as beautiful as the ones you give me from your garden,” my next-door neighbor said a few weeks ago, as she arranged a mixed bouquet from the grocery store. It was her get-well gift to me following foot surgery.

I had never thought of my flowers as noteworthy. They are what they are because I am a nonchalant gardener. Between competing interests, age, and arthritis, I don’t have time to pamper them. So, I stick with hardy, reliable, old-fashioned perennials. Among them are two – gladiolus and dahlias — that conjure up fond memories of summers spent at Old Lodge Farm, my Canadian grandparents’ home outside Aylmer East, Quebec. My grandparents grew neither, but George and Alma Fuller did.

Gladiolus_Carl Lewis_CC BY 2.0_Flickr
Gladiolus

My family would often stop by the Fullers’ farm for a visit and a cold drink of water from their pump before continuing our trek down to the Ottawa River’s rocky shore. Behind the cat-populated barn, Mr. Fuller grew vegetables and rows of gladiolus. Every week he loaded his produce and flower stalks onto his Model A truck and drove to Ottawa’s Baywater market. For her part, Mrs. Fuller tended a bed of dahlias in front of the house. The dark brown, weathered wood provided the right backdrop to showcase their brilliance. Because of the Fullers, I fell in love with glads, as George called them, and dahlias.

Despite being a flower that is slightly out of favor, glads have had a place in my garden for years. They’re easy to grow and never disappoint. Loosely arranged in a tall vase, they make a statement. Dahlias, on the other hand, were forgotten until my father planted them in the late 1990s. He and my mother had moved here from Ithaca, New York, following his retirement from Cornell. In the years that followed, he delighted in Asheville’s longer growing season, planted rhododendrons that never would have survived Ithaca’s winters, had a love affair with hostas, and in his late eighties, discovered dahlias. At the time, I was a wife and mother with a career. While I appreciated his octogenarian enthusiasm, I didn’t have the time or the energy to participate in it. Now, I do.

Dalhias
Dahlias

Here’s the thing about dahlias. When the black-eyed Susans look tired, and the crocosmia have gone to seed, and the Shasta daisy petals are tattered, and the gladiolus have bloomed themselves out, dahlias are coming into their own raucous glory. They thrive in cooler temperatures, one reason why Mrs. Fuller’s were so magnificent. But these fat tubers should come with a warning. Beware: they will take over your life.

The temptation to buy starts with spring catalogs showcasing the latest sumptuous color palates. Against my better judgment, I wonder whether I can fit in just a few more. The answer is no. I have more than I can say grace over. This became painfully clear in 2021 when illness and injury prevented me from properly staking them. I lamented my inability to care. A neighbor’s plot was a constant reminder of my neglect. While its well-supported dahlias stood tall and straight, mine sprawled against the fence. Others, out of desperation maybe, supported one another. I came to the sad conclusion that this was the year I would have no fall dahlias to share. How wrong I was. My dahlias produced an abundance of lush, colorful blossoms until the first frost.

So why does my neighbor extol the virtues of my ordinary, old-fashioned flowers? Could it be that perfection is over-rated? To be clear, I have never aspired to produce award-winning flowers. Could it be that after living with the fear and isolation imposed on us by the Covid-19 pandemic, an unexpected homegrown bouquet is a reminder that not everything has changed?

I won’t be gardening until May this year. By that time, I will be walking again. The dahlias will be sprouting, and it will be clear how many survived the winter. Some rearranging will be needed to make room for a raised bed. This will provide an opportunity to divide and share the tubers. Unlike other years, I won’t bemoan my late start. This year, I will take my time, thankful that a gifted surgeon made it possible for me to return to what I love doing. This year, I will fertilize and snip and stake, knowing that perfection isn’t what’s important. This year, I will garden knowing that my dahlias are resilient, and so am I.

Article written by Janet Moore, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

To learn more about gladiolus and dahlias, see:
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/gladiolus/ 
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/dahlia/common-name/dahlia/ 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Categories General Gardening Tags dahlias, gladiolus, soil-full musings

Compost Demo Site Opens April 9

March 30, 2022

Extension Master GardenerSM volunteers maintain a composting demonstration site at the Western NC Farmers Market, at the Jesse Israel & Sons Garden Center. After a two-year hiatus, due to Covid, the site is reinstituting public demonstrations, beginning April 9, 2022.

When to Visit?
The site is staffed and provides demonstrations from 10:00am to 1:00pm on the second Saturday each month, April through September.

What Will You See?
There are five different composting methods on display at the site. There is a single bin unit, a tumbling composter, a wood pallet bin and a classic 3-bin system — we also usually bring an example of vermiculture on each demo day.
  The site is stocked with informational pamphlets on the how-to and why of composting and they complement the information available in the composting video on this website. Click here to view the video: Making and Using Compost at Home.

An additional Composting demonstration area is located at The Learning Garden at the Extension Office, 49 Mount Carmel Road, Asheville, NC 28806.  Click here for details about The Learning Garden.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Categories Events, General Gardening Tags compost, compost demo, composting

Teaching Moments in the Garden

March 27, 2022

Fickle Days of Winter
A teaching moment in my garden was learning about Western North Carolina’s interesting and sometimes challenging transition to spring. My first gardening year in WNC provided several days of 75-to-80-degree weather in February. Since my new neighborhood was fully bursting into bloom and I was eager to get into the garden, I happily started my early spring gardening activities. Much to my chagrin, I soon learned about the multiple stages of winter in WNC, including Blackberry Winter. I now know that it’s best to wait until Mother’s Day to install tender plants here. My lesson:  Be wise. Be safe. Pause and do a little research before jumping into any new gardening activity.
By Catherine Pawlik, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer

Editor’s Note:  For more information about Blackberry Winter, see:
https://www.buncombemastergardener.org/?s=blackberry+winter
For an interactive map of average first and last frost dates in NC, see:
https://gardening.ces.ncsu.edu/average-first-and-last-frost-dates/

Red twig dogwood in winter

Supporting Nature’s Food Web
A teaching moment in my garden occurred when I witnessed some birds feeding on sawfly larvae which were feeding on my red twig dogwood. I had been hand-picking the pests for years, not realizing that they were natural food for the birds visiting my yard. I have since discovered that sawfly larvae are also food for lizards, frogs, ants, predatory wasps, and other beneficial insects. While other gardeners may not tolerate a defoliated red twig dogwood in late summer, I’ve decided to accept it.

There are many different species of sawflies—pine, dogwood, elm, rose, hibiscus, and others. Species are host-plant specific, meaning the dogwood sawfly isn’t going to migrate among host plants to attack pines. Although no one wants their prized thunderhead pine stripped of all its needles, a gardener may decide to ignore sawfly on an otherwise healthy red twig dogwood. Most plants will survive an onslaught of sawflies unless the infestation becomes very severe.

Dogwood sawfly larvae in next to last development stage_Whitney Cranshaw_CO State Univ
Dogwood sawfly larvae

Watching the birds devouring sawfly larvae taught me a lesson:  Pay close attention to how my garden supports a complex food web. Plants provide food and habitats for all kinds of animals—insects, spiders, butterflies, beetles, birds, squirrels—which in turn become part of nature’s food chain. Today, before I charge into the garden to do battle with pests, I take time to correctly define the problem and my action plan. What is the insect and is it harmful or beneficial? What is the plant’s susceptibility to damage? Is treatment needed? If so, what kind, when, and how? Gardeners call this Integrated Pest Management or IPM.

I’ve learned that removing one food source or habitat may disrupt the natural system, where even an insect pest contributes to the food chain. For now, I’ll continue to love my red twig dogwood both for bird food and its beautiful red stems in winter.
By Judy Lemanski, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer

Editor’s Note:  For more information on identifying and controlling sawflies, see:
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/search_results?q=sawflies&collection=
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/dogwood-sawfly
https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/sawflies/
For information about Integrated Pest Management, see:
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/extension-gardener-handbook/8-integrated-pest-management-ipm 

Preying Mantis_Ken Venron_CC BY 2.0_Flickr
Praying Mantis

Future Gardener Discovers a ‘Stick’
One morning I was sipping coffee on the patio and watching my three-year-old granddaughter pluck leaves off a nearby bush.  “Gramma, Gramma.  Come here quick,” she cried.  “Look at the stick.  Look at the stick.”  I couldn’t figure out what she was talking about.  Then I saw it!  A praying mantis, perched on a stem of the shrub and looking just like a stick!  Maddie watched with amazement as it rubbed a front leg across its face, cocked its head, and then slowly crawled away!  And I captured the teaching moment to tell my granddaughter (who hated bugs) all about the importance of good bugs in the garden.  It was “just a stick,” but it led my little future gardener on scavenger hunts, searching for more bugs and making up stories about their lives in the garden.
Beth Leonard, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Categories General Gardening Tags Dogwood Sawfly, IPM, soil-full musings

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • …
  • 39
  • Next Page »

NC Cooperative Extension; Empowering People, Providing Solutions

Blog posts written and published by Extension Master GardenerSM volunteers in Buncombe County.

Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to our blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 3,779 other subscribers

Recent Posts

  • Dyeing with Madder, August 25
  • Wednesdays in the Learning Garden, August 24
  • Register Now: 2022 WNC Gardening Symposium, October 12
  • Online Seminar: Cool Cover Crops August 18
  • Take Your Job Skills into the Garden

Categories

  • Events
    • Extension in Buncombe County
    • Extension Master Gardener Plant Clinic
    • Lectures & Seminars
    • School Garden Grants
  • Flowers
    • Bulbs
    • Perennials & Biennials
    • Roses
    • Wildflowers
  • Gardening for Children
  • Gardening Videos
  • General Gardening
    • Installation & Planting
    • Mulch
    • Native Plants
    • Propagation
    • Seasonal Chores
    • Soils & Fertilizers
  • Houseplants
  • Landscaping
    • Firewise Landscaping
    • Landscape Design
    • Site Conditions
    • Water Management
  • Lawns
  • Pest Management
    • Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
    • Invasive Plants
    • Pesticides
    • Weeds
  • Plant Diseases
  • Plant Insects
    • Beneficial Insects
    • Insect Pests
    • Invasive Insects
  • Shrubs
  • Special Gardens
    • Container Gardens
    • Herb Gardens
    • Pollinator Gardens
    • Rain Gardens
    • Shade Gardens
  • Trees
  • Vegetables & Fruits
  • Wildlife

Contact Us

Buncombe County Extension Office
49 Mount Carmel Road
Asheville, NC 28806
Helpline 828-255-5522

Events

Keep up with our events by subscribing to the blog or checking our Events Calendar.

Explore the Archives

Back to Top

Copyright © 2022 Extension Master Gardeners of Buncombe County. Privacy Policy.