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Earthworks Landscape Design

Tag: spring

Earthworks Landscape DesignGreen Talkspring
18 Mar 2023
0 Comments By Jim Wynes Gardening , ,

Pansies in the Spring

Pansies represent just one of the over 500 different violet species in the Viola genus. Some of the most beautiful of our native plants are violets. Blue violet is the state flower of Illinois. Violets can be found blooming March through May in every county in Illinois. Violets are also important larval hosts for fascinating Fritillary butterflies. Garden pansies and violas come in just about every color and color combination. They may be a single clear color such as blue or yellow. The single color might also have lines radiating from the center. Or the flowers can be multicolored with a “face-like” dark blotch.

Even though they are all in the Viola genus, gardeners generally lump violets into two groups.The first group includes true violets such as Tufted violet, Viola cornuta and Sweet violet, Viola odorata which are perennial. Sweet violet is the common purple violet in our yards and gardens. The second group of pansies and violas gets the most press.

29 Apr 2022
0 Comments By Jim Wynes Gardening , ,

Managing Grass Weeds in Lawns

Grass weeds in lawns are classified as either annual or perennial. Management options differ between the two classes, with annuals generally easier to control.

Tall fescue can be a signficant weed problem in Kentucky bluegrass lawns.

Crabgrass and other annual grass weeds are common problems in home lawns that can be treated through both chemical and nonchemical methods. Proper lawn care practices to encourage a dense stand of vigorous grass is the best way to prevent weeds from invading. For example, mowing height can have a big impact; lawns mowed higher (over two inches) tend to have less problems with annual grasses such as crabgrass. Close-mowed lawns tend to open up, allowing weeds like crabgrass to invade. Light, frequent watering also favors crabgrass. Crabgrass often invades areas seeded in late spring because of bare soil, frequent watering, and the onset of hot weather, which is ideal for its growth.

Herbicides (weed killers) are also available to manage annual weeds. Preemergence herbicides prevent annual grass weeds such as crabgrass from emerging. Timing of application is important, as the weed killer should be applied to soil before the crabgrass emerges from the soil. Crabgrass will germinate when soil temperatures are greater than 55 to 60 degrees F. for 7-10 consecutive days, and continues until soils reach 95 degrees F. Other annual grasses germinate as the soils get warmer than 60 degrees.

22 Mar 2022
0 Comments By Jim Wynes Gardening , ,

Grow Asparagus

Asparagus is a hardy perennial. It is the only common vegetable that grows wild along roadsides and railroad tracks over a large part of the country. Although establishing a good asparagus bed requires considerable work, your efforts will be rewarded. A well-planned bed can last from 20 to 30 years. For this reason, asparagus should be planted at the side or end of the garden, where it will not be disturbed by normal garden cultivation. Asparagus is one of the first vegetables ready to harvest in the spring. Asparagus is native to the Mediterranean and was eaten by the ancient Greeks.

When to Plant: Asparagus should be planted as soon as the ground can be worked in the spring. One-year-old crowns or plants are preferred. Seeds are sown in a production bed and allowed to grow for a year. The young plants have compact buds in the center (crown), with numerous dangling, pencil-sized roots. Adventurous gardeners can start their own plants from seed. Although this adds a year to the process of establishing the bed, it does ensure fresh plants and the widest possible variety selection.

Harvesting: Asparagus can be harvested the third year after planting crowns, but for no more than one month the first season. The plant is still expanding its root storage system and excessive removal of spears weakens the plants. During the fourth year and thereafter, the spears may be harvested from their first appearance in the spring through May or June (as long as 8 to 10 weeks).