Free Gardening Advice!

Here is my first official Q & A session! I know only my mom and sisters read this blog (hi guys!) but in the case that anyone else does, I would love to try to answer your questions about green things.

My friend, Tina in Pennsylvania, asked:

"So we have an apple tree but it, along with the whole yard, has been neglected for years. It did grow apples this year, but they were very small and the cores seemed rotted almost immediately. They almost sounded hollow when I tapped on the cores. So, my question is, can it be fixed, and do I need to call an expert? I'm thinking it's overcrowded. Can that happen? And if I trim it myself, can I ruin it? Could it have some sort of bug or infection? Does that kind of thing happen? And finally, if I call someone, should I do it now or in the spring? I'd love to have apples and make apple sauce next year."

My answer:

From what I have seen, it’s pretty hard to grow apples organically. Most people who have apples trees spray for insects and diseases, because, yes, they do commonly happen! I would say spraying usually happens in the spring. Your best bet would be to contact a professional for the spraying, but you can learn to do the pruning yourself! It's not hard!

Also, most people don’t know about an awesome FREE information source—your local university Cooperative Extension service and Master Gardeners. They are trained volunteers who are familiar with the horticultural region and growing conditions. They have tons of information and resources at their fingertips and they are there just to help you! They may even have a list of professional arborists to get you started.

Here are some links I found just from perusing the Penn State Cooperative Extension website:

Contact a Master Gardener directly (click on your county to get numbers)

Complete guide to growing apples! (click on pome fruits)

Tree Fruit Resources

You may wonder, why such a plug for cooperative extension? Well, I'll toot my own horn for a moment... (although again, mom and sisters already know this! Hi guys! :)

I'm a Master Gardener! Or was, when we lived in Nevada. To be certified in Utah I would have to take a few more classes and start over with my volunteer hours.


In the fall of '07 I began a course through the University of Reno Extension Service to become a Master Gardener. It sounds like a flashy title, but really it's just a name for a person who volunteers to teach and 'extend' education to the community. I took a 70-hour classroom course (mostly a super quick review of my hort education) and then had a year to complete 50 hours of volunteer service to become certified. After graduating from the coursework in December, my volunteer hours were put on hold to prepare for and welcome little Maddie! But starting in April I began participating a couple of times a month on various projects. Most of my time was spent on the Master Gardener help line (call in to get your gardening questions answered today!) and also as a leader for the Junior Master Gardener program that met 2x a month. The kids enjoyed growing pumpkins, planting herbs, and learning about compost. It was a rewarding way to serve the community and stay connected to the green industry.

For those of you living here in Utah, here are the contact numbers for the Utah State Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners. More info on their website here.

Here is another great cooperative extension website:

"Gardening and landscaping is extremely popular in urban areas and, in many ways, the public's main connection with agriculture and the natural world around them. Extension offers an extensive catalog of publications on every aspect of landscaping and gardening. We have demonstration gardens in several areas around the state where you can see plants and landscaping techniques before you try them at your home. Underlying all of our gardening programs is conserving water - Utah's most precious resource."

Happy gardening!

Bearded Iris

My mom came to visit this weekend and brought a little gift from her yard. She has the most beautiful bearded iris... I remember loving them when I was little because they have little fuzzy beards that looked like colorful caterpillars. And when you examine the petals up close they have a opalescent sheen that sparkles in the sunlight.

Who would think that iris grow from this funny looking thing? It's called a rhizome, and for this little lesson I broke out my plant propagation book from school- 880 pages of mind numbing instructions on how to grow plants! So here is a basic description of what we're working with:

"A rhizome is a specialized stem structure in which the main axis of the plant grow horizontally, or just below the ground surface. The lateral stem is composed of nodes and internodes. Adventitious roots and lateral growing points develop in the vicinity of the node. Upright-growing, above-ground shoots and flowering stems (culms) are produced terminally. The rhizome is thick, fleshy, and shortened in relation to length. It appears as a many-branched clump made up of short, individual section. It is determinate; that is, each clump terminates in a flowering stalk, growth continuing only from lateral branches. Rhizomes grow by elongation of the growing points produced at the end of terminal and lateral branches. Length also increases by growth in the intercalary meristems in the lower part of the internodes."

Get all that? Told you it was mind-numbing! Basically, rhizomes are underground stems, and the off-shoots can be broken apart and re-planted. This is known as division. Let's move on to the practical part of our tutorial.

Step 1. Chose the location. Iris prefer a sunny, well-drained position in the landscape. They need at least a half day of sunlight.

Step 2. Prepare the soil. Soil should be cultivated 12 to 18 inches deep and amended with organic matter. The bed I chose was covered with that nasty weed barrier stuff, so I had to rip it all out and start from scratch. I turned the soil and added the last of my potting soil/organic matter and turned it in the best I could. Every little bit helps!


Step 3. Lay out plant material. The rhizomes should be spaced 12 to 18 inches apart.


Step 4. Plant! Dig a hole about 6 inches deep and wide enough to fit the roots of the rhizome. Build a small mound of soil in the middle, set the rhizome on top and spread the roots down around it. This assures that the roots are deep enough, while keeping the rhizome itself in reach of the sun's rays. They should not be planted too deep! The growing point (where the green begins) should be at surface level when planted. Firm the soil around the roots and water in.


Step 5. Long for beautiful blooms next June!

(Photo courtesy of plantanswers.com)

That's all for today's gardening adventure. It might be the last for this year... but I will try to keep things interesting with indoor projects! Oh, and I thought you might like to see my side-kicks! (pj's and all)

A Pact

I finally cleaned out my beds today. The breeze was fresh, the sun was warm, and the soil was dark.

As I worked, we (the soil and I) made a pact that next year was going to be a lot of fun.