Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 26, 1995 TAG: 9511290030
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN ARBOGAST
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Master Gardeners will be available then to answer questions about rose care as they do the actual work. This public garden is located on the corner of Riverside Boulevard. and Cleveland Avenue Southwest, just off 13th Street.
Roanoke area rose growers know that roses go dormant much later in the fall than most other deciduous landscape plants. Thus, the work of putting the roses to bed for the winter must be delayed until late in fall when the plants are dormant and the soil has been chilled. Work involved will include moderate pruning to eliminate diseased or broken parts as well as reduce the height of extremely long rose canes. Make sure that the organic mulch over the cold soil is about 21/2-3 inches deep, and place a pile of wood mulch about 10 inches high over the lower rose canes to insulate the graft union and the lower rose buds against an extremely cold winter.
Q: I would like a ``surefire'' method of getting rid of slugs and snails. This past growing season, I had a beautiful patch of Hanover Kale, and these pests ruined it. Mrs. A. B., Buchanan
A: An essential job for slug and snail reduction, but certainly not a ``sure-fire'' total control is to search for and remove all materials that provide a damp, daytime hiding and breeding location for snails and slugs, such as piles of mulch or stacks of landscape timbers nearby. Other controls: Use one of the many nonchemical remedies for these pests, such as the shallow beer pan trap or inverted flower pot for these critters to collect under for you to get the next day; go out to the garden at night with a flashlight, pick off the feeding snails or slugs, and eliminate them appropriately; and/or use one of the commercially prepared slug/snail baits according to package directions on the soil around the target plants as well as adjacent garden areas, especially along the garden edges where these pests might be coming from.
Roanoke success story
The first of this year I wrote to tell you of some tomatoes that I had pulled last fall that were fresh and green. I wrote to you this June to say that I still had two of them. Now, it has been more than a year and I still have those tomatoes. I want to share this true story. It seems that nature has gone on a holiday with these tomatoes. I'm going to keep them as long as I can.
RESPONSE: Congratulations. You've surpassed the usually expected one to three weeks in which green tomatoes should ``keep'' well if stored in cool moist conditions.
Franklin County Master Gardener training
The Franklin County Extension Office is taking names of folks in that area who are interested in entering Master Gardener training classes to start in mid January. Call (540) 483-5161.
Plant a row for the hungry
Hey, gardeners. Here's something that we can do next spring to work toward ending hunger in America. The Garden Writers Association of America sponsors the national program called ``Plant a Row for the Hungry'' in which gardeners plant an extra row of vegetables in their garden and then donate the harvest to a local soup kitchen, homeless shelter, day care center, or other service in need of this assistance. To participate in this area, gardeners should write to Thompson & Morgan, P.O. Box 1308, Jackson, N.J. 08527-0308, to obtain a free pack of seed. Please enclose a stamped-self-addressed envelope for the mailing of the seed to you.
Gardener's checklist
Jobs for late November:
Practice fall and winter indoor plant care: turn pots, withhold fertilizer, reduce watering frequency in cool rooms, keep plants out of heat or drafts; check stored fruits and vegetables from the garden and remove ``bad'' ones.
Send short questions about your lawn, garden, plants, or insects to Dear John, c/o the Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491. We need your mail, but this column can't reply to all letters. Those of wide appeal will be answered during the weeks that the subject is timely. Personal replies cannot be given. Please don't send stamps, stamped envelopes, samples or pictures.
by CNB