While it might seem too early to get started on spring planting, there’s one garden plant that needs to get started during winter for spring planting; tuberous begonias and the tubers just arrived at the garden center. As the name implies these begonias grow from tubers rather than seeds or cuttings like other begonias. They sport showy flowers that come in a wide range of sizes and colors. There are even hanging varieties. Besides being a great choice for planting in flowerbeds, tuberous begonias are happy to grow in containers that you can place about the shady patio or balcony.

Since tuberous begonias are slow to start, it’s best to start them indoors and the earlier the better. It’s also a great winter activity for the northeastern gardener who’s yearning for the feel of soil and the sight of something…anything that’s growing.

To make a good show in the garden, you’ll want to start several begonias. Choose pots that are an inch or so larger than the begonia tuber. Fill the pots with a good potting soil. When you’re picking out your tubers at the garden center, you’ll notice that the lumpy round tubers are domed on one side and slightly dished on the other. Starting them is a snap. Simply nestle each tuber into the soil, dished side up, into your pot or tray just barely below the surface of the soil. You should cover the top of the tuber but not with more than a half of an inch of soil. 

Water with room temperature water. Make sure the container you’re using has a drainage hole. Begonias will rot easily if kept too moist. After the initial watering, keep the soil just lightly moist. Don’t water again until the soil is actually dry an inch below the surface. Poke your finger in to check. Depending on the variety you’ve chosen, sprouts will appear from one to five weeks after planting and watering. Once the first shoots appear, make sure that you keep the soil from drying out; still avoiding sogginess since begonia tubers can rot easily if kept too moist. Frequent light watering is best. 

They’ll need lots of bright light but no direct sunlight. Once they start growing, you can speed them along with HALF strength balanced (20-20-20) liquid or soluble plant food every three weeks.

Once ALL danger of frost has passed in spring (mid-May) you can transplant them into their summer bed or outdoor planter. Remember, they prefer shade so make sure they don’t get direct sunlight. A couple of hours of morning sun won’t hurt them but avoid full afternoon sun completely. Now all they need is a little of the liquid plant food every couple of weeks and regular removal of spent flowers and they’ll just go and go.

Since begonia tubers are quite tender, you’ll want to lift them from the soil to store them over winter Do this immediately after the first frost nips them in fall. Snip off all the stems and place the tubers on a sheet of newspaper to dry. Brush off any loose soil and dust them with a good bulb dust to help prevent mold. Once they’ve had a couple of days to dry off, place them into a shoebox of dry potting soil for winter storage. Store them in a cool place that won’t freeze. Get them out next winter about this time and start all over again. Give tuberous begonias a try. They’re easy to start and you’ll have fun playing in the dirt as we wait for the frozen world outside to thaw.

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Among the new seed packs that arrive at the garden center you’ll be able to find some cat grass. Often this is a blend of grasses that cats enjoy. Oats, wheat, rye and barley make up the blend. 

It’s well known that cats eat grass. Most often the eating of grass is followed by the cat throwing up. A great many cat lovers have concluded that it is the grass that is making the cat sick. This isn’t an illogical conclusion, but it is nonetheless incorrect. Cats, in their native environment, will kill and eat small rodents like mice. They can’t digest mice hair and bones so they need to vomit to get rid of it. Cats also clean themselves with their tongues and end up swallowing a good bit of their own hair. This hair is also expelled through vomiting. What does all this have to do with them eating grass?  By eating grass, cats are helping to induce their own vomiting to get rid of whatever is in their stomach that is causing their distress.   In other words, if you see your cat eating grass, don’t stop it. The theory is that the grass induces vomiting since the cats can’t digest it, and it also makes the hair easier to expel. While cleaning up a bundle of grass and fur that your cat puked up isn’t pleasant, it is better than allowing those fur balls to create an intestinal blockage that requires a trip to the vet and, possibly, an expensive operation. 

My cats don’t vomit after they nibble on the fresh shoots.  Clearly they enjoy it and I suspect there are more benefits for them.  They wouldn’t crave it if it wasn’t something they need once in a while in winter.

Starting cat grass is the simplest thing ever. Put some potting soil in a pot, scatter in a bunch of seeds, cover with a half inch of more soil and soak it well.

To hasten sprouting, I like to put the pots in a plastic bag (unsealed) until it sprouts.  In a warm room, the seed will sprout in about 3 days…fast! I remove them from the bag once they sprout and find a sunny windowsill to help them grow a bit before I let the cats have it.  This is the challenging part since the cats love it and can usually find it before it is tall enough to make much of a meal. Bug managed to find the pot growing on an upper windowsill and decided that it was just the right size for a snack. Then he dove right in!  Peep was more ladylike when given her share.

The packet contains plenty of seeds so I’ll start a couple of pots a week for several weeks. This insures a continuous supply for the rest of winter. The grass will re-grow two or three times after the cats nibble it down so don’t toss it after their first “munch in”.  If you have indoor cats, you should consider growing grass for them year round. 

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Lack of snow during the depths of winter can cause big problems for our hardy perennials. As the soil freezes, ice forms. Water expands as it becomes ice, and this forces the soil apart. Frost heaves are an amazing force of nature. Frost heaves are capable of shattering asphalt roads and buckling concrete as they grow. Repeated thawing and freezing and heaving can push bulbs and shallow rooted perennials out of the soil. This is pretty rough on the plants as you can imagine… tiny roots have no chance against the unstoppable force of ice. 

What we really need right now is a nice blanket of snow to stop this destructive cycle. The term “blanket of snow” is very appropriate. Once the soil is covered with a few inches of snow, the soil stops heaving plants out of the ground, and they can stay safely frozen in place. 

We are about to enter the coldest six weeks of winter. Unless we get some significant snow soon this is going to be a very rough winter for our perennial gardens and shrubs. The only way to help is to cover the soil with something to shade the ground from thawing sun and protect the crowns of our plants from drying arctic winds. Straw would work, but it blows around and is a mess to clean up in spring. Burlap could work as well, but that would be an ugly and expensive solution… there must be something better. Let me think… there must be something… evergreen boughs would be perfect!!! 

Christmas trees to the rescue! With the holidays past, there’s no shortage of evergreen material to scavenge to cover our perennial beds. Abandoned Christmas trees can be gathered from friends and neighbors and provide the perfect mulching material. This seems a more fitting end for an evergreen tree rather than getting kicked to the curb as our attention wanders into the new year.

The first step is to strip the boughs from the tree with your loppers. You can get quite a few boughs from a single tree. Layer them like roof shingles over your beds with the twig end facing into the wind.

Start with the perennials that are the most exposed. Don’t cover the beds too deeply with evergreen boughs; just enough to shade the soil and provide protection from drying winter winds. We’re not covering our beds to keep them from freezing. On the contrary, they need covering to keep the soil frozen over winter and especially during any “false spring” weather in February or March. Our hardy perennials are capable of withstanding freezing. What CAN damage them is repeated thawing and re-freezing. 

The layer of evergreen boughs shades the soil so the beds won’t thaw too early in spring. If this winter provides enough snow to keep the ground covered, my layer of mulch won’t be needed since the snow will protect my beds. But I’ve learned not to trust the weather, and if the winter continues to be lacking in decent snow cover, I’ll be glad I’ve got them covered so I can enjoy the primula and other perennials when the growing season returns. 

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You just might be giving or receiving an Amaryllis bulb as a gift during the holidays. If so, lucky you!

This is the time of year to start Amaryllis bulbs for flowers to enjoy when winter days are at their shortest and living flowers outside are still months away. Nothing brightens up a winter home like giant Amaryllis flowers.

Amaryllis flowers range in color from pure white to wine red and every variation in between. Banded, striped and bordered have been developed, transforming an already striking plant into an extraordinary specimen indeed! It isn’t uncommon for the flower spike to rise 2 1/2’ above the top of the bulb and produce flowers 7” across…a real show stopper!!

If you’re thinking of purchasing one for someone (or for yourself), be aware that Amaryllis bulbs offered can vary greatly in size….and size does make a difference! The bigger the bulb, the more flowers you get.

When you’re ready to plant your Amaryllis bulb, inspect the bottom and remove any dead roots. Dead roots will be withered and dry. The pot you choose should seem too small for the bulb. It should only be an inch or two wider than the widest part of the bulb. Plant so that 1/2 to 1/3 of the bulb is exposed above the soil and water thoroughly.

Place your potted Amaryllis in a warm spot (on top of the refrigerator works for me). Don’t water it again until you notice the flower stem starting to emerge from the top of the bulb. This will take some time, so be patient. When a shoot emerges it’s time to move your Amaryllis to a bright location. Keep the soil lightly moist (not soggy wet). The flower spike will grow very quickly with noticeable growth each day.

When the huge flowers open, you may want to move your Amaryllis to a cooler location (as low as 50 degrees) to prolong the show of flowers.

After the flowers are spent, cut off the flower stem. By now leaves have probably started to emerge from the bulb. To get your Amaryllis to flower again, it’s important to promote this leaf growth. Think of the leaves as solar collectors that convert sunlight into energy that’s stored in the bulb for the next flowering cycle. Bright light (but not direct sun) is the source of next year’s flowers. Keep the soil lightly moist and feed with a soluble plant food at half strength about every two or three weeks. The best way to strengthen your Amaryllis is to sink the pot in a semi-shady flowerbed outside when things warm up in mid-May. Sink the pot into the soil so that the exposed part of the bulb is almost covered. In fall before frost, bring your Amaryllis inside and allow it to dry out completely. Keep dry and store at 60 to 65 degrees for at least a month. This dry storage period is necessary to stimulate your Amaryllis to begin its next growth cycle. Remember, Amaryllis like to be potbound, so leave it in the same size pot for two or three years.

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Winter is just around the corner and it’s time to get our bird feeding stations ready. 

Nothing livens up a cold winter day like wild birds flitting and darting to and from your bird feeder. If you’re going to give bird feeding a try, the first thing you’ll need is a bird feeder. 

It’s a fact of life that feeding the wild birds attracts squirrels. You’ll want a feeder that can discourage squirrels. Some feeders use the weight of the squirrel on the perch to move gates that cover the feeding ports. Small wild birds aren’t heavy enough to activate the mechanism but squirrels are. 

The bird feeder I use is called the Yankee Dipper. Why do I like this feeder so much? The more your feeder holds, the less often you’ll need to fill it. This is something you’ll appreciate during the coldest days of winter. The Yankee Dipper holds 5 lbs. of seed. Equally important, it is easy to disassemble so it is easy to clean.

It is also cleverly designed to stop squirrels. The Yankee Dipper is long enough so squirrels can’t reach the feeding ports when hanging by their rear legs from the top of the feeder. The perches at the feeding ports are spring loaded. They are strong enough to support perching birds but dip down under the weight of a squirrel. The only damage the squirrels have done to my Yankee Dipper is to the metal lid. Not bad for 15 years on the job. 

To get the most enjoyment out of wild bird feeding make sure you invest in a good bird feeder. It is better to buy a good one that the squirrels can’t destroy than to keep replacing cheaper ones…in the long run a good feeder is less expensive and you also get the satisfaction of watching squirrels slide off the feeder without getting a snack.

If you already own a bird feeder, now is the time to get it all cleaned up for the season. We need to keep the feeders clean to keep the birds healthy. The feeder attracts all the birds to only a few feeding ports so it is important to keep those ports clean. They are all eating from the same plate so to speak so is best to keep that plate clean. Wash your feeder in very hot soapy water. After it is clean, soak all the feeder’s parts in a mix of 1 parts chlorine bleach to 10 part water. This will kill any germs. Let it dry thoroughly and reassemble. Now you’re all set to fill it up.

To endure such unrelenting cold, winter birds need to stay active. Calories and protein fuel this activity. Black Oil Sunflower is higher in calories per pound than Grey Striped Sunflower. Black oil sunflower is grown almost exclusively for wild bird feeding. I’ve found that the smaller black oil sunflower kernels are more easily handled by chickadees and other small birds.

The second most important food for wild bird to be fine cracked corn. Cracked corn appeals to ground feeding birds like cardinals, doves and juncos. When you shop for cracked corn, be sure you get FINE cracked corn. Bird seed is most often purchased in a blend. There are dozens of blends on the market. Be aware that many blends contain “filler” seeds that no birds eat. The most common “filler” seeds are red millet and milo. Their red color increases their “eye appeal” to the humans that buy it. It’s more important that the blend appeals to the birds than to you. A 50-50 blend of a premium seed blend and Black Sunflower (left) makes a perfect wild bird blend.

Make sure you place your feeding station where you can see it. It is also nice to have a tree or shrubbery nearby. After the birds visit the feeder, they’ll flick to the nearest branch to peck away at their treat. This keeps them in close viewing range so you can enjoy watching your fine feathered friends at close range all winter long.

Another addition to your bird feeding station is a suet feeder. Suet attracts all the woodpeckers and nuthatches. There’s nothing more thrilling than having the large, red-headed Pileated Woodpecker visit regularly! 

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There’s no place on earth that provides a better show of autumnal awesomeness than the northeastern United States.  We have the good fortune to be right in the middle of an area well known for fine foliar flourishes.  Leaf peepers from across the country come here while all we need to do is wait for the color to arrive in our own neighborhood.

So why the grand show at the end of the growing season?  Where do all these colors come from? For the most part, they were already in the leaves but we couldn’t see them.  While the leaves are growing, the elements that show themselves in fall are masked by the green chlorophyll that converts sunlight into food and energy for the tree.  When the days get short enough, the tree stops creating chlorophyll and as the green fades, the underlying color of the leaf finally gets a chance to strut its stuff.

Carotenoids are responsible for the yellow and orange foliage we see.  As the name suggests, carotenoids are also what makes carrots orange.  Carotenoids color maples, ash, hickory, birch, shadblow and many other trees that display yellow in fall.

Anthocyanins  can claim credit for most of the red and purple.  In fall, anthocyanins tint oaks, some maples, dogwood and others.  Trees will often have both carotenoids and anthocyanins present in their leaves and will display stunning combinations of color.

It would seem that there could be nothing easier than taking a great fall foliage photograph.  I’ve spent years in the area, and I have to tell you that it isn’t as easy as it seems.  It is a spellbinding experience, but it’s difficult to capture the essence of it in a photograph.  I’ve travelled miles seeking the perfect vista with little to show for my effort.  Over the years I’ve discovered, that when photographing fall foliage, the delight is in the details.  Moving in closer allows us to capture more intimate autumn moments in a way that we actually experience when we walk through it.  

On a walk through an autumn forest, our eye is often drawn to the beauty of individual leaves.  When the sun shines through the leaves, they glow in the backlighting.  I became fascinated trying to capture that glow in extreme close-up images or macro images.  Naturally this was very difficult since the leaves are in constant motion.  

I started collecting the best of the brightly tinted leaves to bring them inside to photograph them.  I have a small light table I’ve used in the past for looking at old negatives and slides.  I discovered that I could get great results by placing a leaf on the light table under a small pane of glass to photograph.  You could also use a tablet computer with a blank white screen.  This eliminated any motion and allowed me to move in very close with the camera in its “macro” setting.  Suddenly a whole new way of seeing fall foliage opened up.  These days, most of us have a camera on our phone capable of taking close up images.  Even entry level digital cameras have a “macro” setting that will capture images that once required expensive equipment to get the same results.  These days, all you need is a light source and a little imagination. Have fun and enjoy this season’s display but don’t forget to bring your camera along! 

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