Keeping an eye on things- water, garden pests. Plants on the Dark Side: Burdock.
Greetings fellow gardeners,
Sometimes it feels like we are gardening on a roller coaster. It has gone from being way too hot to being cooler than we want right now. Tiny tender seedlings are not happy, but the weather should level out soon. I took the opportunity to make lilac jelly and rhubarb ginger jam while it was cool and raining.
I have planted a few pots of peppers and they are doing well however every pot has a hole and is surrounded with spilled earth. The squirrels and chipmunks are digging deep. Now every pot has a layer of bird netting to prevent the digging. It seems to be working well although my front porch looks like it is covered in giant spiderwebs.
The tomatoes are starting to grow bigger and stronger each day. Now is the time to watch for cutworms. Cutworms wrap around the base of the tomato stem and topple your plant. To prevent this, wrap the base with a toilet paper or paper towel roll. If you have planted your tomatoes in pots, be sure that they are well watered. Tomatoes in pots dry quickly while those in the ground have a longer drying time. Be sure that your water is not connected to a water softener or to city water. Rainwater is wonderful for plants, otherwise let your treated water sit for at least 24 hours.
If you notice little holes in the leaves of your vegetables, you might be having an issue with flea beetles. Make sure the area around your plants is clean. You can put a mulch around the plants to discourage the beetles as well. Keep an eye out around the base of your plants for the larvae and be sure to clean up in the fall so the adults have nowhere to winter over. There is some belief that dill, onions, and marigolds will prevent the flea beetles. While there are no magic plants to prevent pests, growing these plants is good for your garden as they attract pollinators and are quite tasty. (Yes, marigolds are edible). You may find a fat striped caterpillar on your dill. I plant extra dill for these caterpillars as they turn into swallowtail butterflies.
You still have time to plant beans, carrots, chard, and another row of peas while your zucchini, cucumbers and squash should be well past the seed leaf stage. Remember “nothing ventured, nothing gained”. Have a glorious week in the garden.
Judith (email: lapisdragonarts@gmail.com)
Plants from the Dark Side
Burdock
I have been dealing with burdock (Arctium minus) for a very long time. Burdock is a biennial and it starts out looking like rhubarb and then shoots up to a tall plant covered in burrs. It has a strong tap root that anchors it firmly and makes it difficult to pull. I have discovered that there is a week in late March or early April when the burdock will slip out of the ground easily and I pull as much as I can at that time.
In British Columbia burdock is seen as a serious invasive weed.
Common burdock (Arctium minus) is a tall, invasive biennial herb known for clinging burs that were not only the inspiration for Velcro, but also for lowering the health and market value of livestock. The burs get tangled in manes and tails of horses, cows and other livestock, and can also damage or de-value the wool of sheep. The large leaves of common burdock can shade out smaller plants. There have even been occasional incidences where birds and bats have become entangled in the burrs and perished. Heavily burred cattle become stressed, and experience eye, nose and mouth injuries that reduce their market value. https://bcinvasives.ca/invasive-species/identify/invasive-plants/burdock
Burdock is edible and there are many recipes for it however if you have a dog or would like to work in your garden then it is best to pull it out.
Burdock burrs
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