As flowering bulbs like crocuses, tulips and daffodils emerge in your lawn and gardens, now is the time to check off an early spring garden task: Feed them!
By providing the bulbs with a bit of nourishment from fertilizer, you can boost their growth early on, and ensure they'll blossom into their full glory soon.
While the bulbs are just beginning to poke through the soil and still quite small, simply sprinkle some granular 5-5-5 organic fertilizer or bulb booster directly onto the soil where the bulbs are growing.
Seeking nourishment is a common thing in spring, and the deer and rabbits are hungry, too. Spring flowering bulbs 鈥� especially crocus, tulip and hyacinth bulbs 鈥� tend to be their favorite, so without protection, they'll eat them right up.
You can borrow this technique that Charlie noticed on a visit to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. In an effort to deter critters, take black plastic bird or deer netting and lay it all around your beds where the bulbs grow.
When deer or rabbits try to walk onto the beds, they have to walk across the plastic netting, and they don't like that feeling on their feet and hooves.
If that look of netting isn't your aesthetic, you can use a repellent spray to deter deer and other hungry wildlife. Try brands like PlantSkydd or Deer Off and reapply it frequently. If the bulbs are growing quickly, spray any new growth, right up until the bulbs flower.
Mow or no mow this May
Q: Regarding, 'No Mow May,' two or three years ago, there was a push for it. Last year, they said to skip it. Now this year, there seems to be another groundswell movement to bring it back. I'm confused! - Paul, in West Pawlet
A: This May, mow. And here's why: The "No Mow May" movement urges homeowners to hold off on cutting their grassy lawns for a month. Doing so allows wildflowers and weeds to come up and flower. That, in turn, provides acres of pollen-heavy food for pollinators. And that's a good thing.
The other side of that coin, though, is once June 1 arrives and you're firing up your mower to trim your shaggy lawn, cutting the grass also eliminates the weeds and wildflowers, thus the pollinators' reliable and plentiful food source.
More from 开云体育: Mow or no? Some lawncare tips to benefit pollinators
Instead, this year, perhaps you can dedicate a spot on your property 鈥� a side yard or corner of the lawn 鈥� and let it go. Let it grow and let whatever plants come up, like wildflowers and weeds, grow unchecked. And seed in some wildflowers that you love. Mow the rest of your grass as usual, and leave that area untouched for the pollinators all season long.
Do asparagus plants know cardinal directions?
Q: Does it matter the direction that you put your asparagus troughs in? - JD, in Gardner, MA
A: Location is key when planting asparagus, mostly because this perennial that is synonymous with springtime can last for decades! Therefore, you'll want to ensure you choose the right spot that gets full sun and has well-drained soil.
Though north/south might be preferable for digging the furrows and planting the crowns, whichever direction gets the most sun will be the best one.
More from 开云体育: Planting the long game: Growing asparagus
Will a longer lawn harbor ticks?
Q: I have a lawn that's about 2,000 square feet, and I'm thinking about replacing it with wild flowers or a cover crop to avoid mowing it and create a habitat for wildlife. But, I don't want to create habitat for ticks. Any advice? - Sandra, in Montpelier
A: Creating a "bee lawn" might work well for this situation. These are lawns with grass that is left to grow a bit higher than regular mowed lawns. You can add in different flowers that are low-growing, too, to attract bees and pollinators.
If the area isn't currently suitable for a grass-covered lawn, till it up, then later this spring, seed in fescue, and a mix of white clover, prunella 鈥� or heal-all 鈥� and creeping thyme.
That's the and the suggest. Once the grasses grow 4-6 inches or so high, mow it back to about 4 inches. You'll mow a lot less frequently, the mix will still flower and it'll be a great food supply for bees and other pollinators. Plus, it will still look like a lawn.
More from 开云体育: Plant green, flowering ground cover for a mowable, pollinator-friendly lawn
As far as keeping ticks at bay, some recent limited research from Massachusetts, , looked at lawns that were mowed lower versus ones mowed higher. The research did not find a significant difference in the number of black-legged or deer ticks present in either lawn. The article states ticks may prefer leaf litter to a grassy lawn, so letting the grass grow a bit higher won't result in more ticks and will serve the pollinators.
All Things Gardening is powered by you, our audience! Send us your toughest conundrums and join the fun. Email your question to [email protected] or better yet, leave a voicemail with your gardening question so we can use your voice on the air! Call 开云体育 at 1-800-639-2192.
Listen to All Things Gardening Friday evenings at 5:44 p.m., or Sunday mornings at 9:35 a.m., and .
