TOMATO BLIGHT INFORMATION

Posted in: on Friday, April 16, 2010 at at 2:52 PM 0 comments  

RAIN GARDEN WORKSHOP....

April 14- Learn about landscape ideas for handling storm water on your property. Proper use of rain barrel and planning a rain garden. The workshop will run from 6:00-8:00 pm at the Park Street Complex, Honesdale. Admission $5.00



Posted in: , , on Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at at 6:42 AM 0 comments  

Master Gardener Plant Sale

The annual Master Gardener plant sale will take place May 15, 2010 from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm in Honesdale on Main Street at the Pavillion.

Posted in: , , on Thursday, April 8, 2010 at at 7:28 PM 0 comments  

May...The Month for Planting!



May…the month for planting!
At this writing, it is nearly mid-April and the seeds that were started early this month are sprouting and well on their way to making gardens more beautiful or to providing tasty vegetables!  This is such an exciting time for gardeners…new life…blossoms on daffodils, hyacinths, forsythia, magnolia trees and the fruit trees and more to come in May!
May is the month when gardeners get really serious about planting, but remember not to plant what will not survive the cold nights and possible frost that can still come until late in the month to this area.
Shrubs and trees may still be planted, although March and April are better or September and October. Make sure to keep them well hydrated as the weather starts to warm.  When mulching your plantings, be careful not to mound the mulch around the trunks!  This mulching, called volcano mulching, can be death to trees!  If you have a landscaper doing your work, check the mulching and make sure the trunks of the trees can breathe by keeping mulch approximately 6” from the trunk.
Have a plan in place for planting your vegetable garden.  Do a planting arrangement based on crop rotation…don’t place the same related plants in the same area in consecutive years.  Plants have garden friends and enemies, for example, tomatoes like being next to peppers, carrots, asparagus, cucumbers, onions, and garlic, but keep them away from pole beans and potatoes.  Tomatoes also like Monarda (bee balm) as it adds to the flavor of the fruit.
Hardening off your seedlings:  (Hopefully you started them from seed in early April.)
If you were to transplant your seedlings directly into your garden from the indoors it is not likely they will survive…temperatures outside are considerably more harsh than thought.  Getting the seedlings used to the temperatures and conditions outside (hardening off) takes time but is pretty simple.  Start the process a couple of weeks before you plan to plant them in your garden.
Place your seedlings in a somewhat sheltered place outdoors where they can get a taste of what it’s like to be outside.  The first time out should be early morning or late evening and only for one to two hours.  Go slowly, if the plants wilt or flop over, take them back inside until the next day.

Each day increase the amount of time your seedlings are outdoors to get them used to sunshine, wind, rain, and other conditions until they are fully acclimated to day and night conditions and it is time to plant them in your garden, approximately 2 weeks.  During this time slightly reduce the amount of water and fertilizer given to get them used to living in your garden.
After transplanting your seedlings into your garden give your plants a good soaking and keep them well watered for the first few weeks.  Raised bed gardens require you to water more often depending on the amount of rain received naturally.  Avoid overhead watering…you want the water to go to the roots.  Soaker hoses and hand watering conserve water and will cause less stress to plants than relying strictly on rain.
Approximately 2 inches of mulch in your garden, added when you put in transplants or after seedlings are several inches high (if planted directly from seed into the garden), will help preserve  moisture later in the summer and preserve your back by cutting down on weeds.  Be careful not to smother small plants.
For gardening questions please call the Master Gardener Help Line at the Penn State Wayne County Extension Office at 570-253-5970 ext. 1614 or contact me personally.  I look forward to seeing you at the Master Gardener Plant Sale on May 15, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Honesdale, PA, at the Main Street Pavilion.
Happy gardening!
Cathy Long, Master Gardener

Posted in: , , on at at 7:16 PM 0 comments  

Spring 2010 Newsletter


Posted in: , on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at at 12:16 PM 0 comments  

Monthly Master Gardener Meeting


Our next Master Gardener meeting will be this Wednesday, April 7, at 5:30PM in the Extension office conference room at 648 Park Street in Honesdale. Attached is an agenda and minutes from the March meeting. Please contact Heidi (c2heaven2005@yahoo.com) or Dave Messersmith with additional items for the agenda.

Dave has set a deadline of May 1st for Master Gardener volunteers to enroll in the eData system. If you recall, eData is the new system you will be using to log volunteer hours and update training. Kim Mikulak will be available from 4:00-5:30 prior to the meeting to help you enroll or walk you through the system. Here is a link to the eData site with instructions for registering: http://extension.psu.edu/cnregion/edata/default.htm

If you do not have a computer or are having difficulty with the process, you may come in the office on Tuesday’s from 10:00 AM – Noon during the garden helpline hours and Dave or a Master Gardener will be able to help you.

Posted in: , on at at 11:47 AM 0 comments  

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