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Meet the Red Lily Leaf Beetle

23 Jun

Alright ornamental plant lovers, this is one nasty BAD bug! At least it is bad when it comes to your lily flowers…

I saw this little guy hanging out on my kale and collard greens so I was immediately suspicious at first as to what he was doing there. It didn’t seem like he was eating anything however. He was more-so scoping the place out, looking for lilies probably.

The bright-red lily leaf beetle, Lilioceris lilii, is a pretty easy one to spot. They are native to Europe and turned up in eastern Mass. in 1992. They LOVE to eat the leaves of lilies and fritillaria. If they are not controlled, they can kill your plants.

(An important thing to note is they only eat true lilies, those of the Lilium genus, including Asiatic, Easter, & Oriental lilies. Don’t worry about your daylilies, you know, the one that you see growing EVERYWHERE. Those are in the genus Hemerocallis and are not true lilies.)

Lily leaf beetles lay reddish-orange eggs on the underside of lily and fritillaria leaves. It is the just hatched larva that causes the most devastation so be on the look out! Because these bugs are imports, they have no native predators here. The University of Rhode Island researchers have traveled to Europe and collected some larva of the parasitic wasps, a natural predator of the lily leaf beetles. They are currently introducing the wasp to the region in hopes that this will help curb the population of the red lily leaf beetle. So far, it seems to be working out.

In the meantime, stay on the look out for these red little bugs on your lily plants and PLEASE! do not mistake lady bugs for the red lily leaf beetle. Lady bugs are very beneficial to have around in your garden! take a good look at the pictures and make sure you know your bugs!  Pick the red lily leaf beetle adults, eggs, and larva off your lilies, making sure you get rid of them. You can drop them in a can of vegetable oil or water with a lid.

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Gardening Tip #3 – Prune Your Garlic

27 May

It is just about that time of year again!

Right around the end of May to the beginning of June, garlic plants send out a shoot from the top-center of their leaves.

If you want to grow large garlic bulbs, your best bet it to snap off these little shoots. Doing so basically tells the garlic plant to focus its growth on the roots rather than reproduction.

Below is a picture of one of the shoots beginning to emerge from the center:

I wait until the center shoot is long enough to start to curl a little bit and then I snap them off.

Why wait? Because they have a use. Collect all the shoots and make a stir-fry with them. They add a pleasant garlic flavor to whatever you are cooking. Here is what I consider a full-grown shoot that was ready to snap off:

Now, wait a couple more months for your garlic to focus its growth on the roots (aka the garlic cloves) and come the end on July (or when the bottom leaves start to brown a bit) it is time to harvest your beautiful garlic bulbs!

Remember to dry them out and save some for planting again (more about that to come in a future blog)

Happy Gardening ;)

How to Sprout Garbanzo Beans (aka Chick Peas) for Planting or for Cooking

23 May

I was intrigued when I read a recipe that required using sprouted garbanzo beans aka chick peas. I thought to myself, if they sprout that easy, can you grow them?

Chick peas require a long growing season to produce more chick peas so I am definitely off to a late start. They are also pretty sensitive to the temperatures. They like cool weather but not too cool and not too hot. Considering New England tends to be a little bit of both,  I will consider this a trial run for next year.

How to Sprout Yourself Some Chick Peas:

First, buy a bag of the dried chick peas or garbanzo beans (do not use the ones in a can!)

Place them in a shallow dish and add water about half way up the chick peas. In the beginning, they will absorb water fast so you will probably have to add more towards the end of the day. I also placed the dish in a sunny area.

With in the next day or two, you should see them just beginning to sprout. Note the little tails they are beginning to grow in the picture below:

Keep adding water. Within another day or so, the sprouts become more obvious. These things were cranking to grow!


With in several days to a week, They were already starting to sprout green leaves:

 

Once the chick peas had the green leaves and a long tail (as seen in the picture below) I planted them in a pot approx. 12″ x 12″ so that the little green leaves were above ground and the rest of the pea/bean was under the soil.

Can’t wait to see how they do!

P.S. If you want to ditch the whole planting part, look up some sprouted garbanzo bean/chick pea recipes and get cooking!

Happy Sprouting ;)

 

Garden Update – May 15

15 May

Just finished planting all the seedlings outside!

I put them out on the porch a week ago to help them get acclimated to the outdoors. A few of my tomato plants got a little sunburned on their leaves (they turned a very pale green). I will have to keep that in mind for next year when I start the seedlings. I had the under the grow lamp since they sprouted so they seemed to have a little trouble adjusting to real sunlight :/ But, they do have some new, greener leavs starting to emerge.

Here is the complete list of what is planted in the garden up to this point:

  • Tomato – Purple Cherokee, Anna Russian, and Italian Heirloom variety
  • Lettuce
  • Spinach
  • Broccoli Rabe
  • Kale
  • Collard Greens
  • Leeks
  • Cucumbers
  • Red Bell Peppers
  • Cubanelle Peppers
  • Yellow Squash
  • zucchini
  • Yellow Onions
  • Green Onions
  • Garlic
  • Asparagus
  • Rhubarb
  • Carrots
  • Bok Choy
  • Potatoes
  • Jerusalem Artichokes
  • Hubbard Squash
  • Artichokes

All that is left to plant are the beans and the beet seeds!

Can’t wait to see how everything does this year! :)

Fiddleheads – My Plant Sale Score

10 May

DISCLAIMER: Before you attempt to forge ANY kind of wild plant, be sure you know, without any doubt, what it is you are forging and that it is safe to consume. It is very easy to mistake a toxic plant for one that is thought to be edible. I am not an expert forger and I do not claim to be one. I am just sharing my experiences with forging wild food. I have check, re-checked and re-checked again to be sure that what I forge is safe to eat. I encourage anyone who reads this to do the same. DO NOT base your forging facts on the information I provide alone!… Ever see the movie Into the Woods?… exactly…

Ok, I know they don’t look like much but I am extremely excited about finding these native ostrich fiddlehead ferns at our local library plant sale last weekend. These ferns are hard to find! And they are edible!

The term “fiddlehead” refers to a young, tightly coiled fern frond because it looks like the scroll of a violin. The fern is ONLY EDIBLE at this stage! There are many other fiddlehead ferns that look very similar to this but they are not edible! They contain high levels of carcinogens and should not be eaten. Even the Ostrich fiddleheads, the most edible fiddlehead, contain some toxins but they are safe to eat as long as you cook them well and do not eat large quantities or gorge yourself on fiddleheads for days.

There are two specific things I look for when forging for fiddleheads:

1) They have a papery substance that is peeling off the stem

2) They have a groove in the inside area of the stem

FYI – When they are in season, I have also seen fiddleheads for sale at Whole Foods. You can take a good look at them there to be sure you know what they look like ;)

Here are a couple of other links with more information:

A great video showing how to identify Ostrich Fiddleheads http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2yEdUkx8UQ

http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/qa/fiddlehead-facts.aspx

http://www.wildwoodsurvival.com/survival/food/edibleplants/ostrichfern/index.html

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Garden Update – April 25

25 Apr

The rain this past weekend really helped things pick up in the garden!

The spinach, kale and collards are growing well…

The carrots and lettuce sprouted up…

And, for the first time, the tiny wild Blueberry plant that I salvaged in Maine (It was struggling to grow between two large boulders) is flowering!

We are looking forward to our first, very small handful of Maine-style blueberries … if the birds do not get to them first!

In the meantime, the jerusalem artichokes, potatoes and onions have been planted in the grow bags I purchased last year.

Watching Lemon Drop grow as he watches the plants grow.

Current forecast: More rain and Cooler (Mid 40′s – 50′s)

As the end of April approaches, it is finally starting to feel like April!

Until next time! ;)

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Frost Free Date

22 Apr

This year’s frost free date for planting outside is Tuesday May 15, 2012 for Southern Connecticut.

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Notes on the Organics vs. Synthetics by Rick Stecher at Gilberties in Westport, CT

22 Apr

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to listen to Rick Stecher, owner of Country Fare LLC and master gardener extraordinaire, talk about why an organic approach to gardening and yard maintenance is preferable to a conventional synthetic approach.

Organic gardening has its advantages over synthetic gardening because you will save money in the long run, have better looking yards and healthier plants and properties. Rick has taught these unique methods for some twenty-five years and offered a free lecture at Gilbertie’s Herb Garden in Westport, Connecticut.

If you live in the area or you don’t mind taking a quick drive to Westport, Gilbertie’s offers a variety of wonderful workshops and lectures throughout the year, almost all of them for free! Here is a link to their Calendar of Events.

They also have a great sale on plants and herbs at the end of June!

Here are my notes from the lecture:

  • Get a pH test done on the soil in your garden by collecting a soil sample and sending it out to be tested.
  • Ideal pH levels for soil is 6.5 – 6.7
  • Connecticut Soil is naturally acidic – Connecticut rain is acidic (acid rain) – A fun science experiment for kids: Collect rain water and test the pH levels of the rain water with the pH testers you can buy for aquariums in a pet store.
  • You want your soil to be slightly acidic – if it is too alkalin, the metals in the soil are not readily available to the plants, if it is too acidic it is bad for the microbes in the soil.
  • Early spring or autumn is the best time to apply lime to your soil or lawn.
  • Cut weeds below the soil line – In an organic garden, the microbes will attack the exposed root top and kill off the plant.
  • Mulch helps hold in moisture and keeps soil cool. Too much mulch can cause yellowing of ornamental plants because of nitrogen deficiency in soil. The decomposing mulch is taking is away from the plants. It also inhibits gas exchange in the soil. Re-mulch when you really cannot see the mulch anymore (it already decomposed).
  • Peat Moss is not good for organic gardening – it is acidic, holds on to water too much, Does not decompose well – Use compost instead.
  • Coast of Maine compost is good – Does NOT have to be applied every year.
  • Most common garden mistake – having too much organic compost, not enough soil. Your garden soil should consist of 10″% organic matter.
  • If you have too much organic matter in your soil, add some coarse sand.
  • Raised beds are great but do not separate the soil underneath, utilize it! 12″ – 16″ tall is ideal for raised beds.
  • The no-till method works IF you have good, established, balanced soil. If you do, do not turn over soil. It destroys the structure.
  • There is no organic “selective” herbicide. However, Lemon juice and vinegar are a great “non-selective” organic herbicide. Spray lemon juice and vinegar of weeds to help kill them off. Just be aware where you spray it because it can kill your good plants too if you spray them with it.
  • Fertilizer is NOT food, it is a mineral supplement. Plant food only comes from photosynthesis. Fertilizer can help provide the plant with the minerals needed to perform photosynthesis.
  • Blueberries and mountain laurel like very acidic soil.
  • Separate blueberry roots from rest of garden by digging a barrier in the ground around the blueberries. Add Garden Sulfur or Aluminum Sulfate to soil to increase acidity.
  • Seaweed is good for compost – Just be sure to rinse it off well to remove the salt water before you add it to the compost.
  • Another cool science experiment for kids – Get a clear jar and collect soil samples from your garden. Add water and Shake Shake Shake! Put the jar on a counter and let it sit still for several days. watch all the contents of the soil separates. sand will break out of suspension first, then the silt, then the clay. Organic matter will float. Measure off on a piece of paper and figure out what percentage of sand/silt/clay/organic matter you have in your soil.

Rain Barrels and Other Water Conservation Tips

19 Apr

Before spring arrived this year I had a bad feeling this season would be the season for drought. We had a ridiculously mild winter and now, our rainy month of April, where the ground is usually saturated with the spring thaw and fresh rain fall, is proving to be a dud.

In recognition of this, and the fact that every time our dog runs in the back yard he is kicking up big clouds of dirt, I thought it would be a good time to post about water conservation.

In one of my previous posts, I commented on how you should save your water when you make hard boiled eggs and give the water to your plants because there is extra nutrients in the water that leeches out of the egg shells. Another tip is when you are washing the dishes, keep a bin in your sink to give your dishes a quick rinse. Any food particles can go right in the water. Take the bin and carry it out to your garden or compost pile (if it isn’t too far) and water your plants or your compost with your pre-wash sink water. The food particles will serve as a compost tea of sorts for your plants or you will be adding a very necessary ingredient to your compost pile in a dry spell – water.

If you are into gardening at all, you have probably heard of rain barrels before… and how ridiculously expensive they can be. If you are new to this, rain barrels are just that – barrels that catch the rain fall so you can water your plants with it as needed. They come in all shapes and sizes, with spouts, without spouts, etc. If it also pretty easy to make your own, and cheaper! I found a good tutorial on Pinterest about how to make a rain barrel out of a garbage can HERE.

Just a couple things to keep in mind if you do decide to create your own rain barrel:

1. Make sure you have a lid that snaps on securely so if you have any little ones running around, they do not get curious and fall in (HUGE CAUTION ALERT HERE!!!!!!)

2. Make sure you have a lid because mosquitoes lay their eggs in stagnant water and unless you want to raise a swarm of mosquitoes, keep that rain barrel covered!

If you are really, REALLY dedicated, I have hear of people in the Permaculture world who hook their “gray water” system (laundry, shower, sink water) from their homes up to a drain that pours out into a pond in their backyard. The idea is to wash some clothes or take a shower and then watch the water flow into your little pond in the backyard where you can raise ducks, water loving plant-life, AND water your garden.

That is a little too involved for me but it works for some people! I have seen people growing mini jungles in the middle of the desert with that system set-up.

I read a great book about Permaculture called Gaia’s Garden by Toby Hemanway  if you are interested in finding out more about the Permaculture world.

In the meantime, keep those little seedling plants watered! Especially if you have anything planted in a container.

Until next time! ;)

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April means ASPARAGUS!

9 Apr

Garden Update:

The rest of the seeds were planted yesterday!

  • The heirloom, ox heart-shaped tomatoes from Italy
  • Cucumber
  • Zucchini
  • Yellow Squash
  • Watermelon
  • Hubbard Squash

I’m going to plant the beans and the lettuce directly into the soil in a few more weeks.

In the meantime, the collard, kale, spinach and leek seedlings are doing well outside. The seeds I planted directly outdoors are sprouting up and the seedlings I started indoors are getting acclimated to the outdoors and ready to go into the garden.

The grow bags were filled with garden soil and the seed potatoes are planted! I am waiting on some Jerusalem Artichoke roots to plant in another grow bag so they don’t grow out of hand like they did a couple of years ago :p

I also planted a couple rhubarb roots to see how they do.

But, hands down, the best thing to happen in the garden recently is….

…the asparagus is sprouting!

Asparagus is a very easy vegetable to grow but they take patience. You need to give them at least 2 years to establish themselves before you harvest them. This is their 2-3 year in our garden and there where a few ready to harvest. I let lemon drop try out the first one and, to my delight, he LOVED it!

If you want to plant asparagus this year, buy the roots, plant them in your garden and let them do their thing for two years. The first couple of years you will see them sprout but they will be very thin. Just let them grow out. They will turn into these stalks with bushy tops. Let the stalks die off and dry out, then cut them back to the soil level in late winter/ early spring. The second or third year, you will see the asparagus sprout up larger, more like the size asparagus you see in the store. Once they reach that size, they will be large enough to pick.

It is a bit of a wait but it is so worth it to be able to go out and pick fresh asparagus in early spring! And the best part is, they will grow back every year, you do not have to keep replanting them.

Happy Gardening! ;)

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