Butterflies love their nectar and their drinking
water. It’s easy to reserve a place in your garden for butterflies and bees to stop for a drink. Find a sunny spot in the garden away from plants
that can hide predators – an old birdbath is an excellent choice. The birdbath will keep the
butterflies high over the garden, making them feel safe and enable you to see them. Fill the birdbath top with clean sand; the sand should be near the top rim. Fill the top with water to moisten the sand, don’t overfill; you don’t want standing water above the sand. Butterflies will land on this moist sand to get a drink. Trace minerals found in the sand are an added bonus for the butterflies.
Food for the Birds
Your landscape can be the most magnificent on the block and
still provide food for our feathered friends. Feed the birds by
incorporating plants that produce berries. Below is a list of very
attractive landscape plants that will make you and the birds happy.
Bittersweet
Cherry
Dogwood
Hawthorn
Plum
Shrub rose
Viburnum
Black chokeberry
Chockecherry
Grape
Birds will be attracted to areas that provide them cover both during the winter months and the warm seasons. Plant evergreens that
provide dense cover year round. Ask to see evergreens in the Arborvitae family, the Yew family, the Hemlock family or the Spruce family.
Hot Pepper Wax
Hot pepper wax is just one of the many organic/environmentally safer gardening products that have been developed in the past few years to help control insects and repel animals. Made with the capsaicin of hot peppers and blended in a waxy liquid that helps it stick to your plants, hot pepper wax works by repelling insects or animals that try to feast on plants. Offered with two different labels, one for repelling animals and another for insects, hot pepper wax might just be the solution you need. Hot pepper wax is safe on vegetables and all other garden plants. Try it on some indoor houseplants to deter cats.
Warm Season Vegetables
t’s after Memorial Day and this signals the start of summer.
Traditionally it’s time to plant the warm crops like tomatoes,
peppers, eggplant squash and melons as well as beans and carrots. Work up the ground and add organic material like compost, peat moss, mushroom compost and bark fines. Check the soil for pH and adjust accordingly. Tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant are planted asyoung plants in the far north. Cucumbers and melons are
sometimes planted out as young plants too. If you are sowing
seed directly in the garden, plant the seed at the right depth
according to packaged directions. But instead of covering the seed with garden soil cover them with potting soil or vermiculite. This lighter material will not crust over after watering and so the
seedlings can germinate with less effort. This method works
great for small seeds like carrots, onion and lettuce greens.
And the Winner is•••
Hostas are one of the most popular perennial families in
Minnesota. They are hardy, versatile perennials that come in a wide range of sizes and leaf pattern. The American Hosta
Growers Association has chosen a Hosta of the year since 1996. These special plants have been chosen by the membership for their outstanding qualities. The Hosta of the year 2008 is called ‘Blue Mouse Ears’; it’s a miniature Hosta growing 8” tall and 12” wide. The virtue of this plant is its blue/green leaves and
symmetrical form. In July, lavender bell-shaped flowers are
held above the foliage.
1996 Hosta ‘So Sweet’
1997 Hosta ‘Patriot’
1998 Hosta ‘Fragrant Bouquet’
1999 Hosta ‘Paul’s Glory’
2000 Hosta ‘Sagae’
2001 Hosta ‘June’
2002 Hosta ‘Guacamole’
2003 Hosta ‘Regal Splendor’
2004 Hosta ‘Sum and Substance’
2005 Hosta ‘Striptease’
2006 Hosta ‘Stained Glass’
2007 Hosta ‘Paradigm’
Look for all these outstanding varieties and manymore at any
of the seven Bachman’s Garden Centers.
Did You Know?
To make a pound of honey, honeybees must stop at 2 million
flowers.
Those bees need to fly an average of 55,000 miles
to make that pound.
Tips
Don’t spray insecticide on plants in bloom it could harm the
bee population.
Now that warm weather is here, scatter seeds of dill and parsley in empty spaces in flowerbeds.
You can use the flavorful leaves, and they are the primary food of
caterpillars that will turn into
the lovely swallowtail butterfly.
The sound of running water from a fountain or pool will attract birds to your yard, to bathe and to drink.
Flowers that are flat and up facing will attract more butterflies to your yard.
Plant things like zinnia, any kind of daisy and cosmos to name a few.
Flowers and gifts from Bachman’s make any day a special one. When you order your flowers or gifts online, you know you’ll be getting a beautiful fresh floral arrangement from a trusted florist known for outstanding floral design, plus quality and service.
If you’re sending flowers or gifts out of town, you can rely on us to choose the best florist from either the FTD or Teleflora nationwide flower network. Florists who can be counted on to deliver the best fresh floral arrangements and gifts, even when doing a same day delivery.
