|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
August 2010 newsletter
|
|
|
Austin and Rich, our terrific hosts!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Our most recent meeting
We
met last month for the July meeting at Austin and Rich's beautiful
Craftsman home and gardens in the Old Kenwood Neighborhood of St.
Pete.. Thanks, guys, for
providing us with a wonderful location for our Meeting!
Our
Next Meeting:
Our
next Meeting will be on Sunday, August 15, 2010 at 5:00 pm at Jim and
Eric’s lovely home in South Pasadena.. They have a lovely
pool and patio area which will be open for all to use, so make sure
to bring your swimsuit and a towel if you want to take a dip!.
PLEASE remember to bring a chair so there will be enough seating for
all, and bring something to share in the potluck as well as the plant
raffle! No RSVP is necessary
Directions to next meeting: Login to Members page
Florida Gardener's Almanac:
August:
:
The Height of Summer! Here’s a list of things to do in your
Suncoast Garden this month.
Fertilize
Trees and Ornamentals. Shop for a fertilizer that contains
slow-
or timed-release nitrogen. To determine the correct amount of
fertilizer to use, simply divide the first number on the fertilizer bag
(which represents nitrogen) into 100. Apply this amount per 1,000
square feet of lawn and landscape area. Broadcast the fertilizer over
the soil or mulch and water. The nutrient and water absorbing roots of
trees and shrubs are concentrated in the upper 6 to 12 inches of soil
so there is no need to punch holes in the soil--simply water the
fertilizer in.
Watch for
lacebug infestations. Examine plants weekly. These
sucking insects attack azalea, pyracantha, and sycamore producing
whitish speckling on the upper leaf surface. Shiny black spots of
excrement can be found on the underside. Treat when necessary with an
insecticide or horticultural oil.
Spray roses to
prevent black spot and powdery mildew disease.
Symptoms of black spot are dark, round spots with yellow halos followed
by dropping leaves. Purchase a fungicide labeled for the control of
these diseases and follow label directions.
Fertilize
muscadine grapes after harvest. Mature, producing vines
should receive 4 to 6 pounds per year of 6-6-6 or 8-8-8 with 25% to 30%
of the nitrogen from slow release sources. Split applications are more
efficient than a single application so use 1 1/4 to 2 pounds per
application and apply three times per year (recommended times are late
March, May and just after harvest).
Fertilize
outdoor potted plants. Soluble fertilizers should be
applied frequently during the spring and summer months. Or a slow
release fertilizer, such as Osmocote can be applied once or twice
during the season.
Correct palm
and cycad deficiencies. Queen palm, paurotis palm,
and king sago frequently develop manganese deficiencies. Look for
yellow, brown, or distorted growth on new leaves. Foliar sprays of
manganese sulfate (not to be confused with magnesium sulfate) at a rate
of 1 teaspoon per gallon along with one pound of manganese sulfate
applied to soil will correct this deficiency on the next flush of
growth.
Add organic
matter to garden soil. Grass clippings, leaves,
manure or compost are all suitable as soil amendments. Till it in, wait
two weeks and have soil pH tested. County Cooperative Extension offices
offer soil-testing services.
Plant
vegetable seeds directly in the garden or seed bed. Sow
watermelon seeds by the 10th, but delay planting others until
mid-month. Sow seed no deeper than twice its diameter.
Remove old
flower and seed heads from annuals, perennials and crape myrtle.
Prune off old flowers to encourage blooming.
Groom roses to
enhance fall bloom. Remove dead and dying twigs
and reduce length of excessively long canes. This is a neatening, not a
major pruning.
Lightly prune
poinsettias for the last time. Flower buds initiate
in October. Pruning after September 10 results in small bracts
(flowers) or none at all.
Start cuttings.
Take 4 to 6 inch cuttings of tip growth. Remove
lower leaves. Dip cut ends in rooting hormone and stick cuttings in a
sterile, moist soil mix. Cover soil and cuttings with a clear plastic
bag. Place in strong, indirect light.
Establish
plants during the rainy season. June through September
are usually rainy months. New plants require frequent irrigation to get
established, but you can reduce work and water by taking advantage of
rainfall.
Irrigate
according to the needs of plants. Lawn grasses and
vegetables may need 1/2 to 3/4 inch of water twice a week in summer.
Water the lawn when 30 to 50% of the lawn shows signs of wilt
(blue-gray color, folded blades). Place a few shallow cans or glasses
in the irrigated zones and measure how much your sprinklers apply.
Adjust your timer schedule accordingly. Landscape and fruiting plants
will suffice with 1 inch of water per week. A rain shut-off device will
override an automatic irrigation system in the event of rain.
Sources: Florida Home Grown; Florida Gardening Month by Month
Also of
interest:
Selby Botanical
Garden in Sarasota
Sunken Gardens,
1825 4th Street N, St Pete.
Pinellas
County Extension Service calendar for lots more gardening
events.
City
Beautiful Commission in St. Petersburg
Gizella
Kopsick Palm Arboretum in St. Petersburg
Monthly meetings at Moccasin Lake
Nature Park
2750 Park Trail Ln., Clearwater:
Clearwater
Audubon Society
1st Monday, October – May, 7:00-9:00pm.
Pinellas
Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society
First Wednesday of month, 7:30 - 9:30 p.m.
Suncoast
Sierra Club
3rd Thursday, 7:30-9:30pm
|
|
The July Meeting was held at Rich
and Austin’s
house and tropical gardens in St.
Petersburg—what
a
wonderful venue to enjoy a steamy summer afternoon!
The pool and
patio were very inviting and we
had a large crowd for the Meeting.
We had our largest crowd of attendees in recent months, in spite of the
rain, so there were plenty of people to catch up with
around the pool, in between droplets of rain.
There was a delicious selection of food, including light dishes and
summer salads. First place in the food contest went to Shige for
his tasty Chicken Skewers. Thanks Shige!
Honorable Mentions went to one of our hosts - Austin - for his Southern
Chicken Bog, and to Ron for his delicious meatloaf Ring and also for
his Gooey Mango Cake. Also garnering an honorable mention was
Dale Boggs for his Mango Sorbet. All in all, we had a great
showing food-wise at this meeting!
|
|
|
|
| |
Our
host Austin presented the Program portion of the
Meeting with his discussion of coleus history, propagation and care. His talk was full of detailed information
regarding “do’s” and “don’ts” when
it comes to these plants.
After
Austin's insightful talk we all ducked into the garage for one of
our soujourns out of the rain. While there, our Vice-President,
Barry, then discussed the
upcoming elections and the need for Club members to step forward and
serve the
Club in by taking one of the open officer positions.
Many of the current officers are stepping
down from their present positions and there is an urgent need for
others to
take their places if the Club is going to continue to thrive.
The
meeting ended with the raffle conducted by Jim. The raffle featured worthy additions to the Florida
garden, including ferns and flowering plants.
A
FRIENDLY REMINDER--
The
Raffle is an important part of the club meetings. At the last
meeting we had fewer plants than people, so the variety of plants was
not as in previous months. Please remember to bring a plant or
two for the raffle so that we can continue to have the great selection
we have had in the past. If
you do not have any plants started, then you might want to consider
paying a
visit to your local nursery or home improvement store to pick up an
inexpensive
plan or two. Plus, participating in the
raffle is fun! Let’s all try to keep
the
raffle selection top-notch in terms of number and variety!
|
|
|
|
A
Message from our
President
and Vice-President
|
  |
My Fellow Gardners-
I hope you were able to
attend the meeting at Austin and Rich's home. It was difficult for us
to keep track of the people that did attend, as we had about six small
rain showers that kept us running in and out of cover. They have a
beautiful garden and home, and there were many hidden nooks and
crannies in the garden that I hope you had the chance to see.
Austin spoke about propagating and raising Coleus plants and told
us he had over 100 varieties that he raised. It was an excellent talk.
This past month, one of our
members reached a most rewarding time in his life. Shigeharu Sawada
took his American Citizenship test and past. A great
milestone in his life, and we rejoice with he and Ronald in this event!
Congratulate him when we you see him next time.
We are heading for a very
busy time in the life of our club in the next few months.
In August there is the Pride festival in Tampa. We are
still investigating the possiblility for us to participate and set up
our booth to promote the club at this new event. This will
require volunteers to set up and man the booth during the event, so
check your calendars to see if you might be available. We will
let you know at the meeting if this becomes definite.
In September we will have
our elections of officers. We have had a number of folks come forward
expressing interest in several offices. I suggest strongly that
every member take a hard look at the list of officers and their duties
that will be sent to you to see where your talents will fit best. The
Rakes and Blades Club is in need of your help TO KEEP THE CLUB
RUNNING! Many of those leaving the positions have wanted to resign for
years but have stayed on to keep the club going. We have
continued to depend on them and appreciate their dedication, but
everyone deserves a break from time to time. WE NEED THESE POSITIONS
FILLED!
In October is the Film
Festival and the Tampa Bay Business Guild Exposition.. We are planning
to advertise the club in the Film Festival Brochure, so look for
our ad as you review the movies you would like to attend. Also, we
are planning to set up our tent during one of the opening days of the
festival, showcasing our club to those in attendance. We did this
several years ago and it helped us to add more members, more than
at the previous Pride events. It also means that there is some
volunteer time required. We would love to have a number of folks
come out and help with this. Please STRONGLY consider your help in
promoting OUR "Rakes and Blades Club" to the community.
I will be looking forward
to seeing each and every once of you at the next meeting at Jim and
Eric's house in August. May I ask that we beef up the plants that we
bring, as that has been a little lax in the past few meetings. It would
be nice to have a larger quantity to choose from. Thanks!!!!
Have a good gardening month.
Barry and Larry!
Club officer contact
Click on any link to send an email to that
mailbox.
President - Larry
Hughes
Vice President -
Barry Campbell
Secretary
- Keith Korneisel
Treasurer - Gary
Raush
Social Director - George Medeiros
Program
Coordinator - Brian Cahill
Newsletter
Editor/Photographer - Brad Hissing
Membership Director
Raffle
Coordinators - Kevin Ritter and Jim Nevers
Potluck
Committee - Miles Auble, David Stark, Mike Kelly, Bill Ward,
Dani Skrzypek, Rick Nale
Webmaster - Bryan Hopper
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
