Bracebridge Gardeners

Here is my favourite gardener and a chance for all of us to listen to his words of wisdom

Habitat ball constructed from combining two hanging baskets makes a wonderful backyard project. Finding bits of nature to help the wee things "make do"is a tre...asure hunt; meanwhile, we must learn to make do with less consumerism, less plastic, less waste. More beneficials please, give them a home. Thank you for concerning yourself with the ecological health of our beautiful garden.

Nothing's more uplifting than seeing the first early spring flowers pop up from the cold ground. The Almanac has a handy bulb chart listing which bulbs to plant... this fall, how deep to plant the bulbs, and more infoplus, we highlight the 7 most popular flowers! See the guide: Almanac.com/bulbs-plant-fall See more

APT - Dividing Perennials --- Daylilies, Hostas and Peonies ... Quick Tips ------- Dividing perennials, such as daylilies, hostas and peonies, is a great way to make the most of plants already in your garden. Plants that have multiplied into big clumps can take over and compete with others for moisture and nutrients in the soil. When dividing perennials, you’re keeping the garden tidy and healthy, encouraging plants to bloom, and getting more plants to put elsewhere. --- It’s time to divide perennials when they have outgrown their spaces or crowd neighbors in a flower bed. Some perennials, such as irises, need to be divided from time to time to encourage them to bloom rejuvenating the plants. Dividing perennials also saves money. If you’re making a new flower bed, simply start by dividing perennials in your garden and plant some of the divisions in your new bed. --- Personal Note - Early spring through early summer is a great time to divide most perennials. This allows the transplants to establish their roots long before the following winter’s frosts. Early fall is another great time to divide perennials, especially peonies. In early fall, there is less heat stress on your plants than there is at the height of summer. To make sure to allow plants time to put down roots before winter arrives, divide them while the weather is pleasant and you’re comfortable outdoors in a shirt or a light sweater. No matter when you divide perennials, move them quickly to their new place, and pay careful attention to watering. ------- Follow these 6 steps to separate perennials, specifically daylilies. --- 1) First, gather your tools. You’ll need a spade, a garden fork, a trowel, a tub or tarp, a hose and nozzle. Garden gloves are a good idea, too. --- 2) Make sure the plants are well watered. This relieves the stress of dividing them and makes it easier to dig up a clump. Divide plants a day or two after a good rain or water well beforehand. Apply enough water to penetrate to the roots of the plant. --- 3) Dig up your plant. It’s easiest to use a garden fork, but a spade can also work. Loosen the soil around the plant, pick up the clump and place it on the tarp. If you don’t want to divide the whole clump, simply slice through the clump with the spade and dig part of it out. --- 4) Shake the soil off the roots. This helps you see where to divide the plant.. --- 5) Pull or cut the plant apart to divide it. For daylilies, the ideal division has three fans of leaves. If the clump is growing tightly together, you may need to use a trowel or a knife to separate them. Each division should have a root section and leaves. If the leaves are hard to manage, cut them back by about two thirds. --- 6) Replant each divided section. Place them at the same depth they were growing when you dug them up. ------- Personal Note - Firm the soil around each division. Next, water well whenever the soil dries out. Test the moisture in the soil by poking your finger into the ground near the crown of the plant. A light layer of mulch around the divisions keeps the soil in place, helps retain moisture in the soil, and limits weeds. If you can’t plant in the ground right away, temporarily plant them in flower pots. --- Take care of your divisions by continuing to water regularly while they become established. Daylilies divided early in the season should produce a few blooms their first summer. -------

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Interesting article

On the next broadcast of IN THE DIRT, October 17th @7:30am ET, host Laura Emily Thomas wants to know if you knew that Fall is often the best time to sow your na...tive and non-native perennial seeds. Learn all about how to ethically collect, store, and sow native and non-native perennial seeds, this Saturday morning. ICYMI: Archived Podcasts Are Available On Demand At: https://muskokaradio.com/show/inthedirt IN THE DIRT: With host Laura Thomas (Hidden Habitat), Saturdays 7:30am ET once monthly. Blending her passion for natural gardening methods & wildlife conservation, she gets into the weeds, sharing stories & tips from her own experience & other landscape professionals, showing us we can have a beautiful garden providing habitat for local wildlife. ~Shauna Leigh Taylor~ HuntersBayRadio.com/listen The Bay 88.7FM #WeAreMuskoka #InTheDirt #LauraThomas

Here‘s an excellent activity post Halloween

Add organic matter to your veggie garden now. Remove all crop residue and weeds. Add chopped leaves, compost, manure to a depth of 4-6 cm and let creatures living in the soil turn the organic matter into food for next year’s crops.

APT - Quick Tips From My Notes --- Dividing Perennials ... ------- Dividing your perennials will help keep your plants healthy and will make more plants for future plantings. The reasons for dividing are endless. Many perennials grow quickly, forming large clumps. If you don't divide them every two to three years, these clumps can die out in the middle, leaving a bare hole. --- Overcrowding these perennials can lead to fewer and/or smaller flowers than their well-spaced and divided counterparts, division keeps the blooms bountiful. Dividing vigorous plants (including gooseneck loosestrife, plume poppy, and obedient plant) will help keep them from overwhelming their neighbors. Here are all of the ins and outs of dividing your perennials so they last for years to come. ------- It is recommended to divide perennials at the opposite season of their flowering. In the fall you divide the late spring and summer flowering perennials. In spring, divide perennials with autumn flowering. --- It is very important to fertilize when dividing perennials. Add natural fertilizer Plant Starter with Bone Meal to the planting hole to make the plant more resistant to the shock of being transplanted. The bone meal will stimulate root development for faster recovery. -------

Garden centre sales are on! Fall Hort sales too!