Dig This!

Some plants will bloom more profusely if the old, spent flowers are removed, a process called deadheading. Annuals especially, focus their energy on seed production to insure that the species survives. If you remove old flowers, the energy normally used to produce seed is now available to produce more flowers. Perennials can also benefit by lengthening the blooming season. However, some gardeners enjoy the look of spent flowers of perennials such as sedum or purple coneflower. Also, the seed produced can be a good food source for birds. Not all plants need to be deadheaded, including sedum 'Autumn Joy', melampodium, impatiens, most flowering vines, Lythrum, periwinkle (Catharanthus), and wishbone flower (Torenia).    Those that do increase bloom in response to deadheading include hardy geraniums, coreopsis, petunias, marigolds, snapdragons, begonias, roses, campanulas, blanket flowers, delphiniums, zinnias, sweet peas, salvia, scabiosa, annual heliotrope, geraniums (Pelargoniu...

The June RCEMG meeting began with an educational program about Bee Hotels by Pam Paulsen. POLLINATORS According to the USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service, 3/4 of the world's flowering plants and about 35% of the world's food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce. Worldwide there are close to 20,000 bee species and North America is home to around 4,000 species. Approximately 90% fo bees are solitary. Most solitary bees are non-aggressive . NATIVE BEES More than 4000 species. Many are solitary. Better pollinators and less prone to diseases than imported honey bees. 70% ground nesting. To encourage, leave areas of uncovered ground. 30% cavity nesting (hollow stems, wood.) To encourage, leave dead wood, build bee hotels. Insect hotels & nest blocks provide nesting sites for solitary bees and wasps and an overwintering site for beetles, bees, wasps, butterflies and moths. NESTING BLOCK CONSTRUCTION Materials: small logs; tree p...