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Workshops to provide production and marketing information to new and established vegetable growers.
Location and Dates:
* November 13 (4:30 - 9:30 p.m.) - Lamar, MO (Memorial Hall, 11th St.)
* November 15 (4:30 - 9:30 p.m.) - St. Joseph, MO (Ramada Inn, Frederick Blvd. & I-29)
Pre-registration is required for these events. Please contact Ted Carey at (913) 438-8762 or (913) 645-0007. E-mail: tcarey@oznet.ksu.edu
Now that the first freeze has killed most tender plants, it is time to prepare a large area of the garden for winter. There is no need to remove plant debris because it will make an excellent source of organic matter when it is tilled into the soil. All you have to do is chop or shred the materials by running over it with the lawn mower and directing the shredded material back on the garden. Then plow or till the residue into the soil. You can also add organic materials from lawn renovation or fallen leaves before tilling. Most insect and disease problems will be killed when debris is incorporated into the soil. When problems develop from the previous year's crop they are usually from debris left on the surface. If you have been advised that you have a serious problem, do not leave material in the garden. Remove and compost it using the heat of the composting process to disinfect. Fall is an excellent time for tilling. With the warm dry days we have had, soils are dry and easily worked. (CWM)
The good news is we've finally been enjoying some pleasant fall weather. Leaves are falling and trick-or-treaters are gearing up for the year's big haul. The bad news is that broadleaf weeds also seem to have responded to these conditions. This is partly because severe summer conditions thinned out a lot of established turf stands this year and gave weeds space to grow. In spite of it being only a month away from the time when we typically pack up the lawn mower for the winter, it is still a good time to use a broadleaf weed killer. Temperatures are optimum for cool-season turf but also for perennial weeds like dandelions, and annuals like henbit or chickweed, so herbicides should be highly effective. Weeds such as dandelions are producing new leaves but are also moving food to the roots in preparation for winter. Consequently, fall-applied herbicides move with the food to the roots, and the entire plant is killed.
It is important to remember to avoid applying broadleaf herbicides to newly seeded areas until after 2 to 3 mowings. Some newly seeded areas are starting to meet this criterion, and herbicides may be applied safely. Even if the necessary number of mowings pushes you into mid November, applied herbicides will still help knock perennials like dandelions back enough to give you the advantage next spring.
A few things to keep in mind with liquid or soluble broadleaf herbicides: 1) do not mow for several days before and after the application to allow for maximum uptake and movement of the herbicide; 2) do not water for at least 24 hours after application, and do not treat if rain is expected within 24 hours; and 3) always read and follow the herbicide label instructions carefully to maximize the efficiency of your applications! (MF)
We have traditionally recommended that roses be mulched after we have gone through enough freezes that the leaves have dropped. In the Manhattan area that has usually been around Thanksgiving. There are some very knowledgeable rosarians who recommend mulching much earlier; about mid October. So now we are in a bit of a spot. What do we recommend? First, let's review what we know of cold hardiness.
Cold hardiness varies during the fall and winter. As days shorten and temperatures drop during the fall, cold hardiness increases. This process is called "acclimation." Research out of Minnesota mapped cold hardiness by date. In September, a specific variety of rose could be damaged by a temperature of 28 degrees. By November, a temperature of 10 degrees didn't harm the same cultivar. Keep in mind that hardiness is delayed if temperatures do not decline as quickly as is normal. That is why we often see plants damaged when we have a relatively warm fall followed by a sharp drop in temperature. The plant hasn't had enough time to acclimate to cold temperatures.
So what happens when plants are mulched early? Temperatures are moderated for the mulched portion of the plant. They stay warmer longer than if they were unmulched. I expected such plants to be more susceptible to cold damage because acclimation had been delayed. But that would depend on whether a plant acclimated as a whole. I questioned whether or not the canes that were above the mulch cause the mulched portion of the plant to acclimate as if the mulch were not there.
For the answer I talked to our resident expert on cold hardiness, Dr. Channa Rajeshekar. He said that there hadn't been any research done looking specifically at the interaction between cold hardiness and mulching. But it has been proven that plants acclimate as a whole and the canes that were above the mulch should cause the plant to acclimate normally. So he didn't think that mulching in mid October would delay cold acclimation. Darn! My logic on cold hardiness appears to have been faulty. I suspect that most years it won't make much difference whether you mulch in mid October or late November, but on those years where we have a mild fall followed by a sharp drop in temperature, the mulched plant may be the one that survives or escapes unscathed.
Here are some other factors to keep in mind: Mice may still be looking for a place to hole up in mid October and may find the mulch around a rose plant attractive with the rose itself being a food source during the winter. Also, we recommend cleaning up and discarding the leaves that drop from a rose during the fall to reduce disease inoculum the next spring. Covering canes with leaves below the level of mulch may not be a good idea if you have a disease problem. Of course you could pick off and discard any leaves that would be below the mulch level if you have few enough roses to make that practical.
So what should we recommend? Before I would have said late November and warn against a mid-October mulching because of a possible delay in winter hardiness. Now I recommend mulching sometime between mid October and late November and mention possible problems with disease and mice, as well as protection from a sharp drop in temperature with an early mulching. (WU)
Why do some red maple trees have yellow fall foliage instead of brilliant red? Although fall color will vary with different environmental conditions, in many cases the yellow foliage of these red maples is simply due to the genetics of the individual tree. Unnamed red maple trees grown from seed are not always brilliant red. They have highly variable fall color. If you want a red maple with red foliage in the fall, choose named, vegetatively propagated red maple cultivars such as Red Sunset, Magnificent Magenta or Autumn Flame. October Glory has outstanding foliage color but is late in acclimating for winter and can be damaged by early cold snaps. However, even these "good" cultivars will vary in the level of "redness" from year to year. A number of things can reduce the intensity of color including extreme heat or drought during the summer and cloudy days and warm nights in the fall. (WU)
Contributors:
Ward Upham, Extension Associate; Chuck Marr, Vegetables; Matt Fagerness, Turfgrass
Horticulture 2006 E-mail Subscription
For questions or further information contact: Hort
WebMeister.
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