Ask a Master Gardener
Pollination and Pollinators
Pollination is one of the single most important processes that must take place in your garden for you to be able to get the majority of your plants to reproduce. But there are quite a few factors working against this seemingly most basic of natural processes. First let’s talk about pollination and how it occurs.
While there are a few exceptions, (such as potatoes) most plants that produce edible crops such as tomatoes and cucumbers have flowers that need to be pollinated for those fruits to...
Pansies
If it’s fall, that must mean that it’s time to plant pansies. Because of that, your favorite garden center should have a good selection of pansies available that are just waiting for you to take home.
Pansies are a favorite of both well-seasoned gardeners and beginners because, not only do they provide beautiful winter color when most everything else is brown, but they are also pretty easy to grow. Plus, they can freeze solid during a cold snap, thaw, and be back again. You can’t beat that.
Due...
Extending Fall Gardens
This is the time of year people ask us if it’s too late to plant vegetables for their fall gardens. My answer is a definite… ok, it’s impossible to give a definite answer because we never know what the weather is going to do. However, gardeners are gamblers. I mean, you have to be a little bit of a gambler to put a tiny little seed in the ground and expect it to not only grow but produce something you can eat.
At our Seed to Supper Farm in Bixby where we grow vegetables to donate to area food...
Mums
If you have been to your favorite garden center lately, you could not have helped noticing they are packed with mums. Mums are a fall favorite and come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. Colors would include yellow, orange, red, pink, burgundy, purple, and white… probably some more. They also come in a variety of flower shapes. Cushions are a double-flowered cultivar. Decoratives have double or semi-double flowers. Pompoms have smaller ball-shaped flowers and Buttons have small double flowers....
Planting Trees and Shrubs
The weather has been pretty rough on our plants this year. Because of that, a lot of us are likely thinking about replacing those damaged trees or shrubs. The good news is that fall is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs.
When we plant trees and shrubs in the fall, we might think they are just sitting dormant during the winter, but that is not the case. During the fall and winter, they are working on developing their root systems. The better the root system, the better their chance...
Growing Garlic
Whether you are new to gardening or a seasoned pro, garlic is a fairly easy crop to grow and now is the time to start planting your garlic for a harvest early next summer.
When wanting to plant some garlic, the first thing you will need to decide is what kind of garlic you want to grow. I just did a quick check of two mail order seed websites and one of them had 17 different varieties of garlic available and the other had already sold out of garlic for the season. So, while there are a lot of...
Praying Mantids
Praying Mantids in your garden.
The first thing many of you are thinking as you’re reading this is something like the following. Praying mantid? I always called them praying mantises. Technically, you might have been correct, but mantis refers to a smaller subgroup in the order of insects called Mantodea and the insects in this order all have the common trait of what we would call “praying like hands.” No matter what you call them, they are an interesting insect to have in your garden.
While...
Reseeding Fescue Lawns
It’s time to reseed your fescue lawns.
Oftentimes your will hear fescue being called a “shade” grass but the reality is that all grass needs the sun to grow. Fescue is actually a cool season grass, meaning that the further north you travel, the more fescue lawns you will see. Fescue lawns in full sun here are possible, but you will definitely pay the price with your water bill trying to keep it properly hydrated during an Oklahoma summer. This is why Bermuda works well as a turf grass here....
Fall Gardens - Last Call
Now that it’s cooling down a bit, my enthusiasm for my vegetable garden is coming back. Is it too late to plant this year? EG
Many of us feel your pain. Let’s face it. As much as we love gardening, it’s just hard to get excited about working in our gardens when the heat index is approaching 110 degrees. But now that we see cooler days on the horizon, it’s time for us to get out there and plant some seeds.
The event that brings about the end of our garden season is the first freeze date of...
Leaf Scorch
With all this heat, many of the leaves on my dogwood tree are brown. Is it dying? TL
Your tree is likely not dying but suffering from something called environmental leaf scorch. Environmental leaf scorch happens when the plant cannot uptake enough water to meets its needs during harsh summer conditions, and we have been having plenty of that recently. Sometimes, even when we are providing supplemental watering, they still can’t keep up with the extreme heat.
With leaf scorch, the leaves start...