Goodbye WAMC

As of today, WAMC and I have parted ways. I will no longer be a guest on "Gardening with Larry Sombke." The station management decided that it was time to bring in some new voices. I've had a wonderful ten years and I enjoyed speaking with you the listeners, especially when I have been invited to speak at your club or event, even when you ask me questions in the supermarket aisle when you recognize my voice. It has all been great. But I won't disappear. I have a new online garden opportunity that I am pursuing and I will keep you posted on that. And you can always ask me questions here at my blog, or at my Web site www.beautifuleasygardens.com or by email at sombke@beautifuleasygardens.com.
Let's keep in touch.

Organic Lawn Weed Control

Organic lawn weed control is always a challenge for the environmentally-friendly homeowner. Now there is a new product widely available at your favorite lawn and garden center that is going to make organic lawn weed control a lot easier. Concern All Natural Weed Prevention Plus is a pre-emergent herbicide plus organic fertilizer. Sounds too good to be true doesn't it? But this product is made from corn gluten meal, an animal feed by-product from the manufacture of corn starch. A scientist at Iowa State University discovered that corn gluten meal spread on your lawn will prevent the growth of dandelions, crabgrass, quackgrass, purslane, plantain and many other common lawn and garden weeds. I hope it works on ground ivy, a.k.a. creeping Charlie, too. Concern corn gluten is dry, granular and very yellow. Apply corn gluten with a drop spreader at about the same time as the daffodils or crocus are in bloom in mid-spring at the rate of 15 pounds per 1000 square feet of lawn. Apply just before a steady rain to get best results. Children and pets can play on the lawn after application, but don't inhale the light dust of the product because of potential allergic reaction. Do not use corn gluten on a newly-seeded lawn until after the first mowing. I have heard about this product for a couple years but this is the first time I am giving it a full test on my own lawn. I will keep you informed about how well it works for me. For more information about Concern Weed Prevention Plus visit www.concerngarden.com.

Garden Consultation with Free Book

Anyone who books me for a garden consultation this year will receive a complimentary copy of my book Beautiful Easy Flower Gardens. A consultation consists of me coming to your home, walking the grounds with you, looking at the landscape, giving you specific ideas of how you can solve your landscape problems. I will give you suggestions of trees, shrubs, flowers and herbs you can plant so you, too, can have a beautiful easy garden. If you are interested in a consultation (fee is $150) contact me a lsombke@beautifuleasygardens.com.
Hope to hear from you!

Tulip and Daffodils Popping Up

Sara from Greene County writes:
I just heard you say on Vox Pop that it is not good to have things popping up at this time of year. My snow drops are in bloom and my daffodils are over 1 1/2 inches up and the tulips are about 1 inch up. Should I be concerned?
Answer:
No you should not be concerned. This is normal. You just don't want to see a full-scale thaw at this time of year followed by below freezing temperatures that could nip the buds.

2008 Spring Speaking Schedule

I will be out and about giving speeches and offering garden advice at a variety of places this spring. I hope you can drop by and say hello:

April 9 at 7 pm at the Charlton Garden Club;

April 19th 11 am at the Village of St. Johnsville Sesquicentennial;

April 26th (time TK) at the Annual Garden Day at the Ulster County Community College;

May 14th (time TK) at the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum.

I will post more details as they come in. See you there!

93 Year Old New York City Arborist

Times ran a great story yesterday about 93-year-old New York City arborist Larry Borger.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/05/nyregion/05about.html?scp=2&sq=jim+dwyer&st=nyt

WAMC Back on the Air

After a winter of waiting, I am back on the air on WAMC Northeast Public Radio starting this Friday, March 7, 2008 at 2 p.m. Joe Donohue will be the host and I will be joined by arborist Fred Breglia from the Landis Arboretum. Please tune in and have your questions ready. I can't wait!

Lawn Soil Made Better

Perry from Rexford asks:
I have a question about how to improve the soil in my lawn. I moved into a new house that has sandy soil. I have been putting mulch, peat moss and compost into my garden soil, but, short of stripping off the grass, how do I improve the soil in my lawn?

A: You can improve the soil of your lawn in a number of ways. First, get a soil test done to check for a pH level that is between 6.0 and 7.0. In most cases, lawn soil here in the Northeast needs applications of lime. Next, always leave the grass clippings on the lawn because clippings are a good source of nitrogen, moisture and organic matter. Let the grass grow three inches tall. Tall grass promotes the growth of deeper roots which helps keep the soil better aerated. You can also top dress the lawn with a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick layer of sifted compost, peat moss or dehydrated manure. Use organic fertilizer instead of chemical because organic fertilizer helps promote the growth of beneficial organisms in the soil. All of this may take a year or two before you get the improvements you want, but the work and the wait is worth it.