SNOW REMOVAL

• Metal and Plastic shovels are both okay to use
• Shovel snow at an angle to the joints to minimize the possibility of the shovel edge catching on a joint
• DO NOT use shovels or ice scrapers to “chop” at ice
• Use of a snow blower/thrower with metal, plastic, or rubber blades are okay
• Set the height of snow plows to “glide” over the pavers
• Consider the use of a poly blade to attach to your traditional plow blade to minimize possible damage

ICE REMOVAL

• Choose your ice melting agent carefully
  • Potassium salts (KCl) is the recommended ice melter
  • Calcium Chloride (CaCl) tends to leave a heavy white film behind and some studies show that this is damaging to concrete
  • Magnesium compounds (Mg) is not considered as safe for concrete as can break down cement bonds
  • Rock Salt/Sodium Chloride (NaCl) is corrosive to many different products and can accelerate “aging” of the pavers
  • Ammonium compounds should be avoided completely
• Apply the appropriate amount recommended by the manufacturer or supplier
• Pre-mix or add coarse sharp sand to your de-icing application to increase traction without adding more chemicals
• Use ice scrapers carefully and sparingly to remove stubborn ice

PREVENTIVE PROTECTION

• Consider sealing the pavers next Spring/Summer to help protect the pavers from salts and other de-icing chemicals
  • Properly match your paver to the appropriate sealer
• Shovel to keep the pavers as clear from snow and ice as possible to prevent build-up and the need for more de-icers
• Pre-Ice liquid sprays.  Follow the chemical guidelines above if these are to be used

Trim off the dead leaves and stems of the perennials.  Pay attention to those with hollow stems – leave them intact until spring.

Dig or pull as many weeds as possible.  Keep their seeds from dropping onto the ground.

Mound mulch up on the crown of rose plants after the first hard frost.  Most of the shrub roses are fine without mulch, but the mulch gives them an advantage.  Do NOT prune roses now.  Wait until spring when you can see which canes lived.

Leaves, leaves everywhere.  Leaves make good mulch for garden beds.  However they need to be shredded first.  If you pile them on the driveway, you can shred them with the lawn mower and then cover your garden with up to a 6 inch layer of SHREDDED leaves.  Shredded leaves work better in your compost bin, too.

Shrubs, trees and flowers can be planted in the fall, but you have to know what to look for when buying these plants.  The leaves may look “ratty”.   Look for strong live stems.  Loosen the roots when they come out of the pot as many of them are pot bound.  Water the hole, then the plant.  (I’d be happy to go to the nursery with you)

B.  Lawns:

Apply winter fertilizer in October to work first thing in the spring.  A good one is Scotts® Turf Builder® Winter  Guard® Fall Lawn Fertilizer which has a high nitrogen content.

Dormant seeding – grass seed comes up in the spring.  If lawn looks bad from the drought, this is a good time to re-seed it.  First spread a thin layer of soil, Plant the seeds for your type of yard – Madison Parks or a shady mix, and Cover with either straw (NOT hay) or erosion mat

C. Plant bulbs:  The spring blooming bulbs are planted in the fall (September through November – or until the weather is too cold for your hands).

Prepare the soil in advance!  Dig in some good organic matter such as compost, dampened peat moss, or  rotted leaves.

Plant bulbs in clusters for a better show.  An easy way to plant bulbs is to dig a hole 12 to 18 inches in diameter and   about 8 inches deep.  Sprinkle bulb fertilizer in the hole and mix it in.  You’ll note that Bulb Booster and others labeled for bulb planting have a higher third number.  That’s the “K” or potassium, which promotes general vigor, strong root growth and increases a plant’s resistance to disease.

Push the bulbs gently into the loose soil, spacing them only a few inches apart.  Cover with soil and water well.  You can plant a mix of bulbs in one hole.  If you include some daffodils in your mix, it seems to fool the animals.

Planting depth:  Bigger bulbs are better off deeper in the ground (at least 8 inches) smaller ones can be planted more shallowly.  The rule of thumb is:  plant three times deeper than the size of the bulb.  But deeper is better!  It’ll keep the bulbs safer from the effects of freezing weather and they won’t be able to send up sprouts too early (this can happen if your fall weather is especially mild or if there are mild spells over the winter.)

You can plant spring bulbs in among perennials and lilies.  The bulbs will come up first and be finished blooming by the time the perennials are emerging and hiding the spent bulb foliage.

Some animal resistant bulbs that you may not be familiar with: need minimum 6 hours sunlight.  All are hardy.

Bulgarian allium and giant allium

Grecian Windflower (Anemone blanda – blue)

Indian hyacinth (Camassia)

*Glory of the Snow (Chinodoxa)

*Giant snowdrop (Galanthus)

Spanish Blue bells and English Bluebells (Hyacinthoides)

Hyacinth – the giant ones

Blue grape hyacinth (Muscari)

*Scilla

Fritillaria – Crown Imperial, Fritillaria persica and Checkered lily

Dutch iris

*Winter aconite (Eranthis)

All of these bulbs will naturalize (form larger clumps), but the starred (*) ones spread best.

 It makes sense that we eat food that will keep us healthy and strong.  Why should it be any different for birds, butterflies and insects?  Therefore, if we want to encourage the birds and insects, we must provide for them.  Sure, they may eat what is provided, but they probably will go somewhere else.  An interesting thing, is that the plants that are most preferred and necessary for these animals are often less beautiful, and we may ignore them.  Mike Yanny, horticulturist at Johnson’s Nursery, discusses this in http://johnsonsnursery.com/Plant_Talk.aspx   “the main point, as I heard it, was that if we don’t have the native plants in our landscapes, we lose the native insects and animals that are associated with those plants. The non-native plants will not substitute for the native species in most cases.  The native plants will attract the various native organisms and allow them to complete their life cycles . . .If you want Monarch butterflies, you must have milkweeds.” . . .” If they (the birds) do not have the preferred food for their babies, namely the insects, they aren’t as successful rearing their young.”  To learn more, check out Bringing Nature Home by Douglas Tallamy professor of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at University of Delaware  http://www.plantanative.com/

 Designing your landscape with natives becomes a different challenge.  You are probably wanting to have full season color and texture.  Be creative.  Plant the beautiful flowers where you can see them, and then intersperse with the others that are important but less beautiful.  Or one can create a thick native plant border at the edges of your property, using it as a screen and to enclose your site.

 Take planting natives one step further and create a wildlife habitat.  You have already covered three of the four things birds and animals need —  food, a place to hide, and a place to nest.  Just add water.  There is certification for this from the National Wildlife Federation.  http://www.nwf.org/Get-Outside/Outdoor-Activities/Garden-for-Wildlife/Create-a-Habitat.aspx

 This blog just scratches the surface of  how one can use native plants.  What will your native landscape look like?

Christmas greens.  The aroma of live greens in the house.  The feelings they inspire.  I like to use them in arrangements with fresh flowers – poinsettia, but rather carnations, hypericum, and alstromeria.  Adele at A New Leaf Flowers in Madison has the knack for creating beautiful arrangements.

Our Christmas tree is really short, but covered in lights and ornaments that the kids made.  By the way, did you buy a “live tree” – one with roots – for your Christmas tree?  It’s really important to keep it cool, say on a 3-season porch, so it will grow when you plant it outside next spring.

We watch the birds.  Many of the water birds have not left for warmer climates.  I would think their feet and bellies get cold swimming.  The crows have gathered and are having a raucous time.  The hawks perched on light posts have a clear view of the field mice.

I think this says it all about December in Wisconsin: “Heap on the wood! – the wind is chill; But let it whistle as it will, We’ll keep our Christmas merry still”. – Sir Walter Scott

My best wishes for a happy holiday and a super new year.

– rain, so that perennials and shrubs grew more, faster and thicker. Flowers bloomed earlier and more profusely. Very few plants died over the winter.

– rain,  so that at the lake the pier decking is being removed and water is rising and beginning to creep into yards. We will be repairing and adding to “sea” walls to keep water out. P.S. know your local DNR codes, or work with someone who does – us.

This scene and my awakening feelings are the basis upon which my day will evolve, develop and blossom into good memories. This is the moment which I have personally designed to greet the day.  I feel fortunate that my natural surroundings create the backdrop to support these morning feelings.

Are other people are so fortunate as to have created a natural living space for their personal (morning) development?  Have they considered changing and sculpting their environment – to be happy with the start of their days?  It doesn’t take much – a place to sit, perhaps the sound of water, and plants that surround you for you to enjoy.

As part of my booth, I asked children why they thought trees were important.  The children ranged in age from 5 to about 11.  Here are some of their answers:

• Trees remind us that it’s not just us in the world, but that were sharing it.
• Provide shade for plants and animals.
• Provide homes for birds.
• Provide oxygen for us.
• Provide fruits and nuts for humans and animals to eat.
• Provide beauty.
• Provide wood if necessary.
• Provide a privacy screen.
• Make beavers happy.
• Climb.
• Trees are good for keeping us in balance and cleaning the air we breathe.
• Shade.
• They take CO2 out of the atmosphere.  They put Oxygen into the air, and they make our planet look pretty.
• They are the lungs of the earth !!
• Trees are for birds to live in.
• Trees can make shushing noise when the wind blows.

Neat, yes?

Have you seen the magnolias blooming?  WOW!  Seems as if they waited until the sleet had finished.  I bet the flowers will hang on for about two weeks.  Enjoy these beautiful days – even the rain.

If the thatch is really thick, or the ground is compacted, consider aerating your lawn. By next weekend we should be ready. Aeration should be done in spring just before grass begins to grow rapidly. An aerator pulls out small plugs 1 to 6 inches deep of soil and grass roots.

For detailed how to information on lawn aeration, go to http://www.bladeslawncare.com/mowers/lawnaeration.html

You can rent a power aerator from companies like A to Z Rent-all. Look for a core aerator which will give you the most benefits.

Now that you have created “plugs” and holes in the soil, use a rake to break up the pieces. Then apply a pre-emergence herbicide to prevent weeds, and especially crabgrass, from germinating. One of the best and most eco-friendly products is Corn Gluten. Corn Gluten is effective, but is not as effective/strong as herbicides for the same use. HOWEVER, it will not harm your children or pets. It acts as both a pre-emergent and a fertilizer. It is not a problem if it gets into a lake. AND it will make you feel good and green to use it.

Purchase Corn Gluten from the Monona (Wisconsin) Elementary PTO at their spring sale and fundraiser. Purchasing here is for two good causes — the children and your lawn.:
“WHAT IS CORN GLUTEN? Corn Gluten is applied to the lawn to prevent the germination of weeds. Corn Gluten is the powdery substance that is a byproduct of milling corn. It is often used as a supplement in hog feed. This natural protein is very effective for lawns and gardens as a plant food as well as a weed suppressor. Corn gluten meal products offer a non-toxic alternative to traditional, chemical based weed and feed products.
TIPS FOR USING CORN GLUTEN Corn gluten can be used twice a year for pre-emergent weeds and as a natural fertilizer.
FALL APPLICATION: It can be used as a fall fertilizer up until mid October.
SPRING APPLICATION: To minimize the appearance in your lawn of annual crabgrass and dandelions, it is best to spread corn gluten during the month of April, ideally before the Forsythia blooms.

Spreading the corn gluten is easy. You can do it by hand or use a spreader to apply it. Spread the gluten when it is dry and not raining. The gluten comes in 50 pound bags. Spread it at the rate of 20 pounds per 1000 sq.ft. The average Monona lawn front and back would use about 2 bags. One of the larger lawns on the lake may use three to four bags.”
Order, and spread, your corn gluten now. Contact Patty at patty.s@charter.net who is the contact for the Monona Elementary PTO. A 50 pound bag costs $22 dollars.
The corn gluten will be delivered there the following week. Patty will send an e-mail for the exact date and time, so please make sure to include your email address. Submit your order through her with checks made out to the “Monona Elementary PTO”.

What worked? What didn’t? What will you move in the spring? Where are the holes you’ll need to fill in? How has your life changed – or the way you use your yard changed – that will result in additions and deletions to your landscape? The new catalogs begin arriving in late January and a few notes now will go a long way!

When we have a bit more snow cover, notice the paths the rabbits and squirrels take through the snow. Where are they hiding? Do you want to provide food and water for them and for the birds? At the BOD residence, we keep our waterfall running as long into the winter as we can. Rabbit (the one who lives under our deck) knows this and has been looking for the flowing water under the snow.

Write a few notes and send them to me for safekeeping, and then put your garden firmly to bed until after the holidays!

Stay warm!  Jane