Saturday, October 24, 2009

Planting the Kansas Keukenhof







It is late October, many think it is too late for gardening, nothing could be further from the truth. Our good Friend, Piet Stuifbergen (our Dutch bulb supplier from The Netherlands) thinks that October/November is the perfect time for planting these Spring-flowering miracles. We still have an excellent assortment of bulbs to select from, whether it is tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, crocus, any of the misc. bulbs. I started my project today by pulling out the geraniums in our flower bed. Tilled the soil with a Mantis tiller, leveled the soil and then planted the bulbs. I like to till the soil 6" deep which will make the planting go much easier. If the area you are planting in is not tillable, then a bulb planter works well. I planted a variety of Species crocus 'Gypsy Girl' in bunches of 6 along the border. These 4-6" tall, yellow with black striped bulb should bloom by March. Next came Gregii Tulip 'United States' This mid-season tulip has yellow and red flowers that will grow to 18". Behind these in the rear come a bunch flowering, Single Late Tulip called 'Antoinette' which is a reverse of the 'United States', red and yellow flowers. Over the top of all the bulb to bloom for 3 seasons in a Yellow Pansy with a dark blotch called 'Colossus Yellow' I fertilized the area with Ferti-Lomes Start-N-Gro Plus, a slow release fertilizer with a weed preventer, which will keep the area weed-free all winter. Most importantly I watered the area 3 times to get the bulbs moist to start the root development. Check back and see what other bulps I get planted, maybe I'll have a showing next spring of my 'Kansas Keukenhof'

Sunday, October 11, 2009

My dog had fleas




I am sure you have heard, and probably even sang a few measures of that catchy tune at some point. Our 11 yr old Golden knows first hand what it is like to have fleas. Last fall was the first time Bailey had ever experienced fleas. Last fall I noticed there seemed what I thought was dirt in her coat. Upon closer examination, I saw these tiny insects crawling in her fur. You can imagine what the specs I was thinking was dirt, we won't go there. I knew that we sold several versions of Permethrin, a safe insecticide used in most flea and tick controls for animals. It is even used in clothing that you purchase which has an insect label. I checked the label on Hi-Yield Indoor/Outdoor Broad Use Insecticide and sure enough it had animals listed on the label. this product has 24 pages of uses for all types of insect control in the landscape and inside pest control as well. It is low odor which is nice when using on our pets, and around the home as well. My method of application for Bailey was a Ferti-Lome Air-O-Matic hose end sprayer. If you have swine, poultry, beef cattle, horses, sheep, goats, or a dog, try Hi-Yield Indoor/Outdoor Broad Use Insecticide to control fleas and other insects.


How did the product work on Bailey? Well, last fall it only took 1 application to control the fleas. I am confident that today's spraying will do it for this season as well.