Welcome!

Soil is LIVING!

Soil is NOT dirt and not a sponge that simply holds water.

Good garden soil contains microbes, bacteria and fungi that feed on and breakdown raw ingredients in a form that plants can utilize.

These organisms do the work making soil and are essential for proper plant growth.

There are many soil organisms (fungi) that form a symbiotic relationship with plants that breakdown and help extract nutrients from the soil.

Feed the Soil!

There is no such thing as plant food! Plants manufacture their own food via photosynthesis – we give the soil food via raw ingredients.

We do not feed plants, we feed the SOIL so the soil is able to FEED the plants.

This is why composting the single most important thing you can do for your garden because it is the ultimate recycling program!

Even more on Feeding Soil!

All you need in order to begin composting is food, air and water!

The food is a proper balance of Carbon (browns, such as dead leaves) and Nitrogen (greens such as cut grass)

This is the FOOD for the microorganisms. Water and air is free and easy Build or purchase a good composting bin and

simply add to it and turn frequently during the warm months.

“You can’t grow a good rose without a good Cow…”

Soil is made up of dead and decaying plants, animals and minerals… therefore, the more organic matter we can add to soil the better off life is for soil microbes.

Organic matter is the food for the microbes, the main feeder and worker for plants.

Chemical fertilizers do NOTHING to help the microbial activity in the SOIL!

In fact, chemical fertilizers can be detrimental to soil life and structure by breaking down chemical bonds in soil particles, resulting in runoff and erosion. Accumulation of salt can also occur from the over use of chemical fertilizers.

Soil Basics

Keep it in place (more on this later) Keep it porous (cultivate weekly) Keep it organically rich (add manures, etc) Do not use bark mulch to keep weeds at bay, as

it is highly acidic (low ph) and also leads to soil compaction. (Except for acid-loving plants such as rhododendrons, azaleas and taxus)

To foil weeds, cultivate your soil – loose soil is aerated, which keeps the soil porous, warms faster and aids in water absorbtion.

The Soil Triangle

Why Soil Ph is Important

Ph indicates the concentration of hydronium ions, low ph (acid) is a high concentration while a high pH (base or ‘sweet’) indicates a low concentration.

As the Ph drops, many nutrients become unavailable to plants - especially Nitrogen, the most mobile and important nutrient.

Adding lime will raise the Ph and ease the mobility of Nitrogen and other nutrients. Lime takes 4-6 months to become effective so add it in the fall.

More on Ph!

A soil test from your local extention service is a must and a good starting point to understand your soil make up.

Buy a pH meter! They are cheap and very useful.

Add components like manure and composted soil typically have a neutral Ph and adds food for the soil microbes.

Remember - Microbial activity does the work that essentially makes great soil.

Acidity and Available Nutrients

The pH scale goes from 0-14 (Acidic to base) and is the measure of hydronium ions (from high to low)

Neutral pH is 7.0 - but most New England plants thrive between 5.8 and 6.8, as most soil nutrients are available between this range.

Below 5.3 pH, Nitrogen, the most mobile and important element becomes unavailable.

The difference between 5.9 and 5.8 is 10 times more acidic

Photosynthesis

(Literal meaning = “combining light”) This is the plant food manufacturer (not

fertilizers) The process converts light energy into chemical

energy which is used to fuel cell activity in plants. When a proper light wavelength hits a cell, a

chain reaction within the cells takes place. This energy is passes into several proteins like

ATP. Adenosine TriphosPhate is an energy carrier for cells in all living organisms.

Proper plant selection and siting…Sun or Shade?

Choose the correct plant for the site! Know the plants sun and moisture needs Plants suited for full sun use more energy than

plants suited for shade. High energy plants like roses typically need

richer, less acidic soil. ‘Shade loving’ more often refers to soil moisture

needs, NOT only light needs.

Plant siting continued

South facing slope is best for sun loving plants Shade loving plants use less energy than full

sun plants. Hold back on fertilizing shade loving plants.

Do not plant shade loving plants directly under trees . Trees may respirate hundreds of gallons of water a day…

What the deal with keeping roses alive in New England?

Cold weather Acclimation

We define ‘hardiness’ as the lowest extended temperature a certain plant can survive. (Zones)

The prevention of a plant cell from freezing and bursting is dependant upon its genetics: the amount of starches and proteins in and around the cellular tissue.

Plants that can survive the lowest temperatures ALSO typically have larger airspaces between the cells than that of warm climate plants

The acclimation process:

The main trigger for plants and stage 1 of acclimation to winter is decreased photoperiod (length of daylight)

Respiration increases as water is taken into the root system and away from branches, stems and leaves.

Starch levels double, proteins increase and act as a type of ‘anti-freeze’ to protect plant cells.

In order to help plants acclimate, halt all fertilizing toward the end of July/beginning of August.

Helping the acclimation process

Stop deadheading (roses) and remove petals (for sanitation) toward the beginning of September, allowing the plant to produce seeds and naturally shut down.

The seed development in rose hip also helps trigger the plant to slow new production of flowers.

When the soil begins to freeze, mound compost on each rose bush in order to keep the plant frozen.

If we apply winter protection too early, many critters will make rose beds their home and supermarket during the winter!

De-acclimation

In late Winter/Spring, a slow warming of the soil is optimum.

A fast Spring warm up calls on water that is normally locked in frozen ground.

Use indicator plants to help predict soil warmth. When crocus begin to bud, this is a sign that the soil can begin to be worked.

Also a time to slowly remove winter protection (remove soil mounds and/or salt marsh hay)

Salt marsh hay is used as a insulator as it is devoid of weed seeds (this does provide a home for voles and mice, which can damage plants)

Proper watering technique

Rain contained many nutrients that is not in ground water. Rain drops collect nutrients in the atmosphere as they fall.

Due to its larger surface area, SNOW contains more nutrients… and is often called ‘poor farmers fertilizer’

Water deeply and weekly, or about 1 hour for a normal lawn sprinkler during weeks of no rain.

Daily brief watering is damaging as this will only moisten the surface of the soil and will not allow the roots of plants to go deep, which will result in unhealthy plant development. (and draught intolerance)

Fertilizing

There is really not such thing as ‘plant food’! Plants manufacture their own food via photosynthesis. (remember that?)

We need to give the plants living soil and tender it by feeding the soil.

Available organic fertilizers such as a 5-3-4 (NPK) releases slower and more effectively into the soil than a chemical fertilizer

Success for great roses

Roses need at least 6 hours of sun per day, so choose a site that suits those needs. (watch for tree roots, because trees respirate and remove hundreds of gallons of water per day)

Maintain proper Ph soil balance (lime here in New England)

Add as much organic material in soil as possible such as Manures and compost.

Proper and timely deadheading throughout summer to encourage new blooms.

Count on natural rainfall, if not, water deeply and weekly

More Rose success

Timely application and removal of winter protection.

Correct spring pruning: ¼ inch above bud scar of each cane thicker than a pencil…

Roses need rich, evenly moist, (not soaking wet) soil.

Use a good organic fertilizer twice per season. (typically two cups per rose bush at the end of May and the end of June) Water thoroughly!

Pests and Fungi 1

The ‘rugosa’ rose is a good example of evolution of disease resistance – many thorns on the canes prevent predation and the hairy leaves prevent fungi spores from germinating and insects from chewing into the leaf surface

Many of these evolutionary characteristics were unintentionally bred out of roses in our quest to make a bigger, more colorful, more fragrant and floriforous rose.

We need to tender our fine roses with some sort of pest control, not all pest control is toxic!

Pests and Fungi 2

The best way to prevent disease is to choose a resistance rose variety.

Choose your rose cultivar carefully – recurrent or non-recurrent bloomer? Low maintenance or more care?

However, there are many ‘clean’ and ‘green’ pest controls.

‘Green Cure’ is a fantastic fungus control product that is a potassium bicarbonate-based fungicide and a safer alternative to harsh chemical fungicides.

Pests

Rabbits, Japanese beetles, deer, voles, aphids, spider mites all share our love of roses!

Recognizing favorable conditions and taking action (if necessary) before damage occurs in the best way to control an outbreak.

Consider the injury level of the plant BEFORE taking action. If a small population of spider mites exist, look for their predators – Ex: Are lady bugs present?

Even more on Pests!

Predator/prey relationships are dynamic and very important to understand.

Improper or indiscriminate control measures will result in an explosion of the prey species and more damage will result to your plants.

Prey species outnumber predators by 100:1 or more.

For every 100 aphids, there may be 1 or two lady beetles feeding on them.

Controlling Pests

Applying a control measure may have a small effect on the insect you want to control, but may wipe out the entire population of prey that naturally keeps their numbers in check.

Be sure the insect or animal is the one doing the damage. Observe carefully!

Be aware of the ACTION of your control measures! (Stomach poison, contact, films that suffocate, etc)

Most often, NO control measures are needed! Observe before you act is the best rule to follow.

Genetically Modified Organisms

GMO’s are not a result of cross breeding plants, but the introduction of genetic material into species that were not meant to be mixed.

A virus, bacteria (such as Bt), herbicide or insecticide may be genetically manipulated into a plant.

The pollen produced by a plant that is genetically altered is free to breed with wild plants, effecting the future generation of all plants in general.

Corn, soy and Canola represent most of the GMO in the country.

GMOs explained further…

‘Roundup ready’ are plants that have been engineered to be resistant to this herbicide.

This allows farmers to apply herbicide to a field to kill weeds and not the crop.

Weeds will build up tolerance and more herbicide will be needed

Insecticides are also spliced into plant genomes in order to kill insects that feed on them.

Many top scientists are obviously concerned and have warned that humans and animals will be effected after ingesting GMO plants.

Baccilus thuringiensis (Bt)

Bt is related to a species of bacteria that causes food poisoning and also to the bacterium that causes anthrax (bacillus anthracis). Bt kills only very specific species of insects.

Many organic farmers have used Bt for over 50 years as a pesticide to control insects. Bt is also used to control mosquitoes, and other insects that bite and spread disease.

BUT now, genes from Bt are used to modify plants so that the plants produce the Bt toxins and kill insects that try to eat them without any external spraying.

More on Bt

For every single synthetic pesticide that is in use today, there are species of insects that are resistant to it.

Many of the more powerful synthetic pesticides have been or will be taken off the market due to health and environmental hazards.

There have been reports of 2 species in the field that are resistant to Bt, there will be more.

Lets take some Questions!

I actually may have some answers!