2023 Gardening Guide and Calendar on sale now
Now available: The 2023 Gardening Guide & Calendar.
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Harvest Day this month was so busy that the debut of the 2023 Gardening Guide and Calendar may have slipped under the radar. But with summer winding down, and fall planting ahead, now is the perfect time to buy a copy -- and several more for friends and family.
The Gardening Guide and Calendar is produced by the Sacramento County master gardeners, with a different theme each year. (Full disclosure: I wrote some pieces for and helped proof the publication.) Master gardener Laura Cerles-Rogers wrangles many articles and photos into the single most helpful guide for Sacramento-area gardeners that I've ever run across. The price, including tax, is still just $10.
March features bok choy. (Photo: Kathy Morrison) |
The back portion is a gardening magazine in itself: An extensive story on tomatoes, ideas for small-space gardening, a look at vegetable pests, an explanation of the Scoville scale of pepper hotness, and a host of other informative pieces. The so-helpful annual Planting Chart rounds out the pages.
The publication is available online at https://sacmg.ucanr.edu/Gardening_Guide/ for mail delivery, and also will be sold in person at master gardener events the remainder of the year. (Coming up: Open Garden Day on Sept. 10.) Several nurseries in the region also typically carry it during the fall, although the price could be a little higher.
Proceeds from the sales benefit Sacramento County master gardener programs.
-- Kathy Morrison
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Garden Checklist for week of April 21
This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.
* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.
* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.
* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.
* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.
* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.
* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.
* Plant onion sets.
* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.
* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.
* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.
* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.