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Calvin Finch
Q. I took your advice and planted some blue curl a few years ago to provide an early nectar source for pollinators in my shady yard. It worked. In fact the plant has taken over. Is there a reasonable way to reduce the total area that it covers?
A. Sometimes it works just to mow it down before it produces seed in the spring, It would also probably work to apply a preemergent herbicide for broadleaf plants in August.
Q. How can you have a drip irrigation system in your raised bed garden and use a tiller as needed without having to rebuild the irrigation system after each bout of tilling?
A. Select an irrigation contractor that knows how to build the system in panels that you can fold back off the garden to complete the tilling. On my system they used sturdy plastic pipe to make 16 foot sections of an 8 feet wide raised bed that easily folded off to one side and then back after the tilling. The beds are bordered by railroad ties.
Q. Which of the cyclamen colors lasts better in our area gardens?
A. I like the purple the best and think it does especially well in terms of longevity. Other gardeners like the white and red for long term attractiveness. I don’t know though, they think the white has a pleasant fragrance which I never can detect so you may not want to trust them!