propagation

Get ready for next spring and summer by saving seeds and cuttings of your favorite plants now!

Followed by Open Garden and tours of the gardens with Master Gardeners, from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Master Gardener Bader Kudsi will teach gardeners of all skill levels how to graft different varieties of fruit trees.  Grafting involves joining two genetically distinct plants so that they unite to continue growth as a single plant.  A short section of a shoot taken from the type of fruit tree that you want to grow is inserted into a limb or trunk of a seedling tree - the rootstock.  The rootstocks have desirable characteristics that make them preferable to growing a tree on its own roots.

Some species cannot be propagated by techniques known as cutting or layering, but can be propagated by grafting.  You can also graft several varieties onto one rootstock, and the resulting tree will bear several varieties of fruit! 

See also the University of California guide for home orchards at http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu

To sign up for the workshop please contact RitaB@metroed.net or call the MetroEd office, Monday through Friday during business hours, at 408-723-6450.

Lorrie Freeman, MG 1992

To root hardwood cuttings:

In the dormant season, it is very easy to root cuttings of your roses. Prepare a 5-gallon or larger container (with good drainage) by filling it about 2 inches with garden soil; then with construction-grade sand (large particles) fill up to 1 inch below the top of the container. Moisten well. With a stick, make 5 or 6 deep holes. Cut 10 to 12-inch pieces of the rose canes you want to propagate. Use firm wood from the middle of the cane, not the soft tops. Label the cut canes with the name of the variety; a loop of masking tape around the cane works well. Insert the cuttings into the deep holes, with at least three eyes under the sand; firm sand around cuttings. (Dipping the bottom of the cutting in a rooting hormone before planting may help.) Water well and keep moist constantly. Grow the new plants in sun or open shade. It is not necessary to cover with plastic. After three months, carefully lift each cutting out individually with a tablespoon. Plant or share extras.

Thoughts on Pruning Roses

First, have the correct tools and have them sharp: bypass clippers, lopers and a pruning saw. And protect yourself with thornproof gloves. Wear a long-sleeved jacket and strong pants like denim or material that won't snag. If doing climbers, especially, protect your eyes.

Keep in mind Austins have both modern and old garden rose 'blood', so follow local guidelines for both types as much as sensible. Also, if this is the first or second winter you're pruning, do no more than cut the spent bloom and it's one-year growth down 1/3 -- as well as cutting out dead wood, crossing canes (that will damage each other when windswept) and "frivolous" spindly and small, fussy stuff. If it's a first or second year rose that has grown out of all control (and some may do just that), you have to be more "ruthless."

by Nancy Garrison, 2005

LOCATION

When deciding where to plant your vegetable garden, choose the best available location by keeping the following factors in mind. Good soil. You may have little choice concerning the soil type available to you, but you can use a simple test to find out whether your soil is in good condition for planting. Squeeze a handful of soil to test for moisture content. If the squeezed soil forms a clump, the soil is too wet to work. If you work soil that contains this much moisture, it might form into hard, cement-like clumps, which can cause problems for the remainder of the year. If the soil crumbles easily when it is squeezed, it is in an ideal condition to work. Correct tillage and the use of good organic and soil amendments can improve poor soil and can increase yield, even in good soil. Raised beds help improve drainage and tend to warm up sooner in the spring.

Level ground is best for growing vegetables. It is easier to prepare, plant, and irrigate than sloping ground. If you must plant on sloping ground, run rows across the slope, not up and down, to keep the soil from washing away during irrigation.

Water supply. Locate your garden near an abundant supply of water easily reached with a garden hose. Adequate light. Vegetables need at least 8 hours of sunlight each day for best growth. Plant vegetables where they are not shaded by trees, shrubs, walls, or fences. Trees and shrubs also compete with vegetables for the water available in the soil. If your garden is large enough for you to use power tools, be sure you have easy access to a road or driveway wide enough for equipment movement.

Get a Head Start on the Growing Season

• Important with slow germinating seeds such as parsley, peppers, eggplants
• Helpful with slow growing plants or ones that require extra heat
• Timing: 6-8 weeks before projected in ground planting time

Control Conditions Precisely

• Use potting soil, thus reducing incidence of soil borne diseases such as Pythium, which is a water mold fungi.
• Control the temperature -- most seeds germinate faster with warmer temperatures -- up to a point. If you have a choice of warm air temps. but low soil, vs. low air, but higher soil temps. -- choose higher soil temps.
  Ex. at 50°F corn has 47% germination rate, at 59°F it has a 97% germination rate, at 41°F cabbage has a 27% germination rate and at 59°F it has a 93% germination rate.
• Control soil moisture
• Protect from predators such as snails, slugs, earwigs, sowbugs, birds and other critters
  • Place seedling trays upside down over seedlings
  • Grow starts on potting bench off the ground
  • Cover with netting
  • Use iron phosphate snail and slug bait
  • Make earwig trap by placing 2" of soy sauce with tablespoon of oil in "margarine" tub. Punch holes all along top edge of side with hole punch. Place top on and sink this into ground. Check each day and change as needed.

  Step by Step Seeding Procedures

  • Choose containers 2-3" deep such as 6- packs, recycled 2"-4" pots.
  • Be sure there is good drainage
  • Fill container 3/4" full with moist soil
  • Make smooth and level

by Nancy Garrison, former Horticultural Advisor, Santa Clara County, 1986

Sunflowers are exceptionally easy to grow

Just follow these guidelines and then check out the 2001 Sunflower Field Trials .

Plant In ...

• full sun.
• fertile soil with good drainage.
• spring after frost danger is past

And keep the following in mind ...