Well its time the mums are starting to show up at garden centers
My favorite fall flowers are mums. Mums are a perennial and will come back each year with little to no help. The problem is they bloom much earlier than I want them to. I want my mums to last from Halloween to Thanksgiving. And Unless I go out and pinch them back every week they will bloom in early august and be gone by Halloween.
For years I bought them at the home centers Home Depot Lowes Walmart Kmart one problem they were already blooming and would not last either. So I asked the age old question how do I stop them from blooming so early. It is simple but does take work. Late summer when the ground is warm they thrive and grow very fast so you have to watch them. When the little round heads start to form take your finger and pinch only the head off and nothing more this allows the flower to continue to grow and thrive and as long as you do this it will not bloom until you stop doing it so about three weeks before Halloween I stop pinching off heads and low and behold right on cue I have the biggest and most beautiful mums every year.
If you want big beautiful mums from the stores buy them early as large as you can. Transplant them as soon as you get home. Pinch the the heads off and water as soon as you do. If you buy them in early august you will get another 2 months of growth. But remember stop pinching last week in sept or they will bloom to late for Halloween. If you do this you will have the biggest and most beautiful mums you have every seen. If you let it bloom then pinch the plant is done for the year and it may not recover enough before a freeze.
The mums you buy in the store are already close to or are blooming thats what makes you buy them the color. But if you can wait I promise you will be happy. Then you can put them in the ground and have them next season. Remember to pinch.
Bulbs Bulbs Bulbs
I can never get enough and of course I live in a part of the country where the ground freezes and allows the bulbs to start their new baby in the spring. I am grateful for that as I have lived in California also where in most areas the ground does not freeze and you have to dig up daffodils and tulips and crocus.
I love my bulbs every year I wait for the first signs of my daffodils personally I like the King James variety they are large and have large trumpets and clump just fine. Since I live where my bulbs can stay in the ground year around I plant them in what looks like natural clumps and allow them to multiply on their own.
Where I live springs first flowers are usually crocus so when you see them even in the snow spring is close. Then Daffodils then tulips then lilies and summer bulbs.
First year bulb plantings can be fun as you can space them out to get blooms after others but after that the bloom time is the same for all next season. Another of my favorite bulbs is gladiolas summer bloomers and they are beautiful I like the red and purple. Glads are not like early spring bloomers as they bloom in late spring early summer and need support to stay upright but are well worth all the trouble it takes to keep them upright. Glads can be planted in early spring unlike early spring bulbs that need to be in the ground by late september. To allow them to establish a root system before spring. But do not plant them to early as they will try to bloom and will not bloom in spring.
Forcing Bulbs to flower
This is a way to get flowers out of season a bulb like a tulip[ or daffodil needs the freeze to create a flower every year. You can take the bulbs and put them in the freezer or 5 weeks take them out and plant them like normal and they will flower as long as the ground or pot is warm enough enough to start the bulbs flower process. Most bulbs need the cold weather. Which is why they are not hardy to to the south western US unless in high area where they do get a freeze.
Starting Grape Cuttings
Starting a grape cutting now is also the time to start cuttings and grapes seem to be the hardest for people to start from a cutting so here is something I do and it works well. First I get to the vine I want to use and take my cuttings from new growth this year no smaller than 3/8 of an inch across. Has to be new growth not old wood cut then into starters about 8 inches long. Get some newspaper or printer paper run it under warm water. Place the starting in the paper and roll it up. One piece is fine. Do this however many times you have cuttings for. Once this is done wrap them all up in a larger paper and wet it also. Get some plastic bags shopping bags are fine. Place the cuttings in the bag and tie the bag at the top with another bag. To keep in moisture but not so tight it doesnt get new air also. Once this is done place the bag in a dark warm area. I use my water heater as it is in a closest. about once a week I check to make sure the cutting paper is not dry and moisten it up. The cuttings will be warm their is no need to unwrap them yet and if you do you will disturb the process.
After about 5 or 6 weeks I remove them from the paper if they have what looks like white mold on the bottom I replace them for another 5 weeks doing the same thing. The white is what you want and it means the cutting is growing and in another 5 or 6 weeks their will be roots coming from it. I them place them in warm pots that have been under heat lamps to get the dirt warm and keep it warm and in 3 months I have new grape vines. Ready for the spring planting. It is a great feeling of accomplishment. Good luck.
