Impatiens…America’s #1 shade plant

Last Updated on Saturday, 21 January 2012 01:13 Written by Phillip Saturday, 21 January 2012 01:08

The common shade impatiens has been used for years in containers and garden beds as the go-to plant for the shade. Unfortunately people who have only grown impatiens, are going to have to change their gardening habit. A deadly powdery mildew has infected the impatiens family. First observed in 2003, a strain of downy mildew had become a world wide problem by last year. It’s symptoms are appear with leaves turning yellow and are rapidly shed from the plant. A fine white fungal growth may be visible on the lower leaf surface, but affected leaves yellow and fall off rapidly. The fungal spores that are the problem are easily carried by the wind…quickly spreading the disease. Fortunately this mildew seems to be very plant specific, affecting only the Walleriana type of impatiens. The Walleriana impatiens is the common type impatiens that has been in use for years. There is no reason to be concerned that this problem can or will spread to your other plants.

There are a number of good flowering plants that do great in the shade bed or containers. By talking to people at your locally owned garden center you should find plenty of  plants to take the place of impatiens in your shady area. If people at the garden center tell you that impatiens are just fine….you know that you have found a place that is not looking out for your best gardening interests! In no particular order here are some great alternatives….

• New guinea impatiens
• All types of  begonia
• Coleus
• Upright fuchia

This is not a problem that is going to go away, it is real….and it is here now! Growers in Europe are planting ZERO seeds of impatiens this spring! While there will be some growers in the United States (mostly box stores) that will carry impatiens this year, my recommendation is to not purchase them!

To read a few more articles on this issue, check out these links. http://www.greenhousegrower.com/article/23485

http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=205

Locally Grown Means more than Vegetables

Last Updated on Friday, 2 September 2011 07:38 Written by Phillip Friday, 2 September 2011 07:38

Usually when garden centers advertise locally grown items, you assume they are talking about vegetables. I believe locally grown is also important for any item purchased at your local garden center. When you purchase a plant that is locally grown, you should be getting something that is already acclimated to your area. All to often the grocery store parking lot “garden center” and box stores, have plants that are shipped in from all over the country. Many of these plants have a tag on them saying they are appropriate for your growing zone. What you need to do, is look closely at the tag and see where these plants were grown. Very often, perennials and nursery stock that was grown in a warmer climate, have difficulties adapting to the more severe cold of northern winters. This causes people to have failures with their purchases and they think to themselves, “I’m not a green thumb….I just can’t grow plants.” The truth is, that it usually is not your fault at all. So when purchasing plants or produce, think locally. Go to a local garden center that grows their own plants. Ask questions…if they can’t answer those questions they probably didn’t grow the plants themselves. They are hundreds of reasons to buy locally…..this is just one of them!

What are gmo seeds?

Last Updated on Friday, 1 April 2011 09:22 Written by Phillip Friday, 1 April 2011 09:22

If you are someone who loves to spend time perusing seed catalogs, you may have noticed some companies are noting their “non-GMO seeds”. GMO stands for genetically modified organism. Without going into a whole lot of scientific gobbledygook, I’ll try to give you a short explanation. In the mid 70′s scientist started working with the genes of rice, in order to create a better food product. As they learned more about manipulating genetics, they were able to create new seed strains that were better at everything from being disease and pest resistant, to the ability to produce more fruit. This science quickly took off and involved everything from human to animal food. With the explosion of these new types of foods, also came more people questioning the effects of these genetically modified foods on humans. There are studies showing no negative effects , as well as studies showing positive effects for humans.
Those who are against GMO seeds, also rail against the fact that most of these seeds are being developed by the Monsanto company. The Monsanto company funds much of this research that has been done on GMO plants. The company name has become a buzz word for many in the hardcore organic movement, for all things evil. The fact is, that Monsanto has also developed many products that have helped people all over the world.
I am not God, so I don’t know who is right on this issue. I have not seen enough evidence on either side to make that decision. It is my opinion that you need to follow your own belief system when deciding if you want to purchase GMO seeds. I do know that more and more progressive seed companies will offer a line of non-GMO seeds along with their standard seeds. If you think GMO seeds are going to have an adverse effect on your health, then buy non-GMO seeds.