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»*• By Kenner B. Love , 1 Extension Agent. ANR
' Crop and Soil Sciences
The following ;; are January gardening tips from the Rappahannock p Extension Office. ; • Analyze last year’s planting, fertilizing, and spraying records. Make notations to reorder * successful varieties, as well as those you wish to try again.
• Before ordering your spring seed, do a “rag doll" germination test on those seeds left over from last year’s order. Roll ten or 20 seeds in a damp paper towel. Keep them moist and in a * warm location. For most crops, germination of viable seed will occur within a week. If half the seeds germinate and you have enough left to plant twice as many as you usually do, you should get an adequate stand. Otherwise, order more seed. It’s a. small investment to insure success. • • For easier lawn maintenance, eliminate the hard to mow spaces. Eliminate acute angles in beds and borders. Combine single trees or shrubs into a large planting connected with ground covers. Put bird baths in flower beds or surround them with ground covers.
• Avoid heavy traffic on dormant lawns. Dry grass is easily . broken and the crown of the plant may be severely damaged or killed.
• Wood ashes will raise soil pH. Use them only if the pH is under 7.0 based on a soil test. The safe rate of wood ash application to lawn or gardens is 15 to 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet per year (approximately a five gallon paili. Remember, a little wood ash is beneficial, but a lot is not.
• Digging or drilling holes throughout the root zone and partially filling them with fertilizer is not effective, as most of the feeder roots of a tree or shrub are in the upper layer of soil, and drilling puts the fertilizer below the level of the feeder roots.
• To make economical “sticky stakes” for trapping . whiteflies and aphids cut bright yellow cardboard or plastic, such as recycled detergent bottles or margarine tubs, into strips. Coat with petroleum jelly. Insert into pots or hang near problem areas. »
• Recycle your holiday decorations. Greenery used in ornaments can be used again in the garden. Wreaths and branches stripped from Christmas trees make excellent mulch for protecting newly planted ornamentals. Remove the material in the spring and compost it.
• The pH scale ranges from one to 14, with seven being the ipoint at which soil has a neutral ■reaction. The majority of ornamental plants, including grasses and vegetables, grow in soils Avhich have a slightly acid reaction, with a pH of H O to 6.5. One exception is the ericaceous •plants which include azaleas, rhododendrons, andromedas, and blueberries. They require a more acid soil with a pH of 4.5 to 5.5. . • On warm days, check to •see if any perennials have been heaved by freezing and thawing of soil. Firmly press down any that have lifted and cover with at least two inches of organic mulch.
• Sterilize your tools, pots, and anything you use around your plants. Use one part
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