george bonnema
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistNovember 16, 2021Last week’s weather convinced me that I am finished with my garden for the 2021 season. I managed to get 225 new tulip bulbs planted in areas where I wanted more early spring color. I used my cell phone camera to make a video of my flower beds early last spring so when I was ready to plant this fall, I knew exactly where the open spaces were. It will be fun to see that effort rewarded next spring…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistOctober 12, 2021According to the weather forecast, our growing season is about finished. If you have tender bulbs like cannas, gladiolas or dahlias, a light frost will kill the tops but not harm the bulb itself. When the top growth is dead, it’s time to dig the bulb. I use a potato fork to loosen the soil and lift the bulb or clump of bulbs from the soil. In the case of “clump” bulbs, I leave the adhering soil…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistSeptember 07, 2021This summer has been one of the more frustrating summers for gardeners in recent years. Persistent drought, heat, and pests have presented challenges than were not encouraging. I am grateful for the abundant rain we have been blessed with in the past week because going into winter with limited top and sub soil moisture can be a critical factor for survival of many of our trees, shrubs, and…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 03, 2021August is the month to thin or transplant German bearded iris and peonies. Dividing fern leaf peonies is a bit more complicated than regular peonies in that they have a “neck” between the eye of next year’s growth and the tuber. Just cutting into the clump with a spade will often ruin a lot of the potential new divisions because of the way they intertwine. The safest way to divide fern peonies is…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 20, 2021Japanese beetles … they’re back and they’re hungry. I saw the first of these pests on my rose blossoms last week. Last summer I fought them on my roses, my zinnias, my beans and my raspberries. Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) are small insects that carry a big threat. They do not discriminate when it comes to what types of plants they feed on, though they do have favorites (like roses.) In…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 13, 2021Summer-blooming spireas have pretty much finished their early bloom cycle. A light shear now will remove those dead flower heads, and within a couple of weeks they will put on a new crop of foliage that will look as bright and fresh as they did in the spring. … Wish a hair cut would do that for me! Rain over the weekend was another huge blessing, especially the fact that it was more widespread. I…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJune 29, 2021We were blessed with a wonderful rain shower on Monday afternoon, and my gardener’s spirit is revived! It is disheartening to watch the vegetable and flower crops you carefully nurtured succumb to extreme heat and drought. I am grateful! I noticed that the slugs have arrived. I was hoping that the dry weather would have curtailed their appearance, but the damaged leaves on some of my hosts are…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJune 15, 2021The lilacs have finished blooming so if you need to prune them, this is the time to get that done. Remember to cut them back far enough to give them room to grow to the size you will want them to be. If there are no leaves on the stems when you have finished the task, that’s OK. They will develop new leaves on the stems that have been cut back. I noticed black spots showing up on Goldsrum…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMay 25, 2021If you applied systemic rose care as I advised earlier, that was six weeks ago so now is the time to make a second application. All forms of pine trees and shrubs are making their new growth now. That new growth is called a candle. For the more compact varieties of pines like Mugho and Tannenbaum, cutting off 1/2 to 3/4 of that new growth will result in a much fuller and compact plant. Completing…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMay 11, 2021I hope you have noticed the beautiful lavender flowers of the rhododendron shrubs that have been blooming for the last two weeks. The variety is PJM, and these rhododendrons are broad-leaf evergreens, meaning that they do not drop their leaves in winter. This rhododendron grows to about 3 feet tall. They prefer a slightly acidic soil, which is not what we have in this part of Minnesota, so…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMay 04, 2021Seems that our weather has kept us guessing, and that includes the weather forecasters. We go from no frost in the 15-day outlook to a pretty definite light frost sneaking in the mix. Our average last frost date is May 15. To get an average, some years that last date is earlier and some years it is later. My advice is if you can’t move it and you can’t cover it, don’t plant it until after May 15…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistApril 27, 2021Our spring weather certainly has been unstable this year. I don’t understand how a tulip flower stem can survive 16 degrees and still stand firm and continue on to a beautiful flower. My blooming daffodils didn’t come through the cold as well. The leaves are still green so they can feed the bulb to develop the flower for next year. That is why we stress the importance of leaving the leaves of…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistApril 13, 2021In years past, I have recommended applying a product called Systemic Rose Care as a fertilizer and insect preventative for your roses. Bonide and Beyer are two brands that have this product available, and they are basically the same. Now is the time to make that first application of the granules. You will do a second application six weeks from now and a third application six weeks after the…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistApril 06, 2021It seems that garden plants that were showing growth last week survived the 16-degree cold without damage, and I’m appreciating that, especially after one breezy 88-degree day yesterday, I have daffodils blooming this morning … what a glorious morning view! I do seem to have more than my share of critter problems … both two legs and four legs. A pair of Canadian honkers seem to think Poplar Creek…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMarch 30, 2021It is Monday and I have been cleaning up the Healing Garden at Sanford. As I was working, I noticed little sprouts of bluegrass that have been hiding among the stems of perennials that I didn’t notice last year. That reminded me to remind you that this is the best time to remove perennials grass that may have begun invading your garden area. Many of these grasses like blue grass or quack grass…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMarch 23, 2021Spring is a transition between winter and summer, and this week we have been transitioning. The snow added some much-needed moisture to our top soil and that gives me confidence after last year’s prolonged dry season. Today I will remind you that now is a good time to rejuvenate your indoor plants if they are needing that attention. Taking cuttings from old plants to get new plants is the best…
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