Volume36, Issue 4 July/August, 2003 Julie Muhilly, Editor

Timely Gardening Tips

As the Weather Heats Up!

Artown at Moana

From The Florist

Check out our new Community Garden Corner at the Moana Lane Store.

Garden gifts and pottery arriving daily at the Moana Lane store.

Divide iris that are crowded or did not bloom well. Cut them apart and discard old, large or diseased rhizomes.

Keep deadheading to keep the garden neat and flowers blooming.

PINCH ASTERS AND MUMS. To encourage branching, compact growth, and additional flowers, pinch or shear fall-blooming asters and chrysanthemums until mid-July. Remove the top few inches of each stem whenever the plant reaches 1 foot tall.

BUTTERFLY GARDEN. To attract many types of butterflies, plant asters, butterfly bush, gaillardia, milkweed (Asclepias), parsley, sedums, and violets and leave a few dandelions in the lawn. Don't use insecticides.

HANGING BASKETS. Hang flower baskets on porches, lampposts, and tree limbs. Good plant choices for baskets include bacopa, ivy geranium, lantana, trailing lobelia, trailing petunia, and verbena. Baskets with plastic liners require less frequent watering.

Plant beets, bush beans, escarole, kale, collards, lettuce, radish, turnip, chard, and spinach for a fall harvest.

Fertilize strawberry plants with 21-0-0 fertilizer when the harvest is finished.

Side-dress long season crops with 5-10-5 or other balanced fertilizer.

LAWNS. Mow your lawn a little higher as summer temperatures increase. Close mowing will weaken your lawn and make it more susceptible to disease and insects.

WATER GARDENS. Put tropical water lilies and other frost-tender aquatic plants into outdoor ponds when the water temperature reaches 70°. Fertilize at planting time and monthly through September to encourage blooming.

GIVE YOUR HOUSEPLANTS A VACATION. Move houseplants outside for the summer after all risk of frost is past. Cut back leggy growth and put the plants in a location sheltered from wind and direct sunlight (a covered porch or patio is ideal). During their outdoor stay, houseplants need more water than they do indoors; check the pots daily and feed every other week with a liquid fertilizer.

WATER TRANSPLANTS. Recycle a 1-gallon milk jug to be a constant water source for small transplants until they get established. With a pin, poke a hole in one bottom corner of the jug, fill with water, and place the jug where it will drip over the plant's rootball. This also works as a water source while on vacation.

Just as you require more hydration in the summer, so do your plants and trees. Newly planted trees and shrubs should be watered daily.

When the weather gets very hot, it’s best to leave your plants alone. Don’t fertilize, don’t prune. The plants are stressed, and the objective is to let them go into their own version of dormancy until the weather cools down.

When temperatures get to 95° plus, trees such as Sycamore, Maple, Birch and Popular will develop yellow leaves with some dropping.

Hosing plants off in the early morning hours will help keep them cool and clean. Use of high-pressure spray to dislodge spider mites, aphids, small caterpillars and other insects from plants has long been suggested as a non-chemical method of pest control. But remember, do this only in the early morning hours before the sun shines on the leaves.

Hermitage Galley and Moana Nursery present "Artistic Interludes". Every Thursday evening in July, a featured artist will capture their impressions of flowers and interest objets d’art, created by the artisans of Moana Nursery, on canvas, paper and ceramic. An exhibit of all the artist’s work will be on display during the month of July. Refreshments will be served and the Nursery will be open for your enjoyment.

The Hermitage Galley and Moana Nursery will present "Artistic Interludes" as part of the eighth annual Artown Festival, July 1-31, 2003 hosted by the City of Reno. The month long summer arts festival features more than 200 events produced by 75 cultural organization and businesses in 40 locations city wide.

July 3 – Betty Ann Beaulieu – Better known for her animal portraits, Betty Ann also works on ceramic. Her elegant designs reflect her unique observation of nature.

July 10 – Natalia and Tamara – Russian trained artists working in watercolor and oil, creating spectacular painting of flowers and still life simultaneously recalling the past while celebrating the present.

July 17 – Diane Atherton and Dean Burton – Exceptional photographers representing the extremes in how they each approach and portray their floral subjects. At 7:00 pm Dean will give a 10 minute lecture and slide show about his work and process.

July 24 – Diana Zipkin, Richard Sheriff and Liz Leonard – These three talented artists represent the contemporary yet whimsical approach to the still-life.

July 31 – Velma Mowatt, Shelly Warne and Angie Fraley – Velma’s charming little watercolors will warm your heart while Angie and Shelly’s delightful and lyrical ceramics are a joy to display while functioning graciously in the serving of food or vessel for flowers.

As an added feature to Moana’s participation in Artown, guitarist Andrew Ohren will be performing July 3, 24 & 31. Andrew has a large repertoire that includes classical guitar standards, popular favorites and original music. He performs works by composers such as Fernando Sor, Andres Segovia, Heitor Villa-Lobos, J.S. Bach, Antonio Lauro, Manuel de Falla, and Ludwig van Beethoven. He is able to breathe new life into pieces such as Albeniz's Asturias, and Terrega's Recuerdos de la Alhambra. Andrew also surprises his audiences with popular songs like The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, As my Guitar Gently Weeps by George Harrison and Angi by Davy Graham. Andrew's original pieces are technically challenging and musically interesting. The artistry he brings to the guitar is unique and impressive.

Andrew currently lives near Portola, California, where he performs regularly in local restaurants and for private functions. In winter 2001 he performed for several weeks in Sammy's Showroom at Harrah's in Reno, Nev. He was a featured performer at the Tapestry Arts Festival in San Jose, Calif. in August 2002. Andrew Ohren also teaches private guitar lessons, records and composes from his home studio.

Flowers for Festive Feasts

Home entertaining means different things to different people. For college students it could be as simple as putting out potato chips and dip with a fresh cut bunch of tulips in a clear vase and inviting the gang over for an impromptu party. For others a backyard potluck or bar-b-que with some daisies in buckets scattered on the picnic tables is just fine.

Sometimes though the occasion calls for a little more preparation. Although most of us have taken pains to make our homes as attractive as possible, our personal sanctuaries may be special enough for these occasions. That’s when flowers create a festive mood. Visit The Florist at Moana Nursery for a variety of decorating ideas suited to make any home entertainment situation a gala event. The added touch of a floral feat will deliver the drama, color and impact that your friends and family will appreciate and talk about for a long time to come.

The Fourth of July is a great time to stop in and let The Florist at Moana Nursery help you add some flair to your next ‘Festive Feast’. And don’t forget – We Deliver!

This short-lived, coarse-textured tree tolerates a wide range of growing conditions. Growth is rapid at first but slows down with age. The main ornamental feature is panicles of flowers produced in early summer. These are white with yellow and purple markings. The fruit is a long pod that can be a litter problem.

We have plenty of them in stock at both stores.

Our seminars are FREE and conducted by our friendly and knowledgeable staff and local garden experts. Seminars will be held at the Moana Lane location at 10:00 am. It is recommended that you sign up for the seminars as space is limited. Refreshments will be served.

Katie Toftdahl, Container Gardening Specialist, Moana Nursery

The heat of summer zaps your garden color and Katie will show you how to revitalize your beds, borders and patio containers.

Christie Gescheider, Owner, Moana Nursery and Lara Ritchie, Culinary Director, Nothing to It Culinary Center,

Christie will talk about the growing herbs and different ways to incorporate them into your landscape. Lara will be sharing the joy of cooking with fresh grown herbs at Moana Nursery.  The topics included will be how to care for herbs, clean and store them, as well as many of the ways herbs can be enjoyed in everyday cooking!