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Bedford Ramblings
Steve Mills
Steve Mills and his wife have one daughter. They previously owned two coffee/ice cream shops, currently operate an internet sales company and teach classes, but his primary job involves the paper industry worldwide. Hobbies and interests lie in gardening, photography, recorded music and of course, their pets.
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Bye bye daffodils.

Posted Monday, April 5, 2010, at 8:00 AM

Our are fading fast and in another week will be left to memory or photos. We will leave them to grow and gather storage for next year, but after that some bunches have to be split.

Ever wonder why yours are big and those on the fields seem to be smaller? OF course, they could be a small variety but more than likely there are several less obvious reasons.

They could be crowded in their own little patch and can only gather so much nutrients from the same soil as all the others. The ones on the edge of the patch might be bigger because they have room to grow and their roots are exploring new sources of food.

Maybe they were mowed before their leaves had enough time to store extra food to grow larger bulbs. They could also be growing in tight clay, excessive wet or just the opposite, dry areas so they get stunted for opposing reasons. Yours may be in flower beds, fed by lawn fertilizer or maybe you even feed them.

Anyway, what flowers or plants are you using to fill in the color before late Spring and Summer bloomers? I am guilty of putting more of my efforts into vegetable seeds and plants at this time of year, so most of our colors come from pansies or wildflowers.

We do have some tomato, eggplant and pepper flowers, but they are minimal in the scheme of things. By the way, my tomato has some fruit already forming. Does that sound like a proud papa?

Smell the coffee, so my day work day starts.

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  • It's funny how much difference a few miles and species can make. We're in Tullahoma and our doubles daffodils just now came up and are going strong, but our star magnolia has already dropped most of its blooms.

    -- Posted by MotherMayhem on Tue, Apr 6, 2010, at 7:09 AM

  • One tomato and five blossoms so far, and a box load of onions here. watermelon cantelope, cucumber and peppers waiting to be planted. Hopefully a good haybale summer for me.

    -- Posted by cherokee2 on Tue, Apr 6, 2010, at 10:35 AM

  • Mother, do you think the doubles are planted deeper, or on aNorthern slope? (less solar gain)

    Cherokee, do you have a wholesale or "cheap" source for those bales? I would love to do a whole garden that way, but it would be a bit over my budget.

    -- Posted by stevemills on Tue, Apr 6, 2010, at 8:32 PM

  • We have a very shaded yard, that probably has something to do with it.

    -- Posted by MotherMayhem on Wed, Apr 7, 2010, at 9:59 AM

  • Steve,

    I need some help or ideas from you and your fellow gardeners. When we moved into our old farmhouse years ago, it seemed that we only had daffodils on the sides of our "drive-around." As the years have psst we are now seeing rows of daffodils growing up through the grass in the front yard (once part of a formal garden ages ago) as well as circles of small hyacinths popping up throughout the grass. I am afraid to dig them up when they are blooming for fear I'll kill them, but I can't find them after the grass is cut or they have died back. Any suggestions on how to save them and move them to a garden plot. I also am having the same problem now with tulips.

    -- Posted by amalphia on Wed, Apr 7, 2010, at 5:44 PM

  • You are right to wait until the leaves have stored as much energy as they can before cutting. IN the past, I have used small wires with yellow tape. I mowed close and but not over them.

    When you dig, I would either do it after a train or water the area so the bulbs have a fresh shot of moisture, then dig a few inches away from the plant to avoid spearing them.You don't have to carry all the soil with the bulbs, but I don't get too aggressive about cleaning them unless I am storing them.

    They can be replaced in their new location right away or dried and store for planting later. I try to do it within 24 hours of removing them.

    I will be doing this with daffodils this season. Try to replant at the same level as before. Take note of the type of soil. Heavy clay might be better to stay on the shallower side while sand or loam can be deeper.

    Usually you can then water them in and forget them for the season.

    I am writing this after taking some medicine that makes me sleepy, so if it makes no sense at all,ask me questions or challenge my suggestions. No problem mates!

    -- Posted by stevemills on Wed, Apr 7, 2010, at 10:38 PM

  • Steve, you might try talking to a local farmer about wheat straw bales. In the quantities that I use, Farmers Co-op servers for me. I am trying something new this year. Am planting 2 tomato plants directly in a bag of Black Kow. If it works I will let everyone know, because it don't get any easier than that.

    -- Posted by cherokee2 on Sun, Apr 11, 2010, at 6:02 PM

  • I get tempted every year to try that. I have a tomato I over-wintered and am looking for a suitable container. I am glad you reminded me of that.

    I will try another brand of growing medium and we will compare notes.

    -- Posted by stevemills on Mon, Apr 12, 2010, at 7:48 AM

  • Come to think of it, that may not be a good comparison, so I may get a second bag and try a new plant started this year as well.

    -- Posted by stevemills on Mon, Apr 12, 2010, at 7:50 AM
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