Holiday Houseplant Care

So many of us travel around the holidays- sometimes traveling the whole stint of Christmas through the week of New Year’s. This stretch can be long for plants (and you- depending on who you are visiting and how long the trip is), without their regular TLC from you. Our easy-to-follow tips to ensure your plants look amazing after your holiday hiatus.

Moisture

All plants have different moisture needs. Some will need closer attention, and regular watering, even while you are gone. If this is the case for some of your plants, you can implement a self-watering system such as a plant watering globe, plant nanny, or drip irrigation system. A drip irrigation solution is as simple as filling a container of water, and then using a strip of yarn or other water-wicking material immersed in the water to have it “transport” water to the plant in need.

If you prefer, feel free to lean into your community. Ask a neighbor to water while you are gone. Ensure you show them exactly how you water, and how often, so they do not over or under water. Winter air in Colorado is dry. Some of your houseplants will benefit from added humidity. A humidifier on a timer or a DIY humidity tray are great solutions for when you travel. A humidity tray can be as simple as a ceramic drip tray filled with pebbles or clay balls/LECA. Fill the tray with water, and place your potted plant on top of this set-up. Anything that evaporates will immediately be absorbed by the plant. 

Mulch

We typically think of mulching as a technique to utilize outdoors, but this technique can also be used indoors! Mulching can help retain moisture during short periods.  Use fine-grade orchid bark as a top dress for houseplants that need extra care. Once you have mulched, regularly check that these plants are not retaining too much moisture.  

Light

Winter can be a challenge for some houseplants, especially tropical houseplants native to the region around the equator. The equator experiences more consistent sun exposure year-round. You probably have noticed the increased darkness during the winter months in our region.  Thus, some of your houseplants may be craving more light right now. Move any plants that need more light to a sunny window, or beneath a grow light on a timer. With temperatures dipping in the winter months, make sure you are aware that the window you place your plant by is transmitting those cold temperatures indoors. No house plant likes a cold draft!

Temperature

As alluded to in the above paragraph, temperature is key to a plant’s happiness!  Winter brings new variables for plants. Cooler temperatures translated through windows can cause frost, so move plants that may be susceptible.  We also have heaters running in the winter. If you have a plant directly over a vent or radiator, you may see leaf drop or “burnt” leaves.  Move any plants that could be affected. Some of these signs will show up only after you have spent time away, so it is helpful to address these risks ahead of time. 

Maintenance

While some of us may leave house plant maintenance at the bottom of our to-do list, it is important to address it before you leave for an extended time. Many problems that are riding under the surface can rear their head if left unchecked.  This includes any existing pest concerns. Preventative measures can include wiping houseplants down with diluted neem oil and a rag. Neem works as a leaf shine, micro-nutrient, and pest repellant. Other maintenance may include trimming any dead or languishing leaves and stems, so pests cannot get a foothold while you are gone.  Trimming in this fashion, also allows plants to conserve energy and focus on being healthy, instead of trying to recuperate in your absence.

Fertilizing

Fertilizing houseplants in the winter is frowned upon since winter is a season of “hibernation” and not growth for houseplants. Winter can be a stressful period for some species due to cold, drier conditions, and reduced light. Fertilizing can present additional stress. Do not fertilize ahead of your travels, where you are not able to observe any drastic changes or your plants’ calls for help!

Now, what if you were unable to follow these recommendations, and you return to a home of sad-looking plants? We will be covering houseplant-rescuing tips next month!

Tool Care Guide

Fall is here! This is a bittersweet moment for me. Harvest has hit its finale, and I am beginning to accumulate a stack of books that will keep me growing while my garden begins to take a snooze.  Before I cozy up on the couch, and have a cup of tea- I always take care of my end-of-season garden tool maintenance. Garden tools should have regular TLC, especially after use, but in reality, this may not happen. I will detail daily care at the end of this article for your convenience.

End-of-Season Garden Tool Maintenance:

Deep Clean and Oil Pruners:

This is imperative to reduce disease and rust on your snippers, prolonging their use.

• Pruners should be taken apart and deep cleaned at least once each season.
• Unscrew any nuts/ bolts that hold the pruners together. 
• Wash all parts separately in soapy water.
• Soak all parts in vinegar, then rinse with water.
• Rub with steel wool to remove any rust, then rinse and dry.
• Soak in diluted bleach water to sanitize, then rinse and dry.
• Buff with linseed oil and reassemble.

Sharpening:

Both pruners and Hori knives, as well as long-handled tools (hoes and shovels), need to be sharpened every season. Keeping pruners sharp helps produce clean cuts on plants, reducing the entry of any disease.  Other tools benefit from a sharpening, making your life much easier. Digging a hole to plant with a dull shovel is no fun!

• Anything you are going to sharpen should be cleaned first. Long-handled tools may not need the vinegar/ bleach/ oil treatment unless there are concerns about rust.
  • Push the sharpening file in the same direction across the blade and follow the original blade angle. Do not rub the file or stone back and forth, this does not sharpen but dulls the blade further.
  • Smooth these newly filed edges with a sharpening stone.
  • We recommend wearing eye protection and gloves when sharpening to protect against metal slivers.

Care for Wood Handles:

With long-handled tools, it is important to take care of wood handles. Utilize durable tape (think athletic tape or other heavy-duty tape) for minor cracks. Anything that is more compromised should be replaced immediately to prevent injury.

• Wipe down the handles with a damp cloth.
• Inspect for cracks or any weak spots between the handle and the tool head. Address with durable tape or replace the wooden handle if damaged. 
• If needed, lightly sand the handle to smooth splinters, and rub linseed oil to condition.

Daily Garden Tool Care (when you have time!):

Generalized care:

• Rinse any digging tools, then use a wire brush or something similar to get rid of any stuck dirt or debris.
• Scrub snippers down with a brush and soapy water.
• If any tools were used with diseased plants or infected soil, make sure you disinfect them before any other use. Soak the infected tools in a diluted solution of 2 cups of bleach mixed with 1 gallon of water. Then rinse in plain water, and follow with a generous wipe of rubbing alcohol.
• Before storing tools, rub them dry with a rag.
• To help prevent rust on digging tools, mix a bucket of sand with plant-based oil, like linseed oil (avoid any petroleum oils, as this reduces plant vitality). The sand should be damp with oil, but not wet. Plunge any blades, tines, or teeth into the sand a few times for a quick clean, or do this following regular maintenance once the tools have been wiped dry.
• Store your tools in a dry and well-ventilated place. Small hand tools can be stored directly in a dry bucket of sand or gravel, and larger tools should be hung so as not to dull their blades in a mad scramble.

Removing Sap:

• Wipe blades with a rag dipped in mineral spirits or turpentine.
• Submerge and clean the blades in soapy water. Rinse and then wipe with linseed oil.

Preventing and Removing Rust:

• Soak any tools showing signs of rust in a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water overnight.
• Scrub the affected areas with steel wool.
• First, wash in soapy water, and then rinse.
• Rub dry and then buff with linseed or a mineral oil.

All tool maintenance requires is a little elbow grease and time. Sometimes we neglect our tools throughout the season, but I can tell you the reward of pulling out a clean, sharp, and shiny tool in the spring never ceases to make me smile.  Happy fall, everyone!

Protecting Our Watershed While Gardening & Landscaping

By Katherine Placzek

Every item that we use in our green spaces–  fertilizers, pesticides, sprays, powders and granules, etc. all make their way into the water, after it rains or when we water our plants. This means a myriad of compounds, organic and synthetic, are making their way in our or someone’s drinking water. Yes, most of our drinking water is filtered, but this also impacts lakes, streams, aquifers, wells, and other sources of water that can be a habitat for other living organisms, big and small. While this may feel overwhelming initially, we have the power to make little meaningful changes in the way we manage our landscapes.

Lawn and Garden Fertilization

Three things make a difference here. Quantity, quality and timing:  

Quantity: When you use fertilizer, always use the instructed amount of fertilizer or a diluted/ lesser amount. This ensures that your plants can take up the applied fertilizer and that excess is not making its way into our waterways. Excess fertilization can stress plants and negatively impact water quality. Over fertilizer use through agriculture, golf course maintenance, and community landscaping have contributed to dead zones in waterways. A dead zone is where all aquatic life ceases to exist.  First, expansive algae blooms occur that crowd out sunlight, which choke oxygen out of the environment, causing inhabitable levels for any life, plant or animal. While some dead zones do occur naturally, the second largest one in the world is in the Gulf of Mexico, where many of North America’s waterways meet. This dead zone is widely attributed to human causes.

Quality: When choosing a fertilizer, it is advisable to read the ingredients, similar to reading food labels.  If you cannot recognize an ingredient, know it is likely synthetic. Not all things that are human made are bad, but do your research. You may decide that you do not want some of these ingredients in your garage, home, yard, and local ecosystem. This is why Rick’s is proud to continue to carry our Organic Lawn and Garden fertilizers. Both of these are gentle fertilizers, with low nitrogen levels, and contain ingredients such as chicken manure, bone meal and blood meal. 

Timing: Never fertilize before a severe rainstorm where run-off can take the majority of your fertilizer downstream. This is also cost prohibitive. If you plan on putting fertilizer down before predicted moisture, consider prior to a snowfall, where the melting snow can bring the fertilizer into the ground gently. Also read the instructions. Many fertilizers recommend a fertilizing schedule. Follow this, or see if you can stretch the schedule out further, to reduce the amount of fertilizer that you have to buy and apply throughout the year. Never fertilize more than what is recommended, this can stress the plant, and excess product will be absorbed into the waterways.

Pesticide Use

Pesticides include insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides. Similar to fertilizing, follow the same wisdom regarding quantity, quality and timing.  We have said it before, but just to remind you: “While pesticides are convenient and sometimes necessary especially when mitigating invasive plant species, pesticides negatively impact pollinator numbers…. It is important to remember that while applying control products at night can reduce pesticide exposure to several pollinators/ beneficial species, this does not protect nocturnal pollinators such as moths and bats. When we use pesticides there is no current method that does not negatively affect pollinators or their second tier predators, who are further up the food chain (Excerpt from our March 2024 newsletter).” All of these pesticides reach water sources that are drinking water for pollinators and larger organisms: birds, fish, fox, deer, etc. Many of the chemicals used in popular pesticides, including glyphosate do not break down with water. This means the problem is washed downstream, but never away, and can exist in our waterways indefinitely.  Manual removal of weeds is no fun- we all know this. When we choose conventional pesticides, we give up clean water. Limiting the amount of pesticides we use in our yards is one step to keeping our watershed less polluted.

General Maintenance

When you mow your lawn, consider mulching the cut grass instead of bagging it unless you use the cut grass in your compost. Mulched grass that has been chopped by the mower multiple times and is spread evenly over the lawn acts as a wonderful additive of organic material to the soil. This method improves water retention, and overall soil health, decreasing your need for fertilizer.  If you mulch the cut grass, but leave large clumps of thatch, this can burn your grass and be swept away into a waterway. This process can act similarly to over fertilization, causing algae blooms downstream. Use the same logic with fall leaves. Mulch leaf litter and either use it on your lawn or in your garden, to add nutrition to the soil. Avoid abandoning leaves in gutters, and storm drains, as it increases excess nitrogen in the watershed. In the winter, make sure you are using a low saline and non-toxic ice melt as well. Water guardianship takes place in all four seasons!

Plant Selection

Finally, the fun stuff! Select plants and grasses for your landscape that are resilient to the Rocky Mountain circumstances. When we do this, we automatically reduce the need for mowing,  fertilizing and the use of pesticides. Native plants especially, have been living here in the Colorado landscape much longer than any human lifespan. They have been taking care of themselves without any of our human care measures, such as fertilization, and will continue to do so into the future. I believe that by choosing to plant native plants in a landscape, you are actually simplifying your overall workload in the yard. You will fertilize less, you will use pesticides less, and regarding grass, you will mow less. That means more money in your pocket and more sitting on the back porch, sipping on a cold beverage. Cheers!

ECO-BRAN BRAN FOR GRASSHOPPERS DIRECTIONS

DIRECTIONS PULLED FROM PEACOCK INDUSTRIES BOOKLET ON ECO-BRAN

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