Bayview Garden Resources

DEER RESTISTANT SHRUBS AND TREES

POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANTS

POTATO PLANTING INSTRUCTIONS

AIR PLANT CARE

DORMANT SPRAY INFORMATION

Deer Resistant Shrubs and Trees

Potato Planting Instructions

Pollinator Friendly Plants

here at Bayview Garden we are always celebrating our pollinators and the plants that support them.

In 2017, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved this week as a necessary step in creating awareness of the urgent issue of declining pollinator populations. Pollinators, which include bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, hummingbirds and bats, all assist with plant reproduction by helping to move pollen within or between flowers. Thus, pollinators play a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and the food production we rely upon for survival.  We can bring plants into our gardens that are not only beautiful but help support our pollinating friends.  Here are some great perennial and shrub suggestions to bring some pollination love into your garden:    

• Anise Hyssop – Agastache

• Aster

• Bee Balm - Monarda

• Catmint – Nepeta

• Coneflower – Echinacea and Rudbeckia

• Crocosmia

• Escallonia

• Fuchsia

• Goldenrod – Solidago

• Lavender – Lavendula

• Penstemon

• Salvia

• Sedum

• Verbena – Vervain

• Wild Lilac - Ceanothus

• Yarrow – Achillea

Dormant Spray Instructions

Thanksgiving, Christmas and Valentine’s Day are good markers to remind us to do something nice for our fruit & flowering trees, grape vines, berries, roses, and lilacs. Dormant Spray is a great option to help protect your plants year round.

The Pacific Northwest with its mild, damp conditions is a wonderful place to garden. It is also the fungus capitol of the universe. These fungal spores over-winter in the crooks and fissures of bark and twigs, manifesting during the growing season as troublesome diseases. Dormant sprays are compounds that assist us in controlling fungal diseases and many insect infestations, and are used during the winter season while the plant is in its dormant phase. (The plant is dormant, not the spray!)

There are two main categories of dormant sprays. Both common dormant spray materials are acceptable by organic certification standards. Although approved by the EPA for organic use, copper sprays and dormant oils can be irritating to skin and eyes. Wear long sleeves, gloves and goggles when spraying, and avoid the windy days. As boring and tedious as it may be, always read the label and follow the directions. Under certain conditions, plants may be damaged by using a concentration that is too strong.

Fixed Copper – (copper sulphate)

There are several varieties of copper fungicides available on the market. The liquid form is a bit easier to use but is not quite as effective as the wettable powder forms. This copper is a powder that needs to be mixed with water and agitated while spraying as it tends to settle out of solution. Shake it good. Newer copper materials are more effective than the old mixtures, known as Bordeaux sprays.

Dormant oils – (insecticides)

These are special petroleum distillates to which plants have a tolerance. Dormant oil acts as a non-toxic smothering agent on over-wintering insect eggs and insects such as aphids, leaf rollers, scale, mites, pear psylla, and white flies. It is also showing some effectiveness in destroying tent caterpillar egg sacs. Dormant oil, which is used to control insects, increases the effectiveness of the copper or lime-sulphur fungicides by helping them to adhere to the branches more easily. It is good to use both the oil and the fungicide together. The lime-sulphur can be purchased with the oil already added and is the most convenient to use.

Dormant spraying is the most cost effective method of disease and insect control. It is essentially a sanitizing process performed when the plants are resting. Prevention is the key to success. The spray is applied to the bare limbs and twigs of the plant, thoroughly wetting down the bark, covering all sides until it drips. The first spray, when done in late autumn or early winter is like putting a raincoat on the plant. Fungal spores blow around in the wind all winter in the maritime northwest. This spray applies a protective coating, which prevents these spores from getting a toe-hold in the bark of the tree or shrub.

The second spray, done around Christmas time is an added bonus, but if you are going to skip a spray, this is the one to skip.

In the event only one spray can be applied, this should be the Valentine’s Day or late winter/early spring spray. This is the spray that will control apple scab, which can be a serious pest on apples, crabapples and pears. This is known as a delayed dormant spray.

Delayed dormant sprays are applied from the "green tip" stage to the "half-inch green" bud growth phase. When the leaf buds are just beginning to emerge and the plant is just starting to come out of dormancy is the time to do this spray. This is by far the most effective time to wipe out the apple scab spores and many newly emerging insects that have just pounced on the fresh green buds. Timing is critical as sprays applied after this can injure the young leaves. It’s important for the spray to dry on the plant. If it rains within 24 hours of spraying...yup, that’s right, you need to get out there and do it again. So watch the weather report and wait for just the right timing.

No method of insect and disease control can substitute for good cultural practices in gardening. Healthy plants have their own mechanisms for fending off pests. Don’t forget about healthy soil, appropriate fertilization, adequate water, proper location, correct pruning, debris clean-up, and an appreciation for the alluring wonder and beauty of growing things.

Enjoy!

 Air Plant Care

About Air Plants

Air plants (Tillandsia spp.) are epiphytes, which means they grow attached to trees and shrubs in their native habitat and receive their water and nutrients from the nitrogen rich rainfall. There are hundreds of species and varieties of air plants. The varieties with silver foliage tend to be the most drought tolerant while the greener types may dry out faster and need more frequent watering.  Most species produce attractive, tubular shaped flowers of various colors.

Air plants seem almost magical the way they can grow in the air without roots and soil. Many varieties look like exotic sea creatures or lifeforms from alien planets. They are fascinating little plants and with minimal care, are easy to grow. 

Air Plant Care

When you understand what they need, air plants are easy to care for. They require water, light, and the right temperatures, just like any other houseplant. You know an air plant is happy when it sends out flowers. When it is finished flowering, snip off the spent bloom and your air plant will continue to grow and produce more flowers. 

Watering 

Air plants have just a few, small aerial roots that are used to attach the plant to the branch where it is growing. Water your air plants about once a week by placing them in a sink or bowl with room temperature water and soak them, completely submerged, for about 15 minutes to a half hour. When they are done soaking, take them out of the water, shake off the excess droplets and 

lay them on a towel. After they drain, they are ready to put back into their designated spot. It's also good to mist them every few days to keep them fresh, especially when the air is dry indoors as it tends to be in winter. Your air plants will look somewhat dull and unhappy when they need water. We want to replicate their native habitats from the Southern United States, Mexico, Central and South America, where they get what they need from high humidity and plentiful rainfall. 

Light 

In nature, air plant species generally like to grow up in the sheltered, shady canopy of trees. They will do best if you can put them in a brightly lit spot out of direct sunlight. 

Temperature 

Air plants love warm tropical and semi-tropical weather. Protect your plants from anything colder than 45 degrees as they will die if they get too cold. If you live in Zone 9 or warmer, you can grow an air plant outdoors all year if you keep it from getting too wet during the winter.

Decorating 

Air plants look great all on their own or in groups where you can display several varieties together. You can place them in terrariums, hang them in a glass globe, attach them to driftwood or magnets with fine fishing line or hot glue, etc. Tillandsia species also pair well on a branch with orchids as they enjoy the same warm, humid conditions. 

Enjoy your air plants!

 Bare Root Planting Instructions

• Dig a shallow, wide planting hole.

• Mix the native soil with Planting Compost at a ratio of up to 50/50.

• Add a good starter fertilizer to the soil mix. We recommend EB Stone Starter fertilizer at the ratio stated on the bag.

• Spread the roots evenly in the hole, then backfill with your soil mix.

• The first roots should be just slightly below the surface of the soil.

• Be sure not to bury the graft!

• Water it in well to settle all the soil around the roots.

• Trees should be staked and may need protection from deer, rabbits, and field mice.

• Water newly planted trees and shrubs as needed the first year.