Rock out with your pots out
Letter from the Farmer-General
Spring is really and truly here (and it's unseasonably warm across a lot of the northeast this week). We planted our vegetable garden out last weekend – nothing too exciting, a few tomatoes, a tomatillo, peppers, zucchini, the usuals.
Most of the houseplants have made it outside with the warm nights we've been having, and this weekend we'll be finishing off our window boxes and seasonal pots for the porch — a collection of herbs, annuals, and tropicals. We'll take some pictures when they're planted, and if you're planting at your place, send us yours too!
We've had a few questions lately. One was about hydrangeas, and why yours aren't blooming. There are two basic types of hydrangeas, those that bloom on old wood (last season's growth) starting in late spring through fall, and those that bloom on new wood (this year's growth) starting in midsummer through fall. So first, it might not be time yet for your hydrangea to bloom. But if it's one that blooms on old wood, being careful about when you prune is critical (you can't cut out the old wood, or you won't get blooms the next season!). And also, it's my experience that Pittsburgh (if that's where you are, like me) is right on the edge of hardiness for a lot of the hydrangea varieties that are bloomers on old wood. Many of them die back to the ground in the winter as often as not (and no old wood means no blooms!). If you're looking for a reliable bloomer in a northern climate, stick to new-wood bloomers like Hydrangea paniculata cultivars ('Limelight' or 'Pinky Winky' are a couple of common ones) which are reliable bloomers even after a cold winter.
Another question was about peonies (which are blooming right now for us, just started in the heat this week!) and specifically, ants on peonies. If you've ever closely observed the buds or blossoms, you've probably noticed that ants love them, and a lot of people are worried about that. But don't be – the ants don't harm the plants or flowers. They're attracted to the nectar, but they don't eat or damage any parts of the plant. (Of course, if you're cutting peonies to take inside in a vase, you might want to give them a shake or a spray down with the hose outside so they don't bring in any hitchhikers.)
Well, that about does it for now. Talk to you all soon!
———Until next week,
Jonathan, Farmer-General
& the whole greenSinner family