Gardening by the Moon Weekend To-Do
An idea as old as agriculture, based both folklore and superstition but there are scientific ideas to back it up.
- Saturday-Sunday: Moon in the sign of Aquarius - Cultivate, and weed
- Cultivate around landscape trees and shrubs to remove the unwanted vegetation and remove any water basins. With the rainy season soon to begin, you want the water to roll away from plants' trunk or crown.
Later in the Week
- You can increase the color per square foot of your spring-flowering bulbs by piggybacking your plantings. One of the best yellow-blue combinations is the yellow Dutch Master Daffodil with blue Wedgewood Iris. It would be best to plant the bulbs in a diamond pattern with the Daffodils six inches deep, and the Iris planted shallower at three inches. Blue or yellow Pansies are added to cover the bulb area for instant color.
Other Things To-do
- This is an excellent time of the year to plant shade trees. Trees planted in the fall will develop a better than average root system before the spring flush of growth. Redbuds, Red Maples, Chinese Pistache or Crape Myrtle, are excellent for fall color. The nursery professional at your favorite garden center can show you all of these varieties and more.
- Now is the time to remove soaker hoses from flower and vegetable beds for the winter months. Before storing them away, I'd lay them out flat on a driveway or pavement, remove the end caps and flush them out with water. Once they have air-dried, they can be coiled up and stored.