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.

• Lunar Phase: 2nd Quarter begins on Saturday, January 28
  • Saturday-Wednesday: Moon in the sign of Taurus - Plant seasonal color and vegetables.
    • Pansies, Violas, Primrose, and Primulas are now available for planting. Also, you find a good selection of cool-season vegetables such and lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, and others.

Later in the Week

• When recycling clay and plastic containers, it's smart to sterilize them first so that they are clean of any overwintering diseases. It would help if you washed the containers in warm water and bleach  using one part bleach to nine parts water. Also, you can use a moistened rag, wipe the container thoroughly with the solution, rinse well, and then let them air dry before replanting. 
• Blueberries are available now and make an excellent companion plant to Azaleas, Camellias, Hosta and others in shady areas. 6 to 12 Blueberry plants should yield 3 to 6 quarts of berries per year.
• Finally, this is a good weekend to visit your favorite garden center and browse the seed rack. January is an excellent month to sow vegetable and flower seeds into flats for planting later in the spring. 

Other Things To-do

• A sure-proof way of preventing any bare-root fruit tree from being planted too deep is by adding a 3/4 x 3/4 x 5' stake at the time of planting. You attach the tree to the stake so that the top of the first root is at the proper planting depth. At the end of the first growing season, the stake is removed.
• And finally, Apricot trees are sensitive to sulfur, so apply Liquid Copper as a dormant spray.