Category Archives: Test Garden

Dealing With Deer in Your Garden

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Deer eating 'deer-resistant' forsythia!

It seems everywhere I look these days, someone is writing about the impact deer are having on homeowners’ gardens and also on the balance between native and non-native plants in local ecosystems. If you’re one of the lucky ones who does not have to deal with deer munching on your plants, consider yourself blessed. And probably living on borrowed time.

 

I’ve written before about the prevalence of deer here in southwestern Connecticut and the effectiveness of various deer repellents.  No matter what your repellent of choice is, the deer will eventually become used to it and it will become less and less effective. Like many gardeners who deal with deer, my arsenal of deer repellents is continually changing. When it comes to deer repellents, it can be very  frustrating because what works in your friend’s garden may not work in yours.

 

In fact, the University of Connecticut is now evaluating the effectiveness of homemade deer repellents. You can read more, and even find out how to submit your own brew, here at joene’s garden.  It will be interesting to see if any of the homemade concoctions work as good as, or even better, than the commercial ones.

 

The problem with deer comes down to one simple fact…there are just too many of them in  most urban and suburban neighborhoods. Sue Sweeney, a fellow team member at Native Plants and Wildlife Gardens blog (and a fellow resident of southwestern CT) wrote an intriguing post about whether or not hunting could be  The Cure for White-Tailed Deer.

 

Even though I battle deer for control of my garden on a daily basis, I’m not sure I’m ready to concede that hunting in residential neighborhoods is the answer. But birth control may be. Apparently there is a new birth control vaccine for deer, GonaCon, which was mentioned in this Popular Science article. The vaccine, recently approved by the EPA, renders female deer infertile for up to five years.  Before you start rejoicing, read the article because there are some major limitations. But, hey, it’s a start.

 

If hunting and vaccines are not on your to-do list this fall, you might want to check out this compilation of reader suggestions on keeping deer out of your garden that I found on Garden Web.  While I’m not endorsing any of them, some are quite amusing…and disturbing!

 

And if you’re interested in winning a free bottle of Deer Off deer repellent from the manufacturer, Havahart please check out my evaluation of Deer Off and leave a comment on that post.

Deer Off – Product Review & Giveaway

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*** Enter to win a free bottle of Deer Off  simply by leaving a comment below***

Several months ago, I received an email from Havahart, the makers of Deer Off deer repellant, asking if I’d like a free sample of their product to try in my garden. Never one to turn down a freebie, and constantly battling deer in my garden, I jumped at the chance.

I started using Deer Off in my garden in the spring when browsing damage from deer is typically quite high. The first thing I noticed about the product was its scent, or more accurately, the lack of a nasty one. I was able to spray Deer Off on my plants and work in the area right away without needing a gas mask. With some other deer repellents, I’ve had to spray them just before I finish working in the garden for the day because the odor is so obnoxious.

Deer Off is supposed to be 3 times more powerful than similar sprays since it repels by both odor and taste, a double whammy for deer. Deer Off is also supposed to be effective for up to 90 days but I definitely sprayed it more often than that in my tests.

One of the problems I find with efficacy claims is that in order to figure out how long a repellent will actually work in my garden I need to let the deer eat my plants. Since I’m trying to avoid that scenario, I find I reapply any deer repellent more often than the manufacturer recommends, especially if it looks like its working. Why tempt fate?

I noticed Deer Off left a white film on some plants, like this hydrangea.

I did notice Deer Off left a white film on some of my plants. I checked with Havahart and they said that is not unusual. Since the spray was working I figured it was a small price to pay for the protection.

In fact, this is the first year I actually saw two of my hydrangea bloom. I’d protected them in the past with other repellents but the deer always managed to nip off the buds just before they flowered. Deer Off even helped my inadvertently ‘protect’ an invasive plant while I was waiting for it to bloom so I could figure out what it was. Goops!

The only plant in my garden Deer Off did not seem to protect from browsing is a Chamaecyparis, rescued from the compost pile last fall. Even though I knew this little conifer most likely was not deer-resistant, I brought it home, planted it in the middle of a bed that is full of deer-resistant plants like Japanese maple, ornamental grasses and dwarf butterfly bushes and hoped for the best.

This Chamaecyparis wins the top honor as 'Most Deer Browsed Plant' this season.

During the spring, when the Chamaecyparis was pushing out new growth, the deer wouldn’t leave it alone. I sprayed it several times over the course of a few weeks with Deer Off and even used a competitor’s repellent ‘station’ as another layer of protection but still the deer ravaged the poor little shrub. I think I may have to transplant the Chamaecyparis in the fall to an area where I can protect it with netting for a few years (a last resort in my book).

Overall, I was thrilled with the way Deer off performed in my garden. I would highly recommend it to any gardener who has problems with deer and who is looking for an organic, OMRI approved solution to protecting their plants.

As an added bonus, Deer Off repelled rabbits, too. I sprayed it on some petunias and a ‘Yakushima’ bush clover (Lespedeza bicolor ‘Yakushima’) and the results were impressive. My bush clover has never looked so good since I planted it several years ago.

If you’re interested in trying Deer Off in your own garden and would like a free bottle, just leave a comment here and you’ll be eligible to win a bottle directly from Havahart. I’ll randomly select a winner on October 10th.  Good luck!

**Thank you to everyone who left a comment and participated in the giveaway. The big winner is Sherry Fetterman. Congrats, Sherry! **

Notes from my Test Garden…Chasmanthium latifolium

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These unique seed heads are what first attracted me to Northern Sea Oats

These unique seed heads are what first attracted me to Northern Sea Oats

Chasmanthium latifolium.  If you’ve ever heard of it, you probably know it by one of its many common names…Northern sea oats, quaking oats, Indian wood oats or flathead oats.  I call it Northern Sea Oats and I was first drawn to this plant because of its unique sea heads.  When I started looking into it’s site requirements, I was intrigued by the fact that it was reported to grow in full sun to full shade and in moist to dry soil.  And on top of that it is a native plant (not specifically native to Connecticut but native to parts of New England) and is listed as deer resistant.

I decided to buy some northern sea oats and plant them in various areas of my garden (zone 6) to see how they perform in different site conditions.   In late May 2009, I planted three different one-gallon northern sea oats plants, each one was about 6 inches tall.  One was planted in full shade under some hemlock trees in an area where ferns, bleeding hearts and heuchera grow.

The second  one was planted in a semi-shady area that gets both early morning and afternoon sun but during the rest of the day it is in shade.  I have spirea, Japanese forest grass and ‘Rozanne’ cranesbill geranium growing happily in that area.

The third northern sea oats plant was planted about 20 feet away from the second but that area of my garden gets less morning sun and about the same amount of afternoon sun.  So the first plant is in full shade, the second in a partial sun (more sun than shade) location and the third in a partial shade (more shade than sun) location.  The results so far have been very interesting, even though they have only been growing in my garden for about 3 months.  Here are pictures of each one:

This one is in full, dry shade. It has not gotten any taller and as you can see it is being ravaged by some kind of insect. There are no visible flower stalks yet.

This one is in full, dry shade. It has not gotten any taller and as you can see it is being ravaged by some kind of insect. There are no visible flower stalks yet.

 

This one is planted in partial sun. It has not gotten much taller than 6" but it has flower stalks and looks the best of the three.

This one is planted in partial sun. It has gotten several inches taller and it has flower stalks with full-sized seed heads. It looks the best of the three.

 

This one is planted in partial shade and while the leaves are healthy, it has not gotten much taller and the flower stalks are just starting to appear.

This one is planted in partial shade and while the leaves are healthy, it has not gotten much taller and the flower stalks are just starting to appear.

So my impressions to date are:

  • The plant in full shade needs to be moved.  Between the shade, dry soil and insects that feast on many of the perennials in that area of my garden, this northern sea oats would be lucky to survive, let alone thrive in that location.  I think I’ll move it to full sun and see what happens!
  • The plant that is in the partial sun location is doing best but I am still a bit disappointed by its lackluster performance.  I would have expected it to have grown a bit taller by now.  Hopefully it will put on a good show this fall.  I’ll leave this one where it is and see what happens next season.
  • A few extra hours of sun seems to have a big impact on northern sea oats.  The plant in partial shade is weeks behind its partial sun cousin.  I will leave this one in its spot too since I think the seed heads will be a great contrast to the flowers of the pee gee hydrangea that is growing behind it.

 I’ll keep you posted on my northern sea oats progress as the end of the growing season approaches.  And if you’re growing northern sea oats in your garden I’d love to hear about your experiences with it.

Welcoming Buttercup Winterhazel to my Garden

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Buutercup Winterhazel adds understated elegance to a garden

Buttercup Winterhazel adds understated elegance

Today was the annual fall plant sale at the Bartlett Arboretum, an event gardeners in and around Stamford, CT eagerly await.  I have been going to the Bartlett’s plant sales for years and I always seem to find some interesting treasures.  Today I purchased a Buttercup Winterhazel (Corylopsis pauciflora). As I look around my garden I realize many of my more unusual plants have come from the Bartlett’s plant sale.  When I say unusual I don’t mean specimen plants with one or more unique features that are planted as focal points. I mean workhorse plants that are staples of my garden year after year but are not always easy to locate.  That’s because these plants are considered ‘common’.  They can be a bit hard to find in many nurseries which, through necessity, often cater to a gardener looking for the newest and showiest cultivar. I bought Corylopsis pauciflora  for my woodland garden.  Buttercup Winterhazel grows to be about 4′ x 4′ and likes well-drained, acidic soil and is deer-resistant.  The plant tag indicates my new shrub prefers full sun to partial shade but a plant catalog from a trusted local nursery, Oliver Nurseries, suggests Buttercup Winterhazel will grow in full shade too.  As this is a test garden plant, I have decided to test the sun requirements and plant it in an area that is somewhere between part shade and full shade. Buttercup Winterhazel has pale yellow, slightly fragrant flowers in early spring.  It is a more refined and airy alternative to forsythia which blooms at about the same time. When the serrated leaves emerge later in the spring, they should be a mix of pink, golden yellow and green.  Eventually the leaves will turn all green.  Leaves turn yellow in the fall, revealing interesting zig-zag stems. Because of its small stature, Corylopsis pauciflora would make a good addition to a foundation planting but I have decided to plant it in front of some mature rhododendrons at the edge of a wooded area.  The green backdrop of the rhododendrons should really help to offset the pale yellow flowers in early spring.  If you’re searching for a small shrub that will look good all year long, why not take a second look at Buttercup Winterhazel.

Update on Lagerstroemia indica ‘Tuscarora’

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My crape myrtle died back to the roots but it put out lots of new growth

My crape myrtle died back to the roots but has since put out lots of new growth but still no flowers

Back in June, I wrote a post about my Tuscarora crape myrtle which was supposed to be cold-hardy to zone 6 but appeared to have died back during the winter.  When I wrote the original post, there was a bit of new growth coming from the root ball but all the trunks and branches had died.

Well, I’m pleased to report that my crape myrtle is alive and well and the tallest stem is almost 6 feet tall.  The stems and branches seem very healthy, the leaves are glossy and do not appear to have been plagued by any of the insects or fungus that has attacked my garden during this growing season.

My only issue with Tuscarora is that it has not flowered yet.   I know crape myrtle’s bloom on new wood but since I can’t see any buds forming on the branch tips I doubt I’ll have any color this season. I’m just so happy that it is alive that I am willing to wait for flowers. 

As I look back on what went wrong with my cold-hardy crape myrtle, I think the problem is my plant didn’t have enough time to acclimate to my zone 6 garden before the cold weather set in.  While I bought the tree from a reputable local nursery, it was grown down south in a much warmer zone and it probably needed more time to adjust to its new location before the winter arrived.

So what can you do if you want to plant a tree or shrub that is newly rated as cold-hardy in your zone?  Or if you are trying to stretch the zonal boundaries of a tree or shrub by planting it in a warmer micro-climate of your garden?  My advice is to try to plant it in the spring rather than the fall.  Give it as much time as possible to acclimate to it’s new home before it is exposed to the stresses of winter weather.  Or, if you must plant in the fall, buy trees and shrubs that have been grown and raised in your zone.  That way you know they can survive the local climate variations.

Gardening is all about trial and error and learning from your mistakes as well as your successes.  Don’t get discouraged if plants don’t always perform as anticipated.  Are you growing any plants in your garden that you are still waiting to ‘WOW’ you? Plants that you knowingly took a chance on and you’re still waiting to see if you made a good decision or not?  If so, I’d love to hear about your experiences.

Welcoming Wildlife In My Garden…Baby Robins

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Two Baby Robins With One More Ready To Hatch

Two Baby Robins Hatched...One More On It's Way

Several weeks ago a mother robin started building a nest in our blue spruce shrub (Picea pungens) located right outside a kitchen window and the backdoor to the garden.  While this is not the quietest location in the garden, it seems to be a preferred nesting spot, especially for robins. 

The mother robin laid three eggs in total –  two on one day and then the third a day later.  And this morning, two of the eggs hatched about an hour apart.  As you can see from the photo, robin hatchlings are not that attractive!  But I can guarantee you from past experience, that they grow quickly and as soon as they get feathers they are incredibly cute.

Most gardeners love to see birds in their gardens but many may not realize you first need lots of insects in the garden so the birds will have a food source.  Without a constant supply of food (insects), the birds will not stay around for too long. 

Goldenrod Is A Native Plant That Insects Adore

Goldenrod Is A Native Plant That Insects Adore

What’s the best way to have a ready source of insects in your garden?  Garden with native plants.  While there are a variety of reasons to use native plants, the one that appeals to many gardeners is that they are indeed a food source to many insects which in turn means the insects that are feasting on your native plants will be a food source for a variety of birds.  In fact, our native goldenrod (Solidago) supports over 100 different native species of insects. 

If you are looking for a vibrant addition to your garden for late summer through early fall color, you can’t go wrong with goldenrod.  Did you know that while goldenrod gets the blame for causing hay fever in the fall, hay fever is actually caused by ragweed (Ambrosia) which just so happens to look like goldenrod and also just so happens to bloom at approximately the same time.  So don’t be afraid to plant some in your garden.

I just planted two different Solidago cultivars in my test garden a few weeks ago.  For some reason, I was having a hard time finding any goldenrod in the nurseries in my area so I decided to order some from High Country Gardens.  At the same time I ordered some ornamental oregano (Origanum), which again I could not locate locally.  So far, the oregano is doing better than the goldenrod but I know from past experience, you have to be very patient with mail-order plants.  I find they typically take an extra growing season or two to really take off .  That’s one of the reasons I try to buy locally whenever possible.

I’ll keep you posted on the progress of the baby robins.  Check back soon for more photos.

Notes From My Test Garden…Lagerstroemia indica

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I had visions of this in my head in Sept. 2008

I had visions of this in my head in Sept. 2008

In September 2008,  I bought a Lagerstroemia indica ‘Tuscarora’ (Tuscarora crape myrtle) for our Stamford, CT (zone 6) garden.  I’d wanted a crape myrtle for some time but could never find a cold-hardy specimen that I liked and was willing to spend the money on since I suspected I was taking a chance by trying to grow one in my garden.

I’ve used crape myrtles in some of my landscape designs and they had performed splendidly but those gardens were a bit further south and located in zone 7.    I had also seen some mature specimens right here in Stamford, but again they were planted in an area that was a bit warmer than my northern Stamford garden.  When I stumbled upon Tuscarora at a reputable nursery in the area that was labeled as cold hardy to zone 6 , I decided to buy one. 

When I planted it, it was already in bloom, actually it was almost finished blooming, and it was about 4′ tall.  Even though it was labeled as cold-hardy to zone 6, I decided to plant it in a sheltered area on the western side of my house.  I wanted it to be the focal point of that area of the garden and I was so excited that I finally had my crape myrtle.

Cold hardy crape myrtle?

Cold hardy crape myrtle?

Well, this is how it looks today!  While I guess it technically is still alive I must say I am upset that it has died back to roots only – but I’m not giving up on it yet.  (My husband keeps urging me to pull it out all together but I just can’t give up on it).  When I took this photo on June 11th, the tallest new shoot was almost 12″ high.  I’d slowly cut back the branches until I found green wood (indicating that part of the tree was still alive).  I was hoping that I might get some new growth from the trunks that have green wood but so far that hasn’t happened.

According to the National Arboretum website, the definition of cold hardy is ‘able to withstand cold weather conditions’.  The topic of cold hardiness is more complicated than many people realize and I won’t get into the particulars here but if you’re interested in a not-too scientific explanation, click here.

Maybe I’d planted Tuscarora too late in the season last fall and it didn’t have a chance to get acclimated before the cold weather set in.  Or maybe my sheltered spot wasn’t as sheltered as I thought.  I may never know what happened to Tuscarora over the winter but I am so happy the roots seemed to have survived.  I’ll keep you posted on it’s progress over the course of the growing season.  If anyone has any crape myrtle growing tips for me, I’d love to hear them all.

Welcome To My Test Garden

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Part of My Test Garden

Part of My Test Garden

Several years ago I decided to use parts of my garden as a ‘test garden’ so I could see how plants behaved under different growing conditions (can plants labeled as full sun actually thrive in part shade), to see how placement of plants affects deer browsing (I’m beginning to think there is something to the theory of deer pathways and how plants planted near a known deer pathway are highly vulnerable to browsing), to see if plants  recently listed as cold-hardy for zone 6 will survive here in Stamford, CT (stay tuned for a post about my Crape Myrtle) and often just to see how plants actually perform in garden situations.   The way a plant grows here in my Connecticut garden (zone 6) will be different than how it grows somewhere else.

As a landscape designer and garden coach, I am especially interested in real-life performance so I can relate that experience to my clients.  My test garden allow me to ‘try out’ plant combinations in my own garden before using them in a client’s garden. I can observe plant combinations over an entire growing season, not just a day or two.  Since every garden is constantly changing, it never looks the same for more than a few days at a time.  It’s easy to focus on flower color when combining plants but a successful marriage of plants is about more than color.  I have seen plant combinations that are pleasing during the spring and summer become spectacular during the fall as foliage changes color.  And I’ve found the opposite true too!

And I always looking for ways to outsmart the deer so that I can grow more ornamentals that are not on the ‘deer-resistant’ plant list.  Yes, I know, no plant is truly deer-resistant but I am always interested in trying out plants that other area gardeners have luck with to see how they perform for me. 

Northern Sea Oats

Northern Sea Oats

One problem with a test garden is that I ignore some of the rules of good landscape design that I try hard to impress on my clients.  I may buy more than one of the same variety of plant but I rarely plant them next to each other to create drifts of color or interest.  For example, I just purchased three Chasmanthium latofolium (Northern Sea Oats) , a wonderful native ornamental grass that is supposed to thrive in a wide range of site conditions, and planted one in full shade and the other two in varying degrees of part shade.  While many gardening books list Northern Sea Oats as a partial shade plant I have seen some that say it will survive in full shade so I’m looking forward to seeing how they all perform this year.

I also use my test garden to try out different kinds of deer repellent.  I have had varying degrees of success with different products and am currently trialing Liquid Fence since I’ve heard such great things about it from other gardeners who swear by it.  I just sprayed for the first time last week and all I can say for sure it that it is by far the worst smelling product I’ve ever used in my garden!

More Notes From My Test Garden to follow shortly…