More rain and Snow

Snow up near Vida and a LOT more rain on the valley floor.

Time to haul out some plastic to cover the raised beds shed the water.

Grass is growing out of control.

Keep plants covers for a while

Another cold wet day. It was snowing in Noti this AM. Keep the plants covered.

Cover the plants!!!

Monday March 29

The blustery weather pattern has arrived. A lot of wind. from eastern WA / OR to the coast have been clocking in with gusts over 35 mph. Plenty of moisture arrived, with more on the way. “It was snowing heavily at Hoodoo at 2:30 pm this afternoon.”

Potential for some serious THUNDERSTORMS over the entire region. Heavy rain, HAIL, and very strong localized winds probable, esp late Mon into Tue. LIGHTNING STRIKES also in play.

Another set front is due in following Fools Day, with more heavy rain, winds, mtn snow. For the full story see - http://ovs.com/weather_cafe.htm

Asparagus

Perfect time to plant asparagus.
Time to plant potatoes if planting them into old bales of hay.

Thank You

Thanks to all who have started to control their celandine. I have heard from a lot of people working to get this weed under control. Extension and ODA thank you.

Weather Alert

SPECIAL UPDATE - Stormy, chilly, and potentially WINDY weather. This is geared towards patrons that have hoop tunnels and soft covered greenhouses.

Storms due to begin 3/28 lasting until at least 3/7. There is potential for rather STRONG WINDS (for late Mar/Apr) to the PNW. Wind gusts exceeding 35 mph can pose issues for hoop, tunnel, greenhouse coverings. BE PREPARED - use this week, while dry, secure and protect greenhouse materials JUST IN CASE winds next week. Moderate-to-heavy RAIN is also likely over the course of several days. Get ground work completed this week.

http://ovs.com/weather_cafe.htm

Lesser celandine controls

Controls: Celandine has specialized overwintering buds which makes it difficult to control. People can control lesser celandine by repeatedly digging it out and sifting through the dirt for the buds; removal and covering the area with 4-6 inches of sheet compost and/or cardboard; smother with old carpet or plastic; repeated mowing every 3-4 weeks; use of herbicides to control vegetation. Celandine has spread by well meaning neighbors who have “shared” the plant with others since it blooms in the early spring and has a very bright yellow flower.

Lesser celandine

Controls for lesser celandine will soon follow. This weed is taking over understory plants and needs to be controlled ASAP. It came in as an ornamental and has been given away as very colorful spring plant. HOWEVER, it spreads quickly. ODA and Extension need your help in controlling this weed!

This week

Control less celandine, a new noxious and invasive weed which is found in MANY of our yards. I have a patch 3x12!!.
Prune and fertilize gooseberry and currant.
Divide hosta, daylilies and mums.

Weekend

Finish pruning.
Compost garden.
Rototill garden - check soil. Dig hole, grab soil. If it is wet or is sticky...wait to till. If it is crumbly, go forth and till!!!!
Lane Co Farms market starts April 3rd.
Learn about GREAT Extension programs - got to: extension.oregonstate.edu/lane/

Weather

Forecast are for nicer weather,. Be aware of early AM cold.
March 15-April 1 - fertilize all fruit trees.
Fertilize rhodie, camellias, azaleas, with acid fertilizer: 21-0-0 or organic fertilizer with sulfur.
Soils temps OK for cole crops.

Two days

In two days it should be dry enough to start the gardening-farming expereince.
Be aware that some soils are still very wet. Peaching still doing OK. Cherries, pears and apples pushing.

Hints

Soil is still very wet.
When dry, plant peas, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, chard, lettuce.
Lawns are getting long.
Be aware of the "goo" coming from cedar trees is the Coast Cedar rust which affects apples and pears. Not much can be done. However, the apple and pears are NOT in bloom so the rust may go away before bloom.

Cedar rust and pears

OSU Extension Plant Pathologist has noted that serviceberry (Amelanchier) are in bud break and cedars have spores ready to go. Rain means a big infection period for rust. Rust spores on the cedars do not infect cedars. They infect the rosaceous host like Amelanchier or Pear.

http://plant-disease.ippc.orst.edu/disease.cfm?RecordID=254

General info

Seeing lots of damage to plants from the December freeze.
Prune roses to 6" ASAP.
Finish pruning.
Compost lawn clippings. Don't apply Weed and Feed to lawns and compost lawn clippings, this will contaminate the compost pile.

Cold

At 10:00 pm the temp outside is 30 degrees. If the temp goes as normal, 6:00 am could be rough on the peaches.

More on pruning

We can prune Nov.-March. Best to prune Feb. 15-Mar.1. After March the buds begin to open and as long as you are careful, only a few buds are knocked off. Fruit trees only need 25% of the buds to have a full crop.

Master Gardener Plant Sale

Attend the biggest plant sale in the area, the Master Gardener-Garden Fair and Plant sale, held April 24, 9am-2pm, at the OSU Extension Service, 950 W 13 Avenue, Eugene. There will be plants of all types, recycle garden art, live music, bake sale, compost specialists, info booths, Sustainable landscape info., garden products, kids corner, garden books and tools.

Gardens

It is after March 1st so gardens can start going in now.
Plat peas, cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower.
The soil may still be a bit wet.
With all of the rain, add lime at 40 pounds per 500 sq feet.

Garden and Farms, pt. 2

Pt. – B 2-Facebook has two Groups: A-Garden Hints which covers current gardening ideas. The OSU Farm Forum, where farmers make daily comments. You can belong to all groups. The Blog and Garden Hints are similar. Please check out these sites and give comments as to how well they work. Send to those people who might have an interest in gardening or farming. Thank you for your support.

Gardens and Farms - pt. 1

Pt. A - Gardeners/farmers - I’ve developed sites for garden and farming information for people near and far. People are using different social media’s. This is a test to see which media is best for getting info out. Two sites have been designed. 1-Blog at: http://osuextensionlanecounty.blogspot.com/ or search for “Gardening Hints for Oregon”.