Lawn FertilizerWritten by Linda Paquette
Let’s not talk about lawn fertilizer. Let’s talk about air. Air has oxygen and carbon dioxide and a bunch of other elements in it but mostly air is composed of nitrogen. This is good news for your lawn since other day I read this, “Few soils have enough natural nitrogen to maintain desired turf grass quality and recuperative ability throughout growing season.” However, good news is that grass is one of most efficient nitrogen processors on planet!Now, if you want to fertilize your lawn, you can find plenty of information on how to do it from every company that sells chemical lawn fertilizers on Internet. However, fertilizer is really just a four-letter word— food. Lawn fertilizer, like any other type of fertilizer is plant food. Unfortunately, for your lawn that isn’t a dirty word, because lawn fertilizer typically does nothing for soil. At best, it’s only a temporary fix for your turf. Fertilizer Facts Fertilizers have three major components: •(N) Nitrogen: promotes blade growth, forms proteins and chlorophyll (the green stuff) •(P) Phosphorus: helps root, flower, and fruit development – last two are probably elements you don’t want to see in your lawn! •(K) Potassium: Helps stems and roots grow and helps your grass turn protein into nutrients (photosynthesis)
| | How to Transplant LilacsWritten by LeAnn R. Ralph
Lilacs are exceptionally easy to transplant. I have transplanted many lilac bushes from original bushes that my grandmother planted on our Wisconsin dairy farm 70 years ago. Early spring until late spring, from when lilacs develop buds until they actually have small leaves, is best time to transplant. If you have lilacs growing in your yard -- or if you have a friend who has lilacs -- and you would like to start some new lilac bushes, here's how:1. Decide where you want to transplant lilac bush or bushes. 2. Dig a hole that's about one foot deep by one foot across for each bush you want to transplant. 3. Dig up a lilac shoot from somewhere around main bush. Lilacs spread by runners. Use a shovel to dig up shoot because you are going to have to cut off runner, and a trowel will not be tough enough to do job. Choose a shoot that is approximately 8 to 14 inches high. Smaller shoots that are only a few inches high will take a very long time to mature to point where they will have flowers. Larger shoots seem to take a longer time to recover from being transplanted before they start to grow well. Do not worry about how much root you are getting with shoot. You will not be able to take all of root since roots are all connected.
|
