Rosie Lerner, Purdue Extension Consumer Horticulture Specialist
HOME (Indoor plants and activities)
Begin fertilizing houseplants as new growth appears. Keep spent leaves and
flowers removed to improve appearance and encourage more blooms.
Start garden seeds indoors for transplanting outdoors later in spring.
Check stored bulbs and produce for decay; discard damaged items.
Prune, repot and clean houseplants as needed.
YARD (Lawns, woody ornamentals and fruits)
Prune trees and shrubs, except those that bloom early in spring, while plants
are still dormant.
Plant new trees and shrubs as soon as soil dries enough to be worked. Plant
bare-root plants before they leaf out.
Fertilize woody plants before new growth begins, but after soil temperatures
have reached 40 F - it might be several weeks early this year, given the mild
winter.
Remove winter coverings from roses as soon as new growth begins. Prune and
fertilize as needed.
Apply superior oil spray to control scale insects and mites when tips of
leaves start to protrude from buds.
GARDEN (Flowers, vegetables and small fruits)
Plant cool-season vegetables and flowers as soon as the ground has dried
enough to work. Do NOT work the soil while it is wet; wait until it crumbles in
your hand. If the soil forms a solid ball when squeezed, it's still too wet.
Gradually harden off transplants by setting them outdoors during the daytime
for about a week before planting.
Follow last fall's soil test recommendations for fertilizer and pH
adjustment. It's not too late to test soil if you missed last year.
Start seeds of warm-season vegetables and flowers indoors; in northern and
central Indiana, wait until the end of March or early April. Transplant to the
garden after danger of frost is past.
Watch for blooms of early spring bulbs, such as daffodils, squill, crocus,
dwarf iris and snowdrops.
Remove old asparagus and rhubarb tops, and sidedress the plants with nitrogen
or manure. Plant or transplant asparagus, rhubarb and small fruit plants.
Remove winter mulch from strawberry beds as soon as new growth begins, but
keep the mulch nearby to protect against frost and freezes.
Remove weak, diseased or damaged canes from raspberry plants before new
growth begins. Remove old fruiting canes if not removed last year, and shorten
remaining canes if necessary.
Prune grapevines.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
New Vegetable Varieties in 2012
What better way to scratch your gardening itch this winter than to page
through garden catalogs or surf websites with the promise of mouth-watering
produce for the coming growing season! Here's a look at just a few of the new
vegetable seed offerings for 2012. Try a few alongside your old standby
favorites so that you can compare performance in your garden. See the full list here.
Corn and Soybean Export Progress
In December 2011, the USDA judged total corn production
prospects in Argentina and Brazil at 3.54 billion bushels. That forecast was
reduced by 120 million bushels in January and by an additional 160 million
bushels earlier this month. All of the reduction has been for the Argentine
crop. Similarly, combined soybean production in those two countries was
forecast at 4.67 billion bushels in December, but was reduced by 90 million
bushels in January and an additional 165 million bushels earlier this month.
Total precipitation has been well below average in southern
Brazil since late January, suggesting that production there may fall short of
the current forecast. Prospects for much smaller South American crops than
initially forecast have raised expectations for stronger export demand for U.S.
corn and soybeans during the remainder of the 2011-12 marketing year and in the
first half of the 2012-13 marketing year. Over the past two months, the USDA
has raised the U.S. corn export forecast for the current year by 100 million
bushels, to a total of 1.7 billion bushels. The forecast is still 100 million
bushels below the initial forecast made in May 2011 and 135 million less than
exports of a year ago. The forecast of U.S. soybean exports during the current
year has declined steadily from the initial forecast of 1.54 billion bushels to
the current forecast of 1.275 billion bushels, 226 million less than exported
last year. <Read More>
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