Seeds

Preparing for Spring on CRIS Radio

Posted on February 21, 2025February 27, 2025 by Zidack, Heather

Transcript

00:00:01 Stephen Thal

Hi, welcome to another segment on focal Point. This is Stephen Thal and I'm your host for today's program.

We're going to be learning a lot about getting ready for the spring when we realize the weather is still not quite ready for spring flowers, but we want to get everybody thinking about it. So when the time comes, they'll have some ammunition and be prepared to get in there and get their hands dirty.

00:00:31 Stephen Thal

To help us understand that we have Heather from the plant and science program at the University of Connecticut. Welcome back Heather.

00:00:41 Heather Zidack

Hi Stephen. Thanks for having me back!

00:00:43 Stephen Thal

Yeah, it's great because you gave everybody some spirits to think about and encouragement. One of the things that we've been reading about lately is about climate control. And we were curious, you know, as we look around the country, different things are happening. People can't seem to explain why the weather has changed so drastically, and we're sure that this will impact the way we think about our flowers and the way we want to put a garden in and do herbs. Can you help us understand what climate control may be doing to this?

00:01:22 Heather Zidack

Yeah. So there are some things that we are noticing, especially from people just calling into our office with , um, in relation to climate change and a couple of the big things that have happened in 2023, I believe it was the fall of 2023 they did change the USDA hardiness zones. Which, when you're shopping for plants, your zone is actually going to tell you the coldest temperature that plants can tolerate to survive in your area. And so Connecticut, we're about a Zone 6 at this point, is the safe one. But it did shift and so there are parts of the state that are even seeing some warmer. Especially Shoreline is a little closer to zone 7.

And you can look that up through the USDA to see the change from the zones. But that's a big change. Part of that happened because they had more data points and they could actually get more weather stations to report on what was going on, so it became a little more accurate in that sense. But we are also seeing some climate change effects happening as well.

We’ve seen you know a lot of flooding over the past couple years. Remember up in you know, Vermont, New Hampshire, they had some of those floods that led to crop loss and contamination of fields. Storms with heavy winds can damage a lot of crops sometimes.

And higher heat and humidity can affect your gardens as well.

So if you're looking for management techniques, the first thing that you can do is make sure that you're providing enough water and nutritional support to your plants to endure any stresses that they might see during the growing season. So get a soil test.

Have your your soil ready to go. Know what fertilizer you need.

And make sure you're watering. Not too much, not too little. But you're keeping up with what the plants need. That's going to help them build their defenses, just like when we take vitamin C in the winter to prevent colds.

If you're going to be seeing some hot weather come around and there's heat management strategies, one of the first things you want to do is remove weeds. It actually helps to increase air flow around the plants and also remove competition for some of those nutrients and water that I talked about a minute ago.

You can also use shade cloth or something to kind of keep the plants out of the hot hot heat of the sun, especially on those really hot days. If you're able to, If you've got potted plants and you can move them to a a sheltered spot on those hot days it works for them.

But those are a couple heat management strategies.

00:03:58 Stephen Thal

What about bugs?

00:03:59 Heather Zidack

For me? Oh.

00:04:00 Stephen Thal

What about anima-, little bugs like fleas, ticks, beetles?

00:04:04 Heather Zidack

Yeah, well, it's something that we notice in the garden and when we see these different fluctuations in heat and temperature. We see a lot of fluctuations in our insect populations.

So we do see there have been some instances where you haven't had the ability to really have a good kill off of everything in the environment. And so the next year we see more bugs coming out. Our office deals primarily with the garden insects and the pathogens. So seeing things like-Last year, there was a lot of Japanese beetles. Last year there was a lot of fungal infections.

Really, the best thing that you can do for that is again making sure any weeds are gone so they don't have anywhere to hide in your garden. You can also space your plants as they're recommended in order to make sure that you're having good airflow and good movement in between them, and again you're removing hiding places and you also want to prune all your woody ornamentals to encourage air flow too.

So if those are some good strategies for that.

00:05:09 Stephen Thal

You mentioned fertilizer and doing soil testing. Is there a phone number that people can call and how do they do that?

00:05:17 Heather Zidack

Absolutely, so soil testing can be done anytime that the ground is not frozen, so I think we're in the one time of the year where we can't do it right now, but once the ground thaws, the UConn Soil Nutrient Analysis Lab is available for testing.They do a standard nutrient test and that covers all the basic nutrients that you would need for your home garden as well as pH so their phone number is 860-486-4274.

Again, that's 860-486-4274.

00:05:57 Stephen Thal

Ok, Great.

00:05:58 Stephen Thal

So we now got to prepare for maintaining our house plants. As well as taking care of those that we choose to go outside and give them some fresh air and not allow too much heat, how are we going to do this?

How do we prepare for it?

00:06:16 Heather Zidack

Yeah. So one of the things that you want to make sure that you're doing, it's still a little too cold to put anything outside just yet. You want to remember that our target is 50° at night before you're putting any plants outside.

What you want to do with your house plans inside is you want to check for water. Make sure that they're accurate adequately-They have enough moisture in the pot.

You want to check with your fingers, make sure that it's not clumping up too much in your hand. You want to make sure that it's also not like sand texture. You want to make sure there's an even moisture you might not need to water as much right now, especially if your plants are dormant, just like we don't think about hydration much in the winter, because we're not outside and in the heat, plants are the same way. So check before you water every time.

The other thing that you can do right now is dust the leaves to scout for pests and disease.

You can also start fertilizing your house plants when you see new and active growth. So like if there's new leaves, if there's new buds, if they're new shoots, those are signs your plant is waking up and you could use a little food at that point.

And you want to make sure that you're checking any bulbs or plants that you have in winter storage. So if you dug anything up from your yard, like Canna lilies or Gladiolus bulbs or anything like that, check those bulbs in storage.

Make sure they’re firm. Make sure there's no discoloration or smell to them and they should have some kind of humidity with them, but not too much. So if you had stored them in peat Moss, maybe missed in with the bottle for a second, but they don't need sopping water just yet. So you want to check all of those things.

00:07:56 Stephen Thal

And what kind of tools do we need to help us with our projects?

00:08:03 Heather Zidack

So big thing right now is going to be pruning season, so you can use-depends on the the size of the plant. But if you're outside, you want to have some some good hand pruners or some loppers- Depends on the size of your branches, but pruning right now is an advantage because there's low disease and low pest pressure outside, so plants can easily recover without being exposed to any other diseases.

In general, people use hand pruners or like I said Loppers which are a little bit larger to cut their their trees back.

And the rule that you follow is the rule of thirds. You don't want to cut off more than 1/3 of the entire plant if you want to leave 2/3 standing. And that ensures that there's enough of a ratio between roots and shoots that there's healthy regrowth.

With that being said there are some different pruning techniques that can be suggested for different species of plants.

So always consult with an arborist or landscaper or give our office a call. If you ever have any questions.

00:09:10 Stephen Thal

And what about choosing the right fertilizer?

I know there are many different kinds. I know I've heard of fertilizer from Maine where they save all of the lobster shells, crab shells and mix them all together. And that's supposed to be good too, for your plants.

00:09:29 Heather Zidack

There's all kinds of fertilizers out there and so. There's different products that are organic. You have things like manures and composts and things like that. Also have synthetic materials like regular. You have coast of Maine like you talked about. The important thing when you're looking for fertilizers, we always recommend getting that soil test first. Because you want to know what your baseline is, right?

You want to know where you're starting before you add anything else. Once you have that, the soil test is going to tell you in general terms you have 3 numbers on a bag. If you look at a bag of fertilizer, there's going to be usually something like the effect of 10-10-10, 5-5-5, 10-15-10 20-20-20, something like that.

Those 3 numbers there, those 3 numbers represent in this order nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. So when you're looking at those numbers, you're actually looking at a percentage of how much of that nutrient is in the bag.

00:10:31 Heather Zidack

So once you have your soil test for example and it says you are deficient in potassium. So, NPK, your third number there would be the one that you would want to add a little bit more of you would maybe look for something like a 5-5-10.

00:10:47 Heather Zidack

It all depends on what your soil test comes out as and what you're actually looking for with a specific crop, so it's hard to give a generalization, but knowing how to read that bag is your first step in knowing what to shop for when you're ready.

00:11:02 Stephen Thal

If we're going ahead and deciding to plant herbs, is this a good time of the year inside to get those started?

00:11:11 Heather Zidack

Absolutely. There's a lot of plants that you can start right now. Herbs are going to be great for kitchen gardens. You can pretty much start them any time of year.

Great for culinary purposes, but they're also loved by pollinators. The Swallow tail Caterpillar in particular loves things like dill and parsley plants, and they're all over them in my yard. So I actually grow a little extra just for them.

00:11:35 Heather Zidack

You get a lot of fragrance and texture out of all of the fresh herbs, which is fantastic, and it can be easily done, indoor or outdoor.

So right now you would want to start everything indoors that you want. The really cool thing with herbs is that there are some of them, like basil is an example. You know how they sell the basil plants in grocery stores, right?

00:11:56 Stephen Thal

Right.

00:11:57 Heather Zidack

So what you can do is you can actually cut off a stem of that basil, remove the leaves up to like the first leaf, maybe the first 3 or 4 leaves up there, put it in water, and it'll send out its own roots that you could then put in a pot yourself.

00:12:12 Heather Zidack

So you don't necessarily even need to do anything with seeds. You can do cuttings to keep your herbs going.

00:12:17 Heather Zidack

The only thing I would recommend is to plant if you're going to plant mint. Keep it in containers and keep it away from the ground. Don't put it outside unless you want to grow it for the rest of your life. It does have a pretty aggressive tendency, and once it hits the ground and gets rooted in, it can just grow and grow and grow. And then you have mint in that area forever.

But other than that, herbs are great to start right now.

00:12:43 Heather Zidack

A lot of people are starting, especially if they do cut flowers and small seeded plants right now. Like if you think snapdragons. If you think Cosmos, some of those they need to start now because they need a lot of time to grow. Veggie wise. People are starting things like broccoli and Brussels sprouts at this point.

Most people have started like onions and shallots by now, but you probably still have time if you were to do it like right now. And so really, there's a lot of different veggies that you could be starting right now.

00:13:19 Stephen Thal

Yeah, those are are very critical things that we have to keep keep aware of.

00:13:26 Heather Zidack

Yeah, timing is everything with when it comes to starting.

00:13:30 Stephen Thal

Right. And this is Stephen Thal with another segment on Focal Point and we're interviewing Heather from the Yukon plant and Science program and they offer a lot of help to citizens in the state. In terms of not only analyzing the soil, but talking to you about the different kinds of plants or herbs that you might want to consider starting and what has to be done to maintain them, and we know that Climate change has strongly impacted the way we have to do our season so that we can take all of our hard labor in to make sure we get some good results and not have it fail for us during the during the coming growing season.

00:14:20 Stephen Thal

I think it.

00:14:20 Heather Zidack

Yeah.

00:14:21 Stephen Thal

I think it forces us to have a have a little more time to work with this.

00:14:30 Heather Zidack

Yeah, it's really interesting. You know the frost date is a big thing that's important when you start planting seeds and when you start planting outside, especially with vegetable gardens and a lot of gardeners-

I remember, even when I was young, used to plant right around Mother's Day, which is in mid-May. In the past couple years, we probably could have done that, but you have to really watch the weather.

I've seen a few seasons where you're waiting past Memorial Day, which is the end of May at this point, and it's-For me, Memorial Day has become more of that target. Be like-this Is definitely the weekend things are going to go in.

You can keep an eye on the weather. And as long as the weather is staying above, you know, we're not getting frost. You can put your seedlings out, but you're taking a risk because we can have a frost anytime in that spring, part of May, and if you do you can lose your seedlings, so if you do put anything in the ground a little bit early do so with caution.

Keep an eye on the weather and be prepared to be able to run out and cover them if you need to. We always recommend like fabric coverings like either a towel or a sheet or a pillow case or something like that to cover your plants if they're in the ground and we have a frost coming. Using anything like plastic is definitely going to exacerbate the problem and cause more damage when it comes to frost and freezes than anything else.

So I would say. Look at your frost date.

I know the Farmers Almanac has a target frost date that you can look up, but if you want to play on the super safe side, I plant right around Memorial Day and that's a good time to plant, be outside and make sure that you're keeping an eye on the weather when you're putting things out.

00:16:21 Stephen Thal

Are there specific questions you should be asking the local gardeners or when you go in and buy things? To make sure you're getting the things that you want, especially the different plants.

00:16:35 Heather Zidack

Yeah, you want to look for quality seed whenever you're purchasing. In general, most garden centres have. Seed that is timely. So you're going to see, just like we have certain products in the grocery store that have like an expiration date. There are seeds that have that date planted on the back.

They should be packed for this year and I believe they have to sell seeds that are packed for this year, so that's not something that you have to worry about too much, but it is good to know where to look for that information. Look at where It will say “packed for” and then it will have the year on there.

It'll also show the germination rate, which is how well, the seed will actually sprout. That's advertised on the envelope as well as like a quality control and so you want to make sure that it's got a good germination rate.

I've seen seed products before that I've purchased where they had a note on the envelope that said last year we had a low germination rate. So this year we're giving you extra seed and in the envelope it was a little heavier pack than what it had been in previous year.

So you want to make sure you've got a good germination rate. You want to make sure that there's a a date that's packed for this year. Those are both more important than anything like brand. You want to make sure that you're looking for good seed when you're starting.

Something to keep in mind is that there are- if you are someone who saves seeds from year to year, you want to make sure you're storing them well. Keeping them in a cool, dry area.

And if you do have seeds that are either seed that you've saved and you have a history of, like plant disease in previous years, or if you've bought untreated seeds and you have a reason to have concern that maybe you had some kind of, you know, plant disease a previous year. You can have your seeds treated with something called hot water seed treatment and our plant diagnostic lab does that.

00:18:37 Heather Zidack

To help make sure that there are no pathogens on the feed when you plant them in the ground to give them a healthy start. So that's an option, especially if you have a history of disease in your garden that some gardeners do like to take advantage of.

00:18:52 Stephen Thal

Oh, that's good.

00:18:53 Stephen Thal

Are there any special plants that some of the gardeners may be putting out this for sale that we need to be aware of, especially for the disease?

00:19:04 Heather Zidack

So you want to be careful with-I will say if you're looking at things like plant swaps and you're going to like Garden Club plant swaps and things like that, we did help out a lot of garden clubs last year as they were looking at how to do this while still being aware of the jumping warm issue. And so jumping worms are an invasive worm that are going from property to property and the best way to make sure that they don't transfer between properties is to make sure that your roots of your plants are cleaned off.

So. A lot of, especially at plant swaps, a lot of these garden clubs were having people dig their plants that they were willing to donate. Rinse the plants off at the roots. Repot them into soilless potting media.

And then they were willing to trade them and and exchange them at these swaps.

So you want to make sure if you are going to plant swaps, they are taking some kind of precaution like that and if they are not, you can still take the plant home but you want to make sure that you're doing the rinsing of the roots to make sure that nothing is coming onto your property.

00:20:18 Heather Zidack

We had a lot of garden clubs that were able to take some of these procedures and be very successful with their plant swaps and not have to worry about it at all. But education is that first step in knowing how to manage this issue right and so that way they knew that they had to rinse the roots. They had to keep their gardeners educated on how to prevent this from spreading, and they were able to still have plant swaps and stuff, so not encouraging any fear of plant swaps.

Just kind of giving you that heads up of tou may need to wash the roots if you bring some.

00:20:50 Stephen Thal

Yeah, those are very important things. And I think also as a person who may be out with your plants or just sitting in the yard admiring them, I think we need to remind people to wear their sunglasses and to wear a hat and use proper sun protection.

00:21:07 Heather Zidack

Very important. I always used to tell my colleagues when I worked at a garden center, I'd say water the plants and water yourself.

00:21:16 Stephen Thal

That's good.

00:21:17 Stephen Thal

Yeah. Good.

00:21:20 Stephen Thal

Any other items you'd like to have us our listeners be aware of and enjoy their spring fling in the garden and in their house plants.

00:21:32 Heather Zidack

Yeah. One of the things that I would love to make everyone aware of is that the Connecticut Flower and Garden show is coming up at the end of February. It's going to be February 20th to 23rd at the Hartford Convention Center and the Home and Garden Education Center, Myself and my colleagues will be there answering garden questions.

So if you have garden questions, please feel free to stop by and say hi to us. We've also got speakers that are going to be there every single day. And it's a nice taste of spring because a lot of local landscapers and garden centres will do full on displays.

00:22:10 Heather Zidack

It's very cold. We're starting to see Snow and it's nice to take a break and just have that smell of fresh flowers all around and everything. So it's a great opportunity to get a taste of spring. And get your garden questions answered. If you need to see us. So it's really good coming up.

00:22:29 Heather Zidack

The other thing that I have for advice, if you're looking for spring a little bit early is if you have anything like Dogwood, forsythia, crab apple in your house or in your property, you can take cuttings of them and put the branches in warm water.

And they could force the flowers to open right now. So you could get a little bit of spring early in your house by doing that.

00:22:53 Heather Zidack

The other thing that's really important to keep in mind is that if you are an avid gardener. It's a good time to take any of your tools that are in the shed and make sure they're in proper working order. Make sure that all of the handles are tightened.

Make sure everything is sharpened if it needs to be sharpened and paint the handles with a bright red or bright orange paint to help you see them when you put them down in the garden.

00:23:17 Stephen Thal

Yeah. And I think also lawn mowers or any working tools like that should be taken to a mechanic to make sure everything's working.

00:23:24 Heather Zidack

Absolutely anything with an engine. Don't do yourself.

00:23:30 Stephen Thal

Yeah. Sounds like you've had some experiences.

00:23:34 Heather Zidack

Yeah.

00:23:35 Stephen Thal

Now in terms of plants, we have to watch out for some of these poisons that may be used to help plants. Are there any that we should avoid?

00:23:47 Heather Zidack

So most of the ones, fortunately, that you want to avoid too much are not allowed for sale to homeowners. That's a really, really good thing.

What you want to make sure that you're looking at if if anyone is using any chemicals in the garden. Every single product has a label on it, and that label has to match whatever you're trying to to achieve, right?

So If you're trying to eliminate cabbage worms, for example, in your garden. That label needs to say that that product will take care of cabbage worm.

Otherwise you should not be using it whatsoever, and so we say this recommendation with any chemical, but also all of those home remedies that you hear about. We don't recommend using them because there's not that science to back it up that says this label identifies the cabbage worms. And cabbage worms are my identified problem so this is going to work. So that's one of the first things.

00:24:45 Heather Zidack

The other thing that's really important in making sure that you're monitoring regularly and looking for bugs. Because a lot of times if you can take care of the problem early, you don't necessarily need those chemicals. Or there could be other ways to manage it before you get to that point. So as soon as you see something, get a picture and we could help you or have someone at a garden center help you identify what's what's going on. And what you can do to treat it.

00:25:14 Heather Zidack

Reading that label is the most important thing that anybody can do, and it's the safest thing because you want to make sure you're doing targeted approaches to target species when you're using any chemicals in the garden.

00:25:27 Stephen Thal

Yeah. And also if you have a bug you're not familiar with, put it in a little container and send it up to you guys.

00:25:35 Heather Zidack

Yes, we can do that. We do insect identification-insects found in the garden. If, if they're found inside the home, we usually recommend like either a pest control expert or there's other resources available, but we are definitely able to do any garden pest.

00:25:53 Stephen Thal

Yeah. How about the got local garden clubs? Can they be helpful too?

00:25:58 Heather Zidack

Sometimes! They actually have some good resources.

00:26:03 Heather Zidack

If you're looking for an identification or a diagnosis, it really is good to come to the either the plant diagnostic lab or our office here because we have the connection to the diagnostic lab. But there are garden clubs. There are a lot of people with a lot of knowledge about gardening. The the reason that we we pride ourselves on is because we have a lot of research based information that we’re able to share with our clients.

00:26:31 Stephen Thal

Well, we want to thank you for coming in and sharing this vital information for getting your spring things started.

00:26:40 Heather Zidack

Thank you so much for having me.

00:26:40 Stephen Thal

And you know well, give us a call when the neck was a fall we have to get ready.

Or. If there's any alerts, we can send them out.

00:26:50 Heather Zidack

Yes, I will let you know if there's anything else.

00:26:55 Stephen Thal

Well, I thank you very much, Heather, for coming on again. At the program we really enjoyed.

I'm sure I got a lot out of it and I'm sure people here got a lot out of it.

Appreciate you and your staff for all you do, why don't you give your number one more time?

00:27:12 Heather Zidack

Yes, if anybody has gardening questions for us, they can call and our number is 877-486-6271. Again, that's 877-486-6271.

00:27:31 Stephen Thal

OK, very , good. Thank you. Everybody thank you.

Thank you for all you do to help make us a successful spring season.

00:27:39 Heather Zidack

Yes, thank you for having me. Have a good spring!

00:27:41 Stephen Thal

Like this is Steven Thal and another segment on focal point and we wanted to thank you the listeners for listening to all of the focal point programs.

00:27:53 Stephen Thal

As we mentioned earlier in the program, please wear your sunglasses and a hat because the sun is going to be a lot stronger this year because of climate changes.

And also practice a family plan. If you don't know anything about it, contact a local fire department or go on the computer regarding emergency fire plans and involve everybody in in the House and doing a piece of it. And if you practice it a few times and also make sure that. Your fire alarm batteries or whatever are up to date cause a lot of them today are lasting 10 years.

So get involved because life you say may be your own.

00:28:36 Stephen Thal

Thank you for allowing us into your homes. Safe and stay healthy.

Shine a Light – But Which One?

Posted on February 15, 2025February 18, 2025 by Zidack, Heather

By Emily Leahy, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Seedlings under LED lights — Seedlings growing under programmable LED lights. Photo by H. Zidack

The dead of winter brings a longing to spend time outside in the garden again. While this may not be possible yet, it is easy to craft your own growing space indoors. The elements of the outdoors that allow plants to thrive – light, warmth, and water – can all be brought indoors with a little creativity and the right resources.

Some steps remain unchanged. Still, refer to the plant’s label for guidance on choosing a proper container, water and nutrient needs, as well as temperature preferences. Guidelines on how much light the plant should receive can also be found on the label – but how can this be applied indoors?

One of the more challenging aspects to simulate, indoors, is an adequate amount of light. When outside, plants rely on the sun for light needed to carry out photosynthesis. This chemical reaction produces sugars which are used as energy in processes essential for the growth and maintenance of a healthy plant. While plants can still receive sunlight indoors through rays shining through windows, this often cannot act as an equitable substitute for unobstructed sunlight outdoors. This is where supplemental light sources in the form of grow lights come into play. Grow lights are specially designed with the purpose of emitting a wider spectrum of light wavelengths to enable photosynthesis. But with so many options available, how can you choose which is the best option?

Generally, there are two types of grow lights – bulbs and fixtures. Bulbs can be placed into existing light fixtures like lamps or overhead lighting. However, this can be unsuitable as it is difficult to control the distance from the plant and angle at which the light shines. Grow light fixtures are separate systems which can provide multiple plants with light simultaneously, offering a more even distribution. With proper setup, they can be positioned at an advantageous angle to provide plants with their preferred amount of light.

Next comes the question of which kind of light is appropriate for your plant – incandescent, fluorescent, or LED? It is important to determine beforehand the level of light which your plant prefers – high, medium, or low. Incandescent lights, while costing the least, are also the least efficient. 90% of their energy is released in the form of heat, while only 10% is light itself. While this makes them good contenders for low-light plants, they also require caution as they can provide plants with an overwhelming amount of heat.

Fluorescent lights are well-suited for plants requiring low to medium light. They emit the full spectrum of light, essential for promoting growth as they mimic natural sunlight. Most often they are seen as strips or tubes of light that can be affixed above plants, but they can also be purchased in bulb form. LED lights emit the full spectrum of light as well, while simultaneously emitting less heat than other bulb types. Yielding a high overall efficiency, LEDs can be customized with different colors/wavelengths of light to provide certain advantages for some plants. For example, blue lights promote vegetative growth, while red lights do the same for flowering and fruit growth.

Grow light setup — Different stages of growth may need different spectrums of light. Photo by H. Zidack

After choosing the most suitable kind of grow light for your plant, there are a variety of other tips helpful to consider. The type of plant not only determines the proper type of light to use, but also how much light should be provided. Supplying light 24 hours a day is not ideal as it can overwhelm the plant – remember the objective is to mimic the light conditions of the outdoors. Therefore, plants will require some hours of darkness each day.

Seedlings generally prefer 14-16 hours of light per day, as they necessitate the most encouragement for growth. 12 hours of light is suitable for herbs and other greens, while houseplants fall between the range of 6-12 hours per day – be sure to refer to the product label for any specifications on light preferences.

In terms of setup, lights should be angled to ensure a direct stream of emittance onto the plant in order to receive its full benefits. It is best to affix lights about 12 inches from the plant, although adjustments can be made as you see fit. Some indoor gardening systems are available that can be customized to fit specifications according to the type of plant being grown. It is also important to purchase lights that are rated to withstand humidity and moisture if they are being kept in a greenhouse-like environment.

Be sure to always refer to your plant’s label for its specific preferences for light and other growing conditions. With the help of grow lights, you can wait out the winter by bringing a little bit of the outdoors, indoors!

The UConn Home & Garden Education Center contributes to the Cooperative Extension mission of the University of Connecticut by connecting the public with research and resources provided by the University. For your gardening questions, feel free to contact us, toll-free, at the UConn Home & Garden Education Center - (877) 486-6271, visit our website at https://homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu/, or contact your local Cooperative Extension center https://cahnr.uconn.edu/extension/locations/.

All-America Selection Winners for 2025

Posted on January 19, 2025February 4, 2025 by Zidack, Heather

by Dawn Pettinelli, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Each winter the All-America Selection winners are announced. This non-profit organization has established trial gardens throughout the United States and even as far north as Canada. New varieties, species or strains of annuals, vegetables and bedding plants are grown and judged on their performance. Those chosen as winners are outstanding plants and deserve a trial in your gardens as well.

This year’s national winners include 3 vegetables and 5 flowers. ‘Green Lightening’ is a very attractive, striped pattypan squash that tastes as good as it looks. The 5-inch or so fruits weigh in at 1 to 2 pounds and are ready to pick about 50 days after planting from seed. Judges marveled at the abundant yields on these 2 feet high, bushy plants.

Kohlrabi ‘Konstance’ Image by all-americaselections.org

Kohlrabi ‘Konstance’ exudes a vibrant purple color as well as a sweet, crunchy texture. A curious but easy to grow and tasty addition to the vegetable garden, this kohlrabi matures at just 42 days from seed. Upright plants, about a foot high, produce round, purple 4 to 5-inch ‘bulbs’ that can be eaten fresh or served roasted or sauteed. Fruits are crack-resistant and plants resistant to several diseases.

Sweet pepper ‘Pick-N-Pop Yellow’ produces adorable, snack-size, extra sweet mini peppers. The pointed, conical fruits are about 4 inches long springing from compact 2-foot-tall plants. The prolific harvest begins about 65 days after transplanting. This variety shows great resistance to bacterial leaf spot.

One can never have too many dahlias and this year’s AAS winner, ‘Black Forest Ruby’ is a gem that can be started from seed. Since this variety is an octoploid (having 8 times the normal chromosome number) there is much variability in flower shape (ranging from single to double), plant height and structure. Most will be upright about 2 feet high with jet black foliage and ruby-red flowers. You can save tubers from the best-looking plants.

Dianthus ‘Interspecific Capitan™ Magnifica’ with its impressive bicolor pink and white frilly blooms looks as good in the garden as it does in a vase. Plus, the more you cut, the more blooms appear. Summer heat tolerance was impressive with the 2-inch flower heads also standing up to rain and cold. Plants range from 1 to 1 ½ feet tall and bloom all summer. Look for these vegetatively propagated plants at your local garden center.

Sunny sites will positively shimmy when planted with marigold Mango Tango. This rich red and primrose yellow bicolor blooms all summer long even without deadheading. Reaching only 8 to 10 inches in height makes it perfect for edging garden beds, containers or window boxes. Seeds can be started indoors and plants set out after the danger of frost has passed. Fertilize and water regularly for bountiful blooms.

Can there be too many petunias? ‘Petunia Shake™ Raspberry’ will convince you that there’s always room for one more. The fantastic flowers are reminiscent of a blended raspberry milkshake swirled with lemon-lime green sorbet. The 5 to 8 inch mounded plants can do front of the border duty, serve as groundcovers or billow over hanging baskets. Plants will bloom about 70 days from seed and hold up to heat and rain.

Snapdragon‘DoubleShot™ Yellow Red Heart’Image by all-americaselections.org

I’ve never thought of snapdragons as fragrant, yet ‘DoubleShot™ Yellow Red Heart’ is said to have an amazing candy-like scent. Aside from this unusual trait, Yellow Red Heart promises to delight with vibrant yellow blossoms with a red throat that start early and continue through to a heavy frost. This snapdragon reaches about 20 inches in height with semi-double 1 to 1 ½ inch blooms produces all season long and able to tolerate light frosts.

Four regional 2025 Ornamental Winners well suited to the Northeast, include one petunia and 3 nasturtiums. If you’re looking for a vibrant pink petunia great for bedding and containers, try ‘Dekko™ Maxx™ Pink’. The vibrant pink 1 to 1 ½ inch starry blooms are produced all season long and hold up well to rain and heat.

Nasturtiums are top performers in garden beds and containers and are noted for their hummingbird attraction and edible leaves and flowers. New colors in the Baby series of nasturtiums to try out this year might be ‘Baby Gold’, ‘Baby Red’ and ‘Baby Yellow’. All can be grown from seed and start blooming about 50 days after sowing. Two-inch blooms cover compact 12-inch-high mounded plants. Colors are intense and plants stand up to drought, heat, cold, rain and wind. Considering our fluctuating summer weather, these are sure to do well both in the garden and in containers.

Check out these and past AAS winners. They were chosen because of their remarkable characteristics and they are sure to be winners in your yard too.

For your gardening questions, feel free to contact us, toll-free, at the UConn Home & Garden Education Center at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at www.homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu or contact your local Cooperative Extension center.

Heirloom vs Hybrid – An Age-Old Garden Debate

Posted on January 11, 2025February 4, 2025 by Zidack, Heather

By Heather Zidack, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Seed catalogs piled on a desk — Seed catalogs can be overwhelming, but many have keys to help identify various traits among their products. Photo by Heather Zidack

Temperatures are dropping, the holidays are over, and gardeners are starting to look towards the next growing season with excitement. Many gardeners swear by the tried-and-true heirloom varieties, while others are drawn to the disease resistance or increased vigor of hybrids. The debate over which is “best” can get heated between gardeners. Do you know the differences?

Pollination is a key factor. Successful pollination occurs when pollen meets the sticky central part of a flower, known as the stigma. Fertilized seeds develop in the ovary, which will then form into fruit. Over the span of thousands of years, tasty fruit has proven to be a good way to help with seed dispersal in the environment. And taste, along with many other traits, have helped humans decide what plants to cultivate.

Hybrid seeds, also commonly referred to as “F1” or “F1 hybrids,” have been developed through selective breeding. To create an F1 hybrid, breeders have selected parent plants with desirable traits and pollinated them under controlled conditions. While it sounds easy enough, lineages can be tricky. It can be time consuming for plant breeders and some will spend years of their career trying to achieve a specific outcome.

F1 hybrids are often praised for their environmental resilience and higher yields, among other traits. They may be less reliable for seed savers, though, as the offspring of the F1 hybrids are not guaranteed to come back with the same traits as the original plant from your first season, a term we call “true to seed.”

Hybrid seed should not be confused with GMO or genetically modified seeds. Hybrid seed is a product of breeding and selection and does not undergo the laboratory interventions that are needed for genetic modification. Currently, there is only one GMO product available to home gardeners, known as “The Purple Tomato.” All other GMO seed is only available commercially and farmers using these products must sign agreements that lay out the terms of use for the seed purchased.

You may find the term “open pollinated” in your search for seed. These seeds are created without direct human intervention. They have stable genetics and produce predictable traits in their offspring year after year, since they are naturally pollinated. This is great news for those gardeners who enjoy saving their own seed.

It is best to plant open pollinated varieties of similar species away from each other to avoid random cross-pollination. Alternatively, gardeners cand hand pollinate a few flowers and keep them covered. For this, I recommend mesh party favor bags that allow for the fruit to expand. Allow the fruit to develop and harvest them specifically for their seed.

Heirloom seeds are open pollinated plants that have been passed down usually over generations. Often, there is a local history or cultural significance that comes with them. You can find interesting physical traits and some beneficial resistances from heirloom seeds. Since they are open pollinated, their genetics are more likely to be stable and produce true to seed offspring for seed savers, as well.

At the end of the day, I always advise gardeners to look beyond the title and really assess what is going to meet your needs and make your experience most enjoyable. If you love to tell a story with your garden, and enjoy saving your seeds year after year, an heirloom variety might be the perfect fit! On the other hand, if you bring home a packet of tomato seeds that have been bred for small space gardening, and you plan to buy new seeds every year, then enjoy that tomato to its fullest! There are many gardens out there with a beautiful blend of both.

If you have questions about seed selection, or for other gardening questions, contact the UCONN Home & Garden Education Center, toll-free, at (877) 486-6271, visit their web site at www.homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu or contact your local Cooperative Extension Center.

High-tech Tomatoes

Posted on September 13, 2024September 11, 2024 by Zidack, Heather

By Dr. Matthew Lisy, UConn Adjunct Faculty
UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Assorted slicing and cherry tomatoes — An assortment of tomato varieties of both the slicing and cherry types. The colors include red, orange, pink, yellow, and now purple (photo by M. Lisy).

Tomatoes are one of the most popular food plants in the world, and as such, have undergone massive amounts of selective breeding. Native to western South America, the tomato can now be found all over the world. Originally grown for ornamental purposes due to fear of toxicity, modern gardeners grow many different colors including red, yellow, pink, orange, and white.

Tomatoes are prone to certain diseases which led to dependence on chemicals to control either the disease or the pest that transmits it. Disease resistant varieties of tomatoes were made by crossing certain parental tomatoes that had beneficial traits. For example, if a certain tomato tasted great but was prone to some type of wilt disease, it was crossed with a tomato that was resistant to wilt. Of course, this was VERY time consuming, and many times the final product is not perfect, but as close to ideal as possible. This does make people dependent on the seed producers, but at least you get the tomatoes you desire.

People were sad that they could never get the old heirloom varieties with superior taste to grow in the presence of modern-day diseases, so science came up with another solution – grafted tomatoes. Using young plants, the grower would take and graft the top of the desired tomato onto the roots of the undesirable but disease resistant rootstock. Certainly, these types of tomatoes have an important role in agriculture, but they are not feasible/economical in many situations.

One modern scientific solution is genetic engineering. This process takes a gene, or piece of DNA that codes for a specific trait, out of one species, and places it into another. The public generally does not like this type of technology partially due to a lack of understanding of the process, but also a fear of what could happen because of it. While science continues to make new GMOs, many companies will not use them due to consumer preference. In 1994, the “Flavr Savr” tomato became the first genetically engineered food to be granted a license for human consumption by the FDA. Although flavorful throughout its long shelf life, this tomato failed to meet commercial standards due to being easily damaged during harvest and shipping. Even though this tomato failed to become the success the company had hoped for, Calgene (now owned by Monsanto) made history.

Purple tomatoes with a blue pen cap to display size. — “The Purple Tomato,” the first GMO tomato available to home gardeners. Note the completely deep purple skin and flesh (photo by M. Lisy).

Thirty years later, the year 2024 saw another milestone in the world of GMO tomatoes. Norfolk Plant Sciences, and its seed-selling subsidiary, Norfolk Healthy Produce, produced the first tomato with completely purple skin and flesh. This is also the first time a GMO food crop has been approved for home gardeners. The color comes from the anthocyanin pigment, which is said to have heart-healthy and antioxidant benefits when consumed in the quantity found in this tomato. In addition, this pigment may increase the shelf life of the tomato. The gene for this pigment came from edible snapdragon flowers.

Many times, people fear GMOs saying that it is unnatural to have an extra “foreign” gene in an organism, and the potential risk of a “new combination of genes” created by this engineering process. The Food and Drug Administration deems this tomato as safe for human consumption as any other. In the end, each person should do their own research and make an informed decision for themselves and their family. For me, it is an exciting time to be alive as we are living through history. I felt really excited to grow the first-ever GMO tomato for home gardeners. One day, many of the tomatoes will be like this, but for right now, I will marvel at the original.

Tips for the February Gardener

Posted on February 20, 2024February 21, 2024 by Zidack, Heather

Tips for the February Gardener

By Dawn Pettinelli, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Pothos with yellow leaves — Photo by dmp2024

February is a tough time for gardeners. Days are getting longer but the cold temperatures, and in many cases, snow, are keeping us inside. This is a good month to provide houseplants with a little TLC before the weather warms and the gardens beckon.

If possible, bring your plants one by one to the kitchen sink. Give them a thorough grooming by removing any dead or off color leaves. Trim back wayward or undesirable growth. Then give them a good rinsing under the faucet or use a wet cloth to wipe dust off of their leaves. For plants with hairy leaves, like African violets, a soft brush could be used to clean their leaves. Wash their saucers out before setting plants back.

Plants that have outgrown their pots can be repotted at this time. Usually, plants would be moved up to a pot that is an inch or 2 wider. Loosen or trim roots if they are growing in a circle or very dense. An all-purpose potting mix can be used for most plants but specialized mixes for plants like cacti and African violets are also available.

Your amaryllis has probably finished blooming by now. Cut off any spent flowers. Some people like to leave the stem until it yellows as it can photosynthesize but I generally remove the whole stalk after flowering. If you want plants to rebloom next year, the foliage needs light, water and nutrients to grow. Set your plant in a bright location and fertilize monthly starting in March. Plants can be moved outdoors after the danger of frost has passed either in their pots or set them into the ground in a part shady spot. Bring inside in mid-October and let the bulbs go dormant in a dark, warm area for about 8 weeks and then repot for another season of striking trumpet-shaped blooms. Some cultivars do not require a dormant period.

Check on any tender bulbs that you have in storage. Dahlias and tuberous begonias can shrivel if they dry out too much. They are usually stored in some barely moistened peat moss or wood shavings. Sprinkle with a little water if they are on the dry side. Also, this would be a good time to check on any winter squash, potatoes or other vegetables that you’ve been keeping. Use them up before they spoil.

Time spent perusing garden catalogs, either in print or digital format, is a great way to get through cold, winter days. When making out a seed order, don’t forget to note what seeds you have leftover from last year. Most seeds retain their viability for at least a year. It’s always a good idea to plan out the vegetable garden so you know what’s going to be planted where, and when. Last frost dates for your area can be found at: https://garden.org/apps/frost-dates/. The UConn Master Gardener program is offering a Garden Journal with tips on how to plan and maintain your flower and vegetable gardens and plenty of room for you to make notes. To order go to: https://mastergardener.uconn.edu/2024/01/30/garden-journals-available/.

Most of us recognize the benefits of buying local when it comes to produce and other Connecticut grown products but did you know we have at least 5 seed companies in Connecticut. They include Select Seeds (www.selectseeds.com), the Chas. C. Hart Seed Co. (www.hartseed.com), the Heirloom Market at Comstock Ferre selling Baker’s Creek Heirloom Seeds (www.heirloommkt.com), John Scheppers Kitchen Garden Seeds (www.kitchengardenseeds.com), and New England Seed Company (www.neseeds.com). Be sure to see what they have to offer either online or at various retail locations.

If you need a floral fix to get you through to spring, stop by the CT Flower and Garden Show at the Convention Center in Hartford, Feb 22 -25. Visit the UConn Home & Garden Education Center’s booth for a free pH test (bring a half cup of soil) and answers to your gardening questions. A blooming time can also be had at Elizabeth Park’s Greenhouse Bulb and Plant Show, March 1 – 9. Since spring can’t be here soon enough, you’ll just have to go to where the flowers are blooming!

Home and Garden Education Center