Getting in the Garden in January!

With the relatively mild winter weather in New Jersey, it seems that we are able to do more in the garden this January.

Here's a list of things you can do to help promote a better looking garden and landscape come spring!

•Spread winter mulch in beds- use leaves, branches from Christmas trees, wood chips or mulch to prevent heaving

•Go through your garden and inspect for winter damage

•Prune damaged branches and dead wood on woody shrubs and trees (test for dead branches by scratching bark and looking for green)

 •Do some formative pruning on summer or fall flowering woody shrubs (butterfly bush, itea, spirea)

 •Fertilize acid-loving shrubs, if not already done in fall

•Water evergreen and broad-leaf evergreen shrubs during warm spells

•Protect shrubs planted under the roof line from snow, remove heavy snow from shrubs to prevent damage

•Use sand, gravel, urea or kitty litter instead of salt on driveway or paths near gardens

Are you looking forward to spring? We are!

Today in the Gardener's Journal - December 13, 2011

The leaves have only been off the trees for less than a full month and already I  miss my garden. How quick we are to miss the presence of color, foliage and even the smell of a freshly cut lawn. However, without the winter, there would be no spring. I have come to the conclusion that winter is the time when we appreciate our landscape more. Would you agree?

 Gardening can be a funny thing, we work hard in early spring to prepare for a season long of beauty, in mid spring we find ourselves adding more to our palate of colors, in summer we get caught up in the daily activities that we sometimes let our gardens do its own thing, then in fall, we begin the cleanup and savor the last bits of the show, only to drop the curtain during the finale of winter.

But wait! Winter brings on a new act for us to enjoy. It brings on new inspirations, new ideas, new varieties and sometimes a new purpose.  There is something about the cold, winter mornings that brings promise to the landscape. When everything is frozen still, it forces us to rest just like our plants. 

What we can do though is look with anticipation to what's ahead the following year. We can look at areas of the landscape where you've been thinking of revamping, you can read gardening magazines that introduce new and exciting plants.

Take a walk in your garden and look beyond the bare trees, look at their structure, their magnitude and strength. Look at the buds that are set in place for a grand opening next spring. There is plenty in the garden to enjoy in winter, you just need to look harder or be more creative.

What are you considering for your 2012 landscape?

December Landscaping Tips!

It's hard to believe that we are already into the month of December, especially when the temperatures have felt more like early fall in Zone 6, New Jersey, however, it only gives us gardeners more time to savor the last bits of the year with soil on our hands. Enjoy it while you can, and don't forget these helpful December landscaping tips!

•Apply winter mulches after ground freezes

•Bring in clay and cement pots and statues

•Use sand or kitty litter on ice instead of salt

•Water evergreens, especially newly planted ones, when ground is not frozen or during warm spells

•Protect shrubs under roof line from snow damage

•Make sure all broad-leaf evergreens have been sprayed (Wilt-Pruf)

•Plan your garden for next year!

How Did Your Garden Grow?

Isn't fall a great season? It's the time when magic happens in the landscape. It's the time that most gardeners will enjoy the crisp, cool air, tend to their gardens without the hot sun beating upon their brow and it's also the time that color magically appears to an otherwise hum drum look at the end of a long, hot summer.

If you live in the Northeast, you deserve applause as it was a tough season for gardeners. A cooler than normal spring, then a few hot weeks of summer, followed by weeks of rain, add in a hurricane and a rogue Halloween snow storm, all sums up to a challenging landscaping year. But, here we are in mid-November enjoying a few higher than normal temperatures and finding ourselves planning our landscapes for 2012.

What did well in your landscape this year through the challenges set upon them? Perhaps you lost a tree or two in the snow storm during the end of October. Did it change your landscape? Did it open up an area that was previously occupied? In some cases, it may have even shed new light on an otherwise shady landscape. New ideas brought on by mother nature is what some are pondering now.

How did your vegetable gardens fair this past summer? More or less of a harvest? Did the heavy rains wash out areas of your gardens that perhaps needs amending next spring?

Gardening has often been considered a "Trial and Error" venture. Some years you win, some years you lose, but in the end, you always learn. No matter what, you learn what did well, what did not. What you should have paid more attention to, and sometimes, what you should have let acclimate on its own. You see what excelled, and what digressed, or literally what just stayed still. Naturally, we will always want more of the things that excelled, but perhaps it's a good idea to find out why the other things didn't do as well as had expected.

At Rutgers Landscape & Nursery our motto has always been "Where you always get the help you need" and that will never change. So, if you're looking at your current landscape and realizing that changes need to be made because of elements beyond your control, or because you simply want more - we are here to help. Perhaps you've been admiring your neighbors landscape where there always seems to be something in color, or you've been wanting to redo your current landscape to bring a four season level of interest, we can help.

After all,  "if you've never experienced the joy of accomplishing more than you can imagine, plant a garden."  ~Robert Brault

And, Rutgers Landscape & Nursery is here to help you accomplish just that..

November Landscaping Tips

November is the month to prepare your garden for the following years beautiful landscape!



Here are some simple tips to help you acheive a healthy, beautiful start to next years garden.

•Adjust soil pH

•Rake leaves off lawn before snow

•Spray broad-leaf evergreens with Wilt-Pruf, water on warm days

•Fertilize trees and shrubs (that have been planted for at least a year) when dormant

•Finish cutting back perennials; mulch perennial garden after ground has frozen

•Plant spring flowering bulbs until ground freezes

•Transplant established trees and shrubs after they've lost their leaves

•Water broadleaf evergreens on warm days

Winter Is For The Birds!

Are you a birding enthusiast? If so, you should be noticing an increase of your feathered friends surrounding your bird feeders. As the cooler days and nights approach, birds will look for food to store for the winter months.

It is important to start a regimen of keeping your bird feeders filled as we move into winter. It is the time that most foliage has defoliated thus limiting the natural foods that birds are used to eating.

While there are a number of different types of birdseed available, the number one type of preferred seed is "Black Oil Sunflower". Why not incorporate other types of food to your bird feeding practices as well such as:

Dried Fruit
Bread
Dry Dog Food
Cornmeal mixed in suet
Roasted or dried mealworms

If you're a true birding enthusiast, you may want to try making your own suet treats!
Here are two suet treat recipes to try:

Corn Nutty Bird Bites

A high fat mix which keeps birds warm. Birds attracted: Woodpeckers, chickadees, titmice, bluebirds, catbirds, wrens

Ingredients
2 cups whole grain crackers or unsweetened whole grain cereal or bread crumbs
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter

Crush the crackers or cereal. Stir in the canola oil and peanut butter. If dry, add more canola oil to make the grain stick together more.

Offer the mixture in a feeder that suits the style of birds you want to attract, or you can spread it on tree bark or put in a feeding tray. Store the remainder in the freezer for future use.

Molded Bird Treats

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup water, plus another 1/2 cup water
1 ounce (4 packets) unflavored gelatin
5 cups black oil sunflower seeds
1 cup sunflower chips
1 cup pumpkin seeds
1 cup dried cranberries
Nonstick cooking spray

Boil 1 1/2 cups of water in a small saucepan. Pour remaining 1/2 cup of cold water into a large, heat-proof bowl. Stir in the gelatin, and let it sit for about one minute.  Add the boiling water stirring until all the gelatin dissolves, about 2-3 minutes.

Stir in all the seeds and berries until they're coated with gelatin and the mixture sticks together. Let it sit for a few minutes and then stir again.

Scoop the mixture into a greased bundt or fluted pan or on greased tin foil pieces shaping into squares if putting in a suet feeder. Refrigerate, uncovered for at least 3 hours or overnight. Set it on a rack in a dry place for about three days to harden completely. Or, you can put in the freezer and offer when ready.

Thinking ahead long term there are several plants and flowers that one can plant in their landscape to encourage birds. Visit our website www.rutgersln.com and read the list of Berry Bearing Trees & Shrubs 

Planting fruit trees for food and evergreens for shelter will make your landscape even more enticing, along with providing sale places for birds to hide. 

Fall Clearance Sale with Three Great Events

Don't miss this fantastic sale and three great events!

~Reservations are needed for all events~

Wine Tasting

10/14

Ages 21+

Fall Soups with Chef Paul

10/15

Fall Wreath-Making Workshop

10/16

Call Leslie Boss at (908) 788-2600 x234

or email LBoss@RutgersLN.com

to reserve your seat now!