The PIGG Pin

Spring Watering

2010-04-23T12:05:13Z

How to Water Properly!

With Spring time being the time which most people think about their yards and want to add or take away from what they have planted around their house, I want to talk a small bit about how to know what water to put on your new plants.

If you are planting seasonal flowers such as petunias, begonias, impatiens etc. , then watering is a little extra critical. It will be important for you to water at least once per day if not even twice per day. You don’t have to use a lot of water because the roots are very shallow when newly planted. It is very important to make sure the original root ball is getting wet when watered.

If you are planting shrubs or trees, it is a much different thought process. The only thing that is the same if you want to make sure the original root ball is getting watered well. The best way to water shrubs and trees is with a slow drip system. This can be done in several ways… the cheapest is by just using a slow drip on the end of your water hose for several hours at a time. Otherwise you can buy the gator bags, or soaker hoses. I would say that right after planting, plan to water about every other day during the spring. Once the summer hits, water every third or fourth day for a longer period of time.

Happy watering

Rose Bush Maintenance

2010-03-13T16:48:52Z

Hybid Rose Bush

With Spring (hopefully) fast approaching, let’s talk briefly about what to do with those gorgeous rose bushes. Roses are a funny plant to take care of and with the proper maintenance, look perfect all year, but often times will produce good flowers and poor foliage.

Rule of thumb for rose pruning is to do it while they are dormant (wintertime), and don’t take more than about 1/3 of the overall plant size off. This is extremely important if you have an old hybrid style rose bush. You don’t want to get too far into the ‘old’ wood and damage the integrity of the plant.

If you have a Knockout Rose, you have a little more freedom into the pruning of it. You still should do a good winter pruning to get it off to a good start in the spring, but the amount you take off is not as critical. You will damage the plant if you take too much off, but you won’t kill it. I have seen people cut them to the ground every year just to keep the size under control. I would recommend pruning more often, then pruning to the ground…but to each his own I guess.

If you don’t mind using chemicals, I recommend using a systemic fungicide with a rose food in the early spring to help prevent black spot and other problems. If you don’t like chemicals, then you will have to control fungus manually by removing infected leaves daily to prevent spreading.

I have never considered myself ‘expert’ in rose bushes, so if some of you out there are expert and have some extra advise, please share with the rest of us!

Happy Roses

Stella D’ Oro

2010-03-13T16:48:31Z

Stella D' Oro Daylily

I have been working for a couple days now potting up several hundred of these wonderful Daylilies and was thinking you might want to know why I like these daylilies.

The number 1 reason why I like the Stella D’Oro daylily is because it is a rebloomer. What does that mean? It will bloom two and most of the time three times throughout a season. This is unusually for a standard daylily because the original daylilies only bloom once, and then just look ugly the rest of the year (in my opinion).

The old standard daylilies we are all used to seeing are typically seen on the side of the road or on some old farm places. They are typically that reddish orange color and the bloom will get up to about the 36 inch area. The Stella plant is yellow in color and will max out around the 20-24 inch area. This size and color allows this daylily to be an addition to the front of a landscape and can be intertwined with other annual flowers. It makes a great border plant and will always give you a great show.

This daylily will almost double in size each year as far as how wide the plant is and how many blooms it gets. I very rarely see a Stella die. It also doesn’t need much water. They do better in the full sun, but will tolerate some shade and will still bloom.

I will be shipping these plants all over the country in one gallon pots, if you need one, please let me know. Oh Yeah…Did I mention I really like these plants? I use them in 98% of all my new installs.

Happy Stella’s

Preventing Weeds Naturally

2010-03-13T16:49:12Z

Healthy grass creates a nice canopy

I want to talk for a minute today about how to prevent weeds in your lawn ‘naturally’ or ‘organically’. Many of you/us are trying to figure out how to keep our properties looking perfect, without using many chemicals which when used incorrectly can damage the environment. Last time I told you about using pre-emergent to prevent weed seeds from germinating, today we will talk about the natural approach to weed prevention.

It all begins with a healthy lawn. Seeds need moisture, and sunlight to germinate and grow. This is true for any type of seed. When preventing weeds without chemical, you must figure out a way to eliminate at least one of the elements which allow those weed seeds to grow into plants. The easiest one to eliminate is the sunlight. I am not suggesting you build a big tent over your entire yard to eliminate the sunlight, but what I am suggesting is to allow your grass to create a tent-like effect over the dirt. By keeping your grass healthy, it will create a ‘canopy effect’ over the dirt. As the blades of grass lean in towards each other, they will intertwine themselves and ultimately shade the dirt.

There are many ways to encourage your lawn to create the canopy, the first thing is to make sure you have enough grass. In my area, Fescue is the grass of choice, but with fescue it is a clump style grass. Which means, if you have a clump of grass die, you will have a bare spot in the lawn until you plant more grass seed in the bare spot. If you have Bermuda, Zoysia, or St. Augustine, these grasses will creep and fill in gaps on their own.

The second thing is to make sure your grass is healthy. By getting on a routine fertilization program, you can insure the grass always has enough nutrients to maximize its size requirements.

The third thing is water. You MUST water you lawn certain times of the year. If you go through a hot and dry spell, your grass will suffer, giving the weeds a chance to grow.

The forth thing is to not cut your grass too low. In the springtime when you have ideal weather conditions, you may cut your grass slightly lower than during the summer when the grass can easily be stressed. I like to say, never cut lower than 3 inches, and during the summer, move up to at least 4 in. and sometimes 5 inches. Pay some attention to your lawn and let it talk to you and tell you what it needs. (not literally )

Happy Lawns

Preventing Weeds

2010-03-13T16:49:26Z

Weed Free Lawn

Ok, so here we are, a week away from Valentine’s Day and the last thing we want to think about is our grass. Most of us haven’t had to mow or do anything to the lawn for many months, but what we forget ever so easily is the fact that last spring we were not happy with all the weeds in our lawn and wished we had done something to prevent them. Well, now is your opportunity and I want to encourage you not to miss this small window of opportunity. Planning now can dramatically change the outcome of your spring lawn. Let’s talk for a minute about what is to come in the spring.

Crabgrass, Henbit, Dandelion, Chickweed are all annual weeds which reseed themselves every year. These weeds do not survive the winter cold, but left their seeds last year for new plants to arrive this year. It is much easier to prevent these guys from arriving than it is to remove them once they appear. To do this, you must put out what they call a pre-emergent. There are many types and brands which can be purchased, I do recommend not buying the cheapest! Also, FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS ON THE BAG!!. Putting out more the recommended rate WILL damage the environment and potentially contaminate the water supply. I prefer using a granular product instead of a liquid. It will come with some fertilizer in it which helps with overall health of plants. As far as I know, there is no organic version of the pre-emergent. If someone knows of one, please let me know and I will share it with everyone.

So how does a pre-emergent work? Without getting into true science, what the pre-emergent does is create an invisible barrier along the top of the soil and will not allow seeds to germinate and turn into plants. By putting it down in February, you are preventing weeds like crabgrass from ever growing. You have to remember I live in Nashville, Tennessee, so February is our month. If you live south, it is getting late in the season, if you live north, you might want to wait up to six more weeks. If you live NE, you probably can’t even find your car today!! I saw on the news where some of you got 40 inches of snow?! I got 4 inches a week ago and everything was shut down…can’t even begin to imagine 40 inches. Good luck to you!

Some tricks of the trade…consult with your local garden center…many people will split the application rate and put some down now, and wait for another application in about April/May. With the weather in the spring, sometimes the weed seeds sprout late, and excess rain can diminish the products effectiveness and duration, so 2 applications can increase effectiveness.

Next time we will talk about how to create a lawn who will prevent weeds on its own.

Happy Pre-Emergent

Groundhog Day

2010-02-02T13:23:52Z

It's Phil

Today is Groundhog Dog, and I wanted to post some info about the history and meaning behind it. I pulled this directly from Wikipedia…

Groundhog Day is a holiday celebrated on February 2. It is held in the United States and Canada. According to folklore, if a groundhog winter will soon end. If on the other hand, the groundhog sees its shadow, the groundhog will supposedly retreat into its burrow, and winter will continue for six more weeks.^[1] The holiday, which began as a Pennsylvania German custom in southeastern and central Pennsylvania in the 18th and 19th centuries, has its origins in ancient European weather lore, wherein a badger or sacred bear is the prognosticator as opposed to a groundhog.^[2] The holiday also bears some similarities to the medieval Catholic holiday of Candlemas.^[3] It also bears similarities to the Pagan festival of Imbolc, the seasonal turning point of the Celtic calendar, which is celebrated on February 2 and also involves weather prognostication.^[4] emerging from its burrow on this day fails to see its shadow, it will leave the burrow, signifying that

Modern customs of the holiday involve celebrations where early morning festivals are held to watch the groundhog emerging from its burrow. In southeastern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Lodges (Grundsow Lodges) celebrate the holiday with fersommlinge,^[5] social events in which food is served, speeches are made, and one or more g’spiel (plays or skits) are performed for entertainment. The Pennsylvania German dialect is the only language spoken at the event, and those who speak English pay a penalty, usually in the form of a nickel, dime or quarter, per word spoken, put into a bowl in the center of the table.^[6]

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where crowds as high as 40,000^[7] have gathered to celebrate the holiday since at least 1886.^[8] Other celebrations of note in Pennsylvania take place in Quarryville in Lancaster County,^[9] the Anthracite Region of Schuylkill County,^[10] the Sinnamahoning Valley^[11] and Bucks County.^[12] Outside of Pennsylvania, notable celebrations occur in the Frederick Hagerstown areas of Maryland,^[13] the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia,^[14] Woodstock, Illinois,^[15] and among the Amish populations of over twenty states and Canada.^[14] The University of Dallas in Irving, Texas has taken Groundhog Day as its official university holiday and organizes a large-scale celebration every year in honor of the Groundhog.^[16] and

Groundhog Day received worldwide attention as a result of the 1993 film of the same name, Groundhog Day, which was set in Punxsutawney and featured Punxsutawney Phil.^[17]

HappyGroundhog

Lawnmowers

2010-01-29T14:22:55Z

My older brother and I in 1990

As we move out of January and into February, some of us are going to start thinking about our lawnmowers. Some of us just cut our own yards and others of us mow other peoples lawns as well as our own. I was thinking about how many different brands and styles of lawnmowers there are and was wondering who uses what kind of mower to mow what size yard. Today, I want to give a brief description of the ones that I have used in the past, and ask for you to give me a brief explanation of what kind of mower you use for your yard.

I started out as most of us did, using a 20 inch push mower. It wasn’t long before I traded mowing an old man’s yard, for him to give me a 30 inch rear engine riding lawnmower. I believe it was a Murray brand. I then got a Simplicity brand rear engine rider. Then a Murray 36 inch regular looking rider. Eventually we bought a Kobota commercial hydrostat mower. That lead us to get a 51 inch John Deere 725 mower (which were very

My brother and I in 1997

poplar right before the zero turn mowers came out!). We traded the John Deere in on the first Exmark zero Turn mower with a 60 inch deck. We have had some walk behind mowers mixed in over the years of all shapes and sizes. Today we still use Exmark mowers.

When we had just the Murray and Simplicity riders, we also had a Snapper walk behind. During this time we were able to mow about 600 yards in a season. Don’t forget I was in Middle School at this time and my older brother had just started driving. By the time we had got our Exmark Mower, we were averaging 50 + yards per week, even while I was still in High School and my brother was away in college.

It is amazing what having the right equipment will do for you. Tell me what you are using to do your yard and if you have ever, or ever plan to mow for other people. Let’s all learn together what the secret to lawn cutting success is.

For more archived images of me…find me on Facebook.com/kevinpigg

Happy Mowing

Annual or Perennial?

2010-01-27T15:39:36Z

Annual Flowers

This is the question I have to ask myself every time I design a new landscape. I have to decide if I want, or the homeowner wants to replant this spot over and over again or just once. Let’s talk for a minute about the differences between an annual and a perennial.

An annual plant is one that will only survive for one season. These will tend to include; pansy, petunia, marigold, geranium, impatien etc. Annuals always will provide you will a very high quality showing in a landscape area. If maintained properly, the use of an annual could take your landscape from being average to extraordinary. There are summer annuals and winter annuals. Summer annuals are obviously more brilliant and have a much greater selection. Winter annuals such as the pansy, will survive freezing temperatures, but will only truly grow when the temperatures are in the 50’s and above.

Perennials are excellent plants to have and enjoy. They will almost always return year after year and often will become stronger and more vibrant as time goes on. There are hundreds, if not thousands of choices to pick from when it comes to perennials. Perennials are unique in fact they multiply in so many different ways. Some plants will completely die in the winter, but have such a strong seed, new plants will emerge in the spring. Sometimes in the right spot, sometimes somewhere far away from the original plant. Some plants, i.e. hosta or daylily will completely loose all its foliage in the winter, but will reemerge from the root structure in the spring, and become a larger plant

Perennial Flowers

because of a larger root system.

Perennials and annuals are definitely complimentary of each other. When planning a planting area for either one, you must account for the mature size of the plant. Many perennials and some annuals can get upwards of 4-5 ft. in height. You must also keep in mind with perennials how they reproduce themselves. You do not want new plants coming up in places they shouldn’t.

If you have any questions about a plant, or what to plant where…shoot me an email @ askthepigg@thepiggpin.com and we will get you an answer quickly.

Happy Planning

My Fire Pit

2010-01-21T13:30:54Z

My Pig Fire Pit at the Wilson County Fair

As requested, this is my Pig Fire Pit which Rick Wittrig made for me. He literally makes them by hand, no stencils at all. They are made from recycled metal so they are helpful to the environment. Made from a heavy steel, I have carried mine all over town to many shows and places and haven’t had any hint of damage to it.

As you might have seen from my other post, he has made an entire world which will be displayed in the Olympics coming in Feb. 2010. Incredibly awesome stuff. Here is the link to the news report for the olympics http://www.wsmv.com/sports/22284435/detail.html

His website is http://firepitart.com Check it out, he can ship all over the United States.

Super Phosphate in January or February

2010-01-18T15:49:38Z

Super Phosphate

In January or February, one thing you don’t want to forget to use, is Super Phosphate.

Super Phosphate is an inexpensive and effective source of Phosphorus where applications of Phosphorus are needed. With it being quick acting, it helps to enhance growth and color, and helps to strengthen stems and increase blooms.

This product should be used on all Iris, Crape Myrtle, Lilacs, Peonies, Chrysanthemums and Dahlias. Using on bulbs will increase a deeper color!

It is sold as a powder and is very simple to use. Just mix several tablespoons full with soil when planting bulbs or small plants, or just sprinkle a light covering on the ground around existing plants and water in.

Not using SuperPhosphate could be the reason why your lilacs, hydrangeas or other blooming plants do not give you a show in the spring. Don’t miss this window of opportunity to help your plants.

Let me know if you need help finding where to purchase SuperPhosphate.

Happy Blooms