US Winter Forecast 2008-09 from NOAA

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Moldy Tulip Bulbs

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Moldy tulip bulbs are a big disappointment when you are hoping to fill a bed or some pots. It is not that unusual for their skins to have a bit of penicillin mold but these are beyond that tad bit stage. Mold penetrating tulip bulb  Mold on emerging tulip bulb growth  So, what to do? The plant references say to throw them out and buy new ones but I already spent $22 for 50 of these white tulip beauties. First, they got a soak in 1% bleach solution in the kitchen sink in the hope that the bleach would stop the mold from continuing to grow without killing the life force in the bulb itself. After a good slosh around, I wiped them off to see how much damage was beneath the blue and black.  This tulip bulb is soft to the touch and there is little chance it will thrive in the soil. This basal root on these have been ruined by mold. The final step I took to try to salvage part of them  was to spray them thoroughly with fungicide.  They are all planted in the
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Propagate Begonia Stem Cuttings in water - Cane-like Angel Wing Begonia

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Propagating by stem cuttings is just about the easiest way to make more begonias for next summer's garden. During the fall, I regularly trim off 3-node long cuttings and put them into the growing pots where they take root. Now that cold weather has arrived, I root the stem cuttings in a vase of water. It's a great way to produce more pots of Begonias for next summer's garden. Water the plant well the day before. Take a cutting about 4-inches long, with 3 nodes, from a healthy stem. Use a perfectly clean container. Rinse the container with a drop of bleach if you are uncertain about its spotlessness. Remove all but the top leaf or two. There should be no leaves in the water. The cutting should  have a healthy leaf node at the bottom. Don't leave a stub below the node. Place the cutting into the water, and place the container out of the sun. In a couple of weeks, you will see new roots beginning to form. Check the water periodically to make sure it is still f
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Cold-hardy Gardenias for zone 7

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Gardenias, also called Cape Jasmine , are best known for their sweetly scented waxy flowers and thick, shiny leaves. Most of us associate them with warm climates because out of the 200-species only a few are cold hardy enough to grow in our area. Gardenia Frostproof from Logee's.com The flowers vary but tend to be 2-to-4 inches across with six or seven wedge-shaped petals. The fruit that follows is an inch long and matures into a deep orange color in late fall or early winter. If the seeds are harvested they can be planted to grow more shrubs. Their native growing areas are the open woodlands and savannahs of Africa and tropical Asia where they retain their leaves all year and grow into 6-foot tall woody plants. The first American imports from Asia arrived in 1761. They were cultivated by John Ellis on his South Carolina plantation where he named them for his friend Dr. Alexander Garden. New varieties are cold hardy in our zone 7 and gardeners as far north as Canada h
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