Your All Things Plants weekly news

for October 3, 2015

This Week's Gardening Ideas:

Protection from Rabbits for Small Plants and Seedlings

By StaticAsh
October 3, 2015
Protection from Rabbits for Small Plants and Seedlings

How to make simple cages to keep rabbits from eating your young plants. (511 words - Read the full article)

Dahlias Celebration Week Wrapup

By dave
October 2, 2015
Dahlias Celebration Week Wrapup

We're nearing the end of our Dahlias Week, and it was a great one! Let's have a look at the highlights from the week. (204 words - Read the full article)

Great Fun Attending a Dahlia Show

By Paul2032
October 2, 2015
Great Fun Attending a Dahlia Show

My parents were plant lovers, and I remember attending flower shows with them when I was quite young. There were a number of active plant societies then, and many towns had garden clubs that put on a show each year. There was also the state fair and there were some county fairs with shows. (338 words - Read the full article)

Dahlias:  Dos And Don'ts

By Sharon
October 1, 2015
Dahlias: Dos And Don'ts

My love for dahlias got off to a really slow start. I much preferred soil beneath my fingernails than for those same nails to be blackened by bruises from driving dahlia stakes into the ground. And the truth was, dahlias had no other purpose on earth than to stand around looking totally tall and beautiful. I liked plants that had a reason for being, like tomatoes. Now there was a plant worth growing even if it did need to be staked. (1,236 words - Read the full article)

Dahlias in all shapes and sizes

By mandolls
September 30, 2015
Dahlias in all shapes and sizes

Most gardeners are familiar with the more common types of dahlias, the Formal & Informal Decorative, the Ball, the Single, and the Cactus, but there are other forms that get less notice. (398 words - Read the full article)

Solutions for Fruit Flies

By PAgirl63
September 30, 2015
Solutions for Fruit Flies

You probably already know to wash or rinse fruits with edible skins, such as apples, pears, grapes, peaches, nectarines, and plums. Don't stop there! (150 words - Read the full article)

Stake the Dahlias

By Sharon
September 29, 2015
Stake the Dahlias

I grew up loving wildflowers, their little blooms, their foliage, their purpose in life. They seemed to grow and bloom with absolutely no care or attention. I discovered quite early that none of that was true for my mother's prized dahlias. They had to be staked and tied and needed daily care. I wasn't very fond of a plant whose bloom was too heavy for the stalk it grew on. (1,396 words - Read the full article)

Storing Dahlias

By chucklasher7
September 28, 2015
Storing Dahlias

I am sure everyone here has their own method, but I have one that has been great. After digging, cleaning and dividing, I put the tubers in bags of various sizes, either Ziploc bags or old bread bags, identify them, then cover the tubers with extra dry Pro-Mix and seal the bag. They go in the coldest corner of the cellar, and my success rate has been virtually 100% for many years.

Pretty Dahlia Stakes

By pirl
September 27, 2015
Pretty Dahlia Stakes

Many dahlias require staking, but there's a better look than rebar. (171 words - Read the full article)

The most popular images last week from our plant database:

By frankrichards16:
Image from plant ID 162508
By dirtdorphins:
Image from plant ID 700737
By treehugger:
Image from plant ID 76165
By jvdubb:
Image from plant ID 530792
By frankrichards16:
Image from plant ID 172605
By frankrichards16:
Image from plant ID 231796
By dirtdorphins:
Image from plant ID 700737
By floota:
Image from plant ID 29330
By treehugger:
Image from plant ID 172986

The most popular Multi-Plant Photos from last week:

Photo by Catmint20906:
Image by Catmint20906
Photo by Paul2032:
Image by Paul2032
Photo by Paul2032:
Image by Paul2032
Photo by piksihk:
Image by piksihk
Photo by jmorth:
Image by jmorth
Photo by Paul2032:
Image by Paul2032
Photo by robertduval14:
Image by robertduval14
Photo by Catmint20906:
Image by Catmint20906
Photo by geek3219:
Image by geek3219

Noteworthy acorn tips given this week:

8 people gave for post #961972 in "Micro badge idea thread" by Tuckersmom

5 people gave for the idea "Dahlias: Dos And Don'ts" by Sharon

5 people gave for a blog post by greene

5 people gave for the idea "Dahlias in all shapes and sizes" by mandolls

4 people gave for the idea "Solutions for Fruit Flies" by PAgirl63

4 people gave for the idea "Pretty Dahlia Stakes" by pirl

2 people gave for the idea "Stake the Dahlias" by Sharon

2 people gave for post #959765 in "Banner for September 28, 2015 by Fleur569" by Fleur569

2 people gave for the idea "Storing Dahlias" by chucklasher7

2 people gave for a photo of Decorative Dahlia (Dahlia 'Ferncliff Illusion') by robertduval14

The most active threads this week:

Subject OP Area Replies
OT~The Porch SwingCharDaylilies forum34
Plantscherryb1ossomsPlumeria forum34
Help with some idsBoxergirlIrises forum26
October 2015 Butterflies, Moths & LarvamellielongGardening for Butterflies, Birds and Bees forum24
Type of worm?inversinoAsk a Question forum22
Lawn DepressionbjquatAsk a Question forum21
Amaryllis vs HippeastrumgreeneAsk a Question forum19
New HouseplantsCintaHouseplants forum19
Discussing cameras for photographing BBB'sflaflwrgrlGardening for Butterflies, Birds and Bees forum19

Some new reviews from the ATP Green Pages:

DavidLMO recommended Wellspring Gardens and wrote:

They sell small starter-size products and they clearly tell you on their site. They have a nice selection of tropicals at very reasonable prices. Looking for a blooming sized plant? Go elsewhere. But if you want to save some real money and don't mind growing out a plant - check them out. I bought 7 plants from them and, due to cold weather, they held up shipping and periodically checked weather till a window was open for shipping. And they kept me posted. Will buy from them again.

DavidLMO recommended Gardino Nursery and wrote:

Nice selection of houseplants and tropicals. Reasonable prices and good selection. A shipping-related problem caused by the shipper was quickly addressed even though it was not their problem. Interesting selection of not so common plants. Will order again.

DavidLMO recommended Prairie Moon Nursery and wrote:

Excellent source for seeds of native plants and wildflowers. They also offer selected plants, though I have only bought seeds. They have a very large selection of Asclepias (Milkweed) seeds. Nice quantity of seeds for the price and they provide lots of info on how to germinate, on stratification and scarification, etc. Superb germination of their seed. Great outfit - will use them again.

DavidLMO recommended Accents for Home and Garden (Pepper's Greenhouse) and wrote:

Have placed 2 orders with them and happy both times. Wide selection of very reasonably priced items. They do carry many items not readily found elsewhere. In all cases, nice sized plants - especially for the price. Recommended.

beckygardener recommended Maryott's Gardens and wrote:

I placed my very first Maryott's Daylily order recently. I wanted to see what their daylilies looked like as I had heard such wonderful reviews about them and also because they had some cultivars that I wanted at a very good price. I placed a minimum order of 2 cultivars (all were large double fans) of Marilyn Morss Johnson and Winter Rainbow. I received 2 bonus cultivars, which were Get Jiggy and Zoe Allegra. Double fans were large, healthy-looking plants with a nice root system. Packaging was great and I got my order 3 days after it was sent. I got 2 bonus plants with just an order of 2 plants, so you can hardly beat that! I am very pleased with what I received. I highly recommend this mail-order daylily nursery!

Lalambchop1 recommended Plant Me Green and wrote:

I won a plant from Plant Me Green in the August 2015 raffle. I am very pleased with it. The way the crape myrtle was shipped is indicative of the care these folks take with their products. I spoke with representatives from the company on two occasions and found them to be very helpful. I will be ordering from this group again!

Lalambchop1 recommended Tom Bruce's Carolina Daylilies, Hosta and Iris and wrote:

I met Tom Bruce through my daylily club and have been blessed to visit his nursery a number of times. It, like he, is amazingly organized with a gorgeous display of daylilies, irises, hostas, and companion plants. Though he only sells his own introductions online, it's worth a visit if you're in the area to see all he has to offer. He has several weekends open to the public each year and appointments can be made by phone. Tell him I sent you! Tom's prices are very reasonable. Highly recommend.

Lalambchop1 recommended Singing Oakes Daylily Garden and wrote:

I first met Peg and Jim Jeffcoat of Singing Oakes Garden a few years ago when I moved to SC, but have been buying from them for much longer. You'll never hope to meet two more honest, generous people. Sadly, Jim died last year, but Peg is continuing on with the work they love in growing daylilies and other perennials. I have always been very pleased with the plants I've gotten from Singing Oakes. They are very generous with divisions and bonuses. The plants are fresh and true to name. Highly recommend. Pictured below are a "few" flowers I picked up from Singing Oakes.

Lalambchop1 recommended Shady Rest Gardens and wrote:

Doris and David Bishop are integrity personified. I have gotten plants from them on 2-3 occasions and have always been very pleased. They send healthy plants with extra fans or bonus plants. Highly recommend.

We keep growing, because ATP is where all the excitement is these days! Check out these numbers from last week: