NEIGHBORHOOD GARDEN FOR FEBRUARY 5

NEIGHBORHOOD GARDEN FOR FEBRUARY 3, 2007

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LOOKING AHEAD TO VALENTINE’S DAY

BY GEORGE EDGAR

Flowers are the usual gift for Valentine’s Day. If you get cut flowers, be sure to make them last as long as possible. The most important factor in cut flower longevity is fresh water, according to the Extension Service at the University of Nebraska Lincoln. “Change the water in the vase every day, or at least every other day. Rinse the stems off each day to remove stem rotting organisms which may grow in the water. Keep the flowers displayed in a cool environment, out of drafts.”

Flowers and flower color have long been used to express one’s feelings or sentiments. Red roses for example express love and respect. Other sentiments can be conveyed by other flower colors. The following chart from the All-American Rose Selection website (www.rose.org) provides a list of sentiments associated with various rose colors:

ROSE COLOR SENTIMENT OR MEANING

· Red Love and Respect

· Deep Pink Gratitude and Appreciation

· Light Pink Admiration and Sympathy

· White Reverence and Humility

· Yellow Joy and Gladness

· Orange Enthusiasm and Desire

· Red and Yellow Blend Gaiety and Joviality

· Pale Blended Tones Sociability and Friendship

You may want to consider some of the alternatives to Roses such as other cut flowers, flowering potted plants, or a tropical houseplant. As Don Janssen, Extension Educator for the University of Nebraska Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County has said, “A foliage plant which can be dressed up for the occasion with foil, ribbons, and a valentine ornament, will last for years in a home or office, so long as your choice doesn’t demand terribly bright light.”

“If you’re less concerned with a plant’s longevity, you may opt for one with showy flowers, instead. You’ll find azaleas, begonias, chrysanthemums, kalanchoes, Persian violets, and exotic kangaroo paws among those expected to bloom for several weeks. Hibiscus plants bloom indoors under bright light, and then stop until they’re put outside for the summer. And new African violet hybrids bloom off and on, year round.” (“Saying “I Love You” with Flowers”, February 9, 2003).

If you are going to give a plant or cut flowers to your Valentine, be sure and cover it with a paper sack when you take it to the car or take it from the car into the house. Any green plant or cut flower will suffer if taken out of a warm store or warm car if the air temperature is below 55 degrees F. Just that short distance from the store to the car or from the car to the house can damage a plant or flowers if not covered. If the air temperature is between 55 degrees F. and 36 degrees F. you need at least 1 paper sack. (Do not use plastic as it conducts the cold.) Use two bags if the air temperature is between 36 degrees F. and 15 degrees F. Use 3 bags if the air temperature is 15 degrees F. or below. Also do not leave your plant or flowers in the car while you go shopping. Make this purchase at your last stop and get them back in the house as soon as possible.

If you get a potted plant for Valentine’s Day, remember it will need love and care, too! In your home it is adjusting to a new environment and most homes and offices have considerably less light and humidity than the greenhouse it has been raised and kept in. The leaves of the new plant may turn yellow and drop. Be sure and check the care instructions that come with the plant and place in a bright light for several weeks. Also make sure you do not place the plant near a furnace outlet, where hot dry air will blow on it.

Most holiday plants come wrapped and adorned with foil wrapping. These pot covers are very pretty but they hold too much water near the plant roots. If the plant is wrapped, simply poke three or four holes in the bottom of the wrap or cut a slice in the bottom with a paring knife, so the water will drain out into a saucer when watered.

The number one problem most people have with indoor plants in the winter is over watering. Plants do not use as much water in the winter so make sure you check the soil before adding water. When watering, use enough water so some runs out the bottom into the saucer. Do not let the plant set in the water for more than 15 or 20 minutes. Also, most houseplants like a shower every so often. Dust will clog up the pores, so take the plant into the shower and give it a good rinsing. If too large to move, clean with a damp cloth.

Most indoor plants do not need as much fertilizer as they do outside in summer. I like to use a 1/4^th solution of a water soluble fertilizer every time or every other time I water. That way the food gets clear to the bottom of the pot with the roots and doesn’t just fertilize just the top one or two inches of the plant soil.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!!!