1 00:00:02,799 --> 00:00:07,120 Speaker 1: Broadcasting from Ground Zero Studio a here at proven winners 2 00:00:07,400 --> 00:00:10,279 Color Choice shrugs. It's time for the Gardening Simplified Show 3 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:14,240 with Stacy Hirvella me Rick weisst and our engineer and 4 00:00:14,279 --> 00:00:16,440 producer Adrianna Robinson. 5 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 2: Well today, an annual. 6 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:21,600 Speaker 1: Review of the plants in your landscape. In many ways, 7 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:25,559 it's like the annual review of workers at a place 8 00:00:26,239 --> 00:00:29,800 of employment, at least in this case, you're the boss 9 00:00:29,879 --> 00:00:33,520 Apple Sauce and it's time for an annual review. You know, 10 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:38,759 most companies conduct annual performance reviews, usually at year end, 11 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:43,479 sometimes at the start of the year January February. But 12 00:00:43,560 --> 00:00:48,079 it basically gets us to retrack and puts us in 13 00:00:48,359 --> 00:00:54,439 our place as we evaluate performance. Evaluating plants involves assessing 14 00:00:54,479 --> 00:00:59,039 their health, structural integrity, and suitability for the environment based 15 00:00:59,079 --> 00:01:02,920 on the foliage, the roots overall vigor give it the 16 00:01:03,079 --> 00:01:08,799 eye test, and key indicators include vibrant, unblemished leaves, sturdy stems, 17 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:11,120 well developed root system. 18 00:01:11,599 --> 00:01:12,400 Speaker 2: So let's do a. 19 00:01:12,359 --> 00:01:17,159 Speaker 1: Spring evaluation and Stacy, I'm out in my landscape evaluating 20 00:01:17,239 --> 00:01:21,239 and I'm so I'm just so excited. The Inca Holland 21 00:01:21,599 --> 00:01:26,359 Peruvian lilies, the Ulsterroame area. They're popping out of the ground. 22 00:01:26,439 --> 00:01:29,359 We had surmised because of the polar vortex they weren't 23 00:01:29,359 --> 00:01:32,680 gonna make it. They're hearty to zone six A. They 24 00:01:32,719 --> 00:01:34,319 are busting out of the ground. 25 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:36,799 Speaker 3: That's amazing. I also didn't know that they emerged so early. 26 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:38,879 I would have thought that they would have emerged much later. 27 00:01:38,959 --> 00:01:40,799 So that is amazing news. 28 00:01:40,519 --> 00:01:42,079 Speaker 2: It's it's a miracle. 29 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 3: Yeah. I don't have any real updates on that kind 30 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:47,599 of thing yet because even in a good winter, my 31 00:01:47,640 --> 00:01:51,400 fig comes back pretty late. So so far everything seems 32 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:54,359 to be, you know, coming back and doing okay for 33 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:55,599 the most part, awesome. 34 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:58,719 Speaker 1: Well, you know, when they come back, like I've always said, 35 00:01:58,760 --> 00:02:01,480 it's like finding an onion ring in your order of 36 00:02:01,519 --> 00:02:05,480 French fries. It's so enjoyable. And you know what talking 37 00:02:05,519 --> 00:02:09,560 about annual reviews. Sometimes you got to fire a plant 38 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:13,319 from your yard. Maybe you made an impulse buy, walked 39 00:02:13,319 --> 00:02:15,599 around the yard with a shovel in one hand plant 40 00:02:15,599 --> 00:02:18,120 and the other trying to find a place to put it, 41 00:02:18,199 --> 00:02:21,319 and now you're having regret. And if you're gonna bail 42 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:23,599 on a plant. I've always talked about the fact that 43 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:28,759 I still feel that fall, of course, is a great 44 00:02:28,759 --> 00:02:30,919 time to do it, but springs a great time to 45 00:02:30,960 --> 00:02:34,080 do it too, because Stacy, if you're gonna bail, well, 46 00:02:34,159 --> 00:02:37,000 I guess do it now so that you don't miss a. 47 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,240 Speaker 2: Whole year of growth for your new plant. 48 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:41,599 Speaker 3: You know, that's my approach. Get it out as soon 49 00:02:41,639 --> 00:02:43,599 as you can, especially if you doren't planning to move 50 00:02:43,639 --> 00:02:45,639 it anywhere you have no real reason to try to, 51 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:48,479 you know, save it or keep it healthy to move. 52 00:02:49,159 --> 00:02:51,879 You know, life is just too short for plants that 53 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,000 aren't pulling their weight or that you don't like. I mean, 54 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:56,800 a plant can be performing perfectly well, but if you 55 00:02:56,879 --> 00:03:00,759 don't like it, or what I often find for myself 56 00:03:01,120 --> 00:03:04,199 is that a plant isn't worth the amount of space 57 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:06,599 it takes up. Now, a plan can have like kind 58 00:03:06,639 --> 00:03:10,199 of a you know, power performance, but if it doesn't 59 00:03:10,199 --> 00:03:12,319 take up that much space, or it grows someplace where 60 00:03:12,319 --> 00:03:15,360 I'm having trouble growing something else, it can stay. But 61 00:03:15,439 --> 00:03:17,479 you know, if it's getting prime real estate and I'm 62 00:03:17,520 --> 00:03:20,439 not loving it and it's big or even big ish, 63 00:03:20,719 --> 00:03:23,960 I'm like, you're out. I got other things, other things 64 00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:24,560 I can put here. 65 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 2: I'm with you there, I hear you. 66 00:03:26,759 --> 00:03:30,280 Speaker 1: So, just like with an annual review at work, have 67 00:03:30,479 --> 00:03:34,840 next steps for positive and practical solutions. In other words, 68 00:03:34,879 --> 00:03:37,960 if there's no follow up action plan put in place 69 00:03:38,039 --> 00:03:41,479 at the end of the performance appraisal in this case, 70 00:03:41,919 --> 00:03:46,560 an appraisal of how your landscape's doing, then it's really. 71 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 2: Not worth it. 72 00:03:47,879 --> 00:03:50,800 Speaker 1: So you have to evaluate what it is you want. 73 00:03:50,919 --> 00:03:53,599 I'm a big fan of taking pictures and video and 74 00:03:53,639 --> 00:03:56,719 your landscape throughout the season so that you can go 75 00:03:56,800 --> 00:04:00,960 back and evaluate. You have to evaluate on some plants, 76 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:04,280 do you really want it there or does it need 77 00:04:04,319 --> 00:04:06,759 to transfer to another department. 78 00:04:06,479 --> 00:04:09,479 Speaker 2: So to speak. Right, Yeah, falls a great time to 79 00:04:09,520 --> 00:04:09,800 do that. 80 00:04:09,840 --> 00:04:13,000 Speaker 1: But you know what, you can do that in spring two. 81 00:04:13,840 --> 00:04:19,199 Do your perennials need to be divided? Sometimes perennials are 82 00:04:19,319 --> 00:04:21,680 dying out in the center and. 83 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:23,000 Speaker 2: Need to be divided. 84 00:04:23,079 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 1: You see it everywhere you go, with a variety of perennials. 85 00:04:27,240 --> 00:04:29,600 It's up to you to evaluate that and take action 86 00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:30,360 at this time. 87 00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:30,639 Speaker 2: Of the year. 88 00:04:30,759 --> 00:04:32,279 Speaker 3: Well, and you know, I think that's a really important 89 00:04:32,279 --> 00:04:36,279 point too, because if you don't take that action that 90 00:04:36,360 --> 00:04:39,319 sometimes needs to be taken on those types of perennials, 91 00:04:39,759 --> 00:04:44,079 then you're going to give a an incorrect performance review. 92 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:46,639 Because let's just take something a notorious plant for this 93 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:51,319 Siberian iris, okay, right, very common to grow into a 94 00:04:51,319 --> 00:04:53,720 circle and have the center empty, and you know, at 95 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:55,720 first you're like, hey, this plant looks so amazing. I 96 00:04:55,800 --> 00:04:57,959 love it, and then five years later you're like, this plant, 97 00:04:58,079 --> 00:05:01,360 what happened? Well that's on you, because you then need 98 00:05:01,399 --> 00:05:04,240 to dig that up and divide it and give that 99 00:05:04,279 --> 00:05:06,079 a fresh start. And yeah, that's a little bit of work, 100 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:08,800 but it's pretty fun. You have plants to give to friends, 101 00:05:08,839 --> 00:05:10,959 most likely who are going to be happy, and then 102 00:05:10,959 --> 00:05:13,279 you can tell them, hey, five years down the road, 103 00:05:13,279 --> 00:05:14,600 this thing's going to die out in the middle. But 104 00:05:14,639 --> 00:05:16,199 all you have to do is divide it and find 105 00:05:16,199 --> 00:05:18,000 five friends to give the rest of the plants to. 106 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:21,040 So you do have to take that responsibility. It's not 107 00:05:21,600 --> 00:05:24,800 just the plants. And I'm talking a lot about this 108 00:05:24,879 --> 00:05:25,759 in Plants on Trial. 109 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 1: Oh good, Well, like I said, you're the boss Apple Sauce, 110 00:05:29,439 --> 00:05:33,800 so do it. Review for pruning, review for pruning. Let's 111 00:05:33,839 --> 00:05:38,480 get it done. And the problem I see is that 112 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:41,959 people don't have a good feel. Some people don't have 113 00:05:42,000 --> 00:05:44,399 a good feel for pruning. So they just take a 114 00:05:44,439 --> 00:05:48,680 little off the top, big problem. Okay, so review for 115 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:53,680 pruning and develop your pruning skills. Evaluating your garden now 116 00:05:53,720 --> 00:05:58,560 will save you time, money, and frustration. And of course 117 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:01,879 there's all kinds of cliche that we could throw out here. 118 00:06:02,399 --> 00:06:06,319 For example, when you get a performance review at work, 119 00:06:06,439 --> 00:06:11,120 the review speak. Maybe you'll see they said you enjoy 120 00:06:11,199 --> 00:06:11,759 your job. 121 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:14,639 Speaker 2: What they mean is you need more work to do. 122 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:19,480 Speaker 1: They may say you're a hard worker, usually someone who 123 00:06:19,560 --> 00:06:21,959 does it the hard way and complains about it. 124 00:06:22,360 --> 00:06:26,360 Speaker 2: Or you're timely. That means you panic at exactly. 125 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:29,839 Speaker 1: The right time on a project, or you're calm under fire, 126 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:34,040 you're two dazed and confused to act. So you know, 127 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:36,920 all performance review things, but it brings up the point 128 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:43,800 Stacy that in people we evaluate behaviors and results, but 129 00:06:43,959 --> 00:06:49,040 with plants you want to evaluate the traits. In this case, 130 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:53,360 you have plant breeders like proven winners Color Choice Shrubs who. 131 00:06:53,240 --> 00:06:54,720 Speaker 2: Do it for you. 132 00:06:55,000 --> 00:06:59,160 Speaker 1: They invest and they develop plants that they know are 133 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:03,639 going to perform warm in your landscape. And so those traits, 134 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:08,800 the genetics, very very important and they're outlined on the 135 00:07:08,839 --> 00:07:09,519 plant tax. 136 00:07:09,800 --> 00:07:13,480 Speaker 3: Yes. Yeah, so you can make an intelligent decision, and 137 00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:15,279 you know, a lot of times, of course, especially at 138 00:07:15,279 --> 00:07:17,720 this time, we have to say, people are so often 139 00:07:17,759 --> 00:07:20,439 swayed by what the plants look like in the garden center. 140 00:07:20,519 --> 00:07:22,560 And you know, typically that is going to be a 141 00:07:22,600 --> 00:07:26,199 pretty good representation of what to expect, but sometimes it's not. 142 00:07:26,519 --> 00:07:28,879 You know, sometimes the plants are going to be better 143 00:07:28,920 --> 00:07:31,160 because a lot of times those plants are coming out 144 00:07:31,199 --> 00:07:34,120 of a pollyhouse, and so especially things with colorful foliage 145 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:37,160 maybe hasn't developed as much and doesn't look as great. 146 00:07:38,399 --> 00:07:39,959 But yeah, I mean, we try to give you the 147 00:07:39,959 --> 00:07:42,639 full resume, so to speak, if we're using the work 148 00:07:42,680 --> 00:07:45,680 metaphors of the plant before you hire. 149 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:50,720 Speaker 1: It, right exactly. So let's do that landscape assessment. I 150 00:07:50,759 --> 00:07:53,160 think in spring one of the most important things to 151 00:07:53,199 --> 00:07:58,279 go out there and evaluate is your irrigation assets like heads. 152 00:07:58,759 --> 00:08:02,839 For some reason, in winter, gremlins get into sprinkler heads 153 00:08:02,959 --> 00:08:06,720 and mess them up or any type of sprinkler system. 154 00:08:07,199 --> 00:08:10,399 Prepare as though we're going to have a drought this year. 155 00:08:10,480 --> 00:08:13,759 I'm not saying we are. But it's about, just like 156 00:08:13,839 --> 00:08:18,000 an annual review at work, be positioned to adequately. 157 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:20,439 Speaker 2: Review the employee. 158 00:08:19,720 --> 00:08:22,800 Speaker 1: In other words, the individual doing the review has to 159 00:08:22,879 --> 00:08:25,959 have a relationship with that person. If they don't know 160 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:29,519 that person or haven't worked with them, how can they 161 00:08:29,680 --> 00:08:33,679 review them. And so you've got to have that day 162 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:35,799 to day contact the same way. 163 00:08:35,919 --> 00:08:36,879 Speaker 2: It's a no brainer. 164 00:08:37,399 --> 00:08:39,799 Speaker 1: You have to have that day to day contact with 165 00:08:39,879 --> 00:08:42,840 the plants in your landscape, develop a relationship. 166 00:08:43,000 --> 00:08:47,399 Speaker 3: Yeah, definitely. And I will say for myself, you know, 167 00:08:47,440 --> 00:08:50,919 obviously it's spring right now. I think the important review 168 00:08:50,919 --> 00:08:53,519 time for me comes later in the season, and then 169 00:08:53,840 --> 00:08:56,360 trusting myself to believe it in spring, and this is 170 00:08:56,360 --> 00:08:58,440 the first year I'm doing that. That's great, you know, 171 00:08:58,559 --> 00:09:01,759 because like in the past, you'll be like, oh my gosh, 172 00:09:01,799 --> 00:09:03,600 I have got to take out some of the sylphium. 173 00:09:03,639 --> 00:09:05,840 It's taking over the whole garden. I don't want this much. 174 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:07,679 I love this plant, but this is way too much. 175 00:09:08,080 --> 00:09:11,159 And then what happens. You know, you're like, oh, it's 176 00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:14,279 not so bad. It's you know, it's little, and I 177 00:09:14,279 --> 00:09:16,159 don't want to dig up the bulbs that are around it, 178 00:09:16,159 --> 00:09:17,720 and I don't want to disturb all of this. And 179 00:09:17,759 --> 00:09:19,720 then next thing you know, August rolls around and you're 180 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:22,559 drowning again. So you have to make those notes through 181 00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:24,240 the air. But spring is a good time to think 182 00:09:24,279 --> 00:09:27,039 about those things. Review pictures and videos and so forth, 183 00:09:27,080 --> 00:09:31,039 if you've taken them. And yeah, i'd say most action 184 00:09:31,240 --> 00:09:34,720 on a performance review is now is a great time 185 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:35,480 for that to take place. 186 00:09:35,720 --> 00:09:38,039 Speaker 1: Well, on segment four, I'll talk to you about a 187 00:09:38,080 --> 00:09:41,159 specific plant. And I did a plant review on and 188 00:09:41,200 --> 00:09:45,120 I decided to fire that plant. You're out of here, 189 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:48,279 and I fired it last fall. I'm glad I did. 190 00:09:49,120 --> 00:09:54,200 So here's today's limb a rick. This plant is a malcontent. 191 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:59,639 It's purchase I greatly resent. Okay, well, wow, I feel 192 00:09:59,639 --> 00:10:02,679 better now. I guess I just had de vent. I 193 00:10:02,759 --> 00:10:06,039 bought the plant four years ago. It cost me lots 194 00:10:06,039 --> 00:10:09,879 of dough. The store received I lack. Yet I still 195 00:10:09,919 --> 00:10:13,519 tried to bring it back. They smiled and just said no, 196 00:10:14,320 --> 00:10:17,480 its use in my yard is now banned. It failed 197 00:10:17,639 --> 00:10:21,440 even with helping hand. So get a grip. Here's your 198 00:10:21,480 --> 00:10:24,720 pink slip. You, my friend, have just been canned. 199 00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:28,399 Speaker 2: Oh, I'll talk about that plant. And segment four list 200 00:10:28,399 --> 00:10:29,399 I'd like to hear what it is. 201 00:10:29,679 --> 00:10:32,919 Speaker 1: Let's see how Stacey ties this in and plants on trial. 202 00:10:33,159 --> 00:10:36,480 That's coming up next. Here on the Gardening Simplified Show. 203 00:10:42,519 --> 00:10:45,840 Speaker 3: Beautify your home and community with Proven Winner's Color Choice 204 00:10:45,840 --> 00:10:48,960 Shrubs with over three hundred and twenty five unique varieties 205 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:51,960 to choose from. There's a flowering shrubber evergreen for every 206 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,120 taste and every space. Just look for the distinctive white 207 00:10:55,120 --> 00:10:57,960 container your local garden center or learn more at proven 208 00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:03,279 Winner's Color Choice dot com. Greeting's Gardening friends, and welcome 209 00:11:03,320 --> 00:11:05,600 back to the Gardening Simplified Joke, where the topic for 210 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:09,000 today is giving your plants, your landscape, your gardens a 211 00:11:09,039 --> 00:11:12,000 performance review. And you know, you can do that individually 212 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:14,120 on a per plant basis like we were talking about, you 213 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:16,600 can also do it on a whole garden landscape bed 214 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:20,200 basis as well and say, you know, hey, like take 215 00:11:20,279 --> 00:11:22,399 some time to think critically about what's happening in your 216 00:11:22,399 --> 00:11:25,399 beds and do things need to change? And you know, 217 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,039 can you spice things up or calm things down whatever 218 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:30,320 you want to do. So there's lots of different ways 219 00:11:30,320 --> 00:11:33,720 to do this, and I think a big part of 220 00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:38,000 this whole idea of the performance review is to kind 221 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:43,279 of generally weed out the underperformers correct, right, like the 222 00:11:43,759 --> 00:11:47,159 high performers. You know, no one like walks by one 223 00:11:47,159 --> 00:11:48,919 of their favorite plants and is like, Okay, you're doing 224 00:11:48,919 --> 00:11:50,600 a great job. You can stay like it's kind of 225 00:11:50,639 --> 00:11:53,279 assumed that if you have a plant that's performing really 226 00:11:53,279 --> 00:11:56,200 well and you really enjoy it, it's saying so now 227 00:11:56,200 --> 00:11:59,840 you're thinking critically about the underperformers in your landscape and 228 00:12:00,279 --> 00:12:02,279 what you are going to do about them, because again, 229 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:05,200 now is the perfect time to take action. Now. I 230 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,200 have again been dealing with home gardeners and home gardener 231 00:12:08,279 --> 00:12:12,080 questions for many years now, well over two decades, and 232 00:12:12,399 --> 00:12:15,559 I can't tell you how many times I have heard 233 00:12:15,639 --> 00:12:19,120 from a home gardener who you know, has bought one 234 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:21,960 of our plants or whatever and it's not flowering. So 235 00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:25,080 they've had it for a couple of years, it's not flowering, 236 00:12:25,200 --> 00:12:27,960 it's not doing what they expected it to do. And 237 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:31,679 they asked me the dreaded question, did I get a dud? 238 00:12:32,159 --> 00:12:34,919 Speaker 2: Oh, it's the plants fall? 239 00:12:35,639 --> 00:12:38,679 Speaker 3: Did I get a dud? And you know, plants are 240 00:12:38,679 --> 00:12:43,440 not like cars. There are no lemons. Plants are actually, 241 00:12:43,519 --> 00:12:46,879 you know, genetically identical to that. So if you get 242 00:12:46,919 --> 00:12:49,600 a limelight hydrange, if you had a Limelight hydrange twenty 243 00:12:49,679 --> 00:12:51,480 years ago, and you want to add another one. Now 244 00:12:51,519 --> 00:12:55,240 you're still getting the same limelight hydrange. It's consistent, it's expected. 245 00:12:55,320 --> 00:12:59,120 So with that in mind, it is in very impossible 246 00:12:59,159 --> 00:13:01,159 to get a plant that is a dud and just 247 00:13:01,159 --> 00:13:05,120 refuses to bloom. If that is happening, there is something wrong. Now, 248 00:13:05,320 --> 00:13:09,720 something that can happen in here is that a plant 249 00:13:09,840 --> 00:13:13,039 is not inherently a dud, but is having some trouble 250 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:15,879 because of how it was treated prior to you purchasing it. 251 00:13:16,039 --> 00:13:17,679 And you know that I don't need to tell you 252 00:13:17,720 --> 00:13:18,440 that's a big part of that. 253 00:13:18,639 --> 00:13:19,080 Speaker 2: Absolutely. 254 00:13:19,159 --> 00:13:21,679 Speaker 3: Of course, every grower in every garden center tries to 255 00:13:21,759 --> 00:13:25,200 do their best, but things happen. Plants get tipped over 256 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:27,440 in the garden center all the time, and then they 257 00:13:27,799 --> 00:13:30,480 might miss out on watering, or they might get some 258 00:13:30,519 --> 00:13:32,559 broken branches that are going to, you know, make their 259 00:13:32,600 --> 00:13:35,600 habit a little bit funky. There's just so many things 260 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:36,120 that can happen. 261 00:13:36,240 --> 00:13:39,200 Speaker 1: Yeah, and then you question why is it not working? 262 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:42,200 You know, it's the old adage of Larry in the office. 263 00:13:42,279 --> 00:13:45,600 You know, boss comes up to Larry and says, I've 264 00:13:45,639 --> 00:13:47,480 noticed you're just not working. 265 00:13:47,200 --> 00:13:48,159 Speaker 2: Like you used to. 266 00:13:49,240 --> 00:13:51,840 Speaker 1: I go buy your office and you're not working. And 267 00:13:51,919 --> 00:13:55,320 Larry says, well, they installed carpet a couple months ago 268 00:13:55,440 --> 00:13:59,879 so he could hear his boss coming down. May install 269 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:02,960 carpet now he's not working when the boss comes. 270 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:08,200 Speaker 3: Got the same kind of thing, gotcha. Yeah, So you know, 271 00:14:08,240 --> 00:14:10,639 there's a lot of things that can impact plant performance. 272 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:14,639 But I wanted to, in this spirit of the performance 273 00:14:14,679 --> 00:14:18,159 review for plants, talk about some of the things that 274 00:14:18,200 --> 00:14:21,639 can go wrong with plants, so that instead of just 275 00:14:21,759 --> 00:14:24,360 giving the plant a bad performance review, which you may 276 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:26,919 be tempted to do, you can take some time to 277 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:30,159 think about, are there other factors that are influencing this 278 00:14:30,200 --> 00:14:34,840 plant's performance that I can control to improve it. Now, again, 279 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:37,279 what you want and what you think is worth your 280 00:14:37,320 --> 00:14:41,039 time is always takes precedent over any of this stuff, 281 00:14:41,440 --> 00:14:44,360 because you know, again, life is too short to have 282 00:14:44,440 --> 00:14:46,039 things in your garden that you don't care for or 283 00:14:46,039 --> 00:14:48,759 that you're waiting around forever for to do well. But 284 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:50,840 some of us have a sunk cost fallacy, right like 285 00:14:50,879 --> 00:14:53,120 I bought this plant and I'm going to get the 286 00:14:53,159 --> 00:14:55,120 best out of it, come, you know, no matter what, 287 00:14:56,159 --> 00:14:59,360 or something maybe very near and dear to our hearts. 288 00:14:59,360 --> 00:15:01,399 It was given as gift, or you know, we associate 289 00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:04,080 it with something, or you know, we just want the 290 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:07,600 experience of seeing what we can do to change this 291 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:11,200 plant from a poor performer to a high performer. 292 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:13,639 Speaker 2: So you agree with me, be the boss. 293 00:15:13,759 --> 00:15:15,720 Speaker 3: You got to be the boss. I mean, I think 294 00:15:15,720 --> 00:15:18,039 that's the best part about gardening, right right, you know, 295 00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:20,759 like you can just manage all of your plants and 296 00:15:20,840 --> 00:15:23,720 create your own little world and no one can really 297 00:15:23,759 --> 00:15:25,320 say boo about it. It's kind of great. 298 00:15:25,559 --> 00:15:26,679 Speaker 2: Give your plants a bonus. 299 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:29,639 Speaker 3: I've been thinking about it all. My plants get lots 300 00:15:29,639 --> 00:15:32,759 of appreciation. I don't know if they can if they 301 00:15:32,799 --> 00:15:36,799 can handle pay their rent with that. But so anyway, 302 00:15:36,840 --> 00:15:39,399 what I wanted to talk about for plants on trial 303 00:15:39,399 --> 00:15:43,399 today was what are the sign what are the things 304 00:15:43,399 --> 00:15:45,240 that can go wrong? What are the signs that those 305 00:15:45,279 --> 00:15:48,600 things are going wrong, and how you can resolve them? 306 00:15:49,399 --> 00:15:51,799 So kind of a little diagnostic kit as you're thinking 307 00:15:51,840 --> 00:15:55,000 about your performance review. And you know, I think one 308 00:15:55,039 --> 00:15:58,360 thing that just does not get said enough about gardening 309 00:15:59,399 --> 00:16:03,840 is that things change. And a plant that you planted 310 00:16:04,039 --> 00:16:07,879 even five years ago is now growing in much different 311 00:16:07,919 --> 00:16:12,039 conditions than it was when you planted it. So you know, 312 00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:14,720 we do have to continue to monitor all of these 313 00:16:14,759 --> 00:16:18,919 factors that go into plant care and think about if 314 00:16:18,919 --> 00:16:21,440 they're having a negative effect on the planet. It's usually 315 00:16:21,440 --> 00:16:24,240 not the plant's fault. It's one of these things has changed. 316 00:16:24,399 --> 00:16:27,600 So Number one is age. I think a lot of 317 00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:30,440 people don't think about plants getting too old to perform 318 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:34,840 well anymore. And it's not necessarily like a super common thing. 319 00:16:34,879 --> 00:16:37,120 We think about trees, right, and trees can live for 320 00:16:37,159 --> 00:16:39,279 a very very long time, and we don't, you know, 321 00:16:39,360 --> 00:16:42,440 think about that. And shrubs are very long lived. I 322 00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:45,320 mean a shrub can easily live twenty five fifty years 323 00:16:45,320 --> 00:16:48,840 depending on the variety or more. But plants do get old, 324 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:52,559 and especially shrubs, when they get old, they tend to 325 00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:57,559 perform less, not as well. They have thicker wood. That 326 00:16:57,679 --> 00:17:00,960 thicker older wood is less capable of putting out you know, 327 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:04,359 fine vigorous growth, So the plant doesn't look as lush 328 00:17:04,440 --> 00:17:06,880 and full anymore. If it's not putting out a lot 329 00:17:06,920 --> 00:17:08,839 of new growth, it's not usually getting a lot of 330 00:17:08,839 --> 00:17:12,160 flowers on it. And so you know, sometimes if a 331 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:14,440 plant is old, it's either time to replace it or 332 00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:17,839 time to give it a little rejuvenation. Pruning. Only you 333 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:19,680 are going to know if the plant's age is the 334 00:17:19,720 --> 00:17:22,960 issue because you're going to roughly know, you know, how 335 00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:24,599 long it's been there. You'd say, hey, I bought my 336 00:17:24,599 --> 00:17:26,640 house ten years ago, this thing was already growing, so hey, 337 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:28,279 it's at least thirty years old. You know. 338 00:17:28,599 --> 00:17:31,480 Speaker 2: I agree with you. Applies to people too. I think 339 00:17:31,519 --> 00:17:33,160 of this every time I look in the mirror. 340 00:17:34,759 --> 00:17:36,640 Speaker 3: Well, so, if you have an old plant, you can 341 00:17:36,680 --> 00:17:39,160 remove it and replace it with something new. Obviously there 342 00:17:39,160 --> 00:17:42,200 are so many choices now, but if you want give 343 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:45,160 it a rejuvenation pruning, and we've talked about rejuvenation pruning 344 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:47,839 lots on the show, you can simply cut it back 345 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:51,799 to you know, to stumps and it will regrow from 346 00:17:51,880 --> 00:17:54,240 the roots if it's not too old. Now, I have 347 00:17:54,640 --> 00:17:57,759 seen this fail. My in laws had a really really 348 00:17:57,799 --> 00:17:59,640 old white gela. I mean the thing must have been 349 00:18:00,079 --> 00:18:03,440 fifty some years old, you know, and it stopped flowering 350 00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:06,119 as much, and I advised them to rejuvenation prune it, 351 00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:08,359 and it killed it because the plant was just done, 352 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:10,319 you know, it didn't have the vigor in the roots anymore. 353 00:18:10,359 --> 00:18:12,559 So you do need to be aware that that is 354 00:18:12,559 --> 00:18:16,359 a risk of rejuvenating a very old plant, but it's 355 00:18:16,400 --> 00:18:18,319 still worth a try unless you want to just take 356 00:18:18,319 --> 00:18:18,599 it out. 357 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:19,160 Speaker 2: So agreed. 358 00:18:19,359 --> 00:18:22,319 Speaker 3: That's age now, sun I think is the biggest one. 359 00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:27,920 And so few people realize that most sits tend to 360 00:18:27,960 --> 00:18:31,119 get shadier over time. And that's kind of a surprise, 361 00:18:31,240 --> 00:18:34,279 right because we don't we don't really perceive the trees 362 00:18:34,279 --> 00:18:36,599 as growing. But you know, pretty much every yard, at 363 00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:39,799 least here in the Midwest, in any you know climate 364 00:18:39,839 --> 00:18:42,640 that has a lot of trees, as those trees grow 365 00:18:42,759 --> 00:18:46,279 and spread, they're going to cast a broader, wider shadow 366 00:18:46,440 --> 00:18:48,079 and reach areas that they didn't before. 367 00:18:48,200 --> 00:18:51,960 Speaker 2: This is a great evaluation point. Yeah, it really is so. 368 00:18:52,039 --> 00:18:55,000 Speaker 3: And I hear this so often with people and lilacs. 369 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,440 Yes that people you know have a lilac, they've had 370 00:18:58,440 --> 00:19:01,240 it for years. They love it, and they say, you know, gee, 371 00:19:01,359 --> 00:19:03,920 four years ago, this thing was beautiful, it was covered 372 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:07,079 in flowers. In the last four years, it just keeps 373 00:19:07,160 --> 00:19:09,559 flowering less and less and I'm barely seeing any blooms 374 00:19:09,559 --> 00:19:12,039 on it. What did I do wrong? Well, if you're 375 00:19:12,119 --> 00:19:13,920 ruling out pruning, which of course is always the first 376 00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:17,400 thing that we do, then yeat lilacs. Are full sun 377 00:19:17,519 --> 00:19:20,519 plants that need full sun not just when they bloom, 378 00:19:20,839 --> 00:19:22,960 but later on in the summer when they are setting 379 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:25,960 their flower buds. And that's another thing. We don't necessarily 380 00:19:25,960 --> 00:19:29,640 realize how shady our lilacs are in summer when they're 381 00:19:29,680 --> 00:19:33,200 working really hard to produce those flowers, because we're not 382 00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:35,160 thinking about our lilocks anymore. They're just a big green 383 00:19:35,200 --> 00:19:37,759 blob on the side of the yard. So you'll know 384 00:19:37,839 --> 00:19:41,480 a plant is not getting enough sun. Again, reduced flowering 385 00:19:41,519 --> 00:19:44,400 is probably going to be the biggest tell, I think, 386 00:19:45,319 --> 00:19:47,920 but you'll also see that it's sparse, that the internodes 387 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:50,160 or spaces between the leaves tend to be longer because 388 00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:53,000 the plant is stretching for light. If it's a plant 389 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:56,720 with colorful foliage, or even just colorful fall foliage, that 390 00:19:56,759 --> 00:19:59,480 color will be kind of muddy, not looking that great. 391 00:19:59,519 --> 00:20:02,200 That's a sign that plant needs more sun. And that 392 00:20:02,240 --> 00:20:04,240 would be a great time too. Instead of just evicting 393 00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:05,839 it from the yard, although while you're digging it you 394 00:20:05,839 --> 00:20:09,200 can certainly do that. Try it in a sunnier spot 395 00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:12,559 in your yard and see the difference. Now the opposite, 396 00:20:12,759 --> 00:20:17,039 too much light is not so much Typically an issue 397 00:20:17,039 --> 00:20:18,880 for us in cool climates like this, but certainly it 398 00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:20,880 can be a big issue for people in hot climates 399 00:20:20,880 --> 00:20:24,440 and in you know, areas of high elevation, like in 400 00:20:24,680 --> 00:20:28,359 the rocky mountains. So a plant you'll know is getting 401 00:20:28,359 --> 00:20:30,960 too much sun if it tends to look kind of bleached, 402 00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:35,000 it's frequently hard to keep watered. You haven't changed anything 403 00:20:35,079 --> 00:20:38,880 about your watering, but all of the sudden, you know, 404 00:20:39,480 --> 00:20:43,680 it's always wilting. You can't seem to keep it watered. Also, 405 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:46,359 you might see like browning on the tips or on 406 00:20:46,559 --> 00:20:50,440 the edges. That's another sign. Basically the plant is just 407 00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:53,160 going to look stressed. And this is often an issue 408 00:20:53,200 --> 00:20:56,079 for people in hot climates where there was a hurricane 409 00:20:56,200 --> 00:20:59,039 or another type of storm that rips off the canopy 410 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:01,880 and all the understory plants down below, or all of 411 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:05,720 a sudden in full sun. So again you can't you know, 412 00:21:05,799 --> 00:21:07,880 just say, hey, these plants are no good anymore. You 413 00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:09,799 have to think about all of these factors that have 414 00:21:09,880 --> 00:21:12,759 influenced it. You know, I had a bunch more factors, 415 00:21:12,759 --> 00:21:14,759 but we're already out of time because I just can't 416 00:21:14,759 --> 00:21:16,119 stop gabbing about plants. 417 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:18,960 Speaker 1: Well, we got segment four, all right. We'll go right 418 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:21,200 back at this after we get through the mail bank. 419 00:21:21,240 --> 00:21:23,000 Speaker 3: Okay, but first you have to tell me when we 420 00:21:23,000 --> 00:21:24,960 get to segment four what the plant is, because that's 421 00:21:25,079 --> 00:21:27,359 I can't leave everybody on the edges of their seats. 422 00:21:27,480 --> 00:21:27,720 Speaker 2: I'll do. 423 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:29,400 Speaker 3: So we're gonna take a little break and when we 424 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:31,039 come back, we'll be opening up the mail legs. So 425 00:21:31,039 --> 00:21:40,960 please stay tuned. At Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs, we 426 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:43,839 know that a better landscape starts with a better shrub. 427 00:21:44,039 --> 00:21:46,880 Our team of experts tests and evaluates all of our 428 00:21:46,920 --> 00:21:49,880 flowering shrubs and evergreens for eight to ten years to 429 00:21:50,039 --> 00:21:54,400 ensure they outperform what's already on the market. For easy care, reliable, 430 00:21:54,519 --> 00:21:58,279 beautiful shrubs to accentuate your home and express your personal style, 431 00:21:58,400 --> 00:22:01,119 look for Proven Winners Shrubs in the distinctive white container 432 00:22:01,319 --> 00:22:03,720 at your local garden center or learn more at Proven 433 00:22:03,759 --> 00:22:09,319 Winner's Color Choice dot com. Creating's gardening friends and welcome 434 00:22:09,359 --> 00:22:12,240 back to the Gardening Simplified Show, where it is our 435 00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:15,680 pleasure to help you with your garden questions, quandaries and conundrums. 436 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:18,680 And I know they are abundant out there as things 437 00:22:18,720 --> 00:22:21,799 come back from the winter or not or come back 438 00:22:21,799 --> 00:22:24,359 looking a little bit different than you might have thought. 439 00:22:24,480 --> 00:22:26,240 So I know there's lots of stuff going on, and 440 00:22:27,359 --> 00:22:30,319 just a seasonal reminder when it comes to pruning. When 441 00:22:30,400 --> 00:22:33,160 in doubt, don't don't you say I'll just get to 442 00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:36,759 prune it since I'm out here right now, Just wait, 443 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:39,319 you know, until you figure out what the right thing 444 00:22:39,359 --> 00:22:41,039 to do is, and then make your decision. 445 00:22:41,039 --> 00:22:44,440 Speaker 2: Because when you make the decision, don't be afraid to 446 00:22:44,559 --> 00:22:44,880 do it. 447 00:22:44,960 --> 00:22:47,400 Speaker 3: Oh no, don't be afraid, you know, I think. But 448 00:22:47,559 --> 00:22:50,079 the reason people are afraid to prune is because they 449 00:22:50,079 --> 00:22:52,480 don't know why they're pruning. Correct, So this is an 450 00:22:52,519 --> 00:22:54,960 off topic conversation sort of. But you know, if you 451 00:22:55,119 --> 00:22:57,319 know why you are pruning, you no longer have to 452 00:22:57,359 --> 00:22:59,359 be afraid of pruning because you know exactly what you 453 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:01,680 were going to do. People are afraid of pruning when 454 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:03,960 they don't know what they're trying to accomplish. So they're like, 455 00:23:04,039 --> 00:23:05,720 where do I start? Because I don't know what I'm 456 00:23:05,720 --> 00:23:07,880 trying to do. I just have the sense that I 457 00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:13,039 should prune this because people say that or whatever. So anyway, 458 00:23:13,039 --> 00:23:15,200 we have lots of information about pruning on our website. 459 00:23:15,200 --> 00:23:18,799 Performer's Color choice dot Com. There's lots of resources on 460 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:21,839 there to help you out and yeah, when in doubt, 461 00:23:21,839 --> 00:23:25,079 don't it's also of course on our plant tag. Now 462 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:27,279 to kick off the mail bag today, I have a 463 00:23:27,359 --> 00:23:31,519 question of my own for our listeners. Oh. So, you know, 464 00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:33,839 the weather has been improving here in Michigan, and so 465 00:23:34,319 --> 00:23:37,119 my husband and I are sitting outside getting ready to 466 00:23:37,200 --> 00:23:40,359 finally finish up our new patio that we've been you know, 467 00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:43,680 thinking about for a couple of seasons now, and we 468 00:23:43,720 --> 00:23:47,079 are torn between covering it with a pergola or not. 469 00:23:48,039 --> 00:23:51,480 Now we both really like the idea, and we would 470 00:23:51,519 --> 00:23:54,480 plant grape vines on it because that's just like so romantic. 471 00:23:54,519 --> 00:23:57,559 You know, you have like the dining terrace under the 472 00:23:57,599 --> 00:23:59,480 grape vines, and you know, then you don't have to 473 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:02,440 build a st because a grapevine, you know, actual grapevine 474 00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:04,759 trellis takes up a lot of space and it's heavy duty. 475 00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:07,559 Speaker 1: I caution you on that though, because if you do that, 476 00:24:07,640 --> 00:24:09,440 you're going to see possums in summer. 477 00:24:09,799 --> 00:24:12,400 Speaker 3: Ooh, I would love that. That's an incentive for. 478 00:24:12,319 --> 00:24:15,400 Speaker 1: Me because I had and I had the grape vines 479 00:24:15,480 --> 00:24:18,680 and wild grapes growing on it. You know, and then 480 00:24:19,960 --> 00:24:23,240 later in summer when those grapes start to ferment, they 481 00:24:23,279 --> 00:24:25,599 go up there and they get drunk and they lose 482 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:29,440 their car keys and oh my gosh. 483 00:24:28,359 --> 00:24:30,839 Speaker 3: Well we're going to grow table grapes, so we're planning 484 00:24:30,839 --> 00:24:31,359 to harvest that. 485 00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:34,359 Speaker 2: Okay, good, so, but get to them first. 486 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:38,880 Speaker 3: Then there is always that possibility. But my question for 487 00:24:39,039 --> 00:24:42,640 our listeners that is keeping us from you know, fully 488 00:24:42,640 --> 00:24:46,039 going in on this idea. If you have covered a pergola, 489 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:48,920 or if you've covered a patio or deck in a 490 00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:52,519 pergola and planted anything on it, did it turn into 491 00:24:52,559 --> 00:24:56,079 a bird infested nightmare where you could not eat under 492 00:24:56,119 --> 00:24:59,359 it because the birds were doing their business up there. 493 00:25:00,119 --> 00:25:02,599 So this is our concern is you know, if we're 494 00:25:02,599 --> 00:25:04,359 going to do this, we do plan to use this 495 00:25:04,480 --> 00:25:07,759 space extensively. So I wanted to hear from people who 496 00:25:07,799 --> 00:25:11,559 have done this. Was it an issue if you didn't 497 00:25:11,559 --> 00:25:13,480 plant on it, was it not an issue? Or it 498 00:25:13,519 --> 00:25:15,559 wasn't an issue until you planted on it and the 499 00:25:15,559 --> 00:25:18,559 birds had some coverage. So I am looking for some 500 00:25:18,759 --> 00:25:21,799 first hand experience on this. You can leave it on 501 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:25,680 our YouTube comments if you have something to say about this. 502 00:25:26,119 --> 00:25:27,759 If you've been. It doesn't have to be your garden. 503 00:25:27,799 --> 00:25:29,440 It could be maybe you went to visit a friend 504 00:25:29,440 --> 00:25:33,720 and they invited you for a romantic patio dinner and 505 00:25:33,920 --> 00:25:36,119 it was ruined by birds. I don't know, but I 506 00:25:36,119 --> 00:25:37,960 would love to hear from you, good or bad, your 507 00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:40,400 experience with us. You can also reach us at Gardening 508 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:42,599 Simplified on air dot com. I would love to hear 509 00:25:42,720 --> 00:25:45,640 what you have to say in your own experience. 510 00:25:45,960 --> 00:25:46,799 Speaker 2: That's a great question. 511 00:25:47,279 --> 00:25:51,599 Speaker 1: Nothing worse than bird evacuation on the patio table. 512 00:25:51,799 --> 00:25:54,039 Speaker 3: Especially if they ate the grapes. But yeah, that's it. 513 00:25:55,039 --> 00:25:58,559 That would be a nightmare. Yeah, I'm sure anyone who 514 00:25:58,599 --> 00:26:02,680 has a mulberry can attest that issue. Anyway, what do 515 00:26:02,680 --> 00:26:03,119 we got them out? 516 00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:05,880 Speaker 1: Big? Cynthia's writing, How can fleas and ants in the 517 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:10,400 garden be removed safely for wildlife, pollinators and beneficial insects? 518 00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:14,200 I do not use chemicals. We have gotten flea bites already, 519 00:26:14,279 --> 00:26:15,519 have to wear garden boots. 520 00:26:15,559 --> 00:26:16,720 Speaker 2: Please help. 521 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:19,799 Speaker 3: If not a problem that anyone wants to have no fun? 522 00:26:20,680 --> 00:26:23,039 And you know so, I don't know a lot about fleas. 523 00:26:23,079 --> 00:26:26,519 I don't have pets, so I've was reading some interesting 524 00:26:26,559 --> 00:26:30,839 stuff about them. The best way to discourage them from 525 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:33,599 your yard probably easier said than done, but we'll start 526 00:26:33,599 --> 00:26:38,480 here sun, warmth, and dryness. So they like high humidity, 527 00:26:39,039 --> 00:26:42,960 they like coverage, they like moisture, and they like shade. 528 00:26:43,559 --> 00:26:46,359 So if you can first of all kind of limit 529 00:26:46,440 --> 00:26:49,960 those areas or even you know, limit one of those 530 00:26:50,000 --> 00:26:52,400 factors in areas that are like that. I mean, if 531 00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:54,480 you have a shaded area that's under tree, obviously you 532 00:26:54,519 --> 00:26:58,359 can't change that, but can you say, adjust you sprinkler 533 00:26:58,400 --> 00:27:01,319 system so it's not is moist over there? Or can 534 00:27:01,359 --> 00:27:03,599 you cut the lawn short over there so they don't 535 00:27:03,599 --> 00:27:06,279 have as much coverage. There's lots of different ways you 536 00:27:06,279 --> 00:27:10,319 can look at kind of modifying the environment so that 537 00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:12,920 they don't thrive, and certainly as it gets warmer here 538 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:16,119 in Michigan, that will be sort of a natural deterrent. 539 00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:21,680 Diotamacious earth probably the go to for fleas in bugs 540 00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:24,720 of all types if you are trying to kill them 541 00:27:24,759 --> 00:27:28,119 without chemicals, So diatamacious earth. You're not looking for the 542 00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:31,079 pool grade diatamacious earth that you use in swimming pools. 543 00:27:31,079 --> 00:27:33,880 This needs to be a pest grade diatamacious earth. You 544 00:27:33,920 --> 00:27:35,759 can get it all sorts of garden centers and that 545 00:27:35,839 --> 00:27:37,759 kind of thing. Just if you have the pool stuff, 546 00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:40,519 it won't work because it is not as sharp. Now, 547 00:27:40,720 --> 00:27:42,880 diatamacious earth just feels like powder to you if you 548 00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:45,559 touch it. You can't really tell the difference between cornstarch 549 00:27:45,640 --> 00:27:50,000 or you know whatever. But it is actually diatoms, ancient 550 00:27:50,039 --> 00:27:53,519 diatoms that have these kind of edges. So when little 551 00:27:53,519 --> 00:27:56,319 insects crawl over them, they will get lacerated. Now, of 552 00:27:56,319 --> 00:28:00,319 course that means it is a non discriminatory pest side 553 00:28:00,319 --> 00:28:04,279 it will it will lacerate anything that does crawl over it. 554 00:28:04,799 --> 00:28:06,400 But if you can put it in an area where 555 00:28:06,400 --> 00:28:09,160 you know the fleas are, this is an effective way. 556 00:28:09,240 --> 00:28:12,759 Once it lacerates their exoskeleton, they dry out and die. 557 00:28:12,920 --> 00:28:16,720 So this is a really common way to manage fleas 558 00:28:16,039 --> 00:28:21,400 on pets as well as indoors. Now, finally, it does 559 00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:25,359 seem as though cedar oil is very effective against fleas. 560 00:28:25,480 --> 00:28:28,400 Speaker 1: Yeah, I was going to suggest some sort of essential oil. 561 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:33,039 Speaker 3: Yeah, so cedar oil is known to be an effective detern. 562 00:28:33,119 --> 00:28:36,720 It's actually used in some flea pesticides as well, even 563 00:28:36,759 --> 00:28:39,440 though it is just a natural product. So you could 564 00:28:39,440 --> 00:28:42,559 at least try putting that on yourself. If it's not 565 00:28:42,599 --> 00:28:45,039 practical to put around your yard, you can, you know, 566 00:28:45,119 --> 00:28:47,119 rub it on your ankles, on your boots, your pants 567 00:28:48,160 --> 00:28:51,759 and see if that works. So all about that IPM 568 00:28:51,799 --> 00:28:55,279 Integrated pest management, learning about the behavior and seeing what 569 00:28:55,319 --> 00:28:58,119 you can modify to to eliminate the issue. 570 00:28:58,400 --> 00:29:02,039 Speaker 1: Kim writes to US I recently a canthus or bears 571 00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:03,079 breeches and. 572 00:29:03,039 --> 00:29:03,839 Speaker 2: It was beautiful. 573 00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:06,359 Speaker 1: I've read however, it can be invasive in some areas. 574 00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:11,400 I am in seven B. Should I avoid this plant? 575 00:29:11,920 --> 00:29:13,240 I won't avoid it. 576 00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:14,200 Speaker 3: It's such a cool plant. 577 00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:15,119 Speaker 2: I think it's so cool. 578 00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:18,160 Speaker 3: It is such a very very cool plant, and I 579 00:29:18,160 --> 00:29:20,079 would definitely like to have one in my garden, and 580 00:29:20,119 --> 00:29:23,000 I could. There are two main types of a canthus 581 00:29:23,039 --> 00:29:26,519 that are available to gardens here in the US and 582 00:29:26,599 --> 00:29:29,880 probably Canada. A Canthus spinosis, which is hardy to USDA 583 00:29:30,000 --> 00:29:32,599 Zone five, and a Canthus molus, which is the more 584 00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:36,119 famous of them, that's hardy down to usdas one seven. 585 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:41,720 So you can grow both of those, but they can 586 00:29:41,799 --> 00:29:44,839 be very aggressive. Now where they are actually invasive tends 587 00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:47,839 to be more on the West coast in those milder climates. 588 00:29:48,160 --> 00:29:50,359 Where they're not really getting set back by winter or 589 00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:56,160 anything like that. They love hot, sunny, dry spots, so 590 00:29:56,359 --> 00:29:59,359 you can try to also kind of minimize them if 591 00:29:59,359 --> 00:30:02,200 you have just regular natural soil moisture. If you have 592 00:30:02,279 --> 00:30:04,839 clay soil, they'll certainly be more limited than if you 593 00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:09,039 have a really really well drained soil. But all of 594 00:30:09,079 --> 00:30:14,400 this said, they are aggressive, They can regrow from even 595 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:17,240 the smallest part of the root in the soil, and 596 00:30:17,400 --> 00:30:21,079 they are spiny is all get out. So if you 597 00:30:21,200 --> 00:30:24,480 do find yourself needing to manage this plant, it's not 598 00:30:24,599 --> 00:30:26,000 exactly going to be a fun task. 599 00:30:26,559 --> 00:30:28,880 Speaker 1: Don't put in an area where you're going to frequent 600 00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:31,480 as far as walking or sitting around or whatever. 601 00:30:31,559 --> 00:30:34,240 Speaker 2: But if you do that, the things a showstopper in 602 00:30:34,279 --> 00:30:34,519 the wad. 603 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:38,680 Speaker 3: They're beautiful. I really like them. I'd consider adding it 604 00:30:38,720 --> 00:30:40,359 to my yard. But yeah, you do need to be 605 00:30:40,440 --> 00:30:45,240 aware that sighting, as with everything, is going to be 606 00:30:45,359 --> 00:30:48,440 very important, so you don't want to encourage it too much. 607 00:30:48,960 --> 00:30:50,440 All right, we have one this question that I thought 608 00:30:50,440 --> 00:30:53,799 was perfect for you. Deb says that her daughter in 609 00:30:53,880 --> 00:30:57,319 law needs a type of tall grass. She wants seed, 610 00:30:57,359 --> 00:30:59,039 not plants, But I don't know if this is possible 611 00:30:59,119 --> 00:31:00,799 for a large area. The hell she wants it to 612 00:31:00,839 --> 00:31:03,839 be three to five feet tall, large seed heads that 613 00:31:03,880 --> 00:31:06,960 look beautiful when the wind is blowing. Perennial so it's 614 00:31:07,000 --> 00:31:09,799 coming up every year. Erosion control, which pretty much all 615 00:31:09,839 --> 00:31:11,440 grasses are going to have because they have that nice 616 00:31:11,440 --> 00:31:14,079 fibrous root system, and of course full sun, which also 617 00:31:14,160 --> 00:31:16,440 all grasses are going to have. So I don't know 618 00:31:16,440 --> 00:31:18,160 if this is possible to get from seed. 619 00:31:18,839 --> 00:31:21,240 Speaker 1: Well, there's a few different things you can do. Let's 620 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:23,640 start with the non seed first, and that would be 621 00:31:23,759 --> 00:31:28,640 ornamental grasses. I would recommend switch grass or panicums, and 622 00:31:28,759 --> 00:31:33,039 proven Winters has wonderful shy and sky, Niagara. 623 00:31:32,519 --> 00:31:33,880 Speaker 2: Falls, Totem Pole. 624 00:31:34,200 --> 00:31:36,880 Speaker 1: All of those are just fantastic and do great in 625 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:41,160 my landscape, and I think you will greatly enjoy them. 626 00:31:41,319 --> 00:31:45,440 Lemon squeeze, pennacetum, and we'll give you that really cool 627 00:31:45,640 --> 00:31:49,279 fuzzy head. So I would not throw that out as 628 00:31:49,319 --> 00:31:51,039 an option. As a matter of fact, I'd go for 629 00:31:51,119 --> 00:31:55,039 it from seed. Why don't you take the search engine 630 00:31:55,119 --> 00:32:01,359 of your choice and type in tttf so T tall 631 00:32:01,559 --> 00:32:06,519 turf type fescue okay, and you can buy those from seed. 632 00:32:06,599 --> 00:32:11,960 There are many great varieties of tall turf type fescue 633 00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:15,519 that you can just let grow as opposed to cut 634 00:32:15,519 --> 00:32:17,759 it like most people would do with the lawnmower. 635 00:32:17,920 --> 00:32:18,759 Speaker 2: You can cut it too. 636 00:32:19,079 --> 00:32:22,440 Speaker 1: Great for high traffic, great for drought. Grows from seed 637 00:32:22,759 --> 00:32:26,839 TTTF tall turf type fescue. 638 00:32:26,400 --> 00:32:29,359 Speaker 3: All right, And I would just add to that, if 639 00:32:29,400 --> 00:32:31,880 you are determined to grow from seed here, I would 640 00:32:31,920 --> 00:32:35,160 recommend looking at one of the prairie seed companies that 641 00:32:35,240 --> 00:32:38,200 sell seed mixture for exactly this. Now, you do want 642 00:32:38,240 --> 00:32:40,200 to make sure you're going with a prairie specialist to 643 00:32:40,240 --> 00:32:42,920 make sure that everything is native, because there's going to 644 00:32:42,960 --> 00:32:44,359 be a lot of mixes out there that have all 645 00:32:44,440 --> 00:32:46,880 sorts of crazy stuff in them. But there are definitely 646 00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:50,799 some excellent ones that specifically create mixes of tall grasses 647 00:32:50,960 --> 00:32:54,240 for exactly this. So just a little bit of search 648 00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:58,079 engine work will get you to some really interesting options 649 00:32:58,160 --> 00:33:01,000 there as well. So thank you so much for your questions. 650 00:33:01,559 --> 00:33:02,880 We're going to take a little break and when we 651 00:33:02,920 --> 00:33:05,599 come back, we're going to finally find out what plant 652 00:33:05,680 --> 00:33:14,839 Rick fired from his landscape. So stay tuned. Thanks for 653 00:33:14,880 --> 00:33:17,599 listening to the Gardening Simplified podcast, brought to you by 654 00:33:17,640 --> 00:33:21,039 Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs. Our award winning flowering shrubs 655 00:33:21,039 --> 00:33:23,839 and evergreens are trialed and tested by experts with your 656 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:26,960 success in mind. Learn more at Proven Winners color Choice 657 00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:29,359 dot com. 658 00:33:29,519 --> 00:33:32,759 Speaker 1: Welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show as we do 659 00:33:32,839 --> 00:33:37,400 a performance annual review and Stacey, Okay, let's get to 660 00:33:37,440 --> 00:33:39,039 the plant that I fired. 661 00:33:39,480 --> 00:33:40,359 Speaker 2: You're out of here. 662 00:33:41,319 --> 00:33:47,119 Speaker 1: The botanical genus name is People pronounce it differently Ruse 663 00:33:47,839 --> 00:33:54,759 or Russ. It's r h Us sumac, right, and there 664 00:33:54,920 --> 00:33:59,839 is a There is a sumac or a Rus aromatica, 665 00:34:00,119 --> 00:34:04,079 which is known as low grow sum Now, when I 666 00:34:04,119 --> 00:34:06,680 moved into this house, I knew that I had sandy 667 00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:12,960 conditions occasional drought there. It's a sloped area that needed 668 00:34:12,960 --> 00:34:14,920 some help, and I had to do something quick to 669 00:34:15,280 --> 00:34:18,679 fill the area before I could start planting what I wanted. 670 00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:25,039 So I planted this big mistake. It's a deciduous native shrub. 671 00:34:25,079 --> 00:34:28,199 It occurs in open woods, glades and thickets. 672 00:34:28,280 --> 00:34:31,119 Speaker 2: It's dense and growing. 673 00:34:31,559 --> 00:34:34,840 Speaker 1: You will often see this plant in the landscapes of 674 00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:38,360 large stores that have a huge parking lot and have 675 00:34:38,480 --> 00:34:41,480 these curved areas where they throw it in there it's. 676 00:34:41,320 --> 00:34:44,360 Speaker 3: An extremely popular parking lot plant. 677 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:48,079 Speaker 1: Yes, and when I fired this plant last fall, had 678 00:34:48,119 --> 00:34:52,559 it in two locations. Sometimes, you know, when you fire somebody, 679 00:34:52,599 --> 00:34:53,559 it goes pretty well. 680 00:34:53,679 --> 00:34:56,039 Speaker 2: You agree to disagree. 681 00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:57,840 Speaker 1: And they pick up their stuff and walk out quietly, 682 00:34:57,920 --> 00:34:59,039 and we're set. 683 00:34:59,280 --> 00:35:00,840 Speaker 2: Sometimes it gets ugly. 684 00:35:00,960 --> 00:35:03,960 Speaker 1: This one got ugly, oh, I mean ripping this thing 685 00:35:04,159 --> 00:35:06,960 out and the way it would root in and fighting 686 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:11,199 that thing and then falling as I'm pulling on these 687 00:35:11,679 --> 00:35:15,440 rooted stems and quickly dusting myself off to see if 688 00:35:15,480 --> 00:35:17,519 some of the neighbors saw me fall. You know, I 689 00:35:17,559 --> 00:35:21,719 felt really silly. So that's the one that I fired. 690 00:35:21,840 --> 00:35:22,840 Speaker 2: Low grows soon. 691 00:35:22,760 --> 00:35:25,840 Speaker 3: At So did you completely obliterate it completely? 692 00:35:26,039 --> 00:35:26,400 Speaker 2: Now? 693 00:35:26,599 --> 00:35:27,159 Speaker 3: Okay, good. 694 00:35:27,400 --> 00:35:30,199 Speaker 1: I'm still expecting it to show up at some point, 695 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:34,239 so I'll be you watching for it. But that plant 696 00:35:34,280 --> 00:35:35,719 and my landscape. 697 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:38,119 Speaker 3: Is fighting well, you know, And that's a great example 698 00:35:38,239 --> 00:35:41,719 of how plant trace is so important. Yeah, I mean, 699 00:35:41,760 --> 00:35:43,400 you know that that plant does all of that and 700 00:35:43,480 --> 00:35:47,440 has the erosion control and has really grateful color. It's 701 00:35:47,480 --> 00:35:50,039 a native, you know plant, and it's kind of a 702 00:35:50,079 --> 00:35:53,360 go to among landscapers all over. But it was not 703 00:35:53,440 --> 00:35:57,440 the right plant for you in that spot and it 704 00:35:57,519 --> 00:36:01,000 wasn't earning its keep, and you know, and so a 705 00:36:01,039 --> 00:36:04,039 lot of times these performance reviews do you have to 706 00:36:04,039 --> 00:36:07,400 come back to our own decisions, bad decisions so we've 707 00:36:07,440 --> 00:36:09,239 made in the first place, and we've all made them. 708 00:36:09,519 --> 00:36:12,440 We've all made them. I've certainly made plenty of bad 709 00:36:13,239 --> 00:36:16,199 planting decisions in my life. So, okay, that was not 710 00:36:16,239 --> 00:36:18,239 what I expected. But that was a very. 711 00:36:18,039 --> 00:36:20,000 Speaker 2: Interesting It was aggressive point. 712 00:36:20,000 --> 00:36:21,480 Speaker 3: People do love that plant. 713 00:36:21,360 --> 00:36:25,960 Speaker 1: And gets loaded with gall and I just yeah, I 714 00:36:26,199 --> 00:36:27,440 was the boss apple sauce. 715 00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:28,880 Speaker 2: I got rid of it. I knew I could do 716 00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:29,519 much better. 717 00:36:29,639 --> 00:36:35,000 Speaker 1: So in segment two, Plants on Trial, I was thinking 718 00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:37,159 about the fact that not only do you want to 719 00:36:37,239 --> 00:36:41,079 evaluate the gardener a person who's doing that, I mean, 720 00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:43,039 how much maintenance do you want? 721 00:36:43,199 --> 00:36:43,360 Speaker 2: Right? 722 00:36:43,440 --> 00:36:44,719 Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely we have. 723 00:36:44,719 --> 00:36:45,679 Speaker 2: To evaluate that. 724 00:36:45,760 --> 00:36:47,760 Speaker 1: There are people who say to me, yeah, Rick, you 725 00:36:47,800 --> 00:36:50,000 go ahead and plant your dahlia as your cannas and 726 00:36:50,159 --> 00:36:54,320 enjoy your ornamental grasses. But for me, summer flowering bulbs, 727 00:36:54,360 --> 00:36:57,559 for example, too much work digging them up, storing them 728 00:36:57,639 --> 00:37:01,199 that time. I understand, so evaluate the gardener right off 729 00:37:01,239 --> 00:37:04,280 the bat, but I also think that you have to 730 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:09,639 evaluate the ground area some people just instinctively in spring 731 00:37:09,679 --> 00:37:13,440 will order ten yards of mulch, a pile of mulch 732 00:37:13,440 --> 00:37:16,360 in the dry right, and yeah over top of what's there. 733 00:37:16,440 --> 00:37:17,199 Speaker 2: Don't do that. 734 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:21,079 Speaker 1: You know, the mulch can become hydrophobic, stirret. 735 00:37:21,559 --> 00:37:22,639 Speaker 2: Don't just do it. 736 00:37:23,079 --> 00:37:26,920 Speaker 1: Know why you're doing it, I guess is exactly what we're. 737 00:37:26,719 --> 00:37:27,480 Speaker 2: Trying to say. 738 00:37:27,559 --> 00:37:30,360 Speaker 1: But it does bring up the point, Stacy, that when 739 00:37:30,400 --> 00:37:35,840 you evaluate your landscape and your plantings, one big issue 740 00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:38,199 always comes to the forefront. 741 00:37:37,639 --> 00:37:38,480 Speaker 2: And that is water. 742 00:37:38,920 --> 00:37:41,360 Speaker 3: Oof. You can say that again, and you know this 743 00:37:41,480 --> 00:37:43,679 is another place where you have to decide for yourself. 744 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:46,880 Am I going to provide supplemental water and shell out 745 00:37:46,920 --> 00:37:48,679 on my water bill and make sure my plants are 746 00:37:48,719 --> 00:37:51,480 well watered? Or am I going to take a less 747 00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:54,800 intensive approach? But you know, to go back to what 748 00:37:54,840 --> 00:37:57,960 I was saying about evaluating a plant for water. You know, 749 00:37:58,079 --> 00:38:04,119 water is definitely probably the is definitely the biggest reason 750 00:38:04,320 --> 00:38:08,039 that plants don't thrive. And a lot of times people 751 00:38:08,079 --> 00:38:10,760 don't really understand how to read what a plant is 752 00:38:10,800 --> 00:38:13,440 doing in response to too much or too little water. 753 00:38:14,079 --> 00:38:16,719 So I will tell you, as a low water gardener, 754 00:38:18,239 --> 00:38:20,159 the number one thing that you can recognize if a 755 00:38:20,199 --> 00:38:24,559 plant isn't performing well, it's shrinking. And I have seen this. 756 00:38:24,719 --> 00:38:29,599 I had a great, beautiful planting of hellebores on the 757 00:38:29,639 --> 00:38:33,719 side of my house, just beautiful. And they are in 758 00:38:33,760 --> 00:38:36,559 an area where they get a lot of competition for 759 00:38:36,639 --> 00:38:39,760 water from a pine tree, so and that's a very 760 00:38:39,760 --> 00:38:42,800 well established pine so they're competing really heavily for the water. 761 00:38:43,239 --> 00:38:45,440 We've had a lot of dry summers over the past 762 00:38:45,480 --> 00:38:48,079 couple of years, and this is the first year that 763 00:38:48,079 --> 00:38:50,480 that patch of hellebores just didn't come up. Because every 764 00:38:50,519 --> 00:38:53,360 year it was a little bit smaller, a little bit smaller, 765 00:38:54,119 --> 00:38:56,719 until finally it's just like hebe, I can't do this anymore. 766 00:38:56,719 --> 00:38:59,679 I'm done. And it didn't come back. 767 00:38:59,760 --> 00:39:01,800 Speaker 2: So oh, you know, men have to fire them. They 768 00:39:01,840 --> 00:39:02,639 just left, They just. 769 00:39:02,639 --> 00:39:06,239 Speaker 3: Left the building. But and that happens too, But you know, 770 00:39:06,320 --> 00:39:09,000 it's it's important for me to say, well, geez, I'm 771 00:39:09,039 --> 00:39:11,639 never growing that hellebor again. It's a terrible plant, because 772 00:39:11,760 --> 00:39:13,559 it's a it was a beautiful plant, and it was 773 00:39:13,599 --> 00:39:16,199 all totally my fault. But if you don't know those 774 00:39:16,280 --> 00:39:19,239 signs to look for and to and to read and 775 00:39:19,320 --> 00:39:22,400 understand how they're impacting that, then you're likely to blame 776 00:39:22,440 --> 00:39:25,000 the plant or yourself, and it's kind of neither of 777 00:39:25,000 --> 00:39:28,480 those things. So that's probably the number one thing you'll 778 00:39:28,480 --> 00:39:30,000 also see, you know, going back to what he said 779 00:39:30,039 --> 00:39:31,840 about too much sun, because a lot of times these 780 00:39:31,880 --> 00:39:33,519 two things go hand in hand. A lot of sun 781 00:39:33,639 --> 00:39:36,039 and low water will make it much more difficult for 782 00:39:36,079 --> 00:39:38,440 a plant than a lot of sign with ample water 783 00:39:38,519 --> 00:39:41,760 for many plants, but browning on the edge of the 784 00:39:41,880 --> 00:39:45,239 leaves or the leaf tips are also going to be 785 00:39:45,360 --> 00:39:47,840 a good sign that the plant is not getting enough 786 00:39:47,840 --> 00:39:51,480 water or has dried out. Wilting, of course, is the 787 00:39:51,559 --> 00:39:54,000 number one thing that people see, but the tricky thing 788 00:39:54,159 --> 00:39:58,199 is wilting is also a sign of overwatering, especially on 789 00:39:58,679 --> 00:40:01,679 plants that are extra susceptible to overwatering, so they will 790 00:40:01,719 --> 00:40:05,320 wilt just because you know, they just have too much moisture. 791 00:40:05,400 --> 00:40:07,559 And you know, I find I was thinking about this 792 00:40:07,639 --> 00:40:10,000 as I was kind of putting these notes together. When 793 00:40:10,039 --> 00:40:12,880 it comes to giving a performance review of a plant 794 00:40:12,920 --> 00:40:15,400 that's had too much water, usually not an issue because 795 00:40:15,400 --> 00:40:17,280 it will die. You know, a lot of these other 796 00:40:17,320 --> 00:40:19,920 issues for talking about the plants can hang on for 797 00:40:20,039 --> 00:40:21,840 some time to the point where you might say, hey, 798 00:40:22,360 --> 00:40:24,239 you know this isn't working out, We're going to break up. 799 00:40:24,800 --> 00:40:29,400 But if a plant gets too much water, it's probably dead. Yeah, 800 00:40:29,599 --> 00:40:32,800 that's one of the surest, quickest ways to kill a plant. 801 00:40:32,840 --> 00:40:35,000 Speaker 1: And they look at you and they say, this job 802 00:40:35,159 --> 00:40:35,960 just isn't for me. 803 00:40:36,159 --> 00:40:39,039 Speaker 3: So I'm yeah this, you know, the conditions here are 804 00:40:39,079 --> 00:40:41,880 not appropriate for me to be working. And you know, 805 00:40:42,159 --> 00:40:44,559 it just comes back to the simple fact that in 806 00:40:44,679 --> 00:40:48,079 very wet conditions, especially for prolonged periods, there's no oxygen 807 00:40:48,079 --> 00:40:50,320 getting to the roots, and the plants just cannot live 808 00:40:50,400 --> 00:40:53,000 in that environment. Now, there certainly are plenty of plants 809 00:40:53,400 --> 00:40:56,719 that thrive in wet soil. So again, it always comes 810 00:40:56,760 --> 00:40:59,760 back to this plant choice. So the performance review really 811 00:40:59,880 --> 00:41:03,280 is is, you know, do I like this plant? Is 812 00:41:03,320 --> 00:41:05,800 it in the right spot for it to you know, 813 00:41:06,599 --> 00:41:10,400 sort of accomplish its maximum beauty or whatever reason that 814 00:41:10,480 --> 00:41:12,719 you bought it for? And if not, then how do 815 00:41:12,840 --> 00:41:15,400 I change the environment? Do I move it? Do I 816 00:41:15,480 --> 00:41:18,320 change something about how I'm where, I'm what I'm doing 817 00:41:19,239 --> 00:41:22,360 so that it can get a positive performance review? So 818 00:41:22,440 --> 00:41:24,400 sometimes we got to buy the work in agree. 819 00:41:24,639 --> 00:41:29,559 Speaker 1: Now I've I've got to admit something here in this evaluation, 820 00:41:30,719 --> 00:41:34,320 and I would admit to you, Stacey, that I think 821 00:41:34,360 --> 00:41:38,719 you take a far more common sense approach than I do. 822 00:41:39,320 --> 00:41:44,440 I have a tendency to give my plants too many raises, 823 00:41:45,000 --> 00:41:49,440 oh and too much in other words, you know again, 824 00:41:49,599 --> 00:41:52,280 I come from the garden center industry and we're selling 825 00:41:52,280 --> 00:41:55,480 all kinds of potions and fertilizers anything that I have 826 00:41:55,519 --> 00:41:57,599 a tendency to overfertilize. 827 00:41:57,719 --> 00:41:58,559 Speaker 2: I can't help it. 828 00:41:59,519 --> 00:42:02,199 Speaker 1: I'm I kind of lean towards being. 829 00:42:02,079 --> 00:42:02,760 Speaker 2: Liberal in that. 830 00:42:03,159 --> 00:42:07,039 Speaker 3: Oh interesting, how many raises I can? I can give 831 00:42:07,039 --> 00:42:11,559 you a tip, just be lazier. I mean that's basically. 832 00:42:11,920 --> 00:42:14,719 Speaker 1: Kind of like, you know, I find a cool new fertilizer. 833 00:42:14,840 --> 00:42:17,320 Speaker 3: Oh okay, you're a fertilizer tinkerer. I did not know 834 00:42:17,400 --> 00:42:18,039 this about you. 835 00:42:18,440 --> 00:42:20,719 Speaker 2: Hey, hi Ranger, here's a bonus. 836 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:24,800 Speaker 3: Oh. I mean, I do fertilize. I give the whole landscape, 837 00:42:24,880 --> 00:42:27,440 you know, a good dose of fertilizer in spring, which 838 00:42:27,599 --> 00:42:30,079 you know, I have very sandy lean soil. And of 839 00:42:30,079 --> 00:42:33,119 course I fertilize my containers and my vegetables like crazy 840 00:42:33,119 --> 00:42:35,199 because I'm trying to get something out of them. But 841 00:42:35,239 --> 00:42:37,079 as far as stuff in the garden goes. Yet it 842 00:42:37,079 --> 00:42:40,400 doesn't get it doesn't get a lot of love and 843 00:42:40,519 --> 00:42:41,480 TLC from me. 844 00:42:41,719 --> 00:42:43,760 Speaker 2: But I just think you're more practical. 845 00:42:43,840 --> 00:42:47,280 Speaker 1: But again that comes from my background because every year 846 00:42:47,360 --> 00:42:50,119 in spring it's oh, this new fertilizer's on the market, 847 00:42:50,199 --> 00:42:52,360 let's try it and see what happens. 848 00:42:52,360 --> 00:42:53,239 Speaker 2: So I tinker with it. 849 00:42:53,119 --> 00:42:57,239 Speaker 1: It does bring up the fact that in the evaluation process, 850 00:42:57,280 --> 00:42:59,440 possibly a soil test. 851 00:42:59,280 --> 00:43:01,679 Speaker 2: May be a good idea for you. 852 00:43:02,239 --> 00:43:05,559 Speaker 1: And in addition to that, Stacy, you mentioned such a 853 00:43:05,639 --> 00:43:10,800 super important point, and that is the water evaluation. Maybe 854 00:43:11,079 --> 00:43:13,400 in a few spots in your landscape, dig a hole, 855 00:43:13,480 --> 00:43:15,880 fill a hole with water, step back and just see 856 00:43:15,880 --> 00:43:18,440 what happens. It's going to tell you a lot about 857 00:43:18,519 --> 00:43:21,440 what's going on around the root system of those plants 858 00:43:21,440 --> 00:43:23,360 as you evaluate their performance. 859 00:43:23,519 --> 00:43:27,719 Speaker 3: Definitely, and you know where water flows, where water drains 860 00:43:27,760 --> 00:43:30,519 can vary a lot around a yard for so many factors, 861 00:43:30,559 --> 00:43:33,920 factors outside of your yard, neighbor's yards. You know houses 862 00:43:34,199 --> 00:43:38,079 where they're different gutters and downspouts or positions. So there 863 00:43:38,119 --> 00:43:40,760 are always when it comes to water and sun, there 864 00:43:40,760 --> 00:43:43,400 are typically multiple opportunities to try something out in a 865 00:43:43,400 --> 00:43:45,239 different spot in your yard exactly. 866 00:43:45,800 --> 00:43:47,960 Speaker 1: Well, Stacy, this was fun. Do I need to pack 867 00:43:48,039 --> 00:43:48,960 my things and leave? 868 00:43:49,199 --> 00:43:50,119 Speaker 3: No, no, you're staying. 869 00:43:50,199 --> 00:43:53,360 Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you so much, and thanks to you 870 00:43:53,440 --> 00:43:57,079 for tuning in the Gardening Simplified Show, watching us on YouTube, 871 00:43:57,760 --> 00:44:00,440 listening to the radio version, and of course download that 872 00:44:00,519 --> 00:44:04,079 podcast of the Gardening Simplified Show. Thank you Stacey, thank 873 00:44:04,119 --> 00:44:06,679 you Rick, thank you Adrianna, and have a great week.