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Last Updated: Nov 14, 2008 - 12:49:26 PM |
April showers supposedly bring May flowers, but unfortunately, plenty of weeds as well and, no matter how much we try to be ahead of the game, weeds generally win. Moreover, the notion that if ignored they will go away does not necessarily work; in fact, if allowed to go to seed, one can expect to see a whole lot more of these pesky plants the following season.
A few weeks back I went on a “weed walk” led by Susan Edwards, the ANR Technician and Master Garden Coordinator of the Chesterfield County Cooperative Extension along with some fellow master gardeners; a “weed walk,” as the name implies, is to leisurely walk along a field, yard, or someplace similar, and with the aid of an appropriate book or a manual, identify weeds as they cross the path – literally!
I had two good reasons for participating in this activity. First, I have always wanted to gain a hands-on experience on recognizing weeds of our area for which the “weed walk” seemed to be the perfect opportunity, and the other reason is that in order to stay on the list of active master gardeners, we need to do a certain number of volunteer/training hours; the Cooperative Extension, obviously, would like to see master gardeners current in their knowledge. Nevertheless, the class was just as much fun as work, which quite appropriately was held at another master gardener’s home; her garden, though, was lovely but did have, as she pointed out, some weeds at patchy spots. By the way, the purpose of identifying weeds is to enable a gardener to implement proper methods of control.
While it was quite a bit of information for me to absorb in just a few hours, I did learn some interesting facts; that there are two kinds of chickweeds – the ordinary chickweed and the mouse-ear chickweed – and that the wood sorrel and sheep sorrel are not related at all, as evident by the clover-like leaves of the former and the distinctive arrow-shaped leaves of the latter.
As in any learning process, proper tools are more or less a must, and though the basic Golden Guide on weeds I have does help some, the manuals Susan and the other class members brought definitely are more comprehensive. So, for those interested in getting an in-depth knowledge of weeds, the titles of the manuals are Weeds of Arkansas, Weeds of Southern United States (published by Univ. of Georgia), and a publication of the NC Cooperative Extension Service called Turf grass Pest Management Manual; further ordering information, if necessary, can be obtained by calling the Chesterfield Extension Office at 751-4401.
Gita’s Tip of the Month: Transplant seedlings or move plants on a cloudy day or late in the afternoon when the sun is not very hot to make the transition easier.
gitaagrawal@juno.com
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