By Bill Scheffler ~ June 8, 2005

Hi, how is everybody?!

A lot has happened since my last newsletter ... namely, dandelions! It's nice to have that over with. I eat lots of humble pie on that one because we don't have an organic broadleaf weed killer for turf. Dandelions bloom when the soil temperature is between 50 - 55 degrees. That is the same temperature that soil microbes become active, so dandelion flowers are a nice indicator for when the soil is waking up. Organic fertilizers need to be digested by soil microbes so it is always good to know when they become active.

Weather word; hot! Greg Soulje told me we should get some rain during June with warm temperatures in between the storms. July and August should be warmer than normal and drier than normal. (Did I get that right, Greg?) Larry Acker told me there would be very little rain in June and it would be hotter than normal and drier than normal from June 15 well into September (this is for the Chicago area). Ouch. Either way, it looks like a summer of upper 80 and lower 90 degree weather with light rainfall. Looks like a good year for a pool pass!

The big surprise was all the cloudy weather we had in May -- but the rains went north, south and west of us. It is very dry at the surface here, but there is subsoil moisture for now. If it continues sunny, then that moisture will quickly evaporate and plants will be showing stress soon after that, probably this week. Once plants are stressed, insects and diseases soon follow.

Alfalfa and seaweed are very good at de-stressing plants. A handful of guinea pig food (alfalfa meal) for annual and perennial flowers, vegetables and even lawn and trees, does wonders to help keep insects and diseases away. Roses especially love alfalfa. A 50# bag of guinea pig food is about $10 and is available at almost any pet store. The bags without supplements are better.

Sometimes I make an alfalfa tea by putting some pellets in a sock or stocking and putting it in a bucket of water like a tea bag and letting it soak for a few days. This makes a concentrate which can be mixed two ounces per gallon of water. This can be sprayed on the leaves or used to water the plants with. It is especially good at helping plants overcome transplant shock. Mix with 2 ounces of corn syrup per gallon of water and a small amount of liquid fish, and the plant response is terrific. Annuals and vegetables are heavy feeders and should receive this mix every two weeks.

I've had June bugs hitting my screens for a couple of weeks now. They are the moms of the nasty grubs that hit us in August. A little garlic juice or mint oil sprayed on the lawn will repel them. They started hitting my windows around May 20th, so these guys are way ahead of schedule. It makes me wonder when the Japanese beetles will come this year. They usually appear at the end of June, but they may be two weeks early this year.

The good news with dry weather is that there are no mosquitoes! (They need lots of water.)

I think I will end it here and send this along. There is a lot we need to know to prepare for summer so I will begin writing about that for next week as well as answering some of your questions. Those are always the most fun to read! If you have any questions, please send them along and I will share the answers with everyone.

Happy gardening!

Bill Scheffler