Welcome to Hamlen's
Helping Hand!
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5th Newsletter of 2010

Coming Events:

08/15 - FINAL DAY FOR FLOWERBED AND CONTAINER GARDEN CONTEST ENTRIES
Winner will be announced by 09/15.

08/15-09/15 - SCARECROW CONTEST
Create your own scarecrow at Hamlen's by 09/15. It will be judged by 10/15. First prize is $100. second prize $50. third prize $25.

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Water Water Everywhere

Just as we are recovering from one of the longest heat waves in recent history, the topic of water in the garden couldn’t be timelier. Natural rain fall in most cases is insufficient for most gardens. The question of how much and how often to supplement water is a matter of sticking your finger in the soil to find out. If the soil is dry at the first knuckle of your finger, it’s time to water. How frequently to water is a matter of the weather if it’s windy or hot with temperatures in the mid 70’s water once a week , but if the temperatures soar into the 90’s you may need to water as often as every other day. Other things to take into consideration when determining if you should water or not is the nature of the soil, the amount of sunlight, how well the garden is mulched and whether the plants are in flower, during times of flowering plants generally require more water. Keep in mind you can water too much, which could lead to a entire list of problems on its own.

When watering a sprinkler isn’t always the best method of delivery, because it doesn’t hit the plant base well and has a high evaporation rate, nor is a spray nozzle, because it is too intense a spray and can break delicate plants and spray up molds and bacteria’s from the soils onto the leaves. The best way to water is to put your thumb in the end of the hose, water the base of the plant, in times of little or no rain fall foliar watering can be done. The best time to water is in the morning, late evening is probably the worst time to water, as it leaves the foliage damp at night when molds and fungi are most active. But with that in mind water anytime you see wilt or the soil is bone dry no matter the time of day.

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What would we have called the color orange if it wasn't a fruit?
Why does cleave mean both split apart and stick together?
If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat?
If corn oil comes from corn, what does baby oil come from?

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Weather means more when you have a garden. There's nothing like listening to a shower and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans.
~Marcelene Cox

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