RICHMOND GARDEN CLUB - SUMMER ISSUE Gail and Ken Stoltz "artistic" garden
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RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020
RICHMOND GARDEN CLUB
Gail and Ken Stoltz
SUMMER ISSUE
“artistic” garden
Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 1
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020
K
athy Miao, a newly inducted
Richmond Garden Club member and
I have been very busy over the past
few months producing videos for Richmond
Public Library. Her and I have been blessed
with the opportunity for us to learn new
techniques while being surrounded by the
incredible beauty that gardens have to offer
us.
It usually takes Kathy and I a couple of hours
(with most of the work done by Kathy) to film
a topic. We started out our filming in Paulik
Park but have expanded to a couple of our
member’s gardens. Kathy has an artistic eye
when filming. I am always delighted to see
the final production.
Once we have completed the filming, Kathy
then uses the platform “IMovie” to edit and
produce the video. Once completed to our Jill Wright
satisfaction, she uploads it to YouTube which is available to the public. The demonstrating spring
container plantings
editing and proofing generally takes Kathy up to 1 week.
Our next round of filming will involve a virtual tour of our Garden Club
member’s gardens. At this time of year, we usually are wandering around a
half dozen gardens to enjoy what our fellow members have grown. We have
nine gardens that we will be filming over the next while so stay tuned.
Hydrangea season
Paulik Park is ablaze with hydrangea blooms. We
get a lot of questions from visitors to the Park
about problems with their hydrangeas.
H. macrophylla
Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 2
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020 A very popular question this month is why their hydrangeas are not blooming. Hydrangeas can live long floriferous lives without ever being pruned. Pruning does help improve the shrub’s vigour and increase the size of its flowers. Not all of these shrubs should be pruned at the same time. Hydrangeas that bloom on old growth -Bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla cvs., H.seratta cvs.) and Oakleaf hydrangeas (H.quercifolia cvs) - should be pruned after flowering. To determine if your hydrangea blooms on old wood, think about when it flowers. Generally shrubs with this characteristic begins blooming early summer and peter out by midsummer. There may be the odd bloom afterwards. These shrubs form next year’s flower buds in the late summer or early fall as the days get shorter and temperatures cool off. To reduce the risk of removing these buds, prune just as the flowers begin to fade. Many times, the earlier you get it done after the bloom, the quicker the shrub can recover which will result in more blooms and larger blooms next season. H. arborescens Those that bloom on new growth should be pruned before they wake up in the spring or as they are going dormant in the fall - Panicle hydrangeas (H.paniculata and cvs.), Smooth hydrangeas.(H.arborescens and cvs.). Why hydrangeas don’t bloom I have one of my most reliable blooming hydrangeas not flowering this year. What happened? As mentioned above, I may have pruned at the wrong time, but I do not think so. Another reason may be that there is not enough sunlight in my garden this year. Hydrangeas need morning sun and afternoon shade. My shrub may be tucked into too much shade which results in fewer flowers forming. Too much nitrogen fertilizer can also result in hydrangeas not flowering. When nitrogen fertilizer, especially from lawns, keeps washing into the soil among your hydrangeas, you can wind up with beautiful deep green healthy leaves but no flowers. Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 3
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020
Late spring frosts can also result in no flowers on hydrangeas, especially the once-blooming H.
macrophylla and the lacecap types.
So I will spend some time in the garden with my hydrangea that is filled with healthy green leaves
and no blooms. I suspect lack of sunlight.
July garden tips
✦ Plant beets, carrots, cauliflower, lettuce, kale and peas for winter harvest
✦ Add compost to your asparagus and rhubarb beds
✦ Watch for diseases and pests!
✦ Get at your weeds early. Pull them
as soon as you see them.
✦ Add mulch around flower beds,
trees and shrubs to help reduce
weeds and retain moisture.
✦ Water is critical this time of year.
Container plantings need as often as
twice a day during hot, dry and
windy weather. Ken and Debbie Brodie’s
garden
✦ Divide bearded iris after leaves turn
brown. Trim leaves before digging
and dividing rhizomes. Let the
rhizomes dry in a shady spot for a
few days.
✦ Take time to remove suckers from
pear and apple trees when you spot
them.
✦ Continue to deadhead
Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 4
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020
Steveston Harbour Authority boardwalk containers
Take a stroll on the boardwalk in Steveston. Karen
Hakannson, Ruby Hayashi, Mae Yesaki, Lynda Walsh
maintain these beautiful containers. The folks at
Steveston Harbour Authority are thrilled!
Thank you guys!
Trees and shrubs July tasks
✦ Prune June-flowering shrubs
such as Weigela and
Philadelphus (mock orange)
after flowering. Prune
deciduous magnolias if
necessary.
✦ Fast-growing hedges such as
Leyland cypress should be
clipped as necessary
throughout the growing
season
✦ Take semi-rip cuttings of
shrubs such as Choisya,
Hydrangea and Philadelphus.
Roots them in pots of gritty
compost with a plastic bag
over them.
✦ Ensure newly planted trees do not dry out. They often need much more water than people
imagine.
s
Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 5
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020 West Coast Seeds Hummingbird favourite! Our gardens are filled to the brim with blooming crocosmia. Hummingbirds are flitting through the red and orange flowers. Crocosmia is a small genus of flowering plants in the iris family, Iridaceae. It is native to the grasslands of southern and eastern Africa. The name crocosmia comes from the Greek words for “saffron” and “smell”. These brilliant flowers grow from corms, which are closely related to bulbs. They prefer slightly acidic soil that is nutrient rich and well drained, but light lightly moist. Once planted, little is needed in the way of crocosmia care, but stay on top of them in your garden as they can take over. Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 6
RGC July 2020 Newsletter July 6, 2020
In the dog days of summer, these plants offer a bright ray of sunshine and it is so lovely to see our
hummingbirds enjoying them as much as we do!
And finally…….
Send us a photo of your favourite spot
in your garden this month! We will
share the photos with all of our
Richmond Garden Club members!
Email it to:
richmondgardenclub@gmail.com.
Hummingbird
food court open!
Lynda and Dan’s
garden
Susan and Steen Larsen’s garden
Email us: richmondgardenclub@gmail.com 7
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