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January, 2013 GARDENERNEWS.COM No. 117

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Gardener News proudly bestows our 2012 “Person of the Year” to Jeannie Geremia, a Horticultural and Community Garden Chair for The Garden Club of New Jersey. She is also a National Garden Clubs, Inc. Accredited Judge for The Garden Club of New Jersey, and a Central Atlantic Region Community Garden Chair for National Garden Clubs, Inc.

Geremia served a two-year term as president of the Neshanic Garden Club from June 2005 to 2007. From June 2008 to June 2010, she was the District IV Director for The Garden Club of New Jersey. In November 2009, Garden Club of New Jersey President Mary Warshauer presented Geremia with the club’s Presidential Citation for Inspired Leadership, Vision and Dedication to the Goals and Objectives of The Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc. As a devoted member of the GCNJ, she also serves on the Raritan Township, Hunterdon County Open Space and Historical Committees.

As a long-time contributing writer for the

(Continued on Page 6)

Tom Castronovo/Photo

By Tom CastronovoExecutive Editor

Gardener News2 January, 2013 Gardener News2 G a r d e n C e n t e r d i r e C t o r y

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Gardener News January, 2013 3Gardener News

Our farmers and the landFirst, I’m going to share a recent poll with you that concerns agriculture and land preservation in the great

Garden State.The statewide poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind, co-sponsored by the New Jersey Farm

Bureau, shows more than eight in 10 (83 percent) New Jersey residents support the continuation of public funding for the preservation of open space and farmland. Those in the Northwest region of the state (88 percent) are more likely than those in the Northeast (76 percent) to support the funding.

Residents are not as certain, however, as to how the land preservation should be funded. Provided with two choices, about half (53 percent) say a voter-approved bond referendum should be put forth to provide several years of funding. About a third (30 percent) say it should be funded with long-term allocation of existing tax revenues, and one in six (17 percent) are not sure how the preservation should be funded. Those in the Northeast (66 percent) are more likely than those from the Northwest (49 percent) or Central New Jersey (47 percent) to support the bond referendum.

Residents overwhelmingly favor (81 percent) state-funded research programs for food production and farming methods at Rutgers University that benefit New Jersey’s farming and agriculture. The study found no differences exist across the regions of New Jersey.

New Jerseyans favor (55 percent) an agricultural visa worker program which would permit New Jersey farmers to temporarily hire workers from other countries to harvest fruits and vegetables before returning to their home country at the end of the growing season. Only two in five (38 percent) would oppose such a program. Those in the Northwest (67 percent) and South (65 percent) are most likely to support such a program.

Residents offer positive appraisals concerning the treatment of livestock by New Jersey farmers. About three in five (57 percent) believe farm animals are treated humanely. Fewer than one in 10 (7 percent) say they are not treated humanely, but more than a third (36 percent) are uncertain as to how the animals are treated. Those from South Jersey (68 percent) are more likely than those from the Northeast (51 percent) or Central part of the state (54 percent) to believe farmers treat their livestock well.

And finally, about half (51 percent) of the respondents say they or someone in their household has visited a New Jersey farm in the past 12 months for activities such as pick-your-own fruit or pumpkins, hay rides or corn mazes. Those in the Northwest (61 percent) are more likely than those in the Northeast (42 percent) to have visited a farm.

The Fairleigh Dickinson University poll was co-sponsored by the New Jersey Farm Bureau and conducted by telephone from October 26 through October 29 and then again from November 12 through November 16, using a randomly selected sample of 600 New Jersey adults aged 18 and over (Polling was suspended for approximately two weeks due to hurricane Sandy). The margin of error for a sample of 600 is plus-or-minus 4 percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence. Now, let’s talk about America’s farmers.

Did you know that American Farmers and Ranchers in the United States have reached a 50-million-acre mark in voluntary USDA Conservation Programs?

I am quite impressed. America’s top conservationists have enrolled 50 million acres in USDA’s Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), a program that helps farmers, ranchers and forest landowners take conservation to the next level. CSP is aimed at producers who are already established conservation stewards, helping them to deliver multiple conservation benefits on working lands, including improved water and soil quality and enhanced wildlife habitat.

The land enrolled in CSP totals more than 78,000 square miles, an area larger than Pennsylvania and South Carolina combined, making the program one of the largest voluntary conservation programs for private lands offered by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. Nearly 12.2 million acres, or 18,750 square miles, were added to the program’s rolls in 2012.

And finally, I’m going to talk about how Governor Chris Christie and his administration are contributing to the farming effort in the Garden State.

As a member of Governor Christie’s cabinet, New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher announced on December 10, 2012 that Farmers Against Hunger (FAH) is the recipient of a $100,000 Gleaning Support Grant, made possible through the Department of Agriculture’s State Food Purchase Program.

FAH serves 7,000 people weekly during the growing season through 70 organizations, including soup kitchens, food pantries and the state’s food banks. Farmers from all over the state participate by donating their surplus produce or allowing volunteers to come onto their farms to glean ― or pick ― excess produce.

Gleaning Support Program grants must be used by the gleaning organizations for collection, distribution and administrative costs. The groups must distribute the gleaned New Jersey-grown produce or non-farm nutrient dense rescued food gleaned from non-farm sources outside of the growing season only to New Jersey residents.

The funding for the grants comes from the State Food Purchase Program, for which Governor Christie allocated $6.8 million this year to be distributed quarterly to the state’s six food banks to purchase healthy food, with a high priority on buying locally grown produce from New Jersey farmers.

I just love the fact that every time I see a report or survey on anything related to agriculture, it’s all positive.As the old saying goes…No Farmers, No Food! Please support them in any way possible.I hope each and every one of you has a happy, healthy and prosperous 2013.As always, I hope you find the information in the Gardener News informative and enjoyable.Until next time…Keep the “garden” in the Garden State. -Tom

Editor’s Note: Tom Castronovo is executive editor and publisher of Gardener News. Tom’s lifelong interest in gardening and passion for agriculture, environmental stewardship, gardening and landscaping, led to the founding of the Gardener News, which germinated in April 2003 and continues to bloom today. He is also dedicated to providing inspiration, and education to the agricultural, gardening and landscaping communities through this newspaper and GardenerNews.com.

Around The GardenBy Tom Castronovo

Gardener News

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Gardener News4 January, 2013

Look Who’s Reading the Gardener News!

It’s in the newsAlan LeBoeuf, a featured singer for the Country Western group Ballie and The Boys, looks over the December Gardener News just before a New Jersey performance. Ballie and The Boys have spanned three decades, and include seven Top-Ten country hits on RCA Records, four albums, including a “Greatest Hits” release, and 12 television appearances on the Nashville Network, including an appearance at the Grand Ole Opry. Alan has also performed the “Paul McCartney” role with nearly all of the major Beatle music productions, including “Beatlemania” and “Rain.” He also performed a four-year engagement at EPCOT, Walt Disney World, Florida, with “The British Invasion.” He continues to perform for different venues all over the world.


As we embark upon the New Year, farmers will be receiving forms from the U.S. Department of Agriculture as part of the 2012 Census of Agriculture. Conducted every five years by the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the Census is a complete count of the nation’s farms and the people who operate them. The Census looks at land use and ownership, operator characteristics, production practices, income and expenditures and other topics. It provides a source of uniform, comprehensive agricultural data for every county in the nation.

Results of the Census help to shape farm policy and are used as a basis for USDA to provide services to farmers and their communities. Agribusinesses factor the census data into their planning efforts for the next season’s harvest. The information collected will determine future decisions about farm programs, transportation and marketing locations, telecommunications connectivity, rural economic development, production practices, new agricultural technologies, conservation programs and more.

Farmers are required to return their responses by February and can complete the forms online or by mail. The results usually come out several months later.

Most people know the United States Census, conducted every 10 years to count population, but are not familiar with the Census of Agriculture. They might be surprised to know the story the Census of Agriculture tells about farming in New Jersey.

While some states grow only one or two crops, the always interesting New Jersey produces an enormous variety of crops servicing many constituencies. New Jerseyans’ interest in agriculture is always there and it is important to maintain the agricultural land base so our farmers can continue to provide what people relish: enjoying local fruits and vegetables; visiting a farm for a hayride, trail ride, pick-your-own or corn maze; shopping at a community farmers market or roadside market; or having a holiday dinner made from local foods. All the elements of agriculture

-- food, fuel, feed and fiber -- are produced right here in the Garden State.

We have much to be thankful for and the Census of Agriculture is one of the markers that highlights the many innovations and trends happening in New Jersey agriculture that we enjoy today.

The 2007 census looked for the first time at organic production, on-farm energy production and community supported agriculture. It found many farms participating in these endeavors. In the 2012 census, we will see if these trends are expanding.

Five years ago, we found that the number of farms in New Jersey had grown to more than 10,000 for the first time since the 1960s. We will learn with the 2012 census whether that upward movement is continuing or leveling off. The Department

continually works with its partners in the agricultural industry to encourage new and young farmers and actively works to keep current farmland in production. This year we marked our 200,000th acre of farmland permanently preserved.

Some might be surprised to know that the 2007 census showed: Horticulture is the largest segment of New Jersey agriculture; 3,019 farms had a barn built prior to 1960; there were 2,231 alpacas, 260 emus and 176 bison being raised in the state; 204 farms generated energy or electricity on their farm; 40 farms produced maple syrup; and the percentage of women farmers increased over the count from the 2002 Census.

Truly, the Census of Agriculture benchmarks much of New Jersey agriculture’s story. From our state’s top-10 national rankings in the

production of fruits and vegetables, such as blueberries, peaches, cranberries, spinach and peppers, to the increase in farmers providing agri-tourism activities and selling directly to the public.

The Census documents the farms near where we live. As individuals, we take stock on a more emotional level -- the joyous memories provided for families, the healthy and nutritious options, and the ability to contribute support to our local farming families. We can all be proud of our state’s agriculture and how it makes New Jersey the best place to live, work and thrive.

For more information about the Census, visit www.agcensus.usda.gov.

NJ Dept. of AgricultureBy Douglas H. Fisher

Secretary of Agriculture

Editor’s Note: Douglas H. Fisher is New Jersey’s Secretary of Agriculture. He is the department’s executive officer, secretary to the State Board of Agriculture and a member of the Governor’s cabinet. Secretary Fisher fulfills executive, management and administrative duties prescribed by law, executive order or gubernatorial direction. He can be reached at 609.292.3976. For more info, please visit: http://www.state.nj.us/agriculture

Census of Agriculture: An Assessment of Agriculture’sValue to New Jersey

Gardener News January, 2013 5

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2012 Person of the Year(Continued from page 1)

Gardener News and a farmer’s daughter, Geremia is receiving our award for her infectious enthusiasm and burning, tireless passion for developing new community gardens, maintaining community gardens, educating the public on how to interact with nature and most of all, promoting the Jersey Fresh and Jersey Grown programs.

Geremia saw a need to support local garden centers, nurseries, growers and, most of all, agriculture as a whole. Geremia always preaches that by growing food locally, community gardeners can reduce the demand for produce to be shipped/trucked in to local grocery stores, therefore reducing the usage of fossil fuels in the distribution chain. She also preaches that plants in a garden require the attention and care of the gardener to survive. This may come through the watering and fertilization of these plants or even through protecting the plants from harm. The practice of raising plants helps to develop the nurturing instinct of the gardener. They must take responsibility in the care of the plant if they wish it to thrive. Children and adults alike can learn the impact of their actions on another living being through the care of a plant.

In 2011, Geremia applied to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture for the USDA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant program and received $9,300 for GCNJ. In 2012, she applied again to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture for the USDA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant program and received a $40,000 grant. The grant benefits Garden State crops such as fruits, vegetables, horticulture and nursery. These “specialty crops” account for $832.7 million in sales annually in the Garden State. Geremia was awarded the grant money for the GCNJ to develop an outreach and education program to enhance the awareness of garden centers and nurseries about local fruits, vegetables, floriculture and horticulture products, while increasing their consumption.

“These USDA grants are vital for our specialty crop producers,” said New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher. “This funding will promote many different sectors of the industry, protect consumers and inform the public about the diversity and importance of our state’s agriculture.”

“Agriculture plays a vital role in the health and strength of our economy, and by investing in specialty crop growers and producers across the country, we can help spark new markets and job creation, while expanding production of healthy, safe and affordable food,” said U.S. Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan.

There are no boundaries for Geremia. She creatively adapted the USDA’s grant to promote Jersey Fresh fruits and vegetables and Jersey Grown nursery stock and bedding plants through the GCNJ.

When she’s asked to help with any project, it’s always, “Sure!” The word “no” is not in her vocabulary. She is also filled with dynamic energy when it comes to promoting and shopping at one of the state farmers markets. She can be seen almost weekly, somewhere in the Garden State, with display boards and promotional literature about GCNJ programs and educating folks about why they should be looking for the Jersey Fresh and Jersey Grown labels. She is easy to spot. You can always find her wearing a Jersey Fresh hat and a Jersey Grown t-shirt or fleece.

Geremia has this line memorized. If it is Jersey Grown nursery stock, you know the trees, shrubs, plants and flowers are checked for quality, are disease- and pest-free, and accustomed to the Garden State’s climate and soil conditions. Jersey Grown, as green as green gets!

Some say that Geremia keeps community gardens blooming all over the Garden State. We have the same thoughts. These gardens have also become gathering spots for people to learn and grow flowers, plants, and a wide variety of vegetables. Her excitement also helps people develop a sense of pride.

Her relationship with nature involves caterpillars, butterflies and birds. She checks plants (Continued on pg. 16)

Here it is, quite simply...one of the most popular annuals grown, marketed and sold in the Northeast may be difficult to obtain this coming spring.

“Impatiens avoidance behavior will largely be seen for the first time in 2013,” said Cornell University Plant Pathologist Margery Daughtrey (Greenhouse Grower).

Impatiens have and are being attacked by Impatiens Downy Mildew (IDM), Plasmopara obducens, a destructive foliar disease that has aggressively taken on Impatiens walleriana, your garden-variety Impatiens. Since 2011, in North America, there have been substantial regional outbreaks of this disease and it is growing exponentially. Capable of causing complete defoliation and/or plant collapse in your landscapes, this disease poses a serious threat. Europe has been dealing with this problem before us and there is no “practical” spray regimen to control or cure this problem for the home gardener. Reacting to the symptoms of this disease is too little, too late as your plants can be infected five to 14 days earlier, its latent period, before physical signs appear. Scary stuff to see firsthand. Last year in New Jersey, it wiped out entire crops of Impatiens with ease.

Going forward, growers can be as clean as humanly possible growing their Impatiens crop, but there is no guarantee that they will reach the end user without infection. Both vegetative propagated and seed-raised Impatiens walleriana are susceptible. There is no evidence yet of seedborne transmission of Plasmopara obducens. This pathogen moves primarily by being wind-dispersed and by aerial sporangia (spore containing sacs), thus infecting plant material plugs, liners, cuttings and finished plants. Furthermore, Sporangia (sac-like structures filled with zoospores) produced on the underside of infected leaves are easily dislodged and can be spread short distances by water splash, and longer distances by air currents (Ball Horticulture). Primary symptoms of (IDM) include light-green markings or stippling on the leaves, leaves curling down at the margins, white downy-like fungal growth on the underside of the leaves, stunting and leaf and flower drop. Late-season defoliation has also been called “Green Stick Syndrome,” seeing only the naked stems of the plant. This was apparent in central New Jersey last summer to me. I also saw firsthand Impatiens plants that simply looked stunted, refusing to grow.

Adding to this problem are OOSPORES! An oospore is a thick-walled sexual spore that develops from a fertilized oospore in some algae and fungi (Wikipedia). More simply put, it is an overwintering or survival spore. Oospores in soil cause new infections for the following season. Infected plants from the previous year that collapsed release these spores into your soil and contaminate it for the following year and beyond. It is unclear how long these oospores can survive. However, a similar downy mildew oospore with sunflowers, Plasmopara halstedii, was reported to survive eight to 10 years in the soil. Harsh winters may or may not help, as oospores have been known to survive 5-degree Fahrenheit temperatures.

So what can be done to minimize the risk? Don’t allow infected plants to remain in planting beds. Remove, but don’t compost any parts of the plant; including roots, leaves and stems. Avoid planting Impatiens walleriana… maybe?

There is a bright side to this problem, however. New Guinea Impatiens, Impatiens hawkeri and SunPatiens (a cross between New Guinea and wild Impatiens) are non-host plants, meaning they are not susceptible. Not typically sold in flats the same way Impatiens walleriana are, perhaps they will be marketed this way going forward? Other annuals commonly found for sale in the spring and susceptible to downy-mildew diseases are: coleus, alyssum, snapdragons and salvia. Rest assured, these annuals are not susceptible to the same downy mildew (IDM), as that is a different species.

Impatiens Downy Mildew is an aggressive disease that is having a tremendous impact on the green industry as we know it. Growers and retailers are struggling with this issue and, like it or not, supplies will be diminished going forward until a solution is found. Research is being done to breed resistant varieties. Since 2003-04, Europe has been conducting studies, but as of yet, has had little luck finding those with natural resistance. Preventively, growers have found that this is a disease that can be managed. However, once their Impatiens leaves their controlled environments, there are too many variables that can affect the outcome. This is an environmental issue with potential long-distance spread of aerial spores and oospores contaminating landscape beds.

Finally, you may want to consider Begonia’s, Cyclamen, Euphorbia’s, Lobelia, New Guinea Impatiens, Nicotiana and Torenia as flowering shade-tolerant substitutions. Coleus, Dichondra and Plectranthus would all be good foliage options to consider. Good luck, be patient, stay informed and…. now you know.

Brace Yourselves For This

Editor’s Note: Bob LaHoff is co-owner of Hall’s Garden Center and Florist in Union County, a member of the Union County Board of Agriculture, the New Jersey Nursery and Landscape Association, the American Boxwood Society, the European Boxwood Society, a members of the Reeves-Reed Arboretum Buildings and Grounds Committee, a lifetime member of the Conifer Society, a member of the NJ Plants Trade Show Advisory Board, and past member of the retail council for Monrovia Growers. He can be reached at (908) 665-0331.

Unique PlantsBy Bob LaHoff

Nursery Specialist

Gardener News January, 2013 7January is goal-setting

month and it is also a popular month to predict upcoming trends. Together, we can make our goals one with what the trends are in order to have some fun achieving them. Predicted trends will shape what you see in the food markets and in restaurants. Goals will shape what you buy and when.

Recently at a reception with athletes of the multi-sport club from the Somerset YMCA, each member had a nametag with their accomplishment from last year and their goal for next year. Can you imagine if you wore that nametag with your goal to lose weight or to exercise or to eat right every day? Would that hold you accountable? I bet it would.

I was inspired by the athletes – who ranged from people running their first 5K to those who have done ironman triathlons. For those who don’t realize what an ironman triathlon is, it is 2.4 miles swimming, a 112-mile bike, and a 26.2-mile run all in one event. These people are dedicated to their goal and have to do something

every day to work towards it. If you have a goal, you really need to be this dedicated to achieve it.

Goal setting should be taken seriously with much thought and planning. Goal setting should also build on your accomplishments. Back to the multi-sport club – if I do a 5K last year, my goal may be to do a 10K this year. If I lose my 10 pounds this year, what will I do with that next year? Health should be everyone’s goal.

Food is the source of life. Without it, life ceases to exist. We are fortunate in this country to have access to plenty of food. Still, we have people in this country who cannot afford to eat right. We have children going to school so they can get breakfast and lunch. We rely on the good

people in food banks to help. And they do what they can admirably.

Exercise will keep us healthy. It doesn’t matter how much you do, really, but it does matter that you do something that pushes your body to maintain or improve. Going backward is not an option.

Food trends of 2013 will include locally grown, raised and produced products once again. While this trend has been happening for a few years now, food service purveyors are also getting into it big time. Food service includes restaurants and schools. Many schools are trying to grow their own products as written about in this column in November 2012. St Philips Academy uses a hydroponic garden in their cafeteria to

supply some of their salad bar needs – really hyper-local. Walk 30 feet to put the picked product into the salad bar. I can see this expanding to food stores and restaurants soon. Imagine walking into a restaurant or a market with a garden in it. That’s fresh!

Sustainability will be a hot trend also. Sustainability is ensuring the long-term future for a product or a species. So what does that include? Growing practices that conserve natural resources, ensure long-term crop growth, and don’t hurt the environment. It is packaging product in containers that are made from recycled materials and which can be recycled again. We have to think of things in cycles.

Local has been tied to sustainable as a practice.

We need farmers, we want growers, it is imperative that they continue to survive and thrive. We have to support them so that they support us. The practice of farming must be sustained for our own survival.

Think of the sustainability model. Everything is linked to each other in a circle. It is the same with your goals. Exercise, eating right, exercise, eating right – it all helps sustain life. Set your goals. Stick with them. Don’t let anyone or anything get in the way. Eat local and sustainable foods. You will feel better. Happy New Year!

Passionate About ProduceBy Paul Kneeland

The King of Produce

Editor’s Note: Paul Kneeland is the Vice President of Floral, Produce and Seafood for Kings Food Markets, 1st Vice President of the Eastern Produce Council, and a newly elected board member of the Produce Marketing Association. He holds degrees in Business Management from Boston College as well as Northeastern University. He can be reached at [email protected].

Goals and Trends for 2013

Make this New Year a complete and responsible approach to your lawn care that provides real results. Did you know that crabgrass does not grow in the shade? That you can apply grass seed in early-spring and still have a great lawn by summer? You can spot-treat your lawn problems and avoid blanket applications over all your lawn? Why do the same lawn routine for the past 10-plus years if you still only have a C-plus lawn? Take charge of your lawn and break away from your annual lawn care program. What a great idea!

A thick, healthy growing lawn is your best defense against weeds and insects and fungus. You can kill all of the weeds, bugs and fungus and still have a lousy-looking lawn. To achieve a great lawn, first you must start with genetically superior grass seed. Stop buying the quick-fix fast growing cheap seed that is out on the market. When you buy a car, do you look for the cheapest one on the block? No! Next, we need a healthy, biologically active soil to grow any great plant, whether it is a lawn,

shrub or tomato. What have you done for your soil lately?

Consider using a combination of traditional and organic lawn fertilizers on your lawn. Traditional fertilizer will start to green up the grass quicker in early-spring when it is cooler than organic fertilizer. The millions of individual grass plants that make up a lawn do not distinguish between sources of nitrogen in fertilizers. Nitrogen is nitrogen, no matter what the food source, whether it is from a traditional or organic food source. It is the same in the human body. The body digests the protein in an Angus burger just the same as it does a soybean burger. The reason that we want to be sure to add organic lawn fertilizers to our lawn care

program is because they feed the soil life. The enormous quantity of life contained in the soil, both microscopic and visible, is involved in complex interactions. These microorganisms and earthworms are important in the decomposition of organic materials resulting in the release of nutrients to grass plants. Healthy soil is a living, breathing system. This is a method whereby nature’s own laws of maintaining fertility are applied.

The application of organic fertilizers will eventually increase the soil’s porosity, making air and water, essential for a healthy growth, better able to penetrate the soil. Relying strictly on synthetic forms of fertilizer ignores and

condemns the beneficial biology of lawn soil life. In time, these synthetics deplete and degrade the soil, leading to unsustainable lawn maintenance. Organic fertilizers offer softer alternatives than traditional fertilizers since they work in conjunction with nature to insure a healthy, good looking lawn.

A targeted approach to weed control is best and environmentally sound. Why apply broadleaf weed control over every inch of your lawn when weeds are only growing in certain areas, maybe only 50 percent or less of your lawn? You can use a combination weed-and-feed on these areas and a regular lawn fertilizer in the other areas. This saves you money and the environment. Or,

you could apply a traditional lawn fertilizer on the whole lawn and also apply lawn weed control granules without fertilizer to control broadleaf weeds. This is similar to when the doctor prescribes you an antibiotic for an infection for 10 days and then you go back to your healthy lifestyle including a healthy diet, rest and exercise.

As a turfgrass professional I was saddened by the recent loss of the greatest turfgrass breeder of all time, Dr. Reed Funk. Dr. Funk’s work while at Rutgers University is reflected in just about every grass seed variety introduced by the grass seed industry today and will be utilized for generations to come. He was a tireless advocate to create better performing grasses and we are grateful for his contributions.

Happy New Year, let’s make it a great one!

Editor’s Note: Todd Pretz is Vice President of Jonathan Green, a leading supplier of lawn and garden products in the northeast. For more information, please visit: www.jonathangreen.com

A new approach to lawn care

Turf ‘s UpBy Todd Pretz

Professional Turf Consultant



The New York Produce Show and Conference is a world-class event which took place on December 4-6, 2012, at Pier 94 in Manhattan. It was a place for retailers, wholesalers, foodservice distributors and urban farmers to attend. There were networking events, chances to interact in a giant trade show, tours, chef demos and so much more. On December 6, one of the tour stops included Kings Food Markets in Bedminster, Somerset County, New Jersey. Paul Kneeland, far right, a featured columnist for this newspaper, Vice President of Floral, Produce and Seafood for Kings Food Markets, 1st Vice President of the Eastern Produce Council, and a Board Member of the Produce Marketing Association, talks about how the founders of Kings began with the humble purpose of finding the freshest produce around, and how they quickly learned who the best local farmers were and established relationships that would endure and evolve over the years. He also told them that Kings was founded in 1936 and currently has 25 locations, each one seamlessly integrated into the community it serves, in the stores’ newly updated produce department. The tour attendees were some of the nation’s top retail “thought leaders.” The third annual show was produced in part by the Eastern Produce Council and Produce Business magazine.

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Gardener News January, 2013 9For two years I have been

writing about Horticultural Therapy, the process where plants are used as tools for rehabilitation of an individual, or group, with specific goals and objectives and procedures through creative activities and projects that provide sensory stimulation, under the direction of a “trained” Horticultural Therapist. The HT records outcomes and results and makes necessary changes and adaptations to treatment plans to ensure client or patient success.

HT is an emerging profession. It is recognized as a practical and viable treatment with wide-ranging benefits. A growing number of healthcare facilities, from hospitals to mental health institutions, are embracing horticultural therapy that uses gardening as part of their treatments run by horticultural therapists. The following are three examples of problems, goals and objectives appropriate for horticultural therapy and what differentiates it from the loosely used “garden therapy.”

First, the Problem is

identified. The client or participant is unable to follow directions and needs to follow multi-step directions in order to be eligible for employment. The HT Goal: the client will correctly repot geraniums 80 percent of the time, with staff support daily for one week. The Objective: The client will correctly repot geraniums 80 percent of the time, using a cue sheet, daily for one week. First, the Procedure: The staff will demonstrate the multi-step procedure. Second, using a cue card, the staff will explain each step. Third, the client will work with staff reminders. Fourth, step three will be continued until the client has met the first Objective, which is to repot geraniums. Fifth, staff assistance will fade from the

client, with cue cards used only when mistakes are made.

In the second example, the Problem is that the client or patient is depressed with poor self-esteem. The HT Goal is that the patient will increase self-esteem by completing a project. The Objective: The patient or client will choose one small project and complete it daily. The Procedure steps would be as follows: The staff will help the client or patient choose an appropriate project. With staff support, the patient or client will complete that project daily and the patient or client will process feelings about being successful.

In the third example, the patient has suffered a stroke and has poor use of the left hand. The HT Goal is that

the patient will increase left-hand range of motion. As the Objective, the patient will disbud seasonal flowers daily for 10 minutes without a break. As the Procedure, the staff will demonstrate the correct method for disbudding flowers and assist the patient for 10 minutes daily. In addition,the staff will reduce the amount of assistance daily until the patient is working independently.

In each of the three examples, adaptations and adjustments can and will be made by the HT. I have lost count of the number of garden volunteers who say and promote that they are doing garden therapy, when in fact there is no HT and no customized activities with problems identified, treatment goals

and objectives or outcomes on client or patient progress measured.

We need to educate garden clubs and volunteers, employers, senior centers, hospitals, and rehabilitation facilities and schools about the many benefits of horticultural therapy programs, whether growing plants inside or outdoors, in small spaces, or large ones.

There are endless opportunities for people-plant connections. Horticultural Therapists are the link and the bridge to turning the readily used and misunderstood term “garden therapy” into “horticultural therapy.”

Horticultural TherapyBy Laura DePrado

Specialist

Editor’s Note: Laura DePrado, HT Practitioner, is owner of Final Touch Plantscaping, LLC. 908-872-8387, [email protected]. Laura is the founder and Co-Coordinator of Rotary Rutgers Enabling Garden Initiative, “Growing Lives One Seed at a Time” in central New Jersey. www.rotarynj.org and 2012 Paul Harris Fellow Award Recipient.

Horticultural Therapy Versus Garden Therapy

I have always enjoyed the winter months. With the lack of foliage and flowers, many gardeners consider winter to be a dismal time of year. However, I have found the peace of the winter garden rather comforting. With the exception of a snowstorm, the garden remains constant from one day to the next. I suppose this is one reason why many people enjoy evergreens, as they remain constant not only throughout the winter, but throughout the entire year! The taller evergreens are also beneficial for keeping us warm in winter; not only does the foliage block the chilling northwesterly winds, but the comforting deep-green foliage provides great emotional warmth. There are numerous evergreens that can fill this role, which begs the question of how best to decide. If the garden needs a tall, conical plant, perhaps the genus Abies, commonly named Fir,

will provide a few solutions.Abies is a member of the

Pine Family or Pinaceae. In fact, Carl Linnaeus did not provide any unique genre distinction and included Firs within the genus Pinus. It was the Scotch botanist Philip Miller (1691-1771) who first coined the term Abies. Abies is from the Greek Abire, meaning “to rise,” and is a reflection of the upright form of this group of plants. The various species are found throughout Europe, Asia, Northern Africa and North America. Of the species most available to gardeners, Abies nordmanniana or Nordmann Fir ranks among my favorite. First documented by the Finnish biologist Alexander von Nordmann (1803-1866) during his 1836-37 expedition to the Caucasian province of Imeritia, Nordmann Fir inhabits the mountains both east and west of the Black Sea, south to Turkey. The plant was named in honor of Nordmann by his friend and fellow botanist, Christian von Steven, who in 1838

initially described the plant and, following Linnaean classification, gave it the name of Pinus nordmanniana.

In 1842, the French botanist Édouard Spach (1801-1879) reassigned it to its current status of Abies nordmanniana. To look at the tree, one would never guess that there could be so much contemplation over the naming of it. Nordmann Fir has wonderful thick, dark and glossy green needles that – unlike true pines – are not found clustered together in fascicles or groups of two, three of five needles, but rather appear as solitary needles that radiate about the stem. The foliage is one to one-and-a-half inches long and emits a faint citrusy fragrance when broken. If provided a location in the full sun, the plant will become a dense and stately dark green pyramid of a tree, with the branches retained to the ground. In time, the plant will reach 80 feet or more in height and 40 feet in diameter. Unlike many plants that are adapted to mountainous areas and which prefer

cooler summer temperatures, especially at night, Abies nordmanniana thrives in the New Jersey climate.

An equally attractive Fir with dark-green foliage for New Jersey gardens is the Greek Fir, Abies cephalonica. However, it is the Concolor Fir, Abies concolor, that you see most. Concolor is from the Latin con, meaning the same or even, hence concolor means all of one color. Initially found by William Lobb (1809-1864) who was a plant collector employed by the Veitch Nursery of England, this plant inhabits mountainous regions of Western North America. The foliage provides a strong blue color, which has made it popular for ornamental use in New Jersey. It is also a more challenging tree to grow to any significant size in New Jersey, and I find the rich greens of the Nordmann and Greek Firs to be far more appealing on a cold winter’s day!

Firs thrive best in full sun and – reminiscent of their indigenous mountain origins – soils that are well-

drained, although they are pH adaptable. They are certainly tolerant of wind and are not very demanding, other than needing a location where they can grow uninhibited. If you have such a site, where a tall, stately evergreen is of need, consider one or more Abies for their wonderful foliage that not only warms the garden, but also the soul, during these cold days of January!

Editor’s Note: Bruce, foremost a lover of plants since birth, is director of the Rutgers Gardens, an adjunct professor in Landscape Architecture at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, an instructor for Rutgers - NJAES Office of Continuing and Professional Education and chairperson of the Garden State Gardens group. He is a member of the Garden Writer’s Association and the New York Hortus Club. He can be reached at (732) 932-8451. For more information, please visitwww.rutgersgardens.rutgers.edu

Firs for Winter Warmth


Well, it’s that time of year again for us in the Northeast. State trucks, town trucks and private contractors keeping our highways, roads, sidewalks and parking lots free of the white slippery stuff and the slippery stuff you cannot see. I have a business associate that owns a very large private snow-removal company and it is a 24/7 commitment by a large group of material handlers, drivers, operators and snow shovelers that basically, just like Rodney Dangerfield, get no respect. But, what would we do without them? So, after speaking with a number of these individuals who sometimes are out there pushing and removing snow, salting and sanding, etc. from 3 a.m. on a Sunday morning until 10 p.m. Monday night, for example, we came up with a list of tips that these gentlemen and myself, wanted to share with the public.

The snowplow driver is not purposely trying to block your driveway. Especially during a long, heavy, snow storm, there is very little

that the plow driver can do to keep from pushing snow, over and over, in front of your driveway. Not letting the heavy crud build up is all you can do. Now, my horrible neighbor used to throw all her snow out in the street because she was too lazy to throw the shovel full up the bank. When the plow came by, where did all her snow go? Yup, right into my driveway apron. I politely explained this to her and she told me…she didn’t care. But, it is also a law that you cannot do this, so next time she did it I called the local police who came out, caught her in action and told her not to do it again or she would have to pay a hefty fine. Hah! I said to myself, take that, as the police officer stood

there watching her clean up the road that she had just littered with shovel load after shovel load of snow.

Please, do not leave your car parked on the street whenever it is expected to snow in excess of two inches. It is not an easy task to maneuver a 10-ton truck fully loaded with salt around vehicles on slippery roads, no matter how skilled the driver is. Remember, these guys are your friends when it snows and the quicker they can get the snow moved, the quicker you will be able to get going. Your street is very important to you but, unless you live on a main highway, please be patient; the plows will get to you eventually. Roads leading to hospitals, fire stations and law enforcement are

the number-one priority. Ambulances and emergency vehicles need to get through.

Keep your distance. Do not follow a snowplow too closely. First, your vehicle will get pelted with rock salt as it is spread on the road. Secondly, you cannot see around the snowplow and they will not be able to see you in their mirrors. The plow may need to stop suddenly or make unexpected maneuvers and you do not want to be there when it does. The driver has to focus on many things at once; plow placement, watching the road, watching for other vehicles and obstructions, etc. Never pull out in front of a snowplow. Plows need to keep their momentum in order to effectively clear the roads.

The plow cannot push the snow off the roadway at low speeds. Snowplows are big, heavy, lumbering trucks working on very slippery surfaces; they are not going to stop quickly.

Be able to see where YOU are going. How many times have you seen a car going down the road covered in snow where there is one small view hole on the windshield, the headlights are on but you can barely see them, and it is impossible to see out the back or side windows – an accident waiting to happen due to pure laziness. And, for those of you who always run out of windshield washer fluid, check it frequently, buy an extra bottle and put it in the trunk. Your local plow truck driver thanks you for reading, and I will see ya next month.

The Miscellaneous GardenerBy Richard W. Perkins

Freelance Writer

“Snow Plowing Etiquette”

Editors Note: Richard Perkins is an avid horticulturist, a member of the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance and the Seacoast Writers Association. He can be reached [email protected]

As we reflect back on the last couple of years, it’s easy to say that we have been inundated by extremes of weather. Our landscapes have had to endure everything from drought to flooding and extreme high winds, as well as unusual snowstorms. So, what can we do to plan ahead with this in mind?

Since January is a month when the landscape industry winds down from the hectic pace maintained since early-spring, and the holidays have come and gone, it becomes a time to reflect on what went right and what needs to be improved for the coming season. When evaluating properties, a check list should be used. First on this list should be a plan for the property. A simple survey can be supplied by most property owners. The topography should be noted. Where on the property did major damage occur and what can be done to minimize a reoccurrence? The slope and drainage on the property will be valuable information. How the root systems of our plants develop in the soils is of paramount importance. Since soils are natural, living

systems, and vary from place to place, a sample needs to be taken and analyzed. Soil test results will give exact answers to many questions which will be raised during a property evaluation. From these results, recommendations will be made to improve the health of the plants in the landscape. Many of these recommendations can be acted upon this winter. Ornamental trees and shrubs will benefit from dormant feeding. When the combination of recommended procedures is followed, plants are able to seek nutrients at appropriate levels. As the soil comes into balance, it will become a better reservoir of nutrients. Water and air exchange will increase, as well as the depth and density of the root systems, resulting in healthier plants.

A list of plant material on-site needs to be recorded. The health of the plants should be noted at this time and suffering plants should be inspected to investigate what may be causing ill health. Is drainage or proper exposure or wet feet an issue? Altering the surrounding grade or installing a drainage system may need to be done. Many times, the amount of light now getting to our plants has changed. Noting all of this on the evaluation will add the development of a plan of action.

The effects of wind can be hazardous to plant health, as we have found out this year.

Keeping a record of the prevailing wind on a site will help formulate how to improve the chances of plants getting through a winter of variable

temperature and moisture and future storms. Some plants could benefit from bracing and other protection. Proper horticultural pruning could open up the canopy, as well as thinning some of our plants to create less wind resistance. Of course, when we are hit with 100 mph winds, even healthy plans can be damaged, but a good professional pruning can be of help. There may be some other winter pruning which can be accomplished now as well. Avoiding spring flowering plants and some tender ornamentals is a must, but many evergreens and conifers can be pruned with no ill effects.

The use of anti-desiccant materials applied during warm periods in the winter is helpful.

The protective coating afforded by these materials

help protect plants from the harsh drying effects of winter winds. Often, a spray alone is not enough. It may be necessary to cover plants with a burlap screen. Although not ornamental looking, it will give more protection and help plants look better in the spring. Even if this has not been done yet, using metal posts to get through the frost will afford you the opportunity to protect susceptible plants now.

By completing this evaluation, plans for possible changes can be made. A professional landscape company can be of invaluable assistance in diagnosing problems, giving remedial help, planning maintenance and incorporating all of these into a plan of action that can make for a smoother start to your next landscape season.

The LandscaperBy Evan Dickerson

Landscape Professional

Editor’s Note: Evan Dickerson is owner of Dickerson Landscape Contractors and NaturesPro of North Plainfield. He has been pioneering the organic approach to plant health since 1972. Evan can be reached at 908-753-1490

What’s Up in the New Year?

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Jan 22-23, 2013New Jersey Convention Center • Edison, NJ

Be sure to visit our booth at


New Jersey Landscape 201336th Annual Trade Show & Educational Conference

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in the Tri-State Area!

Wednesday, February 27, 2013 - 8:00 am - 4:30 pmMeadowlands Exposition Center - 355 Plaza Drive, Secaucus, NJ 07094

Save $5 on attendance at the New Jersey Landscape Trade Show with this coupon.

Coupon must be presented with mail-in registra-tion form, use coupon code: NJLCA13 for online registration at www.njlca.org or present at ticket booth.

No photocopies will be accepted. Expires 2/27/13.

To receive a registration form or for more info,please contact NJLCA at (201) 703-3600 or visit

www.njlca.org

Save $5 ◆ Rutgers Co-operative Ext. DEP Credit Session ◆ FREE Business Seminars ◆ Over 350 Exhibit Booths ◆ Exciting Giveaways ◆ Trade Show Discounts ◆ Cash and Carry Deals ◆ Expanded “Power Lunch”

To register online now or for more information visit www.NJLCA.org or call (201) 703-3600

Important Dates:2/22/13 - Early Bird Deadline

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January 22-23New Jersey Convention Center Edison, NJ

Valuable Education, New Products & Supplies.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE

GREEN INDUSTRY!

Registration Includes: Full Access

to Classes & Seminars,

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The Region’s All Inclusive GreenIndustry Trade Show & Conference! WHEN YOUREGISTER ONLINE

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The seminars I attended with Judy Sharpton were very informative, and I am looking forward to her return this year to NJ Plants. Many local and regional companies we deal with were vendors at the show. It was fun andconvenient to see them all at one place so close to home.” Tim Serinese, OwnerTimothy’s Garden Center, Robbinsville, NJ

Conference Features Leaders ofNational Organic Food Movement(LINCROFT, NJ) ― Three leaders of the national organics movement

will be featured in January at the state’s largest gathering of nationally recognized speakers and regional experts in organic and sustainable agriculture, gardening, food and nutrition.

“This is a great opportunity for organic growers to learn from the best,” said Camille Miller, executive director of NOFA-NJ, the Northeast Organic Farm Association of New Jersey. The 23rd Annual Winter Food and Agriculture Conference will be held Jan. 26th and 27th at Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, NJ.

Eliot Coleman is making a rare appearance as Keynote Speaker. His Four Seasons Farm in Harborside, ME produces vegetables year-round and is nationally recognized as a model of small-scale sustainable agriculture. He is the author of The New Organic Grower, Four Season Harvest and The Winter Harvest Handbook.

Michael Phillips, orchardist and acclaimed author of The Apple Grower and The Holistic Orchard, will teach a pre-conference workshop Jan. 25 on sustainable orchard health techniques. His workshop provides essential knowledge to both professional orchardists and home gardeners with a single fruit tree.

Ellen Ecker-Ogden, the noted food and garden writer who founded The Cooks Garden Seed Catalog and wrote The Vermont Cheese Book and The Complete Kitchen Garden, will lead hands-on workshops on kitchen garden design and will also lead a pre-conference workshop in which gardeners will be able to customize their own kitchen garden design.

Titled “Building on a History of Innovation in the Garden State,” the conference includes more than 40 workshops over two days. Topics range from farm policy issues in New Jersey to workshops for backyard beekeeping. The annual conference is expected to draw more than 1,000 experienced and beginner farmers, chefs, backyard gardeners, beekeepers, backyard chicken-farmers and policy makers from the northeast.

Additional conference information and the full list of speakers are available at www.nofanj.org.

Please Donate to Governor Chris Christie and First Lady Mary Pat Christie’s Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund

www.SandyNJReliefFund.orgDonations to the fund can also be sent via traditional

mail to the address below:Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund

PO Box 95Mendham NJ 07945-0095

Email: [email protected]

New Jersey Needs Your Help!

Van Vleck House & Gardens Announces Interim Executive Director

(MONTCLAIR, NJ) ― Fred H. Langbein, President of the Board of Trustees of The Montclair Foundation, announced the appointment of Montclair resident Charles Fischer as Interim Executive Director of The Montclair Foundation and Van Vleck House & Gardens. Mr. Fischer assumed responsibilities on December 5.

Van Vleck House & Gardens is owned by The Montclair Foundation and serves as a resource for the Montclair community, both as green space and as a facility used by non-profits. It also provides a venue for music and the arts. The property located at 21 Van Vleck Street is open to the public without charge every day of the year from dawn to dusk. It draws on the support of hundreds of volunteers and receives no local taxpayer support.

January 22-23New Jersey Convention Center Edison, NJ

Valuable Education, New Products & Supplies.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE

GREEN INDUSTRY!

Registration Includes: Full Access

to Classes & Seminars,

Trade Show,

& Pesticide Courses!

The Region’s All Inclusive GreenIndustry Trade Show & Conference! WHEN YOUREGISTER ONLINE

www.NJPlantShow.com Use Coupon Code: Greenhouse

SAVE $5.00

TRADE ONLY

Show Hours *Tues: 9am - 4pm

Weds: 9am - 4pm* Pesticide Courses Begin at 8am Each Day

Storr TractorCompany

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REGISTER TODAY ONLINE!www.NJPlantShow.com • 1(732)449-4004

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“The seminars I attended with Judy Sharpton were very informative, and I am looking forward to her return this year to NJ Plants. Many local and regional companies we deal with were vendors at the show. It was fun andconvenient to see them all at one place so close to home.” Tim Serinese, OwnerTimothy’s Garden Center, Robbinsville, NJ


Auctions have traditionally been very important to the agricultural community, both here in New Jersey and across the country. They have served an important role, because while they are often seen as a means of dispersing either farm equipment or real estate, they are also important in the sale of agricultural products.

I am sure that everyone has heard the familiar sounds of an auctioneer calling off bids in that telltale manner in which they sound like a salesman, accountant and stand-up comedian all rolled into one. There is something about a good auctioneer working the crowd that, to me, makes it almost a true form of art. To me, the excitement that a good auction generates rivals the atmosphere at any sporting event or concert. It also can serve as a social event, where people can catch up with one another and hear the latest goings on within the industry.

New Jersey has a long tradition of different auctions where farm products were sold. They were common in most sectors of New Jersey

agriculture and were used for such diverse products as eggs, peaches, cattle, vegetables and hay. In fact, there are several auctions that still operate on a regular basis to this day. These auctions worked because they were a way for sellers to offer their products to a, relatively speaking, large number of buyers in a somewhat orderly fashion. They would normally have regular days and hours of operation in which they operated and certain ground rules concerning bidding and payment terms and the like. For example, there was a large egg auction that operated in Flemington for many years that had an elaborate building and staff and was a focal point for the entire community. In contrast to that, in my hometown of Oldwick back in the early 1900s, there was

a peach auction that ran on the side porch of the Tewksbury Inn, where the trucks of sellers would line up on one street and the buyers on another.

Of course, as with any sales method, there are strengths and there are drawbacks. For the most part, auctions seem to work well with buyers and sellers both receiving a good product and fair compensation. In times of a glut or a shortage however, prices can become wildly exaggerated. And especially in the cases of perishable commodities, if there is too much product and not enough buyers, prices will become severely depressed. The opposite is also true when demand exceeds supply. Unlike in direct-sale situations when sellers can hold their price

if they choose, in an auction setting they are at the mercy of the gavel. Just imagine the frustration for a grower selling tomatoes who knows that his cost of production is $12 per box and he only receives $3 or $4! The opposite of this can be true as well. If a product is in short supply for one reason or another and on that particular day there are too many buyers present, that $3 box of tomatoes may skyrocket to $30 or $40 a box. Over time, these scenarios do have a way of correcting themselves. If growers continue to receive low prices, they will just start diverting their products to other markets and the lack of supply will usually drive prices higher. And continued prices on the high end will force buyers to look

for alternative sources from which to buy.

Of course, there are always stories of buyers and sellers trying to gain an unfair advantage. Back in the days of the Oldwick auction, one grower was reported to have used a stovepipe when packing his peaches for the auction. He would put the pipe in the middle of the basket and fill it with bruised or small peaches and then outside it he would put his good ones and then remove the pipe. Supposedly, this came to an end when, one day, he forgot to remove the stovepipe.

The Town FarmerBy Peter Melick

Agricultural Producer

Editor’s Note: Peter Melick is co-owner of Melick’s Town Farm in Oldwick and a 10th-generation New Jersey farmer. Peter is a current member of the Tewksbury Township Committee, and a former Mayor of Tewksbury Township. He also served as a director for the New Jersey Farm Bureau and is a past president of the New Jersey State Board of Agriculture. Peter has also been featured on NJN, News 12 New Jersey and on the Fox Business Network.

Auctions have their place in agriculture

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists have released two mobile phone applications, or “apps,” to make things easier for anyone who needs to adjust insecticide spray equipment.

The apps were developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists Bradley Fritz and Wesley “Clint” Hoffmann at the agency’s Areawide Pest Management Research Unit in College Station, Texas. The apps are designed to ensure that aerial and ground-based crews can hit targets and minimize pesticide drift by keying in specifics on the type of equipment and pesticide they are using.

ARS is USDA’s principal intramural scientific research agency, and the research supports the USDA goal of promoting agricultural sustainability.

With dozens of manufacturers producing dozens of different types of spray technology—each with its own nozzle type, flow rate, and pressure setting range—the equipment setup can get pretty complicated. Aerial sprayers also must factor in wind speed, air temperature, flight speed and humidity.

The apps incorporate the latest science of spray technology, including “spray nozzle atomization” models developed by ARS at College Station. They can be used with a smartphone and accessed right from a field or the cabin of a small aircraft. More than half of all aerial applicators responding to a survey by the National

Agricultural Aviation Association reported using smartphones. Data also can be saved for later use and e-mailed to colleagues.

One app is designed for ground-based spraying for mosquitoes and other threats to public health. It covers 60 different sprayers made by 19 manufacturers and was developed jointly with the Department of Defense’s Navy Entomology Center of Excellence in Jacksonville, Fla. The user selects the appropriate sprayer and is guided through the process of selecting specific operational settings, such as the nozzle type, flow rate and spray pressure setting.

The other app, for aerial spraying, walks users through the process of adjusting nozzles and settings so pesticides are delivered at optimal droplet sizes. Droplet size is critical in aerial operations to ensure “on-target deposition” and minimize pesticide drift. The user specifies the nozzle manufacturer from a menu and is steered through a series of screens and prompts that, based on the specific operating conditions, helps him or her select the right size of the nozzle opening, spray pressure, nozzle orientation and airspeed.

The apps are available online through the Apple iTunes App Store and the Google Play Android Marketplace by searching for “Aerial Sprays” for the aerial application app and “Vector Sprays” for the ground-based sprayer app.Editor’s Note: Dennis O’Brien works for the Agricultural Research Service, USDA. He can be reached at (301) 504-1636 or by emailing [email protected]

Spraying Insecticide? There’s an App for ThatBy Dennis O'BrienUSDA ARS Informational Staff


By Madeline Flahive DiNardo, Union County Agricultural Agent and Master Gardeners, MC Schwartz and James Keane

Q. My lawn and gardens were flooded with saltwater during the Sandy Storm in October. What can I do to help my plants and lawn recover?

A. Rutgers Turfgrass Specialist, Dr. Jim Murphy, and Rutgers Soil Testing Laboratory Director, Dr. Stephanie Murphy, have been addressing this issue for many property owners and lawn / landscape professionals. The Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station has a blog dedicated to turfgrass management, www.turfblog.rutgers.edu. There is an article on this topic with additional research-based information on the turf blog site. The article has the following advice for helping your landscape and lawn recover from saltwater flood damage.

Saltwater flooding can potentially cause several problems for plants and the soil they are growing in. A direct effect can be that saltwater “burns” the foliage of plants if it has covered the foliage and entered the cells in the leaves. Excess salt in the soil can dehydrate plants by altering their ability to take up water. Salt competes with roots to absorb water and has an excellent chance of winning due to what is called osmotic stress. When soil conditions are saline, the roots have to work harder to absorb water. High levels of salt (sodium) can be toxic to some plants.

High sodium levels can change the pH level of the soil, often making it too alkaline for healthy plant growth. High levels of sodium in the soil changes the physical structure. Soils contain small particles (clay and organic matter) called colloids. Excess sodium disperses these particles which in turn clog the soil pores, inhibiting drainage and leaching. Leaching is downward movement of materials in soil by the action of water.

In sandy or sandy / loam soils, this dispersal of small particles may not be as big of a problem. The absence or small presence of clay particles will probably not clog the air spaces needed in the soil for drainage and leaching. However, if your property is in a tidal river flood plain, the soils tend to have a finer texture than sandy soils due to its clay content.

Chances are high that lawns that were flooded with saltwater were damaged. During the late fall / winter, it can be difficult to tell if the lawn is dead or dormant. Take a few cores or cut a piece of sod with the grass blades, roots and soil in tact and place it in a pot or pan filled with a good quality potting mix. Place your sample in a warm (65º - 75ºF) sunny location and water it. Sprinkling a little gypsum over the sod before watering may help remove salts. If new growth appears after a week in the sun and warmer temperatures, the grass has not died. If the lawn has died, improving soil conditions and seeding in the spring or late summer / early fall will give your lawn a new start.

How can you help your landscape plants and lawn recover? Once flood waters have rescinded, try to improve the drainage in the area. Take a soil test of the area to determine the pH and nutrient levels. If the pH is too high, the plants may not be able to uptake the nutrients. A standard Rutgers Soil Test will provide you with this information about your soil. Basic standard fertility soil test kits are available at your county Rutgers Cooperative Extension office. For an additional $10, you can request an “Electrical Conductivity (EC) of Soils Extracts” test. The EC test can determine if there are excessive soluble salts in the soil. Soil test forms and instructions for taking samples are also available on the Rutgers Soil Testing Laboratory website: http://njaes.rutgers.edu/soiltestinglab/.

There are a few ways to remove excess residual salts from the root zone of plants. One is the addition of amendments to the soil. If high soil pH is not an issue, applying gypsum (calcium sulfate) to the soil is an option. Gypsum helps displace sodium from the soil. It is important to add it to a fine textured soil before leaching. Use a finely ground gypsum and thoroughly mix it into the soil. The recommended rate is 1 to 2 tons per acre if it can be mixed into the soil. That would be 4.6 to 9.2 pounds of gypsum per 100 square feet. If mixing it into the soil is not practical in your situation, make smaller applications multiple times.

After the gypsum has been applied and mixed in, it will help displace the sodium. It makes leaching more effective, as the gypsum improves the soil structure. Heavily watering the lawn, garden or landscape planting with fresh water from a lawn / garden sprinkler, or an irrigation system can start the leaching process. Natural rainfall also leaches the soil. The water will carry the sodium below the root zone. It’s important to add gypsum to fine textured soils before leaching. If the soil structure has not been improved, the water will not drain properly.

If high pH is an issue, applying elemental sulfur is the preferred amendment for displacing excess sodium in the soil. Bacteria in the soil convert sulfur into sulfuric acid which reacts with calcium carbonate (from shells) in the soil. The reaction produces calcium. Then the calcium can help displace the excess sodium in the soil.

If you will be replacing landscape plants and lawns, and your property is prone to saltwater flooding, consider planting salt tolerant plants. Perennial ryegrass, slender creeping red fescue and tall fescues lawns tend to be more tolerant of salts then Kentucky bluegrass and creeping bentgrass lawns.

Editor’s Note: The Union County Master Gardener’s HELP LINE fields hundreds of citizen inquiries a year – offering assistance with their indoor as well as outdoor gardening and pest control questions. Responses to resident phone calls and on-site visits comply with current Rutgers NJ Agricultural Experiment Station recommendations. Union County residents can call (908) 654-9852 or email [email protected] for assistance. A complete listing of Rutgers Cooperative Extension (RCE) offices where you can contact a Master Gardener in your area can be found on page 22 of the Gardener News. Free RCE fact sheets are available at www.njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs.

CASE FILESFrom the Rutgers Master Gardeners of Union County Garden Help Line

2012 Person of the Year(Continued from page 6)

regularly for caterpillars that will become butterflies. If she doesn’t have a plant in her garden needed as a caterpillar’s host food plant, she will go to great lengths to locate a necessary host food plant. She also goes to great lengths to make sure that any birds that visit her garden are fed and have clean water to drink.

As Geremia continues in her quest to perform exemplary service to the many facets of the agriculture and horticulture industries, and the environment, we gladly bestow our award to her.

The Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc. (GCNJ), founded in 1925, is a federation of individual local garden clubs throughout the state. As of October 31, 2012, GCNJ has 4,613 members, ages 6 to adult. GCNJ is the state affiliate and a charter member of the National Garden Clubs, Inc., (NGC) a non-profit educational organization.

As of October 31, 2012, the membership of NGC is composed of 5,737 member garden clubs with 188,031 members in the 50 states. In addition, NGC has 314 international affiliates from Canada to Mexico and South America, from Bermuda to South Africa, Australia and Japan, as well as 70 national affiliates within the United States. A member garden club from South Korea has just joined.

The first garden club in America was founded in January 1891 by The Ladies Garden Club of Athens, Georgia. On May 1, 1929, 13 federated states became charter members at an organizational meeting in Washington, D.C. In 1935, the National Garden Clubs established headquarters in Rockefeller Center in New York City. In 1941, it was moved to the Empire State Building. A permanent headquarters building in St. Louis was dedicated May 10, 1959.

Gardener News began the annual “Person of the Year” cover story in 2008. Gardener News will annually bestow our “Person of the Year” award to a person who performs exemplary outstanding service to the agricultural, gardening and/or landscaping communities.

Editor’s Note: Tom Castronovo is executive editor and publisher of Gardener News. Tom’s lifelong interest in gardening and passion for agriculture, environmental stewardship, gardening and landscaping, led to the founding of the Gardener News, which germinated in April 2003 and continues to bloom today. He is also dedicated to providing inspiration, and education to the agricultural, gardening and landscaping communities through this newspaper and GardenerNews.com.

Largest Orchid Exhibit in Tri-State AreaWorld’s most diverse species of plants

(HOLMDEL, NJ) ― Thousands of deep colorful flowers will brighten cold winter days at the 16th Annual Deep Cut Orchid Society’s Orchid Show.

The largest orchid show in the tri-state area is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 7 through Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013 at the Dearborn Market, Route 35, Holmdel, New Jersey.

Exhibit hours are Thursday 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

On Saturday and Sunday orchid experts will present free lectures on How To Grow Orchids and information on popular species. Lectures will be at 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Sunday.

There will be exhibits from orchid clubs and vendors in the Mid-Atlantic area and across the United States. Certified American Society of Orchids judges will award prizes to the best exhibit and flowers.

Admission and parking are free. Lunch is available in the Dearborn Market, and visitors can eat in the 11,000 SF garden facility, where the orchids will be exhibited.

A limited number of special group tours with a knowledgeable orchid expert as a guide can be arranged. There is no cost, but arrangements MUST be made ahead of time by calling Carol Abaya at 732-536-6215.


When you’re shopping for JERSEY GROWN nursery stock, you know the trees, shrubs, plants and flowers are checked for quality, disease, are pest free, and accustomed to the Garden State’s climate and soil conditions.

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GovernorChris Christie

Secretary of AgricultureDouglas H. Fisher

Support NJ Agriculture

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The New Year brings OPTIMISM and a “CAN DO” attitude to New Jersey as we have “licked our wounds”, and are geared up to restoring our state to its former glory and then some!

We came through one of the toughest periods in New Jersey’s history after being directly hit with this 500-year storm, Sandy, and are finding out that all the hype about how tough Jersey Guys and Jersey Girls are is true, starting from our Governor Christie and encompassing all members of our great Garden State. Some of us are still experiencing hardships with the loss of homes, jobs, and personal and public treasures. Our landscape is markedly different and in some places, the harsh reality is almost too hard to bear. And yet, from the beginning, though we were shell shocked and even seem to have lost time itself, we are rebounding with a new spirit and empowered as never before to restore that which was destroyed, and make it better than before.

Thanks goes to our emergency responders, power companies, volunteers from all over the country, police, fire companies and rescue and recovery groups. We have been constantly amazed at the bravery and goodness of our citizens, and from the White House, the Governor’s Office on down to the local counties and towns, everybody worked together to come to the aide of the displaced and devastated residents throughout New Jersey and New York. We on the Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc.’s Board, have been planning how best to help our citizens and communities recover from Hurricane Sandy as people’s shelter, food, infrastructure and livelihood are the first things to be attended to. Thinking about all this, the “R” words

kept running through my mind as we continue to get our Great Garden State back on its feet again. We will rebuild, refurbish, rehabilitate, renew, revive, recuperate, re-establish, and recover because we are resilient.

Our Garden Club of New Jersey President Vivian Morrison’s theme these past two years is “Boot-up the Beauty through Service” and we stand ready to “Reboot-up” the GCNJ’s commitment to help restore our public gardens through our newly formed Garden Club of New Jersey Restoration Committee. The GCNJ Community Gardens/Jersey Fresh/Jersey Grown Project Committee will be working hand-in-hand with the Restoration Committee and the GCNJ Natural Disasters Committee to help our 109 garden clubs and their communities throughout the state to restore what was lost to Hurricane Sandy and to give rebirth in this New Year to our public gardens.

I want to share with you, my gardening friends, a quote from David McCullough’s new book, The Greater Journey, in which he relates the following written by John Sanderson: “Let us have gardens, then, and other public places where we may see our friends, and parade our vanities, if you will, before the eyes of the world. Did you ever know anyone who was not delighted with a garden?” Yes, we will RESTORE our beautiful gardens, and redouble our efforts to make this happen.

Our first step has already been taken and that is to revise our GCNJ Community Gardens/Jersey Fresh/Jersey Grown Project grant application to reflect our new first priority: to help restore our public gardens. We will have the new grant application up on our website: www.gardenclubofnewjersey.com as soon as possible, but meanwhile, please use the

current form that’s up on our website under Community Gardens. We will be awarding grants of up to $1,000 to restore public gardens damaged by Hurricane Sandy, expand and/or refurbish existing community/public gardens or establishing new community/public gardens. Our first rounds of grants will be awarded on February 17 at 4 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom at the New Jersey Convention Center during the Mac Events “Mardi Gras Around the World” NJ Flower and Garden Show. Please make sure to attend this stellar event from February 14-17, as the GCNJ puts on its biggest flower show of the year. We reached out to Gardeners Supply Company of Burlington, Vermont, and asked them to give us a helping hand in restoring our gardens, and we were “bowled” over by their immediate response of shipping us 3,000 packets of seeds from Renee’s Garden and Botanical Interests with a retail value of over $6,000. Thank you to Gardeners Supply Company for caring. We will be giving these seed packets out at the February show to contributors to our Natural Disasters Fund that will directly benefit New Jersey’s public gardens. Come look me up and say “hi” as I’ll be chairing the GCNJ Flower Show, “Mardi Gras Madness.”

Editor’s Note: Jeannie Geremia is the Horticultural Chair and NGC Accredited Judge for the Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc., GCNJ Community Garden Chair and Central Atlantic Region Community Garden Chair of National Garden Clubs, Inc. She can be reached by emailing [email protected] Garden Club of New Jersey’s website is: www.gardenclubofnewjersey.com and phone number is:732-249-0947.

The GCNJ Restoration CommitteeBy Jeannie GeremiaGarden Club of New Jersey

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Salt…As I sit here in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, I don’t really know what to

write. Many people lost a lot from the storm and I want to express my sincere condolences. I think a timely topic would be to write about salt and salt damage. A lot of the wind and water that hit the inland areas of New Jersey contained salt from the ocean. In addition, the ice and snow season will soon be upon us and we will start using de-icing salts on paths and walkways.

What exactly is salt? Salt (NaCl; sodium chloride) is commonly applied as a de-icing agent on streets and sidewalks and can cause severe damage to many species of plants. The driving winds and rising waters of Sandy also contained a lot of salt. The damage results when salt, dissolved in water, gets into the root zone, or when it comes in contact with the leaves, needles and branches.

Plant sensitivity to salt varies greatly among species and even among individuals of the same species. Many ornamentals exhibit a very high degree of tolerance while others, particularly shallow-rooted species and evergreens, are readily injured. Plant damage is dependent upon the concentration of salt that actually gets into the soil or comes in contact with the plant; and plant symptoms are usually evident only after salt has accumulated to a toxic level.

Symptoms of salt injury are not always obvious and may resemble damage caused by other adverse environmental factors, particularly drought or air pollution. Affected plants commonly exhibit some or all of the following symptoms: Delay in leaf budbreak and flowering, stunted foliage and buds, tip or marginal foliage browning and premature fall coloration and defoliation.

Salt causes a “burn” to the roots and foliage it comes into contact with. This results from the natural movement of water from an area of low salt concentration within plant cells to one of higher concentration in the soil or on foliar surfaces – causing the water to be literally “pulled out” of the plant. Another way that salt is considered to be harmful to plants is in the sodium ions themselves. Sodium concentration in plant tissues may alter a plant’s mineral nutritional balance and inhibit protein synthesis and other biochemical reactions.

How can we help our plants? The first rule in plant care is always – “Right Tree, Right Place.” A hurricane is not something that you keep in mind when planting a tree, so this applies more to de-icing salts or trees where the likelihood to come into contact with salt water is high. Starting with a tree that is tolerant of the site is your best bet to avoid salt injury. State extension services can provide a complete listing for a given area. If the area must be salted to prevent accidents and injury, try calcium chloride. It is an effective de-icing agent which is much less toxic to plants and should be substituted for sodium chloride on pavements around ornamentals whenever possible. Other materials, including sand and urea, are valid, but less effective, substitutes for sodium chloride.

If salt damage has already occurred, try using gypsum. Gypsum (calcium sulfate), a naturally occurring compound native to the Southwestern United States, has long been used in agriculture as a source of calcium and sulfur and as an amendment to improve soil structure. Recently, gypsum has been found to counteract salt injury by reacting with toxic sodium ions present in soil and rendering them unavailable to the plant. The negatively charged sulfate ions in gypsum bond with the positively charged sodium ions to form sodium sulfate, a highly soluble salt that is readily leached from soil. The remaining positively charged calcium ions are free to bond with negatively charged clay molecules, thereby acting as a “binding agent” between soil particles and resulting in increased soil permeability and aeration. Gypsum can be surface-applied with a lawn spreader or applied via deep placement in the same manner as granular fertilizers.

As always, I hope you learned something! And Good Luck…..’Till next month

Editor’s Note: Robert graduated from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and Syracuse University with degrees in science education and forest biology. He is an ISA Certified Arborist and a New Jersey Certified Tree Expert. Robert is currently teaching AP Environmental Science, Biology and Chemistry at Liberty High School in PA., and on staff at Temple University teaching Horticulture. He delivers many short courses and seminars at various outdoor education facilities. He is available for talks and consultations in both NJ and PA. Robert can be reached by calling (484) 560-5744.

Contractor of the YearCanete Landscape – Tom Canete

Associate of the YearGamka Sales Co. – Bob Hibler

Volunteer of the YearMichael Annecchino – Otterstedt Insurance

Landscape Achievement Awards:

Lakeland Lawn & Landscaping - MeritLandscapeworks Incorporated - Distinction

Sponzilli Landscape Group - ExcellenceLakeland Lawn & Landscaping - Merit

Landscape Perceptions - MeritLandscape Perceptions - Distinction

Scenic Landscaping - ExcellenceCipriano Landscape Design - Merit

Vee’s Botanicals - MeritScenic Landscaping - Distinction

Young’s Landscape Management, Inc. - ExcellenceJacobsen Landscape Design and Construction - Merit

Borst Landscape & Design - DistinctionCipriano Landscape Design - Excellence

Limone Farm & Gardens - MeritLandscapeworks Incorporated - DistinctionDuke’s Landscape Management Inc. - MeritGreen Meadows Landscaping, Inc. - Merit

Green Meadows Landscaping, Inc. - DistinctionLakeland Lawn & Landscaping - Merit

Scenic Landscaping - Excellence

New Jersey Landscape Contractors Association 2012 Award Winners

Does Your Landscape ProfessionalHave The Following?

NJ Home Improvement Contractors LicenseNJDA Plant Dealer Certificate

NJ Fertilizer Certificate (If Applicable)NJ DEP Pesticide License (If Applicable)

Liability and Worker’s Comp InsuranceMunicipal Landscapers License (If Applicable)

These are all required by law!ASK THEM FOR A COPY BEFORE THEY BEGIN TO WORK ON YOUR

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HOMEOWNERSPROPERTY OWNERS

PROPERTY MANAGERS



The superstorm Sandy relief effort touched the hearts of the South Carolina Department of Agriculture deeply. On Monday morning, December 3, Sonny Dickinson, Assistant Director of Marketing for the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, arrived at the Community Food Bank in Hillside, Union County, New Jersey, in a pick-up truck loaded with just over 1,300 lbs. of donated canned food from McCall Farms in Effingham, South Carolina. The brands were Margaret Holmes, a complete line of southern canned vegetables, and Glory Foods, a complete line of pre-seasoned canned vegetables. The food drop was officially accepted by New Jersey Assemblywoman L. Grace Spencer. The New Jersey Department of Agriculture helped coordinate the donation location. From left to right: Assemblywoman Spencer and Sonny Dickinson

South Carolina helps Garden State

There’s good news for fans of black raspberries: A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientist and his commercial colleague have found black raspberries that have resistance to a disease-spreading aphid.

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) horticulturist Chad Finn with the agency’s Horticultural Crops Research Unit in Corvallis, Ore., and colleague Michael Dossett of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are the first to find and report black raspberry resistance to the large raspberry aphid.

ARS is USDA’s chief intramural scientific research agency, and this research supports the USDA priority of promoting international food security.

The researchers screened seedlings from 132 wild black raspberry populations for aphid resistance. According to Finn, strong resistance was found in three of these populations—one

each from Ontario, Maine, and Michigan. Aphid resistance in the Ontario and Maine populations seems to be controlled by multiple genes, while resistance in the Michigan population is governed by one dominant gene.

Identifying these genes makes it easier for breeders to incorporate aphid resistance into commercial black raspberry cultivars.

Aphid control is important because fruit production is severely impacted by black raspberry necrosis virus, which is transmitted by the large raspberry aphid. This and other aphids are important virus vectors in North American black raspberries.

Although breeding for aphid resistance has been recognized as an important tool for protecting red raspberries from viral infection, this is the first report of aphid resistance in black raspberry, according to Finn.

Editor’s Note: Sharon Durham works for the Agricultural Research Service, USDA. She can be reached at (301) 504-1636 or by emailing [email protected]

Scientists Find Aphid Resistance in Black Raspberry

By Sharon DurhamUSDA ARS Informational Staff


The importance of having indoor plants in the home is to increase people’s quality of life. In hard, difficult times when the furthest thing from someone’s mind is a plant, you would be amazed at the surprise it would bring to someone.

Not only are you making a simple gesture, there are many benefits to what you give. The obvious reason is to brighten someone’s day, but there is so much more. Plants provide certain benefits such as looking good in a room, or aesthetics. Many professional designers utilize indoor plants to heighten certain senses in particular areas. They may put them into decorative containers to enhance the look. Plants give a sense of calmness and warmness to a space they occupy. They also provide a health benefit and a psychological one, too. Plants are beneficial in many ways.

Plants are visually attractive and can soften decor that becomes plain or stale. Plants provide color and enhance the working/living environment. Plants create a positive image for your space, for clients, customers, friends

and family to be around. Plants are psychologically soothing and improve employee morale and productivity. Plants can help boost people’s moods. They can psychologically reverse depression, fatigue, and destructive feelings. Plants are natural air filters, helping to remove many indoor air pollutants. They take in and reduce the carbon dioxide in the air and replace and release fresh oxygen into the air through photosynthesis. They help to keep dust particles at bay.

Indoor plants help remove pollutants like volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that cause headaches, nausea, irritation of the eyes-nose-throat, and other symptoms or illnesses. VOCs are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. VOCs include a variety of

chemicals, some of which may have short- and long-term adverse health effects as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency. VOCs can come from many different products that are used daily. Items such as paints, lacquers and paint strippers, cleaning supplies like bleach, surface and disinfecting cleaners, even office equipment such as copiers and printers correction fluids and carbonless copy paper, and also graphics and craft materials, including glues and adhesives, permanent markers, and photographic solutions.

If your bedroom is dry and you’re having trouble sleeping, indoor plants can provide a natural humidifier. Plants naturally release moisture into the air. Be sure to group them together.

Indoor plants are generally some type of tropical plants. Tropical plants prefer warmer temperatures and humidity. In general, most indoor plants require a regular watering cycle. Adjust water frequency accordingly with each individual plant. They may go through periods where increasing the frequency will be necessary, as well as periods of decreasing frequency. Always water plants thoroughly. When finished watering of the plants, go back after about 10 minutes and check to see if plant is sitting or standing in water. If there is water in the dish, you should remove it unless you notice that the soil in the pot is still dry. If the soil is dry, you may leave the water in dish longer.

Indoor plants, in general, prefer temperatures in the

range of 55-85 degrees. For the most part, most indoor plants may be able to handle cooler temperatures for short periods of time. This reminds me of the storms we recently encountered, with long periods of power outages. The extended periods of cold temperature in homes or offices may have caused damage to tropical plants. You may have noticed a lot of leaf droppage that happened even months after this time. This was probably due to cold temperatures the plants experienced during the crisis. Unfortunately there is isn’t much you can do except hope that they will be able to bounce back from the stress they encountered.

So, remember the next time you give the gift of a plant, you’re giving something that lasts a lot longer than you may think.

Indoor Plants to help in Recovering

The Professional GrowerBy Tim Hionis

Greenhouse Specialist

Editor’s Note: Tim Hionis has been growing plants for over 20 years, and is co-owner of Hionis Greenhouses and Garden Center in Whitehouse Station, NJ. He can be reached by calling(908) 534-7710.

With the holiday season almost finished, winter just beginning and the start of a new year, now is the perfect time to start planning your landscape. That’s right! Just as fall is for planting, “winter is for planning.”

The ground may be frozen and all of your plants should be dormant, so besides doing a little winter pruning here or there, or applying another coating of an anti-desiccant to your evergreens, now is the time to plan your landscape. So grab all of your plant catalogues, copies of Better Homes and Gardens magazine, check out websites like Landscaping Network and start dreaming about your new projects for the spring.

It doesn’t matter if you are planning a significant installation, such as renovating your rear yard or installing hardscape features such as a new patio, pool, pergola or pond. Or extending your perennial garden and installing some privacy plantings. (Wow that’s a lot of P’s.) Winter is the perfect time to put all of your ideas together and create a landscape plan. If it’s a smaller project that you’ll be installing yourself, there’s no reason

why you couldn’t design it yourself. But if it’s going to be significant in size and needs to be installed in phases, then you’re probably going to want to work with a professional landscape designer, landscape architect or landscape design/build contractor.

Now, before it gets too cold and the ground is covered in snow, you, or the person you are working with, need to do a couple of things before you can develop your plan. The first thing that you have to do is create what we refer to as a base map. If you’re working with a smaller area, your base map could be measured out on graph paper. If you are putting together a master plan for the entire property or plan on renovating either the entire back yard or front yard, then I suggest you get a copy of

your property survey. It’s with your mortgage papers and was created when you bought or refinanced your house. This document will save you time and money, as well as provide you with accurate measurements.

Now with your base map in one hand and a hot cocoa in the other, you need to go outside and inventory the site. This means locating any trees, shrubs or hardscape features that are not shown on your property survey or graph paper base map. Again, you want to try to locate everything as accurately as possible but not make yourself crazy. You also want to take as many pictures as you can, showing overall views and detailed shots from a variety of angles. Remember that you want pictures that look out and away from the house,

as well as inward towards the house. Since these days you can view all of your pictures on your computer or smart phone and don’t have to waste money on inkjet cartridges printing them out, take pictures of everything, even if you don’t know why.

Now that you have all the information that you need from the great outdoors, you can finally sit down and spend the time necessary to properly design your landscape. With the incredible amount of information available on the internet, it is no longer necessary to touch and see every single plant or get samples of dozens of paving stones before you can make your design decisions. Plus, if you are working with a professional landscape designer, I can pretty much guarantee you that they

have more time to spend with you now then they will in the spring. So why not take advantage of it? (Sorry guys, you know it’s true.)

One last thing that is an absolute must and will help you develop some great ideas and finalize your plan this winter is to go to the 2013 New Jersey Flower and Garden Show on February 14-17 at the New Jersey Convention Center in Edison. The displays are incredible and there’s nothing like the smell of hyacinth to get you in the mood for spring.

Editors Note: Jody Shilan is the owner of Jody Shilan Designs in Wyckoff, where he provides landscape design and consulting services for homeowners and landscape contractors. He earned his bachelors degree in Landscape Architecture from Cook College, Rutgers University and his masters degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Currently, he is Executive Director of the New Jersey Landscape Contractors Association (NJLCA). He can be reached at 201-783-2844 or [email protected].

Winter is for Planning

Creating Outdoor SpacesBy Jody Shilan, MLALandscape Designer


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TIP OF THE MONTHFire hydrants are a very important part of the landscape. During the winter, storms often hide fire hydrants under piles of snow, making them impossible to find quickly. Once they are found, firefighters must spend precious minutes shoveling out hydrants before they can hook them up to an engine. If you have a fire hydrant in front of your residence or business, or know of one close by, please shovel a five-foot area all around the hydrant. This would give firefighters sufficient room with which to work in connecting hoses and opening the hydrant. A “clean” hydrant can make a BIG difference at a fire. Done properly, shoveling can be good exercise, too!

Full Moon, January 26, 2013

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