The Magic Garden

How many dasies can you count on your lawn? If you can count 12 dasies, Spring has come


Most of my hyacinths are in bloom but they are too stubby to pick for a vase. There are some that are long enough. How can I stretch them?
Sharon, Pena, IL

You can wait for more warm weather before picking them. Length is a product of heat. This fall you can transplant the stubbies to a place where they will get more light. This year greenhouses will her using cold storage to retard growth for Easter plants in most areas of the country because of the early onset of spring weather.

I have thousands of tobacco seeds that are tiny. What is the best way to star them? What is the best way to start them? I have an area that is 40 by 20 feet.
Graham, Montgomery, AL

You could put out half of them directly outdoors. You soil will need to be rich in compost and manure and be well drained. Plants need to be a foot apart and in three foot rows. Put a layer of cornmeal ver the seeds. They can placed with three seeds ion each spot.
Start the rest indoors now. Use god potting soil in trays with a quarter inch of fine sand on the top. Make a line in the sand to receive the seeds. Soil can be soaked the first day to make it moist. Mist every day from the second day. When the seedlings are three inches high, you can separate them with twizers. Be careful not to break the stems or roots.
Temperatures indoors and outdoors need to be 70 or higher. Separated seedlings can be placed in four inch peat pots with plenty of light. You can put them in rows outdoors as soon as they are ready.

How do I plant for Bloodroot?
Gary, Round Rock, TX

Sanguinaria canadensis is a perennial that is native to most of North America. Its orange root is planted shallow in the soil in the spring or fall. Its white flowers bloom early in the spring before leaves mature. There are some double flowering varieties that are highly prized. S.canadensis is sometimes known as Indian plant,tetterwort or redroot.

What is the best way to plant asparagus plants?
John, Norwcich, CT

You need to dig a trench that is two feet deep and a foot wide. Rots can be a foot apart. In southeast Connecticut, you ned to put three inches of sand at the bottom for good drainage. Your soil needs to amended with a third composted material and aged manure. Let the plants go to seed in late summer or early fall. Some bonemeal on the top or 5-10-10 eat year will supplement your soil.



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