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THE LAZY BERKSHIRE GARDENER: Week of June 27, 2024

I used to be an anti-annual snob. No annuals for me: They are too much money every year. “Be clever, garden savvy, and have continuous perennial color,” I think. But I have been schooled.

Late June and I feel like something is missing. The rush of spring blooms has been great, but now I am in the big lull waiting for reblooms or early July perennials to start their thing. I could find some more perennials that are blooming right now. But this is where annuals come in. I used to be an anti-annual snob. No annuals for me: They are too much money every year. “Be clever, garden savvy, and have continuous perennial color,” I think. But I have been schooled. The loveliest gardens have annual blooms popping up to support the perennial players. Every growing thing has a place in your garden.

I stare at the perennial beds and wonder what to plant in the spot where other plants have gone to die. I am not sure what has killed the plants. It could be that a vole has found that spot to be the ideal distance from its nest. The soil could have some deep-rooted mineral complicating the pH. It may be the exact spot where my dog steps every time she races around the yard. I sigh and remind myself that I like puzzles and I will just have to try something else there. For now, I am filling it with annual salvia and zinnia. There is no show yet, but it should look nice by August.

So yes, annuals serve a purpose. Any hanging basket of trumpet-shaped flowers will attract hummingbirds. I have my basket of million bells hanging near my hummingbird feeder to keep the birds close. A sudden thunderstorm forced the hummingbird to perch on the hanging basket to stay out of the wind and rain. I don’t see the hummingbird sampling nectar as often on the million bells as they would on cuphea, but that is OK. I get to see them anyway.

Heat, wind, rain, and now the insect pests have started in earnest. As predicted, I spotted a Japanese beetle on my peach tree this weekend. I will add insect picking to my early morning routine now. A few products can help keep the beetle pressure down, but use sprays as a last resort when pest pressure starts to damage produce or threaten plant health. Otherwise, use barriers or simply pick off the pest or knock them into a jar of soapy water.

Less disruptive, simple mechanical methods mean you will do less damage to other insects or to the plants. Watch where you usually find the pests and visit those plants regularly to collect the beetles.

On the left, the Lazy Berkshire Gardener spotted the first Japanese beetle of the season on June 22, about 10 days earlier than usual. On the right, typical Japanese beetle damage getting worse a day later.

If you choose to use a botanical pesticide, follow the directions and don’t use when pollinators are present. Also, target under the leaves, not only leaf surfaces. Investing in a simple pump sprayer makes this job easier because you can redirect the spray without doing acrobatic contortions yourself. Plus, you can use it throughout the year if you clean it out thoroughly between applications. Pest-control concentrates last longer on the shelf as well.

For moth or butterfly larvae, use Bt or Spinosad to stop the feeding and kill the pest. Broad spectrum botanical sprays will work too, but you need to reapply them more often.

Rose slug or the larvae/caterpillar of Sawfly will attack roses and, in this case, perennial hibiscus as soon as stems reach about 10 inches tall. They can be found under the leaves. Attack with Bt or a broad-spectrum botanical like Neem oil.

You can also use reemay, lightweight spun polyester fabric, or exclude net to keep insect pests or birds from landing on your fruiting raspberries or blueberries.

Choose what fruit you want and what you want to offer wildlife. Many spring blooming shrubs have completed their bloom. Watch for fruit on your native viburnums and leave those flower heads to complete the cycle and feed local wildlife. But you can also prune these shrubs to encourage growth from the base or tips that will result in a bushier, more floriferous plant next year. Your first step should be to prune stems that twist around others or rub together. Thinning a shrub will get more light into the center of the plant and improve air circulation. This will reduce the chances of the shrub getting powdery mildew from these hot, humid days. You can prune up to a third of the plant and it will put out fresh growth this season without trouble.

You may wish to prune out unsightly damage, but know the culprit first. The bumps you see could be how the plant has protected itself. Insects lay eggs under the leaf surface. As the eggs hatch and larvae grow, the plant forms a protective gall around the insect. Rarely will these galls kill a plant. If you prune out the damage, destroy the damaged leaves or branches to avoid facing the same pest next year. Sometimes, it is best to be lazy and just let the plant handle it. These pests can blow in from other properties regardless of your efforts.

Sometimes the craziest looking damage is the most innocuous. Galls on a beech leaf may be unsightly but are mostly harmless.

Keep spraying preventive fungicide on plants that had powdery mildew or rust diseases last year. You can’t cure an infection, but you can prevent its spread. Any plant material affected by rust or other fungus should be bagged up and put in the trash to avoid reinfection.

In the vegetable garden, inspect plants for pest damage and scout for pests like striped cucumber beetles and cabbage worms. Keep gathering lettuce leaves and pinch back any flowers that form on your herbs. Potato beetles will also affect peppers, eggplant, and tomato. Search under leaves for pests, as well as orange egg masses.

Some egg masses could be from beneficial insects. An assassin bug will feed on a wide variety of garden pests. What first looks like a pest on the leaf surface could actually be an egg mass! I found a mass on a beech leaf and expected it to move. Instead, I couldn’t remove it easily from the leaf. It had been “glued’ into position. Had I found it in my yard, I would have been thrilled.

An assassin bug egg mass is best left in the garden so the beneficial insects can go to work for the lazy gardener.

Along with finding beneficial insects and successful flowers, I also stumbled on a beautiful weed. This pretty flower turns out to be a troublesome weed from Europe, sulfur cinquefoil (Potentilla recta). Remove any flowering weeds before they form seedheads that will spread into your gardens. Lazy gardeners are not procrastinators. We do a little work now so we can snooze later.

This pretty cinquefoil flower needs to go.

I call myself the Lazy Berkshire Gardener because I don’t want to work too hard in my gardens. I want to enjoy them. I find it easier to observe my landscape and let the compost happen, the water pool up, or daisies to self-sow. I look for ways to do the minimum task for the biggest impact. For example, mulching is better than spraying and much better than weeding all season. I look for beautiful, low-maintenance plants that thrive in or at least tolerate my garden conditions. Plus, I’m willing to live with the consequences if I miss something.

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