Wichita Eagle: Home and Garden

In search of evergreens for Kansas

Annie Calovich — Sat, 18 May 2013 07:13 CDT

There’s nothing like a couple of years of drought to get us wondering just what kind of evergreens we can plant in the Wichita area.

Blue spruces have fried in the past couple of years; pines have been hit by disease.

But this is the prairie, after all. Kansas is the only state in the Lower 48 that doesn’t have a native pine tree. We’re not the icy-cold tundra of the Upper Midwest, where native pines can take the cold winters, and we’re not the desert Southwest, where native pines can take the hot wind.

Get ideas for your yard on garden tour

Annie Calovich — Sat, 18 May 2013 07:21 CDT

When a large Alberta spruce died in the heat and drought last year in Bill and Kathy Ethridge’s front yard, they replaced it with a Horstmann Atlas blue cedar – one of the evergreens that still makes the recommended list for Kansas.

The Ethridges are on the master gardeners’ garden tour that continues Saturday and Sunday. Their house at 5709 N. Sullivan sits on two acres leading down to the river, two-thirds of it in soothing green fescue.

“It’s so exciting not to be flat for Wichita,” Kathy says.

Gardener’s almanac (May 18)

Sat, 18 May 2013 07:30 CDT

Are we caught up yet? – For the most part, the forecast calls for lows in the 60s next week, a far cry from the recent days when we were having a hard time seeing a high in the 60s. Our fears for going from winter to summer were at least temporarily realized. The soil should be nicely warming. Assuming we’re on schedule …

Planting calendar, plus a pepper tip – Beans, cucumbers, eggplant, melons, peppers, okra, pumpkins (wait until late June for a Halloween-timed harvest), sweet corn, squash, tomatoes. One reader recommends Fooled You peppers, which he’s bought at Hillside Feed & Seed in the past. It’s a jalapeno without the heat.

Warm-season grasses – If you’re planning to put in a warm-season lawn this spring, you can plant seed now. Otherwise wait until June to plant vegetatively by sprigs, plugs or sod, extension agent Rebecca McMahon says. Buffalo grass seed is slow to fill in, so you might want to go the vegetative route with that, she says. Otherwise, the variety you want to plant also has something to do with what form you choose to plant. Some are available only by seed, others only vegetatively. For zoysia, K-State recommends only Meyer, and it’s only available vegetatively, she says. As with fescue, sod is the fastest to establish and also the most expensive, she says.

The Grapevine (May 18)

Sat, 18 May 2013 07:30 CDT

Hostapalooza next weekend

You can learn about hostas and find unusual plants and garden accessories for sale at Hostapalooza on May 25 at the Extension Education Center, 21st and Ridge Road. There will be hostas, Japanese maples, dwarf conifers, caladiums, hypertufa pots, daylilies and art for sale; food; and speakers, including “Hosta Guy” Rob Mortko. The garden celebration will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is sponsored by the Wichita Hosta Society. Admission is free. Pictured above: the Hosta of the Year, Rainforest Sunshine.

Mugo pine trim

Garden tour shows ways to landscape across a spectrum of yards

Annie Calovich — Sat, 11 May 2013 07:09 CDT

I forgot that I was heading for Surrey Lane until I slowed toward the stop sign at 45th Street and Maize Road and saw a horse in a pasture scratch his chin on a fence post.

Welcome to the surprises from this year’s master-gardener garden tour, the annual staycation that lets us explore different parts of town, be transported by bodies of water and large trees, see how the other garden half lives, and get ideas to take back home to our own yards. Not a bad return for 10 bucks and some gasoline.

This year’s tour, which is three days next weekend starting Friday, hits all points east, west, north and south. The stops include two gardens that back up to the river, a forest-y garden in old Maize, a Midtown landmark and a little gem in Lincoln Heights that shows you can have breakfast on the front porch. And that you should hang more than one kind of wind chimes to tinkle in the breeze.

Horticulture Therapy Workshop to feature accessible gardens

Fri, 10 May 2013 15:04 CDT

A Horticulture Therapy Workshop on June 5 at the Extension Center will help people develop and expand gardening for those who have physical or mental challenges.

Candice Shoemaker, professor of horticulture and human health at K-State, will be the keynote speaker at the workshop, which will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost is $40 before May 15, and $50 after.

The event will cover the science and practice of horticulture therapy and how it is practiced in an accessible home garden. It is meant to help therapists, teachers and others who work with people who have physical or mental challenges, both children and adults. There will be sessions on accessible gardening and growing plants from cuttings, and break-out sessions on sensory gardening or growing vegetables.

Gardener’s almanac (May 11)

Sat, 11 May 2013 07:13 CDT

Plant – Once we get past the latest (and last?) cool snap, get going on beans, cucumbers, eggplant, melons, lettuce, sweet corn and tomatoes.

Basil and vinca appreciate warm weather, and caladiums shouldn’t be planted outside until nighttime temperatures are consistently at least 65 degrees, a recent master-gardener newsletter says.

Protection from the wind – New transplants that are still wispy may need protection from strong winds. Ward Upham of K-State suggests a plastic milk jug or 2-liter soda bottle with both the bottom and top cut off. Push the jug into the soil so that it won’t blow away, and stabilize it with a wooden dowel or metal rod on really windy days, he says.

The Grapevine (May 11)

Sat, 11 May 2013 07:13 CDT

Mother’s Day at Botanica

Mothers will get in free to Botanica on Mother’s Day on Sunday, and everybody else will pay $5. Hours are 1 to 5 p.m. Three garden clubs will be having events there, with free admission (you only pay admission to Botanica if you want to go into the gardens and you’re not a mom).

• The Wichita Area Iris Club will have a show of irises.

Parsley, sage, elderberry and thyme

Annie Calovich — Sat, 04 May 2013 07:28 CDT

Every spring seems to bring new ideas for ways to use herbs. And, of course, new varieties to try.

This year, I like the idea of using rosemary as a low evergreen edge to a garden bed.

Writes Norman Winter, executive director of the Columbus (Ga.) Botanical Garden, about rosemary: “Not only is it a fixture in the herb garden but is used as a backdrop for seasonal color, like pansies, in much the same way you might use a dwarf conifer.”

Gardener’s almanac (May 4)

Sat, 04 May 2013 07:34 CDT

Keep on rolling – Gardeners are starting to ask whether there’s ever been a crazier spring. Considering the crazy springs (and summers and falls and winters) we’ve had, that’s saying something. But I think after sweating one April afternoon and witnessing snow one May afternoon, both in the same week, we may be there.

Plant – Collards, chard, carrots, cucumbers, eggplant, lettuce, pumpkins, sweet corn, beets.

More Swiss chard advice – After I wrote about Swiss chard last week, Judy Young e-mailed with more tips for growing and preparing it:

The Grapevine (May 4)

Sat, 04 May 2013 07:34 CDT

Farmers markets opening

The Old Town Farmers Market opens for the season Saturday, from 7 a.m. to noon at 150 N. Mosley, and the Old Town weeknight market at Normandie Center is open now, too. Its hours are 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at 6547 E. Central.

The Lincoln Heights Village farmers market in College Hill will open Wednesday. It will be at Douglas and Oliver from 7 to 11 a.m.

Kitchen tour to benefit Junior League projects targeting child abuse

Annie Calovich — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 12:48 CDT

She wanted Gothic.

He wanted a turret.

Together, Lisa and Tom Ritchie had what they call their “castle in the country” built just northeast of Wichita 10 years ago. Part of the house – including Gothic pointed-arch doors and an intimate dining niche in the first floor of the turret – will be part of a kitchen tour May 5 sponsored by the Junior League of Wichita.

Swiss chard: a miracle in the garden?

Annie Calovich — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 07:18 CDT

I’m a note-taker. And not just because I’m a newspaper reporter. I usually write a fresh to-do list every morning, and, if I’m in the mood, I keep track of daily goals. (I’m usually not in the mood.)

I’ve found recently that I have to have white paper to write on. Steno green doesn’t do it, nor does legal-pad yellow. Recycled gray definitely won’t make the grade. If I’m to have the energy to attack the day, white it must be.

I’m sure it’s because my eyes are getting older, and I need sharp contrast.

Gardener’s almanac (April 27)

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 07:21 CDT

All over the map – We had a minor hailstorm Monday evening, a frigid rain Monday night, and snow Tuesday night, before what I think was the final turn toward spring. I had to go out and stand in the snow Tuesday night, first of all because you don’t always get to see snow on green grass and budding-out hydrangeas, and also because you don’t always know when the final snow of the season will be, but I was pretty sure this time. And after a nice stretch of spring blooms on the shrubs and trees, snow felt kind of novel again, and I was oddly sad to see it go. But I’m mostly very happy that we got some rain this week.

Planting tomatoes – The soil temperatures took a tumble with the recent cold weather but should be rebounding. On Thursday the low soil temperature had fallen to 45, after being in the mid-50s a few weeks ago.

As the weather warms again, we’re eager to get out there and make up for lost time by planting things such as tomatoes. But tomatoes don’t do well until the soil temperature reaches a fairly consistent 55 degrees, Ward Upham of K-State says. You can monitor the soil temperature with a soil thermometer, available at garden centers, or by checking The Eagle’s daily weather page in the Local & State section. The soil temperature is given under the heading Farm & Garden. If using your own soil thermometer, check the temperature 2 inches deep during the late morning to get an average temperature, Upham says.

Elderberry, thyme to star at Herb Day

Annie Calovich — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 07:20 CDT

Chef Jason Febres of Taste & See and John Brewer of Wyldewood Cellars will be the guest speakers at this year’s Herb Day, on May 4 at the Extension Education Center, 21st and Ridge Road.

Elderberry is the herb of the year this year, and thyme is the regional herb, so they will receive special attention among the herbs that will be celebrated at the 18th annual Herb Day. The event will include seminars, demonstrations, a box lunch sale by the Herb Society of South Central Kansas, vendors selling herbs and other plants and garden items, an activity for children, a hosta sale by the Wichita Hosta Society, a plant sale by the master gardeners, a sale of garden magazines and books, and door prizes.

The Kansas Grown Farmers Market will be taking place in the parking lot from 7 a.m. to noon.

Kitchens return to warm, inviting spaces in 2013

Jura Koncius — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 12:48 CDT

In the dream kitchens of today, cooking has returned to center stage, and the kitchen island is nurturing family togetherness and reviving casual entertaining.

In kitchens with a small footprint, glass tiles, quartz counters and dish drawers are adding sparkle and practicality. The kitchen of 2013 has soul.

“That industrial, commercial style was looking a little cold,” says Samantha Emmerling, kitchen editor at Hearst Design Group. “People are spending all their time in there, and they want it warm and inviting as well as low-maintenance.”

Bartlett Arboretum open this weekend to display now-blooming tulips

Annie Calovich — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:04 CDT

Bartlett Arboretum in Belle Plaine will be open Friday, Saturday and Sunday to give people a chance to see the grounds’ tulips, finally in full bloom after a prolonged cold spell kept most of them closed during Belle Plaine’s annual Tulip Time two weeks ago.

“It’s raucous,” the arboretum’s steward, Robin Macy, said of the show of flowers. “It’s pretty incredible.”

Volunteers planted more than 30,000 tulips on the grounds under the century-old arboretum’s towering trees. Gates will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, and a $5 donation is suggested. Live jazz will be performed from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday.

Botanica expansion will add wedding space, Chinese garden

Annie Calovich — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:08 CDT

The face of Botanica is getting ready to change again, expanding the original vision of the gardens to include dedicated space for weddings and other rentals, and offering coffee, other beverages and snacks for the first time.

The Wichita City Council earlier this week approved a bid from National Builders to construct an events center at Botanica for $1.35 million. The money will come from the parks section of the city’s capital-improvement program for the expansion of Botanica.

At the same time, Botanica has decided to build its Chinese garden outside the events center. Unlike the Downing Children’s Garden – which pushed Botanica’s boundary to the west when it opened two years ago – the events center and Chinese garden will stay within the original property lines.

The Grapevine (April 27)

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 07:18 CDT

Designer Q&A

Q: All the homes in magazines look uncluttered, serene and gorgeous. My home is filled with chargers, docks and computer wires everywhere. Can you suggest some solutions?

A: Designer Annie Elliott of Bossy Color answers: Ah, modern life. I suggest consolidating: Have one docking station in the kitchen (on a shelf or in a cabinet with a plug, if that’s possible) and one on the credenza in your home office. Just embrace the problem by plugging in a power strip and keeping the electronics in one place. It sounds like the overall clutter is what’s driving you nuts. And magazines are not real life. Please remember that!

Going native for landscape relief

Annie Calovich — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 07:26 CDT

As director of Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesston, Scott Vogt hears from people who are looking for alternatives to the traditional landscape they’ve been trying to keep alive through the drought.

“They’re looking for drought-tolerant plants that require less water and less time,” Vogt says. “A lot of times their plants have been on life support, so they’re looking for something they’re not going to be so tied to.”

Dyck Arboretum grows native plants and educates people about how to use them. One way it does that is through its FloraKansas plant sale in the spring and the fall. The spring sale starts Friday (Thursday for members) and goes for four days. Experts will be available to help in choosing appropriate plants for particular landscape situations. A new addition this year will be a native-music festival – the Prairiestock Local Music Festival, featuring south-central Kansas musicians, on April 27.