13 - Friday, April 7, 1989 - North Shore News acid-high and nu STRANGER THAN fiction category: Did any of you hap- pen to see the official from Environment Canada on the news the other night? For a fleeting moment, I feared I had tapped into a direct cable feed from the Twilight Zone. There he was, standing ankle deep in a water-sodden field out at the airport, trying to convince me that we are experiencing normal weather patterns. At first, I thought he was ex- | periencing momentary technical difficulties or at Jeast having hal- lucinatory problems with a hum- dinger of a cold medicine. Then I realized it was just an exercise in consistency; since when could you believe a weatherman? My weather report: ‘‘Cold and wet today changing to cold and wet tonight easing somewhat to cold and wet tomorrow.’’ If this sounds a little depressing, it’s sup- posed to. I'll cheer up when old Mr. Sun stops giving us the cold shoulder. Anyhow, in light of this ‘nor- mal’ weatner, I offer this list of things to do in the garden during the month of April: * Lawn Care — Do not water the Jawn unless you enjoy being called eccentric or ‘that crazy guy down the street’. Even if the weather does im- prove, it would take five or more days of 70F heat to require you to even think of dusting off the hose. This rain will, however, increase the need for dolomite lime and fer- tilizers, Because both the essential edi. Cantour TT RT pte caatnn Pour reclining : fold # asyes au" Special durin: Many umbrella Lavailahle as op iy that . calcium in lime and nitrogen in fawn food are water solubie, the more rain we get the more acid- high and nutrient-poor our soils become. Even though moss loves this weather — and it will no doubt be flourishing in your yard as it is in mine — do not try to fight it now. Wait for the turf to dry out and then begin power-raking. If you try it now you could cause more problems than you solve. After power-raking, apply moss killer when you can expect 48 hours of dry (snicker) weather. Over-seed the area with a shade- tolerant grass seed (something con- taining poa triviallis) and lime again in the fall. The control of lawn weeds should begin this month. Try to match your response to the problem. In other words, if you only have a few weeds, pull them out. If you have more than you can pull but not a Jawn full, spot apply a liquid weed killer. If you have a field of weeds in- stead of a lawn, rip it out and start over. Do not use Weed and Feed. * Flower Beds — Forget the an- nuals! Pansies and violas are the only flowers capable of surviving this ‘normal’ weather. This does not hold true for perennials and NORTH VANCOUVER Marine & Pemberton 984-9567 BURNABY 2927 Norland Ave. 294-1194 alpines; they can be planted anytime. Your first concern should be the elimination of weeds from the beds. If you were to give careful attention to their elimination now, a | | | you will be faced with far fewer problems in the future. Condition the soil in your flower beds with compost, composted mushroom manure (odd concept), or composted steer manure. Fresh manures contain harmful soluble salts and high levels of nitrogen, both of which can burn tender roots. * Adding dolomite lime and bonemeal will sweeten the soil by lowering the pH to acceptable levels and provide a good organic source of phosphorus, the flower food. A few of your favorite flowers could be sown directly into the ground during this month, but you will have greater success if you start them indoors. Exceptions to this would be sweet peas and nasturtiums which can be sown any time now. Although starting those flowers that are long to germinate (eg. ge- raniums, impatiens, petunias, etc.) over the ‘garden gate Geoff Tobiasson now may put your results off until late into the season, trying them will give you valuable information for next year. Fast germinators such as marigolds can be started any time now. * Vegetable Beds — As in the flower beds mentioned above, éar- ly preparation and weed control are of the utmost importance. If you have not already done so, follow the same procedures as outlined above. By mid-month, you should be able to sow most of your vegetable crops directly into the earth. If you started some seeds in- doors, you should begin hardening them off by exposing them to out- trient-poor door temperatures during the day. All of this assumes we do not con- tinue with our headlong plunge in- to the next ice age. * Trees and Shrubs — The weevils are coming! The weevils are coming! These are the little devils that cut notches and holes in the leaves of your rhododendrons and other brcadleaved evergreens. You could turn your landscape into a toxic waste dump and pur- chase some temporary relief by spraying some extremely danger- ous pesticides. At feast until they mutate and come after your first- born. A better way might be to use traps. Tangle Foot is a paste that can be spread around the trunk of your lasger plants, the weevils will stick to it as they cross. Another method involves laying out sheets of newspaper on the ground in the infested areas each evening and throwing paper and the weevils hidden within away in the morning. Feed your trees and shrubs now. In most cases an application of general purpose 6-8-6 will do the trick, but a layer of composted mushroom or steer manure would do it better. The addition of a little iron-rich moss killer will help to provide deeper, healthier shades of green in most of your shrubs. (BRING YOUR OWN POT)