Articles by Dr. Francis Gouin

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 5/24/12

Cut It Tall and Let It Fall

For a stronger lawn, keep the height at 3 or 4 inches

For years I have recommended cutting fescue and bluegrass lawns to a height no less than three inches, even better four inches, for a stronger, weed-free lawn. Many people object to this height and cannot understand why I insist. The answer is simple. Consider each blade of grass a factory. The bigger the factory, the greater the production. A tall blade of grass is capable of producing more food to feed the roots through photosynthesis than a short blade of grass. Tall...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 5/17/12

Clear Your Underbrush

Or hire goats to do the job

A Bay Weekly reader recently asked me how he could clear away the underbrush in woods surrounding his home without using weed killers. It can be done with persistence and perseverance. You don’t want to cut away any brush until you see mature foliage on the brush you desire to control. Mature leaves go from light green to dark green. The change is very noticeable in such perennial weeds as honeysuckle, poison ivy and trumpet vine. Keep Your Hoe Sharp A garden hoe...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 5/10/12

From Pots to Your Garden

How to transplant bedding plants

Are you one of those gardeners who is much too careful about disturbing roots of bedding plants when transplanting them into the garden? If you examine the roots of bedding plants grown in cells or pots, you will note a layer of roots along the outside edge of the root ball. Vigorously growing plants will sometimes have a thick layer of roots surrounding the root ball and are likely to be root-bound. If these root balls are not broken up before being planted in garden soil,...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 5/3/12

Whack Your Butterfly Bush to the Ground

Woody ornamentals need periodic rejuvenation to stay healthy and productive

It’s never too late to whack that buddleia down to the ground, even though it is flushing new growth. One of my butterfly shrubs was getting so large that in early March I cut the stump close to the ground with a chainsaw. Already the new growth is 18 to 24 inches tall with an abundance of young shoots coming from the roots. While I was lecturing to a garden club, a member asked me how to prune buddleia. I told her to prune it back as close to the ground as possible....

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 4/26/12

Horse Hooey in the Garden

Never use horse manure without composting it first

The proliferation of horse farms in southern Maryland has resulted in owners convincing their friends and neighbors that horse manure is great for the garden. After one experience with using horse manure in the garden, you’ll discover that it’s not what it’s cracked up to be. Unlike cow, llama, alpaca, chicken or pig manure, which can be incorporated into the garden as soon as it drops to the ground, horse manure must first be composted. A horse is not as...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 4/19/12

Tops and Bottoms

When moving trees and shrubs, if you interfere with one, leave the other alone

When you’re transplanting a tree or shrub, leave the branches alone. Once upon a time, gardening wisdom advised pruning back the branches to compensate for the roots lost when the plant was dug. I have been convinced for some time that this practice had been laid to rest, until I recently heard a garden expert on the radio recommend it to a listener who had called for advice. The science of horticulture has discredited this practice, whether the plant is dug with a...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 4/12/12

Prune Your Roses

And cut out all stems infested by cane borers

Roses need to be pruned yearly to keep the plants strong and healthy. Now is the time to prune summer-flowering roses. Wait to prune spring-flowering roses until after they have flowered. Hybrid T and floribunda roses in the ground five years or less should be pruned to within 12 inches of the graft union. Cultivate Your Asparagus Bed Now is the time to hoe out the weeds and cultivate the soil over the dormant roots of asparagus in your bed. Both chickweed and henbit...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 4/5/12

Pruning Hydrangea

You’ve got to know who’s who before the how-to

Four different species of hydrangea grow in Maryland, and while now is the time to prune them all, each is pruned differently. So you’ve got to know who you’re pruning to know how to prune. Hills-of-snow hydrangea grows entirely from a crown close to the ground. It produces stiff upright stems in the spring, two to four feet tall and, starting in July, large creamy white flowers. This variety can be pruned with a sturdy hedge clipper in the same way you prune...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 3/29/12

Grow Dill as a Garden Weed

Take the first step in a natural dill-recycling program

Fresh chopped dill is hard to beat in stewed tomatoes, mashed potatoes, cucumber salad, steamed carrots or your favorite vegetable or chip dip. Dill has a unique flavor and aroma. But it’s difficult to incorporate in the herb garden because it grows tall and spindly and does not produce much for the space it occupies. So I grow it as a garden weed. Have Your Soil Tested Horticulture is a science, not a guessing game. I recently lectured to a large group interested...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 3/15/12

Planting with the Irish

This hurry-up winter is pushing spring

I am told that in Ireland, potatoes and peas are always planted on St. Patrick’s Day. Here in Southern Maryland, our soils are generally wet and cold and impossible to plow, rototill or cultivate in mid-March. This year may be different. On February 20, I rototilled my asparagus bed to get rid of the winter annual weeds and cut down the mustard plants that were beginning to flower. The soil temperature was already up to 45 degrees and might well be ready for potatoes...