Articles by Dr. Francis Gouin

The Best Fruit Grows on Pruned Branches

Now’s the time to prepare your fruit trees and berry bushes

Fruit quality and size are based not on the amount or kind of fertilizer you apply but on how well you prune the plants in the spring before they bloom. You should be pruning your apple, peach, nectarine, apricot, pear and cherry trees now, as well as your blueberry, raspberry and blackberry shrubs. To prune peaches and nectarines, first remove all branches growing above and below each main branch. Then remove all branches less than 12 inches long. Finally, prune all...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 3/10/11

Tomato Alert!

Help needed in avoiding white core at tomato-ordering time

Have you ever sliced open a tomato and found one or two white spots, from the size of a pea to the size of a dime, in the flesh near the stem end of the fruit? Several Bay Weekly readers have brought the problem to my attention, and it seems it was quite common this past summer in many home gardens. One home gardener noticed that the white core problem was rampant even when the plants were irrigated and asked why I had not written about it. White core is...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 3/3/11

Brew Compost into Tea?

I prefer mine straight

I have been asked by several gardeners to respond to the use of compost tea. I have spent nearly 40 years researching composting and the use of compost for growing plants. As a result of many successes, I cannot over-emphasize the benefits of using compost in gardening. Compost can do more toward improving the growth of plants than any fertilizer on the market. It makes physical improvements to the soil while improving its nutritional...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 2/24/11

Firewood Primer

True or false: Oak is the best wood to burn.

As more and more people are using firewood for heating their homes, I am often asked about differences between hardwoods. Yes, there are differences. There are soft hardwoods and there are hard hardwoods. In general terms, conifers such as pine, spruce, fir, arborvitae and red cedar are softwoods. They all contain different levels of resins, most often referred to as pitch, which when burnt will create a smoke that can coat the inside walls of the chimney and can cause...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 2/17/11

Keeping to Their Own Kind

Black walnut trees don’t mind bulbs and ground cover, but they kill competing broadleaf species

The black walnut is a unique tree. It selects its neighbors and wipes out its competition. The roots, bark, wood, leaves and husks of the black walnut contain an enzyme called juglanace. This enzyme remains in the tissues until they are decomposed beyond recognition. The horticultural term used to describe the competition-controlling properties of black walnut is allelopathic response. Juglanace acts like a selective weed killer, allowing only certain noncompetitive species to grow in close...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 2/10/11

Your Garden Tools Are Calling

They work for you; now it’s time to work on them

Now is the time to care for your lawn and garden tools. Sharpen the lawnmower blades, drain and replace the engine oil, replace or clean the sparkplug and blow the dust and dirt from the cooling fins. When I service my gasoline engines during the winter months, I also like to squirt a few drops of oil in the cylinder head before I replace the sparkplug. If you have an electric mower, all you need to do is sharpen the blade and clear the vents of debris. I have an electric mower that is 41 years...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 2/3/11

Full Ciircle

Use the ash from your fires to help your garden grow

Wood ash is a great source of calcium and potassium, also providing some phosphorus and lots of essential trace elements. A 12-quart pail full of fine wood ash can be spread over at least 100 square feet of garden soil. Make certain that the ash is cool before spreading, especially if the soil is covered with dry leaves. Wood ash should never be stored in cardboard, paper or plastic containers. Always place wood ash in a metal container and store under cover. Most of the calcium in wood ash is...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 1/20/11

Pitch Those Fading Poinsettias

It’s much easier to buy next year’s colored blooms than to raise them yourself

Every January, I receive questions on how to keep poinsettia plants and have them flower again next Christmas. My best advice is to dump them in the compost pile as soon as you get tired of looking at them or when they start dropping their leaves. Leave the growing of Christmas poinsettias to growers of greenhouse crops who have both the knowledge and the facilities to produce quality plants in full bloom in time for Christmas. The poinsettia is known as a short-day plant, meaning that it...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 1/13/11

Your Christmas Tree’s Days of Giving Are Not Over

It still holds gifts for flowers and birds

If you planted pansies in your garden last fall, use branches of your discarded Christmas tree to provide the plants with some winter protection. Cutting the branches near the stem and spreading a single layer over the pansies will provide light shade, thus reducing chances of winter injury if we don’t get sufficient snow. Next spring, remove the branches just as the plants resume growing. Pansies are winter-hardy, but providing them with light winter shade will improve their spring color...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 1/6/11

Down by the Old Oak Tree

Why some oaks hold their leaves

Some oak trees retain their brown leaves all winter long, while others drop their leaves like all other trees. The reason is juvenility. It takes 25 to 30 years for an oak seedling to mature. Until it starts to produce acorns, the tree is in a juvenile state of growth and retains brown leaves all winter. As the oak approaches maturity, the ends of the branches near the top of the tree drop their leaves in the fall. The following year, the tree will drop more of its top leaves in autumn while...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin; 12/23/10