Ramsey County

April 7, 2008

Howdy!!!!

Tis the spring to get ready, get set and go on gardening and all of those spring activities that we all partake in.  It is the greatest time of year.  Everyone’s enthusiasm is high and great basketball and hockey is played.  I am a very strong fan of Kansas and after watching many games this winter, to include Kansas, I gave Kansas a 20% chance of being in the final four and picking North Carolina and Memphis in the finals but then guess what, you can not go by what I think.  What a game on Monday night.  Go Kansas!!!!  The same holds true for Sioux Hockey.  They played very well most of the season but when it came to playoff time they played to not lose.  They are very lucky they had the kind of goalie they had or they would be home watching the frozen four in their lazy chairs, instead they are playing Boston College tonight in the semi finals and a chance to play for the title.  Go Sioux!!!

So often we get ourselves into such a rush that we forget the little things like working on our yards when it is still too wet.  Last year I received a phone call asking why they were leaving garden tractor tracks in their grass.  The soil had not firmed up yet from the spring thaw and thus tracks were left.  Some lawns, gardeners are caught in between a rock and a hard spot due to high levels of snow either blown in or deposited from snow blowers.  The high levels of snow can create the ideal environment for snow mold.  You do need to rake out those areas or you will see either a decline in grass or the killing of grass.  This wonderful phenomenon has happened to my lawn again this year.  So I try to rake my lawns in the early morning when there was still a touch of frost to firm up the soil surface.  This is also a good time to apply a little grass to your established lawn for interaction throughout the growing season.  You will be surprised how much better your lawn will look if we add a little new grass seed to our lawns.  Some of the traditional turf grass seed contains Creeping Red Fescue and Perennial Rye grass and those two grasses have their place but seeded with Kentucky Blue grass you will find the Kentucky bluegrass take over the area.  Where you find Creeping Red Fescue and Perennial grass do well is in the more shaded areas or areas of your lawn of poorer soil.

I also found another surprise in my lawn this spring.  I found an area that had small piles of dead grass.  After raking and investigating I found I had moles that had lived under the piled snow and actually made tunnels through the lawn.  In those areas I will have to add a little dirt as they actually made an indent in the soil surface.  I will then have to replant those areas to grass.  I am going to leave one little area to see if the moles had gone deep enough to kill the existing roots.

One last comment to make!!!  We will not be having our annual spring gardening day.  Instead I have visited with the gardening club and we are planning a gardening day this early fall.  We will be different than everyone else and I think will leave us with some very good strategies for educating our gardeners.  Some of the topics will include fall preparation, cut flowers (using our own grown flowers), garden preparation for next spring to only mention a few.  I think this will be a great time and I will keep you posted of time and date.  I am planning a bus tour to beautiful gardens along the Sheyenne River.  Keep posted!!!!

524 4th Ave NE #5, 2nd Floor Ramsey County Courthouse
Devils Lake  ND  58301
701-662-7027
email - ramsey@ndsuext.nodak.edu

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