LADY BUG: GARDNERS NEED TO MAKE RESOLUTIONS

Resolutions for a gardener as an old year passes and a bright new one beckons:

Resolved: To be kinder to house plants next year. It is not a momentous decision. It is simply looking over the collection of plants and those that are unhealthy, unattractive or have seen better days -- just get rid of them and replace them with others.

Resolved: To keep the holiday poinsettia looking healthy. When the Christmas plant begins to look sad, the leaves curl and turn yellow, then it is time to do something about it. As the colorful bracts around the flower begin to look rugged, cut them off and the stems will branch out, producing a foliage plant with attractive green leaves growing into summer.

Resolved: A cyclamen provides a unique contribution to indoor gardening. In Europe the German breeders began working on the development of hybrid cyclamen in the early '60s. Families often kept the same plant for years and it flowered each winter. They grow from a bulb-like corm. After a rest period in summer, growth starts in fall and flowering of these delicate pink flowers begins again in winter.

Resolved: Trees are one of the most neglected assets in America. To protect the beauty of our land, we need to feed trees annually and water and prune them regularly. Horticulture authorities agree that one of the best times to feed trees and shrubs is while they are dormant.

Resolved: To let your neighbor pick the first tomato from his garden. The temptation to plant vegetables too early often results in poor seed germination and delays growth. Vigorous plants of warm season vegetables will develop more quickly at the proper time and often more readily than those that have become stunted because they were planted too early.

Resolved: To restrain myself from saving seeds of hybrid flowers and vegetables.

While saving seeds can be a tempting way to be economical in the garden, hybrid varieties are a result of crossing carefully developed plants. Quality, uniformity and pest resistance can be greatly reduced in planting seeds saved from hybrid plants and will be most disappointing.

Resolved: To properly gauge the water for each house plant. There are only three ways to water house plants, too much, too little and just right. While watering should be a simple process, differences in plant size, pot size, pot soil composition, indoor temperature, humidity and light all alter water use. Consequently, we must alter the frequency or amount of water that needs to be added to the soil.

Resolved: To prune plants as they need it, rather than to wait for them to become too large to be pruned properly.

The old saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," certainly applies to pruning many woody ornamental shrubs, trees and fruit trees. Nothing is more perplexing or difficult than trying to prune back an overgrown plant. Light pruning as needed each season is easier than, and better for, the plants than infrequent heavy pruning.

Resolved: To avoid the temptation to try to grow plants that are not suitable for this climate.

The desire to grow plants that are not well adapted to a locality has always been great among gardeners. Occasionally a plant is found with better than normal adaptability. However, exotic and unusual plants are more often disappointing and may require more care and protection than most gardeners are willing to give. Unless you have a great desire to try to grow a special plant, and unless you take all possible provisions to see it through excessive heat, cold, drought, or rainfall, avoid such plants. Once a resident on North Pacific Street, desired a camellia and how did he complete that desire? By building a small heated frame building around the plant. It survived several years, blooming profusely.

Resolved: Not to plant a vegetable garden larger than needed. The thrill of gardening in pleasant weather of spring encourages putting in longer rows and more abundant hills of all those fresh mouth-watering vegetables. Give thoughts to what you produce in the past and how much used. Make adjustments before planting rather than realizing too late that too much has been planted to be properly cared for.

While New Year's resolutions may be statements only to be ignored later, they still serve as a time to give special thought to ways our lives can be more rewarding and pleasant in the future.

Best Wishes for a happy and rewarding garden year.

~Mary Blue is a resident of Cape Girardeau and an avid gardener.