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MTDS News September 2008 Middle Tennessee Daffodil Society Established April 5, 1958
I also encourage you to attend the ADS Fall Board Meeting's Miniature Symposium to be held on Saturday, November 1st at the Maxwell House Hotel. You can email Becky Fox Matthews, MTDS member and ADS 2nd Vice President at bfoxmatt@united.net for more information or you can click on the link on the ADS website at www.daffodilusa.org Hope to see you on October 12th!
Following Ann's few announcements, a design demonstration was conducted by Jennifer and Jeff Harvey. The Harveys demonstrated both Oriental and traditional design. The demonstration was very helpful to members who have never participated in design classes, as well as to members who have experience doing so. Jennifer also discussed the designs that they demonstrated in relation to the 2008 design schedule. Ann thanked the Harveys for sharing their time and talents with the group. Ann discussed that she was adding a photography section to the show this year for additional interest to visitors of the show. She discussed that the section would be for exhibition purposes only and would not be judged. Ann discussed that MTDS will be celebrating its 50th anniversary on April 5, 2008 and planned a display to have at the show in April at Cheekwood. With no further business, the meeting was adjourned. Becky Fox Matthews invited all in attendance to drive to her house to tour her gardens. What a treat!
MTDS OFFICERS: ADS OFFICERS: LOCAL ACCREDITED JUDGES:
Fall is the time for planting, but before you plant, you need to have your soil prepared and your bulbs sorted. How do I prepare the soil? Mary has a very large commercial
size rototiller which she uses to loosen the soil. She adds some
peat moss to break up the clay and improve its composition. Clay
prepares his soil at least one month in advance of planting. He
amends the soil with peat and "garden chalk", a product
that improves the electrolytes in the soil as well as the drainage.
Clay has also imported good topsoil so that some of his beds are
raised 6" above the normal level. Once prepared, Clay soaks
the soil so that it settles back into place. He refreshes his soil
every time he digs. Kathy digs her ground approximately 10"
deep using a shovel, then uses a Mantis tiller to break up the dirt.
She adds bags of "Super Fines" rototilling these in, breaking
up the clay and improving drainage. Super Fines is a bark mulch
that has been shredded four times. Its composition is very light
and fluffy. Claybusters is a similar product. This process is repeated
several times and results in beds that are raised approximately
6" above the normal ground level. Do you plant your bulbs in any particular order? All three exhibitors agreed that getting bulbs ready for planting is far more time-consuming than getting them in the ground. It is important to have your labels made and a planting order determined before you head out to the beds. Kathy plants her bulbs in alpha order by division. This makes it easier to find a particular variety at show time. She also makes sure that bulbs planted next to one another do not have similar color codes. This helps with identification when there is a mix-up. Mary does the same. This practice was learned from Delia Bankhead. Clay learned his planting method from Marie Bozievich. He plants in alpha order only for everything going in the ground during a given year. Clay feels that intermixing divisions reduces the risk of problems. Bob Huesman doesn't plant in any particular order. He plants bulbs in the locations he thinks they will do the best. Like Clay, he feels that mixing the divisions helps with potential disease problems. Bob makes sure similar color codes are not next to one another. Kathy has observed that division 6's prefer some summer shade and tolerate or even like some summer moisture. How many bulbs do you plant of a particular variety? How do you plant? Mary plants 7-8" deep. She uses an auger and plants one bulb per hole. Minis are planted 4-5" deep in berry baskets. Bulbs are rolled in Banvel prior to planting, a dust to prevent basal rot. 5-10-10 fertilizer is broadcast over the beds after planting and watering is left to nature. Bob plants at a similar depth. He uses Captan, Bonide's Bulb Dust, or another general purpose fungicide powder which prevents fusarium to coat his bulbs. Again this is extra protection against basal rot. Fertiziler is placed in the bottom of the hole, followed by dirt, sand, then the bulb. Bob usually waters unless it is a wet fall. He believes that consistent and ample water is one of the keys to great blooms. Kathy digs 8 or more inches deep, places 5-10-10 fertilizer in the hole or trench, then dirt, then small or medium Gran-i-Grit - to help with drainage and adds to the ease of finding bulbs when digging. It places the nutrients at the roots, where the bulbs are to absorb them. Don't let the fertilizer touch the bulbs or it will burn them. Kathy hasn't been using bulb dust. When it comes to miniatures, Kathy uses fertilizer very sparingly and usually broadcasts it over the planted area rather than with the bulb. Kathy waters in the fall when it is dry. Clay broadcasts fertilizer after planting. He has started using soaker hoses after planting as well. Do you mulch? Everyone answered yes to this. Clay uses pine bark mulch because hardwood compacts too much. Kathy uses hardwood. Mary often uses hardwood, but pine needles when she can get them. Bob uses chopped leaves as mulch and suggests never using hardwood because it robs the soil of nitrogen. All four growers agreed that the use of mulch was essential to keep flowers clean and free of dirt during flowering. Do you isolate new bulbs? All growers agreed that separating new bulbs until you know that they are free of pests and disease is the optimum solution. Some lift their bulbs after the first year to make sure they look good. Kathy often hot water treats new bulbs, depending on the source. Mary, Clay and Kathy have all experimented with hot water treatment which is used to kill bulb flies and nematodes. The temperature and length of treatment varies for these two problems. How do you label your bulbs? All four growers label and map their bulbs. In addition to labeling and mapping, Kathy buries a piece of plastic milk carton with the name of the bulb and the color code written with a Sharpie pen. This provides verification when digging and can be kept in the mesh bag after bulbs are out of the ground. Bob uses plastic sticks and a sharpie and admits that heaving can be a problem. Mary uses 15" markers with a label made with a P-Touch labeler and has found that the labels will last for five years. Clay and Kathy Both use 12" EON markers. Clay uses the plates that come with the markers and a lead pencil. This holds up for about two years. Kathy makes an aluminum label with a Dymo labelmaker. The aluminum labels usually last 8 - 10 years. All four feel that a label AND a map are essential to keep track of their daffodils. Most make the map immediately and several keep track of how many bulbs they've planted. MTDS FALL MEETING: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12TH 2:00PM AT ANN MCKINNEY'S Directions: Take I-65 South to Concord Road exit 71 Go right off the exit. Take a right at Franklin Road. Take a left at Murray Lane. Take first left into Princeton Hills. Take first left onto Remington Drive. 5134 is the last house on the left on Remington. **It would be helpful if you email or call me to let me know if you are coming to the meeting and if you are bringing bulbs to share.** Ann
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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT