Summit Metro Parks is hosting Go Native; A Drop into the Rock & Herb Garden to discover why you should ditch exotic or invasive species and fill your home landscape with beautiful and ecologically important native plants instead! Wildflowers, grasses, vines, shrubs and trees — every species plays its part! Native seed packets will be available for attendees to bring nature home! Seiberling Nature Realm, 1828 Smith Rd., Akron.

Summit Metro Parks wants you to join them for BackYards Gone Wild: Moon Gardens. online to learn all about plants! They will focus on fruits and vegetables we can grow to eat, as well as native plants that are important to many of the critters that call our gardens home. See summitmetroparks.org for more information.

Join Summit Metro Parks for Good Gardens: Planning a Late Season Garden.  Now is the time to make an action plan for your late summer and fall garden. Join a naturalist to discuss strategies and techniques for a late season planting. Bring some seeds and transplants to share with fellow gardeners! The program will be held at Summit Lake Nature Center.

Join Summit Metro Parks for Butterfly and Moth Gardens Garden.  Join a naturalist and discover how to attract butterflies and moths to your yard. Learn the differences between host and nectar plants and why both are important. Ever heard of a moon garden, or why it is important to nocturnal pollinators? Learn that plants will attract certain species of butterflies and basic landscape plans for your backyard. The program will be held at Twinsburg Ledges at 9999 Liberty Road.

Join the Summit County Master Gardeners for Meet Me in the Garden. The June program will be The Magic and Lore of Heirloom Plants and Their Role in Our Modern Gardens. Discover heirloom plants that have withstood the test of time, many of which evoke great memories of times past. Speaker: Brian Gregory is the Senior Horticulturist for Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens. The program will be held at the F.A. Seiberling Nature Realm, 1828 Smith Rd., Akron. Registration is required. Check our website for more details.

 More learning opportunities:

·        Summit County Master Gardeners on Facebook

·        Follow Summit County Master Gardeners on Instagram with our user name osusummitmgv 

·        Submit questions to Master Gardener Volunteers at Ask a Master Gardener

·        Find fact sheets and garden information at OhioLine Yard and Garden 

·        Let's Grow Akron, Seasonal Cooking Workshops

There has been increased interest in vegetable gardening in the last month. Let's Grow Akron and OSU Extension have created this resource sheet to help you get started. Click here. The Summit County Master Gardener Volunteers have provided additional info. Click here

The Ask a Bumblebee Project is a citizen science survey of which flowers bumblebees (and carpenter bees) visit, and which they don't. Anyone with a smartphone can participate, even if you don't know bee or flower IDs. This information will improve planting guides, seed mixes, and land management strategies for bumblebees. You can get more information, and sign up, by visiting the Ask a Bumblebee website.

Plants can't run away from threats, they have to stand their ground. So they have evolved many forms of defenses. Some of these can be toxic to humans and pets. so it pays to be informed and aware.

Poison Ivy: Secretes a sticky oil that causes rash and blisters. Leaves of three, let it be. Don't be a dope, stay away from the hairy rope.

Pokeweed: This plant is "toxic from head to toe". Long clusters of poisonous berries hang from pink stems.

Poison Hemlock: Blooms look like Queen Anne's Lace, but stems are smooth, dappled with purple spots.

Giant Hogweed: This is the worst!! An invasive plant that can grow 10" tall with large lobed leaves and white, umbrella-shaped flower clusters. Sap causes horrible blisters and burns.

To learn how to identify (and therefore avoid) the first three look them up in the Ohio Weed Guide. For Giant Hogweed see the Factsheet. You might also check out Avoiding Skin Irritations and Injuries Caused by Plants.

Suckers that is. On tomato plants. According to the OSUE fact Sheet on tomatoes, "suckers

are the new growth that appears in the leaf axile between the stem and a leaf. If left to grow, a sucker can become another strong stem with flowers and fruit. Tomato suckers can directly compete with the main stem for nutrients, water, and sunlight, thus weakening the main stem."

Whether and how much to prune depends on the type of tomato and how you are growing it. According to OSUE, pruning is more critical in indeterminate tomatoes than determinate ones. Determinate tomatoes have short to medium vine lengths and are are heavily branched. Growth stops when they start flowering, and every branch tends to end up with a flower cluster. Indeterminate tomatoes continue to grow and produce leaves and flowers until the first frost. 

According to Illinois Extension, indeterminate tomatoes "are heavily pruned when trellised, moderately pruned when staked, and lightly pruned when caged." 

Pruning, which in tomatoes involves removing the suckers, can be done in two ways. 

The first is to simply break off the suckers with your fingers. This is preferable to cutting since diseases can be transmitted on your knife or shears. Cornell suggests pruning "tomatoes to one or two vigorous stems by snapping off "suckers" (stems growing from where leaf stems meet the main stem) when they are 2 to 4 inches long." Illinois suggests you should "Limit the branches of indeterminate varieties to two to three fruit producing branches by selecting the main stem, the sucker that develops immediately below the first flower cluster, and another sucker below that. " Illinois notes that you should periodically remove additional suckers that develop on the selected branches.

The second pruning method, according to OSUE, "is called Missouri pruning, which is done by pinching off the growing tip of the sucker just beyond the first two leaflets of a sucker. The advantage of this method is that there is more foliage left for photosynthesis (food production) and better leaf cover to help protect the developing fruits from sun-scald."

Cornell notes that "staking and pruning indeterminate varieties can hasten first harvest by a week or more, improve fruit quality, keep fruit cleaner, and make harvest easier. Staking and pruning usually reduces total yield, but fruits will tend to be larger. Staked and pruned plants are also more susceptible to blossom end rot and sunscald."

Some people prune, some do not. If you have several tomatoes, why not try it both ways and see which you prefer.

According to Wikipedia, succession planting refers to several planting methods that increase crop availability during a growing season by making efficient use of space and timing.

Succession planting is easy to do, and can make your garden more productive. It just takes a bit of planning.

Instead of planting all your crop at once, plant some of the same crop every 2-4 weeks to give a steady supply.  Here are some crops suited to this approach: Lettuce , Beets , Beans, Green Onions and Cilantro.

2. Plant cool weather crops spring and fall

For fall planting count backward from your fall frost date (mid-October for us) using the days to maturity plus time for harvest.

Peas-mid-July

Lettuce-Late July-early August

Kale-1st week of July

Spinach-1st week of August

 3. Follow one crop with another

Plant a quick-growing or early season crop, and then after harvest follow it with another crop.

Radishes followed by onions or carrots

Peas followed by beans

Lettuce followed by Swiss chard

With long season crops, like tomatoes or corn, choose varieties with different maturity dates.

The days to maturity for 'Fourth of July' tomato is 49 days; 'Early Girl' is 65 days; 'Better Boy' is 72 days; and 'Big Mama' is 80 days.

You can plant your crop more closely and harvest "baby" vegetables or you can harvest at different times for different uses. Space carrots or onions at half the growing distance and harvest every-other-one just before they start to crowd. Harvest dill or cilantro leaves, then let the seeds mature and harvest those (cilantro seeds are coriander). Pick off a few beet greens for salad, then let the root mature to harvest later. Harvest only the outer leaves of kale and Swiss chard and let the plant keep growing.

Squash Vine Borers overwinter as pupae or larvae in the soil and emerge as moths when 1000 base 50 degree days have accumulated (late June/early July). (For real-time information on where we stand on Growing Degree Days go to http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/gdd/ and enter your zip code.) Females are active for about 3 weeks, and lay dull red, 1/25th inch diameter eggs, glued to the leafstalks and stems of squash vines, pumpkins, gourds, cucumbers and muskmelons.

Winter squash (in particular Hubbard), pumpkins, and zucchini are quite susceptible to borer damage. When the eggs hatch the larvae bore into the stems destroying vascular tissue and causing wilting. The point where a borer enters a stem is marked by a hole with yellow granular or sawdust-like frass (bug poop) coming out from it.

As a preventative measure, you should look for eggs during the active period and destroy them. Lightweight row covers can be used to protect plants until the vines come into flower. Row covers used to prevent insects from reaching the crop must be anchored down on all sides or the moths will crawl under them. Be sure to remove covers at bloom time to allow for pollination. If you do get SVBs you can perform surgery on the stem to remove larvae and bury the infested stems to encourage new roots. At the end of the season destroy crop residue to reduce overwintering. For more information see the University of Minnesota Fact Sheet.

Cabbage worms. You probably don't care if it is a cabbage looper, the caterpillar of the diamondback moth, or an imported cabbage worm (the caterpillars of those fluttering white butterflies), you just don't want them munching your cole crops (kale, cabbage, broccoli, etc.). There are several strategies you can use. Floating row cover can exclude the egg laying adults. Just be sure to bury all the edges. You can inspect the plants frequently, especially under the leaves, for eggs and larvae and remove them. You can also plant sweet alyssum and other small-flowering ornamentals around your garden to encourage the tiny wasps that parasitize the caterpillars.

You can get more info on these guys, and how to control them from the  University of Minnesota Fact Sheet.

According to the University of Wisconsin Master Gardeners "Floating row cover is a spun-bonded or woven plastic, polyester or polypropylene material that is placed over plants to exclude pests, act as a windbreak or extend the growing season by retaining heat — all while still being permeable to light, water and air." The material comes in different weights depending on the purpose. Heavier materials offer more frost protection, but also allow less light and rain through. Lighter weight materials are used to exclude pests while admitting more light and water. Row cover can also be used as part of the seed sowing or hardening off process, to protect your seedling and your young plants. Care must be taken to check your crops under row covers regularly for any pests or weeds that might have gotten in. And row cover must be removed when the plants are ready to flower, to allow pollination. For more info on using row covers see this ARTICLE.

According to Felder Rushing, "a weed is a plant having to deal with an unhappy human". And whatever your attitude toward weeds, it is a good idea to know what you are dealing with. It is helpful to know if your plant is an annual, a biennial, or a perennial. Does it have a taproot or a fibrous root system. Will digging part of it out produce countless more of the plants springing from the roots you left behind? Or are you even sure it is something that you don't want? Plants can be tricky to identify, especially when they are small, and you wouldn't be the first gardener to pull out something that you didn't mean to. Knowledge is power! If you prefer your information in book form, consider Weeds of the Northeast, in a new second edition. If digital is the way you roll, check out Virginia Tech's Weed ID.

Permanent Markers Aren't! Try using a No. 2 pencil on your labels.

If you use tomato cages, slice open a section of old garden hose and use it to cover the top ring so that the wire does not cut into the stems of your tomatoes as they grow.  

Speaking of tomato cages, instead of putting your plant labels in the soil, tie them to the tops of your cages, so you will be able to see them when the plants are grown.

You can make garden scoops, for fertilizer, potting soil, etc. from plastic jugs. Just cut off the bottom diagonally. (Mark the line to cut with a pencil or marker, and cut with heavy scissors or tin snips.) Use different size jugs for different size scoops. With the cap left on it is a scoop. With the cap off it is a funnel. 

Drive sturdy stakes at the ends of rows to keep you from dragging the hose through your plantings. 

Plant some of your parsley in a large, deep pot sunk in the ground. Then you can dig it up and bring it inside in the fall for winter use. Cut it back some when you bring it in. 

Seed packets on a stick don't last, and "permanent" markers fade. For a permanent label save some aluminium pie pans or frozen food trays. Cut out labels of the size you want, and then put them on several sheets of newspaper and use a ballpoint pen and light pressure to "emboss" them with the names of your plants. 

Although the most familiar eggplants are deep purple elongated fruits with glossy skin, the fruits can be oval, elongated ovals, long and thin, or even small and round. Besides purple, they may also be lavender, white, white with purple speckles or even green or orange.  

Eggplants are a heat loving annual that require a long, warm growing season. Air temperatures below 50˚ F will harm the plant. The fruit will not set if air temperatures dip below 60˚ F. They need two or more months with night-time temperatures near 70˚ F for good fruit production. As they also require warm soil, they benefit from being planted in raised beds.  Set put plants about two to three weeks after last frost average frost date, when all danger of frost has passed, soil temperature is at least 60˚ F, and average daily temperature reaches 65˚ F. Plant transplants 18" to 24" apart in rows 24" to 36" apart. Put row covers in place at planting to control flea beetles.  Eggplants are heavy feeders. Work a complete fertilizer like 12-12-12 into soil before planting. Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers.     

Eggplants are indeterminate, meaning they grow, flower and produce fruit over the entire growing season. They cannot be preserved by freezing or canning and picked fruits keep only about a week. Therefore it is better to try to extend the picking season by starting to harvest when the fruits are 3" to 5" long. The immature fruits are the most tender and have the highest quality. Harvesting can start about 65 to 85 days from transplanting, depending on the variety.  Pinch off blossoms 2 to 4 weeks before first expected frost to ripen existing fruit. 

Harvest from the time fruits are one-third grown (3" to 5" long) until fully ripe. Skins should be shiny or glossy, and seeds inside should not be brown or hard. Cut fruits from plant with the cap and bit of stem left on the fruit. Keep harvesting to encourage growth of new fruit. Use care when harvesting -- most cultivars have sharp spines.

For more information see the Cornell Growing Guide.  

Submit questions online to be answered by Master Gardener Volunteers at  Ask a Master Gardener

OhioLine Yard and Garden provides fact sheets and information on a variety of gardening topics.

The Michigan State Tip Sheets,and the Cornell Growing Guides also offer lots of gardening information that is suitable for Ohio gardens.

Buckeye Yard and Garden onLine provides timely information about Ohio growing conditions, pest, disease, and cultural problems. BYGL is updated weekly between April and October.