Show w r wwywwiwMgHiwMiarewBiRBWiiiiitoiBrwswMiiiMi sjgpy 1 Page 20— The Herald Journal Logan Utah Monday August 3 1 998 There’s no such thing as plant watering formula By Laura Christman ding Calif Scripps Howard News Service usual approach is to click on the automatic watering system which was most likely programmed by someone else "They say 'I'll just turn the sprinklers on every day' TTiey have no idea why it's set for 10 minutes" Wendt who recently retired as a Shas- Is it too much to ask for a simple formula for watering plants? Apparently so You could rely on your plants to tell you when enough is enough but they aren't very helpful Give diem too little water they wilt Give them too much water they will How about a horticulturist? Sony Ask them how long to water and the conversation will quickly spin off into topics like “transpiration" “evaporation" or maybe even "evapotranspiration” Don't expect to hear “Turn on the sprinklers for IS minutes every day" That's because watering is complex method called flexible paving is easy both to install and repair Flagstone laid in sand is also popular for flexible paving Because no edging is required it is easier to lay out an area for flagstone than for bricks or concrete pavers In addition you can space the sand joints irregularly But you must make sure that die flagstones are well supported underneath otherwise they can break when stepped on With sandy well drained soil in areas where freezing seldom occurs the site should be excavated to the depth of die paving plus 2 inches for a bed of tamped sand which will keep die paving from shifting With other soils and in cold climates excavate 4 inches deeper to add a layer of tamped gravel beneath the sand The gravel permits drainage and helps prevent masonry from being pushed upward when the ground alternately freezes and thaws When laying out a project base its shape on the dimensions of the paving units in order to minimize cutting You can cut bricks and flagstones fairly easily by hand using a hammer and a wide chisel called a brick set But you will need to rent a special splitter to cut pavers However pavers that create special patterns usually come with half blocks for filling in outside edges The most crucial step in laying flexible paving is site preparation A firm and flat site mini ii w plants turn d gested Shasta College horticulture instructor Warren Lytle He said a piece of sharpened re-b- ar works well as a moisture probe Soil soaks up water at different rates “Loamy types of soils percolate easier they also have a tendency to dry out faster than clay soils" Montenegro said With clay soils water can end up running off instead of sinking in — the sidewalk gets watered not the plant If that's foliage" Soil and weather also affect how much moisture is lost daily And since not everyone has the same dirt plants and weather there's no watering formula But there are some basic principles to follow Wendt's big theme is: Irrigate all the case Montenegro suggested “cycling" watering in shorter bunts and allowing the water to soak in between the waterings For example yon may need to water for 30 minutes but in three sessions spread out for more than an hour 10-min- There are different strategies includ- ing drip systems sprinklers and hoses for applying water Lytle said it's best to “save the hose for the kids and the cars" “Holding a hose out there unless you are a real patient person is not going to put on enough water And you don't know how much water you have on it" he said Drip systems with tiny emitters apply water slowly and precisely with loss from evaporation However they can be pane to clogging from mineral buildup or small rocks Montenegro said “You often don't know something is plugged and the plant goes under stress" he said Drip systems can be knocked out of position if they are in a place that gets a lot of foot traffic They also have a tendency to be viewed as giant chew toys by dogs noted Redding Irrigation's Mosher Montenegro likes microsprinklers which emit less water than standard sprinklers but cover a wider area that faip emitters Because the spray is more visible than a drip emitter it’s easier to see when one is malfunctioning Mosher said it's important to have an irrigation plan checked by someone with expertise Common mistakes he sees are too many sprinklers or emitters for the area not spacing sprinklers in the proper patten or putting in the wrong size com- A E ! ponents “You have to match the sprinkler to the actual job" Mosher said Irrigation systems also need to be adjusted over time For example a drip system around a tree needs to expand as die tree grows Mosher noted "A little baby eats one jar of Beech-Na day but an adult couldn't live on that It's the same with plants" Wendt said ut Laum Christman in Raddfeig wSas tor riw Record CM Search-Rg- Sv Paving the way to a perfect patio anchored with an edging This shallow-roote- wimpy fast The roots of some plants like trees go a lot deeper than others like turf grass Montenegro suggested pushing a spade or shovel into the ground to see how deep various root systems are How long should you water to get to those roots? "You might want to put the witter on for a half hour or 45 minutes and then dig a hole and see how far it went" sug- transpiration (plants taking in and losing moisture through their foliage) “Some annuals could almost be in standing water" said Rico Montenegro Redding Aiboretum by the River horticulturist “They almost can't drink up the water fast enough to make up for the amount of moisture that exits out of their You've got to learn what each plant Making an attractive mortarless walkway or patio is easy using bricks concrete pavers or flagstones When used for such projects bricks or concrete pavers are laid in sand on a flat firm base and of soil ta College horticulture instructor and now operates a nursery said watering replaces moisture lost to evaporation (heat turning moisture to vapor) and requires determine how hard sloshy or crumbly your soil is and know a bit about irrigation systems Oh yes and don't forget to factor in sun exposure and daily weather changes Got it? Not many people do “People want a real simple answer but it's not that simple" said Dan Mosher of Redding Irrigation Supply in Red By Reader’s Digest Books For AP Special Features less often but irrigate longer Watering every day leads to shallow roots Why should they venture deep if the water's right there at the surface? But if a hot spell hits and bakes the top layer Horticulturist Bruce Wendt said the mizes settling As a rale it is easier to excavate the entire site to the depth required and then We’d Like To Thank Some be Great People! E U S f install the edging and paving Take extra time to make sure that the soil or gravel bed is tamped and level You can tamp small areas with a hand tamper — a square of plywood nailed to the bottom of a 4 x 4 For best results tamp large areas with a plate vibrator a motor-powertool that you can rent Plate vibrators are noisy be sure to wear ear protectors For edging use pressure-treate- d lumber or wooden landscaping e By As ed If 1997 Buyers and Supporters ties anchored with stakes or in spikes Alternatively you can use fb (PVC) anchored with metal spikes Or you can dig a narrow ditch and add an edging of bricks To minimize the effects of frost heave dig the ditch 2 inches Wi strips of polyvinyl chloride deeper than the bricks and pour in a layer of gravel before placing the bricks To reduce the chance of tripping over wood or PVC edging place the top surface 14 inch ft tb pscruyC ham iionALi h tiirtto-- ' t k vltvvr or ro h g t wl v an P di at below the paving The paving will settle more than the edging and the two will eventually be level When paving with flagstones ri th at di di first fit as many uncut stones together as possible to minimize the amount of shaping you have tr to do Place flagstones with their more level and attractive side up Avoid using small stones they tend to sink into die ground or tip when stepped on Until the paving is laid protect the sand bed from rain either by ai di ui at tn y covering the sand with plastic k n sheeting when you have finished for the day or by spreading the sand in areas just before installing the paving Stay off die sand bed by working from outside the perimeter or by kneeling on previously laid sections di a A C n w o Falling wallpaper? Don’t blame paste By C Dwight Barnett Scripps Howard News Service Question: I built my house in 1971 The front area consists of a hall entryway formal living and dining rooms and guest bedroom and hath I live in the back which is paneled The front rooms originally were painted After about eight years I decided I would prefer wallpaper I had it done That paper is still on the living dining and entry walls But not more than 10 days after it was put up the paper in the bedroom and bkh started coming loose The man who put it up came back and did what he could but the problem continued After about five years in frustration and desperation I tore it all off Then I had it papered again Again a week or 10 days later it was coming loose Again he came back But nothing helps No one knows why All the installers have said it has to be moisture causing the problem But where is it coming from? I had the dirt floor under the house covered with bisqueen although the installer said it was dry as a bone and didn't need it I don't have storm windows a si tx SI o h means anything The house is brick — RM Little Rock Ark Answer: It sure sounds like a moisture problem to me too It's not unusual for one or two rooms of a home to have higher moisture levels than adjoining rooms For instance rooms on die northwest side of an uninsulated home P a e 8 c a ( are more moist than southern rooms Rooms farthest from the nace or rooms with no fur- t cold-a- ir returns often have high moisture levels Rooms next to bathrooms can be more moist not from the tb i moisture in the bathroom but from all the pipes in the walls Where there's an opening for a pipe there's a draft And where there's a draft there’s a temperature change and where there's a temperature change there's a moisture i change Try drying the rooms using a dehumidifier then place a sample piece of wallpaper on one wall to see if it sticks G Dwight This year’s Junior Livestock Sale will be Saturday August 8at9:00Jam BanwB Is a master Inapao-to-r American 8ocMy of caittM by to Inspectors Questions may be addressed to him at PO Bor 14091 EvansvMa IN 47728 or to Horn if that I ipllW Silluti)ilM Sinm r (1L 'Vi ' k |