From Mélie’s Garden
What a glorious July and August we have had on Fishers Island this year. One beautiful day following another, but our gardens are very thirsty! Thank Heavens for soaker hoses, if it weren’t for them my flowers and vegetables would have shriveled up long ago. Hopefully, in September, we will get some much-needed rain to revive the plants before the cold weather sets in.
If you are planting or transplanting this month, be sure to fill the hole up with water and let it soak in before putting in the plant. Once the plant is in the hole and covered with soil, water thoroughly again and every other day until the rain comes, so the roots can be happily established. September is also the time to prepare your houseplants for their return to the inside. Do any repotting that is necessary and hose them off well and spray with insecticidal soap before bringing them into the house.
We have been very lucky this summer to have Doug Tallamy speak twice on the Island. I hope many of you heard his very informative lectures on planting native plants that will bring back beneficial insects to Fishers Island. He is urging all of us to get rid of the invasive non-native plants and vines that are strangling our Island. I highly recommend you read his two very informative books “Bringing Nature Home” and “The Living Landscape” that he wrote with Rick Darke.
I also want to thank Island gardener, Dave Denison for his wonderful interview last month. His gardens on Hay Harbor golf course are an inspiration to all on the Island. There are many talented gardeners here and I hope that they will also be willing to share their experience and knowledge with us as Dave so kindly did.
