Himalayan Honeysuckle, also known as Leycesteria formosa, is an ornamental shrub that can grow to 6 feet tall and just as wide in a single season. It also has multiple other "wow" factors going for it. The standard form has dark green foliage, but the 'Golden Lanterns' cultivar has chartreuse-yellow foliage. It really does seem to glow in your garden. New foliage emerges tinged with red, and mature leaves retain a subtle red margin. The striking flower structure, a pendulous cluster of white flowers surrounded by deep burgundy bracts, stands out beautifully against the light foliage. As if that weren't enough to recommend it for your landscape, birds love the shiny, purple-black berries that form in late summer through frost. Another name for this plant is Golden Pheasant Berry. For more information about the Himalayan Honeysuckle check out the Plant of the Month Web site.
 
September Gardening Tips

• Keep deadheading plants such as tithonia, zinnia and cosmos to ensure that they continue to flower.

• Continue collecting annual and perennial seeds that you wish to sow next year. Freshly collected seed is best stored in a paper bag or envelope until thoroughly dried.

• Begin planting cabbage, kale and pansies in the latter part of the month.

• Apply a preemergent herbicide on your lawn to control cool-season weeds such as chickweed, henbit dead nettle and annual bluegrass (Poa annua). For best control apply by Labor Day.                

• Keep an eye out for pests on your pumpkins, gourds, squash and melons. Cucumber beetles and squash bugs can be controlled with Sevin. Harvest your pumpkins when their color deepens and skin yields very little to pressure. Wash the fruits in a weak bleach solution and store in a cool, dry location until you are ready to display them.

• To ensure proper maturity, hard-shelled gourds such as dipper, birdhouse and swan should be left on the vine until the vine starts to die back.

• Divide and repot any tropicals you have outdoors to prepare them for their winter home. Hose off or wash plants with soapy water and inspect them for insects. If needed, treat them with an appropriate insecticide. Imidacloprid, the active ingredient in many of the new insecticides, is a good systemic for insect control. It can be mixed with water and poured on the soil and the plant will take it up.

• Avoid the temptation to plant seasonal pot mums in your landscape. Even if they establish themselves, they rarely live up to your expectations the following year. It is best to just toss them onto the compost pile after they fade. Chrysanthemum 'Clara Curtis' and 'Sheffield Pink' are good reliable cultivars that will be around for years to come.

• Order or purchase bulbs by October 1 for availability of the best selections. Store them in a cool, dry location until you plant them. Colchicums and fall-blooming crocus should be planted as soon as they arrive. Brent and Becky's Bulbs is a great mail-order source.  http://www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com

• Start planning any fall and winter hardscape projects. Fall is a pleasant time (if there is such a thing) to work with stone.
  

For more gardening calendar tips, go to the Garden Girls Calendar site.

A Plant Sale Not to Be Missed!

Many believe that as summer draws to an end, so does the opportunity for beautiful plants to thrive. But the UT Gardens' staff members know that fall is for planting! And the UT Gardens fall plant sale promises to deliver a spectacular fall selection. The sale will be held Saturday, September 19 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for the general public. A preview sale will be held Friday, September 18 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. for all UT employees, garden volunteers and Friends of the Gardens members.
 
Garden enthusiasts will be able to choose from Tennessee native plants, fall and winter interest plants, and winter container gardening plants. The sale will also feature blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, evergreens, assorted trees, shrubs and perennials. Garden art and outdoor garden ornaments will also be for sale.
 
"Shoppers are assured of finding plenty of cutting edge, special plants that they won't find just anywhere," said Dr. Susan Hamilton, interim director of the gardens and associate professor of public horticulture. "Fall is the ideal time for planting new additions to a garden. We'll offer design inspiration with container displays and experts on hand to answer questions and offer advice."
 
Round out the shopping experience with a self-guided tour of the gardens. Visitors will be able to see plants that thrive and flourish in the Tennessee climate and get ideas on garden design and use in their own landscapes and gardens.
 
All proceeds will benefit the UT Gardens. The sale will be located at the UT Gardens on the UT agriculture campus in Knoxville located on Neyland Drive adjacent to the UT Veterinary Hospital. For more information visit the UT Gardens Web site at http://utgardens.tennessee.edu/.
 

Noted Gardening Author and Botanical Illustrator Peter Loewer to Speak at Friends of the Gardens Annual Membership Meeting
Don't miss the Friends of the UT Gardens annual meeting on Sunday, November 8th at 2:00 p.m. at Ijams Nature Center where author and artist Peter Loewer will talk about his latest book, Loves Me, Loves Me Not . Peter will give his companion talk to his latest book which is about the secret language of flowers, first developed by women of a Turkish harem back in the 1600s. A jealous sultan forbade the ladies to learn anything about reading or writing so they resorted to a secret language of trading flowers. Each flower held a different meaning, and cleverness won out in the end. Then in the mid-1800s, the more romantic Victorians pick up the definitions, and you can guess the rest. Peter's talk will be illustrated with 50 slides of his original artwork for the book. Peter has written over 30 books on gardening and natural history, including the award-winning "The Wild Gardener" and "Thoreau's Garden." He is also a well-known and honored botanical illustrator. Loewer lives in Asheville and gardens on the shores of Lake Kenilworth, working on an acre of land featuring natural trails and a formal perennial garden. Many of the rare and more unusual plants in his garden are grown from seed, usually supplied by membership in the American Rock Garden Society, the Royal Horticultural Society in London, and from trading with other gardeners. In 2002, Timber Press re-released his classic book on night-blooming and night-fragrant plants, The Evening Garden. His latest books are Native Perennials for the Southeast, North Carolina Gardens, and Loves Me, Loves Me Not. He has a radio show on Public Radio in North Carolina called "The Wild Gardener," and he is the Contributing Editor to the magazine, Carolina Gardener.

Companies Buy into Employer-Sponsored Gardens
Some small companies are trying to boost morale and camaraderie by creating vegetable gardens at their headquarters, The Wall Street Journal reported. Employer-sponsored gardens can be a cheap and easy way to boost workers' morale, relate better to certain customers and expand a company's health and wellness program. It is unclear how many businesses have them, although the National Gardening Association projects a 19 percent increase in food gardening this year, as the recession motivates households to trim grocery lists. (by Yale Yarbourgh, Garden Center Magazine, 8/18/09)

Study Shows Encore Azalea Varieties Resistant to Lace Bugs
In a recent USDA study, 11 varieties of Encore Azalea were found to be resistant or moderately resistant to lace bugs, a major landscaping pest that can lead to loss of leaves and plant vigor as well as force the use of pesticides. Research entomologist Grant Kirker reported, "Host plant resistance is an environmentally friendly, low-tech, low-cost method of control that reduces the need for pesticides to manage azalea lace bugs." The study, conducted at the USDA-ARS Thad Cochran Horticultural Research Laboratory in Poplarville, Mississippi, studied 19 varieties of Encore Azalea and 14 standard cultivars for host plant resistance to lace bugs. Encore Azalea cultivars found to be resistant included 'Autumn Amethyst,' 'Autumn Twist,' 'Autumn Royalty,' 'Autumn Sangria,' 'Autumn Cheer' and 'Autumn Rouge.' Cultivars showing moderate resistance were 'Autumn Embers,' 'Autumn Bravo,' 'Autumn Starlite,' 'Autumn Ruby' and 'Autumn Princess.' Azalea lace bugs are a major pest in both production nurseries and home landscapes. Adult bugs use their piercing mouthparts to suck the juices from the undersides of the leaves, leaving a yellowish stippling on the upper and lower leaf surface. Severe infestations can lead to reduced plant vigor and loss of leaves. Researchers are hopeful that this new knowledge will lead eventually to the breeding of pest-free cultivars. (Garden Center Magazine, 8/16/09)

Study Shows Organic Food No Healthier than Conventionally Produced Food
Organic food advocates aren't going to be happy with an article that was published in the July 29 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Scientists from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine conducted an extensive review of 162 studies to assess the differences in nutrient content between organically and conventionally produced foodstuffs. Conventionally produced crops had significantly higher nitrogen content and organically produced crops had a significantly higher phosphorus content and higher acidity. No difference was detected for the other nutrient categories that were analyzed. The researchers concluded that the small differences in nutrient content are biologically plausible and mostly related to differences in production methods. (by Sarah Martinez, Project: Green Industry, 8/13/09)

Coming Soon: Tires Made from Trees
Automobile owners may soon be driving on tires partly made out of trees - which could cost less, perform better and save on fuel and energy, Science Daily reported. Wood science researchers at Oregon State University have made some surprising findings about the potential of microcrystalline cellulose - a product that can be made easily from almost any type of plant fibers - to partially replace silica as a reinforcing filler in the manufacture of rubber tires. A new study suggests that this approach might decrease the energy required to produce the tire, reduce costs and create a tire that better resists heat buildup. (by Sarah Martinez, Project: Green Industry, 8/13/09)

David Austin's Rose 'Graham Thomas' Awarded Rose World's Highest Accolade

David Austin's rose 'Graham Thomas' is the World's Favorite Rose, according to the rose aficionados in the 41-member countries that make up the World Federation of Rose Societies (WFRS). Rosa 'Graham Thomas' (Ausmas) becomes only the 14th rose in 33 years to win the triennial accolade - considered by many to be the rose world's highest honor. The award marks WFRS's induction of 'Graham Thomas' into its highly selective Rose Hall of Fame. Each Hall of Fame inductee wears the crown of World's Favorite Rose for a three-year reign. The first World's Favorite Rose winner was the famed Peace rose (Rosa 'Peace'), the 1976 inductee to the Rose Hall of Fame. English-rose hybridizer David Austin is internationally known for his introduction of new types of fragrant, full-bodied English roses that have the form and perfume of Old Roses combined with the broad color range and repeat flowering of modern roses. In 2007, David Austin received an OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) for his services to horticulture from Queen Elizabeth II. David Austin Roses of Albrighton, Wolverhampton, England offers more than 800 rose varieties, including their signature Fragrant English Roses plus select shrub roses, climbers and ramblers. (Garden Center Magazine, 8/11/09)

 
Everything's coming up roses at the University of Tennessee Gardens this September! Thanks to the generosity of Sam and Mary Anne Beall and family, a beautiful new rose garden will officially open with a public dedication ceremony Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 2 p.m. at the UT Gardens.
 
The Beall Family Rose Garden is the largest public rose garden in East Tennessee and, as September is a peak time for rose blooms, UT Gardens hopes the public will join us in enjoying the splendor of the roses in full bloom.
 
The garden features two Tennessee sandstone waterfalls cascading into Japanese koi ponds and more than 100 rose varieties ranging from disease-resistant shrub types to the latest hybrid-tea introductions. A 22-foot gazebo adds a special venue to the UT Gardens for holding weddings, receptions or other events.
 
"The Beall Family Rose Garden is a significant addition to the UT Gardens in Knoxville providing unique opportunities for education, student training, and horticulture research. The endowed garden ensures perpetual funding for student internships and training as well as support for maintenance of garden structures. This wonderful gift to the gardens not only benefits the university but the Knoxville community and surrounding region. I'm proud that we can host a beautiful and educational rose garden that the general public can visit and enjoy," says Sue Hamilton, UT Gardens director.
 
The Beall family established the rose garden in honor of their loving wife and mother, Mary Anne Beall. The Bealls are known throughout the area for their kindness and generosity. They share a passion for roses and hope their gift will inspire students, gardeners and visitors to the garden.
 
Light refreshments will be served, and reservations are requested by Tuesday, September 8 by calling 865-974-8265.

Volunteers
Just as the kids are heading back to school, our volunteers are heading back to the garden! After taking a break during the heat of August, our refreshed vols are ready to tackle the weeds, remove spent annuals, divide perennials and all the other tasks that are required to keep the UT Gardens looking great and ready for visitors. Volunteering at the gardens is a fantastic way to learn more about gardening and spend time with like-minded people. Volunteers join garden staff every Tuesday morning and Thursday afternoon for directed work sessions, but other opportunities are available for people who can't come on those days. If you are interested in becoming a UT Gardens Volunteer, please contact Beth Willis at ewillis2@utk.edu or 865-974-2712 for more information.

Books and Blooms

Books and Blooms is back for fall! Join us on Thursdays. Story time will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the outdoor classroom of the UT Gardens. Fall Books and Blooms will follow the same format as summer, with a storytelling session and craft activity, followed by sprinklers (while the weather is still warm). Carol LaCava and her students will once again provide interpretation for the deaf during story times. Books and Blooms will be held each Thursday through October 30 (rain or shine). As always this is a free event that is open to the public. No preregistration is required, but feel free to contact Katheryne Nix at kavery3@utk.edu if you have any questions or to request a reminder e-mail for Books and Blooms.

 
Event Calendar
September
October

November

Sue Hamilton
UT Gardens Director
sueham@utk.edu

Jason Reeves
UT Gardens Curator, Jackson
jsreeves@mail.ag.utk.edu

Become a Friend of the Gardens
There are a variety of ways you can support the UT Gardens. For more information go to http://utgardens.tennessee.edu/support.html