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Garden
Cuttings
Briefs and news of note for the gardener.
By JUDY STARK
Published October 14, 2006
Christmas cactus alert Last chance if you want your Christmas cactus to bloom on time. Stop feeding it now, reduce or stop watering (don't let stems get flabby from overwatering), and give the plant complete darkness from sundown to sunrise. You can put it in a closet or cover it with a bag, box or dark cloth. When buds have formed, resume a regular water and food schedule and cease the light and dark changes. Then wait for the show. A new apple for your eye New in the orchard: As you scan the apple bins in the stores this fall, keep an eye out for Zestar, a new apple developed by the University of Minnesota. It's a tart apple with a hint of brown sugar, like fresh cider with more zip. It's good for cooking and has a long storage life. Americans annually eat about 79 apples per person. Grow a varied bean crop A reader asks: Can you grow green beans in the fall in Florida? Sure, says St. Petersburg Times gardening columnist John A. Starnes Jr. "My neighbor Margaret has done this in South Tampa for decades, and I am getting ready to do it again too. This fall, instead of regular green beans such as Blue Lake or Kentucky Wonder, I am planting some very cool-looking Caribbean beans I bought dried at a Hispanic market. Buying bags of various beans and edible seeds in grocery stores is a very inexpensive way to buy seeds for the garden." Compiled by Homes editor JUDY STARK
[Last modified October 12, 2006, 12:56:04]
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