Ciscoe Morris: Fertilize your lawn, yank out that ivy

Ciscoe says it’s not too late to plant tomatoes. Just remember to use plenty of fertilizer – it’s going to get warmer outside.

Even though it’s raining this weekend, master gardender
Ciscoe Morris says it’s a great time to make sure lawns
are in tip-top shape, to cut back ivy, and to plant some
tomatoes.

“This is a good time to fertilize your lawn, if you’re
going to water it this summer. The grass actually does a
lot better than when you let it go dormant, so you don’t
get as many dandelions, you don’t get clover taking over,”
says Ciscoe.

According to Ciscoe, it’s enough to water once a week,
less if it’s cool outside. If you don’t water it, you
should skip the fertilizer.

“If you’re not going to water, it will force the grass to
grow like crazy and then if all of a sudden it doesn’t get
any water, that’ll have a real detrimental effect,” says
Ciscoe.

If there are sun breaks this weekend or next week, Ciscoe
says you should also take care of moss or weeds that have
taken over the garden.

“I use straight white vinegar from the grocery store. It’s
got to be a hot sunny day, and don’t forget it will kill
the grass,” says Ciscoe.

Use a spray bottle to get vinegar on weeds. After the
weeds have died, make sure to put a little grass seed and
some lawn fertilizer where the weeds used to be. Ciscoe
says this will make grass bounce back fast.

Ciscoe also says it you should keep an eye on any ivy. It
can take over a garden and spread to nearby forests and
hurt trees.

“The problem is that the birds eat the berries, and they
drop them in the forest and things, and then ivy grows up
the trees,” says Ciscoe.

When ivy grows up trees, it blocks light to plants below
and to the trees themselves. In the winter, ivy weighs
down trees and can cause them to bend and break. Worst of
all, ivy attracts rats that can hide under the big clumps
of vegetation.

Ivy can be hard to remove, so Ciscoe recommends renting
tools and hiring someone from the Millionaire Club to do the work.

Finally, Ciscoe says there’s hope for people who want to
plant tomatoes. Many nurseries have big tomato plants that
are already in bloom. Even with the rain, Ciscoe thinks
that buying a cherry tomato plant will be perfect, since
it guarantees a large crop.

“Don’t forget to put a handful of bone meal and a cup of
good organic tomato food in the hole. Work that in and
plant that tomato. I guarantee, the fourth of July, summer
starts here,” says Ciscoe.