October 2005

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Deer Hunger For Landscape Plants In Autumn By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Shorter days and the cooler weather of autumn signal wild animals to stock up on food. Squirrels cache nuts and birds madly forage for those last insects, fruits and seeds. And deer seem to head toward the nearest available landscaped yard. In fall, deer are trying to fatten up for the winter period and late fall rut, or mating season, explained Nancy Allen, wildlife biologist with the Oregon State University Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. Before seasonal rains really set in, plants in people's irrigated yards are more succulent and tasty to deer than plants in natural areas that have become brown and dry, said Allen. If you'd like to reduce deer damage in your yard, keep the following guidelines in mind: • Fences are the only foolproof method to separate your garden from deer. Remember that deer can jump eight feet or higher and can crawl under and between strands of wire that are set too far apart; • Cages and netting can be used around individual plants that need protection from hungry deer; • Deer repellents can be effective if applied regularly. Repellents include homemade concoctions of egg and water, human hair, bloodmeal, chunks of smelly soap or expensive commercial repellents. Remember that rain washes the repellents away and as a plant grows, the repellent diminishes in effectiveness; • A dog might help keep deer away &endash; at least a dog that is large and has the run of your property. But if your dog sleeps indoors at night, forget it. The deer love to feed at night. There is no such thing as a "deer-proof" plant. Deer will try anything once. And they will often pull up plants without eating them. But it helps to plant deer-resistant plants. The OSU Extension Service offers two publications, "The Wildlife Garden: Reduce Deer Damage in Your Yard," (EC 1557) and "Deer-Resistant Ornamental Plants," (EC 1440) to help home gardeners choose landscape plants unpalatable to deer for their area of Oregon. These publications are also available by mail (EC 1557 is $1.50 a copy and EC 1440 is 75 cents a copy) by sending your request and a check or money order (payable to OSU) for the publications plus $3 for shipping and handling to: Publication Orders, Extension and Station Communications, OSU, 422 Kerr Administration, Corvallis, OR 97331-2119. Is Your Firewood Dry Enough To Burn Efficiently? By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University The higher your firewood's moisture content, the less efficiently it burns. If you don't let it dry long enough under the right conditions before you burn it, you'll get a smoky fire without much heat. The smoke from a low-temperature fire contains gases and acids that condense on your chimney to form creosote &endash; a substance that can ignite and cause a major fire. Burning green wood also means you have to clean your chimney more often. Plus, you'll have to work harder to get your fire going, as some of the wood's moisture must boil and evaporate before it will ignite. Seasoned firewood contains less than 20 percent moisture and generally takes from six to eight months&emdash;and sometimes up to more than a year&emdash;to dry, or cure. Much depends on the weather, the type of wood you have and how you prepare and store it. Hardwood such as oak takes longer to dry than softwood like Douglas fir or pine. The Oregon State University Extension Service offers some hints on how to make sure the firewood you purchase or cut is dry enough to burn efficiently: • Look for cracking at the ends of split wood. Cracks indicate that the ends are dry, although the center of the wood may still be wet. Knock 2 pieces of firewood with cracked ends together. They'll make a sharp cracking noise if they're dry. A dull thud indicates the pieces are wet. • Borrow or purchase a device that determines the moisture content of firewood by measuring its resistance to an electric current. • Weigh a small piece of firewood cut from the middle of a large piece. Record the weight in ounces. Dry the small piece overnight at 200 to 300 degrees in your oven. Weigh it again while it is still warm. The difference in weight is the weight of the water in the wood. Divide the weight of the water by the oven-dry weight in the wood to find the moisture content of your firewood. Wood is ready to burn when the moisture content is less than 20 percent. • Split wood right after you cut it. It dries faster split. Don't forget to cut kindling too, and let it dry. • Stack firewood off the ground to allow air to circulate under the stack and around the pieces. Crossing the wood log-cabin style promotes good air flow within the stack. Do not stack wood directly up against an outbuilding or house. A simple and effective way to stack and shelter firewood is on a pallet, stacked log-cabin style, with a sheet of clear UV-inhibited polyethylene draped over the top of the stack to allow sunlight through to heat the stack. Leave the sides open to allow air to circulate. Secure the polyethylene with a few pieces of wood or rocks. Once the firewood is dry, replace it with a sturdier nylon or canvas tarp. OSU Extension Guidelines For Freezing Garden Produce By Peg Herring, Oregon State University Is your garden produce piling up? Freezing is one of the simplest and least time consuming methods of preservation, according to Carolyn Raab, food and nutrition specialist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. To help consumers maintain top quality when freezing home produce, the OSU Extension Service offers a publication, "Freezing Fruits and Vegetables." Keep in mind that freezing can affect the texture of some fruits and vegetables. Water makes up much of the weight of most fruits and vegetables. That water is held within cell walls that give structure and texture to the produce. When the water freezes, it expands and ruptures the cell walls. Consequently, the texture of frozen produce softens when thawed. There is more softening of produce that is higher in water. Frozen tomatoes or strawberries, for example, become mushy and watery when thawed. Use them in cooked foods such as stews or jams. Textural changes are not as apparent in high starch vegetables, such as peas, corn, and lima beans. Blueberries are an example of a fruit that freezes well with little textural change. If fruits and vegetables are frozen quickly, they maintain better texture. The OSU publication offers guidelines for freezing many different kinds of fruits, vegetables and juices. It includes information on freezing fruits with or without sugar or syrup; freezing vegetables, including blanching methods; correct packing and loading into the freezer. Download "Freezing Fruits and Vegetables" (PNW 214) and several other OSU Extension food preservation publications from the web by going to: http://eesc.oregonstate.edu/agcomwebfile/EdMat/pubresults.lasso?sortnum=0908 Printed copies of this six-page publication are available by sending a request and a check or money order payable to OSU for $1 plus $3 for shipping and handling to: Publication Orders, Extension and Station Communications, OSU, 422 Kerr Administration, Corvallis, OR 97331-2119. In addition, home food preservers in Oregon can get answers to questions by calling the OSU Extension Food Safety/Preservation Hotline until Oct. 14 at 1-800-354-7319, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (except holidays). The hotline is operated by OSU Extension Service volunteers and Extension staff. Chile Peppers, Too Hot To Handle? From University of Idaho's HomeWise Canning salsa is a hot topic at University of Idaho Extension offices this time of year. Not only are consumers asking for tested salsa recipes, they want to know how they can quite literally avoid getting burned. Most peppers should be seeded and chopped before they're used in salsas or pickled peppers or before they're processed in a pressure canner. Because they contain capsaicin, chile peppers should always be handled with respect, says Alexis Woodbury, UI Extension program assistant. This volatile oil produces the fiery sensation that many salsa lovers enjoy, but it can also cause severe chemical burns to hands, faces and eyes that may require medical attention. "When working with chile peppers, wear plastic or rubber gloves and be sure not to touch your face," says Woodbury. "As an extra measure of caution, wash your hands with soap and water after you've processed the peppers and cleaned the kitchen." Up-to-data salsa and canning recipes are available from UI Extension offices statewide. In addition, consumers can order a Pacific Northwest Extension publication called "Salsa Recipes for Canning" from the UI Educational Communications Web site, www.info.ag.uidaho.edu, or by calling (208) 885-7982 or writing calspubs@uidaho.edu. The publication, also stocked by many county Extension offices, discusses salsa ingredients and features such recipes as Tomatillo Green Salsa, Tomato Taco Sauce and Hot Tomato-Pepper Sauce. Copies cost $1.00, plus shipping, handling and sales tax. Shredded Leaves Make Better Compost By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Leaves are nitrogen poor, but rich in minerals, so most kinds make a great addition to the compost pile. But some leaves, including oak and laurel, are especially slow to break down. Fallen leaves will break down much more quickly if they are chopped into tinier pieces before being added to the heap, says Ross Penhallegon, horticulturist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. An easy way to shred leaves into smaller pieces, even if you don't have a chipper-shredder, is to run over them with a mulching lawn mower with a collecting bag if you have a big enough bag. Or shred them, then rake them up. If you have a lot of leaves, store your shredded leaves in garbage bags or cans. Shredded leaves have many uses in the yard and garden. Layer shredded leaves into your compost pile to add air and a carbon source to the pile. This is especially handy in the winter, as compost tends to get matted down and suffer from a shortage of bulk "brown" materials. Place shredded leaves in the flowerbeds as mulch. They do a great job of building organic matter in the soil and protecting flower bulbs and perennials from hard winter freezes. Don't wait for autumn rains to do this easy task. Raking, shredding or grinding up dry leaves is much easier than working with sodden matted ones. Do not add walnut leaves to a compost pile, as they contain material that affects the growth of certain other plants. 2005 Weed Conference To Be Held November 2-4 In Yakima From Heather Filbin, Washington State Weed Conference Office The 55th Annual Washington State Weed Conference will be held November 2-4, 2005, at the Yakima Convention Center, Yakima, Washington. The conference, one of the largest of its kind in the United States, covers information on all phases of weed control and weed management in the Pacific Northwest. The conference begins at 9 a.m. Wednesday and concludes at noon on Friday. Information categories include vegetation management, turf and ornamental, and crops of all kinds. The 2 day event includes over 40 speakers, workshops, general and concurrent break-out sessions, an indoor and outdoor tradeshow, luncheon, social and a weed quiz with cash prizes. This year's conference features keynote speaker Tom Tevlin, President of ConsensusWorks Consultants, Inc., Vancouver, British Columbia.  Tevlin has worked with leading global industry, government, and environmental/social agencies to establish environmental reputation management campaigns related to forestry, aquaculture, biotechnology and polymers, and has participated in every stage of campaign planning and execution from research to implementation to evaluation. Tevlin will open the conference Wednesday at 1 p.m. Pesticide license recertification credits will be awarded for the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and California. Certified Crop Advisor credits will also be available. The conference fee is $75 if registered by October 28th and $85 if registered thereafter. Additional information, including how to register,is available on-line at www.weedconference.org, or by contacting the Washington State Weed Association office at (509)783-4676, heather@maurergroup.com.

Fertilize Your Lawn To Prepare It For Winter From University of Idaho's HomeWise With the onset of fall, days grow shorter and grass roots grow longer. "A healthy lawn&emdash;and even a not-so-healthy lawn&emdash;of Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass or even tall fescue will begin to send energy reserves to its roots in preparation for the long, cold winter ahead," says Tom Salaiz, University of Idaho turfgrass specialist. "To help your grass with its winter preparations, it's important to apply a fall fertilizer between mid-September and mid-October." How much fertilizer should you put on in the fall? Salaiz says homeowners should feed their lawns more nitrogen in the fall than at any other time of year. He estimates that turfgrasses need about 3 to 4 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet during the course of the year&emdash;1 to 2 pounds of which should be applied in the fall. "If you apply 2 pounds, don't put them on all at once," he says. "Space 1-pound applications two weeks apart." How many bags of fertilizer you'll need for your fall fertilization depends not only on the weight of the bag but its three-number ratio of components. For example, the numbers 20-5-10 indicate that 20 percent of the bag's weight is comprised of nitrogen, 5 percent of phosphorus and 10 percent of potassium. In 10-pound bags of 20-5-10 fertilizer, then, you'll find 2 pounds of actual nitrogen fertilizer, a half-pound of phosphorus and 1 pound of potassium. If your lawn is 4,000 square feet and you decide to apply nitrogen at the rate of 1 pound per 1,000 square feet, start by doing a little calculating. First, divide 1 pound by 1,000 square feet to get 0.001 pounds per square foot. Then multiply that by 4,000 square feet. "At the risk of giving everyone high school math flashbacks, that comes to 4 pounds of nitrogen fertilizer that you'll need in order to fertilize that 4,000 square-foot lawn," Salaiz says. "Since your 10-pound bag of 20-5-10 fertilizer contains 2 pounds of nitrogen, it fortunately doesn't take a mathematician to figure out that you'll need to drive back to the garden center and buy another bag." That same bag will also contain 10 percent potassium, meeting Salaiz's guidelines of 10-20 percent potassium for fall lawn applications. The phosphorus needs of mature turfgrass are much more variable and depend heavily on the results of soil tests. Lengthen Growing Season With Coldframe Or Hotbed By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Do surprise frosts or cool temperatures foil your plans to ripen peppers or tomatoes? Do you want to keep lettuce or other greens growing over the winter? Try building a simple coldframe or hotbed to lengthen your growing season into the late fall or winter. Coldframes can be used to start flower and vegetable plants before normal outdoor planting dates in the spring as well as prolong the growing season in the fall. Young plants are protected from spring's icy winds or sudden frosts. The sun enters the clear top of the coldframe by day, heating the soil. At night, the coldframe slows the loss of heat. Built with wood or metal sides, coldframes can have a hinged or removable clear top of glass, plastic or fiberglass, so the cover can be raised on warm sunny days and then lowered during cool nights. The sidewalls can be as high as needed, but eight to 12 inches is the usual height. The north wall of the frame box is usually built higher than the south for better sunlight exposure. A hotbed is simply a coldframe with an added source of heat. These work well in colder areas, where sub-freezing temperatures may occur late fall through spring. For detailed information about building a coldframe or hotbed, download the Oregon State University Extension Service illustrated fact sheet "Constructing Coldframes and Hotbeds," (FS 246) at http://eesc.orst.edu/agcomwebfile/edmat/FS246-e.pdf. Buzzy Cluster Flies Move Indoors In Autumn By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Every fall, large, sluggish flies buzz at windows and knock into lampshades. These irritating insects are probably cluster flies. Slightly larger than houseflies, cluster flies are dark gray with golden hairs on their thoraxes and behind their heads. They have light patches on their abdomens. Though extremely annoying, cluster flies do no damage to homes, according to entomologists with the Oregon State University Extension Service. They normally spend most of their lives outdoors and do not commonly spread human diseases. Adult cluster flies feed on nectar. The larvae, also known as maggots, are internal parasites of earthworms. Each female cluster fly lays her eggs in the soil. After a few days the eggs hatch into larvae. Each locates an earthworm, penetrates its body and develops there. As many as four generations of cluster flies develop each summer. In areas where earthworms are abundant, substantial fly populations can build. Problems are especially common around lawns with healthy earthworm populations. Cluster flies can also be a nuisance in buildings surrounded by rich pastureland. In the fall, the adult flies seek shelter to spend the winter months. They gather near windows in outbuildings and homes, spinning around and buzzing noisily. When swatted, they tend to leave a greasy spot. As the sun sets and temperatures cool, flies crawl into buildings via cracks and gaps including those around eaves, around sash-cords, windowsills, baseboards and under loose-fitting vinyl or aluminum siding. Once in a protected place, large numbers of these flies may cluster together &endash; hence their name &endash; to hibernate in interior spaces such as attics, unused rooms, wall voids, basements and tree holes. They become active whenever temperatures rise above 54 degrees, from early autumn to mid-spring, especially around windows with sunlight. These cluster flies do not breed in buildings. In the spring, they leave their hibernation sites to return outdoors to breed. After mating, female cluster flies lay eggs in soil cracks and crevices near earthworms. In three days, the fly eggs hatch into larvae that penetrate and develop in the bodies of earthworms. Populations vary from year to year, sometimes worse after wet summers. To see a photo and learn more about these buzzing flies, visit the Oregon State University Extension Service's Urban Entomology website at http://www.ent.orst.edu/urban/cluster_fly.html. Since earthworms are generally considered beneficial, OSU Extension entomologists are discouraging cluster fly-haters from doing anything to harm their hosts, the earthworms. So there are no good control measures recommended for the cluster fly larval life stage. The best course of action for cluster fly control is to prevent their entry indoors by sealing around cracks, windows and doors and repairing screens. Don't forget to seal around electrical outlets, switchboxes and vents, especially on the south side of the buildings, where these flies most commonly enter. For temporary indoor relief, use a vacuum cleaner to remove dead, dying or sluggish flies. Old-fashioned methods work well also &endash; flypaper, a fly swatter or folded newspaper will dispatch individuals. Dis-Infest Your Patio Plants Before Bringing Them Inside From University of Idaho's HomeWise With the days growing shorter and the nights growing colder, it's time to start moving your patio plants back inside. But Ed Bechinski, University of Idaho Extension integrated pest management specialist, says you'll want to make sure you don't move plant pests inside right along with them. The likeliest Trojan horses to invade your homes on the houseplants that have been summering outdoors are spider mites and thrips, Bechinski says. These pests pose the greatest threat to your other houseplants because they feed on a wide range of host plants, have "fantastic" reproduction rates and are small enough to operate beneath your gardening radar. Other pests that may hitch a ride inside are aphids, mealybugs, white flies and scale&emdash;all of which could infest your healthy houseplants&emdash;and fungus gnats, which don't threaten plants but do threaten your peace of mind by buzzing you relentlessly as you read at night. "Before you bring a patio plant inside, my recommendation is to give it a quick visual inspection," says Bechinski. Examine it closely for leaf spotting and stippling, unnatural discoloration, webbing at plant tips, abnormal stickiness or tiny, cottony puffs. If you see any of these symptoms, shake the plant foliage over a sheet of white paper and look for the small, dark, moving bodies that could be causing them. If a plant is infested, Bechinski says the first question you should ask yourself is whether it's really worth saving. If it is, plan to treat it several times with a broad-spectrum insecticidal soap, at intervals a few days apart. (Be forewarned that plants with unusually hairy leaves can trap these soaps and suffer leaf burns.) If the infestation still hasn't cleared after several thorough applications, then buy some insecticide-treated spikes at the garden center and insert them in the pot before moving the plant inside. Bechinski thinks it's a good idea to quarantine your patio plants in a separate room from your other plants for a few weeks, just in case an unexpected outbreak flares. If that's not possible, then at least prevent the leaves of the incoming plants from touching those of the plants that have been inside all along. Hosing down your patio plants before you bring them indoors is always a good idea, but Bechinski says you can't count on it to destroy insect infestations. Yes, water sprays will reduce infestations, but your stance should be zero tolerance. That's because outside plants get a little help from biocontrol agents like ladybugs to finish off lingering bug problems, but your inside plants are on their own. If the soil of your patio plants is hosting fungus gnats&emdash;look for "itsy, bitsy, black flies crawling on the soil surface"&emdash;you'll need to try a different tack. Insecticidal soap won't control them, but the biopesticide Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis will. Use it as a last resort, because it's fairly expensive, Bechinski says. First, let your potted soil go as dry as your plants can tolerate in order to kill as many fungus gnat larvae as you can. You might just plan on drying your pots down anyway, whether you see fungus gnats or not. Notes Bechinski: "It's almost a guarantee that you have them." Hurricane Katrina Damages Public And Private Timberland Scientists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service recently reported that Hurricane Katrina damaged or destroyed approximately 19 billion board feet of timber spread over five million acres in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. "The Forest Service is working in concert with its state partners to accurately assess the extent of damaged and destroyed forestland from Hurricane Katrina," said Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth. "While this early assessment suggests a potential significant loss of timber, the next step will be to determine what is salvageable. Recovering the usable timber will help to diminish the economic loss as well as to prevent damage from insects and disease and to reduce the risk of fires." If removed quickly, storm damaged wood can be salvageable for various products. According to Forest Service researchers, down and damaged wood (trees with broken tops, uprooted or leaning trees, and trees that are bent, broken or splintered) can be sufficient to produce 800,000 single family homes and 25 million tons of paper and paperboard. The initial assessment indicates that the damage to the timber is spread across five million acres of lightly to heavily damaged forestland-both public and private-in the three states. However, the majority of the forestland affected is under private ownership. Forest inventories indicate one-third of the timber damaged is concentrated in eight counties of southern Mississippi. Nearly 90 percent of all forestland damaged is within 60 miles of the coast and predominantly in Mississippi. "The extraordinary scale of the hurricane's impacts will require solid coordination at federal, state and community levels to restore these forested lands," said Southern Group of State Foresters Chair Leah MacSwords. Nearly 60 percent of the damage occurred to softwoods-predominantly pines-with the remainder of the damage occurring to hardwoods. The damaged acres may require additional treatment to reduce the risk of fires posed by downed trees and limbs. Scientists from the Forest Service's Forest Inventory and Analysis unit are using historical inventory data and modeling tools with Hurricane Katrina's storm track data to estimate the extent and amount of damage to forestland. The Forest Service has conducted surveys of the South's forests for more than 70 years. A board foot is the unit of measurement for lumber. A board foot is one foot long, one foot wide and one inch thick.

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