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This past week the first of many tree orders was delivered to the 
nursery at the Belle Mead Co-op. That signals the beginning of spring 
for me as the nursery manager. Over the next month garden centers will 
be receiving the many orders of new trees and shrubs. It is a good time 
to start shopping and gathering ideas for the planting season. As soon 
as the ground is workable (thawed and not soggy) the trees and shrubs 
can be planted.
Until planting time there are a few things you can do in preparation 
for 
the gardening season. First take a good look at your tools. Sharpen 
pruners and loppers. Smooth out rough spots on wooden tool handles. 
Tune 
up mowers and tractors. And check hoses for cracks and possible leaks.
Once the tools are ready, head out to the garden for late winter 
pruning. Fruit trees can be pruned now. Young trees should be pruned to 
train them to the desired shape. Older trees are pruned to encourage 
fruit production. Always remove dead, damaged or diseased branches 
first. Bring a few of the pruned branches inside for forcing. Once 
placed in water they will bloom in about three weeks.
Grapevines should be pruned hard in late February. Brambles fruits, 
such 
as blackberries and summer bearing raspberries, can also be thinned 
out. 
Remove the canes that bore fruit last year- they will not bear fruit 
again. Blueberry bushes can be pruned by removing any dead branches. On 
older bushes thin the plant to six strong newer stems. This will 
encourage new stems to grow from the base of the plant.
On a day when the temperature reaches into the 40’s apply horticultural 
oil spray on fruit trees and other landscape plants. This is your first 
defense in preventing insect pests. The oil smothers over-wintering 
insects and their eggs. For fruit trees and roses that had disease 
problems last season, a lime sulfur spray can be applied as a 
preventative. Oil and lime sulfur should not be applied at the same 
time 
on plants however. Follow label instructions carefully.
Make a plan for this year’s vegetable garden. Map everything out on 
paper, remembering to rotate crops. Plan to plant tall crops on the 
north side of the garden so they won’t shade shorter varieties. Leave 
proper spacing between plants for good air circulation. Seed packets 
and 
plant labels usually have information on proper spacing. Plan to fill 
the spaces after early crops have been harvested with something that 
will be harvested in early fall.
Seeds of the cool weather crops can be started indoors at this time. 
Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, leeks and onions are easy to grow from 
seed. The slower growing annual flowers can be started form seed now as 
well. Any that require twelve weeks or more from seed to planting time 
would be considered slow.
All seed starting supplies need to be very clean. If you re-use pots 
and 
seed starting trays from year to year, sterilize them with a weak 
bleach 
solution before planting. Use a soil-less seed starting mix as a 
growing 
medium. Nothing is more disappointing than losing newly sprouted 
seedlings to damping-off disease. As long as all your supplies are 
clean 
it can be avoided.
Most seeds germinate in warm temperatures and out of direct sunlight. 
High humidity is also helpful. Cover the trays or pots with clear 
plastic until the first sign of sprouting. A heat mat can provide 
enough 
warmth for many seed varieties. Or set the trays on top of the 
refrigerator until the seeds sprout. Keep the soil moist but not soggy. 
Once the seedlings are up, move them to a sunny window or under 
fluorescent lights. Keep the lights on for 18 hours a day and 2-4 
inches 
above the plants.
While unloading and inspecting the new trees that arrived this week I 
was intrigued by an interesting collection of tiny eggs on one of the 
cherry trees. They had been laid by some insect in a perfect diamond 
pattern on the trunk of the tree. It could have easily been mistaken 
for 
a piece of tape or cloth. At this time of year with careful inspection 
many insect eggs and cocoons can be spotted on bark and twigs. Insect 
eggs are often laid in neat rows or patterns. They will be quite small, 
oval or round and can vary in color. Most are easily removed by hand- 
simply scrap them off.

Beth Nardone, botanist, is a resident of Hillsborough and is the 
Nursery 
Manager at the Belle Mead Co-Op.  Questions and comments can be sent to 
bethtanical@patmedia.net