**** Interesting Data from National Gardening Association (NGA): In an article titled 'Is Gardening Dead?' in the May 2006 issue of GrowerTalks, data are presented that indicate gardening is changing in the U.S. To quote:

• "Lawn and garden sales were down 4% in 2005, the third year of decline in a row, according to the NGA."

• "The same survey reported a 7% decline in sales of hardgoods related to lawn and garden care, during 'the hottest housing market the country has seen in more than a decade.'"

• "Wholesale floriculture sales grew at a meager 1.9% in 2004 (our most current statistics) at a time when the Consumer Price Index increased 3.26%."

• "'...the floriculture industry continues to have difficulty finding new customers, with fewer households buying product,' said the American Floral Endowment's Consumer Tracking Study in 2005 about its 2004 survey."

• "Lowes says DIY (do it yourself) is losing ground to DIFM (do it for me), 4.8% yearly growth versus 9.1%, according to The Miami Herald. Lowes and rival Home Depot are investing more in installation programs for homeowners who no longer want to do it themselves."

• "We're in the midst of 'a national gardening fatigue,' said the New York Times in a January 2006 article titled 'Baby Boomers, Digging the Ben-Gay.'" Author Anne Raver wrote, 'Boomers are slowing down. Their backs are giving out. They're tired of expensive perennials that keel over in a drought.'"

• Wholesale value of floriculture crops grew by 1% from 2004 to 2005. The total wholesale crop value was 5.36 billion for 2005, compared to $5.28 billion for 2004.

• Bedding and garden plants were up 2% from 2004 and are still the largest ocntributor with a value of $2.61 billion.

• Other important contributors to the total value of floricultural crops were potted flowering plants ($809 million), foliage ($721 million), cut flowers ($397 million), and cut cultivated greens ($105 million).

• 73% of adults use the Internet

• 42% have high-speed connections; 62% have broadband connections

• 88% of adults under 30 go online, compared to 32% of those 65 and older.

**** Second Horticulture/Master Gardener Train-the-Trainer: Our second Horticulture Train-the-Trainer session was held May 25 and 26 in Riverton at Central Wyoming College. Evaluation results were very positive! Stay tuned for information on when and where the next session will be held. Thank you to all who attended; the CDs will be burned in the next week or two and will be mailed out shortly thereafter.

• Q - Some spruce trees in a windrow are dying from the inside out. Not all trees are affected. They are irrigated with a drip system.

• A - We're still working on an answer to this one. We've asked the property owner several questions including: have any herbicides been sprayed in the area? have any fertilizers or other products been applied in the vicinity? what is the water source for the drip irrigation (particulates can clog pores in the drip tube)? has the irrigation water been tested? what is its quality?

• Q - The turf in a west-facing lawn area is dying back. What is the disease that is causing this?

• A - It's probably not a disease. In checking further, the lawn areas are small (roughly 10' x 20'), are on the west side of a two-story apartment complex, and each area is surrounded by concrete (either a driveway, sidewalk, or walkway to the door). The areas dying back are adjacent to the concrete. To top it off, each section is slightly sloped to the south. This is a water issue. Water is most likely running off due to thatch buildup and slope. Irrigation water is not penetrating the areas near the concrete. We are recommending core aeration, particularly in the areas near the driveways and walks. This will help get rid of some thatch and will also increase air and water penetration into the turf root zone.

• Q - What are the strange-looking formations on the tips of my spruce trees? They look like cones but they're not.

• A - They are spruce galls and can simply be pruned out. Chemical controls are difficult as they must be timed to when the insects are present (hard to detect) and they must also reach the insects (which tend to hide). These galls do not harm the trees and can be cut off.

             (*On August 22, the Rock Springs site had to be moved to Green River (WWCC).) 

**** In the Panter Back Yard: Mark planted most of the annuals May 21! So far so good....The planting list this year included:

• Calibrachoa (annual) in a hanging basket - these are related to petunias and have a trailing growth habit - flowers are smaller and are orange, purple, pink

• Cleome 'Sparkler Blush' (annual)

• Zinnia 'Zowie! Yellow Flame' (annual)

• Verbena 'Toronto Wine' (annual)

• Bacopa 'Abundant Giant White' (annual)

• Aconitum 'Bicolor' (perennial) - Monkshood

*National Master Gardener Coordinators Conference, June 28-30, 2006, Hilton, Lisle/Naperville, Lisle, Illinois. Contact: http://www.hort.purdue.edu/mg/info/img_conference06.html

*American Society for Horticultural Science annual conference, July 27-30, 2006, Sheraton New Orleans Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana. Contact: www.ashs.org.

*Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers National Conference and Trade Show, October 26-29, 2006, San Jose, California. Contact: www.ascfg.org.

*American Society for Plasticulture Conference, November 2-5, 2006, San Antonio, Texas. Contact: www.plasticulture.org.

*Wyoming Groundskeepers and Growers Association Annual Conference, January 17-19, 2007, Parkway Plaza Hotel, Casper, Wyoming. Contact: www.wgga.org.

*ProGreen Expo, January 22-26, 2007, Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Colorado. Contact: www.progreenexpo.com or info@progreenexpo.com.

Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Glen Whipple, Director, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071.

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