Thank you for calling Dial-a-Garden. This message was recorded on Tuesday, February 5, 2008.

The Western Colorado Research Center is offering a fruit pruning workshop for the public on Saturday, March 1, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Orchard Mesa station, located at 3168 B ½ Road. The cost is $25.00 with advance registration, and the workshop is limited to forty-five participants. Please call the station at 434-3264 extension 201 to sign up or for more information.

Dormant oil treatments are one of the best things we can do for the health of our fruit trees and ornamentals. Dormant oil, which is available at nurseries and garden centers, is applied before the plant leafs out, but as late as possible before then. It should be done after pruning. The oil smothers the overwintering forms of mites, aphids, and scale insects, greatly reducing their numbers in the coming season. These insects will be much harder to treat later on. Spraying dormant oil too soon darkens the buds and can heat them up, making them break dormancy too early. Spraying green tissue damages it, so watching the buds carefully for the best time is important.

Information on fruit tree care throughout the season, beginning with the dormant oil application, is available from the Mesa County Extension office at 244-1836 or from the Tri River Area Horticulture website at http://westernslopefruit.org . There is a fact sheet on treating apples and pears at www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/garden/02800.html and another for the stone fruits, which require a different series of treatments, at www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/garden/02804.html ; pruning information is available as well. Homeowners with fruit trees have a responsibility to take care of them properly, so they don’t become a repository of pests which cause problems for the fruit industry, and those who reside in the Upper Grand Valley Pest Control District (approximately east of 30 Road) have a legal obligation to do so. If you’re not sure if you live in this district, a map is available at www.mesacounty.us/pest/pestcontrol/pestcontrolmap.htm .

Many vegetables can be started indoors during the winter. The timing for starting them depends on the recommended age they should be at the time of transplanting, and on the average last killing frost date for your area. For information on starting and transplanting vegetables, and on early season varieties that can be seeded directly in the garden well before the last frost, please visit our website at http://westernslopevegetables.org or give the Master Gardeners a call at 244-1836.

Warmer locations will be seeing the greening up of the winter annual weeds as soon as the snow cover recedes. These weeds germinated last fall and have been dormant through the coldest part of the winter. Common winter annuals include cheatgrass, annual wheat grass, redstem filaree, and the early mustards. Although the sight of any green is welcome at this time, remember that the object with any annual weeds is to prevent seed formation. The winter annuals seed quite early in the year, so don’t put the task off too long.

The Tri River Area Horticulture team, headed by Dr. Curtis Swift, maintains an extensive website with fact sheets on many aspects of plant health, plant care, and problems. Cultural considerations including weather and climate information, monthly gardening calendars, information on the Master Gardener Program and on local gardening clubs and organizations, irrigation audit information, and upcoming programs of interest are all available on this well-organized site. You can even find current and back copies of Dial-a-Garden. Please check us out at http://westernslopegardening.org .

Thank you for calling Dial-a-Garden. This message will be updated next week; have a great week!

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Curt Swift CSU Extension Tri River Area Horticultural Agent