Rain, Rain

You know the old children song Rain Rain go away. I know many of us are very tempted to sing that one right now. I'm starting to wonder what the sun looks like, I'm having trouble remembering it. This rain is both good and bad, we are starting to recuperate from the past several years of drought. At the same time it is making it difficult to get planting done, and local greenhouse plants are yellow and still small. Things are not growing as well as we might have hoped for during this very wet cloudy spring. Hang in there, I know that it can be frustrating but we are in dire need of replenishing the water table. Good news is always nice and I do have some. This weekend, Saturday May 30, 2009 the Avery County Farmers Market will be open for business. It is located at the Newland Elementary School upper parking lot. Open for business from 8-Noon every Saturday. This is a great place to get local goods, including baked goods, plants, cheese, berries, and even jewlery all from local producers. I know that there will be several local farms represented the weekend and more are scheduled to come as the season goes on. This time of the year we will be limited on produce, but some good local cool season crops such as aspargus, kale, and other salad greens as well as fresh local strawberries (if the weather alowys it). We do hope to see you there.
Warm wishes and happy gardens.

Spring is in the Air

The warmer weather is finally here. Dogwoods, redbuds, and apples have bloomed and are letting us know that spring is here. I have seen some of the most beautiful dogwoods in bloom this year and have truly enjoyed them. I am also aware that many of you are already very busy planting and working in gardens and landscaping.
I do hope that the frost is finally over now, it got many of us that had plants out early. Of course, that is a risk you take in planting early here in the mountains. Frost damage can look like dieback, burnt tips, and leaf curl. Most plants that are in good soil and healthy can recover from damage like this, but young plants and new growth is especially susceptible to this kind of damange and it could prove fatal in the event that the damage is severe enough. Covering plants with plastic that is weighted to the ground, buckets, or large pots can help, also you can water the folage of plants very early before the fost "lays" on the plant to prevent damage. This is especially helpful when plants such as blueberries or strawberries are in bloom.
I also wanted to include this picture of a dogwood bloom that I saw on my farm. The small dogwood had the largest blooms that I have ever seen and it was loaded down with them.
Well, good wishes and happy gardens.

Hello and Welcome

Hello and welcome to the Avery County lawns and gardens website. I hope that this will be a good resource site for those that are interested in gardens, lawns, and landscapes in the High County of North Carolina. I suppose an introduction is appropriate at this time.
My name is Adam Keener, I am a native to Avery County, graduate of Berea College which is located in Ky, married to a wonderful woman, Becky, father of one child, a wonderful and beautiful girl Callie Jo, working in my "dream job" as an Extension Agent in my hometown, working on getting a Masters degree from NCSU, and running a small farm of about 90 acres, 30+ acres are pasture, about 1/2 acre of gardens, horses, cattle, and chickens to round it out.
I hope that this little project will assist people with concerns and questions that they may have about general gardening, lawn care, and landscaping issues. I will try to update regularly, and address questions that I receive at the office or while I'm out and about.