Green Living

Energy Savings…

Green living does a household, and the world, a lot of good. Now that we’re in the 21st century, we have access to dozens of ways to live more sustainably. A great first step to discovering them all is to explore green communities, where a greener, more environment-conscious lifestyle is the norm. Consider communities that emphasize conservation in planning, design, and statutes. Secondly, localize green-thinking and the reduction of energy consumption by changing things in your own home. And, finally, understand the broader spectrum. How could energy savings impact the world on a broader scale? Take a look at this brief Q & A to get a sense for the impact you could have:

What if…

What if every American home replaced just one incandescent bulb with an ENERGY STAR LED bulbs?

• The annual energy savings would total $700 million.
• It would prevent 9,000,000,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions per year, the equivalent of 800,000 car emissions.

What if everyone had a timed thermostat?

• The average single family home would accrue energy savings of $180 per year.
• Each family’s CO2 output would be reduced by 2,059 pounds per year.
• If 20 million homes installed timed thermostats, then energy savings would be $3.6 billion/year. It would also save 41 billion pounds of CO2 (the equivalent of 3.4 million cars).

What if everyone turned down their water heater temperature by 10 degrees?

• Every 10 degree reduction results in a 3 to 5 percent reduction in CO2 emissions.
• If 20 million homes reduced their hot water heaters by 10 degrees, resulting energy savings would be $1.18 billion/yr. nationwide and 14.6 billion pounds of CO2 would be saved, the equivalent of 1.2 million cars emissions.

What if everyone installed low flow water fixtures?

• You would save 55 gallons of water for every 10-minute shower you took.
• By switching from an eight gallon per minute (gpm) flow to a 2.5 gpm flow, energy savings + reduction in water usage would be equivalent to $320/year.
• If 20 million people switched to low-flow shower heads, we’d save 401 billion gallons of water each year.

You Can!

Do your part to help conserve Earth’s resources. Implement these low-cost, cost-saving, energy-saving ideas in your own home. If you’re diving into the relocation process, then plan ahead by honing in on communities that supports green living. Click here to find green living communities in areas that you’re interested in.

This information was gathered from Energy.gov. For additional information on energy savings click here.

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GROW HEALTHY LAWNS WITH LESS NITROGEN

Dr. Leonard Perry, Horticulture Professor
University of Vermont

Most know nitrogen is important for growth and good quality lawns, even if just from watching television commercials. But if some nitrogen is good, more is not necessarily better.

Nitrogen is one of the main fertilizer elements, the percent in a fertilizer represented by the first number in the analysis. So a 5-3-4 fertilizer would have 5 percent nitrogen. This element maintains dark green color, enhances shootdensity, and increases grass resistance to stress and pest injury.

Too much nitrogen, however, can be detrimental to the turf grass. The grass may grow too lush, and so have increased disease problems. Too much nitrogen can reduce the lawn grass tolerance to high and low temperature stress. And too much nitrogen increases growth excessively, resulting in moisture stress and the potential for thatch (the dense layer of intermingled roots and shoots, both living and dead, near the soil surface that tends to block water and air).

Too much nitrogen also can be detrimental to the environment. Excess nitrogen can increase the risk of ground water pollution. More growth means more mowing. This means more time on the mower, more fuel used, and more air pollution from the mower.

Since nitrogen moves readily into the soil with water (“leaches”), it usually needs applying yearly in some form. There are some ways you can reduce the amount applied, or applied as fertilizers, and so reduce the risk of pollution.

— Be willing to have good quality turfgrass that is green, but perhaps not as dark green as the slick ads on television and in magazines. This is possible by using less nitrogen fertilizer– no more than one pound of actual nitrogen per 1000 square feet per application, and no more than two applications per year. So if using a fertilizer with 10 percent nitrogen, you should use 10 pounds to get this amount of nitrogen.

— Raise the mowing height to reduce turf stress and weeds. Many still mow too low. Low mowing often is justified only on highly maintained golf courses and similar situations.

— Use specialty turf fertilizers that have a high proportion of water insoluble nitrogen (WIN). When possible, use fertilizers with at least 50 percent WIN of total nitrogen. Natural organic sources are 100 percent slow release, which is desirable.

— Apply fertilizer at appropriate times of year. Avoid or reduce summer applications. The best once-a-year application is in late summer or early fall.

— Recycle grass clippings back into the lawns, such as with a mulching type mower. About 46 to 59 percent of the applied nitrogen from fertilizer ends up in the clippings. One estimate shows that returning grass clippings can contribute about two pounds of nitrogen per 1000 square feet a year. Returning grass clippings to the turf can reduce fertilizer needs by 25 to 40 percent.

— For some lawns, you may add or rely on a legume (such as white clover) among the grass to add nitrogen. Legumes have bacteria on their roots that take nitrogen from the atmosphere and convert it to nitrate forms that plants can use.

9/1/15

Distribution of this release is made possible by University of Vermont and New England Grows–a conference providing education for industry professionals and support for university outreach efforts in horticulture.

PERENNIAL PLANT FEATURE FALL ASTERS

Dr. Leonard Perry, Extension Professor
University of Vermont

There are many reasons to use fall-blooming asters in landscapes. There is much variety in this large group of hardy perennials, coming in various heights and showy flower colors. You’ll find selections in all shades of red, pink, purple, white, and even blue. They’re easy to grow, most are native, and they’re one of the main plants for bees, butterflies and other pollinators in the fall. They combine well with ornamental grasses, rudbeckia, and coneflowers.

With so many to choose from, how does one begin? In addition to favorite colors, look for ones that best fit your growing conditions, desired habits, and that have disease resistance.

The starburst appearance of the flowers leads to the name “aster”, from the Greek word for star. Asters give their name to the large composite family— Asteraceae— that of sunflowers, dahlias, daisies, zinnias, and similar flowers. The asters all used to be grouped together into one “genus” (Aster), but thanks to recent botanical research they’ve been regrouped with names more suited to botanists than gardeners. So for instance, although the New England aster genus is now changed (Symphyotrichum), the species name has remained the same (novae-angliae).

Generally, most asters prefer moist, well-drained soil and full sun. There is a range of species, however, that can be grouped by their native environments and corresponding garden preferences. The first group prefers rich, moist soil in full sun. These include the species native to meadows, prairies and marshes such as the New York (S. novi-belgii), New England (S. novae-angliae), and flat-topped (D. umbellata) asters. They prefer steady moisture. Ones that prefer moist soil, but can tolerate dry sites, include the sky-blue (S. oolentangiense), heath (S. ericoides), calico (S. lateriflorum), aromatic (S. oblongifolium), and silky (S. sericeum) asters. Tatarian aster (A. tataricus) in this group, a Siberian native, is quite adaptable to various soils.

The second group of asters also prefer full sun, along with cool nights, and very well-drained soil. This is because they are native to seashores and mountains where soil drainage is excellent. They may be short-lived over only a few years, particularly if conditions aren’t just right. In this group you’ll find the European Michaelmas daisy native to Asia Minor (A. amellus)—a name often given to many asters as they bloom around this Christian holiday of September 29. Others in this group are the Frikart’s (A. xfrikartii) aster, of garden origin, and East Indies (A. tongolensis) aster native to western China and India.

The third group of native aster species tolerate shade (under 4 hours direct sun per day), but bloom better in part shade (4 to 8 hours of direct sun). The blue wood aster (S. cordifolium), Drummond’s aster (S. drummondii), white wood aster (E. divaricata), and big leaf aster (A. macrophyllus) are in this group. Although they prefer moist soils rich in organic matter (humus), they will tolerate some drought.

In perennial trials at the Chicago Botanic Gardens, 119 asters were evaluated over six years. They were rated based on flowering, health, habit, and hardiness. In this USDA zone 5 site (-10 to -20 degrees F average winter minimum), seven asters stood out with five-star ratings. These top asters included ‘Jin Dai’ tatarian aster, white wood aster and its cultivar (cultivated variety) ‘Eastern Star’, ‘Snow Flurry’ heath aster, calico aster and its cultivar ‘Lady in Black’, and ‘Raydon’s Favorite’ aromatic aster. For a rock garden or low wall, where cascading stems are desired, ‘Snow Flurry’ would be a good choice. For perennial gardens and naturalistic landscape masses, good choices would include asters with bushy habits—’Jin Dai’, ‘Lady in Black’, or ‘Raydon’s Favorite’.

In addition, there were 19 asters that rated good, with four stars. These good asters included a couple of New England asters—the rosy pink ‘Harrington’s Pink’ and deep pink ‘Honeysong Pink’, and three New York asters– the light lavender ‘Blaubox’, lavender-blue ‘Climax’, and purple-pink ‘Rosenwichtel’. Most selections you may find of the asters are in the New York and New England species. Perhaps the reasons that more didn’t rate more highly relate to habit and potential problems. Aromatic asters tend to be less problem-prone, and good alternative choices.

New England asters can get to four to five feet tall and fall over under some conditions, particularly low light. Cutting them back in early summer by one third to one half will make them more bushy, with no need to stake.

One of the more recent introductions of New England asters, and one of the most popular asters, ‘Purple Dome’ came from the Mt. Cuba Center and gardens in Delaware. It is violet-purple and low, only growing to about 16 inches high and about 2 feet wide. This makes it a good choice for fronts of borders, along walks, massed, or even containers. It bloomed over two months in Chicago, from early September to early November. ‘Vibrant Dome’ is a bright pink sport of this compact cultivar, not in these trials but popular and available.

‘Purple Dome’ is a good example of how resistance to diseases can vary by site. Often considered to have excellent resistance to powdery mildew, in the Chicago trials this cultivar was only rated as fair.

Asters may get rust or powdery mildew diseases on leaves. The former was seen more on the New York asters in the Chicago trials, while the latter disease was seen more on the New England asters. Giving good air circulation around plants, and disposing of leaves in the fall (not in the compost) will help lessen these. There are several sprays, organic and synthetic, that can be used for these too.

A main destructive insect of asters may be the lacebug, a small grayish insect that appears in midsummer and sucks the plant juices from the undersides of leaves, primarily of the New York and related types. Leaves turn yellowish and eventually brown and fall off. Organic or synthetic insect sprays can be used for control. Read and follow all label directions for best control, and safety for you and the environment.

Deer and rabbits can be quite fond of asters, too. There are repellent sprays for these. Low fencing for rabbits, and deer netting for these may be needed if repellents don’t work. Keys are to train these animals early in the season, and to rotate among more than one repellent strategy or spray.

Several asters have been bred as alternatives to fall garden mums, including the lavender ‘Ariel’, violet ‘Celeste’, and the purple ‘Pixie Dark’. Results from the Chicago trials show these only live a year or two, so should be grown as annual flowers. Since the New York asters have problems, and are short-lived, they are not recommended either, even though commonly found.

Keeping asters healthy during the growing season—in part, growing them under the right conditions– will go a long way toward helping them survive the subsequent winter. More on asters and their culture, as well as other perennial evaluations, can be found in the reports from trials manager Richard Hawke and his Chicago Botanic Garden trials website (www.chicagobotanic.org/research/plant_evaluation).

Distribution of this release is made possible by the University of Vermont, and New England Grows– a conference providing education for industry professionals and support for university outreach efforts in horticulture.

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