Polk County Itemizer-Observer • May 13, 2015 9A
Polk County Living
Divide, conquer plants to keep healthy
BIRTHS
Andersen
While you’re weeding and
seeding and planting and
pruning, there’s one more
thing to put on your plate:
dividing.
Dividing is a matter of
digging up plants, prying
them apart with hands,
spades, knives or an ax and
replanting them in new
holes, said Weston Miller, a
horticulturist for Oregon
State University’s Extension
Service. As perennials grow
from the crown and the
clumps get larger, plants de-
cline in vigor and have fewer
flowers. If you wait too long
to divide, flowering can stop
altogether,
That’s not the only reason
to take out the spade and
start splitting up your prized
plants.
“I divide plants when I
want more of them,” Miller
said. “I’m looking outside
and seeing some chives. I’ll
hack those into quarters. I
divide things like yarrow a
lot because I want to popu-
late large areas.”
If you’ve got enough
yarrow – or whatever other
plant that needs to be divid-
ed — thrill your gardening
K YM
P OKORNY
Your
Garden
friends by sharing extras.
How many more plants
you end up with depends
on how big or vigorous the
original plant. Hosta, grass-
es and daylily can produce
six or more, while hollyhock
and coral bells may only
yield three. Be sure to pay
attention to how many
growing points there are
and leave at least two per
clump when you cut plants
apart.
As a general rule, Miller
said, divide summer- and
fall-blooming plants in
spring and spring-blooming
plants after they’ve bloomed
or in the fall. Don’t cut apart
a plant when it’s blooming.
You’ll know your plant
needs dividing if it’s dying in
the middle or becoming
lackadaisical, he said. Even
if a reference says to divide a
plant every three years,
How to divide plants:
Saturate soil where you plan to plant divisions a few
days ahead of time.
Prepare soil in the new planting area with organic mat-
ter and saturate again.
Dig holes where you will plant divisions. Make them
wide enough to accommodate the roots and a bit more.
Dig deep enough so crown of divisions will be level with
top of the soil.
If the soil is dry, water the plant a day or two before di-
viding it.
Cut the plant down to 6 inches from the ground.
Use a spading fork or sharp shovel to dig around the
plant.
Pry or dig out in one big chunk.
Once on the surface, don’t allow root ball to dry out. If
it’s a warm day, cover with plastic sheet, cloth or even plant
clippings.
Make sure there are growing portions in each division.
For smaller plants or those with fibrous roots systems
like small ornamental grasses, pry apart the roots with your
hands or saw through them with a serrated knife or weed-
ing tool such as a Hori-Hori knife. Use a sharp spade, shov-
el, handsaw or ax for larger plants. With really tough roots,
pry them apart with two spading forks placed back to back.
Shake or hose off loose soil.
Discard dead center of plant.
Plant divisions with crowns even with soil line.
there’s no need to do so if it’s
growing well.
One thing people don’t
think to divide are culinary
herbs such as sage, thyme,
oregano and marjoram,
Miller said.
“You’ll get much more
supple growth and better
culinary quality if they’re di-
vided every couple of years,”
he said.
MI TOWN
The calendar tells us that
we’re knee-deep in spring-
time — and in MI Town that
means that kids of all ages
are in the midst of partici-
pating in wonderful outdoor
sports such as track and
field, baseball and softball.
Whether or not we have kids
or grandkids or even great-
grandkids involved in spring
sports, it’s so much fun to
spend these warm after-
noons and twilight evenings
watching these events. We
don’t have to drive to busy
cities or pay for expensive
seats at faraway stadiums to
enjoy a great time.
—
MI Town is alive with the
sounds of lawnmowers and
weed whackers, and there
are days you wonder if the
weeds are winning the battle
in every neighborhood. For
gardeners, these bright and
P ATTY
T AYLOR
D UTCHER
Columnist
sunny days bring a mixed
blessing — the weeds seem
to grow faster than the flow-
ers — and it’s a challenge to
stay ahead of the game. This
is truly the season of renew-
al in so many ways, and a
day in the yard will bring so
many rewards for each of us
and for our neighbors, who
will welcome an opportuni-
ty to chat over the back
fence and take a welcome
break from our mutual
labors.
—
Thanks to the Monmouth
Garden Club and the Ore-
gon State University Master
Gardeners recent plant
sales, our vegetable gardens
are all taking on a new look
for springtime as well.
There’s a lot of work up front
when planting a garden, but
the rewards are well worth it
as the tomatoes, green
beans, lettuce and all the
herbs are harvested during
the season. This year at our
house, the grapevines are
beginning to show lots of
promise — shade for the
back deck in summertime
and the bounty of fresh
grapes in the fall.
—
If you don’t have time
and/or energy or the out-
door space to grow your
own fresh fruit and veggies,
you can meet and greet your
friends and neighbors at the
Monmouth Bounty Market
on Tuesdays, and stop by the
Independence farmers mar-
kets every Saturday in the
Umpqua Bank parking lot
and down at Riverview Park.
Farm-grown vegetables and
fruits and all kinds of hand-
crafted items are available at
reasonable prices. Good
springtime fare from our
Willamette Valley is avail-
able right in our neighbor-
hood – and our money goes
much farther when we buy
locally.
—
Springtime is a great sea-
son to welcome new neigh-
bors or touch base with folks
we haven’t seen in a long
time. It’s also a good time to
walk along our main streets
to see what our local mer-
chants can share with us.
Let’s also stop for a cup of
coffee or a cold drink at one
of our many cafes and
restaurants.
PEDEE NEWS
Judy Guida visited former
neighbor Sharon Ketchum
in Colville, Wash., for a little
over a week in April while
Sharon’s husband Scott was
on a business trip out of the
country. She had a wonder-
ful time riding horses with
Sharon, as well as learning
the finer points of gopher
trapping. They also went to
a concert each Saturday, the
first Saturday to the
Spokane Symphony and the
second Saturday: to hear
Pink Martini, a Portland-
based jazz and pop band.
On one of the days, they
drove to Idaho to check out
a beautiful, well-trained
palomino gelding which
Sharon ultimately bought —
A RLENE
K OVASH
always fun to go horse
shopping!
—
Once Sharon got Judy out
of the house, she and several
friends flew to Louisville,
Ky., to go to the Kentucky
Derby. They had a great
time, wearing traditional
“Southern Belle” Derby hats,
attending Derby festivities,
and seeing their favorite,
American Pharaoh, win.
—
Last weekend Judy trav-
eled to Phoenix, Ariz., to
visit relatives, enjoy the 100
degree weather and see his-
toric sites in Phoenix and
Scottsdale (Heard Museum
and Frank Lloyd Wright’s
Taliesin West) plus go to a
barbecue festival where
there were lots of country
bands playing.
—
Kevin Porter, who rented
some acreage from a neigh-
bor, planted 17 acres of pur-
ple phacelia for seed last
week, to be sold as a cover
crop. These purple flowers
are very sweet and attractive
to bees and will also beauti-
fy the neighborhood later
Reed Steven Andersen was born to Mark and Monica
Andersen of Dallas at 8:47 p.m. on April 11 at Salem Hos-
pital Family Birth Center.
He weighed 9 pounds, 1 ounce, and was 21½ inches
long.
Reed joins Grant 5.
Grandparents are Scott and Tina Andersen and Steve
and Sandy Lewis all of Dallas, and Tonya Hall-Lewis of
Creswell.
Great-grandparents are Hoyt and Judy Hall of Estill
Springs, Tenn., Bob and Wanda Andersen of Placerville,
Calif., and Paul Lewis of Dallas.
King
Grover Case King was born to Isaac and Stefani King of
Dallas at 2:59 a.m. on April 18 at Silverton Hospital Family
Birth Center.
He weighed 8 pounds, 13 ounces, and was 21 inches
long.
Grover joins Rusty, 1.
Grandparents are Mark and Jill Cavender of Dallas, and
Brian and Kathy King of Falls City.
English
Ryker Lee English was born to Thomas English and Tan-
isha Soto of Dallas at 1:51 p.m. on April 21 at Salem Hospi-
tal Family Birth Center.
He weighed 4 pounds, 9 ounces, and was 17 inches
long.
Ryker joins Joe, 15, Jamie, 13, Jaden, 10, and Braxton, 8.
Grandparents are Todd and Maggie Dennett of Dayton.
Great-grandparents are Lapreal Dennett of New Ply-
mouth, Idaho.
Holmes
Sinai Janaye Holmes was born to Austin and Daisy
Holmes of Salem at 10:36 a.m. on April 25 at Salem Hospi-
tal Family Birth Center.
She weighed 8 pounds, 3 ounces, and was 20¼ inches
long.
Sinai joins Marley, 4, and Azryah, 2.
Grandparents are Celso and Laticia Sanchez of Mon-
mouth, and Richard and Cathy Holmes of Salem.
Great-grandparents are Gilbert and Carmen Martinez
of Los Angeles.
Eisele
Roman Carter Eisele was born to Melvin and Mellisa
Eisele of Dallas at 9:54 p.m. on May 4 at Salem Hospital
Family Birth Center.
He weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces, and was 19½ inches
long.
Roman joins Shelby, 8.
Monmouth~Independence Rotary Club
STRAWBERRY SALE
From the same club that has been doing this for over 25 years.
30 lb. containers of fresh
locally grown strawberries
$
48
Yummy, stemmed,washed, sliced,
ready to eat, freeze or cook.
DEADLINE TO ORDER JUNE 1
PICKUP: INDEPENDENCE, DALLAS, or CORVALLIS
this summer. Kevin’s wife
Karen is slowly recovering
from a head-on crash she
had in January. Still some
deep bruising, not quite
healed.
—
The Polk County Saddle-
ites are planning their annu-
al poker ride for Saturday,
June 20, so plan for that!
Also, save these dates: there
will be the annual Family
Fun Fair at Kings Valley
School at 2 p.m., Sunday,
June 28, sponsored by Pedee
Church among other
groups, and Pedee Church’s
Vacation Bible School,
themed “Weird Animals,”
will be Monday through Fri-
day, July 20-24.
To place your order email:
strawberry@mirotaryclub.org
or call: 503-838-6687
www.mirotaryclub.org
Please leave your phone or email.
We will notify you when they’re ready.
TO BENEFIT ROTARY YOUTH PROGRAMS
Come to the
FREE
HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS
WASTE
COLLECTION EVENT!
LIBRARY CALENDAR
DALLAS
950 Main St. • 503-623-2633
www.ci.dallas.or.us/library
• Wednesday, May, 4 p.m. — Read to the Dog, Bella.
• Thursday, May 14, 11:15 a.m. — Storytime.
• Friday, May 15, 5:30 p.m. — Young Adult Movie Night, “Cap-
tain America, First Avenger.”
• Tuesday, May 19, 11:15 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. — Storytime.
• Wednesday, May 20, 4:30 p.m. — Teen Book Club, “Dragon-
spell” by Donita K. Paul.
• Wednesday, May 20, 4 p.m. – Read to the Dog, Davos.
—
INDEPENDENCE
175 Monmouth St.
503-838-1811
www.ci.independence.or.us/library
• Wednesday, May 13, 10:30 a.m. — Storytime
• Thursday, May 14, 4:30 p.m. — Chess Club for Kids (grades 1
and older)
• Friday, May 15, 6:30 p.m. — Knitting Monsters (basic knitting
projects)
• Friday, May 15, 6:30 p.m. — Knitting Monsters (for adults)
• Saturday, May 16, 3 p.m. — Book Bingo for Adults
• Tuesday, May 19, 4 p.m. — Spring Fun Club (Lego Mania)
• Wednesday, May 20, 10:30 a.m. — Storytime
—
MONMOUTH
168 S. Ecols St. • 503-751-0182
www.ci.monmouth.or.us/library
• Wednesday, May 13, 3:30 p.m. — Community Chinese Lessons
• Thursday, May 14, 10 a.m. — Little Builders Club (babies to
preschoolers)
• Thursday, May 14, 7 p.m. — Once Upon a Thursday Book Club
(meets on second Thursday of the month)
• Saturday, May 16, 1 p.m. — “Sports Around the World”
• Tuesday, May 19, 10:15 a.m. — Storytime
• Wednesday, May 20, 10 a.m. — Bob the Builder
• Wednesday, May 20, 3:30 p.m. — Community Chinese Lessons
(conversation)
—
WAGNER COMMUNITY LIBRARY
111 N. Main St., Falls City
503-787-3521, ext. 319
www.wagner.plinkit.org
• Contact library for upcoming special events and programs
DATE: Saturday, May 23rd, 2015
TIME: From 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Polk County Public Works 820 SW Ash Street___
SPONSORED BY: Polk County, The Cities of Dallas,_______
Independence, Monmouth, Falls City and Salem