Plant your potatoes when white oak leaves are the size of a cat's ear--the phenology thread

[Kolesar]

What is phenology?

Phenology is the study of recurring biological phenomena and their relationship to weather. Bird migration, hunting and gathering seasons, blooming of wildflowers and trees, and the seasonal appearance of insects are examples of phenological events that have been recorded for centuries. We have all observed that plants bloom earlier in warm springs. Insects also emerge earlier when it is warm than in cooler seasons. Because the development of both plants and insects is temperature dependent, plants can accurately track the environmental factors that determine when insects are active. For this reason, plant phenology can be used to predict insect emergence. Indeed, the use of plant phenology to predict insect activity is an old practice, with recorded observations dating back at least 300 years. In fact, research at The Ohio State University has shown that plants bloom and insects emerge in virtually the same order every year, no matter what kind of weather occurred that winter or spring. For this reason, the flowering sequence of plants can be used as a biological calendar to predict insect activity, and to time other gardening practices that are dependent on a particular stage of plant development, such as propagation or weed control. The trees and shrubs planted in the OSU Phenology Garden network sites will be monitored for the first and full bloom, which will assist with identifying insect activity.

http://phenology.osu.edu/

Plant swiss chard, spinach, beet, and onions when the daffodils are in bloom.
-Peas when maple trees flower
-Potatoes when white oak leaves are the size of a cat's ear.
-Bush beans,pole beans, and cucumbers when the apple blossoms are dropping.
-Warm weather crops like tomatoes, melons, and eggplant when black locust and peonies flower.
-Cabbage and broccoli after dogwoods have dropped their flowers because there is less chance of the crops being damaged by root maggots.

[sagesnow]

1. A farmer friend of mine

always said his father told him to plant corn when the oak leaves are the size of a squirrels ear. I always wished I could have met his father and learn from his store of garden wisdom.

[HopeHoops]

2. I have a pin oak. It holds its dead leaves until spring and is late to sprout.

My potatoes are in the ground WAY before the cat ear thing.

[Curmudgeoness]

3. Ugh, I have lots of pin oaks too.

But I know where there are other trees around the area, and suppose that I could search out the White Oaks. My Pin Oaks are mature, heading toward old age....and I just hope that I outlive them, since they are huge! It finally snowed so it covered up all the limbs and branches all over the yard that need cleaned up....good. I don't want to see them now.

[HopeHoops]

4. I don't ever rake the leaves. I just mow them into mulch.

[Curmudgeoness]

5. We are like twins!!!

I do the same thing. Actually, I have to rake sometimes in the fall if the weather is not good for mowing them...there are just too many leaves from all these huge trees to leave on the ground. Lucky for me, two years in a row I have got them all mulched. The years that I have to rake, they go into bags and I dump them in the yard and mulch in the spring....but that is so much more work.

I have been told that oak leaves are the gold standard for mulch, so it is all good.

[HopeHoops]

6. Wait for a good storm to blow them into the neighbor's yard.

[Curmudgeoness]

7. Shhhhhhhhh!!!!

We don't want anyone to think that was intentional!

[HopeHoops]

8. The high-powered leaf blower might be a clue to the neighbor.