City green waste days set for Dec. 2-13

Q: Do you know the dates of the city’s green recycle program yet? I’m ready to start raking and storing my bags of fallen leaves. — R.G., Albuquerque

A: I went into the city’s Solid Waste tab and voilà, the timetable for the city’s green waste has been announced. So mark your calendars and start tidying. Here’s how it’ll pan out.

Starting Monday, Dec. 2, through Friday, Dec. 13, on your regular trash pickup day, set your bags of collected leaves curbside, 4 feet away from your trash bins, and they will be whisked away to be mulched and used in projects by the city.

Please remember that this is a service and there are rules that I implore you to follow.

First, the collections of leaves, small twigs, etc., need to be bagged and weigh no more than 40 pounds each. If you have larger branches that you desire to go away, that can happen too as long as they are bundled (tied up at both ends) into lengths of no more than four feet and again don’t weigh more than 40 pounds. Remember, the workers should not be injured by your overzealousness. Follow the rules, please.

Know that this service isn’t meant to gather old tires, construction debris, rocks or gravel at all.

Rather than filling our landfills with products that can easily be made into a rough mulch, this service is to collect stuff that used to be alive.

With the rapid drop of our temperatures lately, you can bet the leaves will be falling and skittering everywhere, so start the biannual tidying and be far more leaf litter free soon. Very soon!

Q: I have my paperwhite bulbs in the refrigerator, and have picked nondraining bowls and found small bags of pretty small pebbles! Would you guide me to be successful with this forcing bulbs that you’re so keen on? — A.L., Albuquerque

A: I’m so excited! Here it goes.

First, you’ll want to pour in the pebbles in a shallow layer in the bowls. I say shallow, but that depends on how deep the containers are. You’ll want the bulbs to sit on that layer so that the tops of the bulbs are even to, or just barely above, the rim of the container once you seat them.

Next, get the bulbs out of the fridge and gently rub them between your palms, removing any of the dark paperish husks that come off easily. Don’t go nuts making them bare, just more tidy and elegant looking.

Set the bulbs on that layer of pebbles, seating them so they don’t wobble or fall over. Next, fill a cup with some of the pebbles and pour them around the bulbs so they get a certain amount of support from them. I have always visualized the bulbs as a globe. You want the bottom of the globe, the South Pole, sitting on the bottom layer and then add enough pebbles to cover the bulbs past the equator, but not to the North Pole. You want the top fourth of the bulb above ground, so to speak.

Next, you’ll want to add enough water to the container so the bottom of the bulb is just being touched by water. Don’t over fill the container with water. Just the bulb bottom needs to be wet. Find a place that will offer bright light and coolish temperatures, remembering to monitor the water level, and quickly the bulbs will sink some roots and start to pop from the top. Within days, they should look like a garden planting popping up for spring.

That’s another thought too. The more bulbs in the container, the better the display. One or two is nice, but five to seven is grand. Once you’ve gotten the bulbs settled into their new spots, remember to take them for a walk daily. Meaning, turn the containers a third to a half on their axis so the bulbs don’t start leaning, reaching for the bright light. The walking helps keep them more straight.

Now, if the bulbs act like they are shooting up really quickly, you can add a jigger of vodka to the water and see if there is a cooler spot for them to live in. That stunts the growth spurt, keeping the displays more condensed. If you want, you can start displays every other week and have cheerful displays well into the winter months to help dispel the gloom, keeping the faith that spring is right around the corner.

Have fun and enjoy the process of pebble/container forcing.

Happy Diggin’ In!

Tracey Fitzgibbon is a certified nurseryman. Send garden-related questions to Digging In, Albuquerque Journal, 7777 Jefferson St. NE, Albuquerque, N.M. 87109, or to features@abqjournal.com.