 |
by Rett Davis | |
Gardening Q&A by Rett Davis appears in
Alamance County's daily newspaper, The Times-News,
every Sunday in the Accent section. Each week's installment is
posted to this
website, beginning with January of this year. Scroll to the bottom of
this page to navigate to other Gardening Q&As. Please contact
Rett via e-mail with questions
or
comments in regard to this column.
Question:
My tomato plants have all wilted. Some even have black
leaves. I suspect all this rain has drowned them. Will they come back
and do I have time to replant new tomato plants?
Answer:
What a year to have a vegetable garden! Too much water has
rarely been a problem in these parts for the past 5 years. Not only are
tomato plants drowning, many are yellow, and leaf diseases are rampant.
Excessive rains create waterlogged soils that prohibit plant roots from
respiring. Yes, roots need oxygen just like the leaves do. Without the
much needed oxygen, the hormone levels in the plants are altered which
results in wilting. Eventually the entire plant will wilt. Once this
happens it is gone. Plants that show some wilting in the top growing
points may recover as the soil drains. For those plants that are
totally wilted, remove and replant. There is still plenty of time for a
second, or third planting of tomatoes.
Question:
There is a tree on our property that has blackberry like fruit
on it. The fruit is about 1/2 inch long. What is this tree?
Answer:
It is mulberry. Mulberry has been in fruit for the last few
weeks. The fruit can be as long 1 inch in length. It is relished by
birds because of its sweetness. I hope your car is not parked near by!
We have both red and white mulberry in our county. The fruit is the
same color. White mulberry is ripening now. How do you tell the
difference from red and white? The leaf surface on the top of the leaf
of a red mulberry will be rough like sandpaper. White mulberry will
have a smooth leaf surface on top. Red mulberry is also the one found
in woodlands. White mulberry was brought in from the Orient to serve as
food for silkworms. Silkworms feed on the leaves of white mulberry.
White mulberries were once extensively planted though out the south.
Question:
Our okra plants have not grown 1 inch since they geminated
several weeks ago. The leaves are yellow. Should I replant?
Answer:
Excessive rains and cool temperatures have delayed okra. Okra
is one of those vegetables that requires a minimum soil temperature of
70 degrees to even germinate. Most of our day time air temperatures
have not been too far in the 70's. Soil temperature is often 10 degrees
cooler. If your okra stand is good, leave them alone and they should
start to respond to the warmer temperatures that are occurring now. If
your stand is poor, then I would recommend replanting. Okra will
beginning bearing in about 60 days from seeding.
Question:
My leaves on my sweet corn are yellow. I fertilized at
planting. Should I fertilize again and if so what kind and how much?
Answer:
Most sweet and field corn is not as green as we are accustomed
to seeing. Many farmers are reapplying nitrogen to their field corn as
a result. This yellowing is the result of excessive rains that has
leached the nitrogen out of the soil. As much as 50% is gone. Home
gardeners can replenish the nitrogen to their sweet corn by side
dressing with 10-10-10. If your rows are 36 inches apart, then seders
with 10-10-10 at the rate of 2 1/2 tablespoons per 10 feet of row. Do
this before the plants reach knee height. Place the fertilizer in a
band about 4 inches away from the plants.
HERB GROUP MEETING Thymes To-Gather will hold their monthly meeting on Tuesday, June 17th at 6:30 pm in the auditorium of the Agricultural Building, 209 N. Graham-Hopedale Road, Burlington, NC. Please note time change of 6:30 pm rather than 7:00 pm.
Gardening Q&A Navigation Options
If you have any horticultural questions, please direct them to Rett Davis