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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:
I have noticed some unusual weeds coming up in my newly placed pine straw. The weeds look like little mimosa trees. What is it?
Answer:
This is a new weed to our area that has arrived by way of your pine straw. It is called Chamberbitter and is a tough summer annual weed. It is found in Florida, Georgia, Texas, and Alabama. I suspect your pine straw originated from one of those states. We discovered this weed last year in plantings around our own office. Mulches are not very effective in stopping this weed. Preen has no effect in stopping it either. Homeowners must hand remove the weed or carefully spray it with Roundup (glyphosate). Professional landscapers can us Surflan or XL in beds before mulching to prevent germination.
Question:
We have two 17 year old Japanese maples in our yard. One looked sick last year and now it is barely putting out new leaves. The other tree is in full leaf. What can we do for the sick tree?
Answer:
Japanese maples are finicky trees. They do not like our poorly drained soils and they can become infected with a root disease called armillaria. Most all Japanese maples that I have seen, that are in a state of decline, can be attributed to problems with the root system. As the roots fail, the limbs will die one by one, the leaves become smaller each year, and the bark will split. No amount of fertilizer or pesticides will revert this decline. Once the tree has lots all aesthetic value, remove it and replace with a different species all together. But in a different planting hole.
Question:
I have planted a steep hillside along our drive with fescue. The grass is doing great but it is too steep to mow. I do not think I can even use a weedeater. Will the grass die if I can't mow it?
Answer:
Fescue is a very tough grass especially on hillsides, the banks of dams, and steep slopes. It will continue to grow and then eventually slow down when it gets hot. Do not worry about mowing it. It will not die. Just leave it be. It is interesting that where we neglect fescue it does fine. But put it in your yard under a regiment of fertilizer, weekly mowing, weed killers, and irrigation, it seems like an uphill battle to grow it. Go figure!
Question:
We have spend several thousand dollars on a new landscape and the shrubs are dropping there leaves. What is wrong?
Answer:
Regardless of how much money we spend and hours of searching on the Internet, it is often the simple things we overlook. In this case it is just the lack of water. By far the most misunderstood practice in both the agricultural and horticultural world. Everyone from the landscaper to the homeowner interprets it different. Your new shrubbery was at one time watered daily at the nursery until it arrived at your home. After it was planted it was watered (I hope) by the landscaper. Although your native soil may be wet, the soil that the shrubs grew is designed to dry out in just days. Therefore every 5-7 days someone needs to water these plants thoroughly. Standing over them with a garden hose and spray nozzle does not do the the job. I would remove the nozzle and place the hose at the center of each shrub and let the water run at least 10 minutes at the speed of a water fountain. Hopefully it is not too late to save them. You will know in about 2-3 weeks when new leaf buds appear. Be sure you have at least 3 inches of mulch over their roots too.
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