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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:
We have pines planted along the entrance to our development. I noticed the other day that there are growths on some of the trunks and limbs that are bright orange. Are these trees in trouble?
Answer:
There are two very active fungi that are appearing on pines right now. One is called Eastern gall rust. This fungus produces bright orange spores on the surface of a gall or enlarged growth. These round galls will form on the trunk and on limbs. Another fungus, fusiform, is found primarly on the trunk. Instead of a round gall, this fungus forms a spindle shaped growth on the trunk. You will see orange spores appearing in the cracks and crevices of this growth. Regardless of the fungi, if the growth is on the trunk, it is advised to remove them. As the trees get older the wood will become weak at the point of infection and the trees will break at that point during a storm. If the gall is on a limb, just prune the infected limb off. Since these diseases are more of a problem on young trees, there is no sense of urgency. But at some time, during a thinning, these trees can be removed.
Question:
I planted some new dogwood trees several years ago and they have not bloomed yet. I was told I must have bought male trees. Where do you purchase the female trees that will bloom?
Answer:
My mother always referred to me as a late bloomer. So it is with your dogwood tree. Our native dogwood, Cornus florida, must be around 6 years old before it begins to bloom. At that time it is has reached maturity. Maturity in the world of trees means it has begun to flower. Be patient and keep your new trees watered during drought and keep mulch around the base of the tree. This will prevent lawn mower injury to the trunk and reduce competition with grass. Flowering in dogwoods is also influenced by available light. There are many older dogwoods deep in the woods that have not flowered. Too much shade will prevent flowering. This is why you notice a profusion of dogwood flowers on the forest edge and along right-of-ways as a result of the extra sun. But in your case, blooming will come with age.
Question:
My wife told me to take her poinsettia plants and plant them outdoors in the flower garden. It seems like a waste of time because they have lost all their leaves and I did not think poinsettias would grow here anyway. What do you think?
Answer:
You are not alone. I have 6 waiting to be planted at my house. Actually, they do make very nice foliage plants during the summer. I have had plants reach 4 feet in height by summer's end. They have few pests and are very attractive plants. Before you plant them, cut the leafless stalks back to within 4 inches from the top of the pot. After removing the plant from the container, loosen the roots, and plant in full sun. Begin watering and use a soluble fertilizer every 2-3 weeks to encourage rapid growth. Plant poinsettias at least 3 feet apart. But when fall comes and the threat of frost looms, that is where I draw the line. Because they are so large, I do not dig them up and return them indoors with plans to force them to bloom.
Question:
I am not sure what kind of crapemyrtle tree to buy. A lot of the ones I see in the area get so tall and must be cut back to keep them at a reasonable size. Are there dwarf crapemyrtles that would be better suited for small yards?
Answer:
Unbeknownst to most homeowners and many landscapers is the fact there are groupings of crapemyrtles based on their overall size. Many of the problems with crapemytles becoming too large or overgrown are the result of just planting what is available or you fell in love with the color. The result is the severe pruning or 'crapemurder' that takes place each year to keep them at a smaller size.
Crapemyrtle varieties are placed in 3 size groups. Semi-dwarf varieties grow in the 5-12 foot height range. Intermediate varieties will grow from 13-20 feet. Finally, the tree-type crapemyrtles will easily reach 30 feet and above. It is usually the tree-type varieties that suffer from crapemurder. These are the ones that are placed in parking lots, around restaurants, on corners, and other spaces that are too small for trees of this size. Crapemyrtles are wonderful trees and give us at least 100 days of summer blossoms. Visit one of our web pages at www.ncstate-plants.net, then click on Plant Fact Sheets, to pick the one best suited for your needs.
North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University commitment themselves to positive action to secure equal opportunity regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, sex, age, or disability. In addition, the two Universities welcome all persons without regard to sexual orientation, North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&;T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating.