When is the best time of the year to transplant a "cutting" from the potting media to the ground? Specifically, grape, fig, and roses, persimmon, and mulberry?
Bill
Anne's Response:
Bill,
In this area of North Carolina the best time to get plants established is in the early fall when temperatures are a bit cooler and the plants can be kept watered. The plants you named may also be planted in the ground in February when they are dormant. If they are watered on a regular basis the root system will be established by the time hot weather arrives.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Save My Dogwood
I have a Dogwood that is 10+ years old, the leaves are drying and wilting on the tips. Do you have any suggestions as to how I can get my tree healthy?
Liz
Anne's Response:
Liz,
There are several causes of the symptoms you describe. The plant could be in too much sun and if it is also in an area that does not have enough moisture in the soil the leaves could get scorched. Making sure the plant is watered regularly and keeping a layer of about 3 inches of organic mulch under the limb spread of the dogwood will help the plant survive. We have also had high humidity and temperatures this spring that encourage the spread of mildew fungus. The other symptom for powdery mildew is a grey powdery coating on the surface of the leaf. Mildew can be prevented with a fungicide spray but once the symptoms have appeared about the only thing you can do is keep the plant healthy with water, mulch and some fungicide to keep the fungus from spreading. If the blooms of the tree were deformed and discolored the plant may have a Botrytis infection. When the infected flowers drop on the leaves they produce the damage you describe. A fungicide applied when the tree starts to flower helps control this disease.
Liz
Anne's Response:
Liz,
There are several causes of the symptoms you describe. The plant could be in too much sun and if it is also in an area that does not have enough moisture in the soil the leaves could get scorched. Making sure the plant is watered regularly and keeping a layer of about 3 inches of organic mulch under the limb spread of the dogwood will help the plant survive. We have also had high humidity and temperatures this spring that encourage the spread of mildew fungus. The other symptom for powdery mildew is a grey powdery coating on the surface of the leaf. Mildew can be prevented with a fungicide spray but once the symptoms have appeared about the only thing you can do is keep the plant healthy with water, mulch and some fungicide to keep the fungus from spreading. If the blooms of the tree were deformed and discolored the plant may have a Botrytis infection. When the infected flowers drop on the leaves they produce the damage you describe. A fungicide applied when the tree starts to flower helps control this disease.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
What is this Flower?
Can you tell me what kind of flower this is?-- Tom
Anne's Response
Tom,
I think the plant is an alstromeria, sometimes called a Peruvian lily. The foliage remains green most of the winter in this area. The blooms appear in the early summer and sometimes again in the fall. There are several different colored cultivars available. It is a long lasting cut flower and the seed pods are also quite attractive in the garden after it blooms.
Suggest a Vine
We need a really fast growing vine to cover some fencing for privacy purposes. We don't care what it looks like just that it grows fast and stays green in winter. We live in Cary, NC. Any ideas for us?
-- Victoria
Anne's Response
One plant that might work very well for you is Carolina Jasmine. It is a native plant, evergreen foliage and a slightly fragrant yellow bloom in late winter. They have begun blooming now and are sometimes seen in trees along the roadside. I grow the cultivar "Pride of Augusta" on a fence on my pproperty and find it makes a nice screen that can be controlled with pruning in the spring after it blooms. Another solution might be the native American Honeysuckle - not the Japanese version that takes over the world. There are white, pink and red cultivars on the market.
-- Victoria
Anne's Response
One plant that might work very well for you is Carolina Jasmine. It is a native plant, evergreen foliage and a slightly fragrant yellow bloom in late winter. They have begun blooming now and are sometimes seen in trees along the roadside. I grow the cultivar "Pride of Augusta" on a fence on my pproperty and find it makes a nice screen that can be controlled with pruning in the spring after it blooms. Another solution might be the native American Honeysuckle - not the Japanese version that takes over the world. There are white, pink and red cultivars on the market.
Saving My Magnolias
I live in a suburb of Little Rock, AR. In late 2003, we planted two magnolias, which were then about 12 feet high. Each met with an unhappy fate.
#1 died, and was replaced by the nursery in 2005 with a somewhat smaller tree, which also died. That was not replaced, and the dead, leafless tree remains, a dozen feet high. But in the last two or three years, a new tree seems to be growing from the roots of the dead one, and is now three or four feet high. We have done nothing with it, but it seems healthy, with full leaves. Should I stake this to the old dead tree? Remove the dead tree? Do nothing? Perhaps I should add that the corner of the lot where the tree is located is slightly depressed, and thus a bit wetter than the rest of the yard.
#2 has lived, and in a sense thrived. It is now 15-18 feet high. However --- the tree leans like the leaning tower of Pisa. I surmise that this is because our soil is pretty spongy -- we can hardly walk in the back yard after lots of rain -- and that the tree is leaning to the east because of the prevailing west winds pushing it that way without strong soil to hold it in place. Do not know that my surmise is correct, of course. We have kept it staked for most of its life, except for the times when I noticed that the wires were broken (which might have been months earlier, b/c I do not keep close tabs on the tree). What are the prospects that this tree will simply stay in the ground, as opposed to being blown over? What can I do to save the tree? Is it worth spending the money to bring out folks from the nursery (again)? I should add that I am not a gardener, and do not have a natural touch with these things.
-- Philip
Anne's Response:
Philip,
Magnolia trees really don't like "wet feet". That may be the reason for the "demise". Another problem may be the structure of the tree itself. From your description of the new growth I think the magnolia you planted may be a grafted plant. The nursery that originally grew the tree used the root stock from a seedling magnolia and attached a scion or twig from a named cultivar of magnolia. It is a fast way to get good growth from more desirable plant at less cost than growing it from a cutting which would take several years for a nursery to grow to a sellable size. Sometimes grafted plants are planted with the graft site planted too deeply in a hole and the grafted top is killed. If the new growth from the base of the dead tree is healthy you might try to cut off the dead wood without damaging the new growth.
Magnolias have a pretty tenacious root system. At this late date I am not sure you will ever be able to get the tree to grow upright but I don't think you need to worry about it pulling out of the ground.
#1 died, and was replaced by the nursery in 2005 with a somewhat smaller tree, which also died. That was not replaced, and the dead, leafless tree remains, a dozen feet high. But in the last two or three years, a new tree seems to be growing from the roots of the dead one, and is now three or four feet high. We have done nothing with it, but it seems healthy, with full leaves. Should I stake this to the old dead tree? Remove the dead tree? Do nothing? Perhaps I should add that the corner of the lot where the tree is located is slightly depressed, and thus a bit wetter than the rest of the yard.
#2 has lived, and in a sense thrived. It is now 15-18 feet high. However --- the tree leans like the leaning tower of Pisa. I surmise that this is because our soil is pretty spongy -- we can hardly walk in the back yard after lots of rain -- and that the tree is leaning to the east because of the prevailing west winds pushing it that way without strong soil to hold it in place. Do not know that my surmise is correct, of course. We have kept it staked for most of its life, except for the times when I noticed that the wires were broken (which might have been months earlier, b/c I do not keep close tabs on the tree). What are the prospects that this tree will simply stay in the ground, as opposed to being blown over? What can I do to save the tree? Is it worth spending the money to bring out folks from the nursery (again)? I should add that I am not a gardener, and do not have a natural touch with these things.
-- Philip
Anne's Response:
Philip,
Magnolia trees really don't like "wet feet". That may be the reason for the "demise". Another problem may be the structure of the tree itself. From your description of the new growth I think the magnolia you planted may be a grafted plant. The nursery that originally grew the tree used the root stock from a seedling magnolia and attached a scion or twig from a named cultivar of magnolia. It is a fast way to get good growth from more desirable plant at less cost than growing it from a cutting which would take several years for a nursery to grow to a sellable size. Sometimes grafted plants are planted with the graft site planted too deeply in a hole and the grafted top is killed. If the new growth from the base of the dead tree is healthy you might try to cut off the dead wood without damaging the new growth.
Magnolias have a pretty tenacious root system. At this late date I am not sure you will ever be able to get the tree to grow upright but I don't think you need to worry about it pulling out of the ground.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Pruning fruit trees
Hi, I have 2 minature apple trees 1 minature pear tree and a potted blueberry brush, they are all 2 year old, can you please tell me when I have to prune them and by how much, I would be grateful for your advise, many thanks, Susan
Anne's response:
Fruit trees are usually pruned in late January and early February in the Carolinas. Most fruit trees do not need much pruning until they are 3 years old. You remove dead wood, limbs that corss and rub another limb. The formal pruning for good fruit production begins their fourth or fifth year. A blueberry planted in a pot is probably a miniature bush so the only pruning needed is to remove dead growth and thin spindly, weak branches. It will need to be repotted every other year to allow th roots to develop. The North CArolina Cooperative Extension Service has a very good brochure on Home Fruit Orchards that provides pruning diagrams, fertilizer recommendations and spraying to control insects and diseases.
Anne's response:
Fruit trees are usually pruned in late January and early February in the Carolinas. Most fruit trees do not need much pruning until they are 3 years old. You remove dead wood, limbs that corss and rub another limb. The formal pruning for good fruit production begins their fourth or fifth year. A blueberry planted in a pot is probably a miniature bush so the only pruning needed is to remove dead growth and thin spindly, weak branches. It will need to be repotted every other year to allow th roots to develop. The North CArolina Cooperative Extension Service has a very good brochure on Home Fruit Orchards that provides pruning diagrams, fertilizer recommendations and spraying to control insects and diseases.
Can I Move Camellias Now?
Thanks for providing Raleigh with such valuable gardening insight. I think I speak for a lot of people in saying the advice is much appreciated! I just purchased a couple of holly bushes in containers to go on either edge of the house. I'll need to move a couple of camelia bushes first. Can I move the camelias now, or should I wait until later in the winter? A single flower just bloomed this morning on one the camelias, by the way.
Joe
Anne's response:
Camellias can be moved at this time of year. They do bloom from September to March so moving the plants usually means you lose the blooms for one season. My preferred method of moving them has always been to root prune around the edge of the rootball in the late fall, then remove the plant in December. If the plant is not too large you can dig it now and replant. Water the plant well, mulch the ground around the plant with 3 inches of ground leaves, pine bark or pine straw. If we do not have enough rain to keep the ground moist you will have to water it during the winter to provide moisture for new roots to grow. The mulch layer should keep the ground from freezing in our climate. I also remove some of the bloom buds when I move my plants so the plant uses its energy to grow roots.
Joe
Anne's response:
Camellias can be moved at this time of year. They do bloom from September to March so moving the plants usually means you lose the blooms for one season. My preferred method of moving them has always been to root prune around the edge of the rootball in the late fall, then remove the plant in December. If the plant is not too large you can dig it now and replant. Water the plant well, mulch the ground around the plant with 3 inches of ground leaves, pine bark or pine straw. If we do not have enough rain to keep the ground moist you will have to water it during the winter to provide moisture for new roots to grow. The mulch layer should keep the ground from freezing in our climate. I also remove some of the bloom buds when I move my plants so the plant uses its energy to grow roots.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Propogating Corn Plants
I have a corn plant that has grown to the ceiling. It is in very good health and has three small shoots growing around the bottom. I would like to cut the top out but I'm not sure how I should do this. Do you have any suggestions?
-- Tracy
Anne's Response:
Some people like to propagate the corn plant by making a small cut at a growth ring below the tuft of top leaves, wrap the area around the growth ring with a piece of damp spagnum moss and cover the moss with a clear plastic. You seal the top and lower edge of the plastic with tape to provide a moist environment. When you see roots begin to form you cut the stalk below the plastic and pot up the new plant. You can then cut the tall stalk to the base and leave the three neww shotts to make a plant.Sometimes you can cut the main trunk to the desired height; make the cut just above a growth ring and the plant will put out a new growth. The trunk will not be perfectly straight above the cut because the new growth will come out to the side of the stem.
-- Tracy
Anne's Response:
Some people like to propagate the corn plant by making a small cut at a growth ring below the tuft of top leaves, wrap the area around the growth ring with a piece of damp spagnum moss and cover the moss with a clear plastic. You seal the top and lower edge of the plastic with tape to provide a moist environment. When you see roots begin to form you cut the stalk below the plastic and pot up the new plant. You can then cut the tall stalk to the base and leave the three neww shotts to make a plant.Sometimes you can cut the main trunk to the desired height; make the cut just above a growth ring and the plant will put out a new growth. The trunk will not be perfectly straight above the cut because the new growth will come out to the side of the stem.
Best Time to Transplant?
My mother has several small to about 4 ft. crepe myrtles that have started near older plants. I would like to transplant these smaller plants along the drive and around my newly constructed house. First, when is the best time of year to transplant them. Second, how do I go about it to best insure the transplant works and last, when is the best time of year to thin out a crepe myrtle?
-- Vickie
Anne's Response:
Prune and thin out crepe myrtles before they begin to put out new spring growth in April. The small crepe myrtles may be root suckers from the parent plant or they may be seedlings. Rook suckers will be identical to the parent plant; you can gently remove soil until you find the root system of the plant you want to move to determine whether it is a separate plant grown from seed or a plant that has sprouted from a damaged root of the parent plant. If the plants are seedlings you have no idea what color they will be or the ultimate size of the plant. In either case the plants can be moved in January or February.
-- Vickie
Anne's Response:
Prune and thin out crepe myrtles before they begin to put out new spring growth in April. The small crepe myrtles may be root suckers from the parent plant or they may be seedlings. Rook suckers will be identical to the parent plant; you can gently remove soil until you find the root system of the plant you want to move to determine whether it is a separate plant grown from seed or a plant that has sprouted from a damaged root of the parent plant. If the plants are seedlings you have no idea what color they will be or the ultimate size of the plant. In either case the plants can be moved in January or February.
What is this vine?
Can you tell me what this plant is? I frequently see it growing on houses here in Raleigh.
-- Jason
Anne's Response
I think it is a smilax.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Tall Tomato Plants
My 11yr. old grandson planted several kinds of tomato plants this year and they have all grown quite tall and produced many tomatoes. His Red Beefsteak tomato plant is between 8 and 9 feet tall. (This was his first year planting tomatoes.) He was wondering if this was normal or was this some type of record in NC.
-- Andrea (and Kaleel)
Anne's response:
Congratulations to Kaleel on growing such healthy tomato plants; I hope they tasted good. I can’t find the record height of tomato plants but there are pictures of plants as tall as two story houses in some magazine articles. The tomatoes are being picked from the top of a tall stepladder.
-- Andrea (and Kaleel)
Anne's response:
Congratulations to Kaleel on growing such healthy tomato plants; I hope they tasted good. I can’t find the record height of tomato plants but there are pictures of plants as tall as two story houses in some magazine articles. The tomatoes are being picked from the top of a tall stepladder.
Identify This Flower
Please help me identify this flower. It grows on a vine, and it has long green beans. Three pictures are attached with blooms at various stages.
-- Cynthia
Anne's repsonse:
The flowers and pods do look like a legume but I am not sure which ornamental bean it might be. It is similar to Dolichos Lablab or hyacinth bean. It is an annual vine with similar blooms to your photograph but the bean pods are usually purple.
Pests Eating Loropetalums Leaves
I planted some loropetalums this past spring. They did well most of the summer. I have recently noticed that something is eating the leaves from the sides of the leaf. I had heard these plants were pretty disease resistant. Any thoughts on what this might be? I don’t want to lose these plants.
-- Kristain
Anne's Response:
The plants really are quite disease resistant but there are several insects that eat the leaves. Beetles and caterpillars both start eating leaves from the sides of the leaves and the leaves do get disfigured but the plants will not be killed by an occasional visit from visiting insects.
-- Kristain
Anne's Response:
The plants really are quite disease resistant but there are several insects that eat the leaves. Beetles and caterpillars both start eating leaves from the sides of the leaves and the leaves do get disfigured but the plants will not be killed by an occasional visit from visiting insects.
Best Grass Seed for Shady Lawn
Our lawn in Raleigh is pretty much total shade. We would love to have your advice on the best grass seed to use. We are avid listeners to you show!
-- Connie
Anne's Response
The lawn that best tolerates shade is a mixture of fescue and bluegrass but with full shade and competition from tree roots you will never have a lush green lawn.
-- Connie
Anne's Response
The lawn that best tolerates shade is a mixture of fescue and bluegrass but with full shade and competition from tree roots you will never have a lush green lawn.
Staghorn Fern Clippings
I have a Staghorn Fern that I received as a clipping from a neighbor about 12 years ago. A friend is wanting a clipping from it, but I have only done it once about 7 years ago. What is the correct way of removing a clipping from the fern and attaching it to a board or a basket with moss? The one time I did it, I grabed some of the leaves close to the base of the fern and very carefully pulled them loose. However this time I think I may need to cut them from the ferns base.
--Rock Roll
Anne's Response:
Use a sharp knife to cut two or three stems and their attached roots from the base of the fern. You need as much of the root as you can safely remove. Allow the roots of the cutting to sit in water for a few minutes to be sure the cutting is moist. Soak the mounting moss in water and then wrap the moist moss around the roots of the cutting. Attach it to the container or mount with string or wire. The new cutting needs to be kept out of direct sun and it needs to be misted until new roots develop.
--Rock Roll
Anne's Response:
Use a sharp knife to cut two or three stems and their attached roots from the base of the fern. You need as much of the root as you can safely remove. Allow the roots of the cutting to sit in water for a few minutes to be sure the cutting is moist. Soak the mounting moss in water and then wrap the moist moss around the roots of the cutting. Attach it to the container or mount with string or wire. The new cutting needs to be kept out of direct sun and it needs to be misted until new roots develop.
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