Cutting back lithodora diffusa

My Lithodora Diffusa ‘Heavenly Blue’ is too big for the area where it is planted. Can I cut it back to the ground? If so, when should I do it?

I live in Portland, Oregon. Thank you for your advice.

Helene

Anne's Response:

Lithodora does spread quite readily when it is planted in a good spot and for that reason it is a great ground cover plant. It can be cut back after it blooms in the spring. It roots easily from the cuttings. Be sure when you cut it back that you are leaving the rooted ends of the stems in the ground. Top dressing with fine organic material in the area where the plant is growing will help it recover from severe pruning.

Red tip removal

I have red tips that I cut off down to the ground, and this year they started regrowing along with some other plants that I wanted to remove. Can you suggest a way to permanently remove these plants?

Thank you. George

Anne's Response:

Cutting them to the ground and spraying or painting the cutting wound with a Round-up solution works. You can also cut them to the ground and cover the top of the stump with black plastic. It will take several years for the stumps to rot out of the ground.

Crape Myrtle

I live in the very southern end of north Florida and I planted 3 crape myrtle's 3 years ago and are about 6' high and I can't get them to bloom. I planted them where we had pine tree's removed about 8 years ago. Could this be the problem? Also when can I prune them?? Tks, Bobbie

Anne's Response:

Crape myrtles usually bloom when they are planted in full sun. There should be no problems from the pine trees previously planted in the area. Crape myrtles may be pruned in very early spring before new growth begins to develop as the plants bloom on new wood. Excess nitrogen fertilizer does reduce the blooms on the plants. Getting a soil test from the area would give you some indication of excess fertilizer in the fall. Not doing any “tip pruning” on stems for a year or two might help. You could remove limbs the rub against others and dead wood but no other pruning.

Pruning rose bushes

When is the best time to cut back rose bushes? I live in Lexington, NC.

-Lillian

Anne's Response:

Late February or the first week of March is a good time to prune roses in your area.

Question on Crape Myrtles

Anne,

We moved into a newly built home in Delaware in the summer of 2006. The landscaper planted a white (acoma) crape myrtle in the front that is about 7ft tall. There has only been one stem that flowered during each of the 2 summers we have been here. Everyone else in the neighborhood had trees full of blooms but us. Can you please tell me why ours isn’t blooming and every other tree in the neighborhood is??? I only pruned it once in Fall 2006 and even then I only took a couple of inches off of the stems. I pruned it thinking that I would get more blooms this past summer but that did not happen. Instead, new leaves started growing sometime in late July or August. Can you please tell me how to get some blooms out of this tree? I love it and would really like it to bloom.

Please help.

Diedre

Smyrna, DE

Anne's Response:

Crape Myrtles bloom on new wood so they can be pruned in early March if there are stems that must be removed. I prefer not to prune unless there are limbs that are damaged or rubbing against other limbs. The plants need at least 6 hours of sun. They do not really like to be fertilized and they would prefer not being watered – especially after the first of August. The plants can be hurt by a late freeze so if there are dead leaves on a stem after a freeze you can tip prune to promote new growth. If new leaves were just breaking in late July and August I would suspect freeze damage.

Banana trees

Anne,

I have 3 banana trees that thrive on the marsh near Charleston, SC.
With killing frosts, they totally die back. They usually grow to about
5 feet each summer. After the frost, do I cut them back during the winter or spring, or do I just leave them alone and take care of themselves? I hear opposing viewpoints all the time.

Darlena

Anne's Response:

The Charleston area is a bit warmer in winter than we are in Raleigh so you can cut back bananas after the first winter frost kills them back.
If you do cut them back in cold weather the ground should be mulched with ground leaves or pinestraw to protect the trunk of the plant. You can safely cut back bananas in my area in the spring and I prefer to remove the remains from last years' plant. It looks better and you remove any overwintering disease or insect problems.

Leftover Halloween pumpkins

Dear Ms. Clapp,

I have some pumpkins since Halloween and wondering if I can just leave them in the back yard for them to be decomposed. Are they any good for soil? Or should I just put them in the trash can.

Thanks,
Hien

Anne's Response:

The pumpkins will eventually decompose and many people add them to their compost pile for future soil amendments. You may also find that some of the animals in the yard eat them. Squirrels and chipmonks often eat the seeds and flesh.

Drought tolerant ground cover

Anne,

Will you please recommend some drought tolerant ground cover that is evergreen? I would prefer something that is non-invasive, tolerates shade, and isn't more than 6" high.

Thanks.

Beth

Anne's Response:

I am very fond of dwarf mondo grass. Some other possibilities are Partridgeberry (Mitchella repens) that is a native groundcover vine, Pachysandra, Lamium and Strawberry geranium.

Banana Trees

Anne,

I have 3 banana trees that thrive on the marsh near Charleston, SC.

With killing frosts, they totally die back. They usually grow to about 5 feet each summer. After the frost, do I cut them back during the winter or spring, or do I just leave them alone and take care of themselves? I hear opposing viewpoints all the time.

Darlena

Anne's Response:

The Charleston area is a bit warmer in winter than we are in Raleigh so you can cut back bananas after the first winter frost kills them back.

If you do cut them back in cold weather the ground should be mulched with ground leaves or pinestraw to protect the trunk of the plant. You can safely cut back bananas in my area in the spring and I prefer to remove the remains from last years' plant. It looks better and you remove any overwintering disease or insect problems.

What to do with leftover Halloween pumpkin?

Dear Ms. Clapp,

I have some pumpkins since Halloween and wondering if I can just leave them in the back yard for them to be decomposed. Are they any good for soil? Or should I just put them in the trash can.

Thanks,
Hien

Anne's Response:

The pumpkins will eventually decompose and many people add them to their compost pile for future soil amendments. You may also find that some of the animals in the yard eat them. Squirrels and chipmunks often eat the seeds and flesh.

Drought tolerant ground cover

Anne,

Will you please recommend some drought tolerant ground cover that is evergreen? I would prefer something that is non-invasive, tolerates shade, and isn't more than 6" high.

Thanks.

Beth

Anne's Response:

I am very fond of dwarf mondo grass. Some other possibilities are Partridgeberry (Mitchella repens) that is a native groundcover vine, Pachysandra, Lamium and Strawberry geranium.

Evergreens dying

Hi Anne: I have 2 arbervities and a Japanese golden henoki (not sure on spelling) that are dying from the inside out. They start turning brown near the trunk then moves toward the end of the branch but are still alive at the ends. I’ve replaced them once before for the same problem. Any ideas – any way to save them? Thanks – Roger E.

Anne's Response:

There are several things that may be causing problems with your evergreens. Dry weather and “voles” eating the roots are causing problems in some Raleigh neighborhoods. Hot afternoon sun does not help. The insect problems usually leave “webs” around the brown needles or make damaging marks on it. Making sure there is good organic matter content in the soil to retain moisture does help. Keeping plants mulched but making sure the mulch does not get close to the trunks to encourage vole damage is important. The symptoms you describe are a natural growth pattern for most evergreens. As the plant grows the growth on the inside of the plant “ages out”; it turns brown and in most plants eventually falls off. In most cases new green growth does not develop on the interior stems. Some evergreens retain the “old, brown needles” for several years. The tip ends of the plant continue to grow and stay green. Excess nitrogen in the soil can cause rapid growth. It would be a good idea to collect a soil sample and have it tested for nutrient level and pH.

Butterfly Bush

In the area of Charlotte, NC, when is a good time of the year to plant the butterfly bush?

Anne's Response:

I prefer planting butterfly bushes in the spring so they have time to acclimate to the garden before fall frosts. They are winter hardy in our area but prefer getting established in the ground before a hard freeze.

Leyland cypress

Can Leyland Cyprus be propagated? Are Leyland Cyprus available as a "bare root" plant and from whom would be get them?

Anne's Response:

Leyland cypress may be propagated from dormant cuttings in the winter just as other needled evergreens. They are also available from several mail order nurseries as bare root liners. The Messinbrink’s catalog that arrived this week in my mail advertises them.

Help with a plant

I have a plant I have been away and all the leaves have almost come off. Can I save it?

Anne's Response:

Some plants lose all their leaves in the fall. They come back in the spring if the plant is healthy.

Nelly Stevens Holly

Anne,

We just moved to a new house and now that the leaves have fallen, our rear yard has less privacy. We're thinking of planting Nelly Stevens Hollies. Do you think it's OK to plant the now?

Also, do you have any suggestions for a screening shrub that grows more "up" than "out". We have a fenceline about 12 feet from our house (somewhat shady area) that I would like to plant shrubs to provide screening as well as some aesthetics to complement the picket fence.

Any and all advice appreciated.

Regards,

Daren K.

Anne's Response:

A Nellie Stevens Holly would make a very good hedge. They grow very quickly and can be planted now if the soil is amended with organic matter to hold water. You may want to find some means of collecting rain water for the plants if the drought does not break because they will need to have enough moisture for root growth the first year they are in the ground. Some plants that are “tall and skinny” include Japanese Cleyera, Thuja Orientalis ‘Aurea Nana’ (golden arbovitea), Spiny Greek juniper and some of the tall thin sasanqua camellias. The camellias and cleyera do better in shade.

Climber

Hi, Anne!

I have a fir tree which is dying. A great deal of the branches are brown and will not recover. The tree man told me to remove it, but I think I rather plant a climbing flowering vine to take over the dead tree. I live in California. What plant would you recommend, that does not require too much trimming, since the tree is very tall? I love wisterias, but I heard they need lots of trimming. Thanks.

Anne's Response:

If your area is prone to high winds or in an area where fires are common it is not a good idea to have a vine climbing on a tall dead tree. The weight of a vine could cause even more damage than the tree alone. Some vines that will grow less rampantly than wisteria include Cross Vine (Bignonia capreolata) especially the cultivar “Tangerine Beauty”, Akebia quinata, Clematis Montana and Carolina jessamin ((Gelsimium sempervirens).

Zoysia or bermuda?

Anne,

Does zoysia or bermuda do better in a shady area that only gets some indirect morning sunlight during the summer? Thanks.

Nancy

Anne's Response:

Zoysia is usually more shade tolerant than Bermuda and the cultivar "Emerald" is the most shade tolerant of the Zoysias.

ZOYSIA IN MONDO GRASS

I have a zoysia lawn in Memphis, TN. Around the house are beds with various shrubs. Amongst the shrubs we planted mondo grass as a ground cover. The zoysia has grown into the Mondo grass and has taken over. Iwould love to keep the Mondo grass since it is attractive and not invasive like lirope. Is there anything I can spray on that will kill the zoysia and not the mondo grass?

Anne's Response:

Mondo grass is not a “grass” but a member of the lily family. In most cases products labeled for killing “grass or grassy weeds” can be sprayed in mondo to control the grass. Read the label carefully before purchasing it to make sure you are using the correct weed kiler.

Ligustrums

Our local golf course just planted a barrier of 60 ligustrums between the end of my back yard and the golf course, to presumably keep golfers out of my yard. They are presently about 3 - 4 feet tall and extremely ragged looking, branches extending every which way. When should I prune and with so many is there an easy way to accomplish this. Thanks for your help.

Roger P.

Anne's Response:

There is no easy way to “crop” the ligustrum. It is not a “green meatball” shape by nature and does better when allowed to be more “freeform”. To make it useful as a screen and keep the golfers and their errant golf balls out of your yard you want it to allow the plants to form a dense hedge. Maintain the desired height and width of the plants by selectively removing limbs or branches that rub against others, limbs that grow down instead of up or out. I prefer to prune the plant when it is in bloom because I do not care for the fragrance of the plant but it can be pruned at any time from late February through its blooming season.

Question on winter care for Chinese Abelia

Hello,

Thanks so much for your help. I am from Downingtown PA - zip 19335. I purchased a small Chinese Abelia in early 2007 and have it in a pot since I haven't decided where I want it planted permanently. I am wondering for the winter, if I should bring it in a sunny room in the house, or put it in the garage? I intended to have it planted by now. Any suggestions?

Thanks!!
Leila

Anne's Response:

It needs to be kept in an area where the roots in the pot will not freeze. It could be buried in the pot in the ground with a thick layer of mulch around the plant or left in a garage. It will not be happy living in the house.