Q. I purchased a 5 in 1fruit tree from the recent orchard
event. The two thickest grafted branches have vigorous foliage. The next smallest is marginal, with one
foliage "bud" close to the main trunk, nothing distally. The two
thinnest don't look good -- no foliage. Suggestions?
Friday, May 23, 2014
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Shade Plant Selection for the Desert
Q. My garden has matured and now I
have flower beds that are shaded. What plants grow in the shade here and
where can I buy them?
Why I Hate To Answer the Question,"What Plant Should I Use for...."
I send these types of questions now to Andrea Meckley. She LOVES these kinds of questions. So thank her for answers to your question, "What plant should I use for.....
Any Fruit Trees That Don't Need Pesticides?
Q. Are there any fruit, nut, fig, or olive trees that I
can grow in North Las Vegas without using pesticides?
Cathedral Oak a Good Choice But May Be Hard to Find
Q. A few days ago we saw a cathedral oak at the Springs
Preserve. It was identified as
"Quercus virginiana 'Cathedral'"on its little sign. Does it do well in Las Vegas? Do its leaves fall at all (like pine needles
drop)? How tall/wide does it get in our area? Is it a fast grower? Any other facts?
Poor Canopy Development in Newly Planted Large Tree Could Be Lack of Water
Q. I
think I this might be a pink locust tree. I'm seeing a lot of dead branches.
The tree was planted last Fall. Should I give it some fertilizer to help it
push out new growth?
Is Grub Guard Safe to Use in my Landscape?
Q. I ran across an item called Grub Guard in the catalog.
It contains beneficial nematodes. Would these be the same kind of nematodes
that attacked my tomatoes last year?
My Pomegranate Has Those Little Red Bugs
Q. I have a pomegranate tree planted by birds about 20 years
ago. I never had bug problems on this tree before 2011. In 2012 it produced about
150 pounds of pomegranates. In 2013 the tree did not produce any fruit at all.
This year the tree is loaded again but it is infested with those little red
bugs that I think will turn into those ugly creatures you have been talking
about. We don't want to use poisons. Have there been any new developments for
control?
New Texas Ranger Not Looking Good After Daily Watering
Q. I planted a Texas Ranger shrub three weeks ago in some sandy
and rocky soil. I have been watering it with about two gallons daily. I added
one inch-deep bark mulch in a 1 foot circle around the plant. Now I am finding
yellow, brittle leaves on the lower stems and curling leaves on top. Am I overwatering?
Tomatoes With Black Bottoms Now Being Seen
Those of
you who were lucky enough to get your tomatoes planted the first part of March
have already tasted your home grown tomatoes. Quite a few of you have
discovered tomatoes with black bottoms. What do you do?
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Leafcutter Bees Will Probably Use Houses for Blue Mason Bees
Q. Someone gave us a Mason bee house to use. I saw in a
July 2011 post on your blog that there really aren't mason bees in the Las
Vegas area but there are leaf cutter bees. Do you think the leafcutters would
use the Mason bee house? I know leaf cutters stuff the hole with leaves so the
fact that the Mason bee holes are larger might not be an issue.
Artificial Grass Not Damaging Lemon Tree
Q. My lemon tree is about five years old and it has a lot
of flowers and tiny lemons. The tree
looks healthy but I have noticed the leaves are turning yellow. I water it every day about ten minutes, six
days a week. We have artificial grass
about a foot away around the trunk. Am I
overwatering it or is it the artificial turf the culprit?
Cold Damage is Different for Different Oleanders
Q. For the past couple of years my oleanders have
suffered severe frost damage and slow to recover in the spring. They are all
mature plants. While I was trimming the
dead leaves recently, I noticed that the oleanders with red flowers had less
damage and were recovering more quickly than the others that have pink flowers.
Can I Use Chipped Pine for Mulch Around Fruit Trees?
Q. Our neighbor's pine trees are going to be cut down
soon. I would like to use the wood chips from the tree as mulch for our
recently planted fruit trees. I remember you recommend 4 inches deep. What are
your thoughts on fresh mulch as this?
Smokey Grey Color in Your Lawn Means Water
If you see that smokey, green or grey color in your lawn it is a good sign that the grass is not getting water in those spots. Check for blocked or broken sprinklers in that location.
Don't Forget to Thin Apples and Pears When Fruit are Small
Apples and pears require aggressive thinning particularly if you did not space your bearing limbs far enough apart.You can still do some summer pruning if the canopy is too dense.
Harvesting Early Can Keep Fruit from the Wind and Hungry Birds
The fruit in the grocery store looks good. But frequently when you taste it the taste does not match the look of goodness that you thought was there. This is why.
Gopher Plant Adds Interest to a Desert Landscape
Gopher plant adds a lot of interest to an otherwise boring desert landscape due to color and texture during bloom and even after bloom. Use it as a specimen (planted alone as the center of attention) or in masses if you have a large area. In masses, plant them two to three feet apart.
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