THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 26, 1994 TAG: 9406250027
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Medium
DATELINE: 940626 LENGTH:
Too much nitrogen or over-fertilization with nitrogen can also prevent dogwoods from flowering. This often occurs when trees are in a lawn area that receives high amounts of nitrogen.
{REST} Excessive pruning or pruning at the wrong time of year can cause failure to flower in many plants.
Most plants also undergo a ``juvenile'' stage when they're not old enough to flower. Southern magnolia, dogwood and wisteria are examples. Each of them may not bloom before they are 10 years old. Gardeners must be patient.
\ MORE DOGWOOD WORRIES\ Virginia Beach extension agent Randy Jackson warns homeowners with dogwoods to ignore claims that the dogwoods have anthracnose.
``Dogwood anthracnose has never been detected in Hampton Roads and is never expected to be a problem in eastern Virginia,'' Jackson said.
He warned that there is a heavy infestation of powdery mildew on dogwoods, roses, lilacs and crape myrtles. That is being misidentified as anthracnose by some professionals, who are offering to eradicate it for a hefty fee, Jackson said. The remedy for powdery mildew is Daconil 2787, Funginex, Phaltan or a sulfur spray such as Flotox. (See related story, Page F5.)
\ STOP THIEVES\ Gardener Holly Masterson, writing in the Norfolk Botanical Garden newsletter to volunteers, gives advice for landscaping to support home protection:
``Homes along alleys, parks or main roadways are easy targets to thieves. The problem can be remedied with horticulture. Many plants provide an impenetrable barrier, including Barberry (Berberis julianea) and Firethorn (Pyracantha cococcinea). A third choice is Trifoliate Orange (Poncirus trifoliate). These plants can render added comfort by providing barriers and deterring strangers from entering your home space.''
Of the three named, my first choice would be the Berberis julianea, because it grows fast and large. Pyracantha also grows fast, but because of its awkward shape is not as good as a hedge. The trifoliate organe is very slow growing. These plants are available in containers in garden centers and can still be planted. Be sure to keep them watered every other day.
\ ON THE BOOKSHELF\ With all the garden books in bookstores these days, it's a wonder no one thought of this idea before. It's called ``The Southern Gardener's Book of Lists,'' by Lois Trigg Chaplin (Taylor Publishing, $17.95 paperback).
Trigg is a former garden editor for Southern Living and lives in Birmingham. If you need a ground cover to stabilize a slope, are looking for a tree that will thrive in a low, wet spot or want plants to attract hummingbirds and butterflies, this book is your answer. It contains more than 250 lists that group plants according to horticultural characteristics or meet a specific landscape need. There are even lists for selecting plants by fragrance and color.
The Botanical Garden Shop (441-5933) or any bookstore can order it for you.
\ VANQUISH VOLES\ Dry weather doesn't drive away voles, unfortunately. Brent Heath at The Daffodil Mart says that every time he sees one of their quarter-sized holes, he fills it with Ramik. It's ``rodent specific,'' says Heath, so it's harmless to dogs and cats. Ramik is sold in hardware and garden centers.
\ PRUNE EVERGREENS\ Early summer months are the ideal time to prune evergreens. This is when their yearly growth is accelerated.
Pruning is not to decrease size but to increase density or thickness. Density is related to the number of branches formed at the trunk by the end of each growing season. Pruning controls how far a new hub is from a previous one. The closer they are, the denser the shrub.
Pruning too deeply robs the tree of its hardest-working component, its outer foliage. Timing is important. Pruning should be done when new, paler foliage starts to turn dark. This is usually when the ``candle'' of new growth begins to open.
To stimulate growth, trim off one-third of the new growth. To contain a tree or shrub's size, prune off 90 percent of new growth. New buds will form behind the cut to hide it, and new branches will increase thickness.
\ HELP ON NEMATODES\ Linda Pinkham of Smithfield Gardens called to say that the reader who could not find Bioyssis beneficial nematodes should try looking for them under a different name. She says the nematodes are in many garden centers, including Smithfield Gardens, but are labeled ``Biosafe.'' Perhaps that will help readers find them.
Robert Stiffler by CNB