THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 17, 1994 TAG: 9407150077
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G4 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: GARDENING
SOURCE: ROBERT STIFFLER
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
We have two mature brown turkey figs. We had a wonderful crop last year up until fall. Our figs started new growth very early, then we had a hard cold snap. The figs again started to grow, but there was another very cold snap. We took a trip, and when we came home, our fig trees appeared dead.
We can bend most of the branches, which has given us hope. We have left them alone, hoping nature will heal them. We have quite a few new shoots coming out from the base of the trees. Is there anything we can do to help induce growth in these figs? In driving around, I have noted other figs that look like ours. Yet others I see are in full leaf and look fine. What do you suggest?
Vivian Bishop, Portsmouth
I'm glad you asked, for I've been meaning to write about this problem that is so evident throughout southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. You are correct that most figs look terrible. Many are dead-looking, except for small green growth at the ends of the limbs and new shoots coming from the base.
Horticulturists at the Hampton Roads Agriculture Research Center say the old canes are partially damaged. Cut out all dead wood now. If the limbs have not leafed out by now, they won't. Cut them all back to ground level. This should force more new shoots and additional growth. Keep the plant watered during the summer. It means you probably won't pick any figs this year, but your plants should be producing by next season. The healthy-looking fig trees you see most likely were in a protected spot and escaped freezing winds and weather.
The advice above also applies to oleander and pittosporum, much of which is damaged in like fashion.
We are troubled by brackish water that seeps into areas of our yard. When we have a high tide, accompanied by a northeaster, the Lafayette River floods North Shore Road and the brackish water floods a ditch that runs along the other side of our fence. Would you send a list of trees, shrubs and flowers, particularly perennials, that are resistant to brackish water?
Mrs. Philip S. Farrand, Norfolk
The information I have is under a ``seaside gardening'' category, but the plant lists should be helpful.
I live on the eastern branch of the Lynnhaven River and have the same problem. Plants at my house that have lived for 20 years under conditions you describe are: hardy hibiscus, the Fairy rose, cannas, daylilies, Vitex, lythrum, Japanese blood red ornamental grass, euphorbia (the ground cover) Autumn Joy sedum, tea roses, liriope, mint and wild ageratum.
Please advise on caring for a lilac bush that is at least 20 years old. It is 20 feet high and 2 1/2 feet in diameter at its base, spreading to 6 feet at the top. I know it needs pruning and shaping but don't want to chance losing it. It did not bloom as profusely this year as in past years.
Peggy Cobb, Virginia Beach
Virginia Tech horticulturists recommend ``renewal pruning.'' This means cutting out the oldest limbs at ground level. This forces new shoots to come out each spring. To shape, you can prune as much as you want after the lilac blooms. Fertilize it in early spring, which is also a good time to do your ``renewal pruning.'' Since you have not pruned recently, I suggest you do the ``renewal pruning,'' but keep the plant thoroughly watered during this hot, dry summer.
Can you provide a name for the enclosed shrub, which grows at the edge of our property? It has small white blooms in the spring. What method of pruning is best for this shrub, and when do I do it? Also, when is the best time to prune camellias?
Kelly Decker, Virginia Beach
Your bush is the spirea often called ``popcorn bush'' because each small bloom resembles a popped kernel of corn. The sample you sent looks like Spirea thunbergii. After it blooms, it should be pruned by the ``renewal method'' described above, after which it should be fertilized annually. Camellias seldom need pruning except to keep them from getting too large. Such pruning should be done immediately after blooming. Pruning later than that often results in pruning off next year's bloom buds.
Last year you mentioned a foundation planting shrub not suitable for the Tidewater area, possibly because of poor drainage of the subsoil. You recommended a replacement, but I don't remember the name of either plant. This winter we moved into a 20-year-old house that has foundation planting shrubs that are either dead or dying. Since we had such a wet winter, I thought possibly they are the variety you mentioned as undesirable. Can you help me by again supplying names for both plants?
Gladys Hostetter, Ivor
The plant I wrote about as unsatisfactory in most locations is Helleri holly. It often is used as a foundation planting. Because of poor drainage, it dies slowly, branch by branch, or all at once. I think there are much better plants.
The one I suggested is Yaupon holly, a native plant that is available in both dwarf and standard size. Tree authority Donald Wyman calls it ``one of the most interesting of the evergreen hollies. It might be considered as the holly which produces the most fruit.'' Since it's native, it's tough. On top of that, it provides berries that birds like. MEMO: No gardening questions will be taken over the phone. Write to Robert
Stiffler, The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, 150 W. Brambleton
Ave., Norfolk, Va. 23510. Answers will be published on a space-available
basis at the proper time for their use in the garden. For an earlier
reply, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope. by CNB