UGA Vegetable Gardening Publications
With food prices high, folks have been thinking about growing some of their own food. Food gardening is not hard and it doesn’t have to take much room in your landscape. You can even do it in containers! These gardening publications are available on the Internet or ask for a...
Shrub – Transplanting 1-2-3
Most shrubs and trees should be transplanted when the demand for water is least, in late fall or winter. Since many roots will inevitably be lost, they need many weeks to regenerate themselves before the hot, dry blasts of summer arrive. If you are contemplating moving a plant that would...
Shrub – Pruning Calendar
The Home & Garden section of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution published a very nice pruning calendar several years ago. When viewed on a sheet of newsprint, it was gorgeous. When reduced to fit onto a sheet of typing paper it was impossible to read. I imagine you didn’t keep...
South Africa Adventure – 2014
As many of you know, I led a group of gardeners and spouses to South Africa in 2010. The memories of that vibrant, beautiful, surprising country still linger in my brain! We had such a good time I’ve decided to lead another group trip there in January, 2014. Want to...
New Gardening Books
I regularly receive interesting-looking gardening books from publishers. I don’t have time to read them all or give an intelligent review but I know they would appeal to many gardeners. These are some of the books I’ve gotten recently. You can click the link under the book cover images to...
Stream – Water is Orange (Rusty)
Q: I live in Cumming and have a small stream in the woods behind my house. The water looks like rust. Can you tell me why? A: It’s because iron has dissolved in the water and a certain bacteria is...
Tree – Damaged Lower Trunk
Q: I have a large tree in my front yard that is very sick. A big part of the trunk at bottom seems infested with some sort of insect. There are lots of little holes & sawdust…plus a good bit...
Rose – Roots Damaged by Fertilizer
Q: This rose died so quickly! Any idea what I did? It was beautiful, then started to make buds and then the leaves began to shrivel and turn brown. I did put a couple of handfuls of 13-13-13 fertilizer on...
Barred Owl – Identification
Q: This owl is living by our office in Carrollton. It knocked a squirrel out of a tree yesterday then swooped down and gathered it up, took it back up in the tree and had lunch. My wife and the...
Fragrant Crabapple – Identification
Q: I found this small tree growing in Floyd County not too far from Barnsley Gardens. It was growing in an area close to a creek. The tree was small 8+- feet with rough gray bark. The flowers were very...
Lady Banks Rose – Stem Splitting
Q: Is this rusty, splitting trunk on a Lady Banks rose normal? I do not want to lose this beautiful plant! It is about 12 years old and covers our swing arbor. A: Rose expert Ryan Tilley (http://www.rosegardensbyryan.com) says older,...
Sowbugs – Eating Seedlings
Q: These woodlouses, pill bugs, sow bugs, are eating every new seedling I have planted. I have already lost a jalapeno, squash, three cucumbers, and an okra plant. I would like to stay organic, but diatomaceous soil doesn’t work. A:...
Hibiscus – Granular Deposits on Leaves
Q: There are irregular shaped, granular deposits on front and back and upper stems of my miniature hibiscus leaves, grown in a sun room. They feel like fine sand. What is it and how to control? A: UGA’s tropical plant...
Greenhouse Assembly Manual – Thinking Outside Model 44115
Want to do a good deed for a fellow gardener? Sarah C. says she recently purchase a beautiful (used) plastic outdoor greenhouse/shed. “I’ve been able to put the shed together for the most part, but I can’t figure out how to...
World Naked Gardening Day
World Naked Gardening Day is celebrated each year on the first Saturday in May. People across the globe are encouraged to tend their portion of the world’s garden unclothed . As the organizers say: “It’s fun, costs no money, runs no unwanted...
Pesticides – Their History
When did mankind start using pesticides? Would you believe 1000 BC? Using chemicals to kill insects, weeds and diseases is nothing new. People have been using them for thousands of years. True, wide-spread use didn’t occur until the 20th century,...
Rose Rosette – Oil Spray to Control Mites
Q: I just read about rose rosette disease. Can we spray our Knockout roses with Volck oil spray in trying to keep the mites that spread this disease at bay? A: Rose rosette affects all roses. The most common symptoms...
Weeds – Identification with Pictures
Weed control in the landscape is a tough business. You have to know a lot about the weed in question just to get started! As in most situations, a picture is worth a thousand words. Websites Preen has terrific weed...
Diagnosing Holes in the Yard
Sometimes many heads are better than one when it comes to solving a problem. Wade Hutcheson, my Extension colleague in Spalding county, gets plenty of calls from the citizens of his area asking his help in identifying various holes in...
Brown Patch – Diagnosing
You have brown patches of dead grass in your lawn. Is it the common lawn disease ‘brown patch’ or is it something else? The answer is important: if it is brown patch you probably need to spray with a fungicide....
Bermuda – Weed Control
BASIC INFORMATION: Weed Identification Pictures General Turf and Weed Info Lawn Care Calendars THREE METHODS There are three primary methods of controlling weeds. Any one method, when used alone, will not usually control all of your weeds. To consistently control...
Lawn – Timing Pre-emergent Herbicide
One of the sourest phrases that can be directed at a child or adult is “I told you so!” Whether you touch a hot match, leave tools out in the rain or lift cinder blocks all afternoon, someone is usually...
Crapemyrtle – Pruning
One of the most confounding arguments I face is whether and how to prune crapemyrtles. They are mercilessly “murdered” by unaware landscapers and homeowners each winter… yet they still bloom in summer. Some people even believe a crapemyrtle won’t bloom...
Lawn – Growing in Shade
OK. I admit it. I have given up. I came to the conclusion that grass just would not grow in the corner of my lawn near the ornamental cherry trees. The shade there is so dense that my grass, no...
Lawn – Leveling
A new home in my neighborhood had bermudagrass sod planted in March. By May, one area was a perfect checkerboard of straight lines, composed of weedy plants, surrounding the individual squares of sod. Evidently the sod installers were in such...
Bermuda Grass – Disease – Brown Patch
Brown patch is most prevalent on bermudagrass which has been heavily fertilized when night temperatures are above 68 degrees and day temperature are above 80 degrees. Dead patches of grass may start small but can grow and join together to...
St. Augustine Grass Seed – Where to Buy
Q: Please tell me where I can buy St. Augustine grass seeds. Our lawn has some now and we like it a lot, but we’re having trouble finding seeds. A: You can’t buy St. Augustinegrass seed. The plant is very...
