Italy Trip Report – 2013
In May of 2013 I led a group of adventurous and inquisitive gardeners (and their spouses) to the southern coast of Italy and the island of Sicily. We had a wonderful time: lots of great food, beautiful gardens, historic sites and good companionship! Following is my report on the trip,...
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 – 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...
Indian Meal Moth – Control
Q: My family has always enjoyed our bird feeders. We keep the bird seed in the garage in some large Rubbermaid containers. We have a major moth problem in our kitchen. How can I get rid of all the moths...
Bird – Banging into Window
Q: We have a cardinal that has been flying against our picture window for a week. He’s banging his head and making it bloody. What can be done to stop this? A: Ah, that sweet springtime surge of hormones! Makes...
Birds – Roosting in Trees
Q: What a mess! For some reason, a flock some kind of black bird has chosen one of my Bradford pear trees to roost in. There is a huge mass of droppings under the tree. What can I do? A:...
Birds – Feeding
Q: Do you have any information on attracting birds to backyards? Types of feeders, food, plants and watering containers are all part of the information I am seeking. A: Birds have the same needs as humans: food, shelter and water....
Animals in Attic- Control
Q: I hear heavy thumps and thuds in my attic in the middle of the night. Also, something seems to be chewing the wood up there. Would raccoons do this? A: It is possible that raccoons have taken up residence...
Moth Balls – as Animal Repellent
Q: I heard something scratching in the attic last fall. I tried to use a cage trap to catch the varmint but was unsuccessful. I then scattered three boxes of moth balls up there and that seemed to stop the...
Gardening – Shouldn’t be Intimidating
Q: I am a little intimidated by gardening. I have a couple of holly bushes that I’ve had in pots near my entryway for months and they look like they need planting. How do I know where to plant them?...
Trapped Animals – Fate of
Q: As a wildlife rehabilitator, I feel I need to respond to your article about trapping squirrels in the attic. I appreciate your reference to “humane traps”, but you didn’t indicate what people are to do with these creatures AFTER...
Snake – Identification
Q: I saw a two and one-half foot long snake going across my yard. Thank goodness the dogs didn’t see it! It was black and had yellow rings around its body. Its head had little “squares” of yellow almost like...
Snake – Repellents
Q: In the last two weeks I have killed four snakes, one of them in my garage. They were pretty big ones. One might have been a king snake, another was black with yellow lines. We live in a wooded...
Snake – Skins
Q: My neighbor found three big snake skins in his attic. We called a pest control company but they said they don’t handle snake calls. Can you tell me the name of a company that will help us eliminate snakes?...
Armadillo – Control
Q: I have an armadillo that thinks he’s a bulldozer in my back yard. He (I guess it’s a “he”) has plowed up my flower beds and ruined parts of my lawn. We have a trap but he won’t go...
Geese – Control
Q: I live in a neighborhood with two small lakes. One lake, in particular, has been the home to Canada geese since the inception of our community. The geese are fun to feed, lovely to look at, but they have...
Cucumber – Bitter Taste
Q: What makes my cucumbers so bitter? A: Cucumber stems, leaves and roots are naturally bitter, to stave off the attack of insects. In fact, the bitter chemical has a name: cucurbitacin. When a cucumber plant is stressed, the chemical...
Sapsucker – I.D and Control
Q: There are lots of small holes in my Bradford pear, making several rings around the trunk. Is this a borer or a bird? A: You are seeing the damage caused by a yellow-bellied sapsucker. This bird is a member...
Vole – Damage to Plants and Control
Q: When I was spraying my roses I noticed that one of my ‘Oklahoma’ hybrid Teas was drooping at the top. When I went out today it was drooping worse than ever. I pulled gently and it came out of...
Mole – In Lawn
Q: Beginning in late May, we have had moles tunneling in our lawn. We have tried bombs, metal contraptions, and poisonous liquids to no avail. Now, we are preparing to aerate and reseed fescue for fall and don’t want to...
Squirrel – Control in Garden
Q: My apple and pear trees began to bear last year but I didn’t get a single one. The squirrels got them all! Now that I see the fruit beginning to form, what can I do to protect my crop?...
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...
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...
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...
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...
