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...
Dog Waste – Sanitizing
Q: Once we have cleaned up the waste my dogs leave in the yard and contain the dogs, how do we sanitize the yard? A: Nature does a great job sanitizing things. Oxygen and sunshine attack harmful organisms, so simply...
Pony Tail Palm – Offshoots
Q: I have a ponytail palm that is about 35 years old. Recently, it developed rather large sprout on the side of the trunk, should I cut it off or just leave it alone? A: My research suggests that sprouts...
Yacon (Smallantus Sonchifolius) – Growing
Q: I would like to know how to grow the Yacon (Smallanthus sonchifolius). It is produced near the Andes Mountains in Peru. If I can grow it here in Georgia, where can I get the seeds? A: According to my...
Leyland Cypress – Propagating
Q: You say that Leyland Cypresses are easy to propagate but do not explain the method. I have been successful with azaleas, dog woods and hydrangeas, is it done in the same way? A: Easy for professionals – not so...
Scarlet Assassin Bug – Identification
Q: Can you identify the bug eating the Japanese beetle? A: My bug sleuth friend Lisa Ames says it is a Rhiginia cruciata – Scarlet-bordered Assassin Bug. I could use about a thousand of them in my yard each...
Cauliflower Mushroom – Identification
Q: This is a fungus in our very shaded, moist natural area. It is about 10″ in diameter and 8″ height at the center. My husband wants to either eat it or kill it. I think it is beautiful and...
Cockspur Coral Bush – Identification
Q: Can you please help me identify this plant? It has small thorns on the branches but the flowers are really pretty. A: It’s a cockspur coral bush, Erythrina crista-galli . It’s not really supposed to be winter hardy in...
Crapemyrtle – Correcting Dead Top
Q: The top of my crapemyrtle died from cold or something. Then the branches started growing from the base and not from the top. How can I correct this? A: It’s as easy as 1-2-3. 1. Cut out the leafless...
Hosta Virus X – Identification
Q: My hosta leaves have a odd green mottled look…light green and dark green combined. Any ideas what this is? A: Your hostas have a virus, probably one that’s known as “Hosta Virus X”. The problem was first thought to...
Tomato – Eaten by Turtle
Q: I have a problem with some creature(s) taking bites from many of my tomatoes. This morning I spotted a turtle about 6-8 inches long resting next to the tomatoes and 3 ripe fruits had been bitten off again. It...
Cranefly – Control
Q: I’ve been invaded by European craneflies. They look like giant mosquitoes as they bump along windows and outdoor lights. What can I do to get rid of them and prevent future problems? A: Though they look menacing, cranefly adults...
Mulch – Lawn Clippings
Q: Is it okay to use green grass clippings as mulch for my vegetable garden? Does the decomposing grass harm the plants? Does it introduce weed seeds? A: As long as you do not use weed killer chemicals on the...
Vegetables – Depth of Roots
Q: How deep do roots go into the ground for tomatoes in a home garden? If not very deep, then do I need to waste time and gas tilling the entire space? A: Depth is not the problem – it’s...
Wild Onions – Control in Horse Pasture
Q: How should I deal with wild onions in a horse pasture? I have been digging them up slowly but if there is an alternative I would sure appreciate knowing about it. A: According to weed expert Tim Murphy: “There...
Chipmunks – Carnivorous
Q: This morning I saw a chipmunk biting a baby bird. I shooed the chipmunk away from the bird but when I checked on the site later I saw the chipmunk gnawing on a wing of the baby bird. When...
Bumblebees – Smaller Species
Q: One day my family and I noticed bees that were smaller and thinner than regular bumble bees in my yard. The pollen pouches were bright orange. What are they? What should we do about them? A: I’m betting it’s...
Seed Bags – For Hand Planting
Q: I am trying to find the cloth bags farmers use to use for sowing that they would wear over their shoulders. Do you know where I could get some? A: I think you’re going to have to make them...
Ladyslipper Orchid – Plant Seed
Q: I have Ladyslipper Orchids growing in my pine thicket. How do I gather the seed and plant it? A: It’s hard to be successful. One expert uses woods dirt and table sugar to get his to germinate. See Ladyslipper...
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...
