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...
University of Georgia Fertilizer Calculator
It’s a great idea to have your soil tested by the UGA Soils laboratory to find out exactly what nutrients your soil contains. But it’s quite common to receive from the lab a fertilizer recommendation that contains fertilizer products you...
Hydroponics – Small Scale
I recently visited EPCOT in Orlando and was impressed by the tour of their hydroponic system for growing vegetables. If you want to experiment with this system of gardening without soil, here are some valuable resources: Florida: Hydroponics for Home...
Impatiens Downy Mildew – Identification and Substitutes
Q: I have been told by a local garden center that garden impatiens, except the New Guineas, have a disease this year and should not be planted. Is this the case or maybe an exaggeration? A: It is true that...
Holly – Insect and Animal Damage to Trunk
Q: I have been searching the Web for photos or advice from many people and nobody knows for sure what my problem is. I have 8 hollies that line my yard. On the lower trunks there is bark damage. It...
Raccoon Damage to Lawn
Q: A neighbor up here in Cleveland GA asked me if I had any idea what might have torn her lawn up. I guessed a bear, but figured you could probably say for sure. A: My guess is raccoon damage....
Fescue Failure – Using Old Seed
Q: In October 2011, I followed my annual ritual and reseeded my fescue lawn. First used Roundup to kill off heavy weeds. Raked, some top soil, and Scott seed this year, and lots of water. I only got weeds. I...
16-4-8 – Mixed Up Using Common Fertilizer Grades
Q: I recently had a soil test done through UGA. It also recommended 16-4-8 fertilizer. I can’t seem to find it anywhere locally, and it is very expensive to have shipped. Any suggestions? A: Using the UGA fertilizer calculator and...
Spring Cankerworm – Identification
Spring occasionally brings an influx of creatures you hadn’t noticed before. A warm winter can result in thousands of little green caterpillars raining down from oak trees on silk strands. Stnding under an infested tree is distasteful as tiny black...
Vegetable Seeds – For the South
Q: All of the plant catalogs I’ve received so far are from the NE, Midwest, or California. Is there a southeastern seed company you recommend? I would love to buy as local as possible. A: I applaud your support for...
Ice on Azaleas at Masters Golf Tournament – Not True
Michael D. gives an intriguing bit of information: “I was listening to the radio this past weekend, and heard the discussion about early blooming at the Augusta National. Icing azaleas is a rumor that got started years ago when the...
Cottony Cushion Scale – On Shrub
Q: I noticed my bushes were looking scrappy this year so I went out to prune them back. There are thousands of white bugs under the leaves and all over the stems. They are not on any other bushes. How...
Tree Damage – Healing Process Looks Like Vine
Q: I planned to incorporate this lovely Oak into our new home’s landscape. Last year I noticed splits in the bark and suspected lightning. Now, I suspect a vine, NOT visible at the base…growing UNDERNEATH the tree bark? Do you...
Muscadine – Orange Ooze
Q: After pruning my muscadines a couple of weeks ago, some of the cuts have yellow ooze coming out. What is it? A: It’s the dripping muscadine sap being colonized by orange-colored yeasts and fungi. As you know, sap consists...
Pear – Grafting Using Super Glue
Mike A writes: I met you recently and told you about my experiment of trying to graft Bartlett onto Keiffer pear trees with Super Glue. You asked me to let you know how it worked. Apparently it works very well!...
Fast-sprouting Seeds – For Classroom
Q: I am looking for three plants that my kindergarten class could grow from seeds in small individual pots to compare their growth. A: What a great idea! The following flowers take five to seven days to sprout: bachelor’s buttons,...
Converting a Soil Test Recommendation to Local Products
Q: I had my soil tested by the UGA Soils Lab. They recommended I apply 6 lb. of 15-0-15 to my garden. However, no garden centers carry 15-0-15 in my area. What else can I use? A: With the multitude...
Kudzu Bug – Control
First we had kudzu vine…now we have kudzu bugs! I guess it makes sense. This pest of kudzu plants in Asia somehow travelled to the US and now anyone living near a patch of kudzu often spots the insects on...
What Is a CSA?
According to Local Harvest “Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of “shares” to the public....
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...
