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...
Wax Scale – On Maple
Q: Our Japanese maple appears to have some type of fungus. Actually, it looks like small mushrooms. Is this harmful to the tree and what causes this? A: You have an excellent example of wax scale. The adult females you’ve...
Coral Bark Maple – Identification
Q: I have a tree that seems to have a sunburn. The trunk and all the limbs are red and very showy. What is it? A: You have a coral bark maple. Most likely it is the...
Christmas Tree – Additives in Water
Q: I’ve heard a lot over the years about additives to the water I put in my Christmas tree stand that will help the tree stay fresh longer. Is there any thing like that commercially available? A: I check my...
Bermudagrass – Killing for a Garden
Q: I want to start a vegetable garden in a pasture with bermudagrass. I want to go ahead and plow it up now and add some leaves and compost to sit over the next few months, but feel I need...
Gourd Seed – Sources
Q: I would like to purchase a variety of fancy / exotic gourd seed. I need to find a source that will sell enough for several acres. Most of the seed catalogs sell packets with only a few seed per...
Night-blooming cereus – Care
Q: How should I care for a night-blooming cereus? I was given one last year and I have it in a heated sunporch. A: Night-blooming cereus has been a “passalong” plant for decades. As you can tell from looking at...
Peach vine – Identification
Q: I saw an advertisement in the paper for a “Peach vine”. Is there really a peach that grows like a vine? A: It took some digging (in the phone book, not in the dirt!) to find out about the...
Siberian Iris – Dividing
Q: I have Siberian irises that need to be divided. Can I do this now? I read that irises should be divided in August, but that seems like a hot time to do it. A: Siberian iris are almost indestructible....
Blueberry – Ochlockonee
Q: I am looking for a blueberry plant for fruit and for privacy screening. I’ve heard the ‘Ochlockonee’ rabbiteye blueberry is a good one. Do you have any better suggestions? A: The blueberry you’ve chosen has a great reputation. It...
Tools – Sharpening
Q: My hand pruner is getting dull after a few years of hard work. Could you please tell me if it is easy to sharpen it? A: A hand pruner is not terribly difficult to sharpen. All you need is...
Alphabet Gardening – Plants with “U” and “X”
Q: I am planting an alphabet garden with my son. We are choosing plants with common or scientific names that begin with each letter of the alphabet. However, we are stuck with the letters “U” and “X”. Do you have...
How To Make a Hypertufa Container
Q: Can you tell me the recipe for making trough containers out of portland cement and peat moss? A: It’s a simple recipe: • one part Portland cement • one part sand • two parts peat moss. Once you have...
Sports Turf – Maintaining
Q: Can you give me a good resource on caring for sports turf? Our football and soccer fields need an “extreme makeover.” A: As the father of a soccer-playing son, I see wide variations in field conditions. Some are pristine...
False Aloe
Q: I found some interesting looking plants on a building lot that I was about to grade. The plants appeared to be a native orchid of sorts, so I planted them in a raised bed at my home. I was...
Earthworm – Castings
Q: I have mounds of what look like lilliputian guinea pig droppings all over our front yard. Can’t find any one who can I.D. Any thoughts? A: I’m not sure how you’d know what lilliputian guinea pig droppings look like...
Twig Girdler – Identification
Q: My property has many hardwood trees. I continually have to pick up short limbs with healthy green leaves. What is causing them to fall. A: If the trees are oak, pecan or hickory, the culprit is likely the twig...
Arbor Day – Celebrating
Q: Would you please give me the date for Arbor Day? A: Arbor Day is celebrated in Georgia on the third Friday of February. Arty Schronce at the Georgia Department of Agriculture says the first Georgia Arbor Day was proclaimed...
Candy Lily
Candy lily, Pardancanda norrisii, grows to 36″ tall. It is a cross between Belamcanda chinensis, blackberry lily, and Pardanthopsis dichotoma. Candy lily is very similar to blackberry lily but with larger flowers in a wider range of colors from blue...
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...
