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...
Mayapple – Identification
Q: Fifteen years ago I found several of these plants in the woods before everything was bulldozed to start a house. Over the years they have multiplied and are an ongoing source of pleasure for me every spring. I call...
Tulip – Diseased
Q: Back in the spring I observed these tulips growing in a bed not far from my house in Atlanta. The petal damage was so severe I took several pictures. Do you recognize this problem? Could it be damage from...
Japanese Maple – Pruning
Q: The ‘Bloodgood’ maple in my front yard is visually too big for the front of the house. I would like to reduce the size by one-third. I called a Japanese maple expert but he refuses to reduce the size,...
Dogwood – Bleeding Orange Sap
Q: I have a dogwood that was injured with snow load and we cut off the broken branch. I put prunning sealer on the cut and now it looks like this. It looks like it is bleeding to death. A:...
Dirt Dauber Wasp – Identification
Q: I don’t know what animal(s) built these “shelters”, but am curious if you can provide any guidance. Do you have any ideas what built these? A: You are the host of dirt dauber wasps. They are considered beneficial because...
Chaste Tree (Vitex) – Pruning
Q: Last year my husband I planted a chaste tree. Somehow my husband did not keep it in check and now we are at a loss on how to prune it. My husband wants it to have three to four...
Zoysia – Seedheads
Q: For the last several years my Emerald Zoysia lawn has apparently gone to seed mid-summer or later. This year it is greening up in April and has already gone to seed. The lawn is twelve years old. It appears...
Zoysia – Variety Lineage
Zoysiagrass is an excellent lawn grass for Georgia but there is much confusion over the different varieties. Dr. Tim Bowyer, with Patten Seed, made a reference table for me to sort out the lineage of the different zoysia...
Planting Perfectly for Spring
In March, I presented a free hour-long webinar “Planting Perfectly for Spring”. It’s a “live” presentation on how to plant shrubs, trees, flowers and lawns the right way. You watch it on your computer after completing a short registration. The...
Iron – Used as herbicide
Q: What do you know about the new organic weed kilers that contain chelated iron as the active ingredient? A: Several products use chelated iron (iron in plant-available form) to kill weeds. I’m familiar with Ortho Elementals Lawn Weed Killer...
Morel Mushrooms – Identifying
Q: My German in-laws are visiting and want to go hunting morel mushrooms in the woods by our house. They seem to know what to look for but I don’t want our American morels to confuse them. Is there a...
Columnar Trees – For Privacy
Q: We have recently invested in landscaping our back yard and it has become a haven for us. We are challenged to find a tree that can grow in shade, provide privacy and is fast growing. My husband doesn’t want...
Chinaberry – Identification
Q: This tree came up in the undeveloped land next to ours. Can you tell me what it is? A: You have a chinaberry, Melia azedarach. Most gardeners consider it a weed tree because it sprouts so readily in untended...
Fox – Afflicted With Mange
Q: We saw this awful animal in our back yard. Do you think it could be a small chupacabra that kills neighborhood animals? A: The chupacabra (goat sucker) is a mythical animal that is said to roam the Southwest. A...
Fruit – Pruning
Winter and early spring are the best time to prune fruiting plants, whether trees, vines or bushes. The purpose of pruning is to train a plant to its strongest form and to get the correct ratio of leaves to developing...
Lee May – Where Is He?
Q: Can you tell me the whereabouts of Lee May, who used to write beautiful gardening articles for the paper? A: Lee and his wife, Lyn, are firmly ensconced in East Haddam, CT, where he ruminates on the mysteries of...
Rat – Crusty Skin on Ear
Q: I shot a roof rat with my pellet gun in a woodpile. It had very odd, crusty growths in all of the exposed surfaces of skin, whereas the furred areas looked fine. Check his eyes, nose, feet and tail....
Cinnamon – Growing
Q: I want to grow black pepper and cinnamon plants just to have it in my garden. Do you think they will survive? A: I doubt you’ll be successful with either. Both require tropical weather. see Growing Black Pepper Growing...
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...
