August 1, 2008
Its hard to believe its August 1st especially with the lawns so green! Soon the Japanese Beetles will be gone but I am seeing incidents of lacebug damage on Azalea as customers bring samples to the store and I’ve spotted the problem in yards as I drive down the road.
If you have lacebug problems on Azalea, which discolors the foliage to become brown or tan-like to clear instead of a rich green, please spray with a product containing acephate and repeat the treatment again in 10 days.
Seiberling sweet corn has arrived at last! The two week to ten day delay was caused by the cold wet period we had in mid-May which, for a while, turned the corn plants yellow and stunted them.
At the nursery, we’re just about finished taking our cuttings of trees and shrubs and have moved on to potting up small plants of Clematis vines and creeping phlox that will be ready for next April.
Now a word about Knockout roses…I’ve noticed that these roses seem to thrive as if they’re on steroids as long as the soil is rich and fluffy. One way to achieve this “chocolate cake” type of soil is through the use of liberal amounts of compost or a product called Sweet Peet that contains composted bark and cow manure.
Another item to note about shrub roses such as Knockouts is to cut them back right after their big bloom in June and July to free them of any old flower heads that get in the way of new growth that will produce more flowers all summer and into fall.
Remember when you come by the nursery to bring in any plant samples you may have in a plastic bag so we may diagnose the problems to help you to correct it.
Oh, by the way, this week’s Sweet Corn is a bicolor called ‘Temptation’!
Enjoy the summer!
Tom
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment