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Trumpet Vine eradication
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Date Posted: Fri, Oct 14 - 12:59 am
- What is the best way to get rid of trumpet vine. It’s all over my yard
- Hello there, As you probably know trumpet vine has several ways of spreading. I haven't had any personal experience at killing trumpet vines but I do know they require a lot of work to keep them under control. I don't know what methods you may have already tried so I'll pass along the ones I've come across. They all require a certain amount of vigilance. You'll also want to take care if there are other desirable plants nearby. You may want to consider moving them to a safe location while you try to eradicate the vine. If the plant isn't too large, dig it up. This means cutting the vine, or vines, back to a stump and removing what is a rather large root system. You will most likely miss a root or 2 so it is important to keep an eye out for any new plants sprouting from remaining roots. As soon as you see a new plant sprout--dig it out. Another method I've heard of is using boiling water on the root system. Again you would need to cut back the vines to a stump and then pour boiling water over the the rather large root system. You will have to repeat this process maybe once a week until you see some progress. And again, you will most likely miss some roots, so if you see new growth either dig it up or use more boiling water. Even if you use an herbicide you will still have to watch for new growth and re-apply. So while an herbicide might seem like an easier way to go you will still have to be vigilant and be ready to re-apply. The key here is getting rid of as much of the plant and roots as possible and then being sure to watch for any new growth in your garden and digging or boiling out that new growth. If you wait for all the leaves to drop it will be easier to trace the growth back to its origins and see where there might be ground contact. It will take some time and patience but I think you'll see results! Best of luck!
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Vegetable pests
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Date Posted: Fri, Oct 07 - 9:01 pm
- Pole Beans: I planted (for the first time) some cold hardy plants at the end of summer. My pole beans grew in strong, but are now being decimated -- the leaves are bubbly and stems are severed. Some leaves have been chewed. I have been out there multiple times at various points in the day and I can't see anything. I put some sticky yellow bug catchers out there and it caught some tiny little flies and a small Beatle, but something else is still killing my vegetable. Vine Borer - Squash - Yes I had them and they killed my zucchini and spaghetti squash. I hear they overwinter. I planted several other squash plants after the annihilation of my squash (before I found out they stick around). They got 50% -- the others survived only because I covered the stem with foil to prevent the critters from entering. But, how do I extinguish them? Last question: I had two tomato issues. 1. some look like Chinese paper lanterns, with nothing inside of them, just a fragile green shell of a tomato. 2. Lots of blooms, lots of pollinators visiting, no tomatoes. You are probably thinking 'just give up gardening' - but I'm hoping to learn, so I can do better next year. Thank you. Julie
- Dear Julie, You've had a tough summer! Actually, the summer was pretty hard on many living things. I'm going to start with your tomato question first. I'm wondering what type of tomato you planted? I've never come across an issue like this so I have to wonder about the seed or transplant you used. It sounds like it's a tomatillo, rather than tomato. In regard to the non-fruiting issue, I have to wonder about when you planted the tomato, did you plant so that tomatoes would have enough time to mature? Some tomatoes require a longer time to mature and fruit. There are varieties like Early Girl which may be a better bet for you if you're planting a little later or you simply want an earlier crop when planted at the appropriate time. Those are my best guesses. Squash vine borers are tough to deal with. Organic controls for squash vine borers include growing resistant varieties-butternut or the italian heirloom summer squash-tromboncino (a vigorous vining variety), crop rotation is critical, using row covers, passive traps, and surgical removal. The beans may be affected by mexican bean beetles. It's hard to say and I'm not sure why the leaves are bubbled, could be a blight? I'm attaching a document from the VA Tech extension website. There is a good summary of tips on vegetable gardening. I think you will find it useful-- https://ext.vt.edu/lawn-garden/home-vegetables.html You seem like a very observant and dedicated gardener, those are the best qualities for good results. Do not give up!! Best of luck!
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Powdery mildew?
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Date Posted: Fri, Oct 07 - 7:05 pm
- Hi. We have a white film on the leaves of two poppy plants we transplanted over a year ago. Cosmetically, it's not pretty. But don't know if it's harmful. It is only in the last 6 months that the film has appeared. They're under a dogwood tree, didn't know if that affected them. Can you tell me if this is harmful, and if it will impact the blooms? I don't see any buds so I fear this is a problem for the plants.
- Hello there, It sounds to me that you are dealing with powdery mildew. It's a very common fungal problem, heat and humidity aid its progress. It generally doesn't kill the plant, the plant just doesn't look it's best. I don't know which type of poppy you have but I'm guessing it's one of the oriental poppies (papaver orientale), that bloom in spring? You may want to consider transplanting the poppies to a spot in full sun with good air circulation. Cut back the foliage at the end of the season and dispose of it in the trash (not the compost pile). You don't want to be harboring the spores over winter. With some more sun and air, I think you will enjoy those poppies more. Good luck!
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Native plants
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Date Posted: Thu, Sep 15 - 9:44 pm
- I have an east-facing front yard in the Museum District and have approximately 12X 6 feet of space to work with. We recently got a retaining wall put in, and so it is a fresh canvas. The space gets full sun at least half the day. I love native plants, and particularly those that would remain evergreen in the winter. Any suggestions?
- Hello there, so nice to start fresh! I'm glad to hear you are interested in using native plants. I'm assuming the space is 12 feet wide and 6 feet deep. You'll probably want to start by creating some structure with shrubs. For evergreen green shrubs you could use inkberry (ilex glabra). There are many varieties of this plant, some have a loose form whiele others have a tighter globe shape and there are large and smaller sizes as well. So there's an inkberry to fit most spaces and styles. Mountain laurel is also another lovely evergreen plant with beautiful blooms in spring. Dog hobble or more commonly just Leucothoe (axillaris) is another nice evergreen. There is a variegated variety if you want to brighten up a space. You may also want to try evergreen bayberry (morella caroliniensis). In addition to these evergreens, there is virginia sweetspire (itea virginica) which has a nice drape to its shape, panicles of white flowers and beautiful fall color. Another good shrub is pepperbush (clethra alnifolia) with white to pink flowers (depending on variety) which is wonderfully fragrant. There is a smaller-sized variety that would fit in most gardens. Many of the plants in the blueberry family - early lowbush and deerberry (vaccinum pallida+vaccinum stamineum) have gorgeous fall color and colored bare stems in winter. Their spring flowers are delicate and beautiful and their fruits add to their appeal. I know you have a small space but I wanted to give a good number of options so you can pick and choose. Once you have a plan, you can decide what you want to place where. After placing the shrubs, you can then think about adding some lovely native ferns, perennials and/or ground cover, whatever space will allow. Before deciding on plants and placement, you should have a soil test done if you haven't already. You can amend if necessary and as an annual ritual, add compost to nourish you plantings. You can get a soil test kit at your local library when the Master Gardener Help Desk is in operation. Call your local library to find out the day and time. For additional information I suggest checking out this website and using the plant guides for the Capital region and NOVA-- https://www.plantvirginianatives.org/plant-rva-natives. Best of luck with the new garden!
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Soil, native plants
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Date Posted: Tue, Sep 13 - 6:36 pm
- I have got my front yard in great shape! not the back yard :( . It looks like a baseball field with lots of dirt and not much else. My back yard gets filtered sun,, some periods of direct sun in day. I have LOTS of trees. I want to turn my back yard into a natural wooded area with native wildlife. Do you think I need to buy soil or are there lots of native plants that can thrive in clay soil w/out that. Can you think of some native plants that would thrive in that kind of area. Thanks!
- Hello there, Well, the good news is you have lots of trees! We all should....Since that's the case you must have a lot of fallen leaves come winter. What do you do with those leaves? If you aren't already, I would suggest you start a compost pile or two. Or even simpler, you can just let the leaves remain where they have fallen and accumulate. Over time you'll have your woodland base. If you would rather rake them up and compost them, that's fine too. Then make an annual habit of applying that compost to keep feeding the soil. Having all those trees is a real advantage; you have a lot of raw material with which to work. You want to build a good base that will nourish the insects, plants and animals you want in your back yard. There's a good book on permaculture - Gaia's Garden, that has lots of useful information. You'll be especially interested in chapter 4 -Bringing Soil to Life. So rather than spending a lot of money and energy on purchasing soil and amendments, and if you give the project a little bit of time, you can save that money and use it for plants! There are some plants that are suited to clay but building your soil will bring you greater benefits-again, creating a balanced home for insects, plants and animals. There's a wonderful website you can use for finding out about native plants and the habitats they thrive within. I highly recommend--https://www.plantvirginianatives.org. It's easy to use and covers a lot of territory. It's always recommended to get your soil tested to see if the soil is lacking in any nutrients. You can have that done through the Chesterfield Master Gardener program. Here's the phone number: (804) 751-4401. You can also visit your local library and speak with a master gardener and pick up a soil testing kit at the same time. Check your local library for the day and time that the master gardener help desks are active. Best of luck with this project, I think you'll have some fun!
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Fall garden planting
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Date Posted: Tue, Sep 06 - 9:28 pm
- Hello! I just moved to RVA and Id like to plant a small flower garden in front of my house. The area receives sun most of the day. What plants could I plant that would adjust to being planted in September? Thank you so much! Taylor
- Hello Taylor! You've got two really good things going for you-sun and fall planting. Fall is a great time to plant here, though you may want to wait until it cools down just a little bit. This will give you some time to mull over your design. Your plant palette is pretty much wide open. Richmond is on the border of the piedmont and coastal plain regions, so you can use plants that are native to either of those areas. To get you started I have a few plant suggestions. They are: yellow coreopsis (tickseed), some purple echinacea (purple coneflower), liatris (liatris spicata)-also purple, orange butterfly weed (asclepias tuberosa) not butterfly bush, one of the native low-growing phloxes-divaricata or stolonifera, maybe some little bluestem grass (schizachyrium scoparium) for a different texture, for some height-oxeye (heliopsis helianthoides) and some shrubby st. john's wort (hypericum prolificum) for its lovely pollen-laded flowers and attractive foliage. One of the best approaches is to find a nursery you like that sells native flowers and see what is for sale at the nursery as the months pass. Ask the staff for information, they love sharing their knowledge! I also suggest reading up on what is, and why plant, a native plant. This is a really useful website--https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58e25c41e6f2e17ea4cb7766/t/5ed00bfcb208c2251311ebc6/1590692887078/Native+Plants+for+Virginia%27s+Capital+Region+Guide+for+download.pdf. Check out the information for the capital region on this website when gardening in Richmond but remember you may be able to use some plants for the coastal plain as well. Before starting your garden it's a good idea to get your soil tested to find out if it's lacking in any nutrients. You can find out about cost and how to gather a good sample by calling to speak with a VCE-MG at our Chesterfield Master Gardener Help Desk weekdays during regular business hours, March through October or call (804) 751-4401 to speak with the Master Gardener on call. Also, the local branch libraries have MG help desks. Check your local branch for the day and time and speak to an MG. They are there to help! Best of luck with your new garden!
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Natives!!
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Date Posted: Thu, Jul 21 - 7:35 pm
- where can I find a list of native flowers to plant as well as native seeds to plant in my garden. I am aiming to increasing visits from pollinators! My space gets about 6 hours of full sun. Thanks!
- Hello there, so glad you are thinking about all the benefits of native plants. Not only will you attract pollinators but you'll increase the food supply for birds and beef up the organisms in the soil working underground; just to name a few benefits. I'm attaching 3 different websites that are wonderful references, the one for Virginia natives is especially useful. There is no shortage of choices. Internet resources: www.vpns.org; www.xerces.org; www.plantvirginianatives.org. Have fun planting your new garden!! We all appreciate it.
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English Ivy
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Date Posted: Sun, Jun 05 - 1:10 am
- Hi, I have a question about some plants in my backyard. I think I have some kind of ground ivy, and it has something wrong with it. I'm not sure if it's fungus or insect activity. The leaves have small “bubbles" where the leaves material has ballooned in places. Each bubble is the size of a pea. On the underside of the leaves, inside the bubbles, there are clusters of little white specks. I have pictures, but I'm unable to post them here. What is causing this? Do I need to do anything about it? Will it spread to other plants? Thanks!
- Hello there, I am making an assumption that you are referring to English ivy. I haven't seen the problem you're describing myself but I found some information on the Virginia Tech website. Again, I based my search for information on the subject being English ivy. If you think it's something else you can try searching for it on this website. There are photos you can refer to when you get the search results. Here is the website address--https://apps.cals.vt.edu/ppig/ --Select Woody Ornamentals for Plant Type and English ivy for Plant Common Name. It should return 2 entries. One will be for Bacterial Leaf Spot and the other will be Anthracnose-a fungus. I hope this helps! Let us know if you have further questions.
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Reblooming azaleas
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Date Posted: Mon, May 30 - 7:03 pm
- My azaleas are the type that bloom several times a year and are doing very well. They are several years old and I would like to know when they should be fertilized. Thanks.
- Hello there, Good to know the plants are doing well. Since this is the case I wouldn't recommend using any kind of commercial fertilizer. An annual top dressing with some good compost and a light dressing of mulch such as pine needles, pine bark, or maybe hemlock should provide the nutrients your shrubs need. I don't recommend using any of the dyed wood chips. Those can rob your plants of nutrients in their quest to decompose. Also, less is better with mulch, a dressing of one to two inches deep will suffice. Happy plants are easy to care for!
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Native Plants
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Date Posted: Mon, Apr 25 - 4:23 pm
- I’m interested in filling a mulched area in my yard in the city with native plants. Do you have any recommendations for layout and where to buy? I was hoping for a rain garden but it’s not enough space. It’s about 10 feet by 3 feet.
- Hello there! What a timely question. Master Gardeners are exploring this very subject on May 7th at the park at the Main Library between 1-4. There will be a presentation on invasive plants by the JRPS Invasive Plant Task Force followed by Master Gardeners presenting on native plants with plenty of time for questions and answers. Without knowing the orientation, amount of sun, and soil conditions, etc., it's difficult to make a suggestion for your planting. However, I would recommend making as many layers as possible-shade, understory, shrubs, perennials and groundcovers. I know it's not a large area but you would be surprised how many plants can inhabit a space that size. You could omit the shade tree perhaps and plant an understory or two-one at each end of the space. Then infill with a mix of shrubs and perennials and finally underplant with a groundcover or two. This diverse mix will be very attractive to many species of birds, mammals, insects, etc. Please come with your questions and curiosity on May 7th!!