Question:
I have just planted some St. Augustine grass patches in my back yard and I was wondering how often I should water it and for how long to get it rooted? Also, when should I fertilize and which product is best for this grass?
Answer:
You should water the grass often enough to keep the shallow layer of soil that the sod is growing in moist, until it can root itself into the ground under it. After about three weeks, you can check to see if it is rooted by pulling up on a corner of a piece of the sod gently. If you cannot pull it up, that means that the sod has established roots and you can cut back on the watering to once a week. In about 6 weeks, you can fertilize it with a 19-5-9 fertilizer which is obtainable at most nurseries/garden centers.

Question:
We have a garden planted on our side yard which has a border of jasmine, planted in 2007. Somehow, bermudagrass has started taking over the garden all through the jasmine. I have tried to pull it out piece by piece but it will take forever. Please tell me if there is any product that would be effective in killing the Bermuda grass but not the jasmine.
Answer:
You are in luck! Any of the so called ‘over the top’ grass specific herbicides will do the trick. The herbicides are sold by such names as Ortho®, Grass-B-Gon®, Vantage, Fusillade II, Ornamec, and many others. Just ask at your favorite nursery/garden center for one.

Question:
Does a single Duranta plant with purple flowers attract bees? I recently bought a Duranta plant in a hanging basket for my daughter to use on her front porch. Within a week, the plant was covered with bees, honey bees I believe, which in turned scared my daughter. She let the plant die in order to get rid of the bees. So, do you have any advice for the future?
Answer:
All flowering plants will attract bees. However, your daughter reacted unnecessarily harshly. Bees foraging for pollen/nectar are interested in one thing and that is collecting that pollen. They are not interested in stinging anyone.

Question:
I planted a Mexican white oak tree about one year ago; it is about twelve feet tall and has a two inch diameter trunk. The wind has it leaning at about 25 degrees. Can I stake it and correct the inclination to lean?
Answer:
I doubt that staking it would help at this time. Did it lean over that way shortly after you planted it? The entire root ball may have been pushed over before it had a chance to put out roots into the surrounding soil. You are probably going to have to live with a leaning tree.

Question:
I planted a Thompson yucca at the beginning of April. It arrived with beautiful flowers but it has not bloomed since. I thought it was supposed to bloom through the summer. Am I doing something wrong? All my other plants in the bed seem to be doing well.
Answer
: I know of no yucca that has an extended blooming period. There may be multiple bloom stalks on a plant but all will be produced at about the same time. The normal time for the Yucca thompsoniana is April – May.

Question:
I have a giant live oak tree in my front yard. No grass would grow in its shade, so I tried the monkey grass. I planted a couple hundred clumps. The clumps are growing well but not spreading as I had been led to believe. It has been in about a year. I was told to plant a foot apart and they would fill in. What’s wrong? Will they fill in?
Answer:
Mondo/monkey grass fills in directly proportional to the size of the plant when installed and the spacing. If you used the small two inch containers, at a foot apart, it will take several years to be solid. Normally, one gallon containers, planted one foot apart, will fill in a couple of growing seasons. If you have not fertilized it, I recommend that you do so with a good, high nitrogen lawn fertilizer.

Question:
I have planted tomato plants in pots, for the first time. The stalks of the plant have a spiky-looking (thorny) growth on them. They are soft and not yucky to touch. I don’t recall ever seeing this on my in ground plants. Please, what are they from?
Answer:
This is completely normal. If these stems were underground, the growths would turn into roots. They probably are more noticeable in container grown plants because of the increased humidity around the stem.

Question:
I planted some sunflower seeds and now the plants are almost the height of the fence. The plants have big green leaves. However I noticed that some small black worms are eating my leaves. They are underneath the leaves. They are tiny and all crowded together. They don’t seem to be moving. It looks like they are forming a web. I panicked and cut the leaves that had the worms. I threw them in the trash. What are they and where are they coming from? Will they kill the plant? What can I do?
Answer:
These caterpillars are the larva of one of the Patch butterflies. While they will eat some of the sunflower leaves, they will usually not defoliate the plant. It will continue to grow and bloom. If you ignore them, your garden will soon be filled with many small butterflies.

Question:
Almost every Esperanza and/or duranta plant I see is covered with flowers by this time of the year. Mine don’t have a single bud/bloom/flower. What can be done to help the plants flower, if anything? They were planted from one gallon pots in April & May and are now 4-5 feet tall.
Answer:
Have patience. If you have them, where they are getting sufficient sunlight, they will surely soon have blossoms. They are still getting established and are devoting their energy to roots and foliage.

Question:
I have an older crape myrtle in my back yard, and its leaves are turning yellow and falling off as if it’s already fall. This tree shares the back yard with two sweet gum trees. What should I do, is it dying?
Answer:
I suspect that the plant is just reacting to its environment. The crape myrtle put on more leaves, during the wetter than normal spring growing season, than it can support now in the extreme heat. I would not worry. Just be sure not to let it dry out completely in the absence of rainfall.

Question:
I have a couple of miniature goats that run around, I want to plant crepe myrtles around my house but I want to know if they are safe to plant with my goats?
Answer:
I would say that the goats are safe but I have my doubts about the crape myrtles. The goats will probably find them tasty.

Question:
I am interested in growing gourds for luffa sponges. Are they right for our climate? When shall I plant and where can I purchase this plant?
Answer:
The luffa gourd will do fine here. You will need to grow it from seed. If you cannot find these seeds in local seed racks at nurseries/garden centers, you can order them on line from a seed company such as Burpee Seed at www.burpee.com. Since it takes a long growing season, you need to plant them in early spring.

Question:
What are the plants that look like white tipped cattails only and are purple in color. What are they called and where can you purchase them?
Answer:
I am not familiar with any purple cattails. I think that you may be referring to Ornamental Millet (Pennisetum glaucum). This plant is commonly carried by local nurseries/garden centers.

Question:
I bought this house in April and it had several beautiful airplane plants just growing in the ground. I dug up two of them and put them in planters. One is doing great, but the other has brown tips on the leaves. What is causing that and what can I do? The plants are outside and we have had tremendous rain for two weeks, but all are fine except that one plant.
Answer:
The most common cause of brown tips on leaves in container plants is the build up of salts from the fertilizer used. This is exacerbated if the container does not drain properly, or if when you water, you do not apply enough to cause it to run out the bottom of the container. By letting water run through the soil in the container the salts will be flushed out.

Question:
Why do my tomatoes split before they are ripe?
Answer:
Some tomatoes are just genetically inclined to split but the main reason for them doing so is that they get an abundance of water and the skin cannot expand to keep up with the flesh growth and therefore it splits. The only control I know of is to grow a different variety that doesn’t split and monitor the water.

Question:
I guess I am confused about mulch. I have been taught to dress trees and perennials with 2-3 inches of mulch making sure it does not touch the bark, but yet tucked in close enough to prevent water from evaporating in the harsh temps. I do not have these beds in drip irrigation. So how does the 1/2 to one inch of irrigation penetrate this much mulch and benefit my plants. After I water and fluff the mulch my bed is still dry. What am I doing wrong?
Answer:
If those beds are on a separate station of your irrigation system, you need to increase the time that this station runs each time you irrigate. To decide how much time to run, I recommend doubling the current time and then after it has run check the soil under the mulch to see how wet it is. If it has moistened the soil to a depth of 4 inches, fine. If not increase the time even further until it does adequately moisten the soil. Do not ‘fluff’ your mulch as this just lets the moisture on (in) the mulch evaporate.

Question:
I was wondering what would be the best way to deal with weeds in my Bermuda grass as we go into the fall and winter. The two main problems are spurge and crabgrass. I always see these weeds and they say not to use on Bermuda. I want to do something this fall so that the weeds do not take over the Bermudagrass and before the Bermuda goes into dormancy. I want my grass to be healthy and full in the spring and have fewer weeds.
Answer:
Both the spurge and the crabgrass are warm season annual weeds. They are best controlled with the application of a pre-emergent herbicide to keep the seed from germinating. These pre-emergents should be applied mid to late February. The spurge is a broadleaf weed so a broadleaf pre-emergent such as Portrait should be applied in accordance with its label. The crabgrass will need a grassy weed pre-emergent such as Amaze. Again follow the application instructions on its label.

Question:
We have a beautiful perennial firebush near the back of our home. The problem is it is almost 7 feet tall and at least 5 feet wide. It is full of blooms and has a beautiful shape, but it is TOO BIG! We had no idea that it would grow this large when we planted it. Any suggestions as to how to trim it?
Answer:
You can take hedge clippers to your Firebush and cut it back to acceptable proportions. It, as you know, will freeze back to the ground each winter with freezing temperatures. Any time after that first freeze, you can cut it to the ground. If you are fertilizing the plant, you can cut back or eliminate that and it won’t grow so much.

Question:
My oak tree has spider-web looking material on it. Is this a disease or just something that will take care of itself?
Answer:
If it is webbing that is covering the trunk of the tree, it was made by a harmless insect called bark lice. As you say, it will take care of itself. See the images and information at http://www.plantanswers.com/barklice.htm.

Question:
I have a pride of Barbados plants and would like to know if I can cut it back and when would be a good time. Also, it froze back in the winter and has come back beautiful and tall.
Answer:
You can cut it back enough to keep it in control at any time, even now. You will prevent any new blossoms until it puts on new growth. It will freeze each winter and you can cut it to the ground after any such freeze. In the event that it does not freeze, then you should cut it to the ground anyway in the early spring before it starts to put on new growth. This will help it to stay within the bounds you want.