Question:
Are Vitex and Butterfly bushes the same plant?
Answer:
Common names are sometimes a problem. However, Vitex is the botanical name of a plant most commonly called Chase tree or just Vitex. Butterfly bush is the command name of Buddleia daviddii. So they are different plants.

Question:
Last year, I planted Bird of Paradise, Strelitzia, in my backyard where they were looking very nice until winter. After several freezes and nights in the low 20’s, the plants are looking very sad. How can I tell if they are dead or alive and how long reasonably to look for recovery?
Answer:
Without a doubt, the above the ground foliage is dead and if it comes back, it will be from its roots. Without digging up the root ball to inspect the roots, you will have to wait and see if it puts up new growth. I’m not sure how long this would take but would guess that if you haven’t seen new growth by May 1st, it is not going to come back.

Question:
We have several large philodendron selloum. With the hard freeze this year, will they come back?
Answer:
Only time will tell. If the trunks are solid and not mushy, they will probably come back.

Question:
What can I do with Live oak trees leaves that do not burn? They seem to have a coating on them that prevents the leaves from burning.
Answer:
If they are falling on your lawn, you can run your mower over them. The mower will chip them up and they will settle down into the lawn. They will decompose and return their nutrients to the soil. If you have a bagging mower, you can catch the chipped up leaves and use them as a wonderful mulch around your trees, shrubs, ornamentals and vegetables. You can put them in your compost pile. As you can see, there is no reason to send them to the land field.

Question:
We have inherited a very dry, weedy yard. A lot of the weeds are some sort of thistle. We’re military and this is our first time in Texas where yards require more attention than we are used to. We are completely at a loss as to what to do to improve this yard. Is sod or planting easier? We have four small children and two big dogs so the traffic on the yard will be high when the weather is right. What type of grass works best with high traffic and sun only in the morning hours? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Answer:
In the circumstances that you describe, one of the wide blade Zoysia grasses would probably be the best. Bermuda grass is the most traffic tolerant grass that is adapted to this area but it needs full sun to prosper. None of the grasses will stand up to the wear and tear of large dogs. They are creatures of habit and will wear trails in the grass. Sodding is easier in that you get instant coverage. The only grass that is available in this area for seeding is Bermuda and the soil must be quite warm for it to germinate. Meaning that you would not be able to start your lawn before April 15, have at least a three week period of daily watering before the grass would be up and high enough to mow, and like I said above, it is not going to do well in less than full sun.

Question:
Butterfly Iris were planted last year. They have never bloomed. The leaves are brown, probably from the freezes. The plant still looks the same except it is now brown. Do I cut it back and if so when and how much?
Answer:
Butterfly Iris (Dietes bicolor) is normally hardy to about 20° F and will probably come back from its roots. However, you will not know if yours survived the cold until it sprouts (or does not sprout) next spring. You can be sure that it has been killed to the ground and can safely cut off all of the above ground stems and foliage at this time.

Question:
I have three fruit bearing Yaupon hollies and one that does not have fruit. I was told that I have three females and one male. If I cut down the one male plant, will that keep the other females from bearing fruit?
Answer:
The Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria) does have separate male and female trees. Cutting down the male might eliminate (or reduce) the production of berries on the female trees. However, if there are any other hollies (not just Yaupon) in the immediate neighborhood blooming at the same time as your Yaupon, they could provide the pollen necessary for the pollination of your female Yaupon flowers.

Question:
I have Buffalo 609 grass. The weeds are ridiculous. I pull weeds by the roots every day and it never ends (nine yrs. now). Nobody seems to know of a weed and feed to use on this grass. I also have many seedling trees six inches to one foot tall that I don’t want to kill. Is there a weed treatment that won’t kill my grass or kill my young trees? Would you recommend a pre-emergent that will kill the weed seeds and not my trees?
Answer:
I am amazed that you have put up with this for nine years. I would have thought the Buffalo would have been long gone before now. One reason that no one knows of a “weed and feed” mixture for Buffalograss is because it should not be fertilized. And I don’t know of a herbicide that will not harm the trees or the grass and kill the weeds. But I can assure you that the problem is not going to get any better. Buffalograss will never choke out or prevent weed growth.

Question:
My neighbors have bougainvilleas that bloom like crazy. Mine stay leafy with no blooms. How can I get them to flower?
Answer:
Usually bougainvilleas do not bloom because they are not getting enough sun. Some varieties bloom more than others. Move your bougainvillea to a location which receives more sun, cut it back severely and fertilize with Easy Grow Hibiscus Food. It should do better and be in full bloom this fall.

Question:
Should sweet corn be planted in several short rows rather than in one or two long rows?
Answer:
Yes. Corn is pollinated by wind-borne pollen. Planting corn in blocks rather than in long rows makes it easier for the plants to pollinate one another during tasseling.

Question:
The bedding areas under and around my cedar elm trees get covered every year with cedar elm seedlings. What can I do to get rid of them? There are too many to pull.
Answer:
You should apply a broad leaf pre emergent herbicide to prevent new ones from coming up. You would do this about the time that they start dropping their seed. For those that have already come up, you can spray them with a glyphosate herbicide. You must be careful not to spray any other plants that you do not wish to kill. The glyphosate will not hurt the mother trees even if you get it on their bark. Just don’t spray it on their leaves.

Question:
I have sandy soil in my new lawn. I would like to plant bermudagrass seed this spring but have lots of sand burs and many weeds. Should I apply a pre-emergent to kill the sand burs? If so, how long must I wait before I can plant the bermudagrass seeds?
Answer:
If you use a pre-emergent herbicide for the grass area it will preclude planting the bermudagrass for about 6 months. Bermudagrass needs a very warm soil to germinate so I recommend that you do not sow the seed before the first of May. In the meantime kill all existing vegetation using one of the glyphosate herbicides. You can also drag an old carpet remnant over the area (pile side down). This will collect many of the seed. Then after your bermudagrass is up and well established, you can kill any sandbur plants that are growing with a post emergent herbicide called MSMA. This is manufactured by many and available at all nurseries/garden centers.

Question:
Last year, I had an infestation on several of my crape myrtle plants in the front and back yards. I think it was crape myrtle aphids- sticky, black, sooty surface of the leaves. I used nothing on the plants last year. No foliage is out yet but I expect these will return this year. Can I use an oil spray now to prevent aphids? Also, what is the best insecticide to use during the growing season and how often should it be applied? I was told oil to use Malathion or Neem.
Answer:
I do not know of a preventative spray for aphids. At the first indication of them, spray with any insecticide labeled for aphids. There are many – just ask your favorite nursery/garden center person. You should not have to spray any more frequently than weekly.

Question:
Can seed from this year’s okra crop be saved for next year’s planting?
Answer:
Yes. Okra is a self-pollinated crop and seed can be saved from one year’s garden for the next. Toward the end of the season allow some of the pods to remain on the plant and harvest them when they become fully mature and almost dry. If you allow okra pods to remain on the plant and fully mature, subsequent production is greatly curtailed.

Question:
How often should okra be harvested and how can you tell when it is ready?
Answer:
Okra requires frequent harvesting. For peak quality, it must be harvested before the pods become tough. Okra matures rapidly, especially in hot weather. Approximately 4 days are required from flowering to harvest maturity. Okra should be harvested every other day. Pod size will vary with variety, but length will generally be 4 to 6 inches. Test larger pods by cutting through them with a sharp knife. If it is difficult to cut through them, they are tough and unsuitable for serving. Remove old pods from the plant or it will stop producing.

Question:
Is there anything special about the red podded varieties of okra?
Answer:
No. This is a selection or variety which produces red- colored okra. When cooked, the red color disappears and the pods take on the normal green appearance.

Question:
I want to grow a few rows of sweet potatoes in my garden. How do I get seed or plants?
Answer:
Sweet potatoes are started from transplants or vine cuttings rather than from seeds. Transplants, also called slips, usually grow from bedded roots. A vine cutting is 10- to 12-inch section cut from a vine growing in the field. Home gardeners can produce a limited number of slips or sections of vine by placing a sweet potato bud side up in a jar of water and placing the jar in a sunny location. Vines produced can be cut into sections and planted.

Question:
When should you bed out sweet potato roots for slip production?
Answer:
To produce slips, sweet potato roots should be laid on their sides in hotbeds about a month before the nighttime temperatures stay above 60 degrees F. Cover the sweet potato roots with 2 inches of moist sand and keep the hotbed between 75 degrees and 80 degrees F. When the sprouts develop, remove them with a twisting tug. Additional transplants (slips) will form from the bedded sweet potatoes if left in place.

Question:
How do you know when sweet potatoes are mature and ready for harvesting?
Answer:
Sweet potatoes can be harvested at any stage of maturity. They require 100 to 140 days from planting to maturity depending on variety. Harvest sweet potatoes before the first killing frost because cool conditions can physiologically damage roots.