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Frequently asked |
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Frequently asked |
From: Joyce Replogle - Fort Worth, Texas - Nov. 26, 1997
Problem: A friend of mine gave me a lace bark elm seedling with the thought that I might make a bonsai of it. Since it's so little, I'm hesitant to leave it out all winter, but I've heard that, if a plant specimen normally grows outdoors in it's "normal" state, grow it outside in it's bonsai state. Is that true - even for such small, young, tender plants? It was dug up & transplanted in late September, and, so far, I've been able to keep it alive. We've only had one hard freeze, and I brought it in - but now it looks like it's drying up. I can't tell - yet - whether it's normal fall leaf drop, or if it's dying - any information you can give me about starting a bonsai this way would be helpful, as I'm a novice at best. Thanks.
Solution: I will admit that I have two weaknesses when it comes to plants; cactus and bonsai. But it is true, that if the species of plant is normally grown outside it should also live as a bonsai outside. Elms are deciduous and need a dormant period to survive. The cold temperatures of winter trigger the beginning and end of that period. Since you are starting out with such young plants I think they would do better in a cold garage with a window or if you don't have a garage I would put it on a back porch in a protected site with straw around it. Make sure the root mass is watered before it freezes. Wish I could help more but I am also a novice.
From: Suzanne Williams - Ridgewood, New Jersey USA- Nov. 8, 1997
Problem: We recently had a birch tree
cut down unfortunately due to disease. We really don't want to spend the money having the
stump removed professionaly. My husband Paul, feels he can remove it himself. He thinks he
remembers hearing something about organic stump removal. Any help or suggestions you could
give us regarding organic removal and how to go about cutting it out of the ground would
be extremely appreciated as it would save us a good deal of money.
Solution: Although stump removal should be left to the
professionals there are other ways to remove them. The first is the old fashioned way, an
axe and ol' lots of elbow grease. Also, chemical stump removers work by burning the stump
out of the ground. I have not seen biological removers but there are products for
decomposing thatch so I would not be surprised if they existed for stumps. Check out your
local garden center. If it is a fairly young tree and you want to dig it out by hand:
water the stump real well before the ground freezes. Leave it in the ground over winter
and in spring after the thaw dig a trench around the stump until you reach the subsoil
(usually only 12") and then dig soil out from under the stump.
From: Michael Werden - Fresno, California USA - Sept. 12, 1997
Problem: Is there a way to stop the production of pecans. I have two trees in the yard, very close to the house. They are great shade trees but the shells of the pecans cause a lot of staining to the tiles and driveway outside.
Solution: There is no way to stop plants from producing fruit. After all it is the sole purpose of it's life: to reproduce.Your only hope is to reduce the amount of seed development. If you are fertilizing use one with a low potassium number for example, 20-12-6, the last number being the potassium. This will reduce fruit and seed growth slightly. The only other thing I can think of is to sweep up the seeds regularly to prevent staining. Unfortunately, pecans and hickories, are not very good landscape trees. Sorry I could not help more.
From: Chuck Heim - Louisville,Ky USA- Sept. 7, 1997
Problem: My wife and I purchased a maple tree called a Red Sunset Maple.but I can't find any information about this tree anywhere.Please Email me if possible.Thanks.
Solution: I am familiar with Red Sunset Maples, they are very popular in Ohio. Maples tend to be fairly diseases and insect resistant. Acer rubra 'Red Sunset' , grows to about 45-50'' with a pyramidal shape maturing to rounded. It may get suns scald in southern areas. 'Red Sunset's have a orange to red fall color, are extremely cold hardy, and turns color just before 'October Glory' which is the last to turn. If you were to ask any nurseryman, landscape architect, or grower which maple is the best, many would definitely say 'Red Sunset' is one of the top three.
From: Cory - Springville, Utah USA - Aug. 31, 1997
Problem: I have a 5 year old maple tree growing very well in my yard. I would like to have several more. Can you tell me how to grow more trees using this one? Are there seeds I should look for? How do I start them when I find them?
Solution: There are two ways to propagate Maples, with seeds or softwood cuttings. The seeds of the all Maple trees are called syncarps and are a favorite of children. They have a single wing attached to the seed shaped like a propeller and it whirls down like a helicopter with a strong wind. Seeds mature in early summer and fall in mid summer. Store the seeds in a refrigerator at 41°f for 60-75 days than plant shallowly in moist rich soil. An easier way is softwood cuttings. After the growth in spring has hardened slightly in early summer, cut an eight inch piece off the end of this years growth. You will want to remove the bottom two leaves and place the cutting in a container filled with equal amounts of peat and perlite. The point on the stem where the two leaves were removed should be under the soil. Keep moist and mist frequently and within 3-5 weeks it will root. For better odds use a rooting hormone found in most garden stores.
From: Donna Petrusha - Schaumburg, Illinois - USA- July 28, 1997
Problem: We have a flowering crab apple tree. It had tremendous blossoms in the spring. Now, after the long cold spring, the extreme heat and dryness has us sweltering. Some of the leaves on the tree have turned yellow and fallen off. Others have dark spots. We're not sure if this is a disease or if it's weather related. This tree is about six years old. It was planted at the Northeast corner of our house, just at the edge of where the land has about a 30% drop. The soil at the tree base seems to have eroded somewhat and now the tree is slightly tilting, but the roots are not exposed.. We were contemplating building a retaining wall, and building up the soil, but I heard that burying the roots too far could kill the tree. Can you help? Where do we start?
Solution: The yellowing leaves and dark spots sound very much like scab. Scab is a plant disease caused by fungus. The fungus usually comes from decaying plant material on the ground. In the spring, spores are blown into the air and infect moist leaves, which then form dark spots. These dark spots then produce more spores which accelerates the process. --- Scab is very common with crabapples and a cure is very rare. The best thing to do is clean up planting beds in the fall. Remove all fallen leaves and fruit, but leave the mulch layer. Or you can spray the tree with a fungicide and insecticide(insects help spread spores). Go to your local nursery with an infected leaf sample to make sure it is scab and find out what spray they would recommend. The yellowing leaves dropping off is common for crabapples, the stress of the fungal infection and hot temperatures has weakened the plant. --- A retaining wall sounds like a good idea. I would not bury the roots more than 4 inches, because it can suffocate the roots and also force a rapid growth of unsightly suckers at ground level.--- My plan of attack would be to water the tree then wait a day and give it a half-strength fertilizing, than build the wall and raise the grade as soon as possible. Do not bury the roots more than 4 inches than each year in the spring add just alittle more mulch until you have slowly brought the grade up to where you want it. Oh, and good luck!
From: Albert Pollard - Sanford, Maine - USA - May 25, 1997
Problem: I have a few dwarf pear trees that have a thickened, black growths on the younger branches. The leaves stopped growing last year and many fell off. Is this fire blight? Is fire blight a bacterial infection? How do you get rid of it? Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Solution: Yes, it does sound like you have fire blight. Fire blight is a bacteria, Erwinia amylovora, to be specific. Alot of fruiting trees are susceptible to this bacteria but it does not always mean death for the plant. Since it is still fairly early in the growing season prune off all infected branches 12" back from infected areas. Sterilize saws and pruners afterwards with alcohol or bleach (if you want to be thorough sterlize after each cut). Keep a close eye on the tree this year and prune again in late fall if needed, chances are it will slowly spread throughout the summer. Apply copper sulfate next spring before blossoms emerge. You will probably need repeat applications to ensure the infection is gone. The infection will infect young shoots first so reduce the amount of nitrogen in your fertilizer to prevent new growth. Some varieties that are fairly resistant are: Dutchess, Garber, Orient and Seckel
From: Gerry Shortall - Midlothian, Virginia - USA - May 7, 1997
Problem: We just bought two dogwoods with the name on the tag marked cornus x 'rutdan' Celestial tm dogwood. The owner of the nursey was not there and the clerk had no information on this tree including the color. The trees looked very healthy and were a good price so we bought. My question is can you provide me with any information about this tree?
Solution: I am afraid I am not familiar with "rutdan' I have heard the name but I have no hands on experience. However, I can give you some general information on Dogwoods. Most importantly they need acid soil, which means adding sphagnum peat moss to the soil. Mira-acid is a good fertilizer to use. Most dogwoods prefer partial shade but can tolerate full sun. Dogwoods do not like soggy soil so make sure there is good drainage. Make sure to mulch around the tree because dogwoods like cool soil. Dogwoods seem to root easily when they are young, so if you bought smaller trees they have a better chance of establishing. As far as bloom color I'm not sure but with a name like Celestrial it is probably a white blooming. Pink and white are the two major bloom colors of dogwoods. I hope I was some help!
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