June 6, 2009

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Answer:

Most likely it is the plum curculio, which also attacks plums and other types of fruits.

In its adult stage, it is a little beetle-like insect, it’s actually a weevil, that lays an egg under a flap of skin of the fruit. When it hatches, the larva crawls to the center of the fruit and feeds around the seed.

If it happens really early in the process the fruit falls before it even gets close to ripening. But it can also happen so late that you pick a ripe peach and find a worm inside.

Plum curculios primarily are attacking from about the time that three-fourths of the petals are falling off the tree in the spring on up pretty close to harvest. And any control sprays that you do need to be done between that period of time between the three-fourths of the blooms falling off to about two weeks of harvest. It’s too late this year to do much for your crop this year, but be ready to control the insects next year.

past Questions of the Week →

PLANT OF THE WEEK

Pink Skullcap (Scutellaria suffrutescens)

Pink Skullcap is a very interesting plant in that it stays very low to the ground and spreads very slowly, almost like a molten lava flow moving slowly outward from the center. It’s extremely hardy; it takes our heat and drought very, very well. And it’s a plant that deer aren’t that fond of either. So in deer-prone areas it might be one of your better choices to try out. I like the beautiful pink-colored blooms that occur off and on throughout the year, especially in spring, but on into summer as well. This evergreen perennial loves sun but accepts some shade.

past Plants of the Week →

PLANTING TIPS OF THE WEEK

• Fertilize containers and annuals.
• Finish pruning back spring-flowering plants. Lightly fertilize roses.
• Trim back fall-blooming plants to encourage dense foliage and nice form.
• Remember to water new trees and woody shrubs. They need extra attention their first summer. Make sure to give them a deep soaking, then let them dry out between waterings.

more Planting Tips →

THIS WEEK'S FEATURE

Merrideth Jiles from The Great Outdoors designs with clumping bamboos.

Merrideth Jiles' Bamboo list

• Alphonse Karr (Bambusa multiplex 'Alphonse Karr')
• Golden bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea)
• Giant timber bamboo (Bambusa oldhamii)
• Golden Goddess (Bambusa multiplex 'Golden Goddess')
• Silverstripe (Bambusa multiplex 'Silverstripe')
• Buddha’s belly (Bambusa tuldoides 'Ventricosa')
• Mexican weeping bamboo (Otatea acuminata subsp. aztecorum)
• Tiny fern (Bambusa multiplex ‘Tiny Fern’)