Important Tasks
Revealed For
Fall Gardeners
A recent newsletter by Kim
Powell (landscape specialist. Horti
culture Department, N.C State
University) highlighted a series of
important gardening tasks for the
autumn gardener. I have added to
and modified his list and believe the
following information will answer
many forthcoming questions.
? Prune off faded blooms of
crape myrtles. Most crape myrtles
have been blooming for the past
month or so, and as the flowers fade,
seed heads form Now is a good
time to tip prune those seed heads
off for two reasons: (1) flowering is
encouraged; and (2) weight will be
relieved from the branches. You will
notice how a crape myrtle in full
bloom is easily bent out of shape af
ter a summer rain shower. The flow
ers form on this seasons' new
growth, which is usually not strong
enough to support the weight of a
wet bloom or seed head.
? Spring flowering bulb cata
logues are arriving, so it must be
time to start thinking about next
year's garden. Now is a good time to
design that garden, but wait until it
cools off a bit to actually do any
thing. Spring flowering bulbs are
best planted in late October through
December. Now is a good time to
take a soil sample.
? Late Summer Renovation:
After 4 or 5 months of growing,
many landscape beds are p? oh ably
in need of a good weeding and edg
ing. I have seen numerous plantings
that would benefit from a total late
summer renovation. Tbis would in
clude hand-pulling the annual weeds
and grasses and spraying a contact
herbicide on the tough perennial
weeds and grasses.
The perennials and most woody
plants can stand a tip pruning or
even a heading-back trim. Some
perennials will probably need stak
ing. After these projects are com
plete, re-edge the bed, apply a pre
emergent herbicide if necessary and
add a fresh layer of mulch.
? 2,4, D, Amitrol, Roundup and
Banvel are contact herbicides la
beled for poison ivy and poison oak
control. If you want an organic con
trol method, buy a goat. And if you
are concerned about the quality of
the milk, don't worry.
According to University of
California researchers, goats eating
poison oak do not produce milk that
is contaminated. They conclude that
it is safe to use goats to clear poison
oak. They also assumed that it was
safe to use goats to clear poison ivy
and poison sumac, since the toxic
chemical, urushiol, is essentially the
same in all three. No urushiol was
found in the milk or urine samples
of goats fed on 100-percent poison
oak for 10 days.
? Now is a good time to prepare
sites for tree planting. September
through December is an excellent
time to plant trees in coastal North
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Carolina. Remember to stay at least
25 feet from buildings and avoid
planting trees under power lines.
? Take pictures of areas before
and after landscaping. "Before" pic
tures are always good to have, espe
cially when you've finished installing
a nice garden or landscaping feature.
? We've all heard and used the
expression, "If it's not broken, don't
fix it," and there is a lot to be said
for putting this statement into prac
tice. But sometimes we might want
to change our planting strategy and
experiment with new plants or new
cultivars of plants. Landscape beds
often need a break from the same
combinations of plants, especially
bedding plants.
On a recent visit to Callaway Gar
dens in Pine Mountain. Ga . Kim
Powell reported seeing the following
plants used in various landscape
beds. There's no reason why we
shouldn't try some of the same com
binations in some North Carolina
landscapes.
(The common names are followed
in italic by the scientific or cultivar
name.)
Summer Bedding Plants
For Next Year's Gardes
Lantana (Miss Huff's Hardy,
Radiation, New Gold)
Annual Hibiscus (Red Shield)
Silver Dollar (Eucalyptus cinerm)
Egyptian Surflower (Pentas
Lanceolaia)
Sweet PoUto (Ipomea Blackie)
Wormwood (Artansia Powis
Castle)
Narrow-leaf Zinnia (Zinnia an
gustifolia)
Excellent Fall- Blooming
Perennials For The
Sage (Salvia Madrensis)
Mexican Bush Sage (Salvia leu
canlha)
New England Aster (Aster nova
angliae)
Swamp Sunflower (Helianthus gi
gantau)
Tartarian Aster (Aster tartaricus)
Send your gardening questions
and comments to the Plant Doctor,
P.O. Box 109, Bolivia NC 28422.
Please send a SASE for a reply or if
requesting information.
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