Garden Clippings
Add variety to garden plate
By RUTH DAVIES
Article published on Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007  |
After enjoying an especially good meal and push away from the table, the thought comes to mind that it was too much of a good thing.
As certain shrubs or trees become popular, they may be overplanted. Now, if you were a hungry bug, wouldn’t it be easy to just dine and dine in one spot.
Last year, the snowbush shrub, Breynia, was attacked by a spanworm caterpillar and defoliated. Of course this was preceded by the white-tipped black moth.
The caterpillar is yellow and black and is only an inch long and literally inches along the plant. After it has eaten the leaves, it will attack the twigs and stems. The snowbush may die if totally defoliated. An insecticide or organic bacillus thuringiensis will help control the caterpillar.
Frankly, I’m surprised the Indian hawthorn hasn’t been attacked, as it seems every other property has a good number planted.
Unfortunately, one of my favorite plants, lakeside or orange jasmine, murraya paniculata, has been named by the USDA as one of the favorite food of a psyllid insect that carries the citrus greening disease.
According to the USDA, symptoms may include blotchy mottling on the leaves and yellowing of leaf veins and shoots. Other symptoms are twig dieback, poor flowering and stunted growth.
Don’t panic if there is some yellowing at the tip of older leaves or there are yellow spots on the leaf of citrus, this may be caused by a deficiency in magnesium.
The greening disease is a threat to all citrus crops, so although it will hurt to compost my orange jasmine, I will do so to help protect my citrus trees.
Keep up with pruning in the landscape. Poinsettias and chrysanthemums can be pruned until September.
Remember when pruning hedges that you’re not creating tutus, a reverse pyramid. Keep the base wider to support the top of the hedge.
The bonus is that the bottom leaves don’t die off leaving bare sticks.
Ruth Davies is a Pinellas County Master Gardener. She can be reached at sunflower1368@juno.com.
|
Article published on Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007
Copyright © Tampa Bay Newspapers: All rights reserved. |
