Short Hort Notes
June 30, 2008
** $6.99 and No Roots: You’ll love this one.
A student in my plant propagation class last semester relayed a story about a
blackberry plant his wife had bought for him at a local big box discount store.
It was an ‘Arapaho’ blackberry from a propagator in Virginia. The student
related the plant just looked odd to him, like the whip was upside down – the
buds were pointing downwards. So, he brought it into class one day and while
passing it around, one of the students pulled gently on it and it came out of
the container. No roots, no nothing! The stem had been taken as a 12-inch or so
cutting and had been stuck into the container – upside down. As a result, there
were no roots on it at all. Paul may end up on the better end of the deal,
though, as he made three cuttings out of it and stuck them (right-side up) in a
new container to root.
By the way, as we’ve said previously, blackberries are not
recommended for Wyoming. Paul is adventurous.
** Recent Questions:
ü
Hybrid poplars in Wyoming:
Most are crosses between Populus deltoides and Populus nigra. They
still have all the strengths and weaknesses of either species alone.
ü
Late-blooming peonies:
Several companies offer lots of peony varieties –
Walters Gardens
http://www.waltersgardens.com/
Ray Wiegand's Nursery
http://www.wiegandsnursery.com/
Weston Nurseries
http://www.westonnurseries.com/
Lake County Nursery
http://www.lakecountynursery.com/
Bailey Nurseries
http://www.baileynurseries.com/
White Flower Farm http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/
Sheridan Nurseries
http://www.sheridannurseries.com/
Scarff's Nursery
http://www.scarffs.com/
Midwest Groundcovers
http://www.midwestgroundcovers.com/
There are also a couple of good
bulletins online that describe bloom time of various peonies -
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/hort2/mf2452.pdf and
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1241.html.
ü
Turf: Problems with fescues
in lawns as opposed to bluegrass. There seem to be dead spots each spring with a
mix of creeping red fescue, blue fescue, Rhino hard fescue, chewings fescue,
Goldrush Kentucky bluegrass, Dawson creeping red fescue, and perennial rye.
Owner suspects winter kill but the cause is undetermined at this time.
ü
Two great web
sites for caterpillar identification:
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1241.html and
http://pick4.pick.uga.edu/mp/20q?guide=Caterpillars.
ü
Growing Euonymus fortunei
in Wyoming: These things do better in our climate if they are somewhat protected
from the wind. If they are in a protected corner they will do well if shielded
from the worst of the wind and it is kept consistently moist. It’s a broadleaf
evergreen, so winter protection is crucial.
ü
Bishop’s goutweed:
Aegopodium podagraria is a useful ground cover, but is aggressive. It’s
great if you can keep it contained using at least 8” edging. It can actually be
mowed.
ü
Greenhouses: For potential
production of strawberries, tomatoes.
ü
Curling and dead new growth
on mugo pines: probably herbicide damage. Good photos are on pages 66-67 of the
“Insects and Diseases of Woody Plants of the Central Rockies” book.
ü
Stunted, purple tomatoes:
The purpling on the foliage is due to cool temperatures. As soon as temperatures
warm, they should green up and you should not see any further problems. What
happens is cool temperatures, particularly in the soil, slow the plant down so
roots are not taking up nutrients like they should. The purple is P deficiency
but warmer temps quickly correct the situation.
ü
Managing smooth bromegrass
in a lawn: There are no herbicides to selectively control it in the
lawn. Therefore, pulling or spot spray with glyphosate can work. As always, good
turf management such as proper mowing, fertilizing, watering, de-thatching,
etc., will help in the long run. We always recommend pulling/digging the weeds
out rather than chemical control if it is a small enough area.
** In the Panter Back Yard: Everything was
planted the second weekend in June – annuals, perennials, the works. We have the
usual annual verbena, petunias, zinnias, bacopa (Sutera), lantana,
Lotus hybrid ‘Amazon Sunset,’ calibrachoa, broccoli, radishes, peas, basil,
tomatoes, cilantro, and carrots. We pulled out the birds’ nest spruce that was
in front of the house on the south side – it took a beating every winter and
just got browner and browner. So we yanked it. Most other things did pretty well
last winter but now the Douglas fir has pine needle scale. Hopefully the orthene
spray will do the trick. And we pulled out a cotoneaster that was in the way –
it was too big for the spot – and planted a Viburnum instead. It’s an
orphan and we’re not totally sure which variety but it’s doing well anyhow.
The hummingbird feeder is out but no visitors at all yet! We
know they’re around as we hear them down in Colorado but they haven’t made the
trek up to our neighborhood. We had a couple of other interesting visitors this
spring. One was a Lewis woodpecker (http://www.audubon.org/bird/BoA/BOA_index.html)
that hung around for several days. Then last week a black-headed grosbeak
decided to visit for a few days (also Audubon web site). These two were probably
just passing through on their way somewhere else. Our back yard is always full
of some sort of bird activity and travelers get curious about the commotion!
We also had a grackle nest outside the bedroom window but it
looks like the youngster has fledged.
Upcoming Events
--OFA Short Course, July 12-15, 2008, Greater
Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, Ohio. Contact:
www.ofa.org.
--American Society for Horticultural Science Annual
Conference, July 21-24, 2008, Rosen Plaza, Orlando, Florida. Contact:
www.ashs.org.
--Turfgrass Producers
International, Summer Convention and Field Days, July 28-31, 2008,
Eagle Lake Turf & Fairmont Palliser, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Contact: TPI:
www.TurfGrassSod.org.
--FarWest Show, August 21-23, 2008, Oregon
Convention Center, Portland, Oregon. Contact:
www.farwestshow.com.
--Association of Specialty Cut
Flower Growers 20th Anniversary
Conference, September 8-11, 2008, Portland Crowne Plaza, Portland,
Oregon. Contact: www.ascfg.org.
--GrowerTalks Sustainability Conference,
November 7-8, 2008, Embassy Suites, Frisco, Texas. Contact:
www.ofa.org.
--ProGreen Expo, January 12-16, 2009, Colorado Convention
Center, Denver, Colorado. Contact:
www.progreenexpo.com.
--Wyoming Groundskeepers and Growers Association
Annual Conference, February 18-20, 2009, Parkway Plaza, Casper,
Wyoming. Contact: www.wgga.org.
Karen L. Panter, Ph.D., C.P.H.
Plant Sciences - 3354
1000 East University Avenue
Laramie, WY 82071
phone 307-766-5117
fax 307-766-5549
email kpanter@uwyo.edu