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GardenStops
Q & A Page
Q:
Who does water harvesting in Austin, TX. ? I want to start and need the
equipment.
A:
I've found a website that might help you out. If they can't,
let me know and I'll keep looking.
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/watercon/
Q:
I would like to find the name of a small ornamental tree that grows in Texas,
currently there are two blooming in Waco at one elderly lady's house. It
is a small tree, open and airy, small multiple leaves (like mimosa), it
blooms bright yellow cup like leaves with red shooting stamens extending
beyond the yellow. It is like a cluster forming the complete flower at
the end of the limbs. The leaves and flowers drape down and sway softly
in the breeze. Can you help me? This is driving me nuts not
knowing what it is called.
I errored in my explanation on the small Texas tree with the yellow cup flower
with red stamens, not yellow cup leaves with......Sorry.
A:
Your tree sounds like a "bird of paradise bush" (Caesalpinia
gilliesii or Poinciana gilliesii). It could be the Mexican bird of
paradise, but I think you are a bit north for it to make it. I have
attached a photo of the bird of paradise bush for you to check.
Q:
Scenario: You have a Sweetgum Tree growing
fairly close to Two Pine Trees one somewhat large and a smaller one. The
Sweetgum is tall and slender. If you remove the two Pine Trees will the
Sweetgum branch out and become full making for a much better shade tree.
My husband would like to remove the Pines and feels that the Sweetgum will
become a much wider tree providing much more shade versus its current
position. Please Advise!!
A:
If
it is a young sweet gum, it will most likely fill out more. However,
pines don't typically crowd other trees too severely since they are usually
branchless at the bottom. If you do remove the pines and wish to help
the sweet gum get fuller, you can prune it to be bushier. About half-way
out on a selected few branches (you wouldn't want to do this on all
of the branches because it won't look as natural), cut the branch at the place
where some leaves come out of it. That is called a NODE. You
should notice in a few months that at each of those cuts, TWO NEW branches are
emerging. I don't use "paint" on the wounds as long as the
pruning is done properly. (Use a sharp tool, cut an angle so that water does
not stand on the cut, and prune while the tree is dormant.)
Q:
I live in Texas and was wondering is it to late
to winterize my yard? Do you have any advise about plants or things I
can do to get my yard ready for Spring?
A:
Depending on your grass and
where you are, it might be too late to apply a winterizing fertilizer because
nitrogen and cold weather don't mix well. I would concentrate on getting
your back ready for a top dressing of composted material (mushroom compost is
one of my favorites) applied in a 1-2" layer in the first of March (or
before if you are south of Austin).
Hope
this helped. If you have any other questions, let us know!
Q:
hello i have plant called snake plant it is about
31/2 to 4 foot tall and i need to know how much sun light does it call for if
you and please help me it would be great another name they call it is grandma
something.
A:
Thanks for checking out www.GardenStops.com!
Your question about the snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata, also known as
mother-in-law's tongue) was about light conditions. It is a tropical and
makes a great, low maintenance house plant. It requires very little
light, although those with more variegation (light spots) might lose thier
coloring with a low light situation. They require very little water as well,
making them an easy plant to set in a dim corner and neglect (unlike the REAL
mother-in-law!) and do not mind being root bound so they rarely need to be
re-potted. Yours, at 3+', sounds healthy and should grown only another
6-10" in height. It does appreciate going outside into a shady area
in warm weather and have a rain bath at least once a year so that the salts
that often build up in house plants can be diluted.
Q:
I hope you can help me. I have a flower
that comes up each fall and blooms for a couple of weeks, it comes up on a
single stem, then the foliage comes up. The flower is unusual. It is
red, has a clump of flower petals in the center, then there are longer,
whisker like petals about 4 or 5 inches long. Thank you for any help.
A:
It
is probably a Guernsey lily (Lycoris
radiata) if you are anywhere in the middle or eastern part of Texas.
These have naturalized in this area. They are one of the few perennials
that thrive in pretty heavy shade. Some people call them red spider
lily. The grassy foliage comes up in fall and often lasts throughout the
winter, but the exotic looking bloom is mainly in September and October.
I've just gotten good photos of it and will be adding it to my database soon.
Or if you have a great picture, please send it in and we will give you the
credit for it. We LOVE to have our surfers contribute to the site!!!
Q:
Found your web site while looking for some
gardening info...maybe you can help! Could you tell me where the zinnia
seed is located on the bloom? Do you know where I can find a picture or
a diagram of it? Would appreciate any reply. And your web site is
really very nice, lots of interesting info for the home gardener!!
A:
As the zinnia flower dries, the seeds can be seen
by breaking open the flower head. Each zinnia has THOUSANDS of seeds and
they are super easy to propagate or dry to save for next spring's planting.
The main thing to remember is not to bury the seed too deep. Most seeds
need to be planted only as deep as the seed is tall. In the case of a
zinnia, the seed should be just under the surface of the soil. I usually
just wait for the flower to dry (turn crusty brown) and then scratch a tiny
ditch in the ground and then crush the flower sprinkling the
seeds........but I'm SUPER lazy! If your original zinnia is a specific
hybrid, the seeds will not necessarily stay true. In other words, it
might go back to a more generic type of zinnia or might be sterile and not
reseed at all. Do you know which zinnia you have?
Q:
Do you have some info on grass "brown spots"?
My neighbor has a brown circle in her
yard and didn't know
what to do. CF, Fort Worth
A:
A great resource for Texans is the Texas A&M horticulture
website at http://plantpathology.tamu.edu/Texlab/Lawns/turf.html
. Any number of things can cause
brown spots in grass ---- from fungus to insects ----- depending on the type
of grass, environmental conditions (such as excessive moisture or drought),
and time of year. Check out this
website and if it doesn’t help you identify the problem, let us know so we
can help you narrow it down!
So glad
you found our site! www.GardenStops.com will
be growing soon so we hope you will book mark it for all of your gardening
help.
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