Ask Burton

Ask Burton

<< Back to Articles

Ask Burton: This week, a question about suckers – not in Vegas, but in the landscape. Q: I have a Live Oak in my yard that has generated so many suckers that it almost looks like a ground cover. How can I remove them, and prevent more? Is there any sort of herbicide I can apply?

September, 18

A: Well, the answer to this one isn’t simple or perfect, but your best course of action, coming up:

1. Take down your stone tree ring and remove that soil.…

Ask Burton: Q: I have Japanese maples in a very shady spot; they’ve been planted for four years and have been beautiful. They’re showing a lot of burning around the leaves this year, and these plants are not new. We made sure to water everything carefully. Any idea why this is happening?

August, 07

A: The month of July happened! In all seriousness, we had excessively high temperatures in July, as you know. Japanese maples can only pull water out of the ground so…

Ask Burton: Q: I have planted vegetable gardens in the past and I want to make this one as easy to maintain as possible. I don’t mind spending more time setting it up, but once I plant this time, I don’t want to fight Bermudagrass (and every other weed) – I want to water, occasionally fertilize, and get food. Can you help me get there?

July, 17

A: There’s no completely perfect answer, but I’ll tell you the method that’s given me the best results so far – and it’s pretty close to what you’re looking for:

Ask Burton: This week, an observation on the root cause of more than 80% of the plant questions we’ve received in the past three weeks.

June, 26

It’s been extremely hot, dry, and windy, and newly planted trees, shrubs, and flowers will need much heavier watering than normal until we get to the other side of summer.…

Ask Burton: Q: I have areas in my lawn that haven’t greened up for me this spring – any ideas of what’s going on?

May, 22

A: We’re seeing a lot of pictures and samples of damaged turf this spring at the nursery. Here are the common problems and solutions to check right now.

1. Is…

Ask Burton: Q: The leaves on my weeping redbud (pictured) are dry and the tree has started looking really bad. We just planted it in March. What do you think happened to it?

May, 15

A: Sadly, it appears that your redbud has not received enough water. The weather has been unseasonably warm with temperatures up in to the 90’s, so this automatically means we…

Ask Burton: Q: I have loropetalum (Chinese fringeflower) newly planted in front of my house, and the cold burned some of the newest growth this winter and made them thin. How do I help the plants do better?

March, 13

A: This winter affected many plantings of loropetalum and ligustrum, far more than normal for our average winter. The plants were hurt; but unless they’re completely destroyed, probably fixable when…

Ask Burton: Q: I want to get my tomatoes started now that it’s March – how do I protect the plants if the weather turns cold?

March, 06

A:  I push the envelope on this one every year myself, so here are the best recommendations we can give you:

  • Frost Cloth – Frost cloth will keep your…

Ask Burton: Q: When should I fertilize my landscape, and with which fertilizers?

February, 27

A: It’s time to start thinking about it, and here’s what we’d most recommend:

• For a conventionally maintained landscape, start feeding with our Covington’s Tree & Shrub on all…

Ask Burton: Q: I want to grow cilantro, and it doesn’t like me. How can I do better with it? Mine always goes into flower, and withers.

February, 13

A: Cilantro is a favorite herb in local cuisine and a cool season herb for most of us in North Texas. The leaves are cilantro; the seed, if allowed to…