Tag: Ask Burton

Ask Burton: Is time to change out my summer color for winter, even if my summer color still looks good?
Ask Burton: Q: I, like almost everybody, had to replace some plants after the devastating winter storm this February. How can I protect them if we have that level of freezing weather again this time?
Ask Burton: Q: My pothos ivy is having problems. It’s been in the same spot inside my home for several years, and always looked great! I water every week like clockwork, with a saucer to catch overflow until the water evaporates or the plant drinks it up. I fertilize once a month, and there are no bugs on it. But now, the plant looks unwatered, with yellowing leaves and just a pitiful appearance. There’s also a white, grainy residue on top of the soil. Any ideas?
Ask Burton: Q: I have hydrangeas that have speckled spots on the leaves from the late spring, and that isn’t my only issue. My cannas are nibbled, some of my red oak leaves have tiny black spots, and my cedar elm’s leaves look very rough (brownish-green!). What should I do to fix these problems?
Ask Burton: Q: My mature live oaks have struggled this year, and a tree guy driving up my street asking to trim trees let me know that I needed to treat my trees for oak wilt. He said that’s why my trees looked weak. They’re not as thick and healthy as last year, but they are still mostly green with only a few dead branches. Do I need to have him treat? He wants to use a spray.
Ask Burton: This week, a pair of quick questions about the vegetable garden that we hear often each September. Q: My tomatoes looked nice all the way through the summer, and I had hoped to keep them for the second crop. Spider mites have struck, and they’re terribly stressed. Is there still time to replant a second crop? Also, I plant broccoli and cabbage in my fall garden, but they always end up covered in holes.
Ask Burton: This week, a question about one of our most popular groundcovers. People have had this issue crop up in the past two to three weeks; here’s how ot fix it. Q: I have vinca major groundcover, and it’s gone from beautiful to devastated in the past three weeks. Nearly every leaf is destroyed; I see brown, translucent pieces of leaves here and there, mixed throughout. All of my stems are still green.
Ask Burton : This week, we’re dealing with – we hope! – the last of the trouble spots of the intense February freeze. Q: I have a (Japanese yew, live oak, Shumard red oak, sunshine ligustrum, eleagnus, there are others as well) that have taken a turn for the worse as the heat really started to peak this summer. My plants are well established, and my sprinkler is getting good coverage – I checked! But now I have twigs and a handful of limbs dying, and occasionally whole plants are starting to fail without obvious answers why.
Ask Burton: This week, we’re looking at grasshoppers, and some of the best ways to control them. Q: I live a little out of town, and grasshoppers are a problem. They love to eat my cannas each and every summer, but some years, it’s like they’ll leave all of my shrubs looking nibbled. How can I head this off this year?
Ask Burton: Q: I have a Japanese maple tree that I planted in my yard this spring, and the beautiful maroon leaves have turned greenish. Why is this happening? Do I have the wrong type of Japanese maple?