Tag: Ask Burton

Ask Burton: This week, a question about a tasty area of the garden! Q: I want to plant an Italian herb garden. I love to cook, and fresh herbs are the best! But what can I plant here in North Texas, and when?
Ask Burton: This week, a question involving common North Texas shrubs whose answer lies in understanding our soil and water. Q: I have purple loropetalum and ‘Sunshine’ ligustrum in a sunny, south-facing raised bed. They were planted early last year and did fine all summer. Now, the loropetalum is starting to show yellow leaves with green veins, and the ‘Sunshine’ ligustrum is losing tip leaves and the leaves that are there are stunted looking and tiny.
Ask Burton: Q: When can we start planting veggies in our garden?
Ask Burton: Q: When do I prune back my perennial beds?
ASK BURTON: Q: I had a Chinese Pistache planted in my yard a few years back, and I have a question about how it colors for the fall. My neighbor has one in their yard and it gets great orange and reddish color, but mine has been unimpressive, turning yellow and orange but not much red color. Any idea why this is so different?
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.