Weeds are the bane of any gardener’s existence, frequently growing more vigorously than the desirable plants and grass in the landscape. At flowerbeds, you can frequently keep them under control with dedicated weeding sessions, ripping out their origins by hand. But when they begin taking over your lawn and every pavement crack, it may be time to break out the herbicide. Ortho Weed-B-Gon will destroy weeds before they wreak havoc on your garden.

Weeds in the Grass

The most troublesome kinds of weeds to eliminate are the ones which grow in your lawn, because you run the risk of not only killing the weed but also the rest of your grass too. Weed-B-Gon Weed Killer for Lawns Plus Crabgrass Control may be applied to your lawn any time weeds are actively growing. Active ingredients are .10 percent quinclorac, .22 percent MCPP-p, .12 percent 2,4-D and .05 percent dicamba. Be sure the daytime temperature is over 45 degrees and under 90 degrees Fahrenheit when applying, and wait an hour following application to water your lawn. Most weeds will show signs of wilting or yellowing of new development within a day of application. Necrosis will disperse, turning hardened brown and also killing them within 14 to 28 days. If seeds were completely developed before the weeds die, they will continue to be feasible, however. This means new weeds will crop up from seeds, requiring additional treatment. If you’re dealing with particularly stubborn weeds, another application two to three weeks afterwards may be necessary also.

Weeds in the Landscaping

Grassy weeds which populate your landscaping can be tough to remove by hand. In tiny flowerbeds, it is possible to manually get rid of the grass, but bigger areas may need an herbicide such as Ortho Grass-B-Gon Garden Grass Killer. Its active component is 0.48 percent fluazifop-p-butyl. For best results, spray weeds anytime they’re actively growing and repeat again seven days later to control crabgrass, quackgrass and Bermuda grass. Grass-B-Gon may be safely used around ground covers, plant beds, landscapes, flowers and shrubs and also works within one to four weeks following application.

Weeds in the Pavement

Weeds in pavement cracks, along fences and driveways are a lot simpler to kill because you don’t have just as much surrounding vegetation. Ortho GroundClear Vegetation Killer works in such spots. Its active ingredients are .016 percent imazapyr and 1.0 percent glyphosate. For smaller regions, the ready to use formula can be sprayed on weedy offenders when they’re actively growing. Best results are achieved when implemented on a sunny day once the temperature is between 45 degrees and 85 degrees F. Long Sensors must be cut down before application. Weeds will yellow and wilt within 10 hours. They’ll be dead in one to two weeks and shouldn’t grow back for a single year.

Cautions

Don’t use Ortho GroundClear over root zones of trees of shrubs or even where it is likely you might later plant. On clay soils, the product deposits may remain in the ground for up to one year. When using any herbicide, follow all mixing directions and safety precautions printed on the tag. Keep children and pets from the region until the spray has dried.

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Insects can be a major issue if you’ve got an apple tree, with pests like apple maggots causing significant harm to both your own fruit and the tree itself. Sticky traps are often used to protect against insects but provide little protection against flying pests. Homemade traps made from milk jugs provide extra protection for your trees, luring both crawling and flying insects in and killing them before they can escape.

Jug Traps

Milk jugs hanging out of apple trees and other fruit trees are used as traps to catch and kill pests that would otherwise damage the trees or fruit. Insects are lured to the jug with a sweet liquid bait solution and are not able to escape. The trapped insects become coated in the bait solution and finally drown within the trap. You can make traps of different sizes using half-gallon or gallon jugs, depending on the size of your trees.

Trap Solution

There are numerous strategies to produce an effective way for jug traps. Most liquid bait solutions are created using either sugar or molasses combined with water in a 1:10 ratio to make a syrup. Some options also include apple cider vinegar, reducing the amount of water and creating a more intricate bait. Other organic materials, like diced banana peels, are sometimes added as well. Solutions can be reached in advance and stored in a separate container, allowing you to add solution to hanging traps in an as-needed basis without having to make more.

Earning Jug Traps

Milk jugs need minimal if any modification before they can be used as jug traps. While it is not necessary to cut the jugs, cutting holes in the sides of the jugs makes it even easier for flying insects to enter the trap and allows the trap to be refilled without removing it from the tree. These holes should be large enough at the sides of the jugs so that you are able to place at least 1 inch of bait solution in the trap without spilling.

Protecting Apple Trees

Hang jug traps from sturdy branches on the apple trees you would like to protect, using twine or other sturdy string. For smaller trees, a single jug trap provides adequate protection; large trees must have at least two or three traps. If there are no holes cut into the sides of the jugs, position the open mouth of the jug close to the division and tie the jug close to the trunk. Check the jugs every couple of days emptying and refilling them if a significant number of dead insects roam in the bait option.

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Madagascar palm (Pachypodium lamerei) is also an unusual plant that’s really a succulent in the dogbane family and isn’t related to authentic palms. Native to southern Madagascar, this tender perennial is hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9a through 11 and can be grown in cooler climates if overwintered indoors. It is often grown as a houseplant. This species typically grows in the kind of a single trunk, but it occasionally branches after flowering or in the event the main stem is wounded.

Identification

Madagascar palm is notable because of its thick gray trunk and long spines. In the landscape, this tropical species can reach up to 15 feet high and has a slim, straight contour with spirally arranged leaves at the apex. When grown indoors, this plant stays much smaller and contains a spindle-shaped back up. Madagascar palms have big, dark green leaves with a leathery surface and bear white flowers with spiralling petals in late spring to early summer.

Natural Branching

Branching occurs naturally in Madagascar palms that have suffered from some sort of injury, like frost damage. Mature plants also occasionally branch without becoming damaged. This occurs mostly in older specimens and typically happens shortly after booming. Outdoor Madagascar palms are more likely to blossom and to division naturally than those grown indoors. Small branch-like offshoots also occasionally look in the base of the plant and these new limbs can be eliminated to produce a new plant.

Induced Branching

You might have the ability to induce branching at a Madagascar palm tree by cutting the top of the plant. This procedure requires injuring the middle of the spiral from which the leaves normally grow, so the plant produces two new functions. Cut the plant with a clean, sterile knife or shears to reduce the risk of infection. While many Madagascar palms recover, there’s always a possibility your specimen won’t regrow after cutting.

Factors

You may increase the possibility that your Madagascar palm will division by providing it with perfect ethnic ailments. Planting in full sun, providing temperatures over 60 degrees Fahrenheit year old and using an extremely well-drained growing medium promotes outdoor plants to develop the extensive root system necessary for branching. Ideally, these crops must receive regular watering throughout the summer and stay relatively dry throughout the cool season to discourage frost damage and produce an extremely healthy specimen.

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Cherry tomatoes, loved for their sweet, bite-sized fruit, create intimately, with one cherry tomato plant producing enough fresh fruit for the average family, notes Sonoma County Master Gardeners. Fruits ripen in approximately 65 to 75 days from planting, based on the variety. Cherry tomatoes are suitable for putting in hanging baskets, containers or in the ground.

Cherry Tomato Types

Most cherry tomatoes are vining, indeterminate varieties, but you may also purchase determinate varieties. Indeterminate cherry tomatoes continue to grow and set fruit throughout the summer until the plant is killed by frost in fall. While red cherry tomatoes are the most frequent, but also come in orange, yellow, orange and multicolored.

Plant Size

Cherry tomato crops are available in all shapes, from dwarf plants to full-size plants growing around 7 ft tall. Smaller plants are better suited for container growing, but all cherry tomato varieties grow well in garden soil.

Container Tomatoes

Cherry tomatoes work well for container growing. Midget, patio or dwarf varieties are best for containers due to their compact size and smaller root system. Hanging baskets are suitable for indeterminate varieties. Hanging them high enough to keep the vines from the ground eliminates the need for a trellis or other support. Container-grown tomatoes need regular water and a sunny place to thrive.

Growing Information

Cherry tomatoes grow best in loose, well-drained soil with plenty of organic matter. Compact, healthy crops which are 6 to 8 inches tall are best for transplanting after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed. A program of dilute fertilizer at planting gets the plants off to a fantastic start. Fertilize again using a 10-10-10 fertilizer once the first fruits set. Regular, deep watering to keep the soil moist, but not soggy encourages deep roots and a healthy plant. Indeterminate cherry tomatoes need assistance out of a cage or trellis to keep them away from the ground.

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1 look at the twisted branches of this contorted filbert tree (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) in winter is all that it takes to understand how it got its name. A sort of European hazel, it is scientifically classified as a deciduous tree. Contorted filberts climb to 8 feet in height with an equal spread and perform best when climbed in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 9.

Boost the contorted filbert tree in full sun along the shore and in partial shade in the warmer inland regions.

Provide decent drainage for the contorted filbert tree. If you’ve got slow-draining dirt, add 3 to 4 inches of chunky compost to it in planting.

Water that the contorted filbert frequently enough to keep the soil consistently moist during its first two decades. After that, stick your finger into the ground to check for moisture and just water if the ground is dry.

Fertilize the contorted filbert twice a year, in spring, only once you notice new growth and again in early summer. Utilize an all-purpose fertilizer, such as 10-10-10, in accordance with label instructions. Set the fertilizer 1 foot outside the filbert’s dripline and spread it entirely around it. Water the area to soak up the fertilizer to the plant’s roots.

Snip off small bananas which appear around the foundation of this contorted filbert. All these are called suckers and ought to be cut to the ground or flush with the trunk of this tree.

Cut off any branches or twigs with bumps. All these are recognized as cankers and may be a indication that the tree is infected with blight. Dispose of all diseased wood.

Pick off Japanese beetles as you locate them. The best time to spot the metallic pests is early in the morning, on the tree’s leaves. Drop the beetles into a 4-quart bucket filled with water and 2 tablespoons of dishwashing soap.

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There are several ways to conserve leaves for arrangements and artwork, but most leave you with a horizontal, brittle leaf that loses the organic appearance and feel of their leaf. Keeping leaves in glycerin avoids these difficulties and gives them a natural, flexible look and feel. Leaves preserved with glycerin also persist for a long time, making them ideal materials to work with in wall art.

Gathering Leaves

The quality of your preserved leaves begins with the grade of the leaves you collect. Collect big, mature leaves to a dry afternoon and look for leaves at peak condition. Cut the leaf or branch using a clean, sharp knife or pruning shears. Maintain the leaves in water till you are ready to maintain them; leaves that have wilted or dried out doesn’t preserve well. Crush the close of the branch or leaf stem using a hammer just before placing it in the preserving liquid.

Keeping with Glycerin

Stand with the leaf or branch in a vase or jar, as you would a flower. Cover the crushed ending in a solution of 1 part glycerin and 2 parts hot water for two to six weeks. Begin with the option at approximately 100 degrees Fahrenheit to encourage the plant to carry this up quickly, but you don’t have to keep the option alluring. Huge leaves and thick, dense leaves possess the longest absorption period. Add food coloring or dye to the solution at a shade closest to the leaf natural colour to help keep that color in the finished product. Add more water as required to keep the solution at around exactly the exact same level during the procedure. The leaves are ready when they’ve taken up enough glycerin to make them completely pliable, having lost all signs of brittleness.

Supporting the Leaves

Whether you want to wire your leaves depends on how you intend to use them. Leaves that have to support themselves by the stem or branch can be wired for long-term stability. Enrollment also makes it easier to arrange the leaves on your artwork. Tightly wrap the stems of individual leaves with wire in a color closest to the stem color, leaving a long tail to attach them to your artwork. Leaves on branches may need a wire wrap round the branch and the leaf stem to strengthen them for long term display. If you intend to attach the leaves to the wall or a canvas in the back of the leaf, wiring isn’t crucial.

Storing Preserved Leaves

Leaves ready with glycerin keep indefinitely, but their colours will fade over time due to light exposure and heat. Protect the color of their leaves by keeping them in an airtight container in a dark, cool and dry location when they are not on display.

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Tomatoes are one of America’s beloved summer vegetable garden crops. There are many varieties, including determinate and indeterminate types as well as early, mid and late season varieties. If you want new tomatoes throughout the whole growing season, you can plant early, mid and late season varieties in the exact same time and relish fruits as each kind attains adulthood.

When to Plant

When growing tomatoes, you may select varieties for the garden by days to maturation. Early-season strawberries produce fruit at 65 days or less, while late-season tomatoes generally need 80 days or longer to mature. Mid-season varieties produce fruit from mid-summer and typically take between 70 to 80 days to achieve that. Planting a range from all 3 types after risk of frost has passed gives you a complete season of strawberries to relish.

Late Season Varieties

Late season tomato varieties can be determinate or indeterminate, bearing fruit in various shapes, sizes, flavors and colors. These varieties frequently grow bigger, better-tasting tomatoes since the fruit is about the vine and soaking up the summer heat more than ancient and mid-season varieties. Some common late season varieties include “Beefmaster,” “Dinner Plate” and “Crimson Giant.”

Indeterminate and Determinate Forms

Indeterminate tomatoes are vine plants that require staking, caging or a trellis for support. This type of tomato plant continues to send out shoots and flowers until the growing season has ended. Determinate varieties grow to a certain pre-determined size and then put fruit. They are generally bushy plants that put fruit within two weeks of flowering. When choosing late season varieties, select indeterminate varieties for a plant that retains producing until frost.

Care of Tomatoes

All tomato varieties require proper attention to grow and produce wholesome fruit. Tomato plants need a location that receives at least six hours of sunlight each day. Spacing can also be important to help guard against infection and allow room for harvest and care. Rumors need 1 1/2 to 2 feet between bushy plants and bigger staked plants, while bigger caged plants need more space at 3 to 4 feet between plants. All plants need about 4 feet between rows. Rumors need between 1 and 11/2 inches of water every week for proper growth and fruiting.

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Mulching the garden is a powerful method of retaining moisture, suppressing weeds and improving soil structure. It also appears attractive, adding polish to borders and beds. Mulch comes in a variety of artificial and natural colors, including black. The very best black mulch depends on your needs, your budget and the availability of substances in your town.

Compost

Compost is decomposed organic material, including kitchen scraps, leaves and manure. Finished compost is pure black and smells sweet. Organic gardeners sometimes use a few inches of compost as mulch. While compost doesn’t supply the wrapped-up appearance of textured mulches, its benefits to the backyard are numerous. It allows air penetration, adds nutrients and promotes plant growth. Furthermore, making your own compost is a free and easy procedure. If you do not have a compost pile, buying it from the bag or cubic yard is comparatively inexpensive. A disadvantage of compost is that it doesn’t reasonable soil temperature as well as other organic mulches, like wood chips.

Black Wood Chips

Wood chips dyed black are an easy-to-find, moderately priced mulch. The benefits of black wood chips include permeability and pure black color. Some people may dislike the artificial appearance — there is not any such thing like black wood — while some others might delight in creating an extremely dark backdrop for a colorful landscape. It isn’t currently known whether the dyes used in black wood chip mulch have a negative ecological impact. Cautious organic gardeners may recoil at the notion of introducing this unnecessary chemical element.

Inorganic Options

Inorganic mulches are the ones that do not readily decompose. All rocks fall into this class, as does black plastic. While an absorbent black mulch suppresses weeds, it might retain heat or cold in a means that isn’t beneficial to plants. Avoid putting inorganic black mulches near places where folks gather; throughout summer months, their heat-absorbing properties may increase distress. Black plastic kills beneficial beings, damaging soil structure. Irrigation must be installed under the plastic, as water will not penetrate it. This may cause overly wet conditions around roots. But black plastic may increase soil temperature, gaining tender perennials and vegetables susceptible to cold snaps. Black rocks may be attractive in some settings, like on a modernist landscape dotted with artful trees and sculpture. If you select black rocks, make sure your plants are well-established so that temperature fluctuations do not damage them. Rocks may also compact dirt and crush tender roots. Black rocks could be embarrassing to maneuver around in often tended gardens, like those containing vegetables.

Almost-Black Alternatives

If you’re inclined to compromise a pure black appearance to enhance the health of your soil and plants, then consider organic, nearly-black alternatives. Cocoa bean hulls are almost black, smell wonderful and are good for plants, even though they are highly poisonous to cats and dogs. Leaf mould is widely accessible; its own blackish-brown shade varies by leaf variety as well as how rotted it’s. Leaf mould is an excellent option if you want a complimentary, almost-black mulch that breaks down relatively quickly. Leaf mould appears natural and glowing, which makes it a bad choice for polished, pristine layouts.

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With feeding, watering and mowing, taking care of your yard may be a time-intensive commitment. If you’re tired of this, or simply want to create a more natural-looking yard, grass varieties which don’t need mowing provide a sensible solution. No-mow grasses work since they grow quite slowly during the mowing season plus they reach a maximum height which does not require mowing.

Buffalograss

Buffalograss (Buchloe dactyloides) is a drought-resistant, low-growing grass from the North American Plains. It produces a gray-green turf which, when given minimum watering, grows 4 inches tall, and with heavier watering, just 6 inches tall. Buffalograss spreads by stolons and is hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 8. It may handle foot traffic, however, has low shade tolerance. If needed, buffalograss may be mowed at end of winter to eliminate brown, dead foliage and also to quicken spring green-up.

Mondo Grass

Two types of Mondo Grass suitable for no-mow situations are Black Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus “Nigrescens”) and Kyoto Dwarf Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus “Nana”). Black Mondo grass grows gradually, reaching a height of 6 inches or less. Its dense, purplish-black, grasslike foliage is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 10. For even shorter grass, plant “Kyoto Dwarf” mondo grass as it simply reaches 3 to 4 inches tall. This drought-tolerant grass has very low, carpetlike growth and is suitable for xeriscaping. It is hardy to USDA zones 8 and 7.

Centipedegrass

Centipedegrass (Eremochloa ophiuroides) is a coarse-textured, apple-green grass with a creeping growth habit which forms a dense turf. Because of its slow pace of growth, it’s often called lazy man’s grass. If the grass is not mowed, it is going to reach about 4 to 6 inches. The grass stays green during the year in mild climates. As it doesn’t tolerate heavy traffic, then it’s most suitable for low-maintenance turf areas. Centipedegrass is well adapted to sandy, acidic soils and is hardy in USDA zones 7 through 10.

Seashore Paspalum

To get ditches or other areas where height is not an issue, Seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum) is just a salt-tolerant grass which operates well. This medium-to coarse-bladed grass includes a compact root system and can grow up to 20 inches in height. It is a mild- to medium-colored grass which requires moderate amounts of water and fertilizer. It tolerates traffic and recovers quickly from medium wear during summer and spring. Seashore paspalum has a high tolerance for heat, can manage some shade and is hardy in USDA zones 8 through 10.

No-Mow Commercial Blends

Several grass blends on the market are touted as no-grow mixes. The grasses are inclined to be mixtures of fescues (Festuca) or bentgrass (Agrostis). One blend, Dwarf Fescue Lawn Seed Mix brands as a low-growing turf grass that’s hardy in USDA zones 4 through 10. The No-Mow-Grass brand has two variants. The northern variant is Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera), which is designed for areas with hard freezes, grows 3 to 6 inches tall and tolerates shade. The southern version is a blend of fine fescue and buffalo grass, designed for hot, dry areas. The No-Mow-Grass brand doesn’t use USDA zones to classify its grass.

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It looked like such an attractive way to fill out a sunny corner, but when that shrubby saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) grew to its highest possible spread of 18 feet, it looked more like it was out to devour the neighborhood. Worse still, though it requires just a few minutes to plant among those “little hands,” it can take years to eliminate them. Get rid of your palmettos with a plan and plenty of patience.

Palmetto Facts

Saw palmetto and cabbage palm are North American natives. With saw palmetto, waxy, fan-shaped leaves sit atop short, stout stems that develop from under ground level, emerging as the plant ages. The enthusiasts rise from 2 to 8 feet above ground. Palmettos flower between February and April. The white flowers are followed by fruits known as drupesthat ripen throughout the summer until September and October. The plants have been fire-adapted and bloom best after fire years. Other palmettos, for example, cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto), South Carolina’s state tree, grow taller but share several features with the saw palmetto.

Managing Palmetto

Palmettos’ strong underground stems not just help them to survive flames but additionally provide starts for new plants together with the first plant. Reducing these suckers under the soil line might hold back the spread of this palmetto temporarily, but the subterranean segments of the plant will simply develop more massive, eventually forcing more growth than could be controlled. Eventually, the roots will reach out beyond the initial ring of suckers, invading the surrounding plantings with suckers. In locations where flames cleared other vegetation or where palmetto suckers have never been effectively managed, the plant can become invasive, crowding out other plants.

Options

Reducing back palmettos promotes their strong roots to spread and create more suckers; burning them just promotes flowering and production of seed the next year. Mechanical control by itself doesn’t knock out a palmetto cluster, but, paired with herbicide programs, the strategy can wear the plant out. Several herbicides are effective on saw palmetto — the University of Florida’s IFAS Extension indicates a combination of triclopyr ester and metsulfuron and Texas A&M; University’s AgriLife extension recommends a combination of metsulfuron methyl, dicamba and 2,4-D. Check with a native Master Gardener chapter or university agricultural extension for herbicide recommendations to your region.

Timing

Use a combination of cutting and herbicide to “do in” problem palmettos. Starting in spring, mow the plants as far down to the ground as possible with a brush mower before or during flowering. As plants begin growing again in late summer or early fall, apply herbicide at the suggested rate and repeat broadcast or spot applications as directed on the package. If no growth occurs the next spring, then remove the subterranean stems having a stump grinder as far below the soil’s surface since the machine reaches. If the plants begin growing again, however, the cut-and-poison cycle has to be repeated for a second year.

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