Q. I planted some mums last year and they were beautiful. They came back this year and are growing wonderfully, and look fantastic. My question: I’ve been told that they will blossom in early summer and then again in the fall and that if I snip off the buds in the early flowering, then the [...]
Q. I have several wisteria plants that are probably offshoots of a main vine. The main vine blossoms like crazy every year but the offshoot plants don’t blossom, even though they grow and send out lots of stringers and look very healthy. I want to train and control these off shoot plants and want [...]
Q. I have a beautiful wisteria on my terrace. It was green and leafy. I have an irrigation system as well as someone to check them when I am away. I just returned from a 6-day vacation and upon return my wisteria did not get enough water (the irrigation hose slipped out of the planter [...]
Q. I planted gallon pots of Gaillardia last year. I don’t see any of them coming up this spring. Perhaps I’m mistaking them for weeds? What should they look like by this time?
-Geneva, Illinois
A. Gaillardia needs excellent drainage to survive wet soil during the winter. If you planted in heavy clay, I am not [...]
Q. We recently moved to South Carolina and this house. I think we have a honeysuckle bush growing along/up our fence. It doesn’t match up to what I am finding online. I am not sure I have smelled honeysuckle before, but this is wonderful and I assumed this is what it was. I think the [...]
Q. It’s nearing the end of sugar snap pea season here in Sacramento. A bunch of my plants, while still producing a few peas, are covered with what appears to be a mildew or mold that turns the leaves and stems white (powdery). Some of the pea pods themselves are mottled on the sun side [...]
Q. Any suggestions as to what to plant beneath a Black Walnut tree? I have tried rhododendrons without luck. I like the tree, carefully pick up the fruit when it falls to no avail. What plants if any will grow around a ‘Juglan’?
-Hudson, Ohio
A. There are a number of wildflowers and native grasses that will [...]
Two answers for this one!
Q. I purchased a Sweet Kate Spiderwort and I am not sure how much sun or shade this plant needs?
-Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
A. Sweet Kate Spiderwort is one of the most visually vivid partial-sun plants around. It does best in morning to early afternoon sun (1pm-2pm). The bright yellow foliage will [...]
Q. I cut my forsythia back completely last spring, to about 3 to 4 inches in height. Over the course of last summer it grew into a nice looking shrub. This spring it is too leggy. Each branch is a good 36 to 46 inches and hanging low. The bush cannot be mowed around for [...]
Q. I have 3 large clumps of Pampas grass. They took a big hit this winter. They seem to be coming back along the outside perimeter, but the center is brown and dead. Should I cut the center back to nothing?
-Bellingham, Washington
A. Many grasses die out in the center but continue to produce new growth [...]
