Rosie Lerner

rosie@purdue.edu

716 articles by this author

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Q. In the June column, Beverly Shaw’s response to “Thicket thinning” really piqued my interest. “Gardening Q&A” has probably at some time in the past dealt with the problem; nevertheless, I was disappointed that she did not elaborate on how one “selectively” or otherwise “removes” such things as honeysuckle and multiflora rose. Perhaps a future column can revisit ways of doing (or trying to do) this. (Also briars; poison ivy; I probably give up on.) […]
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After the Flood: Garden and Landscape Plants

Recent torrential rains have brought about flooded conditions in many gardens and landscapes. As floodwaters recede and folks get about the business of putting homes and lives back together, questions arise as to the safety of produce from flooded gardens, as well as potential damage to landscape plants. If you have produce ready to harvest, the issue of food safety is best handled with caution. Clearly, if floodwater is contaminated with raw sewage, it is […]
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Purdue Garden Day Has “Rooms” to Grow

Visitors will find rooms with a view at the Purdue University’s annual Garden Day, Saturday, July 10. This annual open-house event will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Horticulture Building and Gardens on the West Lafayette campus.   The festivities include guided tours of the ornamental gardens, a gardening information booth, and gardening lectures presented by experts from Purdue and beyond. Morning tours of the Horticulture Greenhouses also will be offered. […]
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Q. I transplanted and divided some peonies last year. This year, the foliage looks good but some of the buds are small and black and have never fully developed. What’s wrong with them? — Cindy Polley, West Lafayette, Ind. A. Peonies have few pests or problems. The most frequently occurring pests are botrytis blight and leaf blotch, both fungal diseases. Especially prevalent during wet springs, botrytis affects leaves, stems and flowers. Spots appear on leaves, […]
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Clean Up Bulbs to Encourage Next Year’s Blooms

As the dazzling display of spring-flowering bulbs comes to a close, it’s time for a bit of spring cleaning. Now is the time to remove spent blossoms and prevent seed production from stealing needed carbohydrate reserves that can be better saved for next year’s bloom. Even though the foliage that remains is not very attractive and, in some cases, is downright unsightly, resist the urge to cut those green leaves off the plants. The health […]
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Sour Mulch “Burns” Tender Plants

Although the benefits of mulching garden plants are many, wood mulch that has been improperly stockpiled can lead to plant injury or even death. Young herbaceous plants are the most susceptible to such injury, which becomes obvious shortly after applying a hardwood bark mulch. Symptoms appear as if the plants have been burned with fertilizer or pesticides, or possibly, like severe water stress. All of the above could potentially be a problem, but, apparently, we […]
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Q. The home we moved into a few years ago backs up to a creek running through our subdivision. On both sides of the creek is a thicket of ferns, bushes, briars, poison ivy, spindly trees and wild woody vines. The vines grow into the tops of a number of the trees, including cedars. We’ve cleared out a portion of the thicket closest to our home, put up a picket fence and now have a […]
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Preventing Fruiting in Woody Plants

Although most gardeners aim to bring in a good fruit crop on their plants, there are a few situations where a barren plant is preferred. Some homeowners would love to find a way to keep certain landscape plants from dropping their fruits onto driveways and sidewalks. There are a few methods that can help reduce the amount of fruit production on both ornamental and fruit trees. Hand removal of faded blooms, or young fruits, works […]
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Lettuce – Cool Crop for Indiana Gardens

While it is too early to plant tomatoes, now is the perfect time to plant lettuce. The key to growing a successful crop is to plant and mature the lettuce in cool weather. Lettuce is an annual plant that will bolt (produce a flower stalk) and become bitter when temperatures stay above 70 F. Iceberg, or more correctly called crisp head type lettuce, used to predominate produce shelves at most grocery stores. Crisp head cultivars […]
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Q. We have a new home, which we built three years ago on Lake Shafer, and we have lady bug problems. The first summer, they seemed to be all over the houses out, and we are always finding them inside, sometimes on one side of the house more than the other. Do you know how to get rid of them? Thanks.– Jeanne Garofalo, Chicago, Ill. A. The Asian lady beetle is considered a beneficial insect […]
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