Q. I have two gooseberry bushes that never bloom so, therefore, never produce fruit. They are 8-10 years old and in full sun. Do you have to have male and female bushes to produce fruit? If not, what could be wrong? – Judy Bates, Bloomington, Ind. A. Gooseberries are generally self-fruitful. You are facing another problem since your plants don’t bloom at all. Try pruning out all branches that are more than 3 years old […]
Q. Last year, my gladiolus got a blight. They would get about 2 feet high and then turn yellow and start to die. Some of them did bloom, but blossoms were small with blotches. Is this a ground problem or a plant disease? What is the treatment? – Clyde Dawson, Urbana, Ind. A. Several diseases can attack gladiolus leaves. It’s most important to remove and destroy diseased plants. Plant glads in locations with good drainage and air […]
The Perennial Plant Association has selected Scabiosa columbaria ‘Butterfly Blue’ as its Perennial Plant of the Year for 2000. Members of the association, which is made up primarily of professional plant growers, select a perennial each year in an effort to educate the gardening public and promote planting of perennial flowers. Butterfly Blue is a long-blooming, versatile perennial that adapts well to full sun or light shade. The lavender-blue flower heads reach up to 2 […]
Q. This is the second year for my humming bird vines. They are supposed to have trumpet-shaped flowers but did not have any last year or this year. What could be wrong? The vines are hardy and really vine out. We do have a lot of walnut trees on our property, but none are close to the vines. Could this be a problem? Also, I need to know what flowers and vegetables will grow around […]
The poinsettia, the most popular holiday plant, is best known as the plant with bright red flowers on a green background. But what most people think of as the flowers are actually colored bracts or leaves, which surround a small, yellowish-green structure that is the true flower. Today’s poinsettia is much improved from the poinsettia of even five years ago, thanks to plant breeders. Although red is still the most popular color, pink-, salmon- and […]
Nine new garden plants will be the first to have been awarded the prestigious honor of being an All-America Selection (AAS) in the new millennium! These new cultivars have been judged as superior in their classes, based on their performance in test gardens all over the country. For the flower garden, the first award winner is Cosmos sulphureus ‘Cosmic Orange,’ a compact plant reaching about 12 inches tall. Cosmic Orange promises to provide a blanket […]
Q. I need to know when to trim clematis. I have tried for 10 years to grow them. I now have three growing. One is so tall, and I want to know how to keep it full and blooming. &emdash; Veneda Hoesel, Winamac, Ind. A. If you categorize clematis by their pruning needs, there are three different groups. Group one blooms in the spring on last year’s new wood. Little pruning is needed except for […]
There’s still time to get those spring-flowering bulbs in the ground yet this fall. Though generally it is recommended to get the bulbs planted by early October to give them enough time to root before winter, it is better to plant now rather than try to store the bulbs over winter. As long as the soil temperatures are above 40 degrees F., the bulbs should continue their root development. Most garden centers still have a […]
Q. We’re novices to gardening but would like to grow statice and eucalyptus. We have lots of room for the plants. Our soil type is clayish. We live in Rising Sun, Ind. (Ohio County). When and how do we prepare the soil, location (sunny or shade), herbicides, pesticides, food (type and frequency of application), soil additives, etc.? Sheldon Boatright, Rising Sun, Ind. A. There is no way to give an accurate recommendation without having the […]
Q. Several years ago, we were in Michigan to attend a national REMC convention and, somewhere along the way, I bought a ‘Caveman’s Club’ gourd. It grows up to a foot in length and has a bumpy round part with a long neck. It is somewhat, but not exactly, like the dipper gourd. I ordered seeds of an ornamental mixed variety, but there wasn’t any seed like I wanted. As I remember, the seed’s shape […]