Q. I have a question about persimmon trees. I bought three pairs over the past several years from a well-known mail-order company. They were supposed to be one male and one female. All of the trees have little bell-shaped blooms, but don’t develop fruit. Have I received all females? How can you tell the difference? The oldest trees are over 10 years old. How old do they have to be to bear fruit? A. While it can […]
Q. I have some spearmint growing now. I can tell when I mow over it, but I don’t know what it looks like. I would like to grow more but don’t how to go about it. A. All of the culinary mints have square stems and opposite leaves, with spearmint, in particular, having elongated-ovate leaves with coarsely toothed margins. Although many seed catalogs may offer seed packets, the best spearmint selections are of Mentha x piperita and can only […]
Q. I have attached a tree photo that no one seems to know what it is. It has the berries at the top, and branches with leaves, and I did not notice until the leaves fell off that it had thorns on it. It does not have the berries on it until it gets big or old. I have 2 more small ones, but did not notice berries on them. A. This large shrub or small […]
Q. We planted new blackberry and raspberry plants this spring. We would like to know what has to be done to prepare them before cold weather moves in. A. There should not be much to do for these plants, assuming you planted hardy cultivars. You do want the plants to be well watered before going into winter, but that doesn’t seem to be a problem for most areas of Indiana this fall. Both blackberry and raspberry […]
Q. We have a yellow peach tree and a white peach tree. Both have had great fruit in the past. The yellow one was loaded this year, and usually the fruit ripens around the first week in July. Toward the end of June, the fruit started rotting before it was ripe! The white peach tree has several peaches on it, but they don’t seem to mature. The fruit is the size of a small walnut […]
Q. My husband pulled out a weed in the garden that made his hands burn for quite a while. It had sharply serrated leaves that were opposite. The stem looks almost square and ropey, with fine hairs along the whole length. Do you have any idea what it is? A. Stinging nettle is most likely the culprit, with its stinging hairs along the stems and on the undersides of the leaves. These perennial plants grow […]
Q. We have a dwarf peach tree that is full of blossoms in the spring, has wonderful looking peaches, and, then, about midway through the season, all the peaches fall off just weeks before maturity. Do you know what would cause this? Also, what do you recommend for keeping shrubbery around a house green and healthy? I used to use fertilizer spikes for shrubs but have trouble locating them in stores now. A. In mild […]
Q. We just moved into our new home in a wooded area. In 2003, I planted over 80 wild violet plants along our drive (you see them everywhere in the spring). I just love them. Well, so did the deer. I guess they thought I set up a buffet line for them. They ate them down to the heart. Then, I planted hostas, which they thought were tasty, too, I later learned. So what can […]
Q. As with most folks, we lost branches off trees, due to the ice storm. Is there anything we are supposed to apply to the area where the branch broke off to help the tree heal? — John Habermann A. Do not treat the wounds with any paint or sealant. Research shows moisture is trapped under the sealant, leading to increased rot and decay. Cleanly cut off the broken limbs and let the plant form […]
Q. We have a forsythia bush that for the past three or four years has bloomed between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Is this a normal thing considering the warmer weather we have had over the past few years? If we trim the bush now, will it still bloom in the spring? Thanks. – Nancy Folger A. It’s fairly common for some plants to jump the gun and bloom in the fall, especially if the weather is […]