The following question and answer columns are currently written by B. Rosie Lerner, Purdue Consumer Horticulture Extension Specialist and are distributed to news media around the state by the Purdue University Agricultural Communications. Columns from June 1995 - January 2006 were authored by Bev Shaw, Advanced Master Gardener.
Recent columns about animals visiting your gardens sparked a great deal of mail. I’ll print some of the letters here, but I want to remind you that many of these suggested changes may keep the animals away for only a short time. If food supplies are scarce, your garden visitors will munch on soapy, hairy or peppered tomatoes. In addition, some home remedies can be dangerous. (Imagine the oft-repeated “remedy” concerning gasoline in mole holes!) […]
Q. Last season, I spread about 6 inches of hardwood sawdust on my pumpkin, squash and gourd garden to control weeds. The sawdust is still there and will act as a mulch for this season also. By using the sawdust, do I need to add any nutrients to my soil this season? If so, what should I add? – Myrna Sowers, Crawfordsville, Ind. A. Uncomposted sawdust ties up the available nitrogen in the soil, so […]
Q. I’ve been out in the backyard giving myself a backache chopping down ornamental grasses. We love them 363 days a year; every day except for the two that we spend chopping them down and getting rid of the debris! Any thoughts? – Amy Raley, West Lafayette, Ind. A. We buzz down our ornamental grasses with electric hedge shears and a chain saw. The task goes by quickly! We leave the dried grasses in place […]
Q. I just read your column addressing a question on how to keep raccoons out of sweet corn. Have you ever tried a radio? We run a long extension cord to the garden (we tried batteries, but that was too expensive), put the radio inside a garbage bag to protect it from the weather, tune in to a talk show and turn it up very loud. (We tried a music station, but that didn’t bother […]
Q. I am wondering what happened to my tomato plants this past year. Early in the season, they started getting yellow leaves at the base of the plant. Then, the leaves dried up; the complete plant almost turned that way. I have them caged, and they grew way above the cages. The tomatoes seemed to be good, but the plants were terrible. Hope you have an answer. – Mrs. Otis Rupright A. Fusarium and Verticillium […]
Due to the wonders of technology, I received eight or nine questions in a less than timely fashion. If you wrote me this fall, I now have your questions and will answer them over the next couple of columns. I know one of you needed help winterizing mums and now it’s too late! Throw some mulch on them, and I’ll answer the question in more detail soon! Sorry about the delay. Q. Are there any […]
It seems Indiana gardeners were spending their time preparing for the holidays rather than reflecting on recent garden woes. That means I get a month off! Here are some often-asked questions that I have run before. Q. I didn’t get my spring bulbs planted this fall. Is it too late? A. Your best bet is to plant them as soon as possible. If the soil is not frozen, plant them immediately. When the ground freezes, mulch the […]
Q. How do you start and grow rhubarb? &emdash; Gerald Wicoff, Danville, Ill. A. Rhubarb can be planted in the spring as soon as the ground can be worked. Choose crowns of a known cultivar with at least two large buds. Valentine, Canada Red, McDonald and Ruby are recommended red cultivars. Victoria is a recommended green-stalked cultivar. Valentine tends to produce fewer unwanted seed stalks. Valentine and McDonald require less sugar in food preparation than many […]
Q. My Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ flops open in the center each fall and looks disastrous. What can I do?It’s too heavy to tie to a stake. Gary Kukulies, Lafayette, IN A. The upright sedums (now renamed Hylotelephium), need to be divided every few years to keep them from crashing to the ground in the fall. This task is best undertaken in the spring when the shoots are up a few inches. Lift the entire clump […]
Q. Although I am aware of the need to cut back or pinch mums until about the Fourth of July, I need your advice about other flowers, namely daisies, black-eyed Susans, impatiens and petunias. Should all of these be pinched, too, and if so, when? For some time now, I have noticed so many daisies and black-eyed Susans in beautiful clumps standing so stately. As soon as mine are blooming nicely, they begin to droop […]