East Texas Gardening

East Texas Horticulture Field Day

2009-06-21T23:58:34Z

It's time for one of my favorite summer horticulture events in the East Texas area. That's the Horticulture Field Day held at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Overton on Thursday, June 25. This event has grown in popularity as growers, landscapers and gardeners discover the trials and displays of the latest and newest bedding plant varieties and other horticultural novelties. The event is free. It starts in the morning at the Horticulture North Farm, north of the Overton Center, where row after row of bedding plants are presented for viewing and evaluating. Later in the morning the crowd moves to the Overton Center where the diverse and interesting Demonstration Garden displays an amazing number of intersting and unusual perennials, roses, small shrubs and other gems. After the sponsored lunch, the program heads indoors where Dr. Brent Pemberton, who is responsible for the Horticulture Field Day, and Jimmy Turner, head horticulturist at the Dallas Aroboretum, will give slide show presentations of the California Spring Showcase (Pack Trials), trials at the Dallas Aroboretum and other topics.

For directions to the Field Day and a schedule, click here At the bottom of this page are links to go to Pemberton's home page, and a detailed news release on the Field Day

Slime Mold Time

2009-05-10T23:05:04Z

With the warm, humid weather, accompanied by occasional showers comes the predictable appearances of slime molds. If you have never seen them before, they can be somewhat disconcerting. Some are downright disgusting-looking, with disgusting-sounding common names such as the common "dog-vomit slime mold" It's name tells you what it looks like (at least it doesn't smell)!

What are slime molds? They are primitive life forms that for most of their existence feed on decaying organic matter. At some point in time, they go into a reproductive mold, and begin oozing up onto surfaces, crawling like amoeba, forming a mass of "stuff" which quickly dries and releases spores.

One of the more common slime molds we see is on lawns, usually greyish in appearance, kind of like cigarette ashes dumped out on the grass. Sometimes they are black and oily in appearance.

Dog vomit slime mold is usually yellow and brown and shiny, later turning crusty and thick. I usually see it in flower beds where a lot of wood product (bark mulch or compost) has been used. It looks like Fido barfed in the garden.

The good news is that they are harmless to the lawn and garden, and will disappear once it gets hot and dry. You can ignore slime mold, study it, or hose or sweep it away. Kick it and you will likely get your shoes black with all the spores waiting to be dispersed.

For further edification, here are some University references on slime molds:

http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/slimemold/slimemold.htm

http://waynesword.palomar.edu/slime1.htm

http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1117/ANR-1117.pdf

Pine Sawflies in Region

2009-04-29T21:41:19Z

We have not had any reports of this pest in Smith County or nearby counties that I am aware of. Today Dr. Mike Merchant, Extension Entomologist in the Dallas area reported on an outbreak of Blackheaded Pine Sawflies in other northeast Texas counties - to the north and west of our area (Lamar, Bowie and Kaufman counties). So, I have copied Dr. Merchant's "heads up" in case you discover your pine trees have disappearing needles, or hear what appears to be raindrops under your pines on a clear, sunny day (that would be caterpillar droppings).

Several years ago we had an outbreak in southern Smith County - quite amazing at the shear number of larvae that get on one pine tree. You quickly learn not to look up and talk when standing under a pine tree infested with these caterpillars. The good news is that an otherwise healthy tree will not be adversely affected, according to Texas Forest Service entomologist Joe Pase (see below).

Here is Dr. Merchant's report:

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Yesterday and this morning I received some information about a pest caterpillar defoliating pine trees in Lamar, Kaufman and Bowie counties. It has been tentatively identified as blackheaded pine sawfly, Neodiprion excitans. The blackheaded sawfly causes periodic, widespread defoliation of pines throughout the southern states. The Kaufman County report, from urban forester Pam Corder, was on loblolly pine.

The caterpillars are normally an olive green color with black heads. Mature larvae have dark longitudinal stripes. The attached pictures shows caterpillars and damage from Kaufman county. The photographed larva has a lighter head capsule than typical N. excitans, but is otherwise consistent with BHPS. Leaves (needles) of infested pines may be chewed down to the fascicles at the base of the needle bunches.

According to Texas Forest Service entomologists, Joe Pase and Dr. Don Grossman, most affected trees should recover and re-leaf with no treatment. According to Pase, "The larvae feed mostly on 2nd year needles and leave the current year's growth intact. The result is that few trees die from the defoliation. When tree mortality occurs, it is usually from attacks by pine engraver beetles (pine bark beetles) responding to stressed trees. Even then, few trees are attacked by pine beetles. Because the new growth on the trees this year has not progressed very far, the trees look especially bad, but I think most of them will come through OK - they just need a little time for the new growth to develop."

If a tree owner wishes to treat, effective control can be achieved by applying Sevin (carbaryl) or a pyrethroid insecticide. A power, or hose-end, sprayer will be necessary to treat taller trees. Care should be taken to avoid drift when applying insecticides. Sprays should not be applied when wind speed is greater than 5-7 mph. The services of a professional arborist will usually be needed to completely treat larger trees.

It's important to note that commonly used, low impact, pesticides for caterpillars, like Bt and spinosad, are not effective against sawflies because they are not closely related to moth and butterfly caterpillars, which these products target. Sawflies belong to the only plant-eating family of wasps, in the biological order Hymenoptera.

Because this insect can be expected to have more than one generation, tree owners should watch for additional feeding in late May or June. Trees that have been previously attacked, and which experience re-infestation by these 2^nd generation caterpillars, may benefit from a spray. However diseases and natural enemies commonly keep later sawfly generations under natural control.

"Bottom line about the sawflies - I don't expect them to be a significant issue with... pine trees," said Pase.

The following links are provided courtesy of Joe Pase:

http://www.forestpests.org/southern/blackheadpine.html (general information)

http://insects.tamu.edu/extension/publications/epubs/eee_00020.cfm (good written information)

http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/trees/sawfly/neodiprion01.htm (good photo)

Here are links to information about pine bark beetles. For your area, the pine bark beetle called "southern pine beetle" is not an issue.

http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/main/popup.aspx?id=3398 (photos with descriptions)

http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/main/popup.aspx?id=1188 (discussion about pine bark beetles and control comments. Onyx is the only pesticide I am aware of that is currently registered for pine bark beetles.)

Source: Joe Pase III, Entomologist, Texas Forest Service, jpase@tfs.tamu.edu

Orange Goo on Cedar Trees

2009-03-13T01:20:12Z

Many Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) trees in the area are getting covered with masses of orange goo-like stuff - kind of looks like something from outer space splattered over the trees. Actually, I've never seen it quite this heavy and widespread before. What "it" is is a fungus, called cedar-quince rust (Gymnosporangium clavipes). This is an interesting fungal organism that requires 2 different hosts to complete its life cycle. One stage occurs on junipers - in this case, the common eastern red cedar. There are actually several different rust fungi, and some look a lot alike.

This orange mass of goo will eventually dry, and release gazillions of spores, many of which will land on some host in the Rosaceae family, like apples, flowering quince, mayhaws, pears, hawthorn, photinia, or crabapples. There they will infect the young foliage, causing yellowing, spotting and possibly heavy defoliation if the conditions are just right. Young developing fruit might also become affected, resulting in odd projections covering the fruit.

Dr. Kevin Ong, Plant Pathologist with Texas AgriLife Extension Service, has written a short article on a related species, cedar-apple rust. You can read it here.

East Texas Commercial Fruit and Vegetable Conference Feb. 17

2009-02-02T16:26:20Z

The East Texas Commercial Fruit & Vegetable Conference, is Tuesday, February 17, at the Tyler Rose Garden Center. This all-day program focuses on commercial fruit and vegetable production, and will feature presentations in the general session on incorporating integrated pest management strategies into fruit and vegetable production, marketing fruits and vegetables, herbicides for weed control, and pesticide safety.

In the afternoon there will be 3 concurrent sessions. In the fruit session there will be talks on orchard site selection, and blackberry production. The vegetable session includes the subjects of windows for planting recommended crops and variety selections, disease updates, and tunnel houses and mulching for early crop production. The 3^rd session focuses on grapes, with an update on Pierce's Disease, and an overview of what's involved in starting a vineyard.

For agenda details, go to "Programs" under "Events & News" at EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu

Registration begins at 8:00 a.m., and is $20 which includes lunch. The program starts at 8:30 a.m. TDA pesticide license holders earn 4 CEU's by attending the Conference.

East Texas Landscape & Garden Conference - Feb. 14

2009-02-02T16:23:52Z

The 16^th annual East Texas Spring Landscape and Garden Conference is February 14th at the Tyler Rose Garden Center.

One of the featured speakers for this year's program is Dr. Neil Odenwald, retired director of the School of Landscape Architecture at Louisiana State University, and popular speaker, author and award winning landscape architect. He will give two talks on landscape design during the conference. The first will focus on practical ideas for developing the space around your home into a functional and attractive area through the art of landscaping.

The second talk is entitled "Small Space Landscaping", and will cover ideas for developing small areas of the yard into functional, comfortable and enjoyable environments.

Also on the program is Dr. Dotty Woodson, Texas AgriLife Extension Program Specialist from Dallas, who will discuss how to capture, or "harvest", rainfall on your property and put it to use watering your plants. This water conserving technique is a hot topic due to increasing demands on existing water sources and as recurring droughts affects our water supplies. This will be a practical, how-to session on creating a rainwater harvesting system.

I will be giving a brief update on the revision of the Recommended Plant List for Northeast Texas, a list that has served as an area guide for landscape plant selection. Also on the program will be 2 talks focusing on trees. The first will be a session by Daniel Duncum, District Forester with the Texas Forest Service, on how to properly plant and care for trees, so they will get off to a great start, and then live a long, useful life. Many mistakes are made at tree planting time, and knowing the right way to establish trees will greatly reduce premature tree mortality.

The other will be a talk and demonstration by Tyson Woods of Dallas on aiding and caring for trees using a device called an airspade. Woods is the Senior Arborist with Moore Tree Care, a subsidiary of Lambert's. Woods has been very active in promoting organic techniques and has extensive experience utilizing the "airspade", uncovering well over 5,000 trees since 2001.

The Conference, jointly sponsored by AgriLife Extension and the City of Tyler Parks and Recreation Department, and developed by the Smith County Environmental Horticulture Committee, will be held at the Tyler Rose Garden Center on Saturday, February 14. Besides the featured speakers, exhibitors will be showcasing products and services throughout the day. All registration is at the door on the day of the conference, starting at 7:30 a.m. Admission is $15 and includes lunch. The conference begins at 8:30 a.m. and concludes about 3:30 p.m. For information concerning exhibiting, contact Keith Hansen, (903) 590-2980, or Craig Reiland, Rose Garden Supervisor, at (903) 531-1200.

East Texas Turfgrass Conference Feb. 5, 2009

2009-02-02T16:21:32Z

The East Texas Turfgrass Conference focuses on the management of turfgrass, and is of particular interest to those who are involved in the management of commercial, sports and home lawns and turf, including school districts, city parks and recreation departments, lawn and landscape managers, as well as homeowners. The Conference is Thursday, February 5, at the Texas AgriLife Research & Extension Center at Overton.

Topics include controlling turfgrass weeds and diseases, aquatic weed control in ponds, designing and maintaining efficient irrigation systems, how to correctly identify common turfgrass problems in lawns, pesticide laws and regulations, and ends with a panel discussion where you can ask questions of the speakers. Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) pesticide license holders earn 5 CEU's (pending approval) for attending the conference.

Cost is $20 per person, payable at the door, and includes lunch. The complete program is available online at EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu - look under "Events & News" -> "Programs & News".

2009 Northeast Texas Gardening Guide & Calendar

2008-11-18T14:37:10Z

The 2009 Northeast Texas Gardening Guide and Calendar is now available for area gardeners. Written by the Smith County Master Gardeners, a volunteer organization of Texas Cooperative Extension, the calendar provides a wealth of information for the Northeast Texas region.

The Guide lists a month-by-month "to-do" list on plant care; bed preparation; pest, disease and weed control, bulbs of the month, and monthly mini-articles on topical subjects. The gardening guide also features information on beneficial insects, plants in the Northeast Texas Winner's Circle, and vegetable gardening

The Gardening Guide and Calendar are available for $5.00 at the following locations:

Al H Horaney's, Inc., 5520 Old Jacksonville Hwy, Tyler
Blue Moon Gardens, 13062 FM 276, Chandler
Breedlove Nursery, 11576 Hwy 64 W, Tyler
Center Chemical, 1812 ESE Loop 323, Tyler
Harris Nursery, Hwy 69 North, Tyler
Hideaway Lake Area, Jerry Mullins. 903-882-9947
Ingram Nursery, Hwy 64 W, Tyler
In the Wind, 410 Loop 323 WSW, Tyler
Kirkpatrick's Hardware, Old Jacksonville Hwy., Gresham
The Market, 303 Hwy 110 No., Whitehouse
Neal Nursery, 2561 So. Main St., Lindale
Noonday Ace Hardware, 19671 Hwy 155 So., Flint
Noonday Feed & Seed, 16939 Hwy 155 So., Noonday
Pyp-It, 14801 Hwy 110 So., Whitehouse
Smith County Extension Office, 1517 W. Front St., Suite 116, Tyler
Southland Feed & Supply, 427 So. Glenwood Blvd., Tyler

The Guide and Calendar may be ordered by mail for $7.00 from: Andie Rathbone, 13270 Oak Hill Lane, Flint, TX 75762. Make checks payable to Smith County Master Gardeners. All proceeds support the educational and community gardening projects of the non-profit Smith County Master Gardeners Association.

The Smith County Master Gardener program is sponsored by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service and is open to all interested people regardless of race, national origin, or religious beliefs.

2009 Master Gardener Program seeking applicants

2008-10-27T20:11:17Z

The Smith County Master Gardener program begins a new training class in January, 2009, and we are seeking gardeners who are interested in 1) increasing their gardening knowledge through an intensive series of classes covering a wide range of gardening and horticultural topics, and 2) who would then be willing to share their knowledge, love of gardening and expertise with adults and/or children in Smith County.

The Smith County Master Gardener program is a very active program with several educational activities ranging from hosting conferences, speakers for garden clubs, schools and civic groups, creating and maintaining demonstration gardens, publishing gardening guides and tips for newspapers, assisting school gardens and Junior Master Gardener programs, plus a lot more.

Participation in the program is through application, which is available in the Smith County Extension office, or online at: EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu/programs/programs.html Along with the application is a detailed cover letter describing the program, dates of the training, and more.

We will hold an orientation meeting December 3, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. at the Extension meeting room in the Smith County Cotton Belt Building for you to learn more about and ask questions regarding the Master Gardener program. No pre-registration is required. All applicants are required to please attend this orientation meeting.

Deadline to register is December 15.

Bulb Planting Time

2008-10-08T15:30:41Z

Now is the time to be purchasing and planting bulbs for next year's blooming display. Not all bulbs are equal in terms of having long-term stay in your garden and landscape. Too often, bulbs will bloom the first year, and then just come back as leaves - no flowers, or worse, not come back at all the following year.

This is why the Smith County Master Gardeners, a volunteer organization of Texas AgriLife Extension Service, several years ago set about providing heirloom and other bulbs that are known and proven to bring years and years of lasting blooming enjoyment. This is done through the annual Bulb Sale which is held in conjunction with the Fall Gardening Conference in Tyler.

The Conference and Bulb Sale this year are on October 11. The Conference will be held at Marvin Methodist Church, starting at 8:30 a.m. with renown horticulturists Dr. Bill Welch and Chris Wisenger speaking about bulbs, perennials and using these plants in the landscape. After the Conference, the everyone will take the short drive over to Harvey Convention Center, where the Bulb Sale will take place starting at 11:45 a.m. and going until 3:00 p.m.

Don't miss this opportunity to get some premium, hard-to-find bulbs for your landscape. For details, go to East Texas Gardening Events and News and click on the links.

Trees and Hurricane Ike

2008-09-17T20:39:09Z

Ike left a mess all across East Texas in his wake, and the extensive tree damage will take awhile to completely clear up. Many trees will retain scars for their rest of the life, though those scars will eventually be hidden. I'm referring to broken branches not properly pruned, or stripped bark, leading to internal decay and hollow trunks and weakend branches. This is why a careful evaluation of the trees on your property is important.

Leaning trees are potential hazards, and need to be carefully evaluated. If roots have been broken, then the tree has little chance of a good, robust recovery. Mature trees that have been partially uprooted, or, with major crown damage, are candidates for removal since full recovery is unlikely and future problems are probable.

I found some very good information out of the University of Florida Extension service on hurricanes and trees. They ought to know, since they have dealt with many devestating hurricanes in the last several years. The Texas Forest Service also has some useful information storm-damaged trees. These links, and a link to an article I wrote on trees and storm damage can be found at: http://easttexasgardening.tamu.edu/treesandstormdamage.html

There is also a link on finding a certified arborist. The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) is one of the leading tree care (arboriculture) industry's associations, and it sponsors a rigorous certification program for its members. Certified arborists have passed a comprehensive examination showing competency and understanding of tree biology, management and related issues. You can learn more about the ISA and find members on their web site Trees Are Good.

Moles and Patience

2008-09-08T01:01:42Z

I haven't written much about moles lately, mainly because I haven't caught any recently - until today. Quite awhile back I wrote that I haven't had much success trying to trap in deeper tunnels that connect between mole mounds. Seems like the tunnels connecting mounds are so large that maybe the mole runs into part of the trap, then just buries the trap with a plug of soil.

I decided to try again about a week ago. There is quite a lot of mound activity in my back yard, with one or 2 new mounds popping up every day. I even tried scooping one out when I caught it pushing up soil - but like so many times in the past, I missed again. Quite frustrated, I figured that it was worth a shot to try trapping deep. I carefully set the Out of Sight trap, making sure my alignment was right, since I had to dig out a lot of the soil. Almost a week went by with no signs of activity. I was about ready to pull the trap today, since a week without activity usually means they're busy elsewhere on the property. But, sure enough, the trap was sprung and I got another one.

I might also mention, I use both the harpoon-type trap and the Out of Sight trap. I don't remember ever having the Out of Sight trap sprung without catching one, while the harpoon frequently comes up empty.

At any rate, patience pays off - and like I've said before, perserverance. You'll never be permanently rid of these animals if your neighbors are not also trapping - you can only gain the upper hand, kind of like controlling vs eradicating fire ants.

Favorite Plants - Dancing Flame Salvia

2008-08-30T23:20:36Z

If you like loud, gawdy, bright, attention-getting plants, then take a look at Dancing Flame salvia. This speciman is located in the Heritage Rose Garden in the Tyler Rose Garden, and you cannot miss it. It's bright yellow and green variegated leaves on a 2.5 by 2.5 foot bush are alone enough to catch your attention. But, add to that large inflorescences of brilliant red flowers, and you have a show-stopper.

I did a little online research, and Norman Winter, horticulturist at Mississippi State (and A&M Aggie), had a nice write-up on this plant last year in his online "Southern Gardening" series. He writes that some think this is a Salvia van houttei relative, while others think it is a type of Salvia splendens - that's what I figured it to be, with its large leaves and very large, bold flowers. Supposedly it is hardy to zone 8, so that will be interesting to watch. It should root very easy, so insurance cuttings will assure its continued existance.

The plant in the Heritage Rose Garden is in full sun, getting late afternoon shade from the beautiful 'Musgkogee' crape myrtles to the west. The soil there is very well drained, which is good for a questionably hardy plant - like Norman Winter reminds us, it is not just cold that does in some herbaceous perennials, but cold plus wet soil that rots away the crown.

Dancing Flame lives up to its name, and if you need a hot plant for a hot site, it can fill the bill all summer.

Favorite Plants - Dahlia Single Party

2008-08-29T16:06:00Z

One of the great things about the IDEA Demonstration Garden located in the Tyler Rose Garden is the how the Smith Co. Master Gardeners are always on the search for new and great plants for the Northeast Texas area. This spring they found this cool plant in one of the box stores - a dahlia with dark foliage and yellow blooms. We thought, okay, this will be nice for spring color, to be replaced once our Texas heat melts it to a puddle of dead leaves.

What a very pleasant surprise this plant has been. It is one of the Proven Winners introductions - a dahlia in the Happy Series called Single Party (I personally think they could have come up with a better name). First of all, it has continued to bloom non-stop throught out the summer with bright yellow blooms. This first photo doesn't really capture the color quite as well as the second photo.

Secondly, the foliage is outstanding - dark purple-black leaves have held their color throughout the hot summer. Not only is the foliage attractive on its own, but it acts as a great foil for the yellow flowers.

The Proven Winners site indicates this is a zone 8+ plant and will take down to 15 degrees - so, we'll see whether it returns or not. Even if it didn't, it would be well worth buying new every year for its great looks.

The Proven Winners site lists 5 other dahlias in this series, all with dark purple-black foliage with various other flower colors, each with "Single" in the name. We're hoping growers will carry Single Party and some others next year for us to try.

Heritage Rose Garden looking great

2008-08-11T20:42:48Z

Tucked in the southwest corner of the Tyler Rose Garden is a little treasure that is worth seeking out. The Heritage Rose Garden is at the top of the hill looking south, and is easy to overlook when stepping out on the balcony of the Tyler Rose Garden and taking in the sea of hybrid tea and floribunda roses - all 30,000 + in one vista.

Walk up the hill to your right, (or park in the small parking area on the south end of the garden) and you'll find the Heritage Rose Garden which is looking outstanding right now, despite the heat and dry conditions.

Where a bed of dwarf yaupon holly and Martha Gonzales china roses once stood is a great planting of annuals and perennials, with a few shrubs mixed in, and that is coming in to its prime. Muskogee crapemyrtles and a Needlepoint holly planting form the perimeter of this planting of antique and heritage roses and companion plantings of perennials, bulbs and annuals. Check it out next time you are in the area.