Acidic soil won’t make your green spruce blue
Question: I have two Colorado blue spruces, each about 7 feet tall. One has the blue tint, but the second one, which I’ve had for two years, does not have any blue tips. Can I add acid to the soil to gain some blue branches on the second one?
Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens var. glauca) is the “blue” variety of the green-needled Colorado spruce. You may have ended up with one of each type. The degree of blue in a Colorado blue spruce varies with the individual tree and seed source, not the soil pH. Selecting a named variety known for outstanding blue color, desired size and shape will help you achieve your landscape goals.
Q: I purchased tulip and daffodil bulbs this fall but was unable to plant them. They are currently in the basement. Do I need to pot them up until spring?
This is a common problem and your question will help many gardeners in the same situation. Tulips, daffodils and other spring flowering bulbs need several weeks of cold temperatures to initiate flowering. Our winters provide this chill, but so can a refrigerator or unheated garage.
Plant your bulbs in the garden if we have a winter thaw and the ground is workable. You can also place the bulbs in a spare refrigerator for at least 15 weeks, then pot them up and enjoy the bloom inside. Or wait for the garden soil to thaw and plant chilled bulbs outdoors in spring.
You will need to pot up and water the bulbs if you plan on placing them in an unheated garage for the winter. Place them in a Styrofoam cooler or cardboard box filled with some type of insulation for added protection during extremely cold periods. Water whenever the soil is thawed and dry.
Enjoy the forced bulbs indoors after the cold period or outdoors on the patio and deck as spring-flowering bulbs growing in the garden begin to appear.
Q: Is Ames St. John’s wort (Hypericum kalmianum Ames) susceptible to verticillium wilt?
I searched my resources and the internet and found nothing on St. John’s wort susceptibility or resistance to verticillium wilt. So I consulted Brian Hudelson, director of diagnostic services for the University of Wisconsin-Madison Plant Disease Diagnostic Clinic.
He did find one report of verticillium wilt on Hypericum from Poland. So he is assuming Hypericum is technically susceptible but feels it might be more like serviceberry (Amelanchier) that is technically susceptible but seems to be quite resistant.
If you are seeing symptoms of verticillium wilt, such as branches suddenly wilting and then dying, consider submitting a sample to the UW-Madison Plant Disease Diagnostic Clinic
for testing.
Q: I found some leftover seeds I did not plant in this year’s garden. Will they be good to use next spring?
Store leftover seeds in their original packet in an airtight jar in the refrigerator or other consistently cool location. Some seeds remain viable, able to germinate and grow, for a year or two, while others last longer. Proper storage will increase your success.
If in doubt, test stored seeds in spring before planting. Place 10 seeds on a damp paper towel, fold the towel to cover the seeds, place in a plastic bag and set in a warm location for about a week. If all the seeds sprout, plant according to label directions. If only half the seeds sprout, plant them at half the recommended spacing.
ISTOCKPHOTO