Pink tabebuia trees provide show-stopping color
Q: Medium-sized pink flowering trees with tubular-like blooms are very attractive in our neighborhood. What is the name of these trees, and what care do they need?
A:
Show-stopping pink tabebuia trees started flowering in February and can continue well into March. The trees grow about 30 feet tall and equally as wide. Tabebuias add lots of winter color and warm season shade to home landscapes but do develop surface roots that could affect walkways. Provide normal tree care of water for the first four to six months after planting. Fertilizers applied to lawns and nearby plantings should provide needed nutrients for growth. New trees flower about three years after planting.
Q: I am growing tomatoes in containers with fresh potting soil but still get knots on the roots from nematodes. How does this happen?
A:
Hitchhiking root knot nematodes have entered the good soil and are affecting plant roots. These common garden pests may have been in soil adhering to the containers, left on tools used in the garden and then with the container plants or associated with transplants if they once grew in garden soil. Root knot nematodes, which can cause roots to swell and reduce plant vigor, may have entered drainage holes by growing with protruding roots. It sounds like it is time to remove the existing plants with soil and then clean the containers. Add fresh soil and set the containers in areas without contact with the ground where nematodes might be active.
Q: I would like to add an edible fig to the landscape in a sunny location. What is a good variety, and what soil preparation is needed? A:
A feast of soft, sweet figs can be yours in about two to three years. Edible figs grow well in Florida landscapes and produce tasty fruits from late spring through summer. The two most popular varieties are Brown Turkey and Celeste, but garden centers may offer equally pleasing Alma, Green Ischia, Magnolia and San Piero selections. You only need one plant, as Florida varieties do not need pollination. Figs prefer a well-drained and nematode-free planting site. It’s best to work lots of organic matter and manure into the sandy soils. After planting, keep the soil moist and maintain a 3- to 4-inch mulch layer. Feed the plantings lightly every other
month, March through August, with a general garden fertilizer or manure to ensure a good crop.
Q: A poinsettia planted in the ground last year developed the colorful red bracts during late fall and winter. When do I cut the plant back, and how far? A:
Enjoy the colorful poinsettia until at least mid-March or even April. Wait until warm weather and new growth begins to do the needed pruning. Most in-ground plants are cut back about one-half. Also, remove any dead or declining portions. After pruning, apply a slow-release landscape fertilizer. Make additional applications in May, August (if permitted) and early October. Repeat pruning is needed after each flush of new growth through the end of August, removing about 4-to-6 inches of growth from the tips of each shoot. This helps keep the plants compact and full of shoots for displays.
Q: We have lots of azaleas that have grown very tall and cover many of our windows. I want to cut them back to a foot or two of the ground but have been told this will kill the plants. What should I do?
A:
Get the pruners sharpened, as it sounds like you have lots of trimming to do. Perhaps you might want to wait until flowering is over and then whack away during the spring and before the end of June. Do make clean cuts but it is alright to cut the plants back to a foot or so from the ground. Remove any dead or declining stems to the ground at this time and some of the older wood, too. This is going to produce real rejuvenation with lots of new healthy shoots from the base. Severely pruned azaleas may require two years of growth before producing the blooms you remember.
Q: There is lots of sooty mold on our crape myrtle that did not bloom this year, and it’s spreading to the confederate jasmine. Got any remedies?
A:
Curing the sooty mold problem is pretty easy — eliminate the insects. Bugs such as aphids and whiteflies are likely sucking juices from the new growths of the crape myrtle during the summer and dropping excreta plus plant sap on the leaves of both plants that encourage the growth of the sooty mold fungus. Controls can include the natural insecticidal soap or horticultural oil sprays found at your local garden centers. These have to be applied when the insects are first noted. Another treatment is to apply a systemic insecticide available from garden centers to the ground under the crape myrtle for months of control. Follow label instructions when using any of these products. A failure to flower could be as simple as the insects damaging the buds. It could also be due to crape myrtles growing in a shady spot. Keep pruning to a minimum so the shrub or tree forms have plenty of time to produce the flowering shoots.