Damaged live oak poses danger to house, family
Q: Our live oak was hurt badly by the extreme cold two years ago this month. Then it had ice on it recently, and now it looks like the trunk, which had lost chunks of bark already, has cracked. Are we going to lose it for good? It is about 20 years old.
A: It sounds like your tree is a threat to the safety of your house and your family. If it were mine, I would schedule a certified arborist to look at it on-site immediately.
Many live oaks dropped major limbs or fell entirely in the ice and should have been removed earlier. It’s sad what the cold did to them two years ago. Their wood was weakened more than many people realized. They are still outstanding trees to plant. Only a small percentage of live oaks in general was hurt to this degree.
Q: Would you recommend Nellie R. Stevens holly or Chinese photinia for a tall privacy hedge in a dry part of Texas? If you suggested the photinia, would I need to propagate it myself ?
A:
I probably would recommend Nellie R. Stevens hollies.
I love Chinese photinias and have since I was probably 12 years old. I prefer them immensely over redtip photinias, and I never did understand all the excitement over the redtips. Powdery mildew on the Chinese photinias was a reason, I guess. When Entomosporium fungal leaf spot started killing redtips, most serious horticulturists quit recommending them, me included. To this day, I almost never see the disease impacting Chinese photinias. However, I have seen it happen often enough that I am timid about suggesting them. I still have five in my landscape, and they have remained healthy.
Yes, you would have to propagate
them (probably from seed collected now) if you want them. It would take several more years to get plants of any size. The hollies would make beautiful screening shrubs to 16 or 18 feet, and they are available in any size of nursery container almost immediately. They don’t require any more water than other shrubs, but if you forget for even a few days, you will lose them. The signs of drought with them are very subtle. You will need to water them by hand, soaking them deeply every few days for their first couple of summers.
You might consider some of your native junipers (cedars) if you have a really difficult time
getting water to these plants. You could get them irrigation for the first two or three years to get them started and then hope for the best. I just don’t want you to expect miracles in dry Texas.
Q: My dad lives on property west of Austin. He has lots of mountain laurels growing there and we’d like to transplant some to our landscape. Do they move fairly easily if we dug small ones?
A:
Well, since you asked, no. But we may be able to figure some workarounds.
Most native Texas shrubs and trees have evolved to cope with prolonged drought by developing
deep root systems early in their lives. And like many of the others, Texas mountain laurels often grow in rocky soils where the stones and boulders hold much-needed moisture. Open areas are usually filled with competitive range grasses that outgrow the mountain laurels. All of that makes for difficulty times in transplanting unless you can find seedling plants that are 12 to 15 inches tall.
Honestly, you might be better off growing your own from the hard, red seeds you’ll find around his plants. Take a threecornered file and hold the seeds in a pair of pliers one at a time as you file carefully through their outer red seed coat. When you see the yellow inner embryo, stop filing. Soak the “scarified” seeds overnight to get water to the soon-to-be germinating plants, and plant them immediately in 4-inch pots filled with well-draining potting soil. That will speed up germination, sometimes by years, and your new plants will grow surprisingly well in nurserylike conditions until they’re big enough to set into the landscape (probably two to three years). If you’re in a part of Texas where winters drop into the low 20s, protect the potted plants from extreme cold.
Q: What plants would you recommend for an easy-care flower bed that is 4 feet by 100 feet?
A:
There are so many hidden sub-questions within your general question. I don’t know if this is in sun or shade, to be viewed close up or from afar, whether you’re talking about annuals or perennials, how tall you need the plants to be, or what is around them in terms of textures and colors.
My first inclination would be to suggest including groupings of low, evergreen shrubs for the continuity they would bring to the bed during the dormant times. Then I would determine whether I was willing to do the planning and maintenance required for a well-designed perennial garden where something was always in flower. Perennials, many folks don’t realize, are only in bloom for a few weeks, and then you must move on to some other type of perennial. Annuals are colorful for months, but they must be replaced at least two times each year.
I suggest you work with a Texas Certified Nursery Professional before the busy spring season and get an idea of how best to proceed. It could open up exciting opportunities, but with such a large bed, it could also be a huge responsibility.