Keep your plants healthy, watered to prevent borers

Q: Is there a preventive spray to ward off borers before they get started on my plants? I remember I used a dormant oil in late fall or early spring before bud growth.

Can I use it as a preventive? Also, if I see plants becoming infected, what systemic insecticide should I purchase?

A: Boring insects typically overwinter inside plants, so dormant oil will not work on them. Dormant oil is good for insects that overwinter on plants, like scale insects.

Keep the plants healthy and full of water to prevent borers. Watering susceptible plants during drought conditions is probably the best thing that can be done.

There are many insecticides for plant borers. Acephate and imidacloprid are the two most common active ingredients.

Depending on the plant and the pest, the insecticide may be sprayed on, poured around the base or injected into the tree. Timing is critical, and you must follow the label directions. The best thing is to check at a garden center for the appropriate one when you need it. Q: I have a question about my redbud bush. Each year it seems to have fewer blossoms; this year it has just one lonely one.

The landscapers have cut it to the ground twice, and both times it came back. I would love to have blossoms next year.

Is there anything that I can do to promote blossoming?

A: Redbuds bloom on branches more than 2 years old. They can bloom on branches as big as 8 inches in diameter. They will set a cluster of new buds at the joint of where a leaf is now.

You can fertilize the tree with a rose fertilizer according to the package directions. Then be patient, as it may take a couple of years to get the older wood.