Q: I recently planted some wonderful flowers that I purchased at
the Gilroy Rotary Club’s annual flower sale at Goldsmith Seeds.
It’s garden question-and-answer time again! You may e-mail me questions at ga*******@*ps.net. Or you can mail me questions in care of this newspaper, 6400 Monterey Road, Gilroy, CA 95020. For a faster, personal response, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
Q: I recently planted some wonderful flowers that I purchased at the Gilroy Rotary Club’s annual flower sale at Goldsmith Seeds. I do not want to lose any to the wrath of snails. However, I don’t want to scatter poison snail bait because of my dogs. Do you have a solution?
– V.C., Morgan Hill
A: Have you ever tried a snail and slug bait called Sluggo? It’s organic, composed of iron sulphate and a bait. It takes a little longer to kill the suckers, but it is effective. It’s safe to use around pets and children. One warning: It is quite a bit more expensive than good old Ortho’s Bug-Geta. Sluggo is available at local nurseries and big-box stores.
Another possible solution is to place a band of copper around the perimeter of your flower bed. The slugs and snails get a mild shock when they touch the copper and won’t try to climb or cross over. Copper barriers take a bit of work to erect but will also do the job.
Q: I started my tomatoes and peppers from seeds. They came up and developed their first two leaves without much of a problem. Now I noticed that the leaves have curled on the ends and are turning brown. What is the problem?
– MV.C., Morgan Hill
A: Congratulations that you managed to start seedlings this spring with all the rain and cold weather we had. If the tips of the leaves are turning brown, there are two primary suspects: frost or fertilizer burn. With all the cold weather we had in March, plants may have been damaged by a late frost. As for fertilizer, I fertilize my seedlings every year with half-strength fertilizers. This prevents the potential for overloading the soil and burning/damaging the plants. The good news is that the affected leaves shouldn’t cause problems with your tomatoes and peppers. They may or may not fall off, but young, vigorous plants will replace lost or damaged leaves fairly quickly.
Q: My tangerine tree hasn’t had fruit for two years. Can you tell me approximately when I should have blossoms if it is going to have fruit?
– P.S., Gilroy
A: Citrus – whether tangerines, limes, lemons or oranges – are a heavy feeder and need regular fertilizer applications. It’s recommended to apply the total amount of nitrogen required in three applications: in January/February, April/May and August/September. The late summer application probably helps fruit sizing of fall ripening citrus, such as tangerines.
Fruit will blossom in early summer, with fruit forming by mid-summer. Citrus trees also thrive on constant moisture. Apply enough water slowly and deeply to thoroughly soak the root mass. Finally, no matter how well you do everything, some years the conditions are right to produce more fruit than other years.
