It’s garden questions and answers again! You may e-mail me
questions at:
ga*******@jp*.net
. Or you can mail me questions in
care of this newspaper. For a faster, personal response, please
include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
It’s garden questions and answers again! You may e-mail me questions at:
ga*******@jp*.net
. Or you can mail me questions in care of this newspaper. For a faster, personal response, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
Q: I have some potato vines growing to cover the fence. They have become a little overgrown. Can I trim them back significantly and not damage them? Like most vines this time of year, they appear to be dead on the inside, but the side that gets the sun is doing very well.
– P.G., Hollister, via e-mail.
A: You’re right in that many vines don’t look very good this time of year. This also includes plants like fuchsias, which appear to have taken an eight-count because of all our cold, wet weather.
While it is time to prune most deciduous shrubs and trees, you should not yet prune plants or vines that have been damaged by frost. That’s because – even as ugly as some plants and vines may look now – those damaged branches are doing some good. Specifically, they are preventing further damage from the cold.
Be patient, and wait until the weather warms before pruning your potato vine. Fuchsias-lovers also need to be patient and wait until danger of heavy frost has passed before pruning.
Q: We have a lemon tree that bears too much fruit. The branches were bent way down and were breaking. We have done the obvious thing and thinned it out. What I want to know is how to prune the tree so this doesn’t happen again next year? The tree is located close to a walkway and we hate to get bonked on the head all the time.
– A.M., Gilroy, via e-mail.
A: Congratulations. You have a dilemma that most home gardeners would love to have – namely, citrus or fruit trees that produce too much!
The fact of the matter is, pruning won’t really reduce your citrus production for next year because our weather does that. Sometimes the weather is ideal for massive production and other years it’s light. Only if you really hack things back will production be reduced, and I would not recommend doing that.
Most citrus do not need to be pruned. I would simply continue doing what you have been doing, which is pruning when necessary in order to prevent getting bonked on the head.
Q: My camellias don’t seem to be blooming the way they have in the past. They either never open up fully, or else don’t appear to be well formed and only last a day or two. The plants look healthy, but the flowers just aren’t performing correctly. Is there anything I can do?
– W.D., Morgan Hill, via e-mail.
A: Your camellias are probably suffering from an appropriately named disease called blossom blight. This is a common problem among camellias and, unfortunately, is often widespread.
The most effective approach to minimize your problem is to pick up fallen flowers diligently, spread organic mulch over the ground, and fertilize with an acidic fertilizer. There are granular fertilizers on the market, specifically for azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons.
If you’re a chemical spray type of person, there are fungicidal products out there. Check your local nursery for fungicidal sprays for blossom blight.
