QUESTION: I have several podocarpus along a fence, and one gradually has turned brown. What happened to the plant? Can it be replaced?
ANSWER: Mushroom root rot is likely at fault. The fungus affects just a plant or two at a time and causes the slow decline. Look for a yellow to white matlike layer under the bark of the trunk near the ground for almost positive proof this fungus is present.
Regretfully, there is no control for mushroom root rot. Also the fungus often continues to affect other plants nearby. You can help reduce the disease by keeping the unaffected plants vigorous with adequate fertilizer and water. Do replace the affected plant, but remove as much of the old root system as possible, plus a portion of the soil, before adding the new podocarpus.
Trim the torenias?
Q: My two torenia plants have turned into bushes in the front flower bed. Can I thin them? If so, how? Are they annuals or perennials?
A: Enjoy the colorful torenias, also called summer pansies, for about another month. The plants are warm-season annuals. When the colder weather arrives, they decline. By now torenias have produced plenty of seeds, and you can expect some to sprout and grow new plants next spring.
Let jessamine grow
Q: I have a night-blooming jessamine that is huge. Should I prune it?
A: If you have plenty of room, let it grow. Otherwise keep the night-blooming jessamine in bounds with some trimming. The plant has the potential to grow 12 feet tall and almost as wide. It’s probably best to delay trimming to the end of February because the plants are sensitive to freezing temperatures. Mother Nature may do the pruning for you.
Don’t baby shrimp plants
Q: I have three shrimp plants. One is in full bloom; the others remain green without flowers. They have been pampered. What else is needed to make them all bloom?
A: Reduce the care to just what’s needed to keep the plants growing. Sometimes too much care encourages lots of greenery but few flowers. Feedings once or twice a year and waterings only when the soil begins to dry should slow growth and encourage blooms from the entire planting.
Perennial pleaser: Crossandra
Q: I have a bed of crossandra plants with bright orange blossoms. Are they annual or perennial plants? Will they last through the winter?
A: Crossandras are perennials and normally are treated as annuals in local landscapes. Expect the flowering to stop for the winter months. Most gardeners replace the plants with cool-season flowers, but the plants can be left in the ground.
During most winters, crossandras are killed to the ground by the cold. The plants usually grow back to flower for the following spring and summer seasons.
Send the transplants home
Q: My mother sent me cuttings of a puss* willow and white birch tree from Detroit. Both are thriving in a test area of the landscape. Now that they have done well, can they be moved to another location at this time of the year?
A: Gardeners have poor luck relocating most trees and shrubs from Northern landscapes to their Central Florida home sites. The first year they often give a good performance; then they appear to lose their vigor. The plants do not receive the cold needed to begin strong growth the second year. The best place for the puss* willow and the white birch tree is up North.
Is phosphate really needed?
Q: I would like to apply triple superphospate to my rose and day lily plantings. When will the treatment begin feeding the plantings? When should it be reapplied?
A: Few flowers need just one nutrient. Unless you know the soil is deficient in phosphorus you may see little benefit from adding this one element. Normally it’s a blend of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium plus the minor nutrients that is used to feed the plantings.
Many Florida soils have adequate phosphorus and may never need additional amounts as supplied by the triple superphospate product. It contains between 45 percent and 50 percent phosphorus, which is quickly available for plant use. When soils are deficient, only one application is needed per year.
Adjusting site’s pH level
Q: I am preparing a bed for flowers. Is there any product I can add to the soil to make it neutral, regardless of whether some spots are acid and others alkaline?
A: Few plants need an exact soil pH or acidity. Most grow well over a range of soil acidity levels. Flowers usually like a pH in the 6.0 to 7.5 range rather than just the neutral pH of 7.
Because garden sites often are modified by mixing organic matter, fertilizers and manures with the parent soil, it’s not abnormal to find the acidity varies. Till the site well, and you should produce a fairly uniform pH. Have the soil tested, and if needed adjust the pH with lime or sulfur following test recommendations.
