texts: How can I be sure chains are suitable for hanging baskets?

texts:
I have moved into a new home, a fourth floor apartment (third floor in British/European English). There are two chains are hanging from the ceiling of a veranda (covered balcony) area.
The chains are currently loose with nothing hanging on the end of them. They're around 3 - 4mm thickness. I am not sure how they've been secured to the ceiling above, or how much weight they can safely hold.
As the chains are near the edge of the veranda, almost above the railing, I want to be certain that anything I hang will not fall over the edge to an open courtyard below. I also live in an area subject to high wind. It's not impossible to think that the wind could twist the chains to the point of breaking or tip a basket entirely.
Are there any basic tests to do or considerations I should have before hanging a basket for plants off these chains? How do I ensure that the basket will remain secure?
Edit: The picture is low quality, but this has raised some doubts about the purpose of the chain. It seems to be secured to the railing of the above floor, but I'd need to play with it more to tell for certain.


texts: Compost tea - any combination of ingredients not OK?

texts:
I want to make compost tea for my tomatoes but was wondering if it is OK to add several ingredients at once or if there are any that shouldn't go together. Also, should I add more water for each ingredient or can I combine all into one 2 gallon jug?  Most of the recipes are for something like 2 tablespoons of ingredient to 2 gallons of water. So do I add another two gallons for each ingredient or can I add all to a single 2 gallon jug?  I assume the latter.  My plants are 2 months old and just starting to bloom.

These are the ingredients I have and might want to combine one or more at a time: worm castings, bat guano, humic acid, fish emulsion, seaweed granules and root enhancer. Not sure which of these are good together and if now is the right time for any or all of these. Thanks for any input!


texts:
I ask for help on behalf of my mother, who has a potted blueberry plant in her garden: the label says Vaccinium corymbosum, "giant American blueberry". About a month ago my parents left for a week, and since no one was there to water the plants it completely dried out. After a while it started sprouting again, but never completely recovered: branches have dark/grey marks and leaves soon become red, then develop black spots and fall out. She tried repotting it but without any effect. The blueberry has been watered daily and is exposed to full light during the course of the day. Summer has been quite hot here (almost everyday around 30 C°) but I don't know if that could be a factor.
(I'll load pictures as soon as the stack exchange app allows me)


texts: This plant has 5 leaflets that are pink/lavender with darker edged


texts: Why are the lower leaves of my tropical Guava yellowing and dropping?

texts:
I had a Century Guava (世紀芭樂) shipped over from Taiwan to zone 9 California. It is nearly 6 feet tall. I planted it in the biggest container that IKEA sold, 20 inches wide, 2 feet deep. I drilled many holes on the bottom and ensured that water drains out. While the nighttime temperature was below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, I kept the guava inside near a south facing porch door. When the nighttime temperature stabilized to 50 degrees, I moved it outside so that it would get 10 hours of sunlight everyday. Daytime temperatures are averaging 75 degrees. The lower leaves have been slowly becoming yellow. The yellow leaves are dropping slowly at the rate of 2 per week. There are no pests above ground level. However, there are many small black flies living underneath the mulch, which all my other potted plants have, but those flies seem innocuous to those other plants.

At first, I thought I was underwatering it. Although the upper leaves were big and green, they had a crispy feeling, as if it would snap in half if I bent it. I increased watering to 1 gallon twice a week, enough to make water drip out of the drainage holes. However, I think tropical guava leaves are naturally drier than other fruit trees. I visited a local nursery and also felt the same dry crispiness on their tropical guava.

I only put a tiny bit of slow-release tea leaf fertilizer that my florist gave me. I also put a tiny sprinkling of Job's 4-4-4 organic powder fertilizer. I was scared of root burn on a newly planted tree, so I just put a dash of each.

It's supposed to bear fruit like the photo below. The flesh is white and crispy.


texts:
I have a rubber tree that's probably 5-7 years old and that's been kept in the same smallish pot the entire time. I've trimmed the tree once. It is about 70cm/2ft tall. I don't have a bigger spot for it so I want to keep it small. It's been doing well until this winter.
About a month ago the tree began dropping its lower leaves. Some lost leaves yellowed, some not. The photo's about a week old, the bottom two leaves have also fallen since. Although it's cold near the window, it's not colder than last winter. I water it every couple of weeks, maybe I overdid it.

I'm not sure what I should do. Prune the top branches for more branches, and keep the "leg" as it is? Or trim the tree down to a few leaf nodes above soil?
Would it be possible to save the entire top with all its leaves, or is it too big to survive in water long enough to grow roots?


texts: What is the optimal LED wattage for a single bell pepper plant?

texts:
I plan on topping it to keep the canopy wide. I am most concerned with getting an LED fixture that doesn't fully activate photosynthesis.

Granted I know that wattage isn't the best way to determine light output and quality of light but it is a good estimator.

Clearance height will be minimal so anything too high powered is likely going to cause adverse effects.

Is there a comparison for an LED light that produces 'full sun' lighting.

How much of a concern is sunscald with LED lights?


texts: Is that Bishop's weed the president is sitting in?

texts:
The Obama's presidential portraits were unveiled today.
Did the artist plant Barack in a garden of Bishop's weed?
Ignoring the flowers, which make little botanical sense, it sure looks like ground elder to me.


texts: Does pruning a plum tree to maintain its size and shape prevent it from fruiting?

texts:
I have a plum tree that is around six years old (possibly a year or two older - I forget exactly when I got it). I'm very keen that the tree not get so big that I have to use a ladder to pick the fruit, so I've been pruning it to keep it around two metres high. This is what it currently looks like (the tree isn't leaning, that's my bad camera work :-):

The instructions I got from the friend who gave it to me were to thin out the centre and remove overlapping branches so the shape is sort of like an inverted cone. This I've been doing and I'm basically pleased with the shape so far.

The problem is that I get very few flowers and plums. I know it's quite a young tree but I was expecting a bit more fruit by now. I wonder if it's my pruning that's to blame. The trouble is that to keep the tree size down I have to remove most of the new growth each year, and some Googling suggests it's on last years new growth that the plums appear. If this is true I'm sabotaging the tree's attempts to fruit.

I'd be grateful for any comments on how to encourage the fruiting and/or advice on looking after the tree and how to keep it at a manageable size.


texts: Can anyone identify this flowering plant?

texts: This was taken night so the beautiful yellow flowers don’t show too well. It grew a foot just in the last week!


texts: Vegetable Grow time and watering Info Table

texts:
I am building garden monitoring application and would like to find lists with

growing time
time to water
period to plant

of at least the basic vegetables


texts: How can I encourage the side growth of a mango seedling through pruning?

texts:
I have a mango seedling that I started from seed about mid-July, so it's a few months old. It is now about a foot tall and just sprouted few more leaves. I also have an avocado seedling growing, and looking online I see that it's recommended to cut the avocado back to about half its height when it reaches about 6-8 inches. Perhaps my Google-fu is a bit weak when it comes to horticulture, but I'm not seeing too many recommendations when it comes to mango seedling pruning, but I do see some tips on pruning(tipping) trees in general.

My question is, how much should be pruned, just the first few inches of growth, or a more dramatic cut/half the height? Also, is pruning a seedling that is a few months old too hasty of a move? I don't want to end up with a leafy stick, or worst, a dead stick.

Also, FYI, I'm growing this indoor year round since I live in an apartment, and I have a few grow lights set up as well.


texts: Pothos leaves turning white-yellow-brown from the centre

texts:
This was a Pothos from Ikea, it's doubled in size and was doing well.

Then 2 leaves started to show whiteish-yellow-brown patches in the middle.

I don't think it's over watering as the soils is only a bit moist.

Does anyone know what this is?

Thanks


texts: I bought a pepper plant that has 2 plants right next to each other.  Should I remove or cut out the smaller plant when I transplant into the ground?  Will it grow better with only 1 plant?


texts:
We had a tree removed from a corner of our garden a couple of years back, but now we want to green up the space so we're not looking at ugly stump and ugly fence. It was in an awkward position where they couldn't really get a stump-grinder to it, so its probably 3-4 inches tall and about 12 inches diameter.
Any recomendations for frost-tollerant, drought-resistant (gotta love that Aussie climate) shrubs/bushes that might be happy to grow around the stump to cover up the ugly? Bonus points if it'll stop the dogs/kids from being able to eat mushrooms from the stump.


texts: Using the same soil In containers with fertiliser every year

texts:
I want to use the same soil I bought last year for tomatoes. It is covered in plastic and in a very sunny spot (so I hope to kill off all the fungus that might be lurking), and I am mostly wondering about whether they will grow well if I dissolve egg shells for calcium, add Epsom salts, and use normal tomato fertiliser regularly?

Or is replacing every necessary nutrient (I'm not sure just those are all the necessary nutrients!) really not possible artificially?


texts: How deep does a raised bed need to be for a veggie patch?

texts:
I am putting in some new raised veggie beds along a fence line and will also be putting in some climbers (probably passion fruit) between the beds and the fence for screening. To keep the vine/tree roots from sucking all the water and nutrients out of the veggie beds I'm planning to put some thick plastic sheeting down under the raised beds to keep the veggie soil isolated from the tree roots.

So, my question is what depth do I need to make sure the veggies have enough soil? I want to be able to grow most common annual veggies and herbs including tomatoes, carrots, parsley, zucchini, etc. I won't be growing perennials such as chillies or asparagus in these beds.


texts: What edible plants can be grown in cold climates?

texts:
I live in Minnesota (U.S.). It starts to get cold from September (sometimes snows as early as October) until about mid-April (I’ve seen it snow as late as May some years), but I want to do year-round gardening. The daylight hours drop below 10 between December and February. I currently live in the city and don’t have as much space. I will be trying to move to acres when it gets warm, so any tips focused towards portable winter gardening stuff would be great, but isn’t necessary since gardening in the city is my test run. My main question is what are plants that can be eaten and will still grow in cold weather.
I'm very interested in:

plants that don't need a lot of help to grow indoors.
plants that will grow on their own outdoors (even potentially through/under snow).

I'm also very interested in plants that have medicinal properties that persist in cold regions as well.


texts:
A rose I bought at a florist is sending off a shoot, and it seems to be doing quite well. Should I plant the entire rose stem or only this shoot? How can I ensure it will survive?

Sorry for the blurry picture.


texts:
Please help me ID this tree. I have been trying to find it for a few years now and I don’t know what it is.

The tree looks like a dogwood right until the fruit start to swell, then one realized it isn’t a dogwood.

The fruit looks almost like Lychee, however that isn’t possible because these trees I have only found in Connecticut USA.

I have attached two pictures to help.


texts: I bought this plant and put it next to a south facing window on a sunny day. 2 days later I noticed the leaf had this big yellow/brown patch on it. Is this characteristic of being sunburnt or something else?


texts: This is the cherry plum I am trying to save in my new back yard (tree was overgrown with weeds for years and we just moved in an I have been restoring the backyard). Any help or suggestions would be awesome. So far I have not done anything except some pruning. Tree doesn't need the timber brace underneath but I have placed it there while I have been working.


texts:
I have a garden (20 x 20 feet) which has a retaining wall of nearly 10 feet on two sides. The garden has a gradient and slopes about 1 to 2 feet towards the retaining walls from the highest point where the house is. There are no weep holes in the retaining wall nor are there any ungrouted bricks in the wall. This is causing the garden to be always wet and soggy for about 2 meters from the wall inside. I also suspect the neighbouring garden is also draining into mine as they have no outlets anywhere.

How many weep holes are required to be put in the wall based on its height and how far apart should they be placed in order to drain effectively?


texts: How do I get rid of ducks from my backyard?

texts:
There are a couple of ducks in my yard (male and female).  I think they have come to my backyard to make a nest.  I fear that if this happens half my backyard will become off-limits due to an angry duck-mom.  I also worry that they will munch on my seedlings in the spring.  How do I get rid of them?

I have read that hanging CDs on trees could deter them.  Does this work?

I know a dog would do the trick, but I don't want a pet.  Also, both of my neighbours have dogs and the ducks do not mind them so far.

I want to stay away from pesticides, but if that is my only option I will use it.


texts: Do different types of mycelium connect to each other?

texts: I've heard that mycelium connect to each other when they are broken. Do they also connect with other types of mycelium to spread the network faster?


texts: Can Nicotiana alata be used as an aphid "honeypot"?

texts:
I have a problem with aphids.  Some of my plants are too weakened to be sprayed with a high-velocity hose to knock them off, and I really don't have the time to keep spraying with various insecticides, Neem, soaps etc.  The ladybugs in my region seem to be particularly lazy, and the predator wasps just can't keep up.

In Victorian times they used to make up sprays with tobacco plants, and apparently some novels mention that smokers were encouraged to smoke near the roses so that the cigarette smoke would deter the aphids.

I've also read that Nicotiana alata can be useful in an organic garden as the scent attracts aphids and spider mites which settle on the sticky glands.  So, are these stories apocryphal or can they be used to draw aphids and mites from your prized plants?  And if so, how many plants do you need per m2 of garden?


texts:
I have 4 cherry varieties grafted onto one rootstock. They are Royal Ann, Bing, Black Tartarian, and Lapins. It was planted in a dormant state in January 2014 in zone 9. It gets at least 8 hours of sunlight every day. I give it 2 gallons of water every weekend. I have not fertilized it.

It now is flourishing with leaves, but all of them are droopy. Is this the natural tendency of cherry leaves? If not, how do I fix it? The majority of leaves are blemish free. There's only 2 leaves that have been chewed through by an unknown insect.


texts: Can I tilt a plant when transplanting it from a pot to the ground?

texts:
I have an Apache Blackberry that has outgrown its pot. I am getting ready to transplant it into the ground. My concern is that the main cane has been growing diagonally in the pot. When I transplant it to the ground, may I tilt the plant so that the main stalk points upward? Or will doing so cause other problems?

This is the same blackberry plant from my previous question which I asked about brown spots. It did not grow for several months since bringing it home from the nursery. In this past month, it had a growth spurt (maybe due to cottonseed meal fertilizer or the eggshells).


texts: Are turf blankets useful in fall lawn installation?

texts:
We did a complete lawn renovation at a property on Long Island, NY. Due to the owner's schedule, we were delayed in seeding, and it is now November with very little germination across the entire lawn.

Would a turf blanket or cover (example 1, example 2) significantly improve turf establishment in our case? What are things that we should factor in if we decide to use themn.


texts:
I have a Dawn Redwood Bonsai Forrest. 3 out of 4 mini trees are doing fine (2 are doing great, one is doing fine) but the forth (the smallest one) looks sort of bad. Its leaves are look sort of dry and I don't know what I can do about it.

When I received it, maybe 2 weeks ago, I had to repot it because one of the trees were nearly out of the soil and the soil was beyond horrible. So, I repotted it and the tallest tree that seemed like it was about to die started growing and seems much better. On the other side, the smallest tree seems sort of sick?

I try to expose them as much sun as possible because I do know they like full sunlight and the soil is easily drained, yet moist. Is there something else I could possible do? (I've attached some photos just to see the condition of the trees right now).


texts: How to make a KHCO3 Buffer solution in RO water based hydroponics system?

texts:
Hy, how would you make a buffer solution with KHCO3 to have a pH around 5,5–6. It would be used in a hydroponics system to make a buffer solution in RO water (demineralized) that can resist the acidic nutrient fertilizer. Unfortunately, the pH drops drastically to a level of 4, which is not good for my plants…

So, in 1 L RO water, I added Potassium Bicarbonate (KHCO3) as a buffer and make the solution to 90 ppm (128,6 µS/cm). This brought the pH to 7,86. Then, after half an hour I added the Nutrient Solution. 935 µL Nutri Forte A (specification attached to the comment) + 935 µL Nutri Forte B (specification attached to the comment). I stirred it. At the moment the EC showed 1203 µS/cm (1,203 mS/cm) and pH was 7,13. I added 80 µL Phosphoric acid (H3PO4) to adjust the pH. I stirred it. The EC at the moment showed 1205 µS/cm (1,205 mS/cm) and pH was 5,56 on 23,8 ºC.

The solution is in a Jar, not touching any plant only under pure air. The values changes by days:

Day0 - EC 1205 µS/cm | pH 5,56 | 23,8 ºC
Day1 - EC 1220 µS/cm | pH 5,81 | 22,0 ºC
Day2 - EC 1238 µS/cm | pH 6,01 | 21,5 ºC
Day5 - EC 1360 µS/cm | pH 4,02 | 21,9 ºC

I am asking your help figuring out how can I solve this. Should I raise the KHCO3? What could be the problem?


texts: Landlady prohibits removal of gravel, is it possible to grow grass on top?

texts:
I have recently moved to a ground floor apartment that comes with a small backyard (so far I have always lived without any).  The backyard is covered in pebbles.  I have asked the landlady if I can have permission to replace the pebbles by grass, but she has declared that she does not want the stones removed and replaced by grass.

In the long run, I would like to have a mixture of grass and plants.  Is it possible (and realistic for an amateur) to have grass and non-potted plants on top of pebbles, in a way that is possible to remove prior to moving out?  I know there exist houses with rooftop gardens and so, so in principle I imagine it should be possible, but I have no idea if that solution is realistic and affordable for a tiny studio backyard.

I am in southern England.


texts: What are these little green bugs on the roots of indoor plants?

texts:
I got a plant pot in my room, growing some coriander.

I noticed some dusty stuff at the foot of the stalks, and upon closer inspection they are tightly clustered tiny little bugs!

They are all over a lot of my plants, tiny little green dots!  Are they going to kill my plants?  They have spread to my chilli plants :(  They sort of make the stalk look textured and weird.


texts: Can I Save My Purple, Skinny, Lopsided Cactus?

texts:
I am a person who recently got a cactus from a previous owner (used as a decorative piece in a restaurant), and I also have 0 experience gardening. Some searches on stackexchange and elsewhere seem to tell me it's in rough shape, and I was wondering if (and how) I could mitigate these issues. If anyone else happens to know the breed it would be helpful as well.

First off, the cactus quickly becomes quite deformed and skinny, and it has severely grown to one side since I first saw it a year ago:  I am under the impression that the bending is a phototropic response, and so can be corrected.

The bending is on the same side as a waxy purple splotch. Similar posts on this site have led me to believe it's being undernourished, overwatered, or sunburned. The previous owners were informally waiting for it to die, I don't know if it's been watered in months.  This is one of the things I am most concerned about if it will lead to the cactus dying if its diseased or something.

Furthermore, the glass I got it in seems to be covered in a green splotches, and I don't know if this is the glass or if something on the plant is dying and causing this and it's just visible from the places I am seeing the plant.

The last concern about saving it, is that it seems to be growing wider again in the past few months (before I owned it) and I am concerned that there are going to be structural failures if I can resuscitate it.

In summary, I was wondering what this critter is and if there is a way to save it (if it needs saving)?


texts: How to protect against my neighbour's trees

texts:
My neighbor has planted a row of pine trees along our boundary. The trees (perhaps 10 of them) will grow to 14m tall, yet are barely 4m from my house (and 2.5m from his).  The ground is heavy with clay so I'm guessing the roots will spread a distance. Between the fence and my house is a concrete driveway. He has planted the trees so close to the fence that they already push against it and they are currently only 6m tall.

To make the situation worse, my neighbor has since sold the house so the new owner may simply say it is not their problems since they bought the house that way. I have not met them yet.

So my questions:

How bad is this for me? Will the roots affect my driveway or, worse, my house?

Is there any way to protect my house against these trees?


texts:
I have a cutting that's been growing in a pot for about a year. It needs to be re-potted in something larger, but I'm concerned about doing this during the growth period.

Additionally, should the media be similar to the perlite and potting soil I used for rooting or do I need to move on to something else?

For what it's worth, I'm in region 9b.

Thanks much,
MB


texts: Weeping cherry tree shooting straight up

texts: My weeping cherry tree is 3-4 years old. It's blooming now but has a large section of growth shooting straight up in the air. That section is covered in leaves but it never flowered. Should it be pruned during the dormant phase?


texts: Is this plant with small white blossoms a weed or a flower?

texts: There is a plant growing beneath our wine. What kind of plant is it? Flower or weed? Five little leafs are on the white blossoms. It is growing very fast. Leaves are large and heart shaped.


texts: What type of weed is growing in my raised beds?

texts:
I have my raised beds full of this weed, from distance if looks like clovers but up close the leaves are more like parsley. It stays at ground level and has no flowers yet. The second pic shows the root and stalks.

I want to know if I should get rid of it, or if I can just till the soil a bit and use it as green fertilizer.


texts: Why do weeds re-root in wood chips with Back to Eden?

texts: I've been pulling weeds in my Back to Eden, and have found that my weeds are re-rooting in the wood chips when i put them in the middle (10 year old red mulch with some small stuff mixed in). Why is this?


texts: New leaves from mango seedling are drying up and dying off but the plant is still growing

texts: I started some mango plants from seed and after a few weeks they're slowly growing. However, now that each plant has a new leaf or two, I've noticed that some of the newer leaves are drying up and falling off before they even get a chance to open up. The main stem is still producing new plant material so the plant isn't dying? Is it that the bigger leaves are sucking up all the nutrients or is it something else?


texts: How can I grow an apple plant from a pip?

texts:
I recently found a sprouted pip inside a Pink Lady apple. How can I grow a plant from it, preferably indoors? I live in a cool climate, in Scotland.

I would just like to grow the plant; I do not mind particularly whether it yields edible fruit.


texts: Is there any way to recover drooped/folded leaves?

texts: My snake plant is drooping because of the lack of sunlight. I'm going to revive it by moving the pot, but do I have to cut very folded/drooped leaves? They are bent from the middle of the leaf. Any way to recover those leaves without cutting them? I currently use a wood stand for keeping them upward.


texts: To Line or Not To Line a raised bed's perimeter?

texts:
Novice gardeners here. Already feeling overwhelmed.  So, I'm taking over hubby's raised bed. It gave us tomatoes over 3 years ago, since then its been sadly neglected. He lined the inside walls with black plastic and was full of weeds.  I've removed the weeds, torn up plastic tarp and all dirt down to bottom soil. The base soil still has lots of little weed roots (they look like crazy wires) which I'll dig out before reincorporating  the good soil in.

I decided to lower the bed (bad back!) to about 1 foot by removing some boards. There are gaps between them though. Should I line the inside walls again?  These boards are about 5.5" wide. If I don't line I'm afraid my dirt will seep out through the gaps. Any pros for notlining? I also plan on removing about 4 inches of the grass leaning up to the raised bed (highligted with red here). Thanks for your help!


texts:
Can anyone tell me  why this is happening!? When we till after soil, we added composted manure her and 10 1010 fertilizer.  Our seeds are the honey select  variety from a reputable greenhouse in my area. They are treated seeds if that makes a difference. I planted the corn about A month ago and I have seeded the bare spot three times now.  Everything growing in between it is growing wonderfully but why is there a spot, a huge spot come out right in the middle of my corn plot or nothing wants to grow? Things will grow to three or 4 inches tall and then stop and start turning brown or just stop completely without turning brown. I have  added lime because we had a bunch of moss grow because we had a very rainy start to the season so I  raked it off, added lime, until that under. Last week, I side dressed with 10 10 10 fertilizer  and I feed once a week with miracle grow, the water-soluble. I have tried to baby this corn and give it all the nutrients it's been needing so what is going on? Any ideas!?
EDIT:  I am in West Virginia and the un-amended soil  is a very  compacted heavy clay soil. It is a bout a 10 x 12 plot and we used 3 to 4 bags of black kow manure  before planting and we lightly tilled under the manure with a garden claw.


texts: What is the meaning of 'Love Lies Bleeding'?

texts: My mother tongue is not English, and I have problem understanding the common name of some kinds of amaranthus - 'Love Lies Bleeding'. Can some of you explain it to me?


texts: My Moringa tree is in a pot, it's about 3 ft' tall, leaves keep getting yellow and fall off.  I read that Epsom salt is good and coffee. Any suggestions?  It gets full sun in New Orleans.


texts:
I posted this plant more than a month ago here but I was told that I should wait for it to grow more in order to get an accurate identification.
Can someone identify it now?


texts:
Last fall I planted 4 raspberry plants from Burpee.  They grew a little and then it got cold and they went dormant.  Now that it is spring they have been growing again.  They are still very small and I was wondering if and how I should prune them to promote proper growth.  Here are a couple pictures.  The two on the left are a variety that produce raspberries on first year vines, and the 2 on the right produce raspberries on the second year vines.

Here is a close up of the smallest one.  This is a new vine.  You can see no foilege grew on the one from last year (just visible to the left of it).

Here is a close up of the largest.  The vine on the left is the one from last year, and the one on the right is a new one.


texts: Can I save my Dieffenbachia from the cold?

texts: I moved my dieffenbachia to the house we're moving into, but its too cold. All the leaves are like a dark green and very very droopy. How can I save it?? Its almost 5 ft tall


texts: Can anyone ID this oak that has flaky bark?

texts: This is on Long Island, NY near the water. No acorns are available.


texts: Who is this tan mosquito-like flying insect hanging on various tree leafs in zone 5 northeast USA?

texts:
I grow potted trees in zone 5 of northeastern USA and spend time watching the nature around them. I have been trying to learn more about the insects that frequent the plants, whether for good or bad.

In early summer I was regularly seeing the insect shown in photos below. I still see it sometimes, but not as frequently. I couldn't tell that it was hurting any leafs but it was putting its mouth to the leafs as if eating or sucking on something. Is it helping (protecting from other pests) or hurting (being a pest) the leafs? Its mouthparts and coloration are not like mosquitoes' but it otherwise its form is similar to one. It seemed to land on various leafs and trees in different areas of the garden but I noticed it most on hazelnuts (maybe just by chance).

A related question, maybe better a separate question, is how do you learn all the insects that frequent your plants? Are there good resources or methods to ID insects in a garden?


texts: What is this plant (looking like oenothera?) with creamy flowers?

texts:
Zone 7a, continental Europe.

What is this plant doing in my garden? I did not plant it.

The plant in question is in the middle: (to the top and right are two echinaceas, to the left is a part of viburnum bodnantense, and a stump of a plum)

More details:

Height 50 cm (now, seems to be growing)


texts: I have tried to grow a bunch of chilli plants using same soil, fertilizer mix and similar lighting condition. But some of them  have light green/yellowish leaves which do not grow that well. Does anyone has any clue how to make them grow like the left ones?


texts:
I bought cordon apple trees and cherry trees 22 May, 2019. recently I start having problems. It was identified as apple scab and recommended Vitax Copper Mixture, which I spread on all the trees apple cherry pear peach,

I chopped all the deceased leaves on the apple tree and sprayed all the new leaves. It seems to be ok, but still you can see a few leaves still look infected. I sprayed them while they were in the container, now they are in the ground.

The cherry trees have like brown at the edges like burning on them. The pears and peaches seem to have like dots on them. Please look at the pictures and advise treatment. I looked online and people keep saying different things.

I really appreciate your help. I spent a lot of money on the trees and I don’t want to lose them. Please help.


texts: What are little hairs around sprout just above the soil?

texts:
I started sprouts of radishes. I took 3 coffee paper cups, filled them with soil, put 1 seed in each cup and watered a litte bit.

After few days all 3 radishes sprouted but 1 of them has white little hairs just above the soil. What are those hairs and why only in 1 of cups?


texts: How much and often should I water a bean seedling in a small plastic lined cardboard tube?

texts:
Let me start this question by saying there are a lot of unknowns and I can't provide them so please don't be mad or frustrated by this!

As a green based work scheme each employee at my workplace has been given a cardboard tube about the size and dimensions of a coke can. Inside of this is some soil (it looks a bit odd, so presumably enriched with various things) and a bean seed to plant in it and grow in the office until large enough to plant.. somewhere. We all used the little plastic bag the soil came in to line the cardboard tube and prevent it becoming water damaged.

Given this what's the best educated guess about how much and often to water it please?


texts: How can I protect my outdoor potted garden without a fence?

texts:
My wife started planting vegetables this year - she has starters growing indoors, and soon we will need to move them outside.
Unfortunately, after consulting with my landlord, it turns out we cannot put a fence around the part of our property where we'd be doing our planting - due to potential liability with other people on the property.
But, we can still have outdoor plants - we just need a way to protect them from the local wildlife.
There's a group of turkeys that come by frequently due to someone else on the property feeding them - what's the best way to protect our little garden from them?
The type of plants we're trying to grow are: lettuce, cherry tomatoes, raddishes, poblano peppers, bell peppers, chamomile, lavender, and evening primrose.
Note that this is a condo where we'll be putting our plants out onto a small concrete patio.


texts: Looking for plants to out-compete poison parsnip

texts:
This is my garden.  It is nice.

However, as you can see along the road I have a lot of tall weeds growing and one of them is poison parsnip.  I'm trying to come up with a good thing that I could plant that would:

outcompete these road-side weeds (passively - mowing isn't a good option for me)
be cheap enough to affordably cover this ~10x100' stretch of our lawn
(optionally) be beautiful and dense and maybe 6-15' tall

Any ideas?  I know I can try to fight the parsnip by pulling by hand and such, but the previous owners did that for 7 years and it didn't really get them anywhere.  I suspect the town mowers tend to respread seeds up and down the roads, so that seems like a losing battle.

I'm in northern Vermont (zone 3-4).  You can see across the road is mostly marsh - this part of my lawn is moist, but not wet.  We have some kind of willow bush, black locust and day lilies growing natively nearby.  Transplanting individual plants sounds like a lot of work to cover that much area, but that might be reasonable if they could be spaced far enough apart.

In my head, the ideal scenario is some kind of cheap, self seeding/propagating plant that I could scatter seed by hand.  Maybe after cutting the spring growth back to the ground, or helped along by a nurse crop?


texts:
whats wrong with my succulent? Am I watering too much? Too much sun? My cat maybe? Help!

(It gets indirect sunlight everyday, and I keep a calendar of when I water so it’s not excessive)


texts: My tree has root damage: how can I save it?

texts:
I cut a few of the roots around my tree. My tree is now in shock: the leaves are curling and it's losing some of them.  The tree itself is drooping.

Is there anything I can do for my tree?


texts: Is this a rhododendron or an azalea and whats it called?

texts: I have this plant from my mothers garden after she passed, but not sure what it is or called it's either an Azalea or Rhododendron, but not sure which one.


texts:
Last yard some strange ground bees opened up shop in my front yard. I did a little research and determined they're miner bees. Apparently they don't sting and are generally helpful in a similar way to honey bees, so I left them alone. This year I added some raised beds in that same area, and I'm wondering if I'm going to regret that decision.
It's early in the season, and I've only planted a few things, but the tunneling and the piling of dirt is making me worried that they're going to harm my vegetables. Either by smothering my small seedlings with the spoils of their digging, or maybe harming the roots with their tunnels.
Is there common wisdom about miner bees? Any advice is welcome.


texts:
I was trying to grow a mango from its seed, but unfortunately the root broke slightly in a train trip, as you can see in the picture.
Do you think this mango still has any chance to service?
Fuurthermore I wanted to ask whether there is a difference between mango seeds: I bought this one from Mali and a root has developed within new days, whereas I bought some from Central America which weren't able to grow even in weeks.
Thank you
EDIT
It grew


texts: What is the name of this plant that has flowers resembling white filaments?

texts: I came across this flower in Maharashtra, India. I don't have much information about it.


texts: Please suggest an apple variety that will grow well in Long Island NY without pesticides

texts:
I am planning on planting 3 to 5 apple trees for eating, baking and cider.  My wife keeps telling me to get some heirloom varieties but I am not sure which ones and where to get them.

I am looking for suggestions from growers for a disease resistant apple tree for my climate.

The tree location is full sun.


texts: What is the exact latin name of these juniperus cultivars?

texts:
I am interested in 'Skyrocket', 'Blue arrow', and 'Blue haven' Juniperus cultivars.

Most of the time, internet sites list them as belonging to Juniperus scopulorum species. However, sometimes they are listed as Juniperus virginiana.

Why such confusion? Are J. scopulorum and J. virginiana perhaps synonyms? What is the final verdict on the full latin name of these cultivars?


texts: What are these specks of white fuzz in some of my potting soil?

texts:
I was transplanting seedlings of chives and parsley and noticed white fuzzy specks clustered in the soil. Because it exists in both sets of seedlings - neither of which started with this fuzzy stuff - I imagine it is something in the soil or it is a mold they both got.

These seedlings grew indoors under a grow light by a window, occasionally with a heating mat on beneath them. The soil was kept pretty moist - rarely fully wet or dry - and to keep it that way took frequent watering since the grow light would dry the soil of these small seedlings daily.

What are these white fuzzy specks? My guess is some kind of fungal activity, but I'm not sure if it's bad. These seedlings have been growing well. I plan to transplant some of these to the garden soon, or bigger pots, or keep in their pots - any precautions or steps I should take in light of this fuzz's appearance?


texts: Is this heavy blue-green growth on my tree trunk and branches a form of lichen?

texts:
I have a tree with a fairly heavy growth across its trunk and branches; I suspect that it's a form of lichen but I'm not sure.

Is this something that will negatively affect the growth or health of this tree? Should I spray it down or leave it be?


texts: How to care for sweet basil plant in a humid climate, such as Hawaii?

texts:
I am growing a sweet basil plant and providing full sun and plenty of water. I pinched off the first set of flowers and pruned the plant a bit, but the leaves are still drying out towards the top. I'm afraid of pruning too much even though there is some new growth near the bottom. I noticed that the bottom of the stem is also becoming more 'woody.'
Does basil require more liberal pruning to thrive? Would the temperature of the soil in the black pot be negatively affecting its growth? Perhaps I'm just not watering it enough. What is the typical life span of a basil plant? Any tips/suggestions are appreciated.


texts: What is the optimal raised bed depth for Brassicas?

texts:
I built two large raised beds in my new garden, but couldn't manage to fill them to the top. The bottom is closed with cardboard and has a layer of prunings and hay 1-3 cm deep. I planted anyway 10 young cabbage plants, 10 kales, 10 broccoli plants. I tried to gather the compost around the points where I would put the small plants. In their actual state, they have an available depth to root of about 7-8 inches, and space on the side about 50cm.

Would that result in any problem for the plant growth?
If I am to add some more soil later on, should I replant everything, or I can add directly on the top of the actual "small mountains" on which the plants are?

Notice: I live in Bristol, UK, and here it rains quite a lot throughout the year.


texts: Is this lemon ready to pick from my small tree?

texts:
I have a small lemon tree I am growing in a pot in our bright office (I have no idea what kind, it was given to me with a tiny label just saying "lemon"!)

It's still a very young plant, but has three fruits on it. One is now about 4-5cm in size and as just turned a very bright yellow all over, should I pick this now and will it be safe to eat? I'm a little unsure whether it's ripe; it's quite small, it's also a brighter yellow than a typical lemon and is very round, not the usual rugby-ball type shape!

All help is very much appreciated, I've never tried growing anything like this before, but it's a much loved plant!

Pictures:


texts: Why are my persimmon leaves getting all brown and turning brittle?

texts: My trees are all looking like this.What could it be, N.W. Fl Panhandle.These are supposed to be Persimmon trees. Besides the black the leaves have become very brittle.


texts: Can this open water reservoir be damaged from the ice building inside it?

texts:
This circular concrete structure in the garden may have been a well before but now the bottom is closed and a water pipe leads to it. It is roughly a meter deep, 1.3m diameter, 50cm above surface and the walls 12cm thick. It was filled with water and now a thick layer of ice has built on top. An average person can stand on it without it moving.
Could the ice damage the concrete structure? Would it be advisable to remove all water?
Temperatures were as low as -7° Celsius for a day and are unlikely to go much lower than that before March brings much warmer weather.


texts:
Do I put my pots with newly planted bulbs in our outside shed during the winter?  We are in zone 7 and will get snow and sometimes ice during the winter months here.

Or should I just put straw on top of the pots and move them close to the house on the patio?   I do not have room to bury the pots outdoors.

Thanks so much!  PS - we're expecting some winter precipitation this coming Monday morning.


texts: Elephant ear plant a bit limp and discolored

texts: I bought this elephant ear a few days ago and wanted an opinion on the outter leaves. Are they dying and a lost cause, or do I maybe need to change conditions? The soil was dry when I bought it, so I've watered it once since getting it last Sunday. It's by the window but getting pretty indirect light. Thanks for any advice!


texts: Why some types of banana trees seem to grow better when I leave the dried leaves on them?

texts:
I always thought that leaving the dried leaves was good, according to my experience, but then I saw on google that cutting the dried leaves stimulates growth, so I'm confused. I noticed that the dried leaves protect the stem from being dried up by the sun and conserves moisture in the soil and the plant grow faster. I also noticed that not all types of banana trees need the dried leaves. I also think that there should be a purpose for the dried leaves, because everything in nature is for a purpose.
When I cut the dried leaves, I notice that a brown layer forms on the stem but when I leave the dried leaves it looks smooth and with the colour that it should have.


texts: Why are the leaves on my mango seedling turning brown?

texts:
Also the tiny new leaves (on the top of the plant) are falling off right after they pop up. Then the plant grows new ones and they fall off again. Is it because of overwatering? I also recently had a lot of sciaras flying around, but I sprayed the plant and soil with tobacco and now there are almost none.
Thanks for the answer.


texts: How many watts should grow light supply per unit area of edible greens?

texts: There are many lighting products with different rated power. What is the typical grow light intensity (power per unit area) for edible greens?


texts: Venus fly trap plant closes its trap but won't digest

texts: We bought a Venus fly trap about a month ago and it doesn't eat, we put a dead fly inside one of the traps and it closed, but after a while it opened up with the fly the same as it was before. This happened several times, the trap closed  but the plant does not digest the bug. What could be the problem? Why is this happening?


texts: What are these orange spots on my fiddle fig plant?

texts: I've just noticed some orange-like spots on one of the new leaves on my fiddle fig plant. I water it once a week or whenever the dirt is dry. It sits in my window from morning to evening time. Is this a sign of something wrong? What's going on?


texts: For fruit trees, is it better to plant a single multigrafted tree, or multiple trees in one hole?

texts:
In fruit tree catalogs, I've seen multi-grafted or multi-budded trees. Here's an example.

And I've also heard of a technique where you plant 3 or more trees in the same hole. Here's a youtube video talking about it.

Which one is better? Or what are the advantages and disadvantages of each technique? Is one likely to yield more fruit than the other?

What about planting multiple multi-grafted tree in one hole? I suspect that would be a bad idea, but I thought I'd bring up the possibility.


texts: Do I need to line my wooden compost bin?

texts: I've made a compost bin out of old scaffold boards - approx 80cm x 80cm square (say 30 inches). It has four sides, with no top and no bottom and it's sitting directly on soil. I've read that compost can get warm and should be kept damp. If I want the bin to last 5 years,do I need to line it to protect the wood? And if so, with what?


texts: Found this beetle in a pile of wood chips, harmful to my plants?

texts:
I found this relatively large beetle in a pile of wood chips in my garden.  I found smaller individuals of the same species living about an inch underground in my garden.

I live in central NJ.

The beetle is about an inch and a half long.  It has a hard exterior, and is entirely black except for some things that are orange: hairs on the middle pair of legs, the gap between the head and the midsection, I don't remember where else.

The beetle makes a quiet sound, kind of like a hiss, when it gets flipped upside down.

As far as I know it can't fly.

My top guess is that it is a black ground beetle.  Whatever kind of beetle it is, I would like to know:

Does it post any threat to my vegetables/potatoes?
Will it bite me?


texts: What is the best type of grass for high-wear areas in England, and how to use?

texts:
We have started a nursery school in our garden in northern England, it has a large lawn but after the first winter there are bad bare patches on heavy-use areas. Clearly we need to be more actively maintaining it because a dozen kids running around all day 48 weeks a year is fairly high-impact.
My go-to place for lawn-care doesn't really cater to this, I wondered what types of grass are most appropriate? I did a little research and found places supplying for sports fields were recommending a mix of perennial and annual grass seed. I never knew annual grasses existed!
Is this a case where we need to be over-seeding throughout the year as wear occurs or is it a case of do the repairs and hope they stand up for a year?


texts: Proper care after repotting spider plant

texts:
I just repotted my spider plant (chlorophytum comosum ocean) away from a deep pot without drainage holes.

Back when I planted it in this pot, I made a structure out of plastic pots placed at the bottom of the container, which would provide support and empty space for drainage.

The plant sat in this pot for 3 months and ended up growing many thin, long roots all the way to the bottom of the pot, where water was pooling.

While taking out the plant, I unavoidably tore all of those roots off. The big tuberous roots were still intact however.

My questions are:

Will the tearing of these deep roots affect the plant negatively?
Is there a risk of root infection or rot if the plant is repotted right after some of the roots are torn?
Is it safe to water the plant after repotting it in this case? Will it promote the creation of new roots?

In general, what's the best way to care for a spider plant in this situation?

Pictures:

The plant in its new pot:

The biggest torn root I found:

The plant in its old pot:


texts: How can I naturally encourage birds into my garden?

texts:
We love having our garden filled with birds, thus we have put up a variety of bird feeders. We also make lots of water available for the birds. The result is a 2½ year old that can identify about 8 birds in the backyard.

We recently had a guest that politely lectured us on how "un-cool" we were for creating an dependency for the birds on our seed; how the commercially available seed as like "junk food" -- and that when winter comes (we're in Minnesota) the birds might be less inclined to migrate in their search for food. I felt well chastised.

Are there ways to attract birds into our garden naturally (e.g. certain plants/landscaping), and at the same time, also provide a source of food for them?


texts: Plant with leaves like Gladiolus and a tall flower spike with yellow flowers?

texts:
This plant is growing in my daughter's garden. The leaves are similar to gladiolus and the flowers are along the stem the same way gladiola blossom are but they are tiny, cup shaped with 4 petals, pale yellow with a deeper yellow in the middle near the stamen and pistils.

Hopefully someone can tell me what this flower/plant is.


texts: How can I save Yew bush branches severely bent by snow and ice?

texts:
It's been snowing on these Yew bushes for the past three months of this harsh Massachusetts winter. With regular gentle cleaning, they've been doing fine. After last week's snow it warmed up a bit, and the snow began to melt, so we left them alone.

Unfortunately, the following day the temperature dropped again and the melted snow froze, forming patches of a heavy mixture of snow and ice, which caused severe bends in a number of branches.

Click on pictures for larger view.

I haven't cleared the snow because in some areas it appears to be offering some support from underneath. If the forecast is correct, however, it will melt in the next few days.

I'd really like to save these branches. Although they're obviously straining, very few have actually broken; and while some are brittle, most seem quite pliable.

How should I proceed?

Now that it's winter again, I'm posting a long overdue update! We did absolutely nothing, and I'm pleased to report that all of the branches stood back up once the ice melted. Some of the edges and small twigs remained brown, and we eventually trimmed those. There was new growth on every bush during the summer, and they remained a favorite feeding and hiding spot for birds, chipmunks, squirrels and a beautiful fat skunk! In November, we trimmed them just a bit rounder on the tops, but made no major changes. I'm optimistic about their survival through the winters to come.


texts:
I have a small Cailletier olive tree that I hoping to keep indoors. I live in New England so it cannot be outdoors in the winter.
It is currently getting somewhat long and sprawling in its branches which are like fronds.
Should I try to make it more bushy if it is to become an indoor plant? If so, what is the pruning method for doing this?


texts: How do I size a riding mower? Is an Elec-Trak viable?

texts:
We have 2 acres that needs mowing, and various volunteers do the mowing.  We often do the mowing late and are dealing with extra-tall grass as high as 12" in spots.

Maybe they're a bit rough on equipment, but our 2001 42" Husqvarna is requiring a lot more maintenance than I'd expect.  The engine is solid (so is the transmission when the belt isn't slipping) but I'm wondering if we have the right mower.

How do you pick the right size of riding mower?

I'm also wondering about the old GE Elec-Trak electric riding mowers.  The belts on the Husqvarna are a total nuisance, and I wonder if the Elec-Trak would be better behaved in that regard, and not having to mess with a gas engine or transmission would be worth maintaining the big battery bank, and maintaining battery banks is something we do plenty of already.


texts: What is this plant / weed? (with photos)

texts:
What is this plant?  It's about 6 feet tall now, though I assume most people don't let them grow this big.
This is growing currently (early August) in northwest Ohio.


texts: What are these green rosettes popping up in my yard/

texts: We've found several of these on our lawn, under our oak tree. We are in Southern Ontario. What might it be?


texts:
Some of the "natural" insect repellents I use (the kind you put on your skin) have soybean oil listed as one of the active ingredients.

I've also seen ~6% soybean oil listed as an active ingredient in some of the "natural" garden insecticide sprays at the garden center.

Is there anything different about this soybean oil than the jug of vegetable oil (100% soybean) in my kitchen cupboard?

If it is the same, what would I dilute it with, and what concentrations would be useful? If I can mix my own, cooking oil would be much cheaper than the "insecticide" from the garden center.


texts:
While I can show that trimming the boots off a mexican palm tree is done by hand*, I'm trying to think why on some only the upper half is done, another only a small section is done, while others around them are fully done. Here is an image showing what I'm talking about:

Any ideas?

*: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xPBq_wowvs


texts:
I am planning some landscaping which would see the addition of a small garden in my yard. On two sides it would be surrounded by a crushed rock barrier strip 1' wide. I was hoping to use this 1' wide strip as a psuedo-drywell for the french drains I plan to install.

I don't have major problems with drainage, so the french drains are more for the efficiency of moving water from hardscaped areas to cultivated areas. As such, I don't need, nor do I want, a proper plastic tub buried anywhere.

My plan would be to dig a trench for that barrier strip. It would be 1' wide, of course, and 3' deep. I'd line the sides with landscaping fabric, or some permeable liner material, so water can pass through but soil remains confined outside the trench. Then, I'd simply fill with large crushed rocks to create a porous space for water to accumulate.

Because I haven't done this before, I would like to know if this plan seems reasonable, and what I could do to improve it.


texts: Why does my blueberry bush have brown/scorched leaves?

texts:
I recently purchased a dwarf Northsky blueberry bush from a mail order company. When I recieved it, roughly 15-20% of its leaves had the appearance of being burned or scorched; the bad leaves were about 50% brown and curled, like they were burned or just dead.

I plucked those off and transplanted the bush to a larger container and I noticed the plant was also severely rootbound. I had to break off a lot of its roots to plant it. It has been about a week now, and I've noticed maybe two or three more leaves with those symptoms. Since then, the plant has bloomed about 5 really pretty looking flowers.

I want to know if the leaf symptoms were a sign of it suffocating in its original container or shock from being shipped, or maybe that of a more serious disease.

Currently the plant is being kept indoors while I try to nurse it back to health. I keep it in a room with good southern sun exposure.


texts: Why did my red bell pepper become tan colored?

texts:
I planted a red bell pepper seedling that I bought from a local nursery a couple weeks ago. It has been growing rapidly and upright. One of the egg-sized vegetables had suddenly developed a large tan splotch. Its leaves have suddenly curled up as well. The other vegetables on this plant are smaller and don't have this problem. I'm not entirely sure, but it might be correlated with my recent application of 4-4-4 organic fertilizer and store-bought poop-less compost.

Zone 9
Daytime: 70-80 Fahrenheit
Nightime: This week it's been 60's. Earlier this month, it was 50's.
Water twice a week
1 gallon container

Update
It was sun scald. I made some makeshift protection around each vegetable:


texts: I need help identifying this quadricolor waxy leafed plant

texts:
I rescued this plant from a retail store years ago. It became homeless when the display it in was used for was replaced with something new.

It's gotten ridiculously large and has always been wonderfully healthy
and I just love it.

Unfortunately it's gotten a wee bit sick recently and I need to identify what it is so I can try to figure out what's wrong.

Any Ideas?


texts: Why don't you want wood chips on top of soil for an orchard?

texts: Jack Spirko said that you don't want to use wood chips on the surface of soil. Why don't you want to use wood chips? Source


texts: What is this tree with scaly bark in Beverly Hills, California?

texts: My friend took this photo in Beverly Hills, California. Does anyone know the type of tree?


texts: Can I espalier a regular black cherry tree starting with 1" trunk, 6' tall?

texts:
The espaliers at my local tree nursery are grafted and already started, so they'll stay short and espalier like.  But can I just do this with these two cherry trees?

I really don't care if they're espaliered or not - I just need two trees to plant right on (6" away) from a 6' cedar fence.   The bed was originally for black / rasp berries, but I got overzealous digging the hole and so I thought I'd stick some trees in there too.  And since there's all this open soil, I was going to put in some squash or beans for as many years as they can get sun there, then switch to shade veggies.

I have 6"-square re-mesh if a grid is needed to espalier.


texts: Should I dig through roots when removing a mound from around a tree?

texts:
I am a first time home owner, and didn't know that a mound around a tree was bad. A 2' deep, 10' wide mound had been put around the tree a few years before I bought the house. I want to remove the mound but now there are small roots in the mound and to remove most of the mound I would have to shovel through them.

I think the tree is a maple.

Would it hurt the tree to dig up those roots?  What about using a hose to cause the soil to run off? How should I proceed in the best interest of the tree?


texts: Twofold question about Burning Bush - Rudy Haag

texts:
I purchased a few Rudy Haag burning bushes here. They arrived well and healthy-looking. I took care of them as instructed and for the first 3-4 weeks they did really well but after that they started deteriorating. New leaves would appear but quickly shrivel up and die. Leaves and branches would just get dry and die (even with regular watering).

When I contacted the farm I purchase these from, the horticulturist told me he didn't know what was happening and recommended me to move mulch away from the bushes and use less water. Well that didn't help.

I put two of them in plastic pots and brought them inside. One looks already dead and one still has some life. I did notice some spider mites under a leaf of the semi-healthy one (I think they're spider mites), but not too bad. I removed them and bought an organic herbicide at Lowe's that claims to kill over 100 common plant insects.

Question #1 - What can I do to save these plants if not too late?

This morning I noticed some very tiny objects doing parabolic jumps on the dirt. I have no idea what these are. Tried using a magnifying glass and still too small to tell.

Question #2 - What are those? If you look closely, you'll see what I mean in the video below. At first, I thought they were tiny specs falling from the bush, but no, they're tiny things hopping around the bush. I only see them in the pot with the semi-healthy bush, not the other one.

Please see images and video here: img1, img2, video1


texts:
Since a long time my kiwi plants have white dots on their leaves. Now also, one of them is developing a dry spell on one of it's leaves.

Anyone know what the problem might be?


texts:
I bought some creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum), specifically labelled "pink chintz" and it has virtually no fragrance, even when I crush it between my fingers. You have to inhale so deeply to even get the faintest scent.

The label notes that it "features fragrant fuzzy green leaves."

I planted it in October in full sun. I live in hardiness zone 5b. Some moderate searching turned up no answers.

Here are closeup and slightly wider shot of the plant. Apologies for the crappy photos, I'm a better gardener than I am a photographer.

So my questions are these:

1) are herbs planted in the fall not likely to be fragrant till the following spring (which has never been my experience before); &

2) are there specific conditions (weather, soil, age, etc.) that affect the scent of herbs in general?

Thanks for any help!


texts:
I have a kentia palm which after transplanting is starting to die...

One of the oldest leaves completely turned yellow and another one looks like going into the same direction. The still-green one has the tips of the leaves dried.

I use to water it once every 10 days more or less. I can imagine the transplant triggered this issue for some reason....

Any ideas how to rescue it? Thank you!!


texts: Should I leave my bonsai oak tree outdoors during winter?

texts:
I live in southern Sweden, where temperatures can get down to around 20C / 4F in the winter. Any tree grown outdoors is exposed to quite a lot of darkness and cold from around early November to late March. It's from this environment I've taken an acorn that have now grown indoors to a small oak tree for almost a year. The goal is to make a bonsai out of my baby oak, but I'm not sure if I should make it an indoor or outdoor bonsai.

My question is basically; Would an oak from a northern climate thrive if kept indoors through the winter, or should I leave it outside?


texts: Is there a good technique for transplanting medium-maturity pumpkin vines?

texts:
Pumpkin vines tend to drop roots at each major leaf along the vine.

I need to transplant several pumpkin vines that have dropped established roots in 5-6 spots each.

For the vine below, the black box is where I will be cutting the vine. However, there are established roots further out on the vine.

Am I better off severing the outside roots, thus keeping only the main root system in the black box?

Should I attempt to take each root-bunch to the destination? (May not be possible without damaging the vine in transit -- several heavy soil-heavy clumps)

Other ideas?


texts: Why are my Vinca and other potted plants wilting, despite following care instructions?

texts:
Some days ago I posted some doubts about my Vinca (probably a Catharansus rosea) because it started to look bad. After taking care of it as told, it kept getting worse. The same thing happened with another potted flower plant I have. I asked for help at the local greenhouse, and kept the instructions,  but it's not getting better.

These were my flowers before:

And these are the poor things now:

I don't overwater them. I spray water in the leaves sometimes (it's a dry summer) but not on the petals, and I take the water from the plates away so the roots don't rot. I keep them in direct sun light for about half an hour a day, and a lot longer in indirect sun light.

The temperature here has been over 34º C (93º Fahrenheit) and not very humid in general, and it's getting a bit colder right now, but not too much, 30-31º C (87º F).

I'm very concerned and don't know what to do. The rest of my plants are ok, and they don't have flowers. Could it be the bad ones are more sensitive?


texts: Why have my Chilli Pepper plants started to develop small slightly translucent spots/blotches on the leaves?

texts:
See the photos attached of the leaves.

I planted these chilli peppers about 2 months ago (march 2020) and they have been sat on my windowsill. We've had relatively hot and sunny weather for the UK this spring.

The seeds are planted in a general purpose compost in large pots.

I water when the soil looks dry and occasionally very sparingly include some tomato feed/general purpose house plant liquid fertilizer (baby bio) every 2-3 weeks.

The liquid tomato feed has an NPK ratio of 4:2:6
The baby bio general purpose houseplant food has a ratio of 10:4:2.

The advice online is quite confusing and doesn't seem to exactly match the symptoms of my plants.

Is this a symptom of a nutrient deficiency, issues with water levels, or a virus/bacteria?

The symptoms are on every leaf of the three Chilli plants so I am reluctant to follow some advice I have seen on 'removing the effected area'.


texts:
Couple of questions,

The leaves doesn't look very healthy, any idea what might help them?

What bugs are these? they are making a big mess, how to get rid of them?

Update: 2021 Mar
I used neem oil, diluted and sprayed it every week for 3~4 months, and mixed a little muttermilk while watering, the sourwater helped these bugs stay away and no issues of these bugs this winter (2021), oh and also moved it completely outdoors and bigger pot. See them here


texts: Identify plant with tubular pink flowers and paired elliptic leaves

texts: Help in naming pink flower, cottage garden plant.  Have tried numerous books and internet for identification.


texts: What plant is this leaf I found in my rocket salad from?

texts:
Today I bought some rocket at the supermarket (also known as rucola) and found this leaf (well, my tougue noticed those funny, quite stiff little hairs). It's got hairs all over.

Does anyone know what plant this is from? Is it harmless, considering it was found in a package of edible leaves?


texts: Need help identifying this plant, not sure what it is

texts: Can someone help me identify this plant? Overall size is 2ft (60cm) and leaves are about 4 inches (10cm).


texts: Something unidentifiable grew up in my garden

texts:
In one of the empty plantations from my garden something weird grew up.

Can you help identify it?
I know I need to remove it soon, but it grew up so big and wide, so I got intrigued.

Album is here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w41w6yi7vfxr9tm/AACY8MGqbvxnwARdF_6_5Lx7a?dl=0
(huge pictures, couldn't upload it anywhere else)

edit:
Here's some:


texts: What mushrooms should I look into for growing in garden aisles?

texts:
I'm planning out my community garden plot this year, and am considering growing mushrooms where the walking paths will be, and was wondering what types of mushrooms I should look into mixing together to collect throughout the growing season for extra food.

I'm in USDA zone 4.


texts: Why is this boxwood suffering? Is it box blight or an insect-infection?

texts:
I have two small boxwood hedges in my garden which I have trained over the years by cutting into the form of a cuboid. One hedge is in a shady and wet place, one is fully exposed to the sun, south oriented.

They are two different kind of boxwoods, of which I don't know the species. One, I'd say, is the classical one, round leaf variety, one has slightly triangular leaves. Both show the same symptoms.

Last year, I don't know why, I cut the hedges in October only. Even though I'm aware that it should be done in late/middle-summer. I think I thought, what the heck.

Right after cutting I noticed that the some leaves started getting (or already had been gotten) dry and became white-greyish. I thought, ok it was too late, but it won't kill them, they will recover.

At the same time people in the village reported a box-infection of some kind of insect (I forget the name).

Then winter came, we had colds going down to -5 °C and I thought if it is insects, they are dead now.

Now in spring I'm fearing the worst, 50% of the hedges show grey leaves, there is barely new growth.

Today I noticed that there some kind of webs inside (might be normal) and some crumbs, which could be sediments of something, or simply birch pollen. (There are birches nearby).

Here are some pictures I took. I'd like to know what it is and if there is anything I can to do prevent further damage.


texts: Should I use small rocks to disrupt yard erosion?

texts:
I'm having a problem where rivulets are forming in the lower section of my yard, giving it a fragmented like appearance. I assume this is caused my runoff from the upper section of my yard, which is sloped downwards towards the flat, lower section. The rivulets don't form in the all-grass portion of my yard, but instead form right at the base of a landscaped portion that is entirely composed of various vines and ground cover. At the boundary of this ground-cover portion are large, decorative rocks. My assumption was that I could place a layer of small rocks/rock chips/gravel between the decorative rocks and my grass and this would disrupt the flow of the water and remove the small rivers that I assume are forming and causing the large gashes in the yard.

I drew the image above to better illustrate the situation.
Would this work and be a good long-term solution?


texts: Small Pink Tropical Flower Identification

texts:
My son recently added this plant to his garden in tropical East Africa. Our best efforts to identify it have failed. Can you help?

The flowers are about 1" in diameter and have a delicate scent similar to a rose. Leaves are 3"-4" long and fairly narrow with serrated margins. The plant is currently about 14" tall and growing.

Here's a picture of the plant when it was about 10" tall:


texts: Discouraging voles from entering my compost bin

texts: I believe there are voles getting into my compost bin.  I am not putting kitchen waste in the bin but no cooked food or meat.  I can't prevent voles from getting into the compost bin, so my questions are: How can I discourage voles from getting attracted?  What type of food should I not put in the bin?  Are voles detrimental to the compost or will the compost still be usable in my organic vegetable garden?  Should I put tea leaves, banana peels, watermelon rind, etc in the compost bin or will that attract voles?  For the most part, this is a cold compost bin because I don't think I am able to heat it up naturally (that is a different issue).


texts: How deep should a post be in the ground, compared to how tall it's going to be above?

texts:
I have some grape plants coming in next year. My plan is to make a sort of trellis-fence to partly break up the view of the road from my yard, and of course help the grape plants vine out.

What's the ratio for post that's buried in the ground vs post that's showing above ground?

I live in Zone 6, so we have some pretty mild winters (rarely gets below 0, never below -10 I think). I was thinking of using just 4x4 posts with about 8 feet above the ground. I was thinking maybe I would put 3 feet in the ground and have 8 feet above. Would that be enough?

The ground here is made of about half dirt and half clay. So I would imagine it would hold the posts pretty well.


texts: How to safely control a fire after clearing woods

texts:
I have an empty lot with a tree line that is going to be too close to the home I intend to build on it.  I hired a landscape contractor to clear the woods back about 40ft on the property but to avoid the added price of renting a chipper and a bobcat he suggested that he could just leave it in piles for me to burn.

Luckily there are only a few trees over 6 inches in diameter at the trunk, most of it is brush, saplings and smaller trees, however 4,000sq ft of cleared woods is still going to make for some rather big piles to burn!

I already called my local fire department to ask for permission and they said I don't need a burning permit, just to call them when I know a date for when I will burn so they can mark it on their books that there is a controlled burn at that location.

They didn't really tell me what defines a "controlled burn" however, and I certainly don't want to pay the landscaper $60/hr to tend an enormous fire.

My question is, how can I safely burn these brush and sapling piles assuming that I do not have a water source to tap for a hose if it gets out of control?  Is there a safe way to do this to ensure that the grass surrounding the fire won't catch?


texts: Crop rotation: by season instead of by year?

texts:
I have 3 raised beds in a small 30 m2 greenhouse, this is the first year I have it so I don't have much experience. I've been reading about crop rotation, and was wondering why you can't or shouldn't plant the same crop every year. Can't you just rotate the crop each season?

For example, in one bed, I have 16 plants of tomatoes, plus some radishes and arugula in another row that I didn't harvest so I can get some seeds. Lets say when the plants stop producing and start dying, I plant (just an example) some onions, garlic, or whatever would grow well here in the autumn/winter season (pretty dry but not too cold).

I would also add a few cubic meters of compost before spring. And btw, the raised beds are on top of the native soil. I made the retaining walls with wood and filled them with the same soil I got from leveling the terrain, plus about 1/5 of compost. There's no separation or insulation on the bottom.

Wouldn't this already help produce a healthier/more fertile soil since I already rotated the crops on winter plus amended the soil with compost?

I'm asking this because the tomatoes bed seems to be perfect for them. They are growing so big and have a lot of fruit, the other two beds receive a bit more shade so I don't want to end up with a bad tomatoes crop next year if I move them to a different location.


texts: I am very heartbroken to have had to have my beautiful mature Strawberry Tree taken out. I could not afford to have it transplanted, but I want to preserve it in some way. I did not think to ask for cuttings, but I still have some ripe fruit. Is it possible to grow a strawberry tree from the fruit?


texts:
My small lemon tree has been showing these scabs for a while. They are brown, mm sized, and fall off very easily just touching them with a finger or a nail. Examining the soil with a lens I also noted some tiny white mites, but they don't seem to climb on the plant and neither produce any web.

I've been using a generic insecticide but I didn't note any improvement.
Sould I try with some water+soap solution as suggested here: What is wrong with my lemon tree?


texts: What is this succulent with flat hairy leaves?

texts:
This succulent is about 1.5 feet tall. The leaves are flat with a white hairy type substance.

What is it called?


texts: Which term would you use to describe these propagation start point?

texts:
I am building a web application and i want the user to be able to browse information that is relevant to a certain propagation method, for example propagation from seed, bulb, rhizome. English is not my native language and i'm having difficulty finding a suitable word/term to describe this.

I see that davesgarden.com uses the term propagation. Would this be the right term?
The idea is that some plants can be grown from both seeds and bulbs for example. I want to let the user of my app select one of those to see the relevant details like days until harvest or minimum germination temperature. Should i use propagation as the label or would another word be more suitable.

Thank you


texts: How should I treat a badly aphid infested shedding Hoya?

texts:
I have just been given a very badly aphid infested Hoya lanceolata ssp. bella plant.  I was also given another wax plant too, though I am not sure of its name; could it be a Hoya australis. It looks like it is shedding.

I live in Rochester, New York and it is winter now so I am afraid of leaving the plant in my sun room while I treat them; at times it gets below 0 °F in the room.


texts:
I recently saw this plant in a shop. It looks like an amazingly big succulent.
What kind is it? I wonder if it needs much light and if it produces flowers?

Edit
Zoom to the area where flowers emerge
(I suspect):


texts: Can laurel cuttings be propagated directly into the ground in early winter?

texts:
An arborist recently advised me that laurel (common/cherry/English) cuttings are very easily propagated, to the extent that shoots may be cut from an established plant and pushed directly into the ground in autumn or early winter in England.
This would save me substantial time even if the failure rate is quite high, but goes against the 'proper' technique (cut back to 2 leaves, pot, etc)
Does anyone know if this is a valid propagation method?


texts: Is there a dwarf nectarine tree that would be suitable for indoor/outdoor life?

texts: I have an apartment in Brooklyn with a south-east facing deck.  In the summer it gets a lot of light.   Indoors, I also have lots of windows facing that direction.  I'd like to get a nectarine tree and have it indoors in the winter, and outdoors in the summer (I can use a dolly to move the pot).  Are there dwarf varieties of this type that would do well in this situation?


texts: I've read that composting can reach up to 140 degrees - does this affect my plants?

texts: I plan to do approximately a 1'x1' curved ditch between my garden rows filled with wood chips, and manure, will this make the plants get too warm, or will it keep the soil cooler like cover crops do??


texts: What are some natural ways of killing ground ivy (creeping charlie)?

texts: We have ground ivy (creeping charlie) that is trying to take over our back yard.  We are against using pesticides, as we have a young son.  Are there natural/organic ways of beating it (other than just painstakingly pulling it all out)?


texts: Should I be concerned about Ginkgo leaves yellowing in early July?

texts:
Three weeks ago I bought a potted Ginkgo biloba from a local nursery, with strong green leaves. I've never looked after a Ginkgo before but I watered it every other day apart from the day we had heavy rain. It's been in a sunny spot and I've recently moved it into a part of the garden where it's shaded on one side.

This is how it looked the day I bought it:

And this is how the leaves look like now:

Almost every leaf is yellowing on the outside. I understand that one of the features of Ginkgo trees are their strong yellow leaves in the autumn but this seems a bit early.

I live in the south-east of England.


texts: What's up with this rot on our brassicas?

texts:
We've got some rot on the kale, cabbage and harvested broccoli plants that we haven't seen in the last 5 years of growing these.
It's been a weird year for my garden here in Northern VT all around: fewer pests, waaayy more flies (likely from the horses that moved in next door), and much drier than usual.
The rot definitely smells badly (as all rotting veggies do) and is also attracting flies.
Rot on terminal bud of kale plant:

Rot on mature ~6" cabbage head:

Rot in recently harvested broccoli stem:


texts: How to safely protect my raspberries from pests

texts:
I have a flourishing crop of raspberries (I live on Long Island, NY) but last year and now this year I am seeing tiny little worms or caterpillars inside the raspberries.  The insects are white and much, much smaller than the berry. I think the berries infected by these pests become very mushy, not to mention rather gross.

I sprayed the raspberry vines with an insecticidal soap, but it had no affect. I have a more powerful insecticide, but the directions say you cannot harvest fruit for 14 days after application. If I need to go that route I will, because last year these little worms spread to the whole crop and right now they are confined to one area. But since the vines are yielding a bowl of good fruit per day, I would rather not have to waste two weeks worth of fruit.

What could these little worms be? How can I get rid of them? Would food-grade DE be a good option? Should I just use more of insecticidal soap since it is fairly safe?

Related question: I recently discovered a large number of small flying beetles around the vines and on the berries. Could this be the same species as the little white caterpillars?


texts: What could be the cause of death for my carnivorous plants?

texts: In the past year I've had a venus flytrap and two sundews that each arrived healthy, flourished (and ate!) for a month or two, and then died (after which I tried again and bought a new one!). They all lived indoors in a sunny window. The care guide I received with them said to give them distilled water only, which I did. The plants were planted in small pots, with new sphagnum moss. I made sure the moss was kept moist to slightly wet at all times. I'd like to try again, as the sundews were super effective at controlling little gnats and fruit flies, but I'm worried about just killing it again. What am I doing wrong, and what should I be doing instead?


texts:
Just closed on a home recently and am wondering if this tree is healthy? Should I remove these vines? Any tips on what these vines are and how to properly go about removing them?
Also if anyone knows what type of tree this might be?
Thank you, appreciate the help!


texts: What should I do with a wind-harmed tree that will not regrow leaves?

texts:
This tree was planted in May 2011 in Dallas, Texas. Unfortunately the month or so following were some of the windiest we've had and all of the leaves it had at the time were blown off and the tree bent somewhat in the direction of the wind.

Since then, the side of the tree that took the brunt of that wind has never grown its leaves back. Each year it has looked a little better, but it is still obviously flawed.

What can be done about this? Are the limbs dead and should they be pruned? Rotating it would give the bare side more light if that would help.


texts: Purple beech tree disease, dieback or not enough water?

texts:
There is this tree which I think is the Copper Beech tree or Purple Beech tree. It is a deciduous tree  starts with purple leaves in spring and the leaves green in summer.  Maybe it is a 'weeping beech tree' as some branches seem to curve downwards.
It is 7 ft tall right now and at the widest spot, it is 4 ft wide. The lower half is full of branches and leaves.
The upper half of the trunk is dry, and the bark is peeling off and the branches are dead. There are some spots on the bark.
I think it is dying because last year only the upper quarter was almost dead, but it is worse this year.
The picture shows a section of the bark that is about 2" in diameter.
Is it just the lack of enough water or a disease? It wasn't transplanted and it has been there for many years. I appreciate your suggestions.


texts:
I have a hellebore plant that I transferred from the ground to a pot a couple of months ago because it didn't seem to be doing well.  The leaves were turning brown and crispy on the ends and it was getting too big for the area anyway.  I'd like to replant in the ground but in another spot next year.  I thought they preferred total shade (which the original spot was), but I've seen different opinions about whether or not they like a bit of sun.  Would a party shady/ full sun briefly at mid-day be OK?  I live on the coast in the PNW, so it never gets too hot or blazingly sunny.  I've also read that they prefer to be in the ground as opposed to pots, but don't particularly like to be transplanted.  Well, that's a dilemma.  I'd leave it in the pot but sometimes I'm gone for 2-3 week periods when it wouldn't get any water :/

1st photo is of hellebore in pot on deck

2nd photo is of the area where I'd like to eventually plant it.  It is a southwest location with lots of trees around it.

3rd photo is area where it was originally planted.  North side of wall with gravel scattered on ground.

Additional info:
I originally planted it as a very young plant about a year ago in the area pictured in photo three.  It was in total shade but the soil had gravel on top of it.  Perhaps that is what caused the leaves to brown on the edges? It was next to a concrete walkway.  I planted it with garden soil amended with some bagged compost. No additional fertilizer.  I watered it weekly and it seemed to do well other than the browning.  It started to grow out over the edge of the walkway, so because of that and the browning I moved it into the pot about 2 months ago..  The pot is on my back deck, mostly in shade but does get a bit of sun.  The plant seems to be doing well there - no further browning of the leaves, just the old ones still there - but I'd like to move it to the area pictured in photo 2, which would get more sun, mostly filtered.  This area has concrete block around the edge, but surrounded by other plants and grass.


texts: Should I prune or remove fruit before transplanting a citrus tree?

texts:
I have inherited a beautiful Mandarin tree that has spent quite some time in a pot. It has a lot of fruit on it that is ripening right now that will be ready for picking very soon. The tree has been transplanted from the pot into the ground in the correct manner.

I have been told to pull all of the fruit off the tree to help the tree settle in.

Is this really necessary? When I transplanted the tree, it did cross my mind to pull the fruit off, but then I realised that the tree has not lost any roots or anything really. It has simply gained a new container (of nice lovely soil perfect for citrus trees).

The tree has been in the ground for two days now, and is showing no signs of stress. Should I pull all the fruit off?


texts: I don't exactly know the name of my plant, but it seriously need some help. Over the course of time it grown long and shred the lower bottom leaves that leaves a long stem. I am not sure what kind of pot I have to move it in, or what else I could do to save it. Anyone suggest a solution?


texts: This was found on the trunk of a friends lilac.


texts: How much soil needed for cactus maintenance?

texts:
I have several Sabila cactuses that look like the picture below.
I was considering filling up a cut wine bottle like this with soil and using it as a pot for the cactus.
Is this possible or do they need more soil?
They would be living outdoors so they would receive lots of sun since we’re in the Caribbean.


texts:
I started some chard seeds in peat pots and then transplanted them into a raised bed a couple of weeks ago. Today, it looks like there are new chard seedlings coming up:

Is this a new shoot off the same root system? And does chard do this? Is my garden going to be overrun with chard?


texts: The garden is located in Cymru Gogledd (or North Wales, if you prefer). The plant itself is a little under 2' / 24" / 60cm tall, the leaves (which are quite large) are soft and hairy, and the stem is deeply grooved, very fibrous, and hairless. When the leaves (which are quite large) are crushed they give off a slightly minty smell, and the plant also likes to have a lot of water.


texts: Can you bring citrus trees into quarantined states?

texts:
According to the USDA here http://saveourcitrus.org/ and in particular this page http://saveourcitrus.org/index.php/grow-citrus-smart it states "If you are thinking about buying a citrus plant, be sure not to move it from quarantined states or territories."

This makes perfect sense.

I live in one of the quarantined states (Arizona) and I am having an email discussion with an online citrus tree vendor and he won't sell and ship me a citrus tree because of that restriction. However, that doesn't make any sense to me. Surely you would be allowed to ship INTO a quarantined area? (from an unquarantined  area.)

(I assume that the vendor is not in a quarantined state otherwise he would not be able to ship to anywhere in the country.)

Can anyone confirm if you can bring a citrus tree INTO a quarantined state?


texts: What are the advantages and disadvantages of raised vegetable beds?

texts: I'm asking this mainly to learn before I spend money and effort. This year our produce hasn't been good and mainly because of critters. So I was wondering if raised beds will help to keep the critters from digging from underground esp the tubers. We lost all of our potatoes and sweet potatoes this year :(


texts: Platycerium Superbum rapidly spreading black spot in the shield

texts:
Had this fella for nearly a year. As for watering, I wait for the moss to "dry out" meaning it's not crunchy and dry, but not feeling wet. The little white insects I spray off with the hose during the watering but they are persistent fellas. Nothing too crazy for maintaining him the past year.
Then on the last watering, I noticed a darkening spot and in a week, it's grown significantly. It feels crunchy, dead-like. I'm worried it's Rhizoctonia so going to get some antifungal today but I don't see any other black spotting. I'm actually pretty worried that somehow the root ball is dead and it's now dying from the inside...


texts: The potting soil in question is in medium to large sized pots that had/have tomatoes or small fruit trees in them.


texts: My cactus has been like this with cracked skin for months, I then noticed it had aphids and removed them with soap and water for one week and they went away, and just today I noticed these brown spots and black at the top of it! Does anyone know what this is and how do I treat it? I have potted today with new soil to see if that does anything. Any help will be greatly appreciated.


texts: Fruit on trees shriveling up before it develops (peach, apple, pear)

texts:
I can’t figure out why the fruit on my trees aren’t developing fully.

I have a few fruit trees in my back yard (peach, apple, pear) and they all used to produce good fruit. They were never really taken care of, just allowed to do their own thing and they have stopped producing any kind of good fruit.

They flower, and eventually grow a pit or bud, that ends up shriveling up and dying before it actually turns into “fruit”

I don’t have any real gardening experience but I would love to know what’s wrong with the treees so that I can fix them!

I live in Alabama, this has been a reoccurring thing for several years now (about 3-5 years) all the trees are different ages ranging from about 10-5 years.


texts:
Hoping someone could help identify this tree.  I'm ignorant on trees but this looks like it has this short main trunk and these long branches that shoot way up high.

[![enter image description here][2]][2]


texts: What is this small annual with narrow gray/green leaves and rust colored daisy-type flowers?

texts:
I live in Massachusetts, zone 6a. Last June, I saw these plants on a clearance table of mixed annuals, none of which had name tags. They were already in bloom. The colors of both the leaves and the flowers were different from my other annuals, so I bought a few. I planted them in sunny spots around the yard, where they've been blossoming happily, with very little care, in all types of weather, including temperatures as high as 100°F. Since they're among the very few things still flowering after the frost, I'd definitely like to get some more next year.

These are also a good choice because, except for a few nibbles, they're of very little interest to the chipmunks, rabbits, squirrels and other creatures with whom they share space.

The base is a few inches around, and has very narrow, pointy, gray/green leaves, spreading more wide than tall. The rust colored flowers are on 3" - 4" stems, and each bloom lasts a number of weeks. The flowers have little, if any, scent. An interesting feature is that they close up in the evening, and re-open when the sun comes up. On cloudy days they never fully open.

These are pictures I took November 15. This flower looks a bit rough, but it's been there for over a month, and we've had two frosts this week!

What is this plant?

Edit: In response to comments, I changed the images to some that I hope are less blurry! The flower finally died last night so I couldn't take new pictures. I'm hoping the close-ups of the base will give some insight, since the leaves change dramatically in color and texture as they grow, on both the back and front.

Edit: I added pictures of just the leaves, although the quality's rather poor. The full page views look a bit better. The gray fuzz that covers about 2/3 of the front peels off easily. I don't know if the ends were always dark green, or if they grew beyond the fuzzy stage. The entire length of the backs are smooth. Also, the leaves have very small prickles along the edges.

Click on pictures for full size.


texts:
This is my 3rd Areca and no matter what I do, the plant keeps dying on me, it's saddening and frustrating!

The leaves are turning brown from the tip, others are drying. Some, however, are still fine. The wilting is concentrated at the back of the plant (leaves facing the wall)
I only water (1-1.5 L) when the soil dries out, that's like once a week or 10 days. I use bottled water.
No spider mites apparent, no diseases either I don't think
I am a smoker, if that's a factor
The plant was repotted
The room is AC-ed, the temps go down to about 20C, cool air does hit the plant
The plant is placed near an electricity outlet (harmful?)
The plant gets moderate sunlight as it is sitting in a corner

Any tips would help. I really don't want this Areca to completely die on me.

Photos


texts: Should I cut back hibiscus/rose mallow for winter in Minnesota?

texts: I just planted my first Minnesota hardy hibiscus/rose mallow. Should I cut it back in fall or overwinter it intact?


texts: Can I germinate chilli seeds from dried chillies?

texts:
I've got a whole bunch of chilli seeds from a dried chilli pack that I bought. They look golden brown and it seems they have been dried using heat, so I'm not sure if they have any chance of germinating.

Does anyone know if these can germinate?


texts: So it seems that many people say that you should water your average house plant once a week or so,  or whenever the top 1 inch of the soil is dry. My problem is that a lot of my plants are on a window sill and receive sunlight nearly all day long and the soil in the pot dries out after 2 or so days. Should I water the plants weekly or whenever the soil is dry?


texts: Three organic avacodo pits, two are one color, the third is another

texts: I have potted three organic avacodo pits and am wondering why two of them are growing tall,thin and red in color while the third is shorter with a thicker green stalk.


texts: Can I use rainwater captured in Los Angeles to grow plants?

texts:
I have a rainwater capture system. Roof is not metal, neither are the gutters. I capture 1300 gallons under my deck. I live in Los Angeles.

Can I grow with this? Or should I be worried about pollution in the water? I want to do a couple raised beds and maybe some hydroponic growing.

I thought about attaching a filter to it.


texts: Should I be pruning my chilli plants during a Sydney winter?

texts:
It's been an unseasonably cold winter this year in Sydney.

My chilli plants live outdoors. At the moment they are still alive, but most have lost most of their leaves.

Should I prune off the dead branches?

Should I do any other pruning before Summer kicks in?


texts: What is the best way to remove a lot of dead cat grass leaves?

texts: I have multiple groups of cat grass for decoration. They're about 6 months old and some of the leaves died, making it less appealing. Since there are a lot of them, what would be the best way to get rid of them quickly? I don't want to cut them one by one.


texts: Has anybody had any success using 5 gallon buckets as planters?

texts:
I've recently became interested in starting some outdoor planters this coming spring.  After searching around, I found an interesting idea off of Popular Mechanics using 5 gallon drywall buckets as planters.  What appealed to me was the low cost to setup and more space (depth-wise) for plants to grow.

My questions is: Has anybody has success with using a 5 gallon buckets as planters?  If so, what setup would you recommend as far as soil type/composition, fertilizers, placement, other tips, etc?

For what its worth, I am think of growing green-leafy herbs like mint or basil and tomato plants.  I live in Grand Forks, ND (USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 4, more climate info here).  Any help or reference would be greatly appreciated!  Thanks in advance!

EDIT: Also, I forgot to mention that I live in an apartment/townhouse building (front and back door but no porch/yard) with not a lot of room out back.  I may be able to fit in a self watering system with the kiddie pool, but would prefer individual buckets lined against the apartment wall.  Sorry for any confusion!


texts: What's causing our pear tree to die off in the summer and thrive in the winter?

texts:
We have a small pear tree in our garden that is displaying an odd behaviour.
In the middle of the summer, all the leaves turned brown and fell. We assumed this to be a disease, such as Fire Blight or similar, and were about to dig it up, when we noticed a few fresh leaves on the lowest branches. We then left it for a bit to see what happened - and it seems to have thrived, now having a full complement of nice green leaves, and even a single tiny pear - but it's mid-November, so I'd expect a deciduous tree to be losing it's leaves now?
It was bought two years ago as a "patio" variety in a pot, but it did something similar last year, so we, assuming it was struggling for water in the pot, decided to plant it out properly. While on the patio it was next to a potted Camellia Sinensis, now it's alone as far as larger plants go.