texts:
(There are a few other questions which may be related but I am not sure if this is a duplicate. (What is this white crust forming on my cactus during the growing months? , What is this white growth on my cactus?, Cactus with a growth). If it is a duplicate let me know and I will delete the question.)

I bought this cactus "gimmick" plant from Trader Joe's last October. I thought it was cute and I didn't expect the cactus to last. Here is it almost April and it is still alive – but it has these white growths as shown in the photo.

The growths are fuzzy and soft to the touch. I'm assuming they are not a "good thing" but should I just pull and scrap them off? Is it a fungus?

While I am here: the "medium" the cactus is planted in is some sort of hard sand-like material (like sand mixed with glue). This makes it hard to know if the plant needs water. I usually end up pouring water in and then turning the pot over to drain out any excess. Is there some better way to care for this sort of "gimmick" plant?


texts:
Last Christmas I bought a tiny cypress in a pot.
Months passed by and it seemed to be doing good, so I moved it to a larger pot a couple of months ago.

But since a couple of weeks ago, it is becoming brown. It's still green inside, but the tips are definitely brown.

I gave it some "green plants" fertilizer, a couple of times, but I think it was even worse. I water it only when the soil is starting to look dry (every two or three days), and it's living outside in my balcony. I've tried moving it from direct sun to other spots, but it's the same with it.

Any clue on what can I do to make it look happy again?
Thank you very much!


texts: I planted these about 6 months ago thinking they were cauliflowers. Most of them seemed to go to seed(?) but one looks rather good and I am proposing to eat it. What are they and why did most of them go to seed?


texts: Best mosquito repellent plant for a sunny terrace?

texts:
I would like to put some mosquito-repelling plants in the terrace of my apartment. We live in the Latin America, where there's sun and heat all year (this week's been 32°C, or 90°F). I can water and maintain the plants, but the only shade is from neighboring buildings.

What's the best mosquito-repelling plant for this kind of environment? They would be placed in regular plant pots.


texts: Concise database/reference for vegetable gardening?

texts:
The answers provided to Does anyone know of a somewhat comprehensive plant database available online? didn't prove to be much useful for someone that is getting into vegetable gardening. The USDA's database contains information more suitable for identification/taxonomic purposes.

The best online source I was able to find was Dave's Garden.
But it still lacks information on things like diseases, and more.

So I'm asking again for a concise database or encyclopedia/reference-book that gives summarized information on how to grow vegetables only, with things like necessary soil nutrients, diseases that can affect each variety, etc. I wish there were like a Wikipedia but for vegetables only, with one page for each plant... easy to lookup. It hasn't to be online; a big good tome would be suitable too. Note that I'm not asking here for basic gardening information (example: how to water plants)... I'm actually asking for "profiles" of vegetables.

Probably, if I didn't find one such reference after searching online, then perhaps there isn't one.


texts: Why and how do I need to re-pot indoor Basil?

texts:
I have read that you need to frequently repot Basil grown indoor.

Is that true?
Why?
What is the recommend repotting?


texts: How should I prepare a containerized tomato-plant for overwintering?

texts:
I would like to try to overwinter some tomato plants which I planted in a container and have worked well. I will have a hard winter and thus I need to stock them inside the house.

What do I need to consider before, during and after the winter?
Do I need to cut now or do I need to wait for the spring?
Where do I have to expect the new growth to happen?
What about light and temperature?
Is it worth the efforts knowing how easy it is to have them prospering from seeds?


texts: What is this flower with five mottled green petals that are fused together?

texts:
Does anybody know what this is? My colleague photographed it. It seems to be some kind of orchid.
The owner said it was an "umbrella plant."

The flower is in a pot, 30 cm high, flowers about 3 x 2 cm. It's a climber - that's it climbing in the background. The leaves are oval and fleshy.


texts: Do Citrus potted plants need acidic soil

texts:
Does Citrus Plants growing in pots, need slightly acidic soil?

I am thinking of the jasmine plant that requires, 1 teaspoon of vinegar, mixed with water, approx every 15 days, particularly during flowering season.

Should I do the same for other plants like Tangerines or lemons and give them doses of vinegar, periodically?


texts: can anyone kindly tell me what this shrub is ? THANK YOU IN ADAVANCE !!


texts: How can I transplant this large oak tree?

texts:
A few streets away, the homeowner said that if I can dig up and move the oak tree pictured below then it is mine. I would love to have this tree in my yard.  I'm not sure if you can tell from the picture, but this tree is a solid 15 ft tall. It may be upwards of 20 ft, it's hard to tell.

Also, the homeowner said this is a "live oak".  What does that mean?  If it matters, I live in coastal North Carolina.

Would a normal person like me with a shovel be able to dig up this beautiful oak tree and move it a few streets down to my house and transplant it in my yard?  What would the process be to do this?

Click on the picture for a closer view.


texts: What is this bean-shaped thing growing on my aloe?

texts:
I have a miniature aloe and while it's been normal for it to flower once or twice a year, this time something new appeared on the stalk:

B is what grows normally, A is this weird bean-shaped thing that is a new thing. I tried looking it up and found nothing - is this just the next stage of flowering for the plant?


texts:
I had previously asked a question about my Orchids (How Should I Take Care of These Two Phalaenopsis Orchids with Different Behaviors?) and I've read the other questions on the website, however I noticed something odd yesterday that's not discussed in the previous questions, so that's why I'm here again!

This Orchid has been doing really well, and it's full of flowers at the moment, but one of the leaves is almost falling off, turning yellow from the base. I feel the same thing is going to happen with the other leave. This is while the stem of flowers is growing from that certain 'bush'. What should I do?

UPDATE: As I'm waiting here for someone's help, that leave just came off yesterday, and the other one today. The small leaves also look unhealthy and moldy. The stem still seems pretty happy and the flowers are all in good order.

I keep looking closely, and that stem comes just below these leaves and that worries me, unless it's the other 'trunk' beside it that is supporting the flowers.

I feel the roots have changed a bit, too (those dark lines on the roots on the right of the leaves in the picture below).


texts: I have 3 raised beds in my backyard that I want to maximize use for.  Does someone have an approximate calendar (does not have to be perfect) which outlines what activities (growing, harvesting and maintaining) should be during different months of the year and at the same time keeping the raised bed always producing rather than letting it idle.  For example, grow root and leafy vegetables between November and February.  I realize that there can be many different answers but any suggestions would be helpful.  Right now, my main planting and harvesting is spring through fall and rest of the time it is idle or I grow cover crop (fava beans).  I live in the San Francisco/Bay Area


texts: Why do my upside-down tomato plants curve up and break?

texts: When I try to grow "upside-down" tomatoes, they always curve back up towards the sun and eventually break, causing massive damage.  Could I be doing something wrong, or is there a way to avoid this?


texts: What is the yellow-green succulent with red tips in this succulent group?

texts:
Could you please ID succulent A (and G) in the following picture? Succulents A and G look the same species to me - aren't they? What is its hardiness zone? Would it survive the coldness of zone 5, if left outdoor in the winter, while keeping it in its current container and arrangement?

This question is based on another (closed) question.


texts: Is there any way to know what you're getting when you plant seeds collected from hybrid plants?

texts:
I collected a whole bunch of broccoli seeds last year.  I think they were packman hybrid broccoli.

This year my 'broccoli' grew prolifically, but bolted exceptionally quick. I thought I had planted kale instead. But then I remembered the source of the seed.

So, I'm keeping them in the garden while they flower because the bees love them, but what do I have exactly?  Is there any way to know?  Are they a new species of weed?


texts: Which species of Cactus is this and can I eat the fruit?

texts: This delicious plant is looking at me and asking me to eat it. May I do so? And how do I know if the fruit are ripe? And will I be enormously injured if I accidentally touch a needle?


texts: What is the most effective plant for in-house oxygen production?

texts:
I'm looking for an plant with main purpose of oxygen production and CO2 removal in the house. The ideal plant whould have the following features:

Produce fair amount of oxygen;
Not very demanding in terms of care (watering, old leaves removal etc), ideally "plant and forget";
No strong smell;
Not very demanding to sunlight;

Could anyone suggest such a plant?


texts: Gray infestation along the veins on tomato leafs

texts: See attached image. Something gray spreads from older leafs through the veins on tomato plants. Stems and upper side of the leaf look normal. It doesn't seem impacting the plant though.


texts:
I've been wondering if my plant will be able to produce peppers in this container?

Also to my next question, is it really Jalapeno? (bought those on E-bay lol)


texts: How many different plant families do you need for a self pollinating garden?

texts: I would like to grow certain plants in a self contained habitat (like cattails, fireweed, thistle, and other edible plants that are semi easy to maintain) but I read that siblings can’t pollinate each other. Which means that I can’t just grow a garden out of two of the same plant. How many plant families would it take to make sure all plants has a pollination partner?


texts: What is this yellow flower which survives in the Sonoran Desert naturally?

texts: Plants native to the Sonoran Desert require watering every 6 months. The following plant, which I am not sure is native to the Sonoran Desert or not, was found to thrive in the Sonoran Desert solely off rain. What is this plant?


texts: I need help getting ridding of this weed in my flower garden

texts: Can someone identify this weed and tell me how to stop it from coming back?


texts:
A few years back I removed a shady patch of lawn and planted it to ground cover plants. One half was planted to Lamium, the other half to Ajuga Reptans. In the years since the Ajuga has taken off and carpeted it's area, meanwhile the Lamium has limped along and struggled to get going. I'm considering killing off what's left of the Lamium and replacing it with more Ajuga, but how best to do it?

I think it should be possible to divide the existing plants and transplant half, but I want to be sure it won't damage them too much. I know it spreads by runners (rather aggressively), but my previous efforts to pull up the younger runners and move them haven't been very successful, they seem to dry up before they really get going.


texts: The water in my cactus oozed out when I moved the pots and now it is kind of deflated, is it dead, is there any way to help it?

texts: The water in my cactus oozed out when I moved the pots and now it is kind of deflated.  Is it dead, is there any way to help it?


texts:
I've tried to grow cilantro from seed, and also I've purchased cilantro already grown and kept it on my windowsill. In the case of the cilantro I've grown from seed, it grows the first set of leaves and then promptly dies. In the case of the store-bought cilantro, I think my best track record was keeping the cilantro alive for 3 days before it keeled over. (For what it's worth, I have a very good track record with other plants!!)

I've heard that cilantro is pretty tough and doesn't mind the occasional under- or over-water. I've tried watering every day. I've tried watering only when it's very dry (if it lives long enough to dry out). I've kept it in full sun, part shade, and full shade. Nothing has worked! What am I doing wrong?


texts: Identification Can anyone advise on care of this plant?

texts:
Just purchased this perennial, but it did not have any information with it.
My plant identifier states it is Carpet Bee Balm, but because of the red leaves I am unsure. Anyone any other ideas?


texts: What plants or gardening additives might cause the specific neurotoxin symptom 'Descending Paralysis'?

texts:
I have been involved in an event where the presumed diagnosis is botulism secondary to ingestion from hay from last year.  In this case the hay is second cutting timothy hay (making it 6 plus months old).

Three pet house rabbits appear to have been effected. with 2 dead and one recovering from a case of descending paralysis.  The three rabbits were widely separated with physical barriers and one being on a different floor.  Each of the dead bunnies has a surviving partner who shared the same space and food with them. All occurrences started within a 36 hour window, with death occurring in 1 - 2 hours after symptom onset. The living bunny started to show recovery (head control) about 5 days after first symptom onset.

Several tests are underway, but my understanding is that it may be difficult to conclusively show either the botulism in the rabbits, or significant presence of 'botulinum toxin' or 'Clostridium botulinum' in the hay (samples from the mangers of affected animals are being tested). I have posted a question at Biology Can botulinum toxin be grown or kept from denaturing in an UNWRAPPED 50 pound hay bale?

While we are waiting for botulism to be ruled in, out, or unsure, it makes sense to look for other causes as well.  I have searched the web for anything that can cause Descending Paralysis (Head, fore limbs and chest, followed by lower limbs, with recover in order of loss). Other than botulism and some shell fish toxins (which seem extremely unlikely) there is nothing else suggesting it could impact 3 rabbits as has happened here.

We live in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area with our hay coming from a farm a few miles North East. We have been in contact with the vendor and multiple consumers of the hay and there are no other similar occurrences.

Looking for any plants or applications that could be in timothy hay from the region, that has the neurotoxin symptom 'Descending Paralysis'.


texts: Why does my dionea muscipula (venus fly trap) look a bit sick?

texts:
I've done a little bit of research and it says that it's normal that the traps  turn brown after eating, but the plant is way too small to eat something visible to the eye.

Also they don't look very green to me as they were before.


texts: Why are hoes manufactured with both inside and outside edge bevels?

texts:
Hoes are manufactured with both inside and outside edge bevels. The most authoritative guide I see on sharpening is from the US Forest Service and describes an inside bevel in all except one case.

Intuitively, I see the bevel placed on the inside of the strike radius to force material in the desired directon, like a spade. I realise that a wood chisel is used in the opposite orientation when cutting a slot (when the chisel is used with only a small angle to the grain of the wood), but finishing of the edges is done in the same manner as a hoe.

The question is -- why is there conflicting advice on the choice of edge orientation, and whether any actual difference informs this choice.

Update:

An ILO publication on Rural road maintenance training mofules for field engineers has an image showing the bevel orientation. An earlier edition (offline only) indicates that this prevents bounce during use.


texts: Are there any tricks to make irrigation even?

texts:
I've been fiddling with automated watering systems. Building them from scratch and controlling them via the inter-webs. My biggest problem is getting even water flow to each pot. The plants closest to the pump get too much water, those far away get too little. Are there any tricks I can incorporate into my design to smooth the water flow automatically. Right now I have to poke/plug holes and constantly tweak the system.

I feel I may be missing some major design principle of such systems? Any hints? Or things I should study to find a method on my own.


texts: Should I Repot a Tall and Spindly Jade Plant?

texts:
I have a Jade plant that was grown for me from a cutting about 5 years ago. Since that time, I've propagated another plant from a branch and I now have two healthy plants.

My concern is that my first plant is now starting to look pretty tall and top heavy. Which is not very aesthetically pleasing. There is a single trunk which grows up about 10" with very few leaves left. Most of them have fallen off due to physical trauma (the plant has been moved a LOT). At 10" the plant splits into several healthy branches, which are very attractive.  The plant needs to be repotted, and while I'm doing that, I'd like to try to address the aesthetics.  I'd like to try to save the top of the plant, but lower it down 5 or so inches so that it doesn't look quite so awkward.

I'm considering two different options:

Lopping off the top of the plant (the pretty part) and sticking the bottom inch or so of the barren trunk into new soil, in the hopes that it roots and starts a new plant.  Then my original plant will grow out new branches lower down, and I'll be left with two, more attractive looking jade plants. My major concern with this approach is that the roots will not grow quickly enough to support the top of the plant, and it will die.
Repotting the plant, but potting it about 2-3 inches further down into the soil, and letting roots grow out of the trunk, keeping only the main plant.

EDIT: After posting, I came up with a third possible option:

Breaking off the 3-4 lower most leaves when repotting and trying to propagate them as new plants in the same pot. If they survive and fill out nicely, then it could make the whole thing look fairly attractive.

Any suggestions on the best approach?


texts: identification of external aerial root in bonsai

texts:
I've a four and a half year old ficus bonsai. All of a sudden since yesterday, I spotted this root like structure from the woody stems at the neck of the tree. Can someone identify what is this and why this is happening. Is it bad? Should I get rid of it?
The weather over here is monsoon.


texts:
Does a luxmeter provide an accurate measurement of usable light?

What values constitute equivalents of 'shade', 'part sun/shade', 'full sun', etc?


texts:
Anyone know what these berries are? I wasn't able to get a good closeup with my phone, but they have a crevice on one side, similar to the "butt" shape of a peach.

EDIT
When I took the original pictures yesterday (just before sunset) it looked like the berries and leaves were coming from the canes, but after closer inspection in full daylight, its clear the vine has just wrapped itself around the black raspberry canes.. sorry for the confusion. I've added some better pictures. Also, I split one open a red one and touched a drop of the juice to the tip of my tongue, it was very bitter, not at all sweet.


texts:
I had planted a pack of very-generically named "Wildflower" Seeds a few months ago, and these sprouted. I have never seen anything like them. The stems are very thick, the mauve colored flowers are fuzzy and droopy, and the plant itself currently stands at my hips and is still growing taller.
I absolutely love this funky addition to my garden, but I sure would love to know what the heck it is. If someome could help me to identify it, I would greatly appreciate it!


texts: When can I cut back regal lilies without damaging the bulbs?

texts: Growing instructions I've seen nearly all say to cut back stems and foliage "after they turn yellow". Here in Northern California (Sonoma) the sturdy regal lily stalks don't even think about turning yellow until the new stalks start to push the old ones out. Here, the regals are the first of our lilies to bloom, usually in March or April, and the very last to die back.  The old stalks don't even begin to yellow and die back until January.  That's a long time to look at stems. Can I cut back earlier, even partially, or do I risk weakening the bulbs?


texts: How do I pump my bath water to my garden for watering?

texts:
After my kids have a bath, I want to be able to pump the water out into the garden. They usually just have a bath in water without soap etc. so it's still relatively clean.

Usually I just try to siphon the water out with a hose but this doesn't work very well as the bath level is very close to the level of the garden. The hose also has to go up and out the bathroom window which makes starting the siphon difficult.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what might be a good way to achieve getting the water out of the bath into the garden without spending heaps on a water pump?

EDIT
I haven't spent any more time on this yet however my thoughts are to see if I can salvage a water pump from on old washing machine and wire it up to pump the water out...thanks for your suggestions.


texts: Filling in old 4 foot deep 4 foot wide pond

texts: We want to fill in a small deep pond, about 4 feet across and 4 feet deep, we want to convert it to a pondless water feature.  the liner is not leaking, want to fill in the most economical way possible without wrecking the liner.  thought of filling with river stones, but then I thought possibly bags of sand unopened would be less expensive  to fill pond halfway or more up, then filling with the small stones to the top.  that way we could fill the pond back up with water and finish with with the pondless water feature.  Does this sound like a good plan? Or is there a more economical way of doing it without endangering the liner.


texts: Should I cut off severely bent stems (folded on darker line or spot) on my Peace Lily?

texts:
I left my home for 11 days and told someone else to water my Peace Lily but she forgot. When I returned the plant looked dead, lying flat and hanging around the pot. I have watered it and cut some yellow leaves, and in two to three days most of the leaves stood upright again.

Yet the stems of some of the bigger ones have bent so much that they are not uniformly bent but they fold on one point that is darker and seems to be damaged (see pic):

Shall I cut it or is there still any chance that it will regenerate? And if have to cut it, should I do it just below the bend?


texts: What to look out for when shopping for cordless chainsaw and/or hedge trimmer?

texts:
I am in need of a chainsaw to help cut down some dead branches of one of my trees (which is about 3 meter tall).

While browsing the gardening power tools I notice this kind of 2 in 1 (chainsaw + trimmer) on a pole, cordless gadget.

I am going to use this tool occasionally.

My questions are:

Is there anything I should be aware of before buying this kind of tool? e.g. some general shortcoming with this kind of hybrid design
Is 20V powerful enough for the tasks they are designed for?


texts: Brownish marks on upper surface of chilli leaves gradually forming lesions

texts:
I have a young ghost chilli growing in a pot outside which is displaying browning on the upper surface (but not on the lower surface) of its leaves, primarily along the veins at the base of the plant. I first noticed this about a week ago, and by now it has begun progressing to forming lesions.
Here is the plant as I first noticed it, from 7 Nov:

Here is the leaf from the first photo yesterday (11 Nov):

And the plant as it is now:

I've also noticed lesions forming on several of my other plants, but they don't seem to share the same initial form of a large surface-level brown/green blotch so I wouldn't be surprised if they're from an entirely different cause.
From a slightly older Hungarian wax:

And a cayenne (although I've seen this on a few of my other chilli plants):

All of these plants are growing outside in 8-15L pots in a fruit and vege soil mix from a local nursery.
Does anyone have any idea what the cause (causes?) of this might be? I wondered about nutrient toxicity due to overfeeding but it's much harder to find information about symptoms of toxicity than deficiency. We have also had on-and-off trouble with aphids, but this seems to be primarily on older leaves which have, to my knowledge, not been touched much by them.


texts: How quickly do I need to plant bare-root silver birch trees in winter?

texts:
I've bought half a dozen bare-root silver-birches, each is perhaps just under a metre tall with a scraggle of roots. They came by post and arrived after 3 days looking pretty dry - in the past I've received things with some compost or damp cloth - so I hope they're OK and the fact they're dormant means it matters less.

I put them to soak in water yesterday but I've no idea if they need to be planted right now or can sit around dormant for some time now winter is here?
What is the best thing to do? I'm in the North of England.


texts: How to make curly parsley produce seeds?

texts:
I want to grow and harvest curly parsley, and also have them produce seeds for the next harvest. I found plenty of information on growing curly parsley but nothing on flowering, pollinating, or harvesting seeds. So I have some questions about that:

How should parsley be grown to produce seeds?
What is the timeline from seed to seed? Eg time from planting to germination to flowering to seed harvest?
How many seeds can a single seed/plant be expected to produce?
Can a single plant be harvested for both garnish and seeds, or is it mutually exclusive?

Edit: I am also considering growing them indoors with hydroponics to produce year-round, maximise yield and perhaps speed up cycles - how could the natural cycle (eg seasons) be simulated? Ie how does parsley determine when to move to the next stage? Type of light? Strength of light? Number of hours of light per day?


texts: Do strawberry runners start from age zero?

texts:
They say that strawberry plants don't produce good fruit as they become a few years old. Let's say a 5 year old strawberry plant starts a new plant via a runner. Does this runner have its biological clock reset back to zero or is it considered the same age as its parent? That is, will the runner produce good fruit or will it produce bad fruit like its senile parent? What I'm trying to see is if I can infinitely extend my years of harvesting strawberries by constantly rejuvenating my strawberry patch by propagating via runners every year.

These spindly horizontal vines are runners. I have Quinalt strawberries, if that matters.


texts: Glass vs plastic greenhouse covering: pros and cons

texts:
When building or buying a greenhouse, it seems to me that the material to use is one of the first concerns. The two options I'm trying to compare right now are glass and plastic films. The characteristics that seemed important to me were transmittance, insulation, maintenance and cost (both purchase- and maintenance-). What I could find on the net was the following.

Transmittance

As Wikipedia
shows, plants need mostly light from the visible spectrum:

,

at which range both glass and most plastics transmit most light. A quick scholar.google search gave me The Radiative Effectiveness of Plastic Films for Greenhouses, with the following info.

The mil used here was strange to me, which I converted using the first converter Google gave me. It seems that there is hardly any difference between glass and plastic here, although there are special glasses designed to transmit >99% of the sunlight, as described in Transmittance of optical glass, which are out of reach for most people due to their cost.
Insulation

As can again be read on Wikipedia, it is mostly (the lack of) convection that accounts for the temperature, and both glass and plastic stop this. Of course, glass insulates better than plastic, and double glass would do so even better (again due to the lack of convection in between these layers of glass), but I couldn't find any literature on this.
Maintenance

Plastic changes colour over time and needs to be changed every few
years (see The Radiative Effectiveness of Plastic Films for
Greenhouses again for precise numbers), while glass lasts ages
(look at the royal greenhouse of Laeken). I would thus say glass
needs less maintenance.
Cost

Plastic is cheap to buy, but needs to be changed every few years, as
noted at the maintenance point. Glass is more expensive at first,
but needs less maintenance. I could not find any thorough comparisons
of the costs on the web.
Other considerations

Glass just looks better. It does. It gives a different atmosphere, and you can actually see the rest of the garden when you're for example using it as a hangout spot in the winter.

From this intensive search of the web I can only conclude that glass is a little bit better at some points, but I have no idea if it really differs that much. The only point where I think the glass really wins is the maintenance, but that isn't really such a breaking point (I care more about which of the two is best for the plants). Is glass worth the investment? Did I overlook something? Does any of you have experience with both, or argumented reasons for why one of the two is better?


texts: Should I remove the dead flower heads from my hydrangea?

texts:
Earlier this year, I bought a hydrangea (from Ikea of all places!) and planted it out in the garden. It flowered nicely for a while, but the flowers have pretty much finished now and nearly all of the original leaves have withered.

New leaves are sprouting from the old leaf joints, but should I be removing the old flower heads above them?

The stems seem pretty sturdy, which makes me think I'd be doing it no favours if I took the tops off. For what it's worth, I'm in Northumberland in the UK.


texts: Does anyone have some references on using metal halide lamps in a greenhouse?

texts: I am looking for some references to use metal halide lamp in a greenhouse. What specifications should I look for in a lamp?


texts: Is this a sign of stunted growth (on tomato seedlings)?

texts: I germinated this batch of heirloom Tiny Tim tomatoes, and have been told that they start off really slow. It's been a month now. There are a couple of them that has a swollen stem like in the picture, and their growth seems to be stunted. I've never seen anything like this before, and it feels like all the nutrients the seedling absorbed are just sitting in that swollen stem. What's really happening here? And is there a fix for this?


texts: What's a good full-sun groundcover for Zone 6A?

texts:
I'm in Zone 6A, and I have some blueberries planted in a 16x45 or so open area that I need covered with some kind of covering.

The situation is:

It'd get nearly full sun (the first few hours of the day might get shaded out, but then the entire rest of the day it gets full sun)
It's a 16x45 section, with two rows of blueberry bushes I don't want choked by the groundcover.
It can't be mowed (mower can't get to it), and thus shouldn't get too tall.
It shouldn't require much care (in ways of watering/fertilizing)
It should come back every year.
It should spread, but not hyper-aggressively.
It'll get occasionally walked over (especially during blueberry picking)

I also have some stonework nearby, with 1/4" to 3/4" gaps that get choked full of weeds. Is there a good plant for stonework gaps in my Zone? I don't mind, and would probably even prefer, a different plant for between the stonework.

I have a couple plant ideas already, but I wanted unbiased 3rd-party suggestions.


texts:
I have a small yard, about 450 square feet, that I have seeded with Penncross Creeping Bentgrass. I used seed. This is the second year and I overseeded this year because I had a few spots I damaged with liquid fertilizer that was too strong (hot).

I have new grass growing in the ares of need and some in the among the existing grass. I've used guide from Penncross on Seedland and it works great for general information. I am struggling to figure out when I should mow the lawn. For new lawn I've found several links that say 30 days is when you can expect to mow. I'm concerned if I wait too long that the existing grass will grow tall and choke out the new seedlings. So my question is, when can I start to mow my overseeded lawn that is overseeded with Penncross Creeping Bentgrass?

I use a manual reel mower and I usually mow at a height of 3/4". After 14 days I have seed that has germinated and I have some existing grass that is over 3" tall. I feel like the tall grass needs to be tamed so the Penncross can thrive and fully take over. Then maybe I can start to cut this stuff down near 3/16" and practice my putting :).


texts: How to keep away Forficula auricularia from cabbages?

texts: Here is a photo. This type of bug is eating all cabbages that I have planted some weeks ago. Apart from killing one by one, there is any solution? Probably they are living in the organic substrate.


texts: What is this saw tooth leaved plant, and will it flower and attract bees?

texts:
I've got these in my garden in the city of Innsbruck, Austria and I'm wondering what they are and if their flowers attract bees or other insects. They just popped up by themselves and feel really good there, would be a shame to remove them if they attract bees/butterflies as well. If they don't,  I'd like to use the spot for something that does.

Can anyone identify them? I hope the pictures are good enough. If not, tell me and I'll try to get better ones.


texts: Safe to use Chicken Manure in my compost?

texts:
I was talking to someone about adding chicken manure to my compost and they said that I shouldn't do it because it's dangerous.  I had assumed that as long as I let is compost for 6 months to a year everything would be ok.

Who is right here?


texts: Can I drill drainage holes on the side of the container?

texts:
This is a cross-section of a container. Most containers have a drainage hole on the bottom. I've marked that hole with an asterisk.

|         |
|         |
|         |
 \___*___/

The problem with this position is that you have to elevate the pot with a stand and put a saucer under it or else water flow will be blocked by the pot's bottom forming a seal with the floor.

Can I drill the holes on the sides near the bottom so that I don't need a stand and saucer?

|         |
|         |
|         |
*\_______/*

Is there a reason why nobody does this?


texts:
I just bought this bougainvillea but I need help on how to take care of it.
Where should I plant it?
How much sun and water does it need?
And I dont know if it can survive the winter here because it goes down to -20°C.
A friend told me that if I leave it in the container for 2-3 years I can plant it in the ground and it would survive the winter. Does that work?


texts: What causes a yard to become lumpy and uneven.  has just happened over the past few years.  how do you correct it? thx


texts: Can salt be used to control weeds permanently?

texts:
I was reading over here that salt can be used to control weeds in paved areas?

Is salt an effective way to kill all (or most) plant types?
Is it a permanent solution?
Will using salt affect ground water (I have a bore) and nearby gardens?


texts: Well I have two parent mint plants and both of them lost all of their leaves and sprouted up about 50 new sprouts that are growing great, but the original parent plants still don't have leaves. Should I dig them up or give them time?


texts:
Hello botanists and the like,

I was hoping for some assistance identifying a quite striking tree. This particular one is in Commonwealth Park, Canberra, Australia - but it doesn't seem like a native. I'd love to plant a few (probably for my great-grandkids to enjoy) and it seems like it has some fairly unique features that should make it easy to ID for anyone in the know.

Thanks!

Trunk and Branches

Leaves

Roots (?)


texts: What is this small houseplant with serrated, waxy-looking leaves?

texts: A friend of mine got this office plant as a present and is wondering what it's called and how it needs to be taken care of. Any ideas?


texts: What permaculture crops should I grow together in USDA zone 4a?

texts:
I'm trying to work on building a permaculture garden, and was wondering what I should plant in USDA zone 4A.

Ideally I'm looking for a list of each bed with crop combinations to have them help each other.


texts: Why are mineral fertilizers not allowed in organic farming?

texts:
Recently I've read an article stating that easy soluble mineral ferilizers are not allowed in organic farming (with a few exceptions).

By that I mean that there are some laws that restrict you from having a "organic farmer" certificate if you use mineral fertilizer.

Why is that? What is so bad about using such nutrients? I understand that you are not adding any organic matter to the soil, which is beneficial to the soil organisms, but if you already have a 20% organic matter in your soil does it even matter?


texts: White growth on the outside bottom of the pot

texts:
I have a question about a peace lily we are currently growing inside. We aren’t really sure what we are doing for this to be caused but there’s a white/yellow growth on the bottom of the pot and also burnt/dying leaves. I’m not sure if this is due to over watering, poor irrigation or under watering or if it’s just a general disease or whatever.

Any help would be great :)

Lachlan

(https://i.stack.imgur.com/8EnNx.jpg)
(https://i.stack.imgur.com/40ehx.jpg)


texts: Somebody has picked some seeds growing on a 'tropical' looking tree in the south of England (Crawley) and given them to me. Does anybody know what they could be? This clump is about 3 cm long.


texts:
I recently moved several small potted succulents from partial shade to full sun, which proved catastrophic for many of them.

Specific genera among the casualties:

Echeveria / Graptopetalum
Faucaria
Sedum
Sempervivum

Can these plants regrow from the roots if the aboveground structures have died?  What can be done to maximize their survival chances?


texts: I have white fig trees in my yard, and this year we are experiencing figs that seem to be waterlogged, and are now turning brown and falling from the tree.  Some that have remained on the tree have literally dried up (so much so that when I touch them they break off if my hand).  We have never had any issues with them before. What is wrong?


texts: Why do I have mushrooms popping up in my yard?  I had my lawn professionally aerated and overseeded in early spring and now I am seeing mushrooms throughout the lawn.


texts: What should I do to rescue grass from a petrol spill?

texts:
We had some less than stellar workmen do some work a few weeks ago, and one of them spilled a substantial amount of petrol onto our front lawn. There is now an area about 100cm in diameter where the grass is completely dead.

I was not able to do anything about it until now (about 3 weeks later), so I have dug up the entire dead area, down to about 30cm. This is as far as I can reasonably dig, because we live in a clay area (Sydney Australia - almost all of the west is just clay).

The clay still stinks of petrol though, as did all of the dirt and grass I dug up.

Is there any way I can repair this? Do I just leave it dug out for a few weeks to "dry"? (It's summer at the moment, so lots of long, hot 30°C days and hotter)?

If I throw some fresh dirt from another part of the yard into the hole and plant new grass seeds, will the petrol that's in the clay just re-contaminate it? Or is that area going to be dead forever?


texts: What type of hose connector will fit my kitchen tap?

texts:
I am trying to connect my garden hose to my kitchen tap which looks like this.

I foolishly bought http://www.hozelock.com/watering/hose-fittings/connect-to-tap/2177---indoor-round-tap-connector.html but the bevel on my tap stops the connector from holding on properly.

What sort of connector can I buy that will give a reliable connection?


texts: Lotus-like succulent. What plant is this?

texts:
The plant is very small and looks similar to one I have that is quite bigger compared to this little fella. Is this Echeveria? What is the care and soil needs for this plant? Both the plants are in 4" pot.

Update:

Similar plant, is this same?


texts: Is it possible to indefinitely limit the growth of trees, hedges, and shrubs?

texts:
Now that I've lived in my very nicely landscaped first home for over 10 years, I have several "overgrown" trees, hedges, and shrubs (mostly, but not all evergreens) in my landscaping, and at this point I'm pretty sure it's impossible to do anything but have them dug out and replaced with new smaller ones.

For several years, I had tried to save money by not having landscapers do the annual evergreen trimming.  I can only assume that this is the source of my problems.

To start, I'm not a big fan of the "manicured" evergreen look.  With that in mind, is it possible with proper trimming and/or pruning to limit the growth of trees, shrubs, and hedges, or is it just an accepted reality of landscaping that eventually they'll need to be replaced?


texts:
I'm new to vegetable gardening and am just beginning to plant a few seeds into raised beds. On every seed packet, and in almost every other guide or reference I've found, on- and off-line, instructions are given on the correct spacing in two perpendicular dimensions, yet none offers any explanation whatsoever of the reasoning or implementation details of this mysterious practice.

So for example I'm told that for carrots I should aim for final spacing of 4 inches on the x-axis and 12 inches on the y-axis. In keeping with tradition I hope to produce a carrot which is approximately circular about the horizontal plane, so I'm at a loss to see why its space requirements should be any greater in one dimension than the other.

The larger given distance isn't typically wide enough to offer walk-in access, so what on earth could the reasoning be? And how am I supposed to be orienting these axes with respect to their natural environment anyway? Should one or other axis be aligned to the midday sun? The magnetic pole? Ley lines? I wouldn't want to think I'd planted my whole garden at right angles to its proper orientation...


texts: Can this baby rose plant be shifted to a different pot

texts: [I bought this rose plant a couple of months ago. I recently noticed there's a smaller baby rose plant next to the main plant. I'm not sure if it's a new seedling or just an offshoot of the main plant. Can I remove it and repot the small one so that it can grow into its own plant or should I just leave it here I don't think there's space for it to grow big in this pot.


texts: Can I grow a mini-sized date plant from a fresh seed?

texts:
Is it possible to create a plant from a fresh date seed in a mini pot? When I say "mini" I mean a pot with diameter of maybe 6cm, like this one? (see image below)

I already tried this 3 times with 3 seeds that had roots coming out of each, but they all died. So, I'm wondering if the issue is with me, possibly inappropriate soil or a too small pot, or it's just not possible to make it grow as a mini plant.

The soil I'm using is a mix of:

1/3 vermiculite
zeolite
organic soil


texts: I planted bell peppers. Is this actually a bell pepper?

texts:
I planted a bunch of different things. Bell peppers, squash, etc.

The bell pepper plants are all about the same size (10").
One grow on the very far side right next to where I started growing broccoli.

I fear it's not actually a bell pepper plant. It's about 4ft tall and has a ton of seeds blooming off of it. It has a stalk and leaves just like bell pepper plants I've googled, but I don't see anything that resembles what this is turning into.

http://imgur.com/a/kRN8G


texts: What is this white substance on my queen of the night?

texts:
I recently discovered a white substance on my queen of the night Cestrum nocturnum. I don’t know what kind of pathogen it is.

Does anyone have any ideas how to deal with this? I would greatly appreciate any help, suggestions, advice.

Location: Tunis


texts: What are the ideal conditions of this flower

texts: How can I take care of this flower and what season does it bloom?


texts: Why are the tips of my hardneck garlic plants dying?

texts:
I've noticed that the tips of my hard neck garlic leaves are dying, and was wondering if this is normal, or not, because the flower stalk hasn't come up yet.

Time:right before summer
Location:full sun flower bed

What am I doing wrong/right?
What should I do for them?


texts: Is this powdery mildew? Plant is potted and was unwatered for a long period

texts:
A potted everlasting sweet pea in my garden nearly died due to lack of water earlier this year. I managed to revive it but its older leaves are yellowing and have what looks like powdery mildew coating many of them. The upper leaves are largely clear and the plant seems to have begun growing well again. Can anyone confirm that this is in fact powdery mildew? I can rub off parts of the white coating with my thumb which I read may suggest it's not powdery mildew.
If it is indeed powdery mildew then is milk and water the best way to treat it? Should I just remove the leaves that are worst affected?


texts: Many years ago the ice storm of 1998 messed up my poor willow tree.  There have been several small ice storms since then and it has never recovered.  I do not want to get rid of it because it is part of my late grandmothers tree so it is special to me.  it looks horrible and I am wondering if I can cut it back to nothing but a stump and how high should it be.


texts: What is this plant? I could not find anything.


texts: I have this houseplant that is in tough shape. I want to learn about caring for it so I can attempt to revive it, but I don't know what kind of plant it is. Here are some pictures:


texts: Grow oyster mushrooms in vacuum cleaner bags?

texts:
I'm giving oyster mushrooms a go, growing in coffee grinds in a plastic bag. Having an air filter in a bag, like the ones in purpose made mushroom bags, is a recommended technique.
What if I used a vacuum cleaner bag ? These allow air passage and also filter out small particles. Workable idea ?
I bought some that have a synthetic inner layer that I don't think the mushrooms would consume. What about maintaining a good moisture level by just spraying the absorbent bag ?
I'm a noob so let me know if these are bad ideas. Thanks.


texts: What are these seeds/eggs that appear on my indoor plant leaves?

texts:
I keep finding these tiny brown ridged "seeds" that appear on the leaves of my indoor plants.  Since seeds don't normally fly, I am guessing they might actually be related to an insect.  But the only insects I am aware of having in my living room are fungus gnats, lady bugs, and probably aphids, and these don't look like the eggs or pupae of any of those.
The nearby plants are: old basil, young batavia lettuce, young lambs lettuce, wood sorrel, a young avocado tree, and a baby philodendron erubescens.  But I don't see how any of these could be producing these "seeds".
Thanks in advance!


texts: Could anyone tell me the name of this plant?


texts: Please tell me what kind of grass this is

texts: This grass grows naturally in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia


texts: What is the tall red flower in this photo?

texts:
This is supposed to be a pollinator attracting entance:

What is the name of the red flower?

I have never seen it!


texts: I want to plant basic things like carrots, radishes, lettuce, and many more. People have been buying there seeds but in a seed tape form. How could I make my own here at home? What is to not be used for while doing something like this?


texts: Moving asparagus to a pot then back in the ground a few months later

texts:
There are three mature asparagus plants in our backyard, which we've been enjoying so far since we moved in a few months ago. Unfortunately, they are located in the exact spot where we'll soon be building a garage, and due to some other work we're doing in the yard, their new home won't be ready until September at the earliest.

What I'd like to do is dig them up and house them temporarily in large pots. Then in September we'll plant them in their new permanent home.

How likely are they to survive this process? What can I do to help ensure their survival? Am I better off just starting new asparagus plants?

I am in Madison, WI (USDA plant hardiness zone 5a), and all locations (current, temporary, and future) are in full sun.


texts: What should I do about a dead lawn and weeds in California?

texts:
Our lawn had gone from beautiful to being overrun with weeds. Since the drought in California has continued for so long we just basically gave up and now all grass and weeds are dead.  Yup, we have a large dirt yard.

I'm hoping for an end to the drought this winter and if so, I may reseed the backyard.

Will any remaining weed seed that's there start growing too?
Any idea how to ensure it's gone?


texts: Helping wound healing after taking a cutting from monstera?

texts:
I have just taken a cutting from a healthy monstera deliciosa. I am concerned about the open wound left on the original plant, though, as it is exposed and leaking water.
I have read that given good conditions the plant will naturally heal itself, but is there anything I can do to help the plant recover?


texts: Does bonemeal promote bigger and stronger plants through root growth?

texts: There are many web sites on how to use bone meal with claims like "Using bone meal will help your flowering plants, like roses or bulbs, grow bigger and more plentiful flowers." Is this true for all plants, just vegetables and bulbs or not at all?


texts: Is it bad practice to leave dead roots in soil?

texts:
Is leaving them in there better or worse than taking them out?

What about for indoor vs outdoor? Is it okay to leave roots in a pot you plan to re-use soil for?

In my mind I am mostly considering harvestable plants like peppers, carrots, lettuce, etc though I am curious about the outliers as well.


texts: Why are my green pepper plant leaves deformed from the top?

texts: I live in Toronto, Canada. I have noticed some of the leaves of my Green chilli plant curling at the top, always towards the side. Also, some leaves are deformed. It would be great if you can help me out here. This is my first time trying my hand at gardening.


texts:
[MMe Hardy 1] [Mme Hardy 2]- English rose in pot.Distortion in bud through to full flower, except they do not open due to this virus [?] or pest.Flower buds normally have a greenish centre that opens out to white and a very full bloom.Any ideas as to what has affected the rose ?Can it be effectively treated to fully recover or does the plant need to be burnt and replaced ?Thank you.
Acknowledge 2Mb limit but can only upload one compressed image.[Thanks Stephie]
The image shows a bud that is probably atypical of the normal flower, with the green centre. As the fuller flower shows the opening bloom distorts to one side as it tries to enlarge.
Plant has been in pot for about a year as relative has not decided where to plant. Rose flowered normally last year. In thumb-size bigger pot than that in which it was delivered from David Austin rose supplier. Has received regular feeding/watering. Realise it would be far happier and healthier in the ground.
Thank you.


texts: Why are the leaves of my rubber plants getting wavy?

texts:
I just got a young rubber plant (I think thats what it is). After the second watering I realized the plants leaves were getting wavy or ridged. If it matters, I waited till the mix was dry before watering.

Here is the name tag from the plant.

What am I doing wrong, or is this normal for this plant?


texts: A friend of mine told me I should spread seed and then put a half inch of soil over it. I have about half an acre of lawn so this would be a LOT of soil. Is there any way to just spread seed and still have it take without adding soil on top?


texts: How do you organically handle lubber grasshoppers that destroy gardens?

texts:
Last summer I had a problem with black grasshoppers with yellow stripes on them, which I identified as Lubbers. Now I grow everything organically and all my plants are heirloom varieties, so last year these insects plowed through my garden and basically ate everything. This year I hope to circumvent this catastrophe before it happens again.

How can I get rid of or keep away these lubber grasshoppers in an organic earth friendly way?


texts:
I've looked all over the internet, and can't seem to find any Nanking Cherry seed images. Can someone please post one?

I'm considering one as a gift since it's not invasive, and easy to maintain.


texts: What is this succulent looking creeping houseplant with sort of toothy leaves?

texts: This plant was given to my grandmother a very long time ago by a kid she babysat. She gave it to me to take to college. I have no idea what it is except that it looks kind of like a succulent. I want to know what it is incase something goes wrong. I've been watering it whenever the soil looks dry (about once a week) and I keep it in my window so it gets light and it seems to be doing just fine.


texts: Are millipedes  good or bad for the garden?

texts:
Are millipedes considered good or bad for plants?

From wikipedia:

  Millipedes are detritivores and slow moving. Most millipedes eat
  decaying leaves and other dead plant matter, moisturising the food
  with secretions and then scraping it in with its jaws. However, they
  can also be a minor garden pest, especially in greenhouses where they
  can cause severe damage to emergent seedlings. Signs of millipede
  damage include the stripping of the outer layers of a young plant stem
  and irregular damage to leaves and plant apices, the very top of a
  plant.


texts: Identify a Pennsylvania weed with alternate lanceolate leaves

texts: Can anyone identify this weed? I am in western Pennsylvania and would appreciate knowing if it needs to be eradicated.


texts:
This is growing in our garden in Melbourne, Australia and was here when we moved in.

It has these lovely purple flowers in summer and is around 2.5m tall.

It seems to be thriving but it would be nice to know how to care for it.


texts: I found this insect on my Echinopsis sp. It sort of looks like a tick, but what would a tick be doing on a cactus? What is it, and is it harmful?


texts: Is this fig tree disease or just malnourished?

texts:
My folks in Berkeley, CA (San Francisco Bay Area) showed me their young fig tree the other day to see if I could figure out what was wrong with it, but I wasn't certain. I searched here (during title search) and found a nice document from the Aussies at kevinsky's answer here. It appears to be Anthracnose. However, I searched images and other fungi that attack plants and there were several other species that looked similar or more like the specimen below. I did not notice any fruit damaged obviously by this.

There were some other leaves, but not that many, that started to yellow that also had some small spots, but as you can see, there aren't distinct yellow areas around the dark spots, and on the yellow leaves I did not notice a powder as the document indicates is indicative of rust. However, on this specimen you can see there is some white stuff:

The question is, does it matter what type of fungus this is, if it indeed is fungus? Should I just buy a "copper-based fungicide" anyway? Also, is it safe to eat the fruit thereafter and how toxic is this stuff to kids should they get their hands on some leaves?


texts:
I got something called dr earth and I was going to drop a handfull in at the bottom of the hole before I planted. Would it be beneficial for me to throw some steer manure in there as well?

I had my soil tested and they told me there was almost no nitrogen. To try and fix that i sprinkled 6 bags of steer manure and 4 bags of compost over the planting area (about 25x20) and worked it in with a rake. Will dropping some extra in by the roots when planting give it an extra kick or would it be overkill?


texts: What plant is this? Zone 8. Looks like a yucca

texts: I am in Zone 8 and it was in my yard behind my fence. I decided to dig it up and plant it. It was in a moist shady area.https://photos.app.goo.gl/QPFyNwgdhdhYu32F6


texts: Trying to figure out what this grass is, because I like it. Very soft. I've been cutting my grass @ 3.5" mower height so its seems to get quite matted. Depending on the grass type maybe that's too high. This picture is not just mowed, I mowed this law a week ago, but as I said, @ 3.5"


texts: Is it a problem that the stems of my mint cuttings are curling?

texts:
As a minor gardening project in my apartment I've been growing mint, for its robustness and pairing with alcohol.  In my attempt to clone the plant I have and fill another pot, all four of the cuttings I have are curling nearly 180° with a radius of about an inch:

Is this just fine to plant with the inch-and-a-half of stem buried and roots nearly coming up on the other side, or, should I try to root cuttings so they stay straight (tips on how?).


texts: I have had this echeveria for 3 years now. It has grown a lot. It is kept outside in a very sunny spot. We are in Redwood City, CA. It has suddenly developed these brown spots. It was repotted last year and it has overgrown its current pot, but I don't think the spots are because of that. Would this because of the cold? It has been cold at night (50F) here these days. Is this scales, what is the best way to treat this.


texts: Why are my tomato fruits developing black, mushy spots before they can ripen?

texts:
My tomato fruits are going bad before they have a chance to go from green to red.
Can anything be done this year to the plants I have?  I have same problem with every new fruit.


texts: Proper sequence of Northeast lawn maintenance this spring

texts:
I live in eastern Massachusetts and have a big project coming up for my lawn. I am planning to get part of it excavated to fix an issue. Once fixed it will be back-filled with soil and I'll move onto my next project of getting an in-ground irrigation system. Once that's done I plan to loosen up the soil around the entire yard as its very packed and I strongly feel that is contributing to spotty patches of grass and in some areas, no grass is growing. I plan to do all of this in the next 6-8 weeks in spring but I've heard core aerating in spring might not be great as it could provide more opportunities for weeds. Does this plan make sense or should I adjust:

Get soil test
Priority #1: Excavate sub-portion of lawn
Priority #2: Install irrigation system
Core aerate entire yard (is it fine to do this in spring or should I wait till fall?)
Depending on soil test, I may need lime, or not. I read I shouldn't lime and fertilize at the same time. If I do need lime, when should I do it?
Fertilize excavation site with starter fertilizer (was planning to try LESCO this year) and seed it
Fertilize established areas of lawn with crabgrass prevention fertilizer (was planning to try LESCO this year)

A arborist that also does yard work once told me if I core aerate an excellent thing to thicken lawn after I core aerate is to broadcast seed all over the lawn as some of the seeds will germinate and thicken the lawn. Is that correct? Or should I ignore that and really follow a traditional overseeding plan? Also, if I do core aerate and broadcast seed over it should I have then only used starter fertilizer for the entire lawn due to the new seeds?

I'm trying to understand the timing of all the things I'm trying to do and want to make sure I don't do the wrong things.

Update with pictures:

Debris pit area

Patchy lawn

More pictures of lawn

UPDATE as of 7/24/2017:

I've made progress on my plans and I've accomplished the following based on this thread:

Get soil test (completed - details are here)
Excavate sub-portion of lawn (completed - the issue was an old tree stump that was ground up and left to sink over many years)
Install irrigation system (completed)
Core aerate entire yard
Add lime (completed, need to add more in fall)
Fertilize excavation site with starter fertilizer and seed it (completed, looks OK, need to overseed it in fall with more seed)
Fertilize established areas of lawn with crabgrass prevention fertilizer (completed as part of spring maintenance)

So my next big things are to core aerate, top dress, and overseed in the fall.

So the big question is: if I live in Massachusetts, when is the best time to core aerate, top dress, and overseed in the fall? Are we talking early September? Mid September? Late September?

Also, I plan to buy good quality mix of seeds for the northeast that will contain KBG, fescue, and perennial rye. Once I do my core aeration, top dressing, and overseeding, should I still keep the lawn moist every day as if I was doing the same routine in the spring? I assume so since I need to keep the seed moist with the warm soil temperature to germinate, but I just want to confirm. If so, I assume I can flip on my sprinklers daily in the early morning for about 5 minutes per zone max just to get the ground moist and keep it moist through September?


texts:
When I bought my current house 2 years ago I inherited a beautiful mature 8' tall Japanese Maple (probably planted soon after the house was built in 1972).  From outward appearances it seems to be vigorous and healthy. Here's a winter picture showing the structure.

At some point, probably over a decade ago, the prior owners removed a large limb low on the tree but rather than pruning at the collar they left about 8" of stump protruding.

I've had other things on my mind, but finally got around to really examining the tree and noticed the branch stump seemed to be rotting, so on advice of a local arborist I cut the stump back to the collar, where it should have been cut.

The rot extends deep into the tree.  An 8" screwdriver went in with no resistance.  That means the rot extends into the main trunk heart wood but
I can't tell how far it has spread there.

Question: Is the tree doomed in the near future, and is there anything I can do to preserve it or prolong its life?

Should I be doing anything to prevent accelerating damage, such as fill the hole to prevent water from entering, etc?


texts: If one cuts the flower off a fruit tree, will a new flower/fruit grow in its place?

texts: If one cuts the flower off a fruit tree, will a new flower (and then the fruit) grow in its place?


texts: Is it possible to save a lawn completely overrun with weeds? If so, how?

texts:
My garden is large, but is on a steep slope. It's grass covered and has been landscaped so there's a nice flat area with a tree halfway up. The slope makes it difficult to properly mow and maintain the grass on the slopes.

The soil is generally poor - very high in clay. Right at the top of the garden is an area with a lot of stones which we couldn't landscape or lay turf on.

This area has always been a magnet for weeds. One of the houses next door is rented and the tenants (while otherwise pleasant) don't care for the garden at all and it's a mess of brambles, dandelions and other weeds. Of course, all the weeds growing in these areas spread into my lawn.

Furthermore when we had the garden landscaped the gardeners must have broken up bindweed roots in the soil so the lawn is now full of innumerable small bindweed plants. As if that wasn't enough, the poor drainage of the soil encourages a lot of moss growth during the winter.

The end result of all these factors is that a few years after we had the garden landscaped, and despite our best efforts, the garden is now absolutely full of weeds. There are more varieties than I can count including nasty plants like thistles and briars. There's also quite a lot of wild grass.

I have tried spraying with grass-friendly weedkiller, pulling off seedheads when I find them and doing my best to cut leaves and get roots where possible. But it's a losing battle: it gets worse every spring. This year I think I have more weed than lawn.

Is there anything I can do to save this situation, or am I just going to have to put up with having a semi-wild garden?

EDIT:

Our landscapers were, I suspect, quite inexperienced. They seemed far more interested in the artistry of landscaping than the practical requirements. Although they did a decent enough job with the budget and our requirements, they chose bad ground cover plants for bedded areas and didn't plan well. I suspect they just never considered the possible maintenance overhead of the banks. We have considered ripping them up in favour of artificial grass.

It is possible to get a mower up and down the banks but it's extremely hard work and feels very dangerous. I know mowers have auto-cutouts, but you'd only have to stumble once and you could still have a nasty accident. When you do mow, the slopes and lips up to flat areas makes it difficult not to scalp the grass and actually make growing conditions for weeds better.

There is no barrier at all between us and the weedy garden next door. The steepness of the slope overall makes fencing a difficult and expensive option. So seeds blow over constantly, and spreading plants like briars just grow under the earth and pop up.

I will try and post some photos later.


texts: does fruit tree absorb pesticide and fungicide from the root level and will persist inside the fruit it produce? (specifically lime and date trees)

texts:
The specific situation is where there are two trees -- one lime and another date tree plant among the grass in the backyard where the grass area will get sprayed with conventional pesticide and fungicide for grass as well as the root of the trees.

I wonder in this case, will the chemicals inside the pesticide and fungicide will reside inside the trees' fruits? Even when the chemicals are not sprayed onto the fruits or leaves directly?

Thank you


texts: Are these spider mites on my indoor eggplant?

texts:
Yes, numerous questions on the subject but I have some nice photos. These bugs are running along the webs quite freely so the webs are presumably made by them.

They are on my indoor eggplant and I didn't see them last week. Only saw a few webs. But now they're obvious.

The only hesitation I have in identification is that they're readily visible, though just under 1 mm (1/3 in) in size, but the references I've seen say you need a hand glass to see them.

These photos were taken with a macro lens attached to my phone. I've since soaked the whole plant in neem oil.

As per comment request, here's the whole plant.


texts: How low (and for how long) does the temperature need to be before I need to worry about covering my outdoor vegetable garden?

texts:
I have an outdoor vegetable garden in South Florida. The garden consists of things like tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, peas, and squash. Everything was started from seed about 2 months ago. I don't have any veggies yet but plenty of tall stems with leaves all over the place.

It generally never gets below freezing here, but we do have several days during the winter with relatively low overnight lows, ranging from high 30s to low 40s ºF (or 0–5 ºC). Daytime highs after such evenings are typically in the 50s and 60s ºF (or 10–20 ºC).

I'm told I should cover my garden with some plastic or a sheet in order to protect it from the cold. At what point is the temperature low enough (and how long does it have to be expected to be that low) before I need to take the time to do so?


texts: Is it possible to grow an Acacia variety in Ohio (zone 6)?  I'd prefer to not grow them in a greenhouse, I'm looking for something that will survive the winter (even if I cover it all winter).


texts: What are these brown spots on my cactus?

texts:
My cactus has this brown areas growing across the surface since a week ago. If you try to remove them, they are like a hard skin that comes off, the surface underneath is normal green color but appears a bit wet.
What is it and what can be done?


texts: Tomato plant looks like it has grains of salt - what is it and how do I treat it?

texts:
My cherry tomato plant has been showing some yellowing of leaves over the past week or so. Just today I noticed the formation of these cluster of white granules - not sure if it's connected to the yellowing or not. It looks like grains of salt more than anything else; if it's an insect of some sort, I can't get a close enough look to see any legs.

Can you help me identify and respond to this?

Updates:

They are stationary when poked
They were getting more dense, so I took a toothbrush and knocked them off. They are fairly sticky, so that took some doing. I'll wait to see if they return and examine more closely for legs.
I was able to examine some white granules I'd missed earlier in detail under a magnifying glass, and couldn't find any signs of legs. At this point, the waxy response hypothesis seems like the most likely answer. I'll keep the question open for a few more days to see if the white granules return.

Click on any image for full size


texts: I'm incubating oyster mycelium in a cupboard. When the fruiting bodies come, and they sporulate, will that endanger the cupboard itself ?


texts: Why have the leaves of my Dracaena marginata completely fallen off?

texts:
This might be a duplicate, but as it is not set as answered, I have decided to ask the question again and try to provide some more information.

My Dracaena marginata leaves started to brown, break and then fall off for about three weeks.

I went to a local store, and they gave me some anti-bacterial chemicals. They also suggested that the pot might be too small, so I transplanted it. After one week, no leaves was left:

Is there any chance to save it? Unfortunately, I have been watering it once every three to four weeks. Is this too much?

P.S. I live in Germany, and the window is facing the west. The Dracaena is around one meter (three feet) away from the window.

Update:
Following the advices, I have tried to get some cuttings and stick them in some soil. However, after four days, I have noticed some tiny white areason the cuts (see figure). Are these mold?


texts: Why leaves of my bean plant are as in this photo?

texts:
I've a "new" bean plant (1 month old) in a vase (20 centimeters radius).

I water it every day approximately for 500cl/1 liter of water.

I've used a new topsoil and for 2 times a bio compost (famous on Amazon).

But i continue to find leaves as follows:

What can it be and what can i do ?


texts: How big a lemon tree can I grow indoors?

texts:
I recently (yesterday) received a lemon tree as a gift. It's a little more than two meters tall, and comes with a giant pot, maybe around 50 cm in diameter and height. I'm planning on growing it indoors, but I have two questions about the viability of doing this.

Is this the right sized pot for a tree of this size?
The tree will be facing a very large window, but the top branches, right now, will still be above the height of the start of the window - which means they'll get light, but no direct sunlight. Is this OK? Lower down, this window gets a few hours of direct sunlight every day.


texts: Identify plant with narrow straplike leaves and red flower

texts: We have been having this green narrow leaved plant for years. It flowers occasionally as in the image. Some say it is from the family of bromeliads but its structure looks so different.


texts: Is my snake plant dying or is this normal?

texts: Not sure if this is normal for leaves to die or if it's something else? I repotted this a few months ago and it's generally been doing okay I think, and even has a new growth. However a few weeks ago two of the leaves started to turn yellow. Another one has a dry patch that seems to be spreading. Any recommendations would be appreciated!


texts: Seeking help diagnosing leaf health, pictures attached

texts: Newly transplanted plants both appear to have unhealthy leaves. Seeking help identifying and treating said problem. Help is appreciated ty!


texts:
I have been growing a few varieties of chili pepper (incl. Scotch Bonnets) in my garden since April (Spring). Due to trees, other houses, etc., they only get about 6 hours of direct sunlight a day.

Is this amount of sunlight sufficient? Is there anything I can do to help them?


texts: Could you tell me of what four species these seedlings belong to?

texts:
I have been trying to germinate seeds from a mixed packet of tree/bush seeds:

Holly,
Rowan,
Alder Buckthorn
and Dogrose.

Only these two seeds have been germinating nicely and becoming seedlings. I'm curious which of the four it is, could anyone tell me please? Or is it too early to tell?


texts: Can you eat corn, cantaloupe, and pepper greens?

texts:
I've got a little compost pile that has been sitting for a bit, and all of a sudden an absolute ton of sprouts came up. I have a small garden and transplanted a bunch, but theres still wall to wall sprouts remaining.

So basically these vegetable plants in 3ft area are growing thick like grass, I'm thinking very unlikely that anything will fruit with that level of crowding, and I'm not sure what to do with it.

Off the top of my head I could just let it keep growing and see what happens, or I could shovel chop it all up and kill it so it composts instead of grows, or I could just cut and eat them like greens as they grow if they're all edible. Are they? Any suggestions?

Its mostly corn, cantaloupe, peppers, maybe strawberries. No tomatoes as far as I can tell so far.


texts: Using asiatic jasmine for ground cover/weed control in shrub bed

texts:
If I plant asiatic jasmine under mature hedges, will it choke or kill them?

This is in central Florida, hedges are (I believe) ligustrum and loropetalum.


texts: Zucchini flowers not opening up any longer

texts: Why are my zuchini female flowers staying closed all day and night?


texts: How should I start feeding an indoor plant after over a year's break?

texts:
I have three indoor plants that I haven’t fed for over a year, since I repotted them. They have some yellow leaves and aren’t looking as healthy as they could. I am going to start feeding them with a liquid plant food. The instructions say to use 7 drops for 1 qt (approx 1 L) of water. If I do this, will it take quite a while to build nitrogen levels in the soil before they recover, or will they start looking good quickly? Is there any advantage if I increase the concentration? Is there any advantage if I run lots of food-laden water through them, rather than just filling until it can’t take any more?

I usually water them once a week by watering them until water runs freely out the bottom. This has kept the plants in a pretty good state for around four years, apart from this yellowing.


texts: Need help with identifying peace lily root disease

texts:
My peace lily started dying, it's leaves were turning yellow and then brown from past 2-3weeks. I speculated it to be a root rot. Today, I took out the plant from soil and along with root rot, I found these black webs in the main root bulb. For now, I thoroughly cleaned the roots and soaked the plant in 1:1 hydrogen peroxide-water solution for about an hour. Later transferred it to filtered water.
I am not sure if its just root rot or something bigger which I don't know. Do I need to treat my plant with any pesticides? If yes, please share your suggestions.


texts:
I have a cherry tomato plant that is staked and caged. It is in an outdoor covered patio in South Florida.  It is about 5ft. tall and is producing several fruit. I currently use miracle-gro 24-8-16 biweekly. (I am about to switch to the 18-18-21 since most of my plants have begun to flower.

The fruit and the leaves on the top look great. However some of the bottom leaves have the pattern pictured below. I've been looking everywhere to see what this could be but to no success. I am not overly concerned since the plant is growing fine and is producing fruit.

Anybody happen to know what the cause of this is as well as treatment, if necessary?


texts: How can I cure citrus leaves that have brown dots?

texts:
In the picture you can see brown dots on my indoor citrus tree. I have the citrus tree right next to a window. I also have 3 small citrus trees like this, but only this one has brown dots. I treat them all the same way.

I can remove these dots by hand.

How should I cure citrus leaves?


texts: What can I do with a broken orchid stem?

texts:
I recently bought an orchid for a friend, but a bud stem broke off during transport. I gave out the plant but I still have the stem. The buds aren't very far along.

Can I do something with the stem to give it some life or is it a lost cause?


texts: Houseplant with dark green and cream variegated leaves

texts: Hello! Can anyone tell me what this is! And is it just thirsty or does it need support?


texts: Is large vertical crack on the trunk of a shrub a sign of disease or old-age, and can this be reversed?

texts: I just noticed one of my shrubs in the garden has a huge, vertical crack spanning almost the entire length of the plant. This plant has no issues and had a lot of foliage in previous years. Is this some kind of disease or sign of old age and dying? Anything I can do to save or reverse it?


texts:
I'm considering planting a row of trees primarily for their blossoms (I'm in rural Auckland - occasional temperatures are down to -4°C, typically high of 25°C in summer) - which leads to 2 questions.
Are there any easy-to-grow fruit trees which will have lots of blossoms for a long period like Cherry Blossom trees but also yield edible fruit?
How do clay soils fit into the picture, and how is there a significant difference in maintenance work to the trees ?


texts: Watering a new tree in the middle of new sod

texts:
The landscapers planted a new tree (1 1/2 diameter) in the middle of the sod they also installed. They have the yard set to be watered 3x daily for half an hour at a time (the sprinkler heads are the low-flow Hunter rotator ones).

Is this too much water for the tree? If I tone back the water on the sod will that be too little water for the lawn? Do I need to give the tree a deep watering at some point?

One suggestion I have found is to remove the sod in a 6' ring around the tree -- but doesn't that ignore the fact that there is still water going to that area, and probably even more water to the tree since there's no sod to soak it up?

Edit: Some more information - Yard is in Colorado (very dry, has been in the 80s), with Colorado's typical clayey soil. The tree is a Box Elder.


texts: Do people powered rotary lawn mowers exist?

texts:
I'm looking for a lawn mower to use on an allotment, where there is poor security and no source of mains power. Additionally, the group is trying to reduce it's carbon footprint so would prefer not to use machinery powered by fossil fuels. This suggests a person powered mower would be the best.

However, the grass gets infrequently cut so if often too long for a cylinder mower, and is full of stones which will easily knock the ledger bar on a cylinder mower out of alignment. This will all contribute to it working inefficently.

Additionally, it will mainly be used to cut narrow grass paths between beds so there will not be much space to swing a scythe in. Also it would be best if all members of the group are able to cut the grass, and few might be confident using a scythe.

For these conditions a rotary mower would be best, such as the type found on most domestic electric mowers. A rotary mower can also be used as a mulching mower, increasing the health of the lawn which would be a benefit for a permaculture allotment.

My question is, does a rotary mower exist on the market ( anywhere in the world ) that is not powered by a motor. If not, what are the limiting factors that prevent such a model from being developed. I would assume the power required to reach an operating rpm is too great to be generated by hand.

Cheers in advance.


texts: Is it a fast grower? Can it be planted in zone 9 and in climate that's hot and dry with little rainfall?


texts: I have a Hale Haven peach tree that has leaves turning yellow and falling off. I live in Kansas and we just had so much rain. I have never seen this yellowing before this year. I also have rug laid around the tree to keep weeds out. I don't know what the problem is. It does have leaf curl which I am spraying for.If anyone can help me save this tree I would appreciate it.


texts: What zone should I believe about where I can grow sparkle berries?

texts: I've read on a plant catalog that sparkle berries are good to zone 5, but other places say it's good to zone 4, what should I believe?


texts: Can I grow herbs in a glass bottle with no drain holes?

texts:
I read this page, Mason Jar Wall Planter, and many people complained about the bottles not having drain holes, but many others said that simply adding some rocks at the bottom will fix it.

What do you think? Is it possible to grow herbs in this kind of bottle without drain holes?


texts: Why should I leave my coriander seeds on the plant to dry before harvesting?

texts:
I want to harvest the seeds from a Coriander/Cilantro plant. I would like to pick them now, but investigation on the internet suggests that I should let them dry on the plant. Why?

The plant has bolted so I would like to cut it back to encourage new growth.


texts: My Kay Paris Magnolia has browning leaves, which ultimately fall off. I also notice spotting on the leaves. Neighboring trees have a scale problem, but not much on this tree, which I also put white oil on every so often. Any idea of the problem? Below are some photos.


texts: What are these nodules underneath the leaves of this bush?

texts:
What are these nodules that are underneath the leaves and on the stems of this bush everywhere?

I'm in Georgia in April 2020.

I don't know what kind of bush it is, but you can see from the inset photo that it grows back within months after being pruned.

I don't recall seeing these dots in years past.

Should I be doing anything about this?

If these are pests we should get rid of, we'd prefer an organic way, if possible.

UPDATE: Another photo


texts:
I have a plant that I thought was going to be a strawberry. (No clue what kind was crown gifted to me)

It started growing so I transplanted it to a planter with a plant b that was already established.
Now that it has grown, I'm starting to think it may not be a strawberry plant.

Anyone have any guesses? Have I been growing a nice weed?
Thanks.

NEWIST PICTURES ON TOP
New 5-11-18

Older pictures


texts: Does an injured succulent require amputation?

texts:
Two or three days ago, while moving some plants, I dropped a cork cup holder onto one of my succulents (Euphorbia Enopla, pictured below). The fall caused some of the spines to come off, and the plant exuded a thick white sap, which has now dried up.

The part of the plant that got hit is not starting to look bruised, and while the bruise hasn't evolved much in the past 24 hours, a very similar bruise is what I saw in a succulent of the same type (albeit without damaging it myself) before it ultimately rotted and died.

The bruise is at the tip of one of the branches, which it would be possible be cut off.

I don't know if the bruise will get worse or not. Could the bruise become callused (unless this is a property only cactuses, and not Euphorbia have) and heal? Will it spread to the whole plant and cause it to rot? What is the right course of action to save the plant?

This is the plant previous to the injury. The injury happened on the arm:

This is a photo I took yesterday. You can see the brown spot, about 2mm long, on the tip of the arm:

The last picture shows the injury as it is today, roughly 24 hours later. It hasn't grown significantly, however it looks like it might be getting worse:


texts: How do I control fire ants in the mulch around my tree?

texts:
I live in Houston, TX, USA and fire ants are a nearly year long concern.  I have had success treating mounds with Orthene as they appear.

However, I had a Siberian Elm in my backyard that was infested with fire ants and I never managed to kill the colony.  I could suppress it for a bit, but I would see a new mound within days.  Not long after I started treating the tree and mulch around it regularly, it died (I've removed it since).  It was near the end of it's lifespan (likely 30 years old).

Now I have a colony just starting up on a tree in my front yard (likely an elm as well, though it's much bigger than the other).  In addition, my two year old loves this tree and plays around it constantly.

Here are my questions:

Can Orthene harm my tree?  Even over repeated dosages (a few tablespoons a month)?
Is there a better pesticide that is less likely to harm the tree and my child?  The Orthene is effective, but it is quite nasty.


texts: Will rhizomes that have been in the fridge still grow?

texts:
I have some galangal, ginger and turmeric that have been sitting in the fridge.

Is it still possible to get them to grow, and if so, how?

Update:

I tried ginger, tumeric and galangal.
Initially I tried potting pieces of the rhizomes. After 2 weeks not much happened.

So I took them out and placed them in a container with very shallow water. Less than 2mm deep.

I also bought fresh samples from my local market and placed them in an identical container with shallow water.

I got this idea from Melvin Wei on Youtube.

Results after 8 days

Fridge Samples:

Ginger: Green buds
Tumeric: very little change (I think they are growing though).
Galangal: Greenbuds

Fresh Samples:

Ginger: Green buds
Tumeric: Whiteish green buds
Galangal: Green buds

I took the best pieces and placed them into pots.


texts:
Who/what is eating my mint? What should I do about it? Can I do something organic? I had destroyed my mint a year ago by spraying a pesticide, so I don't want to go that route.

I live in Jaipur, India. The current temperature is 22-35 degree C (70-75 F).


texts: Roots of my new Phalaenopsis orchid are yellow, is it mold?

texts:
I got a beautiful blooming Phalaenopsis orchid as a gift last week (store-bought). This is my first ever orchid. I looked at some videos about care and replanting and I am concerned that my orchid is not thriving.
Since I got it, it was kept in the clear pot on a tray, and placed in front of a window, but not in direct sunlight. It was not watered at all. The window is opened a couple times a day.
My first concern is a white dust or spiderweb on top of the soil. It looks the closest to mold, but I didn't find anything similar online, and I also heard that some types of mold are beneficial for orchids.

My second concern is about watering the orchid. A tutorial for beginners suggested to put a skewer in the pot, and only water the orchid (by submerging the pot in water and letting it drip) when the skewer is completely dry. This should happen about once a week, but my skewer is still wet. That's when I noticed that the roots at the bottom of the pot are green-yellow or white, which seemed wrong. The roots are also partially flat and curved to perfectly fit in the packed pot.
I have removed the orchid from the pot, and placed it in a larger bowl to examine the roots and let it dry. It still holds the shape of the pot firmly, and the bottom 2cm/inch of the "dirt" seem somewhat moist to the touch. Most of the roots are firm, but some roots at the bottom of the pot are soft and "deflated".

Are the two issues related? What should I do to hopefully keep the orchid thriving in the long run? I do not have any specialized fertilizer or equipment at hand and will not be able to buy any quickly.


texts: What plants are complementary to these plants in a crop rotation?

texts:
I would like to know what vegetables would work well in a garden with the following history:

Season 1: Tomatoes (various varieties, (vv)), eggplants, peppers (vv), basil, marigold, asparagus (did not survive)
Season 2: Corn, squash (buttercup and sunburst), pole beans, morning glory
Planned Season 3: Unsure what to plant here, thinking of root vegetables: potatoes, radishes, carrots, and more beans and marigold

I am also open to suggestions for variations on seasons 1 and 2 as I have other vegetable patches at various states in the above cycle.  Suggestions for a rotation of longer than 3 seasons are also welcome.


texts: Why do some tomatoes have a whitish band under the skin?

texts:
I've pinpointed the whitish band I'm talking about with two lines on the leftmost picture below:

In my opinion, the whitish band appears due to overuse of fertilizers (nitrates?) in growing tomatoes. But am I right? Do you happen to have a picture of a sliced tomato grown without any fertilizers?


texts: Would a vernal pond (as either a retention basin or a infiltration basin) be a viable solution for this drainage issue?

texts:
So my backyard is showing some heavy pooling issues. I am in Southern Maine, USA

The lowest point (picture 1) is, unfortunately pretty close to the garage pier foundation, and when the water pools it includes two of the pillars.

My thought is to dig out an area where Picture 3 shows the center of the swale and digging out to the left to move the water away from the building and provide an additional feature to the landscape. This would also involve backfilling some of the area nearest the building to ensure the water is moving away.

  1) Would a solution be to dig out an area to be a pond (either a retention basin or a infiltration basin - Link: Nomenclature reference ), and put in a small channel system to move all the water from the other pictures spot into it?

  2) The lowest point is also near an out-of-use dug well. Would this cause any additional obstacle? Can you incorporate a dug well into a pond?

Some comments asked about the well. The dug well is the brick structure in picture 1 and is out of use. My neighbors and I all used deep drilled wells to pull from the lower
aquifer for our water supply. We also all have personal septic tanks and leach fields.

The land behind the house is a four acre field, but due to the mound for the septic leaching, the slop declines towards the yard, causing the natural swales to form.

I hope to refine the question, perhaps with a little feed back because I am out of my milieu.


texts: What happened? - Chilli plants are developing spots on leaves and the edges are curling

texts:
I found some questions about other chilli plants, but I don't think the leaves look quite the same as mine, though it may be the same as the 2nd question posted.

What is happening to my chilli plant? How can I help it?

Dry brown patches on cayenne chilli plant leaves, leaves starting to curl, tiny black spots

Light brown spots have been developing on some leaves, and some have dry, curled up edges. I have been adding a general fertilizer once a week. I have also been using pyrethrum spary perhaps every 1 and a half weeks. They also have some slow release fertilizer under that mulch.

Edit:

Watering schedule:

Every 3 to 4 days, depending on weather. If it's a hot day I may have to top it up a bit, or they start to wilt.

Fertilizer

Slow release NPK: 15.3%, 4.3%, 5.9%
General purpose NPK: 24.2%, 5.6%, 11.7%

I haven't used the slow release fertiliser since I posted this question.

Pests

On my largest chilli plant, it looks like some of the leaves have been eaten by some bug. But I have checked for pests and can't find any.

Pyrethrum

I don't use this very much since I posted my initial question. I was experimenting with it as a way to control fungus gnats. Pretty sure it does nothing.

Update 2
So I picked Enigma's answers since at the time of acceptting answers it had other information in it.

But yes, everyone appears to be right. I stopped the fertilizer and now, the damaged leaves are still damaged, but new leaves are fine and and the problem has not continued. I will also try getting new fertilizer sometime.


texts: What is this reddish tundra ground-covering plant?

texts: The image is from the Scoresby region of Greenland. I am trying to get a name for the red ground cover plant. The yellow tufts might or might not be a different version of it?


texts: Dealing with overgrown gravel and weed membrane

texts:
I have a 8m x 3m bed in my garden which has a mix of well-established shrubs (Weigela, ornamental cherry, smoke bush, roses), ground cover (ivy and honeysuckle), and red valerian, lemon balm and lungwort.

I recently dug up a snowberry to replace it with a hydrangea, and found that the bed is actually about 20cm of gravel with two layers of weed membrane under it.  It has obviously been there a long time as enough leaf litter and detritus has built up to turn the gravel into poor soil, into which the valerian and the other smaller plants are rooting.  The weed membrane is largely intact and is blocking the roots from spreading into the soil below.

I'd like to clear some of the ivy and try planting some other plants in there.  My aim is to slowly move towards permaculture/forest gardening ideas, growing more edible plants.

But all the roots tangled up in it mean removing the gravel and membrane is extremely difficult (apart from the intrinsic difficulty of shifting large volumes of gravel!)  The soil under the membrane is well-compacted clay with apparently little organic matter.

Any ideas how to deal with this situation?  I had thought of putting a fork down through the membrane to open up some holes and then just planting in the gravel, but it would be pretty poor soil.  Should I focus on improving the gravel and leaving the membrane alone?


texts:
Recently I purchased a Cat Palm (about 3 weeks ago) and its leaves have begun turning yellow. It is definitely an issue with the watering schedule as it has improved right after watering's. The Plant is located in an area where the soil gets direct sun, but the leaves only receive bright indirect. My question is how often should I water my cat palm when the sun seems to dry out the soil quite quickly. Is everyday a suitable option? The plant store said no more then once a week so im worried about over watering. Thanks in advance!
Note: The pot has suitable soil for palms and has proper drainage.


texts: What ingredients in milk make it a good fertilizer?

texts:
During the dead of winter when the temperature was hovering consistently around 32F I took 3/4 gallon of milk that had gone bad and pored it on the grass near the back porch. To my amazement the grass sprouted up like it was summer time in a matter of days. It was dark green and some of it reached about 12 inches before slowing down. Its still chilly out and I started dumping my left over milk from cereal bowls in the same area and the grass turns even darker green within a single day.

What's in milk that my grass loves so much?


texts: Does my very young Eureka lemon tree have leaf disease?

texts:
I have had a small sprout of lemon tree (Eureka lemon, if I trust the label) for a few months, and for the past two it has been looking weak and sick.

In particular, it's not making new leaves (although it did grow a little) and the three existing ones appear sick and dry, with spots on them (see picture). At first, there was also some web-looking white fluff on them, although it seems to have stopped (for a while, I assumed a spider was building its web on the sprout).

I have tried using water enriched with nutrients (this one) for the past month, but it did not seem to improve.

What should I do — any idea?

I can try to get better photos if these ones are of too poor quality: my cellphone is sort of a shame in that regard.


texts: Leaves going uniform brown and chlorosis in Carmine Jewel cherry

texts:
Two problems:
A: Intervenal chlorosis.    This has occurred in two weeks.  The remaining batch of trees at my nursery are unaffected.  That it's new leaves suggests an iron deficiency.  But this developed during two weeks since the client purchases and planted it.

What soil conditions/ or stuff that came with the rocks can induce chlorosis this fast?

What is causing whole areas of individual leaves to turn brown?  Searching for "brown areas" "cherry leaves"  gives me a lot of fungal things that cause spots, but they all produce lesions all over the leaf.  It doesn't look like cherry leaf scorch either.  This looks more like some kind of leaf miner.

Again, this isn't affecting the ones at the nursery.


texts: I found this plant growing in my raised bed, where watermelon and pumpkin were growing last year. It resembles Swiss Chard (has a red vein) but does not have a red stem.


texts: Did the Texas winter storms kill off my bamboo and shrubs?

texts:
The crazy cold weather/snow last month here in Texas has left my bamboo almost entirely yellow and three large woody shrubs/trees in my side yard looking bleak. Is there any hope for either? Should I cut back the woody plants?
Photos can be found here: https://imgur.com/a/0p8vyP1.
I am not sure what the woody plants are called. Thank you so much in advance.


texts: Is harvesting purple potatoes any different than white potatoes?

texts: We are trying to grow purple potatoes for the first time, and the plants look really nice. I am wondering if harvesting them is any different than for white potatoes?


texts: Why are my strawberry leaves turning yellow?

texts: About a week ago I planted a strawberry plant. New leaves are growing fine but the old big leaves are turning yellow. I don't know what the problem is.