Question:When is the best
time of the year to prune Texas Mountain Laurel trees?
Answer:TexasMountainLaurel (Sophora secundiflora) requires little,
if any, pruning.However, if you do need
to prune it, you should do it immediately following its bloom.If it has not bloomed, you should wait until
about mid April to prune.
Question:A friend of mine offered
me some live oak leaves she had raked from her yard. I plan to use them under a
loquat tree and in a Xeriscape area consisting of a desert willow, salvia greggii, lantana and cedar.
Another teacher said that the oak leaves are too acidic to be effective mulch.
He said they may kill the plants. What do you think?
Answer:Live oak leaves
make good mulch for all plants.I use
them extensively.They should be spread
3 to 4 inches deep under and around the plants.Any acidity that they might impart to the soil would only enhance
it.I prefer to have them chopped up by
a shredder or lawn mower but that is not necessary.
Question:Please tell me the
names of the best shade-tolerant, hardy, flowering annuals/perennials, which
are really pretty and showy for a San
Antonio flower bed.
Answer:For show you cannot
beat annuals such as wax-leaf begonia, impatiens and cyclamen.Perennials you can use include Mexican
petunias (Ruellia spp.), Shrimp
Plant, Four O'clock, Turk's
Cap, and Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii).
Question:Can Dahlia's be
grown successfully in our area? I have seen numerous varieties in plant
catalogs that say they are suitable in zones 5 to 9. Any suggestions?
Answer:Dahlias are not
suited for this area because of our heat.The smaller flowered, shorter bedding plant types might survive but the
large ones will not.Those zone numbers
refer to the minimum cold temperatures and not to the heat.USDA Cold Hardiness Zone 8 (which includes
all of our area) can expect cold temperatures not to go below 10° F on the
average.
Special Thanks to Forrest W. Appleton, the http://www.PLANTanswers.com
“Answer Man” and all the Master Gardeners of the “Hotline” in support of the
weekly gardening questions and answers.
Remember, Learn and Have Fun!
David
Rodriguez is the CountyExtension
Agent-Horticulture for Texas
AgriLife Extension Service in BexarCounty.To get questions like these answered, call the BexarCounty
Master GardenersHotline at (210)
467-6575, e-mail questions
to mg-bexar@tamu.edu, or visit our CountyExtension
website at: http://bexar-tx.tamu.edu.
Check this out!
Want to learn how to graft your pecan, citrus or avocado tree?Well come to Fanick’s Nursery on Saturday,
April 18 from 9:00 a.m. till
noon located on 1025 Holmgreen Road.Dr. Larry
Stein will talk about and demonstrate different grafting techniques free to the
public.For more information, please
call (210) 648-1303.
