KTRH GardenLine | 5-6-23

Ktr H Garden Line does not necessarily endorse any of the products or services advertised on this program. Welcome to ktr H Garden Line with Skip richter Son. Just watch him as so many Well, good Saturday morning, on a great day for guarding. You're listening to garden Line and I'm your host, Skip richter our phone number. Please write this down. You never know when you might need to call seven one three two one two five eight seven four.

And why you got the pen and paper out, keep it handy because who knows, we'll probably give you some information you'll want to write down over the course of the morning. Well, I tell you we have that wonderful weather or spring. If those of you who haven't lived in Houston area or anywhere in Texas actually through through a brutal summer season know how much we appreciate mild weather conditions. And boy, is that ever what we're enjoying right now.

We've got some good sunshine this weekend. Good day to be out for gardening. Course, every day is a good day. It's a good day to go out and visit garden centers while we're out and about too. I was, it's what I do it's almost a hobby. I just love to get around. And I tell you, if you've if you've not lived in other areas, you are fortunate to live in an area that has so many great

garden centers. I just sometimes I think probably what we need to do is get a hold of the Chamber of Commerce and we need to have a garden centered tourism promo for the Greater Houston area. In other words, someone would come over here, get anice hotel, enjoy the incredible number of restaurants that rate, restaurants of all kinds that Houston has. And you know, each day you put two or three, Can you get to three in a day? I don't know, not if you hang out and enjoy all they have

to offer. But anyway, you get the idea. We can kind of keep somebody busy for certainly a whole weekend just enjoying the wonderful garden centers in the Greater Houston area. It's time to be out and fertilizing our lawns. And I'm sure we'll talk about that a lot today with callers and everything. But your turf grass is best suited our best. It performs best when you have the right nutrients in the right amount, the right ratios that are there

in the soil. Because the soil is the bank account. I'm a broken record about it. All begins in the soil. Everything happens in the soil. Success for gardening happens in the soil. You'll hear these things. You hear me say, spend money on the brown stuff before you spend money on the green stuff, meaning get the soil right before you put a plant in it. And when it comes to a lawn, this same is true.

Now you don't have an existing lawn that you're going out there in rototelling, But if you have compaction, you're aerating and compost top dressing your soil, you're fertilizing through the course of the seasons. And now is the time to get down fertilizer for that long term, carrying you through the summer period. And that's where we want something that's gonna gradually feed our lawn over time.

Because Saint Augustine, unlike us, is perfectly happy in the big middle of a Houston summer, being outside and in the sun, and it's able to grow very fast in those conditions, a good warmth, and nobody gets super super hot. That's not great. But during or let's say temperatures we would consider a little bit unpleasant to be outside. It's still happy as long as it has sole moisture, which I'll tell you it rains a lot here. And so with a little irrigation from us, and I mean a little,

not a lot, we can keep Saint Augustine happy all the time. But when you over fertilize it with nitrogen, you get a growth response. And that growth response is it looks like this number one. You get a lot of top growth at the expense of root growth. I saw a picture a slide back in the day of thirty five millimeter slides. I remember the first time I ever saw this image. But it was three crocks of nutrient solution and they had a little lid on each one, and into the lid was

planted a turf grass. And so if you set the lid down, you know, it was like the turf grass was growing out of the croc. But when you picked it up, you could see the whole root system hanging down. And there were three there was no fertilizer moderate and then over fertilizing

the nitrogen, and the one with excessive nitrogen. I had lots of top growth, meaning you get to mow a lot, meaning certain diseases and insects are especially fond of your lawn because you've turned it into a life more succulent meal for them. And the other thing was underneath the lid. The root system was very limited, and you would think, well, if nitrogen makes grass grow, why why do we have such a limited root system. Well, it makes the top grow at the expense of the root system when you

overdo it, And so I know that it's our human mindset. It seems that if a teaspoon's good, a tablespoon's better, and that is just almost never never the case. So what you want to do is you want to gradually fertilize through the summer, and that way you get what going back to that image I described the middle croc where there's decent top growth and good color, and there's decent root growth as well. Because when you have an extensive

system, you have a drought resilient turf grass. When you have an extensive root system, a little bit of grub chewing here and there is really of no significance. When you have an extensive root system, the resiliency of that lawn and being able to survive and thrive is just better. So it's kind of like us, you know, I mean eating not eating is not a long term plan. Eating way too much is not a good long term plan, right, But a modern amount of healthy food that's what we're aiming for.

And so I just want to point out that if I'll talk about this more in a moment, because I'm gonna talk about lawn fertilizing quite a bit today, but I just want to point out that when we give recommendations on how much to apply and what to apply, it's for a reason. That is for a reason. Now when I talk about excessive nitrogen, don't think that that means if the nitrogen number and the bag is too high. It's

how much you put down that matters. So you put down a rate of fertilizer so that whether whatever the numbers on the bag, you get the same amount of nitrogen in the soil. That that's what we kind of aim for. And I'll explain that more as we come back here from break in just a moment. Lets just know that, uh, if you haven't fertilized your line yet, it's time to get out there and do it. And the second thing is to return those clippings. And we've talked about that before.

But you're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and the number seven one three, two and two fifty eight seventy four. Everybody had well, good Saturday morning. You are listening to garden Line. I am your host, Skip Ripter, and this is a good day for gardening, as they all are. We were talking before break, by the way, our phone number seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four.

Seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. We were talking before break about lun fertilizing and I'm going to continue on that here for a little bit if I can just do a bit of a soapbox. It's important to have the nutrients you need down in the right amounts. Now, the key to how much we apply of a product is based on the amount of nitrogen

in it. That is kind of what we use as our guide. And the reason we say that is, in general, we look for a fertilizer that's going to have a ratio of nutrients where the nitrogen is higher the phosphorus is lower. And the potassium is in the middle. Now, there are times when that is not an approach ratio where your lawn needs something different.

But in general, if we just like I walk up to your yard, I have no idea what you've been doing, if you fertilized or not, what you used or anything, then I go with one of those ratios. You'll hear me say three one two four one two ratios of nutrients. That's means three times as much nitrogen as phosphorus, twice as much potastum as fosphorus three one two. That's always in that number on the bag. So the

first number nitrogen is what we used to gauge it. And if you'll divide the first number on whatever fertilizer bag is sitting in front of you into one hundred, that tells you how much of it to apply per thousands of per feet of lawn. So a fertilizer that has a higher number, you're going to need less of it because it's more concentrated. Fertilijah has a lower number, you're going to use more of it. And it doesn't make lower or

higher or anything good or bad or whatever. It's just we're trying to get a good dose of nitrogen because that's what pushes the growth now law needs. It's all the nutrients, of course, but nitrogen is the one we used to gauge everything. So that's that's kind of how we do our recommendations. So for example, if you had a fertilizer, let's say that it had a really high nitrogen, like a sixth one too, someone will say, well, that's too much nitrogen. It's only too much nitrogen if you put

too much of it on, you know. It's like think about you can take tile and all you can take regular tile and all extra strength tile, all right, one just has more of the same thing in it, and so you would maybe take less of the extra strength to equal the amount and the regular strength. That think of your fertilizing that way, and that hopefully that simplifies that. That divide the first number into a one hundred and I probably need to post that to Facebook. In fact I will today I want

to get off this show. But you want to just use that as your guide. So when we get into the summertime, it is warm, and the grass is as happy as it's going to be, and it is willing to grow very fast. Now we want grass to have vigor and have good health, but we don't want to mow every other day because it's growing so fast. By the time we wake up in the morning's time to mow again. And so what we do is we use a fertilizer that gradually releases.

And there's a lot of different ways fertilizer can be made to release gradually. There's there's technologies that can be incorporated into a fertilizer to give it a slow release so the nitrogen doesn't all come off at once. Organic fertilizers typically or slow release because they are microbially broken down in the soil to release those nutrients

that we want our grass to have access to. And the slow release is a good good way to go. If if you don't have a slow release, maybe you still have some of you know, like fifteen five ten, which is a faster release fertilizer on hand. And now we're going into summer. Would I would cut that application in half? So I told you how to figure out how much you need, and so if you cut it in half, you can fertilize now and fertilize six weeks later, and you sort

of create your own more even growth rate. It's not as good as a as a slow release fertilizer in terms of smoothness of even rate through the time, but it's still it's still better than just dumping it on all at once. Well, our phone number seven one three, two, one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. We want to hear what you're interested in as we go forward. Today. We

got a lot of a lot of good horticultural things to talk about. But you know, the best, the best radio, I think is when you guys call in, we can talk and and kind of help solve your problem. I'll guarantee you that in an area this large, there are a lot of other people that have the same questions you do, the same kinds of challenges or whatever in the garden, and so you want to be able to I'm gonna be able to answer your questions, and then other people are going

to hear the same the same kind of thing, you know. The hang on just a minute. I've got a little glitch here going on. I believe the phone calls that are coming in are not showing up on my board. So we're gonna we're gonna fix that. Josh gonna come in here and wave a magic wand to fix that for us. So anyway, I was talking about about the law, and I also wanted to mention that this is a good time to get your perennials established. If you can get those established,

then here we go. Then they have a better chance of surviving, doing well, and moving into summer. Okay, the gremlins are out of the system. I think we got it working now. For those of you who have been hanging on while I didn't see you were there, I'm gonna go ahead and get going here, Terry in Beach City, let's see all right, Josh, I gotta get in here one more time. Oh, there we go, Terry, good Lorning, good morning. Sorry for the glitches. How can we help? Okay? I had an area where bamboo

was had been growing. To cut it down, used to stump grinder to bust up the root of clusters, and I killed the area. How long should I wait before I come back and plant maybe magnolia trees. Well, even when you grind it and do all that, there's still a lot of wood in the ground in that spot. Okay. And so generally we don't put a tree right back in there, because the stump grinder takes care of

the stump. But there's a lot of huge roots that are just outside that area, depending on how wide they grind, and so I usually like to move over a little bit just to get away from that immediate area. Now there's there's no problem if you take care of the plant and get it in and get it established and going. It's just here you got a new plant trying to get started, and there's a lot of roots that are going to rot in the ground, but they're not running yet, and so it just

it just gives it a little more time. Okay, well, I really need to use this eric, so we're using it for a screen. My neighbor's big butts barn so speak. So I need to go in that area, so I can wait if I need to. Okay, well, but if if you can get all the wood chips and stuff you can out of there as you do that, how far over could you move or do you have to be right in that spot? It probably has to be in that spot, all right, Well, then just go ahead and go for it.

I tell you what I probably would do if you don't have a need to get a tree out right now in that spot, and you could wait until fall. That is an excellent time to plant, and it would give the wood that's there time to at least begin the decay decay process, and I think it'd probably be a little better off. So why don't we hedge our belt by doing that? If you can wait on the planting. Okay, let that area sit, don't do anything to it and wait till the

hall. You know you don't. I might throw a little nitrogen on there and kind of water it in good do that a couple of times, because nitrogen helps the carbon in the wood helps microbes decompose it. You need that carbon and nitrogen. So if it's all just wood chips at rotsbury slowly, you had a little nitrogen that speeds things up a little bit. So I mean, you know you're not nuking it with fertilizer, just a couple of times like it like it was a lawn area and you were fertilizing. That's

about right. Okay, Well, appreciate your help. All right, thank you very much. Appreciate the call. Uh let's go to Ralph in northwest Houston. Now, good morning, Ralph, good morning man. I'm sure glad to have you. I've been here. Well, listen to this program was sent ahead to house, come into a street and now yeah, well, anyway, I've been trying to follow your ship schedule. But my Saint Augustine has some bootle patches that are needs some help, and I have I

don't know, I guess I have to and then fertilize or whatever. Alrighty, have you done any aeration lately? No? Okay, Uh have you fertilized this year yet? No? I haven't. All right, good, Well, we want to get some good fertilizer down and and you would it would it would do you well to put out a release a fertilizer that is going to help kick that lawn into some vigor. And I tell you, I tell you A good one to use for that would be uh, the

Slow and Easy by Nelson plant food. Uh. Nelson Slow and Easy is designed for summer, and I like the way it releases slowly. We got other options for doing that, but the folks Nelson and developing that really designed it to to give that gradual release to help your long to do its best. And so that that would be something I would do now. No, it's a twenty two two ten fertilizer. That's the numbers on the bag. So you only need five pounds per thousand square feet to do well to do

what you wanted to do. The other thing I would ask you would just be do you do you have any um? Do you have any disease problems that have been plaguing it in the past? Or is it just now losing that? Yeah, it's not the dress. Is I had real wrong runners? But I yes, okay, and I can't get it to just all I'm fighting that I don't know, Okay, Yeah, tell you what. Hang on, I'm gonna put you on hold and come back to you right

after the break. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter in the number seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. Isn't well, good morning on a good Saturday morning for gardening. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and our phone number. Write this down. We got the board's working now where I can see you when you call. It is seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. And we're going to head back let's see, we were visiting

with my who do we have here, Ralph? I believe we had Ralph Northwest Houston, all right, Ralph. We were talking about your fertilizer and I was mentioning, you know that you put out a product that will give you a good gradual release over time, and I think that that should take care of it. The only thing where we were going and with the conversation was about diseases. Do you have you had disease or insect problems in that law and in the past, Oh no, not really, Okay, little

packages of this, and I can figure out what to do that. If you feel like it might be compacted, you know, you go out there and uh, it's a place where people walk or you know, pets or vehicle traffic or anything that would really speed up the compaction, then aeration. I definitely would would do that. There's never it's never wrong to erate. I mean, it never hurts, it always, it always is helpful.

But sometimes it's more needed than others. So I can't I can't predict you know, how compacted your lawn is, but I can tell you that if you if the spots are just little small patches, there's a number of things that could be and I don't know that I'd run out trying to treat diseases and everything right now, just for a few small patches, I think fertilizing them, giving a good, good soaking, get that fertilizer in the ground will do the best thing in terms of getting bigger, so it closes over

those patches. All right, I got you. That's I do appreciate you, man. Okay, well, thank you for the call. I appreciate that, Ralph. Now we're going to head out to Willis and talk to

Mike. Good morning, Mike, Good morning. Are you today? I'm well, thank you now that I got the gremlins out of the air waves here and I can actually see that callers are calling U. So you're talking about the fertilizer guard me thinking, I fertilized my law for the first time this year, back in February, and I do the whole bag between my front yard and my backyard, and I experienced the issue that you were talking about earlier, a lot of overgrowth, great growth, but then a lot

of overgrowth. They had to go back with a rake and rake everything up. Yeah, So my question is I'm not too sure exactly how big my lawn is. It's from the front in the backyard. What setting would you come in on those little spreaders that we use? Boy, yeah, if you what what kind of product brand are you using? What's the company? I still want? I'm on the still the rainy levit schedule with the nitric clause. Okay, all right, So there ought to be on a bag

some guide there for you. As far as the setting. The problem is, I can't tell you the setting because different sizes of fertilizer particles require a different setting on the on the on the fertilizer spreader, and you need the one that fits whatever, depending on the fertilizer spreader you own and the fertilizer you buy. That's what determines the setting. And so it can it can be all over the board in terms of what number would be the right one,

depending on you know, those those things. So I would I would just do your best guess at that, but it should be on the bag. If ever you're in doubt, always go lighter, because you can always come back over the lawn a second time, even at the same setting or

even a lesser setting, and you sort of head your bet. That way, if you put too much out, you run out a fertilizer before you finish the lawn, well that's a problem, right, So, but I think your situation was the other It was that it was it was too much was going out. So just just either look on the bag or go on the website Night Fuss Fertilizer website and you should be able to find the number.

Sir. All right, Mike, thank you appreciate the call. Let's see, we're gonna now head out and we're gonna go to Michael and Cyprus. Good morning, Michael, Good morning. How can we help? Oh? Yeah, I'm interested in compost top dressing. I know Randy Lemon had mentioned in the pad that's never too late or too hot to do it. But what kind of precautions do I need to take to it at a hotter

month, say right now or beginning of June. If you've got a good quality leaf mold composts, and that means good quality means it's it's been thoroughly you know, decomposed. Uh, there's not going to be a problem with that with the seasons. Now, I wouldn't put it down an inch deep, you know, on on the line. Of course, that's not a top dressing. That's an inundating but you can you can put a quality compost

like that down any time of the year. Okay um. Now, in regards to the new side, I've recently laid about a palette of a new side in a dog pin area. Okay, um, do I need to put composts on that or a void putting compost on that as well? Uh? How recently like the last two weeks? Yeah, in the last few days, Okay, I would I wouldn't top dress set. I would get it rooted down, give it a give it at least two weeks to root in well, and then begin to lightly fertilize it. And I think that

would be the best way to go. At some point in the summer. You could do the compost top dressing. That's fine, but let's just let it get rooted in and not add too much in the mix at this early stage. Okay, I appreciate it. Thank you for your ope. All right, Michael, thank you for the call. You're listening to Garden Line. I'm your host, Skip richter our number. Please write this down you don't want to forget it. Seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy

four. Well, good morning, good Saturday morning on a good day for gardening and a good day for talking about gardening. On the radio. You're listening to garden Line and I'm your host, Skip Richter Our number seven one three two one two five eight seven four, and we are now going to head out to conrow and talk to Bill. Good morning Bill, Hey, hey, Skip, good morning to you. Two. Is you are called you last week about take all patch. I guess it's also called take all

root rot correct. And I put down pro piconozole for teen okay three, and I put down a slow release fertilizer and with urea because I think that would help change the pH where will make it more acidic. And then I was reading similar about this, and my question is as the oxy as oxystroban is another thing that I heard was putting really quite good for for this. Is that correct? That's right? As I understand, Yes, yeah,

yeah. As oxystroban is a newer, I guess, a newer chemistry than propiconozole that you mentioned, and it is a systemic and it's very very effective because it gets in the plant and continues to provide some benefits. So if you know you have put that down, how long what plays? How long should I wait before you know? Having done the one, do I need

to wait before I put the next the augie down there? You know, I would probably I would probably give it about four weeks before I put it down put the azoxy following it. But take all root rod is primarily at least the turf scientists pathologists are telling me it's primarily infecting in the fall, in the spring, the cooler seasons of the year, and not so much in the summer. We see the results in the summer because as grass has lost roots, it's unable to tolerate the summer as much. But I don't

think you need to be doing the fungicide on that in the summertime. Does it just go dormant or does it dying or what? I don't know. It's just the pattern of its affecting things. It's kind of like that, you know, the big brown circles we used to call them brown patch, that they're in the lawns. That's a cool season issue also, and when it gets hot, that fungus just doesn't have the ability to, you know, do what it would do in the spring, but I'm take all round

all year. But it just that the treatment times or primarily fall in spring. All right, we're I guess we're still in spring for a couple of months. Really, yeah, we are. And actually, you know, the propiconazole, you know, as I'm thinking about it, it's gonna do fine, And I might just wait now and then do the next treatment in the fall, I think. Okay, that was my next question is how

many treatments is well, one a year in general is enough. But if you're trying to get started started up early on and now you're switching products, that's why I would have the two this year. But anything you do to acidify the soil surface, you're not going to change a pH of all the soil, but just up there where the Saint Augustine runners are sitting, if you acidify that area, it gives the grass the advantage over take all root rot being able to thrive. Okay, very good. Does a moony sofiate

work for the acidifying you know, it's been recommended in the past. That's a twenty one zero zero row fertilizer. If you feel like you have all the nutrients you had need in your lawn. There's nothing wrong with that. Uh. There are a number of acidic type fertilizers and a microlife makes a six two four in a red bag. That's that's uh more ascetic. Uh.

And it's not going to change the phure. So but we're just we're just pushing, we're leaning, We're leaning everything toward a little high lower pH up there on the runner. Uh. Sometimes people have recommended other things, you know, light sulfur applications and so on. Okay, you know a lot of my neighbors got hit by the same thing. And one guy had a guy out held a long guy and he was my neighbor. Said he said it was this was all caused by the freeze. Um no, how

does that work back? You know, back in February twenty one, we saw some damage to some lawns from freeze. But in general, uh no, this is not this is just an opportunist disease. Disease. It's around all the time. It's the most common thing I see on saying in Augustine and so as Ron gets stressed, the disease has the opportunity to move in and infect the patient, if you will. He's pulling out all the dead stuff and adding dirt to the to where he pulled out the dead stuff.

Does that make Does that make sense too, or do you need to do that? No, just just get the dead stuff out of there so the new side can sit on the soil rather than sitting on top of dead stuff. If you're having to add some yet, but you're you're not gonna you're not gonna rake it out. It's it's ubiquitous and so all right, yeah, all right, all right, Hey, very good. Takes a lot.

Yeah, thank you for the call. I appreciate that you were listening to garden Line, and Mike, I appreciate you hanging on so far, and we're gonna have to ask you to hang on just a little bit more. We're gonna go to break here. You'll be first up and Ron and Deer Park you're next, if you'd like to be on seven one three two one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two. Kt r H ktr H Garden Line does not necessarily endorse any of the products or services

advertised on this program. Welcome to kt r H Garden Line with Skip rictor just good Saturday morning on a good day for gardening. And to start off, maybe a cup of coffee and some garden line on the radio. You know, I wanted to mention on Saturday the thirteenth, that is next Saturday, day before Mother's Day, Arburgate is having a special event and you really need to go check it out. I'll tell you more about it later, but I'll be out there. I'll make a two hour appearance at the table,

probably be there longer than not. But anyway, that's out at Arburgate in tom Ball area. They have quite a shindgg going. So let's start by going now to Mike as promised in spring. Good morning, Mike, Good morning, Skip Skip. So I'm a retired now and I finally have time to do all the right things that I want to do in my vegetable garden. And so one of the things that I do is I grow sweet corn, and I have about seven rows fifty feet long, and then they

are looking beautiful. Now, the problem is a lot of times I get that warm right up in the top. And I've been doing some reading and I don't mind using kim when when I have to. Okay, um, so what would you what would you recommend for not having worms? And I think timing is very critical. All that that's right, That is right. So you got a couple of options. Uh, you can there is a

BT granule that you can sprinkle into the whorld. You know, as corn comes up, it's like it's this like hollow tube in the in the top. You can sprinkle a BT into there. And because these critters are feeding, the eggs are laid and they're feeding out there at times, and so that that's one thing you can do. The other thing is when the silks come out of the top of the ear and they're only, oh, let's say two inches long, just put a couple of drops of like a mineral

oil. You can use a vegetable oil to just a couple of drops to gum up all those little silky strand at the base. Because the the moth lays egg and the caterpillar that hatches crawls in the tip of the year. And when you do that, you create a caterpillar killing zone there. They can't take that that oil all around them and it doesn't affect your your corn, it doesn't affect pollination. It'll still all work. But you know you're not drenching it. You're just putting a few drops right in the tip of

the year after the silks are about two inches long. Well, I am talking about a lot of corn. Okay, so this is just a little batch. Yeah, well it's it's it's fifty rows and I have seven rows. Yeah, a lot of us probably. Well you said you're retired. What else you got to do? Well, you know what, I'm so busy. I don't have more any time to do anything. All right, Well, all right, so we're gonna I'll back off. If that's a little you got a lot of corners, that's pretty tedious, So you would

just I would just go with a BT. But you're gonna need to do BT. If you're gonna do a spray that works, well, but you're gonna need to do that about probably twice a week for a little while here as it gets started, because BT doesn't last but about a date or two in the environment. And you know you want to get at times, so you get it on there. So when the worms are hatching and starting to do what they do, you can you can shut them down, and that

time is about two inches of the silk. Well, no, you would, I would be spraying the BT when the corn is you know, like waist high or even even smaller depending on Just look. You'll see that you'll see holes in the leaves as they're coming out of the top of the cornstalks, as it's growing and getting taller, and that's a sign that those caterpillars are that there are caterpillars out and about Yeah, how about spinosa? Spinosa is fine? I don't know. It depends on the product as to whether

or not it's labeled for corn a vegetable garden. I know there's a Captain Jackson makes a spinosa and Monterey makes a spinosa. There's a lot of spinosa's out there, but just check that label to be sure. But it works on anything that choosing eats leaves, so that would definitely include the caterpillars. Very cool. Then I'll appreciate you. All right, thank you, sir, Good luck with the corn. All we ask is that you drop a bushel off at KTRH Studio and we'll call it each yea, so alrighty by

blast. All right, let's head out to Deer Park now, by the way, our number is seven one three two one two five eight seven four. We're gonna talk to Ron this morning. Good morning, Ron, Hey, good morning. I appreciate you taking my call. Actually one question turned to two. So the first one, my main question was, I use about a three core inch thick mulch on the soil, on natural bark mulch, but I know it's that underneath that, it's still the soil is really

hard on tom. Okay, and that's curious. What I could do to you know, is that is that? Should that be expected? Okay? And what is an alternative? And then the second question, you've mentioned something about something too of a ward off takeoff patch because I have a problem with it. It seemed like every year, you know, Yeah, I'm not sure exactly how to address that. Okay. Well, they're trying to stay away from any heavy chemicals or anything like that. Okay. Well, um,

let's take those one at a time. Did you mean to say three quarters of an inch is as deep as the mulchos? Yes? Okay, Well I you need more. I would have, you know, two inches or depending what is the bed? Is this a flower bed or a shrub bed or what? Yeah, it's it's makes a flower in shrub. Okay, I would at least do a two inch malt if it's a pretty fine textured mulch, and if if you get real chunky, you might even have to go a little deeper than that. Because we're trying to block the light

out. You always want to leave the mulch and just add new malts. And so if you're planning flowers, just pull that old malts back when you plant, pull it back around them, and refresh with a little bit on top. But the old malt, as it's decomposing, is working at the

soil surface, and it's helping to loosen the soil. So one other alternative might be run to go ahead and use a compost as a malt, maybe an inch if compost as a malt, and then if you want to put some wood, you know, decomposed wood on top of that as a malt, that's fine. But that compost at the soil surface will go a long way. And then each time you're replanting something like flowers, you know that's going to get worked into the soil surface a little bit, just inherently as

you're digging into pulling up an old plant putting in a new one. And so I think that would be the pathway to having a better situation there. Okay, So go with a compost about a minute, about an inch, about an inch initially, and you kind of scratch that in to an inch, so you got an inch on top and scratch it in and then finish with a mulch on top of that. And I think you're going to have we're gonna have to we have to run to break. Let me come back

and I'll jump on the take all part of your question. You are listening, I'm gonna put you on hold here, Ron, you are listening to garden Line our number seven one three two one two five eight seven four. Get to meet you guys and get to see some cool stuff. We're going to head out to Deer Park now and we are going to talk to Ron. Hello, Ron, thanks for waiting, Yes, sir, just waiting that you're gonna let me know about what to put down to us, you

know, as a permititive or something or take the take all? Right, okay, Well there's two ways to go by take all, but both ways begin with cultural practices. If the soil is compacted, that needs to be

alleviated with coreperation and compost top dressing. If the area is very shady, that's st as the grass, and it may not be a spot for grass, or it may be that you can improve on that a little bit when we use products that stress the grass and a lot of the weed control products when the weather gets hot, the post emergence can stress the grass and that predispose go ahead. Okay, So the thing that you want to do from a control standpoint, if you'd rather not use a fungicide, you can put

peat moss out. And this has been done in two A and M tests and been successful, and we haven't quite turned the corner on it to where it's just an automatic recommendation. We're always really cautious to make sure that the data is correct. But if you put about one compacted bale of peat moss per thousand square feet and water it in that acidic environment around the runners, really helps suppress take our root rot. Uh. And so that would be

a compressed bale. So just think of like a hay bale, but but a bag of compressed pete. You have to break it up into a wheelbarrow, make little piles around the yard and then and then spread it around uh. And that would be the non UH. That would be the more organic way. Of course, acidifying fertilizers help. Even an application of sulfur to the lawn can be helpful. But but that would all be part of that

cultural effort. Well, where where would you find the bag the bailed Pete Moss in So you're going to find it in any of the good garden centers. If they don't have it, they're gonna be able to order it for you. Uh So, you know, you what, what's the what is the closest place you like to shop? I don't know, I'm in your parks. I mean we have mows nursery and then a couple of box stores, home depot at loads. I'll tell you what. I would check with

one of your local Ace hardwares too, U the Ace hardware. If they don't have it, they probably can get it. Go ahead and ask them see if they get it in. If not, Moss Moss probably could order it and get it in for you as well. But just think about a bail per thousand, So just figure out about how many thousand square feets you want to cover and that that would be the next approach for it, along

with a little bit of stuffer. Is that like a hay bail? Yeah, it was like a bag of soil, but it's square and hard. You remember when coffee used to come in those little vacuum packed breaks. That's what I'm talking about, but on a big, like three point eight cubic foot bag, and when you fluff it up, it becomes a lot more than that you have to break. Okay, Yeah, it's okay, it's like that coffee excepted. Okay, excellent, good thank you very much.

Yeah, good luck. Appreciate that. I shall thank you. Ye bye bye. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and our phone number is seven one three two one two five eight seven four

seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. We're talking about lawns and fertilizing lawns, and I was talking about the ratio of the numbers on the bag, why we put nitrogen on, why we don't put too much nitrogen on, and you just in general, you want to get your lawn soil to the condition where when that grass needs anything, it's there and it's

in the right amount. You know, some nutrients, when they become excessive, they inhibit the plant from being able to take up other nutrients because they make those nutrients, they change the form of the nutrients. So for example, okay, nerd alert here, we're gonna go a little nerd alert. But I just want you to understand the concept. If you have high pH and super high phosphorus levels, iron becomes less available and so you get iron

chlorosis on your grass. Even though there's plenty of iron in the soil, the plant can't get it. And that's why I like to recommend soil tests, because when you do a soil test, you find out what is in my soil, and then you can fertilize accordingly. In general, you know, I've I did a study one time in northwest Austin where we looked at two hundred homes. We soil tested everyone, and there wasn't a single home

that needed phosphorus. I'm serious, two hundred. Now, that's not necessarily normal for it to be that crazy overwhelming, But in general, phosphorus is generally not needed much a little. It's an essential nutrient, but most soils are going to have some, but maybe not your lawn. So with a soil test, you find out what you have and you can fertilize you know,

accordingly, And that's that's what we're talking about. If you want to get your soil tested, you can go to soil testing one word soil testing dot TAMU, dot e DU. That is a state soil testing lab up in College Station, and there's a farm there you fill out. You want the urban soil test. And that's not because we're in Houston. I mean, you can be out in Timbuck two on one hundred acre farm far from civilization. You still want the urban soil test. If you're doing lawns and

gardens and landscapes. That's really what that means. I wish they called it something different, but anyway, they don't. So this isn't the farmer's soil tests. This is the urban soil test. Fill out that farm, tell them you know, I'm growing roses. There's a box to check I'm growing saying, you know grass, I have a vegetable garden. And then when the results come in, it will be geared toward what you are growing in

that spot. And you don't have to soil test every year. I mean every few years is fine, but it just helps you fertilize more intelligently. And in the meantime, we give you the rule of thumb and you're not going to go wrong. I mean, you can go fertilize with the rule of thumb for five years in a row. That's fine. Just occasionally you do need to check and soil tests to get the best results from that.

That's kind of what we're aiming for, because everybody wants to have a beautiful lawn, right, I mean, you know we it's it's like an American tradition. We we love our lawns, and I know there's a movement towards, you know, having less lawn and doing other things. And hey, it's your yard. Do what you want. I mean, it's your property. As long as you and the homeowners association can get along on it,

then have fun. But in general, people want a beautiful lawn. They want it to be uh just attractive, evenly green and the carpet of the landscape. That's basically what a lawn is. That's your outdoor carpeting, and so having it good and beautiful is important. Our number one cause of law problems. Um uh. If you want to see the number one cause at lawn problems, we need to go look in the mirror. It's we we tend to to miss take care of our law. We you know, our

fur furizing is uninformed and sometimes illly timed. H We uh have compaction that we don't alleviate on the lawn. We overwater Oh my gosh, do we ever overwater our lawns in Houston? Uh? It is? It rains a lot here, but we still water like we lived in El Paso U. And you know all the things we do to to predispose problems. I talked about overdoing the nitrogen and having issues with that. That's the problem. You

know. Just take care of your grass, return the nutrients, follow our guidelines, use the kind of products we're talking about, and you can have that kind of beautiful dance and healthy and healthy lawn too. Let's head out now we're gonna go to the phones as John in Lafayette, Louisiana. John, how are you today? Great? Just raining a lot crazy over here right now? Is it all right? Yeah? And you're listening to Guardline

on the radio or on their computer on my computer? Well, yeah, I phone too, sore fron Okay, good well, glad you listen. How can we help? Yeah? I lived over ju Snarrea for like forty years, you know, I always kept up my yard and never think with the nitrofoss products. And since I moved over here my yard, the weeds are just going crazy. Now I'm not sure how to get started on it

because I cannot find the nitro foss products over here. Okay, use I was going to have any ideas what I can do to get get the weeds

under control anyway. Yeah, So if you're not finding the products we talk about here, the nitro fist, the Nelson's, the microlife for example here for your lines, just find something that has a three one to ratio three times as much of the first number as a second, half as much or twice as much of the third number as a second three one two, and you'll find that a lot of numbers like fifteen five, ten is a real common one that you see out there. And I would fertilize at the rate

we recommend. You can follow the schedule that's available online. And as far as the weeds, you have two options. You can start fighting them with sprays, and if you're going to do that, you need to do the broad leaf spray right away because it's about to get way too hot for applying those things. Or you could just mow it and ignore it and work on mowing, watering, and fertilizing to bring that lawn back and choke out most

of the weed problems. And then you may have some treatments for the others. But when you get into the fall, you want to put a pre emergent down to stop the seeds that are going to carry you all through the winter. In spring, the weed seeds that are going to do that. And I think in general that those guidelines are is how I would go about it. Just you can make that choice. But I'm about to have to go to a break here. Did that cover your question? Yeah, I

believe so. But the fifteen to fifteen five ten, that's a fertilizer, right, yes, sir, that would be an example of a three one to ratio product. Okay, all right, Hey, thanks for listening and Lafayette and I appreciate you giving us a call. You're listening to garden Line. We're gonna go to break, but Greg and Pinehurst will catch you right when we come back. Spirit Well, good morning on a good Saturday morning for gardening. We love to talk about things that are gardening related. I'm

going to head back out. I still got John there on the line and Lafayette johnre do you ever a follow up? No, I don't, okay, id't know. I didn't know I was still on the line. I'm sorry, no problem, that's okay, thank you for your call. Let's head to Pinehurst. We're gonna talk to Greg Well. Hello, Greg, Hey, Skip, how you doing so? My yard is looking phenomenal thanks to you and Randy Hobby. I've got about a hundred foot of fence privacy

fits that I went to line with m Probably I'm thinking cherry laurels. The only other thing I could think of would maybe be Eagleston hollies. But I really like the cherry laurels. I'm just afraid they're not going to get tall enough. How tall do cherry laurels typically get. They get tall enough. I've seen even the Brighton tight, which is a more compact grower, I've seen at twelve fifteen feet tall. So in time, okay, that time perfect? Okay, yeah, in time obviously in their fast gros. And

then one more question about that. Could I was thinking to kind of just add a little color maybe on the ends of each of one hundred foot each side, put like a vitex or something is that we play well together a vitex in tery level. Well, you know, you wouldn't want to get them too close together. But the vitex is deciduous, so it's going to be your summer color. You would just have to keep that trimmed in order to maintain uh some appropriate size for what you want to at a vitex,

you know, Santonio. The other day I saw some vitexes that were two stories high. That's one of the tallest vitexes I've seen. So they get big in time, but in general they can be kept. I have one at my house that's about it's probably about ten feet tall. I've been kind of keeping it at that size, just with some judicious pruning, so you have a range there. And then what one more question in my beds,

I call it, can call it a bed um, it's um. There's this area that I would love a landscape or tell me he thought a Japanese maple would be a really good kind of ornamental tree. Okay, because it's a very very low shade. Um, but I'm afraid it's almost got too much shade. How much can a Japanese like how much sunshine. Does a Japanese maple apps actually need excuse me, Yeah, that's that's hard to be

precise with an answer on that. They if they, if you were to ask a Japanese maple, it would love a little morning sun and then some dapples shade throughout the day. Uh, if you if you put it in too deep of a shade, if it's deep enough, it's not going to do well go downhill. But if it's it's at least going to be more sparse. It's gonna be a little more thin, just because it's not getting

that light. So sure, it comes down to foot candles and time greg In other words, you know, a good little morning sun goes a long way and keeping a plant boosted, but a bright shade all through the day can essentially be the equivalent. And you know, think about the solar rays, you know, like rain coming down and so how hard is it raining and how long does it rain? Right, and so that determines how to

train you get And the sun is similar. And so it's not to say you can get a whole day requirement in an hour of blazing hot sun. It's just to say that if the shadier it is the brighter it needs to be, and the longer of a somewhat bright time during the day you have for it to do well. Okay, Yeah, I just want to set

it up for success. And I'm still not sure it's the right spot for really anything to grow because I had some the builder had put some I think box woods or something there, and they just die because it just does die. And it's got very go kind of poor drainage. So maybe I shouldn't put anything there. I don't want to buy a Japanese maple in it die in a year. So yeah, yeah, they're they you know there, they come at a price. The yeah, I don't know that. I

think the drainage. I mean, look at how you fix that, because there are a lot of good things in the sun. There's bears breeches, which is a nissa canthus makes a tall spike. It's an unusual perennial. Uh there ish I had one in my head just a moment ago. Oh. The oak leaf Hydrangia makes a very large, pretty bush. But again you don't put it in a swamp. But but it'll appreciate a moist area. It likes wet feet. Yeah, and you know, just wherever you

know, wherever you do your shopping. I mean you're not too far from A and A, are you? Or are you pretty far from Yeah, it's up in Montgomery actually, uh yeah, no that's not too far. I'm really I'm close to plants for all seasons in the arbor Gate. But I think, okay, well, hey, any of those places are going to be able to point you to some things that I wouldn't list here if I talked for an hour. You know that that they care, yeah,

and so. And also down at Nature's Way they have a nice plant selection now and a lot of natives. So if you're interesting something a little native, they may have something that works well in the in the shade for you. But those yeah, okay, yeah, the places you mentioned that you're gonna be able to come home with something good. And my landscape for actually used to work for plants for all seasons, so he definitely knows what he's

doing. But kind of like you, it's kind of like he can, I have so many ideas in his head, right, so hopeful, Well, yeah, I know it's it's it's always hard, off the top of the hat to think through a billion plants and come up with one. Sure. Yeah, I tell you I'm gonna be at Arbourgate next Saturday. I'll be there over I think it's eleven thirty to one thirty. I believe it's

the time. Uh and uh yeah, that's right. And if you want to take some pictures of that area from different angles, just kind of let me see it. Maybe I could give you a little bit better answer on how the maple would do there. Just absolutely bring them on your phone. Already you're going to be there, so yeah, it will definitely come out. Oh it's gonna be a blast. I mean they're gonna have Balini's I mean, you know, so it's gonna be it's gonna be art in the

garden part. I'll bring my two year old. All right, there you go. All right, thank thanks for the call. Greg. I appreciate that you're listening to garden Line and our phone number if you want to get on the board during break seven one three, two, one two five eight seven four you did the same, being well, good morning on a good Saturday morning for gardening. You're listening to garden Line our phone number seven one three two one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two fifty

eight seventy four. We're gonna head out now to northwest Houston and talk to Frank. Morning Frank, Good morning, Skip. I have a problem with my peach tree. I'm gonna do the harveys, but all the limbs are horror zone. So not all of them, but you know, most of them is kind of you know, grouping on the ground. Okay, I prop these limbs up a time up after iluma harveys. Yeah, you kind of need to. The weight of that heavy load is going to bend them

down, and they're generally bounced back. But if if they're weighted down for long enough, the limb just kind of doesn't fully bounced back, And so I would do that. I would also look at the way you prune to try to you want to create an open bowl with your tree pruning. So your peach tree looks like a bowl or a chalice, if you will, but it's it's open. It allows light in the center, but it's not hanging so far out because as those branches go way too far out, Frank,

you're gonna end up getting sun skald on the branches. There's gonna be a lot more suckers growing straight up and water sprouts off the shoots that are not productive growing back in the middle of the tree. So kind of aim for about a forty five degree angle on all those branches, maybe sixty degrees going out, and that would probably be about ideal. So it wouldn't be a provate to prom at this time. Oh no, I would prop them now and get the get the fruit off that you can. How close to

harvest do you think you are? Is this a real early peach or not about this time tomorrow? Oh my gosh. Okay, no, don't do anything. Just get prop the branches. You don't want them broken, and then when the harm when the all that's done, then you can try to, you know, get things back into the shape you want them. Do any pruning minor pruning that you might need to do to keep those uh, water sprout suckers coming up through the middle of the tree. As we go

through the rest of the summer, do I continually see this tree? You know? It depends on the growth. How old is the tree? How many years in the ground. Oh, it's been in the ground about three years. Okay, so you're you're hitting the productive age of the tree. Now it's kicking in on good good production, good production, So I would I would let the growth guide you. At the end of a season on a peach tree, you should have about eighteen to twenty four inches of new

growth on the shoots. If it's more than that, you don't need to fertilize so much. Back off. If it's less than that, it could use a little extra fertilizer. So with that heavy load of fruit, it's probably not doing as much growing as it could. But if you're seeing some vigor, now I would hold off on the fertilizing. Okay, I think that's provided. But you say, profit don't wrap it, you know, to string around it or something. Well, yeah, you could do the

I wouldn't you know, do the string. I knew a peach orchardess that had banded his trees to hold them up like that, using a kind of a plastic type strap banding. But you don't want it to cut into the branches. But I think you're in good shape. But hey, Frank, if you've got that many peaches, you need to bring me about a bushel maybe bushel and a half, and drop them off at the station. Because

you got too many. I have to take some off your hands. Well, I bring you with the squirrels, so only oh my gosh, well that's gonna leave me hungry. Hey, thanks for the call, appreciate that. Let's go out to northwest Houston and we're going to talk to Mike. Good morning, Mike, Marty Skip. I just had a drip system put in my flower beds in my f you know, in my front yard. Yes, and they put the drip system in it kind of a grid. And my wife couldn't like the way that they laid the grid on top of

the you know, around around the shrubs. But it's lay it on top of the ground. And I was wondering, would it be wise to put some course pine board mulch in there and kind of cover the pipe pipe looking things? Gotcha, I understand the reason for that. You can do it either way. The advantage of having the drip on top of the ground is you can see when it's working and when it's not. You know, if if an a metter gets clogged, it's kind of evident when you turn it

on, just go kind of check it over. If you put it under mulch, you can't see that, but it does hide the pipe. And so either way is fine, just you know, occasionally, just make sure that it's working well. Maybe when it's time to remulch or to add to the mulch, you can kind of pull the line up through the mulch, take a look at things, turn it on, and then throw the new malch on top of that. Okay, how deep should up put? Deep should I make the mulch when I put it down for the first time?

What is the plants being grown in the bed? Oh? My goodness, you would actually we are We don have flowers or shrubs? No, no, no, no, there's shrubs. Okay, shrubs. Yeah. I would probably put about a three inch mulch. And it depends on what. Now, if you're going with a fine mulch like compost, for example, well you don't need three inches, you know, an inch or two is enough. But the three inches is pretty good for most things that blocks the

light. And that's what we're asking for the mulch to do. Well, I's gonna put down a course mulch. Shut, How deep should that be? I still think three would work. You'll know though, if we'd start popping through you don't have a thick enough Okay, very good, Thank you. For your time. I appreciate you, Skip, thank you for the call. You're listening to garden Line. Here is our number, write it down, give us a call, Josh. You'll get you on the board

for our next hour, which why time is flying this morning? Seven one three two one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two KTRH. We're gonna be back here. We got plenty more to talk about today, including your calls, so we referred to coming back and visiting with you about what's of interest to you. The nice thing about gardening is there's something for everybody, orchids on the house, to the lawn outside, to everything

in between. KTRH Garden Line does not necessarily endorse any of the products or services advertised on this program. Welcome to KTRH Garden Line with Skip Rictor. So please just watching as I need to get out today and purchase some container, some pots, or some indoor plants. I'm gonna be doing some repotting of some indoor plants today and I need to find some really good, attractive quality containers. Oh my gosh, the containers now so much better than it

used to be. It just it's astounding. But I enjoy that process or repotting. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter. We are here to answer your gardening questions. Our phone number is seven one three two one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. Give us call. Let's talk about whatever is of interest to you when it comes to gardening. We were discussing peach trees and fruit

trees and things like that. If you if you have a fruit tree and you hadn't thinned it, you probably need to think about doing that pretty soon, sooner rather than later. Of course, you know, if you're if you're like Frank and you're already picking the fruit, well, my gosh, I mean, that's a little too late to thin. But generally I thin peaches when they're about the size of my thumb. That kind of one inch rule. I like it when when we have measuring devices at the end of

our arms. For everything, you know, you plant, you plant onions as deep as the first joint on your index finger. You thin peaches when they get about the size of your thumb. Yeah, I mean we have a lot of If you haven't figured out how to use your hands for all kinds of measuring. What's the when you open them wide open? What's the distance from your end of your thumb to the end of your finger. I'm talking about wide open where you can see all your fingers and everything's sticking out.

From the end of your little finger to the end of your thumb. That's how far apart you thin your peaches. And so if you're you look at the width of your hand, you know, close your hand up or not not a fist, but just flat like you're you're waving at somebody. Uh, the width from across from one side of your your knuckles to the other side across there, that's how far apart you thin thumb plums. So

that makes it easy, right, easy to remember. Well, let's go to the phones again, the number seven, one, three, two into fifty eight seventy four. We are going to start off in Montgomery talking to Jim. Hello, Jim, Hey, how you doing skip, I'm well, thanks? What's up? Well? I got this thing. I live up here on five acres and it's pretty woodsy in some areas, and I was wandering around through the woods. I found a cedar juniper that evidently they

pop up here every now and then. I guess birds eat the juniper berries or whatever, and because they seem to be underneath trees and kind of in the woods. But I want to transplant this one that I found. It's only about three and a half four feet tall. But I was wondering, do they have tap roots? I don't think so, but I may be paying about that. I don't you know, if it's a seedling. I don't know, Jim, I'm gonna have to check that out. But I

can tell you this when you transplanted. First of all, if you could wait until fall to do it, it would be better because you can do that it's an evergreen, and when they don't like being transplanted. So if you can get it done in the fall, when it's cool and the demands are super low, I think your chances are going to be better. But think wider rather than deeper. So I think you're a question about a tap root, was like, how deep do I need to dig? You only

need to dig about eight inches deep. But if you can get you know, like two feet wide on each side of the plant, that's a huge thing. But what I've done, I'll take a tarp out and I'll slide it onto the tarp so I don't have to pick up all that soil, and then I'll just drag it over to where I want to replant it. So I don't know if that's a practical on the setting you're describing or not,

but no, it's probably about. Like I said, I live on five acres, so when I found this thing, it's up closer to the front of my property and where I want to put it, it's back closer to the house. But I can wait till, you know, gets cold and do that. But um, it's sandy soil, so it's pretty easy after it rains to move a lot of that out of the way and kind of scrape it away and then dig it up and I can get pretty much all the roots. I've done that with some of its American Hollywood grows wild

out here in the wood. Yes, I've moved a couple of those before and they're growing like crazy. Well you must know what you're doing then, because that's a that is a good a good way to go about it. But yeah, I would I would do that early November, or it could be later than that, but you know it the pressures off the plant at that time, and you have the most weeks until it gets hot again. Yeah. I was just mainly concerned if it had a tap root, because

that those are harder to get to, you know. Yeah, I'm gonna have to check to be sure on that. I just all right, well, I can wait till later. I mean, it's not a big rush, it's not in a section where you know it's going to be a problem. So I just uh discovered it. And I noticed that my neighbors that we well we all up here have at least five or ten acres and I've noticed some of these that are really large that have grown up. And it's

it's the cedar juniper type plant. You know, it's dark green, and it's got the little thorny kind of branches, you know. Okay, yeah, so yeah, it really looks pretty. It's grown, you know. Uh. Like I said, I just discovered it this winter, when you know, everything gets deciduous and then I can go wander through the woods and I can see, you know, what's still green. Yeah. Well, good, well, good luck all right then, So thank you very much,

Thank you for the colle Jim appreciate that. Let's head out now to rich in Spring. Hello Rich, good morning, Skip. We're looking for a non selective herbicide that is faster acting than the normal forty one percent states faster. Okay, what are you trying to kill? Just normal weeds? I don't want to wait. It seems like it's ten to fourteen days when I spray, you know, with your normal product, and it takes a long time for him to start wilting and then dying. I'm just looking for

something quicker. There used to be a product called Finale that was faster. It didn't it didn't translocate quite as well down as glypha sate did, but that would be it now. Certainly, like if you're just trying to burn the top of annual weeds and not that generally kills them, then a vinegar product is about as fast as you can get on a hot sunny day.

You put it out and it just fries the top pretty quick. Um. It's trying to think of other things for that that would be faster but also still be effective that you know, if it's grasses, the products that grass control products only that have sethoxiden in them, or they're reasonably fast. So I don't know that that's where I would go with it. I think, Okay, I appreciate your helps, kid, Thank you all right, good luck with that. You are listening to garden Line. I am your host,

Skip Richter, and we are here to answer your gardening questions. If you want to give us a call, the number is seven one three two one two five eight seven four. You are listening to garden Line. We are having a blast today answering your gardening questions and just really getting into the down and dirty of all kinds of things gardening. Let's head out to pair Land and we're going to talk to Kevin. Good morning, Kevin, Hey, good morning, Skid, that life's caller. I think he was onto

something because I've been saying it for a while. I'm not going to name the product, but I think we all know what it is. That's a weak killer. I don't know if they've watered it down, but it does not work anymore. I started using just straight vinegar, you know, five percent acidity in my garden sprayer, you know, just for driveway weeds and stuff like that, and that works and it's organic. But the other product that the gentleman was talking about, I think they just I think it's water

now. Honestly, well, that's interesting. You know, the vinegar does if it's if it's strong enough, about eight to ten percent would be what i'd aim for. I mean, go stronger, but it just I guess vinegar actually becomes more dangerous as you someone who's talking to me the other day about a thirty percent vinegar, Well, I wouldn't want to splash that in my eyes. Yeah that'll burn. The extra extra careful, but yeah, that works. There's also since you're talking about that, I appreciate the call

coming. There's also now products that are made with other compounds that top burn. There's a a soap based weed control product. In other words, it's a it's not insecticidal soap, it's a soap made to burn plants. And there are there's products that contain the natural ingredient eugenol and others that are used as a top burn. So as long as it's not a perennial weed where it can come back from the ground, you fry the top back on an annual weed and you get rid of it. I mixed in a little bit

at dawn dish soap with the with the vinegar. You know, just to give it that surfactant you stickiness to it, yea, And I mean it actually works great and it's cheap. Yeah, well, that's yeah. I appreciate that that that a few drops of dish soap is good. You can also just buy a commercial surfactant that are designed for that, but uh,

that that does help it stick. And for those of you listen, and I'm kind of going outside the call here, but whenever you're using a top burn product like vinegar, it's best if the weather's warm, the sun is shining baking down on the plant. It works so much faster. If it's fifty degrees outside and it's misty and cloudy and overcast, it doesn't work as fast and as well as if you if you do it on good hot sunny day. Thank you for that call, Kevin. You're listening to Garden Line

our number seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. Now we're going to head out and talk to Melanie and Lamarck. Hello, Melanie, good morning. I called you a couple of weeks ago because my pumpkin plants as making mail flowers and no female flowers. Good news is is I've got some pumpkins coming, but is my leaves are starting to yellow and brown, and I don't know what's going on. What's going on is probably powdery milde.

It's some type of a foliage disease. But that sounds like powdery milde, and you need to treat it as quick as you can. When it takes all the foliage away, it takes all the ability for the plant to produce carbohydrates, which is what you need to make a good pumpkin. And so would I would begin to use a spray for the Do you garden organically or you know, just whatever it takes, or what's your approach, whatever

it takes, whatever it takes. Okay, all right, Well, there are products when when you head out to a garden center you know in your area that carries a wide variety of things. Look for a product labeled for vegetables that is that will control powdery mild. It'll be a fungicide, and there's a number of different chemistries out there on the market that can do that. But you just want to make sure it's labeled for the vegetables and you

can do pretty good. I have found pretty good success on with a powdery mildew at using kneeme oil. Now that's an organic, but kneem oil spray. You just don't want to spray too strong, you know, and mix it too strong, you know, spread in the hot sun. But kneem oil is a very good organic product for powdery mildew. Okay, I'll try that, thank you very much, but just remember you're gonna have to whatever you use, you're gonna have to do retreating. But you want to protect

that foliage. Thank you for the call, Melanie. Thank you. Let's head out now to friends Wood. I'm going to talk to Carolyn this morning. Good morning Carolyn, Good morning Skip. I received as a gift a peace lily, and so after I had had it for a few days, and it's big, it's a big plant. It came wealthy looking, so I decided to plant to water it. Well, that perked it up for a day or two, and then it went back to being wealthy. So I decided to repot it, and I bought a nice pot and I planted

it in rose soil. Okay, well, now it is just so droopy that I'm gonna I don't know what to do. Now. That's interesting, and I have a moisture meter that I use and it says it's moist Yeah, I'm just stumped. Piece lilies or they're they're a challenge. I've had one that has just struggled for a couple of years, and I was always like, is it too wet, is it too dry? You stick your

finger in the soil, or trying to figure it out. When you repotted this one, did you notice where they're healthy, creamy colored roots on the outside or where they kind of brown and water soaked looking. They were kind of brown and hard hard. Okay, so what what's happened is you've had a root death on the plant and that can be caused by saggy, wet conditions. It piece lily. The good thing about it is it takes as

lower light, just about as any plant in the house can take. But when you get it or light, the water use just really slows down, and so you want to be careful not to overwater it. I would make sure when you repot with something like that, I would use a looser mix that's not as heavy and mucky, just to provide optimum drainage in the soil. Uh, And then I would stick my finger in the soil. I mean you can see do it with a finger. You can sharpen a pencil

and stick it down a couple of inches down in the soil. Pull it out and you'll see if the sharpened in the wood part is wet or stained, or if there's soil clinging to it. Kind of like you know how you use a toothpick when you're trying to see if a poundcakes are ready to come out of the out of the air. It's sort of like that when stuff's clinging that a pencil can. If you don't want to get your finger dirty, that's that's a way to do it. But I think getting the

getting the soil moisture right is the key. And it sounds like I'm sorry, go ahead. It sounds like you maybe you can. Those are pretty good. That depends on the science behind how that particular meter you buy works. Some of them are pretty accurate, some of them are not so accurate. So uh, just you know, you kind of use all the above. You know what I use as mine's in a plastic pot. So I picked the pot up and I can tell the minute I pick it up if

it's light, very lightweight compared to what it is when sweat. That's how I tell how much water's in it, because it works pretty good for me. So maybe try try all the above and try to settle in. Would you at this point if you were made, how long ago did you repot it? Oh? About two weeks ago or a week ago? Maybe no, but it's been two weeks. You know, if you feel like you use some cheap, mucky potting soil, I would. If you feel like you used a decent soil, then I would not at this time of that,

right, you told me the rose soil. Yeah, that's that's fine. That should work fine for it. I shouldn't be careful on the water. Oh, I don't know what to do with it now. It just looks it's just droopy. And yeah, yeah, well I would pull I'd lay the pot over, pull it out and just get a look at the roots and soil and see what you see going on. If it's drooping, it doesn't have a good root system. The root system has died from either drought or saggy conditions, and so you know, you got to get a

good root system on it. There are drenches of fungicides that can fight root rot, but the real problem is soil moisture, and so somehow you got to figure out how to get that right. Boy, I tell you I have friends that have had these things for twenty five years that they're still wonderful. And I get this going on. I'm a professional horticultures and I just admitted to you that I've had one I struggled with. Of course, I'm not taking care of it, you know, the cobbler's kids go barefoot at

my house, but when it comes to Paris. But I moved it to a different location and start watering a little more and it's doing better. And so I guess I was keeping a little too dry. I don't know anyway, good luck with that. Thank you for the calls. I'm gonna go out to Montgomery and talk to Terry. Terry I got, I got about one minute, so let's see if we can do this. If not, we'll hold you over pass break. Hi, thanks for taking my call.

I've got some black powdery mildew growing on my Saint Augustine in the front yard and it's flotchet but I think it's spreading. Do you know what it is? I do, and it's nothing to worry about. It is a fungus growing on the surface of the Saint Augustine and it will dry and it'll turn kind of a grayish color, and when you mow you may see some dust that's the spores of it. It's ubiquitous in nature. When conditions you're right, it takes off. You can squirt it with a hose and blast it

off. It is not a disease that's in the plant. So good news. Oh that is very good to hear. And we did that in less than one minute. I'm amazed. Well you did your part. Thank you, Terry. I appreciate that. Thank you. Have a great day. Thanks for your thank Bye. Steve will get to you when we get back from break. Well. Good Saturday morning, on a good day for talking about gardening and also forgetting not in doing some gardening. You're listening to garden

Line. I'm your host, Skip Rector and our number. Write this down seven one three, two one two five eight seven four seven one three two and two fifty eight seventy four. We are going to head out to northwest Houston now and talk to Steve. Hello, Steve, Hi, excudum. My question about lawn fertilization. It's about organic versus SYNTHETI now I use an organic fertilizer, you know, microlife, and I just one year take on organic works synthetic you know the nitro foals y'all tend to promote a lot or

you know brands like Scots which a lot of people use. Um, that's my question. Okay, So like, well, I think I understand what you're asking. So let me see. I'll find out here in a minute. The fertilizers we talked about on this show are fertilizers that I personally have

used and they work. That they work. Some people are not organic in their approach, and so the synthetics provide the advantage of uh some special chemistries that control the release a little bit more perhaps, or they just they just provide a variation in the nutrient content as we go through the season. You can choose different different lines and things. But that's available pretty much in their organics too. The organics are going to slowly decompose due to microbial activity,

and so a lot of folks are interested in gardening organically. And you may notice that some of the products we're talking about, like nitrofiles, for example, they have their own organic version as does Nelson plant food, And so it's kind of your choice as to how you want to garden, how you want to approach that. But if you hear me talking about it, I've tried it. It works, and so I have no hesitation recommending it.

Okay. I have just always heard about some synthetic fertilizers that they're kind of bad for the soil over time. I don't know how true that is. I know I have restarted my lawn some I don't know, eighteen years ago, and of course, when of the lawn is new, it may look beautiful. I sit outside is look at it. But it seems like every year my lawn quality seems to erode a little bit. Now, maybe I have a soul oil issue. Maybe I need to have someone come out and

check my soil. And yeah, well, if you have somebody, you know, what do you recommend as far as that goes, as far as checking your soil, well, as far as soil is concerned, a soil test, you can go to a soil testing dot TAMU dot edu and find out if something yeah, yeah, soil testing one word, uh some if something is out of balance, that could be a problem and you could have

that with organic product, you have that with a synthetic product. I mean, out of balance is out of balance, right, and so fertilizing based on a soil test is a good idea, you know, as far as the other though, it really comes down to what you want to use. I mean, we could talk about this for an hour, really drilling down into all the details. But if you if you properly take care of your lawn, whether the fertilizers coming from organic or synthetic, the nutrients of plants

take up or the same. The difference is with the synthetics, it's a salt based fertilizer with the organics just coming from something that was once alive, a living material, typically plant based, and uh that is releasing those nutrients back into the soil gradually over time, so you can have a beautiful lawn either way, you decide what your preference is. If you're not happy with what you've been using, then switch try something else and see see how that

works. Okay, okay, okay, um, all right, well, goodn thank you so much for the information. All right. I hope that's helpful. I know that the whole organic synthetic it's a can of worms, and and there's there's a lot I can say about it. And I don't mean to say that nothing, nothing matters or anything. I'm just saying that I see people have success with both ways, and and my approach here is you tell me how you want a garden, and I will guide you in

having success with that that way. Uh. And so I hope we'll come across that way. I personally, I use a lot of organic products in my lawn and landscape, but I just like to use them. I love them. It's not I wouldn't say I would never use a synthetic at all. I'd also use that, but it's you know, it's your preference, and uh. You know everybody is going to have a reason. Uh.

And you'll hear a lot of arguments for one way or the other. I'm not going to get into all that today or on the show even It's just know that if I'm recommending it, it's something I've used and it works. Let's head out now to Tom Ball and we're gonna talk to Ken. Good morning, Ken, Good morning, I've got Uh. We moved my mother in law down from Dallas recently, and we brought a rosebush with us and transplanted it. So just last week we put it in the ground and it's

looking pretty poorly, and I was thinking maybe a root stimulator. Oh yeah, you could give it a shot on that. I mean, I'm sure the transplanting. Was it in a pot up there? Did you have to dig it up up there? No? Okay, well yeah, it has a lot of reason to be unhappy right now. But um, you just want to keep the soil moist without keeping it soggy wet. Hopefully you put it in a rose soil. If you didn't, I would today, uh pull it up, get some good rose soil to put it on, and

enhance the soil quality in the bed. Keep those roots moist, good, good, Okay, Yeah, you're doing all you can. Just keep it moist. I don't know if if you know, I didn't see it when you dug it. I didn't see the size and the amount of roots and all that. But maybe there's not quite enough roots for it to just keep going pretty well. So I would even consider throwing a little bit of a shade over it a bit and just kind of giving it. When it's a

real hot sunny day, do a little shake cloth or something. And just give it some time to kind of get some roots in. You don't want to block the light, but you just want to kind of let's reduce the demands on it a little bit. That might help. Overall. I think you're going to be fine. It just it's gonna pout for a while and may even decline and get some dead branches. But if you keep the soul moisture moderate and then give it some fertilizer, it's going to do well.

Hey, Ken, I got to run to a break, but I hope that is helpful for you. You're listening to garden line seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. Well, good Saturday morning, A good day for gardening, good day for talking about gardeners. We've been talking a lot about fertilizers and lawns, and I think lawns is the kind of the topic of the day. It seems like today as most days. If you're familiar with Nitrofos products, are you familiar with their Superturf. That's the nineteen

fourteen Nitrofis Superturf is designed for summertime. They triple guarantee it keep the grass green longer, reduces mowing requirements and reduces brown patch problems in Saint Augustine as we get later in the season. And the reason is we're gradually fertilizing with Superturf nineteen four ten. It's feeding over a full twelve to sixteen weeks. It's cutting down on those problems because we're not overdoing the fertilizer. You'll find

nitrofosts anywhere. Nitrofost products are sold, of course, but you can call them seven one, three two to eight eighteen sixty eight, or head out to one of the many ACE hardwares all over the Greater Houston area for your nitrofost Superturf. All right, I think I'm going to head out to Crosby and we're going to talk to Barbara right now. Good morning, Barbara, Hey, good morning, so nice to talk to you as well. I have a I have a brand new hummingbird butterfly garden. It's a good size,

some shape, and I have high hopes for it. It's real pretty so far. I've packed it with perennials that will bloom. My problem is weeds. I can't molt it. It's a two part question. I can't vult it because they have chickens and they're going to relocate anything that's loosed. So I'm looking for the definitive ground come. Oh. I also have milkweeds for the butterflies. So far, I hadn't brought one to maturity because kickings like to hop up and pick those things off. I think I've got a

busset for the chickens. But anyway, I'm looking for the definitive ground cover. See what comes to mind for you, something low growing, doesn't have to bloom. I was thinking of just letting the dichondra go, But what can I buy? Anything come to mind? Maybe that blooms? Oh boy, Well, first of all, you need to give your chickens a good talking to you. This is unacceptable behavior and they need to know that feeding them you're being good to them. As long as they're turning it into eggs,

I'm gonna let it have all. Right, there you go. You know the problem when you put in plants, it's it's yes, you're cutting down on weeds, but essentially those plants become a weed to the to the other plants. You know what I'm saying that their competition growing together U s for blooms. This is a real good sunlight obviously, because you got good blooming plants that are in and out there. Uh there is see what would

be a good option. There is a Oh my gosh, my mind is drawing a blank on the plant I'm trying to say, and it'll occur to me a minute. Oh my god. Anyway, I'm gonna I'm gonna have to draw a blank on that right now, the one somebody's listening and they're gonna come up with the ideal logo and ground cover to put in between all of these bernials, and they're gonna they're gonna tell me about it, and you're gonna remember it at the same time, while I kicked myself, that's

the nice thing. I only have what how many million people live around here that could call and and straighten me out. Yeah, the work if I have another question. But by the way, I thought about of one thing. It's blue shade, blue shade ruellia. Uh there that that would be a good one that you might want to try. And it's not the kind of ruelia that just gets big and throw seeds all over the creation. This is a low growing, spreading plant and there's also a blue days da ze

volvulus blue days. It's a little bit wet for the blue days. That, yeah, it's a little bit too wet. Forts um, all right, I've found one and I can't remember the name of it either. I was gonna going to toss it out there. I'm leaving the little tags on everything, so whatever makes it through the winter, I'm going to concentrate on that next spring. But I'm planting everything, a little bit of everything I can think of that attracts humming virgins, butterflies, you know. You know

what hey, let me one second, sorry, Barb. You know what I would do is I would look at an herb ground cover. A regano spreads the low prostrate grow prostrate run uh. Regonos marjoram as a similar kind of growth habit uh. You know, there's a reganos that more come more upright, But I'm talking about the ones that spread. They spread far and wide and they do well. And one other plant see has as my brain kicks in, I start imagining plants here. Another one is called um uh

frog fruit, and it is it is like a lot of weed. But people have just heard about frog people. That's that's a thing. I've been pulling that up. I have seen, I know I have seen. I've seen entire yards of frog fruit in Houston, not not like you know, five acres. Yeah. Well, Dichondra is a law is a lawn weedy in California, and we we eat that out. Yeah it is, it is for us. Dichondra doesn't form as nice dens of a covers it as

it does in California. They plant it by seed in California. But I think the frog fruit would be good because it has little blooms on it, So that's going to help pollinators, a little tiny paras wasps. I can sure, I sure have some rootstock that I can transplant there you go, uh from the yard to the guard. That's a good thought. Yeah, And it's easy to route little sections so you can fill it back in pretty

quick with that. And in the meantime, though, I wouldn't completely rule out giving those dead gun chickens a talking to you, because you know that. All right, we'll sit down. Listen. One quick thing. Where can I get rock for decorations? Oh gosh, you can get them all kinds of places. Where are you out in Crosby? How far would it be for you to go down to Sna Malt not too far outs around local multiplaces and yards will have some rock. But you know that. Okay,

where's wherever's closest to you? I don't I don't know where you go for that kind of thing. Okay, I'll check the multiplaces. If those chickens can relocate the rock they got, they deserve what they get. Listen, if they can relocate the rock. For good about eggs, you need to butcher them because they're gonna have muscles like you. Believe me, Fir, you're right. Thanks for having fun, Barbara. Oh my, you're listening to garden Line. I hope you're having a good time. I sure am

myself right now. KTRH Garden Line does not necessarily endorse any of the products or services advertised on this program. Welcome to KTRH Garden Line with Skip rictor just watch him good morning on a good Saturday morning. Regarding good Saturday morning for listening to the ready talking about gardening. Two. If you would like to do so, write down this number seven one three two one to five

eight seven four seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. You know I was talking about being out at the Arburgate, and I just want to mention that again. This is next Saturday, the thirteenth, now Mother's Days the fourteenth, but I'll be out there for two hours from eleven thirty to one thirty, and I hope you'll come out and see me. Number one, it's worth going to Arburgate whether I'm there or not. But on top of all that, we're gonna be there answering your questions. We're gonna

you can bring in samples, bring them in in a plastic bag. We don't want to turn anything loose in the nursery. Let me take a look at it. Bring in a sample to me to look at. If you want to take pictures on your phone and bring those in, maybe we can look at identifying a plant or identifying a problem. Just make sure your photos

are as close as possible. Maybe, you know, if it's an overall setting, like I was talking with someone earlier today about a I see a Japanese maple tree, you know, seeing the whole setting kind of helps to assess that. But if it's anything that I need to get a good close look at, as close as you can get, but check and make sure it's in sharp focus before you bring it, because I want to be able to help you with it. That's going to be the day before Mother's Day.

And by the way, when you're out there, I promise you can find eight hundred thousand things that your mom can't live without. Now, maybe she's a gardener, Oh my gosh, grab anything. It's good, it's good to go. If she's not a gardener, they're unbelievable gift shops. Beverly has just set up a beautiful show place and there's everything from cool yard art to beautiful indoor gifts. Maybe mom, you know, would like a house plant, they've got them. Maybe she like a really attractive pot for

the house plant. They've got that. So come out and see me next Saturday, day before Mother's Day, eleven thirty to one thirty at Arburgate. And by the way, why not bring your mom. There's an idea that would work pretty cool. I think she would enjoy it that if she hadn't been out there before, I know that she would enjoy it. We always like to take family to some of our great local complete nurseries like we have here. You know, I was talking earlier about a Nitrofoss in the bag.

I think we're discussing their super turf as a summer. You know, Nitrofos products are available in four pound jars for the specialty types of things, you know, the color express, hibiscus food, plumeria food, rose food, and so on. Well, this is a very economical way a little four pound jar. Maybe you just have a couple of hibiscus plants, or maybe you you know, just have a citrus tree or two, and you could just get away with a little four pound jar as a very simple,

efficient, cost effective way of providing your Nitroo products. The Nitrofos products are sold everywhere. I mean they're all over town. But if you're up in Tombauld, Arbrogate and DND Feed sell Nitrofos products. Down in the Fisher's Hardware down in South Houston on Sophomore, or the one in Laporte on Broadway Street sell nitro Foss products. And then ACE Hardware is just you know, pretty much everywhere there's an ACE hardware, you're going to find those Nitrofoss products like

that, like that four pound jar. You know that when we think about the springtime and planting, it's just it's hard to not be excited because there's so much happening right now. The lawns are growing. We're taking care of our lawns. Our trees are growing. Any final little bit of pruning that you might need, you know, for your tree to keep them happy and healthy and everything, this is a time to get that done. There's just a lot of different activities. If you've got a vegetable garden. Our cool

season gardens are kind of heading out. My lettuce is bolting and it's I'm about to pull it out. Got one old old time what do you call it, heirloom variety called crawford that I grow. So I always let one stalk go to seed and save the seed because you don't see, it doesn't last forever. It helps to store it right, but it doesn't last forever, and so I'll let them go to seed. I've got my cilantro actually

is trying to bloom right now. In fact, it is blooming right now, and several things, and I always leave a few of those blooms around for beneficials. For example, a carrot. Did you know that a carrot blooms. It's like Queen Anne's lace, which is closely related to carrot. So I'll pull all my carrots up and I'll leave one or two at the end of the row. Just let them put up a bloom. It's pretty number one. It's a good cut flower. Actually, surprisingly enough, strange

reason to grow carrots, but I think it's kind of cool. The blooms, though, are real attractive to beneficial insects. The little blooms on your cilantro when it bolts and goes to bloom. I've got a couple of radishes that I let go bloom just because I think the blooms are beautiful. They're really cool. And so this is that transition time we're putting in the warm season. You know, we've already planted Tomatoesefully you got your tomatoes in by

now. If not, it's a little bit late. The peppers, eggplants, squash, cucumbers, all those things have been planted. But it's time to heat things up. You know, there is some really warm weather material out there in the garden that that includes things like southern peas, black eyed peas, purple hull peas, crowder peas, and for example, U there is okra. Everybody knows okra. I can't forget okra. It's my favorite summer vegetable. And by the way, if you're not an okra eater,

um, let me know because I'll talk you off the edge. I'll tell you out to make okre where I know what you're gonna say, you're you're typically I'll say it's slimy a. We can fix that. We can fix that. Okra is a wonderful Southern vegetable. It's such an important part of things like a gumbo for example, and of course fried okres real popular. There's other ways to do okra as well. But other warm season gardens.

There's malabar as in Malabar, they call it Malabar spinach. It's not spinach that is also mucilagius like the ochris, but it's a very good green. Molochia very popular in mini cultures. Molochia is a very good green. And you only need like two molochia plants if not one, to just stay in

molochia because it becomes a bush in the summer. It's not perennial freeze it down, but you share it back and share it back and share it back, and it just keeps coming back and keeps producing healthy greens for your summer table. In the flower gardens. You know, we've got all the spring flowers that have been doing so well, but as we start to get really hot, things like Selosha start to shine. A gomprina or Bachelor's buttons one

of the names. One of the plants called bachelor's buttons that do really well when it's hot. Angelonia summer snap dragons. Another name for it, Oh my gosh, that blazes through the heat really well. Scave Ola. If you have a hanging basket, Scaveola looks great coming over the sides of it, as do the type of It's actually kin to a listum, but we call it lobularia, which is also what a lissum is. The lobularia the stream series does really well in the summer heat. And keep going and going

for you. Zenia's sunflowers, lots of good things to carry us on in the summer, and many many more. That's just naming a few. You know, you get into a shady area and there's many other options. Well, you're you're listening to Gardenline our phone number seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. I'll stop stop the monologuing here for the next segment, give us a call. Let's talk simple, which was Wednesday. All right, good morning, we are listening to Lorie Morgan with a little bit

of flash blast from the past. I guess you're listening to Garden Line and I am looking forward to talking to you. So you'll need a phone number in order for that to happen, and that would be seven one three two one two five eight seven four. We're in our last segment this morning. We got a big day of gardening ahead as well as tomorrow afternoon as well as a good time to get out and be in the garden. So give

us a call. Let's see what kinds of questions you might have. You know, I was visiting with Louise from Heirloom Soils the other day and he was telling me that they are promoting an event, or they're sponsoring rather an event called plant con which is an inaugural plant convention here in the Houston area and Heirloom Soils folks ask me if I would tell you a little bit about

it, and I'm more than happy to do that. That is going to be on May nineteenth through twentieth in it will be an event where you can come and see a lot of vendors and a lot of things regarding plants. And I mean it's it's it's too big to just describe in one little, one little period of time. But if you go online to plant con pla ntco n dot org slash tickets, plant con dot org slash tickets, Uh, it is going to direct you to all the information you need on how

to be a part of that. But the folks at Heirloom, Uh, they are one of the sponsors of it and a very enthusiastically uh talking about it's gonna be a great, a great thing, great party. So I hope you hope you'll be able to join. I'm gonna be there myself. I'm gonna go out and check it out. But plant Con inaugural Plant Convention for Used in Texas. Well, we are talking all kinds of things gardening

today. You know, there's a there is a real interests these days in things that provide an enhancement to the garden beyond just growing a plant to eat or look at. And that would be things like butterfly gardens and hummingbird gardens and gardening with the birds and wild birds Unlimited. You are not going to find a better place than wild Birds Unlimited to get supplies, to get equipment,

but also to get information, quality, accurate information on birds. Now you can buy bird stuff a lot of places, as you know, but there's nothing like wild Birds Unlimited. They've got a store in Katie if you're out west, if you are maybe northeast in Kingwood or northwest and Cypress down south in Paarland, bel Air, West Houston, and soon a clear Lake store. In fact, it's going now. I will be out at clear Lake by the way. We are going to be doing a live out there

coming up. I'll tell you more about that later as we get a little bit closer to it. Well, let me just let me just tell you right now. It's going to be on May twenty seven. That's way out ahead of time. But since I'm mentioning it, I just put that on your calendar. Come out and see me if you're out in that area. Now that that store fifty four forty I was trying to find the address El Dorado Boulevard. That's on the corner of El Dorado and clear Lake City Boulevard

across from the HB. The storefront it faces clear Lake City Boulevard. So you just you're not going to go wrong with a wild Bird's Unlimited. And if you've not been into one, you need to go. You know, there was a time when I was not a birder and then I walked into Walbird Unlimited and oh my gosh, and now it's what kids buy me for a Christmas presents is stuff from wild Bird's Unlimited. A pretty cool, pretty cool store. And it's a fun hobby by the way. You know,

we keep talking about mothers to day. Oh my gosh, how can you go wrong a hummingbird feeder or a new bird feeder or bird house maybe quality a mix, it's appropriate to the season and the wildbirds folks, by the way, they can they can do just that. You know the springtime that birds have nests with eggs and young, and those young need high protein. You know, they don't need a bunch just bird seed. I mean they

need like protein like dried meal worms and things like that. Willbirds can get you fixed up with that and whatever the season, whatever kind of bird you want to attract, they can point you to the right feed and the right kind of feeder to accomplish. Just that so pretty pretty important stuff. I love love bird bird watching myself, especially the hummingbirds. I've got a new hummingbird feeder and I you know, as it came from a wall birds as

a matter of fact, last year. And I'm sorry to say this, but I bought it, I came home, I set it down on a shelf and ran off doing something. I just saw it the other day. So now it needs to go out with my other hummingbird feeders because I love watching hummingbirds and they're they're just you know, entertaining. I guess to watch as well. So anyway, well enough of that, let's let's go to the phones the number seven one three two one two five eight seven four,

and we're going to head out to Tomball and talk to Amy. Hello, Amy, good morning, Good morning. I just had two dwarf magnolia trees planted in my yard and I want to know what I need to do to them to make sure that they grow healthy dwarf magnolias. Okay, Well, they want well drained soil. They prefer a slightly acidic soil, so that may require if you didn't do a lot of bed development prior to planting them. Maybe incorporating some organic matter to soil create kind of a woodland soil around

those plants as best you can. Fertilizing with a product for acid loving plants is always helpful. But good sun and good drainage, or the two keys and the compact types of magnolias, they get sizable over time, but they just grow in a more They grow more slowly because they're growing more compactly, and they're they're not hard to keep happy as long as they have good soil drainage and and somewhat of a woodland forest type soil ideally, So what does

that mean woodland forest type soil? Okay, Well, the forest knows how to build soil. It drops leaves on the ground and drops leaves on top of those leaves, and they rot and it just gets better and better over time. Right, And so when we add organic matter into the soil, and when we malt and keep it mulched, always have malts decomposing on the

surface. And as wide of an area is esthetically acceptable to you. You know, if you were that magnolia tree and you walked up and said, hey, how far away do you want grass, it would say over the hill where I can't see it. That's a magnolia's opinion and every tree's opinion of grass. So those kind of tips create that forest floor where that's where their magnolias are from, and that's where magnolias are happy. Okay, all right, all right, very good, thank you very much. Yeah,

and it's not the fastest growing of species. So get you a good quality fertilizer and gradually, over time continue to feed it to keep the vigor as as best you can. Okay, all right, yeah, thank you, thank you. I appreciate your call. Let's see now we're going to head out to Tumball and talk to John. Hello, John, good morning, I'm good. Thanks, great question. I know about as far as the spraying for weeds, anything overready five degrees, don't do it. If you

have a day coming up it's going to be less than eighty five. Can you like, I've already sprayed once she needs sprayed in the evening if the following day is not gonna be eighty five or is that two risky? Yeah? You know, the eighty five is a general guideline, you know, because there we're talking about a lot of different kinds of chemistries and the wheat

control products, so they're not all exactly the same. There's one, uh, there's one called what's the name of that thing, Celsius that's a little hard to find, but it actually can go up to about ninety degrees ninety two degrees and still be okay. But in general we aim for eighty five just to avoid problems because when you stress Saint Augustine, then things like take off patch become worse, and so we just want to stay away from that.

But they answer to your question is yes, if you can. If you can do it when the temperature is a low cooler and especially when the next day is not going to be one hundred degrees, then that would be just fine. But go ahead and get it done right. And as far as going forward, as far as cutting the grass or watering after that, what's a good time for you, how many hours, two days or twenty four hours or after you apply, well I would I would do them.

Well, let's see, so I think in this case, if you don't want to mow off the leaves of the weed, you're trying to spray, and so I would go ahead and treat it, and then I would give it. I give it a week if you could. Now, if you're in a most cycle spot right now where it can't it can't set a week, then go ahead and mow it and then do the treatment. But you

just need some leaves to put the weed control product on. The post emergent weed control all right, speaking a real one more quick question, free emergent post emergent. It doesn't seem like I've done several applications. It's not doing much of anything of the pre or the post or what both. I mean, I I've had in the collected yard that I bought a house from in all right, it's just a tom I'm gonna I'm gonna cut to the chase.

Here's what you need to do. I want you to pull up one of every kind of weed you got, put it in a bag and bring it to Arbourgate next Saturday. I'll be there from eleven thirty to one thirty, at least to one thirty, and I will look at the weeds and we'll see if we can get to the bottom of this. You may have a weed that needs a special product recommended, or we can talk timing and other things, but I think that's the best I can do. If you

can be there next Saturday. Let's do that, Okay. Appreciate you, Bet, appreciate you very much. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and the phone number is seven one three two one two five eight seven four. Michael and Sugarland. I see. I want to be able to give you time to really discuss your question. So if you will hold on, you will be first when we come back from break. For the rest of you, Now it's a good time to call Josh

and get on the board. Well, good morning on a good gardening day, as all days are. You're listening to garden Line. I'm your host, Skip Richter, and we are heading toward the end of the mornings show here. We got our last segment going, so if you'd like to give us a call, the number seven one three two one two five eight seven four, and we're just going to run right out into sugar Land there and talk to Michael. Hello, Michael, Good morning, Scip, good charlady,

morning to you. Thank I I'm calling because I've got I've been on the schedule that you feed you so to provide for about the last four years and every year and my grass has been you know, I got said Augustine,

it's it's been perfect. But for some reason, it's like this year, after that last little freeze, I've gotten maybe seven or eight spots that even though the rest of the soil but the grasses is perfectly green up to you know, when we're supposed to be there's dead spots where you can see the runners are dead now on the same Augustine, runners of course are coming back. But my question for you is should I pull those runners out to date the soil to allow the new runners to grow, or should I just

leave them alone and let nature take its course. Well that's a good question, Michael. I think it's a little too tedious to try to pull up dead runners. And there's nothing wrong with you in that, but that that

would be a little bit of a chore. If you feel like your soil might need a little narrating, then I would either hire a company to come out and do the aeration for you, and you know, we get we talk about green pro and the folks that do that and the compost stop dressing, or if you want to do it to it yourself, you can rent a good core narrator. You want to rent one that pulls the cores of soil out and drop some on the surface, not just squeeze as a hole

open in the soil. Don't get that second kind of narrator. Get a core narrator, and then get you some quality leaf mold compost, a good quality leaf mold compost. And you were you were down there in the Sugarland area, you're going to be able to find that. You know, your garden centers, you got the two enchanted it's enchanted gardens, enchanted forests that probably are going to have some bags of that for you. You can also go down to CNA Maltch. I'd call the folks down CNA Maltch that's not

too far away, and get some quality for a top dressing. This is if you're doing the do it yourself that that's what I would do first. Uh, certainly fertilizers important. Go ahead. Well, I got another question as a follow up. You know I've already put down top top dressing pretty much. I do it every year. I've just recently put down the super Church about a week or so ago. Okay, good, so that's what I'm a little behind on the schedule, but I guess should I. Since

I've already put down top dressing, I put down fertilized as well. And those areas where and the spots that I'm talking about, there's maybe six or seven of them, and they're no more. They're about the size of a baseball and they're really tiny. Okay, yeah, they're not going to big there, just at least small, uh you know, one here maybe six and six and seven feet apart. So what I did was I actually put a little more uh fertilizer on those spots. And I'm beginning to see an

improvement. But I guess my second question is should I go ahead and now do the whole area because that's gonna make that area a little more child or yeah, but just leave that area along. Well, I generally prefer to fertilize smoothly over the whole area, right, instead of just having some greener spots than others. So however, you might be able to achieve that.

Now, if your spotsor the size of a baseball, that is almost certainly not a disease or an insect that's doing that, Uh, there's go ahead. I actually dug into it to check for you know, for chinch bugs. I mean, and I've never this. This roe has been perfect in every way. Uh. I just thought it was unusual because it's never happened before where you would see just and when I say size of a baseball, maybe twenty five inches, yeah, and only one in particular area, so

I know there's no chinch bug. I took that out and had that chample. But they're they're just uh it's kind of confusing because they're only in that little area. All right, Well, tell Michael, I'm heading to a break here. Um, I think that you don't have a disease. It's gonna be something unusual, like you stop the lawnmower and a little bit of gas strip down, or a dog went to the bathroom there. It's gonna be some outside the box kind of thing like that that's killing those spots.

But I think you're good. What you've done sounds great. I think you're on the right track and it's going to fill in just fine. Call me back if that's not the case, if these developed, because we want to catch things early. But I think you're okay. Thank you, sir, Have a great day, all right, Take care our phone number seven one three two one two five eight seven four seven one three two one two fifty eight seventy four. Day. Well, good morning, good Saturday morning.

Good for gardening and talking about gardening. And that's what we're about to go right to do now, our folks to see. We're gonna head out to clear Lake City and talk to Larry. Good morning, Larry, good morning. I have a question about the dollar weed it's going through saying augustine grass. What is the best product to use for that? There are a number of them that will work. Um, there is a weed beat or Ultra that is available. You can find it in a lot of places. I

mentioned it because it's widely available. Oh my gosh, the second one is dropped out of my head right now I'm thinking about it. But we Beat or Ultra would be one I would probably go with. That's gonna be yeah, we Beat or Ultra. Huh. I believe it's a that's a bone nine product. And what is the best and best pound to employ it? Absolutely as soon as possible, because once temperatures get up in the mid to

upper eighties, which we're kind of we're bouncing around there this week. In fact, today is gonna be a little warmer than that but it's supposed to cool just a tiny bit, but go ahead and get it down because the warmer it gets, the harder. Those products are on your Saint Augustine grass. Okay, the liquid or a granular product. The one I mentioned is a liquid. Okay, yeah, yeah, okay, I appreciate it. Thank you very much. You're bet in good luck with it. Okay,

thank you, yes, sir. Yeah, you know. The the getting ahead of weeds is something I talk about the importance of building a good dense turf to choke out most of the annual weeds coming from seed. But something like uh, Virginia button weed or something like a dichondra or uh you know those those persistent weeds dollar weed that he was just talking about. That those weeds you're not gonna get too dense. They're gonna they're gonna be there,

especially the dollar weed. Uh. And so that's where we just have to hit him with a with a post emergent and to get to get rid of them. Number one though, on Virginia button weeding dollar weed both don't water so much. The more you walk, the more problems that you're going to have with those weeds. It makes the weed have the advantage and really grow. So keep your Saint Augustine a little on the dry side, give it a good soaking, let it dry out. Don't just you should not ever

water Saint Augustine three times a week in Houston. You shouldn't water it two times a week, to be honest. If you've got a good established Saint Augustine with a good root system, then once a week it's gonna be enough. Now, if you've got issues, maybe a little bit more, but don't overwater it. And that helps give the turf a little bit of a good fighting chance against those those pernicious weeds that stick around. You know.

I we're talking about products and things I mentioned earlier about nitrofists four pound jars and and I don't know if you've thought about fertilizing in this way before, but with nitrofis, you've got the big bags. They've got all the lines

of products and big bags, and that's fine. But when you just have a few of a plant one or two, you know, couple of rose bushes, or maybe you know a couple of citrus trees, or are just a small color containers that you would want to use their color express in the four pound jars is the economical way to go, and you're going to find them everywhere. Nitrofosts, soul so Fisher's Hardware and South Houston Lake Hardware include

Ausbush Ace and the Woodlands. Really all the aces are going to carry those nitrofos products, and the four pound jars is something you should take a good look out. I think you're going to find exactly the blend of fertilizer you're looking for in a very compact, more economical package as well. Earlier I was talking about birds and at the house, I've got a bird feeder that

I actually neglected. I'm surprised. The birds have been banging on the back door telling me to feel the dang thing up, but they haven't yet there. I guess polite birds, but I just noticed the other day it was out of feed. I just walked by run around too much, I guess, not taking care of the of my own stuff. But Wilbird's unlimited. You know we mentioned them earlier. Is just to go to place. Something I didn't mention earlier that I do want to I do want to mention now,

and that is the website. If you want to find a Wall Bird's Unlimited near you in the Greater Houston area. And I'm talking about stores in Katie, stores in Kingwood, stores in Cyprus and Pearland and bel Air and West Houston. And now there's the story in clear Lake and I will be there in one of the ed towards the end of May. I'll be out there and I'll announce that later. But that one's on Eldorado Boulevard. That is just a really, really good place to go. I'm so glad you

guys have one out there in the clear Lake area. But if you want to find the one nearest you, go to WBU dot com forward slash Houston. That gets you our Houston Wall Birds Unlimited group WBU dot com forward slash Houston and it'll direct you right to one near you and I and that's important. You know, Houston's a big town, and you know I'm willing to drive all over town for garden centers and things like that just because I can

never get enough. I mean, there's always something cool and new going on and I want to go see them. And so for me, it's nothing if I'm in Cyprus to drive down to you know, southeast Houston, or if I'm in Kingwood to drive across down to the southwest side, or vice versa. There's so many good places, but I know a lot of people you like to find places that are close to you. You know, I was kind of surprised. I guess it makes sense. I hadn't thought about

it. But folks here tend to live in their little burb, you know, their little corner. Maybe you're downtown in Houston and you just don't head outside of that much. That's fine, and that's why we have good garden centers all over the place. We've got ace hardware's all over the place. We've got wild birds all over the place. You can find something close to you. And I don't know if you've noticed this before. I talked about

this before, and I'll probably talk about it again and again. But sometimes there's a mindset that we have when we're trying to save some money, and you know, that's that's something we all do, is try to, you know, save money and get more for our dollar. And the idea is, well, I'm going to go someplace and buy a cheap plant, or I'm going to go someplace and just buy a cheap product. And the problem with that, I would contend that that is not a way to save money,

that that's a waste of money. And here's why you buy cheap pruners. You use them a few times and say words the kids don't need to hear, and throw them in the trash or put them in a bucket, and you're going to get around to sharpening them, and you don't. But you buy a plant that is in a place that doesn't take care of their plants, and maybe it's a plant that doesn't belong here. I've been to big box stores and seen raspberries that won't grow here. I've seen grapes it

won't grow here. I've seen perennials that don't grow here, and they're being sold because they're being sold in that chain all over the country. When you go to a place that knows what they're doing, they haven't. They have of staff that knows what they're doing, and they direct you to plants that you're probably not going to get at those other places, and they tell you how to plan them and how to take care of them, and the products

they give you work. That is a way to save money because you get quality and you enjoy it for years, rather than being disappointed and frustrating and struggling, and you know, you call it's like this thing won't grow well, it doesn't want to grow here. You know that lilac was great in the Midwest, but it shouldn't be sold here, right. That's why I would say, go to quality independent garden centers. Go to quality places that

carry the products that we recommend because we know they do well here. But there's no product on this show that I will recommend that I don't know is going to do well, or a business that I don't believe is going to be the kind of service that you deserve in your garden because your dollars are hard earned and they need to be well spent. And so realize that a quality pair of prunters that you can sharpen unless to the rest of your life.

I've got prunters are twenty years old and they're still going strong. That's the kind of things you want to direct you to think about. That mindset