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Greg Quinn's thought for the day: What happens if you get scared half to death......twice?

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Hi Greg Love you on WHUD. I planted about a dozen miniture roses in my little garden in the spring. I had the best luck, even with the weather we had. They had continuous blooms and are still flowering as we speak, although the leaves are thinning out. My question is what preparation and protection do they need for winter and when. Also, what do I do to them in the spring to assure further sucess. This is my pride a joy, so I want to do everything perfect. Thanks Pat Laughlin

Hi Pat, Thanks. I assume these roses are hardy species. Mound wood chip mulch around the crown (the base) and put a few moth bolls in each mound to repell mice and voles. In the spring, when new growth first begins, prune them back just above an outside facing bud, fertilize with 5-10-5 or a good rose food and when they begin to bloom, water them one time with I Tbs of Epsom salts per gallon of water. Good luck!

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Hi Greg, I really enjoy your spot on WHUD but since I'm getting ready for work at that time of the morning, I never have time to call. This e-mail thing is great!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have about 10 Amaryllis bulbs but only 2 of them now bloom. I purchased them all at different times over the past 10 years. The first year that I got each new bulb it bloomed beautifully. Some even bloomed for another year or two after that, and some even got a second bulb in the pot (which I replanted in another pot). I put them outside all summer and fertilize them and then I stop watering them and bring them inside in the fall. I put them all in a cool, dark, dry closet in my basement until February. They all get beautiful leaves but most do not have flowers. I am ready to throw out the non-bloomers!!!! Or is there hope for them with some words of knowledge from you??????????? Thanks, Fran PS I love you segment. You have a great sense of humor.

Hi Fran, After they have "slept" for 60 days this year in your cool dark place, pot them up in the next larger size pot, feed them with Super Phosphate and give them as much direst sun as possible. They should come back into bloom tis year or next. P.S. What do you mean my sense of humor? You think I'm funny? You think I'm like "ha-ha" funny? You think I'm here for your amusement? Huh? Huh?

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Dear Greg-Thankyou for being there for all of us garderners. Your information is invaluable and much appreciated.Question: In this area, what is the best time to prune Buddleia (Butterfly Bush), Trumpet Vine and Climbing Rose on a trelis and how severely? Is it necessary to prune the Climbing Rose at all? It was newly planted this past Spring and we've been deadheading the few blossoms, but would like to look forward to bushier and fuller growth with more blooms next year.Thankyou for your advice. Judy

Thanks for the kind thoughts, Judy, I'm glad I can help others enjoy my passion. All three can be pruned in the early spring and all as much as 50% although that may be too much for your individual plants so use your esthetic judgment pruning is not necessary on these but will certainly help to thicken and produce more blooms. Be sure to fertilize with a 5-10-5 when you do.

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Dear Greg-We have about a dozen Amaryllis which we unpotted and planted in large window boxes in early summer.They have thrived and grown beautifully in a semi-shaded area near the house-sporting large strappy leaves.We want to prepare them for bloom again this winter (they were gorgeous for the holidays beween Nov. & Dec. last year). What should we do at this point? Should we allow the folliage to die back on it's own or cut it off? Remove the bulbs from the soil and when? If so, should they rest as bare bulbs and when should they be repotted for holiday bloom? We would appreciate your instructions on how to proceed. Thanks, Judy

Hi Judy, Store Your Amaryllis in a cool dark place for at least sixty days. At that time cut off all the yellow foliage and feed them with a water soluable 15-30-15 fertilizer and put them in full sun or under bright lights. Depending on the specie, they will push the flower spike first or foliage first and then the bloom. Enjoy!

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Greg, I have a star dog wood tree. I fertilized it in the spring with spikes. I don't think it flowered in the spring, now the leave tips are curling and turning brown. Is there something wrong? Should I fertilize in the fall with the spikes again? I have a miniature rose bush in a pot. It has bloomed all summer. How do I save it for next year?Thanks for your help.

First, I much prefer the granular kind of fertilizer to the spikes. The browning of the tips has nothing to do with nutrients but rather lack of water and possibly a fungus. There is nothing to be done at this time. Fertilize your Cornus with a 5-10-5 in November and then again in the spring. Roses in pots must be stored in a very cool (but not freezing) place for the winter unless you can provide a very bright location and keep it growing.

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Hi Greg, I am having a new brick walkway put in. I want to plant a low, green, ground cover on one side of it and possibly have spring bulbs mixed in the greenery. Do you think this will work and what ground cover do you recommend. The area gets a mixture of sun and shade. Thank you, Kathy Ferrusi

Hi Kathy, You might check out one of the low growing junipers which are excellent along walkways. A couple of varieties would be Blue Rug or Blue Star for a slightly blue foliage or Procumbens Nana for a tight green look Most spring bulbs will poke through them.

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Greg Quinn's thought for the day: Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.

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Hi Greg, I am in the process of having a new home built in Connecticut. It should be finished in mid-November. My questions are: 1) what grass seed types are better suited to starting off at that time of the year and do they have specific maintenance requirements? 2) the property has a considerable amount of rock ledge with some areas having no more than a couple of inches of soil and in some cases there is septic sand underneath topsoil. How do these factor into my decision regarding seed type?Thanks!Bob Pagett

Hi Bob, 1)I like a mix of approx. 1/3 turf type rye (many different names), 1/3 fescue, and 1/3 Kentucky blue grass. 2) You will have the single best opportunity to improve your growing conditions BEFORE you seed. Then is the time to incorporate copious amounts of compost mixed thoroughly in with the soil. You can probably use as much as 1 cubic yard per 100 cubic feet. The soil is always much more important than the plant. check the pH afterward and add lime if necessary. It should be around 7.0 - 7.2. Good luck with your new home.

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Greg - love the fact that you answer questions online as i am in the car when you are on the air i need to know if a very very large hanging geranium can be preserved over the winter. some people have told me that you can put them in the basement for the winter and they become dormant.

I have had only about 50% success storing my dormant geraniums in the basement. You would do better to keep it growing. If you have a bright window, that'll work or you can put it in the basement with a hanging florescent light 12 inches away. In February you can take cuttings and start new little clones for next summer.

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Hi Greg, I love listening to you on WHUD, but I have not been able to talk with you on the air, so I am thrilled to be able to e-mail my questions. My son gave me a rubber tree plant years ago, that has become tall and is begining to droop. There are several shoots coming up from the bottom of the plant, and I want to know, if I were to cut the tree back would this damage the tree, or would this encourage it to become fuller? Also it is still in it's original container. Do I give it a larger pot, and if so, what kind of soil do I need to use, and do the roots need to be above the soil. Thank you for whatever information you can give me. Elaine advise pls.

Hi Elaine If the plant seems to be lifting itself out of the pot, it's time to repot. Go with the next size larger pot. Plant at the same depth it is currently growing. You may cut it at the same time and may actually root the cuttings and get lot's of new little rubber trees. "Oops there goes...another rubber tree plant!"

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Greg Quinn's thought for the day: Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, But beautiful old people are works of art.

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Hi Greg, I have been listening to you since last gardening season and always find your advice helpful if not just amusing. This year , right after the Tropical Storm Floyd drenched Yorktown with 13 inches of rain, the tomato vines in my garden all died off. There are still tomatoes on them, slowly ripening. The same thing happened to the vines in my father's garden. This is interesting because he did not grow the same variety and he lives in Binghamton. That area also had the winds and rain. Is this die out a result of a tropical mold that blew over us? At first I suspected a frost, but the impatiens are still fine and they are the first to shrivel from a frost. The dahlias are really lovely now along side the mums which just opened. So the rest of my yard is still thriving. Nancy Caswell

Hi Nancy, Thanks for the compliment. The situation with your and your father's tomatoes is a combination of problems. First, the storm. The wind alone would wreak havoc but with the deluge, the vines were doomed. If there is any mold present, it's as a result of the dead/dying plants rather that alien spores from the planet Floyd. Secondly, the short days and cool night will eliminate any chance of revival this year. I'm afraid we'll have to wait till next year for great tomatoes. In the meantime, ever try fried green tomatoes? MMMMMM!

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AFTERNOON. I PLANTED MY DAHLIA TUBERS AS USUAL THIS YEAR, BUT WITH THE DROUGHT THEY DIDN'T GROW. WILL THESE TUBERS BE OKAY TO PLANT AGAIN NEXT YEAR? THANKS PAT TRAP

Afternoon! They will probably come back. Store them in a cool dark place over the winter in peat moss and dampen once a month. Good luck

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Hi Can one prune apple & peach trees & grape vines now when there are still leaves on them? We're gone from Nov. thru March and would like to start now and not leave it all till April.... George

Hi George, Unfortunately, now is not a good time. Much of the chlorophyll that has been manufactured all summer is in the upper reaches of the plants now and will slowly translocate down to the root system for next spring's growth. Pruning now will cut off that casch of chlorophyl. January-February is the ideal time. You might want to retain an arborist to schedule the pruning for you at that time.

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I have had a Crown of Thorns plant for a number of years. Just a few weeks ago I notice one of the leaves had a brown ring starting close to its edge. The ring gradually spread until it engulfed the entire leaf. This has happened to one leaf per week. I don't have a clue of what has happened after all these years. Could you please help. Thanks, Marilyn

Hi Marilyn, It's hard to know what changed but something has. If nothing else has altered its environment, i.e., change of location, light, fertilizer or watering practices, then it may be getting too root bound to take advantage of the water and fertilizer. Water well and slip it out of the pot and inspect the roots. If it is a big mass it's time to transplant. Go to the next size pot and try to duplicate the soil type.

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We have been under attack by this fungi. It is all over our siding, rock wall, plants, etc. and we don't know what to do. When the perennials die we can get the leaves with the fungi on it out of the garden. We also plan on removing the mulch, but we don't know how to kill the fungi on the house and rocks. Do you have any idea what we can do? Help!!! J. Iannone

Sorry, I have to know more about the "fungi" to help. Are you sure it's Fungi and not algae? please describe it to me and the exact conditions, i.e., dense shade, ground water, very damp, etc. and I'll see what I can do. Hi Greg, I'd like some advice on the care of a 3 year old butterfly bush. Should it be cut back for the winter, if so, how much? Also, is it possible to divide or propagate it? It did quite well this year considering the drought, but should I be feeding it to improve it more? Thanks for your input. Janet Hi Janet, Your Budlia can be cut back as much as 50% or less as you see fit next spring just before the new growth starts. The butterfly bush can be propagated by air layering or from cuttings. during the growing season. I feed mine with a 5-10-5 spring and fall.

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HI : MY NAME IS ANNA GUEVARA, WE ARE IN A PUZZEL HOW TO SAVE MY FATHERS FIG TREE. WE SLOD HIS HOME OF 40 YEARS AND WOULD LIKE TO UP ROOT THE FIG TREE AND SAVE IT FROM BEING TORN DOWN, AND PLANT IT UP STATE NY, BLOOMING GROVE AT A BROTHERES HOME HOW CAN WE DO THIS???? THANK YOU, ANNA GUEVARA

PS WE SAVED MY MOMS LILAC TREE AND PLANTED IT UP STATE NY LAST YEAR WHEN SHE PASSED AWAY.

Hi Anna, The fig can be dug up with the largest root ball you can handle making sure that the soil never fall away from the roots. Burlap will help to wrap it for the move. Replant it in a hole improved with lots of compost and a couple handfuls of bone meal. Be sure to plant it at the exact same depth as it was growing and water it in well. As you probably know from your Father's practice, figs have to be completely wrapped during the winter. I like to use oak leaves wrapped with burlap (never plastic). Good luck.

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Greg Quinn's thought for the day: How come abbreviated is such a long word?

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Greg, Enjoy listening to you with Ed and Mike. My question regards several red twig dogwood and barberry shrubs in our front yard (southern exposure). They were planted 3 years ago and doing extremely well. We would like to cut them back a bit. When is the best time for this? Thank you.

You may cut back your red twigs and barberry in late March / early April. These are some of my favorite shrubs!

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Hi Greg...planted white and purple ones (rhododendrons) in July and have kept them watered well..added bone meal when planting..stopped watering them so much and had a lot of water after Floyd..the leaves are starting to turn yellow..I thought I'd add mirac-acid but I was wondering why the leaves are turning yellow when an older one is still green..granted it is in another part of the yard..Is there anything I can do so I don't lose them ..I've planted 8 of them..Thanks

I have seen this all over the area since the hurricane. It is most probably related. Mir-acid is fine and I would add some chelated iron according to label directions. I think they'll all come back fine next year.