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Final Garden Questions: Answered

by on ‎04-17-2014 02:48 PM

Can you believe April is almost over and it's almost time for those May flowers? We are celebrating the end of National Garden Month with the final answers to your Garden Month questions!


8) Why Are The Leaves On My Plants Turning Yellow?


The good news is your plant just may be going through its natural growth process by yellowing its leaves and shedding them.  The other good news is your plant is telling you something is wrong by yellowing.  And more times than not, diagnosing your plant like a doctor with a patient’s symptoms can be clear-cut.  Could it be...


Change of location? This is the first question to ask.  Like most people, plants like their areas and are accustomed to it.  If the new area is too light or lacks light, the plant in its defense will drop their leave in order to grow new that can adapt to the conditions.  Consider moving the plant back to its original spot, if it was thriving there.  Or if this isn’t possible, such as you’ve moved, then keep a watchful eye and give your plant time to acclimate.  It may just be as simple as this.


Limited Light?  Does your plant have yellowing on the lower leaves?  Check to see if the yellowing leaves are on the side of the plant not in the direct light, then there is the problem.  Oftentimes too, plants next to a window shed leaves because of shorter days and will have a growth spurt when days get longer.


Cold Conditions? Have you moved your plant recently into a drafty area or has it experienced an unusual blast of cold weather?  Try placing the plant back to where it thrived or moving it to a warmer spot in your home with more light.   Do the opposite if you think the plant in undergoing heat conditions.


Nutrient Deficiency?  Are the top leaves yellowing?  Or do you notice yellowing in unusual patterns?  These are the tell-tale signs of deficiency.  Perhaps the plant is nitrogen deficient or you getting too much calcium in tap water.   You can also try Chelated Iron to green-up your plant.


Over Watering? When a plant gets too much water it strangles the roots and this is a major cause of yellowing.  Few plants like to have water in their trays, so water accordingly.


Overly Dry? Has your plant been missing regular watering?  Like people, plants need to drink consistently.  See if getting back onto a schedule will improve the plant health.


Insects?  If your plant leaves look yellow or burnt, it might be the result of infestation i.e. Spider Mites.  Spray a systemic insecticide provided these are not edible plants…


9) How Can I Stop Deer From Eating Everything?


Honestly, there truly is no full-proof way to prevent deer from having a bite (if there were, surely we would all own stock in it) but there are some ways to discourage these majestic but destructive animals. 


Here I go again, (my blog post “It’s True – It’s Time To Prune”) but pruning and cleaning up your garden is a great place to start.  I trim the lower branches on my trees regularly because unless deer are extremely desperate, they will go find “low hanging fruit” on someone else’s property.  A yard clean of leaves, acorns and rotting fruit is like a store with empty shelves and again, the deer will move on.  Over the years so many friends and fellow gardeners have given me “solutions” to try like spreading cat litter around your property borders, placing bars of deodorant or strong smelling soap around your property and  hanging them from garden gates.  And who knew that deer do not like any “melodic” noise whether it’s wind chimes or the radio?  A great excuse to have music playing from your patio speakers all of the time!    


You can also consider the many plants and shrubs that deer just don’t like.  I compare it to a restaurant that serves nothing but food you don’t eat (ok, it might be hard for me to find any restaurant with nothing I like to eat, but that’s another story all together).  Here are some ornamental varieties I like and deer unfriendly:


-Ground Covers:  Barrenwort, Pachysandra, Spotted Deadnettle, Sweet Woodruff, Lily of the Valley, Bearberry, Bugleweed.


-Perennials: Forget Me Not, Lambs Ear, Bleeding Hearts, Butter and Eggs, Tansy Statice, Peony, Hyssop, Buttercup, Basket of Gold, Catmint, and Lemon Balm.


-Bulbs:  Tulip, Autumn Crocus, Daffodil, Snowdrops.


-Ornamental Grasses:  Indian Grass, Fountain Grass, Big Bluestem, Feather Reed, Hard Rush, Blue Fescue, Blue Oat Grass.


Sorry deer, you can come over for a glimpse of my garden, but you can’t stay for dinner!  


10) How Do I Prune Hydrangeas?


Even experienced gardeners have questions on when to prune hydrangeas.   And no wonder with four different species of hydrangea and hundreds of varieties!  With these mind-numbing numbers, let’s focus on two of the most popular; the Mophead (Macrophylla) and PeeGee (Paniculatas).



Mophead and Lacecap Hydrangeas - You really don’t ever have to prune a Mophead hydrangea.  But for the health of the plant, you can remove dead stems at any time of year.  If your Mophead is older than five years and too large, then you can cut back a third of the old wood after it has bloomed. Your typical Mophead blooms on the old wood so leave the shoots and only prune out any dead sticks. But there are new varieties, like one of my favorites Endless Summer, which blooms on the new and old wood.  I relish this species for many reasons; it can full-set bloom twice in a summer, which is not true of other Macrophylla, comes in pale shades of blue, lavender and pink, and is fairly prune-resistant.     



Pee Gee bloom on old wood and can be pruned any time of year except summer when they are preparing to bloom.  Some of my colleagues prune back these varieties regularly right after the blooming period, yet I do not even touch these beauties until the fall. We look forward to watching the snow fall onto the blooms in the winter.  If I do feel the need to prune, the great thing is that these hydrangeas are one of the only varieties that can be trimmed into tree-form.   


Both the Paniculata and Macrophylla are beautiful used in floral arrangements and the blooms dry nicely to make into dried arrangements and wreathes too.




I hope you enjoyed celebrating National Garden Month with me! Be sure to check out our Gardening Guide for all of your garden and outdoor living needs!


- Barbara