by Matthew Orwat | Aug 24, 2017
On Saturday, September 16th, 2017, from 9AM to 12PM, UF / IFAS Extension Washington County will be providing a rose gardening workshop for gardeners across the Panhandle. Many roses are hard to grow in the Florida Panhandle without investing considerable time and energy into spraying for insect and disease problems. This workshop will teach attendees how to select and sustainably grow roses adapted to the hot-humid conditions of the Southern Gulf Coast. There will be opportunities for outdoor learning and hands-on activities.
Topics include:
- Selection of disease resistant rose cultivars adapted to the lower South
- Resources to obtain hard to find easy care rose cultivars
- Soil and Nutrient Management
- Disease and insect management
- Irrigation
- Rose Propagation
Participants will be given the opportunity to propagate their own rose and take home their own propagation assembly to grow their own roses from scratch.
Refreshments will be provided and a door prize will be available.
Address: Washington County Ag Center Auditorium, 1424 Jackson Ave, Chipley FL 32428.
Pre Registration required for count: Contact Nikki or Cynthia at 850-638-6180 or email Matthew Orwat at mjorwat@ufl.edu
or register online at eventbrite HERE !
by Daniel J. Leonard | Aug 11, 2017
Growing in containers can be one of the most versatile ways to add color, texture and mobility to the landscape. However, gardeners generally reach for finicky annuals to fill their pots with pizzazz. The problem with this strategy is that most annuals and perennials need to be watered constantly, fertilized regularly, and changed out with the seasons. That sounds like a little bang for a whole lot of buck! I and most of the real plant people I know fall squarely in the school of lazy gardening and believe there is an easier, less intensive, and ultimately less expensive way to get the same result. This can be accomplished by thinking outside the box and using an alternative class of plants that can fit the same bill of providing color and texture in pots without the headaches and have been sitting on the shelves right in front of us the whole time, the shrubs.
It is beyond me why shrubs aren’t used as container plants more often. Maybe the reason for the lack of use is pure perception; after all, no one with any sense would plant a giant, coarse green meatball or an enormous antebellum azalea in a decorative pot on their front walk. Recent innovations by plant breeders have left this argument moot though as new introductions of old species have revived interest in the entire group. Many of the best of these new cultivars sport traits perfect for container culture (dwarf growth habit, increased flowering, and interesting texture and form) while preserving the ironclad, undemanding nature of their parent plants. The following are a few of my favorite new shrub introductions for container growing!
- ‘Purple Pixie’ Loropetalum
Purple Pixie loropetalum is a low-growing shrub that can spill beautifully out of a container. (Photo by MSU Extension Service/Gary Bachman)
If interesting architecture is what you require in a plant, ‘Purple Pixie’ must be on display in your yard. This dwarf cultivar of the wildly overused purple shrub Loropetalum chinense has taken the horticultural world by storm. The unique combination of true purplish foliage that only greens slightly in the hottest summer sun, ribbon-like pink spring flowers, and a graceful weeping habit make ‘Purple Pixie’ a winner. Give this plant a medium sized container (at least 12” in diameter), water when the soil begins to dry, fertilize infrequently with a slow-release formulation, site in full sun to partial shade, and enjoy for many seasons to come.
This is definitely not your granddaddy’s Ligustrum. Gone are the rampant growth, sickly sweet smelling flowers, and the aggressive nature of ‘Sunshine’s’ parent Chinese Privet (Ligustrum sinense). ‘Sunshine’ is a sterile cultivar with dwarf characteristics (growing 4-5’ with infrequent light pruning), vivid yellow-chartreuse foliage, and most importantly, no flowers. All ‘Sunshine’ asks of us is plenty of sun, occasional fertilizer and a light haircut once or twice a season! Use this plant to frame a dark flowerbed or in a container as a companion to the previous plant, ‘Purple Pixie’ Loropetalum for an extremely striking combination!
‘Sunshine’ Ligustrum. Photo courtesy of JC Raulston Arboretum.
A new take on a landscape standard, ‘Baby Gem’ is an exceptionally compact and slow growing cultivar of Buxus microphylla var japonica. All the same features gardeners love about traditional “full-size” boxwoods remains (tight, formal growth habit, ability to prune into many different shapes and ironclad constitution) but with ‘Baby Gem’ are delivered in a perfect package for a pot. This little “gem” of a plant is perfect for use in a smallish container to frame a formal landscape or to give a sense of order to an informal container garden or border!
So if you’re ready to stop replacing all of your potted plants each and every season, reach for one of these shrubs the next time you are at a garden center. You’ll likely be rewarded with compliments on your creativity, four season interest from the plants themselves, and more time to enjoy being in your garden instead of laboring in it! As always, if you have any questions about this or any other horticultural topics please contact your local UF/IFAS Extension office! Happy Gardening!
by Julie McConnell | Jul 12, 2017
Coontie (Zamia floridana) planted at the same time but growing at different rates. Photo: J_McConnell, UF/IFAS
When designing landscapes, it is popular to create lines and masses of plants for high visual impacts. Plants are carefully selected to be similar in size and shape at the time of installation. They are all grouped together, so they must be getting the same care, but why do they look different years later? There are several factors to consider when we are trying to figure out why a perfectly matched set no longer looks like a uniform planting.
Although plants may be in the same bed, shadows cast at certain times of the day may reduce sunlight to some sections and not others. This can be caused by structures or trees that have grown over time and changed light patterns.
Supplemental irrigation may also be variable even with the best system design. Over time plants grow and may block sprinkler emitters from reaching some sections of landscape beds. Even if the landscape relies on natural rainfall, there can be still be dry/wet spots in the landscape due to drainage off of hard structures, low areas, or wind direction during storms.
It might be possible to adjust some lighting and watering issues, but there is one factor that many gardeners have not considered – genetics. If plants were grown from seed, than variation is not only possible, but likely. This might be displayed as differences in height and width, foliage color, flower color, speed of growth – all may be influenced by parentage despite best efforts to care for each plant similarly.
Many landscape plants are cultivars. This means they are grown from cuttings or divisions which make them identical to the original plant. When a plant is grown from seed, however, there is no guarantee it will have the same specific qualities as the mother plant.
To combat this phenomenon, landscapers should check sunlight and watering for irregular growth patterns and adjust if needed. If a landscape design requires uniform plants, use named cultivars rather than seedling grown plants in lines or masses.
by Matt Lollar | Jun 29, 2017
Algal leaf spot, also known as green scurf, is commonly found on thick-leaved, evergreen trees and shrubs such as magnolias and camellias. It is in the genus Cephaleuros and happens to be one of the only plant parasitic algae found in the United States. Although commonly found on magnolias and camellias, algal leaf spot has a host range of more than 200 species including Indian hawthorn, holly, and even guava in tropical climates. Algal leaf spot thrives in hot and humid conditions, so it can be found in the Florida Panhandle nearly year round and will be very prevalent after all the rain we’ve had lately.
Symptoms
Algal leaf spot is usually found on plant leaves, but it can also affect stems, branches, and fruit. The leaf spots are generally circular in shape with wavy or feathered edges and are raised from the leaf surface. The color of the spots ranges from light green to gray to brown. In the summer, the spots will become more pronounced and reddish, spore-producing structures will develop. In severe cases, leaves will yellow and drop from the plant.
Algal leaf spot on a camellia leaf. Photo Credit: University of Florida/IFAS Extension
The algae can move to the stems and branches in more extreme cases. The algae can infect the stems and branches by entering through a small crack or crevice in the bark. The bark in that area cracks as a canker forms that eventually can girdle the branch, killing it.
Algal leaf spot on a sycamore branch. (Platanus occidentalis). Photo Credit: Florida Division of Plant Industry Archive, Bugwood.org.
Management
In most cases, algal leaf spot is only an aesthetic issue. If only a few leaves are affected, then they can just be removed by hand. \It is important that symptomatic leaves are discarded or composted offsite instead of being left in the mulched area around the trees or shrubs. If symptomatic leaves are left in the same general area then irrigation or rain water can splash the algal spores on healthy leaves and branches. Infected branches can also be removed and pruned.
Preventative measures are recommended for long-term management of algal leaf spot. Growing conditions can be improved by making sure that plants receive the recommended amount of sunlight, water, and fertilizer. Additionally, air circulation around affected plants can be increased by selectively pruning some branches and removing or thinning out nearby shrubs and trees. It is also important to avoid overhead irrigation whenever possible.
Fungicide application may be necessary in severe cases. Copper fungicides such as Southern Ag Liquid Copper Fungicide, Monterey Liqui-Cop Fungicide Concentrate, and Bonide Liquid Copper Fungicide are recommended. Copper may need to be sprayed every 2 weeks if wet conditions persist.
Algal leaf spot isn’t a major pathogen of shrubs and trees, but it can cause significant damage if left untreated. The first step to management is accurate identification of the problem. If you have any uncertainty, feel free to contact your local Extension Office and ask for the Master Gardener Help Desk or your County Horticulture Agent.
by Gary Knox | Jun 29, 2017
IPM for Shrubs in Southeastern US Nursery Production Volume II is the third book released by the Southern Nursery Integrated Pest Management Working Group (SNIPM) and includes chapters on hydrangea, loropetalum, holly, rhododendron (including azalea), Indian hawthorn, and weed management. Each chapter covers history, culture and management of the major species and cultivars in production, as well as arthropod pest management and disease management. Within the discussion of these topics, each chapter includes strategies for developing effective IPM programs for key pests and plant pathogens, including tables of fungicides and insecticides for use with these key organisms. While developed for nursery producers, this information also may be useful to landscapers, students, arborists and others.
This free book is downloadable as pdf chapters at
http://wiki.bugwood.org/IPM_Shrub_Book_II.
The first book, IPM of Select Deciduous Trees in Southeastern U.S. Nursery Production, was released in May 2012 and is available for free download as chapter .pdf files at http://wiki.bugwood.org/SNIPM and as an eBook from the iTunes Bookstore https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/ipm-for-select-deciduous-trees/id541182125?mt=11.
The second book, IPM for Shrubs in Southeastern US Nursery Production Volume I, was released in June 2014 and can also be downloaded as chapter .pdf files at http://wiki.bugwood.org/SNIPM or from the iTunes Bookstore at https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/ipm-for-shrubs-in-southeastern/id903114207?mt=11.
The SNIPM Working Group is a multi-disciplinary group of Extension professionals formed to more efficiently and effectively develop and deliver educational programming to the southern U.S. nursery and landscape industry.
by Gary Knox | Jun 22, 2017
Come to this free workshop to learn about the latest results of University of Florida and national research on roses. Receive hands-on training on symptoms and management of rose rosette disease, rose mosaic disease, crown gall, and rose pests.
FL Pesticide CEUs, FNGLA CEUs and GA Pesticide CEUs have been applied for!
This program is geared for nursery and greenhouse growers, landscapers, municipal maintenance personnel, Extension personnel, Rosarians, rose enthusiasts and science teachers. Sponsored by Farm Credit of Northwest Florida and Harrell’s.
To register for this FREE event, please go to: https://rose-diseases-pests.eventbrite.com
