Summer is not the best time of year to plant desert spoon, but if you are going to plant them, plant them at a time during the day when it’s cooler and plant in wet soil.
Bob Morris
Bob Morris is a horticulture expert living in Las Vegas and professor emeritus for the University of Nevada. Visit his blog at xtremehorticulture.blogspot.com. Send questions to Extremehort@aol.com.
Yellowing of bottle brush leaves oftentimes occurs when the soil is low in nutrients and organic matter content. Fix yellowing leaves by applying a landscape fertilizer every year in the spring and combine it with an annual application of chelated iron.
To prevent fruit production in an ornamental tree, spray the it with a chemical every year to get the fruit to drop when it’s still small. Spray the entire canopy of the tree when as many of the flowers are open as possible.
There is some bad information on the internet saying that pygmy date palm can handle temperatures to 22 degrees. That’s not true. It’s more like about 28 degrees.
There are natural products that you can apply for controlling grubs of June beetles, including insect-devouring — but plant-friendly — nematodes.
The Moapa vegetable publication written by Dr. Sylvan Wittwer has information for cultivating vegetables for all of the different elevations found in the Las Vegas Valley.
Q: I planted a Bosc pear tree seven years ago not realizing it required a second pollenizer pear tree. For several years, I did get a few pears even though the tree had lots of flowers. I think my neighbor’s pear tree was the pollenizer, but it seems to be failing. I have no room to plant a pollenizer pear tree. Not sure what to do.
Q: My Mexican bird of paradise grows well but it looks too thin. Or is that its natural way? I would like it to fill in and be healthy looking.
Q: Wondering if you have any recommendations for varieties of pineapple guava that will fruit in the Las Vegas Valley. Thanks for putting that list of fruit trees that grow well in the Las Vegas area.
Q: I planted a Pink Lady apple and a Fuji apple together as pollination partners last March. My Fuji died over the summer. I like Fuji apples from the store but I’m wondering if I should try again with another Fuji tree or choose another variety?
Temperatures turned cold this past week. Historically, we still have about three or four more weeks of warm weather so it probably will get warm again soon. But if you plant vegetables from seed, these cold soil temperatures should still be warm enough to germinate radish, peas, beets, possibly carrots and turnips.
You had an article a while back about trimming oleander down before spring. I have five in my backyard and have never done that. I am afraid to trim them down.
Q. Are these nematodes on my tomato roots in the picture I sent to you?
Question: Will either dwarf lime or lemon trees do well here?
Q: Do desert-adapted shrubs like Texas rangers, cassias and others benefit from adding sulfur to the soil? Will they perform better in a pH around 7.5 as opposed to 8? I know it’s probably not necessary but I’m just wondering if the additional sulfur in the soil will help them thrive better or if it’s overkill.
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