All of the so-called temperate fruit trees flower in the spring. The white-flowered types such as almonds, plums and pluots, apples and pears usually flower a bit later.
Home and Garden
Lowering total landscape water use requires finding a balance between open areas that need no irrigation with areas that require irrigation.
The general recommendation is to not have rocks greater than golf ball-sized so that lawn grass roots have a place to grow. Trees and shrubs have similar guidelines.
As we water plants infrequently, the roots extract water and grow into deeper layers of soil. Deep rooting of plants is the main reason good gardeners say, “Water plants deeply but infrequently.”
Lemons usually don’t ripen until about December. Ripening means the sugar content increases as they reach maturity. December and January are the usual times we see citrus damaged by vermin.
The months of January and February are the time to apply fertilizer to landscapes. When precisely this application is made depends on the growth of the plant.
One easy way to tell the difference between a bay laurel and a Carolina cherry laurel is to crush the leaves and smell the herbal aroma. Bay laurel leaves have a pungent aroma. When you crush the leaves of Carolina cherry laurel, they have an aroma of maraschino cherries rather than herbal.
Spraying insecticides make mite problems more likely on susceptible plants such as Italian cypress. Miticides, unlike insecticides, are less likely to cause mite problems later.
Q: I have some tomatoes and pepper plants in pots. They are about 18 inches tall. Is it too early to plant them in my raised bed garden? It’s been too cold lately to plant.
Another freeze went through the valley this past week along with some unusually cold weather. Freezing temperatures are more damaging to plants as we enter the spring months because plants are starting to wake up from their winter dormant period. These same plants might have no problems with these temperatures in December and January.
Q: I have had a large poinsettia since last Christmas. Is there a way to encourage blooms this year? It seems I read somewhere to put it into a dark place without water for a period of time. Anything you can tell me will help.
Come and visit me at the Home Improvement and Backyard Expo on Sept. 16-17 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the South Point. Bring in some plant samples or pictures and let’s talk about them. Would you like a couple of 10-minute classes? I will stay longer than 2 p.m. if anyone wants to chitchat.
Q: I heard about a cherry tree from the Dave Wilson Nursery website that has very low chill hours. Can we order these from the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Orchard?
Question: We have nine pine trees, and they are dropping lots of needles. We have a large berm under the trees and water inside the berm twice weekly. Should the needles be removed or left inside the berm?
Question: In a past posting on your blog, you mentioned that using 100 percent distilled water for container plant irrigation might mess with the potting soil. What did you mean by that?
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