Beautiful smoke trees can be found at any nursery

A warm and windy week has brought more and more questions my way.

Q: I saw a smoke tree at the Preserve and want to know where I can get it.

A: Yes, the smoke tree (Cotinus coggygria)is a beautiful tree and brings an unusual color into your landscape from the traditional greens. It gets its common name from spent flowers that appear like puffs of smoke around the plant. All nurseries carry the tree.

Q: Why did my miniature rose start growing long canes all of a sudden?

A: Most miniature roses are not grafted, so there isn't much of a chance of reverting back to the rootstock used to graft other roses on to it, said Jackie Jackson of the Las Vegas Valley Rose Society. So all you need to do is cut back long canes to within the confines of the plant. But, suppose the long canes have different colored flowers, then remove the long canes coming from the root stalk.

Q: What are the cottony masses of bugs clustered around pruning scars on my apple tree?

A: The tip off is cottony mass around pruning wounds. It is the woolly aphid. The woolly stuff is where it gets its name to protect it from predators and sprays. It weakens trees by feeding on roots and limbs. Hit the cottony secretions with a strong jet of water to wash it off, or use insecticidal soap if the problem continues. Clean up debris around the area where it overwinters.

Q: Where can I get clary sage and when can I plant it? I also want to know about its oil.

A: The botanical name of this perennial herb is Salvia sclarea. It is a common herb sold at your nursery and now is a good time to plant it. If you don't find it, request it and they will bring it in. You will find its distilled oil in specialty stores. The plant gets about knee-high with lilac-colored flowers in whorls along the stems, rising above heart-shaped leaves with a silver cast to them.

Q: When is the best time to trim our red-tip Photinias?

A: After the showy red-tip leaves turn green and flowers emerge, trim them. Do it too early, and you will miss the showy colored leaves. Expect another flush of red tips in the fall.

Q: I have an apricot tree covered with aphid honeydew. In the past, we released ladybugs and praying mantis but the aphids are overwhelming this spring. If I spray the tree with dish soap and water, will it also kill the good bugs?

A: Nurture these beneficial insects, including lacewings and tiny parasitic wasps, as they feed on aphids. Right now, the parasitic wasps have caught my attention. You can see their work by looking for aphid mummies. These aphids have become white specks stuck in their own honeydew on leaves.

The tiny parasitic wasps cause the aphid mummies by laying their eggs inside the aphid and the wasp eggs hatch into larva and feed on the inner parts of living aphids. When the wasp completes its life cycle, it releases a chemical that causes the aphid to harden. Shortly afterward, the wasp emerges to find other aphids to do their thing. Or, wash aphids off with a strong blast of water or spray aphids with insecticidal soap.

Q: I planted a pomegranate tree last spring. It soon dropped its blossoms and lost its leaves through the winter. We haven't seen any blossoms yet. What could be wrong, or should I just be more patient?

A: Be more patient. It takes three to four seasons to come into production. You will get some fruit between now and then. It is normal for leaves to drop during winter.

Q: We have a chaste tree that is about ready to bloom. Do we need to remove last year's seedpods, or let them go?

A: You make the choice. Seedpods do distract from the tree's beauty, but it won't do any harm leaving them on the tree.

Q: In previous years, I grew tomatoes quite successfully. But for the past two years they will not ripen. They have full sun, blossoms and plenty of green tomatoes, but they will not turn red. I picked and placed them in my window, and they still remained green. What is wrong?

A: You don't say how long you waited before picking them. It seems like an eternity for tomatoes to ripen, especially when you want to sink your teeth into them. And if you overfertilized them, it will slow the ripening process.

Tomatoes color from the inside out, and if you picked them before that stage begins, they will not ripen, which is when they turn a whitish-green. At this point, let them finish ripening or ripen them on the kitchen counter. I use to grow tomatoes commercially, and they'd get up to a point and just seemed to antagonize me. But once they started ripening, I was flooded with tomatoes.

Q: I have a Palo Verde I'd like to eliminate its crossing branches. When can I do it?

A: Prune these beautiful trees anytime, especially if branches are getting in the way and crisscrossing. Remove the branch where it attaches to the branch you want to keep, and cut it out at the crotch.

Q: You need to come and see my rose bush. A palm tree is coming out of the center of the bush. It is so unique.

A: Somehow, someone planted a palm seed at the base of your rose bush. You need to remove it, as palm seedlings can be very hard to remove once established.

Someone once called and said they had a pine tree and palm growing in the crotch of a mulberry tree. It was a picture-taking moment!

'DANCING INTO SPRING'

Here are the folks who received accolades at this year's spring flower show on April 12-13:

Award of Design Excellence to Anna Williams; Tricolor Award to Peg Cummings and Award for Table Artistry to Karen Burth; Award of Excellence in Horticulture to Steve Hinkson; Arboreal Award to Peg Cummings and Collector's Showcase Award to Alana Sullivan.

Awards of Merit to Dora Robertson, Sullivan, The City of Las Vegas Doolittle Community Garden (14 blue ribbons), Roberta Baltz and Hinkson.

Award of Appreciation to Karen Del Toro and the Hawaiian Civic Club; Educational Award to Paula Garrett and Youth -- Horticulture Award to Maya Eros

MAKE IT. BAKE IT. SEW IT. GROW IT!

Growing the right ideas has never been easier than stopping by the Las Vegas Farmers Market at the Springs Preserve, 333 S. Valley View Blvd. The market features the freshest fruits and vegetables from the Southwest, authentic, European-style breads and pastries, as well as local (within 500 miles of Las Vegas) fresh-grown produce, such as blood oranges, asparagus, beets, avocados, squash, pomelos, bok choy, strawberries and more. Visit local artisans and artists with hand-made arts and crafts and help close the loop by choosing organics grown regionally. Beginning Thursday, and every Thursday into the summer from 4 to 8 p.m., expect weekly surprises, live music and green artists. Bring your shopping bags or pick up one up at the market. If you want to become a vendor at this market, visit www.lasvegasfarmersmarket.com or call 562-2676.

Linn Mills writes a garden column each Sunday. You can reach him at www.linn.mills@springspreserve.org or call him at822-7754.