ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, September 15, 1996 TAG: 9609180008
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-1 EDITION: METRO DEAR JOHN
Last week, we talked about using winners as a method to prevent problems in the landscape and garden such as three flowers that recently received the award of All-America Selections Winner for '97. This week, let's look at the three new varieties that were honored as AAS Vegetable Award Winners.
That designation was given to Dynamo f1 hybrid cabbage, Cajun Delight f1 hybrid okra and Siam Queen Thai basil.
Dynamo Cabbage produces small, attractive, blue-green heads. It proved in AAS trials that it would do well under stressful conditions, such as severe heat, producing dense heads with less waste, a small core and less splitting than other cabbages. It is resistant to the disease called Fusarium yellows.
Cajun Delight okra offers tender immature pods that can be harvested earlier than other okras and produces over a longer period of time, thus giving a much higher yield potential. It grows quickly under warming late-spring temperatures and is adapted to northern gardens.
Siam Queen Thai basil is an improved tropical basil that produces large, aromatic leaves; thick red-purple stems; and is later flowering compared to other basils. These attractive qualities make Siam Queen great for the sunny door-yard garden or one adjacent to the patio. Like other basil plants, it is relatively disease and pest free in gardens.
Q: I have a butterfly bush growing in a low swampy place. I want to move it to a higher, drier spot. When should I transplant it, and should it be cut back at moving time or later? W.W.W., Vinton
A: Cutting plants back when transplanting is not helpful and is one of those old recommendations from a few years ago that horticulture researchers have now shown not to be worth the work. Since most transplanted landscape plants have reduced vigor their first year after moving and should not be stimulated by pruning until they are well established with adequate roots in their new location, remove only broken or damaged parts now and wait until early spring a full year later to prune your bush.
Q: Why is it that in the spring and early summer, you have an abundance of Blue Concord grapes on the vines but by harvesting time in August they have dried up and fallen off? What can be done to prevent this? E.W., Rocky Mount
A: The problem sounds like some sort of disease is occurring on the grape plant. Since you didn't mention other clues, such as grape leaf symptoms, and since I obviously didn't see samples from your plants when the problem was first noted, I can only mention the grape diseases called black rot, bitter rot and ripe rot as possibilities.
The most important suggestion for now is to practice "sanitation," which means raking up and removing infected grapes and leaves from the ground near your grape vine, and pruning and removing infected parts of the grape vine this fall. Next growing season, follow a good fungicide program on your grape vine and frequently observe the growing leaves and developing grapes for any clues before it is too late.
Q: I have a 3-year-old Mandevilla Vine. It bloomed beautifully the first two years. I cut it off to about 3 feet. It had lush green leaves, and to my horror, it also had whiteflies. I've sprayed with diazinon as directed. It is still covered with whiteflies. What should I do? The backs of the leaves are also darkened. Please help. V.C., Roanoke
A: It sounds like you have two connected problems here: (1) a flowering plant that is likely receiving too much nitrogen fertilizer. This is indicated by the lush green leaves with no blooms and also the fact that the whiteflies are sucking enough lush juices out to produce a large quantity of sweet secretion on which black, sooty mold has grown on the leaf bottoms; and (2) the difficult-to-control pest called whitefly.
The solution to the first situation would be to curtail or probably eliminate fertilizer applications, especially now that the Mandevilla is under stress from the sucking injury of the whiteflies. To combat the whiteflies, isolate the Mandevilla while it is infested so that the pests do not spread; purchase from a garden center or make small yellow sticky squares and place them around the Mandevilla to lure and trap some of the whitefly population; and use an indoor plant whitefly control product that is approved for use on Mandevillas every few days as indicated by the label.
Send short questions about your lawn, garden, plants, or insects to Dear John, c/o The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491. We need your mail, but this column can't reply to all letters. Those of wide appeal will be answered during the weeks that the subject is timely. Personal replies cannot be given. Please don't send stamps, stamped envelopes, samples, or pictures.
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