ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, October 13, 1996 TAG: 9610150065
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Dear John
SOURCE: JOHN ARBOGAST
Q: I have a flower bed with iris, tulips, lilies, buttercups and a phlox that has a bulb-type root. I've had a problem in that bed with a grass that is a weed that takes over the bed every year. I have dug it out twice, replanting the bulbs each time, but the grassy weed just comes right back. The rhizomes on this grass seem to go down deeper than I can dig. Is there an herbicide that I can use that won't hurt the bulbs but will kill the grass? If so, when should it be applied? Also, I need the phone number of the man who prunes boxwoods. There was an article in the paper about him a while back. A.B., Union Hall
A: I get the impression that this is a perennial weed that grows from established parts rather than an annual. This difference is important in selecting a control strategy because control of an annual weed can be done before the weeds germinate. This is done with a weed preventer that prevents germination. Be sure to select a weed killer labeled for use in the type of area where the weed is growing, which in your case is in a flower bed.
Virginia Tech's recommendations for controlling perennial grasses in home ornamental plantings are: 1) when the weeds are actively growing, apply Roundup, Roundup L&G or Oxtho Kleenup as a directed spray to the weeds, using care not to contact the bark or foliage of desired plants, or 2) make spot treatment only to the grassy weeds with Ornamec or Grass-B-Gon and repeat if needed. Whichever product you decide to use, be sure that you purchase a formulation designed for residential use, not commercial applicators, and that you follow all label directions and cautions.
As for your boxwoods, I am assuming that you're asking about the business that prunes boxwoods after frost in mid-to-late fall and takes the greenery for payment for their services. The Extension Office does not have contacts with that company nor can we vouch for their expertise. Possibly, some of that individual's past customers will come forward with that information.
Q: I planted seeds from a Southern Magnolia tree back in the spring. They are just coming up and are about 2 or 3 inches tall now. How can I keep them alive through the winter and how about fertilizer? D.A.J., Buena Vista
A: I hope that you started the magnolias outdoors, so that the little plants have been gradually getting used to reduced temperatures. This will help the young trees develop as little woody plants, capable of surviving outdoors. There are two methods for handling newly started plants. In either, very little watering should be needed while the plants are dormant. Method No. 1, for seedlings started in or transplanted to well-drained, outdoor planting bed: provide shade and wind protection (no plastic coverings, please), then, after the first hard freeze, place a 1 1/2-2-inch thickness of a loose mulch such as pine needles around the plants; do not pile the mulch any deeper, because mice can use greater mulch depths as cover from which they will chew on the landscape plants during the winter. Method No. 2 for little seedlings still in pots: water the young trees; select a well-drained, shady outdoor bed location and dig a trench in which you'll bury the pots up to their rims; then, after the ground becomes frozen just on top, mulch as before; remove the pots from the bed in early spring.
Fertilizer applied now will not help your young Southern Magnolias over winter. Use a liquid tree and shrub fertilizer mixed according to package directions in early spring.
Q: I wonder if there is anything that will help me get rid of chickweed. I have tried a couple of things that say they will get rid of it, but it seems like they don't help. I am not the only one who has it . F.W.H., Clifton Forge.
A: Two points are critical for lawn weed control: 1) proper identification of the problem weed; and 2) based on that, selection of a control product that should control that species, and the preferred time of year to treat, which means the time that the target weed is tender and thus most susceptible to control. This Extension Office usually gets samples or questions about chickweed in the spring rather than now. So, if your letter is about a weed that is bothering you now or in late summer, it doesn't sound like chickweed. It certainly would be worth your time to have an expert identify the weed. Virginia Tech says that the best time of year to apply the appropriate control for either the Common Chickweed or the Mouse-ear Chickweed form is right now in October or early November.
Send short questions about your lawn, garden, plants or insects to Dear John, c/o The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke 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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