THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 28, 1994 TAG: 9408260093
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G2 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: GARDENING
SOURCE: ROBERT STIFFLER
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines
My husband and I recently purchased property in Chesapeake. We have to clear both sides of the property in order to make drainage ditches. After we do this, we will be able to see our neighbor. He has small children and a swimming pool. We are older adults and would like to plant something on our property to regain our privacy. What type of tree or shrub do you suggest? We want something to look like Mother Nature had a hand in it; something evergreen and fast growing. The ditches should be completed by the end of August, which is not the best time for planting, so I'll appreciate some planting tips.
Mrs. R. Cerny, Virginia Beach
There are many good plants to solve your problem. For a hedge that looks as if nature put it there, wax myrtle (native bayberry), is hard to beat. It fits all your requirements and requires little pruning. Another excellent choice that is more formal is Leyland cypress, a tree. It can be pruned to a square shape or left to grow naturally. Yaupon holly is another native plant that would meet your needs. Other choices include sasanqua camellias and many varieties of holly. Though they won't be green in winter, many deciduous shrubs such as upright Tatarian honeysuckle can be purchased bareroot from mail-order nurseries. The cost is much less that way.
As for planting, any plant named can be planted in October and should thrive. Water every other day after planting but do not fertilize them until late winter or early spring.
We are trying to get St. Augustine grass established in our lawn. We need a yearly maintenance plan. Can you help? We have also been battling crabgrass and Dalisgrass. Any suggestions you have will be greatly appreciated.
Ken and Jan Cochran, Suffolk
Your primary problem is that St. Augustine grass is not supposed to grow here. Our winters are too cold. As you know, you must start with plugs. It needs full sun and as much water as you can give it. Fertilize from April through August with a high nitrogen fertilizer such as 30-5-10, applied in an amount to give it one pound of nitrogen per month per 1,000 square feet. It also is a haven for many insects, so check regularly for them. Apply an insecticide if you find bugs. As for crabgrass and Dalis grass, use a pre-emergent control early next spring, perhaps in March. Many crabgrass products also control Dalis grass, but make sure you get a product especially for St. Augustine or you'll harm it.
This is a follow-up to the letter I wrote you about snow-on-the-mountain and touch-me-nots. I have had good response since you put my letter in the paper. I got touch-me-nots from Madge Taylor. A friend also sent a seed catalog that includes seeds for both these plants. It says that snow-on-the-mountain is also known as Bishop's Weed. The seed house that carries this seed (and the catalog is free) is J.W. Jung Seed Co., 335 S. High St., Randolph, Wis. 53957.
Marie Brown, Norfolk
Thanks for the tip on where to buy these hard-to-find seeds. I visited J.W. Jung years ago. It was then a small country elevator in the center of a tiny town where the snow stays 2 feet deep from November through February. You did't need a street address to find J.W. Jung in this village. But now it supplies many hard-to-find vegetable and flower seeds nationwide.
Thanks for your response to my letter about Scripton. I tried it in my feeder, but it did not seem to deter the squirrels much - and I sneezed mightily every time I distributed it. We ended up buying a new bird feeder. One more note about touch-me-nots. In New York, we called them lady-slippers or balsam.
Mrs. Raymond Schofield, Hertford, N.C.
I've found the way to use Scripton is to sprinkle it heavily on seed in the openings where the bird food comes out of the feeder. Don't sprinkle over the entire amount. After a few days, at least at my house, the squirrels do not go near that feeder. Each time you refill the feeder, repeat the process. It doesn't require as much Scripton as it sounds, so it's affordable. It doesn't seem to bother the birds one iota. We've had dozens of yellow finches eating it up.
As for touch-me-nots, many plants have regional names Locally, that's often what they're called. This is another reason we should use only botanical names. But as long as they stay so hard to spell and pronounce, I doubt that will ever happen. MEMO: No gardening questions will be taken over the phone. Write to Robert
Stiffler, The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, 150 W. Brambleton
Ave., Norfolk, Va. 23510. Answers will be published on a space-available
basis at the proper time for their use in the garden. For an earlier
reply, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope. by CNB