THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 14, 1996 TAG: 9601120073
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G3 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: GARDENING REMINDERS
SOURCE: Robert Stiffler
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
THERE HAVE BEEN several questions about yellowing azalea leaves. That is normal for some varieties, especially Snow, the white-blooming azalea. Some believe the drought last summer caused more yellowing this time of year than usual.
Others, including North Carolina Botanical Garden representatives say it may be chlorosis of older leaves, which means the veins lose their green color. The cause may be magnesium deficiency or iron being unavailable to the plant. That can be caused by compacted soil, poor drainage, low temperatures, over-fertilization, unbalanced fertilization or excessive soil acidity.
If you have any of those conditions, improve the soil with mulch and spray the foliage with Epsom salts. Most likely with some special care, your azaleas will put out new leaves in the spring and be as healthy as before. FERRY MORSE RETURNS
If you'd like the first mail-order seed catalog from Ferry Morse in more than 30 years, call (800) 626-3392. Ferry Morse offers toll-free ordering, a full guarantee and a toll-free Garden Help Line. They're introducing many old-fashioned garden favorites in their 1996 catalog, which is free. FERTILIZE ICY WALKS
Here's a helpful reminder for when we have winter storms. To melt ice and snow from sidewalks, apply fertilizer heavy in potash (the last number on the bag). It melts the ice and fertilizes the grass or shrubs around the sidewalk. And it's not harmful like salt. HEAT-TOLERANT PLANTS
White Flower Farm's new Garden Book offers what they call ``two new initiatives.'' The first is kits to build water gardens. The other, of more interest to readers in this area, is a special catalog for gardeners in Zones 7 and 8. (We're for the most part in Zone 8.) They've added 20 varieties of plants, selected for tolerance to heat and humidity. For a free copy, call (800) 503-9624 or write to P.O. Box 50, Route 63, Litchfield, Conn. 06759-0050. SOAK SEEDS BEFORE CUTTING
Diane Morris, whom many remember as Hampton Roads' ``bulb lady'' or ``herb lady,'' wrote from her herb farm in Seaboard, N.C., about moon vines. She says rather than nip at the seeds with fingernail clippers, or cut yourself trying to nick them with a knife, try this: soak them overnight in lukewarm water first. Then they can easily be nicked with a paring knife. Be careful not to cut into the seed too far. Don't soak longer than overnight unless the seed floats. If it floats, try soaking it longer until it softens.
Morris also says that Queen Anne's lace, because it is in the carrot family, does not respond well to transplanting. Neither do sunflowers. They resent transplanting, she says, unless it's done when they're quite small and the whole clump of roots is planted undisturbed. Some plants perform better when directly sown into the garden. PROTECT THE BIRDS
Readers often ask how to prevent birds from flying into their windows. Nancy Peckham of Horseheads, N.Y., writes in the January-February issue of ``Birds & Blooms'' magazine that 83 people wrote her from 31 states and Canada to offer advice on that subject. She says the idea that worked for her was to put a sticker of a diving falcon on her windows. Not one bird has hit the windows since.
``Birds & Blooms'' is an excellent new magazine about flowers, birds and butterflies, published without advertising but with lots of color photos. It costs $10.98 per year for six issues. Call (800) 344-6913 and charge your order. by CNB