THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 9, 1997 TAG: 9702070101
SECTION: HOME & GARDEN PAGE: G3 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Gardening
SOURCE: Robert Stiffler
LENGTH: 100 lines
Until early September, we had one of the prettiest mimosa trees on Colington Island. It was 7 years old, solidly branched, well-leafed and had the most beautiful flowers. After Hurricane Bertha passed through, we had several days of flooding rains. Soon after, the tree began to lose its leaves. There also was a gray, watery discharge from one of its primary limbs. We assume the tree is dying, but should we delay cutting it down until spring?
Jerry and Nina Raveling,
Kill Devil Hills, N.C.
Your tree was most likely damaged by the storm. But the secret to its demise is age. You said it was 7 years old, and that is as old as most mimosa trees live. They get a verticillum wilt, usually before they're 10 years old, and die. You can cut down your dead tree and replace it with another mimosa but be aware these trees have a short life expectation.
I live on the Outer Banks and garden in raised beds. In my vegetable beds, I planted tomatoes, bush beans, lettuce, spinach, beets and arugala. Up came a strange plant I have never seen before.
It is 18 inches tall with blossoms that are clustered at the top that open two or three each day. The stamens look like they are painted on. It has pale blue flowers but very sweet and sticky sap.
I am enclosing a sample. Do you know what it is?
Jane C. Holmes, Nags Head, N.C.
Your flower is a wildflower, and that's probably how that term originated. Weed specialist Laurie Smith at the Hampton Roads Research Center says that what you describe about the plant indicates Eupatorium serotine, often called coastal snake root. It is one of a half dozen varieties of Eupatorium. The blue blooming Eupatorium, however, is hardy ageratum, which has a bloom much different than the sample you sent. Hardy ageratum can be a real pest in a garden, although it does provide fall color.
The bloom you mailed looks like Meconopsis grandis ``Branklyn,'' which is an 18-inch perennial with poppylike, blue flowers on stout stems and hairy leaves. I'm sending you two descriptions from Smith to help in determining the identity of your plant.
I have pampas grass that bloomed the first year with three small plumes. The second year it had only one plume. I thought it was not getting enough sun, so I had a tree that was shading it cut down. This year it has not bloomed at all. Please help.
Also my azaleas appear to be very hardy but turned a brownish color in September, although their centers stayed green. Earlier in the year, I had my azaleas sprayed for bugs, caterpillars, etc. Could the spraying be the cause?
Louise D. Kearney, Norfolk
The pampas grass was most likely stressed by the tree and will take a year or two to recover. In full sun, it should thrive. I hope you enjoy it. As an aside, I'd never cut down a tree to get pampas grass to grow, because I think you'll find in a year or two that pampas grass can become a pest. A chain saw is required to cut it down each spring.
If your azaleas were sprayed when the weather was hot, the damage could be from the spray. Pesticides should never be used in hot weather, and especially during the hottest part of the day. Azalea lace bugs or spider mites can cause the kind of damage you describe. Check the undersides of the leaves if the situation develops again this year.
Can you identify the plant enclosed? It blossomed last year for the first time in eight years. Before that, it only produced leaves, from late March to late October.
B.G. Hudgins, Virginia Beach
Our plant identifier Dan Milbocker says: ``The specimen sent in is in bad condition. It looks like a funnel-shaped flower, and one entire leaf that looks like Dipladenia. The plant is also known as mandevilla. They are tropical vines, commonly grown as flowers. Such flowers also occur on morning glory, sweet potato and hibiscus. Most of those named do not have this type of leaf, which makes me believe the plant is Dipladenia.''
Because you say it had leaves only from late March to late October, that would indicate it is tropical. What doesn't add up is that, unless you are growing it indoors, these vines do not survive winter weather in this area.
Readers should remember that Milbocker moved to Pennsylvania and continues to voluntarily provide this identification service, but it takes longer to receive an answer.
When visiting my grandfather in Sharon, Pa., I was amazed at the size of his seckel (sugar) pear tree. The tree produces bushels of sugary, sweet pears every year. It is more than 60 feet tall and has a circumference of more than 6 feet. Is this unusual for a pear tree? Also are seckel pears native to this country and can they grow in this area?
T. Grasso, Virginia Beach
Tree authority Bonnie Appleton at the Hampton Roads Research Center says it is unusual for a seckel pear tree to be that large. Your grandfather must be treating it right. They are not native to this country, but they will grow here.
Can you tell me if the enclosed piece of greenery is a weed or some kind of flower? It about took over my flower garden.
Julia H. Felts, Norfolk
Weed Specialist Laurie Smith at the Hampton Roads Research Center identified your plant as Virginia copperleaf, a weed. It is a summer annual with hairy stems, 1 to 3 feet tall. It's often found in gardens in this area. Always pull and destroy it before its seeds drop onto the soil and come back next season. MEMO: No gardening questions will be taken over the phone. Write to
Robert Stiffler, The Virginian-Pilot, 150 W. Brambleton Ave., Norfolk,
Va. 23510. Answers will be published on a space-available basis. For an
earlier reply, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope.