Featured Plant: Itea virginica, Virginia Sweet SpireFall is a spectacular time for native perennials! Itea virginica, Virginia Sweet Spire, has showy cat-kin like spire white flowers in the late spring months that make way for glossy green leaves that turn vibrant red and orange in the fall. The flowers are produced on last year’s growth or old wood and depending on the cultivar the flowers may be upright or cascading. “Little Henry” is a popular cultivar of this plant. The shrub is deciduous with an attractive arching form. It can handle a variety of soil conditions and planting sites including low and wet sites. Not only is this plant native, it’s deer resistant, a source of nectar for pollinators, drought tolerant, and produces an attractive display for three fourths of the year. This mid-sized shrub grows 3-5 feet tall and has a spreading growth habit in an urban landscape setting. In a more natural setting with shade it can grow taller.
By: Lauren Hill, Horticulture Agent Cabarrus County
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Winter Lawn Care for Tall FescueYou have aerated, re-seeded, fertilized and established a healthy tall fescue lawn this season! If not it is best to wait will next fall to establish a tall fescue lawn by seed, springing seeding typically cannot make it through the summer months. You may also consider installing tall fescue sod or exploring other turf grasses for your home lawn. To keep your tall fescue lawn healthy you must continue care through the winter months as this cool season grass is actively growing. Tall fescue requires a 2 ½ to 3 inches mowing height and it is best to leave clippings on the lawn for additional nitrogen. Tall Fescue needs 1 -1 ¼ inches of water every week, ideally all at once. Water to a depth of 4 to 6 inches to adequately wet the soil. Typically clay soils will have runoff from irrigation because they absorb water slowly, allow water to absorb then begin irrigating again until reaching desired amount. Always irrigate in the morning hours to reduce incidence of disease. Tall Fescue grass should only be fertilized in the fall and winter months when it is actively growing, do not fertilize after March 15th. Ideally a soil test will indicate the type and amount of fertilizer needed. If you do not test use a complete nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium turf-grade fertilizer. For example a 12-4-8 or 16-4-8 fertilizer and apply 1 pound of actual nitrogen in November and again in February. Regular leaf removal is essential in keeping tall fescue alive, leaf accumulation a top a new lawn will kill the young grass. Applying the practices will ensure a healthy and beautiful lawn for the upcoming months.
For more information please contact Lauren Hill, Cabarrus County NC Cooperative Extension Horticulture Agent, at (704) 920-3310 or by email at lhdunca3@ncsu.edu. Hypericum calycinum St. John’s WortSt. John's Wort is a beautiful pollinator attracting plant for any garden needing a showy display of yellow flowers from late spring through the summer months. St. John's Wort is part of the Hypericaceae family. A perennial that likes wet areas also can tolerate dry locations. It performs best in partially shaded locations but can tolerate full sun. This bush has an upright habit that can reach a height of five feet when planted in its ideal location of moist soil and partial sun. Pollinators are attracted to this plant because of its nearly 25-100 large showy flowers per a stem that contain many stamens. Pollinators that are attracted to the showy flowers and nectar source include leaf cutter bees, bumble bees, beetles and flies. St. John’s Wort is an excellent addition for a pollinator restoration habitat. It can be propagated by seed, division or cuttings.
Fall Canker WormThe fall canker worm is a native insect inhabiting the Eastern part of the United States but is a particular problem in Cabarrus and Mecklenburg counties. It is an inch worm caterpillar that emerges in the spring as leaves begin to appear. With the recent freezing night time temperatures, it is now time to band your trees to protect against the fall canker worm. At the first freeze in the late fall, canker worm female moth emerges from the soil, climbs up the host tree and lays her eggs on an available branch to overwinter and hatch in spring. Once the leaves emerge from their buds in the spring the eager worms begin eating leaves on trees and shrubs. Repeated canker worm damage can lead to a trees decline in health. To protect your tree against a canker worm infestation banding is the recommended course of treatment.
Banding the tree will trap the females as they begin to climb the tree in hopes of lying their eggs. Bands should be applied to trees from mid-November through the end of January. Most bands are applied to the middle of the trunk where you can reach easily from the ground. You will need a cushioned material such as fiber glass insulation (sold as pipe insulation) or cotton quilt batting in a 3-4 inch wide strip around the tree. You can secure the batting with staples or tacks, nailing into the tree is not recommended. Apply a strip of tar paper 5-6 inches wide leaving an inch margin on each side of the cushioned material and secure with stapes as well. Apply the Tangle Foot material to the paper with a putty or spackle knife. It is recommended to wear disposable gloves and old clothes because the Tangle Foot substance is very sticky. As leaves fall you may need to apply another layer of the Tangle Foot to ensure adequate coverage. You will need to remove the band in the spring after the canker worms have come and gone. Banding supplies are available for purchase at local nurseries, hardware stores, big box stores and online. For more information please contact Lauren Hill, Cabarrus County NC Cooperative Extension Horticulture Agent, at (704) 920-3310 or by email at lhdunca3@ncsu.edu. Winter LawnWinter is the perfect time to plan for yard projects, specifically lawn maintenance and lawn renovations. Several types of turf grow in piedmont North Carolina including cool season and warm season grasses. Tall fescue tends to be the most popular as well as the most maintenance intensive. Best management practices can help you maintain a healthy lawn. Best management classes include soil testing, watering, mowing and fertilizing. They vary depending on the type of lawn you have. Soil testing can be done at any time of the year, watering varies for the grass type and time of year, mowing varies on the turf type and fertilizing is dependent on your soil sample recommendations.
For lawn renovations you must plan ahead to amend the soil for the desirable lawn you are planting by first soil testing. Cool season grasses require watering during warmer months. Warm season grasses are dormant during the winter and can be drought tolerant during the warm summer months. Mowing is dependent upon the type of lawn and time of year. When planning a renovation you must consider seeding or sodding, plugs are available for some turf types as well. Fertilizing should be done when the grass is actively growing, cool season in the cool months and warm season in the warm months. Watering should be done in periods of little rain. Seeding is less costly than sodding, both can be labor intensive. Most lawns can be seeded in the warmer months of the year. Warm season grasses such as Bermuda, zoysia, centipede and St. Augustine can be seeded April through May. Tall Fescue and other cool season grasses need to be seeded in the fall, mid-September through the beginning of October. Weed management can be lessened if a healthy lawn is established though best management practices. It is best to properly identify the weeds in question to come up with an integrated pest management plan. Planting the best-adapted grass for our area along with watering, mowing, and fertilizing properly will help create an integrated pest management for your lawn. Keeping the lawn healthy and dense prevents weed germination and creates a good habitat for beneficial organisms that help control pests. For specific recommendations please refer to the Carolina Lawns Publication https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/carolina-lawns For questions: Email lauren_hill@ncsu.edu Re-seeding a Tall Fescue LawnBy: Lauren Hill, NC Cooperative Horticulture Agent Cabarrus County
Fall is the ideal time to plan to re-seed your existing tall fescue lawn. The soil temperatures are still warm for the seed to easily germinate and thrive in the cool season to come. The middle to end of September is the best time to re-seed your tall fescue lawn. During this time the air and soil temperatures are optimum for tall fescue germination. The air temperature is 70 to 80°F and soil temperatures greater than 60°F. It is better for the air and soil temperatures to be warmer than cooler for the best germination rates. Seeding tall fescue in less than ideal conditions can result in poor germination rates and a thin turf. It is important to soil test your tall fescue lawn to determine lime and fertilizing needs. The ideal soil pH for a tall fescue lawn is 5.8- 6.5. This can be achieved through soil testing and amending with lime and the proper fertilizers. Purchasing quality and fresh seed ensures success in re-seeding. Check the label for sell by date, germination rate, percent of weed seed, and look for names of grass cultivars in the mix. Before seeding, aerating your soil is highly recommended to ensure the seed comes into direct contact with the soil and reduces any soil compaction. After seeding, the area will need to be watered to keep the top 1.5 inch of soil moist at all times. Depending on the weather and soil, light watering for the next 7 to 21 days after seeding may be required. Wait until new grass reaches 4.5 inches before mowing at a 3 inch height. For more detailed information and questions please contact Lauren Hill 704-920-3310 or lhdunca3@ncsu.edu The Language of Flowerslan·guage of flow·ers
noun a set of symbolic meanings attached to different flowers when they are given or arranged. -The language of flowers has been around for centuries.
Works Cited: Seaton, Beverly. The Language of Flowers: A History. Charlottesville : University Press of Virginia, 1995. Scourse, Nicolette. The Victorians and their flowers. London : Croom Helm ; Portland, Or. : Timber Press, c1983. Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae :secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin) (10th ed.). Stockholm: Laurentius Salvius. PLANTS FOR POLLINATORS |
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