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Penny Carnathan
Penny’s a Nurture And Hold (NAH): Nah, I won’t pull that out yet, it’s still got a green shoot. She likes dragonflies, lady bugs and new stuff only after weeding, pruning and fertilizing.
Kim Franke-Folstad
Kim’s a Want It Now (WIN): Everything pretty, everything now. She will resort to full-spectrum insecticides in desperate situations, and believes it’s her duty and right to buy new plants every weekend.
Both advocate Plant Choice (SOMEthing besides crotons. Please!), lots of color and low maintenance. We don’t agree on everything, but we’re smart enough to learn from each other - and from you.
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Is there a plague upon us? We ask the experts [Or, Here’s why you should wear those gloves!]
Posted Sep 29, 2009 by Loren Omoto
Updated Sep 29, 2009 at 03:10 PM
After Saturday’s post about all the pestilence in my garden, Chip Fulp—who also has battled some strange stuff the last couple months—suggested I check with the Hillsborough Extension Service to see whether there’s a plague and someone forgot to tell us.
Three horticulturists, bless their hearts, took the time to mail back. In short, the answer was no.
Marina D’abreau thinks it’s a summer state-of-gardener-mind phenomenon.
“What I do see, though, is that people have short-term memory when it comes to their landscapes,” she wrote. “During the cooler, drier months, when the bugs are “resting”, homeowners get complacent and happy. When the bugs return, they always claim that they’re “the worst they’ve ever been!”
JoAnn Hoffman, urban horticulture program assistant, wrote:
“I’ve had calls from folks having trouble with vegetables mainly because they were growing them out of season (example- tomatoes in the summer.) ... I think more people are having trouble growing vegetables because more people are trying too grow veggies and frankly, it ain’t necessarily easy. “
True that, JoAnn!
And finally, there’s Lynn Barber, the ever amusing Florida Yards & Neighborhoods agent. She hasn’t gotten calls either, but has noticed in her own garden an excess of mosquitoes and fire ants, and the return of lovebugs.
The lovebugs don’t bother her; the mosquitoes are a sign of plentiful rain, which is all good; but the fire ants, those are a nemesis. She shared this tale:
“A day before going to Puerto Rico on vacation some years ago, I repotted a citrus tree. Didn’t know the soil was harboring fire ants until I was bitten multiple times. My hand swelled up like a Bufo frog! Couldn’t wear a ring or a watch. Couldn’t get into the doctor before I left the country. Good thing my friend, who met me in Puerto Rico, is a nurse. She had me pack my hand in ice (at the pool), made me take Benadryl and said if no noticeable improvement, we were hitting the hospital the next day.
“This is what my hand looked like….well, sort of …… Quit laughing! This is a true story!”
“Suffice it to say, it was not the best vacation either of us have taken …. and, again, suffice it to say, I wear gloves when gardening!”
Lesson taken, Lynn, thank you. I sure would freak if I saw one of those things on the end of my arm!
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Reader Comments
Posted by (Janna) on September 30, 2009
I was practically eaten alive by mosquitoes the other night at dusk! Happy for the recent rains, though. I WILL continue wearing gloves while gardening!! Haven’t noticed the love bugs. Yet.
Posted by (Chip) on September 30, 2009
Ok I still say the bug’s are just a bit more aggressive than normal this year! I love this little cool down we are having my whole garden is sighing with relief {me to} and I am Branching out pardon the pun with some rose’s and blue berry bush’s I have very limited experience with rose’s and none with blue berry’s I only know what I have picked up online I am saving those for last until I am more certain of how to prepare a bed for them any advice on this any one?...“Chip”..
Posted by (Janna) on September 30, 2009
Chip, if I remember correctly from posted photos, Janice had some beautiful roses. She may be able to give you some tips. I’ve tried to grow roses before, but lost them to disease (or something). That was before this blog and all the helpful advice available from other gardeners…
Posted by (Chip) on September 30, 2009
Waldo is one happy bug! I think he{or she} is in love now there is two of them, now if they bring all there bud’s I say have a party! I just got the alamanda’s my wife bought last week end on a trellis and that was love at first sight! big pale pink flower’s and loaded with bud’s and a bargain at three buck’s a peace they were a perfect choice for the entrance to our garden and the pink hill that is beside it. if this nice weather keep’s up I should be planting straw berry’s soon!...“Chip”
Posted by (Iluvpumpkins) on September 30, 2009
Chip, I am not an expert but I try to follow Tampa Rose Society rules. Buy good roses their site tells you the best ones for Tampa. I always use rose soil found only at Home Depot or Hardin’s. Fro fertilizer I use Gro Mor for roses and Mills Magic found at shells Feed. The American rose society recommends Bayer 3 & one for insect and fungus. When my husbands overtime stopped I had to cancel the rose service. I really miss this year. Good Luck. Janice
Posted by (Susan Gillespie) on October 01, 2009
I will have to try those rose foods. Thanks, Janice. My roses all had yellow leaves for awhile and now look kinda naked on their branches. Plus the actual roses aren’t staying very long. I assumed there was way too much rain or for awhile, not enough. Rough year for all the plants.
I have never seen a bufo and I hope I never do. I have heard such bad things about these frogs killing peoples pets. And as far as I’m concerned fire ants serve no purpose and could vacate my yard anytime soon. I like walking barefoot in the grass and you can’t do that very much here.
Posted by (Chip) on October 01, 2009
My wife picked out the rose’s. she spent a lot of time looking on nursery webb site’s until she found what she has wanted for a long time Cecil brunner’s
we had them shipped to us from Houston Texas she was so excited she took a half a day off from work the day they arrived. so I have very carefully prepared the bed’s for them around a gazebo style
trellis I got just for them now I have some sweet peas soaking over night to put in with them. but I think I will step back and let her put them in the ground. today I start my beds for my blue berry
bush’s and what a nice day to do it in! I love the month of October that is when fall garden’s
really take off!...“Chip”...
Posted by (Susan Gillespie) on October 01, 2009
That is a great rose for Florida, Chip, and should be beautiful on your gazebo.
Posted by (Chip) on October 03, 2009
wear your glove’s and watch wear you put your
hand’s as for me boot’s and a good thing to while relocating a rock I found a pygmy rattler today! and it was not to happy to have his home moved. this time of year they find place’s to hide for the winter to come and I know better having lived here most of my life and I have this deal with snake’s
you leave me and I will leave you alone. this one broke the deal and latched on to my boot, now it is compost. Take care when picking stuff up off the ground that has been there a while use a shovel or any thing to move until you know nothing is under it “Chip’
Posted by (Iluvpumpkins) on October 03, 2009
Chip, The very best advice is to join the Tampa
rose Society. They send out a newsletter monthly and living in Tampa we need all the help we can get.
Susan, My roses got infested with Chili Thrips. Look them up see if the pictures look like what your roses are doing.
Posted by (Chip) on October 03, 2009
I have been reading up on rose’s and they do seem to be a hand full the same can be said of the blue berry’s I have also I told my wife about the rose society and she is sighing up for it thanks we have so many different seed’s started there just is not enough room here to name them all. I have been pushing my self to get it all in for this weekend’s
full moon. Tomorrow is a weed and clean up day the bed’s are made and the seed’s are in the ground now if it will rain! after all the rain we have had it had to stop now ....“Chip”..
Posted by (Susan Gillespie) on October 04, 2009
Wow!, Chip makes me glad I put on my garden clogs before I go out there. Some crazy snake story always gets my attention. Glad it turned out ok.
Chili thrips? Yikes. Are they too small to see, because I never saw any bugs. What do you do for that, Janice? Some of the pictures do look like what is going on with my roses.
Those roses I bought at Greenfest are so-so. It was supposed to be in the Knockout family and act like a low groundcover. Sort of. But It lost all it’s small blooms and has never been the same. I am unsure if it’s wrong place or just that this year was so hard on everything. The Rose Society seems like a wonderful place join for all of our rose questions. Thanks for the idea.
Posted by (Janna) on October 04, 2009
Thanks for the snake alert, Chip!! Black racers are fine, but pygmy rattlers….SCARY! Glad you were wearing your boots. I am sometimes careless - especially about lifting pots, saucers and rocks. Today, I approached these tasks with shovel in hand. Good luck with your roses, blueberry bushes and seeds. I’ve planted lots of seeds, including nasturtiums. (Which, by the way, I SOAKED before planting - thank you.)
C’mon RAIN!!!
Posted by (Janna) on October 05, 2009
Wow, Penny. Great snake story with a happy ending!