How to Do Inarch Grafting Grafting can be done when the bark slips on the tree, generally about the time buds swell in late winter or early spring. If you are grafting with inarching to save a damaged tree, trim the damaged area so the edges are clean and free of dead tissue. Paint the wounded area with asphalt emulsion tree paint. Plant small seedlings near the damaged tree to use as rootstock....

What is Italian Late Garlic? Italian Late garlic is a softneck variety. This means it does not have the tough flower stalk of hardneck garlics that needs to be removed to encourage bulb development. Softnecks produce more cloves per bulb as well. The flavor of Italian Late is robust but not overly hot compared to other varieties. The taste is rich and lingers on the palate. This garlic’s aroma is very pungent....

Symptoms of Eggplant Phomopsis Blight On seedlings, phomopsis blight of eggplant causes dark brown lesions, just above the soil line. As the disease develops, the lesions turn gray, and the stems eventually collapse and the plant dies. Blight in eggplants on established plants is evidenced by gray or brown, oval or round spots on the leaves and stems. The center of the spots lightens in color, and you can see circles of small black, pimple-like dots that are actually the fruiting bodies, or spores....

About Fig Tree Insect Pests Among common pest insects of figs, the fig borers (family Ceramycidae) are unquestionably the most annoying and frustrating to manage. These long-horned beetles lay their eggs under the fig bark near the base of the trunk in early summer, giving their larvae plenty of time to develop before cooler temperatures set in. At about two weeks old, the white grub-like larvae will begin to bore into the wood of infected figs, where they quickly take up residence....

What to Do with Pumpkin Seeds Pumpkins are pretty easy to grow and a common supermarket staple in fall. Most of us will have the occasion to carve one up and make it a jack-o-lantern or simply roast it for pie. Before you do either though, you need to clean out the guts and seeds. Stop yourself before dumping them out. There are many pumpkin seed uses and the benefits are worth the processing time....

Why Won’t My Almond Tree Fruit? So maybe getting nuts from your almond tree wasn’t the only reason you planted it. It provides shade and height for your landscape, but you also really hoped to get a harvest of almonds out of it. An almond tree not producing nuts can be a big disappointment. One reason that you may not be seeing nuts yet is that you just haven’t waited long enough....

“The only wildlife in this garden will be rats and mice,” I thought. Like so many, this homeowner had gone too far. I’ve learned a lot about wildlife gardening since then, making my own mistakes, and I’m proud to say that today I have a wide variety of wildlife in the garden. A garden for wildlife doesn’t have to be a jungle of unkempt plant life and rodent attracting eyesores....

But potted trees that survive winter don’t necessarily need to be brought inside. In many areas, it’s entirely feasible to overwinter potted trees outside – including both potted evergreen trees and potted deciduous trees – if you take proper precautions. If you are interested in winter tree protection, read on. Potted Trees That Survive Winter Trees planted in pots feel the cold of winter more than trees with roots in the ground....

The winter solstice is also the origin of many Christmas traditions, including the plants we associate with the holidays, like mistletoe or the Christmas tree. That means that there is a special meaning to winter solstice for gardeners. If you are hoping to celebrate the winter solstice in the garden and are looking for ideas, read on. Winter Solstice in the Garden Winter solstice has been celebrated for thousands of years as both the longest night of the year and the moment of the year when the days start getting longer....

Growing Brugmansia in Cold Climates Overwintering brugmansia indoors is an important part of brugmansia maintenance in cold climates. To make this endeavor easier, it’s better to grow brugmansia plants in containers. Container grown plants can be easily moved indoors for brugmansia winter care. Brugmansia Winter Care Preparation Prior to bringing brugmansia indoors for winter dormancy, it’s a good idea to cut the plant back. Likewise, outdoor brugmansia plants in warmer climates should also be cut back to the ground and mulched generously....

What is Wonderberry? Also known as garden huckleberry, the wonderberry/sunberry (Solanum burbankii) is a unique plant developed by Luther Burbank in the early 1900s. The bushy, erect plants reach mature heights of 2 feet (61 cm.). Attractive, white flowers appear in midsummer, followed by hundreds of deep bluish black berries. Wonderberry growing is easy and the plants require little care. Start the seed indoors in late winter, then move the plants outdoors when all danger of frost has passed in the spring....

Healing with Plants It is foolish to pass up a visit to the doctor if you are seriously wounded. Nothing beats a tetanus shot for preventing that disease. However, there is definitely a place in the world for treatment using plants with healing properties. Once you’ve seen a doctor, you’ll want to follow their advice. You can also use herbs or other wound-healing plants to supplement the wound care process....

Why Butterfly Bush Leaves Are Yellow Butterfly bush is aptly named because it draws bees and butterflies but also emits a strong scent in the evening which attracts moths. This plant has beautiful 6 to 12 inch (15-31 cm.) long flower spikes but ashy green unremarkable foliage. If butterfly bush leaves are yellow, it might be due to plant stress or it might be an insect invasion. These vigorous growers are not subject to many disease or insect issues and are resilient enough that they don’t need regular babying....

Are Yellow Watermelons Natural? Yellow flesh on your watermelon might come as quite a surprise since the exterior doesn’t look any different than the red variety. The flesh of watermelons turning yellow is a natural mutation. In fact, the originator of our commercial variety, which comes from Africa, is a yellow to white fleshed fruit. The fruit has a sweeter, honey-like flavor as compared to red fleshed melons, but many of the same nutritional benefits....

Kiwi for Cold Climates A. deliciosa is native to Southern China where it is considered to be the national fruit. In the early 1900s, this plant was brought to New Zealand. The fruit (actually a berry) was thought to taste like gooseberries, so it came to be called “Chinese Gooseberry.” During the 1950s, the fruit became commercially grown and exported and, thus, a new name was coined for the fruit – kiwi, in reference to New Zealand’s furry, brown national bird....

Growing Bamboo in Zone 8 There are two main types of bamboo plants: clump forming and runner types. Clump forming bamboo do just as their name implies; they form large clumps of bamboo canes. Runner bamboo types spread by rhizomes and can form a large stand, shoot their runners beneath concrete sidewalks, and form another stand on the other side. Runner types of bamboo can become invasive in some areas. Before growing bamboo in zone 8, check with your local county extension office to make sure they are not considered an invasive species or noxious weed....

About Zone 8 Strawberries Strawberries can be grown as perennials in USDA zones 5-8 or as cool-season annuals in zones 9-10. Zone 8 stretches from parts of Florida and Georgia to areas of Texas and California and into the Pacific Northwest where annual temperatures rarely dip below 10 degrees F. (-12 C.). This means that growing strawberries in zone 8 allows for a longer growing season than in other regions. To the zone 8 gardener, this means larger crops with bigger, juicy berries....

About Growing Tomatoes in Zone 9 The neat thing about zone 9 tomato plants is that you can start the seeds directly outside. That said, you will almost always have better outcome if you transplant seedlings. Tomatoes for zone 9 can be started indoors for later transplant as early as late January through April and again in August. Tomatoes come in all shapes and sizes, from the tiny cherry and grape to the enormous slicing heirlooms and somewhere in the middle, the romas....

Zygopetalum Orchid Care – How to Grow Zygopetalum Orchids A popular feature of many Zygopetalum orchids is its heady fragrance, which can fill a whole room. Zygopetalum variety orchids are typically green with brown stripes or spots and a white lip with velvety accents of indigo, fuchsia, purple, or maroon. You may be wondering how to grow Zygopetalum orchids, which originate in tropical South America. Zygopetalum orchid species and hybrids require specific care, but when those needs are met, growing these orchids can be achievable and rewarding....

Reasons for No Kernels On Corn First of all, it’s helpful to know a little about how corn is formed. Potential kernels, or ovules, are seeds awaiting pollination; no pollination, no seed. In other words, each ovule must be fertilized in order to develop into a kernel. The biological process is very much like that of most animal species, including humans. Each tassel is the male part of the corn plant....