I ran into a Horticulture Hotline reader the other day and
he mentioned that his wife always put the article where he sits for breakfast
to be sure he read it each week. So I guess it is time for the Horticulture
Hotline disclaimer.
For the new readers of the Horticulture Hotline, my To Do
Lists are designed to help you target a few activities in your yard and in your
home that will benefit you in the future, giving you more free time. These lists are not designed to interfere
with high school, college, or professional football games, soccer, baseball,
fishing, shrimping, hunting, golfing, eating chicken wings at a local sports
bar, oyster roasts, or watching NASCAR on the couch with closed eyes! This is not designed to be a “honey do”
list.
Large Patch Fungus (Brown Patch Fungus) is attacking lawns
across the Lowcountry. I rode through
several neighborhoods this week and saw it everywhere. These cooler nights make conditions right for
this disease. Fungi like moisture and it
has been raining a lot recently. If you
can let your grass dry out between watering, you will have less fungus (I
understand this is not easy to do with rainfall). There are organic products that will increase
the bio-diversity in the soil and help control Large Patch Fungus (Neptune
Harvest Crab shell, SeaHume, and Back to Nature’s Cotton Burr based products). If you have an active infestation, a
combination of Cleary’s and Disarm are good chemistries to rotate.
If you plan to plant bulbs this fall, purchase them now
while the selection is good. Look for
bigger bulbs. Bigger bulbs equal bigger
plants. When planting, try 04-04-04
Sustane in the hole. Use Mighty Plant on
the foliage to help create a bigger bulb next year.
Worms are still chowing on lawns. They like to feed under
the cover of rainfall when it is darker and birds are less apt to see them.
There has been a lot of spotty attacks this year. If you travel during the
fall, you might want to use something preventatively because worms can do a lot
of damage quickly.
The wet, cooler weather will also run roaches and rodents
into your home. If you are prone to be
attacked by these two pests be sure to prepare for their arrival.
Moles always get more active in the fall. Manage their food source with Lebanon Insect
Control and use Repellex around the perimeter to keep them out of your yard.
Now is the time to put out your fall fertilizer for your
trees, shrubs and turf. Fall fertilization is very important for the health of
your plants, trees and lawns.
Now that the weather has cooled down, it is a good time to
redefine your bed lines, prune anything that has gone wild over the summer,
sharpen your mower blade, and pull any vines that are strangling your plants.
Have you put out a preemergent product for winter weeds yet?
Mosquitoes?
If this sounds like too much work, hire a professional.
Always read, understand and follow product label. The
product label is a Federal Law.
Bill Lamson-Scribner
can be reached during the week at Possum’s Landscape and Pest Control Supply.
Possum’s has three locations 481
Long Point Rd in Mt. Pleasant
(971-9601), 3325 Business Circle
in North Charleston
(760-2600), or 606 Dupont Rd,
in Charleston
(766-1511). Bring your questions to a Possum’s location, or visit us at
http://www.possumsupply.com. You can also call in your questions to “ The
Garden Clinic”, Saturdays from noon to 1:00, on 1250 WTMA (The Big Talker). The Horticulture Hotline is
available 24 / 7 at possumsupply.com.
