Indian Hawthorn (AKA Raphs) finished blooming and can be
pruned as needed. Watch out for the leaf spot disease that attacks these
plants. If your plant’s foliage is thinning and it has spots on its leaves,
there is a good chance your plant is under attack. Honor Guard does a good job of keeping this
fungus in check; however, this disease will always be out there so regular
spraying is a must. Also, when spraying fungicides, it is important to switch
chemical classes to avoid resistance. If they do not need pruning hold off,
because pruning encourages new growth and the disease likes new growth. The wet
fall really increased the favorable disease conditions.
If you are taking a vacation this summer and have St. Augustine grass, be sure to put out an insecticide to
protect your lawn from ‘the nasty rascal, the chinch bug’. Chinch bugs can do
serious damage in a very short period of time. Chinch bug damage is often
confused with dry spots or fungus. The hot dry areas of your lawn is where the
chinch bugs are going to attack first (never in the shade). They thrive and
multiple greatly in hot, dry weather, so this year has been a very bountiful
year for them. Bug Blaster, Sevin, or Allectus should help you manage this lawn
terrorist.
As the temperature and humidity rises, St. Augustine grass
will also get a leaf spot disease called gray leaf spot. Even though I usually
try to avoid scientific names, I have to use this one because there are
different leaf spot diseases that are controlled with different products. Look
for the name Pyricularia grisea on the label to get control of this leaf spot.
Several years ago, I picked up a customer from another store (and he still
shops with us) because the other store was selling him a product that was
labeled for the leaf spot (Helminthosporium spp) and after repeated
applications the customer was not getting any control. The product was not
labeled for the gray leaf spot (Pyricularia grisea) that the customer was
trying to control in his clients St. Augustine grass. Some products that are
labeled for this disease include Prophesy, Cleary’s 3336, and Fame.
Azaleas are getting ready to set their flower buds for next
year, so it is very important to do any pruning on these plants right away.
Even if you pruned them hard right after they bloomed, you can still do any
touch up pruning to manage any growth that might have occurred since the last
pruning. An application of KeyPlex or 18-18-18 Mighty Plant should help them
set more blooms for next year. Watch out for lace bugs sucking on your plants.
Any of the repeat blooming azaleas (Encore, Red Slipper)
should be pruned right after they flower. If you prune fairly hard, you will
likely lose some of the next flush of blooms; however, they should get back in
sync fairly quickly, providing you multiple blooms.
Always read, understand and follow product label. The
product label is a Federal Law.
