Horticulture Hotline 01/24/22
Bill Lamson-Scribner
Ravenel Bridge – ice falling – bridge closed – umm.
We finally had some freezing weather and more in the forecast. If you haven’t already pruned your plants that turned to a black mush, you can wait and some of the damaged foliage and branches will help insulate the plant for the next freezing event. I know some of you that maintain high end properties aren’t going to be able to get away with this, so prune away or replace. Sometimes it depends where the damaged plant is located. By the front door – one set of rules. In a big bed mixed in with other plants in the backyard, maybe another set of rules.
I am not a big fan of Weed and Feed this time of year, especially on Centipede grass. Now is a great time to kill young winter weeds before they begin to flower and seed; however, it is way too early to put nitrogen down on your lawn. Adding nitrogen at this time of year can set your grass up for winter kill. Centipede grass is the most susceptible to winter kill. Centipede should not get any significant nitrogen fertilizer until late April/early May depending on the weather. The ratio of the most common Weed and Feed product is not very appropriate for Centipede grass either (29-00-10, 34-00-04). Centipede usually likes a 1:0:1 or 1:0:2 ratio fertilizer (15-00-15), depending on a soil test. This means that the nitrogen is either equal to the potassium or one half of the potassium. It is a good time to control winter weeds that are up before they start flowering. Instead of putting a product across your entire yard, if you can spot spray the weeds with Weed Free Zone; you will be putting less chemicals into the environment.
Most Weed and Feed products that you see mountains of at this time of year in certain stores contain the active ingredient: Atrazine. Atrazine is what kills the weeds. Atrazine is a root absorbed chemical and it will go into desirable trees and shrubs via their root system as well as weeds. If you read the label of the product it will tell you not to put it in the root zone of desirable trees and shrubs. This is very difficult to do as it is impossible to know exactly where all the roots of trees and shrubs are located. Remember you could also have roots coming from the neighbor’s yard. Your trees usually will not die the first time you put out this type of product, but over time it will weaken the tree or shrub until something else (insect or disease) kills your tree.
With Valentines Day coming up, why not buy a nice decorative pot, some good potting soil, some good fertilizer, some nice plants and some wetting agent and have a present that can last forever?
It is the time to put preemergent herbicides on your lawn that will stop small seeded annual summer weeds from coming up and terrorizing your lawn. These products are very safe to use in and around shrub beds and trees. They will not only keep weeds out of your lawn, but will also keep them out of your beds. Dimension is a very good product, but there are numerous others based on your needs.
As with any product, read, understand and follow product label when applying.
