Plant Sale and Mosquitoes

 

Horticulture Hotline 07/26/26

By Bill Lamson-Scribner

 

This Thursday (7/30) and Friday (7/31) you can get a great deal on some great plants at the ‘Summer Sizzler Native Plant Sale’ at Trident Technical College. See attached pictures of flyer for more information. The perfect place to buy plants and see all the different (cool – old man lingo or vibe – new lingo) displays around the building!

 

The dry and windy spring kept the mosquitoes at bay, but after that little bit of heavy rain that flooded low areas and ditches, regular rains, and high tides, they are out in full force. Last night I was talking to a neighbor while she was pushing her 18-month daughter around in a stroller, and the mosquitoes were attacking the young girl. The mother, with child again, had 5 mosquitoes on her immediately. We cut our conversation short and headed to our air-conditioned houses. B^ST#$%S!

 

Malaria, Chikungunya, Dengue (still in the tropics), Zika, West Nile Virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis are transmitted by mosquitoes … now it is time to wage war against the mosquito! Worldwide mosquitoes are the number one killer of humans (including wars) – amazing! West Nile Virus was discovered in Beaufort County this year!

 

Scout around the yard for anything that holds water. Old tires, saucers under potted plants, rain gauge, bird baths, old flower containers or pots stacked in a corner, dog toys, kids’ toys, a container by the grill you use to soak wood chips in, a cooler, an old fountain, an upside down 5-gallon bucket that has a lip that holds water, a trash can lid with a dent, brick work that needs repointing, a hole in a tree and a dog’s water bowl all make great places for mosquitoes to breed. Empty the water out these areas (refill the dog bowl and the bird bath daily). A tarp covering a boat or wood pile can have many pockets that hold water. Sagging gutters hold water.  A few empty bottles or cans can end up breeding thousands of mosquitoes! A bottle cap can be a breeding area. Many mosquitoes can breed in just an ounce of water. I was at a seminar, and the speaker encouraged people to limb up Magnolias (every horticulturalist gasped) so you could easily rake up the leaves because the big leaves held water and therefore were a breeding spot for mosquitoes. Sorry, I am not limbing up my Magnolias!

 

If you have bigger areas of water like a ditch or a low area of the yard that holds water, apply the Mosquito Dunks or the Altosid Pro G. The Mosquito Dunks are an organic Bt product that kill larvae and the Altosid Pro G is a growth regulator product that contains the same active ingredient that is used in the Precor products for controlling fleas. Although Altosid is not organic, it is very safe and labeled to be used in very sensitive areas like marshes. Turn off your irrigation when you can and correct any drainage problems. Mosquito Denial is a great product if you have a fountain, decorative pond, or standing water. Mosquitoes rely on the surface tension of the water to land and lay eggs. Mosquito Denial takes away this water tension, so the mosquito cannot lay eggs on the surface of the water.

 

Any pruning you can do to increase air movement and sunlight penetration will also help. Mosquitoes like moist stagnant areas, so it is more important to treat bed areas than it is to treat lawn areas. Concentrate your efforts on the undersides of leaves on shrubs. Many mosquito products work on lawn pests also, so many folks treat their lawn too while they are spraying. Mosquitoes are very weak fliers, so they do not like wind or air movement (big fans for parties or by your grill – helps with flies too). Mosquitoes are a public health issue, so you might be able to get some help from a government agency if you have a big ditch or pond.

 

Mosquito Pro (connect to a hose and spray), DuraFlex, and ProFlex are very good control products for mosquitoes and many other pest because they contain growth regulators that break up the life cycle. EcoVia (organic) has many formulations and is a good option as well. Luckily, there are many products that control mosquitoes available!

 

Bill Lamson-Scribner can be reached during the week at Possum’s Landscape and Pest Control Supply (follow us on Facebook). 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 possumsupply.com. You can also call in your questions to “The Garden Clinic”, Saturdays from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, or listen to the replay of Saturday’s show, Sundays from 11:00 to noon on 1250 WTMA (The Big Talker). The Horticulture Hotline is available 24 / 7 at possumsupply.com. 

 

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Not So "Cute" Time Of Year

 

                                           "The Nasty Rascal" The Chinch Bug Damage

Horticulture Hotline 07/05/2026

By Bill Lamson-Scribner

 

1. The nasty rascal, the chinch bug in St. Augustine grass has been killing large areas of turf in the Lowcountry. Remember the products that control chinch bugs generally have a short residual. If you are going out of town for any length of time, be sure you treat the lawn before you leave. Sod webworms and armyworms will be out soon as well – you have been warned.
2.  Fleas have been a close second to chinch bugs this year. The wet fall seemed to help increase the flea population. Fleas are hard to control. Plan to treat the animal, the house, and the yard. The use of growth regulators will make an impossible task much easier. Expect about two weeks to get this pest managed.
3. Wasps, flies, mosquitoes, fire ants, and ticks should be controlled. Prevent disease or allergic reactions by controlling these pests. Fresh fruit and vegetables bring drain flies and fruit flies.
4. Japanese beetles have been chowing down. Bifen or Mosquito Pro will take care of them.
5. Be sure to get your azaleas and camellias pruned as soon as you can. They will be making their flower buds that you see much later soon. Do you have azaleas and camellias on a good fertilization program as they have big appetites to perform their best?
6. Many of us have palm trees. I’m always talking / writing about preemergent products for lawns and beds to control weed seeds. Now is the time to preform palm seed control on your palm trees to prevent those hard to control palm seedlings from sprouting up everywhere you do not want them to sprout. Simply remove the stalks that will produce seeds from the palm now. Granted it is not an easy task, but it is easier than removing the volunteer palms later. Because it involves pole saws, or ladders, or lifts, this job might be best off left for a professional.
7. Moles seem to be particularly active this year.  They just had their young in April and now they are tunneling up a storm.  The young moles are hungry!  Manage the food source in your yard (grubs, crickets) with Above and Below and go after the mole with Mole Patrol. 
8. Be sure to change or sharpen that dull mower blade. A sharp blade will give your grass a cleaner cut and will allow less entry points for disease. Inspect your blade for nicks and damage if you are going to continue to use the same blade. Since a mower blade spin at very high speeds, any nicks or bends can lead to the blade being out of balance. When a blade is out of balance, the mower will vibrate (like your tire out of balance on your car) and you could damage the spindle and other parts of your mower that cost far more than a new blade.
9. Look up at your trees. If you have any tree work that needs to be done, I would get it done as soon as possible.  Look for trees that have cavities at the base of the tree and look at the tops for broken limbs, dying tips and weak crotch angles.  Have a tree care professional inspect your trees to be sure it is safe. Most tree care companies will inspect for free. Try to get this done before the Lowcountry is in that cone for a direct hit for a hurricane! The tree companies are usually very busy year-round in the Lowcountry. 

10.  As with all products, you should read and follow product labels.  More is not better when dealing with control products.  Measure your yard so you know your square footage and watch overlapping when applying your products.  Watch the weather forecast to ensure the products have a proper amount of time on your lawn prior to any rain.  If the product needs to be watered into the ground, slow watering by a sprinkler is better than a gully washer from the sky.  A very hard rain can wash products into the storm water drains which are bad for the environment and you have wasted a lot of money. Sweep or blow fertilizers or control products off hard surfaces when you are finished applying them. In the case of fertilizer this may prevent staining, and most importantly it will keep products from washing through storm drains to the marshes.

11. With the dry weather we had earlier this year, spider mites have come out in full force. Be sure to use a product labeled for mites when trying to control these plant juice suckers. Mites are not insects, so all insecticides do not control them.
12. Another plant juice sucker that is out in full force is lace bugs on azaleas and lantana. If the leaves look mottled, flip the leaf over and look very closely for the pest. The lace bug is small and well camouflaged so you might need a magnifying glass. Dominion Tree and Shrub will give you long term control of this pest.

                     

Always read, understand and follow product label. The product label is Federal Law.

 

Bill Lamson-Scribner can be reached during the week at Possum’s Landscape and Pest Control Supply (follow us on Facebook). 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 possumsupply.com. You can also call in your questions to “The Garden Clinic”, Saturdays from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, or listen to the replay of Saturday’s show, Sundays from 11:00 to noon on 1250 WTMA (The Big Talker). The Horticulture Hotline is available 24 / 7 at possumsupply.com. 

 

 

                                            Chinch Bug Damage

                                                     Dull Mower Blade