Some Benefits of Organics Part 3

I’m going to continue writing about the benefits of organic products and wetting agents in your landscape. This article is part three of this topic, so if you missed the first two articles, you can go to possumsupply.com under Horticulture Hotline and catch up.

Here are a few general facts about mulch. 

·        In the old days, the recommendations were the more mulch the better up to 6-8 inches, now days; the recommendation is only 2-3 inches. 

·        Always wait to apply mulch in the fall until after the leaves have dropped from your deciduous trees. In the spring wait for the late leaf droppers like Live Oaks and Water Oaks to drop their leaves. 

·        Be careful not to apply mulch right up to the trunks of plants, shrubs or trees.  The trunk has a different cell structure than the roots and cannot handle prolonged periods of moisture.  The moisture will soften the tissue and allow disease and insects to attack the trunk, or the trunk will send out adventitious roots. 

·        The main purpose of mulch is to buffer the temperature extremes and suppress weeds.  If your soil is naturally wet, it is better to have a very thin layer of mulch so that the ground dries out quicker. If your soil is dry, a thicker layer of mulch will help hold the water in the soil longer. 

·        When applying mulch around your house, try to keep an 18-24 inch mulch-free zone from the base of your home.  You might even contact your professional pest manager to inform him that you have added mulch to your beds. 

Now days there are many synthetic mulches (synthetic pine straw, mulch made out of ground tennis shoes, mulch made from ground tires), also rocks, and dyed wood mulch that will keep their color longer.  These mulches look good but will not add organic matter to your soil (except the dyed wood mulch).  

There are many types of wood mulch (hardwood, double shredded hardwood, pine nuggets, mini nuggets) that over a period of time will break down and help the organic content of your soil.  Wood mulch will add more organic matter over a period of time, than the pine straw.

If you like to have your cake and eat it too, you can apply Cotton Burr Compost at a depth of 2 inches and cover it with pine straw (or wood mulch) and this would immediately benefit your soil.  Every time it rains or your irrigation runs, your plants would be receiving a tall drink of compost tea chocked full of nutrients.  This combination would also feed the beneficial micro-organisms in the soil and not tie up any nitrogen.   You can have the neat tucked appearance of pine straw and get the nutrients from the Cotton Burr Compost that will immensely improve your soil.

As an update from the yard, if you have not noticed, the mosquitoes and chinch bugs have gone crazy out there. Sucking on us and our St. Augustine lawns.

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

Some Benefits of Organics Part Two

I’m going to continue writing about organics for the landscape from last week. If you missed last week’s article you can find it at possumsupply.com under Horticulture Hotline.

Cotton Burr Compost, Flower Bed Amendment, Nature’s Blend, composted chicken manure, composted cow manure and / or SeaHume are great products to use now on your ornamental plants and lawn. For best results spread over the yard including beds; however, you can spread the products around individual plants or just troubled areas in the turf. If you plan to do individual plants, be sure to cover where the roots are and out a little past where you think they are. Also remember to keep compost or mulch off the trunk of trees and shrubs. On turf use multiple applications at a ¼ inch as needed.

Organic products feed the soil as microorganisms break the organics down into a usable form to the plants. When the soil is cold, these microorganisms are inactive. As the temperatures warm up, the microorganisms begin to break down the organic material and make the nutrients available to the plant. As the plant is beginning to grow and put on new leaves as the temperature warms up in the Spring, so, like magic, there is food available to the plant right when it needs it most. The forest with its leaves, twigs, limbs, and microorganism population is fertilized in this manner. With the warm weather we are having now, the organics are really working well.

Cotton Burr Compost, Flower Bed Amendment, Nature’s Blend, composted chicken manure, and composted cow manure are all composted to the point that they do not tie up nitrogen. Some organics can actually steal nutrients away from the plants while they decompose fully. Wood chips, fresh raked leaves, or grass clippings (if you are collecting bags of grass clippings compost first, mulching or regular mowing the grass clippings can stay on the yard) are best put into a compost pile until you are unable to tell what they were originally, and they are fully composted.  

SeaHume is a combination of cold water kelp (Ascophyllum nodosum) and humates.

The seaweed is full of sixty major and minor nutrients, amino acids, carbohydrates and natural occurring plant growth promoting substances (bio stimulants) that increase plant vigor, quality and yield. Humates increase the availability of nutrients in the soil, increase root growth, keeps nutrients in area that roots can reach (high CEC), make the soil more friable and many other benefits that will be discussed in a later article.

The organics help the microorganisms that break down the organic matter into a usable form for the plant. The microorganisms also move around in the soil, aerating it which makes roots grow deeper, so the roots can collect water and nutrients deeper in the soil, which means you save money on water and fertilizer!

Some Benefits of Organics

As the summertime heat and humidity begin to move into the Lowcountry, I want to remind you of some of the benefits of using organic fertilizers, composts, mulch, wetting agents with biostimulants, and bridge products. Some of the things I write about are generalizations (ex. 10-10-10 is all synthetic – a fertilizer blender could put organic filler in the formula, but not likely).

When you purchase a typical 10-10-10 fertilizer, you are getting 30% nutrients and the rest of the bag is filler (70%). Filler usually consists of drying agents to keep the fertilizer from absorbing moisture and becoming clumpy. Filler is also limestone or other non-nutritional ingredients. The nutrients in a 10-10-10 are water soluble so the plant can absorb them. The 10-10-10 is usually all fast release, so once it goes out the plant better be ready to take it in, or the Nitrogen (what part hasn’t already volatized into the atmosphere as N2 gas) and the Potassium will leach through the soil profile or run-off into non-target areas.

Unlike humans, plants uptake only the nutrients that they need. No obese plants out there! A natural or organic fertilizer may have a lower N-P-K ratio; however, all the ingredients are either a food source for soil organisms, plant essential minerals or micro-nutrients. Organic fertilizers are not water soluble, and depend on beneficial soil organisms to convert the nutrients into a form that the plant can uptake. This is the same process that feeds the trees from fallen leaves and limbs in the woods. This process is the true, original slow release fertilizer. Nothing is lost to evaporation or run-off which is good with all the water around here.

With an organic fertilizer you generally have slow steady growth as the soil organisms meter out the nutrients. Slow steady growth is easier to maintain and less susceptible to disease and insect attack. The plant will grow deeper roots, making it more drought tolerant; therefore requiring less water (lower water bill).

A 10-10-10 might cause “flush growth” that requires more hedge trimming or mowing. The plant will be more susceptible to disease and insects. Excessive fertilization could also add to thatch in the lawn areas. A plant that is putting out a lot of new growth is often sacrificing root growth for top growth and the landscape needs more water as a result.

Well, I’m out of column inches, so I will have to continue next week.

Watch Out For Late May

1.      I have already seen the nasty rascal chinch bug in St. Augustine grass, grass feeding worms, and in our stores, we are already selling a lot of flea killing products.  If you have St. Augustine grass, be sure to put out a product labeled for chinch bugs such as Aloft, Bifen or Lebanon Insect Control.   

2.      The cool, dry nights make powdery mildew on plants and large patch on lawns a problem.  Roses, Crepe Myrtles, Dogwoods, Verbena and Gerber Daisies are a few plants that I would check for powdery mildew.  Powdery mildew is a white substance that grows on the tops of the leaves.  As the lawn tries to figure out whether it is still winter (nighttime temperature still in the 60’s), or summer (daytime temperature in the high 80’s), Large Patch (Brown Patch) is prevalent.  For powdery mildew, Honor Guard, Fertilome Systemic Fungicide, or Neem PY (organic) will do a good job.  For Large Patch consider Cleary’s 3336, Disarm or Serenade (organic) in active areas. 

3.      While driving through neighborhoods localized dry spots are very evident.  These are areas in the yard that turn that bluish gray color from lack of water.  New neighborhoods with young grass and poor soils seem to be most susceptible to these dry areas.  Exposed areas with lots of wind and areas at the beaches also are good candidates for these localized dry spots.  Adding organic matter to the soil (Cotton Burr Composts or SeaHume), wetting agents, or adjusting sprinkler heads will help with these dry areas.  Remember to water in the early a.m. before the wind picks up, so the grass will dry by nightfall.

4.      Moles seem to be particularly active this spring.  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, mole crickets) with Lebanon Insect Control and go after the mole with Mole Patrol. 

5.      As with all products, you should read and follow product labels.  More is not better when dealing with control products.  Know your square footage and watch overlapping when applying your products.  You also need to 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, a 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.

      Also sweep or blow fertilizers or control products off of 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.

Indian Hawthorn Disease

We were talking on the radio this past week about Indian Hawthorn and the disease they

get, so I figured I would expand on this topic this morning, since this plant is so common in the Lowcountry.

The Indian Hawthorn or Raphiolepis have been plagued with leaf spot for years now.  It seems like right after the Red Tips (Photinia) were virtually wiped out by entomosporium leaf spot, the diseased began attacking the Indian Hawthorn.  Indian Hawthorn and Red Tips are in the same plant family as roses (Rosaceae). 

When dealing with a plant that is very susceptible to a leaf spot disease I like to think of several different factors:

·        Is this plant worth keeping in the landscape or should I replace it with another plant that is not susceptible to disease.

·        Is this plant worth spraying ever 14 – 28 days to keep it in my landscape?  To keep an Indian Hawthorn alive, it needs a life-support system.  The plant must be sprayed at least monthly or it will get leaf spot again.

·        What cultural practices can I do to help relieve the pressure of the disease?  The removal of fallen foliage (sanitation) is key when dealing with a leaf spot disease.  Having a healthy soil, as determined by a soil test, is also very important because a stressed plant is more susceptible to disease.  Providing the correct amount of water preferably through a drip system, so the plants are not over-watered or drought stressed.  Proper fertility as determined by the soil test is also important.  Use nitrogen fertilizer very sparingly in small amounts because flushes of new growth are more susceptible to leaf spot.  Choose “resistant” varieties such as “Olivia”.    This does not mean that this plant will never get this disease; it is just more resistant to the disease. Mulch like Cotton Burr Compost will help prevent splashes of water drops that could spread the disease.  Also this mulch will lower the watering needs of the plants. Bioscience products like Messenger should be considered as well. Messenger will thicken the cuticle of the leaf making more resistant to the disease as well as more drought resistant. Good air movement.

·        What control products will work best on this disease?  If you decide to spray, be prepared to spray often.  Honor Guard, Banner, Dithane (Mancozeb), and Kocide are good choices. These products should be used in rotation and according to label. I like the lime-sulphur idea or lime-copper spray for the reason that the original Lamson–Scribner invented this product in an effort to save the French wine crop in the late 1800’s. He called it Bordeaux mix. When spraying these chemicals, an appropriate surfactant should be used. Certain surfactants work better than others with particular products.

I’m in yards all the time and this disease is the most common disease I see in our Lowcountry landscape. I usually recommend replanting the area. I can understand spraying roses all the time. Indian Hawthorn – ah, not so much.