Q: Three years ago my lilies were completely decimated by nasty critters. The next year I sprayed them with "neem." It does kill them but one needs to keep spraying them and the stuff is expensive. Last year I heard on Paul Parent's show about using "Bayer Tree and Shrub". It is a systemic material that is applied early in the season (just did mine). It was a miracle; not one of the critters was to be seen. You might give it a try.
A: Paul Parent is one of the most knowledgeable gardeners around. If he says it works, I'm going to try it, too. My thanks to Paul Parent and to you, too. Maybe we can have our lilies back again. Thank you for taking the time to write and sharing this with us.
Q: I received some beautiful tulip plants for Easter. Can I plant the bulbs now or should I dry them and plan in the fall?
A: I hope you have continued to water and grow the foliage on your tulip plants. Since they were forced to bloom at Easter and were probably grown in an inexpensive sand and soil mixture, the bulbs probably have had little chance for any nourishment this spring. It is questionable whether they will come back, but if you have the space, dig them in, about 5 to 6 inches deep, dying foliage and all, just the way you would plant fresh bulbs. Don't remove the yellow foliage until it literally drops off. Fertilize through the summer with your other plants. The tulips may not have the strength to bloom for another year or two if they ever bloom at all, but they're fun to watch if you have room.
Q: I have two holly bushes; female and male. Two winters ago, the male got freezer wind damage. Last spring, the tree did not die, but half of it is still empty of leaves and looks tacky. I left it alone until this spring and it still looks tacky. I was going to cut most of it off and hope for the best. Any advice?
A: If you can bear it, I think I'd give it another year. This year, you could carefully prune any dead wood, but make sure it's really dead. Water the tree very regularly this season and give it plenty of holly food (available at garden centers) and mulch well to maintain moisture.
Next winter, spray it with Wilt-Pruf, which is an anti-desiccant and will protect it from cold, dry winds. Hollies grow very slowly, so it takes patience. Then maybe it will be time to make a decision about replacing it.
Q: I am more than excited to get outdoors and start poking around and have a couple of questions perhaps you could answer. The first is that I would like to plant a small tree (12 to 15 feet) and have found three inches in a clay layer of several inches. Is it possible to shore this up with topsoil layers enough to support a smallish tree? There have been daisies planted there and they grow, but what root system would be suitable?
Secondly, I inadvertently seem to have killed a dwarf Alberta spruce. It was uprooted at the end of the season as not appropriate for the area and was (embarrassingly) left covered in my lawn cart. Surprisingly, the tree stayed dormant and green. When I took it in the house, however, the quills dropped off. Will it survive if I plant if now? It looks pretty bare at the moment!
A: Yes, I think the soil can be properly amended enough to support a small tree (which is going to grow into a large tree!). Get as much depth in the planting hole as you can manage. Don't amend the soil with too much bought soil. Use decent compost and decent topsoil from the adjoining area — not too much peat, and fertilizers, etc. You might want to add some sand if the drainage is poor, as it probably is with the clay substructure being so deep.
Why did you bring the spruce tree indoors? The true test of the tree's life is not only in the needles, but rather in the branches. Break one and see if it bends (possibly live) or snaps (dead). If it bends, it still has some moisture and sap in it and might live. But after being uprooted and left out on a garden cart all winter, even if covered, it is doubtful it would have survived. You might want to try planting it if there is some extra room in some inconspicuous place in the garden but it might take some years to respond.
Q: You mention birds eating the Bradford pears. Do Callery pears bear fruits? I thought the whole point of this much touted new hybrid ornamental is that it is sterile and has no fruits to litter streets or yards.
A: In answer to your question about Callery pears: the scientific name is Pyrus calleryana "Bradford." It was the original introduction of the Callery pear. Others have been "Chanticleer" Bradford pear and "Aristocrat," "Autumn Blaze" and several others.
It is not native to the U.S. (it was introduced from China in 1908) and has become almost invasive here. The tiny fruits are spread easily by birds and trees cut down at ground level will often re-sprout. Because the birds eat the tiny fruit and they seldom drop and make a mess on the ground, they are not a problem on city streets where they are often planted.
This Week's Dirt
Now that it's May, are you wondering when you can safely plant? Want to know how to forecast the weather? "Lettuce" show you how! Gardeners have depended on these old May sayings and adages for generations:
"When oak leaves are the size of a mouse's ear, it's time to plant corn and other hot weather veggies."
"A cold May is kindly, and fills the barn finely..."
"Plant corn when the apple blossoms fall."
"If a thunderstorm occurs before seven in the morning in April or May, we'll have a wet summer!"
"Many thunderstorms in May, and the farmer sings, 'Hey! Hey!'"
And we all know, "April showers bring May flowers!" It should be a beautiful May!
nnn
GreatGardening by Barbara Barger is a regular feature of the Home North section. Reach Barbara by e-mail at nsgardener@comcast.net or write to her c/o Eagle-Tribune, 100 Turnpike St., North Andover, MA 01845. Her Web site is www.nsgardener.com
