So your citrus has started to bloom, and you’ve gone out to visit your orchard only to find leaves covered with a black coating and white fuzz. The black coating is one or more genera of fungi called sooty citrus mold. And in this instance the white spots are from mealybugs laying eggs and freshly produced sugary honeydew secretions as they poke along sap sucking your citrus tree. Although the sooty mold blocks sunlight, it doesn’t feed on the plant tissue and alone won’t destroy your citrus, but ignoring the pests that attracted it just might. Aphids, mealybugs, scale, and whiteflies are the soft-bodied usual insect suspects with their honeydew excretions that must be addressed for your citrus health and to end growth of the sooty mold.
Treat pests, and mold incidentally with a homemade insecticidal soap or a premixed one available at the garden center. Other available treatments include horticultural oil, fungicides, and pesticides. Hanging sticky traps in your citrus trees can attract and capture some of the perpetrating pests such as whiteflies but won’t rid the trees of existing sooty mold. Rinsing the leaves with a strong stream of water can loosen and remove the mold and some pests.
Insecticidal soaps are soap salt from fatty acids in animal fat, coconut, olive, and palm oil. Some online recommendations for making insecticidal soap claim you can use dishwashing soap. Yet, many brands are detergents with none of the necessary salts from fatty acids to be an effective treatment against sooty mold and fruit tree pests. Rely on actual soap such as olive oil-based unscented Castile soap that contains soap salt as the basis of your DIY Insecticidal soap production. Add a tablespoon or two to a gallon of water and apply liberally. You can also purchase the premixed insecticidal soaps in ready-to-use spray bottles.
Applying the Insecticidal soaps will loosen the mold, which will eventually dry and flake off. Soak the leaves to loosen the mold and coat the insects as it only works when wet, and there is no systemic benefit to this treatment.
BE CAREFUL with Insecticidal soap overspray and don’t apply to azaleas, begonias, succulents, and various other plants. Use caution with your citrus understory plantings, as fruit trees have shallow roots that can suffer from too much competition for space and nutrients. Such adverse growing conditions for your citrus trees can result in nutritional deficiencies and stress that attract more pests. Consider practicing companion planting under the citrus with plants such as legumes that return nitrogen to the soil and flowering species like daisies and cosmos that attract beneficial insects. Only use plants underneath your citrus that can withstand your citrus pest control protocols.
Put an added kick in your homemade insecticidal soap with a tablespoon or two of cayenne pepper to further fortify the attack on the soft-shelled honeydew-releasing pests. Dried pepper sprinkled around the base of trees is also an effective pest deterrent without the pepper spray risk of leaf burn on some plants. Cayenne pepper is not only toxic to targeted pests but beneficial insects such as honey bees. Research the interactions of these concoctions with other desirable flora and fauna in your garden or landscape.
Horticultural oils are petroleum or plant-based oils that include neem oil. These oils make it difficult for the mold to cling to the plant and clog the breathing and other insects’ functions. Precautions are necessary when applying horticultural oils as they can burn non-targeted sensitive plants and your skin. Horticultural oils are non-selective pesticides that kill both pests and beneficial insects. Pond owners beware as horticultural oil is toxic to fish. It is crucial to limit overspray, prevent intrusion of the oil into your pond, and other water bodies via stormwater runoff.
There are also various systemic pesticide treatments available for treating your lawn and garden. Bonide Systemic Granules is what we sell at our garden center and a reliable and effective product when the insecticidal soap and neem oil simply aren’t potent enough to knock down an infestation.
Once the sooty mold is gone, it is essential to maintain a healthy ecosystem for beneficial insects to thrive in and around your citrus trees, including companion planting, limiting the use of harmful chemicals, and proper fertilization of your trees. Some of the predators of these pest species include Ladybugs, Lacewings, and some predator wasps. If you don’t have them in your yard, and are considering trying to establish a population Arbico organics is a reliable source. Earth Works garden center has the organic treatments mentioned in this article available for purchase, and our lawn care department can set you up with fertilization, lawn pest control, and general lawn maintenance programs.
And remember that for comprehensive solutions to your specific lawn, garden and landscaping need contact Earth Works of Jacksonville online and at 904-996-0712. Earth Works operates a retail Garden Center/Plant Nursery in Jacksonville and provides landscaping, hardscaping, water features, lawn care service, lawn spraying, and drainage solutions.
Earth Works proudly serves clients in Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Nocatee, St. Johns, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove Springs, Amelia Island, Fernandina, and St. Augustine.
There are several levels of butterfly gardening depending on whether you want to just attract a few or provide a habitat inviting several varieties to move in lock, stock, and chrysalis. You can start by planting a few nectar plants or providing other lures to attract the butterflies in your area. You may find that you’re satisfied or that you’re so enchanted by your fluttering visitors that you want to do more.
Butterfly habitat necessities
Adult food sources In the garden, these are most often plants that provide nectar for adult butterflies. Most butterflies aren’t very picky and will feed on a variety of flowering plants, though they may have a favorite or two. Fermenting fruit also makes a good food source.
Host plants Plants that provide a site for the butterfly to lay eggs and a food source for the emerging caterpillar. Be prepared for heavy munching on host plants. Since highly preferred hosts may be unattractive or eaten until they have few leaves, mix in with other plants.
Shelter Woody plants located near the nectar plants will provide butterflies with shelter during bad weather and at night.
Water Butterflies can’t drink from open water. They prefer very wet sand or soil.
Planning a successful butterfly garden
Butterfly species Determine which species live in your area and which ones you want to attract. Several walks around your neighborhood will help you determine which butterflies are in the area and what they’re feeding on.
Select a site Choose a site for your butterfly garden that receives full sun, defined as six or more hours of direct sunlight daily. A little bit of late afternoon shade is fine, but most butterfly garden plants need bright sunlight. If you’re adding plants to an existing bed, try to cluster butterfly-attracting plants together. This provides a variety of places for butterflies to feed. If you’re creating a new garden, select a spot that’s easy to see from a porch, deck, or window so you can enjoy the bright colors and antics of visiting butterflies. Group plants together in clusters of three or other odd numbers. This looks more natural from a distance. Clustering flowers together by color, such as all red or orange blossoms together also forms a more cohesive look. Avoid the use of broad-spectrum insecticides, especially Bacillus thuringensis (BT), or any insecticide that is applied broadly in the environment.
Decide on the type of garden Select plants suited to the selected butterfly species and that will fit in with the type of garden you’d like to have whether it be formal or natural or somewhere in between. You can even have a butterfly rock garden. If you have an area that gradually slopes to the south, it’s an ideal spot for a butterfly rock garden. Include flat stones and low-growing butterfly plants, such as lantana, Stoke’s aster, and clover.
Adult food plants Find out more about the native nectar plants that will attract the butterflies in your area. Butterflies are attracted by sweet-, pungent- and acrid-smelling flowers that are orange, yellow, pink, purple and red.
Other attractions Sugaring* may be just the entree for your neighborhood butterflies or perhaps a nectar feeder. You might also consider providing a “puddle” or an area for basking. Some butterflies sip moisture and nutrients from moist soil. You can provide a puddle by allowing water to stand in a depression in your yard or by placing sand in a wide shallow container and keeping it moist. Puddles should be in an open area. Butterflies also bask in the sun to raise their body temperatures so they can fly. You can accommodate them by including some flat rocks in your garden. A few extra-large rocks provide more perching and sunning spots for butterflies.
Host plants Find out more about the host plants that butterflies will lay eggs on and that will feed the caterpillars. Host plants aren’t just maternity wards. Many butterflies are more likely to frequent nectar plants that are near host plants and may feed on the host plants, too.
*Sugaring Sugaring involves combining one can of beer, a pound of sugar, a half cup of dark molasses and some very ripe fruit in a blender and allowing the mixture to thicken to a spreadable consistency. After letting the tantalizing elixir ferment for about a day, you brush it onto tree trunks or posts or place it in a dish on a flat surface and then wait for the butterflies to arrive.
Butterfly Plants
Flowers
Aster Bee balm Black-Eyed Susan Buddleia Butterfly bush Cannas Catmint Coreopsis Daylily False indigo Gaillardia Goldenrod Guara Hollyhock Joe Pye Weed Lantana
When it comes to our lawns all the rain we’ve been experiencing here in Northeast Florida has its pros and cons. First the good news, the regular rains have provided relief keeping the oppressive heat from drying out our grass and thus keeping the chinch bugs at bay. The bad news, persistent moist lawns have invited in the tropical sod webworms (Herpetogramma phaeopteralis Guenée)! They arrived early and have been wreaking havoc on our lawns for the last four months! There are several other species of webworms that also cause damage, but the tropical varieties have become a prevalent threat to the Northeast Florida lawns this year. The dingy gray triangular-shaped moths fluttering up from our feet while walking through the sod is the most obvious clue you have a problem requiring your immediate attention. While we cannot prevent them from flying in from neighboring lawns we should be looking and listening for their caterpillar larval stage feasting on the sod at night.
Unlike chinch bugs that eat the entire plant the sod webworms feast only on the sod leaf blades, but unchecked can do tremendous damage leaving behind large brown patches during infestations. Furthermore, don’t make the mistake of thinking winter cold will take care of the problem it may not be cold enough and the health of the untreated sod may be worse come Spring.
Treatments include Bacillus thuringiensis, a beneficial bacterium sold under several brands at Earth Works Garden Center. Homeowners may also choose the parathyroid insecticide bifenthrin either as a liquid or in combination with fertilizers such as Scotts Summerguard Lawn Food with Insect Control
For help addressing your specific lawn and lawn pest control needs to contact me Chad Lakin for a FREE Lawn Maintenance & Lawn Pest Control Quote: 996-0712
Better Than Your Grandma’s Herb Box – The perfect herb box for any back porch, patio, green house or gift.
Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 1 Serving
Ingredients For the Container:
• 1 – 29 x 14 x 14” Planter Box
For the Planting Media:
• 1 – .5 c.f. Bag of Pea Gravel
• 1 – 2 c.f. Bag of Happy Frog Potting Soil
For the Plants:
• 1 – 10” Lavender
• 1 – 1 gal Pesto Basil
• 1 – 1 gal Creeping Rosemary
• 1 – 1 gal Blue Tuscan Rosemary
• 1 – 4” Blue African Basil
• 1 – 4” Genovese Basil
• 1 – 4” Dill
• 2 – 4” Sage
• 2 – 4” French Cooking Thyme
Instructions
1. Place planter box on flat surface that is easy to access.
2. Open bag of pea gravel and dump into the bottom of your planter box. This should give you about two inches of gravel which helps with the drainage.
3. Next, open your bag of Happy Frog potting soil and pour it into your container until half full.
4.Once your soil is in, take your biggest plant, the lavender, and figure out exactly where you want it. Since this is your biggest plant you might want to put it toward the back so it doesn’t overshadow some of your smaller plants. You might need to move some soil over to make sure the top of your plant’s soil is an inch or two from the top of your container. Remove the lavender from its plastic pot and loosen the roots, then place it in your planter box.
5.Now add in some more soil and build up around your plant till you can add your 1- gal plants without them being too low. Then take you 1 gal plants, place them where you want them and again make sure the top of their soil is an inch or two from the top. I recommend putting your creeping rosemary in the front of your pot or to the side so that it can fall to the side and create a nice cascading effect.
6.Repeat step 5 but this time raise your soil enough to be able to place your 4” plants. Again, I placed my thyme in front so it can grow over the side of the pot.
7.Lastly, you are going to fill in all the crevices in the container that don’t have dirt. Take a small plastic pot or use your hand to put soil in these areas and then pat it down with your hand. You can also water your pot now which will pull your soil down and show you any places you might have missed soil.
8.Your planter is now complete and ready to be enjoyed by you or anyone else who loves fresh herbs.
Winter is here!! Learn how to protect your plants from the cold snaps.
The task of protecting your plants from “Old Man Winter” can be daunting, but if you adhere to these simple guidelines your landscape will be as beautiful as ever this Spring.
Jacksonville has many different micro-climates. So how much you will need to cover depends on where in town you live. For example, the beaches and along the river tend to be a few degrees warmer than the forecast and escape the worst of the freezes. While North and West of the river tend to be the coldest.
Hard Freeze Precautions! – Delicate plants need protection. Here are some valuable tips on how to care for your garden in freezing weather.
Some common plants found in Northeast Florida which need protection are:
There are too many other sensitive plants to name here. If you are not sure about a certain plant in your yard try www.floridata.com or call us at 996-0712. Plants in containers are especially susceptible. Plant roots have little ability to acclimate or develop cold tolerance. While the ground stays well above freezing on a bitterly cold night, the soil in a container gets almost as cold as the air temperature.
Even though container plants’ above-ground parts may survive a cold snap the roots may suffer injury. Such injury is often not evident until several months later when warmer temperatures begin to place increased demands on the plant. To protect container plants, group them closely together in a protected location up against the home. If very cold temperatures are forecast, cover them with frost cloth for the night.
The best way to protect in-ground plants from the cold is to cover them. At Earth Works, as well as other garden shops, you can find a freeze cloth that is light-weight yet thick enough to provide a few degrees of protection on a cold night. Blankets also work well but are heavier and may require some supports to avoid crushing tender bedding plants, especially when weighted down by rain.
A sheet of plastic placed on top of a blanket can help hold the warm air underneath. However, plastic can burn any leaves it touches on a cold night. This is avoided by placing it over a cloth cover. If more than one night of protection is needed, remove the covers during the day to allow the sun to warm the soil. Then cover them again late in the day.
Blankets keep us warm because they help contain the heat that our bodies produce. Plants do not produce heat for the cover to hold in. The heat we are trying to contain is in the soil. Therefore whenever possible the covers should go over the plants and to the ground. In some cases, this just isn’t practical, like with a tall roebellini palm. In such cases, gathering and wrapping the head of the palm will be necessary. Be careful to include the “heart” from which the new fronds grow.
Two other handy items are a mechanic’s light or a string of outdoor Christmas lights. These can be placed under the covers to give added heat. Just take the obvious precautions to avoid fire hazards and electric shorts. Also, take care not to allow a hot light bulb to contact and damage plant tissues such as the trunk or branches. Use lights beneath a cover to protect valuable but marginally hardy plants like citrus trees. They can also make the difference for an in-ground bougainvillea on a really cold night.
When a freeze is a forecast, give plants a good watering a day or so in advance. Drought-stressed plants are more susceptible to cold injury. The moist soil is also a good “heat sink”, absorbing heat during the day and radiating it out slowly on a cold night. Combined with a cover it can make a small but important difference.
Of course, we must take care not to overwater, creating a water-logged soil condition. Soil dries out much more slowly in winter. Soggy soil excludes oxygen from the roots, often resulting in root loss and attack by root-rotting fungi.
Finally, you can use leaves to mulch perennial plants. A thick blanket of leaves can help protect marginal perennials.
We have rolls of 12′ wide freeze cloth to cut to any length as well as precut packages available at the Garden Center. If you have any questions just give us a call 996-0712.
