Grassy Weeds
Grassy weeds are true grasses or monocots. A grass seed germinates and emerges as one single leaf. It develops hollow, rounded stems and nodes (joints) that are closed and hard. The leaf blades...
Author: Robert F. Polomski
This Month in Your Garden- July 2022
Coastal – Laura Lee Rose Check rain gauges and run sprinklers as needed to keep grass healthy and green. One inch of irrigation can be added weekly if there isn’t sufficient rainfall. Look for any...
Lightning and Trees
Did you know that Lightning Safety Awareness Week was June 19 – 25, 2022? When you hear statements from the National Weather Service like this one: “Continuous cloud to ground lightning...
Pruning Peaches & Nectarines
Growing peach (Prunus persica) and nectarine (P. persica) trees in the landscape or backyard orchard in South Carolina can be both fun and rewarding. However, the success of your peach-growing...
Watering the Vegetable Garden
As you drink your recommended 6 to 8, 8-ounce glasses of water per day, don’t forget that your vegetable garden should also never be short of water this summer. Did you know that water makes up 80...
Reading A Fertilizer Label
Before you purchase a fertilizer, read and understand the label to choose the right one. While commercially available fertilizers vary in the amount of nutrients contained in the bag and the content...
Peaches & Nectarines
Growing peaches (Prunus persica) and nectarines (P. persica) in South Carolina can be both fun and rewarding, providing you with the opportunity to put part of the lawn area to good use by producing...
Leaf Drop in Evergreens
You may have noticed your evergreen shrubs and trees shedding yellow and brown leaves this spring. It seems unusual, but it could be a normal leaf and needle drop. While some may believe that...
Caladium
Caladiums (Caladium species) are in the arum (Araceae) family and native to Central and South America. They are hardy only to USDA zone 9 or 10; therefore, caladiums should be used as annuals in...
Sweetpotato
Planting The sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) is a warm-season crop that is not planted until well after the last chance of frost in the spring. The soil temperature should be above 65 °F before...
To Shear or Not to Shear
Shearing hedges into cubes, globes, and squares is a form of architectural pruning that balances appearance with shrub health. This balancing act is most evident in the Pearl Fryar Topiary Garden in...
A Shrub Do-over Involves a Makeover
Do your flowering shrubs need a makeover? Perhaps it’s the overgrown shrub that craves your contact whenever you use the front door or carport. Maybe it’s an old shrub that lost its vitality and...