written by Alice Mussett, Fannin County Master Gardener

GARDEN TIPS

•  Apply pre-emergent weed killer to lawns between now and March 15 to control spring germinating weeds. Water in the pre-emergent lightly to get the granules off the leaves and onto the soil.

•  For cool-season, non-grassy weeds such as clover, henbit, dandelions, and chickweed, apply a broad-leafed weed killer containing 2-4-D when daytime temperatures will be above 70 degrees and no rain expected for 48 hours.

•  Apply horticultural oil spray to fruit trees, hollies, camellias, oaks, crape myrtles, and others early this month before new buds begin to swell to control scale insects.

•  Consider keeping a garden journal with information on planting dates, varieties planted, care instructions, and notes on observations and experiences with plant selections. 

PLANTING TIPS

•  Bare-root roses and trees.

•  Move established trees and shrubs: Leave as large a soil ball as possible keeping the roots intact. Prune the top growth and thin to half to compensate for root loss.

•  Vegetable garden:  Plant onions and peas early. Cool crops that can be planted include cabbage, broccoli, Brussel sprouts and cauliflower. Irish potatoes, leafy and root vegetables such as leaf lettuce, carrots, radishes, turnips, beets, chard, and spinach can be planted later this month.

•  In the flower garden: Early in the month plant pinks and snapdragons. Later in the month plant larkspur, English daisies, sweet alyssum, ornamental chard, petunias, calendulas, Iceland poppies, and stocks.

•  Dig and divide mallows, gloriosa daisies, cannas, mums, fall asters, and salvias later in the month before they start growing.

PRUNING TIPS

•  Bush roses: Remove dead, dying, and weak canes. Leave 4 to 8 healthy canes, removing about half of the top growth. Make each cut just above a bud that faces out from the center. Use good, clean shears that will make clean cuts. 

•  Climbing roses should be trained and not pruned. Weave long canes through openings in trellises or arbors and tie them with jute twine or plastic/wire plant ties. Securing canes now prevents damage from winter winds and contributes to a more refined look to the garden when roses are blooming.

•  Peach and plum trees: Remove vertical shoots and maintain their bowl shape.

•  Other fruit and nut trees: Remove the vertical water sprouts on apples and remove dead or damaged branches.

•  Nandinas: To reduce height, select a tall cane, follow it to the base of the plant and cut there.

•  Cut Autumn Sage back to 8-10 inches.

•  Groundcovers:  Asian jasmine, liriope, and mondo grass can be trimmed with a line trimer or mower set on the highest setting early this month.

FERTILIZING TIPS

•  New trees and shrubs: Use a liquid, high-phosphorus root-stimulator fertilizer monthly.

•  Asparagus: All-nitrogen fertilizer early in the month. Harvest stalks for 6-8 weeks, then feed again and allow plants to grow the rest of the year.

•  Fertilize cool season turf such as fescue and ryegrass late in the month with all-nitrogen fertilizer. Wait until late March or April to feed St. Augustine and Bermuda lawns.

•  Fertilize pansies and other cool season plants with a high-nitrogen water soluble plant food every 2 to 3 weeks to keep them growing and blooming vigorously.

For horticulture questions call 903-583-7453 or email [email protected].  

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Helpful site http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/vegetable/

Summer in Texas can be very hot and dry. July, August and September are among the hottest months with the highest temperatures. Here are some lawn care management tips from AggieTurf to help your lawn stay healthy throughout the summer. Subscribe to the Texas Lawn Companion email newsletter for lawn care tips from AggieTurf specialists throughout the year.

Watering

When watering your lawn, be sure to water as efficiently as possible to conserve resources and to promote dense, healthy turfgrass growth. To improve water-use efficiency, see the AgriLife Extension Water-Wise checklist.

If warm season turfgrass undergoes a prolonged period of drought, it can go into summer dormancy. This means that it will cease growth, turn a tan golden-brown color and then recover when water becomes available in the late summer or early fall. Allowing your grass to go dormant is an option when you don’t want to water on a regular basis during the hottest and driest weeks of summer.

Summer dormancy is contingent on your lawn’s ability to develop deep, healthy roots during periods of active growth. The practices listed in the Water-Wise checklist help encourage deep rooting, deep water infiltration and healthy turfgrass growth. If you choose to do this, stop fertilizing because it’s best to apply fertilizer products when turfgrass is actively growing, not dormant.

As fall approaches, remember that watering your lawn can have a significant impact on turfgrass diseases. As a rule of thumb, water early in the morning. Evening watering can prolong periods of leaf wetness and promote conditions for disease. Turfgrass growth starts to slow in the fall which means that less water and fertilizer are required.

Mowing

During the hottest parts of summer, your lawn may not need to be mowed as often, especially if it is struggling with heat and drought stress. However, many summer weeds are flowering and producing seed. Take steps now to reduce seed populations in your landscape and reduce weed numbers in the spring. Frequent mowing and removal of clippings during this time can be helpful in managing weed populations.

For information on mowing heights, frequency, clipping return and more, see: Mowing Recommendations for Warm-Season Turfgrasses.

Fertilization

Continue to fertilize your lawn as needed to support health turfgrass growth. When there isn’t as much water to support growth, consider reducing or suspending the amount of fertilizer applications. Nutrient rates including phosphorous (P) and potassium (K) should be determined by a soil test. Soil tests will also help to identify important soil properties like pH, which will influence nutrient availability.

For information about soil testing, please visit the Texas A&M Soil Testing Lab website.

Urban Soil Submittal Form

Insects

Three common lawn insects to be aware of during summer months are bermudagrass mites, grubs and chinch bugs.

Bermudagrass mites will thrive in hot temperatures and be very active during the summer. They are not visible to the naked eye. When severe infestation occurs, they will cause turfgrass to thin out and will create a tufted “witch’s broom” appearance.

There are several insecticide options for severe cases, but one effective tactic is to scalp the infested area and remove the grass clippings, physically displacing many of the mites.

Learn more about bermudagrass mites »

Damage from turf-feeding grubs is most visible during summer and early fall. Grub damage appears as irregularly shaped patches resembling drought stress. When grub infestations are severe, turfgrass can often be pulled up and rolled back as if it were new sod. Another sign is that animals (skunks, armadillos, possums) will start to dig up areas of your lawn. Timing is important for treating grubs. Waiting too long can drastically reduce the effectiveness of lawn insecticides.

Learn more about turf-feeding grubs »

Chinch bugs are common summer pests in southern lawns. They cause the most damage to St. Augustine grass but can also affect other types of turfgrass. Chinch bug damage shows up as irregular-shaped patches that spread outward. If your yard has bermudagrass mixed in, you may notice tufts of bermudagrass still standing in the middle of dead or thinning St. Augustine. Chinch bugs are visible without magnification, but still somewhat small and sometimes hard to spot without help.

Learn more about chinch bugs »

Diseases

Two common turfgrass diseases during summer are Take-All Root Rot (TARR) and Gray Leaf Spot (GLS). For assistance with proper identification, contact your AgriLife Extension county agent or the Texas Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab. Be sure to properly identify a turfgrass problem before applying treatments.

Take-all Root Rot is usually the most active during spring and early summer but can be visible at any point during the growing season when turfgrass is under stress. Temperature extremes, poor water quality, drought, compaction, and even herbicide injury can all increase the likelihood that Take-all Root Rot will appear. Good cultural practices are especially important in preventing this disease.

Learn more about Take-all Root Rot »

Gray Leaf Spot is a foliar disease found on St. Augustine grass lawns during this point in the growing season. It is commonly found in shady, moist areas of a lawn. Control this disease by keeping the area mowed and aired out. Some St. Augustine grass varieties will be more sensitive, and in severe cases fungicides may be required.

Learn more about Gray Leaf Spot »

Weeds

There are many products available at local stores to treat weeds. However, the number of active ingredients used in those products is limited. Learn more about the ingredients to become more aware about what you need to buy.

Things to remember when choosing herbicides:

• Not all lawn products are safe to use on all lawns. What might be safe in your Bermudagrass lawn could significantly injure or even kill your St. Augustine grass lawn.
• Different active ingredients will target different types of weeds. Proper weed identification and thorough label reading will usually help you choose the right product.
• Incorporate preemergence herbicides into your program if you are dealing with bluegrass, crabgrass, goosegrass, or other annual weeds.
• Be mindful of your other landscape plants. Wind, rain, and irrigation water will move herbicide treatments to undesirable areas. Take time to read all cautionary statements on product labels.
• Timing is everything. Most herbicide products must be applied before weeds mature.

For more information about herbicide selection, please see the publication: A Homeowner’s Guide to Herbicide Selection for Warm-Season Turfgrass Lawns.

The information in this featured solution was adapted from lawn related articles written by Dr. Becky Grubbs in the Texas Lawn Companion email newsletter.

Check out this great article about chiggers written by Mike Merchant of Insects in the City .

If my phone calls are any indication, this appears to be a whopping chigger season.  Don’t know what I’m talking about?  You should count your blessings.

Chiggers are my personal worst nightmare. They are tiny mites, barely visible to the eye, that live on the soil surface and, in their larval stage, are parasites on humans and other vertebrate animals. Chigger bites itch terribly for 1-2 days, then slowly shrink to mildly itchy red marks that take 1 or 2 weeks to disappear. The only good thing I can say about chiggers is that, as far as we know, they don’t carry disease.

Bites typically occur in the most sensitive of places, especially around areas of tight clothing (belt line, sock line) and thin, sensitive skin (you can imagine where).

So why do chiggers seem worse this year? If I had to guess, I’d say it’s been our high humidity and above average temperatures the past month. Chiggers love hot and humid.

The most common places to encounter chiggers is in bramble patches, woods and fields with long grass. But in a year like this, chiggers can be a problem even in manicured lawns. Chiggers are often said to prefer shaded areas, but workers in our blazing-sun-drenched turfgrass plots at the Texas A&M AgriLife Center in Dallas have annual problems with chiggers beginning around late May and early June.

Your first protection against chiggers is a good repellent. DEET, our most popular mosquito repellent provides significant protection against chiggers.  Dusting sulfur is a cheap and convenient alternative for some. Traditionally old-time Texans make it a habit to carry around an old sock filled with sulfur (in the pickup truck of course). When getting out of the truck they swing the sock against their shoes and lower legs to dust themselves before they set off to ride, roundup, plant, fix bob wire, or whatever else good Texans do these days.

Here are my three tips for self protection in chigger country:

• Use a good repellent, applying to your shoes, socks and pants legs before stepping into chigger danger.
• Tuck your pant legs into your socks to make it harder for chiggers to get in your pants and find the tender places.
• Scrub yourself well in the shower after you think you might have been exposed. Chiggers typically take several hours to settle down and begin feeding. If you can shower before they begin chowing down, you can reduce the number and severity of bites.

If you have chiggers in your lawn or backyard, consider using a liquid insecticide spray like bifenthrin. These sprays can significantly reduce chiggers.  Before spraying, mow your lawn. This reduces humidity on that critical soil surface and makes it easier for sprays to contact the chiggers.

If your lawn is full of dandelions, clover or other flowers, make sure you spray for chiggers in the evening to avoid spraying pollinators, like honey bees, while they are foraging. Follow all label directions to avoid harm to good insects.

Good luck, and may the chiggers stay on the other side of the fence for you this year. For more information about chiggers, see our factsheet, E-365.