How about a gardening thread?

[meloncollie]

Still cleaning up from the storm...

The lilac, which had been about 3 meters tall, is bent over down to the ground, but still alive. A portion of the root has been upended, but not all.

Obviously the tree needs to be cut down, but I'm wondering what the chances are of new shoots starting out from the root that hasn't been upturned? And if there is a chance, what is the best way to prune the destroyed tree while saving the roots?

Should I cut off all the branches, and then re-plant the root ball? Should I try to leave any of the bent branches to nourish the roots?

Or just chalk it up as a loss, and plant something else?


The only reason I'm contemplating the trying to save it is that this is one of those deep deep magenta lilacs - love the color. Any advice on saving it would be appreciated.

[pilatus1]

I made it to the garden last night for the first time since last week's snow. My kiwi vines look like they've been through a nuclear holocaust. Pawpaw trees have dropped all their buds. Fig trees have dropped all of their new growth, too. My Feijoa Sellowiana may have given up the ghost.

[FunnyBone]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	Still cleaning up from the storm... The lilac, which had been about 3 meters tall, is bent over down to the ground, but still alive. A portion of the root has been upended, but not all. Obviously the tree needs to be cut down, but I'm wondering what the chances are of new shoots starting out from the root that hasn't been upturned? And if there is a chance, what is the best way to prune the destroyed tree while saving the roots? Should I cut off all the branches, and then re-plant the root ball? Should I try to leave any of the bent branches to nourish the roots? Or just chalk it up as a loss, and plant something else? The only reason I'm contemplating the trying to save it is that this is one of those deep deep magenta lilacs - love the color. Any advice on saving it would be appreciated.

There is a guideline on this webpage about how and when to coppice your lilac.

https://www.thespruce.com/pruning-li...lilacs-1403004

[amogles]

	Quote:	pilatus1
	I made it to the garden last night for the first time since last week's snow. My kiwi vines look like they've been through a nuclear holocaust. Pawpaw trees have dropped all their buds. Fig trees have dropped all of their new growth, too. My Feijoa Sellowiana may have given up the ghost.

My kiwi was decimated too, but has made a remarkable recovery since

[DantesDame]

Ok, so what's wrong with my currant (Johaniisbeere) bush?



I planted it about a month ago in the garden allotment. It has been doing fine and seemed to weather the frost and hail without issue. But now I see that each new clumps of leaves is just that: a clump.

I can't see any evidence of bugs or larvae... and the weather hasn't been that bad for the last week or so. Thoughts?

[pilatus1]

	Quote:	DantesDame
	Ok, so what's wrong with my currant (Johaniisbeere) bush? I planted it about a month ago in the garden allotment. It has been doing fine and seemed to weather the frost and hail without issue. But now I see that each new clumps of leaves is just that: a clump. I can't see any evidence of bugs or larvae... and the weather hasn't been that bad for the last week or so. Thoughts?

Are you sure there are no aphids on the backsides of the clumped up leaves?

[meloncollie]

Johannesbeeren can be hit with a number of diseases/infestations, cold damp weather in the spring doesn't help.

Keep an eye out for leaves rolling, turning yellow or flecked.

I had a bad case of (probably) 'Blattfallkrankheit', a fungus brought on by cold wet weather, that hit my Johannesbeeren a few years ago. Shortly after fruiting the bushes lost their all leaves, ca mid summer.

I've not had much success eradicating the disease, despite my best efforts. Last fall I tried an experiment, cutting one row of bushes down to the ground (and of course removing all branches/leaves from the ground) while leaving the parallel row pruned as usual.

Unfortunately the late show put paid to the Johannesbeeren so I won't know if one pruning ended up more successful than the other. We'll still see if any can carry leaves past mid summer.

I bring this up because it starts each year with a sort-of-similar odd leaf growth.

But what you have there could be any number of things.

If you start to see a grey or white powder on the leaves, that's usually one of the Mehltau diseases. These are a real problem with Johannesbeeren.

If the leaves turn bumpy it might be one of the Lause infections.

Some photos here might help:
http://www.hortipendium.de/Schadbild...Johannisbeeren

---

Do you have a good garden center nearby? If so, bring photos and one of the affected stems and see what the experts say.

Balcony allotment is ready. On this space will grow/are growing, photos 1-4 from top left to right to bottom left and right:

1. Chives, lemonbalm, 2x basil varieties, 6 beetroot, lavender and rosemary and the last of the 'old' welsh onions. Then 2 tomato plants and 3rd basil variety, parsley, lemonscented thyme,tarragon and 2 varieties of mint

2. Oregano & Majoram, 7 heads of lettuce, strawberries (big pot)

3. Strawberries (small pot), carrots and dill

4.6 Kale, 1 cucumber, 6 Kohlrabi,4 peperoni, sage, lovage, new welsh onions, 6 fennel and red radishes

Due to a misunderstanding between Daughter#3 and me,we have 4 peperoni instead of 2 and 2 chillies. So i will head out and get some chilli plants and then our allotment is complete for this year.
Having said that, when the salads are picked and a pot is empty, I'll sow summer spinach and other salads in the pots.
Let's hope for a good gardening year!

[DantesDame]

	Quote:	pilatus1
	Are you sure there are no aphids on the backsides of the clumped up leaves?

I went back today and uncrumpled some leaves. There were a few very small black flies with narrow wings hanging out, as well as a couple of small black ants.

A couple of places had what looked like a greenish coating on the stem. My eyes aren't what they used to be, so no details on it. Not being around to check on this for the next two weeks, I just jumped into the deep end and bought a bio insecticide. I only sprayed it on/under the affected leaves and will now just wait and see if it will be successful.

[DantesDame]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	Johannesbeeren can be hit with a number of diseases/infestations, cold damp weather in the spring doesn't help.

You do not paint a very cheerful picture

[meloncollie]

	Quote:	DantesDame
	You do not paint a very cheerful picture

I just looked at one of mine that wasn't too badly damaged by the snow... yesterday it looked good, as if it would recover. But today...yep, the new growth leaves are curling in. A few leaves are drying and spotting. It looks like another season of this fungus.

But do talk to someone at your local garden center for advice.

[pilatus1]

My johannisbeeren have looked similar in the past, with a mild aphid/läuse infestation. The greenish coating on the stem is likely a clump of tiny little greenish white aphids. They feed on the new plant growth, and excrete honeydew. The ants eat the honeydew or carry it back to their queen. The ants actively farm the aphids, bringing them to new plants and offering some protection from predators in return for the aphid excrement - a symbiosis.

Knocking the adhids off with a strong spray of water helps. Better yet is a spray bottle with a few drops of bio soap and a teaspoon of veggie oil (helps it to stick), which will kill the aphids. Best is a mix of water, bio soap, and neem oil. But surely whatever you have used should work.

Hopefully the plant hasn't got the diseases mentioned by melloncollie..

[DantesDame]

	Quote:	pilatus1
	Knocking the adhids off with a strong spray of water helps. Better yet is a spray bottle with a few drops of bio soap and a teaspoon of veggie oil (helps it to stick), which will kill the aphids. Best is a mix of water, bio soap, and neem oil. But surely whatever you have used should work.

Ah yes, the old soap and water trick. I have used that before on something similar, with good success

[meloncollie]

Have any of you also noticed a decline in the quality of bagged soil this year?

I have bought many different kinds of soil this year, all price points from el cheapo stuff to the very expensive name brands, from a wide range of providers from discounters to specialty garden centers, all sorts of soil types, such as Universalerde, Geraniumerde, Tomaten/Gemuseerde, Beerenerde, Balkonpflanzenerde, Moorbeeterde...

And this year, all bagged soil, no mater what the price or supposed quality, seems to be largely incompletely composted wood. Not the rich dark topsoil I expect when I pay for Sackerde.

What's going on? Has there been a change in thinking as to what constitutes 'good' growing soil?

[DantesDame]

The grape vines are recovering!!



This makes me very happy. The Kiwi is also sprouting leaves, and the blackberries are blossoming in full force


I also snapped a photo of one of the two frogs in my little pond. Noisy little critters!

Melonc do you mean 'top soil' or 'compost' - the two are very different.

I don't know anywhere that sells top soil (dirt) bagged. Compost is made with composted material - be it garden, fruit, veg, tree, etc, waste- composted in a high heat system - often mixed with varialble quantities of peat - often from rich peat bogs in Eastern Europe, now how native peat bogs are protected. There is more and more awareness of the massive ecological disaster peat harvesting is causing- so here maybe your answer.

Talk to your local garden centre or Landi manager or senior staff and ask them- they should be able to show you samples too. Our local Commune (Gemeinde) produces its own with a high heat system- with household fruit, veg, garden waste and tree prunings, etc- and we can go twice a year to get as much as we want from the composting place- high quality, no large pieces, brown and rich- but of course, it is compost, and not top soil (dirt).

[meloncollie]

I mean normal growing soil - which is what we Midwesterners would refer to as top soil. Every other year this is what I have bought - a rich, dark soil.

This year, every single bag of soil I have bought, from anywhere, of any kind, at any price, is mostly roughly or incompletely composted wood. As in visible twigs and bits of wood mulch, some of it clearly from building lumber. More wood than plantable soil in the mix. Terrible quality.

All peat-free. Not labeled as composted or recycled soil. Labeled exactly as in years past, as universal soil, blooming flower soil, vegetable or tomato soil, geranium soil, acidic soil, etc.

I am surprised - at first I thought I had simply bought a bad batch of one kind, but with subsequent purchases it's across all types, all brands, all retailers.

Hence my question of whether it's now thought that a woody soil is what we should be growing things in.

[Belgianmum]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	Have any of you also noticed a decline in the quality of bagged soil this year?

I can't say that I've noticed a difference myself although I haven actually been able to do any gardening yet.
In my supervisory role though the soil looks just the same as last year. We finished up what was left from last summer and bought more of the same sort and it certainly doesn't appear to have a lot of woody matter in it.

ETA: having just read the bag it says that wood fibres help to aerate the soil and favourise root product but I don't think they mean dirty great lumps of wood.

[Tom1234]

I just had an eye-watering quote for some loose-weave coconut burlap (jute) sheets/matting for using to stop soil erosion on a short, steep bank while the ground-covering plants get established. It bio-degrades into the soil after a year or two and even when newly laid, it's pretty invisible.

I can only seem to buy massive quantities.

The normal places have that sort of thing in the winter for wrapping plants but not this time of year. I've tried a few garden centres too.

So, has anyone seen any?

Thanks!

[amogles]

	Quote:	DantesDame
	I went back today and uncrumpled some leaves. There were a few very small black flies with narrow wings hanging out, as well as a couple of small black ants.

That's it then.

The aphids feed off the plant and cause the leaves to crumple.

The aphids prodce a sugary secretion that they feed to the ants. The ants in return protect the aphids against beetles, spiders and other things that would otherwise eat them. Some types of ants even farm aphids by carrying the baby ones to uninfested leaves or plants even.

Ants and aphids make a tough combination.