Hey, it's the Beetles!

Hey, it’s the Beetles!

Every year around the last week in June, Jefferson County can count on Japanese beetles to make an appearance in our yards. The adults emerge from the ground to begin feeding on plants, with about 300 species attractive to them. They will eat the leaves, flowers, and even fruit!  Activity is most intense over a 4 to 6 week period beginning in late June, after which the beetles gradually die off. Individual beetles can live about 30 to 45 days.

These guys usually feed in large groups and are most active on warm, sunny days.  They prefer plants in direct sunlight. These feeding clusters of beetles can really do some damage.

So, where did they come from?  

They were discovered in New Jersey in 1916 and yes, they were originally from Japan. Our mild weather, grassy lawns and lack of natural predators was perfect for their numbers to multiply.  They were first discovered in southern Louisville in 1937. Today they can be found in every one of Kentucky’s 120 counties.  Japanese beetles are considered the most devastating insect pest in our urban landscapes.   

Controlling the adults is just half the battle (see the link below for more info). The larvae of these beetles are the grubs that can do so much damage to our lawns and golf courses. They eat the roots of turf plants, causing them to brown and loosen like a piece of carpet (early fall). These lawns will probably not recover. Early detection is the key. The best time for a curative grub control is early to mid-August! With curative control, treatment is applied in late summer, after the eggs have hatched and grubs are present. Insecticides used for curative control have relatively short residual effectiveness (usually 2 to 3 weeks or less). Therefore, proper timing is important. The best time to apply curative grub insecticides in Kentucky is in early to mid-August when grubs are still small and their feeding damage is relatively light. Grubs are still vulnerable to treatment in late August and September but as they grow larger, they become progressively harder to control, and damage to the turf already may be severe. By late September, in response to cooler soil temperatures, some grubs already may be moving downward and out of the treatment zone. Remember to water-in the insecticide as soon as possible after the application.

Not every lawn will have a grub problem, but correct timing and control can help get a handle on these insects.


Grub Control:
http://www2.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/entfactpdf/ent10.pdf

Insecticides for Grub Control:
http://www2.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/entfactpdf/ef441.pdf

Japanese Beetle Control:

http://www2.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/entfactpdf/ef451.pdf

Wow, It's Getting Hot!

  

Wow, It's Getting Hot!

Wow! What intense weather we are getting.  Cooler than average temps last week, now temperatures could be above 90° degrees. This can cause problems for our gardens and landscapes. Tomatoes slow down production and drop blooms, cool season grasses go dormant, insect populations soar, water stress (this year too much rain) affects everything and gardens start to look shabby. Heat and humidity combine to prevent us from trying to control insects and diseases. A case in point, in my front yard the grass is staying wet with dew till noon.  That tells me the humidity is not going to allow me to safely spray for anything in my garden.  Even an organic control will burn plant material in the 95° early afternoon heat.  The chemicals just do not evaporate before the heat rises. 

To prevent the spread of disease don't work in the garden while the foliage is wet. Mulching the garden and flower beds can help by providing a barrier between soil borne fungi and plants.  Be sure to remove and dispose of diseased plant material.

Until the heat and humidity fall all I can do is wash the insects off with water or physically remove them. Yuck.  

As a rule of thumb: Do not spray/apply any chemical on plants when the temperature and humidity (%) added together are 140 or above.  

So, stay cool! 

An Unexpected Garden - part 2

An Unexpected Garden - part 2 

Microgreens

By definition an unexpected anything is not looked for, and, therefore, a surprise. Micro gardens, or microgreens, are just that. A simple, but delightful concept, especially when one applies it to gardening. Microgreens are young seedlings of herbs or vegetables that are harvested when they are 1 to 3 inches tall, usually right after the first set of true leaves appear. Upscale restaurants have been using them for years to add to salads or sandwiches and to garnish dishes. They have different flavors and tastes, not to mention color, than their older versions. Some recent studies show that these young plants are higher in nutrition and vitamins than more mature veggies. What’s not to love?

Several seed companies package seed just for microgreens. They are very knowledgeable about varieties and availability of plants suitable for this. Sow seed on sterile growing media. The soil should be moist without being wet.  (Kits that include watering baths for the seeds are also available for the home grower!) They do need a sunny window or grow light. The time from seed to harvest varies with crop species but many are ready to harvest within 1 to 2 weeks. Harvest only the stems with the leaves –no roots.  They can be cut or clipped with clean kitchen shears. Commercially an electric knife or trimmer is used.  Starting a flat or pot every week or so can keep you supplied with fresh microgreens!

What an unexpected and simple idea, take seeds from herbs and vegetables, sow them in clean potting soil, harvest as seedlings (the micro part) when they are full of nutrients and vitamins!  Microgreens may be a novel approach to gardening and it could add a lot to your table!

Introduction to commercial microgreen production from UK:

http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CDBREC/introsheets/microgreens.pdf

More from the University of Florida:

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1164

STRRRRIKE ONE!!

STRRRRIKE ONE!!*

*That’s all it takes…..

The power and display of a summer thunderstorm in Kentucky can be breathtaking.  Pop-up thunderstorms can occur almost daily in and around Jefferson County at this time of year.  Trees in our yards are occasionally struck by lightning causing concern to homeowners. Signs of lightning injury can vary from almost no damage to split bark and exploding trunks. The bark may peel, the ground around the tree may crack and small plants close to the tree trunk may also die as a result of lightning.

 The tree damage is influenced by a range of factors. The anatomy of the tree (grain of wood) can affect the direction lightning follows or the path of least resistance may be through the cambium layer (living cell tissue under bark). The actual lightning bolt has a direct influence on a tree’s injuries. The more current a bolt carries, the hotter and more destructive it is.  Location next to streams or water sources; the tallest tree in a group; and solitary trees are more likely to be struck by lightning. High levels of starch in deciduous trees attract lightning (oak, maple, ash), however oil, like in beech and birch trees, is a poor conductor. Even the resin content in the tree can be a factor as it is a good conductor of electricity (pine, spruce, hemlock and fir).

There is very little that can be done for a tree that has been struck by lightning.  Many of these trees will decline and eventually die though some may take years to do so.  If a tree on your property is struck watch for dying leaves and branches.  Remove dead wood and if practical keep the tree watered and free of stress. 

Don’t confuse lightning damage with a girdling of the trunk at or below the soil surface caused by 2,4-D (herbicide) that was applied in high concentrations. 

When I think about the heat and current a bolt of lightning carries I am surprised when a tree shows little or no sign of damage!  Hollywood has trained us to expect explosions and special effects when Mother Nature gets wild. But lightning can be sneaky, so be observant.   

A Rose is a Rose

 A Rose is a Rose....

Close to the Jefferson County Extension Office on a traffic island, knockout roses have been blooming their hearts out all summer.  This group of roses is one of the hardest working plantings in the city!  No supplemental water, pruning, fertilizer, pesticides or winter protection.  They bloom repeatedly and bring color to the intersection.  Even heat and exhaust from traffic does not seem to bother them. Few perennials give such a performance in the summer. Knockout roses may not be the biggest or most exotic roses to grow, but they sure are the easiest.  Consider them for areas that need color but may be difficult to access. The only problem they may have is a susceptibility to rose rosette, a phytoplasma infection spread by a microscopic mite (no you can’t control the mite with pesticides -it’s too small). All plants in the genus Rosa are susceptible to Rose rosette; the symptoms include excessive growth (witch’s broom), purplish-red coloration, excessive thorns, leaf distortion and thick cane production.  Infected plants will decline and may not survive the winter.  There is no cure... The best control is to be aware of the disease then remove and destroy affected plants as soon as possible.  All multiflora roses (Rosa multiflora) should be removed from neighborhoods as these are the host plants for the mite.( Multiflora roses were first used as living fences or hedges but are now considered noxious weeds.) No plants are perfect; there are always advantages and disadvantages to the choices we make for our landscapes. In the long run, Knockout roses will out-perform many perennials and are my choice for summer color!  Day lilies (Stella D’Oro), Brown-eyed Susan, Coreopsis, Butterfly-weed, Lavender, Coneflower and Crape myrtle are all reliable color for summer too.