LITTLE ROCK — Q I have had a recurring problem with my hydrangeas.
They get a black spot, which causes the leaves to shrivel. I haveused a triple-action fungicide, miticide, insecticide but with no results. What should I use to clear up this problem?
A I don’t think there is a hydrangea without a leaf spot this fall. The growing season was not kind.
Spraying now will not be effectivesince the leaves will drop as soon as we have a killing frost. What you can do is practice good sanitation, and rake up the old leaves this fall or winter. Watch the new growth in the spring. If you see the leaf spot early in the season every year, then a preventive fungicide spray would be in order (you don’t need the miticide, insecticide in the spray). If the spotsonly happen late in the season, Iwouldn’t worry.
Q I have a fern that is 11/2 years old and is down to about three or four leaves. I want to do whatever I can to continue and rebuild its growth. I have cut off all the old dead leaves, repotted it, and need to know what to do now. It was given to me from a funeral so it is very important.
A I am assuming it is a houseplant and not a hardy fern, since you got it from a funeral. I don’t know if you move the fern outside in the summer, but if you don’t I highly recommend you do next year. If it is outside now, bring it back inside soon. Indoor ferns often shed old leaves constantly because of the lack of humidity, which they love. For now, put the fern in the coolest room with bright light in your house. Let it get on the dry side before you water. Keep it alive until spring, then move it outside in the shade, and I bet it rebounds beautifully. Fertilize two or three times when it is outside and it should get full.
You may also want to repot it when you move it outdoors next spring to make sure it is not pot-bound.
Q Should I fertilize my Encore Azaleas now or wait until spring? They are blooming very well at the present time.
A Even though your azaleas are blooming nicely, you do not want to prune or fertilize them now. Fertilizing them could encourage tender new growth that would not over-winter well. All you should do nowis enjoy the blooms and water when dry. Fertilize them in the spring after they bloom.
You can apply a second application of fertilizer about six to eight weeks after the first.
Q We have a huge hydrangea that refuses to bloom although it is beyond a doubt the largest and most beautiful plant in our yard. We did have some freezing the last two winters.
Should we use some sort of protective cover on it in the winter? I would love to see such a beautiful plant bloom.
A The key to hydrangea blooms is to keep the buds from freezing back.Big leaf hydrangeas have their flower buds on the tips of the branches. Warm spells during the winter often lead them to think spring has sprung, and they break dormancy early.
At that point they are highly susceptible to frost damage.
If they freeze, there go your flowers, but the plant will grow by leaps and bounds.
Watch them closely this winter. If the buds have green on them and a hard freeze is predicted, consider covering them for extra protection.
Covering can give you several degrees of protection.
Q We buy geraniums every year and put them in pots. This year, we have a particularly beautiful colorwe would like to save through the winter. I know there are different types of geraniums;
one can be kept year after year and one is normally only good for one season. How do we know which variety we have? Also, can you buy true geraniums in Northwest Arkansas? Do you recommend trying to store geraniums during the winter and if you do, what method would you use?
A You have several options. One is to move the plants indoors and treat them as houseplants, but they don’t like that very much - low humidity and lack of light tend to make them leggy. You can store them in your garage in their pots and ignore for the winter. An old-fashioned way is to take them out of the pots and hang them to dry in the basement or attic. They may or may not survive that way. In any instance, pot them or move them back outside in early spring, cut them backand fertilize. They are woodier than most annuals and can go dormant and survive as long as they don’t freeze. In the scheme of things, buying new plants each year is probably going to be easier.
Janet Carson is an extension horticulturist with the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture. Write to her at P.O. Box 391, Little Rock, Ark. 72203, or e-mail her at
HomeStyle, Pages 41 on 10/30/2010