Impersonating an Insect

Usually when a gardener tells me there are holes in the leaves of their plant, I assume insect damage.
However, that is not always the case. Leaves that have been affected with shot hole disease often appear as having been chewed by an insect.  Plants in the Prunus genus such as almond, apricot, cherry, cherry-laurel, peach and plum are candidates for this problem.  Shot hole disease can be caused by a fungus or a bacteria, so treatment will depend on which type you have.  It gets the name from the multiple holes in the leaves, which have a shotgun hole appearance. The symptoms start with leaf spots which eventually dry up and fall off the leaves leaving the holes. Infected leaves can also turn yellow and fall off the tree prematurely.  The disease is usually more of a problem after a wet spring.

shot hole disease on cherry laurel

Fall Gardening

Didn’t have such a great garden this year?  It could be that your warm season veggies weren’t as happy with the cooler temps and overcast skies we had during this year’s growing season.  However, those same conditions may make for an excellent fall garden.  Fall gardens are usually more difficult to manage because you are fighting with high heat and increased weed and insect pressure. But the heat may not be so bad this time around.  So, before you put away your gardening gloves, you may want to give the following vegetables a shot:

 

·         Collards-  ‘Georgia’ and ‘Vates’

·         Kale- ‘Dwarf Blue Curled Vates’

·         Lettuce- ‘ Salad Bowl’, ‘Red Sails’, and ‘Black Seeded Simpson’

·         Mustard- ‘Savannah’, Tender Green’, and Southern Giant Curled’

·         Radish- ‘White Icicle’, ‘Cherry Bell’, and ‘Champion’

·         Spinach- ‘Tyee’ and ‘Melody’

·         Turnip Greens- ‘ Seven Top’ and ‘All Top’

 

All of these should be able to tolerate a frost.  The average first frost dates for Bolivar and Brownsville are Oct. 11 and Oct. 8, respectively.  I have always heard that it is Oct. 15 for Somerville, but I can’t find that information in any University of Tennessee publication, so I couldn’t swear to the accuracy of it.  If you are interested in a fall garden, we have a free publication that lists the foods commonly grown in the fall in Tennessee backyard gardens as well as what varieties to try, how far apart to space the seeds or plants, and how many days it will take before they are ready to harvest.  It also lists the expected yield of each one per 100’ row.  Included is a discussion on how to time planting based on your first frost date.  To get a copy, just call 465-5233 or email tashwort@utk.edu and ask for the Fall Vegetable Gardens publication. Better yet, click on this link.  UT Extension offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability or veteran status and is an Equal Opportunity employer.

Top Tomato Named

On Saturday, July 19, the second annual tomato contest was held at Tractor Supply.  Mr. Dave Gincher won the blue ribbon in all three categories. His ‘Caspian Pink’ tomato was the largest in circumference at 14 ¼” as well as the heaviest at just over 1 lb. 4 oz.  The second place tomato in these two categories was a ‘Golden Boy’ grown by Mr. David Lee.  In the tastiest tomato category, Dave Gincher’s ‘Juliette’ tomato took the top slot with a ‘Celebrity’ tomato grown by Joeann Millington in second and Mr. David Lee’s ‘Golden Boy’ coming in third.

 

 



David Lee, Joeann Millington, and Dave Gichner

 

 





If you want to grow prize winning tomatoes for yourself, follow these tips. 

• Rotate the location of your tomatoes so that they are planted in the same place four years or more apart.
• Plant them in a sunny spot.  6 hrs. or more of sun a day is best.
• Spray a preventative fungicide such as chlorothalonil every 7-10 days.
• Scout your tomatoes for insects frequently. 

New Exotic May Be Bugging Fayette County Growers Soon

There is a new pest making its way to Fayette County.  You won’t notice when it arrives unless you grow or buy local blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, grapes, cherries, or persimmons.  The new insect is the spotted wing drosophila, a very small fly.  The fly is native to Southeast Asia but arrived in California in 2008.  It has been making itself at home, and now can be found in 27 states, including 20 counties in Tennessee.

 

The insect attacks small fruit by laying eggs in the berries as they start to ripen.  Each female can lay 350 eggs, and then her daughters are ready to lay all of their eggs 20 days later.  The damage looks like a circular sunken in place in the fruit with a very small larvae inside. When the insect finally arrives in Fayette County, fruit growers will have to spray insecticides weekly to keep their fruit free of extra protein from the fly larvae. 

No one can predict when the spotted wing drosophila will make it to Fayette County, but it could be any time.  In fact, this summer we set up traps in a local blueberry orchard and tested ripe fruit for larvae.  None were found, and the blueberries are growing wonderfully without the use of any insecticide sprays.  That’s good news for now, but it is unfortunately only a matter of time. For more information about how to detect the larvae in your fruit, or any other plant and soil science related question, call the UT Extension office at 901-465-5233. Or, visit  spottedwing.org or more pictures and information. 

Frequently Asked Questions in Home Gardening

A good part of my job at the Extension office is answering homeowner questions about their lawn and gardens. I thought it might be helpful to share a few of them and my answers.

When should I prune my Japanese maple?  Never.  This is one plant that I just would not put the pruners to at all.  Japanese maples are beautifully shaped with graceful branches.  I know that I would never be able to do anything with my pruners to improve upon such elegance.  If you have one that is too tall for the space, then you (or the person who owned the house before you) planted the wrong one.  There are dozens of varieties of Japanese maples that have different mature heights.  Choose carefully which one to plant. 

 What grass should I plant for my shady yard?  None.  If you have shade, choose a groundcover, make new beds, or mulch.  Turfgrasses are full sun plants.  If you have moving shade, you could try zoysia.  But even zoysia will not tolerate full shade.  You might get a good stand for a while, but each year the grass will get thinner and thinner.  There simply is no substitute for sunlight.  You could always try a moss garden.  That would be lovely. 

 Should I apply paint or tar to my tree if I have to prune off a limb?  No.  Trees are very good at handling damaged tissues.  They make “calluses” around the wounded area, then seal the damage off and continue to grow around the wound.  Research has shown that painting over the wounds does nothing to help and may actually make things worse. Tar or paint can prevent the area from drying out, prevent the tree’s natural process of compartmentalizing the area, and possibly even act as a food source for pathogens.  If you have a limb that broke off of the tree, perhaps in a storm, and it was not a clean break, then you can help the tree by cleaning up the ragged edges to make it easier for the callus tissue to form. 

 

I figured I needed a photo to give my blog post interest, so here is a random chipmunk.

Master Gardener Recognition Night

On Friday, May 23, University of Tennessee Extension held a recognition night to honor several Fayette County Master Gardeners.  Twelve Master Gardeners graduated from their internship and received a certificate as well as their green Master Gardener name badge.   The badges are earned after an intern attends fourteen weeks of gardening classes and completes forty hours of volunteer service. 

 

Alida Gover, Cindy Matlock, Anne Chase, Martha Shaeffer, Judy Schmunk, Beth Mize, Laura Winfrey, Katherine Robinson, and Robin Comella.  PJ Bartholomew, Susan Hines, and Dan Sutherland not pictured

 

Five year pins were given to five Master Gardeners to acknowledge their continued years of service to their communities through the Master Gardener program. 

 

 

Loretta Taylor and Will Gresham receive their 5 yr. pins.  Elizabeth Baker, Beverly Culver, and Darlene Rike not pictured.

 

 Four Master Gardeners received the gold leaf pin award for completing 100 hours of volunteer service with the Master Gardener program for the 2013 year.  Everyone enjoyed dinner at the Oak Room and the commencement address given by Dr. Christopher Cooper, the State Master Gardener Coordinator. The eighth annual training class for Master Gardener interns will be starting in August.  If you are interested in joining our group, call the Extension office at 901-465-5233 to get more information.  

Alida Gover, Cindy Matlock, and Vivian England receive 100 hr. pins.  Darlene Rike not pictured.

4-H Archers Score Big at State Shoot

On Saturday, May 3, nine 4-Hers from Fayette County traveled to Murfreesboro to compete in the State 4-H Archery Shoot.  There were nearly 400 youth from across Tennessee at the shoot to compete in the recurve, Genesis, and compound bow divisions. Fayette County was well represented in each division. 

Our Senior High Compound Team, Hunter and Rebecca Winstead and Cameron Hart, came in second place.  Cameron Hart won first place individual in the high school compound division, shooting a 299 out of a possible 300. He hit the bullseye 18 times in his 30 shot match.  He also won premiere archer in that category, which takes into consideration the scores on a written skills test. 

 

 In the Genesis bow division, Cameron came in 7^th place. 

 

In the recurve category, we had two youth place in the top ten.  Mitchell McCreless placed 8^th in the Senior High age group and Haddon Carter placed sixth in the Junior High group.  4-Hers Beau Hart and Landon Carter shot in the Genesis division, while Ben Dixon and Corbin Hart shot compound bows. If your child is interested in 4-H Archery, contact Tonya Ashworth at 901-465-5233.  UT Extension offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability or veteran status and is an Equal Opportunity employer.

 

Cameron and Corbin Hart

Corbin on the left, Cameron on the right

Landon, Mitchell, Hunter, Cameron, and Rebecca

Haddon and Mitchell

Hunter

Mitchell, Landon, and Beau

Rebecca and Hunter

Ben, Rebecca, and Hunter