March Sadness – Recovering from a Storm for the Ages

[BigL 34]

SHA 

Any fertilizer that I can use to help my oaks?  I have 30 in the front yard and another 20 in the backyard.  

Also whats a good fertilizer for st Augustine that won't harm the oaks?  I'm in Round Rock if that matters.  

 

 

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

9 minutes ago, BigL said:

SHA 

Any fertilizer that I can use to help my oaks?  I have 30 in the front yard and another 20 in the backyard.  

Also whats a good fertilizer for st Augustine that won't harm the oaks?  I'm in Round Rock if that matters.  

 

 

I swear by Fertilome's St Augustine Weed & Feed. I think it's a 15-0-6 or something similar. Atrazine is the weed killing ingredient and it gets a bad name unjustly, IMO. Atrazine is not supposed to be good for trees. However, I've never actually seen it harm a tree, including my own.

There is no better specialized product for St Aug than Fertilome, IMO. Look at the far right top corner for "Find a Dealer" feature on this web page:

https://www.fertilome.com

If I were to do a fertilizer for trees, I would have an arborist come out and do it. He will have the long prod to insert into the root system where he'll disperse the fertilizer and likely some SuperThrive (plant hormone). That would give them a good start.

I absolutely would not do this until they start leafing out though.

 

[Soldierhorn 516]

When would you put out horticultural cornmeal?  Putting it out this week before the weeds germinate and before the next rain in a few days would seem ideal. 

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

5 hours ago, Soldierhorn said:

When would you put out horticultural cornmeal?  Putting it out this week before the weeds germinate and before the next rain in a few days would seem ideal. 

Right now. HC is not an immediate response product. It has to biodegrade before nutrients can be used by the turf. So putting it down now will mean you'll get a nice bounce in mid-April.

 

[Soldierhorn 516]

surprise, surprise... it looks like my olive trees in pots are still alive.  peach trees in pots are already budding.  ... so my losses might not be as bad as I thought.  

Irises are flat out amazing the way they can take extreme heat and lack of water, as well as extreme cold.  The iris leaves in pots are still green.  

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

11 minutes ago, Soldierhorn said:

surprise, surprise... it looks like my olive trees in pots are still alive.  peach trees in pots are already budding.  ... so my losses might not be as bad as I thought.  

Irises are flat out amazing the way they can take extreme heat and lack of water, as well as extreme cold.  The iris leaves in pots are still green.  

Wonderful news!

Both my front Live Oaks are without leaves now. You never see them like this so its just weird. I'm looking for signs of rebirth.

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

DON'T PLANT YET: Another round of cold air is expected around Mid/Late-March (possibly below freezing temps). I would hold off on any planting! It only takes one good frost to kill your plants!

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

Sharing a photo a reader sent to me, asking me if this was an insect of some kind.

Answer – Sapsucker Woodpecker. You will note how the holes do not go all the way around the tree, to avoid killing the tree. The Sapsucker pecks his holes, looks for insects, tree puts out sap in response to the holes, bugs get caught in the sap and Sapsucker gets them when he returns.

 

 

[Baron 1,523]

Mark, I had been in the process of reclaiming a garden when Covid struck me.down. its tilled and sprayed with weed and grass killer. Can I use a preemergent? I plan on starting my plants indoors.

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

14 hours ago, Baron said:

Mark, I had been in the process of reclaiming a garden when Covid struck me.down. its tilled and sprayed with weed and grass killer. Can I use a preemergent? I plan on starting my plants indoors.

Yes, as long as you're not growing anything from seed, that should be fine.

[Soldierhorn 516]

On 3/10/2021 at 7:33 PM, Sirhornsalot said:

Sharing a photo a reader sent to me, asking me if this was an insect of some kind.

Answer – Sapsucker Woodpecker. You will note how the holes do not go all the way around the tree, to avoid killing the tree. The Sapsucker pecks his holes, looks for insects, tree puts out sap in response to the holes, bugs get caught and Sapsucker gets them when he returns.

 

 

what kind of tree is that?  is it a government tree attacked by lobby-peckers?  I've seen more sapsuckers the closer I get to Austin

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

5 hours ago, Soldierhorn said:

what kind of tree is that?  is it a government tree attacked by lobby-peckers?  I've seen more sapsuckers the closer I get to Austin

lol, I was told it is a Japanese Blueberry Tree. If thats right, then its the largest one I've ever seen.

[wadster 165]

I think we dodged a huge bullet with the St. Augustine. In 89 I lost over 1/2 my yard. This time we had snow before it got really cold and I'm sure that helped insulate the grass. So far my grass looks like it survived. My Indian Hawthorns look bad but hoping they come back. Just leaving them be for now. 

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

1 hour ago, wadster said:

I think we dodged a huge bullet with the St. Augustine. In 89 I lost over 1/2 my yard. This time we had snow before it got really cold and I'm sure that helped insulate the grass. So far my grass looks like it survived. My Indian Hawthorns look bad but hoping they come back. Just leaving them be for now. 

My St Aug was actually green and full before the storm hit. It went dormant and now is coming back out. 

I'm replacing a ton of Indian Hawthorns, Pittisporums and Lorapetalums right now.

 

[wadster 165]

29 minutes ago, Sirhornsalot said:

My St Aug was actually green and full before the storm hit. It went dormant and now is coming back out. 

I'm replacing a ton of Indian Hawthorns, Pittisporums and Lorapetalums right now.

 

Any hope for the Indian Hawthorns?

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

1 hour ago, wadster said:

Any hope for the Indian Hawthorns?

Look past the top layer of leaves. If there are green leaves below, then they'll be okay. However, you will need patience as they won't rejuvenate over night. 

If there are no green leaves in the interior, then its probably dead.

[Soldierhorn 516]

Question:  when should I put out Trichogramma wasps for my pecan trees? 

When I move out to the hill country, I plan on locating chickens where my fruit and nut trees (jpecan, walnut, etc) will be to aid in killing fruit/nut pests

[Soldierhorn 516]

Different question so different post....

In your opinion, would you put Nematodes out right now during the wet season and before fertilization applications?

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

59 minutes ago, Soldierhorn said:

Question:  when should I put out Trichogramma wasps for my pecan trees? 

When I move out to the hill country, I plan on locating chickens where my fruit and nut trees (jpecan, walnut, etc) will be to aid in killing fruit/nut pests

Any time after your traditional last frost date

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

39 minutes ago, Soldierhorn said:

Different question so different post....

In your opinion, would you put Nematodes out right now during the wet season and before fertilization applications?

Wait until after your first application, which should be April 1 or close. Once it is watered in, you can let them out. Plan on re-introducing them after the June application.

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

1 hour ago, Soldierhorn said:

Question:  when should I put out Trichogramma wasps for my pecan trees? 

When I move out to the hill country, I plan on locating chickens where my fruit and nut trees (jpecan, walnut, etc) will be to aid in killing fruit/nut pests

If you do that with the chickens, make sure you feed them some ground beef (uncooked) once or twice a year. They crave it for some reason. And if you have fruit trees, their fruit can sometimes look like meat (plums, for example). So satisfy the urge, if there is one, before you let them near the fruit.

[Soldierhorn 516]

39 minutes ago, Sirhornsalot said:

If you do that with the chickens, make sure you feed them some ground beef (uncooked) once or twice a year. They crave it for some reason. And if you have fruit trees, their fruit can sometimes look like meat (plums, for example). So satisfy the urge, if there is one, before you let them near the fruit.

chickens are actually far more carnivorous than a lot of people assume.  They would MUCH rather consume a grasshopper/cricket than any grain and chickens that consume less grain produce much better (healthier) meat and eggs.

[Sirhornsalot 14,837]

3 hours ago, Soldierhorn said:

chickens are actually far more carnivorous than a lot of people assume.  They would MUCH rather consume a grasshopper/cricket than any grain and chickens that consume less grain produce much better (healthier) meat and eggs.

Thats true. When I was 12 years old, I built a chicken pen out of scraps of wood and tin that I'd find. I saved up and bought chicken wire and then bought chickens. I had them until I left for college. Every time I'd see the hens pecking at each other's faces and necks (bringing blood), I'd know it was time to feed some meat to them. I'd feed them and all that pecking each other would stop.

[Soldierhorn 516]

Frustration: I ordered Nematodes and Trichogramma wasps online and they were suppose to be here the first week of March. They still havent arrived and probably wont for another week - irritating.  All the garden nurseries that I use to go to in this area are completely shut down and look like vacant lots due to the government shutting down businesses.  I hope they can  come back but in the mean time, I have to order my stuff online.  

[Soldierhorn 516]

Finally got my Trichogramma wasp yesterday.  They took so long in transit that a lot had already hatched and were crawling around in the enclosed plastic bag.  Hung the pad on a peach tree (between two pecan trees) and bag with the live wasps on a pecan tree so the wasp in the bag cold get out onto the tree. 

Got the nematodes yesterday as well. this is a little different than I'm use to.  In the past, I would get the nematodes straight from the nursery frig and put them in a few gallons of water.  These ordered nematodes came in 8 mesh type packets and the instructions state to just bury the packets so I buried a two packets (separately) beneath several trees.  I'm still going to try and find some that I can put in water to treat for red ants around the yard.