I had a lot of feedback after last month’s newsletter; people wanted more information on trees, with many questions referring to another tree subject: SUCKERS. Unsure of the answer, I decided to call Tyson Woods at Lambert’s for his advice.

Let’s get right to it: the question for Mr. Woods is about suckers growing on trunks and major interior branches of trees. What to do with them? Are they harmful? His answer was much shorter than the explanation I’m about to give you, but it’s snowing outside, I’m not expecting any customers today, I’m feeling lonely and have the urge to expound (I’ve never used that word before).

Many times you read about suckers being damaging to trees because they grow faster than the branch they are growing on, causing an excess amount of weight and stress on existing branches. These “water sprouts” can cause damage to some softwood trees, but are actually beneficial to some of the hardwoods. As we all know, (because we are smart and have read all the issues of Organic Matters,) leaves on trees and plants are necessary for photosynthesis, the process by which plants use energy from sunlight to produce sugar, which is then converted into plant energy.

Ok, where are you going with this, Greg? I am sure is your question.

When a tree is newly planted we recommend leaving all the branches on, except those broken or damaged, so that there will be more leaves (for more energy production). When trimming a tree, we were removing dead, broken, low hanging branches and water sprouts or suckers.

Until recently I had instructed my crews to remove all water sprouts or suckers that were growing on interior branches. Not anymore. When you prune a tree, you open areas to sunlight. On larger branches, dormant buds might start to grow and form new branches. If you leave some of the suckers that have grown since the previous season, you encourage fewer new sprouts. It seems that the movement of sap goes into the already formed branches more easily than it would into a dormant bud. It is true that the now interior growing branch will continue to grow, but that’s not a bad thing. The tree will look fuller and interior leaves will have become accustomed to low light levels and be able to help in energy production. Branches that do not have enough leaves will die. Remember last month’s article about vines on trees? Well, I recommended removing vines so they would not crowd out tree leaves, and now I know that removing all the suckers may be just as harmful as letting vines grow on tree trunks and canopies.

Again- live and learn.

When trimming a tree, we have seen many “trimmers” concentrate on lower branches and interior branches, but more often then not, I have seen, (even my guys), forget to thin the outside of the canopy where heavy branches can cause extreme damage to trees. A good example of this is seen on Bradford Pears and becomes extremely noticeable after a storm has ripped off entire sections of a tree. On the last day of December 1979, an ice storm came through Dallas, severely damaging many Oaks. Other trees were also damaged, but the hardest hit were Live Oaks, whose evergreen leaves became heavy with frozen ice, causing the branches to snap.

We had finished trimming some oaks just before the storm; removing branches that were on the outside canopy to decrease possible wind damage. I have heard this termed as the “wind-sail effect”. None of the trees we trimmed were damaged by the storm. Thinning the canopy relieved the weight of heavy branches that became heavier with the coating of ice. We thinned the canopy by removing every other branch around the exterior circumference of the tree.

Days after the ice storm we were busy cutting back many branches damaged by the weight of ice. Later on in the fall of that same year we returned to many homes where we had tried to repair damage to trees and noticed thousands of suckers or watersprouts had emerged on interior limbs. This was an obvious sign that we removed way too many branches from these trees, but in that particular case we had no option. We selectively avoided some suckers, leaving the most vigorous and properly directed growers, hoping to help restore the beauty of the tree. Luckily, we left enough suckers to allow the trees to fill in nicely. I am pleased to say that over a hundred trees were trimmed during the month of January 1979 and none show signs of damage from that ice storm today.

Still on the subject of trees:

Crape Myrtle Alert!

There is no real reason to trim Crape Myrtles unless they have branches that can cause physical or bodily harm. Crape Myrtles will do very well if left alone and will have a naturally beautiful tree form if misguided pruners are kept away from them.

If you feel interior branches of a tree are too crowded and impede air circulation or if branches are rubbing each other, prune. Make sure that you prune branches no thicker than the size of a pencil and do not top the tree as so many people have. Topping causes a very ugly crowning effect that is very disfiguring for what could be a beautiful tree.

If the tree is planted too near a foundation and has started to grow awkwardly away from the house, consider transplanting the tree rather than prune it into ugly stubs.

Yaupon Holly: There is no way that you are going to keep a Yaupon Holly trimmed into neat little balls or down to a specific height. Remember most Yaupons are native and can grow up to 25 inches high and at least that wide. Do not plant a native yaupon (ilex vomitoria) in an area where it cannot grow properly. Use a different type of evergreen such as a Needlepoint, Dwarf Buford, etc. Tell your nurserymen or landscaper exactly what space you are trying to fill and ask for appropriate plant material suggestions.

Spray Pecan and Fruit Trees with Dormant Oil now; reapply in February. Read the directions on the bottle. Remember that the best time to apply is when temperatures are between 40 and 70 degrees F. Apply on a day when the wind is at a minimum and apply enough product to allow coverage in crevices and cracks. This is best done when the tree does not have leaves on it and before buds begin to swell. The reason to apply is to smother over-wintering pests, so complete coverage is required. If you cannot spray the highest points of the tree, hire an applicator. ROHDE’S!

If you have Dormant Oil left over from last year, you should still be able to use it as long as you shake the bottle vigorously (better than stirring).

Pruning Fruit Trees

by Don Trotter

A correct pruning cut removes the branch just outside of the collar. The collar is formed from good tissue and will roll over the wound and seal off the interior of the tree from insects and airborne diseases.

Incorrect pruning cuts that leave branch and leader stubs also start disease and defect problems. Do not leave stubs. Look for the collar.

When pruning deciduous fruit trees it is always helpful to remember three steps to a good basic pruning job.

1. Eliminate all dead or diseased wood.
2. Eliminate crossing or touching branches in favor of stronger growth if possible.
3. Keep the center of the tree clear of branches for good air circulation.

These three steps will assure you of a pruning job that keeps your fruit to the outside of the tree for easy picking, keeps the center of the tree open for air circulation that will reduce pest and disease problems, and keep the tree tidy and free of decaying wood that serves no purpose. Some specific information regarding the most often grown fruit trees follows and speaks of the age of "fruiting" wood. For example, wood formed during last year's growing season will be considered second year wood and wood that was formed two seasons ago is referred to as third year wood. Wood that will be formed during the growing season coming will be called first year wood.

Apples and pears; Most fruit is formed on second and third year wood. Apples and pears produce a type of fruiting wood called a spur. Spurs are where a lot of fruit can be produced, they look exactly like stunted branchlets and should be saved unless dead or in a spot where they conflict (cross) with other growth. Apples and pears also produce fruit along the middle section of second year wood. Apples and pears do best when pruning is limited to cleaning and shaping. No more than 25% of the previous year's growth should be removed to maximize fruit production.

Apricot, Peach. Plum, Nectarine; Most of the fruit for all of these fruit varieties is formed on second and third year wood. Plums can also form spurs like Apples and this growth formation should be saved whenever possible. Crossing branches should always be eliminated and the long whip-like growth that was formed last year on some branches can be reduced up to 60%. Apricots also produce these whips and they can be treated similarly. Most of the fruit is produced in the middle third of the growth that was formed last season (second year wood). All caution should be taken to preserve this wood whenever possible. Having an open center is very important to all of these varieties of trees to reduce the possibility of disease and pest infestations. It is always a good thing to apply a dormant spray immediately after pruning to seal open cuts in the tree before next year's growth begins. My favorite pruning sealer is good old Elmer's white glue. Rub it or brush it on the open cuts in your tree to seal out bad guys.

Pruning your fruit trees is not nearly as daunting a task as many like to make it. Simply cleaning your tree of dead wood, elimination of crossing branches, and shaping your tree is often enough for residential fruit trees so they maintain their shape and attractiveness in the garden. I'll see you in the Garden!

Got questions? Email the Doc at Curly@mill.net. Don Trotter's natural gardening columns appear nationally in environmentally sensitive publications. For more information check Don’s books "Natural Gardening A-Z" and "The Complete Natural Gardener" at bookstores or on-line booksellers; both are from Hay House Publishing.

Pest Control

Every year around February we have more people noticing insects in the house. Think about it! If you were cold, wouldn’t you want to be in a warm house?

Most of the calls that we have received are concerning rodents nesting in attics, ants in kitchens and bathrooms, roaches just roaming around and, now that everybody is stuck indoors and reading more, we have had calls about silverfish.

Most insects do not have cell phones to call their friends up when they find a hole in the wall that turned out to be a good eating-place. They leave a scent. How do they leave this scent? With their waste. Roaches leave a spreading mess that produces an odor to attract their friends. This mess is called “aggregation matter.” If this gets on counter tops, I am sure it cannot be good for you; roaches carry many diseases including salmonella and e-coli. Sandra, the lovely one, cleans the cutting board and counter tops before placing food on them, just in case something walked over it between uses.

Most pests do not come in the front door (except the two-legged kind). They like their special entrances—the little crack in the exterior wall, behind old loose caulking material, around weather-stripping that is no longer airtight— these are inviting passage-ways for many pests. I use copper weather-stripping at my house with hopes that the air and moisture builds up and shocks the little insects.

The larger rodents may make their way into any portion of your house that is not occupied. Squirrels and roof rats may find living quarters in the attic above your bedroom. They do this because they know they can keep you from a good night sleep. If they are right on top of you, you hear them stirring around. They want you to feel like part of the family as they start to multiply. Nothin’ cuter than the rustlin’ sound of five or six small rodents wiggling to get to their mother for breakfast or are they chewing through the ceiling so they can jump down and surprise you some night?

Obviously, the best way to control pests is through exclusion. Keep them out of the house. And don’t give them a reason to come into your house.

A while back, I wrote about this same subject, but failed to stress the importance of a scheduled inspection walk around the exterior of the house, with tools in hand. Tools?

• Screw driver; to scrape off old caulking from windows and frames.
• A caulk gun to fill in the voids where you removed old caulking material.
• A combination of Diatomaceous Earth and Boric Acid in a ready-to-use puffer to apply in spaces where insects may be lurking.
• Enough Stuff-it Copper Mesh to jam into every weep hole on the first course of brick around the foundation of your house.
• Foam insulation to fill in larger voids. Remember that foam insulation expands. A LOT! Do not apply so much product that the insulation breaks through panels or pushes out molding as it expands (it happened to me!).
• Take a note pad and make notes of needed repairs as you walk around the house. Look up at the eaves and gables for large entry holes for rodents.
• After you have sealed the small crevices around the house and before you put your tools and materials up, do it again. When you have finished the second time, have someone else repeat the process while you make notes of materials that you need for repairs and don’t forget to check the weather-stripping around doors. Remember that you waste time when you do not double-check the amount of material that needed for repairs. Go around the house once more and look for entry holes for larger animals (when your neighbors ask why you are doing laps around the house, be sure to have an interesting explanation ready).
• Before you seal the holes in the attic or storage room place some RED FOX Urine on cotton balls and toss them in the area where you suspect you may have unwanted visitors. If you go into the attic, try to do this on a sunny day. Turn off all the lights so that you will be able to see where sunlight is coming in. Make a note and seal these holes up too, but not yet. Let the RED FOX Urine do its thing.
• Come back the next morning and start rodent proofing your home. Make sure that you tightly seal all entries. Now you have finished…… with the outside. Time to go inside and kill the bugs that are residing with you.

On the inside of the house there is still a lot to do. First thing you need to do is—Think Like a Bug. Crawl around on the floor and look into cabinets, behind appliances, under window-sills, in closets and storage spaces (again, have a good story ready for this activity!). Do not forget the bookshelf. Most of us read a book, shelve it and don’t look at it again. Every once in a while the kids or a friend will want to borrow a book and sometimes you may see a silverfish.

Not often, but there have been times I have seen roaches or their little droppings around my bookshelf. I think it is because of the glue that binds the books. Just like cardboard boxes and paper bags we bring home from shopping, the glue on certain books must be tasty for the roach. Every three months I take a vacuum cleaner to my bookshelf and suck up dust or crud from the top of the books, as well as from the space between the books and the wall. After that I apply my ready-to-use combination of DE and boric acid.

Move all appliances at least quarterly. Look for wet places underneath these appliances or at the hook up on the wall. Repair if needed, and while you are at it, spray with Citrus Oil or a bleach solution if mold or mildew is visible. Clean up any dust bunnies or other debris that has accumulated. Apply the combination of DE and boric acid before replacing appliances.

Roaches search for water in bathroom toilets, bathtubs, on the counter top where water has splashed. We try to keep the traps closed in the sinks and bathtub area. Keeping the lid down when the toilet is not in use lets the roach know that there isn’t light at the end of this tunnel. They can go for a month without eating, but must drink water at least once a week. Roaches can swim, holding their breath for a long time, long enough to swim up the sewer line connecting to your toilet or other drains!

In the kitchen, or wherever your son decides to eat snacks, clean up. Clean up after every meal and don’t let food sit out overnight -that means even used dishes. If you don’t wash the dishes, at least put them in the dishwasher and close it tight. Empty all fluids from cups, cans and glasses. Use a damp cloth to gather crumbs and water spills and then go over the area with a dry cloth to gather any moisture.

I use Niban FG in the house on a monthly basis. Niban is a bait that contains Boric Acid and cornmeal. I use it for control of silver fish, pill bugs, grass hoppers and of course, roaches. One container will do my house three times.

I use ant bait that contains boric acid in a gel form. I have used several of them but I seem to get best results with “antX”. When using gel products, I cut drinking straws into one inch sections and place along areas where I see foraging ants. Even though it claims control of Argentine, Pharaoh, Ghost, Harvester and White Foot ants, I have seen carpenter ants and roaches taking this bait and later noticed that the activity stopped. Boric acid, in liquid or granule form, is a stomach poison and must be eaten to be effective.

One customer had such a bad roach problem she could see roaches during the day. Her situation was so bad she was afraid to use her toilet since she saw them swimming in the toilet bowl. I suggested she go to Leslie’s Pool Supply and get a chlorine block to put in the toilet. She placed the block in a panty hose and tied the hose off with a large knot so that the flushing effect would not remove the chlorine tablet each time. She also had a bad habit of keeping newspapers and magazines in the house- storing so many that you could not walk down the hallway. After I talked to her about five times, I finally convinced her the only cure was to clean out all debris from the house. After that was done, she still had roaches, but not as bad as before. Finally, I recommended that she call an organically inclined exterminator, such as Rid All Pest Control (214-340-6969) or The Pest Shop (972-519-0355) and never heard from her again. I hope that she is bug free by now.

Of course roaches are not the only problematic insects. Spiders can be a nuisance, but most are beneficial. In Texas, we do have two verrrrry nasty spiders, the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse. If you have an abundance of pest insects in the house, you are bound to have more spiders. Spiders do not do a very good job at hiding their webs, so you see the spider web and panic. Smack! There goes the shoe or out comes the call for “Dearrr, come kill this spider!”

I use spider webs as indicators. If I find webs, I put out more Niban FG. If I do not see insect activity, I may just put out glue boards to see what insect is lurking around.

I receive many calls about fungal gnats inside the house. Well, being as smart as I am, I know that the reason for this is that house plants are being over watered. The best preventative is to cut back on the watering. When you do water, add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar or mild vinegar per gallon of water. Meanwhile, if you have a bad infestation, spray the affected plant and the soil with RTU Schultz Insect Spray that contains pyrethrum. If you just have a few gnats, place yellow sticky traps around the plant. One customer lifts each plant (in the pot) before and after he waters the plant so he becomes familiar with the weight of the dry plant or the wet plant. This way, he can eventually tell when the plant needs water.

In conclusion, (I always wanted to use that phrase), cleanliness is next to godliness (and the best way to keep insects and other pests out!).