In my last newsletter, January 2008, I wrote about my trip to South Africa. Part of my story led us to a small city named Riebek. In this town Henry, my host in Cape Town, and I stopped for lunch at the Royal Hotel.

Here we sat and enjoyed a wonderful meal and lingered for about an hour. Finally I had to get up and look for the restroom. On my way back I passed by a typewriter, an old typewriter. Next to it I saw a paperback book “The Complete Works of Shakespeare.” I smiled mischievously to myself before quickly returning to our table where I informed Henry of my find. “As I was walking through the foyer I saw Shakespeare’s typewriter. It was sitting next to a paperback, the Complete Works of William Shakespeare."

Henry has two degrees and a master, speaks fluent German, French and Japanese and understands Spanish, so I considered him to be very smart. Well, not anymore. “I wonder if William had visited this very hotel that we were now in? What could he have been doing here?” he asked.

I suppressed a smile. “Some writers get away from their everyday surroundings to get inspired. England is just up the coast.”

The Royal Hotel is the oldest hotel in SA built in the 19^th century way after Shakespeare kicked the bucket, which also happens to be way before the invention of the typewriter.

During our travels, that day, I kept bringing up the subject of Shakespeare coming to the Cape Town area.

Finally, Henry stuck his tongue out to groom his mustache and looked over at me. “Shakespeare did not use a typewriter. Bonehead!”

I laughed loudly and joyously as I looked at an imaginary wristwatch. “Bonehead? ME?

It only took you four hours to catch on to my joke, BONEHEAD!”

My account of South Africa brought me more responses from readers then anything I have ever written. I do not know if people were being polite, not wanting to embarrass me for my faux-pas or like Henry were preoccupied with more important things like the beautiful landscape we were driving through and the wonderful foods we had tasted earlier.

One reader, Diana Finch Wilson, wasted no time in correcting my error. I was proud of her for pointing out my “gag” and awarded her a gift certificate from Rohde’s for $50.00.

Next time I make a mistake point it out to me and maybeeeeee I will give out another prize.

Time to get busy!

Last year, 2007, was a notoriously bad year for pest damage to trees and shrubs.

Record amounts of rainfall and mild temperatures allowed insects such as scale and webworms to attack trees and shrubs.

Many of you are familiar with webworms; during 2007 one could not drive through any neighborhood without seeing trees that were affected by this caterpillar that was so prolific. Not only did it attack its normal food source, fruit trees and pecans, it attacked plants that were normally off of its menu.

Many customers wondering why hollies and hawthorns were being attacked called me. By the time the third generation of webworms hatched there just was not enough food offered to these pest. They needed to eat so they fell onto shrubs and smaller plants latched onto these and started consuming the foliage. I guess like you and me if we are hungry enough we will eat just about anything. Unfortunately, sometimes hunger makes us eat food that we normally found disgusting. Fortunately, we sometimes find the taste of that vegetable or particularly prepared meal acceptable and we go back for more.

This may happen to the webworms. Some may be over wintering on their non-specific host plant, such as the yaupon holly. Will the next generations that hatch on these new plants pass on the acquired taste to subsequent offspring’s?

Not only were webworms a problem this year. I also received calls from many who were disgusted by a black coating on leaves and trunks of plants. “I have never seen this before!”

Insects can attack most plants such as aphids, mealy bugs, soft scale and whiteflies who use their mouthparts to suck juices from plants. Anything that consumes must evacuate waste, this waist comes out as honeydew. You would ask why is it called “honeydew”, is it sweet and if so who found out?

Do not look at me? I did not taste it, and no I will not taste it just to humor your curiosity.

Anyway, the honeydew left on the plants leaves or trunks eventually become sooty mold.

Sooty mold became most notable last year on the trunks of Crape Myrtles. When people noticed the trunks of crape myrtles turning black they also noticed, for some, a new pest Scale.

Scale brings back childhood memories to me. Spit balls shot at the classroom's billboard or ceiling. Not that I would have ever done that, but I saw many of my classmates chew little wads of paper until they were wet with sufficient saliva to slide out of their ball point pens and then stick to a hard surface. I am sure that everyone has seen a spitball at least once in their lifetime.

A secretion from the insect allows protection for the female’s eggs producing scale; a white covering that appears as small permanently glued clusters on plants. The eggs hatch into “crawlers” who travel far enough away to start their own scale “hut”.

Of course scales suck plant juices and create honeydew that is secreted on to leaves, stems or bark of trees. Last year there was such an abundance of scale on Crape Myrtles that entire trees were covered with the disgusting c..p, I mean sweet honeydew.

Well...we now know that many insects produce honeydew. Some are specific to certain plants and others have unsophisticated taste buds that just want something to eat.

It is not only Crape Myrtles that can be affected by Sooty Mold. Camellias, Gardenias, Pecans a full range of trees and can get Sooty Mold when infestation of large groups of insects occur.

Now that it is cold and most trees are not even thinking about bud break, uses of certain oils can effectively kill over wintering eggs and insects by suffocation or by somehow entering the bodies and damaging their internal organs.

By applying dormant oil now you minimize leaf burn since there are no leaves to burn.

Dormant oil is now known as the actual application of a product rather then the product itself: as in a verb, as a way of controlling pest. This means that you should be aware of what specific product is going to be used by you or the applicator who may do the application for you.

There are several kinds of dormant oil most associated with our industry:

• The original dormant oil was a heavier weight refined petroleum distillate.
• Now days there are more refined oils that are manufactures from plant oils such as soybeans, canola and cottonseed.
• “Organocide” contains Seasame oils, and has become my product of choice because of the low chance for Phytotoxicty, or burning nearby sensitive plants.

It is important to read the label of the product that you use. Applying at different strengths at the correct time. High temperatures, freezing temperatures and drought conditions stress the plant and can cause damage.

Do not apply on very windy days.

Do not apply on rainy days.

Scythe

Scythe is a fatty acid based, non-selective, contact herbicide that can be used at this time of the year on your lawn to control weeds.

Scythe kills weeds and grasses fast. When Scythe makes contact with a living plant, the spray quickly penetrates green plant tissue, and disrupts normal membrane permeability and cellular physiology. The disruption of the cell membrane results in cell leakage and death of all contacted tissues. Results are usually visible within minutes after treatment. Depending on plant size and species, some re-growth may occur and require additional treatment.

Soil Activity

Because Scythe is rapidly degraded into the environment, treated areas can be sown (e.g. to lawn grass) or transplanted into as soon as desirable levels of weed control are obtained. Scythe may be applied for post-emergent control of weeds in areas that have been seeded, or planted with bulbs or other underground propagation parts, provided that the desirable plants have not yet emerged.

Timing

For most rapid kill, apply in warm sunny weather. Avoid applications when rainfall is imminent. A rain-free period of one to two hours following application is usually sufficient for effective kill. Avoid cold temperatures. Applications when temperatures are below 70 slows the rate of kill and reduces the visual effect of the herbicide even though weeds may still die.

Scythe is my product of choice for post-emergent winter weed control since most grasses are dormant and will not be harmed. I quit using scythe by mid March. When grass begins to grow and takes over most winter weeds.

Fertilizing

It is never to late or to early to apply organics fertilizers. The main thing is to put out the proper amount, which requires that the applicator know the amount of lawn, or landscape that will be treated.

Measure the width and length of each section to be treated. Multiply these measurements to get the square footage and mark it on a plot plan for future reference. Once you have determined the square footage purchase the amount necessary. Most organic fertilizers are applied at a rate of 20 pounds per thousand square feet at three-month intervals.

Depending on soil conditions other supplements can be applied such as Humate to increase mineral content and organic matter. Most soils that are healthy will not have a heavy weed problem but will have plenty of turf to crowd out in wanted plants.

Competition from trees for water or light may cause grass to thin or die back, keep this in mind before you blame the use of organic products on thinning grass conditions.

Thinning out the trees branches to allow more sunlight or deep root feeding so that the tree has another source of nutrients and does not take all the soils stored food may help improve grass conditions.

If trees have been pruned in the past year and grass conditions did not improved consider installing a shade tolerant landscape to replace the existing grass.

I do not place particular importance on the use of Corn Glutton Meal in the fall as I do in the spring. If you know you have a heavy infestation of summer weeds apply CGM late to mid February. For better results reapply in mid to early March.

I do not like using granulated CGM since the particles do not give even coverage and take longer to breakdown. I have seen CGM granules two months after applied on to a specific test area. Granted it is easier to apply then the dust blown meal, but since the product covers just about every inch of soil it becomes more readily available to the germinating seeds roots, which then dies off.

To make the CGM a more complete fertilizer apply Humate at same time. Green Sense Humates are petrified compost that have been decomposing for thousands of years and come from deposits of lignite coal and contain humic acids that act as organic “chelators” which enhance the uptake and utilization of vital plant nutrients contained in both organic and conventional fertilizers. Due to their negative ionic characteristics, these organic acids increase the cation exchange capacity of the soil, which enhances the transfer of nutrients through cell membranes of plant root materials.

Physical Benefits

1. Dispersion of clay in compact soils.
2. Cohesion of sandy soils.
3. Increase in soil permeability.
4. Increase in the soils capacity to retain water.
5. Reduction of water evaporation from soils.

Chemical Benefits

1. Increases the capacity of cation exchange.
2. Fosters the transportation of microelements up to the plant roots.
3. Easier absorption of nutrients.
4. Beneficial chelating effect on Iron, Magnesium, Zinc, and Copper.

Roses

Climbing Roses should be excluded from the following section.

February is the time to trim roses. I like working cotton bur compost into the soil to help acidify, feed and loosen the soil.

Recently I found out about the three D’s to rose pruning: dead, diseased and damaged canes.

By removing the above canes you will minimize disease, improve air circulation and improve the beauty of the plant.

Start by finding stems that are obviously dead. Live canes will be red or green. Prune out the middle branches to increase air circulation. A customer of mine who had over 100 roses had me prune the stems leaving a circular exterior.

If you are trying to espalier the roses prune the dead wood and then prune any of the braces thaw are growing away from the structure or that cannot be pinned to the structure.

Always clean your pruners between rose bushes and make sure that the blades are sharp.

Apply Dormant Oils now.

Rohde’s offers services to help those who do not have the time or inclination to perform any of the suggested applications.