Pam Bennett, Barb Bloetscher, Joe Boggs, Jim Chatfield, Erik Draper, Dave Dyke, Dave Goerig, Tim Malinich, Jane Martin, Hannah Mathers, Pam Sherratt, Amy Stone, and Curtis Young
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April 28, 2005
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This is the fourth 2005 edition of the Buckeye Yard and Garden Line (BYGL).
BYGL is developed from a Tuesday morning conference call of Extension
agents, specialists and other contributors in Ohio.
BYGL is also made available on the Internet from the Ohio State University
Horticulture and Crop Science (HCS) in Virtual Perspective website
(http://bygl.osu.edu). Additional fact sheet information on any of
these articles may be found through the OSU fact sheet database (http://plantfacts.osu.edu).
BYGL is a service of OSU Extension and is aided by major support
from the Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association (ONLA), with additional
funding from the Ohio Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture
(ISA) to the OSU Extension Nursery Landscape, and Turf Team (ENLTT).
Participants in the April 26, 2005 conference included: Pam Bennett (Clark); Barb Bloetscher (Entomology, C. Wayne Ellett Plant and Pest Diagnostic Clinic (CWEPPDC)); Joe Boggs (Hamilton/Center at Piketon); Jim Chatfield (Center at Wooster/Horticulture and Crop Science [HCS]); Erik Draper (Geauga); Dave Dyke (Hamilton); Hannah Mathers (HCS); Tim Malinich (Cuyahoga); Joe Rimelspach (Plant Pathology, CWEPPDC); Pam Sherratt (HCS); Dave Shetlar (Entomology); Amy Stone (Lucas); Curtis Young (Allen) and Randy Zondag (Lake)..
Additional factsheet information on any of these articles may be found
through the OSU Factsheet Database (http://plantfacts.ohio-state.edu/)
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WEATHER WATCH
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What a weekend to remember - snow, wind, and cold temperatures! BYGLers from across the buckeye state reported unusual spring weather and are wondering how much longer until summer. Although temperatures did not dip enough for Cincinnati to see the "white-stuff" accumulate, Dave Dyke reported that some areas in southwest Ohio had hail. Pam Bennett reported that Clark County received about 1" of snow, and Curtis Young said that Allen County's soil is saturated with last weeks rain and snow combination. The weekend snowfall total in the Lima area was 2". Heading north on Interstate 75, the snowfall amounts increased. Once the rain turned into snow in the Toledo area, Amy Stone reported snowfall totals from 3-6".
Most of the northeastern Ohio folks topped all! Reports from Mahoning, Lorain, Geauga, and Lake Counties were snowy, except a small band near the lake that missed the wintery-fun (they are probably disappointed!). Erik Draper reported 17" of snow over the weekend in Geauga County. The National Weather Service reported that this winter has been the snowiest winter on record in the Cleveland area. With the weekends event officially bringing over 12" to this area, 117.9" of snow has fallen in the winter of 2004-2005. In second place was the winter of 1995-1996 when 101.1" fell. Hopefully more snow wont be added in May. Remember - 56 days til summer!
Following are the weather summaries from selected OARDC weather stations across the buckeye state. The information is a summary of data collected from April 1 - April 20.
| Weather Station |
Region of Ohio |
Ave. High Temp F | Ave. Low Temp F | Ave. Temp F | Normal Ave. Temp F | Total Precip " | Normal Precip " | | Perry |
NE |
60.4 |
39.0 |
N/A | N/A |
2.99" |
N/A | | Hoytville |
NW |
64.1 |
36.6 |
50.1 |
48.9 |
2.13" |
3.25" |
| Columbus |
Central |
67.3 |
42.3 |
54.7 |
51.1 |
2.99" |
3.74" |
| Miami |
SW |
69.2 |
43.5 |
56.1 |
51.3 |
1.92" |
3.87" |
| Jackson |
South |
70.3 |
40.3 |
55.1 |
52.4 |
3.26" |
3.81" |
For additional information, or to see the locations of all of the OARDC weather stations in Ohio, check out the website at http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/centernet/weather.htm
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HORT SHORTS
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PLANT PHENOLOGY - IN A HOLDING PATTERN
Fortunately, the cooler temperatures came with snow and cloud cover that prevented many blooms from being damaged in most of the state. It also provided a lull in the storm of spring blooms which are lasting longer due to cooler temperatures.
In the central Ohio area, plants still in full bloom include: common lilac (Syringa vulgaris), flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), Koreanspice viburnum (Viburnum carlesi), most of the crabapples (Malus spp.), and redbuds (Cercis canadensis). Dwarf fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii) is just beginning to bloom.
Curtis Young noted that Koreanspice viburnums were still in full bloom, and some of the early crabapples and redbuds were just beginning.
Up in the snow belt, Erik Draper noted that saucer magnolias (Magnolia soulangiana) and some of the earlier cherries (Prunus spp.) are still in bloom.
In the southern part of the state, redbuds, lilacs, and flowering dogwoods are still in full bloom while Vanhoutte spirea (Spiraea x vanhoutteii) is just entering its peak.
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GDD (GROWING DEGREE DAYS)
GDD is a measure of the daily maximum and minimum temperature and directly relates to growth and development of plants and insects. The GDD of any zip code location in Ohio is estimated using the GDD of ten OARDC weather stations and available on the web at: http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/gdd/
The range of GDD accumulations in Ohio from north to south is 138 to 326. Following is a report of GDD for several locations around Ohio as of April 27, 2005: Painesville, 138; Cleveland, 141; Toledo, 176; Youngstown, 165; Lima, 207; Wooster, 206; Coshocton, 222; Columbus, 236; Springfield, 243; Dayton, 277; Cincinnati, 326; Ironton, 323; and Portsmouth, 324.
To put these GDD accumulations into perspective, the following is an abbreviated listing of plant and insect species with their respective phenological event and average GDD accumulations at which these events occur. Due to variations in weather, temperature, humidity, etc., these events may occur a few days earlier or later than predicted by the average GDD. By looking at a city, town, or village near you from the above list, or visiting the above web site, you can see what could be taking place in the landscape around you.
Saucer magnolia, first bloom, 133; bradford callery pear, first bloom, 142; European pine sawfly, egg hatch, 144; weeping Higan cherry, first bloom, 145; P.J.M. rhododendron, first bloom, 147; Chanticleer callery pear, full bloom, 149; Norway maple, full bloom, 149; inkberry leafminer, adult emergence, 150; Sargent cherry, full bloom, 151; star magnolia, full bloom, 151; Allegheny serviceberry, first bloom, 153; Manchu cherry, full bloom, 155; Spring Snow crabapple, first bloom, 155; Apple serviceberry, first bloom, 159; spruce spider mite, egg hatch, 162; Bradford callery pear, full bloom, 164; Allegheny serviceberry, full bloom, 169; saucer magnolia, full bloom, 174; PJM rhododendron, full bloom, 178; boxwood psyllid, egg hatch, 179; weeping Higan cherry, full bloom, 179; Koreanspice viburnum, first bloom, 185; Regent serviceberry, first bloom, 186; Japanese flowering crabapple, first bloom, 189; eastern redbud, first bloom, 191; gypsy moth, egg hatch, 192; Koreanspice viburnum, full bloom, 205; azalea lace bug, egg hatch, 206; Spring Snow crabapple, full bloom, 209; common flowering quince, full bloom, 214; birch leafminer, adult emergence, 215; Coral Burst crabapple, first bloom, 217; elm leafminer, adult emergence, 219; common chokecherry, full bloom, 221; alder leafminer, adult emergence, 224; honeylocust plant bug, egg hatch, 230; common lilac, first bloom, 234; Ohio buckeye, first bloom, 245; common horse chestnut, first bloom, 251; hawthorn lace bug, adult emergence, 253; hawthorn leafminer, adult emergence, 260; flowering dogwood, first bloom, 263; red buckeye, first bloom, 265; Blackhaw viburnum, first bloom, 269; imported willow leaf beetle, adult emergence, 274; Sargent crabapple, full bloom, 298; red horsechestnut, first bloom, 304; pine needle scale, egg hatch - 1st generation, 305; Cooley spruce gall adelgid, egg hatch, 308; eastern spruce gall adelgid, egg hatch, 308; common lilac, full bloom, 315; Winter King hawthorn, first bloom, 328; and lilac borer, adult emergence, 330.
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PERENNIAL OF THE WEEK - TIARELLA SPP., or FOAMFLOWER
This outstanding native plant is excellent for the shade garden and provides blooms in mid spring, with the delicate white or whitish-pink, airy flowers adding lots of color to the shade garden. It can get 6 - 12" tall and has a mounded form. Tiarella prefers a cool, moist area with organic soils. Numerous cultivars are available that provide interesting foliage as well. T. Ninja' has emerald green leaves with black markings along the veins, and pinkish fragrant flowers. T. Iron Butterfly' has large dissected leaves with purple-bronze markings along the veins. Flowers are light pink and fragrant.
By the way, the perennial of the week in the April 7th BYGL edition, Hellebores, are still in bloom in the central Ohio area. This is a good indication why the Perennial Plant Association selected them the Plant of the Year this year.
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DEATH BY FREEZING
A question was pose to the BYGLers; "What impact will the un-seasonal snow and cold event have on our insect populations?" The answer might be disappointing to some. Although much of the state received measurable snowfall (<1" - >17") over the April 22-24 weekend, the accompanying air temperatures hovered around 32 F. As with most of our plant material, most of the insects suffered very little impact by the colder than usual temperature. Granted the insects were slowed by the cold, but it was not cold enough, or cold long enough, for the insects to die. Even soft-bodied insects such as aphids, require temperatures around 24-26 F before they begin to freeze to death. Thus, don't drop your guard and stop monitoring for developing insect populations. They are still out there, both good and bad, waiting to crank up populations when the temperatures rise once again.
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YELLOWROCKET SCIENCE
Despite the on again, off again nature of spring this year, weeds and wild flowers have found ways to bloom. A number of Extension offices have received calls regarding "all those yellow flowers." In April and May of 2002 and 2003, we reported the appearance of a yellow-flowered weed that seemed to be springing from cultivated fields everywhere in Ohio. The weed was identified as CRESSLEAF GROUNDSEL (Senecio glabellus) (a.k.a. BUTTERWEED (Packera glabella)). We noted that it was sometimes being mistaken for WILD MUSTARD (Brassica kaber (a.k.a. Sinapsis arvensis)), because both produce bright yellow flowers, and both may behave as winter annuals, however Cressleaf groundsel is poisonous to grazing livestock.
An important distinction between the two weeds is that cressleaf groundsel belongs to the aster family (Asteraceae; a.k.a. Compositae), and the yellow flowers are daisy-like in appearance. Wild mustard belongs to the ... well, the mustard family (Brassicaceae; a.k.a. Cruciferae), and its four-petaled yellow flowers are borne on stalks, a characteristic of the family. Wild mustard should not be confused with the ever-loathsome GARLIC MUSTARD (Alliaria petiolata) which has white to bluish-white flowers. Cressleaf groundsel is native to the northern United States, while wild mustard is an alien from Asia and Europe, but both are considered noxious invasive weeds by some authorities.
This week, Joe Boggs added to the weedy confusion (nothing new there!) by reporting that the past dominance of cressleaf groundsel appears to be dwindling, at least thus far this season. The dominant "yellow-flowered" weed that is currently launching its flower stalks above cultivated fields and landscapes in southern Ohio is GARDEN YELLOWROCKET (Barbarea vulgaris). Like wild mustard and garlic mustard, this weed also belongs to the mustard family. Presumably, the common name of yellowrocket comes from the arrangement of short flower stalks clustered around the stem and topped with tiny four-petaled bright yellow flowers. The weed's dark green, shiny leaves provide an important feature that distinguishes yellowrocket from wild mustard: basal leaves are 2 to 8" long, and lobed with a large terminal lobe and 1 to 4 oppositely arranged lateral lobes. Also, the terminal lobes have a heart-shaped base.
Why make such a big deal out of correctly identifying yellow-flowered weeds, other than to promote weedy definitude? Because the first step in weed management is to correctly identify the weed, and the second step is to learn the weeds biology, to know its life cycle. Cressleaf groundsel and wild mustard are both winter annuals that occasionally behave as summer annuals. Preemergent herbicides can easily disrupt their life cycles. Garden yellowrocket is a biennial that occasionally behaves as a winter annual. The biennial plants are going to be present for two years, and will produce flowering stems during the second year of growth. While pre-emergent herbicides will eventually disrupt the life cycle, the effect will not occur in one season.
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BUG BYTES
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APHIDS ON SEDUM
Pam Bennett found aphids sucking the sap out of Sedum spp. in gardens around the Clark County Extension office. The aphids appeared to prefer the variegated varieties of Sedum. Pam described the aphids as relatively small and dark green to black-green in color. Very few insects attack Sedum, however some species of aphids do, including the SEDUM APHID (Aphis sedi). The sedum aphid is a small (1/8"), dark green to black-green aphid. Feeding from this aphid causes the foliage to curl, twist and become distorted, especially the terminal growth. Pam has dealt with infestations of these aphids in other years as well. Her approach to managing them is to prune the most heavily infested terminals and let biological control agents such as lady beetles, take care of the remainder of the populations. This approach has been very successful in the past.
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EMERALD ASH BORER OPEN HOUSES SLATED FOR LUCAS, HANCOCK, AND WOOD COUNTIES
The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) has scheduled two open houses for the Toledo and North Baltimore areas concerning local emerald ash borer (EAB) eradications. Affected residents in Lucas, Hancock, and Wood counties are invited to get firsthand information on the state's efforts to eliminate the ash-killing insect.
During the open houses, residents can talk directly with ODAs plant pest control staff, learn about EAB and eradication efforts, view maps of local eradication zones, and learn about EAB quarantine restrictions. Citizens may visit anytime during designated hours at the following locations: the North Baltimore Library, 230 N. Main Street, North Baltimore, Ohio, Wednesday, May 4, 6-8 p.m; and the West Toledo Public Library, 1320 Sylvania Avenue, Toledo, Thursday, May 5, 5-8 p.m.
ODA has begun eradication in and around the North Baltimore area and will soon begin in west Toledo. In designated eradication zones, all marked ash trees, whether they are visibly infested or not, will be cut, chipped to less than an inch, and destroyed. This is the only known way of eliminating EAB in an already infested area.
The departments eradication program is conducted under its authority in Ohio Revised Code Section 927.70 to control, eradicate, and prevent the spread of invasive species and prevent massive economic losses to Ohios homeowners and nursery, timber, and tourism industries.
For more information about the open houses or eradication program, call the departments EAB hotline, 1-888-OHIO-EAB, or visit the web site at www.ohioagriculture.gov/eab.
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HATCHING OF GYPSY MOTH CONTINUES
Last week, Pam Bennett in Clark County observed first hatch of gypsy moth caterpillar in Clark County. The gypsy moth has been detected in 43 of Ohio's 88 counties. This event of first hatching has been observed to be closely timed with the first bloom of Eastern redbud.
ODA is monitoring egg hatch, development, and population levels across the state and has "Suppression" or "Slow-The-Spread" treatments scheduled in the following counties: Clark, Defiance, Delaware, Fayette, Franklin, Highland, Jackson, Logan, Madison, Meigs, Ottawa, Paulding, Pickaway, Pike, Seneca, and Union. Treatments are scheduled to begin next week. Check out their website for more details at http://www.ohioagriculture.gov/gypsymoth/
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DROOPY BUCKEYE LEAVES
Droopy leaves are appearing on Ohio buckeye trees in the southern and central part of the state. This is not the outcome of a despicable plot hatched in that unnamed state up north, it is the handiwork of the moth Proteoteras aesculuana. The moth has no official common name, but has been generally referred to as the BUCKEYE PETIOLE BORER, although it will occasionally infest the petioles of horsechestnut.
The moth's larvae bore into leaf petioles causing new leaves to droop, shrivel, and turn dark green to black. Eventually, infested leaves will drop from the tree. Symptoms may superficially resemble frost or freeze damage; however such a diagnosis is not supported by the random appearance of affected leaves among healthy leaves. Look for a slight swelling and a small hole in the leaf petioles of the off-colored, drooping leaves. Small quantities of sawdust-like frass may hang from the hole. A longitudinal cut made in the swollen area will reveal a tiny caterpillar tunneling out the center of the petiole. Each petiole is occupied by a single caterpillar.
Damage caused by the tunneling caterpillars may appear conspicuous against a backdrop of healthy leaves; however, the insect seldom causes significant leaf loss, so no chemical control recommendations are currently available. There may be two generations per year in Ohio, so hand-picking and destroying infested leaves now will reduce the number of moths available for producing a second generation.
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CORRUGATED BIRCH LEAVES
Joe Boggs reported that the depredations of SPINY WITCHHAZEL APHIDS (Hamamelistes spinosus) are now appearing on expanding birch leaves in southern Ohio. Feeding activity by this aphid produces characteristic leaf corrugations on birch leaves. Colonies of hundreds of aphids that reside on the underside of affected leaves within the corrugated folds also produce copious quantities of sticky honeydew. The honeydew may become colonized by black sooty molds further adding to the aesthetic damage produced by this aphid.
The aphid has an interesting life cycle. It overwinters either as an egg on witchhazel twigs, or as an immature female on birch twigs. A "stem mother" aphid hatches from the eggs on witchhazel in early spring. She migrates to new buds where she feeds and lays eggs. Her feeding activity coupled with the activity of her offspring causes affected buds to develop into a reddish-green woody galls that is covered in spines. The young aphids develop in a chamber within the gall. The spiny galls on witchhazel give the aphid its common name.
On birch, the overwintering immature females travel to expanding leaves in the spring where it gives birth to large numbers of aphids. Her offspring induce the formation of corrugations on the birch leaves, in which they hide from predators. Although the galls on witchhazel and the corrugated leaves on birch may appear unsightly, neither condition is considered damaging to the health of the host trees. Control are not generally required for plant health reasons. However, where control is required for aesthetic reasons, it is important to remember that damage caused by this aphid can only occur on newly developing leaf or bud tissue. Thus, control efforts must be implemented prior to the appearance of leaf corrugations on birch, or spiny galls on witchhazel.
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DISEASE DIGEST
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DOGWOOD ANTHRACNOSE
This disease is quite common on dogwoods (Cornus spp.) The pathogen causing anthracnose on dogwoods is Discula destructiva, which overwinters on dead twigs and leaves, both on the tree and ground. Tiny brown fruiting bodies of the fungus are easy to see on dead twigs and leaves. Certain cultivars are more resistant than others, but the highest resistance is found with the C. kousa varieties.
Symptoms include large, brown, irregularly shaped blotches on leaves. Often, the diseased area is at or near the leaf tip, centered approximately on the mid-vein. In severe cases defoliation and twig cankers may occur. If repeated for several years, the trees may weaken and eventually die.
The following three practices can be followed for cultural control: pruning and destroying infected twigs; raking and destroying fallen leaves from spring through fall; not allowing irrigation to wet the tree canopy. For chemical control, dormant applications of lime-sulfur are worthwhile or apply Daconil 2787 or Maneb 75DF at bud-break and continue at 10 - 14 day intervals until dry weather. Fungicide applications the rest of the growing season may be needed if periods of wet weather occur and there are infected leaves or twigs on the tree.
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TURF TIPS
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CONTROLLING BROADLEAF WEEDS IN SPRING
Environmental factors influencing the absorption and translocation of foliar absorbed broadleaf weed herbicides in the spring are diverse. In particular, soil temperatures are important. Weeds tend to absorb and translocate ester formulations more readily than amines under the cooler, more erratic conditions of early spring, while amines are more effective when soil temperatures are warmer (>55 F). In addition, broadleaf herbicide applications are usually more effective in late spring/early summer than in winter/early spring because more sugar/photosynthate is translocated downward.
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DID RAIN AFFECT PRE-EMERGENCE HERBICIDES?
Dr. John Street says no - for two reasons: 1) Pre-emergence herbicides are not very soluble and do not readily leach from soils. 2) Herbicides can be broken down by soil microbes if the soil temperatures are warm enough for microbial activity. Soil temperatures are still cool at this time of year. In summary, it is highly unlikely that the pre-emergent herbicides applications made prior to the spring rains will be leached away or broken down at this time.
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ANNUAL BLUEGRASS SEEDHEADS APPARENT
Annual bluegrass (Poa annua) is very obvious at the moment due to its apple green color, and its prolific production of seedheads this time of year. Annual bluegrass is shallow rooted and therefore not very drought tolerant so it turns brown and may die in summer. It is very difficult to control annual bluegrass in a turf situation. The traditional method has been to spray with a non-selective herbicide (e. g. Roundup), and reseed, however, some new products are being researched that may selectively kill annual bluegrass in a turfgrass lawn.
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ATAENIUS OUT AND FLYING!
Now that the VanHoutte spirea is beginning to flower, golf course superintendents should be reminded to prepare their susceptible areas of turfgrass for the onslaught of the BLACK TURFGRASS ATAENIUS BEETLE (BTA), Ataenius spp. These small (3/16"), shiny, black beetles lay eggs in turfgrass with a thick layer of thatch in early spring, about the time that the VanHoutte spirea is in full bloom . The small, white, C-shaped larvae dine on the organic material in the soil-thatch interface, including any turfgrass roots they unearth. Although tall-cut turfgrass may contain these grubs, it usually has enough deep roots to survive the occasional pruning. Annual bluegrass, however, typically has shallow roots and may wilt and die if enough roots are clipped.
In "normal" years, applications of imidacloprid (Merit) or halofenozide (MACH2) applied in the spring will control both the ataenius larvae and the larger, annual grubs which appear later in the season, however, if the season warms early and the ataenius are active in late April (as they are this year), a preventive grub application made at this time may not last until late fall when the residual is needed to control the other grubs. In these situations, Dr. Shetlar recommends treating the BTA now with a pyrethroid or chlorpyrifos (e.g. Dursban), then apply the preventive treatment for the larger grubs in June. Spraying now will kill the adult BTAs as they land on the turfgrass to oviposit, which will reduce the incidence of BTA larvae.
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INDUSTRY INSIGHT
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FERTILIZERS AND EFFICIENT USE BY THE PLANT
With the heavy rains and snowfalls that occurred during the weekend in many parts of Ohio, questions have arisen regarding the effectiveness of earlier fertilizer applications. Nitrogen is readily leached by water and volatilized into the atmosphere so the wet weather will have had an effect on reducing the amount of nitrogen available to the plant for uptake. However, the bigger issue is that spring applications of nitrogen are generally not the most effective regardless of wet or dry weather.
Many fertilizer recommendations for woody ornamentals suggest fertilizing in early spring (bud-break), and in fall (leaf abscission and afterwards). However, fertilizer uptake efficiency appears to be low at those times. Plants lack functional leaves, thus there would be minimal contribution from photosynthesis to active ion absorption. Furthermore, without leaves, the driving force (transpiration) behind mass flow of nutrients from soil solution to roots is limited.
Dr. Mary Ann Rose, working for TruGreen- ChemLawn, devised an experiment to estimate N uptake efficiency of container linden trees at different times during the 1998 season: at bud-break, during active growth, after terminal bud-set, before leaf abscission, and during leaf abscission. At each of these times, one group of plants received 15N-enriched ammonium nitrate and was harvested 10 days later.
Nitrogen recovery efficiencies at bud-break and leaf abscission were much lower than at other application times. Whole-plant recovery efficiency of 15N-enriched ammonium nitrate was 10% at bud-break, 13% at leaf abscission, and ranged from 58% to 71% for the intervening times. Results suggest that the currently recommended times for fertilization are not the most effective times. Fertilizer practices should be changed to reflect a continual rate of fertilizer is available over the growing season. Using slow-release formulations would be the best way to achieve this. Products such as a Scotts Osmocote or a Harrell polyon fertilizer would be recommended versus a Isobutylidene diurea (IBDU) (31-0-0) or a Sulfur coated urea (SCU) (36-0-0) which are also slow release urea fertilizers.
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IRRIGATION TESTING
If you have not already done so, spring is an excellent time to test your irrigation water. The spring test reveals water quality at the best of times, because aquifer rivers, ponds or wells will be at their highest and most dilute at this time of year. If water has never tested, do two tests this year, one in the spring and one in late summer. The late summer test tells the worst water quality scenario. After this first year of measuring, test your water once per season, usually in the spring. Consider more than once in a season if any of the following apply: 1). There has been a very wet season; 2). A high usage period has occurred; 3). An unusual drought has occurred; or, 4). When water is from various sources, including city water. Remember, also, when taking water trucks out to a planting site, do a quick test for at least Ec and pH to make sure nothing detrimental has been stored or moved in the water tank previous to using it for irrigation. For more information on water quality and water testing visit: www://hcs.osu.edu/basicgreen.
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GERANIUM pH CHALLENGE
Last week Dave Dyke diagnosed a zonal geranium (Pelargonium hortorum) problem at a local greenhouse. The geraniums in mixed hanging baskets (which contained petunias, geraniums, and others flowers) were exhibiting some brown necrotic areas, less than desired growth, and very poor foliage color (chlorosis). Other geraniums from the exact same shipment of plants had been grown by themselves in containers in the same greenhouse under the hanging baskets. Those plants were 6 - 8" tall and looked superb.
At first glance, the geraniums appeared to be experiencing some sort of disease. However, the uniformity of the problem throughout a large number of baskets and the lack of any readily identifiable fungal or bacterial sign outside of some brown necrotic spots indicated a soil or nutrient problem. The diagnosis was that the media pH was too low.
Geraniums are members of what has been called the "iron efficient" group. Plants in this group are very efficient at absorbing iron from the soil solution and, as such, are prone to iron and manganese toxicity problems at low pH levels (below 6.0 in the case of some geranium cultivars). Therefore, geraniums require a media pH of from 6.0 to 6.6 to grow the best. On the other hand, some plants including petunias, bacopa, calibrachoa, diascia, nemesia, pansy, petunia, snapdragon, and vinca, are "iron inefficient" species and generally grow best at a pH of 5.4 to 6.2.
Growers often use complete fertilizers to grow "iron inefficient" plants at higher fertility levels to compensate for their inefficiency for absorbing iron and manganese, which increases the levels of iron and manganese. That, of course, could be a problem for the geraniums. Then add in the factor that geraniums themselves tend to drive down the pH of a growing medium and one can understand why growing geraniums in mixed containers can be a real challenge. For further information on geranium nutritional programs see, "Iron-Out, a Nutritional Program for Geraniums and Other Crops Prone to Iron and Manganese Toxicity at Low Media-pH," University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension at http://ceinfo.unh.edu/Pubs/AgPubs/IRONOUT.pdf.
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COMING ATTRACTIONS
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Come celebrate ARBOR DAY IN TOLEDO at Ottawa Park
On Saturday, APRIL 30TH from 12:00 - 4:00 p.m., a Plant Health Care Workshop is being sponsored by OSU Extension, local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources/Division of Forestry, and the Toledo Urban Forestry Commission. There will be activities, demonstrations, and educational opportunities for both kids and adults. Highlights include a portable sawmill demonstration, information on the emerald ash borer, tree planting demonstrations, tree selection recommendations, plant identification walks, and pruning demonstrations and more! For additional information or to register, contact the OSU Extension office at Toledo Botanical Garden at 419-578-6783 or email Amy Stone at stonea@ag.osu.edu.
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ORNAMENTALS RESEARCH DAYS
Come learn more about ornamentals research at OSU. Details later, but start by getting these dates on calendars:
* June 29: Ornamentals Research Program Tour at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) at Wooster. Sponsored by the OSU ENLTT, OARDC, and the OSU Extension Center @ Wooster (contact: Jim Chatfield).
* July 1: Ornamentals Research Program Tour of the OSU Centers at Piketon. Sponsored by the ENLTT and the OSU Extension Center @ Piketon (contact: Joe Boggs).
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Kick-off the with Toledo's first scheduled BYGLIVE of the season
The diagnostic walk will be held at Toledo Botanical Garden from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. on Monday, May 2nd. Meet at the flagpole near the Conference Center and begin the walk-about. To RSVP, please contact the OSU at TBG office at 419-578-6783.
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September 22: ORNAMENTALS RESEARCH TOUR at the OSU Main Campus in Columbus
Sponsored by OSU College of Food Agricultural and Environmental Science, the OSU Department of HCS, and the ONLA (contact: Hannah Mathers).
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BYGLIVE! IN CINCINNATI
The second 2005 Cincinnati BYGLive! Diagnostic Walk-About will held 12:00 - 3:00 p.m., Monday, May 2, at the Boone County Arboretum at Central Park. This special Cincinnati BYGLive!, which is usually held at Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum will be hosted by Dr. Mike Klahr, County Extension Agent for Horticulture, UK Cooperative Extension Service, Boone County, and Kris Stone, Director, Boone County Arboretum.
Mike founded the Arboretum in 1999, and this truly impressive ever-growing work in progress now encompasses 121 acres of park-land, 800 trees and 1500 shrubs, all labeled and positioned by a Global Positioning System to better monitor and manage the arboretum. For more information on the Walk-About, call Joe Boggs at 513-946-8993. For directions to the Arboretum, call the UK Boone County Cooperative Extension Office at: 859-586-6101, or visit the Arboretum website at: http://www.bcarboretum.org/
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BYGLOSOPHY
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"The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.
- Henry Van Dyke, Fisherman's Luck, 1899
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