Storms force cancellation of Shawnee's Red, White and Blue Celebration

We are all aware of the importance of wise water use when caring for our yards and gardens. Our lack of rain in recent weeks is just one more reminder. Most of us remember the water rationing two years ago.

Dry weather is not unusual in Oklahoma. Gardeners struggle hard enough to maintain healthy plants when extreme high temperatures are accompanied by lack of rain. What compounds the stress of this year’s dry weather is that it follows the wild weather extremes experienced earlier this year.

When should I prune my hydrangeas, they have not been blooming?
 
Hydrangeas would be considered a spring flowering shrub. Prune all spring flowering shrubs right after they are done flowering for the season. The buds for bloom set will form on the stems and twigs that grow during the rest of the current growing season.

Hydrangea arborescens “Annabelle” is a shrub with white sterile blooms that appear every year. The blooms can be up to 10 inches in diameter. This year’s blooms are spectacular. The plants shown in the photograph are grown by Jackie Shepherd and were in partial shade when they were planted several years ago. Recently a tree had to be removed so that they get full southern sun until 3 p.m. and they are now thriving.

The Louise Counts Park between the Shawnee Public Library and the Hamburger King/Richards Drug building is a good place to stop and sit a few minutes when downtown. The members of Redbud Garden Club spent several hours recently grooming the park’s planting bed for the summer.

When should I control white grubs in my lawn?
 White grubs are the larvae stage of June bugs. They were laid as eggs last summer, hatched in August and over wintered in the soil. They have started and will continue to emerge this month as adults and the process will start all over.

The temperatures are heating up and even though we have had moisture, there will always be a need to conserve moisture and keep plants as comfortable as possible. There is nothing that I can think of that is more important, efficient and cost effective than mulching.

The Multi-County Master Gardeners recently met and Bobbie Rider discussed the upcoming educational trips. 

Q: I have some bees in a tree in my front yard, they don’t look like honey bees, so I am wondering if they are killer bees?
 
A:The one thing that I can assure you is that if they don’t look like honey bees, they aren’t Africanized bees. The normal person with the naked eye cannot tell the difference. They must be DNA tested to discern the difference. In Pottawatomie County, Africanized bees have been found a few years ago, so there is no governmental help in identification.

Black-eyed Susan flowers are blooming. The botanical name of the plants on lower Bell Street is Rudbeckia hirta, or “Indian Summer.” It is a short-lived perennial, but self seeds so freely that plants will appear the following year.

Q: In my oak trees, I have these round balls attached to the stems and some leaves. What are they?
 
A:  You are referring to oak galls. They look like miniature golf balls on the tree. Over a period of years, it can literally cover the tree. Galls can be on many species of shade trees. Sometimes the galls will be on the stems and at other times on the leaves. They can be large, the size of a quarter or so, or may be just small bumps on the leaf. Each plant species will have its own type of gall.

If you have driven to Oklahoma City on Interstate 40 recently you probably noticed patches of bright yellow flowers, especially between the Dale and McLoud exits. These are coreopsis, a native Oklahoma wildflower. The choice of green and gold as Oklahoma Baptist University’s school colors was influenced by the green and gold coreopsis growing around the campus.
The common name is Tickseed. The shape of the seed, which resembles a bug, influenced the name. Due to the efforts of the Federated Garden Clubs, Florida adopted coreopsis as its state wildflower in 1991.

Well, it is that time of year again, when Oklahoma gardens begin to produce those luscious, local fruits and vegetables. I just had to hop down to the Pott County Farmer’s Co-op Market at the intersection of  U.S. 177 and Hardesty Road. The big deal this year, according to market manager Valerie Scott, is that virtually everything you find at the market is Oklahoma grown.

Peonies have been blooming in Shawnee for several weeks. It is likely that most of the clumps that are seen around town have been there for decades. There are several plantings in our neighborhood that I look forward to seeing each spring.

Q: How can I control ticks in my yard?
 
A: I have received a number of calls concerning ticks this spring. Moist, humid conditions are prime breeding conditions.

Japanese Spirea is a shrub that is extensively planted along Bell Street in downtown Shawnee, especially in the plaza in front of the auditorium. Its blooms are beginning to open and will be beautiful for several weeks. In July or early August the faded flowers will be sheared back to prepare for another flush of blooms in the fall.

With school soon to be out, summer outings become the usual. People often bring mementos home from vacation, but some keepsakes are best left behind. Living organisms, whether plant or animal, do not make good souvenirs.

Yarrow is a perennial plant that is very hardy once established. The botanical name is Achillea. It is an herb named for the mythical god Achilles whom legend says used this plant to staunch the flow of blood from battle wounds. 
The Yarrow shown in the photograph was planted at the entrance to the Ninth and Broadway Street parking lot about nine years ago by a group of master gardeners. It continues to thrive each year in spite of all the adverse conditions that a parking lot flowerbed has to endure.

Q: I have a heavily shaded yard, can you recommend a turf grass that will grow in shade?
 

A: How much shade is the real issue. There is no turf grass that can withstand total shade. Those grasses we do have can handle varied amounts of shade and still survive.  Bermuda needs six to eight hours of unfiltered sunlight, at least, on good loamy soil. Heavy clays might even require more hours of light for good health.

Q: Last year on my tomatoes I had a leaf disease on the bottom half of the plant all summer. Should I spray a fungicide?
 
A: Fungal and bacterial diseases are very prevalent in tomatoes. The disease you mention is called southern blight. Warm, humid and wet weather is a great time for diseases to get started on vegetables, as well as ornamental plants.