This Week In the Garden
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Pruning Greenery For Winter - November 19, 2016
This week in the garden West Tennessee Research and Education Center Horticulturist Jason Reeves talks about pruning shrubs for use in winter greenery decorations. Prune by the trunk and reach into the plant, don’t just shear the surface.
Related Resources: Pruning Shrubs How To Prune Coniferous Evergreen Trees |
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Ladybug Larva - November 12, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper identifies the larva of the lady bug. It can easily be mistaken for a harmful insect but should be left alone because it is a beneficial.
Related Resources: Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle Predators: Lady Bird Beetles |
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Composting Chicken Manure -
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Bacterial Leaf Spot - October 29, 2016
This week in the garden UT extension agent Chris Cooper talks about bacterial leaf spot. He shows how to identify it and talks about some ways to prevent it.
Related Resources: Management of leaf spot diseases of trees and shrubs Bacterial Spot of Pepper and Tomato |
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Flowers for Butterflies - October 21, 2016
This week in the garden Mary Schmidt from Lichterman Nature Center talks about how butterflies feed and the flowers you can plant in different seasons of the year to attract them.
Related Resources: Gardening for Butterflies Butterfly Gardening |
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Watermelons In Raised Beds - October 8, 2016
This week in the garden UT Assistant Professor of Residential and Consumer Horticulture Natalie Bumgarner talks about growing watermelons in a raised bed. One of the problems is space and she talks about some solutions for the space problem.
Related Resources: Watermelons Raised Bed Gardening |
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Spraying Malathion - October 1, 2016
This week in the garden Retired UT Extension Agent shows how to spray Malathion on a plant to kill mealybugs.
Related Resources: Pesticide Information Profile: Malathion Insecticide suggestions to manage landscape tree and shrub insects |
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Mixing Pesticide - September 22, 2016
This week in the garden Retired UT Extension Agent Mike Dennison shows how to mix Malathion insecticide to control mealybugs. He shows how to do the math to determine how much insecticide to use.
Related Resources: Pesticide and Fertilizer Math: Calculations for Mixing Small Amounts of Pesticides Safe Handling of Pesticides - Mixing |
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Tomato Stake Extension - September 17, 2016
This week in the garden Master Gardener Tom Mashour shows how to make an extension for a tomato stake. Using a PVC pipe and some wire you can continue to support your tomato plants even if they grow ten feet tall.
Related Resources: Tomatoes - Staking Stake your Tomatoes |
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Tomato Hornworms - September 10, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper goes looking for tomato hornworms. He talks about how to find them and how to use BT to kill them.
Related Resources: Tomato hornworms in home gardens Tobacco/Tomato Hornworm - Vegetables |
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Splitting Tomatoes - August 27, 2016
This week in the garden UT extension agent Chris Cooper talks about cracking tomatoes. This condition is often caused by uneven moisture. The tomato is still edible. It is only a cosmetic issue.
Related Resources: What Causes Tomatoes to Crack? Disorders of tomato |
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Killing Japanese Beetles - August 20, 2016
This week in the garden UT/TSU Extension Agent Joellen Dimond shows how to use soapy water to kill Japanese beetles. By putting them soapy water, where they drown, the beetles do not release the pheromone which attracts other beetles to their location.
Related Resources: The Japanese Beetle Japanese Beetles in the Urban Landscape |
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Stopping Tomato Blight - August 13, 2016
This week in the garden UT/TSU Extension Agent Joellen Dimond talks shows how to apply fungicide to tomatoes to stop blight. Blight is a result of fungus that gets on the leaves, usually by splashing up from the soil. Fungicide kills the spores before they have a chance to grow on the tomato leaves.
Related Videos: Mixing and Applying Fungacide Related Resources: Tomato Diseases & Disorders Control of Tomato Blights in the Home Garden |
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Pruning Flowering Annuals - August 6, 2016
This week in the garden Tipton County UT Extension Agent Joellen Dimond shows how to prune flowers. Pruning flowers reduces leggy-ness and helps them bush out. Flowers are pruned so the cut is just above a leaf or branch.
Watch Joellen plant these flowers Related Resources: Pruning Herbaceous Plants Pruning Flowers and Other July Gardening Tips |
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Blossom End Rot - July 30, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper takes a look at a watermelon that has blossom end rot. Blossom end rot is caused by a lack of calcium in the plant. This is often caused by too much or not enough water. Also, a soil test can determine if the soil needs more calcium.
Related Resources: Blossom-End Rot of Tomato, Pepper, and Watermelon Blossom End Rot |
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Squash Vine Borer - July 23, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper finds a squash plant that is infected with squash vine borer. He tries unsuccessfully to find the borer and then talks about how to prevent squash vine borers.
Related Resources: Squash Vine Borer Squash vine borer management in home gardens |
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Killing Poison Ivy - July 9, 2016This week in the Garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper talks about how to kill poison ivy. Poison ivy contains an oil called urushiol which will irritate your skin. To kill it: while wearing long sleeved clothing and gloves cut the vine just above the ground and apply glyphosate concentrate to the wound.
Related Resources: Poison Ivy Poison Ivy Weed Management |
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How To Wipe On Herbicide - July 2, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension agent Chris Cooper shows how to apply a herbicide to kill grass around a plant without getting any on the plant. He wipes herbicide concentrate on the grass. He also shows how to use a small paintbrush to paint herbicide onto a sedge plant in the grass.
Related Resources: Safe Herbicide Use Herbicide Injury to Yard and Garden Plants |
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Nutrient-Deficient (Yellowing Leaves) Pepper Fix - June 25, 2016
This week in the garden our peppers have yellowing leaves. This is probably caused by a nutrient deficiency of nitrogen. Chris Cooper recommends side dressing with a nitrogen fertilizer. The leaves should green up soon.
Related Resources: Fertilizing Vegetables Lack of Nutrients - Vegetables Soil Management and Fertilization |
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Applying Pre-Emergent In a Flower Bed - June 18, 2016This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Joellen Dimond spreads a pre-emergent herbicide on a flower bed. Coverage and rate is important, any spot you miss may have a weed sprout. After spreading the pre-emergent it needs to be activated by watering it in.
Related Resources: Weed Management in Annual Color Beds Weed Control in Landscape & Gardens Weed Control Options in Landscape Beds and Groundcovers |
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Tying up Tomato Plants - June 4, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Chris Cooper shows how to tie up a tomato plant. Tomatoes are very susceptible to blights which live in the soil. Tying up the plant with a soft piece of cloth gets the leaves and fruits off the ground, makes the plant easier to take care of, and reduces blight.
Related Resources: Staking and Training Tomatoes Pruning and Staking Tomatoes |
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Removing Thatch - May 28, 2016
This week in the garden UT Extension Agent Booker T. Leigh demonstrates how to de-thatch a lawn using a garden rake. The rake pulls all the dead grass off of the soil surface allowing nutrients and water to reach the surface.
Related Resources: Managing Thatch in Home Lawns Controlling Thatch in Lawns |
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Thinning Vegetables - May 21, 2016
This week in the garden Retired UT Extension Agent Mike Dennison shows how to thin vegetable seedlings. Two weeks ago he planted several seeds in each hole to make sure there was a plant at each spot. To thin Mike carefully pulls out the extra plants leaving the healthiest looking seedlings. This will allow each new plant to develop without competition from close plants.
Related Videos: Planting Vegetable Seeds Related Resources: Thinning Plants in the Garden Thinning makes more productive gardens |
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Sidedressing Vegetables - May 14, 2016This week in the garden Extension Agent Chris Cooper shows how to use fertilizer to sidedress vegetable plants. He sprinkles the fertilizer on the ground around the base of the plant. Side dressing vegetables gives them the nitrogen they need to grow.
Related Resources: Vegetable Gardening – Nitrogen Recommendations Fertilizing Vegetables |
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Killing Grass - May 7, 2016This week in the garden Extension Agent Chris Cooper shows how to use Round-Up to clean up the gravel area around our raised beds. Round-up (glyphosate) is a broad spectrum herbicide meaning it kills all plants. As a result, you need to be careful that it does not get on desirable plants. Be especially careful on windy days when the wind can carry the mist from your sprayer. The weeds will start dying immediately but you may not see results for a week or more.
Related Resources: Killing weeds in the garden with glyphosate Use of Roundup and Similar Products in the Home Landscape |
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Turning a Compost Pile - April 30, 2016
Tipton County Extension agent Joellen Dimond shows how to turn a compost pile. In compost piles bacteria break down organic matter. Those bacteria require oxygen to work. Turning compost piles prevents them from becoming matted and blocking air flow into the pile which speeds the composting process. Compost piles should be turned every two weeks.
Related Resources: Backyard Composting of Yard, Garden, and Food Discards Backyard Composting |
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Spray Patterns - April 23, 2016
This week in the garden Extension Agent Celeste Scott talks about spray patterns in home pump-up sprayers. The stream setting is useful for perimeter application or spraying high in trees. The mist setting is good for applying chemicals to plants where good coverage is necessary especially in dense foliage.
Related Resources: Using Your Handheld Lawn and Garden Sprayer Calibrating Hand-Held and Backpack Sprayers for Applying Pesticides Calibrating Hand-Held Sprayers |
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Killing Fire Ants - April 16, 2016
This week in the garden Chris Cooper shows how to use ant bait to eliminate a fire ant mound. The bait should be spread around the mound. The worker ants will find the bait and take it back to the mound. The bait will either sterilize the queen –no new ants- or kill her. This is the first step of the “Texas Two-Step” for eliminating fire ants. This step will eliminate the mound but you have to wait for all the ants to die which could take up to two months. If you want to get rid of the mound more quickly, go back after several weeks and kill the remaining ants with a contact insecticide.
Related Resources: Imported Fire Ants Managing Fire Ants in Vegetable Gardens |
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Taking a Soil Sample - April 9, 2016
This week in the garden Haywood County Extension Director Walter Battle shows how to take a soil sample in a small garden. He collects several samples of soil from the top 6-8 inches and mixes them together and puts them into a soil sample box. This box can then be mailed to the soil lab. To reduce postage fees you can leave the soil out to dry before packaging.
Related Resources: Tennessee Soil Testing Information Mississippi Soil Testing Information Arkansas Soil Testing Information |
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Spraying Dormant Oil - April 2, 2016
This week in the garden retired UT extension agent Mike Dennison demonstrates how to apply dormant oil to a crape myrtle tree. This procedure is also applicable to other ornamentals and shrubs. Spray to the point of runoff. Dormant oil will tend to separate from the water in the sprayer tank so make sure you shake it regularly to keep it in suspension. Do not spray less than 48 hours before a hard freeze. The water in the spray may freeze injuring the plant. As always read and follow label instructions for mixing and applying dormant oil.
Related Resources: Pest and Disease Control Using Horticultural Oils Horticultural Oils – What a Gardener Needs to Know |
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Cleaning Out Garden Beds - March 26, 2016This week Haywood County Extension Director Walter Battle talks about cleaning out the garden getting it ready for planting. Old plants that do not have disease problems like cabbage or cauliflower can be composted. Plants that have disease problems or blights like tomatoes should be thrown away to help reduce the disease in your garden this year. It is best to clean up your garden in the fall.
Related Resources: Tips for garden clean-up to reduce pests, diseases Cleaning Up after Plant Disease |
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Removing Mistletoe - March 19, 2016
UT Extension agent Chris Cooper shows how to cut mistletoe out of tree. It takes a pair of pruners and a little time. Try to cut off as much of the mistletoe as possible. The mistletoe may not die but will not be able to produce seeds for several years. Be careful when climbing in trees or on ladders.
Related Resources: Mistletoe in Landscape Trees Mistletoe |
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Pansy Fertilizer Experiment - March 12, 2016
Chris takes a look at the difference in two plantings of pansies. Before one group was planted manure and fertilizer were added to the soil. The other group did not have any soil amendments or fertilizer. There is a big difference in the results.
Related Resources: Fertilizers Growing Pansies |
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