Q/A column – for release July 19, 2009

Dan Culbert - Extension Horticulture Agent 

 How Does Your Garden Grow?

Your local Extension office offers a column for local gardeners, and we depend on folks sending us questions.  This week we received very few questions -  maybe it’s because people are too busy mowing in their Florida Yard, keeping up with all mosquitos,  or just  keeping the  kids busy now that school is out.  Please send us some questions so we can continue to keep Okeechobee in the Green.

Dead Bays

 I live up by Fort Drum and have noticed that a bunch of trees nearby my property have turned brown overnight.  I’m not sure what kind of trees they are; they are not pine trees or oaks.  What can I do to stop our trees from dieing?  ~ Larry

 Thanks for your question.  I would normally ask a caller to bring in a sample to ID the problem, but I’m pretty sure since you are from the northern are of our county, that the tree you are loosing is called the Red Bay or Bay Oak.  We have recently had many of these native trees dying in your area.  Unfortunately our county has been added to the list of places that are now reporting a new disease called Laurel Wilt.  It is spread from one tree to another by a very small beetle, the Red Bay Ambrosia Beetle.   This complex of a fast moving fungus and a small boring beetle is spread by moving infected, infested yard trash or firewood long distances.  The same pests will also affect Avocado trees, so watch out for them too.

 Once the tree is infected, it will die.  Dead trees should be chipped on-site.  The pile of mulch should be left in place to prevent spread.  If you have a healthy Red Bay tree that you want to save, there is a preventative fungicide that can be injected into the tree, but since it is very expensive, it would have to be a valuable part of your Florida Yard to have this treatment applied.  This treatment is not available for Avocado trees because they have edible fruit.

I wrote a column, “Bye bye Red Bays” last November.  You can read it online at our home page and see pictures of the beetle, infected trees and get more updated information.  The important thing to know is, don’t move infected firewood, period.

  

Unknown New Tree

I recently found a volunteer tree that suddenly appeared in the middle of my pasture.   It has a curious compound leaf and seemed to grow a foot taller each week!  I’m worried that this might be a new invasive weed and should be removed. Can you identify what it is and if it should be removed? ~ Willard 

Willard - thank your for your question!  I took a look at the cutting you brought in to our office and thought I knew what it was, but to be sure I sent off some pictures using our Distance Diagnostic and Identification System (DDIS) to the UF Plant Identification Lab in Gainesville.  They confirmed my suspicion that your new tree is a Winged Sumac, Rhus copallinum.  While this is a poison ivy and Brazilian Pepper relative, it is not a problem plant, and may actually be a valuable source of seed food for winter birds.   (Since yours is a juvenile tree, it probably won’t flower or produce seed this year.)  It can grow up to 20 feet tall and will drop its leaves in winter.  Winged Sumac is known as a “pioneer species”, one of the first trees to start moving a pasture into a forest.  They do not live that long and would not compete well with other trees.  You can enjoy it or cut it down as you see fit.

  

America’s Flower

I’ve always been fascinated with Roses.  I’ve heard that they are hard to grow here, but I’ve had good success with them.  Are there other gardeners out there that are interested in sharing their successes and enthusiasm for roses? – Rosie

 I’m glad that you have learned some basic things about growing “America’s Flower” here in our area and are interested in sharing this information with others.  Okeechobee has a very informal Garden club that meets on the fourth Monday night of the month.  I’ll put the word out that anyone interested in setting up a “Rose Society” here in town should come out to the Garden club, 6 PM on Monday July 27^th.   I will make a short presentation on basic rose care that evening, and we can gauge if there is enough interest in having regular get together to learn more about this plant.

 In the mean time, for other gardeners that want to get beyond the thorns and smell the flowers, why not take a look at my archived news article, The Queen of Flowers .  It was published in May 2008, and can still be seen on our County Extension website.  It goes over some basic information of rootstock selection and disease management, the keys to success with rose growing in Florida.

 

Send your garden question by fax (863-763-5901), email (okeenews@newszap.com) or just drop it off at the Okeechobee News office at (107 SW 17th St. suite D, Okeechobee, FL 34974).  The University of Florida - Okeechobee County Extension office will pick out questions that would be of greatest interest to local residents and publish brief answers in the Okeechobee News. Be sure to include your name and phone or email address in case we need more information.  Clear digital photographs may also be submitted.  

More information is available on the award-winning Okeechobee web page, http://okeechobee.ifas.ufl.edu. If you need additional information, please email the Extension office at okeechobee@ifas.ufl.edu or call us at 863-763-6469.  Local residents can stop by our office at 458 Hwy 98 North in Okeechobee, and visit our Okeechobee County Master Gardeners from 1 to 3 PM on Tuesday afternoons.  Go Gators! 

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Trade  names, where used, are given for the purpose of providing specific information. They do not constitute an endorsement or guarantee of products named, nor does it imply criticism of products not named. The Florida Cooperative Extension Service - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer authorized to provide research, educational information, and other services to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap, or national origin.  Florida Cooperative Extension Service / IFAS / University of Florida.  Millie Ferrer, Interim Dean. Last update: 07/17/2009.  This page is maintained by Dan Culbert