Why Won’t My Four O’clocks Bloom? Four o’clocks get their name for a very obvious reason – they tend to bloom around four o’clock…except when they don’t. So when do four o’clocks bloom? A lot of other flowers open and close according to the sun, which roughly means they’re open during the day and closed at night. Four o’clock flowers, on the other hand, respond to temperature, and they don’t like the heat....

Pruning Flowering Almonds Ornamental almonds are easy to grow. The plants are not picky about soil conditions as long as the site is well-drained, and they grow well in full sun or partial shade. However, in order to obtain more flowers on the tree, you’ll do better to plant them in sun. The amount of sun the tree gets impacts how heavily it blooms. Flowering almond trees bloom in spring before they begin to leaf....

When and How to Grow Iris You should plan on planting iris bulbs like these early in the fall. These small bulbs have a rough tunic on the outside. The bottom is the part that has the flattened basal plate, so obviously the top is the opposite end. Group Planting Iris Bulbs In groups of five to ten bulbs in a nice flower border, plant Dutch, English, and Spanish irises. Each group of bulbs should be planted next to perennials such as peonies....

Growing an Indoor Potato Plant Follow these tips on caring for a potato plant in a pot indoors and you’ll be well on your way to enjoying this unique houseplant: Although you can purchase seed potatoes, plain old Russets from your supermarket make fine indoor potato plants. Cut the potato into chunks of no more than 2 inches (5 cm.). Be sure each piece has at least one or two “eyes” with sprouts....

What is a Seascape Strawberry? Seascape strawberries are small, herbaceous, perennial plants that grow to only 12-18 inches (30.5-45.5 cm). As mentioned, Seascape strawberries are everbearing strawberries, which means they produce their delectable fruit throughout the growing season. The plants bear large, firm, brilliantly red fruit in the spring, summer and fall. According to most Seascape berry info, these strawberries are heat tolerant and disease resistant as well as being prolific producers....

Plants and Shrubs That Grow in Zone 9 Gardens Here are some of the most common shade-loving zone 9 plants: Ferns – Millions of years old, ferns are the definition of an old standby. Usually native to forest floors, they thrive in shady spots. While ferns come in a huge range of species and varieties, some good ones for zone 9 include: Autumn fern Holly fern Bird’s Nest fern Button fern Sword fern Ghost fern Log fern Lady fern...

What is Amaryllis Southern Blight Disease? Southern blight of amaryllis is a fungal disease that can affect these plants. The causal agent is the fungus Sclerotium rolfsii. It also causes disease in legumes, cruciferous vegetables, and cucurbits, among many other plants you may have in your garden. There are a lot of different plants, and weeds, that can play host to the southern blight fungus. For amaryllis, you are most likely to see the disease if you grow them outdoors....

How to Grow and Store Spaghetti Squash In order to effectively grow spaghetti squash, which is considered a winter squash, you must understand what the spaghetti squash plant needs in order to grow to its typical 4 to 5 inch (10-13 cm.) diameter and 8 to 9 inch (20-23 cm.) length. Here are some tips on growing spaghetti squash and some basic information on how to grow and store spaghetti squash:...

About Pecans with Stem End Blight This fungus normally attacks during the water stage of growth and progresses. If you look inside before the shell forms, you’ll find a brown liquid that’s not at all appetizing. Not all nuts will be affected, but enough that your harvest can be severely lessened. Sunken, black, shiny lesions appear and spread to the shuck, the result of stem end blight of pecans. The fungus, Botryosphaeria dothidea, is thought to spread by insects as they feed on the nuts....

Can You Grow Sugarcane in Winter? Sugarcane is the common name for the genus Saccharum that grows almost entirely in tropical and subtropical parts of the world. As a rule, sugarcane cannot withstand freezing, or even cool, temperatures. There is, however, one variety of sugarcane that’s cold hardy, called Saccharum arundinaceum or cold hardy sugarcane. This variety is reported to be cold hardy all the way down to USDA zone 6a....

Sun Pride Tomato Information ‘Sun Pride’ is a newer American hybrid tomato cultivar that produces medium-sized fruits on a semi-determinate plant. It is a heat-setting tomato plant, which means your fruit will set and ripen nicely even in the hottest part of the year. These kinds of tomato plants also do cold-settings as well, so you can use Sun Pride in the spring and summer to fall. The tomatoes from Sun Pride tomato plants are best used fresh....

What are Hover Flies? Hover flies (Allograpta oblique) go by several other names, including syrphid flies, flower flies, and drone flies. Hover flies in gardens are a common sight throughout the country, especially where aphids are present. The adults feed on nectar as they pollinate flowers. The female lays her tiny, creamy-white eggs near aphid colonies, and the eggs hatch in two or three days. The beneficial hover fly larvae begin feeding on the aphids as they hatch....

When to Fertilize Peonies Well-established peonies don’t need frequent fertilizer application. Start off new plants with rich, composted soil and fertilize in spring and fall for the first few years. At that point, your peonies should only need fertilizer every three years or so, if at all. In spring, fertilize peonies just as you begin to see new growth poking through the soil. In the fall, add fertilizer after cutting back the plants....

How to Plant Zucchini When planting zucchini, you can plant them either as individual plants or grouped on hills. How you grow zucchini squash is up to you, based on how many zucchini plants you intend to grow and how much room you have to grow them. Individual Zucchini Plants After the chance of frost has passed, plant two to three seeds 36 inches (92 cm.) apart. The seeds should be planted about an inch (2....

Hollyhock Anthracnose Symptoms This particular infection is caused by the fungus, Colletotrichum malvarum. It is a destructive disease that impacts the stems, petioles, and leaves of hollyhock plants. It’s important to know the signs and symptoms of the disease so that you can take immediate steps to get the infection under control before losing all your plants. Hollyhock with anthracnose will develop black spots on the leaves and stems. The spots may also be tan or red....

When to Fertilize Tulips You should be fertilizing tulips once a year. The best time as to when to fertilize tulips is in the fall. At this time, the tulip bulbs are sending out roots to prepare for the winter and are in the best possible shape to take up the nutrients in the tulip bulb fertilizer. Do not fertilize tulips in spring. The roots of the bulb will be dying off shortly after that in order to be dormant for the summer and will not be able to take up the optimal amount of nutrients from the tulip bulb fertilizer....

What is Southern Pea Pod Blight? Wet rot of southern peas is a disease caused by the fungus Choanephora cucurbitarum. This pathogen causes fruit and blossom rot in not only southern peas, but also okra, snap bean, and various cucurbits. Symptoms of Southern Peas with Pod Blight The disease appears first as water-soaked, necrotic lesions on pods and stalks. As the disease progresses and the fungus produces spores, a dark gray, fuzzy, fungal growth develops on the affected areas....

What are Santina Cherries? Santina cherry trees, the result of a cross between Summit and Stella, were bred at Pacific Ari-Food Research Station in Summerland British Columbia in 1973. Santina cherries are multi-purpose and can be eaten fresh off the tree, cooked, or preserved by drying or freezing. They are delicious incorporated into hot or cold dishes. Santina cherries paired with smoked meat and cheese is a delightful treat. Santina Cherry Tree Care Santina cherries are self-fertile, but harvests will be more plentiful and the cherries will be plumper if there is another sweet cherry tree in the vicinity....

What is a European Plum? You won’t find European plum trees growing wild in European forests. This tree is known only in cultivation, but it is planted around the world in temperate areas. European plum trees grow well in the western U.S. They bloom in late winter or early spring. Fruit ripens between spring and fall, with the harvest of different types of European plums occurring at different points between May and September....

Marshmallow Plant Info What is a marshmallow plant? Native to western Europe and North Africa, the marshmallow plant (Althaea officinalis) has had an important place in human culture for millennia. The root was boiled and eaten as a vegetable by the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians. It is mentioned as being eaten in times of famine in the Bible. It has also been used medicinally for just as long. (The name “Althea,” in fact, comes from the Greek “althos,” which means “healer”)....