Q.
I purchased two pussy-willow bushes in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Will they grow here? – B.D., Fort Lauderdale
A.
Pussy willows could survive nicely in north Florida, but we do not have enough dormant period for the plants to do well. If you want to plant them anyway, give them a northeastern exposure and water with ice water December through February. This may help to simulate cold weather.
Q.
Enclosed are some plant samples. The ixora hedge’s leaves are light colored and appear to have something eating the edges. The varigated lirope’s leaves are turning brown from the tips down. I don’t know the name of my other plant, but the small varigated leaves have turned dry. The hibisucs is still bearing but has few leaves. I have tried fertilizing with Epsom Salts. – Mrs. M.B., Delray Beach.
A.
Your ixora hedge is chlorotic; the leaves are being chewed by the leaf-cutting bee. Damage is minor so I would not spray. Fertilize with ixora-gardenia fertilizer for acid-loving plants in March, June and October to help with iron and manganese deficiencies. I suspect the liriope has root rot and it is probably planted too deep. Weekly watering is sufficient for established plants. Replant just above the roots. Your variegated plant with small leaves is variegated Chinese privet. If the stems are brown when you scratch them, the plant is probably dead. Hibiscus can use the same fertilizer and schedule as the ixora. Do not prune the hibiscus if you want flowers because they bloom at the ends of the branches. Most flowering plants need at least 5 to 6 hours of sun daily.
Q.
Enclosed are leaves from my hibiscus. One nursery says it doesn’t get enough water and another says it gets too much. The sprinklers are on every other night if there has been no rain, but on days they are not on I water lightly. I have sprayed the tree for small sucking insects that appear only on the buds. The tree has been feed with Miracle Grow every 3 months. What can I do next? – D.M.H.
A.
You are watering too much. Two times a week is more than sufficient for established in-ground plants. Excess water causes root rot and any fertilizer leaches away. Hibiscus leaves are yellow in the spring and drop off to be replaced by new foliage. The inner older leaves are the ones that should be falling. Most evergreen plants drop their leaves in Florida between February and May. Fertilize in March, June and October with an acid type granular fertilizer for gardenias and ixoras. The sucking insects are aphids. They attack new growth, but should wash off in the rains. Be very careful what you spray hibiscus with as they are very sensitive. Orthene should be effective for the aphids if the rains don’t take care of them.
Q.
Recently we had security lights installed in our back yard. One light shines on our small grapefruit tree which is about 4 feet tall. We also have a tangerine tree and orange tree (these are fully grown) and they get part of the light also. I would like to know if being in the light 24 hours a day will hurt the blooms or stunt the growth of our fruit trees? – D.I., Pompano Beach.
A.
The lights shouldn’t affect your citrus that much. It would affect short day plants such as poinsettia, kalanchoe, Christmas cactus and etc. They will not bloom at the right time if exposed to light at night.
NOTE: Robert Haehle will give a free plant clinic 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Living Color Garden Center, 3691 Griffin Road, Fort Lauderdale. Bring samples of your plants for a diagnosis.
—- Robert Haehle is a horticultural consultant based in Fort Lauderdale. Send your gardening questions to him in care of Lifestyle, Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 33301-2293. Questions of general interest will be answered in this column. Personal replies will not be possible.
