I talked about the Bears Britches and the Heloborus flopping. Today I discovered the leaves are falling off my Plum trees, all the bottom branches are bare. My Lorapetalums are dying, my chocolate Mimosa is not growing. I am going to start digging up Hostas that are looking bad tomorrow. If I am losing my shade, I might as well dig them all up and put them on the carport.
I told you guys about the chemically treated Cedar mulch and how it killed all my hostas, but that was two years ago.. I should have had the soil checked before I planted anything.
I dont know what to do about these plum trees, what happens next? Do they start falling apart? Oh and by the way, they started bearing fruit this year.Plums everywhere.
I think I want to move.
Something is really wrong in my back yard.:(
Hopefully a neighbor hasn't put round up out close to your fence or where water runs into your yard. Hope you safe your hostas.
Oh, and take pictures too.
This message was edited May 7, 2012 7:33 PM
Sheila, I have put round up at the roots of some of those tall weeds, but not recently.
sylvia...not sure how it works up in Dallas...but, down where I live our county extension agent will come out and test soil, etc to see where a problem lies. you might try to give yours a call.
That round up stuff is really bad, I hope that is not it.
I feel your pain, Sylvia. Let us know how things go and what you end up doing. It's alot of work and money--so sad. I will say a little prayer for your backyard! Janet
You can call the extension office for help I bet.
Sylvia, did you or your helper use anything like 'Weed and Feed'? My sister's ex fertilized his lawn with that and killed nearly all their trees and all of the flowers and shrubs. I'm sorry you are having this problem and hope you are able to save some of your plants.
Lizzie I will call the county ext office tomorrow, but they charge for soil samples. :( I doubt very seriously if they come out here.
Pat I never used weed and feed, the only thing i can think of is that Cedar mulch
If I cant get that ground to grow anything, I am moving to Tyler or somewhere. Its getting harder and harder to grow anything ... or they are cutting down the trees! I hate to tell Linda (Smockette)about the Plum trees, She had a hard time hauling these trees from Houston
Thanks Guys!
I will keep you posted
That or you have a neighbor and caught drift if they spray while winds are blowing, look and see if ANYONE else's yard resembles yours. Also, I have noticed real estates salesmen sometimes spray wooded areas tho illegal - to clear an area they are getting ready to advertise, that would caause drift too. The cedar mulch wont cause that much damage the roundup - well, some poisons lay dormant and wait for rain to activate - good luck
City_Sylvia,
One thing you can be sure of. Unless you accidentally got Round-Up on the desirable plant leaves, Round-Up is not your culprit. Round-Up falls apart chemically in soil and does not penetrate through thick bark.
We had a very wet winter and early spring. What kind of soil do you have? Heavy clay? Sandy? Loamy? Soil pH? When you purchased your plum trees did you get plums grafted to the rootstock appropriate for your soil type? If you didn't, that may be the reason why they are in trouble. Rootstock meant for sandy soils will eventually fall prey to diseases and die in heavy wet clay soils. Conversely, rootstock meant for heavy soils may have problems in sandy soils.
http://www.davewilson.com/roots_table.html
www.coopext.colostate.edu/.../rootstocks%20Dec%2029%202010.pd...
Hellebores prefer well draining soil with plenty of organic matter in it and hate being waterlogged. Bear's Breeches also likes well draining soil and a slighly acidic to slightly alkaline soil. If the pH is too far to one side or the other, it may become a problem.
Soil testing is not all that expensive but it is something that is really necessary. You can test soil samples for soil types yourself. There are some kits you can buy and use to test for basic nutrients, but they are not really very helpful if you are having extensive problems. You can buy very cheap pH meters to test your soil's pH. Some plants are not as finicky about soil pH as others, but others need to grow in soil that is a certain pH range or they will suffer nutrient problems.
You mentioned chemically treated cedar mulch. With what was the mulch treated? Weed-inhibitors? Some of these can leech into the soil and remain active for years. They don't discriminate between weeds and desired plants. If this is the case, you need to find out what is in the soil and how long it takes for it to break down into harmless materials.
Contact www.soilsalive.com.
Mr Bosco takes care of my yard. It is totally organic and you can "smell" it.
His system got the soil biology correct in my garden and now it is a Paradise.
Call him he will have the right answer.
Hey I am sorry i am just now responding, but i have been so sick I can hardly hold my head up.The doctor finally called me in a C-pac, hopefully I get through this. You guys are so brilliant, I dont know where to start.
Drthor I think I will start with you. I looked up Mr. Bosco and went no farther because I could never afford a system like that. Maybe one day, I might just have to move. But with all the rain things did start to look a little better.Some things a lot better. My soil is so gritty and dry and packed solid. I didn't do any amendments this year, not even the big O!I usually broadcast that all over before spring and fall. Then again my Drip irrigation need to be re-install, I will take care of that next week. My business is picking up so i will be able to do more.
BETTY when I called the county extension office two years ago about my plants, he emphatically told me it was the Cedar mulch. he said Cedar mulch is treated with Oily chemicals that gets into the soil and is hard to breakdown.I was suppose to send in soil sample then. I will definitely take care of it next week.
Sandy? Loamy? Soil pH? When you purchased your plum trees did you get plums grafted to the rootstock appropriate for your soil type? If you didn't, that may be the reason why they are in trouble. Rootstock meant for sandy soils will eventually fall prey to diseases and die in heavy wet clay soils. Conversely, rootstock meant for heavy soils may have problems in sandy soils.
Betty we must talk to Smockette about these trees. lol They were were full grown when she delivered them. I planted one out front it look so different, pretty dark red leaves, but its leaning to the side and I think it has to do with the grafting you are talking about.
The Helleborus and the Acanthus is looking a lot better, even the Lorpetulums have perked up.
I think your last past paragraph summed up what the man at the county ext said, almost verbatim!
I am going to do pictures. I got to download them. BRB
Anyone know about SBS, a soil building company? I am thinking about getting me a Tiller! Anyway these people are right around the corner and they deliver soil and amendments.
(wrong pictures)
This message was edited May 16, 2012 8:39 PM
I will start over tomorrow. its not working for me. :(
Let us know what Smockette says about the rootstock used. I love gardening. I especially like incorporating edibles into my garden — fruit trees, shrubs and vines. We've moved cross country several times and each move starts the learning curve all over again. Fortunately, with the Internet, it's become easier to get agricultural information. Be warned though. There is a lot of misinformation as well especially when the website is pushing some sort of product. I like to stick to ".edu" and ".org" sites although there are plenty of ".com" sites with excellent information. Our taxes help pay for TAMU's AgriLife. We may as well take advantage of its availability.
I hope you feel better soon.