With the last substantial rains being a distant memory, summer temperatures and low humidity are ideal conditions for spider mites – a scourge of the season for roses and lots of other plants. Spider mites are related to spiders and ticks. With eight legs and an oval body 1/20 of an inch-long, they look like […]
These pests love dry and dusty! Read More »
Grrrrr – while merrily tending my roses, I’ve come across another victim of the dreaded beast – the gopher. If this is not one of the gardening challenges you face, you can stop reading now. Since I live in gopher heaven, each season I have to deal with the damage from this voracious pest. And
The ethereal green lacewing is one of the more recognizable garden “good guys.” With its slender pale green body, delicate gossamer wings, and immense golden eyes, it gives the appearance of a fairy prancing on garden leaves rather than the aggressive predator that it is. Lacewings, also called aphid lions, are natural enemies of several
Garden Good Guys – Green Lacewings Read More »
The holidays are behind us and now is a good time to start your winter pruning. This is the brief period of time when roses in Marin go into semi-dormancy, and the best time to prune repeat blooming roses and a lot of other trees and shrubs. If you’re new to pruning, or simply want to
It’s Pruning Time! Read More »
As we approach pruning season, you’ll be looking more closely at your roses, and you may encounter rose canes that appear darkened or dead. Likely, this is dieback, a condition characterized by the progressive death of stems and canes that can ultimately compromise the health and appearance of your rose plants. The dying areas may
Watch Out for Dieback Read More »
With the first rains of the season comes the potential for Botrytis – the disease that can turn lush blooms into a brown, soggy mush. This common disease is also known as Botrytis blight, bud rot, gray mold, wooly mold and when growing on grapes, the “noble rot” where it can either ruin a crop
Nobel Rot on your Roses? Read More »
Spiders get a bad rap; many people go to great lengths to get rid of them. Is it their other-worldly appearance? Concern about being bitten by a poisonous type or simply the idea of “creepy, crawling” things? Whatever the reason, before eliminating them, it’s good to understand the invaluable role they play keeping pest populations
Mostly Good Guys for Garden Pest Control Read More »
Thrips are generally bad news for the gardener, whether you have one type of thrips (the name is the same – singular and plural) or more. Not visible to the naked eye as they often feed within buds and furled leaves or in other enclosed parts of the plant, these extremely small insects cause damage
These Bugs are Bad News Read More »
A discouraging sight to anyone growing roses is that succulent new cane tip that suddenly wilts and dies. This symptom may have many causes, but one of the culprits is a cane borer. There are numerous borers – they’re generally the larvae of a beetle or moth that bore into canes, feed, and eventually cause
Wilting Roses and Cane Borers Read More »
Plants, whether cultivated or wild, generally grow well when the soil provides them with adequate nutrients and moisture, sufficient light reaches their leaves, and the temperature stays within a “normal” range. However, plants can get sick, most often from a disease-causing agent like a bacteria or fungus. But there are also plant ailments that may
What are Abiotic Disorders? Read More »