-
Calvin Finch
Q. Our St. Augustine finally started growing aggressively but now it is turning yellow! What do you think is the problem and how can we deal with it?
A. It sounds like the problem is iron chlorosis which is quite common now. The good news is that it will eventually cure itself as the summer progresses. The grass is temporarily growing faster than it can uptake the required iron and nitrogen. If left on its own the growth rate will decline to the point where it has adequate iron and nitrogen to support the growth rate. A better option may be to spray the grass blades with a chelated iron product or apply a product such as Iron Plus. It will even work to dissolve some iron sulfate in water and spray the foliage.
Q. Tell us again about growing Southern peas in the garden this summer.
A. Southern peas are easy to grow in the vegetable garden in the summer and they are productive and fill the space to reduce weeds such as Bermuda grass from growing in the summer vegetable garden. Obtain seeds from your favorite nursery. I like the purple hull. Black eye peas or creams best. You can harvest the bean like pods and use them like green beans or you can let them dry in the pod and shell them for hot dish type recipes.
Q. On your radio show you were talking about two kinds of milkweed being available at area nurseries. One was a native milkweed and one was the tropical milkweed. You said the tropical milkweed was better liked as an egg-laying site for Monarchs and Queens. Why wouldn’t the native milkweed be better?
A. There are lots of native milkweeds, most are just as favored for a egg-laying site as the tropical milkweed (A. curassavica). Unfortunately the native Butterfly Weed Milkweed (A. tuberosa) is not a favorite egg-laying site. It is easy to grow, the flowers are attractive and the nectar produced is liked by the Monarchs but the internal chemicals are not as potent as other milkweeds. Without the potent chemicals to be internalized, the Monarchs would lose their undesirable taste to predators.