Question:
Last summer, we were plagued by Whitefly. They were on a hedge of Escallonia in the backyard. I thought I had gotten rid of them, but they’re back. How do I get rid of them for good?Answer:
- Whitefly is a sap-sucking insect that attacks a wide range of landscape plants as well as edibles. They’re not a cousin to any type of fly; instead, they’re closely related to Scale, Mealybug, and Aphids.
- Whitefly is found on the undersides of leaves, produce a clear sticky honeydew when feeding on plants, and when disturbed are very mobile.
- This mobility makes them difficult to control. Whitefly is a warm season pest, whose population begins slowly during the spring and escalates into large number very rapidly with temperatures in the eighties.
- You need to be proactive early on. The longer you wait, the bigger the problem in successfully controlling the pest.
- Here is why. The species is mainly parthenogenic, meaning it reproduces without mating.
- The adult female lays two to four hundred eggs. At room temperature, it takes a newly laid egg twenty-five days to mature. At eighty-one degrees, the maturation rate accelerates dramatically. It now
- takes eighteen days for the egg to develop into an adult. Hence, the rapid increase in the population
- Horticultural Oil is an organic solution that suffocates the insect. It’s best applied in the early evening or at dusk. You’ll need to make several applications, every five to seven days. To be successful, you need to be diligent with the follow-up applications.
- Personally, I prefer Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub Protect and Feed. It is a long-term solution and a less tedious answer
- One application protects the current and any new growth for a year. It also contains a slow release fertilizer to encourage the new growth, which hides the damaged foliage. Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub Protect and Feed is applied to the roots under the drip line of the plant, so no spraying is necessary.
Question:
I placed a bird-nesting house next to a group of redwood trees. These trees are about four years old and about thirteen feet high. It looks like one of the birds has broken the main shoot at the top of the tree. Will the tree continue to get taller? I’m concerned that the tree is ruined and I should replace it.Answer:
- The main shoot of a tree is called the central leader.
- When damaged, a new leader will take its place and continue the growth.
- What changes is the look, as the vertical line from top to bottom will now have a bend at the point where the new leader begins, and the old leader was broken?
- This bend will be obvious the next couple of years and then less apparent as the tree matures. I wouldn’t be inclined to replace it unless having a straight vertical trunk was critical.
- The tradeoff is that the replacement tree more than likely will not match the existing trees. This is a judgment call on your part.