Christmas Tree Recycling

    According to one report I read, 33 million Christmas trees are used every year in the United States. What do we do with all of these trees after Christmas when they no longer have any use? The answer is simple: recycle. And I do not mean to simply put them in the garbage.

    Almost all municipalities will pick up or have a place to discard Christmas trees. Hopefully they have a program to utilize rather than destroy the trees. If you live in the country, you will have to solve the problem yourself.
   But before you begin the recycle process be sure to remove all lights and ornaments. However, if you used "natural" decorations, such as strung popcorn or cranberries leave them on the tree to provide food for birds and animals.
    Here are some ways you can recycle your Christmas tree and keep it from going to overflowing landfills:
    Make mulch - If you have a chipper, run the tree through it. The chips make great mulch and smell good while being chipped. You can cut off the boughs and place them on the ground like a blanket to protect plants that are susceptible to wind or cold damage, plants that are marginally hardy in your area, and plants that might come up early and be nipped by a late spring frost, such as fall-planted pansies or flowering bulbs. Retain the trunk for a use I will tell you about later.

    Save it for wildlife habitat - Move the tree in its stand outdoors for the winter or tie the tree to a post, where it can provide food and shelter for wild birds. Even better, put the tree near a bird feeder or hang bird treats from the tree. The trees could be used as artificial fish attractors in ponds or lakes. The sunken trees provide a place for small fish to hide. Snails and aquatic insects grow here also to provide food for the fish.
    If you are in a hurry, a simple alternative way to dispose of holiday trees is to use them as wildlife cover in fields and forests. Besides birds, rabbits and other small animals could use them as shelter during winter months. The trees will eventually decay and be recycled naturally.
    Turn it into a trellis – That trunk you saved after removing the branches can be set up in your garden as a trellis for peas, beans, or cucumbers. I guess you could even use it to make a “bottle tree.”

    Reuse your tree any way you can. Remember it took 5 – 10 years or possibly more, depending on the species, to grow this tree. Do not waste all of Mother Nature’s time for a few weeks of your pleasure.

The Christmas Vampire

     Vampire movies and television shows are the rage these days. But is the idea of a ‘Christmas vampire’ carrying it a bit too far? Actually, not. There is a plant associated with Christmas that sucks the lifeblood (so to speak) from trees. This vampire is generally hidden from us until the leaves fall, then we see it.

    However, if two people meet in its presence, their hearts can beat faster. The custom associated with this vampire has awarded the first kiss to many young people - - - while standing under the mistletoe.

    Kissing-under-the-mistletoe is one of many folklore stories associated with mistletoe. Another story has it that Jesus was crucified on a cross of mistletoe wood. As punishment, the plant was banned from earth, thus growing in trees as a dwarfish plant. Mistletoe is still called Herbe de la Croix (wood of the cross) in parts of Brittany.

    Over 1300 species of mistletoe are found around the world. The unusual growth and feeding nature of mistletoe has set apart from other plants. Early Anglo-Saxons called them "mistl-tan" meaning "different twig."

     In many parts of the world, mistletoes are attributed with mystic and medicinal powers. Mistletoe was sacred to the Druids of northern Europe, the Ainos of Japan, and certain African tribes. Until the middle of the 19th century, European mistletoe was prominent in medicine and pharmacology. When growing on sacred willows in Japan, mistletoe was regarded as the cure for many diseases. In Malaysia, certain mistletoes were used as a muscle relaxant during childbirth, and to treat ringworm and snakebite.

    While mistletoes have different uses in different cultures, mistletoes cause a great deal of injury to forests, orchards, and ornamental plants. They are parasitic plants that extract water and nutrients from their tree hosts. The mistletoes impair growth, lower host plant vigor, reduce wood quality and quantity, reduce fruiting, and predispose trees to attack by insects and disease. In North America, wood losses due to this "vampire" are about 500 million cubic feet of lumber per year.

    On a positive note, in some areas of the country, collection of mistletoe is a cottage industry. Beginning in late November, mistletoe is collected, bagged, and sold for Christmas decorations. Some adventuresome people harvest mistletoe while hanging over the edge of the basket of a hot air balloon.

   Take time to enjoy this special holiday season and its traditions. Harvest some mistletoe to help a tree and maybe to entice a kiss from that special someone . . . but please, no biting.

Put Fallen Leaves to Good Use

    Once upon a time winter was announced by the smell of burning leaves. We would rake the leaves into a large pile, jump into them a time or two for fun, and then burn them. For most of us, those days are gone because of air pollution concerns, global warming, and burning restrictions.

    Some people will bag their leaves to send to the landfill. However, because these wastes make up to 20% of the total wastes disposed, many communities are prohibiting the dumping of lawn wastes. More progressive cities separate the lawn wastes and make compost that they sell back to the taxpayer.



    Mowing the leaves in place is the easiest and most simple means of disposal. Some folks seem think that leaving the leaves on the lawn will insulate the grass from winter kill and keep down winter weeds. The more likely outcome of this practice is an increase in turf disease problems. The best thing to do is ‘mow and mulch’ the leaves into the grass or rake and remove.

    Excellent results are obtained by using a mulching mower that cuts and recuts leaves several times. The smaller the pieces, the quicker the microbes can break down the leaves. You may need to make 2 or more passes over larger tree leaves to get a finely shredded product. I find it easier to not wait until all the leaves are off the trees and on the ground. The deeper the layer, the more difficult it is to get them all shredded.

    If you have a garden area, place a layer of leaves, shredded or unshredded, over the surface of the soil and let them decompose in place. Before you prepare you garden next spring, you can also rototill or disc the layer of leaves into the soil. The decomposing leaves will help sandy soil retail water and will relieve compaction in clay soils.

    Another great way to deal with excess leaves is to use them as mulch. They will decompose in place, reduce weed problems, and enrich the soil, all at the same time. Another use for shredded leaves is as a layer of mulch in perennial and shrub beds, and around the base of young trees. Make sure that larger leaves are shredded first so they do not form a barrier layer when wet, thus restricting air and water movement.

    Leaves and other organic matter can be recycled by putting them in a traditional compost pile if you have one. The resulting compost is perfect for enriching the soil in every gardening project. Your compost is ready to use when the pile has become somewhat smaller and the color of the material is dark brown.

    Still hanker for that burning leaf smell on a crisp, winter day? Crank up the grill one last time and after you are through cooking, sprinkle a hand-full of leaves over the dying embers, inhale, and remember the days gone by.

2010 Fall Flower & Garden Fest

The 2010 Fall Flower & Garden Fest will be held Friday and Saturday, October 15 & 16, at the Truck Crops Experiment Station in Crystal Springs, Mississippi. Crystal Springs is about 25 miles south of Jackson. Hours are from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. both days and food vendors will have food and drinks available.

This is the largest home gardening show in the Southeast. Average attendance is 6,000 people over the two-day event. Admission and parking are free. The garden, grounds, seminars, and one of the tour wagons are handicapped accessible.

Let's Go Walkin' Mississippi will be onsite to kickoff the 2010 Fall Flower and Garden Fest with a one-mile fun walk at 9:30 a.m. Friday, October 15. Be sure to visit their exhibit under the Main Tent.

FOOD - There will lots to choose from -- ribeye steak sandwiches, catfish, BBQ plates, vegetable plates, hamburgers, and hot dogs. For dessert, there will be cookies, cakes, and other snacks. The Chautauqua Garden Club will be selling homemade ice cream, including muscadine, blueberry, strawberry, and peach, plus a couple of "nutty" offerings. Be sure to visit the Copiah County 4-H Tent for hot and cold drinks all day.


For more information contact your local Mississippi County Extension office, or call (601) 892-3731.

Pest Alert:Attack of the Azalea Caterpillar

Azalea Caterpillar

Azalea caterpillars are showing up on azaleas this time of year. You might have seen moths about 2 inches long with orangish-brown banded wings flying around your azaleas. The moths are sort of pretty until the lay their 100s of eggs on your favorite azalea and the caterpillars start eating.


Azalea caterpillars primarily attack azaleas, especially the “indica” varieties. They will however feed on blueberry, viburnums, and apples. This large (2 inches at maturity), strikingly marked caterpillar is an occasional pest of azaleas throughout the South. Newly-hatched azalea caterpillars are yellow with longitudinal reddish stripes, but their appearance changes markedly as they grow. Older caterpillars are black, checkered with yellow or white, and have a reddish-orange head and legs. If you disturb the caterpillars they will raise their heads and tails raised, creating a broad u-shape.


Newly-hatched larvae feed together on the undersides of leaves, causing leaf skeletonization. As larvae grow they spread out and feed individually, causing progressively greater amounts of defoliation. Heavy infestations can cause total defoliation of entire plantings of azaleas. As with most caterpillars, 80 to 90 percent of the total leaf area that a single caterpillar will eat during its life is eaten during the last 3 to 4 days before pupation. This is why severe defoliation can seem so sudden. Plants that appear perfectly fine on Sunday afternoon can be totally defoliated by Wednesday afternoon.


Be alert for signs of leaf skeletonization caused by the young caterpillars. Infestations are most common in late summer and early fall. Early detection and control of young larvae can prevent serious defoliation injury. If you find only small numbers of caterpillars, remove them by hand. If you choose chemical controls, select products that contain active ingredients: permethrin, bifenthrin, carbaryl, acephate, cyfluthrin, cyhalothrin, Bts, or spinosad.

10 Steps to Successful Muscadine Growing

Fry Seedless muscadine

In case you missed the muscadine field day, here are 10 steps to to guide you toward successful muscadine growing.

1) Site Selection - The most critical issue in choosing a planting site for muscadines is good internal soil drainage. A good muscadine location is a well-drained and in full sun.


2) Soil test- Land preparation should begin the year before planting. Conduct a soil test and correct any deficiencies in P and K levels. Adjust the pH to 6.5 with dolomitic limestone.



3) Establishment - Use contact or systemic herbicides to clean up infestations of johnsongrass, bermudagrass, or nutsedge in the year before vines are set. Build rows 4-12” high and four feet wide to improve water drainage.

4) Trellising - Construct trellis before planting vines. Use a single-wire (9 guage) trellis and space rows 10 to 12 feet apart; set posts 20 ft apart within rows and plant one vine at each post (rather than between posts).


5) Cultivar Selection - If you plan to sell the fruit, then you need varieties with a dry stem scar such as Nesbitt, Summit, Tara, and Triumph. If you want muscadines for eating fresh, any kind will do. If your goal is to produce wine, you will get better juice yield using Carlos, Doreen, Magnolia, Welder, or Noble.


6) Planting - Plant in late winter when vines are dormant. Commercial grow tubes (24-36” long and 3-4” in diameter) will increase growth and protect vines in the first growing season, Remove the tubes in late September so the vines can develop cold hardiness in the fall.

7) Provide adequate water during growing season – You will need to apply one inch per week. If the soil feels dry, water. If it feels wet, do not water.

8) Maintain good weed control.

9) Harvest fruit when ripe – Selling fruit that looks ripe but is not will cause a loss of customers or produce a poor quality processed product.

10) Prune annually to develop fruiting spurs.

It's Muscadine Season

Noble Muscadine

The 2010 Muscadine Field Day will be held on Saturday, August 21, 2010 beginning at 8:30 am at the McNeill vineyard. The vineyard is located on Highway 11 just south of McNeill, MS.

 

This year we will have more informative talks including:

Dr. Wayne Porter, MSU-ES, will speak on Muscadine Production and growing muscadines.

Dr. Blair Sampson, USDA, will talk about insect pests and beneficial insects.

Dr. Steve Stringer ,USDA, will give you an update about new and upcoming varieties.

The speakers will be available for questions about the varieties as you have the opportunity to walk through the vineyard. There will be information about the different varieties, which are good for juice, which are better for eating fresh, and which is better for wine making. There will also be recent research information on resveratrol, a natural chemical found in muscadines.

On your stroll through the vineyard, you see the different varieties growing and be able to taste them. Muscadines have a unique flavor, different from table grapes that are sold in the grocery stores. There are also a couple of varieties that would be great in your landscape. We will provide you with a zip-lock bag to take some home.

Pest Alert: Bagworms are on the move

The common bagworm is found from all along the eastern half of the United States. They most commonly attack arborvitae, juniper, cedar, and Leyland cypress. They occasionally occur on broadleaf trees and shrubs.

You can easily recognize this insect by the tapering grey to tan silk bags it produces and attaches to its host plant. Bags are about 1 1/4 inches. Some of the needles or leaves of the plant are usually woven into the bag. If the bags contain caterpillars, they are not firmly attached to the plant and they move it some they can get to more food. When the insects pupate, they use strong silk to attach the bag to the plant.

Adult females are wingless and never leave the bag. Eggs, as many as 500, are deposited inside the bag. This is how this pest overwinters. In the spring, newly hatched larvae either remain on the original plant or spread to other plants by ballooning on a silken parachute.

The feeding caterpillars damage the host plant by defoliating it. When only a few caterpillars are present, defoliation is negligible, but heavy infestations can result incomplete, or severe defoliation of individual plants. In severe cases you end up with a defoliated plants covered with bags. These plants usually die.

Because of this insect’s limited mobility, infestations are often localized, and you can hand pick bags before eggs hatch in the spring. It is easier to remove bags of larvae than pupal cases or egg cases, which are attached to the plant with strong silk. These often have to be cut away with scissors or pruning shears.

You can control this pest with foliar insecticide sprays, but choose your treatment carefully. Chemical controls:

carbaryl - Sevin

permethrin - Hi Yield Garden, Pet, and Livestock spray or Bonide Eight

cyfluthrin – Bayer Advanced Garden Power Force Multi-Insect Killer

cyhalothrin -Triazide Soil and Turf Insect Killer

Spinosad - Fertilome Borer, Bagworm, Tent Caterpillar, and Leafminer spray

Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis ) – Thuricide, DiPel

Spinosad and Bt products are less likely to flare mites.

Treat small, recently planted trees with a hand sprayer or use a hose-end sprayer designed to treat trees and shrubs to treat trees up to 20 to 25 feet tall. Treat in mid-April through early June to control newly hatched caterpillars before they cause much damage. Adults are hard to control because they are protected by their bag.

Attack of Weird Insects

In the last 10 days I have had 3 calls about and insects called the wooly alder aphid.  See photo.

Woolly alder aphids require both alder and silver maple to complete their life cycle.

Control of this pest on alder is rarely employed because alder is not used as a landscape plant, and predators, such as lacewings and lady beetles, may keep this pest below damaging levels. Infested silver maple trees may become so large that control measures are expensive.
Chemical controls include malathion, Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub Insect Control, insecticideal soaps, and horticultural oils.

Pruning Tips

This is the time of year for prunig. Pruning is one of the least understood practices of landscape maintenance. Basically you don't prune unless there is a good reason to do so.

One of the main reasons we prune is to maintain or limit the size and shape of a plant. But if you have to frequently prune any plant to make it fit into an area, it probably should not have been planted there in the first place. It might be a good idea to consider replacing it with one of smaller mature size that better fits the space. Another reason we prune is to remove diseased, dead, or abnormal plant tissue. Or we might be pruning to stimulate flowering and/or fruit production. We may want to develop a specific plant form, like a hedge, topiary or an espalier. We might need to remove plant parts that may interfere with structures or utility lines or that may create a visibility problem. Most of this type of problem could be avoided if the mature height and width of shrubs and trees are taken into consideration before planting.

Know your plant type before you begin pruning. When to prune is particularly important. For plants that flower in late spring, prune now. Tese plants include crapemyrtle, floribunda roses.

For early spring flowering plants, prune in late spring after their flowering season is over. These plants include azaleas, dogwoods, forsythia, spirea

Spud-tacular Potatoes

From its humble beginnings in the Andes Mountains of Peru, the potato has become one of the world’s staple foods. Baked, fried, mashed, or stuffed - you name it, and people will eat it. The average American consumes 126 pounds of potatoes each year. Sounds like a lot until you hear about the 745 pounds per capita consumption in Belarus!

The potato is a great vegetable. It is rich in protein, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins such as riboflavin, niacin and Vitamin C. And by selecting the right colored varieties you can add antioxidants.

Varieties commonly grown in Mississippi include: ‘Red LaSoda’, ‘LaRouge’, ‘Superior’, ‘Atlantic’, ‘Norchip’, ‘Kennebec’, and ‘Yukon Gold.’ These all have white flesh except ‘Yukon Gold’ which is buttery yellow.

If you want to be the star of the potato patch this spring, plant some ‘All Red’ which has red skin and red flesh. ‘All Blue’ has blue skin and blue flesh. These plus some of your white-fleshed varieties will make a truly patriotic potato salad for the Fourth of July picnic. These specialty potatoes will have to be ordered.
January through early March is the best time to plant in Mississippi. You can also plant them in the fall if you can get seed stock. Potatoes prefer loose, loamy, well-drained soil. Planting in heavy clay can result in a bumpy looking potato. Plant your potatoes on a raised bed that is 12-15 inches high to prevent damage during heavy spring rains. Most roots and all tubers will develop at the same level and above the level that the original seed potato was planted.
Buy certified disease-free seed potatoes from local farm supply stores or through mail-order catalogs. Do not use potatoes from the grocery store (unless they are organically grown) because they have been treated with a chemical to inhibit sprouting. Cut the seed potatoes into 11/2 to 2 ounce seed pieces with at least one ‘eye’ on it. Store the cut potatoes in a warm spot for a few days to heal over the cut surface.
Plant your potatoes in a trench 10-12 inches deep with the seed pieces 10 – 12 inches apart and cover with 3-4 inches of soil. As the plants grow taller, gradually fill in the trench with soil around the plant. Some gardeners prefer to cover with straw mulch instead of soil. This makes harvesting easier. Each potato plant will produce 2-4 pounds of potatoes.
Potatoes are a cool-season crop and grow best when the day temperatures range from 60-65 degrees and night temperatures are between 45-55 degrees. Tuber production will stop when the temperatures exceed 85 degrees.
Harvest at the appropriate time for the type of potato you want. ‘New’ potatoes are harvested in May while baking potatoes are harvested sometime in June. Use a spade or fork to dig up the potatoes. Immediately use any injured potatoes before they rot. Store the good potatoes in a cool (40-50 degree), dark, humid place. Remember the old-fashioned root cellar. Store the potatoes in the dark because light will cause then to turn green and make them inedible.
It is still cold at night but the soil is warm enough to get potatoes growing. Make the effort to grow your own potatoes and be the envy of the neighborhood. If you need more information, contact your local extension office, or search www.msucares.com for Information Sheet 1507, Commercial Production of Irish Potatoes in Mississippi.

Protecting Your Plants from Freeze Damage

Most established and, especially, adapted plants, probably will not be affected by this cold spell except may be in coastal counties. It has been cool to moderately cold in the more northern areas of Mississippi, so adapted plants have fairly well hardened off. However, the temperature during a freeze, when it occurs, and for how long it occurs are all factors that gauge how damaging a freeze will be. If we have a really prolonged duration of freezing conditions, this is when the most damage will be done.

Protect plants that are in containers either by placing them inside a protective structure (house, garage, greenhouse, or shed) or by placing a protective covering over them. Container plants are especially susceptible to cold temperatures because their roots are above ground. Roots that are damaged by cold temperatures may not show immediate signs of damage, but these plants will show signs of stress when temperatures increase.

Push together container plants that are left outside and mulch or cover them to decrease heat loss from the sides of the containers. Wrap the base of the containers in plastic, burlap, or blankets to reduce heat loss.

We have not seen weather this cold in the last 20 years. There have been a lot of plants established in areas marginal to their cold tolerance. Two that I have seen are frequently planted are palms and assorted citrus trees. There are varying degrees of cold hardiness among citrus tree with kumquats and satsumas being some of the more cold tolerant. The temperatures that are being predicted will injure even the most cold-hardy of these without some form of protection.

The same can be said about some the palms planted along the coast. Even the most cold tolerant of them can be injured by temperatures in the mid-teens.

Some things you can do to help all plants during this cold spell is to apply mulch to the roots to insulate them. The mulch will also keep winter weeds under control and reduce the need to water the plants. If the soil around your plants is dry, water thoroughly. Remember, as water freezes it gives off heat.

For plants such as small citrus or small palm trees, you can build a frame over the plant or plants, cover with plastic, and seal plastic to the ground with soil. This plastic traps moisture and warm air as it radiates from the soil. It also knocks off the cold wind. Be careful not to allow plastic to come in contact with plants or damage will occur at the points of contact. Put an incandescent light bulb in the enclosure if temperatures in the teens are forecasted.

If you only drape material over a plant to protect it, make sure the cover comes all the way to the ground. Blankets or tarps are better than plastic, but anything is better than nothing. Again, foliage in direct contact with the cover might be damaged but the plant will be saved.

If the plants are too large to build frames, place Christmas tree lights (not the LED type) in citrus trees or around the trunk of palm trees. You could also used water pipe heating tape to wrap trunks. If you can protect and save the trunk of citrus trees, they will grow back. Palm trees are more difficult to protect since their growing point is in the tip of the tree.

Another option for citrus tree is to spray them with water during the freeze period. Especially coat the scaffold branches with this freezing water. An ice-coated citrus tree is a sight to behold! You will probably lose a year of production but you will not have to replace the tree.

After the freezing event it is best not to do anything for a few weeks. Allow enough time for a freeze damage to show up in the plants. You might even wait to new growth starts in the spring. This is early January so there is a lot of time left this winter for more freezes.

Recycle Your Christmas Tree

According to one report I read, 33 million Christmas trees are used every year in the United States. What do we do with all of these trees after Christmas when they no longer have any use? The answer is simple: recycle. And I do not mean to simply put them in the garbage.

Almost all municipalities will pick up or have a place to discard Christmas trees. Hopefully they have a program to utilize rather than destroy the trees. If you live in the country, you will have to solve the problem yourself.

But before you begin the recycle process be sure to remove all lights and ornaments. However, if you used "natural" decorations, such as strung popcorn or cranberries leave them on the tree to provide food for birds and animals.

Here are some ways you can recycle your Christmas tree and keep it from going to overflowing landfills:

Make mulch - If you have a chipper, run the tree through it. The chips make great mulch and smell good while being chipped. You can also simply cut off the boughs and place them on the ground like a blanket to protect plants that are susceptible to wind or cold damage, plants that are marginally hardy in your area, and plants that might come up early and be nipped by a late spring frost, such as fall-planted pansies or flowering bulbs. Retain the trunk for a use I will tell you about later.

Save it for wildlife habitat - Move the tree in its stand outdoors for the winter or tie the tree to a post, where it can provide food and shelter for wild birds. Even better, put the tree near a bird feeder or hang bird treats from the tree.

The trees could be used as artificial fish attractors in ponds, lakes, or coastal areas. Be sure to tie a weight to the tree to keep it from floating and sink them in an area 4 – 10 feet deep. The sunken trees provide a place for small fish to hide. Snails and aquatic insects grow here also to provide food for the fish. When used along the coast, erosion is also reduced.

If you are in a hurry, a simple alternative way to dispose of holiday trees is to use them as wildlife cover in fields and forests. Besides birds, rabbits and other small animals could use them as shelter during winter months. The trees will eventually decay and be recycled naturally.

Turn it into a trellis – That trunk you saved after removing the branches can be set up in your garden as a trellis for peas, beans, or cucumbers. I guess you could even use it to make a “bottle tree.”

Reuse your tree any way you can. Remember it took 5 – 10 years or possibly more, depending on the species, to grow this tree. Do not waste all of Mother Nature’s time for a few weeks of your pleasure.