Bob Morris is a horticulture expert living in Las Vegas and professor emeritus for the University of Nevada. Visit his blog at xtremehorticulture.blogspot.com. Send questions to Extremehort@aol.com.
Q: My husband went out a couple of weeks ago and picked up a Pink Lady apple. I it planted they way you recommended and I have mulched the ground except for the 6 inches next to the trunk. I have it securely staked and I am watering by hand every day. What’s next? Food? Or what to make it do well?
Question: I have a narrow area, and the Las Vegas nurseries have Japanese privet. However, I have read on various blogs that birds eat the berries, and they get dropped in other areas of the yard and gardens, sprouting up all over. They say it is considered an invasive species in many areas. Have you found this problem to be true, and if so, is there anything that can be done so that the plant will not produce berries?
Question: I planted some bare root fruit trees earlier this year, and unfortunately, several did not survive. This was my fault because I didn’t get them planted right away, and the roots may have dried out. I want to replace them with container nursery stock.
Q: I just sighted my first grape leaf skeletonizer moth. I’ve learned that Bt will control the worms. I’d like to try and minimize the larvae if I can by eradicating as many moths as possible. Can you recommend the best course of action, if any, to control the moth ?
Question: Last Christmas, a friend bought for me a tiny pine tree about 6 inches tall. It is now 2 feet tall, and I need to transplant it. When is the best time of year to do this?
Q: I noticed last year that I didn’t get nearly the same number of tomatoes that I had harvested in previous years. I have a raised bed with a blend of about 4-to-1 cheap compost and our desert soil. Each year I have continued adding compost from my own yard and vegetable scraps. Last year the tomato plants themselves grew well and I saw lots of flowers, but the tomatoes just never developed.
Q: I attempted to grow watermelons for the first time last summer and everything was looking good until it got hot. These tiny black specks appeared on the back of some of the leaves. I was told it was aphids but they weren’t sure. I hope you can see them clearly from the picture I’ve attached. Should I use insecticidal soap as recommended or something else?
Q: Have you ever heard of adding vinegar or citric acid when fertilizing indoor plants in our area? We collect rain water and use it for our indoor plants.
Question: I purchased an assortment of tomatoes, and they are doing well. Folks like to put them in cages, but I have always found them more bother than they are worth. So I let them sprawl and go where they want.
Question: In a past posting on your blog, you mentioned that using 100 percent distilled water for container plant irrigation might mess with the potting soil. What did you mean by that?
Earlier in the season, around mid-March, I was encouraging you to plant your own onion transplants and grow your own onions. They are so much better tasting than store-bought onions. I gave the readers here and on my blog some varieties to choose from; many are available from seed, which should be started in about mid-October, the same time as you would plant garlic.
Question: I bought a house last December that has two large grape vines growing over a pergola that covers a hot tub. Last summer when the vines were producing grapes, the birds were unbearable.
