Q: My persimmon trees fruited prolifically this year. I had heard that one should wait until after a hard frost for the astringency to disappear. The fruit never dropped but the leaves did. Finally, I had one tree with fruit where the astringency was gone. Are there other ways to remove astringency? Jerry Silberman, southeast Pennsylvania
A: One way is to put persimmons in a bag with a ripe banana or apple. After a week or two, the persimmons will be ripe. Another way is to carefully put alcohol in the leafy persimmon cap. Replenish the alcohol as necessary for a couple of weeks. I would use only ethanol, vodka or Everclear for safety.
Q: I had a small jade plant but I went to Indonesia and now it’s looking pretty bad. It has two stems and a few little leaves hanging on. Is it dead? Nick Dillon, Atlanta
A: Jade plant is great for people like you who go off to Indonesia at a moment’s notice! It is a succulent so it is able to store water in its leaves and stems. Growing outdoors in its native South Africa, it would dry out during a drought and restore itself when it rains. Water your puny plant and place it in a sunny window. I bet the stems and leaves will plump up and it will be well on the way to recovery in a few weeks, as long as you have no more long trips planned.
Q: An odd weed was growing in my neighbor’s centipede lawn. It first showed up last winter and now we have it. It is green and growing now and the leaves look like parsley. Pat Horvath, Tucker
A: You have lawn burweed. In December, you can spray with any broadleaf weed killer. Next spring, be sure your lawn maintenance practices are top-notch. Thickly growing grass shades seeds, preventing germination, and will crowd out new seedlings. It’s a winter annual plant so preventing seed germination each year is absolutely vital. Spread a preemergent that contains isoxaben in early September to prevent the seed from germinating. Burweed will die when temperatures approach 90 degrees, usually in late May or early June. I have a lawn maintenance calendar that has tips on mowing, fertilizing, and planting each kind of turf grass at bit.ly/GAlawncal.
Email Walter at georgiagardener@yahoo.com. Listen to his occasional garden comments on “Green and Growing with Ashley Frasca” Saturday mornings on 95.5 WSB. Visit his website, www.walterreeves.com, or join his Facebook Page at bit.ly/georgiagardener, for his latest tips.
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