Q: Some time back I listened to a radio caller asking about wasps that pollinate figs. Based on what I heard, I told my sister that the wasps only pollinate the Mission figs that grow in California. My sister disagreed and now my research says all figs are pollinated by wasps. Is Walter wrong this time? The Kelly Family, email
A: I'm not always right, but I'm right often enough to keep my hopes up. So I was wrong to say 'Mission' figs depend on wasps; it's the 'Calimyrna' fig that I was thinking of on radio. "Common" figs, including 'Brown Turkey", 'Celeste', Brunswick' and 'Mission' do not need pollination. Their fruit develops with insect help. "Caducous" figs, including 'Smyrna,' 'Calimyrna' and 'Marabout' require a tiny wasp to crawl inside and perform pollination. An Internet myth posits that the crunchiness of Fig Newtons comes from wasp eggs but, in truth, fig wasps are digested away by fig enzymes.
Q: This spring I had a terrible crop of parsley piert in my bermuda grass. I want to put a pre-emergent on this September but can't find a good one for this particular weed. Do you have a suggestion? Dale Thomas, White County
A: Parsley piert is particularly difficult to control. This winter annual sprouts in cool weather but becomes noticeable in late spring and summer. Common pre-emergents like dithiopyr and pendamethalin are typically ineffective. Isoxaben is somewhat effective at preventing seed germination but I could find only one product that contains it: Bayer Advanced Season-Long Weed Control. You can also inhibit weed growth by mowing at the proper height and fertilizing your bermuda to keep it growing aggressively. As with lawn burweed, parsley piert control is not a once-and-done task but a years-long process.
Q: You mentioned early in the year you were experimenting with Permatill in your garden; are the results in on that? Marcia O'Shaughnessy, Fulton County
A: Expanded slate (PermaTill, Soil Perfector, etc.) is used by many gardeners to loosen clay soil permanently. The less-expensive organic soil conditioners we gardeners use typically cook away after a few years. I mixed expanded slate into a bed where I plant annual flowers each year, and it worked wonders for soil tilth. I went to plant a new lavender last week and the soil was soft and well drained: perfect conditions for this plant.
Q: I am at my wits' end. A bird has been pecking on my kitchen window every morning and during the day! We chase him away but he returns. Julia Carter, Coweta County
A: Your cardinal is mistakenly trying to establish a territory as if it were spring. He is enraged and jealous because he sees an interloper standing right there behind that shiny glass window. Worse yet, the stranger fights back every time the cardinal gives him the rush. Robins and mockingbirds do the same thing. The springtime ratio of daylight hours to nighttime hours is what initially causes the territorial urge in birds. This same behavior may be repeated in fall, when the same ratio occurs. In my experience, the fall bird-banging season is much shorter than in spring. Tape some newspaper onto your window to cancel the mirror effect. You can remove it in a few weeks.
Q: Our hydrangeas have always struggled. This year I dug one up to replant it and I noticed the main root had termites. Is this common for a live plant to get termites? Valerie Cross, Cobb County
A: Termites don’t have mouth parts or a digestive system that can eat living tissue. They are present in the root because it died and began to decompose. I don’t know why your hydrangeas declined but I do know that termites weren’t the cause.
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