Q: We have two very large hydrangeas that are lush and healthy. But we haven't had many blooms for the last couple of years. What can you suggest to increase blooming? — Jack O'Brien, email
A: The top three to five buds on a bigleaf hydrangea are the ones that send out blooming shoots. They were likely frozen in the winters of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, so there were few blooms on many mophead and lacecap hydrangeas for the past couple of years. Folks who grow hydrangeas in protected locations didn't have much freeze damage, so their plants have bloomed normally this year and last. Try a light fertilizer application now, water appropriately for the weather, and we'll see what happens next year.
Q: I've inherited a small farm. I want an income-generating crop that we can plant and harvest. I'm thinking about growing garlic. However, there is lots of nutgrass there. What should I do? — Jill Denlea, Forsyth County
A: You have a tough situation. Nutsedge is almost impossible to eliminate without using herbicide. But if you use a herbicide, you can't sell the garlic as "organic," which means you won't get a good price. I've used a water-powered weeder (bit.ly/waterweeder) to control nutsedge in a small area. Perhaps the tool would be useful for you. As far as raising and selling garlic, contact my friends at Georgia Organics (georgiaorganics.org) for help in growing and marketing your crop.
Q: We have a 95 percent zoysia lawn. Some Bermuda has infiltrated the zoysia. What is the best way to eliminate the Bermuda? — Bill Sheesley, email
A: My neighbor has a thin-bladed zoysia (maybe 'Emerald') that has gradually overcome the Bermuda grass in his lawn in the past decade. The same thing happened on my parents' lawn. My guess is that wider-bladed zoysia ('Meyer', etc.) is less competitive with Bermuda grass than the thin-bladed plant is, explaining why your zoysia hasn't prevailed. For quick results, you could spray the intermingled area with glyphosate (KillzAll, Roundup, etc.) and resod with zoysia. There are a couple of herbicides that weaken Bermuda in zoysia lawns, but they take years to show much effect.
Q: Can Roundup be used on weeds between rows of corn? The plants are 6 feet tall. — Walter Boyles, email
A: You may not be able to see it, but most garden sprayers deliver heavy droplets that can be seen with the naked eye and mist droplets that are much harder to spot. Unless the air is completely still, the unseen mist droplets can be deposited on nearby plants, possibly killing them. Your best bet is to make a nozzle guard from a bottomless milk jug. Use tape to secure the neck of the jug to your sprayer nozzle. Walk slowly as you spray and keep the bottom of the guard/jug as close to the weeds as you can.
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