Q: Is there a good sealant to spray where tree limbs are removed? — Terry Mann, email
A: No sealant is needed or recommended after removing a limb. Trees repair wounds by internally "walling off" the damaged area. Tar and other materials retard the process of healing. They also may provide hiding places for insects and disease underneath. If the pruning cut is done correctly, just beyond the trunk collar from which the limb emerges, the tree will grow over the wound in a few years.
Q: Please give instructions on how to store acorns, chestnuts and fringe tree seed from now until the time to plant next spring. — Stinson Batchelor, email
A: These seeds from woody plants require a process called "stratification" — a two-month period of cold, moist conditions. Place two cups of sand in a bowl and add enough water to make it moist but not soggy. If it's too wet, sop up excess water with a paper towel. Place a few nuts into individual resealable plastic bags along with a half-cup of damp sand. Seal and place in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. Remove and plant seeds in late March. You also could accomplish this outdoors in a flower bed, but you risk squirrels digging them up.
Q: In an online article about mowing zoysia, you say that de-thatching could be accomplished by topdressing with a quarter-inch layer of clean topsoil. When is the best time to apply the topsoil? — Richard Preziosi, Fayette County
A: The best time to topdress is after your lawn is 100 percent green in spring, typically in early May. The topsoil inoculates the thatch with fungi, which decompose the grass clippings naturally.
Q: I was given three pineapple lilies and accidentally cut back the leaves after planting. Will the plants grow back? — Denise Gunter, Carroll County
A: Yes, they should be fine. The leaves will re-appear next spring in late April. My favorite pineapple lily is Eucomis 'Sparkling Burgundy', which has purple, strap-like leaves and white, pineapple-shaped flowers.
Q: What are the chances of a very big crape myrtle coming back from being cut completely down by a tree company? The instructions were to prune it back but now it's completely gone except the flat surface of the trunk even with the ground. — Trisha Kirsch, email
A: My guess is that there was a miscommunication. "Cut back that tree" could be interpreted different ways in different languages. But I have good news! Unless the crew put herbicides on the stump, your crape myrtle is coming back with a vengeance! You'll see lots of sprouts from the stump next spring. Choose three of the most vertical ones and cut the others to the ground. Continue to nurture the three you've selected and cut back the others for a couple of years. The new trunks will grow taller rapidly and you'll have a good-looking plant in short order.
