Dear Neil: Does this look like Take All Root Rot? I性视界传媒檝e already treated for insects two weeks ago. The grass pulls loose easily.
I性视界传媒檝e dealt with TARR in my own St. Augustine for 30 years. I性视界传媒檝e seen it in many other lawns. I have never seen it show up that dramatically. That looks more like some kind of chemical burn from applying the wrong weedkiller or even laying black plastic on top of the grass on a hot, sunny day. (Not to suggest that you did either of those things.) The fact that the roots are not holding tight does suggest either TARR or white grub worm damage. You say that you treated for insects two weeks ago. Did you dig and find a high number of the white grubs in the soil in this specific area? I性视界传媒檓 assuming that you did not since I see no disturbed ground. All the TARR I have personally seen looks more like the grass just beyond your leaf rake, where it is yellowing in a rather uneven pattern. It normally thins out over a period of one or two years until the grass is pretty much gone. If your lawn was thick and healthy until recent years, that is indeed the way TARR develops.
I would try the fungicide Azoxystrobin to stop any further development if it is TARR. Before I treated, however, I would collect a few samples and send them to the Texas Plant Disease Clinic at Texas A&M. You性视界传媒檒l find their mailing address and collection instructions on their website. There will be a charge for them to culture your sample, but then you would know for sure.
Dear Neil: These Indian hawthorns were pruned some years back to about 5 ft. tall. Should I just let them continue to grow, or should I trim them? If the latter, is it better to trim them after flowering or in the fall or winter?
They look like they need to be evened up a bit with some careful branch-by-branch pruning. Use hand shears and loppers to do the work and prune them immediately after they finish blooming. Try to retain their natural growth form and not some unnatural square or globe shapes. Then let them grow untrimmed until next spring性视界传媒檚 blooming has finished. They will produce flower buds on the growth they make this year.
You are fortunate that you have nice, mature Indian hawthorns. Many in Texas were killed by the cold of February 2021. Also, the fungal leaf spot Entomosporium that has riddled redtip photinias has now taken up residence also in Indian hawthorns. Your plants seem to be doing fine, however.
Dear Neil: What is this weed? If the ground is moist enough, I can pull it out. Recently I pulled one out with a root that was almost 3 ft. long. I性视界传媒檓 not sure where the 性视界传媒渕other plant性视界传媒 is.
My dad and uncle, both PhD botanist/plant taxonomists at Texas A&M taught me that you need flowers to do accurate IDs of plants, so I won性视界传媒檛 attempt on this one. Generally, when people ask the question this way, they性视界传媒檙e mainly interested in how to get rid of the plant 性视界传媒 whatever its name might happen to be. You would want to treat it with a broadleafed weedkiller 性视界传媒 spot-spray onto the vigorous new growth. The more new growth you can coat with the herbicide, the better the control will be. It often takes several treatments on 2-week intervals to kill out a deeply rooted specimen like this. If it性视界传媒檚 difficult to spray it without having drift get onto desirable plants nearby, use a foam rubber paintbrush to apply the herbicide to the leaf surfaces.
Dear Neil: The local county Extension office identified this plant as Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia). She told me this is neither an insect nor a disease 性视界传媒 that she had the same thing on her plants. Can you tell me what is going on and what I might do? The spots don性视界传媒檛 develop until the leaves start to mature.
This is as normal as sand at the beach. What she told you is absolutely correct except for the species and common name. Most of us just call this plant 性视界传媒渆laeagnus,性视界传媒 although its common name is the odd 性视界传媒渇ruitland silverberry性视界传媒 (Elaeagnus pungens). Russian mulberry is much taller, with different leaves. I性视界传媒檝e grown this plant for all my gardening life, and every plant that I性视界传媒檝e ever had or seen has this same coloration. Even the fruit has the same speckles. No problem at all. Absolutely no call to action. Enjoy your shrub. It性视界传媒檚 a good one for Texas.
Dear Neil: I have a Nellie R. Stevens holly that I性视界传媒檝e had for eight years. One of its three trunks died and was easy to break off at ground level. Does that indicate any kind of a disease?
Not at all. I性视界传媒檝e had that happen a few times in our landscape. I have 45 or so of them in the woods around our house. One of them got too dry last summer during the drought. The sprinkler station that covered its area missed it. I have also lost a couple of trunks due to repeated woodpecker riddling. But I性视界传媒檝e never seen a disease bother them in 54 years of growing them.
Dear Neil: I saw this Texas mountain laurel growing at a local business. It had these very unusual fan-shaped growths that appear to be part of the plant. What is this? I性视界传媒檝e grown my own mountain laurel for many years, and I性视界传媒檝e never seen this.
This is fasciated growth. In normal English, that refers to plant tissues that have divided in two planes (two-dimensionally). The most common example is the old-fashioned garden flower called cockscomb (celosia), but you性视界传媒檒l also see them in many types of cacti and succulents (notably Euphorbias). I性视界传媒檝e had them on my own mountain laurel, and I just trim them off to get rid of the unsightly growths.
