Prepare Now for A Great Start to

Great Turf

Don’t apply broadleaf weed killer or most crabgrass

preventers to newly seeded areas, or areas that will be

seeded. These products can decrease the germination

percentage of grass seeds.

by Andy Rideout

Springtime always brings with it a renewed

interest in maintaining a healthy lawn, but there

are many good management practices that you

can work on now that will help your turf be

successful in 2015.

Winter is a good time to do any maintenance on

your equipment. Changing the oil, replacing the

spark plug, and a good overall cleaning will help

you ensure a season without mechanical issues.

A good sharp blade throughout the mowing

season is also very important. Surgeons use very

sharp instruments so the cut will heal quickly.

When your mower blade cuts the tip of the grass

blade, the wounds are susceptible to infections

and insects. The sharper the blade, the quicker

you grass will recover. Remove your blade and

drop it off at a local shop to have it sharpened.

Consider purchasing an extra blade so that you

can change it out mid-season without

interrupting your mowing schedule.

When you put your sharp blade back on the

mower, remember to adjust the height. The

recommended mowing height for tall fescue is 2

to 3 inches, and for Kentucky bluegrass the

height is 2 to 2.5 inches. Mowing at the best

height for the grass encourages a deeper root

system, discourages weeds, and helps reduce

watering. Setting up your mower is a relatively easy task. Don’t trust the

settings on the mower; instead, park your mower on a concrete or other

hard surface and measure from the blade to the surface to get the proper

height. There is no need to be exact but within ¼” inch is great.

Following recommendations for mowing height and frequency will make

your lawn care duties easier and result in a more attractive yard.

A good fertility program for your lawn should be based upon a soil

sample and now is the time to bring a sample to the office. Most of the

time, you should not apply nitrogen in the spring. Nitrogen promotes top

growth and will only increase your time on the mower. For most lawns,

nitrogen should be applied in the fall or even late winter to help develop

the roots, increase density, and prepare the plant for the spring green up.

These tips are just some basics. Different grass varieties and soil types

require unique management practices. The extension office has detailed

information on home lawn maintenance and can take your soil samples to

help you customize your lawn maintenance.

www.ca.uky.edu

Winter 2015

2

Which Garden Catalog

Should I Use?

With so many garden catalogs to

choose from, which ones should

you use?

Check to see if the Latin

botanic name and/or the

cultivated variety is

listed with the

common name,

especially with

flowers, trees,

and shrubs.

Common

names for

plants vary

from region to

region, but if a

botanic name is

listed, you can be more certain you get

the plant you intended.

Check return policies, guarantees on

plants, and shipping charges. A

customer service number should be

listed prominently. Be careful of

companies that ship plants year round.

The size of plants and bulbs should be listed. A two year

old plant for $10 may be a better deal than the $3.50

seedling, especially for new gardeners.

Take advantage of catalogs with specific growing

information such as light, soil, and water requirements.

Some plants require very special soil conditions or winter

protection. With seeds, look for All American Selections

that have performed well through out the United States.

Catalogs should list plant hardiness zones rating. We are in

zone 6. Some plants listed as perennials (plants that live

several years) can be grown as annuals in colder areas.

For more information on seed catalogs and varieties of

plants that do well here in Kentucky, contact me at

859-623-4072 or amanda.sears@uky.edu.

Start ordering seeds for indoor sprouting. Pansies,

snapdragons, carnations, sweetwilliam, and violas all need 8

to 14 weeks after seed sowing before they can be set outside

in late March...so go ahead and plant these seeds indoors in

early January.

Fruit & Veggie

Gardens

by Amanda Sears

3

Time to Control Peach Leaf Curl &

Plum Pockets

Late fall and winter is the time to control peach leaf

curl and plum pockets in peach and plum trees.

Control for these diseases must be done before

buds start to swell which can happen even in

January if we have abnormally warm weather.

Peach leaf curl can occur on peaches, nectarines,

and apricots with plum pockets occurring on wild

and cultivated plums. These diseases are closely

related and control can only be done in late fall and

winter.

Peach leaf curl is caused by the fungus Taphrina

deromas. Infection can cause severe defoliation,

weakened trees, and reduced fruit quality, set, and

yield. It causes distinctive leave curling and

puckering before defoliation. The symptoms may

be on single leaves, portions of leaves, or entire

branches. They are often times accompanied with red or purplish coloration, making them easy to

spot.

Plum pockets is caused by the fungus Taphrina

communis and is closely related to the fungus

causing peach leaf curl. Plum pockets infections

cause tips of plum shoots to appear

swollen and are often twisted and

curled. Plum fruit will also

appear swollen, misshapen,

and have bladder like thick

spongy flesh. The centers of the plum fruit will be

hollow because of the lack

of seed development

caused by the fungus.

Distortion of the leaves

can occur as well.

Infection of plum pockets and

peach leaf curl occurs during

spring or late winter just as buds begin

to swell. Rain washes spores of the fungi

to the surface of leaf buds where they

multiply. Once bud scales loosen in the spring, the rain will continue to

wash the spores onto newly forming

leaves. The optimum temperature

for infection is between 50 and 70

degrees Fahrenheit. Once the disease is spread in the spring and infection

occurs, there is no further spread during the season, however by then the

damage for the entire season has occurred.

A single spray of a fungicide containing active ingredients chlorothalonil,

copper hydroxide, copper oxychloride sulfate, copper sulfate + hydrated lime (Bordeaux mixture) or ziram should be made during the trees dormant period

between leaf drop and bud swell in the spring. Late fall or early winter is a

good time to spray because warm mid to late winter weather can cause

premature bud swell and infection. Once infection occurs fungicide sprays

are useless.

Another option for peach leaf curl control is to plant disease tolerant

varieties. Varieties derived from Redhaven have some tolerance, whereas

Redskin types are more susceptible. If leaf curl has occurred, thin fruit

heavily to reduce the demand on the remaining leaves and reduce drought

stress by irrigation. Trees showing disease symptoms will tolerate

infection better if provided with good growing conditions to offset leaf

loss.

Information for this article was derived from PPFS-FR-T-01, Peach

Leaf Curl and Plum Pockets, By John Hartman and Paul Bachi

Trees & Shrubs

Continue picking off and destroying dry, shriveled, mummified fruits from plants to prevent carry-over of diseases such as brown rot of peaches and black rot of grapes.

by Dennis Morgeson

4

How to Have Beautiful Clematis Blooms

Spring just wouldn't be the same without a clematis

vine in full bloom. There aren’t too many

gardeners who don’t have or don’t dream of having

a trellis covered in brilliant red or majestic purple

clematis blooms. And then there is the sweet autumn clematis with its intoxicating sweet

fragrance. But there is one question many

gardeners always ask, “How do I prune my

clematis vine?” The truth is, your clematis will

bloom without any pruning at all. However, if it is

pruned correctly, it will grow and bloom more

vigorously. Since we grow clematis for its blooms,

we should strive to prune them correctly.

Timing is very important when pruning your clematis vine. You never want to prune in the fall,

the vine needs to stay dormant until spring and fall

pruning can trigger a plant to break dormancy at

the first sign of warm weather. The problem with

this is that warm weather can occur in January and

the new growth can’t take the return to winter

weather and it will kill the plant.

Before you start pruning you need to know what pruning category your clematis vine belongs to.

There are three pruning groups: A, B, and C or

sometimes called 1, 2, and 3. When you buy your

plant, it may have a tag on it that will tell you this

information. If it doesn’t, you can tell by watching

what time of the season it blooms and noticing if it

blooms on the woody stem that grew last year and

survived the winter or if it blooms on green,

flexible stems that come straight from the main

stem.

We will begin with the C or group 3 cultivars.

These include cultivars such as the sweet autumn clematis, ‘Jackmanii,’ and

‘Ville de Lyon.’ This group will die to the ground over the winter and if left

unpruned it will flower only on the top with lots of last years dead foliage and

bare stems showing down near the base. This group blooms on new growth

so you need to cut the entire plant down each spring, if you don’t you will get

smaller and fewer flowers each season.

The next group will be B or group 2. This group usually includes the large-

flowered doubles or rebloomers such as ‘Multi Blue,’ ‘Henryi’ and ‘Nelly

Moser.’ The members of this group make a good companion to roses because

of their pruning requirements. These plants bloom on old wood in the spring

and in late summer smaller flowers will be produced on new wood. When

the plants leaf out in the spring you want to remove any stems that have died

back and do a light pruning to keep the vines trained to their trellis or

structure.

If your clematis doesn’t die back in the winter and blooms early in the spring

it is probably an A or group 1 plant. Some of the more popular species in this

group include C.armandii, C.alpina, and C.montana. These clematis will

bloom in early spring on old wood. You should wait to do most of your

pruning until after the main flowering has finished. If you prune too early

you’ll cut off the flower buds. If you have a group A clematis that is not

doing too well or is overgrown for its spot, it is probably due for a renovation

pruning. This can be done after the vines flower. You should cut off almost all side branches, but leave the main vertical stem that fastens the plant to the

trellis. The following spring the new growth that sprouts will have had time

to mature and should flower normally.

Flowers

If not already done, mulch over your perennial bed with a 6-8 inch layer of pine boughs, pine needles or straw, or a thinner layer of loose compost or bark. Apply winter mulches around lilies and other perennial flowers after the ground begins to freeze. A 2½ inch layer of bark or woodchip mulch will help prevent "frost heaving" caused by freezing and thawing through the winter.

by Lori Bowling

5 Upcoming Events

UpcomingUpcomingUpcoming

Horticulture EventsHorticulture EventsHorticulture Events Jan. 8 Commercial Arborist, Landscaper, and Nursery

Worker Seminar

859-586-6101

Boone County Extension Office

Jan. 17 and Feb. 28 Winter Walks in the Arboretum

859-586-6101

Environmental and Nature Center, Union, KY

Jan. 21 Commercial Growers Fruit and Vegetable

Meeting

270-886-6328

Fairview Produce Auction, Fairview, KY

Jan. 29 Lunch and Lecture: Gardening for Butterflies

502-695-9035

Franklin County Extension Office

Jan. 30 The Dollars and Sense of Emerald Ash Borer

lgrueber@frankfort.ky.gov (pre-registration

required)

Kentucky History Museum, Frankfort, KY

Feb. 3 Veggies 101

hardinext.org

Hardin County Extension Office

Feb. 3 Home Based Microprocessor Workshop

859-873-4601

Woodford County Extension Office

Feb. 4 Commercial Pesticide Applicator Training

859-586-6101

Boone County Extension Office

Feb. 11 Starting Seeds Indoors

859-586-6101

Boone County Extension Office

Feb. 16 Pruning Fruit Trees in the Orchard

270-554-9520

Call for directions, Paducah, KY

February 16, 6 pm (1st of 5 classes) Let’s Get Growin’ Monthly Garden Series

Warren County Extension Office

270-842-1681

February 17, 1 pm GAP & Market Sampling Training

Warren County Extension Office

270-842-1681

Feb. 24 Ash Tree Renovation

859-586-6101

Boone County Extension Office

Feb. 25 & Mar. 3 Landscape Design (Two-Part Class)

hardinext.org

Hardin County Extension Office