Fresh From The Nursery

One of the most common tree bugs, the white pine weevil, is an insect pest that attacks the top of young (under 25 feet tall) Colorado spruce trees in our area. A tree infested with weevil will have a wilted leader in early summer. Unfortunately, the signs will often go unnoticed until the fall when the needles drop.

Infested trees result in the formation of multiple trunks and bushy-topped trees.

The adult white pine weevil overwinters in the soil underneath the previously infested tree. In the spring, the egg-laying females climb up to the tips of trees usually less than 25 feet tall. The female chews holes in the bark and lays its eggs. The eggs hatch just as the buds are breaking and the larvae feed there’ eventually girdling the stem and causing wilting. Adult weevils chew through the stem and ext the tree in late summer. They briefly feed on the needles and bark before dropping to the ground and taking shelter for the winter.

“We hope that, when the insects take over the world, they will remember with gratitude how we took them along on all our picnics.” Bill Vaughan

Once the terminal leader dies, the side branches will begin going skyward to replace the old leader.

Prune out the dead top and burn the remains to control and prevent further infestation. Be sure that you have cut all of the infected areas by cutting as close to the next row of branches as possible. You can improve the appearance of your tree by training the best remaining side branch to be the new leader. Remove the other competing branches and stake up the replacement leader.

An insecticide needs annual application in the spring just before the buds break, The most effective pesticides are restricted use and are only applied by a licensed applicator. The homeowner safe insecticide, Sevin, used at the recommended rate can also provide control.

The chilly mornings we have been enjoying are a welcome reminder that fall is on the way. Here are a few ideas for fall garden maintenance to keep you busy in your yard this month.

Many of our garden crops will soon be harvested and we should clean up the refuse immediately because it can harbor insects and disease organisms. Any diseased or insect-infested plants should either be burned or bagged and taken to the dump. All healthy plant debris can be composted or worded into the soil. Smaller plant material will break down quickly if rocked into the soil, but the larger point material should decompose in a pile away from the garden. If you take care of the plant mat3eial after each crop is fully harvested, it will not be such a huge there a the end of the season.

After plant removal is complete, lightly till your garden plot and work in compost. Fall tillage will help your soil heat up more quickly and accept moisture more easily in the spring. The tilled in compost helps in destroying insect eggs and disease organisms.

Cut back perennial flowers to the ground as soon as the foliage has turned yellow. As long as the plant is still green, it is storing food in the roots for next year. Once the plants have gone dormant, you can divide overgrown perennials such as daisies, daylilies, yarrow and others. Give your garden a boost by top dressing your perennial flower beds with an inch or two of compost after all of your plants have been cut back. This will also help protect the roots from freezing, aid in weed control and naturally leach nutrients into the soil.

“You know you are a real gardener when you think compost is a fascinating subject.” Author unknown.

Some words on weed control

All weeds should be destroyed this fall. Fall germinating weeds such as shepherd’s purse and the mustard plants will sprout from now until snow cover and will go to seed early in the spring. Control of these weeds in the early stages will prevent a lot of work next spring. All the summer weeds now have full seed heads and need to be restored. Do not put these weeds in your compost. There is a risk that you won’t kill all the seeds and would be planting them back into your garden later.