Answers to Popular Plant & Garden Questions

By L.A. Jackson

Editor’s Note: We have an office full of green thumbs. Many of us enjoy getting our hands dirty in the garden and have some perplexing plant and garden questions for our buddy and garden adventurer L.A. Jackson. Perhaps you face the same plant conundrums. Check out Jackson’s solutions to our pressing botanical questions.

Q. What is the proper time and the proper way to prune a crape myrtle tree? Last time I pruned mine, it grew out too many new and extremely weak stems, and I felt guilty for months!
— Dena Pickle, Circulation Manager
A. To keep your crape within bounds, late winter — say, the first to middle of February — is the best time to prune. Telling you how to prune is a bit more complicated, but some buddies of mine at Wilson Brothers Nursery in McDogough, Ga.,  have a nice page of instructions on their Web site at: www.wilsonbrosnursery.com/How-To/Pruning-Instructions/How-To-Prune-A-Cra....

I don’t go out of my way to encourage crape myrtle pruning because without snips and clips, they form a fine flowing shape worthy of a specimen tree in any landscape. And now there is good news for gardeners who like crapes but don’t have the space: Restrained cultivars have been introduced that only reach a mature height of 10 to 12 feet, and now there are even some specimens that peak at a teeny, tiny 2 feet, so if you pick the properly proportioned crape myrtle for your landscape, the pruners will never have to come out of the garden shed.

Black-eyed Susan, also known as rudbeckia, is a drought-tolerant, dependable perennial that will show off well in a curbside landscape.

Q. Do indoor plants “know” when the seasons change, or is there anything I should do to help them along so they flower at the right times, etc?
— Tara Croft, Copy Editor
A. Most indoor plants are sensitive to changes in heat and light, so when it gets a little chillier inside and there is less light due to the sun heading south for the winter, plants sense something is up. As far as the “right time” for an indoor plant to flower, for me, any time is the right time, and I’d rather not go through the machinations of training it — if I want to go through that kind of trouble, I’ll get a dog.

For example, there are directions available that will show you how to get a Christmas cactus to bloom right at the height of the yuletide season, but I just set my plant in a bright window (not in full sun), where it freely blooms early in December and then it puts on another flower show for me later in the winter.

Native oakleaf hydrangeas bloom on old wood, meaning that if any pruning is necessary, it should be done right after the flowers fade.

Q: My husband and I just bought our first home. We are looking for ways to enhance its curb appeal and would love to know your recommendations for drought-tolerant, low maintenance trees, shrubs and flowers that make good foundation plantings. In addition to the types of plants, do you have advice on how to arrange them to highlight the different heights, textures and colors?
— Emily Uhland, Graphic Designer
A: Whew! This is a biggie! For starters, there are, of course, a ton of plants to suggest, and my short list would include ‘Miss Huff’ lantana, purple barberry, fountain grass, sea oats, acuba, Japanese beautyberry, purple heart, butterfly weed, gaura, ginkgo, black-eyed Susan, Russian sage, rosemary, blueberry, smoketree, Yaupon holly, evening primrose, abelia, ironweed, butterflybush and goldenrod — as you can see, my short list is not so short, and if you want even more ideas for tough-yet-pretty plants, pick up a copy of Bulletproof Flowers for the South by Jim Wilson (Taylor Publishing).

As far as how to arrange them, well, it is subject to personal tastes, but I can tell you what I don’t like: a straight row of 20 of the same type of plant, lined up like soldiers on parade. This not only looks artificial, but 10 years from now, if a few of the plants die, you’re left with gaps that destroy the symmetry. So why even start symmetry in the first place? Mix and match plants with various colors and textures, keeping in mind that, for better visual appeal, to create a layered effect by a progression of heights, starting with groundcovers in front, followed by perennials and annuals and finished off with shrubs and trees in the background. Again, don’t line the plants up in straight rows — curve and swerve the plantings and allow different specimens to flow (within reason) into the space of bordering plants.

Varying textures will be easy and very effective for visual appeal, but keep foliage color in mind, too. Variegated plants will hold interest long after flowers have faded, but also think about using plants such as barberry, fountain grass and smoketree, which have variants that come with elegant, eye-catching purple foliage.

The best way to provide eye-catching interest to a curbside landscape is to make it a merry mix of colors, textures and heights.

Q: When or is there a good time to trim hydrangeas? In the winter, should the whole bush be cut back or should it just die back on its own?
— Joe Overby, Staff Writer
A. OK, you’re going to have to have some smarts on this one as to just what kind of hydrangea you have because it will dictate when you should prune. If you have Hydrangea paniculata (‘Pee Gee’, ‘White Moth’, ‘Kyushu’, ‘Pee Wee’ and ‘Brussels Lace’ are common cultivars) or H. arborescens (such as ‘Samantha’ or ‘Annabelle’), they bloom on new wood, so they should be cut back in late winter, or if you want to try for repeat blooms, just after they first flower. If you are growing the native oakleaf hydrangea (H. quercifolia) or the pink-or-blue blooming H. macrophylla, they flower on old wood, so they should be snipped right after flowering.
L.A. Jackson is the former editor of Carolina Gardener magazine. If you would like to ask him a question about your garden, go to his Web site at: southeastgardeningwithla.com.

Written and Photographed By L.A. Jackson