Garden & Yard Issues
All Garden & Yard Issues Content
What’s Bugging Your Garden? Broom Moth
There is a new pest problem for flower growers that enjoy Baptisia (false indigo) called the Genista Broom Moth. It is actually the caterpillars that cause the damage.
Shot Hole Disease in Apricots
Shot hole disease of apricot trees can be identified through symptoms on leaves and fruit. Small holes will appear on leaves while brown lesions with a deep purple band will show up on fruit.
Care of Peace Lilies
Peace lilies, or Spathiphyllum, are popular houseplants because they are generally easy to grow, have pretty flowers and can tolerate lower light levels. But lots of people do have problems with them. I would say that most of these problems relate to improper watering and fertilizing.
Earwigs in the Garden: Less-Toxic Control Alternative
Since earwigs provide some ecological service as natural enemies, I hesitate to recommend a pesticide application to control it. As an alternative least-toxic solution, bait trapping the earwigs should work to reduce the insect’s population to the non-threatening levels.
Mulberry Trees
Every year about this time I received a few samples of mulberry trees. This is a very common tree in South Dakota, not so much from being planted by people but from birds.
Biological Control of Pests in High Tunnels
Major insect and mite pests in high tunnels include aphids, thrips, white flies, and spider mites. Biological control uses living organisms (natural enemies) to suppress or limit pest populations to levels that do not cause economic injury to the crop.
Maple Trees Looking Thin at This Time
Many of our maple trees are looking thinner at the tips of their canopies. The foliage in the lower, interior of these trees is dense, but when you look up at the tops, the leaves appear fewer and there are noticeable gaps at the base of the new shoot.
Apple Issues
Learn to identify and manage common apple tree issues including: apple maggot injury, apple scab, cedar apple rust, and fruit cracking.
How to Remove a Stump
Spring is the time of the year when people get around to remove trees from their yard.
Root Weevils & Imported Longhorned Weevils Finding Their Way Inside
We have been receiving reports of small, black insects that are observed crawling up bathroom walls, hanging out in basements, or otherwise finding their way inside.