Q: I hope you can give me some advice on my privet hedge. The hedge is about 25 years old and runs about 250 feet around my yard. It was very healthy last year but did not come back very well this spring. I had them cut back to 2 feet. I have always covered the base with leaves each fall. I have been watering them with Miracle-Gro each week, and they are all full and green now. My question is: When should I stop putting Miracle-Gro on them? Also, is it a good idea to put the leaves around them again this year? I am next to a lake and get very cold air from the North.
A: The privet plant is not hardy enough for many northern areas, and when there is a record cold like you probably had last winter, there will likely be some dieback. The leaves you pile around the base are going to help insulate the roots and lower trunks, so I would go ahead and keep doing that.
You don’t want to keep forcing new growth to come out as we get into the fall. The new growth will not have time to harden off, and it won’t be able to survive cold weather as well as hardened-off stems. I would stop fertilizing four to six weeks ahead of the first killing frost of the fall.
Q: We hope you can help us with a mysterious ailment to our sugar maple tree. The tree is about 30 years old and is beautiful, especially in the fall. About a month ago, we noticed the leaves developing green half-inch high needlelike spikes. The spikes turned brown and died. Nothing has emerged from the spikes. Therefore, we do not think it is insect related. The tree looks healthy otherwise, and branches are not dying. This has never happened before, and we hope you can help us solve the mystery.
A: I think your maple tree has maple spindle galls, which are caused by a tiny mite. They are harmless, but they can be unsightly. A mite spends the winter on the tree trunk hidden in cracks under the bark. As the leaf expands in the spring, the mite begins feeding, and it causes a small blister. The mite moves into the blister and secretes chemicals that cause the leaf to create the gall. They reproduce asexually for a while, and then in midsummer, the galls dry up and the mites move back to the tree trunk.
Since they do no significant damage, controls are unnecessary.
Q: I have exotic lilies in my garden. They grow 4 to 5 feet tall and have beautiful yellow scented flowers every year. They are about four years old. I want to move their location and don’t know what time of year to do this. I do not want to damage them. Is there a good time to move them, and if so, how should it be done?
A: Wait until the leaves on the stems of the lilies turn yellow and die. At that time, you can dig them up and replant them. If there are small baby bulbs, you can move them to even more new places. Different kinds of lilies bloom in the spring, summer or fall, so the digging date depends on the time when the lily dies back to the ground.
Dig around the spot the stem is coming out of the ground carefully, as the bulbs can be damaged by the shovel. Digging a wider hole and then moving in closer is better. Damaged bulbs should be left out of the ground for a few days to dry the cut area before replanting. The bulbs can be stored in a cool, dry location for several months before replanting, but the sooner they are replanted, the better. Replant the bulb as deep in the ground as they were originally. Mix some organic matter into the hole, especially below the depth of the bulb, so the roots can grow down into the good soil.
