June 6, 2026 • 39 mins
Horticulturist and landscape designer Teresa Watkins hosts Better Lawns and Gardens, Florida’s most popular gardening radio show. Her guest today is the president of the Manatee River Garden Club, who discusses how to celebrate National Gardening Week through “Random Acts of Gardening.” The “Dirty Word of the Day” is “Sucker.” Teresa also answers listener landscaping and gardening questions.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Good morning from the Summit Responsible Solution Studios.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. This is our
second hour. I'm Teresa Watkins. I'm a horticulturist, landscape designer,
garden author, producer.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
Lizzie Steele is a genius on the telephone and the radio.
Thank you equipment, Thank you, you're the best for technology.
And so we do wish everyone a good morning. It's
a beautiful, lovely day out there, lovely weather. No rainfall
expected through Tuesday or Wednesday, and then everybody has a
shot at it throughout the state. So North Florida, South Florida,
(00:46):
Central Florida, you're going to be getting rained next week
and we desperately need it. So we're doing really well
with this. No hurricanes being in the works right now,
so that's good. June first started a hurricane season, and
so you do want to make sure though that if
you have trees that need taken care of so that
(01:09):
they don't damage your house during a storm, get it
done now, especially when we don't have a storm approaching,
so you want to check that out.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Let's do the dirty word of the day. And now
it's time for the dirty word of the Day on
Better Lawns and Gardens with Teresa Watkins and the dirty
word of the Day is sucker.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Last week we had a phone call from a listener
who wanted to know, you know, if you should cut
off the suckers that were coming are growing out of
the bottom of the plant. So a sucker is a
new plant that grows from the root of an existing
tree or shrub rather than from a seed. It may
appear at the base of the plant or some distance away.
(01:52):
Suckers often develop when exposed roots are damaged by mowing
or injury, and they can also grow roots from the
cut from a cut down tree. Because tree roots typically
extend one and a half to two times the height
of the tree, these sprouts may emerge far away from
the trunk. This is a form of natural vegetative reproduction
(02:16):
that enables plant propagation. Each root is a clone of
the original plant and has the same genome. Plants that
reproduce this way include raspberries and blackberries, blueberries and pineapples,
bananas and apple, cherry, plum pears, guava, privet, belaurel, elms,
(02:38):
some roses, romeliads, aloe and agaves, and yuccas. Suckers act
as a dispersal mechanism that help plants spread to habitats
favorable for survival and growth. Some species, such as poplars
and blackthorn, produce root sprouts that spread quickly and form
dense root mats, allowing them to reclaim land cleared by logging, erosion,
(03:04):
or grazing. The giant aspen pando is a striking example.
Although these plants may be considered invasive, they are sometimes
cultivated and allowed to grow because they stabilize soil and
later are replaced naturally by non pioneer species, especially in
areas disturbed by public works or along waterways and reservoirs
(03:27):
prone to flooding. By creating shade, they also provide conditions
in which other species can establish and gradually take their
place on grafted plants, such as fruit trees, roses, and
other ornamentals. The graft union is the point where the
desired variety is joined to a rootstock. The rootstock is
(03:48):
chosen for traits like size control, hardiness, or disease resistance,
not for producing the fruit or flowers you want. Suckers
are shoes that grow often below the graft us union.
They are not part of the plant and will produce
a different plant type which may be smaller, less hardy,
or unsuitable for your needs. So the dirty word of
(04:09):
the day is sucker. And this hour after the interview
with the Manatee River Garden Club President Melanie Kester, I'm
going to give you key reasons to remove suckers from
your plants. So we're going to be doing that. Also
to the weather is lovely, it is a wonderful time
(04:31):
to plant. You want to make sure that you're using
plants that are suitable for your area, suitable for the
sunlight conditions. You want to check your sunlight.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Do you have.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Sunlight from all.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Day long six to eight hours or more, then you
have full sunlight conditions, and you want to make sure
your plants can handle that. If you have sunlight from
five to six hours, either morning sun afternoon shade, afternoon
sun morning shade, then you want to use plants that
can handle those conditions. And if you have five hours
(05:09):
of less, then you want to have plants that can
handle full shade. Turf does not grow well in conditions
with five hours or less unless you use a shade
tolerant Saint augustine grass or a zoysia grass that will
take those conditions. Behaya grass will not grow in the
(05:33):
shade very well. It will definitely just start to decline
as you put it in. So you want to make
sure you have the right sunlight conditions for your plant.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
You want to make sure.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
You have the right soil moisture, how wet does the
ground stay. We have our zero conditions are considered very sandy,
and we find those in the middle of the state
central Florida, down through Polk County and down below La Gocuchobe.
There they're really dry conditions. On the coastline, you want
(06:04):
to make sure you have the right pH so that
the plants. If you're on the beach area close to
alkaline new alkaline conditions salt water, spray or water, then
you want to make sure you have plants that can
handle that too as well. So check the pH of
your soil, and always before fertilizing, get a soil test.
(06:27):
You know, once a year is fine because soil conditions
can change, so you definitely want to make sure that
you are getting a soil test. Coming up, we have
a president of the Manatee River Garden Club Melanie Kester.
She is going to talk about the project they are
promoting for National Gardening Week. She comes up next Business
(06:49):
Saturday Morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
(07:10):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. Melanie Kester's love
of gardening began early, from planting her first vegetable garden
in third grade to quietly scattering hibiscus seeds around her
hometown as a child. She is the president of the
Manatee River Garden Club in Bradenton, Manatee County, and she's
a certified horticulturist whose work has focused on interior plants
(07:33):
and later the orchid industry.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Her passion for orchids runs deep.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
She once had a car full of coworkers stop on
Alligator Alley so she could rescue an epiphytic Encyclica orchid
from a tree. Excuse me, I asked Melanie to join
us today to talk about the Manateee River Gardens Club
outreach for National Gardening Week June seventh through the thirteenth.
Good morning, Melanie, thank.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
You for coming on. Bet our lawns and gardens. How
are you.
Speaker 4 (08:02):
Oh, I'm great, Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Well, I will tell you I was thrilled when I
saw your Facebook post and I thought it was such
a wonderful idea I wanted to have you come on.
And so you're the current president of the Manatee River
Garden Club.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
So tell us where you're based and a little bit
about the club.
Speaker 4 (08:22):
Yes, well, we are in Bradenton. We are between Tampa
and Sarasota. For those listeners who are not familiar with Bradenton,
we are right on the banks of the Manatee River,
hence the name of our club, and we have we've
been a part of Bradenton for a century now and
(08:44):
we're just a vibrant community of people who love nature.
We are involved in our community from everything such as
funding student scholarships to you know, restoring the habitats. And
you know, we we welcome all Floridians one natives born
(09:05):
and and you know, and newcomers.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
That's great.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
So National Gardening Week runs June seventh through the thirteenth.
Your club has a special campaign planned. So how is
your club promoting National Gardening Week?
Speaker 4 (09:20):
So we are taking the approach that we're calling random
acts of gardening. And if you think of it like
a pay it forward kind of a thing, it makes
more sense. It's just about taking something really simple, like
maybe you know, sharing a fresh flower bouquet from your
own garden, maybe you know, sharing some seeds of things
(09:43):
that you've collected yourself, or even just helping a neighbor
weave their flower beds. But the idea is just to
brighten someone else's day and to build community and you know,
spread joy through nature.
Speaker 1 (09:55):
I think that is a wonderful idea and I think
it's something that everyone can anticipate.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
So do you have to be a gardener to to
do this?
Speaker 4 (10:05):
Oh goodness, no, goodness, no, you just need to be
a human being with a heart. I mean, you know,
you don't even need a green thumb or a backyard.
It's you know, go and buy some flowers or even produce,
you know, at a local farmers market. You know you can.
You can do things like, you know, like I said,
share some seeds from your own plants. You can take cuttings.
(10:27):
My gosh, you can take you know, the green onions
from from your your groceries and clip them off and
then pop them in a base and watch them grow.
And you know, kids love to watch that kind of stuff.
I mean, that's the kind of random acts of gardening
that we're envisioning, something.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
That doesn't take a lot of time, and it just
is not something you're tied to for you know, weeks
and weeks.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
But just to brighten someone's say, I think that is
so wonderful.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
So you're asking them, how do they share what they
do with your Manitee River Garden Club.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
Well, you know, we, like I said, you don't even
need to be a gardener or you know, gosh even
known a trial to participate. Just you know, give, give
something that's beautiful, give a give a plant, a cutting,
you know, divide your pamiliads, you know, ask a neighbor,
you know, can I help you weed? Or you know
(11:21):
anything like that. And we have a hashtag and you
know it's random acts of gardening and you know, just
just take a take a snapshot and and and tag us.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Right, tag you, and then and then share it on
Facebook or Instagram or Pinterest hashtag random acts of guarding.
That is wonderful and so, uh, you have other community
programs and.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Projects, what what else does your garden club do?
Speaker 4 (11:52):
Well, you know, we have just recently finished a partnership
with Habitat for Humanity and they they had a community
of oh, I don't know, I would guess it was
about three dozen homes that they were building, and you know,
we we helped those homeowners, you know, pick out plants
that made sense for their particular location. And some people
(12:15):
just they didn't want a garden or even plants and
their landscape, and so we helped them with earth boxes.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Oh there you go. Yeah that works.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
Yeah, I mean, that's it's just it's it's so easy
and and but you know, there's a lot of people
that just have never have never done anything like that,
and so they just need a little bit of a
of a guiding hand and you know, and some reassurance
and voila, they're gardeners and.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
It happens just like that. It does.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
So if someone is listening in Bradenton or Manatee River County,
how can they come to a meeting or join your club?
Because I recommend that for everyone moving to Florida that
would like to learn about landscaping. And they did it
up north, but they don't know what they're doing down here.
I recommend everyone join a garden club, local garden club.
How do they do that in Bradenton and Manateee River County?
Speaker 4 (13:11):
Well, so, Manateee River Garden Club is here in Bradenton,
but we also have other betterated garden clubs. There's there's
the Lakewood Ranch garden Club, and then there's the Gardeners
out east. And all you need to do is, you know,
just just get on the internet and type in garden
(13:32):
Club braidenton Florida and you'll find one of us three.
And you know, and being part of us that erated
garden club is my goodness. I could talk for hours
about what a wonderful opportunity that is. And and like
you said, you know, you move here and it's just
so different from what we did up north.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
And so where are you from up north?
Speaker 4 (13:57):
I'm actually originally from Ohio.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
There you go, okay, super and so what so I
want you to go through and explain a little bit
about your orchid adventure. You actually protected one tell us
about that.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
So at the time, I was working for a fortune
and fifty insurance company in Miami and this was just
after nine to eleven, and you know, no one was
flying and we had a meeting in Tampa, so we
all had to carpool and drive from Miami up to Tampa.
(14:34):
And on the way to Tampa, I saw this area
that was being you know, being cleared, and I kind
of made a mental note of it. And on the
way back, you know, I don't know, maybe two days later,
I thought to myself, you know that sure looked like
prime habitat for the Insicklias. And so we approach it
(14:55):
and I think, you know, you guys, if you know mine,
can can we just stop for like maybe ten minutes?
And oh, okay, sure? And so there I was in
my suit and back then we had to wear pantyhose,
and I simmied right up that that that live oak
tree and peeled off that in Sicklia and stir enough.
(15:19):
The next time I drive drove through there, Yeah, it
was it was all.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Gone, all gone.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Oh my goodness, Well, I am so glad you did that.
And I and I hope I think it's pretty standard.
I would wish it was pretty standard that when they're
clearing property they do go through and check for native
trees and also you know, very rare species. So I
would hope they do that now. I'm sure they probably
(15:45):
didn't do that back then. So so Melanie, give us
your website again.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Www. Manatee River Gardenclub dot com.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
And when are your meetings.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
We meet from September through May, and it is always
the third Wednesday of the month at ten thirty and
then we have a lovely lunch and everyone is always
welcome to stay for lunch with us.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
That's wonderful.
Speaker 1 (16:12):
So they can just come and try out your club
and just meet and see how they get along.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
That would be wonderful. Melanie, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
I'm going to be posting your Facebook post so that
everybody can let you know about their random act of gardening.
And next week, next Saturday, if people would like to
just hashtag the Manatee River Garden Club and then tell
everybody what they did for the week, just one little
(16:40):
random act of gardening, Melanie can just.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Save the world.
Speaker 4 (16:44):
Oh that's wonderful, all right.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Thank you so much for joining us.
Speaker 1 (16:48):
Thank you all right, by bye. I just thought that
was such a great idea. And she's got in her
genes in her blood saving plants and doing random acts
of gardening like that to saving an orchid. Uh, and
so I'm so glad she did that. But what I
mean random acts of gardening. You can do that with children,
(17:10):
you can do it with a nursing home, with your work.
Speaker 5 (17:13):
Yes, yeah, definitely, so yeah, I love that and I
love the the It's it's like, I don't know, sometimes
whenever you tell people about gardening, it seems like a
scary thing, like a very detailed, oriented and babysitting kind
of thing. And you know, you can it's something you
could actually teach somebody that you know, just just start.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
With one small thing. That's right, Just start with one
little small thing.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Bring somebody some flowers, plant some zenias, you know, a tomato,
a pepper, and watch it grow. This this week we
did some random I had to up pot, replant, repot
some shrubs in a larger pot. So, I mean, it
(17:57):
was so good to get your hands in the dirt.
It just wonderful. So I thank Melanie kester Or. She
is the president of the Manatee Menitie River Garden Club
and that website is Manateerivergardenclub dot com.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Or if you're interested anywhere in the country.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
In the world, you you can find a local gardening
club or association, no matter where you are. We have
a lot of listeners all over the world and Singapore
and then also you know Peru, Peru, you know, so
you can find a garden club, a local garden club
to one if you're if you are a gardener, you
(18:38):
can share your knowledge, or two if you're not a gardener,
you can learn about gardening. Yes, and it's so beneficial
for your health, you feel better, and it's good for
the world. I think if we gardened wore, the world
would be a better place.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
One hundred percent.
Speaker 5 (18:51):
Also, you know, and if you're you should just go
into one of the box stores and find some seeds
now for the fall.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Starting those catalogs here, going through so you get the
ones you want and not stuck with the ones that
nobody wants.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Do that Linden zone a B.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
She said, when starting your cuttings and water, would it
be helpful to add a touch of some hormones and
root and hanser No. Let me explain why, Linda real quickly. One,
because when you put it in the water, it dilutes
it and the plant doesn't get the benefit of it.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
Also, to it can make your water.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
It can kind of cause disease issues in a bacteria
when you put the hormone in it, So don't do it.
You want to do root tone or root hormones on
your cuttings, do it before, let it dry for a
couple of hours, and then place it in water for
Saturday morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
This is now the time for your garden question one
triple eight four five five, two nine six seven, or
you can text two three six eight.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Zero like Andrea from Lady Lake just did.
Speaker 1 (20:14):
She talked about the do you want to know about
the bamboo gloves or Father's Day and it's a great idea.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
I just think it's just wonderful.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
You can go onto our Facebook page, Better Lawns and
Gardens and all five of the my recommendations for Father's
Day gifts are up there and you can see the
bamboo gloves and click right on the link and it'll
take you to the website and you can do that.
So thank you, Andrea, and Andrea for the text message
(20:43):
that's great. So in the first hour we talked about
I'm sorry. This hour we talked about suckers and how
to remove them, and so these are the key reasons
why you should do it. You want to prevent unwanted
plant tipe. So suckers grow from the rootstock, but if
they're left on the plant, they will take over the
(21:07):
plant and produce flowers and fruit that are not the
same variety. There's going to be something different about them.
They may not produce enough, they may produce something that
tastes totally different or not good at all. So that's
definitely one of the reasons why you cut suckers off
to prevent unwanted plants. But also you want to save
(21:29):
energy and resources for the plant. So suckers compete with
the actual living shoot for water and nutrients in sunlight,
and so this can weaken the main plant and the
graft and reduce fruiting potential. Also to graft failure. If
the suckers are growing from the rootstock, this may indicate
that your graft did not take and that the only
(21:51):
the bottom portion of your graft is surviving and so
poor formation or damage, which could lead the whole plant
to die. Suckers keeps the plants energy focused on the
desired branches and fruiting wood, leading to a healthier growth
and then preventing overcrowding suckers. Especially like underneath an oak
tree where we have those surface roots and you mow
(22:13):
over the surface roots, you have all of those little
oak trees coming up all the way around it, so
suckers can form dense clusters that block sunlight and airflow,
increasing disease and then also reducing the overall plant. So
you want to make sure that you don't do that. Now,
if you have the suckers on the oak tree that
(22:36):
are coming up, you can do a use a product
called sucker Stopper. Follow the label the instructions more is
not better, and it will reduce the amount of suckers
coming up. But definitely do not mow underneath an oak
tree cutting nicking those surface roots because then you're going
to get the suckers coming up. Keep a wide barrier
(22:57):
circle mulched so that you don't have to mow it.
So how do you remove them, Well, you identify the
graft union. It can be either a bump, a knot.
You can even see a color change that it's a
totally different part of the plant just above the soil line.
Then you cut those suckers as close to the base
as possible, removing as much as a shoot you can.
(23:20):
And then if you remove them promptly when they appear,
especially in early spring and summer, they're going to be
smaller and a little bit more tender, easier to cut off.
And then you dispose of the removed suckers to prevent regrowth.
So again that product that's called sucker stopper, you can
get it at the hardware stores.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
Online.
Speaker 1 (23:39):
You know, you can go to just google sucker stopper
and it will come up. So we do appreciate that
question about sucker stoppers one triple eight four five five
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero. Let me know what's going on in
your neighborhood, in your backyard. If you do a random
(24:03):
act of gardening this week in celebration of National Gardening Week,
then go ahead and post it on Better Launchtock Garden
with the hashtag random act of gardening and then also
hashtag Manatee River Garden Club and let us know what
you do, because I think that's so sweet. You can
again plant some zenias that will do well during the
(24:25):
summertime or a groundcover, and then also take a neighbor
a little flower base, so just even just a few flowers,
definitely most of one's yard for them that they haven't
been able to get to. Please take care of your neighbors.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
Yes, you know, for obviously first ass permission before you
go on any based property, especially in the state of Florida.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Exactly you never know, you never know.
Speaker 5 (24:48):
But also yeah, I think it's it's a good act
of kindness. And we kind of get really busy with
the amount of technology we have alone just totally just
read just redirects our mind every where else that this
is what she was saying. Is it definitely a good idea.
Let's just stop for a second, you know, let's just
stop and let's think, okay and look around who lives
(25:10):
around you?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
A do you even know your neighbors?
Speaker 1 (25:13):
That's that's a big part of it. That that's a
really big thing.
Speaker 5 (25:17):
And I'm at fault because we had new neighbors that
just bought property next to us, and I met the wife,
but I never got back with her to get give
her our information, and that was like three months ago,
three months ago. But and so you're all right, and
she is right. This is actually a good idea. So
whenever I get home today, I might actually hang something
over the fence, you know, you know, basically reintroduce myself,
(25:38):
but share a little bit of the stuff that we've
been doing.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
That's wonderful. Onions, you can always give her some onions, girl.
Speaker 5 (25:44):
Let me tell you, I got I got onions, by
the grace of God, coming out of every spot in
my yard.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
I think that's wonderful. Are they a particular kind of onions?
Speaker 6 (25:54):
You know?
Speaker 5 (25:54):
I did random this year. I did Validelia. I did
like sweet onions, white onions, red onions.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (26:00):
So, and then my Kaye is a Cayamne peppers. Yes,
like Cayamne peppers are are coming out, my habinaros, my jalapenos,
and I don't even eat any of that.
Speaker 2 (26:11):
Stry Bloxman would be so proud of you.
Speaker 3 (26:14):
You know.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
I'm just trying to grow and to be like Gary.
Speaker 5 (26:16):
One day.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
I want to be just as good as him. He
is wonderful, I'm sure, and he will let you. He
will help you do that.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
One triple eight four five five two ninety sixty seven,
or you can text two three six eight zero. I
will tell you I've been having so much fun with
you know, I'm designing a landscape that I'm putting a
meadow in and just going through and deciding on which
of the wildflowers we wanted to plant in it, and
(26:47):
just creating a meadow in a large just a grassy area.
Speaker 5 (26:51):
Okay, that's what I'm in my next step after we
have our thirtieth wedding anniversary coming up this next weekend.
But after that, I'm planting sunflower in an area and
trying to figure that out for our photos, for our
fall photos.
Speaker 7 (27:05):
For us, I'm not going to be wonderful. Well, keep
the dogs out of it. Yeah, so, and how's your
turkey's doing. They are doing stupidness. They're still alive, getting
fat and sassy.
Speaker 1 (27:18):
That is wonderful. We're gonna be back with more of
better lawns and gardens. You have a question gardening question,
give us a call one triple eight four five five
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero and I would love to hear about
your random acts of gardening and we'll be right back
(27:38):
Saturday morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins. This is Florida's talk and Entertainment network.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm Teresa Watchings.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
If you have a gardening question, one triple eight four
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Let's go to Collette in winter Haven. Good morning, Collette,
how are you?
Speaker 5 (28:12):
I'm good?
Speaker 6 (28:13):
Good morning Teresa.
Speaker 3 (28:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (28:15):
I thought some plants that I noticed yesterday. You know,
just the leaves of course are left at this point,
something is dripping the finish off of the leaf. I
mean the leaf is still there. It doesn't have holes
in it or anything. Well maybe a couple holes somewhere,
(28:36):
but if the dark green part it's like striped.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
Yes, any idea?
Speaker 6 (28:43):
What's that?
Speaker 2 (28:44):
Yes?
Speaker 1 (28:45):
That that's a rust disease and it happens frequently in amaryllis,
but you're not gonna be able to do anything about it.
It is actually in the emeralists plant. So what I
suggest is that one just wait until the leaves grow
down and you can cut them off. Okay, once once
(29:07):
they've been I would say two or three months, and
then you can cut them off this summer sometime, but
next year I want you to make sure you note
the location of it see if it comes back, because
sometimes it alternates and it doesn't come back every single year.
Speaker 2 (29:22):
But I have it in my yard.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
I see them sometimes, and then the next couple of
years I don't see it, and then then it'll come
back again. It is a rust disease in the actual amarillis,
and it's uh, it happens, but there's nothing you can do.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
About it, Okay.
Speaker 6 (29:39):
Well, yeah, And the other question I had was I
have some miss growing in a row box Lizzie.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
Over, good for you, Good for you.
Speaker 6 (29:52):
And some of the leaves are nice and big and gorgeous,
and then some of them are are just like twist teeth.
They've got so many little tiny holes. Yeah, it's kind
of in a sort of a bushy area. There's other
plants around it and stuff, so sometimes it's kind of
(30:14):
in the shade. And I do have some slugs that
I'm trying to work to get rid of. But what
could be putting the holes in the mint leaves.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
It could be a number of different insects, so I
would just cut those stems off. Since men is so prolific,
you're not going to miss them, and they could be
under the leaves, they could be in the shrubs around
your your mint plant. I just it's an insect isssue.
So but go ahead and just cut them off and
throw them away, Okay, okay.
Speaker 6 (30:44):
And then I just wanted to make a comment for
anybody out there that has a North Fork Island time
it is totally brown like mine. Mine. Mine is a
good size I'm going to say, maybe fifteen feet tall,
and it went almost totally brown. Some of the leaves
(31:05):
were part brown, you know, part almost green. But we
noticed this past week that if you look at the
base of those old limbs that we haven't cut off yet,
there's little green sprouts. Yeah, to come back out.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
That is very good.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
Yes it's taken this long, but yes they will recover
and then you can slowly just cut off the brown,
brown branches.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
So that's good. I'm glad you could see this.
Speaker 6 (31:34):
He hasn't gotten to the rest of them yet. I
was just encouraged to know because I see so many
of what looks like totally dead ones as they drive
around the winter Haven and so I hope people will
give them a chance to come back.
Speaker 2 (31:48):
There you go, Thank you so much, glad, I have
a great day.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Thank you for calling. Let's go to Polly in o Vito.
Good morning, Polly. How can I help you?
Speaker 8 (31:57):
Hey, yep, I can hear you fine, okay, quickly.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (32:01):
So my question is I don't know if it's exactly
a garden question, but it's about mosquito dunks.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
They can talk about.
Speaker 8 (32:06):
A lot, and I started using them mid April. So
I put I live in a neighborhood and has like
a like a zero lot lying kind of neighborhood yard,
you know, not real big. I put one in the
front and one in the back, and sort of like
an oval planter. I got it a dollar tree actually
like a pod, you know. Could they say to put
it in a pot? And I put some vegetation in
(32:27):
at some leaves, a little bit of bark from my tree,
and you know, I changed it. It said a month,
but I changed it after three weeks because honestly, they
look so like murky mucky dounky in there is that
normal and there is kind of like a I don't
want feel lack of a better word, it looks like
a layer of sort of foam, but it's moving around.
Speaker 9 (32:48):
I don't know what that is. The larvae it's in
the front and the back. They're sort of grouped together.
Speaker 8 (32:54):
Looks like thumb sort.
Speaker 9 (32:55):
Of moving all the time. And I don't you know,
I look the magnifying glass. Nope, is this what it's
supposed to do?
Speaker 1 (33:04):
It is you know, it's something that is not mosquito larva.
It could be something else, some other little moth or
something like that, but it shouldn't. I would go ahead
and dump it out and then keep the keep the
mosquito dunk in it and just freshen the water.
Speaker 8 (33:24):
Okay, should I not put any vegetation in it? There's
no reason to take some leaves and twigs and et cetera.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Well, if you want to, if you want to, you can.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
I don't necessarily do that, but it's not going to
you know, eliminate or hurt the mosquito dunks at all.
So it's working, and so, uh, you know that that
is normal for it to do that.
Speaker 8 (33:49):
Okay, Well, I have seen a couple of mosquitoes, but
I mean, I'm sure it's not one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (33:53):
Well, you see mosquitoes, but you don't see the larva
so one. So the mosquito flew into your yard, yes,
but they when they lay eggs, then the mosquito in
the water, then the mosquito dunks kill them.
Speaker 2 (34:06):
So that's what you're doing. Is you're not getting new
ones doing.
Speaker 8 (34:08):
It all summer? Keep going with it? Yeah, I would, okay, okay,
And if you have time for another quick question, I
don't know if you real quicky, but I don't know
if you.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
Do or not real quick? Don't mulch? What about?
Speaker 7 (34:20):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (34:20):
I use the no float cypress because I don't like
that colored stuff. I think it looks more prettier natural.
Speaker 2 (34:27):
Right is that an?
Speaker 8 (34:28):
Is that a good choice?
Speaker 2 (34:30):
Sure?
Speaker 1 (34:30):
Mulch is you know, mulch is mulch as far as
you want to put down three to four inches to
make sure there's no sunlight. So your choice of mulch
is up to you. I like to look at it
from a design perspective. But yes, that is just fine,
not a problem. I don't have a favorite.
Speaker 8 (34:47):
Like mulch at all, but my homeowners wants it, so
I put it down.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
You definitely need it.
Speaker 8 (34:51):
I know the way when you blow the yard you
know it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Well, the thing is is that you have to have
it so that it's you know, what I would do
if it floats away is make sure you're controlling that
water area the gutter coming down around it. And then
also too, you can put a little swale right before
your curb or the street and that will catch it.
And if it's coming down fast enough, you may not
have it being applied correctly on the ground, So don't
(35:19):
have it so high that it mulches off. Three inches
is all you need, and that usually stays pretty cool.
Speaker 8 (35:26):
Okay, yeah, No, it blows away when I blow the yard,
That's what I'm saying about. It doesn't rain away like
when I'm I have huge trees and I have leaves
and I have to blow the yard and it just
sort of goes into the grass. So it's annoying.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
But anyway, well, no, the thing is is, if you've
got that many leaves, I would use the leaves as mulch.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
Put that up around your shrubs.
Speaker 8 (35:48):
And you're away with the wind.
Speaker 9 (35:49):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (35:52):
There you go, Thank you more free, So if.
Speaker 8 (35:54):
That tells you anything. I have four giant sycamores, and
I know they're a pest, but they're here and that's the.
Speaker 4 (35:59):
Way it is there.
Speaker 1 (36:00):
You go, well, just do it once or twice a
year and you won't have to do it anymore.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
Thank you. Let's go to dianaka Simmy. Good morning Diane.
Speaker 7 (36:08):
Hi.
Speaker 3 (36:09):
I'm another one of those zero lotline people.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
No I know.
Speaker 3 (36:12):
I had to cut down the maple tree that the
builders put in the yard because the roots were lifting
up my driveway and the roots I have roots all
over over that small section that's available that is not
concrete I do want to put because I that maple
had shade. The house is just sitting there in the sun.
I'd like to get some kind of a tree. I
(36:34):
like trees. I like shade. So why did I move
to Florida? What kind of a tree can I get?
That it's not going to have roots that are going
to damage the house because they're they're so close.
Speaker 1 (36:48):
So it's going to go in that ten fifty An
olive tree would work, but also crepe myrtles would do nicely.
You can get some of the larger ones, but they
don't have a deep, you know, invasive roots system. Also,
some fringe trees will work. You can also do down
in Kase. Send me the Tibet China tree will give
(37:08):
you some shade.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
And there's there's quite a few other ones varieties. But
I've got a heard break coming up at the end
of the show. So Diane, what I'm gonna do is
next week, I'm going to talk about some trees that
you can plant that don't have a deep and penetrating
root system that will damage your homes.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
How's that for you?
Speaker 3 (37:27):
Oh, it sounds one. I envy both of you with
your large yards you have planting all this stuff. I
do not.
Speaker 2 (37:34):
I do not have a large yard. I have really
small yard.
Speaker 3 (37:37):
I do not.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
I do have a really small yard is fifty by
about one hundred. That's it.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
So thank you so much, Diane.
Speaker 2 (37:46):
There you go, Diane, thank you so much.
Speaker 6 (37:48):
We'll go.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
I'll take care of that next week with the trees
for the root system.
Speaker 2 (37:52):
Thank you, Lizzie, thank you so much. I appreciate you.
Speaker 5 (37:55):
Yes, and thank you to our callers because as you
just saw this, this rapid fire of phone calls, the listeners,
you guys make our job amazing.
Speaker 2 (38:04):
So thank you. There's never a dumb question, never, never
not question.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
I will answer some more gardening questions next week and Diane,
I'll give you some trees that don't have a deep,
deep root system.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
We'll have it.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
Thank you to Melanie Kester, the president of the Manatee
River Garden Club. If you would like to do your
random acts of gardening, you let them know hashtag Manatee
River Garden Club and their website is Manateerivergardenclub dot com.
Thank you to Dana Ndrick two. We love having him
as a sponsor of the show. It's Saturday morning.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens.
Speaker 1 (38:38):
I'm Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
Speaker 5 (38:45):
If you miss any of the show and you'd like
to recap any episode, go to Better Lawns dot com.
Speaker 10 (38:50):
That's Better Lawns dot com.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
Directed in distinct disap
Good morning from the Summit Responsible Solution Studios.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. This is our
second hour. I'm Teresa Watkins. I'm a horticulturist, landscape designer,
garden author, producer.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
Lizzie Steele is a genius on the telephone and the radio.
Thank you equipment, Thank you, you're the best for technology.
And so we do wish everyone a good morning. It's
a beautiful, lovely day out there, lovely weather. No rainfall
expected through Tuesday or Wednesday, and then everybody has a
shot at it throughout the state. So North Florida, South Florida,
(00:46):
Central Florida, you're going to be getting rained next week
and we desperately need it. So we're doing really well
with this. No hurricanes being in the works right now,
so that's good. June first started a hurricane season, and
so you do want to make sure though that if
you have trees that need taken care of so that
(01:09):
they don't damage your house during a storm, get it
done now, especially when we don't have a storm approaching,
so you want to check that out.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Let's do the dirty word of the day. And now
it's time for the dirty word of the Day on
Better Lawns and Gardens with Teresa Watkins and the dirty
word of the Day is sucker.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Last week we had a phone call from a listener
who wanted to know, you know, if you should cut
off the suckers that were coming are growing out of
the bottom of the plant. So a sucker is a
new plant that grows from the root of an existing
tree or shrub rather than from a seed. It may
appear at the base of the plant or some distance away.
(01:52):
Suckers often develop when exposed roots are damaged by mowing
or injury, and they can also grow roots from the
cut from a cut down tree. Because tree roots typically
extend one and a half to two times the height
of the tree, these sprouts may emerge far away from
the trunk. This is a form of natural vegetative reproduction
(02:16):
that enables plant propagation. Each root is a clone of
the original plant and has the same genome. Plants that
reproduce this way include raspberries and blackberries, blueberries and pineapples,
bananas and apple, cherry, plum pears, guava, privet, belaurel, elms,
(02:38):
some roses, romeliads, aloe and agaves, and yuccas. Suckers act
as a dispersal mechanism that help plants spread to habitats
favorable for survival and growth. Some species, such as poplars
and blackthorn, produce root sprouts that spread quickly and form
dense root mats, allowing them to reclaim land cleared by logging, erosion,
(03:04):
or grazing. The giant aspen pando is a striking example.
Although these plants may be considered invasive, they are sometimes
cultivated and allowed to grow because they stabilize soil and
later are replaced naturally by non pioneer species, especially in
areas disturbed by public works or along waterways and reservoirs
(03:27):
prone to flooding. By creating shade, they also provide conditions
in which other species can establish and gradually take their
place on grafted plants, such as fruit trees, roses, and
other ornamentals. The graft union is the point where the
desired variety is joined to a rootstock. The rootstock is
(03:48):
chosen for traits like size control, hardiness, or disease resistance,
not for producing the fruit or flowers you want. Suckers
are shoes that grow often below the graft us union.
They are not part of the plant and will produce
a different plant type which may be smaller, less hardy,
or unsuitable for your needs. So the dirty word of
(04:09):
the day is sucker. And this hour after the interview
with the Manatee River Garden Club President Melanie Kester, I'm
going to give you key reasons to remove suckers from
your plants. So we're going to be doing that. Also
to the weather is lovely, it is a wonderful time
(04:31):
to plant. You want to make sure that you're using
plants that are suitable for your area, suitable for the
sunlight conditions. You want to check your sunlight.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Do you have.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Sunlight from all.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Day long six to eight hours or more, then you
have full sunlight conditions, and you want to make sure
your plants can handle that. If you have sunlight from
five to six hours, either morning sun afternoon shade, afternoon
sun morning shade, then you want to use plants that
can handle those conditions. And if you have five hours
(05:09):
of less, then you want to have plants that can
handle full shade. Turf does not grow well in conditions
with five hours or less unless you use a shade
tolerant Saint augustine grass or a zoysia grass that will
take those conditions. Behaya grass will not grow in the
(05:33):
shade very well. It will definitely just start to decline
as you put it in. So you want to make
sure you have the right sunlight conditions for your plant.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
You want to make sure.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
You have the right soil moisture, how wet does the
ground stay. We have our zero conditions are considered very sandy,
and we find those in the middle of the state
central Florida, down through Polk County and down below La Gocuchobe.
There they're really dry conditions. On the coastline, you want
(06:04):
to make sure you have the right pH so that
the plants. If you're on the beach area close to
alkaline new alkaline conditions salt water, spray or water, then
you want to make sure you have plants that can
handle that too as well. So check the pH of
your soil, and always before fertilizing, get a soil test.
(06:27):
You know, once a year is fine because soil conditions
can change, so you definitely want to make sure that
you are getting a soil test. Coming up, we have
a president of the Manatee River Garden Club Melanie Kester.
She is going to talk about the project they are
promoting for National Gardening Week. She comes up next Business
(06:49):
Saturday Morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
(07:10):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. Melanie Kester's love
of gardening began early, from planting her first vegetable garden
in third grade to quietly scattering hibiscus seeds around her
hometown as a child. She is the president of the
Manatee River Garden Club in Bradenton, Manatee County, and she's
a certified horticulturist whose work has focused on interior plants
(07:33):
and later the orchid industry.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Her passion for orchids runs deep.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
She once had a car full of coworkers stop on
Alligator Alley so she could rescue an epiphytic Encyclica orchid
from a tree. Excuse me, I asked Melanie to join
us today to talk about the Manateee River Gardens Club
outreach for National Gardening Week June seventh through the thirteenth.
Good morning, Melanie, thank.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
You for coming on. Bet our lawns and gardens. How
are you.
Speaker 4 (08:02):
Oh, I'm great, Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Well, I will tell you I was thrilled when I
saw your Facebook post and I thought it was such
a wonderful idea I wanted to have you come on.
And so you're the current president of the Manatee River
Garden Club.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
So tell us where you're based and a little bit
about the club.
Speaker 4 (08:22):
Yes, well, we are in Bradenton. We are between Tampa
and Sarasota. For those listeners who are not familiar with Bradenton,
we are right on the banks of the Manatee River,
hence the name of our club, and we have we've
been a part of Bradenton for a century now and
(08:44):
we're just a vibrant community of people who love nature.
We are involved in our community from everything such as
funding student scholarships to you know, restoring the habitats. And
you know, we we welcome all Floridians one natives born
(09:05):
and and you know, and newcomers.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
That's great.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
So National Gardening Week runs June seventh through the thirteenth.
Your club has a special campaign planned. So how is
your club promoting National Gardening Week?
Speaker 4 (09:20):
So we are taking the approach that we're calling random
acts of gardening. And if you think of it like
a pay it forward kind of a thing, it makes
more sense. It's just about taking something really simple, like
maybe you know, sharing a fresh flower bouquet from your
own garden, maybe you know, sharing some seeds of things
(09:43):
that you've collected yourself, or even just helping a neighbor
weave their flower beds. But the idea is just to
brighten someone else's day and to build community and you know,
spread joy through nature.
Speaker 1 (09:55):
I think that is a wonderful idea and I think
it's something that everyone can anticipate.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
So do you have to be a gardener to to
do this?
Speaker 4 (10:05):
Oh goodness, no, goodness, no, you just need to be
a human being with a heart. I mean, you know,
you don't even need a green thumb or a backyard.
It's you know, go and buy some flowers or even produce,
you know, at a local farmers market. You know you can.
You can do things like, you know, like I said,
share some seeds from your own plants. You can take cuttings.
(10:27):
My gosh, you can take you know, the green onions
from from your your groceries and clip them off and
then pop them in a base and watch them grow.
And you know, kids love to watch that kind of stuff.
I mean, that's the kind of random acts of gardening
that we're envisioning, something.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
That doesn't take a lot of time, and it just
is not something you're tied to for you know, weeks
and weeks.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
But just to brighten someone's say, I think that is
so wonderful.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
So you're asking them, how do they share what they
do with your Manitee River Garden Club.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
Well, you know, we, like I said, you don't even
need to be a gardener or you know, gosh even
known a trial to participate. Just you know, give, give
something that's beautiful, give a give a plant, a cutting,
you know, divide your pamiliads, you know, ask a neighbor,
you know, can I help you weed? Or you know
(11:21):
anything like that. And we have a hashtag and you
know it's random acts of gardening and you know, just
just take a take a snapshot and and and tag us.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Right, tag you, and then and then share it on
Facebook or Instagram or Pinterest hashtag random acts of guarding.
That is wonderful and so, uh, you have other community
programs and.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Projects, what what else does your garden club do?
Speaker 4 (11:52):
Well, you know, we have just recently finished a partnership
with Habitat for Humanity and they they had a community
of oh, I don't know, I would guess it was
about three dozen homes that they were building, and you know,
we we helped those homeowners, you know, pick out plants
that made sense for their particular location. And some people
(12:15):
just they didn't want a garden or even plants and
their landscape, and so we helped them with earth boxes.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Oh there you go. Yeah that works.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
Yeah, I mean, that's it's just it's it's so easy
and and but you know, there's a lot of people
that just have never have never done anything like that,
and so they just need a little bit of a
of a guiding hand and you know, and some reassurance
and voila, they're gardeners and.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
It happens just like that. It does.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
So if someone is listening in Bradenton or Manatee River County,
how can they come to a meeting or join your club?
Because I recommend that for everyone moving to Florida that
would like to learn about landscaping. And they did it
up north, but they don't know what they're doing down here.
I recommend everyone join a garden club, local garden club.
How do they do that in Bradenton and Manateee River County?
Speaker 4 (13:11):
Well, so, Manateee River Garden Club is here in Bradenton,
but we also have other betterated garden clubs. There's there's
the Lakewood Ranch garden Club, and then there's the Gardeners
out east. And all you need to do is, you know,
just just get on the internet and type in garden
(13:32):
Club braidenton Florida and you'll find one of us three.
And you know, and being part of us that erated
garden club is my goodness. I could talk for hours
about what a wonderful opportunity that is. And and like
you said, you know, you move here and it's just
so different from what we did up north.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
And so where are you from up north?
Speaker 4 (13:57):
I'm actually originally from Ohio.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
There you go, okay, super and so what so I
want you to go through and explain a little bit
about your orchid adventure. You actually protected one tell us
about that.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
So at the time, I was working for a fortune
and fifty insurance company in Miami and this was just
after nine to eleven, and you know, no one was
flying and we had a meeting in Tampa, so we
all had to carpool and drive from Miami up to Tampa.
(14:34):
And on the way to Tampa, I saw this area
that was being you know, being cleared, and I kind
of made a mental note of it. And on the
way back, you know, I don't know, maybe two days later,
I thought to myself, you know that sure looked like
prime habitat for the Insicklias. And so we approach it
(14:55):
and I think, you know, you guys, if you know mine,
can can we just stop for like maybe ten minutes?
And oh, okay, sure? And so there I was in
my suit and back then we had to wear pantyhose,
and I simmied right up that that that live oak
tree and peeled off that in Sicklia and stir enough.
(15:19):
The next time I drive drove through there, Yeah, it
was it was all.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Gone, all gone.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Oh my goodness, Well, I am so glad you did that.
And I and I hope I think it's pretty standard.
I would wish it was pretty standard that when they're
clearing property they do go through and check for native
trees and also you know, very rare species. So I
would hope they do that now. I'm sure they probably
(15:45):
didn't do that back then. So so Melanie, give us
your website again.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Www. Manatee River Gardenclub dot com.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
And when are your meetings.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
We meet from September through May, and it is always
the third Wednesday of the month at ten thirty and
then we have a lovely lunch and everyone is always
welcome to stay for lunch with us.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
That's wonderful.
Speaker 1 (16:12):
So they can just come and try out your club
and just meet and see how they get along.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
That would be wonderful. Melanie, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
I'm going to be posting your Facebook post so that
everybody can let you know about their random act of gardening.
And next week, next Saturday, if people would like to
just hashtag the Manatee River Garden Club and then tell
everybody what they did for the week, just one little
(16:40):
random act of gardening, Melanie can just.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Save the world.
Speaker 4 (16:44):
Oh that's wonderful, all right.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Thank you so much for joining us.
Speaker 1 (16:48):
Thank you all right, by bye. I just thought that
was such a great idea. And she's got in her
genes in her blood saving plants and doing random acts
of gardening like that to saving an orchid. Uh, and
so I'm so glad she did that. But what I
mean random acts of gardening. You can do that with children,
(17:10):
you can do it with a nursing home, with your work.
Speaker 5 (17:13):
Yes, yeah, definitely, so yeah, I love that and I
love the the It's it's like, I don't know, sometimes
whenever you tell people about gardening, it seems like a
scary thing, like a very detailed, oriented and babysitting kind
of thing. And you know, you can it's something you
could actually teach somebody that you know, just just start.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
With one small thing. That's right, Just start with one
little small thing.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Bring somebody some flowers, plant some zenias, you know, a tomato,
a pepper, and watch it grow. This this week we
did some random I had to up pot, replant, repot
some shrubs in a larger pot. So, I mean, it
(17:57):
was so good to get your hands in the dirt.
It just wonderful. So I thank Melanie kester Or. She
is the president of the Manatee Menitie River Garden Club
and that website is Manateerivergardenclub dot com.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Or if you're interested anywhere in the country.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
In the world, you you can find a local gardening
club or association, no matter where you are. We have
a lot of listeners all over the world and Singapore
and then also you know Peru, Peru, you know, so
you can find a garden club, a local garden club
to one if you're if you are a gardener, you
(18:38):
can share your knowledge, or two if you're not a gardener,
you can learn about gardening. Yes, and it's so beneficial
for your health, you feel better, and it's good for
the world. I think if we gardened wore, the world
would be a better place.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
One hundred percent.
Speaker 5 (18:51):
Also, you know, and if you're you should just go
into one of the box stores and find some seeds
now for the fall.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Starting those catalogs here, going through so you get the
ones you want and not stuck with the ones that
nobody wants.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Do that Linden zone a B.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
She said, when starting your cuttings and water, would it
be helpful to add a touch of some hormones and
root and hanser No. Let me explain why, Linda real quickly. One,
because when you put it in the water, it dilutes
it and the plant doesn't get the benefit of it.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
Also, to it can make your water.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
It can kind of cause disease issues in a bacteria
when you put the hormone in it, So don't do it.
You want to do root tone or root hormones on
your cuttings, do it before, let it dry for a
couple of hours, and then place it in water for
Saturday morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
This is now the time for your garden question one
triple eight four five five, two nine six seven, or
you can text two three six eight.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Zero like Andrea from Lady Lake just did.
Speaker 1 (20:14):
She talked about the do you want to know about
the bamboo gloves or Father's Day and it's a great idea.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
I just think it's just wonderful.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
You can go onto our Facebook page, Better Lawns and
Gardens and all five of the my recommendations for Father's
Day gifts are up there and you can see the
bamboo gloves and click right on the link and it'll
take you to the website and you can do that.
So thank you, Andrea, and Andrea for the text message
(20:43):
that's great. So in the first hour we talked about
I'm sorry. This hour we talked about suckers and how
to remove them, and so these are the key reasons
why you should do it. You want to prevent unwanted
plant tipe. So suckers grow from the rootstock, but if
they're left on the plant, they will take over the
(21:07):
plant and produce flowers and fruit that are not the
same variety. There's going to be something different about them.
They may not produce enough, they may produce something that
tastes totally different or not good at all. So that's
definitely one of the reasons why you cut suckers off
to prevent unwanted plants. But also you want to save
(21:29):
energy and resources for the plant. So suckers compete with
the actual living shoot for water and nutrients in sunlight,
and so this can weaken the main plant and the
graft and reduce fruiting potential. Also to graft failure. If
the suckers are growing from the rootstock, this may indicate
that your graft did not take and that the only
(21:51):
the bottom portion of your graft is surviving and so
poor formation or damage, which could lead the whole plant
to die. Suckers keeps the plants energy focused on the
desired branches and fruiting wood, leading to a healthier growth
and then preventing overcrowding suckers. Especially like underneath an oak
tree where we have those surface roots and you mow
(22:13):
over the surface roots, you have all of those little
oak trees coming up all the way around it, so
suckers can form dense clusters that block sunlight and airflow,
increasing disease and then also reducing the overall plant. So
you want to make sure that you don't do that. Now,
if you have the suckers on the oak tree that
(22:36):
are coming up, you can do a use a product
called sucker Stopper. Follow the label the instructions more is
not better, and it will reduce the amount of suckers
coming up. But definitely do not mow underneath an oak
tree cutting nicking those surface roots because then you're going
to get the suckers coming up. Keep a wide barrier
(22:57):
circle mulched so that you don't have to mow it.
So how do you remove them, Well, you identify the
graft union. It can be either a bump, a knot.
You can even see a color change that it's a
totally different part of the plant just above the soil line.
Then you cut those suckers as close to the base
as possible, removing as much as a shoot you can.
(23:20):
And then if you remove them promptly when they appear,
especially in early spring and summer, they're going to be
smaller and a little bit more tender, easier to cut off.
And then you dispose of the removed suckers to prevent regrowth.
So again that product that's called sucker stopper, you can
get it at the hardware stores.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
Online.
Speaker 1 (23:39):
You know, you can go to just google sucker stopper
and it will come up. So we do appreciate that
question about sucker stoppers one triple eight four five five
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero. Let me know what's going on in
your neighborhood, in your backyard. If you do a random
(24:03):
act of gardening this week in celebration of National Gardening Week,
then go ahead and post it on Better Launchtock Garden
with the hashtag random act of gardening and then also
hashtag Manatee River Garden Club and let us know what
you do, because I think that's so sweet. You can
again plant some zenias that will do well during the
(24:25):
summertime or a groundcover, and then also take a neighbor
a little flower base, so just even just a few flowers,
definitely most of one's yard for them that they haven't
been able to get to. Please take care of your neighbors.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
Yes, you know, for obviously first ass permission before you
go on any based property, especially in the state of Florida.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Exactly you never know, you never know.
Speaker 5 (24:48):
But also yeah, I think it's it's a good act
of kindness. And we kind of get really busy with
the amount of technology we have alone just totally just
read just redirects our mind every where else that this
is what she was saying. Is it definitely a good idea.
Let's just stop for a second, you know, let's just
stop and let's think, okay and look around who lives
(25:10):
around you?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
A do you even know your neighbors?
Speaker 1 (25:13):
That's that's a big part of it. That that's a
really big thing.
Speaker 5 (25:17):
And I'm at fault because we had new neighbors that
just bought property next to us, and I met the wife,
but I never got back with her to get give
her our information, and that was like three months ago,
three months ago. But and so you're all right, and
she is right. This is actually a good idea. So
whenever I get home today, I might actually hang something
over the fence, you know, you know, basically reintroduce myself,
(25:38):
but share a little bit of the stuff that we've
been doing.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
That's wonderful. Onions, you can always give her some onions, girl.
Speaker 5 (25:44):
Let me tell you, I got I got onions, by
the grace of God, coming out of every spot in
my yard.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
I think that's wonderful. Are they a particular kind of onions?
Speaker 6 (25:54):
You know?
Speaker 5 (25:54):
I did random this year. I did Validelia. I did
like sweet onions, white onions, red onions.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (26:00):
So, and then my Kaye is a Cayamne peppers. Yes,
like Cayamne peppers are are coming out, my habinaros, my jalapenos,
and I don't even eat any of that.
Speaker 2 (26:11):
Stry Bloxman would be so proud of you.
Speaker 3 (26:14):
You know.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
I'm just trying to grow and to be like Gary.
Speaker 5 (26:16):
One day.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
I want to be just as good as him. He
is wonderful, I'm sure, and he will let you. He
will help you do that.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
One triple eight four five five two ninety sixty seven,
or you can text two three six eight zero. I
will tell you I've been having so much fun with
you know, I'm designing a landscape that I'm putting a
meadow in and just going through and deciding on which
of the wildflowers we wanted to plant in it, and
(26:47):
just creating a meadow in a large just a grassy area.
Speaker 5 (26:51):
Okay, that's what I'm in my next step after we
have our thirtieth wedding anniversary coming up this next weekend.
But after that, I'm planting sunflower in an area and
trying to figure that out for our photos, for our
fall photos.
Speaker 7 (27:05):
For us, I'm not going to be wonderful. Well, keep
the dogs out of it. Yeah, so, and how's your
turkey's doing. They are doing stupidness. They're still alive, getting
fat and sassy.
Speaker 1 (27:18):
That is wonderful. We're gonna be back with more of
better lawns and gardens. You have a question gardening question,
give us a call one triple eight four five five
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero and I would love to hear about
your random acts of gardening and we'll be right back
(27:38):
Saturday morning. You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm
Teresa Watkins. This is Florida's talk and Entertainment network.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And welcome back to Better Lawns and Gardens. I'm Teresa Watchings.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
If you have a gardening question, one triple eight four
two nine sixty seven, or you can text two three
six eight zero.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Let's go to Collette in winter Haven. Good morning, Collette,
how are you?
Speaker 5 (28:12):
I'm good?
Speaker 6 (28:13):
Good morning Teresa.
Speaker 3 (28:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (28:15):
I thought some plants that I noticed yesterday. You know,
just the leaves of course are left at this point,
something is dripping the finish off of the leaf. I
mean the leaf is still there. It doesn't have holes
in it or anything. Well maybe a couple holes somewhere,
(28:36):
but if the dark green part it's like striped.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
Yes, any idea?
Speaker 6 (28:43):
What's that?
Speaker 2 (28:44):
Yes?
Speaker 1 (28:45):
That that's a rust disease and it happens frequently in amaryllis,
but you're not gonna be able to do anything about it.
It is actually in the emeralists plant. So what I
suggest is that one just wait until the leaves grow
down and you can cut them off. Okay, once once
(29:07):
they've been I would say two or three months, and
then you can cut them off this summer sometime, but
next year I want you to make sure you note
the location of it see if it comes back, because
sometimes it alternates and it doesn't come back every single year.
Speaker 2 (29:22):
But I have it in my yard.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
I see them sometimes, and then the next couple of
years I don't see it, and then then it'll come
back again. It is a rust disease in the actual amarillis,
and it's uh, it happens, but there's nothing you can do.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
About it, Okay.
Speaker 6 (29:39):
Well, yeah, And the other question I had was I
have some miss growing in a row box Lizzie.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
Over, good for you, Good for you.
Speaker 6 (29:52):
And some of the leaves are nice and big and gorgeous,
and then some of them are are just like twist teeth.
They've got so many little tiny holes. Yeah, it's kind
of in a sort of a bushy area. There's other
plants around it and stuff, so sometimes it's kind of
(30:14):
in the shade. And I do have some slugs that
I'm trying to work to get rid of. But what
could be putting the holes in the mint leaves.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
It could be a number of different insects, so I
would just cut those stems off. Since men is so prolific,
you're not going to miss them, and they could be
under the leaves, they could be in the shrubs around
your your mint plant. I just it's an insect isssue.
So but go ahead and just cut them off and
throw them away, Okay, okay.
Speaker 6 (30:44):
And then I just wanted to make a comment for
anybody out there that has a North Fork Island time
it is totally brown like mine. Mine. Mine is a
good size I'm going to say, maybe fifteen feet tall,
and it went almost totally brown. Some of the leaves
(31:05):
were part brown, you know, part almost green. But we
noticed this past week that if you look at the
base of those old limbs that we haven't cut off yet,
there's little green sprouts. Yeah, to come back out.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
That is very good.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
Yes it's taken this long, but yes they will recover
and then you can slowly just cut off the brown,
brown branches.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
So that's good. I'm glad you could see this.
Speaker 6 (31:34):
He hasn't gotten to the rest of them yet. I
was just encouraged to know because I see so many
of what looks like totally dead ones as they drive
around the winter Haven and so I hope people will
give them a chance to come back.
Speaker 2 (31:48):
There you go, Thank you so much, glad, I have
a great day.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
Thank you for calling. Let's go to Polly in o Vito.
Good morning, Polly. How can I help you?
Speaker 8 (31:57):
Hey, yep, I can hear you fine, okay, quickly.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (32:01):
So my question is I don't know if it's exactly
a garden question, but it's about mosquito dunks.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
They can talk about.
Speaker 8 (32:06):
A lot, and I started using them mid April. So
I put I live in a neighborhood and has like
a like a zero lot lying kind of neighborhood yard,
you know, not real big. I put one in the
front and one in the back, and sort of like
an oval planter. I got it a dollar tree actually
like a pod, you know. Could they say to put
it in a pot? And I put some vegetation in
(32:27):
at some leaves, a little bit of bark from my tree,
and you know, I changed it. It said a month,
but I changed it after three weeks because honestly, they
look so like murky mucky dounky in there is that
normal and there is kind of like a I don't
want feel lack of a better word, it looks like
a layer of sort of foam, but it's moving around.
Speaker 9 (32:48):
I don't know what that is. The larvae it's in
the front and the back. They're sort of grouped together.
Speaker 8 (32:54):
Looks like thumb sort.
Speaker 9 (32:55):
Of moving all the time. And I don't you know,
I look the magnifying glass. Nope, is this what it's
supposed to do?
Speaker 1 (33:04):
It is you know, it's something that is not mosquito larva.
It could be something else, some other little moth or
something like that, but it shouldn't. I would go ahead
and dump it out and then keep the keep the
mosquito dunk in it and just freshen the water.
Speaker 8 (33:24):
Okay, should I not put any vegetation in it? There's
no reason to take some leaves and twigs and et cetera.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Well, if you want to, if you want to, you can.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
I don't necessarily do that, but it's not going to
you know, eliminate or hurt the mosquito dunks at all.
So it's working, and so, uh, you know that that
is normal for it to do that.
Speaker 8 (33:49):
Okay, Well, I have seen a couple of mosquitoes, but
I mean, I'm sure it's not one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (33:53):
Well, you see mosquitoes, but you don't see the larva
so one. So the mosquito flew into your yard, yes,
but they when they lay eggs, then the mosquito in
the water, then the mosquito dunks kill them.
Speaker 2 (34:06):
So that's what you're doing. Is you're not getting new
ones doing.
Speaker 8 (34:08):
It all summer? Keep going with it? Yeah, I would, okay, okay,
And if you have time for another quick question, I
don't know if you real quicky, but I don't know
if you.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
Do or not real quick? Don't mulch? What about?
Speaker 7 (34:20):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (34:20):
I use the no float cypress because I don't like
that colored stuff. I think it looks more prettier natural.
Speaker 2 (34:27):
Right is that an?
Speaker 8 (34:28):
Is that a good choice?
Speaker 2 (34:30):
Sure?
Speaker 1 (34:30):
Mulch is you know, mulch is mulch as far as
you want to put down three to four inches to
make sure there's no sunlight. So your choice of mulch
is up to you. I like to look at it
from a design perspective. But yes, that is just fine,
not a problem. I don't have a favorite.
Speaker 8 (34:47):
Like mulch at all, but my homeowners wants it, so
I put it down.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
You definitely need it.
Speaker 8 (34:51):
I know the way when you blow the yard you
know it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Well, the thing is is that you have to have
it so that it's you know, what I would do
if it floats away is make sure you're controlling that
water area the gutter coming down around it. And then
also too, you can put a little swale right before
your curb or the street and that will catch it.
And if it's coming down fast enough, you may not
have it being applied correctly on the ground, So don't
(35:19):
have it so high that it mulches off. Three inches
is all you need, and that usually stays pretty cool.
Speaker 8 (35:26):
Okay, yeah, No, it blows away when I blow the yard,
That's what I'm saying about. It doesn't rain away like
when I'm I have huge trees and I have leaves
and I have to blow the yard and it just
sort of goes into the grass. So it's annoying.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
But anyway, well, no, the thing is is, if you've
got that many leaves, I would use the leaves as mulch.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
Put that up around your shrubs.
Speaker 8 (35:48):
And you're away with the wind.
Speaker 9 (35:49):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (35:52):
There you go, Thank you more free, So if.
Speaker 8 (35:54):
That tells you anything. I have four giant sycamores, and
I know they're a pest, but they're here and that's the.
Speaker 4 (35:59):
Way it is there.
Speaker 1 (36:00):
You go, well, just do it once or twice a
year and you won't have to do it anymore.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
Thank you. Let's go to dianaka Simmy. Good morning Diane.
Speaker 7 (36:08):
Hi.
Speaker 3 (36:09):
I'm another one of those zero lotline people.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
No I know.
Speaker 3 (36:12):
I had to cut down the maple tree that the
builders put in the yard because the roots were lifting
up my driveway and the roots I have roots all
over over that small section that's available that is not
concrete I do want to put because I that maple
had shade. The house is just sitting there in the sun.
I'd like to get some kind of a tree. I
(36:34):
like trees. I like shade. So why did I move
to Florida? What kind of a tree can I get?
That it's not going to have roots that are going
to damage the house because they're they're so close.
Speaker 1 (36:48):
So it's going to go in that ten fifty An
olive tree would work, but also crepe myrtles would do nicely.
You can get some of the larger ones, but they
don't have a deep, you know, invasive roots system. Also,
some fringe trees will work. You can also do down
in Kase. Send me the Tibet China tree will give
(37:08):
you some shade.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
And there's there's quite a few other ones varieties. But
I've got a heard break coming up at the end
of the show. So Diane, what I'm gonna do is
next week, I'm going to talk about some trees that
you can plant that don't have a deep and penetrating
root system that will damage your homes.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
How's that for you?
Speaker 3 (37:27):
Oh, it sounds one. I envy both of you with
your large yards you have planting all this stuff. I
do not.
Speaker 2 (37:34):
I do not have a large yard. I have really
small yard.
Speaker 3 (37:37):
I do not.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
I do have a really small yard is fifty by
about one hundred. That's it.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
So thank you so much, Diane.
Speaker 2 (37:46):
There you go, Diane, thank you so much.
Speaker 6 (37:48):
We'll go.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
I'll take care of that next week with the trees
for the root system.
Speaker 2 (37:52):
Thank you, Lizzie, thank you so much. I appreciate you.
Speaker 5 (37:55):
Yes, and thank you to our callers because as you
just saw this, this rapid fire of phone calls, the listeners,
you guys make our job amazing.
Speaker 2 (38:04):
So thank you. There's never a dumb question, never, never
not question.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
I will answer some more gardening questions next week and Diane,
I'll give you some trees that don't have a deep,
deep root system.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
We'll have it.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
Thank you to Melanie Kester, the president of the Manatee
River Garden Club. If you would like to do your
random acts of gardening, you let them know hashtag Manatee
River Garden Club and their website is Manateerivergardenclub dot com.
Thank you to Dana Ndrick two. We love having him
as a sponsor of the show. It's Saturday morning.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
You're listening to Better Lawns and Gardens.
Speaker 1 (38:38):
I'm Teresa Watkins and this is Florida's Talk and Entertainment Network.
Speaker 5 (38:45):
If you miss any of the show and you'd like
to recap any episode, go to Better Lawns dot com.
Speaker 10 (38:50):
That's Better Lawns dot com.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
Directed in distinct disap
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Betrayal Weekly
Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com