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Gardening Alert: Don’t Prune Freeze Damage Yet, by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

Gardening Alert: Don’t Prune Freeze Damage Yet, by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

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If you’re like me, this winter’s extra-cold temperatures have taken a toll on many of your plants. I’m itching to cut off the freeze damage, but that is not what experts recommend.

In a recent article in the Gwinnett Daily Post, Tim Daly, UGA Extension Ag & Natural Resources Agent, gives several great tips for assessing and dealing with freeze damage. These tips assume your plants are cold hardy and appropriate for zone 7B.

  • Bronze colorization doesn’t mean a plant or a branch is dead…it’s the plant’s reaction to a big chill
  • Scratch the bark with your fingernail. If the stem tissue is green or white, the wood is still alive…look for new growth in the spring 🙂
  • If the stem tissue is brown or brittle, …
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In Search of Winter Color by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

In Search of Winter Color by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

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I like to buy plants for my containers that can be planted in the yard at the end of their bloom season. This fall I felt the need for large bursts of color and enticing texture, so I did a little research before heading out and put Brown’s Japanese Yew, Huechera, Floral Berry (St. John’s Wort), Stone Crop, Hens & Chicks, Compact Oregon Grape, and Lime Twist Sedum on my list of plants to look for.

After my first stop, Snow ‘N Summer Asiatic Jasmine, mugo pine, cabbage, and violas were added to the list. I hadn’t bought anything yet, though. At my next stop, Frenzy Juncus, an Autumn Empress Encore Azalea, a few Hazy Dark Pink Asters, and a pack of SnapdDragons jumped the list and hopped into my cart. They called my name, and there weren’t many of them, so I needed to get them right away. Oh, and 5 hot fuscia cyclamen. I love cyclamen…

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National Garden Week: Planning an Heirloom Garden by RGC Blogger Florence Anne Berna

National Garden Week: Planning an Heirloom Garden by RGC Blogger Florence Anne Berna

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Ahhh!!! Spring and early summer! The time of year that stirs our mind, spirit and body into venturing outdoors and communing with nature. So you rise up, arm yourself with tools and head out to tackle the weeds, pruning and edging. After all of the ‘grunt’ work is done you head to the stores to buy your beloved summer plants. Buying plants that have been pampered in greenhouses to look their very best to entice you to buy them. At home, you follow all the rules for Southern gardening: Till the clay. Amend your soil with sand and peat moss. Mix in some all-purpose fertilizer. Plant your summer selections and water. Then the heat comes and quite possibly a drought. Or perhaps too much rain. In no time at all those lovely summer plants are not well or worse — not even alive! There is an alternative…

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National Garden Week: Autumn Sage-A Perfect Perennial For Georgia by RGC Blogger Dotty Etris

National Garden Week: Autumn Sage-A Perfect Perennial For Georgia by RGC Blogger Dotty Etris

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Autumn Sage is a perennial plant native to North America – specifically native to Texas Hill Country and Mexico. It is named for Josiah Gregg, a naturalist who found it as he traveled throughout the Southwestern United States and Mexico.

It is a sub-shrub that blooms from March – November on previous or current year’s growth, attracting pollinators. It is specifically known as a magnet for Hummingbirds. It thrives in rocky soils but does well in dry to medium well-drained soils. When first planted, water 2 times a week until it is established but then it does well on its own. If it gets to be terribly hot for too many days with no rain at all, I will sometimes water it, but it seems to thrive even when neglected – perhaps that is why I love this plant so much…

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Garden Week In Georgia: Then Flowers ‘d be the Friends…In Praise of My Good Friend Fatsia Japonica by RGC Blogger Florence Anne Berna

Garden Week In Georgia: Then Flowers ‘d be the Friends…In Praise of My Good Friend Fatsia Japonica by RGC Blogger Florence Anne Berna

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A glossy leaf plant, Fatsia Japonica is also known as false castor oil plant or Japanese aralia. It is native to Japan and Korea. It is evergreen growing from 3 to 16 feet tall. Its leaves are large fans and its flowers look like something from outer space with small white globes blooming on tall white stalks.

Fatsia Japonica grows best as an understory bush in a climate not going below 5 degrees…

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Great Master Gardening Resources & Education from Guest Blogger Jim Hodson

Great Master Gardening Resources & Education from Guest Blogger Jim Hodson

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Note from Suzy: Here’s a fantastic resource for garden enthusiasts everywhere. Guest blogger Jim Hodson contacted us via our website to let us know about the Master Gardener resources Fast Growing Trees developed. You need to check out this site. Be careful, though. My initial check-out of the resource turned into a delightful 2-hour exploration followed by many subsequent visits. There’s a direct link to the Master Gardener section In Jim’s post…

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Tasks for the Georgia Gardener in January & February by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

Tasks for the Georgia Gardener in January & February by RGC Blogger Suzy Crowe

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For several years I’ve been a little late trimming the liriope. Determined to get a jump on it this year, I did some research and found great info on what I can do right now, not just with the liriope, but with my gardens…

Gwinnett County UGA Extensions office’s Tips for the Landscape & Garden: January says it’s time to:

  • Plan & prep new construction projects and planting zones…
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Christmas Cactus FAQs by RGC Bloggers King Trousdale, Lisa Ethridge & Suzy Crowe

Christmas Cactus FAQs by RGC Bloggers King Trousdale, Lisa Ethridge & Suzy Crowe

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A Christmas Cactus is a succulent plant from the Brazilian rain forest. It is at home in a jungle, not a desert. Treat your Christmas Cactus right and it will live and bloom for decades. Here are some FAQs to help you treat your Christmas Cactus just right.

Should I repot my Christmas Cactus?

  • If your Christmas Cactus came in a small pot, it needs to be transplanted to thrive
  • Select a medium pot and fill it with a mix of potting soil and perlite
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Plants: Winterizing Your Dahlias by RGC Blogger Donna Feit

Plants: Winterizing Your Dahlias by RGC Blogger Donna Feit

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I love my dahlias. I bought some tubers a few years ago, planted them as soon as they arrived, and several weeks later was delighted with beautiful pink and sunset-orange blossoms. They bloomed throughout the latter part of summer right up until the first frost. I left them in the ground for the winter and they returned the following year.

After that, I wanted to learn more and started to research growing dahlias. I was surprised to learn that they don’t “winter” well and are often killed by freezing cold weather. I was fortunate in that the first winter was an especially mild one and my tubers survived.

I don’t want to run the risk of losing my beautiful dahlias, so this year, I’m going to dig up the tubers and store them properly over the winter. Since we’ve already had a couple of frosts, now is the time!

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