Help, My Persimmon Tree is Not Bearing Fruit! Before attacking the reason behind a persimmon tree that isn’t bearing fruit, it’s a wise idea to know a little about the proper planting of the tree. First of all, persimmons are only rarely self-pollinating, as each tree bears only male or female flowers. The exceptions are some of the oriental varieties, which are capable of producing fruit from each gender. Depending upon the varietal, you may need to plant two or more trees....

Norway Maple Weed Trees Norway maples are tall, attractive trees that taller than 65 feet (20 m.). They have dense, rounded canopies that offer deep shade beneath. The trunk of the Norway maple is mottled gray and smooth. The color and texture of the bark contrasts with the dark green, deeply lobed leaves that grow to 6 inches (15 cm.) long and 5 inches (13 cm.) wide. Both the leaves and the twigs “bleed” a milky sap when cut or broken....

What is Plasticulture? Plasticulture is the use of lightweight plastic or mulch to cover the seed bed in order to control the soil temperature, retain moisture, and retard weeds and insect invaders. Plasticulture also refers to row covers and greenhouses. Basically, plasticulture practices double or triple the efficiency of the garden while allowing the gardener to harvest weeks earlier than usual. The initial costs of using plasticulture in the garden are definitely an investment, and management of the system may take some time to get down, but it is well worth the effort....

Studies show the addition of pollinator friendly plants to your landscape can increase vegetable and/or fruit yields. Some good pollinator plants for vegetable gardens include echinacea, rudbeckia, monarda, and butterfly bushes. Pollinator-Friendly Companion Plants for Vegetables Crop plants pollinate by insects or wind. If the plant produces separate male and female flowers, a bee carries pollen from the male flower to the receptive female flower. If the male and female structures are located within each flower, visiting insects will help to move or shake the pollen loose....

How to Store Cabbage For home gardeners, this usually means harvesting the entire cabbage crop at once. Deciding what to do with cabbages can be problematic. Due to its strong flavor, canning cabbage is not recommended. It can be frozen and used for cooked dishes, soups, and casseroles. Sauerkraut is another popular method of preserving cabbage. A cool, damp environment is needed for storing cabbages. A dirt floored root cellar is ideal, but a refrigerator can also work....

What is Anthracnose on Beans? It can be incredibly rewarding to grow your own food, especially when you start to move beyond the seedlings you can buy at your local nursery. Beans are usually a pretty easy garden plant to grow directly from seed, since they produce abundantly and have few common problems in most areas. Unfortunately, anthracnose in beans can be a serious problem for some gardeners, but there are steps you can take to protect your plants....

Tomato Plant Protection If your tomato plants are being eaten and you have ruled out birds or insects as the culprits, animals could be the problem. Most gardeners are used to battling rabbits, squirrels, or deer but don’t think much about protecting plants from these other animal pests: Woodchucks Gophers Chipmunks Opossum Raccoons Moles Voles We also don’t like to think that our own pets and livestock (like goats) could be the problem....

How to Protect Hanging Baskets from Frost Protecting hanging baskets near the end of the season (or even early on) can help extend their life. Some steps you can take to prevent frost damage to hanging plants are simple and quick, while others require a little more effort and planning. Even the laziest gardener can throw a garbage bag over a hanging display to help insulate it and protect it from frost, but only the most dedicated gardener will heal in their pots....

Collecting Rainwater for Gardening During the summer, much of our potable water is used outdoors. We fill our pools, wash our cars, and water our lawns and gardens. This water must be chemically treated to make it safe for drinking, which is great for you, but not necessarily great for your plants. Collecting rainwater for gardening can eliminate many of these chemical salts and harmful minerals from your soil. Rainwater is naturally soft....

Advantages of Growing in Unframed Raised Beds Unframed raised beds offer most of the same advantages as framed raised beds. These include improved drainage, a deeper volume of loosened soil for plant roots to explore, and a raised growing surface that is easier to reach without kneeling. Raised bed soil also warms up earlier in spring. An additional advantage of unframed raised beds is that you can install them with significantly less expense and effort, which is especially important if you’re gardening on a large scale....

Determining Shade Plant Light Requirements In addition to shadows moving over the landscape each day, the amount and intensity of light a given area receives changes throughout the seasons. Over time, flower beds can also become shadier as trees grow or sunnier when trees are trimmed or are removed. Growing shade plants in the sun can result in scorched leaves and poor growth. If not corrected, this can lead to loss of the plant....

What Do Slug and Snail Eggs Look Like? We’ve all seen it. The telltale trail of slime over rocks, pavement, house siding and any exposed areas. Slugs and snails are mostly active at night and hide under rocks and debris during the day. They can be difficult to eradicate because they are good at hiding, but their feeding activity is unmistakable. Snail egg identification and destruction is a good start to saving your leafy greens and other tasty plants....

Making DIY Succulent Ornaments To plan for succulent Christmas ornaments, get your supplies ready ahead of time to make sure you have everything you’ll need. Some directions call for a casing to hold the succulent while others use wire to hold everything together. Lightweight plastic ornaments are available with an open front and a flat bottom. The succulent tweezers come in handy when making this type, as it allows easier placement of succulents....

Sugarcane Fertilizer and Macro-nutrients Studies have shown the main sugarcane nutrient requirements are nitrogen, phosphorus, magnesium, sulfur and silicon. The exact amounts of these nutrients depend upon your soil, but at least it’s a place to start. The soil pH will affect the plant’s ability to absorb and added nutrients and must be 6.0 to 6.5 for optimal results. Other factors will affect the exact amount of nutrient absorbed, such as heavy soil, which can minimize uptake of nitrogen....

What is a Summer Solstice Party? There are party-goers and party givers. If you fall into the latter camp, hosting a summer solstice garden party is right up your alley. And you will be in good company since the holiday is celebrated with different traditions all over the world, from sunrise at Stonehenge to Swedish flower crowns and maypoles. The word ‘solstice’ is derived from the Latin words ‘sol,’ meaning sun, and ‘sister,’ which means to stand....

What are Grafted Roses? Many of the rose bushes on the market are known as “grafted” rose bushes. These are rose bushes that have a top variety of rose that typically is not as hardy when grown upon its own root system. Thus, these roses are grafted onto a hardier rose bush rootstock. In my area of USDA Zone 5– Colorado, the bottom part of the grafted rose has commonly been a rose bush named Dr....

Tomato Pinworm Identification In warmer climes, the tomato pinworms spend the winter as pupae at the soil’s surface. Where the winter weather is too cold for survival, the pupae hide in the dirt floors and plant detritus of the greenhouse. The small grey brown moths lay their eggs on the underside of leaves during the night and because of their tiny size, the eggs are hardly noticeable. It is because of this tomato pinworm control rarely begins at this stage....

About Bugs That Eat Bay Leaves Bay laurel is a remarkably adaptable temperate zone plant. It has few disease or pest issues and is easy to cultivate. There are few bugs that eat bay leaves, in part because of their intense foliar oil. Most pests on a bay tree will be boring or sap sucking, favoring the stems and woody parts of the plant. Some are easy to spot, while others almost require a microscope....

Passion Flower Vine Pruning Passiflora vines are rampant growers that scramble up any vertical surface. Without training and some sort of support, the vines will creep over the ground and take over other plants’ spaces. There are three reasons to cut passion flower vines: The first is to train the plant when young. The next is to promote thicker annual growth and higher fruit yields. The third is to rejuvenate damaged or old, neglected plants....

What Does Plant Variation Mean? Variegated plants for gardens add a unique and unexpected touch to gardens populated by standard green foliage. What does plant variegation mean? It is the result of a mutated leaf cell and can be inherited or random. Gardening with variegated plants offers a host of interesting opportunities to accent and brighten regular foliage as well as provide a unique foil for flowering specimens. The result is a glorious cacophony of texture, hues and tones....