March Sadness – Recovering from a Storm for the Ages

[Sirhornsalot]

My wife is telling me that the live oaks look like bombs went off through the entire pasture. They are also still without power.

The Live Oaks are some unhappy and confused trees right now. lol

Give it time. They'll be late, I'm sure. But there will be some that don't make it.

 

[Soldierhorn]

The cold/snow/ice didnt seem to effect my blue bonnets; they're everywhere and very healthy

I'm going to have to transplant some and that is always tricky

 

[java]

While I was exiled in Albuquerque, I found something called Walls of Water. I would start tomato plants inside those, small ones, in late February. 
 

They acted as mini greenhouses, and those tomatoes got off to a great start.  When it was warm enough, just take the Walls down. They produced and produced - by June.  We had tomatoes for months.

 

[Soldierhorn]

While I was exiled in Albuquerque, I found something called Walls of Water. I would start tomato plants inside those, small ones, in late February. 
 

They acted as mini greenhouses, and those tomatoes got off to a great start.  When it was warm enough, just take the Walls down. They produced and produced - by June.  We had tomatoes for months.

would you post a pic?  I'd like to see it

 

[HornSports Staff]

Mark,

Will Sago Palms bounce back from the winter storm?

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Mark,

Will Sago Palms bounce back from the winter storm?

Some will, some won't. 

Trim off the brown fronds, close to the pineapple center, even if this means trimming every one of them off.

This will encourage a living specimen to grow new fronds.

Keep an eye on the top center of the pineapple. That is where the new fronds will come from. Careful if you touch as there will be sharp points there. But this top should be soft to the touch (except the point, of course). If that goes brown and hard, then its a dead Sago.

Its worth waiting a few weeks to find out.

 

[BigL]

SHA 

Any fertilizer that I can use to help my oaks?  I have 30 in the front yard and another 20 in the backyard.  

Also whats a good fertilizer for st Augustine that won't harm the oaks?  I'm in Round Rock if that matters.  

 

[Sirhornsalot]

SHA 

Any fertilizer that I can use to help my oaks?  I have 30 in the front yard and another 20 in the backyard.  

Also whats a good fertilizer for st Augustine that won't harm the oaks?  I'm in Round Rock if that matters.  

I swear by Fertilome's St Augustine Weed & Feed. I think it's a 15-0-6 or something similar. Atrazine is the weed killing ingredient and it gets a bad name unjustly, IMO. Atrazine is not supposed to be good for trees. However, I've never actually seen it harm a tree, including my own.

There is no better specialized product for St Aug than Fertilome, IMO. Look at the far right top corner for "Find a Dealer" feature on this web page:

https://www.fertilome.com

If I were to do a fertilizer for trees, I would have an arborist come out and do it. He will have the long prod to insert into the root system where he'll disperse the fertilizer and likely some SuperThrive (plant hormone). That would give them a good start.

I absolutely would not do this until they start leafing out though.

 

[Soldierhorn]

When would you put out horticultural cornmeal?  Putting it out this week before the weeds germinate and before the next rain in a few days would seem ideal. 

 

[Sirhornsalot]

When would you put out horticultural cornmeal?  Putting it out this week before the weeds germinate and before the next rain in a few days would seem ideal. 

Right now. HC is not an immediate response product. It has to biodegrade before nutrients can be used by the turf. So putting it down now will mean you'll get a nice bounce in mid-April.

 

[Soldierhorn]

surprise, surprise... it looks like my olive trees in pots are still alive.  peach trees in pots are already budding.  ... so my losses might not be as bad as I thought.  

Irises are flat out amazing the way they can take extreme heat and lack of water, as well as extreme cold.  The iris leaves in pots are still green.  

 

[Sirhornsalot]

surprise, surprise... it looks like my olive trees in pots are still alive.  peach trees in pots are already budding.  ... so my losses might not be as bad as I thought.  

Irises are flat out amazing the way they can take extreme heat and lack of water, as well as extreme cold.  The iris leaves in pots are still green.  

Wonderful news!

Both my front Live Oaks are without leaves now. You never see them like this so its just weird. I'm looking for signs of rebirth.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

DON'T PLANT YET:

Another round of cold air is expected around Mid/Late-March (possibly below freezing temps). I would hold off on any planting! It only takes one good frost to kill your plants!

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Sharing a photo a reader sent to me, asking me if this was an insect of some kind.



Answer – Sapsucker Woodpecker. You will note how the holes do not go all the way around the tree, to avoid killing the tree. The Sapsucker pecks his holes, looks for insects, tree puts out sap in response to the holes, bugs get caught in the sap and Sapsucker gets them when he returns.

 

[Baron]

Mark, I had been in the process of reclaiming a garden when Covid struck me.down. its tilled and sprayed with weed and grass killer. Can I use a preemergent? I plan on starting my plants indoors.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Mark, I had been in the process of reclaiming a garden when Covid struck me.down. its tilled and sprayed with weed and grass killer. Can I use a preemergent? I plan on starting my plants indoors.

Yes, as long as you're not growing anything from seed, that should be fine.

 

[Soldierhorn]

Sharing a photo a reader sent to me, asking me if this was an insect of some kind.

View attachment 3755

Answer – Sapsucker Woodpecker. You will note how the holes do not go all the way around the tree, to avoid killing the tree. The Sapsucker pecks his holes, looks for insects, tree puts out sap in response to the holes, bugs get caught and Sapsucker gets them when he returns.

what kind of tree is that?  is it a government tree attacked by lobby-peckers?  I've seen more sapsuckers the closer I get to Austin

 

[Sirhornsalot]

what kind of tree is that?  is it a government tree attacked by lobby-peckers?  I've seen more sapsuckers the closer I get to Austin

lol, I was told it is a Japanese Blueberry Tree. If thats right, then its the largest one I've ever seen.

 

[PleaseDeleteUser]

I think we dodged a huge bullet with the St. Augustine. In 89 I lost over 1/2 my yard. This time we had snow before it got really cold and I'm sure that helped insulate the grass. So far my grass looks like it survived. My Indian Hawthorns look bad but hoping they come back. Just leaving them be for now. 

 

[Sirhornsalot]

I think we dodged a huge bullet with the St. Augustine. In 89 I lost over 1/2 my yard. This time we had snow before it got really cold and I'm sure that helped insulate the grass. So far my grass looks like it survived. My Indian Hawthorns look bad but hoping they come back. Just leaving them be for now. 

My St Aug was actually green and full before the storm hit. It went dormant and now is coming back out. 

I'm replacing a ton of Indian Hawthorns, Pittisporums and Lorapetalums right now.