Letters to our garden editors

Southern Living, Aug 1999

Cutting back cannas: The leaves on my cannas are starting to look ratty Can I cut the plants back now? How much?

HELEN GALLUCCI

TITUSVILLE, FLORIDA

Caterpillars, leaf scorch, and windstorms usually leave canna foliage looking pretty tattered by now. But the solution is simple. As soon as a canna stalk finishes blooming and begins making seed capsules, just cut it off at the ground. New stalks will soon sprout to replace it. Flowering will continue as long as the warm weather does.

Crepe myrtle woes: I have six crepe myrtles, three to four years old, growing in full sun. They look healthy, but only one has bloomed. Any ideas?

T.G. DAVIS JR.

PINEVILLE, LOUISIANA

Many selections of crepe myrtles exist out there and they vary greatly in their characteristics. Selections that grow very tall may spend much of their early years making new branches and leaves, rather than flowers. We suggest you be patient. If you take good care of your plants, they should bloom next year.

Sprouting stumps: We moved into a wonderful old house with a completely overgrown yard. We cut back all the brush, but now we have stumps that keep sprouting. How can we get rid of all these stumps?

S. P. MILBURN

GEORGETOWN, TEXAS

Make a fresh cut across the top of each stump. Then paint undiluted triclopyr (Brush-B-Gon Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, and Brush Killerl) onto the cut surface, as well as the remaining sides of the stump and any sprouts or exposed roots. Be sure to read label directions carefully before applying.

Doberman D day: Our two Doberman pinscher puppies are wreaking havoc on our backyard! Just their running and playing is doing it in. Is there a tough grass that's good for Central Florida and will stand up to them?

LOU BOGGS

COCOA, FLORIDA

We doubt that any grass can stand up to constant attack. But you might try common Bermuda or Bahia. Our resident expert on canines, Assistant Garden Editor Liz Druitt, suggests siphoning off the dogs' excess energy by walking them each day. If that doesn't work, have them watch a New Orleans Saints highlight film, which should quickly induce a sleeplike state.

Lisianthus: We saw some flowers called "lisianthus" at the garden center and were wondering if you could give us a little more information about them.

STAN LATHROP

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

Lisianthus is a tender perennial that overwinters from the Lower South on down. Despite the lack of a sexy name, it boasts beautiful blue, purple, pink, or white flowers that are shaped like little roses. They make great cut flowers and last a long time in water. Lisianthus prefers full sun and fertile, well-drained soil.

Tips of the month: During a very rainy gardening year, I found I was spending time almost every day cleaning mud from my shoes. So I tried pulling a plastic grocery bag over each shoe and tying the bags around my ankles. Mud didn't stick to the bags, and my shoes were clean and dry every time.

ELLEN BRIDGES

HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA

I've found a new use for fabric softener sheets. After they lose their scent, I place them in the bottom of flowerpots to keep the dirt from washing out. The sheets allow excess water to drain and have lasted for 2 years so far.

MARILYN OGLETREE

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA

EDITORS' NOTEBOOK

"Honey, have you been microwaving our tomato plants again?" Tell the truth-isn't that what you were thinking when you came out this morning and saw all the tomato leaves rolled up? Or perhaps you thought this sorry condition was the handiwork of some evil bug or disease. Then rejoice with my happy news. Tomato leaf curl is often a natural response to stress put on fruiting plants by hot weather. Some selections, such as Big Boy, Floramerica, Beefsteak, and Roma, are more prone to it than others. It usually starts at the bottom of the plant and proceeds upward. Even if the curled leaves fall off, this doesn't reduce the yield. If you don't like curled leaves, there are three steps you can take: Don't overwater, don't damage roots by cultivating close to the plant, and don't take the microwave outside.

Steve Bender

To our readers: Tips of the Month are ideas that readers say work for them. Southern Living does not test them. Submit your tips on a postcard with your name, address, and telephone number to Garden Tips, PO. Box 523, Birmingham, AL 35201. For each tip published, you'll receive $10