Letters to our garden editors

Southern Living, Sep 1999

Kid-proof grass: We live near Savannah and plan to put in a new lawn. We have centipede in the front, but found it to be intolerant of wear. What kind of grass can stand up to two very active, small children? SHERI P. HARDBECK

RICHMOND HILL, GEORGIA

AstroTurf comes to mind because it stays green all winter and never needs mowing or watering. But suppose you're into the natural look. In that case, we recommend planting common Bermuda, which is almost indestructible in a sunny spot. If your backyard is lightly shaded, plant either St. Augustine or Zoysia. St. Augustine shows wear, but recovers quickly. Zoysia is very durable, but also expensive. No matter which grass you choose, plant it now so the root system can establish itself before the weather turns cool.

Exciting discovery: We were climbing around on Lookout Mountain in northeast Alabama when we discovered what we think may be an American chestnut. Is this possible? I thought the chestnut blight had wiped out chestnuts.

JEANETTE W. JONES

GAYLESVILLE, ALABAMA

When the chestnut blight roared through the Eastern United States early in this century, it destroyed millions of American chestnuts (Castanea dentata). But today you'll occasionally chance upon a sucker growing from an old stump. Some suckers reach 30 feet tall before they succumb to the disease. Maybe this is what you saw. Some home-center stores now offer blight-resistant hybrids. It's also possible you were looking at an Allegheny chinkapin (Castanea pumila). This close relative produces sweet, edible nuts, but grows into a large shrub rather than a tall forest tree.

Fresh start: We have a shady garden underneath a big oak. Some perennials there, such as bleeding-heart, astilbe, and goatsbeard did not do well. Id like to redo the bed, dig in lots of compost and good soil, and raise the bed about 4 inches. Would you recommend doing this in fall or spring? BARBARA MACHELL

SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA

The sooner, the better. A raised bed sounds fine, but be careful not to completely cover the root zone of the tree with more than a few inches of soil. Mature oaks are very sensitive to having soil piled over their roots and can die as a result. One further word of advice-if you plan to grow bleeding-heart, astilbe, and goatsbeard in Spartanburg, keep a hose handy, because you'll be watering about every five minutes.

Bye-bye bamboo: We've tried and tried to get rid of bamboo, but to no avail. Is there anything that will kill it without harming the surrounding plants?

A. M. RILEY

HAMPTON, VIRGINIA

Cut all of the bamboo to within 6 inches of the ground. Then paint the cut surface of each stump with undiluted triclopyr (Brush-B-Gon Poison Ivy, Poison Oak & Brush Killer,) or glyphosate (Roundup). Follow label directions carefully. You'll probably have to do this more than once. Tasteful ideas: I would like to plant wisterias around my house. Do you have any tasteful ideas? CONNIE ARENSBERG

MOBILE, ALABAMA

How about letting it shade an abandoned school bus? Seriously, the trick to using wisteria is not letting this rampant vine climb trees and bushes where it can escape cultivation. We suggest confining it to a sturdy arbor, wall, or fence where you can prune regularly. Don't let the bean pods form after flowering or you'll have wisterias coming up everywhere.

Tip of the month: Never put old tomato vines in the compost. They may harbor some type of disease that could be transferred to a future garden.

CHARLOTTE BRYANT

GREENSBURG, KENTUCKY

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. o