Native Plants
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Thursday - July 09, 2009
From: Spring, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Non-Natives
Title: Problems with non-native St. Augustine grass in Spring TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
St. Augustine. It's July 6th, 3 weeks ago my grass was green and healthy, today I've got large patches (20' x 3') that are dying. I water my yard 10 mins / day in the morning (5:00 am). It's been 100+ degrees everyday but I figured watering 10 mins. daily was enough. Any ideas?ANSWER:
Well, our first idea is that you need to replace that St. Augustine with a native grass that can withstand this drought and heat that Texas has been having. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is committed to plants native not only to North America but to the area in which the plant is being grown. Probably you are not going to want to dig up your lawn, especially in the middle of summer, so since we don't know anything about non-native grasses, we found an article St. Augustine Grass by Richard L. Duble, Turfgrass Specialist, Texas Cooperative Extension. We suspect that your watering practices could be part of the problem, as usually two or three deep waterings a week, rather than a sprinkle every morning is recommended. Also, when you are reading the above article, be sure to read down to the end to the part about diseases.More Non-Natives Questions
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November 12, 2012 - Was trimming my pygmy date palm when a frond fell and a thorn pierced my rubber gloves and stuck me in the web of skin between my thumb and forefinger. Did not see a broken thorn but area where struc...
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A method for killing nandina and ligustrum with herbicide
October 19, 2012 - Is there an effective herbicide that can be painted on the stumps of Nandina and Wax-leaf ligustrum to keep them from growing back?
Thanks so much!
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Will non-native hostas do well in South Carolina from Seneca SC
May 20, 2013 - I am moving to SC from CT and want to bring some of the hostas I grow in CT. If I plant them in the shade in SC, will they do well down there?
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Transplanting non-native sago palms in Gonzales, TX
January 24, 2011 - How to harvest Sago palm pups. I have 2 very old sago palms and they have loads of new starts (pups) coming off of the plant. I want to cut some pups and start some new plants without harming the pare...
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