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Questions From Near You

Old Saybrook, CT
Identity of shrub with brownish flowers called cinnamon bush
When I lived in Vernon, CT, my neighbor had a small shrub/tree approximately 5 ft tall with small ovate slightly serrated leaves. In spring it produced reddish brown flowers that were of a hardened p...
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Niantic, CT
Plants that will grow on the Connecticut coast
I live on the coast in Connecticut and have a hard time growing plants here. I live about 1/2 mile from the beach and find that my soil is very rocky. The only plants that have done well in my yard ...
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Greenport, NY
How to use seaweed for mulch and fertilizer
Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,I live on the Peconic Bay, Greenport, Long Island. We have an oyster farm and lots of seaweed. I've read that seaweed was used on farms in the past as mulch (fertilizer?). ...
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Guilford, CT
Problems with non-native indoor palm in Guilford CT
My question is I have an indoor palm plant that I have had for 7 yrs. It has grown from about a 5" plant to about 3' tall plant. The past few weeks the leaves are turning yellow & brown and lost abo...
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Guilford, CT
Plants for property in Connecticut adjacent to a salt marsh
Hi - I live on property adjacent to a salt marsh. The salt marsh leads out to Long Island Sound. I would like to plant non-invasive native plants of Guilford, Connecticut. I do not know what plants ...
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Oakdale, CT
Growth on underside of squash plant leaves
I have a mold in my garden that is oval in shape and has spikes growing out of it, the color is yellow. This mold (yup it's not a bug I checked) is all over the underside of my squash plants. Any hel...
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Uncasville, CT
Control of out-of-bounds Virginia creeper
Our Virginia creeper (Woodbine) has outgrown its planned location this past summer. What is the best way to prune ivy stems for next years controlled growth?
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Sag Harbor, NY
Salt tolerant plants for shade on tidal inlet in NY
Are there any salt water tolerant grasses or forbs with deep roots that grow in shade? I live on a tidal inlet/canal on Long Island NY. The southern bank has cedars and oaks but the soil is eroding ...
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Sag Harbor, NY
Hedge options for Sag Harbor, New York.
Hello, My fiance and I live in Sag Harbor, NY on the East End of Long Island. We would like to plant a hedge across our yard to separate the front and back and have privacy. Here is a picture o...
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Mattituck, NY
Ground cover for shaded sandy soil in Long Island, NY
I live on the north fork of Long Island (Zone 7) I would like to find a grass or low ground cover that will grow in shaded sandy soil. The yard has quite a few trees. It also has to stand up to modera...
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Branford, CT
Repotting of lemon cypress for drainage
Hi, I bought a lemon cypress tree in a nice tin, It is in Plastic and the bottom has about 1.5" of water with no drainage in the plastic or tin. It will be kept inside. Does the plant need to be in...
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Amston, CT
Male pollinator to produce berries on Juniperus virginiana from Amston CT
We have planted 3 juniperus virginiana 'Glauca' (on our Connecticut property) that have a few blue berries on them. Will they need a male pollinator to make berries? We do not have other juniperus...
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Hebron, CT
Ground cover for Connecticut sandy gravel bank
What ground cover plant can I use on a sandy gravel bank behind my house?
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Franklin, CT
Re-landscaping neglected garden in Franklin CT
I am starting from scratch in a yard that has no planting beds or, for that matter, plants at all. House was vacant for quite some time, grass was three feet tall when we moved in. I would like to p...
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Wallingford, CT
Will catalpa roots damage a nearby swimming pool?
Will a catalpa tree cause problems to my swimming pool? It is 8 feet away and I cut all the branches off every fall. It then grows back to about 6 feet in diameter an makes a great garden feature but ...
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Wallingford, CT
Non-blossoming trumpet vine
About 9 years ago I started a trumpet vine, from seeds that I got from plants that were invading an empty home. I saw how invasive it was. It had worked its way into the windows and front porch and ...
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East Hampton, NY
Starting shade-tolerant ground covers in New York
Hi, I have seen some of the posts for shade-tolerant ground cover on the east end of Long Island and my question is process related. Now that I've identified the grasses/plants I need to keep my fro...
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Lebanon, CT
Plant Identification from Lebanon CT
What is that plant-- a wildflower --large thick stalk--flowers can be purple, pink, and very light pink. 3 branches off of stalk--flowers growing up each branch. Flowers smell similar to peonies.Leave...
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New Haven, CT
Could lilacs grow in Georgia?
Hi Mr Smarty Pants, First off, I want to commend you on your promotion of native plants. I am passionately anti-invasive plants (in fact, it was the subject of my master's thesis). That being said...
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Glastonbury, CT
Failure to thrive of non-native Japanese maple
My 10 year old Japanese red maple leaves suddenly started to curl up and die at the end of summer last year. Only about a quarter of the tree leaved out this spring, branches are dead. Can I plant ano...
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Southampton, NY
Native plants to attract migrating birds
Can you suggest native plants that would attract migrating birds? I have a very sunny location, with very sandy soil. Thanks in advance for your answer.
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