Boardash: ArcaMax Gardening Daily Tips for Sunday October 25, 2009

Saturday, October 24, 2009

ArcaMax Gardening Daily Tips for Sunday October 25, 2009

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Gardening Daily Tips
For You
Sunday October 25, 2009

Mahonia, Leatherleaf (Mahonia bealei)
Q&A: Controlling Fungus Gnats
Q&A: Tree Roots Buckle Sidewalk
Tip: Roast Pumpkin Seeds
Wine and Dine Daily Video
Reader Photos

Mahonia, Leatherleaf (Mahonia bealei)

Today's Featured Plant
Mahonia, Leatherleaf (Mahonia bealei)

Read the full profile of this plant at ArcaMax.com.

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Q&A: Controlling Fungus Gnats

Question: There are little black gnats flying around my house, and I've tracked them back to my houseplants. How can I control these annoying creatures, and are they harming my plants?

Answer: The little black insects are most likely fungus gnats. They breed in overly damp soil, where both the larvae and adults feed on abundant soil fungi. If the population of gnats is very high, the larvae may run out of fungus to eat and turn to your plants' rootlets for food, but this rarely causes plants distress. To rid yourself of these pests, allow the soil surface to dry out a little between waterings. Most houseplants do better when the soil is not overly wet, so this should not hurt them. To break the breeding cycle and eliminate the pests you can also spread a thin layer of sand or gravel over top of the potting soil -- this works well if you have plants that do actually require a constantly wet soil. This layer will dry out very quickly (faster than the potting mix) and the gnats will have no place to breed. Each generation lives only a short while so once the surface moisture stops they should disappear in a few weeks. There are also commercial products containing a special strain of the biological control Bt that help control this pest.

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Q&A: Tree Roots Buckle Sidewalk

Question: I have two oak trees in my front yard that are causing the sidewalk to buckle, as well as making it very difficult to grow a decent lawn. Someone suggested that I replace them with more "root friendly" trees and that this would resolve the situation. Is this true?

Answer: Oaks aren't usually considered shallow-rooted trees -- where conditions allow, they send their roots deep. There may be an underlying factor that's causing them to favor the soil surface, such as a shallow bedrock layer under the soil, high water table, soil compaction, and the like. If this is the case, any tree that you plant will grow shallow roots. I suggest that you have a landscaper or arborist take a look at your site and assess what kind of tree is likely to be compatible with the conditions in your yard before spending a lot of money and energy in tree removal and replacment -- it'll be worth the front-end investment!

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Tip: Roast Pumpkin Seeds

To roast pumpkin seeds, separate clean seeds and spread on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt and roast at 375F for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir and roast for another 2 to 3 minutes until the hulls are golden brown.

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Wine and Dine Daily Video

Learn to make chocolate cupcakes with buttercream frosting, spring rolls, and even a classic mint julep. They're all easy with free videos from ArcaMax's new Wine and Dine Video Ezine!

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-- From the ArcaMax editors

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Sincerely,
ArcaMax Editors