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In the Garden with Janet B. Carson
November 14, 2009

Question  The following picture was taken on November 2 on the North side of my sun room in my back yard. I don't recall hydrangeas blooming this late.

Picture of a hydrangea bloom.

Answer  Is the plant one of the Endless Summer or re-blooming types? If so, that might make more sense. Otherwise, it is just a fluke. It has been an unusual year. Just this week I also saw gardenias in bloom, bearded iris and a few scattered blooms on a tulip magnolia! Enjoy and cut it for longer enjoyment indoors before a frost. Read on . . .

Question  I have several forsythia bushes around my home in northwest Arkansas, (Madison Co.) but only one that is now blooming.....well, it really is just about finished blooming; AND the foliage is a beautiful burgundy color. That coupled with the yellow blooms and the burgundy leaves make for a very pretty sight.  Is this unusual?  I am 77 years old and have never seen forsythia like this, let alone blooming this time of year, in my lifetime.     

Answer  Forsythia often turns a nice reddish bronze before the foliage falls off. Blooms in the fall are a bit unusual on forsythias, but have been known to happen in fluctuating years. Forsythia set its flower buds in August and early Sept. All the wet weather, had them set a lot of buds. Then it got cool and then it turned warm again. Some of our plants are confused as to what season they are in. Hopefully, it is only a portion of the flowers that are in bloom now, and you will still have a good display next spring. For now, enjoy the show.

Question  We've had some clematis for a number of years. This year they did not bloom much, which I am blaming on the rain, and the leaves either dried up on the vine or fell off.  Is it beneficial to cut the vines back each year (we haven't)? 

Answer  The key to pruning clematis is to know when they bloom. Some varieties only bloom in the spring, and flower buds are set now--so pruning would remove your flower buds and you won't have any blooms. Other clematis varieties bloom in the summer on new wood, and they can be cut back hard every year in the fall or early spring and still produce flowers on the growth they put on in the spring and early summer. Fall blooming clematis are the toughest of all and can be pruned as needed through June. After that, leave them alone to set flower buds.

Question  We just moved some houseplants in from being on a shaded patio for most of the summer and the leaves are turning yellow and it seems that the leaf tips turn brown.  What would be the likely cause of this and what step can we take to prevent this? 

Answer  If you just moved the plant inside the past couple of weeks, yellowing is not unusual. The plants are acclimating to the conditions indoors. It got pretty cool in October at night, and the plants got used to cool nights and warm days. They had loads of humidity and rainfall, plus bright light. Now they are inside in a heated house with a pretty static temperature, no humidity and low light. They have to get used to these conditions. In a few weeks, the yellowing and dropping leaves will stop, but they won't grow in leaps and bounds. Cut back on how much water you give them indoors and keep them going until spring, when they can be moved back outdoors.

Question  We were at the Cooper Memorial Chapel in Bella Vista this weekend and they had some beautiful shrubs about 4' tall, a very pretty silky like leaf, would almost lay flat like a fern or very soft pine needles, very pretty green color, would almost make you think it was an artificial plant, I took a small piece to the nursery in Bella Vista and they said it was a yew but did not know what kind.  We live in Benton and would love to know what they are, as they were growing in the shade and we have areas that we would like to put them. 

Answer  There are several plants with the common name of yew. In NW Arkansas, you saw one of the species of Taxus. You will see some here in central Arkansas, but they aren't as happy in central or southern Arkansas with our heat and humidity. A more southern friendly yew is the plum yew-- Cephalotaxus. While not as formal in growth habit, it thrives in our heat and loves shade. An even more southern loving "yew" is Podocarpus. Hope this helps.

 

If you would like to see all of the Q& A's that Janet writes they are archived in the Reference Desk section.

 

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