Also, every year my black-eyed Susan flowers are full of holes. I can’t see any bugs. I hope you have some answers for me. — ELSIE GLICK, GORDONVILLE
A. Penn State’s Timothy Elkner says insects are feeding on both your beans and Susans. Aphids and leafhoppers are causing the bean problem. Some other insect is working over the Susans. It could be flea beetles, vine weevils or even slugs. Slugs come out at night and often disappear during the day, so you would not see them. This means you need to start early next season with an insect control. Visit your garden center and find a product that controls these insects. Also make sure to eliminate any weeds around these plants, where insects could be hiding.
Q. I have two large butterfly bushes in my front yard and had many different beautiful butterflies on them all summer. I also have three bushes whose name I don’t know, but they get small, pink ball-shaped blooms that the butterflies, bees and hummingbirds seem to love. We really enjoy just sitting and watching them get nectar from these bushes. — JENNIFER L. DOUGLAS, MARIETTA
A. It didn’t take long for Jennifer to tell me that butterfly bushes do attract butterflies, after I bashed the bushes in a recent column. I asked readers if they had better results. Even before I had time to read the column, Jennifer had e-mailed me. I’m not familiar with the bush described by Jennifer as having small, pink bell-shaped blooms, but if she’ll send a sample or a picture, we can get it identified. Remember to send plant samples wrapped only in dry paper towels.
GARDEN CUTTINGS
The most important thing you can do for your lawn this fall is to let it breathe. Reduce stress and ensure your lawn’s health and vigor by aerating it. Aeration is the key to top-notch fall lawn care and ensuring a lawn you can be proud of next spring. Opening up the root system provides a direct path for air, water and nutrients to reach the grass roots, which encourages more roots to take hold and grow deeper into the soil. You can rent aerators at any rental store, or some garden centers rent them. Be sure to get the kind that digs up cores of earth. I always tried to aerate at least every other year.
There is a new “groundbreaking” liquid solution for aerating, called “Lazy Man Liquid Soil Aerator.” You use a hose-end sprayer to apply Lazy Man, and 100 percent of your soil will be treated. Lazy Man is new and may be hard to find, but you’ll find it on the Internet at www.lazymangardener.com. Remember this old saying that you can trust: “Beautiful lawns are made in the fall.”
If you planted a fall garden that included cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli, you probably already know that cabbage butterflies (the small white ones) lay eggs that hatch into cabbage worms and become a real problem. Frequent spraying with Dipel will correct the problem.
Bob Stiffler’s column appears every Thursday in Your Life.
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