When to landscape is a difficult call
By ROBERT KESSLER Penn State Cooperative Extension Franklin County office

COMING EVENTS

June 22 - 6 to 8:30 p.m., Grow Herbs for Home & Garden Workshop, Franklin County Extension office.

July 18 - 10 a.m., Falling Spring Nursing Home Garden Tour, 201 Franklin Farm Lane, Chambersburg, Franklin County

Master Gardeners

PLANTING YOUR

LANDSCAPE

Maybe you just built your house or maybe you have been wanting to add to or redo your landscape and you are now worried if you should wait to plant until fall. The answer to that question is it depends.

What it depends on is what size material are you planting and how well you keep it watered. Large bushy plants that have lush growth will be harder to transplant than a plant that has been in a local nursery and is adjusted to our climate. Basically, maybe the biggest isn't the best plant to put in during the hot days of summer. It may be a plant recently shipped in that has been pampered. A plant in a local nursery that has been there for a little while has become more acclimated to our weather and will probably transplant into your landscape just fine.

Once it is properly planted by your landscape contractor or by you, it needs to have two to three inches of mulch over the area to help prevent weeds and to hold moisture. Then it is your job to keep the plants watered.

Proper watering is crucial to the survival of newly planted landscape plants, no matter when you plant them, but especially in the summer. Proper watering means that you water deeply and less frequently. Too often people want to go our two or three times a week and spray their plants. Bad idea! You don't get the water to soak into the ground that way. You can use a hose with a slow stream and move it several times per plant and add adequate amounts of water. If you use overhead watering, do it early morning so the foliage will dry out quickly, which will reduce the risk of diseases. You need to have about one inch of water per week added to your trees, shrubs and garden. If it rains an inch, you don't need to water. If you only get a half inch of rain, then you have to add a half inch too.

If you go on a two to threeweek vacation, you should have someone come in and water during that extended vacation.

Proper watering will make summer planting successful. Remember to keep watering your trees and shrubs into the fall anytime we don't have adequate rain.

TERMITES IN MULCH

We often get questions about using mulch that wasn't treated for termites. We also see samples of mulch that contain termites and people panic because they think they are in their house too.

There have been numerous studies done on mulches and the results do show that termites do like mulch and can live in it. Does this mean that you shouldn't use wood chips for mulch that you should switch to stones? The answer is no to both questions. No you shouldn't stop using wood chips because they might get termites. Research has shown that termites are less interested in the wood chips and much more interested in the moist conditions it creates. You have just as much a chance to have termites under stone mulch as wood mulch and we know they are not feeding on the stone.

Termites are everywhere in our environment. Occasionally they will end up in your mulch, but they can be in the litter from a wood pile or get into a board lying on the ground or get into a dead stump. What we do need to do is to follow a few precautions to keep termites from entering, regardless of the type of mulch we use.

Never have any structural part of the house within six to twelve inches of any soil. Piling mulch up against the side of the house is making it possible for them to go from the ground into your house without being noticed. You should keep mulch several inches away from your house.

Pressure treated wood is not 100% resistant to termites. If you cut the end off a four by four or a six by six, you will sometimes see that the center wood is untreated. This could give access to termites if that end is on or in the ground.

Mulch is meant to be used two to three inches deep around plants. When you use a much deeper mulch, you just increase the desirable conditions for termites and really too much mulch can be a problem for your plants.

If you do find termites in your mulch, you should consult a professional about an inspection of your home. You could treat the mulch and get rid of those termites, but that doesn't mean that they are not in your house too. Termite inspections are offered free by many companies in our area. If you do find out you have termites, get a second and even a third opinion. Your house will not fall down from termite damage while you are doing this. You will be better informed and will know what some of your treatment options are and the cost of those treatments.

TIME FOR GRUB

CONTROL

In a couple of weeks, you will start seeing the adults of the Japanese beetles. This will be your reminder to consider using a grub treatment on your lawn.

If you had a grub problem last year in your lawn or if you see a large amount of beetles in your yard or flying around your night light around midnight, you should use a preventative treatment. This is a chemical that should be in place when the eggs start hatching. Your choices of material are imidacloprid (Merit) or halofenozide (Mach2). Mach 2 can be applied a little later in the season and still have affect on the developing grubs. Be sure to read the label. Merit needs to be watered in within 24 to 48 hours of the time of application.

Most lawns do not need to be treated for grubs every year. If you decide not to use a preventative material, you can wait and see if you have a problem. There are ways to monitor for grubs. Cut a six-inch square of your turf with a knife on three of the four sides of the square around early to mid August. Pull back the grass from the soil and

look for grubs. If you

find two to three grubs in a six by six inch area, that means you have eight to twelve per square foot of lawn. We usually suggest that lawns that have eight or more grubs per square foot of lawn should be treated. As you look for grubs, keep in mind that these grubs will be smaller than or about the size of the end of your little finger.

If you do find you have eight or more grubs, then you need to use a curative treatment. You can use Dylox (trichlorfon) or use Sevin (carbaryl). Follow label directions for grub control.