Last summer and fall, the fire ants were in decline. Perhaps it was due to an unusually dry and hot summer, or maybe the release of a natural predatory wasp called a Phorrid Fly by the guys at UGA. Whatever the reason, I was happy to notice fewer fire ant mounds in the landscapes that I manage. Well, this spring, they’re baaaaaaaaack! A mild winter along with the recent rains have caused a near explosion of fire ant mounds. Frankly, many of the mounds can be minimized simply by mowing over them. That repeated mowing of the mounds is what I call ‘harassment’. It doesn’t kill the mound but the ants will either be subdued or will move the mound somewhere else.

Treat two times a year with a bait product.

A better treatment is to use a fire ant bait like Amdro to control them. These control products are mixed with corn gluten which the ants will gather as food. They will carry the little yellow granules into the mound and feed it to their little ant buddies, as well as to the queen (or queens!). It takes about 10 days for this stuff to show it’s effects, but Brother, it works! Ants will haul out their dead and place them in one area near the mound, sort of like that scene out of Monty Python’s Holy Grail where the character trudges along the village street banging on a pot and shouting, “Bring out your dead!”.

These baits have a very low application rate, usually about one pound per acre, and it only takes two applications a year to get very good control. When you go to your favorite Garden Center to purchase this stuff, pick up a little hand-held spreader that looks like a flour sifter. It’s the best way I know to apply a bait like this. When you apply it remember you don’t have to get total coverage, as you would with a fertilizer or weed control. Just make a pass every 25 feet or so until you get enough out to meet the correct application rate.

The time to apply this is now! (Late March to early April), then again in September when the ants are foraging for winter. It may not totally eliminate your fire ant problem, but you will notice a significant decline in the number of mounds.

Because of the unusually warm winter we are having this year, it would be a good idea to apply your crabgrass preventer earlier than normal, as in NOW.

The conventional wisdom says that crabgrass preventer is applied when the Forsythia, or Yellow Bells, are blooming. And no, Forsythia does not ’cause’ crabgrass any more than February ’causes’ Super Bowls. It’s just that some weed guy at a university somewhere noticed that crabgrass germinates under the same conditions that Forsythia  blooms. Clever. That rule of thumb applies most of the time….except when the winter weather for Atlanta is more like that of Orlando.

First caveat: Finding the crabgrass preventer at the Garden Center or big box might be a trick, because they may not have it available for sale yet. You’ll know it when you see it, it will say “Crabgrass Preventer” on the bag.  Second caveat: You will probably need to apply a second treatment in late April to make sure you  get good control.  The lawn care guys call this a ‘split application’ because they usually will apply the preventer at half the recommended rate, but do it six or eight weeks apart to get really great extended benefits of the product. It would be wise to purchase all you need now because it probably won’t be available when you need it again in late Spring.

As always, measure the area you are applying these products, and always, always read and follow label directions.

As long as you’re here, how ’bout signing up for my semi-regular Southern Garden Coach update here?

While vacationing with my family at the Walt Disney World Resort last fall it occurred to me that the landscapes at that place can be so strikingly beautiful, so overwhelmingly perfect, that the average homeowner might not appreciate some of the aspects of these landscapes that will apply to their homes and gardens.  But there are many “take home lessons” from the Walt Disney World Parks and Resorts and their great landscapes.

Perhaps the most basic lesson is to plan your landscape, or let a professional help you.  Now, I don’t know the organizational flow chart of the Horticulture department there, but I can safely guess that they have a few landscape architects and designers on staff. These are professional, experienced people that are capable and prepared to design those magical landscapes. You can use this same approach in your home landscape. It doesn’t matter if your home is a year old or a hundred years, it is never too late (or too soon, for that matter) to start the design process. Hire a landscape professional that you like and to whom you feel comfortable talking.  Check their references, and see how well they listen to you.  A designer who wants to do a ‘cookie-cutter’ design or who wants to impose their own design ideals is not for you.  And of course, a design can be planted in phases, as time and money allow.

After getting a thoughtful landscape design, let’s do something else that Disney does well: Create a spectacular entrance!  Every one of the four major parks, as well as every resort on the property has a well-done entrance. Each one clearly communicates  a mood or a tone that the ‘guests’ can expect to find once inside.  Accomplishing this in a subdivision is a little trickier than in a theme park, but the lesson still applies.  The way I apply this idea is to make the front of the home as welcoming and inviting as possible.  It’s part of my fundamental design criterion to draw the viewers eye into the landscape, right up to the front door.  I accomplish this through the use of bed lines, contrasting textures of the plantings, framing the view, and a judicious use of color. It’s important to avoid overly busy home landscapes as this will only draw attention to the landscape itself, rather than the front door of the home.  

June is the time for most daylily blooms

Perhaps one of the easiest, most reliable, and trouble-free perennials for a sunny spot here in the South is the daylily or Hemerocallis. This Latin epithet means ‘beauty for a day’ and in fact, each flower opens and closes within the span of 24 hours.

If you have not tried growing daylilies, I suggest you get busy right away. They will grow most anywhere, but they do best in full sun with rich, well-drained soil, and ample moisture.  They also do quite well in a pot or planter.

If you have been growing daylilies, I want to encourage you to get some different varieties to try. You see, the plant breeders have discovered that daylilies are as easy to manipulate as they are to grow, so we have a huge selection of colors, sizes, and bloom times from which to choose.

After bloom, the bloom stalk (or more properly: scape) can be removed with pruners or scissors while it remains green.  After it turns brown in the late summer or fall it can usually be removed without a cutting tool.  If you allow it to  a produce seed pod, it will direct more energy toward seed production and less to the mass of the plant. The foliage looks pleasant and ‘grassy’ for the remainder of the season. In the winter the foliage turns brown and withers. Some varieties are semi-evergreen and don’t go completely dormant, but some of this depends on where you are. The warmer the winter, the more green foliage you will have….probably. One more note about the foliage: If you have a long hot summer that beats down the foliage of your plants, it’s OK to cut the whole clump down to 2 or 3 inches and allow it to grow new leaves.

To find new daylilies, cruise around the garden centers near your home. You could also  do a Google search for daylilies and will undoubtedly find several mail order nurseries to peruse.  Don’t be afraid to order bare root plants, even during the summer months.  Daylilies are tough and will be just fine. This is a good way to stretch your dollars, too. Bare root plants are cheaper to ship so you can buy some really cool new hybrids or just buy more of a particular color.  Just remember to unpack them as soon as they arrive and put them in a pot of fresh potting soil, then keep them watered. Better yet, have the bed ready and plant them straight away in their new home. If the foliage looks a little shaggy, trim it with scissors and let it start fresh. Because they are usually so prolific, daylilies have  become a great ‘pass along’ plant that is great to share with family or friends.