Local Weather Forecast
Today: Current:79	Sunday: 92/70	Monday: 91/71
Complete Forecast for  Sep 06 2008

TOP JOBS

DEAR NEIL: You mentioned peonies in a recent column. I have noticed, while visiting relatives at the time they were blooming, that they are fragrant in Iowa and not in Washington. Is that unusual?

It probably has a lot more to do with the varieties that were being grown or where in their flowering cycle they were when you saw them. Fragrance of almost any group of flowers will vary from variety to variety. Roses are the classic example. You can smell some varieties as soon as you enter the garden. Others require much closer olfactory inspection. Also, fragrant flowers will have their best aromas early in the lives of the individual flowers and early in the morning as well.

DEAR NEIL: We are trying to eliminate a row of old-fashioned nandinas that are growing too close to our house. We tried pulling them up, and we have applied Round-Up, diesel oil and 2, 4-d. Nothing has killed them out completely, and they're so thick we can't get a rototiller into them. What can we do?

Pretty good testimonial as to why nandinas are so popular where we do want them. The best method is one that you mentioned, and that would be the same broadleafed weedkiller 2, 4-d that we mentioned earlier, applied as a foliar spray to active new growth in mid-spring. Wait until May, then spray at the recommended rate. You'll still have those massive roots to contend with, but at least you'll have killed the top growth. You might try a really heavy-duty rototiller. Beware of any utility lines that might run into your house through their bed.

DEAR NEIL: I have a large oak tree that is close to my drive. One of the tree's roots has lifted the drive by about 5 inches. Can I safely remove that root in order to replace that elevated portion of my drive?

Absolutely. The tree will recover, assuming it suffers at all. While you have the driveway torn up you might check for any other smaller roots that may be waiting their turn to do your drive harm. Cut a trench along the side of the drive and install some type of root barrier to keep additional roots from causing a problem. You could also install interlocking concrete pavers that would allow you easier access to the soil without breaking solid pieces of concrete.

DEAR NEIL: I have new blackberry plants that have grown very well. They were planted last winter. Should they be pruned now?

Oh, no! Blackberries produce fruit on canes that were produced the preceding year. Once they bear fruit, however, those canes will never bear again. That makes early June the best time to cut the canes that have just borne fruit back completely to the ground. "Tip-prune" the new canes this spring to keep them shorter and more compact.

Have a question you'd like Neil to consider? Mail it to him in care of this newspaper or e-mail him at mailbag@sperrygardens.com. Neil regrets that he cannot reply to questions individually.