Overfeeding can stunt broccoli

Q: I have put a lot of composted horse manure and chicken manure in my garden and everything seems to be growing very well. The broccoli I planted last year is growing very lush and thick, with huge, healthy green leaves, but the broccoli heads that formed were narrow and spindly. — Thomas McGrath, Mableton

A: My bet is that the manures gave the broccoli plants so much nitrogen that they had little interest in flowering and making the head you want. A soil test is always useful to get maximum production from a garden (www
.georgiasoiltest.com). At this stage, I’d till the plants under. Hot weather will cause them to fade.

Q: I have several “Bright and Tight” cherry laurels that I planted last spring. Last fall I noticed they had lost a lot of leaves. This spring there is new growth, but it is only on the tips of each branch. Would pruning help? — Karen Reschly, 
e-mail

A: Spring-planted evergreens like Leyland cypress, magnolia and cherry laurel always have a hard time establishing a good root system. The best you can do is apply a slow-release organic fertilizer like Holly-Tone or EB Stone lightly now and keep it watered if it turns dry this summer.

Q: Our home was sodded with (Bermuda grass) six years ago, but we’ve neglected it since then. We’d like to bring it back. Can it be overseeded with Bermuda seed to thicken it up? — N’neka Scruggs, e-mail

A: You can overseed a thin Bermuda grass lawn with Bermuda grass seed, but it’s key to put the tiny seed in close contact with the soil. To that end, in early May rent a core aerator and go over the lawn three times in varying directions. Apply a pound of seed per 1,000 square feet.

To get even coverage, mix each pound of seed with 5 pounds of grits or dry play sand before spreading.

After the seed is down, drag a piece of carpet or chain-link fence over the area to break up the aerator cores and put the tiny seed close to the soil surface. Apply one inch of water immediately after planting. Then apply enough water to prevent the top half-inch of soil from drying each day. Do this until seedlings are 1.5 inches tall.

Over the next two months, wean the lawn to a single watering of one inch per week.

Listen to Walter Reeves 6-10 Saturday mornings on AM 750 and 95.5 FM News-Talk WSB. Visit his website, www.walterreeves.com, or join his Facebook Fan Page at xrl.us/wrfacebook for more garden tips.