Small Peonies Can be Transplanted Now

By Walter Reeves

For the AJC

Q: My peonies have outgrown the place where I planted them. I would love to transplant them now but everything I have read says to wait until October Chrystal Griner, Covington

A: If the clump is so big that it needs dividing, I’d wait until October to do it. But if it is small enough that you can excavate a big clump of dirt surrounding the roots you can transplant now. There will still be some root damage but not so much that it can’t be ameliorated with occasional watering this summer.

Q: I noticed in a recent column that you spelled the name of a particular Southern plant “crapemyrtle”, not “crepe myrtle” or “crape myrtle”. I thought the name was two words. Beki Graham, e-mail

A: Every garden writer tries to be consistent in their spelling of plant names, and some do consistently spell it in either of the “two-word” ways you mention. I take my tree and shrub plant names from Dr. Michael Dirr's "Manual of Woody Plants." I also use for reference Dr. Allan Armitage’s books on annuals, perennials and vines.

Q: Does it hurt to cut off lower limbs of tomato plants that are on the ground? Ken Turner, e-mail

A: It’s no problem at all and you may avoid disease problems by doing so. Early blight is a common tomato disease that is spread by fungi splashing onto leaves from the soil below. It’s a good idea to mulch tomato plants when young and to keep the stems supported off the ground with a trellis.

Q: Are wild strawberries edible? Wayne & Jackie, Gilmer County

A: If you’re referring to the lawn weed we commonly call wild strawberry, Potentilla indica, the fruits are edible but they have no taste I can discern. Another name for this plant is Indian mock strawberry. Although its yellow flower is pretty, most folks pull it out of their landscape.

Q: We had zoysia sod installed recently. Can you recommend a watering schedule for our irrigation system this summer? Maria Barton, e-mail

A: The correct answer is to water when the grass needs it. This may not be a predictable schedule. In other words, irrigating once per week this spring would have been a waste of water and a detriment to your lawn. We had plenty of rain for all lawns then, but our weather has been dry since early May. One way to schedule appropriate watering is to hire an irrigation contractor to install a soil moisture sensor, which will tell your irrigation controller when the grass needs water. I’m familiar with two brands of moisture sensors: UgMO (www.ugmo.com) and the Rain Bird SMRT-Y system (www.rainbird.com).

Q: I have a potato vine in a large ceramic pot. It grows like kudzu and is covering everything close by. Any problem with trimming? John Wages, Lawrenceville

A: There’s no problem at all with cutting the vine when needed. Some early varieties of ornamental sweet potato are known for their vigorous growth. More recent introductions, like the Sweet Caroline series of ornamental potatoes, the Illusion series and ‘Carolina Purple’ are more restrained in their habits.

Listen to Walter Reeves 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.