It
’s time for garden questions and answers again. Remember, send
your questions to me via e-mail at: [email protected]. Or you can
send questions by mail in care of this newspaper. Please include a
stamped, self-addressed envelope if you want a personal
response.
It’s time for garden questions and answers again. Remember, send your questions to me via e-mail at: [email protected]. Or you can send questions by mail in care of this newspaper. Please include a stamped, self-addressed envelope if you want a personal response.
And now, on with this month’s garden questions and answers.
Q. I have a Dracaena palm indoor plant that is getting brown on the tips of the leaves. This is a problem that has also occurred in the past. Can I do something to prevent this from happening? – J.G., Hollister, via e-mail.
A. What you’re experiencing is pretty common with many houseplants, but particularly palms like Dracaenas. The problem stems from salt burn of the leaves. Palms are particularly sensitive to excess salts in the soil. These salts collect and are transported to the leaves, accumulating at the tips first. In severe cases, this salt burn will spread to the leaf edges and even the entire leaf.
These salts are not only in the soil, but even the water and fertilizers we use. You need to leach out these excess salts by thoroughly flushing the soil. Do this by taking your plant outdoors and running water through it at least a couple times to the point the excess water is draining out the bottom.
Then, flush a third time using a vinegar and water solution. Simply mix a half teaspoon of vinegar per quart of water (two teaspoons per gallon). This will help leach out accumulated salts. It’s a good idea to use this vinegar and water solution instead of regular water every other time when watering your houseplants. The vinegar neutralizes the harmful salts and lower the pH of the soil, making it more acidic and keeping it salt-free. Your houseplants will be much healthier for it.
By the way, if you have a water softener in your home, never water houseplants with this treated water. Always water houseplants using the untreated, non-softened water from an outdoor spigot. In the meantime, you can instantly get rid of the slightly brown leaves at the end of your palm by carefully trimming away the brown portions with scissors.
Q. I have an indoor palm that is getting white dust of some sort on the leaves. The leaves also are turning a slightly speckled yellow color. Obviously, it is not healthy. What can I do? – G.J., Gilroy, via e-mail.
A. We might as well handle houseplant problems this month. Your palm is suffering from two problems. The white stuff are mealybugs, while spider mites are causing the speckling effect. If you look closely, you’ll probably see tiny spider webs on your plant, as well.
The surest method of eradication is to spray with a houseplant insect killer, such as malathion or isotox. Check with any nursery or garden department, and they will offer a plethora of insecticides that will do the trick.
You can also try a non-toxic solution. For mealybugs, dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol and touch all the white areas with this solution. This will take care of the adults, but not their eggs. As soon as you see more signs of them, treat with rubbing alcohol again on cotton swabs.
As for spider mites, you sometimes can gain control by spraying with a liquid soap solution. Mix a couple tablespoons for liquid soap into a plastic quart sprayer and thoroughly spray your palm.
Goldsmith Seeds in Gilroy is selling discount tickets to the 18th annual San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, which runs March 19-23 at the Cow Palace in Daley City. Advance tickets are $17 (regular admission price is $20). Tickets are available from the receptionist at Goldsmith, 2280 Hecker Pass Highway, weekdays.
It will be open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on all days except March 23 when it will close at 6:30 p.m. Details: www.gardenshow.com or 800-829-9751.
Keith Muraoka lives and works in Gilroy. His award-winning column has been in this newspaper since 1984. E-mail him at: gardendude @jps.net, or write him in c/o Morgan Hill Times, P.O. Box 757, Morgan Hill, CA 95038.
