Q We just had a pin oak planted in our front yard in Fayetteville.
The tree has about a 3-inchdiameter base. When the nursery planted the tree, they replaced the zoysia sod around the circumference of the tree. Do we need to remove the grass and replace it with mulch or is the way it was done OK?
A I recommend leaving a bit of space around the base of the tree where there is no grass, just mulch. This will accomplish two things. One, it keeps whoever is mowing the grass or using a weed trimmer away from the tender bark at the base of the tree. Secondly, grass roots do compete with young tree roots for establishment.
Q Should you prune crape myrtles?
A Crape myrtles come in a variety of sizes from ground-cover forms to standard tree forms. The variety you are growing determines at what age you prune. If you have a standard tree that is well shaped, very little annual pruning is needed. If you have a young tree, pruning to get the form and function you want is good, but don’t practice “crape murder” and cut it to its knees every season.
Q Should I be watering all my trees and plants during this dry period?
If so, should I only water during an extensive period of temperatures above freezing? And how often should I be watering?
A While weekly watering is not necessary in the winter, you do need to do some watering when it is as dry as it has been. While we have had some precipitation, we have also had a lot of high winds. Windy conditions dry things out quickly. I don’t recall seeing this many burn bans across the state in the winter in earlier years. I hooked up an oscillating sprinkler this weekend and watered several of my landscape beds.
Pay particular attention to container plants and newly planted trees and shrubs, but a little water, especially before a hard freeze, is a good thing.
Q I have two pomegranate bushes that I bought five or six years ago. They are 10 to 12 feet tall, and have grown really well and bloom like crazy, but they have never set any fruit. What can I do to get them to set fruit?
I live in Russellville, and I have seen some around here with a lot of fruit on them.
A Pomegranate bushes come in all forms. The double flowered form is quite commonly sold as an ornamental, and there are fruitless varieties. They bloom more freely since they don’t set fruit.
Q I have been told by a close friend who is a really good gardener that we are supposed to pull up our roses because of some disease that is taking over in Arkansas. I hate to question him, but I still see roses for sale at local stores.
Surely if we have to pull our established plants that are healthy, they wouldn’t let them still sell roses. Can you help enlighten me?
A Many people are scared of the disease on roses called rose rosette virus. It has been more widespread in recent years, but there is no reason to pull up healthy, established rose bushes, and yes, you can and should still plant more. Just be aware of the virus, and if you notice it on a plant, cut out the affected branch.
If new damage occurs on the same plant, pull that plant and destroy it. There is no cure once a plant has the disease. Rose rosette is spread by a tiny mite. These mites often overwinter in the tops of rose bushes, so proper pruning will help to destroy them. If you do see the disease, it will show symptoms, which can include extra red stems, excessive thorniness and deformed or mottled foliage. If you suspect problems, take a plant sample to your county office of the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture’s Cooperative Extension Service for diagnosis.
Janet Carson is a horticulture specialist for the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service. Write to her at 2301 S. University Ave., Little Rock, Ark. 72204 or email her at
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