Garden Slugs, Yuck!!

If you prefer avoiding insecticides, and do not mind putting in early morning work time, you can trap slugs. Place scrap boards on the soil under plants and between garden rows. Each morning collect slugs from under the boards and put in a bucket containing soapy water. The slugs will drown and can be disposed of later. (Don't put slugs into your compost pile as they will become smelly.)

Yeasty odors attract slugs. Use yeast and water, or beer, as an attractant for slug traps. One trap design uses a coffee can in which a hole has been cut about one-third of the way up from the bottom. The can is buried so the hole is at ground level. Place about 2 inches of beer or yeast and water into the trap. Cover with the plastic lid to reduce evaporation and to keep out thirsty pets! Check and remove dead slugs daily, and replace the attractant every 4 days.

You can find answers to many gardening questions at our consumer horticulture web site: http://consumerhorticulture.psu.edu/, or contact your local cooperative extension office. In Lackawanna County ask for the Garden Help line at 963-6842 or email LackawannaMG@psu.edu


Terry Schettini, Extension Educator
Penn State Cooperative Extension in Lackawanna County

When Good Lawns Go Bad

Most homeowners take great pride in the lush green grass carpeting their landscape. Equaling their pride, is the effort put into maintaining their turf. Fertilizing, feeding, weeding, mowing, and more is part chore and part enjoyment. Conversely, it is discouraging to see your lawn browning despite your best efforts. So what is a homeowner to do when good lawns go bad?

First you should determine the cause. Factors in turf deterioration might be tree root competition, soil compaction, excessive shade, and the wrong type of grass planted. Obvious right now is the lack of rain and high heat. The best thing for the grass in times like these is to do nothing. And here are a few more tips to help your lawn though the dry spells.

Walk on it as little as possible. Don’t play on it. Don’t fertilize it either. Find something else to do around your yard. Most turf grasses suited for this area undergo a dormancy when it is hot and dry. It is not recommended to water the lawn. Water restrictions may be put in place, plus imprecise watering can lead to weakened plants, pests, and lessening the ability to recover.

Mow high and less frequently, all season long. Taller grass blades shade the root system and crowd out weeds. Never remove more than one third of the plant when you mow. Keep your equipment in top shape. If you have used your mower more than about eight hours, sharpen the blades. Otherwise the mower will tear the grass causing browning, and leading to diseases. Lawns mowed with dull blades use thirty per cent more water.

Leave the clippings. Nature and earthworms will incorporate the cut grass into the soil. They break down quickly helping both drainage and moisture retention.

Remember, when your pet needs a pit stop, help them find another place to go. This time of year the salt in a dog’s urine can damage the grass.

Home lawns represent 70% of Pennsylvania's 2,000,000 acres of turfgrass. Lawns increase the property value of homes, stabilize soils, and give us something to do early Saturday mornings. Studies have shown as little as a quarter inch of rain in three weeks time is enough for the grass to survive. By managing it year-round, and protecting it during the vulnerable times, you can enjoy your lawn for years to come.

For more information on lawn care, the Penn State Master Gardeners in Lackawanna County have the publications Lawn Management Through the Seasons and Renovation of Lawns. Please contact us at 570-963-6842 or LackawannaMG@psu.edu to request a copy.

Steve Ward
Master Gardener Coordinator
Penn State Cooperative Extension in Lackawanna County

Purple Boxes and Emerald Ash Borer

Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) is an exotic, invasive wood-boring insect that is threatening to infest and kill all North American ash species from the genus Fraxinus, like Green Ash and White Ash (the more common ashes), as well as Black Ash and Blue Ash. The borer does NOT infest the unrelated American Mountain Ash, which is in the genus Pyrus. Government agency and Cooperative Extension staff have been monitoring the borer and trying to slow its movement across the USA since it was first sighted in Michigan in 2002. This week we would like to explain a bit about the purple monitoring boxes that you might see as you travel across the state and give you some tips on how you could help slow down the borer’s spread.

So, as for the boxes, we have been hearing some interesting stories about them. They range from “I have no idea what they do” to “they attract beetles that attack ash trees and kill the beetles.” To help clear things up below is some information from a blog maintained by Robert Hansen, Extension Forester, Tioga County Extension office. You can visit his blog at http://www.mypawoods.blogspot.com

The “Purple Boxes” are back in Pennsylvania’s landscape. Cooperating agencies have again hung the purple emerald ash borer “traps” in key areas of the state. Many of them are located along major roads and highways and parks (since people are one of the principle transporters of this insect). The traps are treated with a substance that attracts emerald ash borer to the trap where they get stuck on the sticky surface. Technicians will periodically check the traps for emerald ash borer adults.

Remember, these traps do not attract emerald ash borer into non-infested areas. The purpose of the traps is to determine if the insect is already present in the area. If you see these traps in your travels, please do not disturb them. They can best do their job if they are left undisturbed. And please encourage anyone who may mention them to you to please leave them alone.

If you suspect that you have seen emerald ash borer damage or an adult emerald ash borer, contact your local Cooperative Extension office, Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry office or Regional Pennsylvania Dept. of Agriculture office. For more information on emerald ash borer go to http://bradford.extension.psu.edu/nresources/forestry.html and scroll down to the emerald ash borer photo and click there. The purple boxes are not control measures. Their purpose is not to kill the beetles. Their purpose is to monitor to see if the beetle is in the area.

To keep up with up to date happenings about emerald ash borer and other forest related topics, visit Hansen’s blog listed above.

Now, here are some tips on how you could help slow the spread of the borer …

• Do not move firewood. That is one of the primary ways the emerald ash borer moves into uninfested areas. Buy your firewood locally when you get to your campsite.
• Do not plant ash trees.
• Monitor ash trees on your property and be prepared to remove if them if they become unhealthy or infested. We recommend that you use a certified arborist in your area. For help in finding a certified arborist visit the website www.PATrees.org or call your local extension office.

Questions? Contact your local cooperative extension office. In Lackawanna County ask for the Garden Help line at 570-963-6842 or email LackawannaMG@psu.edu

Terry Schettini, Extension Educator
Penn State Cooperative Extension in Lackawanna County

Blight

Here we are in the midst of summer. Perfect for picnics, all sorts of outside activities, and enjoying the freedom this season brings. We will be celebrating Independence Day and the weather forecast is great. The summer, so far, has been much better than last. Remember? Lots of rain, lower than average temperatures, and a disappointing growing season for the home gardener. Even worse, this time last year, we were plagued by late blight. While weather does play a part in the development of the disease, the pathogen, Phytophtora infestans, has to be present in order for late blight to develop.

In parts of Pennsylvania there have been confirmed cases of late blight. Late blight is a disease that can kill plants and wipe out crops in a few days if conditions favor disease growth. Those conditions described the 2009 growing season – cool to moderate temperatures with wet weather. Once you have seen late blight wipe out a garden or field, you begin to understand how important preventative measures are to protecting your home garden.

Late blight affects primarily potatoes and tomatoes, not other garden crops. Spores can blow for many miles, land on a wet tomato or potato leaf and start a new infection. So the disease can quickly spread from one garden to another. Infections can be prevented by regular spraying with fungicides containing chlorothalonil or mancozeb, but applications must begin before the disease gets started and continue through the growing season every 7 days to protect new growth. If weather is dry, you can stretch this interval; but if we have heavy rains, you may have to shorten it.

Gardeners should be spraying fungicides on their tomato and potato plants to prevent infection. Keep in mind that fungicides prevent infection they do not cure it. All plant surfaces should be covered with fungicide before conditions favor infection. Do not wait until after the rain stops to apply fungicides – they should be sprayed and dry before rain starts. Thorough coverage of all plant surfaces is needed for good control.

Remember, fungicides are to be used and handled according to labeled instructions. For more information on late blight, please contact the Penn State Master Gardener Helpline at 570-963-6842 or email: LackawannaMG@psu.edu


Steve Ward
Master Gardener Coordinator
Penn State Cooperative Extension in Lackawanna County
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