12
votes
Accepted
Can I force a dormant forsythia branch to bloom by bringing it inside?
Yes you can.
This actually an old German Advent/Christmas tradition in honour of St. Barbara's Day (Dec. 04) and it's usually done with branches of cherry or apple trees. Forsythia will work fine, ...
- 15.5k
10
votes
Accepted
Planting shrubs on a gently sloped landscape.
Plants will grow up to the light. I recommend planting them perpendicular to the imaginary level surface. Anything else would look odd as the alternative is not seen in nature.
What will help is ...
- 56k
10
votes
Is this part of my bougainvillea or a weed?
It looks like a mint or a very closely related labitae. Even the flower spike looks like mint. Is the stem squarish?
In any case it is certainly not part of your bougainvillea.
- 6,316
10
votes
Accepted
What are these tall, tree-like shrubs and how often should I water them?
Judging by the new growth being red, I'd say these were Photinia fraserii 'Red Robin'. I can't tell if they're pleached or not, can't see any framework within the foliage, so its possible they're just ...
- 128k
9
votes
Accepted
How do I make Emerald Green Arborvitae grow as fast as biologically possible?
The time you spend in preparation is as, or more, important than post planting time.
site location, cedars like access to water, not soggy and not dry
some shade is fine and full sun is tolerated if ...
- 56k
9
votes
Accepted
Should I seal the wounds where limbs were removed on a crape myrtle?
According to Wayne K. Clatterbuck in the article Tree Wounds on the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Tree Care Kit:
Research indicates that wound dressings (materials such as tar or paint) do not ...
- 51.5k
9
votes
Accepted
Can I graft elderberries (Sambucus)?
Because of the large pith cavity in elderberry stems, grafting is tricky and good grafts are rare. It's better to grow them from cuttings. Spliced side grafting onto one-year-old seedlings may be ...
- 51.5k
9
votes
My long stemmed rose is growing new leaves
You can try rooting it if you want by snipping the stem just below a bud at the base, stripping off the thorns and leaves, leaving one leaf at the top if you like, but you can take them all off, and ...
- 128k
9
votes
Accepted
What is this small shrub with variegated glossy ovate leaves?
It looks like Griselinia littoralis "Variegata". It's an evergreen shrub native to New Zealand. Because of its dense growth, it is used widely in Britain and Ireland as a privacy hedge.
Identifying ...
- 7,159
8
votes
What is this red shrub in my garden?
I reckon its Prunus cerasifera, or a cultivar of, commonly known as Purple Leaf Flowering Plum or Myrobalan plum. The leaves should be toothed or serrated at the edges - some varieties are more ...
- 128k
8
votes
Accepted
Is this part of my bougainvillea or a weed?
After some further research, and with the help of @Escoce's and @Bamboo's answers, I believe this is a Sweet Almond Bush.
Family: Verbenaceae
Genus: Aloysia
Species: Virgata
©Dave's Garden / http:/...
- 252
8
votes
Accepted
Variegated Arboricola shrubs leaves wilting
The active ingredient of the herbicide used is Dicamba Mecoprop. It also affects broad leaf shrubs and trees. From this pdf by the International Society of Arborists
Once the material is absorbed ...
- 56k
8
votes
Accepted
Identifying these Pink and White Flowers
This is a Spiraea shrub. Here is a general article on the genus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiraea.
There are 10s of species and probably hundreds of cultivars. One of the most common garden ...
- 3,026
7
votes
Accepted
What kind of shrub or bush is this, black berries, elongated leaves?
The shrub is definitely a Prunus and I'm trying to decide whether its Prunus lusitanica or P. laurocerasus - the leaves seem a little too narrow for the latter, unless this is a small variety such as '...
- 128k
7
votes
Accepted
How do I save lilac seeds?
Growing lilacs from seeds isn’t easy, but it can be done. It can take up to three or four years for a seed-propagated lilac to bloom, though, so you’ll have to be patient and just enjoy watching the ...
7
votes
Accepted
What does 'standard' mean when referring to shrubs and vines?
Standard, in this context, means trained into tree form. Usually standard shrubs and vines are trained from a young age, allowing only one stem to grow from the ground, forming the trunk. This must be ...
- 51.5k
7
votes
My long stemmed rose is growing new leaves
I bought this rose at rite aid on clearance two years ago. We put it in water, and the stem never turned brown. After about 9 months in a glass of water, I put it in soil. It grew a bunch of new ...
7
votes
Accepted
How can I save Yew bush branches severely bent by snow and ice?
The yew bushes in front of the building I work at are flattened by snow and ice every winter, (nobody cleans it off, and if the roof gets cleared, they get extra helpings on top.) They are poorly ...
- 18k
7
votes
What is the proper way to plant a bush under an established fruit tree?
You can't - if you want to plant close to a tree, it has to be done when you first plant the tree, at the same time, in other words. You could plant near the apple tree, but not under the canopy.
- 128k
7
votes
Accepted
What is this bush with small yellow flowers and an orange substance in the stems?
This is definetively Chelidonium majus or greater celandine. In the US it's a neophyte, probably imported by early settlers that used the orange milk to treat warts1 and other skin conditions.
It ...
- 15.5k
7
votes
Accepted
Can you identify this fragrant shrub?
This is a beautiful specimen of common privet (Ligustrum vulgare). The lanceolate dark glossy leaves, the intense scent and especially the four petals are quite distinctive.
- 15.5k
6
votes
Accepted
What is a good shrub for privacy for the Pacific Northwest USA?
Bamboo might be a good option as they are evergreen, grow fairly tall and also grow pretty fast here. There are clumping varieties available that don't attempt to escape your yard, but a root barrier ...
- 7,707
6
votes
How do I make Emerald Green Arborvitae grow as fast as biologically possible?
There's an interesting piece of research online carried out in June 2005 at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, and published in the Horticultural Research Institute Journal; one of the ...
- 128k
6
votes
Accepted
What is this pink/lavender flowering shrub?
That is a crepe myrtle, Lagerstroemia sp. Possibly L. fauriei.
This is a genus of flowering shubs and trees in the loosestrife family. Most of them are hardy in zones 8 and up, but L. fauriei is ...
- 51.5k
6
votes
Should I seal the wounds where limbs were removed on a crape myrtle?
Whilst it was once considered essential to paint wounds on trees with a protective/preventive treatment (Arbrex, for instance), this practice has long since fallen out of favour - turns out it often ...
- 128k
6
votes
Accepted
What is this pink flowering alpine shrub?
Looks like Rhododendron ferrugineum, or alpenrose. This plant can be found in European mountain ranges in high altitudes, mainly above the tree line. Here's a similar picture I've found, for ...
- 51.5k
6
votes
My long stemmed rose is growing new leaves
Bamboo's answer is good. I agree with everything stated there, just wanted to add the method I used when I did this years ago.
I recut the cut ends (flat, and clean), but then topped the stems off (...
- 51.5k
6
votes
Accepted
How should I treat a weigela bush with a large section of dead branches?
If this plant still has a good root system and is not dying due to being water logged or root rot then the tough love approach works:
cut everything back to the ground
when new growth starts ...
- 56k
6
votes
Accepted
What is this shrub with large heads composed of single flowers?
Red Hydrangea macrophylla
Here we go...you lucky person!!!
- 39.8k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible