Cape plumbago (Plumbago auriculata) -- One of Grumpy's favorite sources for blue flowers!

Q: I live in South Florida and my cape plumbago and ficus hedge has been infested with white fly. There is a lot of dead wood on the underside of the plants and they are thinning out rapidly. I can't afford to replace them - I have over 130 feet of plumgago beds.

Any suggestions?

Thank you,
George DeBarros

Q: I have two camelias that begin to bloom in October and continue to bloom until January if we don't have a killing frost.  I don't know their name.  However, one of them (only this year) has leaves that look mutant.  They are tiny and haven't grown much.  The other is fine.  They about 12 to 14 feet apart on the south side of my house (this is the front).  These camelias are about thirty years old and I really like them.  They have at times had rubbery looking leaves but nothing like this.
Can you tell me what to do?

Dianne Hollifield
Kings Mountain, NC

Q: Grumpy Gardener,
I live in north Texas and am new to gardening in Texas. Last fall, I planted over 200 tulip bulbs. Daily when I would go out to my garden, bulbs would be dug up by squirrels. It was a constant battle, they would dig, I would replant. Any ideas how I can deter them?
Thanks.
Connie Cleveland
Granbury Texas

Dear Grumpy Gardener,
I live in Ville Platte, La. Located in the center of the state. I need a fast growing tree that will grow next to a patio and provide shade. I have crepe myrtles and river birch trees in other areas of my yard so I am looking for something different. Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks, Andree

Right now into December is the perfect time to plant daffodils, hyacinths, tulips, and other spring bulbs. But if the pathetic selection offered by home centers leaves you cold, do I have a name for you – an outstanding mail-order nursery specializing in easy-to-grow heirloom bulbs you can’t get almost anywhere else.

Q: Help!  The most beautiful rose I have ever seen is across the street and I don't know  it's name.  It is  a climbing rose and has been neglected for the last fifteen years, yet continues to bloom with more petals per rose than I have ever seen. 

Here is my question.  How do I move it from my neighbors yard to mine?  I have never transplanted anything in my life but this plant has been offered and I need to act right away.  Please try to help me if you can.

Thanks,
Judy Wynn
A looooooooog time subscriber.

Native plants are the best plants. Everybody knows that. Well, Grumpy has discovered the most beautiful native vine of all that you’re sure to want for your garden.

Q: What is the name of the crepe myrtle cultivar located at the wall surrounding the Auburn University Library?
Robert Harrington

"Winterbor" Kale

Growing autumn greens is so easy, even George Bush could do it. And as W himself might say, “Now is the idealistic time to plant.”

Q: Dear Grumpy,
I have a fenced-in backyard that receives afternoon sun and morning shade. Two Goldens Retrievers occupy the space.  How do I design the yard to be dog-friendly, but have flower beds too? We are also extending our deck.

Thanks,

Cher

It’s my favorite time of year. The air grows crisp and cool, screaming brats get banished to school, and we all look forward to the miraculous blooming of the toilet paper tree.

Dear Grumpster,
Please suggest a tree for me. We live in lower Alabama and I need suggestions for a tree that will stay compact and not grow too tall for a spot between my house and a new deck. I'm trying to break up/soften the appearance of the area by creating a bed in between the brick houses and new deck.

Thanks,
Holly

Q: Dear Grumpy,

I need to transplant a boxwood that is in the way of an addition to the house. How do I do that? It needs to be done now (October).

Carol

Brian advises Ketchup to take the fifth.

A while back, I sheepishly admitted to the world that Ketchup, my cat, hunts hummingbirds. He stealthily crouches at the foot of my ‘Lady in Red’ salvia, waits for an unsuspecting hummer to show up, and pounces.

(Cathy's Rust)

Q: I am so confused about replanting container fall mums. Can you leave the mums in a container for the winter or should you replant them in the ground? I have done both, and not had the best of luck. I know that mums roots can freeze in the containers. But I have transferred container mums in the ground before the first frost, with no luck. I live in zone 7.

Thanks.
Michele Quarton

Q: OK, Grumpy, here's a new one. I have two garden spiders on each of my window boxes in the back yard (on my husband's barn). I believe they are called garden or banana spiders. One is large and has weaved a zigzag (I guess she's the she) and on the other box is a smaller one with no zigzag (I guess he's the he). I don't really want to kill them, but they have made it nearly impossible to water the boxes because the webs are so large. Do you know of any way to run them off before my husband, the spider killer, does away with them?

Thanks,
Holly

Q: The October issue of SL suggested using rain barrels. We have 3, one bought from our county extension office (ugly, until I painted it!) and 2 from a winery. One of the winery barrels' water smells awful, kind of like rotten eggs. Why? What can I do to get rid of the smell? Is it still safe? (the plants do not seem to mind!)
Betty