Springtime Tips from the County Extention Agent

Community

Articles written By:  Eddie Ayers, County Extension Agent

Angry Birds

Springtime is when birds are preoccupied with mating, nest building and rearing young. Male birds are trying to establish territories for nesting sites. This instinct sometimes results in them attacking other male birds that are invading the territory.

When a male bird flies into a window, it’s trying to attack another male bird. Actually, it’s attacking a reflection of itself. A bird may knock itself out by this repeated window attack. Often, they make a literal “bird mess” of cars and windows.

Several types of birds may do this from time to time, and some birds are more territorial than others. However, robins and cardinals are probably the most common and are known to attack house windows, car mirrors, hubcaps and shiny bumpers if they see their reflection in them.

The attacks can last for several days or as long as a few weeks until the bird realizes the threat is not real. This behavior is particularly prominent during the breeding season, but can sometimes happen at other times of the year.

One option for dealing with this issue is to simply stop washing your car. If your mirrors and windows stay too shiny, they are more likely to attract an angry bird defending its territory.

Another option is to place a tarp or protective cover over the car’s mirrors and windows for a few weeks until the angry bird decides to move on. As a last resort, park the car in a different location to minimize reflections on the glass or move it to a garage.

For windows on houses, it may be necessary to apply a non-reflective covering or tinted film to the outside of the window. If you choose to cover the windows, it is the outside that must be completely covered because a cover inside may turn the window into a mirror.

A medium-weight, plastic painter’s drop cloth, which is available at most hardware stores, works well at making the window less reflective.  The plastic is clear enough to allow light into the room, but it is cloudy enough to eliminate reflections.

When the outside of the glass is covered, the bird may go searching for its imaginary rival at other windows. There have been reports of robins attacking as many as 15 windows on both the first and second stories of homes.

Fake owls, rubber snakes, and other distractions will frighten birds, but as long as the rival bird is still visible in the window, the bird’s defense mode will override their fright mode.  The territorial birds quickly learn that these artificial critters pose no threat.

So when you have a bird attacking a window, do not think it is after you.  It is just defending its territory.  Start thinking about what the bird is seeing and this will help you find a solution to get angry birds to stop attacking the window.

 

Eastern Tent Caterpillar

As I ride through the county debating the situation of the early spring and will we have another cold snap, I have noticed the webs are back in the wild cherry trees.  Maybe you have noticed them too and are trying to figure out what is making the webs.  The culprit is the Eastern Tent Caterpillar.  The webs serve as a home to the newly emerged larvae or as we like to call them, caterpillars.  The eggs are timed to hatch when the cherry buds unfurl as they need to eat to grow and complete their life cycle.

Older larvae are generally black, with long brown hair and a white stripe down the middle of their backs. Along the midline is a row of blue spots with brown and yellow lines. At maturity, the caterpillars may reach a length of 2½ inches. The adults are reddish-brown moths which have two white oblique stripes on each forewing.  These are harder to notice, but they are the final step in the life cycle.

The adult moths emerge in May and early June and lay egg masses that resemble chocolate-colored collars that encircle the smaller limbs of their host. Each egg mass is about 1 inch long. Eggs overwinter and hatch in mid-March of the following year to start the cycle again.

From each case, several hundred tiny feeding machines emerge, and for four to six weeks they hungrily strip the trees of their leaves. The larvae are gregarious and upon hatching they gather in the forks of the limbs and develop the web that can be seen in the trees.  This serves as their home for the larvae.

From this mass of silk, the developing larvae move outward to feed on developing leaves, but they return at night and during rainy weather.  The nest gradually becomes larger and larger as silk accumulates.

Although the nests are most commonly seen in the forks of wild cherries, this pest can be found in other ornamental, shade and fruit trees, especially apples. While not a serious pest in the natural forest, the unsightly web insect can reduce the beauty and esthetic value of shade trees and other hardwoods in the landscape.

About four to six weeks after hatching, full-grown larvae will crawl away from their nests and accumulate on the sides of homes, on driveways and sidewalks and on various woody ornamentals in search of sites to complete the next phase of life, the pupae phase.  This phase is a shell or cocoon in which the caterpillar matures into a moth.  There is concern that they may be attacking other plants, but when they do leave their web, the larvae are finished with their feeding and will do no damage to plants on which they are found.

The caterpillars are primarily a nuisance and do not usually pose a danger to the overall health of a larger, well-established tree as the tree can produce another flush of foliage.  However, young fruit and ornamental trees may be damaged, so it is a good idea to remove the web from these trees.

Usually, no chemical controls are necessary or very effective.  One reason is that the web is water proof and insecticides that are applied usually do not reach the larvae but you can break open the web and apply an insecticide such as carbaryl (Sevin), BT or a pyrethroid if you would like and if you decide to use an insecticide, please read and follow the label.  In addition, the egg masses can be clipped from the limbs in late June to prevent nests from developing the following spring.

I hope that this solves the mystery of the webs in the trees, but the debate is still on going about the early spring and the chance of a cold snap.  According to history we are not out of danger of a cold snap yet, but only time will tell.

Is it too Late?

As the weather warms up, people want to get outside and spring into action.  Many people ask if it’s too late to . . .  Perhaps you’ve also wondered if you’ve waited too late to perform an overdue garden chore. Here are some frequently asked questions with the answers.

Can I still prune my fruit tree?  Yes.  Even though fruits are beginning to bud out, you can still prune them but try to prune them as soon as possible and I can provide you with more information on how to prune each type of fruit tree.

Can I still use a dormant oil spray to kill scales?  Probably not.  Once trees and shrubs begin to grow, you should not use dormant oils.  These oils do a great job of controlling scale insects, but they can burn tender young leaves.  Instead, use other insecticides now to control these pests.  There is a ‘summer oil’ or ultrafine oil that can be used after plants begin to grow.  But be very careful when you buy oils to get the one that can be used on your specific plant and at the time of year that you want to use it.

When should I begin spraying my fruit tree?  Peaches, apples and some plums often require regular sprays to produce a good crop.  A beetle called the peach curculio ‘stings’ peach and plum fruit causing the fruits to ooze a jelly-like substance and to drop from the tree.  Several fungi can rot fruits before they ripen, so it is important to apply fungicides before the disease starts.  The time to start a fungicide spray is during bloom.  The fungicide will not kill insects, but insecticides may kill bees, so do not spray an insecticide during bloom.  To control many insects and diseases that damage fruits, use a premixed ‘Home Orchard’ or ‘Home Fruit Tree’ spray.  These should contain both a fungicide and insecticide.  Start spraying apples when you can see one-quarter inch of green sticking out of the buds.  Read the label to see how often to spray and how long to wait between the last spray and harvest.  Plan ahead as you approach harvest so that the time between the last spray and harvest will be long enough to allow the chemical to break down so that you can harvest and eat the fruits safely.  If this seems like a lot of work, consider buying these fruits at a local fruit stand or grocery store or plant fruits that require less spraying.  Low spray fruits include blueberries, blackberries and Oriental persimmon.  You might also want to plant the UGA recommended varieties if you want to have fewer problems.

Can I still mow last year’s ugly leaves off my liriope?  Well first, pull the old leaves apart and look into the center of the plant.  The new leaves will begin to grow here.  If new leaves are already beginning to grow, do not trim the liriope.  You may cut off the new leaves.  The plant will continue to grow but the new leaves will have blunt, brown ends on them.

If you have any questions about these chores or others, contact me at the Gilmer UGA Extension office.

 

Lawn Care:  Timing is Everything

The key to a beautiful home lawn is timing which includes planting, fertilizing, controlling weeds and mowing.  This article is dedicated to controlling weeds and fertilizing.  Later in the spring, planting and mowing will be discussed.

Because the ground is warming up, now is the time to consider weed control.  There are two types of chemical weed control, re-emergence and post emergence.  Pre-emergence herbicide controls weeds by preventing the weed seed from germinating.  Post emergence herbicides are chemicals that are applied after the weed has emerged from the ground but are still small.  The reason timing is important is that you want to get the pre-emergence in the ground, by the seed, before it germinates, but not too early or the chemical will be leached down past the seed.  Too late and the seed would have germinated and the chemical will have no effect on it.  Most seed germinate in the 50 to 60 degree soil temperature range and we are getting close to that now.

Early application of fertilizer can lead to early green-up, which means your lawn may look prettier sooner, but it will also be more likely to be damaged by late, cold weather.  Fertilizing too early can also lead to turf disease problems. Plant roots that are still dormant may not take up any nitrogen that is applied too early. Therefore, fertilizers will be lost through leaching and runoff.  A couple of good options for applying pre-emergence herbicides and fertilizers are as follows:  apply the pre-emergent herbicide alone, then apply fertilizer several weeks later; and use combination fertilizer products, potassium is a good fertilizer for late winter or early spring application.

Contrary to many advertisements you’ll see in the springtime for herbicide and fertilizer combination products (commonly called “weed and feed” treatments), the two actually should not be applied at the same time.  It can be done, but that means that one of the two components will not be used at the optimal time. It is recommended to hold off on the first, spring nitrogen application until the soil temperatures at a 4-inch depth are consistently 65 degrees and rising. Nitrogen application is typically 30 to 45 days after the application time for pre-emergent herbicide for summer-annual, grassy-weed control products. The University of Georgia’s “Georgia Weather” website (http://www.georgiaweather.net/) is a good source for finding current soil temperatures, then try to time your lawn fertilization based on soil temperatures. A soil test is still the best tool to use when making fertilizer application plans.

For more information on timing your lawn maintenance tasks, contact me at the Gilmer County Extension office or send me an email at [email protected] any time.  You can also check the University of Georgia’s official turfgrass website at http://www.georgiaturf.com/ anytime.

 

Tips to Prune your Shrubs

 With the arrival of spring, I thought I would give you some tips on when and how to prune some of the more common shrubs found in Georgia.  The first thing to remember is that shearing the surface with hedge shears destroys the natural shape of many shrubs.  If you use hand pruners to cut out undesirable long branches, it will result in a more natural appearance.  Remember also that pruning should be started soon after the shrub is planted.  Pruning plants when they are small will result in the development of a compact limb system near ground level. Now let’s look at pruning some specific shrubs.

 

Azaleas.  Contrary to popular opinion, most azaleas respond to pruning.  The practice is especially desirable in order to produce more compact growth on the taller growing varieties.  Removal of long unsightly limbs by cutting off inside the plant can be done immediately after the flowering period.  To induce branching on young plants, prune out tips of new growth any time after flowering until mid-July.  Tall, overgrown azaleas can be safely cut back to within one foot of the ground before growth begins in the spring, but remember the plant will not flower again until next year.

 

Boxwoods.  Cut or break out unsightly limbs before growth begins in the spring.  Prune new growth lightly during the early summer months.  When pruning, do not cut only across the top.  Instead, cut the entire surface area.  If a more natural appearance is desired, do not shear the surface.  Instead, break off or prune out individual taller stems.

 

Crape Myrtles.  Pruning in the early spring before growth begins, plus proper fertilization, is the secret of abundant crape myrtle flowering.  To obtain heavy flowering on compact plants, prune stems back to within one foot of the ground each year in March.  If you do not want a low type plant, but want to stimulate more vigorous growth, prune stems back to about pencil size in March.  To produce a tree-type crape myrtle, remove all except three or four of the main stems at ground level and cut off side branches on these up to the point where limbs are desired.

 

Spring Flowering Shrubs.  In Georgia flowering shrubs that blossom before May develop their flower buds during the previous summer or fall.  If they are pruned heavily during the late summer, fall, or winter months, flower buds will be lost.  Therefore, pruning spirea, forsythia, flowering quince, and other spring flowering shrubs is best done after the flowering period.  Individual limbs should be thinned out from inside the plant rather than shearing the surface.

 

Summer Flowering Shrubs.  In Georgia flowering shrubs that blossom after May develop flower buds on new growth so pruning in the early spring before growth begins will result in more vigorous growth and flowering.  Examples are althea and butterfly bush.

 

If you have any questions about pruning azaleas, crape myrtles, boxwoods, or spring or summer flowering shrubs, or would like information on pruning something not listed here, contact me at the Gilmer UGA Extension office.

 

Leave a comment

Back to Top