WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:08.720 You're tuned in to the Gardening Simplified YouTube podcast and radio show coming to you 2 00:00:08.759 --> 00:00:14.320 from Studio A. Here at proven winner's color choice shrubs. It's Stacy Hervella, 3 00:00:14.679 --> 00:00:19.679 me, Rick weisst and our engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson. Yes, 4 00:00:19.760 --> 00:00:24.519 folks, it's Adriana who makes this show blossom on your iPhones, iPads, 5 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:28.480 computers, car radio, whatever it may be. And we thank you very 6 00:00:28.559 --> 00:00:32.759 mulch for listening and watching. Well, I don't like spiders and snakes, 7 00:00:32.880 --> 00:00:36.600 but that's not what it takes to love me like I want to be loved 8 00:00:36.640 --> 00:00:42.679 by you. Words from Jim Stafford, that famous nineteen seventy four song that 9 00:00:42.840 --> 00:00:48.280 he wrote and released nineteen seventy four. I'm getting old. I can't believe 10 00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:54.439 it, Stacey, you're telling me that's the year I was born. Well, 11 00:00:54.640 --> 00:00:59.439 ask Jim Stafford, or you could ask Pat Wiggers. Pat Wiggers, 12 00:00:59.439 --> 00:01:03.120 a wonder lady who stopped me this past weekend, said every week she never 13 00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:08.280 misses the Gardening Simplified Show, watches it, listens to it, and Pat 14 00:01:08.359 --> 00:01:14.519 was really proud of the fat fact that Pat Wiggers her name the initials were 15 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:18.920 p W p W and she liked that, and I like that too. 16 00:01:18.959 --> 00:01:22.560 What a nice lady. And she told me she had an incredible climatis in 17 00:01:22.599 --> 00:01:26.519 her backyard. She showed me a picture and she said one day she was 18 00:01:26.599 --> 00:01:30.959 kind of working through that clematis with her hands and a big spider crawled out. 19 00:01:32.439 --> 00:01:34.959 She also had a snake in her yard. She had to call her 20 00:01:34.040 --> 00:01:38.799 husband, who picked up the snake and carried it off into the woods. 21 00:01:38.280 --> 00:01:45.959 Stacy, snakes and spiders are reality in the garden, and I think what 22 00:01:46.040 --> 00:01:51.359 we have to remember is that they need three main things to survive, shelter, 23 00:01:51.879 --> 00:01:56.680 water, and food. And if the conditions are right providing those three 24 00:01:56.680 --> 00:02:00.680 things, odds are you're gonna see snakes in your garden. Yeah. And 25 00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:06.200 you know that food part. That is the really crucial thing, because as 26 00:02:06.280 --> 00:02:09.240 much as people get a little bit freaked out when they see a spider or 27 00:02:09.280 --> 00:02:14.800 a snake, what these animals are eating in the garden. What attracts them 28 00:02:14.840 --> 00:02:16.439 are things that are worse for plants. You know, the snakes and the 29 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:20.840 spiders are totally benign for plants. They don't eat plants, They eat the 30 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:24.120 things that eat and damage your plants. So it's kind of one of those 31 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:28.759 things where you don't want the cure to be worse than the poison exactly, 32 00:02:28.960 --> 00:02:36.719 And the best long term solution is habitat modification. If you have a rachnophobia, 33 00:02:36.840 --> 00:02:38.360 is that what it's called, that's what they say, or you don't 34 00:02:38.439 --> 00:02:43.080 like snakes, And personally I don't like snakes. I really don't. They 35 00:02:43.159 --> 00:02:46.759 kind of creep me out. Now. I know that they're important in the 36 00:02:46.800 --> 00:02:53.280 whole biodiversity of our gardens and our landscapes. But I found a novel way 37 00:02:53.360 --> 00:02:58.840 to deal with snakes. I'm saving that for segment for today, the limerick. 38 00:02:59.319 --> 00:03:02.400 I'll teach you what I do when it comes to snakes. But you 39 00:03:02.439 --> 00:03:08.759 know, most snakes they're afraid of you. They quickly slither away when your 40 00:03:08.840 --> 00:03:13.199 presence is known. Yeah, I mean here in North America are snakes. 41 00:03:13.439 --> 00:03:16.560 We don't have a ton of very venomous or dangerous snakes. And even among 42 00:03:16.599 --> 00:03:20.719 those, they tend to be very reclusive, and they don't want to be 43 00:03:20.919 --> 00:03:23.199 They just want to be out there, you know, chowing down mice and 44 00:03:23.479 --> 00:03:29.000 stuff, not messing with you. So the key is eliminating low shade. 45 00:03:29.360 --> 00:03:31.439 I had a big snake in my garden A couple of years ago. Boy, 46 00:03:31.479 --> 00:03:38.960 it freaked me out, but he was underneath a gigantic tomato plant that 47 00:03:38.120 --> 00:03:43.199 had foliage all the way down to the ground, and so it was cool. 48 00:03:43.199 --> 00:03:46.879 It was a great place to hide hang out. So you've got to 49 00:03:46.919 --> 00:03:52.520 look for those areas of low shade or areas where they can quickly slither away, 50 00:03:52.599 --> 00:03:57.719 whether they're firewood piles or rock walls or whatever they may be. You're 51 00:03:57.759 --> 00:04:02.439 going to make it less hospital to snakes if you have there's no need for 52 00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:10.120 hysteria, so to speak. But the snakes eat insects and rodents, I 53 00:04:10.120 --> 00:04:13.199 mean they are providing a benefit in the landscape. Yeah, I mean a 54 00:04:13.199 --> 00:04:16.240 lot of people have a really serious issue with voles and mice, especially if 55 00:04:16.240 --> 00:04:19.279 you have a lot of shrubs hydranges. They love to eat hydrange of bark, 56 00:04:19.319 --> 00:04:24.120 and so in that case, learning to live with a snake is ultimately 57 00:04:24.199 --> 00:04:27.519 going to do you way more good than trying to eradicate the snake. But 58 00:04:27.560 --> 00:04:29.839 I get it, you know, I don't have a problem with snakes. 59 00:04:29.879 --> 00:04:31.319 I also have no snakes in my garden, so I can't speak to this 60 00:04:31.639 --> 00:04:35.639 necessarily from personal experience, But I like hiking, and I have certainly taken 61 00:04:35.680 --> 00:04:39.959 care of many gardens that did have snakes, and to me, I have 62 00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:44.319 no problem with their presence, but they do rattle me when I see the 63 00:04:44.399 --> 00:04:46.560 move. Good, oh, I didn't even like that. I do tend 64 00:04:46.600 --> 00:04:51.240 to get rattled if if I see a move like I just if I see 65 00:04:51.279 --> 00:04:56.439 a snake like slither before I've you know, identified that it's there, Like 66 00:04:56.480 --> 00:05:00.199 I just have this sort of like you know, primal reaction of like oh 67 00:05:00.199 --> 00:05:03.519 my gosh, you know, danger noodle, as they say. But I 68 00:05:03.560 --> 00:05:08.319 do like them, and I do definitely understand the benefit that they have too 69 00:05:08.360 --> 00:05:11.759 stains. If I'm concerned and it's a time when there's a lot of snakes 70 00:05:11.800 --> 00:05:14.560 around, I'll carry a stick with me. In the garden, you can 71 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:17.360 kind of just rattle the bottoms of the bushes. I don't go in there 72 00:05:17.480 --> 00:05:21.399 barefoot. I make sure that I have shoes on. You want to keep 73 00:05:21.439 --> 00:05:28.519 grass mode regularly, keep shrubs pruned or pulled away from the house. There 74 00:05:28.600 --> 00:05:32.240 are things you can do to deal with snakes. And then, of course 75 00:05:32.279 --> 00:05:39.879 the notorious area underneath the deck. But that's where raccoons and possums and everybody 76 00:05:39.879 --> 00:05:43.680 else hangs out too, So you may want to seal off the lower portion 77 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:49.639 of your deck. The snake repellence, I've found that they don't work. 78 00:05:49.720 --> 00:05:56.360 They smell terrible like mothballs. But I think it's more snake oil salesman stuff 79 00:05:56.399 --> 00:06:00.720 than it is look at the environment. As far as spiders are concerned. 80 00:06:00.800 --> 00:06:04.120 Spiders, of course are good website developers, right. I've got a lot 81 00:06:04.120 --> 00:06:08.360 of great spider puns. I'll let them go. You can look them up 82 00:06:08.439 --> 00:06:12.480 on the web. But the King and Queen of garden predators are spiders. 83 00:06:12.639 --> 00:06:16.319 I personally love spiders. I love the silk web that they weave, their 84 00:06:16.399 --> 00:06:21.839 diversity venom to paralyze their prey. Of course, you've got garden black, 85 00:06:21.879 --> 00:06:30.160 widow, brown recluse, wolf, crab jumping spiders. But that's you know. 86 00:06:30.079 --> 00:06:35.199 I've read somewhere that about three to fifteen percent of people have a rechnofobia. 87 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:39.759 Oh that's pretty high. Yeah. Yeah. In the garden center the 88 00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:41.680 other day, a lady came up to me. She says, can you 89 00:06:41.680 --> 00:06:46.279 show me where the tarantulas are? I'm like, tarantula's We don't sell spiders. 90 00:06:46.319 --> 00:06:48.360 She says, yeah, tarantulas, everybody's got them. So I walked 91 00:06:48.360 --> 00:06:51.240 her over to the succulent. She said, yeah, there they are the 92 00:06:51.319 --> 00:06:55.920 tarantulas. I thought it was interesting. Okay, yeah, she calls them 93 00:06:56.560 --> 00:07:01.759 tarantulas. Anyhow, the biggest benefit of garden spiders is that they eat insects, 94 00:07:01.839 --> 00:07:06.480 mostly the unwanted pests that you don't want in your flower beds like wasps, 95 00:07:06.480 --> 00:07:13.879 beetles, mosquitoes, flies, mayflies, and tall plants help also attract 96 00:07:13.879 --> 00:07:17.839 spiders to your garden. I've found that sunflower plants are a great plant for 97 00:07:17.920 --> 00:07:23.439 attracting spiders to your garden. So if you don't want to attract spiders to 98 00:07:23.560 --> 00:07:27.879 your garden. But you know, I don't think that it's not easy to 99 00:07:28.000 --> 00:07:31.040 just sort of generalize about spider habitat because they will, as you said at 100 00:07:31.040 --> 00:07:34.120 the beginning, they'll go anywhere where there's food, and as far as like 101 00:07:34.240 --> 00:07:40.199 making a home, they have many options. Not all garden spiders spin webs 102 00:07:40.279 --> 00:07:43.120 exactly, so you know, the orb they're called orb weavers, the ones 103 00:07:43.160 --> 00:07:46.399 that make the beautiful sort of stereotypical spider web. But then there's hunting spiders 104 00:07:46.399 --> 00:07:49.240 like wolf spiders, and they don't need a tall plant. They're just going 105 00:07:49.319 --> 00:07:53.560 to be on the ground hunting around for you know, whatever they can find. 106 00:07:54.040 --> 00:07:57.160 The simple fact is if there are insects in your garden, and there 107 00:07:57.199 --> 00:08:01.920 are insects in your garden, spiders are going to be there because that's a 108 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:05.160 good food source for them. Absolutely. And you mentioned the wolf spider. 109 00:08:05.240 --> 00:08:07.959 That thing is really spectacular. It's quite something to watch, and you're right. 110 00:08:09.079 --> 00:08:11.879 They see a wolf spider, I believe burrows down into the ground or 111 00:08:11.920 --> 00:08:16.120 has a little hole in the ground that it comes out of. So they're 112 00:08:16.240 --> 00:08:20.639 fascinating. And because of their size, wolf spiders can be kind of intimidating 113 00:08:20.680 --> 00:08:26.040 to people. But they're out there cleaning your landscape of some of the nasty 114 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:31.639 insects that you contend with, and they do a pretty good job of it. 115 00:08:33.200 --> 00:08:35.759 Have you heard of the juro spiders. Oh yeah, lots of people 116 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:41.879 freaking out about these. Yeah. These are spiders that are native to Asia, 117 00:08:41.960 --> 00:08:45.919 made their way to the US in recent years and they feel they're going 118 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:50.320 to infiltrate more states in twenty twenty four. They use a method called ballooning, 119 00:08:50.440 --> 00:08:54.679 spinning that web. They get caught in the wind and they travel and 120 00:08:54.759 --> 00:09:01.519 they move. It's they have a natural mechanism called ballooning. But jiuro spiders 121 00:09:01.519 --> 00:09:05.519 have been confirmed in Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, and 122 00:09:05.679 --> 00:09:11.600 Tennessee, West Virginia, and Maryland, and they figure it's going to continue 123 00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:18.919 to move north. So familiarize yourself with this spider again. A spider using 124 00:09:18.039 --> 00:09:24.000 venom to paralyze their prey, not necessarily to cause injury to you. And 125 00:09:24.080 --> 00:09:28.440 spiders are just like the snakes. They really don't want to hang out with 126 00:09:28.480 --> 00:09:31.000 you and many times will just scurry away when your presence is felt right, 127 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:35.519 and you know, a spider's venom is intended to paralyze prey. It's not 128 00:09:35.559 --> 00:09:37.200 like they are malicious creatures that just are like, oh, who can I 129 00:09:37.279 --> 00:09:41.720 go around and bite today? You know, they want to say it takes 130 00:09:41.799 --> 00:09:43.720 energy, first of all, and they want to save that venom for doing 131 00:09:43.919 --> 00:09:48.120 what counts, which is feeding themselves. So I understand people's fear of spiders. 132 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:50.759 I think it very much connects to the primal fear that I was talking 133 00:09:50.759 --> 00:09:54.159 about with snakes and seeing them move. And there certainly are many areas of 134 00:09:54.200 --> 00:10:00.080 the world where spiders can be extremely dangerous and extremely harmful. North America just 135 00:10:00.159 --> 00:10:03.919 isn't really one of them. Well I'll tell you what if you do see 136 00:10:03.000 --> 00:10:09.159 snakes or spiders in your garden or landscape, it's an indication and frogs, 137 00:10:09.639 --> 00:10:15.799 bats that there is good biodiversity there and odds are you do have the healthy 138 00:10:15.879 --> 00:10:26.200 landscape, but the case and plants simplified wolf crab. But that's uh. 139 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:31.440 You know, I've read proven winners. Colored Choice Shrubs cares about your success 140 00:10:31.480 --> 00:10:35.720 in the garden. That's why we trial and test all of our shrubs for 141 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:39.559 eight to ten years, making sure they outperform everything else on the market. 142 00:10:39.799 --> 00:10:46.799 Look for them and the distinctive white container at your local garden centers and gardens. 143 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:52.360 The order of the day is spiders and snakes. And you know, 144 00:10:52.440 --> 00:10:56.360 I think that if you do have a fear of either of these animals or 145 00:10:56.399 --> 00:11:01.679 really anything in your garden or in life when it comes to animals, the 146 00:11:01.720 --> 00:11:05.399 best thing you can do is to take the IPM approach, which is to 147 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:09.879 say, learn everything that you can about the animal, and then that helps 148 00:11:09.879 --> 00:11:13.480 you understand their behavior. That helps you better understand. You know what the 149 00:11:13.559 --> 00:11:18.279 issues are and what you can do, what you can change in your garden 150 00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:22.440 to make it less friendly for them. And like you said, that's going 151 00:11:22.519 --> 00:11:24.720 to be shelter. That's going to be water, and that's going to mostly 152 00:11:26.039 --> 00:11:28.840 be food. Correct, So there you can't always, you know, stop 153 00:11:30.519 --> 00:11:33.039 certainly insects from being in your garden. But for example, if you do 154 00:11:33.120 --> 00:11:37.759 have snakes, that could indicate that you really have a bigger issue with voles, 155 00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:43.159 with mice, with moles, with any number of small mammals. Chipmunks 156 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:46.360 is another good one, and in that case you could look at trying to 157 00:11:46.440 --> 00:11:50.679 control those, maybe modifying the habit to make it less friendly for those, 158 00:11:50.360 --> 00:11:54.240 rather than trying to modify the habit to be less friendly for the snake, 159 00:11:54.240 --> 00:11:56.480 because that's that's going to be a much taller order. If there is food 160 00:11:56.519 --> 00:11:58.600 there, they are going to be there. And this is why I've said 161 00:11:58.600 --> 00:12:03.120 it on the show multiple times. If you have spiders in your house, 162 00:12:03.600 --> 00:12:07.519 you need to be a lot more concerned about what they're eating than the spiders 163 00:12:07.559 --> 00:12:11.159 themselves, because there is something in your house that is making it hospitable enough 164 00:12:11.559 --> 00:12:15.639 for this spider to be well fed and happy in your home. Well said 165 00:12:16.080 --> 00:12:20.320 exactly right on it. Do your research. It really helps. And it's 166 00:12:20.639 --> 00:12:24.080 it's kind of like the old proverb to know your enemy, And I'm not 167 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:26.679 saying there are enemies or that the right approach is to think of them as 168 00:12:26.720 --> 00:12:30.440 your enemy. But the more you learn, the more you can do to 169 00:12:31.120 --> 00:12:35.000 you know, better, make your environment less friendly. And it just seems 170 00:12:35.000 --> 00:12:39.960 a lot less scary. I use a unique i PM approach that I use 171 00:12:39.080 --> 00:12:43.120 myself. We'll share it with you in segment four. In the business we 172 00:12:43.200 --> 00:12:46.919 call this a radio tas So all right, I am eager to hear it 173 00:12:48.000 --> 00:12:50.519 myself. So I did not, you said before, I can't wait to 174 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:54.200 hear how Stacey ties us into snakes, and I didn't. I'm not tying 175 00:12:54.200 --> 00:12:56.919 today's plan on trial into snakes. If I could have thought of a way 176 00:12:56.960 --> 00:13:00.559 to do that, I would have. But I'm tying it into spiders. 177 00:13:01.240 --> 00:13:03.600 So you know, there are all sorts if you look online, all sorts 178 00:13:03.639 --> 00:13:09.159 of websites and things telling you ten plants that you can plant to repel spiders, 179 00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:15.120 and this all based on myth and superstition. You know, it made 180 00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:18.279 me laugh because one of the plants that kept coming up in these articles was 181 00:13:18.399 --> 00:13:22.080 lavender. Oh. Now, of course lavender has a strong fragrance, but 182 00:13:22.120 --> 00:13:26.879 you know what, lavender also has a flower that attracts a ton of insects, 183 00:13:26.960 --> 00:13:31.080 a lot of inserts like a lot a lot full of nectar. So 184 00:13:33.279 --> 00:13:37.320 you know, if you're planting lavender in the hopes of deterring spiders, it's 185 00:13:37.360 --> 00:13:41.200 not gonna work because all you're in this wall. You know, they bloom 186 00:13:41.240 --> 00:13:43.480 fairly long, about a month, so in that period you're gonna have bees 187 00:13:43.519 --> 00:13:48.759 and flies and moths and butterflies and all these things that spiders are going after. 188 00:13:48.919 --> 00:13:50.960 So, uh, you know that that kind of mentality of like, 189 00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:54.919 oh, ten plants to repel spiders, it almost makes these plants out like 190 00:13:54.960 --> 00:13:58.080 they are spider kryptonite, Like, oh, they can't they can't cross the 191 00:13:58.159 --> 00:14:03.120 lavender line. And that's just not how it works. Spiders do have somewhat 192 00:14:03.159 --> 00:14:07.919 of a sense of smell. It's not like our sense of smell. It's 193 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:09.759 sort of just helping them distinguish between, you know, the things that they 194 00:14:09.879 --> 00:14:13.960 encounter. But they're not like whoa lavender, better leave, you know. 195 00:14:15.039 --> 00:14:18.600 And then and so many of these sites do kind of imply that that is 196 00:14:18.919 --> 00:14:22.639 the case. Spiders just view it as clickbait on the World Wide Web. 197 00:14:24.399 --> 00:14:28.360 They ignore it. You should, yeah, and again, whenever you see 198 00:14:28.360 --> 00:14:31.360 these things, you do have to like ask yourself, is this a reputable 199 00:14:31.399 --> 00:14:35.799 source. And when I search for plants that repel spiders with the command site 200 00:14:35.960 --> 00:14:41.960 ste colon dot eedu, because that will limit your results to just university websites. 201 00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:45.759 So you know, everything is reputable and reliable, not just you know, 202 00:14:45.840 --> 00:14:50.159 some person just posting stuff on online to get clicks. Not a single 203 00:14:50.519 --> 00:14:56.320 site said that these plants would would repel spiders. And if in the off 204 00:14:56.440 --> 00:15:00.039 chance maybe essential oils or something might have a chance, it's only going to 205 00:15:00.039 --> 00:15:01.559 be indoors. It's not going to work outside. I mean, the outside 206 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:05.720 is just it's just too big. So you have to if you want to 207 00:15:05.759 --> 00:15:11.039 deter spiders in your garden, you have to deter insects. You have to 208 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:13.240 deter their prey. And then, of course is easier said than done, 209 00:15:13.279 --> 00:15:16.120 because as we all know, plants and insects go hand in hand. That 210 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:22.120 is nature's way. But what you can do is to plant things that are 211 00:15:22.559 --> 00:15:31.000 less attractive to insects and and maybe that will prevent the spiders from taking up 212 00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:33.480 residents in your garden. And so my example of this, if you're thinking, 213 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:35.480 like, well, what are you talking about, just like ornamental grasses 214 00:15:35.600 --> 00:15:39.879 or pines or something with no flowers, no I'm talking about a mophead hydrangea. 215 00:15:41.080 --> 00:15:46.600 Really, yes, specifically gatsby moon mophead oak leaf hydrangea. Now why 216 00:15:46.639 --> 00:15:48.960 would that be okay? So people are familiar with the concept that there are 217 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:54.080 oak leaf or sorry, that there are mophead and lace cap hydrangels. So 218 00:15:54.200 --> 00:15:58.000 lace cap hydrangeas. Hydrangs have two different flower types, flourete types. They 219 00:15:58.039 --> 00:16:03.080 have a steryl floret, which is the one that you see that's real showy. 220 00:16:03.440 --> 00:16:04.720 That's what most people think of when they think of a hydrangea flower. 221 00:16:04.720 --> 00:16:08.200 They're seeing the sterile florets, and then they have the fertile florets, which 222 00:16:08.200 --> 00:16:12.799 are small, they're star like, and those are full of pollen and nectar 223 00:16:12.919 --> 00:16:18.279 everything that in insects of pollinating insects would want. Now, in nature, 224 00:16:18.360 --> 00:16:22.080 most hydrangeas are inherently lace cap because they exist for the pollen and nectar so 225 00:16:22.159 --> 00:16:26.159 that they can set seed and reproduce and keep being you know, keep that 226 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:30.279 hydrange of population going. Well. Along comes humans and they're all like, 227 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:33.799 hey, these steril flourettes are pretty I want more of them. And so 228 00:16:33.919 --> 00:16:38.600 they breed plants selectively and they've developed mophead versions and in a mophead hydrangea, 229 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:41.799 and this is true of any type of hydrangea, because mophead and lace cap 230 00:16:41.840 --> 00:16:45.519 aren't specific types of hydrangea, they are specific types of hydrorange of flowers. 231 00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:49.679 So an oak leaf hydrangea can be a mophead, A smooth hydrangea can be 232 00:16:49.679 --> 00:16:55.519 a mophead piniculat as. All of them can be either or so in these 233 00:16:55.559 --> 00:17:00.639 mophead when the sterile florets far far outnumber those fertile fluoret pollinators can't get to 234 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:06.160 them. Now that's interesting, And you know a programming note here. I 235 00:17:06.200 --> 00:17:10.359 know Stacey, and she loves insects. She knows a lot about insects. 236 00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:15.319 She enjoys attracting insects to her yard. So in this case, you're just 237 00:17:15.400 --> 00:17:21.160 kind of painting a scenario for someone who maybe has arachnophobia and doesn't want as 238 00:17:21.160 --> 00:17:23.039 many spiders in there yet, right, so oractophobia if you don't want as 239 00:17:23.079 --> 00:17:26.319 many spiders. A lot of people are allergic to bees. A lot of 240 00:17:26.359 --> 00:17:32.400 people are just plaint afraid of bees, and so planting mophead hydrangees can be 241 00:17:32.519 --> 00:17:36.799 an effective strategy if you want to reduce you know, if you still have 242 00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:40.240 hydranges, you still want summer color and all of that, it can be 243 00:17:40.279 --> 00:17:42.759 an effective way to reduce pollinating insects in your garden. Now that is not 244 00:17:42.759 --> 00:17:45.960 something I personally would want to do or would recommend, but I understand that 245 00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:49.680 everybody is me, and so I wanted to speak about Gatsby moon. Oak 246 00:17:49.759 --> 00:17:56.000 leaf hydrange specifically is today's plant on trial because generally speaking, oak leaf hydrangees, 247 00:17:56.079 --> 00:18:00.759 as North American native shrubs, are very pollinator friendly. So I have 248 00:18:00.839 --> 00:18:04.079 Gatsby pink in my garden. They've grown tall enough that the deer can't eat 249 00:18:04.079 --> 00:18:08.039 them. So I do get some flowers, which is awesome, but yeah, 250 00:18:08.079 --> 00:18:11.000 they are pollinator magnets. When they are in flower, they're fragrant, 251 00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:15.640 they're just covered in those fertile florets. And so yeah, I get bees. 252 00:18:15.680 --> 00:18:18.400 I see all sorts of really interesting insects, and that again, especially 253 00:18:18.400 --> 00:18:22.640 those orb weaving spiders. They set up and they say, hey, this 254 00:18:22.720 --> 00:18:25.799 is a hot spot for insects. I'm gonna I'm gonna weave a web right 255 00:18:25.839 --> 00:18:30.480 here, and I've got a front row seat to the buffet. So when 256 00:18:30.519 --> 00:18:33.599 you have these plants that don't attract them, is they don't attract those pollinating 257 00:18:33.599 --> 00:18:36.920 insects. The spider is just gonna go elsewhere to where there is is better 258 00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:41.160 fixings. As it were. So the Gatsby moon as a mophead oakly fydra 259 00:18:41.200 --> 00:18:45.160 enge, which is not that common. Most oakly fighter anges are lace cap. 260 00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:48.680 The flowers are big and full, and when you see one of these 261 00:18:48.680 --> 00:18:51.640 flowers, and if you see it at a garden center, at a garden 262 00:18:51.680 --> 00:18:55.519 or something, you just try to get in there. They're so densely packed 263 00:18:55.559 --> 00:18:59.720 in the inflorescence that you can't even hardly like separate them with your hands to 264 00:18:59.799 --> 00:19:03.319 get down to those fertile florets, and so neither can the insects. If 265 00:19:03.319 --> 00:19:06.759 it's hard enough to do with your fingers, imagine how hard it would be 266 00:19:06.799 --> 00:19:08.039 for a little bee trying to get in there. It's not worth the effort. 267 00:19:08.079 --> 00:19:12.640 There's other things that it can do. So it's a good choice in 268 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:17.640 that way, and it's still a beautiful plant. And you know, I 269 00:19:17.720 --> 00:19:21.799 always recommend oak leaf hydrangeas as one of my all time favorites because in my 270 00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:26.359 opinion, they are the true four season hydrangea. A lot of other hydrangeas 271 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:29.279 they just don't look that great in winter. A lot of them don't have 272 00:19:29.359 --> 00:19:33.119 fall color. Whereas the oak leaf Hydrangea has these beautiful oak shaped leaves that 273 00:19:33.160 --> 00:19:37.519 come out with fuzzy white growth on them in spring flowering just starting to flower 274 00:19:37.559 --> 00:19:42.319 here in Michigan right now in late June, and then the flowers persist through 275 00:19:42.319 --> 00:19:47.440 summer. In fall amazing fall color, beautiful burgundy red. So you see, 276 00:19:47.440 --> 00:19:51.160 for a deciduous plant to have four seasons of interest, that's pretty special. 277 00:19:51.279 --> 00:19:52.279 Yeah, and especially for a hydrangea. Then in winter you get the 278 00:19:52.279 --> 00:19:56.400 beautiful peeling bark. So it's kind of like a having your cake and eating 279 00:19:56.440 --> 00:19:59.480 it to kind of plant. Now, it's not to say that you won't 280 00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:03.240 get any in because I have seen some really interesting wool carter bees on my 281 00:20:03.279 --> 00:20:07.839 oak leaf hydrangeas that harvest the fluff for their nests. So that's always a 282 00:20:07.839 --> 00:20:11.880 fun thing to see. So, I mean, it's impossible to have a 283 00:20:11.920 --> 00:20:15.839 plant without some insects. But again, you can do these things, make 284 00:20:15.920 --> 00:20:19.680 these choices of you know, having a mophead versus a lace cap to try 285 00:20:19.720 --> 00:20:25.599 to reduce the insects and to hopefully in turn reduce the spiders or you know, 286 00:20:25.680 --> 00:20:27.359 like I said at the beginning, another alternative is just to learn everything 287 00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:32.759 you can try to make peace with them, you know, and you know, 288 00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:34.279 carry a stick. It works for the spiders and it works for the 289 00:20:34.279 --> 00:20:37.160 snakes, so you can kind of, you know, go ahead and clear 290 00:20:37.200 --> 00:20:44.880 the pass and scare the spiders and snakes. But even if you aren't concerned 291 00:20:44.880 --> 00:20:48.119 about insects, Gatsby Moon is a beautiful addition to your hydrange collection. It 292 00:20:48.200 --> 00:20:52.240 really is very very unique. There just aren't a lot of those big, 293 00:20:52.720 --> 00:20:56.079 full mopheads that you see, especially when it comes to oak leaf, even 294 00:20:56.119 --> 00:20:59.799 though they're way more popular in the big leaf and the mountain Hydrangeas you just 295 00:21:00.119 --> 00:21:03.599 see how much with the with the oak leaf. It's true and boy gets 296 00:21:03.640 --> 00:21:08.079 my stump of approval. That is a gorgeous plant, so gets by moon. 297 00:21:08.119 --> 00:21:12.400 Oakleaf hydrange is hardy from USDA zones five heat tolerant to USDA Zone nine 298 00:21:12.440 --> 00:21:15.039 six to eight feet tall and wide, so this is a bigger plant. 299 00:21:15.039 --> 00:21:18.240 But if you have a large spot in your garden, you can't do much 300 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:22.920 better than this beautiful native oak leaf HYDRANGEA look for it at your local garden 301 00:21:22.960 --> 00:21:26.880 center, or of course you can visit us at Gardening Simplified on air dot 302 00:21:26.920 --> 00:21:30.680 com to find all the details and a link to find a direct if you 303 00:21:30.759 --> 00:21:34.759 are so a lot of people are. People are just playing afraid effectively strategy. 304 00:21:34.880 --> 00:21:38.079 If you know if you still have hydrangeas, you still have want summer 305 00:21:38.119 --> 00:21:41.079 color and all of that, it can be an effective way to you. 306 00:21:41.559 --> 00:21:45.680 At Proven Winner's Color Choice, we've got a shrub for every taste and every 307 00:21:45.720 --> 00:21:51.119 space. Whether you're looking for an easy care rose, an unforgettable hydrangea, 308 00:21:51.319 --> 00:21:53.359 or something new and unique, you can be confident that the shrubs and the 309 00:21:53.400 --> 00:21:57.400 white containers have been trialed and tested for your success. Look for them at 310 00:21:57.440 --> 00:22:03.960 your local garden center. Greetings gardening friends, and welcome back to the Gardening 311 00:22:03.039 --> 00:22:06.839 Simplified Show, where it's, in my opinion, the best time of the 312 00:22:06.880 --> 00:22:08.480 show because I love knowing what's going on out there. I know what's going 313 00:22:08.480 --> 00:22:11.359 on in my garden. I know what's going on in the trial gardens here 314 00:22:11.359 --> 00:22:14.920 around Proven Winner's Color Choice shrubs, but I don't know what's going on in 315 00:22:14.920 --> 00:22:19.200 your garden. So I love reading people's questions and especially your garden celebrations and 316 00:22:19.279 --> 00:22:22.480 your garden quandaries and conundrums, so we can help you resolve them. So 317 00:22:22.599 --> 00:22:26.519 if you have a garden quandary, conundrum or celebration. We would love to 318 00:22:26.559 --> 00:22:30.200 hear from you too. Gardening Simplified on Air dot Com is our website. 319 00:22:30.200 --> 00:22:33.799 There's a contact form there, and you know, you can reach out to 320 00:22:33.880 --> 00:22:37.279 us there with your pictures and tell us what's going on, because it's a 321 00:22:37.279 --> 00:22:41.359 busy time in the garden. And you know, when we get into hydrange 322 00:22:41.480 --> 00:22:42.960 season, which for some people have already started. If you live in a 323 00:22:42.960 --> 00:22:47.839 warmer climate, ooh, that's when the questions really start rolling in. So 324 00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:52.039 I believe that our first question today is home in fact hydrange question. Yes 325 00:22:52.079 --> 00:22:55.240 it is, Tina writes to us, I would love a blue hydrange of 326 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:57.480 for my garden. My current you know, that's got to be one of 327 00:22:57.480 --> 00:23:03.599 the most desired color plan chands down a garden, hands down. My current 328 00:23:03.680 --> 00:23:08.680 macrophilla is pink despite my adding loads of soil acid of fire. Will the 329 00:23:08.680 --> 00:23:15.279 blue Jangles variety remain blue even in my assuming higher pH soil? Thanks? 330 00:23:15.759 --> 00:23:18.799 Okay, So great question, Tina. I'm going to try to answer this 331 00:23:18.960 --> 00:23:25.960 as quickly and clearly as I can. So it is there's a big there's 332 00:23:25.960 --> 00:23:29.079 a big fact of confusion out there with hydrange's changing their flower color. So 333 00:23:29.119 --> 00:23:32.079 first of all, as Tina points out, only hydrange of Macrophylla, which 334 00:23:32.119 --> 00:23:37.599 is also known as big leaf Hydrangea fluoris hydrangea will change their flower color based 335 00:23:37.599 --> 00:23:41.440 on soil chemistry. Other flowers other hydrangeas will not. This is unique to 336 00:23:41.559 --> 00:23:47.400 this species of Hydrangea, and the color change does not happen solely based on 337 00:23:47.720 --> 00:23:51.519 soil pH A lot of people think that if it's in acidic soil, it'll 338 00:23:51.519 --> 00:23:55.079 be blue, if it's an basic or alkaline or neutral soil, it'll be 339 00:23:55.119 --> 00:23:57.960 pink. But that's not actually the whole story, greed, because you do 340 00:23:59.039 --> 00:24:03.279 need it to be acidic for blue and alkaline for pink or red, but 341 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:07.480 you also need aluminum in the soil, and aluminum is a naturally occurring soil 342 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:14.559 mineral, so it's but it's more present in clay soils than in sandy soils. 343 00:24:15.480 --> 00:24:18.480 So Here out in West Michigan, our hydrangeas definitely tend more to the 344 00:24:18.559 --> 00:24:23.799 pink and red. Our soil is neutral to acidic, but we just because 345 00:24:23.799 --> 00:24:27.480 it's so sandy out here, we just don't have the aluminum to get that 346 00:24:27.519 --> 00:24:34.000 blue color. Now, to compound matters, the majority of color change products 347 00:24:34.000 --> 00:24:37.279 that are out there on the market to change the color of your hydrangea are 348 00:24:37.400 --> 00:24:42.279 simply soil acidifiers, so they will make your soil more acid But if the 349 00:24:42.359 --> 00:24:47.279 issue with your hydrange or color change is that it doesn't have aluminum, they 350 00:24:47.279 --> 00:24:49.720 will do nothing. And so you'll keep applying it and applying it and applying 351 00:24:49.720 --> 00:24:55.279 it and making your soil more and more acidic without ever getting the color change 352 00:24:55.599 --> 00:24:59.079 that you were hoping to get. Oh, very true and Stacey and the 353 00:24:59.119 --> 00:25:03.480 garden center industry. I remember selling some product in a bright blue package and 354 00:25:03.519 --> 00:25:07.640 it was called aluminium sulfate. Yes, is that something we're looking Yes, 355 00:25:07.759 --> 00:25:12.440 aluminum right there, the name you got. I figured that I thought I'd 356 00:25:12.440 --> 00:25:17.319 take a shot at you need aluminum sulfate. Now. I would not encourage 357 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:18.680 you to just go out there and apply STEPH willy nilly. This is a 358 00:25:18.680 --> 00:25:22.640 great opportunity to get a soil test and find out what's really going on. 359 00:25:23.519 --> 00:25:27.680 But if you have been applying a soil acidifier and it's not giving you results, 360 00:25:27.759 --> 00:25:30.480 then chances are the aluminium is the issue, and you are going to 361 00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:36.160 want to put down aluminum sulfate instead of just the soil acidifier, and then 362 00:25:36.200 --> 00:25:40.599 that will add the aluminium ions that need to be there for the chemical reaction 363 00:25:40.680 --> 00:25:44.799 to take place for the flowers to turn blue. No, so that tells 364 00:25:44.799 --> 00:25:47.480 you what you need. But now as for the variety, let's stands blue 365 00:25:47.559 --> 00:25:52.799 jangles, which is indeed a proven Winter's color choice variety. Not every hydrangea 366 00:25:52.000 --> 00:25:56.319 is equally able to go from blue to pink to purple and morph through those 367 00:25:56.319 --> 00:26:02.920 color changes. The more red a hydrange has in it inherently, the less 368 00:26:02.960 --> 00:26:06.839 likely it will be to go blue. So when we put blue in the 369 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:10.119 name of one of our hydrange of varieties, what that means is that it 370 00:26:10.119 --> 00:26:14.160 will go blue more easily. If conditions are right, it will be blue. 371 00:26:14.200 --> 00:26:17.720 But that if the conditions are right is still important. So yes, 372 00:26:17.759 --> 00:26:22.720 blue jangles will be blue in acidic soil that contains aluminum. But if you 373 00:26:22.920 --> 00:26:26.519 have a soil that doesn't contain aluminum and or it's not acidic, it won't 374 00:26:26.559 --> 00:26:30.680 be blue. That's just the way that it is. But it's to signify 375 00:26:30.680 --> 00:26:34.880 that it can if conditions are right, but that those conditions are really really 376 00:26:36.359 --> 00:26:40.319 crucial. So Tina, I would say, since you have been applying acidifier, 377 00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:44.480 I would just switch to aluminum sulfate make sure that you are reading those 378 00:26:44.519 --> 00:26:48.759 directions very carefully. An over application of aluminum sulfate can actually be very toxic 379 00:26:48.759 --> 00:26:52.799 for plants, so you don't want that to happen. And you also need 380 00:26:52.839 --> 00:26:56.480 to be patient because typically what needs to happen is that the aluminum sulfate needs 381 00:26:56.519 --> 00:27:00.599 to be present when the flower buds are being made, when it blooms. 382 00:27:00.640 --> 00:27:02.759 So it's not like you're going to be able to put aluin himself eight down 383 00:27:02.759 --> 00:27:06.039 and then come out in a week in surprise it's blue. You might see 384 00:27:06.039 --> 00:27:08.440 a little color change, but for those like deep, rich, true blues 385 00:27:08.440 --> 00:27:11.440 that most people are after, it's going to take some time, and you're 386 00:27:11.440 --> 00:27:15.960 going to need to keep applying it over the course of time, and you 387 00:27:15.000 --> 00:27:18.799 will if you want to have a blue hydraena, you'll need to do it 388 00:27:18.880 --> 00:27:22.920 in perpetuity because you're so I will just go back to its natural conditions without 389 00:27:22.920 --> 00:27:26.599 it. So Tina and Blue Jangles, we have our eye on you. 390 00:27:26.759 --> 00:27:29.559 Did you get that? I did? I like that. It's a good 391 00:27:29.599 --> 00:27:30.880 one. Yeah, I thought that was pretty good too, right, I 392 00:27:30.880 --> 00:27:37.200 feel very positive about that. All right, let's continue on here. Thanks 393 00:27:37.240 --> 00:27:40.519 for the note, Tina, Roger writes, to us. I have a 394 00:27:40.559 --> 00:27:44.839 semi dwarf peach tree that I got on Mother's Day. Since then, it's 395 00:27:44.880 --> 00:27:49.640 been going downhill. I've been watering. Other than adding compost dirt around it 396 00:27:49.680 --> 00:27:53.839 and a layer of wood chips over the top, I have added no other 397 00:27:55.079 --> 00:28:00.000 fertilizers. And Roger sends us a picture in Stacey. I took a look 398 00:28:00.079 --> 00:28:03.640 at that picture. One thing I want to note right off the bat is 399 00:28:03.920 --> 00:28:08.680 something I see often, and that is the tree is staked with a steak 400 00:28:08.759 --> 00:28:12.640 that they use in the nursery industry to ship these trees. But it's not 401 00:28:12.839 --> 00:28:18.000 the proper way to steak a tree, so it's right up next to the 402 00:28:18.039 --> 00:28:21.440 trunk. So I would pull that steak off. Initially, it's not causing 403 00:28:21.480 --> 00:28:25.400 your problem, but I recommend pulling that steak off and getting that tree steaked 404 00:28:25.440 --> 00:28:30.160 appropriately. What I saw in the picture Stacey, I commonly see with the 405 00:28:30.799 --> 00:28:37.079 peaches. My personal opinion is it's peach scab. Do you agree or disagree 406 00:28:37.160 --> 00:28:41.480 with me? I don't know that I disagree, But I also what I'm 407 00:28:41.519 --> 00:28:45.119 seeing in this plant is just general stress, okay. And you know a 408 00:28:45.160 --> 00:28:51.000 plant when a plant goes from the grower, which you just bought this recently. 409 00:28:51.240 --> 00:28:53.680 As recently as may goes from the grower it goes to the garden center. 410 00:28:53.799 --> 00:29:00.400 It makes a dramatic change in the conditions that it's experiencing. And the 411 00:29:00.519 --> 00:29:06.079 leaves that a plant makes under a more shaded or protected environment are different than 412 00:29:06.119 --> 00:29:08.920 the leaves that it's going to need when it's out in full sun and wind 413 00:29:08.960 --> 00:29:12.359 and all of that. And so that's what a lot of people will see 414 00:29:12.480 --> 00:29:15.759 happen after they plant something out in the full sun, out in the wind, 415 00:29:17.240 --> 00:29:18.799 and the plant is just like you know, the leaves don't have the 416 00:29:18.839 --> 00:29:22.160 right type of chlorophyll in them, and so a lot of times the plant 417 00:29:22.160 --> 00:29:26.279 will really struggle. And that's what I feel like I'm seeing here is leaf 418 00:29:26.319 --> 00:29:30.400 scorch from the sun. But it absolutely could be a fungus. I mean, 419 00:29:30.440 --> 00:29:33.480 peach trees are, of all fruit trees you can grow at home, 420 00:29:33.519 --> 00:29:37.240 the most notorious for all the crazy diseases that they can get notorious. And 421 00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:42.119 if it's not peach scab, and I would understand that. The important thing 422 00:29:42.160 --> 00:29:48.079 here is if you're irrigating, don't be irrigating over the top and soaking that 423 00:29:48.160 --> 00:29:52.359 foliage or wet foliage into the evening hours, because that's when you're going to 424 00:29:52.440 --> 00:29:56.000 start getting those diseases. Yep. So here's what I would recommend. Take 425 00:29:56.039 --> 00:29:57.640 that steak out. Like Rick said, it's not really doing any good and 426 00:29:57.759 --> 00:30:03.839 it could cause the could cause the bark to get injured and leave an opening 427 00:30:03.880 --> 00:30:08.640 there. I would definitely scratch up the mulch so that water can penetrate a 428 00:30:08.680 --> 00:30:12.480 little bit better. It looks fairly matted down and that can become hydrophobic and 429 00:30:12.519 --> 00:30:17.319 make it difficult for water to reach the roots. And then I would just 430 00:30:17.400 --> 00:30:19.599 continue to care for it as you have been. I would be hopeful that 431 00:30:19.640 --> 00:30:23.599 in the next couple weeks the foliage that emerges is going to be adapted to 432 00:30:23.720 --> 00:30:27.480 the outdoors and be just fine. But just to be on the safe side, 433 00:30:27.559 --> 00:30:32.119 when autumn comes and the plant drops its foliage, make sure you clean 434 00:30:32.160 --> 00:30:34.400 all that up and discard it. Don't compost it, just throw it away, 435 00:30:34.440 --> 00:30:38.559 and that way any fungal spores that are on it will be hauled away 436 00:30:38.799 --> 00:30:42.079 and less likely to harm your plant. But I don't think you have any 437 00:30:42.160 --> 00:30:45.839 huge cause for concern. I'm not seeing welting, I'm not seeing water stress. 438 00:30:47.160 --> 00:30:48.960 I'm just seeing a plant that's a little like WHOA. I've been through 439 00:30:48.960 --> 00:30:55.920 some crazy stuff lately. Gillian writes to us Bonjour, Rick, and Stacy. 440 00:30:56.039 --> 00:30:59.200 I love that I always had that phrase I've used through the years, 441 00:30:59.200 --> 00:31:03.920 Bone Jour. My mom has been dealing with this groundcover for years. She 442 00:31:03.039 --> 00:31:07.640 sends us a picture. Thank you, Jillian. A friend from my childhood 443 00:31:07.680 --> 00:31:10.880 gave it to her. It seems to be spreading by runners and does not 444 00:31:11.000 --> 00:31:15.039 want to take leaf of the area by spraying, cutting, or pulling. 445 00:31:15.039 --> 00:31:18.880 Can you identify what this plant is how best to eliminate it? Thank you, 446 00:31:18.160 --> 00:31:22.640 very mulch. She also mentions I enjoy listening to the show while with 447 00:31:22.839 --> 00:31:27.880 my horse. I'd love for it to be longer, especially the details section 448 00:31:29.519 --> 00:31:33.599 of the plants on trial segment. And Stacy, looking at that picture, 449 00:31:33.960 --> 00:31:37.039 you nailed it right off the back. Yes, I did. And I 450 00:31:37.119 --> 00:31:41.079 was laughing about this, Gillian, because this is a plant that just last 451 00:31:41.119 --> 00:31:45.279 episode, Rick was talking about this plant and he said, I do not 452 00:31:45.440 --> 00:31:48.960 recommend that you plant This is when we were talking about the plants that undergo 453 00:31:48.039 --> 00:31:55.680 color changes. It is chameleon plant known as houtunia. And yeah, it 454 00:31:55.720 --> 00:32:00.039 is a nightmare. Honestly, it's I don't know if you could call this 455 00:32:00.319 --> 00:32:05.160 a friend. I'm sure they were well intentioned, permanent It is one of 456 00:32:05.200 --> 00:32:07.680 the worst weeds, worse, most aggressive groundcovers, and worse weeds to try 457 00:32:07.720 --> 00:32:12.279 to deal with in the garden because it does spread by runners, and those 458 00:32:12.319 --> 00:32:15.960 runners are really thin and really fragile, and so you try to pull it 459 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:19.599 out in any little piece of those runners still in the soil is just going 460 00:32:19.640 --> 00:32:22.559 to cause the plant to come back proper dated. So probably the easiest way 461 00:32:22.559 --> 00:32:27.599 to try to control this is, if possible, make the soil dryer. 462 00:32:28.400 --> 00:32:31.720 They cannot deal with dry soil. They love moist, wet conditions. So 463 00:32:31.799 --> 00:32:36.799 if you have an irrigation system or other ways that this area is being watered, 464 00:32:37.359 --> 00:32:38.680 try cutting back on that. That's not going to take care of it, 465 00:32:38.720 --> 00:32:43.880 but that can certainly help the help it spread less aggressively. It is 466 00:32:43.960 --> 00:32:46.759 even hard if you're willing to use an herbicide on it. It's hard to 467 00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:51.759 control with an herbicide because it's really really waxy. If you are going to 468 00:32:51.799 --> 00:32:55.119 try it, I have found that more of a two four D based herbicide 469 00:32:55.119 --> 00:32:59.240 works better than a glyc of state herbicide on those plants. Where it's hard 470 00:32:59.240 --> 00:33:01.160 for things to stick. But if you are going to try it, I 471 00:33:01.160 --> 00:33:06.720 would actually try it in spring before that waxy coating comes off develops, because 472 00:33:06.759 --> 00:33:08.960 then you should be able to get better contact. And hopefully it's going to 473 00:33:09.000 --> 00:33:13.119 take repeated applications. This is one of those weeds that you can't just say, 474 00:33:13.720 --> 00:33:17.000 Okay, I weeded and I'm good. It's going to take many seasons 475 00:33:17.039 --> 00:33:22.759 of concerted effort, and I would say a variety of techniques to try to 476 00:33:22.799 --> 00:33:25.880 control it. Karma chamelia yes, also known as chameleon plant, although yours, 477 00:33:27.039 --> 00:33:29.759 for some reason it is all green instead of colorful, which so you're 478 00:33:29.759 --> 00:33:32.920 not even getting color. You just have this obnoxious speed. So I will 479 00:33:32.920 --> 00:33:37.079 put some resources for you on the show. Outes at Gardening Simplified on air 480 00:33:37.119 --> 00:33:37.599 dot com. We got to take a break. When we come back, 481 00:33:37.640 --> 00:33:46.640 we've got branching news. The Gardening Simplified Show is brought to you by proven 482 00:33:46.640 --> 00:33:52.799 Winner's Color Choice Shrubs. Our award winning flowering shrubs and evergreens have been trialed 483 00:33:52.799 --> 00:33:57.680 and tested for your success so you enjoy more beauty and less work. Look 484 00:33:57.720 --> 00:34:00.559 for proven Winners color Choice shrubs in the distinct of white container at your local 485 00:34:00.640 --> 00:34:07.799 garden center. Welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show. It's time for branching 486 00:34:07.880 --> 00:34:10.880 News and Stacey. I threw this story in this week for Branching News. 487 00:34:13.360 --> 00:34:17.679 A very nice lady by the name of Nary Brown was visiting the Walmart in 488 00:34:17.920 --> 00:34:23.719 Pineville, Louisiana last week when she found an unexpected item in her shopping cart, 489 00:34:24.079 --> 00:34:28.639 right where she normally stows her kids. In the cart, there was 490 00:34:28.679 --> 00:34:34.239 a venomous snake. Yikes. Yes, this has made the rounds on Facebook. 491 00:34:34.280 --> 00:34:37.400 Her Facebook post that she didn't even see the snake at first, an 492 00:34:37.400 --> 00:34:42.239 other customer pointed it out to her. She says she's grateful she took her 493 00:34:42.320 --> 00:34:46.400 kids to daycare instead of to the store with her. The snake appears to 494 00:34:46.440 --> 00:34:53.519 be a juvenile cotton mouth snake. Wow, yikes, and that brings up 495 00:34:53.599 --> 00:34:58.679 the point I mentioned in the first segment my IPM. Wait, wait, 496 00:34:58.800 --> 00:35:00.960 they didn't say how it got there, No, they don't. She just 497 00:35:01.000 --> 00:35:04.679 looked down in her cart and all of a sudden, cotton mouth. I'm 498 00:35:04.679 --> 00:35:07.599 gonna guess that the cart was probably out in the parking lot, and then 499 00:35:07.679 --> 00:35:12.559 when they collected it up, it kind of coiled up inside. That makes 500 00:35:12.559 --> 00:35:16.400 sense. Yeah, that makes sense. There you have it. Surprise free 501 00:35:16.440 --> 00:35:21.440 snake with every purchase. Like I said, hysteria at the wal Mart. 502 00:35:21.559 --> 00:35:23.119 So there you go. Gave her quite a fright. It would me too. 503 00:35:23.599 --> 00:35:29.880 So my IPM approach for dealing with snakes me personally is this. I'll 504 00:35:29.880 --> 00:35:32.920 give it to you in the form this week of a limb a rick, 505 00:35:34.599 --> 00:35:37.960 and that is how do I proceed with a level of class with reptiles. 506 00:35:38.039 --> 00:35:42.360 I'll take a pass. I'm not much of a snake charmer. As a 507 00:35:42.400 --> 00:35:45.559 matter of fact, I wear armor when faced with a snake in the grass. 508 00:35:46.039 --> 00:35:51.400 Snakes aren't for everyone, so not to be outdone when faced with a 509 00:35:51.519 --> 00:35:58.679 slithering serpent or any other intruding insurgent. I've trained myself to run, and 510 00:35:58.800 --> 00:36:04.199 boy, Stacy, can I unfast? I know you, so running is 511 00:36:04.239 --> 00:36:07.639 always an option. That's my IPM approach to dealing with snakes in the garden. 512 00:36:08.119 --> 00:36:13.800 I've taught myself how to run, and you know, perhaps the impact 513 00:36:13.880 --> 00:36:15.440 of your feet on the earth will make the snake go away. On the 514 00:36:15.480 --> 00:36:20.239 cycle, I probably scare the snake away to that way. Hey, this 515 00:36:20.280 --> 00:36:23.440 is a fabulous story. I love this. This is right in my wheelhouse. 516 00:36:24.119 --> 00:36:29.440 And again, any of these stories we post them to Gardening Simplified on 517 00:36:29.639 --> 00:36:34.480 air dot com. That's our website. You'll find links there and links to 518 00:36:34.639 --> 00:36:39.199 stories, information, pictures, so make sure to visit Gardeningsimplified on air dot 519 00:36:39.239 --> 00:36:46.280 com. A mechanic has built the fastest wheelburrow in the world in his garage. 520 00:36:46.519 --> 00:36:52.239 Dylan Phillips has modified the wheelbarrow to fit an engine and a sled so 521 00:36:52.280 --> 00:36:55.800 it can hit a top speed of more than fifty miles per hour. We 522 00:36:55.920 --> 00:37:01.559 heard that right, a wheelburrow that's faster than fifty miles per hour. After 523 00:37:01.599 --> 00:37:06.159 two years of tinkering, Phillips, who's thirty eight years old, has claimed 524 00:37:06.159 --> 00:37:09.840 a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records after the wheelbarrow reached an average 525 00:37:09.840 --> 00:37:15.639 of fifty two point five eight miles per hour and a high speed of fifty 526 00:37:15.679 --> 00:37:20.719 six point eight two miles per hour. The previous record, held by Kevin 527 00:37:20.840 --> 00:37:25.440 Nix was forty four point six miles per hour. He just did it for 528 00:37:25.559 --> 00:37:30.840 fun. The videos fun to watch, the story's fun, and kudos to 529 00:37:30.920 --> 00:37:36.960 him. I consider him a true entre manere. Dylan Phillips, the world's 530 00:37:37.000 --> 00:37:39.679 fastest wheelbarrow. Well, so I'm taking at this is not a wheelbarrow that 531 00:37:39.719 --> 00:37:45.239 you stand behind and and propel. He sits behind it. Okay. So 532 00:37:45.280 --> 00:37:47.639 he made a little sled and he's said, okay, God, that's the 533 00:37:47.679 --> 00:37:53.119 sled part. Okay. Because he doesn't run beyond then he is that when 534 00:37:53.119 --> 00:37:57.239 I was installing all my mulch a few weeks ago, fifty miles an hour 535 00:37:57.320 --> 00:38:00.960 would have been helpful. How about a story. Tolos out today's show in 536 00:38:01.400 --> 00:38:10.519 VideA is a company led by CEO Jensen Huang. He says a Japanese gardener 537 00:38:10.639 --> 00:38:15.480 taught him one of the most profound learnings of his life, and it's why 538 00:38:15.559 --> 00:38:22.320 he can be on top of every detail of his three point two trillion dollar 539 00:38:22.960 --> 00:38:28.960 chip Giant I mean amazing. Jensen is known in Silicon Valley for his meticulous 540 00:38:28.960 --> 00:38:35.800 attention to detail, and it was a chance encounter with a Japanese gardener that 541 00:38:35.920 --> 00:38:40.679 helped the CEO realize he has the time to be a perfectionist instead of racing 542 00:38:40.760 --> 00:38:46.280 to the next project. He used to work in one of their overseas offices. 543 00:38:46.920 --> 00:38:52.119 He learned this lesson while on vacation with his family. He was in 544 00:38:52.880 --> 00:39:00.400 Kyoto, Japan, at the Silver Temple and the Mosque garden, and they 545 00:39:00.559 --> 00:39:04.760 visited. He said, it was suffocatingly hot and humid. Sticky heat is 546 00:39:04.960 --> 00:39:09.039 radiating from the ground. And along with the other tourists, they wandered through 547 00:39:09.119 --> 00:39:15.360 this meticulously groomed moss garden. He noticed a loan gardener. Now, remember, 548 00:39:15.480 --> 00:39:22.719 this moss garden is gigantic and it's exquisitely maintained. He noticed a loan 549 00:39:22.840 --> 00:39:28.039 gardener squatting carefully picking at the moss with a bamboo tweezer and putting it into 550 00:39:28.079 --> 00:39:34.039 a bamboo basket. Now he thought that what in the world is going on 551 00:39:34.239 --> 00:39:36.280 here. He walks up to him, and he says, what are you 552 00:39:36.320 --> 00:39:38.320 doing, he says, and the gardener says, I'm picking dead moss. 553 00:39:38.719 --> 00:39:44.320 I'm taking care of my garden. Now, Jensen said, but your garden 554 00:39:44.480 --> 00:39:47.880 is so big, and the gardener responded, I've cared for my garden for 555 00:39:47.920 --> 00:39:53.000 twenty five years. I have plenty of time. Now that's really really something, 556 00:39:53.039 --> 00:40:00.280 because Jensen Huang has twenty six thousand employees, and he he now feels 557 00:40:00.400 --> 00:40:06.679 that he has the capacity to support them, that he's not too busy for 558 00:40:06.760 --> 00:40:10.440 them. He used this in a graduation address, and I thought that that 559 00:40:10.599 --> 00:40:16.320 was that was really neat the impact that this gardener at that mosque garden had 560 00:40:16.519 --> 00:40:21.679 on this the CEO in his work, he was meticulous. Yeah, you 561 00:40:21.679 --> 00:40:23.440 know, I have been to Japan and I've actually been to that garden, 562 00:40:24.599 --> 00:40:29.039 and yeah, you see in any garden that you go to in the Kyoto 563 00:40:29.079 --> 00:40:32.360 area, you will see gardeners, you know, crouching down and weeding areas 564 00:40:32.360 --> 00:40:37.960 with tweezers. It's it is definitely an exercise in care and in patience. 565 00:40:37.960 --> 00:40:39.920 But you know, I feel like gardening is so poignant like that. I 566 00:40:39.920 --> 00:40:43.880 mean, have you ever read the book Being There by Jersey Kauz Escape or 567 00:40:44.000 --> 00:40:49.280 seen the movie very much like The Gardener comes out with all these life insights 568 00:40:49.280 --> 00:40:52.719 that completely change the financial world. Now, speaking of gardening the financial world, 569 00:40:53.440 --> 00:40:58.559 I saw I was watching financial TV a couple days ago and I saw 570 00:40:58.599 --> 00:41:01.639 this thing and it said so and so oh will now move to whatever company 571 00:41:02.119 --> 00:41:07.639 after a period of gardening leave. And I stood right, I said, 572 00:41:07.679 --> 00:41:12.000 gardening leave? Is this a real thing? And I but my instinct said 573 00:41:12.000 --> 00:41:15.280 no. My instinct said no, this person did not take leave to work 574 00:41:15.320 --> 00:41:17.239 on their garden as lovely as that would be, and as much as I 575 00:41:17.320 --> 00:41:21.039 was thinking, well, gee, I could take some gardening leave to no. 576 00:41:21.239 --> 00:41:24.960 It turns out gardening leave is a term for when someone leaves a company 577 00:41:25.519 --> 00:41:29.840 but is under like a non disclosure because I have like a big project that's 578 00:41:29.880 --> 00:41:32.960 going to be, you know, coming out. So the company still pays 579 00:41:34.000 --> 00:41:38.039 them, but they don't have to work. And that is in financial sector 580 00:41:38.079 --> 00:41:44.000 and probably tech as well known as gardening leave. Wow, I'd like that, 581 00:41:44.079 --> 00:41:47.760 get I know. So whether this person actually did any gardening on their 582 00:41:47.800 --> 00:41:52.440 gardening leave, I don't know, but I was extremely disappointed to find out 583 00:41:52.480 --> 00:41:54.599 it was not, in fact a leave dedicated to horticulture. That's great, 584 00:41:54.719 --> 00:42:00.440 you could add that to your investment horfolio, right, are you good? 585 00:42:00.639 --> 00:42:04.440 Hey? Real quickly? You know how much I disliked garden hoses? Yeah, 586 00:42:04.480 --> 00:42:07.599 oh yeah, So I was happy to see this story. A homeowner 587 00:42:07.760 --> 00:42:12.000 uses his garden hose to save his house from serious fire damage. It happened 588 00:42:12.039 --> 00:42:17.440 last week in Fargo, North Dakota. A Fargo homeowner's quick actions potentially saved 589 00:42:17.440 --> 00:42:22.519 his home from significant damage. A fire started on his deck was spreading to 590 00:42:22.599 --> 00:42:28.840 his home by the time the fire department got there he had put it out 591 00:42:28.880 --> 00:42:31.239 with the garden hose. So garden hoses, you know, they have a 592 00:42:31.280 --> 00:42:38.880 reputation of getting kinky and you trip on him and hoses frustrate me. But 593 00:42:39.000 --> 00:42:44.519 in this case, this homeowner used his garden hose to do a good thing. 594 00:42:45.000 --> 00:42:47.760 He did the work before the firefighters got there and saved his home. 595 00:42:47.800 --> 00:42:51.760 I thought that was a good, feel good It is a feel good story. 596 00:42:51.800 --> 00:42:53.599 I'm just shocked that he didn't have any kinks in the hose, that 597 00:42:53.679 --> 00:42:57.199 it wasn't all knotted up, and that he was able to, you know, 598 00:42:57.280 --> 00:43:00.360 quickly turn on the water and deliver it where it needed to be, 599 00:43:00.360 --> 00:43:02.719 because that does not seem didn't get caught on the edge of the bed while 600 00:43:02.719 --> 00:43:07.960 he's trying to go put out the fire exactly. So I'm glad that everything 601 00:43:08.000 --> 00:43:10.920 worked out well and that for once, garden hoses did not live up to 602 00:43:10.960 --> 00:43:15.199 their frustrating reputation. There you go. Thanks for watching and listening to the 603 00:43:15.239 --> 00:43:21.559 Gardening Simplified Show. Remember we are a podcast, YouTube show, and radio 604 00:43:21.639 --> 00:43:27.400 show. You can get more information at Gardeningsimplified on air dot com, and 605 00:43:27.440 --> 00:43:30.719 we'd love to have you send pictures and notes. We always love to hear 606 00:43:30.760 --> 00:43:34.960 from you. Thank you, Stacy, thank you Rick, thank you Adriana, 607 00:43:35.119 --> 00:43:39.679 and thanks to you for making the Gardening Simplified Show part of your weekly 608 00:43:39.760 --> 00:43:42.000 habit. Take care,