Tim Johnson – Page 42

Southern blight is rare in Illinois, but it can cause collapse and death of herbaceous plants

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

I have an avid gardening friend who thought some of my hostas might be suffering from southern blight, which I have never heard of. How can I identify this and...

Tar spots on Norway maple are caused by fungi, but don’t threaten health of tree

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

My Norway maple has lots of black spots on the leaves and the leaves are falling off the tree in large quantity. I am worried that the tree is dying....

Rough foliage on tomato plants could be caused by crowding, but stunted growth points to a virus

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

Many of my tomatoes have foliage that is not looking so good, but the plants still seem to be producing a lot of fruit. There are a couple of plants...

Hosta Virus X affects only hostas, and the plants won’t recover

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

I have some hostas in my garden that look funny with strange, mottled colors on the leaves — different from surrounding plants. A friend told me there is a disease...

Sunflower hulls from bird seed can inhibit growth under feeders

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

We feed birds all summer long, and the grass and flowers near the feeder tend to look bad. The grass dies due to the broken seeds that fall and an...

When properly sited, pachysandra can be a trouble-free garden plant

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

I have a bed of pachysandra growing along my driveway and noticed a section of it has turned brown and looks dead. The bed is along some tall shrubs and...

Are landscape fabrics worth the trouble to suppress weeds?

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

I have some large beds of trees and shrubs in my garden, and the weeds have been very difficult to keep up with this year. Will installing a weed barrier...

Winter’s damage to plants means lots of gardeners looking for replacements

June 14, 2019 at 2:50 p.m.

I have a number of dead plants in my garden that I want to replace after the difficult winter. Can you provide some advice on selecting replacement plants? — Jason...

Yews don't perform well when grown in wet sites. If yews are yellowing and thinning, that's a sign of too much water.

Are your yews going yellow? They’re likely drowning in too much water.

May 23, 2019 at 9:02 a.m.

About 10 years ago, I planted several upright yews to provide privacy in my garden. A couple of them have gotten thin and are showing some yellowing in the foliage....

Holes in your hostas may signal slugs. Here’s how to stop this garden pest.

May 23, 2019 at 9:01 a.m.

I am starting to see a lot of ragged holes in the leaves of my hosta and some of my other perennials in the same section of my garden. There...

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