Home & Garden: Tree Diseases That Cause Spots on the Leaves

Tree Diseases That Cause Spots on the Leaves

Spots on tree leaves indicate a health problem, probably one caused by a fungal or bacterial infection. These issues spread in a number of ways and affect a variety of tree species. Caring for an infected tree may not save all the leaves, but prevents further damage.

Home & Garden: How to Care for Mother Fern Plants

How to Care for Mother Fern Plants

Mother fern is the fleshy green fern that produces baby plantlets on its leaves. They are easy to grow and maintain but suffer from severe wilting when the soil conditions are not right.

Home & Garden: Insect Pests for Sunflowers

Insect Pests for Sunflowers

Sunflowers are a favorite flower among many home gardeners. This flower produces lovely yellow blooms and is used to make sunflower oil and ground meal. While sunflowers are generally healthy, they are susceptible to damage from certain pests. Insect infestations can affect the overall health and ap

Home & Garden: Rotting Red Maple Bark

Rotting Red Maple Bark

Red maples (Acer rubrum) are native to North America and grow abundantly in the cooler, eastern areas of the United States and southern Canada. Also referred to as swamp maple, soft maple and water maple, the tree is widely used for shade around homes and in other landscapes. Red maple adapts to a w

Home & Garden: How to Cut Austrees for Planting New Trees

How to Cut Austrees for Planting New Trees

Austree, from New Zealand, is a hybrid willow (Salix matsudana x alba) that grows rapidly from 50 to 70 feet in height. Its vigor leaves it susceptible to several diseases, so the tree generally has a short life span. It requires a lot of water during its lifetime and will begin dying back even duri

Home & Garden: Croton Propagation Techniques

Croton Propagation Techniques

The colorful croton (Codiaeum variegatum) is a member of the family Euphorbiaceae and is native to India and Malaysia. It is sure to brighten up even the dullest areas of the landscape in frost-free areas. Crotons grow well planted outdoors in United States Department of Agriculture hardiness zones

Home & Garden: How to Grow a Rose Garden

How to Grow a Rose Garden

Create a rose garden in your landscape to show off this flowering queen of plants. Depending on the amount of time you want to dedicate to your rose garden, you may select roses that require minimal care or delicate hybrids that need lots of attention. You have a large selection of possible colors a

Home & Garden: What Are the Causes of Browning of Leyland Cypress Shrubs?

What Are the Causes of Browning of Leyland Cypress Shrubs?

The Leyland cypress is also known by its scientific name Cupressocyparis leylandii and is commonly used as a hedge, screen or a Christmas tree. At maturity, the Leyland cypress can reach heights of 70 feet or more. While typically healthy, the Leyland cypress can develop diseases which...

Home & Garden: Tick Repellent for Children

Tick Repellent for Children

Tick-borne illnesses such as Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever can cause serious health risks in humans, particularly children. These diseases carry the potential of damage to the heart, nervous system and joints if left untreated. Tick repellents, especially DEET-based repellents also

Home & Garden: Outdoor Plants That Don't Require Full Sunlight

Outdoor Plants That Don't Require Full Sunlight

Hosts of perennial plants grow in full shade to partial shade, including such species as astilbe, begonias, corydalis, bishop's hat, lungwort, hosta and foamflowers. Perennials easily form the largest group of plants able to grow without the benefit of full sunlight, but are by no means the only typ

Home & Garden: Catfish for Pond Stocking

Catfish for Pond Stocking

Larger-sized ponds work well for stocking channel catfish at about 115 fish per acre. Channel catfish require little management and cause no problems unless you overstock the pond.

Home & Garden: How to Make Dried Floral Arrangements

How to Make Dried Floral Arrangements

Making your own dried floral arrangements saves money and allows you to design the arrangement exactly as you want. With such a wide assortment of dried flowers readily available at local craft stores you can create any look you want. You can also dry your own flowers.

Home & Garden: Why Do New Water Filters Recommend Letting Water Run for 10 Minutes?

Why Do New Water Filters Recommend Letting Water Run for 10 Minutes?

A few reasons account for why new water filters will recommend you run your water for 10 minutes prior to use. Doing so helps to eliminate trapped filter debris, settle the filter material, ensure filter integrity and activate filtration materials in the filter itself. Following the instructions on

Home & Garden: How to Control Sand Burrs

How to Control Sand Burrs

There are over 25 different types of sand burr species in the Poaceae grass family. The sand burr is attached to the sand burr plant. The sand burr seed itself is hard textured with sharp stickers. Sand burrs can be found in lawns all over the U.S. Use a seasonal control process to on the sand burr

Home & Garden: What Is a Currant?

What Is a Currant?

A currant is the small, round fruit produced by the currant bush. The currant bush is a member of the Ribes genus, which includes American, European and Asian varieties. Birds love the berries, and they are known to strip the strigs as the berries ripen. Currant bushes are low-maintenance and suitab

Home & Garden: When Planting Tomatoes & Eggplants, How Big Do the Containers Need to Be?

When Planting Tomatoes & Eggplants, How Big Do the Containers Need to Be?

Container gardening allows you to grow fresh vegetables when you do not have space for a vegetable garden. Anything you can grow in a vegetable garden you can grow in a container, including tomatoes and eggplants. Because nightshade plants need lots of sun for ideal growth, move your containers to a

Home & Garden: Tips on Growing Your Own Plants From Seeds

Tips on Growing Your Own Plants From Seeds

Starting your own seeds gives you more varieties from which to choose.Jupiterimages/BananaStock/Getty ImagesFor the price of a six-pack of bedding annuals you can buy a packet of seeds and grow dozens of plants. Starting your own plants from seeds isn't just economical. Instead of having...

Home & Garden: How to Care for a Mountain Laurel Tree

How to Care for a Mountain Laurel Tree

Mountain laurel is an evergreen shrub that grows in the eastern United States from Maine to Florida. It produces clusters of cup-shaped flowers May through June that range in color from white to pink. In its natural environment, the mountain laurel grows on the slopes of forest-covered mountains and

Home & Garden: How to Grow Lily Pads

How to Grow Lily Pads

Water lilies are floating flowers that come in pink, red, white, blue, and yellow colors. The flowers sit on top of a wide green leaf, or pad. Underneath the surface of the water, the stem of the water lily anchors the lily pad to the bottom of the lake or pond. They are widely used in aquatic garde

Home & Garden: What Is the Right Temperature to Grow Mango Trees?

What Is the Right Temperature to Grow Mango Trees?

Mangoes are medium-to-large evergreen trees originally from India and southeast Asia. According to the University of Florida, these trees have been grown in India for more than 4,000 years. This rich, sweet fruit tree grows in North America, but only in climates that do not experience severe cold. C