A modern miracle
jojoco
last year
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Xpost W/ AZ gardens: Buffalo Grass lawn rehab
Comments (3)Sounds like you think the experiment failed. Did you plant a seeded variety of buffalo or sod? I don't think that was thatch. I think that was buffalo grass plants. Thatch is a dense mat of plant material just above the soil. It ranges from roots to stolons to grass plants. Yours didn't look like a dense mat of anything. It looked like grass in a dormant stage. In the wild, buffalo grass would NOT be closely grazed by bison or cows. If it was grazed at all it would be grazed once in the spring and the bison would move on looking for tender new grass. They would have kept on moving until they reached central Canada and then they would have returned feeding on other grasses. By the time they returned to your buffalo grass patch, it would be 18 inches tall. The only time forage is closely grazed over long periods is after fences are installed to keep the livestock from leaving to look for fresh forage. Fencing animals in is not natural or "in the wild." What is your watering schedule? How long and how often? Is the blue grama an experiment or do you have reason to believe it is the solution to a problem?...See MoreHelp! What can I do about protecting my roses when it gets hot?
Comments (17)I was thinking just what Jerijen said, amazed that Knockout roses could be decimated by blackspot. MScaradine, are your Knockouts the original Knockout, or one of the varients bred from it? Second question is: You mentioned your tea roses doing well. Did you actually mean the old garden tea roses or hybrid teas? I have just heard so many people shorten hybrid tea to "tea" that I'm never sure. They are completely separate classes of roses. I wouldn't throw out the Knockouts without giving them a chance to recover, perhaps to next year. I had a Belinda's Dream rose that had significant blackspot when I bought it and for a few months afterwards, but after that it was highly resistant. Thanks, Rosetom, for your information about Banner Maxx. I did not know it is the same class as the tebuconazole. I used that before I ever started with the Bayer stuff, so I still have a supply of it. I have also used manzate occasionally, so I'll remember to give that a turn every so often. I don't much care for the filmy residue the Manzate leaves behind, but that's a minor annoyance and doesn't last long. Anyway, I have not been too diligent this year about spraying, but, knock on wood, so far the blackspot has been easily controlled, so the Bayer tebuconazole is still doing its job. Yea, Modern Miracle, indeed! I think Ingrid has a valid concern about the enivornmental impact. It is easier, though, to avoid blackspot in a drier climate. When you live in the Gulf South, blackspot is a major issue. There are certainly a handful of old garden roses highly resistant to it, but none are immune. Also, there are a lot of old garden roses that I see blackspot here as badly as modern roses. so you have to do your research carefully. I find (selfishly, perhaps) that certain colors and bloom form and size combinations are just simply not available in old garden rose varieties. I am encourage, however, with how much improvement we're seeing, in the overall disease resistance of some select modern varieties. My fingers are crossed that this trend will continue. In the meantime, if we're going to use chemicals in the garden, the labels that say CAUTION are supposed to be less dangerous than the ones that say either WARNING or DANGER. Bayer has a CAUTION label. Mike...See MoreInteresting Black Spot theory
Comments (11)There is a great deal of mythology surrounding the origin of Blackspot, and many of the myths are quoted again and again, year after year. While its true that the first Hybrid Foetida, 'Soleil d'Or' has appalling problems with the disease, one has to remember that its other parent was a Hybrid Perpetual; a group notorious for its own disease problems. Surely both sides of the pedigree contributed to the problem. Certainly, the introduction of the China genes didn't help at all, but neither are they completely to blame. Blackspot resistance (and the lack thereof) is a complicated matter. You can cross two disease prone roses and get a seedling that has complete immunity to disease. You can also take two native species roses and although both may be completely impervious to Blackspot, the resulting hybrids may have no disease resistance whatsoever. The moment you cross any plant with another individual not from its own species, you risk losing disease resistance. And since our modern garden shrubs are such mongrels, and since so very little attention was paid to disease resistance, especially in the 20th century when breeders figured the modern miracle of "better living through chemistry" would cure any disease problems, they selected what looked good and left disease management up to the end user. Lucky us. Lets hope what Bill Radler and Robert Basye started is only the beginning of a new approach to breeding ornamental roses....See MoreWhat are your feelings on total knee replacement?
Comments (31)Well, I did it! Or rather my orthopedic surgeon did. Dr. Pontius gave me a total knee replacement almost five weeks ago. After spending five days in the hospital I came home to the excellent care of my hubby, Bob, instead of going to a rehab facility. The after care provided was very complete and well organized, and I'm told is cheaper for the insurance company than going to rehab. I had RNs, LVNs, a caregiver that helped me shower, and physical therapists in and out of our home almost daily. While there is a lot of discomfort the first two or three weeks round the clock pain meds are provided to take the edge off. Interestingly the anesthesiologist gives you something like a massive novicain injection in the thigh area before surgery (you are 'out' when he does it) which totally negates any severe pain. It lasts for several days allowing you to start physical therapy by walking around your hospital room the day after surgery. I am now walking without a walker or a cane (not very fast, but I'm walking) and I even went outside to water the plants yesterday, as well as going to Olive Garden for lunch with Bob and visiting my daughter where she works. Yes, there is a lot of exercises that must be done a couple of times daily. Some I do almost continually such as scrunching the knee cap muscles while sitting in a recliner as well as moving both legs around and working the feet up and down. At first the therapy is not easy and you think you are never going to be able to extend the knee, but it's amazing how quickly you find that movment works through and lessens the stiffness and soreness. I'm still taking pain meds, but am going longer between doses. A couple of tips I can think of right now: Be sure you get the same pain meds that were working well for you in the hospital. My prescription was initially filled with a generic and it was not the same! I had the ice machine at the hospital and it was wonderful, but one of those pleated ice bags works very well also. We went through a lot of bags of crushed ice before I thought of using a mini ice chest to keep the it in between uses. My drinking water bottle was kept cool in it as well. Elastic compression hose work great to keep the swelling down. I'm still wearing it in the daytime. You may be able to bring them home from the hospital, but if not buy some. Well, that's about it. So far so good. Of course there are certain risks with any major surgery. If the rare complication occurs recovery might take a little longer, but they are taken care of. Whatever, the modern miracle of knee replacement sure beats the alternative of limping around with knee braces and a cane or walker the rest of your life. Happy gardening everybody!...See Morejojoco
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