Ed Hume Answers Your Gardening Questions
Ed Hume cannot answer all of the garden questions he receives, but questions
of general interest will be answered here every month. Email your questions
to HumeSeeds@aol.com. Please
note: we do not accept attachments.
Before submitting a question, be sure to check the index
of previous questions and answers or search our
site using key words. Many questions have already been answered
here on the site.
Other April Links
 . I wondered if you might
be able to tell me if I can severely prune back a large rock daphne which
has become barren in the middle, a space of about 10 inches in diameter?
 The best time to prune a Daphne
is after it finishes flowering. If possible, keep your pruning cuts within
the first 1/3 to 1/2 of the tip growth. If you prune it more severely, it
is difficult for the plant to recover.
I want to put together a calendar
(by month or season) that tells me what to do for the various plants in my
garden. I have your book. Do you know of any other resources, written for
the northwest, that would help me in this project?
Marianne Binetti just came
out with a book titled 'Month to Month Gardening in the Pacific Northwest'.
You can also get some ideas from my Moon Sign Almanac
and my online calendar. You'll find it in our seed
racks at stores throughout the northwest.
I read your response to a
question of when to tranplant a jade, but my question involves support for
the newly transplanted jade. I had several "babies" in medium size pot for
nearly 5 years. They're now each 18" tall or so and I divided them into 2
medium size pots. Two of the stems cannot support themselves at all now and
their roots were surprisingly shallow (although I don't believe I ever overwater,
as such would indicate I understand - does anything else cause shallow rooting?)
How do I help this plant? Is staking acceptable, and if so, what is the best
method to not hurt the jade?
Yes, the plants can certainly
be staked. Stake the center stalk. You can use a bamboo stake or even a wooden
stake to do the job. I think the bamboo looks better…but it's up to
you. Sparse watering or feeding could encourage shallow rooting.
I have a bleeding heart plant
that I would like to transplant I would like to know when I would be able
to do that if it could be this spring or do I have to wait until fall. It
is huge and I would like to separate it and make it in to two plants instead
of one.
The 'bleeding heart' can be
dug and divided at this time of year, before the new growth starts. It can
also be divided in the fall.
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