January

• January 2, 2010
  Some warm season vegetable seed need a little extra warmth to germinate early in a cool home.

• January 9, 2010
  You can purchase potting soils for different kinds of plants with different needs.

• January 16, 2010
  Gophers can be trapped, but releasing them elsewhere can be cruel.

• January 23, 2010
  Too much manure can reduce garden's yield.

• January 30, 2010
  Those wood ashes from winter are not good for New Mexico gardens.

February

• February 6, 2010
  Snails can be a problem even with reduced irrigation.

• February 20, 2010
  Now is a good time to prune deciduous trees and pruning sealer will not help and will not stop slime flux.

• February 13, 2010
  It is still not recommended to top trees.

• February 28, 2010
  Pomegranate plants need water in the winter and they will do better if in the ground.

March

• March 6, 2010
  Prune lilacs after they flower.

• March 13, 2010
  Fertigation, applying fertilizer with drip irrigation, can work for you.

• March 20, 2010
  The native New Mexico datura (sacred thorn-apple) is not moonflower.

• March 27, 2010
  Hackberry and service berry trees are safe for livestock and you can even eat the fruit from service berry tree.

April

• April 1, 2010
  Yes, there are mild chiles in addition to hot chiles.

• April 10, 2010
  NMSU Extension Service, nurseries, garden clubs, and Master Gardeners are good sources of gardening information for new residents.

• April 17, 2010
  Mistletoe can infest landscape trees.

• April 24, 2010
  Vinca and other plants may have diseases, but good samples are needed to properly diagnose problems.

May

• May 1, 2010
  You can grow a new aspen tree from a broken branch.

• May 8, 2010
  Trees may need nitrogen fertilizer.

• May 11, 2010
  Straw mulch can be helpful or harmful when starting garden seeds.

• May 22, 2010
  Osage orange can be propagated by stem cuttings, root cuttings, layering, and seeds.

June

• June 5, 2010
  Plants can be sun burned, but you can help avoid the problem.

• June 12, 2010
  Heat of summer is a good time for planting, but difficult for the planter.

• June 19, 2010
  Saving vegetable seeds can be interesting, but must be done properly.

• June 26, 2010
  Peach tree borers can injure any of the stone fruit trees.

July

• July 3, 2010
  Slime mold is a strange landscape invader, but beneficial.

• July 10, 2010
  Grafting a broken branch back is not impossible, but very difficult.

• July 17, 2010
  Squash Bugs are baaack.

• July 24, 2010
  Foxtail grass and rabbits can be problems in lawns.

August

• August 7, 2010
  Several problems can cause a tree to die after only a few years.

• August 14, 2010
  Mushrooms are a necessary part of the landscape environment.

• August 28, 2010
  Some New Mexico homeowners can grow pomegranates.

September

• September 4, 2010
  Identify the cause of death of a plant before replacing the same kind of plant at the same site, or choose other plants to use.

• September 11, 2010
  Seedless grapes may make seeds.

• September 18, 2010
  It is difficult, but not impossible, to start new peach trees from cuttings.

• September 25, 2010
  You can rototill lawn clippings into the garden in the fall to decompose through the winter if they are herbicide free.

October

• October 2, 2010
  Exotic loquat fruit may, perhaps, be grown in protected areas of Southern New Mexico.

• October 9, 2010
  Science says that it is very unlikely for melons and cucumbers to hybridize, but maybe not impossible.

• October 16, 2010
  Pine needles are not toxic and make excellent mulch.

• October 30, 2010
  The first frost may not kill all garden plants.

November

• November 6, 2010
  Western cherry fruit flies are a problem in cherries in some regions of New Mexico.

• November 13, 2010
  Don't eat bitter almonds that may have come from rootstocks.

• November 20, 2010
  You can move roses and other plants late in the dormant season, or pot them now to plant later.

• November 27, 2010
  Pine tree needles turn brown and fall off this doesn't necessarily mean your tree is unhealthy, and they can be used as beneficial mulch.

December

• December 4, 2010
  Conifer aphids may persist through winter, but other aphids will disappear until spring.

• December 11, 2010
  Yellow-bellied sapsuckers can make holes in the trunks of trees.

• December 18, 2010
  Daffodil are very hardy, so do not worry if they start growing early.

• December 25, 2010
  You can prune evergreens now for a little holiday greenery, but do major pruning in late winter.

Desert Blooms Website

Marisa Y. Thompson, PhD, is the Extension Horticulture Specialist, in the Department of Extension Plant Sciences at the New Mexico State University Los Lunas Agricultural Science Center, email: desertblooms@nmsu.edu, office: 505-865-7340, ext. 113.

Links:

For more gardening information, visit the NMSU Extension Horticulture page at Desert Blooms and the NMSU Horticulture Publications page.

Send gardening questions to Southwest Yard and Garden - Attn: Dr. Marisa Thompson at desertblooms@nmsu.edu, or at the Desert Blooms Facebook page.

Please copy your County Extension Agent and indicate your county of residence when you submit your question!