Paul Pugliese.
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Back in January, I wrote a column about the extreme freeze event we experienced in December 2022. As predicted, we saw a number of trees and shrubs that were damaged by this sudden drop in temperatures. Many of our trees and shrubs were not fully acclimated for winter when this temperature drop occurred. Local weather…
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Trees provide many benefits to our communities such as shade, reduced energy costs, preventing soil erosion, and filtering pollution from air and water. They also beautify our landscapes and increase property values when properly maintained. Some homeowners become concerned when trees grow large and may worry about branches that could break or fall and cause…
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The average lifespan for flowering cherry trees in Georgia is about thirty years. As they begin to reach this advanced age for cherries, we begin to see a cascading set of problems that ultimate lead to the decline and death of a tree. Typically, we get calls at the Extension office once the tree begins…
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Have you ever seen a caterpillar with long hairs that stick out like two black horns on its head, one black horn on its tail, and four hairy mohawks on its back? If so, you probably encountered a tussock moth caterpillar. Depending on the species, their colors can range from dark gray to light gray,…
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Dish soap and water are often referred to as the cure-all for managing garden insects such as aphids. Understanding how soap impacts insects and how to best use soaps means better insect management and healthier plants. We still don’t understand exactly how soap kills or doesn’t kill an insect. The leading theory is that the…
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The larvae of scarab beetles, known as white grubs, are one of the armadillo’s favorite foods. Armadillos will dig up a lawn searching for grubs in the fall and spring when grubs are near the surface. The Extension office receives many calls this time of year from frustrated homeowners that have their lawns plowed by…
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Fall and early winter are an excellent time to make some mathematical adjustments to your landscape. As deciduous plants enter into a dormant phase, they have less demands for water and nutrients since they don’t have leaves to support for the next few months. Even though evergreen plants still have leaves that are actively photosynthesizing…
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March is a great time to plant Irish potatoes in North Georgia. There are literally hundreds of cultivars of potatoes that come in every shape, color, and size imaginable. Potatoes can be white, red, purple, blue, and yellow. The Irish potato gets its name from the history of the Irish potato famine. The popular term…
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Weeds make flowers and flowers make seeds—lots of seeds. Although plants don’t have legs or feet to move around, they do have the ability to move their seeds. In fact, there are several seed dispersal mechanisms used by plants to move about. This is the reason why weeds are seemingly a never-ending problem for farms,…
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Last week I was working in the backyard and discovered an Eastern Kingsnake eating another Eastern Kingsnake! This a one-in-a-million chance encounter with one our most incredible native snake species that is found throughout Georgia and the Southeast. I quickly ran inside the house to get my nine-year-old son to come out and watch this…
Posted in: Wildlife