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Helen Chesnut’s Garden Notes: Anthurium plants need frequent watering

Dear Helen: Is there a way to prevent brown spots from developing on my anthurium plants? N.S. Anthurium (flamingo flower) plants require high levels of humidity in the air and a soil kept consistently moist.
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Anthuriums bring notes of tropic luxury into a home. The plants thrive in humid warmth, bright indirect light, and a moist soil.

Dear Helen: Is there a way to prevent brown spots from developing on my anthurium plants?

N.S.

Anthurium (flamingo flower) plants require high levels of humidity in the air and a soil kept consistently moist. In dry air the leaf tips and edges turn brown.

Under-watering is the usual cause of lower (older) leaves developing brown spots. Though the soil they grow in must drain efficiently of excess moisture, anthuriums require ample watering. It’s one of very few house plants that should be watered a little every few days.

Cold, wet conditions can foster fungus diseases that cause brown spots on the leaves. Soil drainage needs to be perfect, and air temperatures should be warm at around 21 C. Temperatures in winter should not dip below 15 c.

Too much sun will cause light-coloured (white or tan) spots on anthurium leaves. The plants need the brightest possible winter light but protection from direct summer sunshine.

Dear Helen: Almost every apple on my tree this year had a hole bored into it. The holes are messy and go through to the centre of the fruit. I’m wondering whether this pest is still around, and what I can do to get rid of it and prevent the same damage next year.

M.J.

You have described coddling moth damage. This pest is not generally a major problem in home gardens here, but this year and last year I’ve heard from friends who have noticed the problem in their apple trees. This year, in processing my apples, I came across only a few with coddling moth damage.

Coddling moth larvae over-winter in cocoons on or at the base of host trees, to emerge around apple blossom time as small grey moths. Females lay eggs on or near developing fruit. Resulting larvae burrow into the fruit, usually at the blossom end, to feed. After about a month they leave the fruit and crawl down the tree trunk to spin cocoons that produce a second egg-laying generation in July and August.

Sanitation and visual monitoring measures work best as controls in home gardens, and are easiest to employ on small trees. Doing most of the pruning in summer rather than in the dormant season helps to keep trees compact.

Inspect the apples often, beginning around six weeks after bloom or when they are about the size of marbles. Remove and destroy any with entry holes. After the tree sheds excess fruit in the “June drop” thin the clusters to leave only one apple. Pick up promptly all fallen apples. Place suspect apples in the freezer or a bucket of soapy water for a week to kill the larvae.

Keep checking the apples regularly and remove any with entrance holes filled with crumbly brown droppings. If you cut open suspect apples, depending on the timing you may find a caterpillar feeding inside. Dispose of it.

To trap larvae left as they move down a tree to pupate, in early June wrap a 20-cm wide band of corrugated cardboard (corrugation against the tree) around each trunk. Some, but not all the caterpillars, will stop to spin cocoons in the bands. Check every 10 days for cocoons and larvae to pick out. Replace with fresh bands in mid-July.

Keep the base of the tree trunk and the area under and around the tree scrupulously clean.

Garden events

Dahlia meeting. The Victoria Dahlia Society meets Thursday, 7:30 p.m., in the Victorian at McKenzie, 4000 Douglas St., in the main floor meeting room. The evening will feature a demo on dividing tuber clumps and preparing tubers for winter storage. Visitors welcome.

Nursery tour. Russell Nursery in North Saanich, 1370 Wain Rd., is hosting free guided tours on Thursday and Sunday at 10 a.m. Learn how the staff sources, grows, and maintains their plants. Pick up tips on selecting plants at a nursery and caring for them. Call 250-656-0384 or email russellnursery@telus.net to reserve a place.

Wreath making classes. Russell Nursery’s holiday wreath making classes, between Nov. 23 and Dec. 14, are starting to fill up. See russellnursery.com/classes.