HOW’S YOUR GARDEN BY L OIS T R IG G C H A P L I N
Agave is Perfect in a Pot Agave passes summer’s test of sun, heat and drought in a container, especially compared to other plants. Native to hot, arid climates, its succulent leaves are built for extended periods without water. If stressed, they will finally get a wrinkled look, but it could take weeks. A number of agaves are sold in the nursery trade, especially those native to Texas, Arizona and Mexico. The big thick leaves and classic starburst shapes are like little sculptures, making a handsome accent in a pot. Look for those that are cold-hardy through zone 7 so that they can be yearround items that just grow prettier.
SIMPLE TIMES Tomato fruitworm egg is pearly with small ridges.
The tomato fruitworm loves green tomatoes.
THE CO-OP PANTRY
caterpillar is inside the fruit, there isn’t much one can do. If the fruitworm has been a problem in the past, spray plants with Neem, Bt (Dipel, Thuricide) or other approved insecticide to kill any young caterpillar as it hatches from the egg and before entering the fruit. Bt is the least harmful to beneficial insects such as the tiny (1/25th of an inch) beneficial trichogramma wasps that parasitize the fruitworm eggs. The pearllike eggs laid singly on the leaves are easy to recognize. I am always on the lookout for them as I work in the garden. If the eggs are black, it means that they have been parasitized; leave them on the plant so that the trichogramma wasps inside will emerge and seek out more eggs.
Agave is perfect in a pot. Agaves make showy, drought-tolerant container plants.
A Hungry Caterpillar It’s disheartening to find once-promising green tomatoes rotting on the vine. Often the culprit is a caterpillar, the tomato fruitworm that tunnels through a green or ripe tomato and then exits that fruit and moves on to damage another. The pest usually shows up about the same time that the silks dry on corn plants because the tomato fruitworm is actually the same pest as the corn earworm. As corn silks dry, it seeks out other places such as tomato leaves on which to lay eggs. Once the egg hatches and the
Crinum – An Old Summer Standby A classic, old garden plant, wonderfully fragrant crinums don’t seem as popular as they once were, but they’re certainly worthy of a spot in sunny gardens. They are perennial, they are tough and they can live for decades. In midsummer, the plants are topped with long stalks of white or pink blossoms. When not in bloom, their distinctive whorl of long, straplike leaves creates an interesting texture in a flower bed. Some form a very large root system or large tuber, making them hard to dig up, so this plant should be put in a permanent location. Plants are tolerant of multiple soil types, and very tolerant of drought, but will bloom best with adequate water and full sun. As the clump July 2021 51
