IN THE GARDEN: Moss A Hardy Solution For Lacking Ground Cover

Q: Our south-facing garden is beautiful with moss, a wonderful winter cold survivor. Definitely a ground cover worthy of shady areas!

A: I have been a long time Moose fan and want others to embrace it. I get more questions about how to kill than how to farm.

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Q: I read your article on winter injuries with interest. He asked my opinion. They are alive, don't believe it, but really surprisingly small and green, without flowers. I was at a hot spring recently and they have such a beautiful glow. Was it not that cold there, or what made the plants recover so quickly? Is there anything I can do to make mine bloom again?

A : That's interesting, I was on the track on Saturday and saw some great ideas. It was as cold as the hot springs say and it hurt. He needed to find a place to buy and replant replacement ideas for the racetrack. I have seen ideas that "live" or recover for several meters, but they are small and green. Fertilizing in warm weather will help them regrow, but I don't expect colorful warm season flowers unless we have to repot them.

Q: Our redpoint wrapper has been reduced to no wrapper, and we need some suggestions on how to replace it. I live in Little Rock. The area gets some afternoon sun, but not too much and not too little in the morning. I was trying to get some ideas for my walks and chose Holly as my candidate and was hoping you might have some suggestions. I'm not against a mix and hope to experiment a bit to find the best fit. The red dot was good until it stopped being good.

A: The red tip photinia has been sick for years and I saw it for the first time, this time it was also affected in winter. Since you had a photinia hedge, I think you wanted something evergreen and very tall. There are many holly hedges: Foster, Nellie Stephens and Burford are good choices. You can also try cherry laurel, one of the southern columnar magnolias, and add Sasanqua camellia. Camellias take the cold but generally do well in Central Arkansas. I like a little variety to add interest, but if you mix up the variety, your coverage won't be the same.

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Q: I mean, my rhododendron bush bloomed profusely on Thanksgiving, but now the leaves seem to be falling off and dying. Do you think I will lose? [A reader sent in a photo.]

A: I assume the plant is the camellia and not the rhododendron. Rhododendrons are best in the cold season, and they don't bloom in the fall, they bloom in late spring. Sasanqua camellia bushes bloom in autumn and are hit hard by December frosts. There are two old, well-established ones that have lost two-thirds of their leaves for the first time. As with the other tips, don't cut until new growth starts and we know how much damage has been done. I'm crossing my fingers not to do a lot of pruning this spring.

After 38 years with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, Janet Carson is one of Arkansas' most respected horticulturists. His blog is at aarkansasonline.com/planitjanet . Write to him at PO Box 2221, Little Rock, AR 72203 or email him at jcarson@arkansasonline.com.