Everyone seems to be gardening during the pandemic so if you’ve got questions turn to Ask an Expert, an online question-and-answer tool from Oregon State University’s Extension Service. OSU Extension faculty and Master Gardeners reply to queries within two business days, usually less. To ask a question, simply go to the OSU Extension website and type in a question and the county where you live. Here are some questions asked by other gardeners. What’s yours?
Q: I have a 3-year-old dwarf Braeburn apple tree that is producing lots of apples. The branches are bending downwards. I have already removed about 100 small apples. Should I remove more until the branches are not downward facings. Or is it okay if they bend like this? – Marion County
A: I thin our apples to one fruit per cluster (from the four or five that are often present), which significantly reduces the weight on each branch and improves fruit quality and makes any applied sprays more effective. So, if you can thin a bit further to achieve that, it might help. It’s not unusual for branches on young trees to do that, especially with a good complement of fruit. If they are bending already, you might consider using some tie tape to lift the branches up to an appropriate angle and tie them to the trunk. Otherwise a heavy fruit load may break them. By doing so now any future growth this year will help “fix” the branch in place. Do this especially with well-positioned branches that you think you will keep for future years. During the winter, you might consider as part of your pruning whether to shorten some of the long droopy branches to increase rigidity in the long term. – Neil Bell, OSU Extension horticulturist
LavenderOSU Extension Service
Q: Several weeks ago, I transplanted two French lavender (Lavandula stoechas) plants in bloom. (The wrong season, of course, but I had no choice.) They had been growing side by side and were replanted side by side, as one attached image shows. One made it through; the other looks gray and brown. The leaves do show greener than the photo indicates. Is there anything I can do? If I cut off the browning flowers and stems, will that just push the plant to try to make more flowers? Should I deal with it now or later? – Lane County
A: Yeah, not a good time to transplant lavender. At this point your best bet is just to watch and wait. If the green one is trying to bloom, I suggest trimming off its flowers to encourage it to send energy to the roots for a while, instead of the flowers. Same for the brown one, but if the flowers are dead, no need to trim them off right now. Keep the plants lightly watered (remember they like it dry, so don't drown them), and when it is very clear what parts are alive and what parts are dead (maybe a month or two from now), then trim out all the dead parts.
Or, buy new lavender and start over. It is not usually a long-lived plant anyway in our climate. – Signe Danler, OSU Extension horticulturist
Blackberries planted in containers may need more room. OSU Extension Service
Q: I'm seeing a very strange set of characteristics on the leaves of my one blackberry plant. Some leaves are browning and curling, but there's an odd coloring as well on some leaves. In some cases, the browning part of the leaf looks sunken in. The curling part of the leaf also isn't always brown. Sometimes it's a light green. Sometimes the brown is between the veins and sometimes not. I would deeply appreciate your help identifying what's wrong. I haven't changed anything about the plant's conditions since I planted it two to three months ago. – Washington County
A: The berries have been damaged during our recent heat waves, even though brief. As new plants, they haven't yet developed a vigorous root system. And because they are in containers, the potting mix dries quite rapidly. The plants would benefit from dappled sunlight until they get established.
The dark brown areas dried at a relatively slow rate compared to the dry green spots which were essentially flash-dried.
Another potential issue is that the plants are in containers. If you don't have any space in the open garden, the containers should be much larger.
See Growing Blackberries in Your Home Garden. – Jean Natter, OSU Extension Master Gardener diagnostician
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