QUESTION : Much of what I have been reading lately recommends that our lawns be aerated and then composted this time of year. I have a lawn that is one of the bermuda hybrids (it has a number - I think it is 375 or 357 - I can never remember which) that is going into its third season. Is aerating still advisable, or is that only for older, and/or St. Augustine lawns? The aerators I have looked at to rent put pretty large, deep holes in the lawn. Any advice on making sure the sprinkler system doesn't get hurt?

ANSWER :Aeration, by core extraction, of most lawns, followed by a top dressing of ½ to 1 inch of compost can only improve them. Is it absolutely necessary? Probably not. If the lawn is so compacted that water will not penetrate it after irrigation or rain, or if the thatch is built up to a detrimental amount, then perhaps aerating is necessary. This PLANTanswers web site is an article written by Dr Richard Duble on bermuda grass. It includes some discussion on aeration but also provides good information on the maintenance of a bermuda lawn:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/PLANTanswers/turf/publications/bermuda.html
About your sprinkler system, the only advice that I can give you on your sprinkler system is to know where the pipes, valves and sprinkler heads are located and avoid aerating where the aeration machine might damage them. The pipes are usually MUCH deeper than an aerator will ever penetrate.

QUESTION :When is a good time to plant caladium bulbs?

ANSWER :Caladiums like heat! The soil must be quite warm for them to do well. While this web site http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/flowers/caladium.html says to wait until after May 1, it should be warm enough to plant any time after April 15. However, you should go ahead and purchase your bulbs now if you haven't already done so. You will find that the longer you wait, the less selection you will have and nurseries usually receive only one shipment of caladium bulbs each year.

QUESTION: Can you save seed from this year's crop of cantaloupes for planting in next year's garden?

ANSWER: Yes, but this is not recommended. Do not save seed from any vine crops because some cross-pollinating can become evident when the seeds are planted in next year's garden. If you grow only one variety of cantaloupes and there are no cantaloupes in neighboring gardens, seed can be saved for next year without producing off-type fruit. If hybrid varieties are used, you should not save seeds for next year's planting. And this PLANTanswers web site provides more information about saving hybrid seed:

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/vegetables/seed.html

It begins, "You shouldn't save seed from hybrid vegetables because they won't produce true in the next generation." It then goes on to explain. You should contact your Cooperative Extension Service to ascertain if cantaloupes can be grown there and if so, what varieties are recommended.

QUESTION: I am requesting some information about deodorized cat litter being dumped on mature bushes (hollies and ligustrum). I own a rent home where my former tenants deposited deodorized cat litter, in large amounts approximately 2 inches above ground, onto the plant base. Several bushes have dead spots, half yellow and half black/dried leaves. I understand that cat litter absorbs liquid and extracts water from plants. My questions are:

1) What effect does deodorized cat litter have on the bushes?

2) Does the deodorized cat litter contaminate the soil?

3) What would you recommend to correct the problem?

ANSWER: Cat litter is nothing more than calcite clay and should not damage your plant material. The "fragrance" added should not be a contaminate or phytotoxic in any way. Although the calcite clay does absorb liquid it will not "rob" the subsoil moist from the root zone of a shrub. In fact, it should be a good mulch to attach neighborhood cats to deposit the renewable resources of manure and urea nitrogen in the urine. If you want to eliminate this product, simply scatter it throughout the lawn area. This is an environmentally friendly product not to be disposed of at the toxic waste materials facility. I use calcite clay in all of my potting soil and grow purrrrrrrrrfect plants -- SORRY, I couldn't resist it!!!!!!

QUESTION: I've tried to locate some info on how to get rid of mud dobbers and I'm hoping you might have some suggestions. We live in Kerrville, Texas and have a problem with the mud dobbers building nests in everything.

ANSWER: I understand that mud daubers (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) can be a nuisance putting their mud nests in unwanted places. However, they are providing beneficial service by eliminating many spiders (especially black widows). While they are very resourceful in finding available mud, they are much more active where mud is abundant. If you live along the river there is little you can do, but if you eliminate mud puddles caused by leaking pipes and etc, you will reduce the mud dauber activity. This Iowa State University web site is the most informative of the references that I found:

http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/bmuddaub.html

This is what it has to say: "Mud daubers are solitary wasps that construct small nests of mud in or around homes, sheds, and barns and under open structures, bridges and similar sites. Several species exist in Iowa. These wasps are long and slender with a narrow, thread-like waist. Some are a solid steel blue or black but others have additional yellow markings.

This wasp group is named for the nests that are made from mud collected by the females. Mud is rolled into a ball, carried to the nest and molded into place with the wasp's mandibles. There are three different wasps that practice this behavior. The black and yellow mud dauber builds a series of cylindrical cells that are eventually plastered over with mud to form a smooth mud nest about the size of a fist. The organ-pipe mud dauber, a more robust, black species, builds cylindrical tubes resembling pipe-organ pipes. The third species is a beautiful metallic-blue wasp with blue wings. This one does not build its own mud nest but instead uses the abandoned nests of the black and yellow mud dauber.

After completing the mud nest the female captures several insects or spiders to provision the cells. Prey are stung and paralyzed before being placed in the nest. A single egg is deposited on the prey within each cell, and the cell sealed with mud. After the wasp has finished a series of cells, she departs and does not return. The larvae that hatch from the eggs feed on the prey items left by the adult wasp. New adult wasps emerge to start the process over again.
Wasps usually evoke a great deal of anxiety or fear. However, solitary wasps such as the mud daubers do not defend their nest the way social wasps such as hornets and yellow jackets do. Mud daubers are very unlikely to sting, even when thoroughly aroused. They may sting if mishandled.

Control of these insects is not warranted since they normally pose little threat. Rather, mud daubers should be regarded as beneficial, since they remove and use as prey many species of spiders which most people find disagreeable. The mud nests can be scraped off and discarded at night if they are objectionable, or wasp and hornet aerosol sprays can be used to treat nests if desired. There is no proven method that is effective in discouraging wasps from building nests in sheltered or protected areas. Prompt and frequent removal of nests is suggested in areas favored by the wasps." Another web site:

http://entowww.tamu.edu/extension/youth/bug/bug155.html

QUESTION: I am doing a science fair project for my fourth grade class, and I choose to do it about potatoes. Will potatoes grow roots faster inside or outside. They are hanging by toothpicks in a glass of water, but for 2 weeks nothing is happening inside or outside. My mom thinks that maybe they are dormant in the winter, and that's why they won't sprout roots. Can you help me understand more about potatoes and sprouting?

ANSWER: I assume you are talking about Irish potatoes or those potatoes used for baking and making mashed potatoes and not the sweet potato with the orange color served at Thanksgiving and Christmas. The sweet potato is a true root with sprouts or buds at one end of each root piece. When toothpicks are stuck in that root -- the bud end at the top of the water and the rest of the root submerged -- sprouting will occur on the bud end and a vine will grow from those buds. Pieces of this vine (6 - 8 inches long) can be broken away, stuck in the ground and will root and produce more sweet potato roots.

With the Irish potato, the potato is a tuber (a fleshy, usually oblong or rounded thickening or outgrowth of a subterranean stem or shoot. A carbohydrate storage structure) which is not itself a root but rather a modified stem or shoot. The plant of a potato originates from an eye or bud on the side of the potato. A plant sprouts from these buds sending out roots several inches from the potato seed piece or whole potato that contains several buds. Potato eyes do have a dormancy that can be broken by heat or cold but must be satisfied before sprouting will occur. You should chose a potato on which the eyes have begun to sprout for your experiment. This will mean the dormancy has been satisfied. Often, potatoes purchased in supermarkets have been treated to prevent/delay this sprouting.

Please see the drawings on the following web sites for further clarification of the way Irish potatoes grow. I hope this information is helpful.

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/easygardening/potato/potato2.html

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/easygardening/potato/potato3.html

There are some pictures of different varieties with foliage and tubers at the site:

http://potato.tamu.edu/variety/var.htm

By the way, whether you use Irish potato or sweet potato, the sprouting should occur first inside the house where it is warm.

REPLY AND FOLLOW UP QUESTION ON SCIENCE FAIR PROJECT:
Thank you for your reply, it was nice of you to answer my question so quickly. The potatoes I used for this experiment were from the grocery store. They were in a 5 pound bag and my mom said that they were russets. They are now turning green, and I guess t his must be because of the chemicals on them.

ANSWER: No, The Russet potatoes are turning green because of their exposure to light. If we are lucky, the potatoes which you put outside are greener than the ones indoors -- right?! There is your project -- does light have an effect on the formation of Solanine in potatoes in your location? You can use our website or any other literature you can find on the chemical and indicate what recommendations you can make after doing your experiment-basically, keep storage potatoes out of direct, intense light so they will not develop the poisonous chemical Solanine.

To help you along, I suggest you look at these sites:

http://www.uaf.edu/coop-ext/publications/freepubs/FGV-00337.html

http://www.css.orst.edu/crops/potatoes/storproc.htm

Temperature, humidity, and air movement are the most important environmental factors during storage. Temperature requirements are governed by the intended use of the potatoes. Tubers should always be kept in the dark since very small amounts of light will gradually cause greening. Lights should not be left on in storage longer than necessary. Surface greening is due to chlorophyll formation and is harmless.
However, its presence in potatoes is undesirable because of marketing restrictions and the fact that at times an alkaloid called solanine increases with the chlorophyll.
Solanine and other glycoalkaloids cause potatoes to have a bitter, undesirable flavor.
Greening develops slowly in the light at 40 F or below, but develops rapidly at 68 F.
More Information About "Poison" in Edibles:

carrots - carotatoxin (nerve toxin)
potatoes - solanine (spina bifida in fetuses, poisonous in general)
celery - psoralen (photosensitizer, carcinogen)
okra - sterculic acid (poison)
crucifers - goitrin (turns off your thyroid)
mustard - allyl isothiocyanate (war gas)
tomatoes - tomatine
broccoli - benzpyrene (carcinogen)

Additional information can be found on these web sites:

http://www.taunton.com/fc/features/ingredients/potato4.htm

http://health.phillynews.com/encyclopedia/providers/poison/go_green.asp

Solanineis found in food and ornamental plants. Unripe tomatoes and the green "eyes" of potatoes contain solanine which can cause moderate nausea,
vomiting, headache and diarrhea. Eating large quantities can cause drowsiness, sweating, and changes in blood pressure and heart rate. Most
effects are seen within 2 to 24 hours. Diarrhea may last for three to six days.