QUESTION: I live in Giddings, but I drive a truck all over central Texas. Last Monday, I noticed several white bluebonnets outside of Bastrop. They were in the middle of a patch of normal bluebonnets. The flower looked just like a bluebonnet except that all of the flower part was white. I have kept my eyes open for other flowers like this but I haven't seen any. Is this normal? I am rather excited about my discovery because I enjoy seeing the bluebonnets every year, but this is the first time I have ever seen this.

ANSWER: Please read the information about "Color-ization of the State Flower" at
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/98promotions/julyoct/julyoct.html

You will see a white selection at:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/98promotions/julyoct/bonnet16.jpeg

and the even rarer pink selection at:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/98promotions/julyoct/bonnet19.jpeg

Luckily, those smart Aggies have mixed all these rare colors to produce the primer color at:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/98promotions/julyoct/bonnet28.jpeg

Seed of the maroon is available from Wildseed Company (www.wildseedfarms.com).

Thanks for sharing your "find" with us.

QUESTION: Two years ago I bought a tomato plant called Miracle Sweet. I was told it was a Texas A&M plant. It produced low-acid, medium-sized fruit and was very disease resistant. Please tell me about this plant and where in Houston I can buy more this year.

ANSWER:I do not know that Texas A&M had anything to do with this tomato, nor have I seen transplants of it sold. If you cannot find locally available transplants, seed for this variety can be purchased from Park Seed. If you do not have their catalog, you can order one at Park's web site:
http://www.parkseed.com/

This is how they describe the tomato in their catalog: "Miracle Sweet Hybrid. VFNTASt. 69 days. Fruits are a beautiful dark red, smooth and attractive, and of medium size, about 5 ounces each. Fruit set is huge and heavy on these indeterminate vines, and with the great vigor and excellent disease resistance, you'll be enjoying enormous yields. Vigorous plants are best staked high, or else given plenty of space to grow."

QUESTION: I grow cucumbers every year and every year my cucumbers come out round. Is there something I am lacking in my soil? Please help!! I don't mind round cucumbers but would prefer the straight ones.

ANSWER: Unless you are planting the one called 'lemon cucumber' which is supposed to be shaped and colored like a lemon, your cucumbers are misshapen because of inadequate moisture or low soil fertility. Cucumbers have their roots very close to the surface of the soil and require frequent waterings. Also, you should fertilize your plants with a high nitrogen fertilizer when they start to make vines and then periodically (perhaps every 2 weeks) throughout the growing season.

QUESTION:: My Japanese Maple looks like it is dying. There is one section that is blooming leaves but the rest is dry and brittle. My neighbor suggested that we have a fungus or something in our bark. Some bark is missing and it is dry underneath. Should we prune the dry brittle stuff away and let the healthy growth take over? Should we just fertilize? Please help. It is a beautiful tree about 6 feet tall and we would hate to loose it.

ANSWER:I do not know what is wrong with your tree. They prefer a cool, moist climate with ample rainfall in spring and summer and acid soil. A shaded or partially-shaded planting position sheltered from strong winds suits them best.

If you scratch the bark with your fingernail and do not find green under it, that portion of the tree is dead and nothing you do will bring it back to life. So you should prune out those portions and see if the tree will recover.

QUESTION: I am trying to get more information about the jatropha plant. Can it be planted in the ground and winter over in Harris County (Houston), Texas? Does it die back to the roots or just lose its' leaves? I have seen them planted as shrubs at Moody Gardens in Galveston. Are they considered perennials? What is the best way to care for them, i.e. fertilizing, pruning, etc.

ANSWER: The genus Jatropha includes more than 100 different tropical perennials. I am not familiar with any of them but am sure that you will have to treat it as any other perennial that is not winter hardy in your area. Mulch over the root zone heavily and expect it to freeze to the ground. It may, or may not, come back from its roots after being subjected to freezing temperatures. The following information is from Botanica on CDRom:

Jatropha; Family name: Euphorbiaceae

This genus consists of evergreen and deciduous shrubs, small trees and herbs. Originating in warm-temperate and tropical regions of Asia and the Americas, the plants have a distinctive milky sap and are grown primarily for the unusual, large, deeply divided leaves which can have 5 lobes. The flowers may be yellow, purple or scarlet, and male and female flowers are generally borne on separate plants; they are not especially ornamental. Because of their strong sculptural form, some Jatropha species are often cultivated as part of a collection of succulents, although they are not related.

Hardiness zone from 10 To 12; Plant Spread approx. 180 cm; Plant Height From approx. 180 To 600 cm; Flowering colors: Purple, Red, Scarlet, Yellow; Garden type: Dry Garden, Tropical; Position: Sunny, Semi-Shaded; Propagation season: Spring; Soil: Medium Loam.

Jatropha Cultivation: They do best in full sun, but will tolerate light shade, and need fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil. Propagation is from seed or cuttings in spring.

QUESTION: I am moving into a new home with a medium size magnolia tree about 15 to 20 feet tall and approximately 6- inch diameter trunk. It looks poor. Its leaves are drooping and some are yellowing. It also does not seem as full as most that I've seen. It does get regular waterings and is in full sun. Is it possibly diseased or do I need to supplement its feedings?

ANSWER: Most likely your magnolia is feeling stress from past periods of dry weather. If it does not already have mulch applied over its root zone, I recommend that you do so. First you should apply about 1 to 2 inches of compost over the area from the trunk out to the dripline of the tree. Then cover the same area with an organic mulch. It doesn't matter what you use as mulch (decorative bark, tree trimmings, leaves or whatever) so long as you apply about 4 inches. This, coupled with your frequent waterings, should help the tree.

QUESTION: I have a number of Texas Mountain Laurels being eaten up by small caterpillars. What are these? What times of the year do they appear? What can I do to control these critters?

ANSWER: The Mountain Laurel caterpillars, Uresiphita reversalis or Sophora worms, come with the new growth so they seem to be present as long as the plant is actively growing. They can be easily controlled with one of the Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) products. This is sold as BioWorm Killer, Thuricide, Dipel or such. Also Ortho's product Orthene will kill the caterpillars on contact.

QUESTION: I found a plant growing on my fence and I would like to find out what it is. It looks like a miniature pea plant ? it sends out tendrils that wrap around the chain-link and has climbed to about 3 ½ to 4 feet tall. It has small sets of 2 ova- shaped leaves and has small lavender flowers also in sets of 2. It has produced what look exactly like miniature pea pods. The pods are about an inch long and have about 6 small (about 1/8 inch diameter) "peas" inside. They also smell like peas. I have never noticed these growing here before and I have never heard of miniature peas. Can you give me any idea what kind of plant or weed this is?

ANSWER: This answer is provided by Paul Cox of the San Antonio Botanical Garden:
"I believe this is a Singletary Pea, Lathyrus hirsutus. It is an uncommon escapee being originally from Europe." .
See the information and image at this web site:
http://www.biol.soton.ac.uk/ildis/vicieae/lhirsutu.html

FOLLOW-UP QUESTION: Do you know if these peas are edible?? From what little information I can find it seems that many types of legumes are inedible and I cannot find specific information regarding this particular plant.

FOLLOW-UP ANSWER:According to this web site it is edible:
http://www.oregonlive.com/gardening/vern/garvern990107.html
Austrian field pea (Lathyrus hirsutus). An edible sweet pea, most often used as a green manure plant for soil improvement. I harvest only the flowers, which are a fabulous purple and mauve. There are several edible Lathyrus, including earth chestnut (L. tuberosus) and beach pea (L. japonicus sp. maritimus).

QUESTION: I have planted 4 sets of 3 plants (Carnival) together in my garden, but I have had about 3 individual plants just turned to mush at the base of the plants. Could you please tell me what or why this is happening?

ANSWER:I am not sure exactly, but check out the following site to see if you can identify which problem you have.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/imagemap/mgmaps/tomstem/tomstem.html

QUESTION: I had a friend telephone and ask if I knew anything about a vegetable called India Bihel Melon. Apparently it is a common melon used in India and is suppose to help prevent Leukemia. Do you know anything about this melon and if it can be grown in this part of the country?

ANSWER:I could find nothing on a melon called Bihel. However it is possible that your friend is talking about Momordica charantia ? Bitter Melon. It is grown throughout Asia, originating in China and can be readily grown here. This Virginia Cooperative Extension article gives the basic cultural requirements:
http://www.ext.vt.edu/departments/commhort/commhort-36.html
The requirements for bitter melon production are similar to pickling cucumbers. Bitter melon fruit production takes about 75 days from seed, require well?drained soils, a constant supply of moisture, and bee pollination.

This web site gives a tie-in with leukemia:
http://www.aidsinfobbs.org/periodicals/atn/1992/155.03
Second, the public interest in bitter melon developed because of the work of one patient, who tried the treatment after learning that it was being tested in the Philippines for treating leukemia. He has used it for 3 years and reports very good results. He happens to live in Los Angeles, and has spoken at many AIDS meetings there. That is why the AIDS/HIV use of bitter melon is currently centered in that city.
At this Plantanswers web site you will find:
http://extension-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/specialty/melon.html

Description. The bitter melon, a member of the squash family, has a taste similar to bland squash but more sour. It's shaped like a cucumber with light green skin but heavily "warted". It is widely grown in tropical countries where young fruits are used as cucumbers.
Culture. It is similar to cantaloupe.
The only seed source that I found is:
https://www8.web2010.com/cyberseeds/index.htm

QUESTION:I need recommendations on how to best utilize my garden plot this spring. The plot is approximately 20 x 30 feet with the longest sides situated to the north and south (all full sun area). The soil is heavy clay with not much of anything significant having been grown on this area of the yard for some time (we moved in to this house last Spring). Soil is poor condition. I'm currently preparing the area with blanket composting of leaves. Any vegetables would be great (we are vegetarians).

ANSWER: I commend to you the articles that you will find at this PLANTanswers web site:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/PLANTanswers/earthkind/ekgarden2.html

For controlling pests that will come to your garden see the article at this PLANTanswers web site:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/PLANTanswers/publications/miniput.html