Dormant pruning last winter did more than concentrate resources for flowers and fruits. It did more than eliminate superfluous growth, which many pathogens overwinter in. It also directed or concentrated resources for stems and foliage. Such growth now grows faster than some types of insect infestation. Aphids, though, are famously prolific and tenacious.
Hybrid tea roses very effectively demonstrate the advantages of dormant pruning. Those that lacked such pruning are more vulnerable to major aphid infestation now. Those that benefit from such pruning are significantly less vulnerable. Even with minor infestations, they may bloom well. Their vigorous stems grow at least as fast as aphids can proliferate.
It is too late for dormant pruning now. Furthermore, this is the beginning of aphid season. It continues until early autumn. Fortunately, aphids are usually not problematic for too long on the same hosts. Their natural predators often find and control them as their infestation culminates. They might continue to be present, but at a tolerable or unnoticeable degree.
Insecticides can be useful for severe infestation, but can interfere with natural processes. Some eliminate predatory insects that can naturally control aphids. If possible, it might be more practical to literally allow nature to take its course. Aphid are prolific, but essentially weak. Mildly soapy water kills them fast without killing many beneficial predatory insects.
Ants symbiotically cultivate aphids in exchange for their honeydew (which is excrement). They protect their benefactors, and move them to ideal host material. Pruning citrus trees so that they touch nothing else can nearly block access to ants. Application of a barrier to their trunks, such as grease, blocks access more completely. Predatory insects still fly in.
This technique is practical for many small trees, but not low shrubby roses and hibiscus. For them, aphids might be easy to blast off with a spray nozzle on a hose. This procedure neither removes nor kills all aphids, but it can limit their damage. Repetition of the process will likely be needed a few days later, and maybe a few times. Aphids might be persistent, though.
Highlight: star jasmine
It is certainly a star within many gardens, but it is technically not a jasmine. Star jasmine, Trachelospermum jasminoides, is actually closely related to Plumeria. Its floral fragrance can be comparably rich with copious bloom, but is distinctly vanillish. Bloom is abundant for late spring and early summer. Sporadic bloom can start early and continue to autumn.
Without bloom, the distinctly glossy foliage is handsome alone. Individual leaves are not much longer than two inches, and not much wider than one. Their deep green foliar color and lustrous sheen almost seem artificial. Pruning or any disturbance of foliage or stems releases caustic and toxic sap. Twining vines ascend by wrapping around their supports.
Star jasmine can get two feet deep as a ground cover without support. It requires pruning to prevent it from overwhelming shrubbery or climbing into trees. It also requires frequent pruning around its edges. As a climbing vine, it grows fast to ten feet high, and can grow much higher a bit slower.
It can become a neatly shorn faux hedge on a chain link fence.
Tony Tomeo can be contacted at tonytomeo.com.
