LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Desperate times call for desperate measures. That was the case for Gilbert Corsey's green thumb.
You may have heard him on the news talking all about his newly planted trees that were dying a slow painful death. Every day, he was trying something new to save his plants, but nothing was working. A house call with Wallitsch Gardens was warranted.
It wasn't hard to find where he lived. There was a trail of dead leaves that guided our way there. Upon his arrival, I asked Jeff Wallitsch his initial reaction.
"He's laughing. That's the initial reaction," Gil laughed.
"At first glance, they look good," Wallitsch said. "But when you kind of get down a little bit closer, we kind of see what some of the issues are."
From downloading a plant app that suggested using baking soda water, to cinnamon, to pruning, to fungicide, Gil gave his best effort.
"So let me tell you what to do, since the app told you what to do," Wallitsch said.
First, they were planted too deep.
"You want to make sure the root ball is above the ground a little bit. Because, that way, it will settle," Wallitsch said.
Second, don't choke your plant with dirt or mulch around the base.
"We can remove all the soil around the base of the plant, and that's going to help it dry out quicker and its also going to get air to it's roots, which is important," Wallitsch said.
Third, cut your landscape fabric around the plant.
"The hole is not big enough," Wallitsch said. "It was just mounded up against the trunk. So what you can do is go in and trim off any of that extra landscape fabric."
His Aucuba plants were essentially wearing a turtle neck in the heat of summer.
Wallitsch also recommended only watering one to two times a week with a slow trickle. And if your plants develop little white spots like Gil's did, it's likely mealybug.
"You spray a basic insecticide and then in a week or so they're typically gone," Walitsch said.
So when it comes to Gil's grade?
"Did I get held back? Is that an option?" Gil asked.
"Well we didn't fail," Wallitsch said. "So I'm going to say a C. But then we went to class and so now you're up to an A."
After taking all of the Wallitsch Gardens advice, Gil's plants are no longer just surviving, but are indeed thriving.
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