Horticulture
Bernalillo County Extension Horticulture Program
Bernalillo County is home to about one-third of New Mexico's population. Most of these people live in the urban part of the county, though the East Mountains and the South Valley still maintain some rural character. The urban nature of the county is reflected in the educational programming, and kinds of assistance, that our Horticulture Program is able to offer.
We are available to speak to groups (civic, community, church, other) on various horticultural topics, and as always, are open to the public for information on home and landscape gardening, including plant selection, soil issues, pest and disease identification, vegetable and fruit production, and more. We also encourage the greens industry to use us for accurate problem diagnosis and control recommendations.
Master Gardener Program
2012 Master Gardener Classes are FULL. Please apply next year!
The Albuquerque Area Extension Master Gardeners are a key component of our horticultural outreach. These volunteers are trained by us to provide science-based horticultural advice to the general public. Master Gardeners engage the public through various means, from their Hotline to working with ARCA homes on garden projects, with many other volunteer opportunities in between. To find out more, visit them here.
Trees and Arboriculture
Our area of largest concentration is arboriculture, or the care of the urban forest. In addition to tree-problem diagnostic services available to the general public and to commercial operators, we provide occasional public workshops on tree planting and pruning, and we are very involved in helping put on an annual tree care conference, Think Trees New Mexico. This regionally important conference features top-notch presenters and a very affordable fee; visit and register here.
Xeriscape/low water landscape
Recognizing that we do live in a desert environment, we are also very involved in supporting xeriscape landscaping. Xeriscape refers to landscaping with reduced, efficient irrigation. The keys to successful xeriscape include proper plant selection, good mulching, and efficient irrigation. In addition to providing advice in these areas, we support the Xeriscape Council of New Mexico's International Water Conservation and Xeriscape conference; visit them here or "like" them on Facebook.
Turfgrass
We live in a desert, but turfgrass is commonplace in our landscapes and parks. While turfgrass provides many benefits, if not properly cared for it can be a source of much water waste and pollution through overuse of pesticides and fertilizers. The Southwest Turfgrass Association provides valuable education about the latest research in turfgrass care and maintenance at a yearly conference held in the fall. Visit them here
Frequently Asked Questions
I've had codling moths on my apple trees before. What should I spray with, and when? When to hang up the traps?
Codling moths are not simple to control. Their development is tied to temperature and they produce several generations per year. The timing of their activity varies from year to year because the temperature varies from year to year. Here are a few options for management.
Do nothing
Install maggot barriers. These look like panty-hose footies. Put on each apple you want to keep worm-free when they are only dime- to quarter-size.
Hang a pheromone sticky trap out when trees are in full bloom. This may trap out enough of the male moths to provide more worm-free apples than doing nothing.
Spray (use product with active ingredient Spinosad) 4 times about 10 to 14 days apart starting 2 weeks after petal fall. This method may be more effective some years depending on the temperatures. Other years, the spray times may be out of sync with the moth's life-cycle.
Hang a pheromone sticky trap when the trees are in full bloom. Monitor it for codling moth daily. Record daily temperature maximum and minimum. Calculate degree days. Spray 250 to 300 degree days after biofix. Spray again at 1250 to 1310 degree days after biofix. For more information visit: this link or contact the County Extension Office for more information on what biofix is and for more details on monitoring.
There are many small black spots on my Pinon needles. What is it? How do I get rid of it?
Pinon needle scale is infesting you tree. Scale insects are relatively immobile, protected by a hard or soft shell, and pierce and suck their liquid meal from the plant. The good news about this pest is it is specific to pinon trees. The infestation will not spread to other types of plants.
Pinon needle scale has a well-understood life-cycle. This is a great help in managing the pest. The scale lay their cottony-white egg masses on the trunk and lower branches (also check the bottoms of branches) sometime in late winter. These eggs hatch into tiny yellow sausage-shaped crawlers that make their way up into the branches and out to the tips where the new growth is. They settle down and become immobile black specks that you can barely see (early spring). They feed all summer and become fatter and fatter. By the fall, you can see them quite clearly as little black beans in the needles. They will overwinter in these protective hard casings and emerge in the late winter or early spring. The females crawl down the tree toward the trunk and the males are able to fly. They converge and mate and the females lay their cottony egg masses. The cycle continues.
When you notice the egg masses, take a pinch between your thumb and index finger and squeeze it. If the eggs end up as a yellowish sticky gross mess on your fingers, the eggs have not hatched. This is the perfect time to spray the egg masses off tree with a high-powered nozzle or take a broom or brush and remove the egg masses. Clean up anything that you spray or brush off the tree and dispose of it off-site (put in the garbage can). If you leave the egg masses on the ground, they will still hatch and possibly make their way on to your pinon on tree. If you pinch the egg masses and they are dry and powdery, they have already hatched. At this point, you could spray the tree with a horticultural oil (to smother the crawlers) or an insecticidal soap. Once the crawlers reach the tips of the branches and settle down, they are very hard to kill due to their protective shell. Try to catch the scale before this point.
When do I spray for the pine tip moth?
Pine tip moths feed on and destroy new growth (terminals) of pines. If you suspect infestation has occurred, look for red-brown dying branch tips. Snap off one of these tips and look for a small reddish-colored caterpillar living inside the shoot. This is the pine tip moth larvae.
However, the best time to spray for the pine tip moth in Albuquerque is (before you notice any damage) the last week of April and again the last week in June. Before you spray, consider a few things. The moth is not a strong flyer and won't fly over about 15 feet. If you have a large pine tree that taller than 15 feet, spraying is not necessary at all. Also, consider the type of pine you have before you spray. The pines which the moth prefers to infest are: Ponderosa, Afgan, Austrian, Scots, Mugho, and Japanese black pines. Pinon pines are less likely to be infested.
Some recommended insecticides are permethrin or imidacloprid. The Permethrin will need to be sprayed. The imidacloprid (ex: Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub) is systemic and it is applied to the soil. Apply imidacloprid 4 to 6 weeks before you need it to be effective. The chemical is slow to translocate throughout the tree. Please read and follow all pesticide label instructions.
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FAQs
Here is a listing of more than 70 frequently asked horticultural questions and answers. Please browse the document or use the document search function to find what you are looking for.
