Answer from Pat:
Yes, I sure do have a suggestion. You need to undertake a program of corrective pruning in winter or very early spring after your tree has dropped its leaves and before new buds open, followed by annual fall pruning to keep the tree growing and bearing. You also need to undertake a regular schedule of cleaning up the tree to remove all mummified fruit, debris, twigs, and dead fallen bark, and thoroughly clean up the ground under the tree in winter, followed by spraying with fungicide more than once in winter to control the pests and diseases that can and will beset neglected peach trees. Also cover the ground with fresh mulch under the tree after spraying and pruning. This will do much to control diseases, and fertilize your trees according the the time and directions provided by your local University Extension. Placing a layer of aged manure under the tree after cleaning the ground in fall, and covering the root zone but not touching the trunk, could do much to aid the health and recovery of your tree and would provide both fertilizer and mulch. (Deciduous fruit trees do not have a heavy requirement for fertilizer but they do need some.)

It sounds to me as if your tree is suffering from a disease such as brown rot, which results in mummified and rotting fruit, or it may have other fungus diseases such as bacterial leaf spot, which can also turn fruit brown and shriveled. Also, your failure to prune is why the tree can no longer bear much fruit. Oozing of sap can be caused by diseases such as gumosis, but also from peach-tree borers and other pests. Unfortunately, neglected peach trees always go into severe decline and seldom if ever come to a good end.

Peach trees need more severe winter pruning than any other deciduous fruit trees because the fruit is only born on one-year old shoots. Dormant spray is done to control pests as well as diseases. If you do not prune and if your tree isn’t bearing or only bearing on the tips, this is because you haven’t pruned it enough to stimulate growth of adequate new wood that will bear the following year.

Go to your local book store or look online and purchase a good book on pruning deciduous fruit trees. Make sure it contains diagrams. You will also need to know when to prune in your area. Here in California where I live we have a mild-winter climate so we prune our deciduous fruit trees in January. In summer the only pruning we do is to remove suckers arising from branches or from the ground. In Ohio the right time of year to prune a young peach tree is March. But your tree is a mature tree, and timing for that might be different, so refer to the University Extension In your area and phone the Master Gardeners for advice. I would expect March to be the time to prune, but I am not sure about the correct time to prune in Illinois, so ask the experts at your University of Illinois University Extension. Also send for a copy of Ohio State University Extension Bulletin 528. “Training and Pruning Fruit Trees.” (Mentioned below.) You can also find out if there is a similar publication in Illinois.

For your own safety I recommend you purchase a sturdy three-legged ladder. A three-legged orchard ladder is one of the best purchases a gardener can ever make. I have owned one of these for many years. With good care it can last a lifetime.

Brown rot is a fungus disease that attacks fruits and twigs of stone fruits. Peach leaf curl attacks the leaves of peach trees twisting them out of shape and can kill trees. Another disease is bacterial leaf spot which causes black or brown spots on green leaves and brown sunken areas on fruit. In order to prevent these diseases from ruining your harvest and killing your tree, in addition to pruning you will need to undertake undertake a regular program of annual dormant spray in late fall and winter, which you will need to repeat more than once. (Ask your University Extension when spraying should be done and wear protective clothing.) Spray with a product such as dormant disease lime sulfur spray mixed with horticultural oil against pests. Some organic gardeners claim that beneficial fungi control all negative fungi in their gardens, but obviously this is not the case in your garden. Thus you need to spray with dormant spray. If you are an organic gardener, choose an organic product, such as Bonide Organic Lime Sulfur Spray. Even organic gardeners need to use dormant spray on roses or if they intend to have any luck growing deciduous fruit trees, especially peaches that are more subject to disease problems than any other fruit tree.

For more information: Please refer to the information on peach leaf curl on pages 59 and 62 of my organic book and see the information on pruning of peaches and other deciduous fruit trees discussed on page 51. Page 382 once again covers the subject of peach leaf curl at the right time of year when we need to control it here. This timing of course will not be right for you, but will help others reading this blog.

For how to correct your tree’s shape and size, see UC University Extension Publication 8058: Pruning Overgrown Deciduous Fruit Trees. (This pamphlet is on the internet and includes excellent instructions for correcting an overgrown deciduous fruit tree.) Also see: Ohio State University Extension Bulletin 528. “Training and Pruning Fruit Trees.”
Ohio University Extension Fact Sheet 4321-1086 will also give you much information on growing peaches and nectarines in the home landscape.
University of Illinois Extension has some helpful information also: http://urbanext.illinois.edu/fruit/tree.cfm?section=tree
Also see this valuable information from the University of Illinois (Your state!) http://urbanext.illinois.edu/fruit/peaches.cfm?section=tree

It is not too late to save your peach trees but I hope you realize now you can’t simply plant them and forget them.

Related posts:

1. Corrective Pruning Fruit Trees
2. Dormant Spray For Low-Chill Apple Trees
3. Preventing Sap From Oozing from Peach and Nectarine Fruit

Question from Heather:

Answer from Pat: Prune lavendar as soon as the main blossom season has finished. Lavendar needs full sun. Otherwise it will grow towards the light and become uneven. Prune it after bloom by shearing the plant all over removing all the blooms and at least an inch or two of foliage. Don’t cut it back into bare wood, however. Only shear away of some of the gray green foliage and all of the blossoms. Some lavenders bloom mostly in spring, others in summer, some year round and others twice a year. The year round one’s are best sheared following spring bloom and again lightly in fall. Strive for a nice smooth rounded shape. By shearing lavender this way after bloom you can keep it more compact and help it to live longer. If growing in very poor soil, fertilize lightly after shearing with a balanced organic fertilizer and follow up with irrigation.

Related posts:

1. Pruning New Zealand Christmas tree close to a swimming pool
2. Pruning Sweetshade, Hawaiian Wedding Tree (Hymenosporum flavum)
3. Pruning of Ground Morning Glory (Convolvulus)

Question from Csaba:

Answer from Pat:
Many years ago I realized that many people suffer from your problem, which usually comes from growing up in a cold-winter climate and then moving here. Thus 25 years ago I wrote a book called “Pat Welsh’s Southern California Gardening, A Month-by-Month Guide.” I have revised it several times and now with over 100,000 copies in print this much-beloved book is called, “Pat Welsh’s Southern California Organic Gardening, Month by Month.” Please get a copy since it will totally cure your problem and give you much pleasure besides.

If you will purchase a copy or go to your library once a month and simply read it chapter by chapter including the checklists at the end of each chapter throughout the year, you will know exactly what to grow and where to plant it, in sun or shade and when to prune, fertilize, water, mulch, manage pests and disease problems and all other garden tasks for all the plants we grow here including roses, geraniums, ornamental grasses, fruit trees (deciduous, mediterranean, tropical and semi-tropical), vegetables, gardenia, camellia, azalea, fuchsia, tropical vines, succulents and cacti, sub-tropical flowering trees, lawns, ground covers, native plants, herbs, pond plants, and much much more.

Snail vine (Vigna caracalla) is not specifically covered but you can prune it any time during or after the growing season to keep it in bounds. Otherwise it may scramble over other plants. It needs sun, not shade!

Many years ago your garden club used to have me as a speaker every year. Now they have forgotten me, and I only give talks for one month in spring and one in fall. (Currently March and September) But I am still out there giving those talks and enthusing gardeners on many plant topics including pruning.

Related posts:

1. How to Prune Perennials
2. Can I prune my Podocarpus gracilior tree now
3. When to prune climbing rose

Question from Charlie:

Answer from Pat:
Lavatera maritima can grow for a good eight or ten years if not overwatered where drainage is poor. It needs good drainage, fertile soil, and cutting back hard to keep it in bounds and encourage branching. When it is not adequately pruned, parts my become woody and then die back. By pruning often you keep it putting out fresh growth which then will bloom. Follow up with balanced fertilizer and water.

Lavatera maritima is not a permanent plant, however. I have seen many lovely specimens only after a few years to miss seeing them. Lavatera’s are mallows (Malvacceae). They are related to hollyhocks and no members of this family live long. It sounds to me as if your plant has reached the end of its life and if it lived ten or twelve years that’s amazing. If it dies, dig up the roots, amend and fertilize the soil, and plant a new one. It might be good to find another spot close to your pond but perhaps would be okay to plant the new one in the same place. They grow fast, so don’t cry over the old one, just get another. People often fail to do that because when their lavatera shrub dies they think they did something wrong and this discourages them from planting another. Not so. And in your case, you did amazingly. 10 or 12 years is a long life for this plant.

Related posts:

1. Coreopsis maritima – Sea dahlia

Question from Cheryl:

Answer from Pat:
Pigeon berry or sky flower (Duranta repens) is one of the most attractive and colorful quick-growing shrubs we have in our Southern California plant palette. It grows rapidly in the shape of an upright wall and is useful as a screening plant. There is a 30 foot tall hedge of it in front of a house in Point Loma. Most people would rather not let it grow that tall since one must hire help to prune it. Instead, pinch it back with clippers and trim it often to keep it in bounds. Otherwise it sends out long shoots. Cut these shoots back by two-thirds of their length when they are growing in an ungainly manner. I have occasionally seen it grown as a tree on a single trunk and then it can be trained into a small to medium size weeping tree and even kept to about ten feet in height with frequent pruning. I know one that is grown this way in front of a wall next to an entry way gate. Another duranta I am familiar with is used as a sort of thick espalier against a south-facing garage wall. The gardener who planted it prunes it whenever it begins to shoot out of bounds. Duranta needs regular water and full sun. The berries are poisonous but very pretty. Both flowers and berries can be on the plant at the same time. In my opinion it’s one of our better plants and largely trouble free.

Related posts:

1. Duranta
2. Pruning Macadamias
3. Pruning Sweetshade, Hawaiian Wedding Tree (Hymenosporum flavum)

Question from Randy:

Answer from Pat:
Grow ground morning glory (Convolvulus sabatius) in full sun and provide good drainage or a slope. Water ground morning glory deeply and more often the first year to encourage deep roots and fertilize occasionally, but lightly to keep it going. After first year water less often. Prefers well drained sandy loam but will survive in clay if not overwatered. Don’t cut this back after bloom in fall. This might make it die in winter. Wait until late winter, mid-February, or early February if the weather’s warm. Then cut back to prevent it growing too tall and woody. Follow up with with fertilizer and water. It should bounce right back and start to bloom. Some people cut back lightly throughout the year but once a year in late winter is fine.

Related posts:

1. Pruning Lavendar
2. Combinations with Mexican Sage
3. Michelia Figo Tree

Question from Judy:

Answer from Pat:
Your buddleja probably needs some harsh pruning now in late summer after bloom to renew the plant. Cut down some of the old stems so it can send up new ones. Fertilize after pruning so it can regrow with fresh stems to bloom next year. It sounds starved for fertilizer or maybe drainage is not good. Yellow leaves can mean lack of nitrogen, but they could also mean poor drainage. See below for a run-down on total care.

Butterfly bush (Buddleja) is reputed to be drought-resistant but in sandy soil this plant needs a lot of water and in any soil it needs regular irrigation in my opinion. It needs good drainage, but hates bone-dry soil. Additionally, Buddleja’s need a balanced fertilizer for growth and bloom. Fertilize at intervals throughout the growing season and make sure there’s plenty of phosphorus and potassium in the product you use. Deadhead faded flowers or they will stop blooming. After bloom cut the stems that have bloomed back by two or three feet. Otherwise the plant will get very leggy. Each year, in fall remove some of the oldest stems all the way to the ground to renew the plant and get it to send up fresh new growth. These plants really need a fertile soil and if fed and watered will please you with a good display of blossoms. In too much shade, however, you will not get many flowers and 3 or 4 hours on the east side of your home might be a bit sparse. Instinctively, I think the other factors are causing your problem, not the lack of sun. When stems are old and crowded flowers will get smaller and smaller on these worn out stems. You need to get the plant to put out new growth but don’t cut it all down at once. Try removing 1/3 now, 1/3 in early spring, and 1/3 next fall.

Related posts:

1. History and Care of the Torrey Pine
2. Lavatera maritima
3. How to Prune Perennials

Question from Richard:

Answer from Pat:
Yes, you are right. For goodness sakes do not cut back into bare wood or the branch may die. In fact it most probably would do so.

Sorry I could not answer sooner. I was on vacation and just got home late last night.

In the case of bare branches and foliage only at the tips of sweetshade or any other tree or shrub, just pinch the tips of the branches. Even now in early June is fine. By “pinch” I mean cut off of an inch or two from the tips of the growth including the leading bud. That is usually enough to stimulate growth further back. When that occurs you can pinch or cut more another year and gradually encourage a bushier tree.

Let me know if it fills in. Pinching back should force growth further back on the branch. Sweetshade does not branch readily and this should force it to do so even when older such as your tree is.

Related posts:

1. Pruning Sweetshade, Hawaiian Wedding Tree (Hymenosporum flavum)
2. Pruning Macadamias
3. Pruning New Zealand Christmas tree close to a swimming pool

Question from Jon:
I hope you are recovering well from your surgery and feeling better.  My mother (who is 90) has also had several joints replaced as well as heart valve.  Hopefully the technology will continue to improve by the time I need something done.

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1. Kiwi Problems
2. How to Grow Cucumbers on a Trellis
3. Florida Avocado trees

Question from Jim:

Answer from Pat:
Yes, you can prune your fern pine (Podocarpus gracilior) hedge now to keep it flat. Once it gets out of shape then it’s more difficult to correct. Most non-flowering hedges can be pruned year round, but they will grow faster in warmer weather. It’s fine however to prune now since we have been having rain intermittently and I’ve been noticing many woody plants in my garden are actually growing now when one would usually expect them to be slowing down. (I mention non-flowering since if one prunes a a hedge of a flowering plant that flowers on old wood, such as India hawthorne (Rhaphiolepis) then that will prevent it from flowering in spring. Some other flowering heges can be pruned any time since they bloom on new wood. For example a tropical hibiscus hedge can be pruned throughout the growing season when it is flowering but not in winter, because it’s tropical.)

After pruning the hedge I would follow up with manure or organic fertilizer and water it or let the rains do the job. I am answering you immediately so I hope you have time to do the job this afternoon and let the rains water the nutrients into the ground. I do not think we are likely to get frost this year and you live in Encinitas which is usually a frost-free area, so I would even fertilize with an organic fertilizer after pruning despite the fact it’s November. Or instead of fertilizer apply manure after pruning. Fall is a great time to add a layer of manure on top of the ground and let the rains wash it into the ground. If you have a source of aged horse manure that’s fine to use, but here is a little-known fact: If you have a source of clean (non salty) fresh horse manure picked up daily by a good horse owner, you can apply that on top of the ground surrounding established plants such as your hedge. This is a perfectly good practice just as long as you don’t dig it into the ground but let it lie on top to age and see that it’s well water or alternatively has plenty of rain.

When pruning a hedge always leave it wider below and narrower above, as shown in my video on pruning a hedge.

Related posts:

1. When to Prune a CAMPHOR TREE (Cinnamomum camphora)
2. When to prune climbing rose
3. How to Prune Perennials