Botany

Q. I'm contacting you in regards to an issue that I originally submitted a request for back in early August to the City Department of Traffic and Lighting. As of today, the request has not received a final response, so I thought I would drop your office a...

Q: My Norway maple has lots of black spots on the leaves and they are falling off the tree in large quantity. I am worried that the tree is dying. What is this problem and is there anything that I can do for my tree? -- Bob Winter, Lake Forest A: From...

The champion is dead - long live the champion.  The grand American beech in Mary Azrael's backyard in Mount Washington was at least 160 years old and had reigned officially as the city's premier tree of that species for nearly two decades.  But time...

I have three red maple trees that I planted several years ago. They were beautiful before this spring. One did not have a full production of leaves. Now that fall is here, the other two trees have dropped their leaves. The tree of concern still has its...

There are lots of red-and-black bugs crawling around on the side of my house. They do not seem to be eating any plants but I am worried that they may cause a future problem, now that they have found my garden. Is there anything that I should do? -- Bob...

Do you have a green thumb? Do you love to learn? Would you like to give back to our community? Would you like to join a dynamic group of gardeners? If you answered “yes” to any or all of these questions, you could be a master gardener....

Superstorm Sandy may not have hit Baltimore as hard as weather forecasters had warned, but it did claim one of the city's oldest trees, an impressive Osage orange in Druid Hill Park that's been estimated to be nearly four centuries old. As reported...

Descanso Gardens officials were urged this week by local residents to keep its proposed “Oak Woodland” project as natural and educational as possible. If all goes according to plan, Descanso will open this new garden — its first...

My lily-of-the-valley ground cover has spots on the leaves and does not look good. What is this problem, and what can I do about it? — Patrick Swanson, Evanston   From your description, it sounds as if your problem is anthracnose, which is a...

If a tree falls in La Cañada Flintridge, there's a pretty good chance a city staffer will hear it. But officials are tweaking the city's tree ordinance, looking to make it easier for residents to work with local rules. The moves the city is...

Eleven eucalyptus trees in Bluebird Canyon will be chopped down, settling a passionate debate that has lasted for about a year. Safety trumped aesthetics and the City Council voted 4-1 to follow the city arborist's recommendation to remove the trees,...

I have tried growing sweet corn for the first time this year. I have noticed that some of the ears have misshapen kernels with what appears to be a black growth. What is this and what should I do? -- Lisa Jenkins, Barrington It sounds like you are...