pandora vine care

[FutureGreenThumb]

My 3 pandora vines are currently being treated for caterpillars, aphids, black spot, you name it, by a lawn care company. They seem to be doing much better now, and I would like to discontinue the service and care for them myself. What kind of preventative treatment should I use. I hate to discontinue the service for fear I will end up killing the vines, but $75/month is an expense I could do without. Thanks!

[Newt]

Hi FGT,

My 3 pandora vines are currently being treated for caterpillars, aphids, black spot, you name it, by a lawn care company.

I had never heard of your vine and decided to do some searching. I was also curious why you seemed to have to spray for so many bugs and diseases, so I read all your previous posts to see if there was a pattern or reason for all that spraying. I think I do see a pattern here. My observations lead me to believe that by overwatering you are weakening your plants and, in their weakened condition, they are more prone to pests and diseases. The bugs just seem to know when 'dinner is served'. You also have been fertilizing and/or purchasing potting soil that comes with fertilizer. Over fertilizing causes plants to put out lots of fresh tender new growth that the bugs also find appealing. They kinda fly around and spot all that lovely fresh 'salad' and are attracted to your plants.

I'm wondering if your vines are planted in pots or in the ground. I haven't been able to find out much about these vines, but there are two different varieties. One is Pandorea pandorana - Wonga Wonga Vine. This vine likes a leaner soil, so by fertilizing you may actually be attracting pests.
https://www.mediterraneangardensociety.org/plants/Pandorea.pandorana.html
https://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plants/Bignoniaceae/Pandorea_pandorana.html
https://ww1.clunet.edu/gf/plants/scientific/gar-2499.htm

and the other is Pandorea jasminoides - pandorea or bower vine. The last link says it has no serious pests and likes fertile rich soil. That means lots of compost.

https://ww1.clunet.edu/gf/plants/scientific/gar-20.htm

https://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/shrubs/PANJASA.PDF

I suspect you have the second one - bower vine. Do you know which one you have? Since you mention that they have, or are being sprayed for caterpillars, I thought that this vine might be larval food for a certain butterfly. I did find that it is, but apparently in Australia. There might be a local moth or butterfly that seems to like yours.

I have found that since I don't use chemicals to solve my bug problems Mother Nature takes care of most of them by allowing the good bugs to eat the bad bugs. I don't' mind a few chewed leaves. I'm sure you could stop the service. You might want to wait until cooler weather to stop when there are less bugs around. Then you could use the fall and winter months to strengthen your plants so they will better resist pests. One of the best ways to do that is to build a healthy soil. Healthy soil equals healthy plants. I'd rather add compost to the soil then use fertilizers. The plants tend to like it better that way as well. The compost slowy adds nutrients, where fertilizers are like steriods and can cause lots of fast new growth. Slow as you go is a good motto with a garden. If a serious outbreak occurs then we could help you with something that would be more environmentally friendly and just eliminate the bad bugs and not the good bugs who eat the bad ones. Come spring the birds, who will appreciate the lack of all those poisons, will catch bugs and feed them to their babies. It can take a while to go from a chemically dependent garden to one that isn't, but this is a good time of the year to start.

Newt

[opabinia51]

Well, I would recommend doing some small scale permaculture around your vines. I would first research any companion plants that the vines have (and I'm sure that someone here will have some advice on that) and I would also plant some plants to attract beneficial insects like ladybugs for the aphids, predatory wasps for the caterpillars and so on.

The idea of modern gardening called monoculture is what causes gardeners so much grief. Having groupings of one or two types of plants acts like a magnet for attracting pests. Having a good plant community will attract benecial insects, provide shelter for plants from pests and provide a healthy ecosystem therefore eliminating the use for sprays.

Also, plants naturally have an entire microbial ecosystem on their leaves and stems that fight infestations so, by using the least amount of sprays as possible, you will encourage this healthy ecosystem and encourage your plants to grow as healthily as possible.

Anyway, some practical advice, aerated compost tea as a foliar (leaf) spray will inoculate your plants with beneficial microbes that will gobble up and pests and pathogens. And you can actually buy ladybugs to eat your aphids.
The healthier your soil and the more diverse your plant community, the fewer problems you should have.

[FutureGreenThumb]

Wow Newt, you should write a book! You are correct in your assumption; it is the Pandorea jasminoides. We have three planted in the ground with mulch at the bases. I rarely water them; I'd say once every few weeks if we've had a dry spell. I do have a problem with overwatering my other plants and what you said makes sense---weakening the plants that can lead to pests. I am trying to get better about that! I use dynamite 13*13*13 for all of my plants (was told by a nursery employee to use it) and use Jungle Growth soil for my containers.
So I should not use the fertilizer with the Jungle Growth?
I should also mention that the reason we started the lawn service to begin with was because 2 of the vines started dropping leaves at their base. I assumed one of the many pests or the black spot caused this, so we went ahead with the service. I will look into finding plants that will attract beneficial insects and composting. Thanks for your help!!

[FutureGreenThumb]

Found a helpful website https://www.hortsource.com/beneficicialplants.htm

Gardening seems to be so very complicated, like I have a 2nd job. Isn't it supposed to be fun and relaxing? lol....am I making things harder than they really are?

[The Helpful Gardener]

All those chemicals and sprays are what's making it hard, FGT. We need to get you to organic soon, and then you'll start to enjoy it more...

First things first, get those spray jockeys out of your yard. That's probably the start of it all right there...there are organic lawn care companies springing up everywhere; bet you have one near you...

Scott

[FutureGreenThumb]

Thanks Scott--I will look into that

[Newt]

Hi FGT,

Sorry I didn't respond before this. I actually was able to work in the garden for about 3 days! Now I have company. I have often thought of writing a book, but there's so much info on the internet, it just doesn't seem like something I'd ever get finished.

I use dynamite 13*13*13 for all of my plants (was told by a nursery employee to use it) and use Jungle Growth soil for my containers.
So I should not use the fertilizer with the Jungle Growth?

I looked up the Jungle Growth and it appears to be organic with nice 'goodies' for your plants. Since we're talking containters, it wouldn't hurt to use the fertilizer, but I'd wait at least a month or more before fertilizing a newly purchased plant. Growers add slow release fertilizers to the soil. That's those little round ball shaped things you see in the soil. They're often tan, white or grey. It's also helpful to know which plants like the soil lean and which like it rich and need fertilizing more then others. For example if you grew gerbera daisies, they are heavy feeders and need lots of organic matter to bloom well. If you grew sempervirens (chicks and hens), they prefer the soil leaner with less organic matter. Getting to know the plants is helpful.

I should also mention that the reason we started the lawn service to begin with was because 2 of the vines started dropping leaves at their base. I assumed one of the many pests or the black spot caused this, so we went ahead with the service.

With plants it's really not good to assume. Best to know for sure as sometimes taking a certain action can cause more problems. Many vines lose their lower leaves as they mature, the stems age and become coarser or even grow bark. If you look at pictures of old vines at google you will see they have 'bare knees'. Go to Google and put the name of your vine in the search box. Click on 'Images' and you'll get lots of pics. Best to use the scientific or Latin name first when searching.

I loved that site you found. I bookmarked it so I'll have it to share.

Newt

[FutureGreenThumb]

Yes, that does make sense that when vines become woody they do not support leaves. Glad you liked the site...I found it very helpful!

[The Helpful Gardener]

Yes, Thanks for the link, FGT!

HG

[Zelda]

I found this discussion to be very interesting. I am considering replacing a trumpet vine with a bower vine. Your discussion about vine stems becoming so woody that they have no leaves caught my eye. That is the main problem with my trumpet vine, and why I am considering replacing it. If I cut my trumpet vine to the ground, will I get new growth this spring but eventually get the woody stems in a year or two again? I live in the desert around Las Vegas, NV, and this trumpet vine is about 2 years old and 5-6' tall. If I trim to the ground, what month is a good time to do it here in the desert? (I'm a recent transplant after living 60 years in NY, and have so much to learn about the timing and advisability of doing things in this desert climate. Thanks for any help you can give me about dealing with vines and not having growth only at the top while enduring bare, dry-looking woody stems all the way up the trellis.[size=18][/size]

[Newt]

Hi Zelda,

I'm not sure I can fully answer your question about trumpet vine - campsis radicans. You said,

If I cut my trumpet vine to the ground, will I get new growth this spring but eventually get the woody stems in a year or two again?

This vine blooms on new wood, but it takes the root system 5 to 7 years before it's mature enough to bloom. It seems to me that when I grew it in my zone 7 garden the current year's growth bloomed from woody stems that were older and already there. It was the last plant to leaf out in the spring and the first to lose it's leaves in the fall. I have found that cutting the vine to the ground will send up new shoots - all over the garden eventually. Place this extremely agressive (from the roots) vine in a wild place, or one where you will be mowing and cutting off the shoots that can pop up as much as 30' or more from the parent. Best not to plant it in a garden bed. You can cut it back in late winter or early spring before it leafs out.

I too grew up in NY state and was in zone 5. You are probably in zone 8 now.
https://www.garden.org/zipzone/

Newt