The types of grasses that grow in our area can actually be harmed by some winterization products that may be found in local stores. 

Like all shrubs and trees, azaleas keep their foliage to the outside of the canopy, where light is plentiful. The inner part has little, if any, foliage.

Daffodil bulbs can be planted here in November through early December.

The types of grasses that grow in our area can actually be harmed by some winterization products that may be found in local stores. 

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers' questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Is there anything I should be doing to winterize my centipede grass? I get so confused when I walk in the garden center and see all the products touting winterizing your lawn. Looking at information on the internet just makes me more confused. — Mark Keller

You may hear about using “winterizer fertilizers.” Here in the Deep South, fertilizers of this type should primarily provide potassium (represented by the third number in the analysis). An adequate supply of potassium is needed by plants to achieve their full, natural hardiness going into winter.

Winterizers appropriate for our lawn grasses will have a small first and second number of 5 or less. The third number in the analysis should be much larger.

The use of winterizers is generally optional. All plants need adequate potassium going into the winter, yet no one goes out and puts winterizers on azaleas or crape myrtles. Our lawn grasses are selected to be hardy in our climate, and it is not critical to winterize lawns for them to survive the winter.

Be very careful if you do decide to apply a winterizer to your lawn. A lot of the confusion about winterizing comes about because of how northern lawns are fertilized. Up North, lawns of bluegrasses, bentgrasses, fescues and ryegrasses benefit from generous nitrogen applications in the fall. This helps these Northern lawn grasses green up and grow vigorously in the spring.

Our lawn grasses (St. Augustine, Bermuda, zoysia and centipede), however, are made less hardy and more prone to cold damage by nitrogen applications in fall. And it does not help them grow better in the spring.

Unfortunately, winterizers rich in nitrogen (over 20%) that are only appropriate for northern lawns are readily available to Louisiana gardeners at some national chain stores. Using these products is far worse than doing nothing at all.

Like all shrubs and trees, azaleas keep their foliage to the outside of the canopy, where light is plentiful. The inner part has little, if any, foliage.

Our azalea bushes are about 8 years old, and they don't look right. There are plenty of leaves on outer parts of plants but nothing on the inner parts of the shrubs. Should we cut them way back to allow new growth inside? If so, how severe should we cut back and when? Thanks for your help. — Norris Blanchard

This sounds normal. The dense covering of leaves on the outside blocks light from reaching the inner part of the shrubs.

The purpose of a leaf is to capture the energy of the sun and make food for the plant. Where there is not enough light for this to effectively happen, it doesn't make much sense for plants to have leaves there. They would take resources from the plant and provide little or nothing in return.

To see a good example of this, stand under any mature tree, and you will see that all of the foliage is to the outside of the canopy. The inner part of the tree has little, if any, foliage — just like you see in your azalea shrubs.

I would not recommend cutting the azaleas back based on this. If you do decide to cut back the azaleas (controlling their size would be a good reason to do this), do it in late spring right after they finish flowering.

I’ve noticed I can see some surface roots under the mulch in a bed of shrubs I have. I’d like to put some soil to cover the roots. Should I pull back the mulch first? — Janene Sanders

It sounds like filling over the roots may not really be necessary. Many plants have shallow roots, and it is natural for them to be visible at the soil surface when you pull the mulch aside.

If you do decide to add some fill, pull back the mulch, put no more fill than needed just to cover the roots — about one-half to one inch — and replace the mulch. You can use a commercial topsoil or garden soil.

Daffodil bulbs can be planted here in November through early December.

BULB TIME: November through early December is the time to plant spring-flowering bulbs, such as allium, anemone, calla lily, crocus, daffodil, Dutch iris, grape hyacinth, leucojum, lilies (Easter lily, Asiatic lily and others), narcissus, ornithogalum, Peruvian scilla, ranunculus, Spanish bluebell, sparaxis and spring star flower. Tulips and hyacinths are exceptions that are planted later.

BIRDS VS. CITRUS: Birds will peck on the fruit of citrus trees as they begin to ripen. The damage looks like an ice pick was driven repeatedly into the skin of the fruit causing blemishes, often in patches. If you see this occurring, you can prevent additional damage by covering your tree with bird netting.

SEEDS NOW: You can direct seed poppies, larkspur, sweet pea, calendula, alyssum, bachelor’s button and Virginia stock now.

WATER, WATER, WATER: You may have gotten used to frequent rains over the summer, but the weather now is drier. Check your outside container plants frequently. They rely on you more when rain does not fall.

MAKING MORE: Dig, divide and transplant perennials such as day lilies, ajuga, daisy, rudbeckia, coreopsis, yarrow and others now through February. If you do it now, keep newly divided plants well-watered should the weather continue to be dry.

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers' questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Learning about the soil in your beds is important to successful gardening.

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers' questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Dan Gill is a retired consumer horticulture specialist with the LSU AgCenter. He hosts the “Garden Show” on WWL-AM Saturdays at 9 a.m. Email gardening questions to gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

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