Watch this space for a new tip each month!

Peach trees tend to set too many fruits. If you leave them all on the tree they'll grow into small, poor quality peaches. The tree's branches may even break under their heavy load. For the best peach crop, thin fruits when they reach thumbnail size. For early-season varieties, leave 6 to 8 inches of space between each fruit; for late varieties, leave 4 to 5 inches.

Rust is one of the toughest rose diseases to control. This fungal disease causes bright red or orange blotches on the underside of rose leaves, which eventually kill the leaf. In moist warm (70F) temperatures the spores spread by wind to infect other rose plants. To control this disease, plant resistant varieties such as Garden Party and Sarabande or spray roses with a neem-based fungicide such as Rose Defense as soon as you notice the infection.

If slugs, earwigs, flea beetles, and thrips attack your plants, consider spreading diatomaceous earth (DE) around them. This organic product is made from skeletons of tiny diatoms. The sharp edges pierce the bodies of these insects. Work DE into the soil for slug and earwig control and sprinkle it on plants for flea beetle and thrips control. Reapply after a rain.

After wet springs, you'll often see red thread fungal disease on your lawn. It appears as circular reddish-purple patches about 2 feet in diameter. Eventually the patch bleaches to white. This disease is unsightly, but doesn't kill the grass. It's most prevalent on perennial ryegrass and fescue. To control the disease add nitrogen fertilizer to your lawn and dethatch it.