Q. My lawn is infested with different types of weeds growing in between what remains of the grass. Are there any selective weed killers that I can use without killing grass? I live in Karachi.

A. There are a number of supposedly ‘selective’ weed killers but, being totally against the use of dangerous, toxic chemicals, I do not advocate their use. Such chemicals, whether watered in or sprayed on, poison the soil, reducing soil life and eventually killing it. They are potentially harmful to humans, animals and birds as well as contribute towards atmospheric toxicity which, in turn, harms every single life form on the planet. A weed is simply an out-of-place plant and it is a simple, if somewhat tedious, job to physically pull them out of the grass, repeating the process as often as necessary, until they have all gone.

If this sounds like too much hard work, buy or hire a special garden flame gun which — carefully following the instructions and taking the recommended precautions with protective clothing etc. — can be used to burn out the weeds. But, don’t forget, this method kills beneficial soil microbes and insects, too. Hand weeding really is the best option.

All your gardening queries answered here

As maintaining a lawn is labour-intensive, and a tremendous waste of increasingly precious water, give some thought to removing it altogether and either planting the area with fruit trees and vegetables or creating a food forest to help feed your family all around the year. If done properly, this requires less water than a lawn.

Q. Online nurseries located in the UK or the US either do not accept credit/debit cards from Pakistan or do not deliver here. There is a very limited number that will send seeds. I have tried buying from online Pakistani sources but they have a very limited range of bulbs/seeds/plants to offer. Can you share some good web links please?

A. It is, unfortunately, not possible to share such web links here. The best way forward is to join a number of the numerous Facebook gardening groups in Pakistan, slowly get to know other members and discuss the problem with them. They will have lots of suggestions to offer.

Q. I reside in Islamabad and want to plant Quercus dilatata (barungi) and Quercus semicarpifolia (banjar) trees. These trees are mainly seen in the Murree hills, Swat and Abbottabad areas. Unfortunately, the nurseries in and around Islamabad only have ornamental trees. Even the forest nurseries here only have imported species, such as eucalyptus and paper mulberry. I have searched everywhere. Please can you tell me where can I get them? 

A. You may have better luck if you try the forest nursery in Murree and nurseries in Abbottabad, Manshera and in Haripur too. It is a shocking state of affairs that eucalyptus and paper mulberry, the latter supposedly banned from being sold — are, if you are correct, openly for sale in your local forest nurseries whose staff should know better!

Q.  An aunt brought a few packets of different cone flowers when she visited our Islamabad home from Germany. Can these be grown here and, if so, when should the seed be sown?

A. Yes, they can. Cone flowers — ‘Echinacea’ perhaps being the most well-known of them here — do very well if sown in autumn and studiously cared for in your locality where, if winter is exceptionally cold, they will benefit from night-time protection at least. If you can start them off in a greenhouse/polytunnel it would be better, but this is not absolutely necessary. Autumn-sown seeds will flower for quite a long period the following spring and on until hot summer weather burns them up. Seeds sown in early spring don’t flower as well since the plants have not had enough time to grow to their full potential.

Q. Can soil left over from pots of seasonal plants be rejuvenated to become fresh soil?

A. Yes, but it takes quite a bit of effort. It is better, providing the plants grown in it were not diseased, to sift out any remaining roots and mix it in with new sweet earth.

Q. Seven years ago I planted three shakri malta plants in my Lahore garden. Last summer, the trees blossomed well but strong wind and rain caused about 90 percent of the blossom to drop before it had the chance to be pollinated. Please advise on how to get maximum yield from the trees in the coming season.

A. Erecting weather-resistant netting — the type that still allows maximum sunlight through and which is specially designed for trees — over your trees should provide enough of a barrier to save the majority of the blossom/crop. It needs to be erected as soon as the trees begin to form blossom and removed after harvesting of fruit. It protects against bird damage as well.

Please continue sending your gardening queries to zahrahnasir@hotmail.com, Remember to include your location. The writer does not respond directly by email. Emails with attachments will not be opened. Commercial enquiries will be ignored.

Published in Dawn, EOS, January 27th, 2019