Garden Q&A: Try your luck with four-leaf clover

Is it possible to grow a four-leaf clover? I have a friend who needs some luck, and I'd love to give her a plant.

It's much easier to grow a little good luck than you might think. Oxalis tetraphylla is a bulbing plant that can be found online and grown easily in this area. It is available in at least two varieties, one with solid green leaves and another with an iron cross in the center that is pretty striking. There are other oxalis hybrids that have three leaves, and even some with vivid purple or burgundy leaves.

The hybrids are not the same as their weedier cousins. They will not spread by underground runners. A clump of them will increase in diameter slowly but surely, and you can divide them and share them.

Both can be planted in pots in a rapid-draining soil mixture. Look for a cactus mixture in the nursery or mix sterile sand or a fine gravel in with the soil. Plant the bulbs so that they are about 1 inch below the surface of the soil. Water them thoroughly, but don't allow them to stand in water, which would cause them to rot.

Your plants will prefer a partially sunny spot. You should have foliage in about six weeks and flowers in about eight to 10 weeks.

If you have saved a few of the bulbs for yourself, you will find that they do very well here in the ground in well-drained soil.

The only problem I have found with them is that during the hot, dry weather we have in April, May and early June, they tend to attract spider mites. The mites make their foliage speckled and unhealthy. You can spray them with a robust blast of water from a hose.

In cases of severe infestation, simply cut away the foliage and remove it and the mites. In the heat of summer, they will die back and come back again when the temperatures cool. Lack of water will also force them into dormancy, but they will come back when regular watering returns.

I have had a problem in my lawn with crabgrass but have started seeing success in getting rid of it. I applied a heavy dose of Scott's with Halts. Can I resod now?

Crabgrass is a very frustrating plant. Applying extra of a chemical to get control of a weed problem is never recommended, and for good reason.

Halts is Scott's trademark name for pendamethalin. It is a pre-emergent weed killer, available in a number of other products on the market.

Preemergents sometimes have some post-emergent effect on weeds, but the majority of their active function is to inhibit seed germination, in this case by inhibiting root growth. That's going to be the issue for you.

The Halts product is not recommended to be used where replanting or reseeding will be done, because it reduces root growth. Although the people at the nursery told you that it would last for a year, it is really only effective for three to five months. That's a fairly long time and should be a concern for anyone who wants to resod.

Since you applied the product in October, you should be able to resod by the end of February.

Make sure your sod is laid very tightly as any gaps will allow sunlight to reach the crabgrass seeds lying dormant and give them a chance to germinate.

Do not apply Halts to your newly sodded areas until at least next fall, so that the grass can become well established before being stressed by herbicide.

If you think you need to apply it next fall, consider just spot-treating areas to limit the amount of damage done by the chemical. While lawn herbicides are safe when used as directed, they are stressful to the healthy desirable grass. Since you can't prevent such stresses as heat or heavy rainfall, you should try to limit the stressors by not adding to Mother Nature's tricks.

Becky Wern is a master gardener with the Duval County Extension Service and the University of Florida/IFAS.