Meteorologist Dave Epstein is our go-to person for pressing weather questions on everything from winter blizzards to summer droughts. He’s also a horticulturist, meaning he’s an expert in anything that grows leaves and flowers. GBH's Morning Edition asked our audience for weather and gardening questions, and Epstein graciously answered them on the air. This transcript has been edited for clarity.

Have a gardening or weather question for meteorologist Dave Epstein? Tweet him @GrowingWisdom, email us at thewakeup@wgbh.org, or text 617-300-2008.

What's the best plant to start with for a new gardener?

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for beginner gardeners, Epstein said. But he did have some suggestions.

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“If you were trying to grow something to eat, I think any of the greens are really good: Kales, some of the mixed lettuces, radishes are pretty easy if you have a little spot,” he said.

Gardeners trying to grow flowers can look for almost any annual at their local garden center, Epstein said, so long as the spot where they plant it has some sun.

“If you're trying to grow a perennial, I think sedums are a pretty good, easy plant,” he said. “They tend to be bug resistant, they're drought resistant, they flower.”

Also, think ahead: This is a good time to browse bulb catalogues for flowers that will pop up next spring if cared for properly.

“Something as simple as just putting in some daffodils in the ground and letting those pop up in the spring, that'll give you some color,” Epstein said.

I have been raising an apple tree for years, nine feet tall, with very little fruit. This summer the leaves turned brown. I read this could be root rot from too much rain and my poor draining clay soil. Can the tree be saved, if it ever stops raining? Or do I have to dig it up, clip the bad roots, and move it? This would probably require a tractor, right? —Kerry in New Hampshire

Without seeing the tree, Epstein said, it would be tough to tell what the culprit is.

“It could have been planted too deep. It might be that it is the clay soil. It may be that it has some sort of disease,” he said.

It could also be that it’s hard to grow apples organically in New England, he said.

“It's really hard to grow apples, and any even stone fruit, organically,” Epstein said. “You can do it, but it's really tough.”

Apple trees have to be properly protected from bacteria and fungi, and pruned to encourage blooming and fruiting.

“There's a lot that could be going on,” Epstein said. “I would suggest just educating yourself on apple trees, pruning, feeding, treating and then also make sure it's not planted too deep.”

Are there colorful and fluffy annuals that do well in the shade? My petunias have failed to thrive in my mostly shaded lawn. —Stephanie in West Roxbury

Petunias will, indeed, struggle in shady spots, Epstein said.

But one flower that could thrive: Impatiens.

“I've got a bunch of Impatiens kind of popped in corners of the yard that are really flowering really nicely and get very little sun,” Epstein said. “Now if it's deep, deep shade, like absolutely zero light, it's really tough, if you're under, like, a hemlock forest. But if you have a little bit of dappled sunlight, impatiens work really well.”

They may, however, require a bit of planning. Impatiens are usually planted between late May and mid-June, Epstein said.

“For next year, that's a great way to have color continuously, spring all the way until you get your first frost,” he said. “They will die as soon as they hit 32 degrees, however.”

We noticed that cherry trees (weeping, Yoshino, and other kinds) didn't flower this year, and furthermore Yoshino is dropping leaves and didn't leaf fully. Any thoughts? —Nivi from Westford

The reason the cherry trees didn’t flower likely stretches back to February, when a cold snap fell over the Northeast and killed a lot of budding blooms that had been getting ready to emerge in an otherwise mild winter.

“That's why the forsythia didn't flower. That's why we're not having any local peaches this year,” Epstein said.

As for the falling leaves: It could be because the tree is getting too much or too little water, or because of a disease of some sort that thrives in the wet, rainy summer Massachusetts has been experiencing.

“It's been a very wet summer, obviously,” Epstein said. “So a lot of the leaf diseases that tend to be on these trees could be really thriving. I would say that generally, unless the plant's dying, losing leaves from fungus and things like that, it will come back next year. But check your drainage and your soil.”

Is rotating plants actually necessary? —Rachel

If an indoor plant seems to be stretching and bending toward a window or light source, then yes — it’s a good idea to give it a 180-degree turn every so often so it straightens out.

“It'll start moving back the other way,” Epstein said.

People can also move indoor plants around to different spots in their home, especially as the seasons change and more or less light comes through the windows, Epstein said.

“Some plants that tend to be lower light, you can move them into a higher-light window for the winter, because the light's not as strong,” he said. “So there are plants like, maybe a begonia you've got inside that could handle, in the winter, really bright light. But then in the summer when that light's really strong, you might want to move it into an east-facing window.”

Rotating can be important for outdoor plants, too, he said.

“I've had my tomatoes in the same spot for two years in a row,” Epstein said. “They've got to be moved next year because the diseases that attack tomatoes end up establishing themselves in that area.”

It’s good to rotate those plants to different spots in the garden as much as possible as the years pass, he said.

“I don't have a big vegetable garden, so it's hard for me to rotate too much, but I do try to do it,” he said.