MENUThe emerald ash borer (EAB) is still with us. We haven’t heard as much about EAB this year as we did last year because last year was its debut season in our area.This is not a pest that sneaked up on us. It had plenty of advance publicity. Nothing has changed. The EAB is still decimating the ash tree population of several local communities.While spring is the best time to protect your trees from this pest, you can still protect your trees now. The adults have mated, or soon will. So, time is of the essence if you have done nothing to protect your ash trees.It’s more economical to prevent emerald ash borer than it is to treat it after it has established itself in your ash tree(s). As a preventive, the product and application method I use needs to be reapplied only every two years. As a treatment, it has to be applied every year. The product is called Treeage, and is only sold to state licensed applicators who have been trained by the manufacturer in the use of its product and application equipment.All preventives and treatments for emerald ash borer have to be applied systemically, either as a soil drench or trunk injection. So, if someone offers to spray your trees for emerald ash borer, don’t let them. You’ll be wasting your money.EAB prevention or treatment is not a do-it-yourself project. Only one of the labeled products is available to consumers, but the consumer strength of this product is not sufficient to prevent or kill this insect.Even though EAB treatments are expensive, several decades of preventive treatments cost less than removing and replacing most ash trees.
Your spring/summer gardening is finished and your autumn gardening hasn’t started yet. Kick back with a cool beverage and enjoy the fruits of your labor. This is the time to smell the roses.After our wet June, hot, muggy early July weather, and the unpredictability from there forward, I recommend that you limit your gardening to just the essentials. Water when needed; mow the lawn when it needs mowing, and weed when you can’t stand looking at them. The rest of the time, admire your garden because autumn arrives all too soon in our area.There are a few preventive measures that you can take in summer, but we recommend that you limit your role to simply dialing our number and leaving the work to the professionals. Our people work outside every day so they are acclimated to hot humid weather. They know how to keep hydrated and take frequent, short breaks.Tree pruning and pest control are the two primary preventive measures in summer. If a limb breaks or a tree fails, it should be pruned or removed promptly before it can cause any further damage. We had a number of calls for lightning strikes after an early July storm. If, as you admire your landscape, one of your trees needs thinning or shaping, we can do that in summer as well.Also, as you enjoy your landscape, any signs of insect damage should be taken care of immediately. Even if the pest is at a stage in its lifecycle where control is ineffective, we will be able to plan a strategy for dealing the pest long term.Our people are also designing and installing landscapes all summer long. So, if you are dissatisfied with your present landscape, call us. The dog days of summer is the season when tree and landscape professionals work long and hard.
Our last blog made suggestions about modifying your watering habits in the wake of our wet spring and uncertain summer. Mulch can reduce the amount of work, and guess work, that you would be facing otherwise.Mulch plays a greater role in your landscape than just looking nice. Mulch moderates soil temperatures, reducing the time it takes for soil temperatures to reach extremes that traumatize plant roots. Two to three inches of a good quality, biodegradable, organic mulch “insulates” soil, holding heat and releasing it gradually. Since heat fills the void left by lack of heat, mulch will extend the time it takes for the sun to heat up soil each day. By the same token, mulch also extends the time it takes for the soil to cool down at the end of a sunny day.Mulch does the same with water as it does with heat. It retains it and releases it over time. This moderates the amount of water that soaked into the root zones during our seemingly endless spring rains. If the weather turns hot and dry, the mulch will also retain your irrigation water and release it over time. The plants will actually be able to use it as they needed instead of having wet feet one day and parched roots the next.There is a good reason why I mentioned biodegradable organic mulch above. This type of mulch does more than just look nice. It moderates temperature, holds water and, over time, decomposes and returns nutrients to the soil. It’s like nature’s fertilizer.My personal mulch preference is double ground hardwood mulch because it is made from recycled debris from tree trimming operations. Recycling this material contributes to plant health while reducing the stream of waste going to landfills. Inorganic mulches like various types of stone chips don’t provide organic mulch’s added benefits.I do not recommend colored mulch. Mulch sold for its color has dye in it and some dyes are harmful to plants. Our mulch is black, its natural color. As tan wood chips age, they take on a gray color which then darkens to black. Naturally black mulch will do the most good in your landscape.This growing season has been rather unique to say the least. Spring was late in coming and when it did come, it brought with it inordinate amounts of rain and high temperatures. Plants like the status quo, and mulch is the best moderator you can apply to help them maintain this status quo.For more on landscape maintenance, click here.
To water or not to water in summer is usually quite easy to determine. If we have a dry spring and summer, we have to water. If we have continual rain, we don’t. That’s not the case this summer. We had an extraordinary amount of rain in the spring – several inches above normal. In July, the rain tapered off as the temperature rose. What lies ahead, though, is anybody’s guess.Established plants do not need watering right now. There is sufficient moisture in the ground. Until recently, some planting beds were downright soggy. Consequently, we don’t have to be as vigilant about making sure our landscapes get at least an inch of water a week, either from rain or irrigation. However, that could change as the summer progresses.If we continue to “enjoy” Florida weather with its daily showers as we did earlier in the summer, we may never have to water this season. Of course, the weather could turn almost instantly to drought conditions and dry up the soil very quickly. In that case, it’s back to watering.My recommendation is to let common sense and your plants tell you when they need water. If we do not have rain for a couple of weeks, check your soil. Either put your finger into the soil or use the moisture meter that you use for your house plants to check the amount of moisture in the soil. If leaves begin to wilt and grass begins to burn, that means the plants need water. It is best not to let them go that long, however. Stressed plants are easy targets for insects and diseases.Containerized plants that live outside are the exception. There is no place for water to accumulate like there is in a planting bed. Excess water just runs out the drain hole. Unless it rains every day or two, you should check your containerized plants to see if the potting mix is dry. If so, it’s time to water.I suggest using a moisture meter to check your outdoor containerized plants every day or two. While most in-ground plants will be fine without rain or irrigation for a week or two, containerized plants will still need water every day or every other day.Remember, water is a plant’s lifeblood.
Pest management is a bit more complex than weed management. That’s because control methods vary with each type of pest.As I pointed out in my last blog, there are only two methods of weed control – pull them out or spray them. If you select spraying, there are both organic and inorganic nonselective herbicides. Such is not the case with insects, however.Today, insect control is targeted at specific insects. Some formulations are effective against a number of insects while others are specific to one insect or one genus of insect. Bacillus thuriengensis (Bt), for example, is used widely against a number of pests, but they are all in the Lepidoptera genus. This genus includes almost all butterflies and moths. Using this bacteria-based product against any other insect, or group of insects, is a waste of money because it won’t harm them at all. Besides, it is illegal to use an insecticide for anything other than the target pests on the label.In addition to chemical control, you can control some pests by mechanical methods. Some insects can be removed by hand if you have the time and patience. There are tree bands that effectively trap insects that climb up trees. Some mammals, such as deer and rabbits, can be deterred to some extent with fencing. Making sure that snow or mulch are not piled up against trees can also deter small mammals like mice.Some use pheromone traps, such as the purple emerald ash borer traps or yellow Japanese beetle traps, as control measures. These traps are not intended to control the target pests. They were developed for scientists to determine population levels. They provide scientists with a sufficient sample to calculate the population in an area, but they don’t trap enough to achieve control.For the do-it-yourself pesticide applicator, I can’t stress too strongly to read the label and follow the label instructions to the letter. Misapplication is the biggest pesticide problem. I just cringe when someone opens their shed and shows me all the bottles of “stuff” on the shelves. Trial and error pesticide application is not good for you, for the environment, or even for the non-targeted insects (including beneficial insects). There is a reason why the state licenses commercial pesticide applicators and requires them to take continuing education to maintain their licenses.
Throughout history, weeds have been the bane of all gardeners. They take up valuable real estate and spread aggressively, “stealing” the water and nutrients intended for your desirable plants. But wait. Which plants are weeds and which are desirable? It depends on your viewpoint.It’s difficult to classify a weed. There is no “Weedus” genus into which all undesirable plants are lumped. In fact, weeds that one person wants to get rid of others want to cultivate. Many gardeners, for example, classify Queen Anne’s lace as a weed. However, florists buy the lacey blooms and use them extensively in flower arrangements. Even the dandelion has its share of advocates. They make dandelions into wine and use the leaves in salads. So, weeds are like junk – one person’s junk is another person’s treasure.Once you have identified which plants in your landscape are weeds, the next step is to keep them under control. But how? You only have two control methods – mechanical and chemical. Mechanical control is the good old fashioned method of pulling weeds, although there are some modern tools that can help. Chemical control is the use of organic or synthetic herbicides.Horticultural vinegar is becoming a popular herbicide among organic gardeners. This product, however, is not plain old household vinegar. The active ingredient, acetic acid, in horticultural vinegar is from grain rather than fruit. More importantly, household vinegar is only 5% acetic acid, rendering it ineffective. A study by Oregon Cooperative Extension found that at least 10% active ingredient is necessary. At higher concentrations, the acid in horticultural vinegar can burn your skin.Rather than relying on untested, illegal home remedies, legal horticultural vinegar is available at garden centers. Like its most common synthetic counterpart, glyphosate (Roundup), horticultural vinegar is nonselective. This means that it will kill any plant it touches. It should be noted that horticultural vinegar carries a “Danger” warning while glyphosate only carries a “Caution."If you don’t want to make the selection and worry about all the legal and technical aspects of weed control, you can call us and we can take care of it for you.
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Root rot, which is very evident in the photo, caused this giant tree in East Rochester to fall.[/caption]A recent weekend of high winds, capped off by a horrific tree-related fatal accident, brought into focus the vulnerability of trees. They may appear solid and healthy, but it is difficult for the untrained eye to know what is going on inside a giant tree. That’s why trees should be inspected by a certified arborist at least once a year.This may seem like an unnecessary expense, but rest assured that it is one of the most important investments you can make to protect your safety and your property, as well as your neighbors and your community. Planting a tree is like acquiring a pet. When you make that decision, you assume responsibility for its health and wellbeing, and it is a legal obligation that can include significant costs and penalties if a tree fails.While high winds contribute to tree failures, the vast majority of trees weather such storms with little or no damage. So, there must be a reason why only certain trees fail. In my 30 plus years of arboricultural experience, I have found that wind related tree damage is not random.Some people, arborists included, will suggest that trees’ size and leaf mass are too much for high winds, but nature engineered trees to flex in the wind. Rather, most broken branches and failed trees are weakened by rot or other diseases, weak branch attachment to the trunk or large limb, or other natural or environmental compromise. In the case of last weekend’s fatal accident in which a tree fell on a passing car, the roots were so rotted that they were not anchoring the tree. It was ready to fall. A mere breeze could have caused that giant tree to topple.A certified arborist can diagnose the presence of fungi and rot, and the extent of the damage. The untrained eye cannot usually detect these problems until they see external signs, such as mushrooms growing out of the base. These are fruiting bodies, which indicate that the disease has progressed to the point that immediate action should be taken.The presence of rot may not spell an immediate death sentence for your tree. Since rot usually destroys trees slowly from the center out, you may be able to enjoy your tree for decades before it becomes a hazard. It is better to maintain such a tree under an arborist’s care than to not spend the money and hope that the story doesn’t end tragically like it did in East Rochester.
Organic is one of today’s horticultural buzzwords, while chemical has been relegated to the status of a four-letter word. In horticulture, the word organic is open to wide interpretations, leading to confusion among well meaning people who just want to do what is right for the environment.First, let me define organic. More accurately, let the dictionary define organic. It is “belonging to a family of compounds characterized by chains or rings of carbon atoms that are linked to atoms of hydrogen and sometimes oxygen, nitrogen and other elements.” While carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen are basic elements, they become chemicals when combined.Chemistry and organic chemistry are freshman year core courses at my alma mater – SUNY College of Forestry and Environmental Science in Syracuse. Many organic compounds are much more complex than synthetic compounds. In some cases, organic pesticides, even natural organic compounds, are more toxic than their synthetic counterparts. Other organics have much shorter residual lives than comparable synthetics.As the president of an environmentally responsible tree and landscape company, I am committed to using organic products whenever possible and practical. However, I am not wed to the concept that anything that comes out of chemical plants is bad. In fact, even organics come out of chemical plants.In some instances, we have to weigh the various outcomes when deciding on a course of action. This is not unlike human health decisions. Chemotherapy treatments for cancer, for example, are very potent, synthetic chemicals. But, consider the consequences of not accepting them.Some people don’t think that way when it comes to their landscapes. During a networking session at a conference, the couple with whom I was speaking was dead set against using any type of synthetic chemical for any purpose in their landscape. Playing the devil’s advocate, I posed this hypothetical question: “Suppose you had a majestic American elm that had, so far, escaped Dutch elm disease and its death sentence. Your arborist advises you that there is a preventive fungicide that is injected directly into the tree. Would you put that multi-hundred year old tree in jeopardy just because you are against the use of chemicals?” Their answer: “We would have to think about that.”A balanced fertilizer’s macro elements are the same whether they are considered organic or synthetic. All have nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. The only difference is the source from which these elements were derived. Amonia, the source of nitrogen in fertilizer, is NOH whether the nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen atoms were combined in a chemical plant or extracted from animal urine. The trick comes when plants need the micronutrients that are not present in animal products.When a case is made for banning landscape chemicals, DDT is always brought up. Do you know what the common insecticide was before DDT? Nicotine sulfate (as in the harmful stuff in tobacco), which is still sold, albeit with a DANGER warning, for organic gardeners. Apply a product like glyphosate (Roundup) on weeds and it takes several days for the weeds to die. Apply vinegar to weeds and you can practically watch them die.The purpose of this tirade? To emphasize responsibility in caring for your landscape. Use organics when possible or practical, but don’t put your valuable plants at risk while agonizing over the origins of the product that can improve their health.
Brian Krawczyk is, once again, the best tree climber in New York State. In early June, he journeyed to Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay on Long Island to compete in the New York State Arborists, ISA Chapter’s annual Tree Climbing Championship, and he won for the fourth time.The first two wins for Brian came in 2006 and 2007. During the winter of 2008, however, he suffered near fatal injuries in a recreational ice climbing fall. The injuries to his back, pelvis, ribs and ankles were so extensive that doctors doubted whether Krawczyk would walk, let alone climb trees. After sitting out the 2008 championship, Brian came back and won the 2009 championship. In 2010 and 2011, he placed second to fellow Birchcrest climber Jorge Obando and in 2012, he was runnr-up to Birchcrest’s Jeremy Passinault.Brian and the other 14 contestants had to compete in five challenge events to qualify for the Masters Challenge. The Masters Challenge consisted of a single climb, during which the climbers had to perform simulated work tasks.For his win, Brian won a package of climbing equipment to use when he competes in the international Tree Climbing Championship, August 3 and 4, in Toronto.Good luck in Toronto, Brian.
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HWA Infestation[/caption]Downstate, homeowners have been battling the hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) for more than 20 years. We have avoided any major infestations by this pest…until now. Sure, a few have popped up once or twice on nursery stock, but these were easily controlled. Recently, however, we were called to inspect and treat a group of about 30 hemlock trees in Irondequoit that were suffering from a significant HWA infestation.If you have hemlock trees, we recommend that you inspect them immediately. If you see white cottony masses on the branches, the HWA has found your hemlock(s). These cottony masses, which look like the ends of cotton swabs, hold, or held, HWA eggs. We don’t know the exact timing of their life cycle in our area yet. However, they hatch between February and June downstate.The immature insects, called crawlers, have hatched, or are still hatching. They then crawl to the base of new growth needles, molt and lose their legs, and begin to feed. You can see them with a hand lens. They appear as black, flat, oval spots. In mid to late summer, they will build new cottony masses, mature and deposit their eggs.The HWA life cycle is very complex and may involve two generations a year. The lifecycle described here involves reproduction by females only. According to Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County on Long Island, other mature adults grow wings and fly to other trees, including spruce trees, and reproduce sexually.Needles change from dark green to grayish green to yellow as feeding damages them. This is followed by premature needle drop and loss of vitality. Within two years, limbs begin to die back, beginning at the bottom of the tree. It takes four to eight years, depending on tree size, environmental stresses and the tree location, for a tree to die.HWA is a pest that has been plaguing hemlock owners downstate for decades. They have been able to control it but not eradicate it. At certain times of the year, dormant oil and horticultural soap are effective controls. Chemical pesticides, applied by licensed, commercial pesticide applicators either as sprays or systemic soil drenches, are also effective.If you have hemlock trees, don’t let the hemlock wooly adelgid get a foothold, call us now for a professional inspection and, if necessary, treatment.
What can soothe more than the sound of gently running water? Nothing. That’s why water features are so popular in landscapes. Asian cultures have known about water’s calming effects for centuries. That is why a water feature is part of most Japanese and Chinese gardens. Water is also one of the four elements of Feng Shui.It would be nice if we could each have a babbling brook flowing through our property, but that’s impossible, so we do the next best thing and create the effect of a babbling brook.Like everything in landscaping, each property owner has his/her own ideas of what a water feature should be. Some like a pond with a waterfall. Others are satisfied with a self-contained fountain. Several factors influence water feature decisions. The first, of course, is budget. The second is the amount of time you want to spend on water feature maintenance.Ponds are the most expensive water features. Installation involves digging a hole in the ground and placing either a rubber liner or a fiberglass insert in the hole to hold the water. Either a waterfall or a fountain then has to be built to circulate the water in order to give it the sound you want. The water is circulated by a pump, and you need a filter to keep it clean. Rocks are generally used to give the feature a natural look and to hide the mechanical elements. Unless you are quite handy, you may want to consider a professional installation. We offer both design and installation service.If your pond is a natural design, you will want to put in aquatic plants and fish. Some people like frogs, too. Fish and plants help keep the pond clean by eating algae and other material that can gum up the pump and filter, as well as making the pond look bad. Maintenance includes feeding the fish and cleaning out their waste and other contaminants.At the other extreme are self-contained tabletop water features for your patio. In between are fountains and larger self-contained water features to accent your garden/landscape.If you have been thinking about adding a water feature to your landscape, now is the time to check out the various options so that it can be installed in time for you to enjoy a full season of melodic sounds and added tranquility. A good place to start is to go back to our homepage and click on the “Gallery” button and see some of the water features we have designed into other landscapes.
Foundation planting is, arguably, the most discussed question in landscaping. Should you? Shouldn't you? Why not? Why? How do you make it look like the house is on a permanent foundation? These questions have been debated for decades.Shrubs were originally planted to hide Victorian houses’ foundations, which weren't the most attractive part of the house. Like so many other things in our society, foundation plantings fall out and then back into favor. In our conservative community, they never fell completely out of favor.Many landscape designers are moving away from foundation plantings, but they aren't leaving this area naked. Instead, they are extending the plantings out from the foundation and incorporating them into gardens, called entry gardens, some of which include the whole front yard. Be assured, however, that you can have a very attractive entry garden without it covering your whole front yard.Building an entry garden at the approach to the house is preferred, increasingly, as an alternative to a straight row of manicured shrubs in front of the house. As a bulletin from Clemson Cooperative Extension in South Carolina says, “Many designers now like to refer to the area in front of the house as the entry garden to emphasize that the purpose of this area is to complement, not camouflage, the house. The entry garden can incorporate any of the areas that are in the public view.”While the entry garden enhances the approach to the house, the rest of the front foundation area doesn't have to be completely bare. Consider another planting at the far corner of the house with a transition planting, consisting of low growing plant in between. Low growing plants will reduce, or eliminate, the need for shearing. Shearing is the practice of pruning yews and other plants so they are rectangular in shape – definitely unnatural. In fact, these transition plants should be dwarf varieties that seldom, if ever, need pruning.Low growing plants also provide added security. Large foundation plants provide criminals with hiding places as they prepare to commit their crimes. Besides the potential for harboring criminals, large growing foundation plantings also give the house a hemmed-in feeling. Approaching it is like going through a tunnel.Whatever you do, your entry garden/foundation planting should be one element in your home’s total landscape, rather than a standalone piece. If all of this sounds confusing and beyond most do it yourselfers, may we suggest calling in one of our professional landscape designers. This is what they do every day. Landscaping is a major investment and it is an investment that grows – in size and in value. Curb appeal, in addition to your own enjoyment, is the reason for making this major investment, so why not start out on the right foot?
Your garden/landscape is a 24/7 attraction in your yard. Are you getting the most enjoyment from it? You don’t have to look out the window to a black abyss after dark, you can look out to a beautifully illuminated garden. Better yet, go outside and enjoy your garden on warm summer evenings.Garden lighting can make your garden even more attractive at night than during the day. Depending on what kind of lights you have and where they are aimed, you can get a whole new perspective on your garden at night.Many people work late these days and have little time to enjoy an unlighted garden. It is nice to enjoy late dinners on the patio or in the garden. Besides the pleasure of a garden-side dinner, this is an opportunity to enjoy the fruits of your weekend gardening tasks all week long.Are you perplexed about what style lights you want, or the installation details? There are many different lighting options available. The most basic are the solar-powered lights that are sold in garden centers and big box stores. These may be a good place to start. Solar-powered lights are inexpensive and easy to install. You just stick them in the ground.A lighted garden may be difficult to visualize without actually seeing your garden illuminated. Solar lights may be a good choice for you to start with. You can move them about to create different effects. They are inexpensive, so you can buy several sets and experiment. However, these lights are not very long lived, so they will need replacement in a year or two.Low voltage lighting is a good upgrade from solar-powered lighting. These lights use house power and are connected by wires, which are buried just under the soil surface. This makes them less portable than solar-power lights, and is why we recommend solar- powered lights to help you visualize the layout before going to the trouble to bury wires.You may want to combine full voltage accent lights, such spots, with low voltage lamps to outline paths and patio. The solar-powered lamps that you used in the design phase may even be incorporated into the final design in some way.If you are having a new landscape or a landscape renovation done this season, ask your designer to include lighting. Even if you aren’t renovating your landscape, you can have one of our landscape designers design the lighting and our field crew do the installation. You can let your creative juices flow and design your own lighting scheme. Any way you do it, the added hours in your garden with be good for you.
This week (May 19-25, 2013) has been designated “Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week” in New York and other states in which this insidious pest is wreaking havoc with the ash tree population. Its purpose is to make all of us more aware of the emerald ash borer and the destruction it causes.While knowing its life cycle and how to identify the pest in its various stages is nice, it is pretty difficult to apply that knowledge. The emerald ash borer lives most of its life inside the tree trunk, boring “D” shaped holes for adults to emerge and reproduce. Even the exit holes are hard to see since most of them are in the upper branches of the tree.If you own ash trees, the most important thing to know is that the destruction of individual trees can be stopped. The most economical way is to have a preventive pesticide injected into your tree(s) or into the soil around the base of your tree(s). An infested tree can be treated, but it costs much more and the prognosis is not as good as it is for preventive applications.The product I use is called Treeage, and it is only sold to state licensed applicators who have been trained by the manufacturer in the use of the product and application equipment. As a preventive, Treeage needs to be reapplied only every two years. As a treatment, it has to be applied every year.There are several other products labeled for prevention and treatment of emerald ash borer. I have tried all of them, and Treeage is the only one that I found to be effective. One product is labeled for consumer use, but the consumer strength is not enough to be effective against this resilient bug.One other important lesson this Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week is that transporting firewood into and out of an area is leading method for this pest to spread, and importing or exporting firewood is illegal in New York State.Another important lesson is that, if you don’t treat your ash tree(s), they will almost certainly be attacked by the emerald ash borer, and it is much more expensive to have a diseased tree taken down and replaced than it is to have either a preventive or treatment applied.A third lesson is that the emerald ash borer will attack weak or stressed trees first. If you keep your tree(s) well watered, fertilized and pruned, its chance for survival is better.
As flowers bloom and green leaves break forth, green bugs will eat their way out of the trunks of ash trees. They are the adult emerald ash borers who will fly around until they mate. The females will then excavate holes in the bark of ash trees, lay their eggs, and another generation of the voracious pest will go about the task of devastating these beautiful trees.The emerald ash borer may be unstoppable in its march across the country, but its destruction of individual trees can be stopped. Prevention is the best cure for this pest, and prevention is much less expensive than treatment after the EAB has struck.So, this is the time to make arrangements for systemic applications of preventivematerial. Systemic means that nothing is sprayed into the air. The material is injectedeither into the soil at the base of the tree or directly into the tree trunk. After all, the emerald ash borer spends all of the destructive portion of its life inside the trunk of the tree.The product I use is called Treeage, and it is only sold to state licensed applicators who have been trained by the manufacturer in the use of its product and application equipment. As a preventive, Treeage needs to be reapplied only every two years. As a treatment, it has to be applied every year.There are several other products labeled for prevention and treatment of emerald ash borer. I have tried all of them, and Treeage is the only one that I found to be effective. One product is labeled for consumer use, but the consumer strength is not enough to be effective against this resilient bug.Remember that all preventives and treatments for emerald ash borer have to be applied systemically, either as a soil drench or trunk injection. So, if someone offers to spray your trees for emerald ash borer, don’t. You will be wasting your money.
Some people want their yards to be wildlife sanctuaries while others would just as soon have wildlife visit your house rather than theirs. Still others enjoy watching wildlife at a distance. You can enjoy wildlife on your terms, more or less, just by designing your landscape to manage birds and critters. Make your wildlife desires known to your landscape designer right from the start and he/she can select plants to meet your wildlife management criteria.If you want wildlife to browse nearby, where you can watch them, there are many plants that will attract various creatures right up to your window if you want. Garden stores sell bird feeders that will attract a variety of birds or others that will only attract visits from the species for which it was designed.If you don’t want wildlife at all, there are certain plants that animals will not come near. The list is much shorter than the list of plants that attract animals. Be aware, though, that different animals have different tastes. For example, deer may not be interested in certain plants but rodents may feast on those plants. That’s why, if you want to be most sure of meeting your wildlife management objectives, you should consider retaining a landscape design professional, rather than trying to do it yourself.What about the person who likes animals, but would prefer to like them from a distance? Why would anyone like to admire wildlife from afar, you ask? They might like to watch birds frolic and feed, but don’t like cleaning up what they leave behind. Some may want to attract hummingbirds or butterflies, but bees feed on the same plant nectar and someone in the family might be allergic to bee stings.The answer to these concerns is usually to place the plants that attract the wildlife that you want to keep at a distance…at a distance. If someone in the family is allergic to bees, plant butterfly bushes (Buddleia davidii) at a sufficient distance that fewer bees come near your living space. This is not all that cut and dried, however. If you have a party and eat cake and ice cream on the patio, you will surely have some uninvited guests. But, attracting unwanted guests in this manner is expected, even if you don’t have any plants nearby.At one extreme, people plant their landscapes to encourage all wildlife and don’t worry about the consequences to their plant materials. At the other extreme are those who will do anything to keep their gardens pristine and free of wildlife. Most of us, however, practice wildlife management so that we, our plants and the animal visitors can co-exist. Sometimes even peacefully.
Tomorrow, April 26 is Arbor Day, a day set aside for planting trees. But, what do you do if your property has enough trees? How about planting trees for somebody else? Or, how about giving the trees on your property some TLC?Have you ever been to Nebraska? It’s flat prairie land and, in the 19th century, was very devoid of trees. In 1872, however, J. Sterling Morton set out to change that. Mr. Morton had served in Nebraska politics and, in the 1890s, was Secretary of Agriculture inPresident Grover Cleveland’s cabinet. Mr. Morton also edited a newspaper in Nebraska City. He remembered growing up in New York’s forested north country and wanted to see more trees on the Great Plains. So, he crusaded for a day to be set aside for the planting of trees. Today, every state celebrates Arbor Day, and New York’s is always on the last Friday in April.Getting back to Arbor Day activities for you and your family. You may know of a neighbor or friend who can’t afford a tree, or one who is disabled and unable to plant a tree. You can also join with a group like a school group, community group or Scout unit to plant trees in public spaces. They could always use help.If you have lots of trees on your property, take some quality time with your family to walk around your yard and look at the trees, and touch them. Look up, look down, look straight ahead. Do they look healthy, or are they starting to look a bit long in the tooth? Are there cracks in the bark? Are there dead or dying limbs, or limbs that have broken off and are hanging precariously? Do you see any insects chewing on the leaves? Or are there any fungi growing on the tree, especially at the base?The late Dr. Alex Shigo is, arguably, best know for his advice to “touch trees.” The father of modern arboriculture believed that we had to get up close and personal to really experience the splendor of these largest living organisms. We invite you to do the same this Arbor Day.If you find anything out of the ordinary, our best advice is to call in an arborist to confirm your diagnosis and to correct the problem. After all, it’s Arbor Day, and your trees certainly deserve a gift on their special day. Think of all they do for you 24/7/365. They provide shade, sequester carbon, provide us with the oxygen we breath, help control water run off and soil erosion, add value to our property and some provide us with delicious fruit.Friday may not be convenient for every family. So, mark Arbor Day on Saturday or Sunday. Any day can be Arbor Day. There are only two periods during the year when trees should not be planted – in the heat of summer and when the ground is frozen in winter.
This has been a rough winter, not only for us but for our landscape plants as well. Cold weather lingered almost into May. Late spring means that plants are late leafing out, and our lawns are just greening up. This means they have not really started making food. They are still living on the food they had stored from last season.When plants begin making food, they need certain minerals from the soil. Will they be available in your soil? While these minerals occur naturally in good, rich topsoil, the fact is that many builders scrape away topsoil when building homes. They may, or may not, bring it back. Or, they may bring in topsoil from another location.The best way to know whether your soil has the minerals that your trees, shrubs, lawn and other plants need is to have a soil test taken – not just a pH test, but a mineral content test as well. This test will tell you whether you need to fertilize or not. Our plant health professionals can conduct such tests.Following the standards under which professionals like us work, fertilizer should only be applied to meet a stated objective. This means that, if you had a soil test and it showed that your soil had all the necessary minerals for your lawn and landscape, you probably don’t need to fertilize this spring. If it showed a mineral deficiency, you should fertilize. Minerals are finite. If they are deficient when a soil test is taken, they will always be deficient, and the only way to replenish them is through fertilization. It can be compared to humans taking a vitamin supplement to replenish minerals deficient in our diet.The soil test will tell you what trace, or micro, nutrients are needed, as well as whether you need the macronutrients – nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. That way, you can avoid the waste and environmental compromise of buying one size fits all fertilizer. When a soil test indicates special needs, we are able to formulate fertilizer just for your application, and we apply it to trees and shrubs in liquid form injected right into the root zone.Often we also add beneficial fungi and bacteria, called mycorrhizae, to help roots find and absorb the minerals they need for good health.So in answer to why you need spring fertilization, it is to replenish any missing nutrients in your soil and jump start your plants’ food making process, photosynthesis.
Now that spring has finally arrived and our lawns are starting to green up, this would be a good time to take a walk around your lawn to see how it fared the winter. Your lawn has a number of winter enemies. Some are mechanical, some are chemical and some are diseases.The most obvious, if you had a plowing contractor, would be divots in your lawn. Divot damage depends on how much snow you had and how frequent and how deep it was. If you had just a little snow, the plower could likely push the snow to the side without having to push it on to the lawn. When we have a lot of deep snow, the only place to put the snow is in the lawn. This is when divots from the edges of the lawn end up in the middle of your yard. The easiest fix is to replace the divots just as you would on a golf course. If that is not possible, the lawn edges will have to be renovated.Chemical damage is usually the result of road salt. Salt, sodium chloride to be exact, is very toxic to plants. When spread on the road, salt mixes with the water it creates from melted snow and ice. Passing vehicles then splash it on adjacent lawns and other landscape plants. If the grass in your tree lawn (the area between the curb and sidewalk), or even further into your front yard, is brown and appears dead, wait for the rest of the lawn to green up before taking any action. If that grass is dead, rather than just dormant, it will have to be replaced. I suggest replacing it with a hardy mixture that can withstand the onslaught of salt water. The good news is that some highway departments have turned to ice control products that are less toxic to plants.If you have brown spots or patches in your lawn, they indicate the presence of a fungal disease. Brown patch is one of the most common. Look for six inch to 20 inch diameter patches in which the grass is brown. It may have a purplish-gray “smoke ring” border with green grass in the center.Dollar spot is another common turf disease. Shapes are irregular on most lawns, but are silver-dollar sized on really short grass like putting greens. Look for white cob-webby fungus on dewy grass. If you look closely, the grass blades should have straw-colored lesions with reddish-brown borders.You will know you have a disease called fairy ring if you have an arc or circle of lush green grass and/or toadstool or puffball mushrooms. There may also be a ring of dead grass. Fairy rings usually occur in the same place each year, with the ring expanding outward.Leaf spot is the last fungal disease, and infests lawns most during cold, wet, overcast weather in spring and fall. Look for gradual browning and thinning of grass. Small, dark- brown, purplish or purplish-red colored spots may also appear on the leaves from the early spring to late fall. As these lesions increase in size, their centers may fade to a straw or light-brown color. The spots are usually surrounded by narrow, dark, reddish-brown to purplish-black borders.If you have any of these diseases, the first thing to do is to rake out the dead grass. If the area is small, the healthy grass will fill in the open areas. If it is larger, you will have to reseed. Don’t apply a fungicide because they are not effective against lawn diseases. Rather, be judicious in your fertilization and watering. Most fungi thrive in a high nitrogen, wet environment. If mushrooms are present, manually remove them, especially if you have pets or small children, since these fungi may be poisonous.When reseeding, use a fungus-resistant variety and overseed the whole lawn. Also, mow high. Set your mower at about three inches.If you need help nursing your lawn back to health, just contact our office and talk to one of our lawncare professionals.
After being cooped up with only potting mix dirtying your green thumb, you may want to go full bore into the garden on the first good day. You want to get real dirt on that green thumb! Resist that temptation. There are many sound reasons why Memorial Day is the traditional start of the gardening season in our climate.I’m not saying that you have to wait until Memorial Day to get out into the garden. I’m just suggesting that you not push it. It takes awhile for the soil to dry out enough for you to work it…and in it. Temperatures should moderate and you should be sure that the lasthard frost has passed before planting. Even though plants may be hardy in our zone, a hard frost while they are young and tender can kill them.Until it “feels” right to work in the garden, limit your activity to spring cleanup. Tips for that were covered in a previous blog. I let the lawn be my gardening barometer. If the grass needs mowing and the mower doesn't sink into the turf, then it is OK to begin working in the garden.Spring bulbs will provide you with early spring color, provided you planted bulbs last fall. Spring flowering trees and shrubs will also brighten your property. Wait until bulbs and woody plants are finished blooming before planting annuals. Annuals will be most susceptible to any late season frost, and our unpredictable winter may just bid us farewell with a late frost, or even a storm.You don’t have to just sit inside and wish you could be outside. You could use this time to make plans for updating or renovating your landscape, if you haven’t done so already. You can also use the time to set up your patio or deck. Furniture and statuary can be taken out. Just don’t take out your temperature-sensitive plants.Even though our gardening season is relatively short, there will be plenty of days to work the soil. Although it may not seem like it, the season is actually more than half the year.
The winter from which we are just emerging is more reminiscent of past winters than they are of the winter of 2011-2012. In harsher winters, our yards are probably going to need more spring cleanup than they did last spring.Living near Lake Ontario, I probably received more snowfall than those of you who live more inland. However, you probably had just as much high wind as we did. This means more cleanup.Wait until all the snow melts and the ground hardens up a bit so you don’t leave footprints in your lawn. Then go out, walk the property and make a list of what should be cleaned up.The easiest chore will be trash pickup. The winds probably brought more trash into your yard from the neighbors’ yards and the roadside. There may also be twigs and branches to rake up, some of which came from your yard and some from the neighbors’. While checking on twigs and branches, look up into your own trees for broken branches. If any are cracked, broken or hanging on other branches, call us to remove them before they fall and cause damage. Don’t climb up there yourself or try to pull them down from the ground or they could fall on you.If you didn’t finish all your leaf raking last fall, or if the wind blew more leaves into your yard, rake then up this spring and either compost them or send they to the landfill. While checking your lawn, also look for bare spots and diseases (subject of another blog coming up).Check the gutters of your house to be sure there are no twigs, branches or leaves clogging them. You will certainly need clean gutters as April showers begin.This is also a good time to take a lawn rake and fluff up the mulch in your planting beds. If you added extra mulch in the fall to help insulate plants, this is the time to remove that extra mulch so you only have a maximum of three inches. While working in your planting beds, pull weeds that are either left over from last fall or popped up already this spring.As you pull out your patio furniture, give it a good cleaning, or at least a hosing. You will likely get some help from Mother Nature when it rains.Walking your property is a great way to discover cleanup projects that we haven’t mentioned here because they may be unique to your property. You might even get some ideas for improvements while doing spring cleanup. So, don’t slack off on spring cleanup. It could be the best thing you do for your yard this spring.
Winter is the time when most people decide to repaint or redecorate their homes. This isn’t a statistical fact, just an observation. It’s the season when we spend the most time in the house and the walls can begin to close in on us.The same phenomenon should occur outside in our landscapes. Since we are on the go more in the good weather and our growing season seems short, we often overlook updates to the landscape. If, however, you actually calculate the amount of time you spend in your yard and garden in the summer, you might be surprised. The growing season is more than half the year.As a garden/landscape person, I look out the window quite often in the winter, and consider how I can improve on the landscape in the spring. The tasks that I come up with may be as simple as pruning back overgrown shrubs or pruning trees to improve their health. Or even simpler, it could involve just fluffing the mulch. Other times water features or night lighting or new plants cross my mind.If you look out your window and see room for improvement, now is the time to begin planning. If you know something has to be done, but you don’t know what, enlist the services of a professional landscape designers. Our designers have been working through the winter, helping people realize the full potential of their property. Since our planting and installation crews schedule their work on a first come, first served basis, the people whose designs are being created now will have their dreams realized as soon as the spring planting season arrives.It’s not too late. Begin working with one of our designers now, and get on the planting and installation schedule so you can enjoy your renewed, renovated or redesigned landscape all season long.Working with a landscape designer can be fun. These professionals have the academic training and field experience to translate your thoughts into a beautiful setting for your yard. You may not know one plant from another, and wonder how you can share your thoughts with a landscape designer. All you have to do is let him/her know what results you expect. What do you want your landscape to achieve, its purpose, the feel that you want when you step outside. The designer will do the rest.If you know what plants you want, the hardscape items you would like, and the shapes of the various elements, but don’t feel comfortable committing them to paper, a designer can help there, too.It’s important to have a plan. In fact, it’s the only way to be sure your thoughts and ideas are implemented to your satisfaction. You wouldn’t think of decorating the inside of your home without a plan. Why would you tackle the vast outdoors informally?
The emerald ash borer’s aggressiveness has taken some of the heat off landscape pests that may appear more benign. However, these other pests are still around and need to be controlled. It is nearly impossible to completely eradicate an insect. However, they can be controlled.Aphids and scale never take a break from eating. That’s because they reproduce so fast that their progeny take over when the adults die off. Even if you can’t see them, you’ll know when you have aphids in your trees. Their waste material is a sweet, sticky honey dew that drops anywhere under an infested tree.Eastern tent caterpillars will soon begin building their webs in the forks or crotches of trees. In late summer, a fall webworm that is much like the eastern tent caterpillar will begin spinning its webs on branch ends.White and paper birch trees are targets for the bronze birch borer and a leaf miner. Many viburnum shrubs in the area are the dining room table for the viburnum leaf beetle. In addition to these common pests, there are a number of moths like the gypsy moth thatpops up every once in a while around here. We also see an occasional spring or fall cankerworm, commonly called inchworm.Entomologists tell us that insect damage is often secondary damage. Insects are adventitious creatures. They attack plants that are already weak. Most of the time, according to these experts, trees are weakened by diseases.Keeping track of the insects and diseases threatening your valuable trees and shrubs could be a full time job. In most cases, however, these pests are hard for the non- entomologist or plant pathologist to identify. This means that the average do-it-yourselfer may use the wrong treatment against a pest. All purpose sprays are not really all purpose. They may treat a wide range if insects, but they are not effective against all pests.Using all purpose insecticides and misuse of targeted insecticides is not good for the environment. It is how all insecticides get banned in various jurisdictions, such as Canada and on Long Island. An IPM (integrated pest management), or PHC (plant health care), program takes the burden of identifying and deciding on treatment options from your shoulders and puts it on an entomologist or PHC professional’s shoulder.A PHC professional monitors pest activity in your yard so that the most effective treatment, or preventive, can be applied at the optimum time in the pest’s life cycle. The results are also monitored to be sure you have control. I certainly am happy that agriculture researchers developed this process, and that we have been able to adapt it.
While we haven’t had much snow again this winter, I want to forewarn you of a post snowstorm practice that is unsafe for you and your trees. I’m talking about knocking snow off the evergreen trees and shrubs in your yard.As I drive around after snowstorms, and see people doing this, I’m always tempted to get out of my truck and warn them that this practice is not a good one. Instead, I’ll use this forum to sound the warning.Some people use their hands to shake branches. Others sweep the snow off with brooms. The real scary practice is whacking the branches with a snow shovel.Nature built evergreen trees (technically conifers) to carry heavy snow loads. Their soft wood is much more resilient than hardwoods. That’s why hardwoods lose their leaves in winter – to lighten the weight on their branches and discourage snow from sticking.Notice the shape of your evergreens. They are cone shaped. While snow build up may cause the branches to droop more than they normally do, they will spring right back when the snow melts and the added weight is removed. As it melts, the snow slides off the branches naturally, just as it does in the woods.If you try to help evergreens shed snow faster, branches are apt to break when they snap back into place, rather than returning to their natural shape gradually. Also, your shaking, sweeping and beating action can cause an avalanche of snow to fall on you.Removing ice can also cause injury to you, as well as damage to the tree. Ice falling from the upper branches can injure you as you stand under the branches. The stress to branches from removing ice can also cause them to crack internally. This is called radial cracking, and was quite widespread in Rochester after the 1991 ice storm. When you look at a branch cross section, it will look like a sliced pie. Cracks radiate out from the center but never reach the edge or the bark.The next time you feel sorry for that poor, snow-covered evergreen in your yard, remember how nature designed it. Watch the snow gradually melt and slide from its branches and the branches return to their natural positions. It can actually be relaxing.
Each month, a magazine published by the Tree Care Industry Association, reports onsome of the tree-related accidents reported in the media. Any accident is one too many.However, those involving property owners pruning their own trees are 100 percentpreventable.Last month’s issue reported on 15 accidents. Seven tree workers were killed and twoinjured. Five non-tree workers were also killed and one injured.It is bad enough when trained, professional arborists get hurt or killed in work relatedinjuries. It is even worse when property owners end up in this column. Arboriculture isone of the most dangerous professions in the world. One of the reasons that tree pruningand removal is costly is that legitimate tree care companies have to pay a tremendousamount each year for insurance to cover their workers.Even with this information in mind, property owners go out and try to prune, or evenremove, their own trees without the proper training, tools, protective equipment, orinsurance coverage should an accident happen.Have you ever thought that standing on a ladder to prune a tree can result in a branchknocking you off the ladder and falling on top of you? Many of the accident in TCI’saccident column occur when property owners climb ladders to prune their trees. Othercommon causes for both professionals and property owners include falling out of atree for whatever reason, chainsaw cuts, branches falling in an unexpected directionand hitting the person or falling and hitting someone on the ground, and touching anenergized electric wire. Electric wires are not insulated. That black covering on them is toprotect them from the elements.When you realize all the dangers that can beset you if you try to save a buck and do yourown pruning, the cost of professional tree service looks better and better.
