valley crest newsletter spring 2012

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THE LANDSCAPE REPORTER SPRING 2012 TREE TALK with Steve Devoe, ValleyCrest Tree Care Manager MA & ISA Certified Arborist Proper and proactive care is crucial for your tree’s long-term health and beauty. Below are a few benefits of pruning the trees on your property. SAFETY: Pruning dead branches helps to eliminate the potential hazard of falling limbs to people and property. Trimming branches that may obscure or interfere with street lights, traffic signals, and overhead wires help to eliminate visibility issues. Raising the canopy of trees over walkways, lawns and parking areas help eliminate potential injury to pedestrians and vehicles. AESTHETICS: For most landscapes, a plant’s natural form is best. Avoid pruning or shearing shrubs into tight geometrical shapes that may adversely affect their growth. Change the natural form of a tree or shrub only if it needs to be confined or trained for a specific purpose. HEALTH: Pruning trees encourages development of a strong structure and reduces the likelihood of weather damage. By removing interior branches and sucker growth that could develop into interfering, crossing and or rubbing branches opens up the interior of the tree which helps allow sunlight into the canopy of the tree allowing wind to pass through helping to dry out the tree to prevent fungus disease. Additionally the nutrients that the unwanted branches are using will now be available to the rest of the tree. DID YOU KNOW? THE EFFECTS OF A WARM WINTER ON YOUR LANDSCAPE This season, you may notice some “out of the ordinary” occurrences concerning spring flowering trees, shrubs, perennials and bulbs, as a result of this mild winter. All of these plants are very resilient and adaptable; however, you may observe a few differences in your landscape this spring as compared to last. During years that New England experiences a mild winter, spring flowering bulbs may emerge early. This year, we are seeing bulbs which are planted in sunny locations, start to pop as early as February due to soil temperatures that have remained warm. Often when bulbs emerge too soon, the chance of a late frost may occur and damage the exposed tips. This can result in a stunted flower, smaller plant size and/or discolored foliage. This also pertains to early flowering trees and shrubs such as Magnolias and flowering Dogwoods. In some cases, the flower may be “burnt” around the edges or it may not flower as profusely. The lack of snow this winter is also a concern. Typically, snow blankets the ground and provides insulation and moisture to the soil and roots beneath. The lack of moisture and freezing temperatures may cause damage to the roots of your plants, and as a result they may suffer. fun fact: One acre of trees removes up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide each year and shade trees can make buildings up to 20 degrees cooler in the summer. Magnolia blossom damage by late frost.

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Page 1: Valley Crest Newsletter Spring 2012

THE LANDSCAPEREPORTER

SPRING 2012

TREE TALKwith Steve Devoe, ValleyCrest Tree Care ManagerMA & ISA Certified Arborist

Proper and proactive care is crucial for your tree’s long-term health and beauty. Below are a few benefits of pruning the trees on your property.

SAFETY: Pruning dead branches helps to eliminate the potential hazard of falling limbs to people and property. Trimming branches that may obscure or interfere with street lights, traffic signals, and overhead wires help to eliminate visibility issues. Raising the canopy of trees over walkways, lawns and parking areas help eliminate potential injury to pedestrians and vehicles.

AESTHETICS: For most landscapes, a plant’s natural form is best. Avoid pruning or shearing shrubs into tight geometrical shapes that may adversely affect their growth. Change the natural form of a tree or shrub only if it needs to be confined or trained for a specific purpose.

HEALTH: Pruning trees encourages development of a strong structure and reduces the likelihood of weather damage. By removing interior branches and sucker growth that could develop into interfering, crossing and or rubbing branches opens up the interior of the tree which helps allow sunlight into the canopy of the tree allowing wind to pass through helping to dry out the tree to prevent fungus disease. Additionally the nutrients that the unwanted branches are using will now be available to the rest of the tree.

DID YOU KNOW? THE EFFECTS OF A WARM WINTER ON YOUR LANDSCAPE This season, you may notice some “out of the ordinary” occurrences concerning spring flowering trees, shrubs, perennials and bulbs, as a result of this mild winter. All of these plants are very resilient and adaptable; however, you may observe a few differences in your landscape this spring as compared to last.

During years that New England experiences a mild winter, spring flowering bulbs may emerge early. This year, we are seeing bulbs which are planted in sunny locations, start to pop as early as February due to soil temperatures that have remained warm.

Often when bulbs emerge too soon, the chance of a late frost may occur and damage the

exposed tips. This can result in a stunted flower, smaller plant size and/or discolored foliage. This also pertains to early flowering trees and shrubs such as Magnolias and flowering Dogwoods. In some cases, the flower may be “burnt” around the edges or it may not flower as profusely.

The lack of snow this winter is also a concern. Typically, snow blankets the ground and provides insulation and moisture to the soil and roots beneath. The lack of moisture and freezing temperatures may cause damage to the roots of your plants, and as a result they may suffer.

fun fact:One acre of trees removes

up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide each year and shade

trees can make buildings up to 20 degrees cooler

in the summer.

Magnolia blossom damage by late frost.

Page 2: Valley Crest Newsletter Spring 2012

PLANT CAREVALUE OF FERTILIZATION: It is easy to forget that shrubs, perennials

and annuals need to be fed regularly during

their growing season. If they were fertilized

only when initially planted, they would be

starving six weeks later. Plants response to low

nutrients is few flowers, weak growth and more

susceptibility to harmful insects and disease.

There are two ways to fertilize: If you water

your plants regularly, use a granular fertilizer

like 10-10-10, applying one pint per 100

square feet of flower bed. If the plants are not

watered regularly, use a water soluble fertilizer

(MiracleGro, Peters, etc) and fertilize regularly

according to label directions.

Fertilizing shrubs (or trees) can take place two

or up to, three times each year. Remember that

fertilizing will not make up for other problems

such as soil that is constantly moist or dry,

compacted, overly acid or alkaline. Check the

planting site and correct any existing problems

first.

IRRIGATION TALKwith Brian Crowe, ValleyCrest Irrigation Account Manager

Properly treated annuals

Properly treated Hydrangea

Managing your irrigation system is more than just fixing your sprinklers. Today, water is money.

It makes good sense to ensure that your irrigation systems are working as efficiently as possible. The two easiest ways to do this is to first make sure your controller is programmed correctly to accom-modate the landscape needs and not set to over-water, and secondly that the heads are adjusted so they water the turf and shrub beds and are not over spraying pavement, walks or other non-landscape areas.

If you have seen a spike in your irrigation water bill or the charges seem unusually high, there are a number of cost saving solutions that include; low volume head and nozzle upgrades, installing drip irrigation where possible, installation of smart con-trollers and computer water management systems.A complete irrigation system audit is the best way to find out just how inefficient your system may be. A typical audit will map the entire system and identify all head types and water usage per head and per zone as well as overall water usage for the run time of each watering cycle. The audit can also summarize overall coverage and head distribution issues. The results of this type of audit can be used to manage your water costs as well as plan for pos-sible upgrades.

BARK MULCH….NOT JUST FOR AESTHETICS

While mulch enhances the look of your landscape it also serves as protection for the health and well-being of the plants that it surrounds. It reduces competition from grass and weeds in search of water and nutrients, resulting in improved growth of landscape plants while protecting tree and shrub roots from drying during extreme temperatures. Mulch also acts as a vapor barrier to prevent rapid evaporation of wa-ter from the soil, which is especially useful in areas prone to drought. Because mulching can improve water absorption and retention in the soil, irrigation water can be conserved and maintenance time can be reduced.

Page 3: Valley Crest Newsletter Spring 2012

The Landscape Reporter is published quarterly to help educate property managers on sustainable and horticulturally sound landscape practices.

Serving Massachusetts, Southern New Hampshire and Rhode Island from

5 locations: Belmont, Billerica, Boston, Foxboro and Lunenburg.

www.valleycrest.comwww.valleycresttakeson.com

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DID YOU KNOW? continued from page 1

Evergreen trees and shrubs are especially susceptible to “winter burn” during dry winters. The dry winds draw moisture away from the plants’ leaf or needle resulting in a curling leaf with brown edges. However, winter burn can easily be remediated by pruning away the damaged growth in the spring.

While it is impossible to predict exactly what effect the warmer winter will have on your landscape, it is likely that we’ll see fewer blooms on flowering trees and shrubs in the spring and some perennials may be less vigorous. Your ValleyCrest Account Manager will bring any issues discovered to your attention and suggest any necessary remedies.

Rhododendron damaged by winter burn.

TURF UPDATEKentucky bluegrass will be emerging from winter dormancy soon with warming temperatures, longer day length and predictable spring rainfall. To make your lawn look it’s very best apply a balanced nitrogen fertilizer to enhance spring turf color and promote overall plant development while at the same time limiting excessive top growth. This application should also consist of a preemergence crabgrass control as well as a postemergence control for existing broadleaf weeds. Snow mold disease incidence is likely to be below average this spring given the lack of winter moisture. Likewise, springtime grub activity should be limited due to low incidence last year.

Sustainable Landscapes | Tree Care |Turf & Ornamental Maintenance | Irrigation & Water Management | Landscape Enhancment | Seasonal Color | Snow & Ice Services | Sports Field Maintenance