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A monthly compendium of gardening tips
and tricks for the care and enjoyment
of your trees and shrubs.
SELECT YOUR MONTH: 
(2006)
2006:
 January:· How does your yard look? Does it have winter interest? Have you selected plants that not only look beautiful in the summer, but have winter interest also? Have you selected plants that provide seed and long lasting berries for wildlife? Providing a natural food source is the preferred way by naturalists, and wildlife experts to feed winter birds and animals. This also reduces the attraction of bears, deer, raccoons and other wildlife to your feeders.
· Little surpasses the joy of eating fruit from your own garden; however, growing those fruit is often a horticultural challenge. This year's Mass Aggie Seminars ("Growing Fruit in the Home Garden" -- February 10 - April 28, 2007) will help overcome the challenges with growing fruit at home. They present programs on basic and advance apples and stone fruit (peaches, plums, and cherries), on blueberries and raspberries, on grapes, on identifying and controlling fruit pests, and even on grafting apples. Many of these Saturday sessions (such as pruning, grafting, and identifying pests) are hands on and should be both educational and fun. All sessions will be on Saturdays, and locations include Brooksby Farm in Peabody, Tougas Family Farm in Northborough, and UMass Cold Spring Orchard in
Belchertown.
· Recycle your Christmas tree. Cut up into smaller pieces the limbs make a great mulch covering, however if you did cover it with those shiny plastic “icicle strands” those should be removed, easily if you can “tap” your tree upside down so they fall off. The larger trunk can be cut into shorter pieces, and if you place them near a heat source so they can dry, (not too close to burn!) they will continue to provide that “Christmas tree smell” well into the New Year.
· If you burn wood for the winter, save the ash and spread on your lawns and gardens as an excellent source of potash, and nutrients, even the “charcoal” will help hold moisture. Make sure you never burn any type of painted or pressure treated wood, if in doubt, don’t!
· If you don’t have a good landscape plan drawing of your yard, now may be a good time to start that sketch. Having this sketch when you go to the nursery yard will help their staff review your needs and offer the best plants for your yard.
· If you are REALLY into gardening them you should check out: “New England Grows!” the largest North East conference and trade show of the “green” industry, Held in Boston on February 6 -8, 2007. Website: http://www.negrows.org/
February:
· How does your yard look? Does it have winter interest? Have you selected plants that not only look beautiful in the summer, but have winter interest too? Have you selected plants that provide seed and long lasting berries for wildlife? Providing a natural food source is the preferred way by naturalists, and wildlife experts to feed winter birds and animals. This also reduces the attraction of bears, deer, raccoons and other wildlife to your feeders.
· Little surpasses the joy of eating fruit from your own garden; however, growing these fruits is often a horticultural challenge. This year's Mass Aggie Seminars ("Growing Fruit in the Home Garden" -- February 10 - April 28, 2007) will help overcome the challenges with growing fruit at home. They present programs on basic and advance apples and stone fruit (peaches, plums, and cherries), on blueberries and raspberries, on grapes, on identifying and controlling fruit pests, and even on grafting apples. Many of these Saturday sessions (such as pruning, grafting, and identifying pests) are hands on and should be both educational and fun. All sessions will be on Saturdays, and locations include Brooksby Farm in Peabody, Tougas Family Farm in Northborough, and UMass Cold Spring Orchard in
Belchertown. For a copy of the schedule, go to www.massaggieseminars.org or call the UMass Extension Fruit Program at (413) 545-2254.
· If you burn wood for the winter, save the ash and spread on your lawns and gardens as an excellent source of potash, and nutrients, even the “charcoal” will help hold moisture. Make sure you never burn any type of painted or pressure treated wood, if in doubt, don’t!
· If you don’t have a good landscape plan drawing of your yard, now may be a good time to start that sketch. Having this sketch when you go to the nursery yard will help their staff review your needs and offer the best plants for your yard.
· If you are REALLY into gardening them you should check out: “New England Grows!” the largest North East conference and trade show of the “green” industry, held in Boston on February 6 -8, 2007. Website: http://www.negrows.org/
March:
· Now is the time to look for the Hemlock Woolley Adelgid (HWA) on your Hemlock trees. This insect is tiny, but its presence is very conspicuous as a white cottony sack on the underside of the Hemlock needle. HWA is somewhat controlled by cold winters, and some natural control may have occurred this winter but the population is growing. The HWA can kill hemlock trees within a 1 to 2 year period if left uncontrolled. An application of Dormant oil in mid April to May is an effective control, for more information visit: http://www.hort.uconn.edu/Ipm/homegrnd/htms/46wooly.htm
· Now that the winter snows may start receding, leave any winter mulch on your beds until the warmer sun of April. Rake up and remove any leaves that may have blown into and matted down on lawns, and flower beds. Otherwise stay off of lawns and flower beds during the “mud season” Any damage done now to the roots of plants will have a detrimental effect as they start to grow in April – May.
· If you didn’t have your lawnmower or garden tractor serviced last fall, now would be a good time to get that done.
· The 2007 Cary Award winners have been selected; you can visit the winners at: http://www.caryaward.org/newwinners.html . The Cary Award, administered by Tower Hill Botanical Garden and the Worcester Horticultural Society, are plants that are chosen for their hardiness, uniqueness, and ability to extend the New England growing season. Keep these plants in mind when visiting your local gardening center or nursery as you landscape your yard.
· Now is the time to survey your yard for winter storm damage to trees and shrubs. Removing broken, cracked limbs can be easier accessed while the ground is still frozen, than later in the spring. If you can’t safely reach it from the ground, consider contacting a Certified Arborist to do the job.
April:
Sturbridge will be presented with its 18th consecutive Tree City USA Designation and its 10th growth award from the National Arbor Day Foundation in an award ceremony on April 12th.
· Be caucus of our 5th season, Mud Season; don’t be too anxious to get out on the lawns and in your garden until the soil has a chance to dry out. Damage to fine roots and soil compaction will occur
· April is Arbor Day in Massachusetts, usually celebrated on the last Friday in April. This year in Sturbridge there will be several events held. A tree planting and dedication of the Rotary centennial park at the corner of Cedar St and US Rt 20. and a tree planting and Arbor Day program at Burgess Elementary School at 1 PM, both of Friday April 27th. Also all students at Burgess will receive a tree seedling to plant. Details will be listed on the Town Website shortly. If your community does not celebrate Arbor Day contact your community’s tree warden and find out why, but more importantly, offer to help and get involved!
· Speaking of Arbor Day, Planting the right tree in the right place is the golden rule! Take time to learn about the various tree species and their growth requirements then match your planting site to the needs of the tree before you plant it in your yard.
· Once your yard has dried up and all frost is gone, now is the time to vigorously rake your lawn and apply lime, preferably a dolominic type. You can also overseed those areas where needed.
· Rake out the mulched beds also. Breaking up and loosening the mulch will help make the mulch do its job better, and remember, do not over mulch! 3-4 inches of mulch is proper, more than that will encourage fungi and mold to develop and harm your plantings. And finally NO MULCH VOLCANOS! Mounding mulch around the woody stem plants will cause fungi damage and eventual death. Mulch volcanoes also provide an excellent place for mice and rodents to live, and as a food source, will eat off the bark of woody stem plants causing further damage.
July:
· Early fall? Due to the wet months of May and June, a fungus attack on newly opening tree buds has now left its mark with an early leaf drop. Mostly Oaks, Birch, and Maple although any deciduous tree is susceptible. Brown leaves, curled edges, black spots, and a broken leaf stems are all signs to look for on those leaves. Solution? Rake and dispose of the leaves to control future outbreaks, and if we continue to have average rainfall, trees will survive this attack of the fungus. You will just have fewer leaves to rake in the fall!
· Beetle alert: Here they come!!! Japanese beetle adults have been observed in high numbers. I have seen adults of two species of our problematic species (Japanese beetles, and Asiatic garden beetles) active over the past two weeks. It is safe to assume that beetles are beginning to lay eggs in many areas of southern New England. Hand picking for removal is a very safe option, check the under surface of leaves for egg nests, or now would be a good time to schedule an application of a product containing imidacloprid (Merit™ and other trade names, and Allectus™, which contains Merit™ and Talstar™). In addition, chlothianidin (Arena™) is a new product that appears to be very active against white grubs. These should be applied by the end of July to be effective, and make sure you
water them in good!
· Want sweeter blueberries? Leave the berries on the bush for up to a week AFTER they have turned blue, they will be much sweeter!
· Lawns: Keep your mower blades sharp, and raise the deck to a height of 2.5” – 3” now to encourage good root growth depth. Water your lawn only once or no more than twice a week, deeply. Frequent (daily) light sprinklings do nothing for a good lawn (and trees too!)
· Speaking of watering, if you have recently planted new trees and shrubs, watering once a week deeply (slowly, 15-20 gals) is a great way to keep your plants green and growing. Water only during the early morning, or evening (till 9 am, or after 6 PM,) for best results. Use a drip hose or slow running nozzle. Do not wet the foliage (this will encourage fungal attacks, see above)
August:
· Are Brown Leaves falling off your Maple, oak, crabapples, or dogwoods? Black spots, brown curling leaf edges are the symptoms of various fungi that attacked your trees during the past wet spring. Now it’s too late for control except for raking up the leaves and disposing them. Do not place them in your compost pile, as the disease will over winter, instead bury them. Note which trees were especially susceptible to these fungi, you may want to consider a fungicide application on them next spring.
· Brown needles on evergreen trees such as spruce, hemlock, arborvitae and juniper may be s sign of spider mites. It’s easy to check, tap a sample branch on a sheet of white paper. If mites are present, tiny dots can be seen moving across the paper. A safe control with a force-full spray of water from a garden hose, repeated regularly will dislodge enough of the mites to prevent significant damage to your trees.
· August is also the time we start seeing the fall web worm building their nests out on the ends of tree and shrub branches ( the spring web worm usually nests in the crotches of trees). Although unsightly, they are not really hurting the tree through defoliation as the growing season is now starting to end. If you really must, remove by hand or prune out just what is nest. Do not try to burn out the nest as this will also burn the bark of the tree, resulting in death to that area of the tree.
· Check your landscape for wasp and hornet activity before your start pruning or shearing trees and shrubs. Wasps and hornets start becoming really aggressive this time of year.
· The heat of July, and the dryness so far of this August are stressing lawns, if you haven’t already, raise the mowing height of your lawn mower to 2.5” – 3”. Mowing at this height will also discourage weeds from growing.
· Got some room in your garden? Now is the time to plant fall harvest crops like cauliflower, brussel sprouts, spinach, Swiss chard, kale and lettuce.
October:
· A reminder that the fall web worm is building their nests out on the ends of tree and shrub branches (the spring web worm usually nests in the crotches of trees). Although unsightly, they are not really hurting the tree through defoliation as the growing season is now starting to end. If you really must, remove by hand or prune out just what is nest. Do not try to burn out the nest as this will also burn the bark of the tree, resulting in death to that area of the tree.
·Also as a reminder, the early brown leaf drop we are experiencing is from various tree fungi that attacked our trees with the wet spring and early summer. Note which trees in your yard were affected and consider calling a qualified arborist next spring to assess the need for fungicide control. This fall rake and remove the leaves from your yard to control next year’s inoculation.
· Mulch: Now is the time to look at the mulch around your trees and shrubs. Mulch should be raked to loosen to the top surface tension so fall rains can easily penetrate to the soil. Pull weeds and crab grass to remove next year’s seed supply. Mulch thickness should be no more than 4” and not piled against the stem of the tree or shrub, this “mulch volcano” damages the bark surface of your plants, allowing fungi to invade, weaken and eventually kill your plants.
· Woody stem shrubs and trees can be planted this month, the exception is evergreen plants. These plants rely on their roots to pull moisture out of the ground. Newly planted evergreen plants may not develop good root system to properly survive a hard cold winter.
· Conserve water (and money!) Turn off your automatic watering systems, with the shorter days and cooler temperatures lawns require less water.
· An application fall rated fertilizer (IE: the second # higher = 10-15-5) lawn fertilizer will help your lawn recover from the summer and generate new roots for a better lawn in the spring.
· Like tree tips? Consider ordering the 2007 UMass Garden Calendar. This year’s theme is Choosing the right plants. The UMass Garden Calendar offers daily gardening tips such as when to plant peas and how to manage grubs, beautiful color photos and lots of information. To order send $11.00 Payable to UMass, Outreach Bookstore, University of Massachusetts 101 University Drive – suiteA4, Amherst MA 010002-2385. For more information go to www.umassgardencalendar.org
November:
· By now we have probably had our first “hard” frost. This frost has killed off most leaves and annual plants, now is the time to rake and remove these plants and leaves from your garden if you have not already, healthy plants next spring start with removing old plants and vegetation this fall.
· Dead plants, mulched leaves and grass clippings make the start of a good compost pile!
· You should wait until there is an inch or two of frost in the ground before mulching roses and other tender plants for the winter. By holding off this mulch layer, mice and moles would have found other places to winter besides around your tender plants!
· Now also is the time to wrap up arborvitae plants and other small multi trunk plants to prevent snow and ice load from splitting them apart.
· If you haven’t put away your lawn mower yet, make one final cut of your lawn with a low setting, 1 ? - 2”. Mowing your lawn close for the winter will help reduce the chance of grass compaction and snow mold on your lawn.
· Keep watering newly planted trees and shrubs right up until the ground freezes. As long as soil temperatures are above 40º F roots will continue to grow, providing your plants a better start next spring.
· And finally, if you have mulch around your trees and shrubs now is the time to “fluff” it up by hard raking and turning over. This loosening of the mulch will break a surface tension that builds on compacted mulch, preventing rain from reaching the ground, and increases the air spaces, providing a better insulation for your plants during the winter. Remember, NEVER pile mulch around the stems of trees (AKA Mulch Volcano). Mulch should be pulled back, 2-4” from the tree stem, exposing the root collar flair.
December:
· Thanks to an unusually warm and wet November, recently planted plants are off to a great start. However this wet ground may also cause freeze damage if it turns too cold too quickly. That’s why proper mulching is so important. 2-4 inches, turned twice a year (spring and fall) and kept away from stems and bark.
· Those who celebrate the Christmas Holiday may be thinking of decorating and then planting outside a live tree this year. The steps: 1: Pre dug around the roots now before the ground freezes, then cover the area with a straw or hay mulch to prevent ground freezing if purchasing from a Christmas tree dealer. If from a nursery all ready balled and burlaped, place the tree in a cool building like a garage or tool shed. 2: Pre dig a hole where you want to plant the tree after the Christmas season. This hole should be at least 2 x’s as wide as the root ball you have dug around the tree. Fill this hole with straw/hay and cover with a tarp. Also cover well or store indoors the soil you removed to prevent from freezing. 3: Bring in and decorate your tree for the shortest time possible and
try to keep the room temperature cool, too hot and dry of a room will possibly “re awaken” the tree into a false spring, then the shock of winter planting will do it some harm. Place the tree in a large tub and keep the root ball moist but not flooded wet. 4: As soon as possible after the holiday, plant the tree in its new outdoor site, remove burlap, plant tree no deeper than when it was previously planted, water in well and keep covered with 4-6 inches of mulch. You may also want to spray on a desiccant to slow down the evaporation of water from its needles. 5: this spring remove the hay mulch, check soil for depressions, re mulch with wood or Bark mulch and keep well watered for this growing season, Enjoy!
· Winter is the time to service your garden tools, clean all soil and debris from steel blades of shoves and tools, then apply a light coat of WD-40. Sharpen cutting tools and apply WD-40. Wooden handles may need a light sanding if you left them out in the weather too much then apply a coat of outdoor wood sealer.
· Remember to mulch in roses after the ground has frozen to a depth of two inches, this will protect your plants and keep away mice and moles.
· Sit back and relax, Garden catalogs are just around the corner in January!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.
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