January 2011, Happy New Year!

Now that the holidays are over we tend to wait out the winter and plan for the day when we can get out and work in the garden and beds.  We begin pulling weeds which always seem to grow, check our mulch layer and calculate how much we need to bring in, what we are going to save, what will we replace... and did that tree or shrub make it?

Winter always plays havoc on trees and shrubs, especially in the Northwest.  I grew up in the Midwest, where we do get -60*F windchills on occassion.  Temps in the minus teens and 20's are common.  That's why they grow what is adapted for the environment, and what will go dormant.

In the Northwest we are a little more bolder with what we plant.  We push the envelope, adding a plant from a different hardiness zone because we've seen it and want to try it.  I don't think our plants really enter a dormancy period.  I have mowed the lawn during each month of the year!  I think they enter a period of laziness and do nothing.

But then there is our weather.  This past year Sprang early, the rains came every month and no one grew a decent tomato!  In fact, what plants should have shut down coasted right up to and through our first frosts.  Then we had a little snow, some ice and some cold temperatures.  And still I saw green leaves on willows and birches until December 15th.  I even pushed a new variety of pond plants, knowing better, and still they survived until the week before Christmas.  And I'm at 500 feet!

Remember the winter of 2008/9?  We got cold and had strong winds which dried out evergreen tissue and burned a lot of trees and shrubs.  How about the snow in 2009?  We saw a lot of limb breakage and tree failure.  Or 1996?  A lot of people experienced trees which died of root rot due to all the rain and standing water.

So did your plants make it then?  Will they make it now? 

Lets discuss how to tell if they did and what to do in the future to help them survive.

Extended cold periods, quick freezes, dry winds associated with freezing temperatures, too much moisture and standing water can be damaging and deadly.  Succulant or tender tissue can freeze and split, preventing nutrient and water uptake.  Buds are delicate tissues and can die in cold temperatures.  When flowers and leaves are breaking out they are extremely vulnerable to temperatures.

Did it make it?  Now when these events happen there is not always an immediate change in appearance.  It may take days, weeks or months.  So, hurry up and wait for the spring flush and watch the plant.  See if some of the branches are pushing buds.  Compare the bark color of one branch to another.  Compare the suspicious plant to another in your yard or in the neighborhood.  Then, when it looks like there may be dead branches or an entire plant, do a scrape test. 

To do this, scrape the bark with your fingernail or knife.  Live tissue will appear green, light green or white (a few plants may have different color tissue so you need to know this first).  Dead tissue is brown, black, possibly mushy or even bone white and dry as kindling.  Now move down the branch, checking previous years growth and keep doing so until you find live tissue - hopefully. 

Now what?  A damaged plant does not always mean it's a total loss.  With some help it can recover although it can take some work.  But so does removal and replanting.  So the choice is yours; save it or time for a change.

Lets save it!

* Prune out any dead wood down to the next live bud, stem or trunk.  Don't leave dead stubs.  Live wood heals and looks better.

* Remove any leaf litter and debris after doing this to avoid secondary damage from insects or disease.

* If the plant has not been mulched, do it now.  Mulch helps retain soil moisture, reduces compaction and protects the roots and  shoots from temperature extremes.

* Nurse your plants back to health with a regime of compost tea or organic fertilizers, services which Northwest Tree Specialists provide.  Don't over do it with heavy and high doses.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

* Start by planting a hardy plant.  Species like Eucalyptus, Jasmine, Viburnum or Daphne have been introduced to our area and are not adapted to the cold temperatures we can experience.  Depending on where you live in the Portland metro area, most of us are in the 8a or 8b plant hardiness zone.  The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map shows the average annual minimum temperature in North America.  This places us in the 10-20* F range.

* Plant in the correct spot.  Sure, a flowering dogwood looks great in the middle of the front yard, but did you know it's shade tolerant?  It's an understory tree, and although the flowers look great in the spring, those brown leaves in the summer are burnt from the sun and lack of watering.  Sometimes this is misdiagnosed as the disease antracnose and people pay to have it sprayed.  Do your homework before you plant by looking up plants on the internet, asking a reputable nursery or hire a landscape designer.  The efforts will save you a lot of time, headaches and money.

* Keep your plants healthy going in to the winter and summer months.  Use compost tea or organic fertilizers at the right times and use the correct amounts. Not sure what to use?  Don't have the time?  Call us for help.

* Rake up debris in the fall and spring and have Northwest Tree Specialists do your dormant treatments.

* Call us to do your pruning and removals to protect your property from damage.  By the way, did you prune your roses to waist height by Thanksgiving and knee high by Valentine's Day?  You'll get better growth and help reduce disease and insect issues if you were to wait until spring.

* Protect your trees and shrubs.  I recently read a popular NW magazine telling it's readers to paint the trunk of your thin barked trees with white latex paint!  Sure, this is an old method and the paint is flexable and with fade away - eventually.  But who wants to look at it?  If you've experienced bark crack issues before and you want to try something I suggest trying something temporary.  Most nurseries sell tree wrap or plastic covers to protect against rabits and deer.  These usually offer just enough protection.  I've tried using pipe insulation foam (the brown or black stuff with a seam already cut in to it) with success.  Regardless of what you use, put it on a few days before the cold event and take it off once the threat is past.  By no means forget about it until next summer.  This may cause girdling, improper growth or pest issues.

* Wet snow is not good for evergreens and ice is not good for anything.  For ice I recommend praying.  Don't try and de-ice with solutions, warm water or heaters.  You will cause more harm than good.  Never break it off with a broom.  You will damage tissue.  As for snow I recommend using a long handled broom and gently tap or push snow off your small trees and shrubs, ONLY if you can safely do so.  Arborvitae, Alberta spruce and Rhododendrons are some species which are often damaged during heavy snows.  One hint with Arbs; when they bend out of the hedge, just push them back and tuck them in.

* Don't forget to water.  Young plants need water to get established.  Older, established plants also need water.  Keeping them watered once the rains end in early summer will keep them healthier.  So many people think because we get 60 inches a year they can forget the summer time.  Wrong.  Remember the dogwood mentioned above?  To avoid leaf scorch simply pour 5 gallons of water around the root zone once a week, twice if it's over 90*.  Have a tree in the middle of the lawn?  Don't rely on your lawn irrigation system.  Grass consumes most of the nutrients and moisture.  Remove the grass out to the drip line, mulch and dedicate a sprinkler, soaker hose or drip system to that tree.  All plants need water, so again, do your homework and determine just how much.

* February thaw time is a great time to get out in the yard to get some work done, take inventory and plan.

Our Plant Health Care department loves to help its customers solve problems and make recommendations.  We do not charge for our consultations.  Send us an e mail with a question or to set an appointment.  We'll be glad to help!

phc@nwtreespecialists.com

Happy 2011!

Summer is here!  Don't forget about your trees

With kids home for the summer, vacations and family BBQ's, often times we put our trees on the back burner.

Most people spend a lot of time (and money) in the spring planning on what to prune, plant and mulch.  The garden is tilled and and the flowers planted.  The grass is mowed, the irrigation system flushed and readied.  Most people look forward to this time outside after a Northwest winter.  Come fall, we repeat the process to prep our landscapes for the upcoming months.

During the summer a lot of people concentrate on the small things; flowers, grass and vegetables.  What about the bigger things like our trees?

There are many concerns over the summer that can effect your trees imediately or months down the road.  These include:

Water (drought stress)

Heat

Pests

Construction damage

Let's talk about watering first.

A mature tree, in ideal conditions, can take up to 50-250 gallons of water a day, depending on the species of tree.

So, that 30 inches of rain we got over the winter, it's gone.

A simple way to check your tree, before you see it wilting and dropping leaves, is to carefully dig down 6-12 inches and look for cool, damp ground.  Better yet, invest in a soil probe and take a core sample which should not come out bone dry.

Now, we're not advocating running up your water bill pouring 50 gallons of water a day on it.  That would create over saturated ground and cause your roots to rot.  Trees take up moisture through the air as well as the soil, and what the extracted from the soil is sometimes hard to see or difficult to imagine.  Your best bet is to use a soaker hose, placed around the tree half way between the trunk and the outer canopy, and run it for 2 hours every other day on trees less than 12 inches in diameter, 4 hours for larger trees.  If we get a heat wave over 90 degrees you may want to do this every day.  There are even drip irrigation emitters specifically designed for trees, just ask your local nursery or dealer on which ones to use. Also, if you do not have mulch or bark dust down, do it this fall or next spring.  This helps retain soil moisture and lessens ground compaction from winter rains.

If your tree is drought stressed give us a call for a free diagnosis.  We offer a deep root feeding solution to help them recover.

Heat and drought stress generally go hand in hand.

But, just like you and I, heat affects other things as well.  Sun scorch (burn) on leaves and sun scald (blistering) on the bark can not only occur on a poorly watered tree but one which is planted in the wrong location. 

For example, most people plant native dogwoods in the open so they can see the beautiful spring flowers. These trees are actually shade tollerant; they do well in the shade of other trees but not so well out in the open, direct light.  If the tree is not well taken care of the leaves can get sunburnt and drop off.

Watch shearing small trees and shrubs before a predicted heat wave.  Barberry is one such shrub that is often sheared this time of year.  Cutting back and opening up the "canopy", the top of any tree or shrub, now exposes protected foliage and bark which can burn or blister.  It's good to water a little bit more than normal before doing any kind of pruning activity.  It's best to call us to schedule and do your work during the appropraie time of year.

Again, if you have a stressed tree or shrub give us a call.  We can nurse them back to health wit our deep root feeding program.

Pests, insects and diseases that feed on your trees, should not be forgotten in the summer. 

Disease issues usually are not a huge factor with the exception of powdery mildew.  Once you have it you are stuck with it.  Over-the-counter fungicides work at supressing the spread but that's it.  It's best to be proactive and prevent this and other diseases in spring before it takes hold. Often times we are called to respond to disease issues too late.  When that happens we can't deal with the problem but we can improve the tree health through deep root feeding and develop a plan for the next season to treat with organic or environmentally friendly products to prevent disease problems.

Summer time is insect time.  Some are beneficial, some are not. Those that are not include aphids, root weevil, bronze birch borer, lace bug, spider mites, wooly aphid, leaf miners and catepillars.  Treating for insects should be based on 2 things: the tollerance level of the tree and the tollerance level of the owner of that tree. 

If a tree is being devestated and its health is in jeopardy, then it needs treatment.

If its an aesthetic thing then treatment is your call.  For example, aphids on a tulip tree can create a big mess on anything below.  An aphid feeds by sucking the sap out of the leaves.  As it feeds it exudes its excremete as a clear, sticky substance known as honey dew (its clear as the morning dew and sticky like honey).  Sometimes, the honey dew will turn black or gray after a while.  This is a mold known as sooty mold and can be rather unattractive.  Most people don't appreciate honey dew dripping on their cars, decks and patios, so they want a treatment.  Now if this tree is in the middle of the back yard and not hurting anything then you have the option of not to treat and hope the benificial insects, like lady beetles, do their job.

Whatever your problem or need, we have a safe solution for treatments.  We do not spray the entire tree but use newer technology to get the treatment into the bark or root system, and most of our treatments will last an entire season.  Call us and we will have a sales person stop by for a free diagnoses and explanation of our program.

Last of all, construction damage.

 Whether you are adding on to your house, putting in an irrigation line, re-building the driveway or the city is doing road work, watch out for your trees, above and below ground.

Never pile soil around the base of your tree for any period of time.  Doing so suffocates the roots.  In fact, keep all heavy equipment and materials from being parked or stacked under the trees canopy. 

Watch cutting roots and avoid doing so if necessary.  Cutting too many roots or cutting very large roots can cause tree damage.  Remember, the roots are a tree's life line.

After your project is complete, monitor the tree for problems.  Look for wilting, leaves truning color before other ones, dying branches, etc.  Keep monitoring all the way through the fall.  Sometimes problems don't arise immediately.  Sometimes it can take years.

If you see any issues call us immediately for a free diagnosis and solution.  We offer mychorrizae treaments as well as benefical fungi and bacteria treaments to help trees recover from contruction work.

Healthy Roots = Healthy Trees