Crabapple LandscapExperts

Leaves of Grass: Benefits of a Beautiful Green Lawn

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 12 Mar 2014 13:45:00 +0000

A green lawn is a valuable asset to any landscape, framing the architecture and providing a restful green oasis. Landscape plantings, including lawn areas around homes and workplaces, have a positive impact on inhabitants.

Healthy, maintained lawn areas create an inviting view for passers-by and provide a pleasing, natural backdrop for other landscape elements.

Even the uniform lawn surface provides a sense of coherence and harmony to the entire landscape scene. This peaceful setting contributes to a feeling of well being and can even decrease emotional tension.

Did you know? Restful green lawn areas can reduce:

+ noise levels

+ hot summer temperatures (evapo-transpiration of moisture through the leaves)

+ Carbon dioxide (while increasing Oxygen levels)

+ air conditioning costs

+ glare and light reflection

+ particulate pollution in the air

Of the two major categories of turf available in Georgia (warm season and cool season) Fescue lawns are a cool season grass that remains green all year. Crabapple LandscapExperts maintain a detailed calendar to ensure that its clients with Fescue lawns receive the best possible service precisely when needed. Best practices include an application of fertilizer in early Spring (February or March) that continues Fescue’s strong growth up to the hot days of summer.

When recommending Fescue, Crabapple LandscapExperts recommend improved turf-type Fescue varieties with finer blades and deeper, more vigorous root systems. As a rule, they are more disease and drought resistant, tolerating shade and temperature extremes better than some of the older Fescue varieties.

Fertilizer is carefully selected to best enhance foliar growth, creating a strong, lush, green Fescue lawn. Your LandscapExperts determine the amount of fertilizer by careful soil testing. When indicated, lime is added on a late-summer schedule to balance the acid/basic soil reaction and make sure the Fescue turf efficiently uses recommended fertilizer.

Check with the LandscapExperts to determine if your Fescue lawn needs aeration or overseeding services to reach its maximum potential.

Reference: http://www.sustland.umn.edu/maint/benefits.htm

Repairing Ice Damage on Trees and Shrubs

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 16:00:00 +0000

UGA Urban Ag photo

Ice damaged, split or bent trees and shrubs often can be saved. Both Patience and Training are required.

First, wait until the ice melts and the branches begin to recover by themselves before evaluating the damage. Do not waltz outside with a chainsaw because safety is a big issue, and limbs under tension may snap back. Smaller branches can sometimes be cleaned up with loppers.

Ask your Crabapple LandscapEXPERTS Rep for an evaluation to see how we can help the landscape you manage.

1. If the ice load has yanked the root ball out of the ground and toppled the tree we will:

trim roots
excavate hole
rock back in place
use three equally placed stakes to secure it upright
water as though it was a new planting

Ice coating twig,
photo by Liz Castro

2. If the tree or shrub has suffered broken limbs or splitting we will:

decide if it must be taken out entirely (think, "fire wood")
consider the shape of the tree or shrub AFTER pruning before making the first cut
clean wounds by cutting smoothly back to the trunk
don't expect "wound paint" which research has shown does not aid healing

Digging Deeper:

University of Georgia Advice on Ice Damage

UGA Urban Ag Advice on Ice Damaged Trees

Moss Lawns, No-Mow Alternative Landscape Surface for Dense Shade

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 05 Feb 2014 14:00:00 +0000

The Moss Garden, Bloedel Reserve,
Washington State, USA

America is the land of the lawn, and typically our clients ask Crabapple LandscapExperts to remove moss from their lawns.

But moss also can be used as a bona fide landscape surface. According to the New York Times, “moss makes a lush, no care lawn” and the use of native and drought-resistant plants like moss as a sustainable substitute for grass is becoming a major design trend.

CrabappleLandscapExperts know that Moss Lawns have only two requirements: shade and moisture. They are not a new concept, but have been used in Asia for more than 4,000 years.

Termed a “lower plant,” moss is a Bryophyte lacking true roots, flowers, fruits or seeds. The small plants are composed of leaves and stems that absorb water and nutrients directly and that reproduce by spores. Two types of widely adapted spreading mosses, sheet moss (Hypnum sp.) and fern moss (Thuidium delicatulum), are used to get moss lawns started, and then many native mosses fill in naturally.

Many Benefits of Moss Lawns

native
fast grower
grows in shade and dense shade
grows on poor and compacted soils (as well as on good soils and even rock)
grows on acid, neutral or alkaline soils
organic, no chemicals needed
maintains a low-growing profile
prefers even moisture
goes dormant during drought, but revives with the return of water
lends even new gardens an aged look
prevents soil erosion
acts as a moisture-retentive mulch
when dense, repels weeds
combines beautifully with shade wildflowers and perennials
unpalatable to deer
walkable surface
does not need fertilizer
needs much less water than standard turf
needs very little maintenance

Moss Lawn

Interesting in exploring options for deep shade? Ask Eric High, Crabapple Enhancements Estimator, about converting to a moss lawn on a property you manage at 770-740-9739.

Digging Deeper

Read Steve Bender’s August 2012 article in Southern Living Magazine on Moss Lawns:

http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/gardens/planting-a-moss-lawn-00417000079162/

Sheet moss (Hypnum sp.) and Fern moss (Thuidium delicatulum) are available by mail order from mossandstonegardens.com in Raleigh/Durham NC and tripplebrookfarm.com in Massachusetts.

New York Times article headlined “Moss Makes a Lush, No Care Lawn.” http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/garden/01moss.html?em&ex=1209873600&en=8c1469804769db4a&ei=5087%0A

and another Lawn Alternative: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/21227186

Getting Rid of Moss in Lawns

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 29 Jan 2014 14:00:00 +0000

photo by Brian Cross

Crabapple LandscapExperts lawn care services create a thick, healthy lawn for their commercial clients, with no room for moss to grow. However, homeowners sometimes ask about getting rid of moss in their home lawns.

First, What is Moss?

Mosses are in the Bryophyte group and are small, non-vascular, branching, photosynthetic green plants with shallow roots.

What Causes the Growth of Moss in Turf?

CrabappleLandscapExperts can determine the causes of moss in your lawn. The following chart shows the causes of moss as well as ways to eliminate moss through cultural controls.

CAUSES OF MOSS GROWTH	CRABAPPLE CULTURAL CONTROLS
Dense Shade	Limb up or remove trees to allow more sunlight
Decreased Air Circulation	Evaluate placement of woody ornamentals
Compacted Soils	Till or aerate soil
Infertile Soils	Add compost
Acidic Soils with Low pH	Treat with dolomitic lime
Wrong choice of turf (bare spots)	Select the proper shade-tolerant variety of lawn
Excess Moisture	Add drainage
Shallow roots	Rake out moss with a landscape rake
Drainage Problems	Mix Permatill or small gravel with the soil or add drainage tiles, drainage ditch or dry creek bed
Excessive Thatch	Dethatch the area and remove the thatch

Crabapple LandscapExperts will be happy to consult on your commercial landscape. Please phone us at 770-740-9739.

Digging Deeper

UGA Bulletin http://www.caes.uga.edu/Publications/pubDetail.cfm?pk_id=6426

Heat Up Your Commercial Interior with Plantscaping by Crabapple

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 14:00:00 +0000

Hilton Garden Inn interior
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

Crabapple has widened its capabilities to encompass Interior Plantscaping, providing equally effective on indoor landscapes.

Crabapple LandscapExperts is the fifth largest landscape maintenance company in Georgia, professionally caring for the outdoor properties of many commercial, retail, business, resort, and community-living clients. Lawns, landscapes, playgrounds, public meeting areas, flower beds, circulation and pathways, irrigation, lighting and surfaces are professionally maintained to the highest industry standards by the LandscapExperts team.

Variegated tropical foliage + flowers
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

Crabapple Floriculture/Seasonal Color Managers work with a talented group of professionals in the Enhancements Department to create colorful and healthy flower beds for Crabapple clients. They meets with clients, designs, purchases, installs and coordinates the maintenance schedules of Crabapple’s seasonal color beds and containers to insure their appeal, health, vigor and year-round beauty.

Tropical Flowers enliven the display
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

When longtime client the Hilton Garden Inn in Cartersville, Georgia approached the Enhancements Department for an interior plan to augment their attractive entrance and grounds, she drew on her seasonal color design experience to create a striking interior landscape for the Lobby of the Inn substituting tropicals. “When Hilton reached out to Crabapple’s Enhancement Department for assistance, I was thrilled to take on the project,” she noted.

Foliage plants in the Inn's Lobby
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

CrabappleLandscapExperts advise commercial and residential managers and HOAs that interior plantscaping:

Dramatically welcomes guests and residents

Reinforces the “Garden Inn” theme of the Hilton

Adds to a feeling of well-being

Reduces stress indoors (and out)

Improves air quality by increasing oxygen and humidity to the Lobby air

Decreases carbon dioxide and dust motes

Reduces background noise

Planting Area

Bright light from multiple windows
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

The containers were purchase ahead of time by the Hilton Garden Inn. The largest containers stand about four feet tall with a planting area of five square feet.

Inventory of Site Conditions

Crabapple’s inventory of site conditions in the Hotel Lobby revealed the perfect lighting for interior landscaping. Bright indirect natural light from many windows is supplemented with soft light from many electrical fixtures. These conditions match light requirements for a large number of interior plants in the tropical palette. Most interior plants we use come from the tropical rain forest where the days are bright but get very little direct sunlight.

LandscapEXPERTS Expertise

Lower container of mixed tropicals
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

Drawing on seasonal color design experience, the interior team sourced the tropical plant material, then combined foliage colors, fine and bold textures, varying heights, tropical blooms and growth patterns in tropical plants to produce a luxurious, easily-maintained tropical bower welcoming Hotel guests.

CrabappleLandscape Experts can create an indoor environment for you!

About 90% of time is spent indoors. Interior plants are an ideal way to create attractive settings for hotels, professional buildings, neighborhood clubhouses, and shopping centers, really anywhere. Indoor plants not only convert carbon dioxide onto oxygen; they trap and absorb many harmful pollutants, all the while enhancing our sense of well-being. Indoor environments add to the décor and overall ambience of your workplace, hotels and amenity buildings. Crabapple would love to come out and meet with you to discuss and plan your interior landscapes. We can build it from the ground up. Crabapple is now creating outstanding indoor environments!

Interior Plantscaping
photo by Chessa Azzolesi

Winterkill: Trace a Branch to Determine if it is Dead - Repair Winter Damage

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 15 Jan 2014 15:00:00 +0000

Scraped Trace reveals Greenwood

Pruning out dead wood on woody ornamentals is a continual job and a skill Crabapple LandscapExperts have developed when pruning the properties you manage. Sometimes it is obvious that wood is dead:

No leaves or dead leaves amid green leaves
Brown needles
Bark is dead
Presence of fungus growing on dead wood

Other times, it's necessary to run a test in order to scientifically determine if the branch is dead or not, and to recognize where the winter kill ends.

When to Trace

Scrape the branch to determine if any greenwood is present beneath the bark. Tracing is especially useful in late January and in February, when deciduous woody ornamentals are leafless and “everything looks dead”.

Tracing

Obviously dead branch
bark is peeling off

Make a small wound or scrape on the bark of the suspected twig or branch. With a thumbnail, a pruning knife or open pruners, shave a thin slice of bark off of the branch about the size of a fingernail. Check for greenwood which is actually the active cambium layer. When Crabapple finds green color, we know the branch is alive. A dull or olive green color is not as promising as a bright, light green with moist sap, but any green means the branch is not dead yet. Completely brown means the branch is dead.

“Trace back” down the branch is a good way to determine how far the die back extends, telling us where to prune the branch. Crabapple follows up with another trace a bit further down the branch to determine the extent of the winter kill. After a pruning cut, the limb will resprout from dormant buds, typically at leaf nodes.

Call your Crabapple Rep for all your winter pruning needs, 770-740-9739.

5 Types of Cold Damage to Landscape Plants

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 14:00:00 +0000

Winter Leaf Scorch,
U DE, R. Mulrooney

Plants vary tremendously in their tolerance to cold temperatures. The U.S.D.A. publishes a Hardiness Zone Map that is based on decades of data and indicates Atlanta is in Zone 8A. This is used as a guide when choosing plants. Crabapple recommends the selection of plants that are reliably cold hardy in our area, and then excellent maintenance during the growing season, as the two best ways to guard against cold damage. Factors that affect plant selection include minimum and maximum daily temperatures, difference between day and night temperatures, and average daytime and nighttime temperatures. Location/site/microclimate in the landscape also plays a role.

Winter Burn or Desiccation Injury

Atlanta is filled with needle leaf evergreens (pine) and broad leaf evergreens such as camellias, tea olives, holly, anise and boxwood that keep the winter landscape green. Unfortunately, the broad leaf evergreens are more prone to winter burn or leaf desiccation injury than dormant, deciduous trees and shrubs.

Winter Leaf Burn,
photo Glen Jacobsen

Winter burn occurs when the absorption of water by the roots cannot keep up with the amount of moisture lost by the foliage (transpiration). When the soil is frozen the roots cannot absorb water or translocate it up to the leaves to replace what is lost, and this results in leaf desiccation. This occurs on sunny and windy days, on days that are exceedingly cold (or hot), as well as when the soil is frozen and the plant cannot absorb water, or in a drought situation. Injury appears as brown leaf margins or needle tips. Usually the leaves are injured but dormant buds survive.

A 3-inch layer of organic mulch (pine straw, woodchips, or leaves) helps to insulate the ground and moderate the soil moisture level.
The microclimate of a garden plays a big role in actual garden temperature. Changes in elevation, cold air drainage, sun exposure, and thermal heat mass (surrounding buildings, pavement or rocks) will make some gardens significantly warmer or cooler than the temperatures recorded for the area. Air drainage cold air sinks to the lowest spot.
Knowledgeable advance siting is important at the planting stage for broadleaf evergreens, and includes such considerations as protection from winter wind and/or the direct rays of early morning sun. Crabapple accomplishes this by planting in the airy shade of tall pines, or on the west side of a building, wall or hedge.
Landscape plants should be well-watered prior to the cold blast. Luckily, there is plenty of moisture in metro-Atlanta soil due to our recent hard rains.
Anti-desiccants (brand names include Wilt Proof or Moisturin) can be sprayed on broadleaf evergreens to reduce the amount of water lost through leaves. However, leaves lose water through the same pores that take in carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, so the overuse of antidesiccants can be toxic to plants.

Freezing injury

Freeze injury to Camellia
blossoms, Geri Laufer

When temperatures get too low, plants are susceptible to freezing injury. Flower buds are frequently affected, for example peach, dogwood, magnolia, forsythia or hydrangea flowers may not bloom well after an extremely cold winter.

Container plants are more vulnerable to polar cold snaps than in-ground landscape plants and will benefit from some protection. Containerized nursery stock have small, above ground root balls that freeze easily, and newly planted bare uoot or balled-and-burlapped plants with their reduced root systems, are also very susceptible.

One method of protection: remove branches from discarded Christmas trees (plentiful this week) and lay over the tops of nursery flats or pots. Then bury the whole area in fallen leaves. (Do not cover with plastic, because direct sun hitting the plastic can steam-cook the crops.)

As for woody ornamentals planted in decorative accent containers, wooden, foam or plastic planters usually come through freezes just fine, but clay pottery can break if subjected to freezing temperatures. Move them to an unheated garage for a day or two to get over the worst of the weather.

Winter injury, thin bark split
U of OH, "split happens"

Freeze cracks/sun scald

Sometimes it isn't really the cold temperatures that cause problems, but rapid fluctuations between warmth and cold as temperatures climb and plunge. Bark on some trees may split on the southwest side due to rapid temperature changes. Thin-barked trees such as cherries and maples are most likely to crack. Shade protection or wrapping with tree wrap may give protection against frost cracks. If thin-bark trees have split, call Crabapple LandscapExperts to shape and clean the wounds so they can heal over properly.

Frost injury

Frost injury typically occurs in low-lying frost pockets, especially at the beginning or end of the cold season, when summer annuals and vegetables can get that “wilted lettuce look” or camellia petals or early-blooming magnolia flowers are turned brown in a late cold snap. Delicate petals and new leaves are the most susceptible to frost damage. One way to avoid frost damage is to select late-flowering cultivars that bloom in the spring instead of the early ones.

Winter Frost Heave,
Missouri Botanical Garden

Soil heaving

Soil heaving results from alternate freezing and thawing of the soil and is rarely a problem in metro-Atlanta. Shallow perennial plant roots are pushed out of the soil leaving them exposed to cold and drying winds. Good root establishment helps to protect from heaving, but some plants (mums, strawberries) have characteristically shallow roots and are prone to heaving.

Replant perennials that have been tossed out of the ground and water-in. Reduce heaving with an application of organic mulch, such as 3 inches of pine straw, wood chips or shredded leaves. Snow cover (also rare in metro-Atlanta) also acts as an insulation for perennials and often prevents heaving.

January 4, 2014

History of Cold Temperatures in Hotlanta

Arctic Blast
10 coldest temps recorded at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport:
1. -8 degrees (January, 1985)
2. 0 (January, 1982)
3. 1 (December, 1985)
4. 5 (December, 1989)
5. 5 (January, 1994)
(tie)6. 6 (January, 1986 and February, 1996)
8. 8 (January, 2003)
9. 9 (January, 1985)
10. 10 (January, 1996)

Call your Crabapple LandscapExperts for help with winter damage to the landscapes you manage.

Spring Flowers and Day Length or Photoperiodism

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 01 Jan 2014 15:00:00 +0000

Short day Poinsettias

Have you ever wondered why it's hard to get a poinsettia to bloom again? Or have trouble with bolting lettuce, arugula or cilantro in the summer garden? To better understand the habits of perennial flowering plants Crabapple explains that we must take day length or 'photoperiodism' into account.

Some flowers habitually bloom in fall, as the days are getting shorter on the way to the shortest day (and the longest night) of all, December 21, the Winter Solstice. Fall-blooming goldenrod and chrysanthemums are famous for this, as are the well-known Christmas cactus and poinsettia. After the Winter Solstice, the days slowly start getting longer again.

Long day Foxgloves

Other perennials reliably flower in spring, as the days are getting longer (and the nights are getting shorter) on the way to Midsummer. Foxgloves and peonies are characteristic of this time of year. These are termed "short day" plants. After the Summer Solstice, the days slowly start getting shorter again as the Wheel of the Year turns.

Plants respond to night length in direct ways. Photoperiodism is the term used to discuss plant responses to day length, or more accurately, night length. “Long day plants” (like clover and garden pinks) bloom as the days get longer and when the nights are short.

Short day Chrysanthemum

After Midsummer, these plants stop blooming and other plants (like asters) begin to bloom. These are called “short day plants” because they are triggered to flower as the days grow shorter (after the Summer Solstice) during late summer and fall. Well-known as a Christmas flower, the poinsettia develops its showy bracts as there are a long, unbroken periods of darkness each night and year approaches the Winter Solstice.

Day neutral strawberry

Still other plants are “day neutral plants” because they are less responsive to the length of the dark period. Spring and Fall Equinoxes are the midway point of the solar year. For example, tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries are day neutral.

The florist industry can control flowering by providing supplemental lighting or sun-shielding darkening covers in greenhouses where night-length-sensitive flowering crops are being grown.

Ask your Crabapple LandscapExperts Rep about any landscape maintenance questions you may have.

Happy New Year!

How to Make a Kissing Ball from fresh Boxwood and Holly

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 25 Dec 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Ever heard of the old-timey “Kissing Ball”? Crabapple LandscapExperts agree, holidays seem more charming when fresh botanicals are used for decorations, and there’s no excuse in our industry not to bring some evergreens indoors! Along with pine and mistletoe, it’s traditional to deck the halls with boughs of holly and boxwood, two evergreens that symbolize ‘constancy’ and ‘foresight’ in the Language of Flowers. While some “Kissing Balls” are made of needle-leaf evergreens, this winter try one made of boxwood and holly. Easy to make and with staying power that lasts through New Years Day and beyond, a shoe box of 4-5 inch clippings will make one kissing ball and will create the finish to a beautiful holiday.

How to Make a Boxwood & Holly Kissing Ball

Supplies:

Half a block of floral foam, well soaked in water

Tight plastic mesh from bulb, grapefruit or onion bags, dark color preferred

Spool of thin wire approximately 18 to 20 gauge

Clippers

About a shoebox full of 4-5 inch sprigs of Green Borders Boxwood

About a dozen 4-5 inch clippings of Christmas Jewel® Holly with berries

A few sprigs of mistletoe

Floral pick

Red Ribbon

Directions

Soak the floral foam (one brand name is Oasis) thoroughly, then pare off the corners to make a rounded or ball shape about 5 inches across.
Drain the floral foam and wrap the plastic mesh around it, enclosing the foam securely. Weave or stitch it together in a few places to hold it closed.
Cut a 10-12 inch length of wire to make a hanger. Thread it through the center of the foam, creating a bend or U- shape to catch on the bottom side of the foam. Make a loop at the top for hanging.
Clip enough 4-5 inch sprigs of boxwood and stick in the floral foam to cover the ball evenly and completely, making a uniform sphere of boxwood about 10 inches in diameter.
Add berried stems of berried holly as an accent, again spacing evenly around the sphere. Your lush, full Kissing Ball of greenery is now ready for decorating.
Wire a bit of mistletoe to a pick and insert at the bottom of the sphere.
Add a red bow at the top and a tuft of short streamers to the bottom of the ball and hang it up!

Throughout the Holidays, re-soak the entire Kissing Ball once in awhile to keep the green stems fresh, submerging it in a large basin of warm water then allowing it to drain well before re-hanging.

Your friends at Crabapple LandscapExperts hope you meet someone interesting beneath the Kissing Ball.

Peeling, Exfoliating, Ornamental Bark for Winter Landscape Interest

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 18 Dec 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Paperbark Maple Bark

Tree leaves are down and most deciduous branches are bare. And though Crabapple LandscapExperts can enhance the winter landscape of the properties you manage with winter-flowering Camellia, Witch Hazel, Oregon Grape Mahonia, Japanese Paperbush, and Hellebore as well as cool-season winter color plants, there is another ornamental feature that takes center stage in the landscape now.

Peeling bark, known as exfoliating bark (as in skin care) is the natural process of old bark peeling away from a tree trunk in large curls or patches, revealing the new bark that is often of a different color beneath. Certain trees are known for this shedding of bark and used ornamentally in the landscape.

Cork Oak Bark by P Tobin

Exfoliating bark adds visual interest and captures attention during the winter season. Some of the trees selected for this attractive feature include:

Paperbark Maple (Acer griseum),
3-Flowered Maple (Acer triflorum)
River Birch (Betula nigra)
Lacebark Pine (Pinus bungeana)
Lacebark Elm (Ulmus parvifolia)
American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) large tree
Climbing Hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala ssp. Petiolaris) woody vine

Crapemyrtle Bark by UAR

Besides beauty, exfoliating bark eliminates fungus diseases, boring insects and pollution from an ornamental tree by simply dropping off, all ecological advantages for the tree. Crabapple LandscapExperts often chooses these trees for the urban landscape, since they can refresh and renew their bark despite ozone and urban particulate matter. Call your Crabapple Rep now to discuss adding woody plants with attractive bark to your landscape during the winter planting season at 770-740-9739.

Eucalyptus deglupta

Digging Deeper
Rainbow Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta) is a tropical tree with incredible exfoliating bark! -->

Think Outside the Box to Choose a Living Christmas Tree

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 11 Dec 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Choose a Living Christmas Tree; Think Outside the Box!

Blue Spruce likely will not thrive
in Hotlanta

Purchasing a freshly cut Christmas tree, wreaths and greenery each year is not a profligate waste of resources, but specifically helps Christmas Tree Growers and the Agricultural industry in general. Just think of cut trees as longer-term "cabbages" specifically planted by tree farmers to be harvested in seven years or so. After the holidays put discarded trees to good use as habitat for wildlife, or chipped, shredded and turned into compost, thus recycling their nutrients and minerals and enriching the earth. It’s all good.

On the other hand, the popularity of choosing a live Christmas tree growing in soil in a nursery pot has been on the rise. The problem is that many of these trees don’t survive the holiday season or don’t fit the Atlanta climate or the landscape plan if they do survive. Crabapple LandscapEXPERTS suggest you choose a tree appropriate for the climate, care for it correctly while it is decorated, and afterward, use it to good advantage and site it correctly when planting in the landscape.

When shopping for the tree, consider its mature height and width and plan ahead to decide where it will be planted in the landscape. Savvy gardeners and landscapers dig the hole before they ever go shopping for a tree.

Vigorous rootball

When selecting a prospective tree, choose only healthy stock and not stressed leftovers from last season. Consider good color, good branching structure and flexible limbs. Knock the plant out of the container and look for non-pot bound, non-circling root systems with fresh white feeder roots. The potting mix should be moist, and there should be no disease or insect damage evident.

Choose only from varieties that grow well in the area. While fir, spruce and pine are traditionally used for cut trees, they are not suited to live in metro-Atlanta. Garden Centers often market a wide variety of cone-shaped trees as holiday options, whether or not they do well long-term, so choose the one that’s best for the area and the specific landscape, even though it may not be a traditional choice.

Deciduous

Now is the time to be thinking “outside the box”. What about choosing a dogwood, redbud, flowering cherry, deciduous magnolia or double file viburnum to decorate? Ornaments would look terrific hanging from bare branches, and one of those might be just the accent plant the landscape needs.

Cone Rosemary

What about a cone-shaped rosemary or bay tree? Even a balled & burlapped selection is ok; merely place in a large landscape pot with drain holes and cover with mulch to keep evenly moist.

Tropicals can be decorated!

Don’t fail to include the Tropicals section when searching for a living Christmas tree. The Norfolk Island Pine is “nearly traditional,” and one year I didn’t even shop but decorated our oversize Monstera deliciosa with a choice selection of my Mom’s vintage ornaments. It’s the season!

If a hardy tree is selected, don’t bring it inside right away, but keep it outside in a protected area until a few days before Christmas. Keep the soil moist but not wet and sheltered from winds and full sun. Acclimate the tree to warmer temperatures by moving it onto a covered porch or garage over a period of three to four days.

For needle-leaf or broad-leaf evergreens, decrease transpiration from the leaf surfaces and retain valuable moisture within the tree by spraying with an anti-desiccant/anti-wilt product. A couple of brand names are Wilt Pruf or Cloud Cover.

Crabapple Warning: a living tree that soon will be returned to winter temperatures outside cannot be brought indoors for weeks on end without consequences. Warm rooms with low humidity can quickly dry out the tree. Dormant buds can break and grow in a “false spring,” only to suffer when moved back outside. Avoid bringing the tree indoors too early, since the less time spent in hot, dry indoor temperatures the better, and certainly no more than a week. Avoid placing near heat vents, forced air, radiators, stoves, but do consider a window where it will get some sunlight. Keep soil in the pot moist.

After Christmas move the tree back outdoors to that protected area so it can readjust for a week or so. When there’s a break in the weather, follow recommended planting procedures, with a wide, shallow planting holeabout twice as wide as the root ball, but not deeper. Plant slightly higher than the surrounding soil because it will soon settle, backfill with the native soil and mulch the tree to retain moisture. Newly planted trees need even moisture, so water throughout winter and spring. The new addition will contribute holiday memories as it adds beauty to the landscape.

Nature Indicates Best Planting Time for Bulbs is NOW!

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 04 Dec 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Colorful tulips make a big impact on the landscapes you manage when they flower in the spring.

Crabapple can add brilliant tulips to your Seasonal Color Beds by planting Spring-flowering bulbs now. Crabapple LandscapEXPERTS Floriculture Manager Chessa Azzolesi says, “We do not install tulip bulbs at the same time we install the fall pansies and cool season annuals. The ground is not yet cold enough, and the days are not short enough then. We install our tulip bulbs in December, usually one to two weeks before the Holidays.”

Some of Nature's “Guidelines” that signal when to plant bulbs

Night temperatures average 40-50 degrees F.
Soil temperatures hit 50-60 degrees F.
The UGA / Georgia Tech game has been played
Persimmons are ripe on the trees
Chickweed begins to appear in the flower beds
Camellia sasanquas are in bloom
Tender houseplants are back indoors
Cicadas and crickets stop chirping
Gloves are needed when walking the dog
Fall foliage is past its peak and heaps of autumn leaves are on the ground
There's a run on fruitcakes at the grocery
Christmas wrapping paper goes on sale
Christmas Cactus is in bud
Crabapple winterizes your irrigation system
Migrating birds fill the skies
Peony foliage is brown and Hosta leaves are on the ground
Car heater is often turned on
Chipmunks and squirrels are actively burying pecans and acorns

Time is short! Call your Crabapple Rep this week at 770-940-9739 to get some Tulip bulbs added to your corporate landscape.

Digging Deeper

For a complete background on Spring FloweringBulbs, see the UGA publication

To hear a quick Radio Spot on City Café’ with John Lemley on planting fall bulbs with Geri Laufer, click the link: http://wabe.org/post/city-cafe-fall-ones-fancy-turns-todaffodils-and-tulips-0

Match your Football Team Colors to your Garden Berries!

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 27 Nov 2013 14:00:00 +0000

This time of year people respond to color in the garden and on the football field! Berries add a bright statement to landscapes and many ripen and color up now. Some of these berries share the same Team Colors that are displayed by some of Crabapple LandscapEXPERTS' favorite SEC athletic teams.

Berried Treasures

The most familiar berried shrub in the winter garden is Holly, with a profusion of Georgia Bulldog-Red berries set against spiny evergreen leaves. There are many different types of holly including the deciduous Winterberry Holly, American Holly, English Holly and plenty of hybrids.

If you’re a Florida ‘Gator try the Orange Pyracantha berries. This is a low-growing evergreen groundcover or can be trained on a wall or espaliered to climb along a fence, loaded with orange berries.The beautiful woody ornamental produces an abundance of orange berries each fall and is an excellent source of landscape color fall through winter.

Alabama Crimson Tide followers might try the Crimson-Red berries on the compact, evergreen Nandina. This is a prolific berry producer and delivers brilliant crimson foliage and generous sprays of crimson berries. They are extremely long-lasting, often continuing into the following summer. Versatile and durable, Nandina is effective massed as a border planting or as a specimen in the landscape. Birds that consume Nandina berries are known to become inebriated and subsequently fly into glass windows and doors.

LSU Tiger fans might plant the superb shrub known as Beautyberry that sports Purple berries. Abundant clusters of the long-lasting purple berries are grouped along the branches, following small purplish-pink flowers in summer. Prune this deciduous shrub in late winter to early spring to promote branching and berry production.

Kentucky supporters might choose the bright Blue berries of Mahonia that follow upright trusses of fragrant yellow terminal flowers. The berries are sometimes called Oregon Grapes. Leathery, dark green leaves have spines that make a fine specimen plant or a barrier hedge.

White Snowberries could suffice for the garden if your team has lots of “away games” since visiting teams often wear White jerseys. Hope your team has a Winning Season!

Digging Deeper

Can athletic uniform colors determine winners?

Winter Watering -- Plants Need Water Throughout Winter

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 20 Nov 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Now that metro-Atlanta has had a taste of cold weather, many folks are ready to roll up the hose and turn off the irrigation system. But conifers, broad-leaf evergreens, and recently planted ornamentals need additional water to be supplied to their disrupted root systems until their myriad feeder roots grow out into the native soils. Extra water is needed so the limited root systems can absorb enough moisture to supply limbs and leaves and to prevent die back.

If an inch of water per week is not supplied by rainfall, Crabapple LandscapExperts recommend slow watering applied directly to the root ball. A soaker hose or water breaker nozzle is a good choice for slow water delivery. Take particular care to water underneath the limbs of evergreens, specimens or hedges because the branches can act as a shield to divert rain water, leaving the ground drier than ever. For established plants with larger root systems, apply the water to a wider circumference to make sure all the roots are supplied. .

Atlanta's seesaw temperatures are confusing for people and plants alike! Trees, shrubs and perennials that were planted or transplanted this autumn are especially susceptible to drying out as temperatures range from below freezing to 68 degrees F. and from cold, drying winds to bright sunny days.

Evergreens transpire water out of their leaves all winter long. This makes it essential to replace lost moisture whenever temperatures rise above freezing.

Broad-leaf evergreens such as holly, anise, boxwood, pittosporum, magnolia, camellia and tea olive can rapidly dry out in winter as well as during the growing season.

Needle-leaf evergreens like pine, juniper, arborvitae, cedar, yew and Japanese plum yew also need a water supply during the cold months. Conifer branches often prevent rain water from reaching the ground so that it is dry under the canopy even after a rain.

Two to three inches of a good organic mulch applied over the top of moistened soil will help to maintain moisture levels at a constant level. Keep an eye on your new transplants throughout the winter. Ask your Crabapple Rep if you have questions about wintertime water needs of your plants.

10 Top Tips Protect Plants from Cold Temperatures

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 14:00:00 +0000

This week in metro-Atlanta, Crabapple LanscapEXPERTS suggest you pay attention to the weather forecasts! In meteorologist lingo, “the Jet Stream is blasting south, bringing frigid air masses from polar regions” and this is called an “advective freeze". We know that windy cold with a sudden plunge in temperatures, sometimes prolonged over several days, makes plant protection difficult. Remember, healthy, hardy landscape plants on the properties you manage will be unaffected by this cold snap.

How To Best Protect Landscape Plants

Tip 1. Add mulch to protect newly planted roots. Apply organic mulch anytime to insulate shallow roots by reducing temperature fluctuations. Most woody ornamentals and perennials are root hardy, so use a layer of mulch to protect the crown and the root zone despite the fact that foliage may die back to ground level. Evergreens and newly transplanted plants especially benefit from a thick layer of mulch around their bases insulating the soil and allowing them to take up moisture despite periods of cold weather and avoid dehydration. Don't let "mulch volcanoes" touch the trunks though.

Tip 2. Drape burlap, canvas, old quilts or sheets, large cardboard boxes, or floating row cover fabric over plants you might want to protect for the duration of the coldest temperatures. This might include prolonging the life of fall flowers or tropicals. Covering is used for three reasons:

a. to slow wind movement;

b. to protect from frost; and

c. to shade from early morning sunshine- devastating to frozen leaves

NEVER use plastic to cover plants; not clear plastic, not black plastic, and not white plastic. Plastic traps solar radiation and causes a buildup of moisture underneath. If plastic is not removed at dawn (and who is going to do that?) the sun’s rays cause heat build-up and frozen plant tissue bake inside the tent.

Tip 3. Use windbreaks like fences, walls, tree canopies or the sides of buildings to protect container plants that can’t come inside. Coverings include frost cloth, sheets and quilts, plastic, cardboard panels or large cardboard boxes, and lean-tos propped against the wall.

Tip 4. Consider building a quick-frame (cold frame) to provide additional protection for favorite or newly transplanted ornamentals. Drive stakes into the ground around the plant(s) then drape canvas over the stakes, making sure it reaches to the ground. This provides air flow and ensures the cover does not have direct contact with the leaves, since touching can injure the foliage.

Tip 5. Water the soil ahead of the freeze or when there is a slight break in the freezing temperatures to maintain soil moisture, but do not over water. Watering melts frozen soil or container potting mixes and lets plants become re-hydrated.

7 Tip 6. Home gardeners: DO NOT try to use water as cold protection! Commercial agricultural enterprises sometimes use water from a sprinkler system to coat strawberries or citrus fruits. The idea is to keep the leaf surface temperatures near 32°F (0°C) because sprinkling utilizes latent heat released when water changes from a liquid to a solid state. But sprinkling must begin as freezing temperatures are reached and continue until thawing is completed. Water must be evenly distributed and supplied in ample quantity to maintain a film of liquid water on the foliage surfaces, possibly for days.

Although commercial farms uses sprinkling for cold protection, residential sprinkler systems do not have the flow volume to protect plants this way. Too much water can cause disease, plus the sprinkler itself can freeze up. As a result, cold damage to plants from inadequate amounts of irrigation water may worse than if nothing was done at all.

Tip 7. Move container plants to a shaded location to avoid morning sun hitting them. Lift pots and containers and place on lumber or 'pot feet' to prevent waterlogging. Insulate above-ground pots with a layer of bubble wrap or hessian to prevent them freezing and cracking and ensure plant rootballs stay healthy.

The Last 3 Tips are for those of us guilty of stretching the Climate Zone envelope. These plants shouldn't actually survive, but just maybe . . .

Tip 8. Blankets do not provide “warmth” unless an incandescent light bulb or a string of Christmas lights is added inside the covering. Choose extension cords labeled for outdoor use. (New LED lights won’t add heat.) This is sometimes used as a temporary measure for a day or two.

Tip 9. Happen to have a cool greenhouse handy? Lucky! Tender plants grown in pots can be moved inside during bad weather. Or take cuttings of those that cannot be grown in pots and overwinter these in a warm greenhouse or on a windowsill, ready for planting in spring.

Without a greenhouse, move hardy container plants under a protective roof like a deck or porch, and group them together to increase their protection. Move tropicals indoors overnight to avoid temperatures below 35 degrees F. then cart them outside again for the sunny days.

Tip 10. Cover is especially beneficial for borderline tender plants that the gardener just had to give a try. The ever-increasing number of tender plants available may not withstand sustained cold without some form of protection. Hardy Tropicals may fit this description. Recent transplants are good candidates for protection, because they may not had enough time to establish strong root systems.

Crabapple LandscapExperts know that well-cared for, hardy landscape plants will not need any protection at all! Call your Crabapple Rep with any questions at 770-740-9739!

10 Top Landscape Uses for Ornamental Grasses

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 06 Nov 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Muhly Grass

CrabappleLandscapExperts know there are many benefits of using ornamental grasses in landscape design. Grasses are low maintenance and they provide year-round interest; Grasses are fast growing and drought tolerant. They attract wildlife and gently move in the wind.

There are grasses for any type of landscape situation, from drought tolerance, shade resistance, or beautiful ornamental inflorescence. See a dictionary of grasses here.

10 Top Landscape Uses for Ornamental Grasses include:

Garden accent- site a specimen plant in a perennial border and create a focal point
Add texture –light and filmy grasses contrast with large-leaf perennials and geometric clipped- shrubbery

Soften hardscaping- mobile waving of grass and movement is in contrast to solid buildings dramatic effect of

mass planting

Dress up decks, pools and patios- formal repetition in containers or casual groupings

Edging- short tufty grasses like blue fescue, grassy substitutes like Liriope, sedge or carex

Make colorful containers - adds a vertical note

Fall and winter interest- persistent grasses will bleach in sun

Attract wild life - those that eat grass seeds and grains

Groundcover – turf grasses, plus grassy look alikes mondo grass and Liriope

Add privacy - plant a row of tall grasses to screen an area, such as switch grass, reed grass, miscanthus,

pampas grass

Talk with your Crabapple Rep about enhancing the landscape you manage with ornamental grasses. 770- 740-9739.

10 Top Reasons to Plant a Tree this Fall!

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Here's a shocking recommendation that makes quite an impression on Crabapple's customers: "Plant acorns on 40 foot centers." This graphically contrasts the size of a small seed or seedling plant with the depth and breadth of a mature oak.

When a shade tree is planted, it is for future generations to enjoy. Most people like trees and relate to them on a personal level, so here are some reasons to plant a tree this fall-- and when you think of some more, go ahead and add them in the comment section!

1. Trees increase property values by softening harsh outlines of buildings, screening unsightly views and providing brilliant fall color. Slow-growing, small ornamental trees are intrinsically valuable. Trees add beauty and grace to any community setting, making life more enjoyable, peaceful, relaxing. Trees offer a rich inheritance for future generations.

2. Trees reduce air conditioning utility bills for cooling during summer heat an average of 33% percent through their shade and respiration, providing natural "low-tech" cooling. This reduces the need to build additional dams, power plants, and nuclear generators. Deciduous trees provide passive solar temperature regulation, providing shade in summer, but offering light during winter.

3. Tree shelters and windbreaks reduce heating bills in winter, increase snow entrapment, wind reduction and wildlife habitat. Living snow fences hold snow away from roads, keeping roads open and reducing road maintenance costs. Tree shelters for wildlife habitat and livestock reduce weight loss during cold winter months and provide shade for moderating summer heat, along with significantly increasing crop yields compared to fields with no windbreaks. Windbreaks create a more favorable micro-climate for cropland by reducing wind and heat stress on the crop, while preventing topsoil loss and reducing soil moisture losses.

4. After leaves drop to the ground in autumn and are raked, they provide excellent mulch for flowerbeds and gardens, as well as exercise for people raking them.

5. Trees help reduce stress in the workplace, increase the speed of recovery of hospital patients and instill community pride.

6. Forests provide summer and winter range for migratory birds.

7. Trees reduce soil erosion and water pollution, help recharge ground water and sustain stream flow. Forests provide watersheds for lakes and ponds.

8. Trees provide nutmeats (pecans, walnuts, hickory, hazelnuts), fruit (peaches, apples, plums, persimmons), berries for jams and jellies (cherries, chokecherries, buffaloberries), and maple syrup, in addition to pharmaceutical products (for example, Taxol from Taxus or Yew trees in the Pacific NW has been successful in fighting breast, ovarian and lung cancer).

9. Fast growing trees provide fuel wood for stoves and fireplaces by establishing a

continuous supply of energy plantations, while managed forests provide pulpwood,

lumber, plywood, veneer and other wood products on a sustained yield basis.

10. Trees alleviate the “Greenhouse Effect” by absorbing carbon. A single tree absorbs about 13 pounds of CO2 per year, and one acre of new forest sequesters around 2.5 tons of carbon annually. Planting 100 million trees in the U.S. would reduce the amount of carbon by an estimated 18 million tons per year.

So why not pick out a tree and have Crabapple LanscapeExperts plant it for you this autumn?

Digging Deeper:

SOURCES: Kim Coder UGA Extension, and Glenn Roloff USDA Forest Service; http://www.treelink.org/

Top 10 Landscaping Tips for the Transition to Fall

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 23 Oct 2013 13:00:00 +0000

As Summer draws to a close and Autumn gears up in metro-Atlanta, it's the perfect time to give the landscape some attention. Crabapple LandscapExpert think this list of 10 landscaping tips will help with the transition.

1. Plant a cool-season veggie garden this fall

Wow Thanksgiving guests with Arugula and radishes from the garden! Plant radish and cilantro seeds now, and starts of lettuce, endive and arugula, along with garlic, onions, broccoli, cabbage, even Brussels sprouts. Be sure to keep them watered as they get established.

2. Keep an eye on rainfall.

Combined rain and watering should equal 1 inch per week. If it doesn’t rain, water new transplants and veggies along with perennials, shrubs and trees for best transplanting success.

3. Compost! Compost! Compost!

Pull out spent tomatoes and ragged zinnias, knock the soil off of the root balls of summer veggies and annuals, and chop them up before putting them in the compost bin. Raked autumn leaves should be added to keep the green to brown ratio (nitrogen : carbohydrate) in balance. (BTW, diseased plants, nematode-knotted tomato roots and weeds with seeds should be put in a plastic bag and trashed, not composted.)

3. Divide and/or plant perennials

Fall is the perfect time to dig up and replant all kinds of overgrown perennial flowers. Often there’s enough to share with the neighbors. Perennials are lower maintenance than annuals, staying in place and reblooming year after year, so try some new ones at the local independent garden center.

4. Fall is the best time to plant woody ornamentals

Fall is the best time to plant shrubs and trees because the soil temperature is warm from the summer and that promotes root growth, while the air temperatures are cooling down, decreasing transpiration. Plus, deciduous trees and shrubs are losing their colorful leaves, making them even less prone to wilting or drying out.

Dig large, generous holes, only as deep as the nursery pot, but three times as wide – think of the size of a hula hoop laid on the ground. Water in thoroughly and mulch with pine bark or pine straw. Then keep them watered until spring if it doesn’t rain instead.

5. Cool season lawns are revving up

Crabapple fertilizes and waters Fescue lawns that do their best growing during the cool seasons in Hotlanta. We rake off fallen leaves and dead grass, while patching worn areas with fresh hybrid Fescue grass seed covered with straw. Fescues are mowed high to provide good root growth.

6. Warm season lawns are going dormant

Bermuda, Zoysia and St. Augustine lawns are turning that comforting tan color that shows they are dormant. Warm season lawns can be over-sown with annual rye grass or even sprayed green if desired. Call your Crabapple Rep to discuss.

7. Eliminate broad leaf weeds in lawns

Spot-treat broad leaf weeds already growing in the lawn with a post-emergent herbicide. The green weeds are particularly unsightly in dormant warm season lawns.

8. Add spring-flowering bulbs to the landscape

In addition to pansies, add daffodils and tulips to add brilliant color early next spring. You will hardly notice winter if the daffodils start blooming in January! Smaller bulbs like hyacinths, crocus, grape hyacinths and blue star also add interest. If you have critters (chipmunks, squirrels, pine voles, mice) that eat the tulip bulbs, plant cloves of garlic along with the flower bulbs to repel them. Daffodils (Narcissus) are poisonous to critters and reliably perennial, so they are a superb choice for metro-Atlanta.

9. Mulch after planting to provide many benefits

In addition to adding a layer of insulation, mulch maintains the moisture level and much more. Read more on this Crabapple Blog -- all about organicmulch.

Corona By-Pass Pruners

10. Pruning – Don’t even think about it now!

Pruning now will stimulate ‘dormant buds to break’ below the cut and grow into tender little twigs. These are then subject to cold damage by low temperatures in the coming winter season. Sharpen the pruners now, but wait until February to make the cuts.

These landscaping tips will help your landscape A little gardeningmaintenance or help from Crabpple LandscapExperts will help with the seasonal transition.

Fall Gardening is the Easiest, and Remarks on Controlling Cabbage Worms

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 16 Oct 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Broccoli, photo from BH+G

Bye-bye Warm Season Veggies

Pull up those tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cukes and other hot-weather vegetables that have stopped producing and gotten old and bedraggled. Remove weeds, then fork in rich compost, well-rotted manure and/or Nature’s Helper.

Cool Season Veggies Reign Supreme October to April
Plant seeds or starts of veggies that do well in the cool months.

These are often separated into five families of plants

Cabbage Family: cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, arugula, radishes, winter cress, radishes, beets, turnips,

Parsley Family: Parsley, carrots, cilantro

Lettuce or Daisy Family: loose-leaf lettuce, mache, corn salad, curly endive, radicchio, arugula

Onion Family: garlic, elephant garlic, shallots, scallions, possibly leeks in ATL

Violet Family: throw in a few (edible) pansies or violas to enliven the garden

Growing Cabbage at the base
of a fence

E-A-S-Y

The temperatures are down, the rains come regularly and gardening is easy with Mother Nature on your side. These cool season crops continue until hard frosts in January, and pick up again at the first sign of warm weather. Or place a floating row cover over your crops to keep temperatures even and cabbage worms away.

Checkered White Cabbage Moth
photo by Megan McCarty124

OOPS! What to Do for Cabbage Worms?

Those white butterflies flitting above the newly planted brassicas may look cute, but (horrors) they may be laying eggs on the cauliflowers, cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and radishes in the organic home garden. These eggs hatch into Cabbage Loopers, Imported Cabbage Worms, or Diamondback Moth larvae that are hungry for your tender leaves in the fall garden.

Cabbage Looper
Wikipedia Commons

5 Ways to Foil Cabbage Worms

1. Try setting-up a bird feeding station next to those cole plants and enjoy watching the birds grab dozens of cabbage worms to supplement their seedy diet each day.

2. Handpick the green caterpillars. My grandma used to drop them into a jar of kerosene, but the 2-brick method also works well.

3. Sprinkle plain flour on the young Brassica Family plants. The worms will eat it, bloat and die. Make an effort to coat the undersides of the leaves where the eggs are laid unnoticeably and the smallest caterpillars start eating.

4. Diatomaceous Earth is naturally occurring siliceous, sedimentary rock made of the fossilized remains of diatoms (hard shelled algae). It crumbles to a fine powder with an abrasive feel, like pumice. If you are a caterpillar or a slug crawling over diatomaceous earth, the individual particles slice you up like knives with sharp, micron-sized particles.

5. Floating Row Covers are reusable, safe, easy, and organic. They are made of a lightweight material such as spunbonded polyester placed directly over the young crops, or draped over low hoops in a row. Floating Row Covers allow sunlight and water to get to the plants, but they form a physical (organic) barrier to protect the plants from insect damage. In addition, they mitigate cold temperatures during those bitter days Atlanta gets in late January and February, and thereby prolong the growing/ harvesting season. Floating Row Covers come in a long roll that is anchored with landscape staples or bricks to keep them on the plant rows.

Plant a Fall Garden and have home-grown veggies at Thanksgiving and Christmas, with a lull at Valentines, and then coming on strong for St. Patrick's Day and Easter/Passover.

Why and Where to Make Compost - Indoors and Out

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 09 Oct 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Compost nourishes plants

Crabapple asks: Are you interested in having great veggies, brilliant flowers and vigorous houseplants? Try adding compost to the potting soil.

Why compost?

Composting is known as "making black gold" for the plants in the garden or for houseplants, and is a good idea because it can:

Decrease the carbon footprint

Reduce the amount of solid waste added to landfills

Improve soil quality for veggies on the balcony or for indoor plants

Save money on potting soil

Is an easy and fun science project

Can increase popularity when you use compost as gifts (just joking, it’s too precious to give away)

Where to compost?

Live in an apartment but want to make compost for your houseplants? Does your HOA covenant prohibit traditional compost heaps? Want to compost at the office? Maybe the kids want to compost at school? Although Crabapple LandscapExperts composts on a grand scale, we can suggest several possibilities for unobtrusive composting tips.

Composting in a bucket

1. Start a compost bucket with a lid under the sink, adding veggie and fruit scraps and maintaining the wet/dry ratio by adding dry shredded paper whenever you add food. Drill some holes in the bucket to allow for good air exchange needed for aerobic decomposition. If it gets too wet it will begin to smell bad, so keep it barely moist, like a damp sponge. Apartment Therapy blog gives a step-by-step example of easy indoor composting. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-make-your-own-indoor-co-138645

2. Use the blender to make juice out of vegetable and fruit scraps and peels, then pour the juice on the garden plants, balcony veggies or houseplants. This is not actually compost yet, but will nourish the soil microorganisms that in turn aid the plants.

3. How about trying a worm farm at the office, also known as vermicomposting (like vermicelli). Start with a simple, opaque plastic box about 12”W x 24”L x 8”H with a lid and drill air holes near the top. Add a 3 inch layer of soil, then add kitchen scraps, shredded white paper, corrugated cardboard, coffee grounds and tea leaves for the worms to process. Order a package of red wigglers through online and you're ready to start. The liquid "worm tea" that collects at the bottom of the box can be diluted with water and used to revv up office plants that help to purify the air.

4. Start a school composting project like this real-life biology lesson in California. http://earth911.com/news/2011/09/20/how-to-start-a-school-compost-program/

Compost in a pickup truck!

Decrease your carbon footprint and turn food scraps into a beneficial new product through composting. Learn more about the topic from the Cooperative Extension Service in each county.

Watering Needs of Plants Under Varying Conditions

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Crabapple LandscapExperts suggest rule-of-thumb guidelines for watering landscape plants.

Plants will need more water when:
They are in a period of active growth
They are growing in full sun
Temperature is high
Humidity is low
It has not rained in 5 or more days
They are fast-growing varieties
They are planted in poor or sandy soil
They are in flower or bud
They are contained in small pots
Clay pots evaporate water faster than plastic pots

Plants will need less water when:
They are in a period of rest (typically in winter)
They are growing in shade or dense shade
Temperature is low (65 degrees F. or lower)
Humidity is high
Heavy rain recently (in the past 2 or 3 days)
They are slow-growing varieties
They are planted in moisture-holding or heavy soil (such as clay)
They are growing in large tubs
They are planted in non-porous pots (plastic or glazed)

Stop Winter Weeds Now with Pre-Emergence Preventers!

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Crabgrass in bermuda,
WikiMedia Commons

Fall application of crabgrass preventer now will prevent a lot of lawn weeds in Bermuda, Zoysia, Centipede and St. Augustine lawns during the winter. Now is the time for Crabapple LandscapExperts to apply pre-emergence herbicides to the properties you manage in order to P-R-E-V-E-N-T the cold-season weeds from sprouting. In winter, Bermuda and Zoysia turf goes dormant and turns a light tan color. This makes the rapidly-growing, bright green chickweed, henbit, or annual bluegrass stick out like a sore thumb. Other times of the year, broadleaf and grassy weeds “blend in” with the green of actively growing lawngrass.

Pre-emergence herbicides eliminate mainly annual weeds by preventing their seeds from sprouting. They can be applied in granular or liquid forms, and do not typically damage shrubs, trees and perennials. Well-established turf is not noticeably affected by the pre-emergents, and it is pretty safe. Once the application is complete, Crabapple will water-in (or if rain is predicted, so much the better) the pre-emergent herbicide to enable it to create a barrier to seed germinating on the soil surface.

Purdue Cooperative Extension

The timing varies from year to year, but typically metro-Atlanta’s average best time to apply is the last week of September through the first part of October, coinciding with nighttime temperatures around 55 or 60 degrees F. It’s not a problem to apply the pre-emergence herbicide too early, except that it may wear off sooner. But if Crabapple puts it down too late, some of the weed seeds will have already sprouted, and be on their way to becoming an unsightly green interruption in the turf you manage.

One caveat is that if you have contracted with Crabapple to overseed with annual ryegrass over the top of your turf in order to maintain the green color all winter, then pre-emergence herbicides should not be used, because the annual ryegrass seed also will be prevented from sprouting. Another caution, Crabapple does not recommend Weed-And-Feed after about mid-September, in order to reduce both the incidence of disease and the cost to our customers.

Pre-emergence herbicides are a great way to control winter weeds, but not a panacea. Crabapple will still need to spot-treat resistant perennial weeds such as dandelions and wild onions with a broadleaf weed killer during the winter. For more information, call your Crabapple Rep to discuss pre-emergent herbicide to keep the lawns in your community looking perfect at 770-740-9739.

Digging Deeper:
UGA has a Suggested Weed-Control Calendar.

Leafy Air Filters: Moving Houseplants Indoors to Clean Indoor Air

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 18 Sep 2013 13:30:00 +0000

In addition to enhancing décor, houseplants actually DO clean indoor air! A famous study by NASA scientists concluded that indoorplants remove several common pollutants from the air by absorbing them into the pores of their leaves, in the same way they take in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. Although the experiment took place in a sealed chamber, today’s tighter, more energy-efficient homes are approaching this model far more closely than drafty, older homes.

A 2011 article in The Wall Street Journal championsthe role of “The Mighty Houseplant” in purifying the air, citing several studies. The story explains a growing body of global research shows plants can reduce pollutants including dust particles and contaminants such as formaldehyde and benzene that come from cigarette smoke, paint, furniture, building materials, cosmetics, dish detergent, fabric softener, carpet cleaner, and other sources.

The U.S. Green Building Council, which certifies buildings based on environmental standards, cautiously agrees, noting while "using plants to help clean air is a great strategy…we've had difficulty quantifying the results.”

The EPA notes that people spend more than 90% of their time indoors, where levels of a dozen common Volatile Organic Pollutants (VOCs) can be two to five times higher than outside.

In 2009 Live Science ran an article about houseplants making air healthier.

Also that year, University of Georgia scientists Bodie Pennisi and Mussie Habteselassie identified five "super ornamentals"—plants that showed high rates of contaminant removal when exposed in gas-tight glass jars to common household VOCs, such as benzene (present in cigarette smoke), and toluene (emitted from paints and varnishes). They are: the purple waffle plant, English ivy, asparagus fern, purple heart plant, variegated wax plant.

purple waffle plant photo from
Wikipedia byTau'olunga

UGA aims to broaden these findings by developing a simple test kit homeowners can use to check for VOCs, as well as an expanded list of plants and their associated pollution-fighting abilities. The university also sees a potential market for enhanced potting soil and other media.

Deborah Brown from the University of Minnesota Extension suggests that the "liberal use of houseplants indoors seems like an easy way to make a dent in the problem". Crabapple agrees.

Thinking ahead? Before you bring houseplants indoors for winter you may want to inspect, clean, and prune or repot them. Seeour Crabapple Blog from last fall to get all the tips.

Cutting Garden Flowers Brings the Outside Indoors

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Calendula, Godetia and Bachelor Buttons in the Higgledy garden.

Planning a cutting garden or just want to bring the outdoors inside? Crabapple LandscapExperts say there are plenty of benefits from bringing freshly cut garden flowers indoors.

Flowers from the yard:

1. save money

2. are very fresh

3. last a long time
4. are homey
5. can be selected for a color scheme

Getting Started

Disinfect a deep bucket with detergent or a bleach solution (1 part bleach : 9 parts water)
Fill with warm (not hot, not cold) water and
Add a cut flower preservative.
Commercial "Cut Flower Food" provides:

elaborated sugars that are normally supplied in the growing plant by the leaves and
a disinfectant to reduce the growth of bacteria that clogs the vascular (water-conducting) tissues

Rosie Lerner and Michael Dana of the Perdue Department of Horticulture offer three recipes for make-your-own preservative solutions that will prolong the life of the flowering branches in Forcing Branches for Winter Color: http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/ho-23.pdf .

Homemade Flower Life

2 C lemon-lime soda (with sugar)

2 C Fresh Water

½ teaspoon Chlorine Bleach

Harvesting

Use disinfected, sharpened bypass pruners or a clean, sharp knife to harvest garden flowers
Know what stage of growth to pick

a. Zinnias full grown

b. Sunflowers just opened to prevent petal damage

c. Roses in loose buds

d. Black eyed Susans and purple coneflowers fully opened

e. Salvia in bud to flower

f. Hydrangeas and Hellebores older, mature flowers prevents wilting

g. Fennel, plug up the tubular stem w a wet cotton ball

h. Early Spring- forced woody branches (forsythia)
i. Tulips

j Holiday evergreens

Conditioning

Immediately plunge the flowers into the bucket of water and floral life
Re-cut each stem UNDERWATER on an angle to increase the surface area and ensure that it won’t sit flat on the bottom of the vase. Trim off any buds or twigs that will be submerged under water so they won’t rot
Split or score the bottom inch or two of each stem if woody (like Hydrangeas) to expose the conductive tissues (cambium layer) and encourage maximum water uptake and plunge them into the waiting vase
Some plants with soft stems and heavy flower heads like Gerber daisies or tulips will droop, so wrap the bunch in newspaper and stand them in deep water overnight

Arranging

Arrange them in a decorative vase, positioning with:

a. Floral frog

b. Chicken-wire mesh

c. Pebbles at bottom of vase

d. Oasis Floral Foam

e. Needlepoint holder

f. Criss-crossed tape over mouth of tall vase

Enjoy them in your home, but out of direct sunlight

Leyland Cypress Swallowed the House

noreply@blogger.com (GardenGeri) — Wed, 04 Sep 2013 13:00:00 +0000

2 Leylands planted too close
are "swallowing" this house.

Leyland Cypress is a fast-growing evergreen tree that is often used for privacy hedges, windbreaks, and screens, but Crabapple LandscapExperts cautions that its mature size is often overlooked.

Leylands actually grow 50 feet tall in 15 years (!), and the rapid, thick growth produces a dense, dark shade. Young shrubs are almost irresistible because they can be purchased so inexpensively at big box stores. These plants quickly outgrow most residential landscapes unless regularly and severely trimmed, sheared and/or topped. Leyland Cypress grow in both part shade and full sun, and tolerates many soil types, drought conditions and is salt tolerant, however this is an unusually shallow-rooted variety, and can topple in wet soils.

Photo credit, Boing Boing
from the Guardian

When planting young 3-gallon plants, it may seem overly optimistic to plant them on 30-foot centers, but planting more closely will simply result in overgrown plantings.

Check with your Crabapple Rep for appropriate plant selection.