Landscaping Blog

Post-Holiday Wrap-Up!

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 18:38:11 +0000

Make sure your tree does not end up in a landfill this year! The City of Philadelphia will not be recycling trees left curbside. Residents should take their trees to drop-off points to be chipped for mulch. Trees must be free of decoration and removed from any plastic bags. Please see below for specific neighborhoods and appropriate drop-off times.

Chestnut Hill & Mount Airy

Norwood Fontbonne Academy

8891 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118

Sunday Jan. 8th from 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

$5 donation requested. No early drop-offs.

Gabby's Community Garden

On Chew Ave between E. Mt Airy Ave and E. Mt Pleasant Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19119

Sunday, Jan. 8th from 1:00 pm-4:00 pm

$5 donation requested. No early drop-offs.

West Philadelphia

Bartram's Garden

5400 Lindbergh Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19143

Christmas Tree-Cycling & Coat Drive

Saturday, Jan. 7th from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm

$5 donation requested. No early drop-offs. Gently used coats will also be collected for donation to Feel The Warmth.

Philadelphia Recycling Centers

Northwest Drop-Off Center

Domino Lane & Umbria Street

Northeast Drop-Off Center

State Road & Ashburner Street

Southwest Drop-Off Center

3033 South 63rd Street (near Passyunk Avenue)

Program will run for two weeks: Tuesday, January 3rd through Saturday, January 14th

The sites are open from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, Monday through Saturday.

For more information (215) 686-5560.

Additional Neighborhoods in Philadelphia http://greenlimbs.com/2012-tree-cycling/

Cheltenham Township: Pick-up

WEST of Old York Road:

Tuesday, Jan 17th; Wednesday, Jan 18; Monday, Jan 23rd and Tuesday, Jan 24th

EAST of Old York Road:

Thursday, Jan 19th; Friday, Jan 20th; Wednesday, Jan 25th and Thursday, Jan 26th.

215-887-1000, ext. 330

Springfield Township: Pick-up

Township crews begin collecting Christmas Trees during the first week of January. Please place your tree at the curbside on your regular collection day.

215-836-7600

Why We Use Christmas Trees

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 20:45:38 +0000

The tradition of the Christmas tree dates back to the 1500's where the first tree was decorated at Riga in Latvia in 1510. By the mid 16th century, German towns began selling Christmas related items at markets and people began purchasing items to take home to hang on their "Christmas tree." The concept of a Christmas tree later spread to England, and eventually made its way to the U.S. through European settlers. Today, Christmas trees can be seen virtually everywhere once the Holiday season is in full gear. Each year, families scramble to find that perfect tree to fill their home with lights, presents, and memories.

Tree Facts (Courtesy of the National Christmas Tree Association):

There are approximately 25-30 million Real Christmas Trees sold in the U.S. every year.
There are close to 350 million Real Christmas Trees currently growing on Christmas Tree farms in the U.S. alone, all planted by farmers.
North American Real Christmas Trees are grown in all 50 states and Canada. Eighty percent (80%) of artificial trees worldwide are manufactured in China, according to the U.S. Commerce Department.
Real Trees are a renewable, recyclable resource. Artificial trees contain non-biodegradable plastics and possible metal toxins such as lead.
There are more than 4,000 local Christmas Tree recycling programs throughout the United States.
For every Real Christmas Tree harvested, 1 to 3 seedlings are planted the following spring.
There are about 350,000 acres in production for growing Christmas Trees in the U.S.; much of it preserving green space.
There are close to 15,000 farms growing Christmas Trees in the U.S., and over 100,000 people are employed full or part-time in the industry.
It can take as many as 15 years to grow a tree of typical height (6 - 7 feet) or as little as 4 years, but the average growing time is 7 years.
The top Christmas Tree producing states are Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Washington. (See a complete list of all 50 states ranked by several variables.)
The most common Christmas Tree species are: balsam fir, Douglas-fir, Fraser fir, noble fir, Scotch pine, Virginia pine and white pine.

Photo by: Andrew McCaul, Country Living Magazine

P-interesting

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:25:55 +0000

If you haven't heard of pinterest yet, we highly recommend that you check it out. Pinterest is like an online corkboard where you can save ideas, samples, and collections of all your favorite things. Be forewarned - It can become very addicting!

Rochelle Walter Greayar, author of Studio G, created a great collection of all her favorite landscape designers through pinterest.

The above image is a landscape design by Jinny Blom who is a favorite designer of ours and one of the designers featured in Greayar's pinterest collection.

Going Nuts

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:06:44 +0000

I'm not sure what's worse around here - stink bugs, squirrels, or deer. Since we just posted a blog article on the harmful effects that deer have on our plants, we should probably move on to the impact of squirrels on our local landscape. These critters steal food from bird feeders, vegetable patches, eat fruit and nuts from backyard trees, raid your garbage, and will even eat your pet's food. Fortunately, there are many ways to naturally repel these creatures from your garden.

Spices

Sprinkle hot spices such as chili powder and cayenne over any fruit or vegetables bothered by squirrels and along areas such as tables and fence railings that squirrels use for moving from place to place in your garden, according to Oliver Finn. The scent of these spices will repel these creatures. Mix these spices in a spray bottle to saturate the fruit in trees and shrubs.

Squirrel-proof Your Bulbs

Squirrels dig up newly planted bulbs. To protect your bulbs and containers you can use repellents and mix oyster shell into the plantings and/or lay chicken wire over the bed and cover it with oyster shell and mulch. Any combination will have some benefit to protect your bulbs and planters. Another trick would be to plant bulbs in the garlic family (allium and fritillaria) as a natural repellent.

Feed the Squirrels

Provide a cob of corn, raw peanuts or sunflower seeds in a section of your garden away from the vegetable or flower garden and easily accessible to the squirrels. Well-fed squirrels should have no reason to raid your vegetable garden, trees or pet dish and will keep other hungry squirrels away.

Time to Celebrate

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:26:05 +0000

Celebrate the good things in life by taking time to acknowledge them. This can be done in many ways, but we'd like to suggest a unique milemarker that can be done alone or with someone else - planting a tree. The long life span of a tree can represent the growth and development of important things in your life.

One trend right now is the ceremonial wedding tree. Planting a tree at the start of your marriage can make for a fun bonding activity and can mark the start of your life together as a couple. Scandinavians traditionally plant an evergreen near the front door of a bridal couple's home as an investment in life and longevity. The evergreen is thought to give strength to the marriage. We've also heard of parents planting trees to celebrate the birth of each of their children. Wait until the child is old enough to remember planting the tree and by that age you should also know something of their personality, favorite colors and temperament. What tree would you plant for your wedding or child?

Deer Food

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:04:14 +0000

As we head into the winter season, you may begin to notice increased plant damage due to deer and other animal browsing. In this area of Pennsylvania, deer overpopulation is a major obstacle and concern; especially for us in the landscape industry. Oftentimes clients try to tell us that they have a uniquely severe deer problem, but unfortunately this seems to be the case for almost all of our clients. Now a day it is rare for a client to be without a deer problem, so when we come across an untouched property we become overly excited and go crazy planting hosta and other deer friendly foods.

Deer eat approximately 5-9 pounds of food daily, loosely browsing a variety of different plants. In the summer they eat acorns, green plants, nuts, fruits, and aquatic plants. In the fall they switch to eating grasses and evergreen plants. In springtime deer prefer new shoots and budding plants. But, in the cold months of winter deer can be found eating just about any woody plant available. Beyond their browsing, deer can also severely damage or kill trees and shrubbery when they expose cambium layers of a plant by rubbing their antlers on bark to mark their territory during the fall mating season.

A simple solution to minimizing deer activity is to allow a well-trained and unchained dog to patrol the perimeter. If you want to install a deer fence, the fence will need to be at least 6 feet in height and (8ft is better), should local rules permit. In some cases, it may be advisable to "mark" the fence at regular intervals with nursery tape or cloth, so the deer can readily see it and learn to browse elsewhere. Deer repellent sprays can work, but they need to be reapplied consistently to all plants. Anything left unsprayed will easily turn into deer food.

Model Amphitheatre in Swarthmore, PA

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:07:07 +0000

Burkholder Brothers was recently asked to work on the design of an amphitheatre. To begin the design process for this exciting project, we stopped by the amphitheatre at Swarthmore College for some inspiration. Swarthmore's outdoor amphitheatre makes great use of the natural woodland setting and sloping hills along the edge of campus. One of the design elements that enhances this setting is the fact that mature trees were kept throughout the seats of the amphitheater, giving the feeling of being "in the woods" rather than simply being surrounded by woods. The natural stone steps and pea gravel walks provide easy access throughout the area and blend in beautifully with the surroundings.

Up next...maybe a visit to the Colloseum in Rome?

What is an amphitheatre?

An amphitheatre is an outdoor venue used for entertainment. Amphitheatres are typically man-made, though there are also geological formations used in the same manner which are known as natural amphitheatres. The term derives from the ancient Greek amphi-, meaning "around", or "on both sides" and théātron, meaning "place for viewing".

Grapes in the Landscape

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:33:09 +0000

It's not often that we get to use grapes in landscape design in this area of eastern PA, but it never hurts to visit a vineyard for some design inspiration (and some wine samples). There's something so perfect about a straight row of grapes at a vineyard. And, for some reason almost everything looks better when covered in vines. Vines help soften hard edges and give a feeling of age.

Crossing Vineyards in Newtown, PA is located on a 200 year old estate that was part of the King of England's land grant to William Penn in the 1600s. It includes 20 acres of French Hybrid and European Vinifera grapes that are sustainably managed using eco-friendly growing methods. The grounds are beautifully maintained and used for a variety of events. Outdoor tents enable prolonged outdoor activities and the vineyard has a full season calendar of events. If you're a chocolate fan, we highly recommend the wine and chocolate pairing class!

A view of the path leading to a tasting area at Crossing Vineyards

Recycling Rainwater

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 13:51:31 +0000

The past few months have wreaked havoc on our plants and our water schedule. First we experienced a drought, then a hurricane, and now we've had a lot of rain. It's hard to know what to do with weather this extreme. While there's no controlling the weather, you can control what you do with rainwater runoff. Rain barrels are an excellent way to store rainfall for use in the landscape.

Why Use A Rain Barrel?

• It's free! Spend $50 for one and then use it for one summer and it is likely you've more than paid for it. An easy way to calculate is figure out your water bill per gallon – then figure out how any gallons you need to break even. After that it's completely free.

• Rainwater is much better for plants to drink as it has natural nutrients in it and does not contain chlorine and other additives tap water has.

• We are letting free water escape our land. Unfortunately most new home builders remove the top 2-4 inches of good black dirt when leveling a plot. This good top soil is then hauled away and sold to companies that bag it and sell it back to you! This practice unfortunately makes our soil underneath the sod very poor and impermeable as it is typically hard clay preventing deep root growth for plants and grass. Water then takes a very long time to soak down into the clay, thus it winds up collecting as fast flowing water drowning the grasses' shallow roots and then most of it flowing into the storm drains where it is gone. Thus, a normal infrequent rain no longer satiates the water needs of most lawns (at least in my geographical location) and requires frequent watering using drinking / treated water during the summer. By using treated clean drinking tap water it winds up wasting those substantial resources to make it safe to drink.

Information Source: http://conflictedracer.wordpress.com/2011/04/24/rain-barrels/

Rain barrels gone artsy make for a great statement piece or a fun community project

A Rain barrel that functions as a flower pot serves two purposes

De-Stressing with Nature

kelly@burkholderbrothers.com (Burkholder Brothers Landscaping) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:46:43 +0000

I don’t know about you, but it seems like things just keep getting busier. One of the most difficult tasks in life is finding and maintaining balance – everyone struggles with it at some point in life, and for many it’s a constant battle. Maybe that’s why it's so relaxing to be out in nature. When you’re surrounded by plants and animals, it takes you back to the beginning – back to the way things were before we interrupted the cycle and balance of our natural environment. It’s refreshing to see the beauty, stability, and peacefulness of nature.

Landscape Architecture blog, The Dirt, recently posted a great article on how nature has been shown to help people de-stress. In this article, Michael Posner, professor emeritus at University of Oregon says that our brains get fatigued after working long periods at a time. According to Posner, a break in itself does not help deal with stress; the quality of the break is what matters. Dr. Marc Berman of the University of Michigan found that memory and attention span quality improved by 20 percent when subjects walked through an arboretum versus walking down a busy urban street, which left subject without any cognitive boost. Berman also found that simply looking at photos of nature helped improve cognitive attention span. So create a de-stressing environment for yourself, whether it is real plants or photos of plants.

Read this article for more info: http://dirt.asla.org