Spring is just around the corner, green spaces are beginning to wake from their winter slumber, Earth Day and Arbor Day are a little over a month away, and people are ready to get outside with planting on their minds. But before you go and get your tree(s) for planting, there is quite a lot…Read more about Urban Tree Spotlight – Planting Deciduous Shade Trees[Read More]
Resources for landscapes and gardens in the Midwest
Landscape Report
arboriculture
August was National Check Your Tree Month, but this is something that every tree owner/manager should be doing year-round. As the last hot days of summer are finishing up and we look forward to cooler fall days, we can look to our trees for different signs of trouble. Most people tend to look up at…Read more about Enjoy Your Trees While Checking Them[Read More]
I think white pines are beautiful trees, especially at maturity, and they have the added advantage that they are one of the few conifers that don’t try to kill you with their needles. Besides working with the foliage, have you ever had to “rescue” a child who climbed too high in a spike-infested deathtrap of…Read more about Declining Pines of the White Variety[Read More]
Many trees are planted for their beautiful fall color, especially in locations where the climate provides reliable autumn weather. I have said this multiple times during extension talks and conversations with submitters to the PPDL, but I seem to have not experienced a ‘normal’ fall since moving to Indiana with how erratic the weather has…Read more about Early Fall Color – A Symptom of Stress[Read More]
When I was a kid, if you’d asked me what my favorite season was it would always immediately be summer. No school, time for playing outdoors, swimming, hiking, and late nights playing flashlight tag. Now, if I ranked the seasons from worst to best, they’d be Summer in last, followed by Winter (yes, I choose…Read more about Can I Plant Trees in the Fall?[Read More]
Trees stressed by prolonged drought are more subject to attack by boring insects. This article provides tips and a video link on how to manage pines for borers. Record breaking heat and sporadic rainfall during July of 2023 took their toll on landscape trees. Cone bearing evergreens, like white pines, are especially susceptible to drought…Read more about Beat Back Borers Attacking Pines and other Cone Bearing Trees[Read More]
Remember the pre-Christmas freeze? What about the extremely long fall? The Midwest experienced above-average temperatures through most of the winter, but those extremely cold temps in late December made for more than a few pipes to freeze in the southern part of the Midwest. The dichotomy in weather patterns over the last several years has…Read more about Cold Injury During a Very Mild Winter?[Read More]
When transplanting trees, it is important to consider the long-term viability. Since the typical life span of an urban tree is 7-20 years (USDA), proper establishment techniques are very important to decrease this mortality rate. When a tree becomes established, it is much more difficult to correct below ground problems. Root deformations can occur for…Read more about Using Pneumatic Digging Equipment to Correct Root Deformations, Deep Planting, and Compaction on Established Trees[Read More]
There are many age-old, philosophical questions that people have been arguing over for many years. What is the meaning of life? Nature or nurture? Do aliens exist? Should I remove the wire and burlap from B&B plant material? The last question has been debated for many years, with almost everyone having a different opinion. There…Read more about Wire Baskets: Leave them or remove them?[Read More]
After you have decided on the best species and cultivar (right plant, right place!) for a location, it’s time to inspect the plants from the nursery or garden center. What should you be looking for when inspecting trees prior to transplanting into the landscape? Here are a few: Look for structural defects (Fig. 1). Ensure…Read more about Selecting High Quality Plants[Read More]
Sign-up to receive email news and alerts from Purdue Landscape Working Group:
This is US
For More Information
Purdue Home Page
Purdue Extension
Find your county office
