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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]


Labor is one of the largest expenses in the landscape services industry, and maintenance services, such as pruning, is one of the most labor-intensive tasks. While plant growth regulators (PGRs) can be a cost-effective tool to control growth in shrubs and reduce labor expenses, lack of information on the economic feasibility of PGRs has limited…Read more about Are PGRs worth it? A sensitivity analysis using Paclobutrazol for shrub maintenance[Read More]


As the fall weather starts you might be tempted to put away your bugspray along with your shorts and flipflops but hold up! You still might need it. Some ticks may still be active well into the fall and even in the winter. These tiny animals are more than just a nuisance. They often carry…Read more about The Cold Never Bothered Ticks Anyway (well, kinda)[Read More]


As the 2020 gardening year draws to a close, now is the time to ensure a successful gardening season next year, for you or your customers!  Sanitation is a cornerstone of integrated pest management and is essential for good plant health management. Throughout the year, we have been plagued with both unusually wet and unusually…Read more about “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.” —F. Scott Fitzgerald[Read More]


A New Certification Course Offering from Purdue Pesticide Program This new course helps prepare those working toward their Category 3a Ornamental Pest Management pesticide certification exam. It will also be useful to new employees or veterans of the industry by providing practical information about caring for plants in the landscape. Taught by leading experts in…Read more about A New Certification Course Offering from Purdue Pesticide Program[Read More]


Please join us Wednesday (October 7th) for our bi-weekly, live educational series.  The event will take place at 12:00 pm (Eastern) on Zoom at https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/96190839031 or on Facebook Live at https://www.facebook.com/PurdueLandscapeReport/. The following speakers and topics will include:   Ariana Torres: Costs of applying plant growth regulators (PGRs) for shrub maintenance John Bonkowski: Phytophthora Canker on Trees Lindsey…Read more about Purdue Landscape Report: Virtual Live[Read More]


Most experienced gardeners will tell you that removing the dead foliage and stems of perennials and annuals in the fall is a great way to help next year’s garden get off to a good start. Removing the stubble and leaves can remove overwintering fungi and insects that can attack plants in the spring. It also…Read more about Protect Pollinators and Plants with a Balanced Fall Garden Cleanup Plan[Read More]


Labor is one of the largest expenses in the landscape services industry, and maintenance services, such as pruning, are one of the most labor-intensive tasks. While plant growth regulators (PGRs) can be a cost-effective tool to control growth in shrubs and reduce labor expenses, a lack of information on the economic feasibility of PGRs has…Read more about Costs of applying plant growth regulators (PGRs) for shrub maintenance[Read More]


Dry summers are not that unusual in Indiana. Of particular concern this year is that the dry spell is lasting well into autumn, putting plants in poor condition to get through the winter.   Figure 1 from the US Drought Monitor shows that much of Indiana remains abnormally dry to under moderate drought.  While some…Read more about Water Now Minimize Winter Injury[Read More]


This very slimy substance (Fig. 1) has many common names, was once classified as an algae but is now known as a Cyanobacterium. It is worse in areas that are frequently wet, such as low areas in lawns or on frequently irrigated golf courses (Fig. 2) or along walkways in nurseries where it can create…Read more about Lawn Jelly? Star Jelly? Nostoc by any other name is just as slimy.[Read More]



Please join us Wednesday (September 16th) for our bi-weekly, live educational series.  The event will take place at 12:00 pm (Eastern) on Zoom at https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/96190839031 or on Facebook Live at https://www.facebook.com/PurdueLandscapeReport/. The following speakers and topics will include: Costs of Applying Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs) for Shrub Maintenance-Ariana Torres Plant Selections You’ll Live to Regret-Tom Creswell Manganese Deficiency…Read more about Purdue Landscape Report: Virtual Live[Read More]


Purdue Landscape Report: Virtual Please join us tomorrow (September 2nd) for our bi-weekly, live educational series.  The event will take place at 12:00 pm (Eastern) on Zoom at https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/96190839031 or on Facebook Live at https://www.facebook.com/PurdueLandscapeReport/. The following speakers and topics will included: Janna Beckerman, Resistance is…..confusing John Bonkowski, Tulip Poplar Summer Leaf Drop Kyle Daniel,…Read more about Purdue Landscape Report: Virtual Live[Read More]


Do you have a tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) in your yard and does it look like fall has come early? This is a likely occurrence in the landscape in late summer, especially leading into August. About this time of year leaves on many tulip poplar trees will start to gradually turn yellow before they fall…Read more about Tulip poplar summer leaf drop[Read More]


One of the most common weeds that present significant challenges to both landscapers and growers are thistles.  There are several reasons that thistles are difficult to control, including thousands of viable seeds per plant (Fig. 1), rhizomatous growth characteristics (Canada thistle) (Fig. 2), and large root system (Fig. 3). There are three major types of…Read more about Understanding and Controlling Thistle in the Nursery and Landscape[Read More]


Have you noticed large, messy webs on trees? You may have seen a colony of fall webworms. These caterpillars hatch in mid-July but tend to become more noticeable as the summer progresses. They often eat branches bare of leaves but are they a threat to tree health?   What do they look like? Fall webworms…Read more about Fall webworms: Should you manage them?[Read More]


This spring the PPDL received several samples, calls and emails related to dying weeping cherry trees (Fig. 1, 2, 3). Reports of this phenomenon came from as far away as Missouri. Ornamental cherry trees (and related Prunus spp.) are susceptible to multiple problems, including southwest injury (Fig. 4) Botryosphaeria dieback/canker (Fig. 5), bacterial canker and…Read more about Weeping Cherry Problems 2020[Read More]


The Purdue Landscape Report Team is excited to offer you an online learning opportunity on Wednesday, August 19th at 12:00 pm (Eastern) via Zoom and Facebook Live. This is part of our on-going, biweekly series. The topics and speakers will vary each session, so check out the newsletter every two weeks to find out what…Read more about Online Learning Opportunity[Read More]



Plants that experience extremes in soil moisture may develop spots on their leaves, called “oedema” (also spelled “edema”). The spots may first appear as a blister or raised spot, particularly on the undersides of leaves, but may occur on the top side as well as on the stems. Eventually, the blister develops a rust-colored, cork-like…Read more about Oedema Is a Corky Quirk[Read More]


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