Why I Oughta...

The conifers are starting to show up at the nurseries and big box stores.  There's one orange big box store that always orders in some unique trees - including conifers.  Over the weekend, I popped in there to see what is already in-stock and saw a pair of yellow pine trees.  Hmmm...those are interesting.   Here, below, is a photo showing these yellow pine trees.  They sure stand-out, don't they? What are they?  According to the tag, these are Louie White Pine trees for $99.00. Interesting, right?  Let's get to know the Louie White Pine.  From Conifer Kingdom : Gold decorates this outstanding Pinus strobus ‘Louie’ all year. In the cold of winter, the brilliant golden hue is brightest at the needle tips. In summer, needles change to a wonderful soft golden green, unlike other pines. Globose when young, the medium-sized tree develops a beautiful conical form. "Medium-sized" tree.  I like that.  Not a dwarf, but not going to be a giant...

Yesterday was the first day of Spring.  And, we woke up to a view in our garden to a decidely-not-spring-like situation.  Everything was covered in a layer of snow and sleet.   And, it could not have been more beautiful.   The pair of Greenspire Linden espalier trees had that snow cling to every branch and REALLY HIGHLIGHTED the structure and the four horizontal cordon layers.  Even the boxwoods got in on the "winter interest" action.  Towering over those Lindens is a row of Green Giant Thujas that are planted by my neighbor on the other side of our fence.  This 'borrowed view' sure is handsome - as those evergreen trees show off their snow-covered tips: And, here below, is the view from our back stoop.  Everything is white - and the limbs are striking in their contrast.   Spring is here.  Let's roll. 

The two Greenspire Linden Trees in our backyard that are trained into a horizontal cordon espalier are one of my garden success stories.  I planted them back in 2017 and over the years, they've filled out with (now) four distinct sets of branches in the espalier.   I showed these trees in their naked form six weeks ago (early January) in this post about the Green Velvet Boxwoods that are planted at their feet .  The four "levels" are clear, but the top has gone totally wild.   Here's a post from late December that shows the top-growth on both of the Lindens .  I've been pretty light-touch on pruning these the past few seasons; mostly shortening branches and taking off tips vs. hard-pruning limbs right off.   But, the 'wild top' of this thing is calling for a more heavy-hand with pruning.  I busted out the lopers and my hand pruners and started to go at them. Below, you can see both trees.  The tree on the left has just about one-foo...

A few years back, I learned my lesson when it comes to pruning young trees:  don't.  Don't prune them.  Let them go a few years before you touch them at all.  No limb'ing up.  No removing limbs/branches.  If you have to do anything, just clip off the tips of some of the lower branches, but leave them in place - attached to the tree.   In trying to 'hurry the tree up', I thought I could prune off all the lower branches and focus the energy near the top of the tree - to drive the leader UPWARDS.  Turns out, the tree needs limbs and branches and leaves to collect the necessary energy to grow.   That 'leave the tree' advice is what I've followed with the Bald Cypress tree that is planted IB2DWs.    It went in the ground in 2018 .    The Bald Cypress is probably my most 'successful tree'.  I planted it as a tiny, pencil-thin pot-grown tree.  Today, it is probably fifteen feet tall and growing.   Be...

A big part of writing a [garden diary] all-year-around is using the dormant season - like RIGHT NOW, deep in the coldest part of the year - to noodle on garden edits and additions.  I've done it most Winters - educating myself about plants, shrubs and trees.  Sketching out edits to beds.  Thinking about what I should/could add to the garden in various spots. With the temps so low lately, I only get out to the backyard garden to dump our kitchen scraps into the compost bins.  I scurry from the backdoor to the bins in the back of the yard.  And then scurry right back.  So, I only have brief glimpses to notice/document the garden. But, one of the spots that I have been looking at (on these walks) is along the south fence line where we have three Green Giant Thujas that are spaced about five-feet apart.   These three went in the ground in April of 2022 and were small(ish).  Looking back at the photos from when they were planted , the tips of the...

Fall Planting 2024 continues with a second front-yard conifer tree: the Skylands Oriental Spruce. Picea orientalis ‘Skylands’.  This is the second, small conifer tree that I put in our front yard in the past week - with the first one being the Oregon Green Austrian Pine .   At the end of September, I wrote about the Skylands Spruce and detailed the golden needles - among other features .  I've been thinking about a Skylands Spruce in our yard for years and now...thanks to Nat's Mom...we have a small one.   I extended (back towards the house) the island bed that features the Northern Glow Korean Maple and the Spring Grove Ginkgo.  Now, there's a Skylands Spruce.   I had a lot of luck with Fall Planting (#FallPlanting) conifers last year, so *fingers crossed* that trend continues with these two new conifers this Fall. Below are a few photos showing the tree and the island bed: Below is a look at the island bed from the sidewalk - the Skylands ...

Just yesterday, I shared the details (and description) of a new (to me) tree:  the Austrian Pine 'Oregon Green'.  This is an upright, narrow and semi-dwarf conifer tree (grows to 10' tall and 6-8' wide at 10 years) that lends a touch of Japanese Gardening to the landscape.    I mentioned at the end of that post that I found a small (young) ball-and-burlap specimen at the end-of-the-year sale at the orange big box nursery.   Ever since I read the statement:  " Conifers Should Come First ", I've been aware of the need to plant (even) more of them - specifically in the front yard.  In January, I mused about adding more conifers to our front yard and highlighted some inspiration photos .  I also posted (earlier this year) about using a hide-and-reveal technique with a front-yard path .  In both of those situations, the ideas call for upright conifers in various spots.   One last data point - back in 2019, I created a post that deta...

The single-best decision we've made with our landscape in the six seasons since we moved into our house was planting a row of Frans Fontaine European Hornbeam trees along the property line on the north side.   Over the years, I've tried to document their grown from 2" caliper trees to a full hedge today (one that likely needs to be pruned next season).   Here's a post from July 2022 that somewhat chronicles the full history of these trees .   I typically try to post some photos of these trees in late Summer - here's the trees from a year ago (September 2023 ) and then again as they drop their leaves.  Here's last Fall/early Winter when they were dropping their leaves - and some holding their leaves .   Have a look at what the trees look like below - right now.  They're tall, full and surprisingly in need of (I think) a prune. Like all the trees in our yard, if you look closely, you'll see a bunch of brown, dead 'tips' on the branches....

Back on July First, I posted the details of a new (to me) Northern Glow Korean Maple tree that I planted in our front yard in a newly created island bed.  I tucked it in next to our third Spring Grove dwarf Ginkgo tree.  Planting a new tree in the middle of the summer Summer is always a risk - with the heat and drought conditions that usually occur around here in Zone 6a/5b.   But, I learned last year that some shade cloth (50%) is a pretty good path towards helping young, dwarf trees get established during the heat of July and August.  So, that's what I did:  I put up a shade cloth covering both the Ginkgo and the Northern Glow Korean Maple .  With the cloth down at the end of August, I've begun to provide supplemental water to both of these small trees.  And, what I'm seeing on the Maple is a surprise (to me):  new, late-Summer foliage growth.  There are a handful of new buds that have emerged on some of the tips of the tree and some n...