Plant Health Care – Spring Tips

Hello and wecome back to my seasonal plant health care tips. With springtime just around the corner we need to start thinking about our garden and how we can get the season off on the right foot. First of all we want to ensure that with our plants and trees they start pushing new growth and setting buds so we get the most vigorous growth and blooms this spring. The best way to do that is with a properly balanced fertilization for your shrubs and trees and now is a great time to do that application. A mix of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium will promote trunk and branch growth, stimulate vigorous root growth, promote flower bud formation and make an overall healthier, stronger plant.   

The other key during this time of year is to get ahead of the oncoming flush of weeds in your planting beds. One of the best ways to stay ahead of this is with an application of compost or barkdust mulch. If this hasn’t been done in a while I’d recommend a 2″ layer be put down. With our regular clients we do an annual application and in these cases we only put down approximately 1″ each year to freshen it up. This mulch over your planting beds is the best way to keep weeds down and it also helps to build good soil, retain moisture and reduce run-off. Finally, while this is not for our organic clients, if you want to add an extra layer of weed protection to your planting beds you might consider an application of a pre-emergent herbicide. These typically last about 90 days, depending on site conditions and practices, and they prevent weeds from germinating in the first place. It is a chemical and we recommend that you either closely follow the manufacturer’s recommendations or hire a licensed applicator.

Since this time of year is one of the busiest in the garden I will be posting again next month so make sure to subscribe to our RSS feed and get the latest tips from your truly.

Jim Zauner

Staff Horticulturalist

 

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Plant Health Care – Winter Tips

Winter Greetings!

There’s not a whole lot going on in most landscapes now but there are a couple things that everyone should consider doing at this time of year to ensure a healthy and vibrant landscape when springtime rolls around.

The first is a dormant and copper oil treatment. These are both natural products and a great foundation for healthy and pest-free shrubs and trees. Many insects lay their eggs on plants and trees in the Fall and the eggs overwinter and hatch in the spring ready to attack and munch on the tasty new foliage in your landscape. The dormant oil is sprayed onto plants and small trees,  including fruit trees, and it coats and suffocates these eggs preventing them from hatching in the spring. We also recommend adding copper with this treatment as it is a natural fungicide and helps to treat many fungal diseases from  taking hold in your landscape.

The second treatment that we recommend at this time of year is a systemic root injection for your large trees that are too large to spray or to take care of insects that are not controlled by foliar sprays. The insect control is injected directly into to root zone and the tree takes it in and moves it up the tree. Insects are controlled when the tree leafs out and it begins to feed on the foliage. The other major benefit of this treatment is that it minimizes other treatments as it offers full season control.

Both of these are excellent ways to ensure your plants and trees get a great start this spring and your landscape stays healthy and pest-free. They are preventative treatments that are very cost-effective.

I will be posting news and tips about plant health care throughout the year so stay tuned and keep checking back in.

Jim Zauner

Staff Horticulturalist

“An ounce of prevention equals a pound of cure”

Benjamin Franklin

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Meet DeSantis Landscapes Staff Horticulturalist – Jim Zauner

Jim Zauner

Last year we brought on 20+ year industry veteran Jim Zauner to lead our new Plant Health Care service and well, we thought it was time you meet. Jim is our go-to guy when it comes to any questions around fertility, diseases and pests in your landscape. With his many years of experience he can usually assess a situation fairly quickly (sometimes even over the phone or via email) and provide our staff with the reasons for the issue and how to resolve it. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is Jim’s modus operandi, meaning he will always first recommend the least toxic, effective methods first. Jim has helped us to develop a full service Plant Health Care Program featuring organic options through our EarthSense program which you can find here on our website.

Jim is a native Oregonian and lives in Canby with his wife Heidi and two stepdaughters. Jim’s strong work ethic, expert opinion and sense of humor has been a valued addition to the DeSantis team.

Jim will be writing seasonally relevant posts for this blog throughout the year so make sure you’re receiving our RSS feed to stay up to date how to keep your landscape healthy and thriving throughout the year.

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