Ever wonder how Christensen’s stores and maintains trees in "the field" to keep them viable all year long? If you've ever tried to keep above-ground material healthy over a long period of time you know there are challenges to be met. But for the most part, it’s really not that far off from what you do when you plant a tree in a landscape - except we do it for a few thousand trees.

First, we grade out the area where the trees are going to go and then auger holes to place the trees in. After the tree is straight in the hole we backfill it with dirt and lightly pack it down.

Then an irrigation emitter is placed into every root ball. We use two different sizes of irrigation emitters, yellow for trees that are 3” or smaller and black for anything larger. We do an irrigation check on the trees at least once a week depending on the time of year. The irrigation system for the field might run 24 hours a day in the summer, so making sure that the trees get the required amount of water is sometimes difficult. We check the emitters to make sure they are not clogged, that they are spraying correctly, and that they haven’t come off of the feeder line and are flooding the tree.

After the trees are put in the ground we apply pre-emergent to prevent weeds from growing in the root balls and the surrounding soil. We generally do this twice a year. As the year goes on if weeds begin to grow we spray with non-selective herbicide. We add a non-toxic blue indicator dye to make sure that we are only hitting the targeted weeds and not the trees.

We do several other sprays throughout the year to prevent disease or insect damage. For instance, we spray for apple scab in the early spring as the trees just start to leaf out. There's also a scheduled spray to prevent gypsy moth, when the temperature is right. We do other targeted sprays as issues come up. Our nursery is inspected regularly for pests so we can be sure that our material is ready for distribution.

At the end of the season we put tree guards on the trunks to prevent damage that could be caused by roaming rabbits and deer. In the spring we remove any guards that are made from solid material in order to allow the trunk of the tree to stay dry and also to prevent bugs from making a home there.

Lastly, when we lift trees from the field to go on your truck, we carefully re-wrap the rootball with fresh burlap if needed. You can be confident that the trees we store are ready to go on your landscape job, spring, summer, or fall.

So, you’re ready to install some landscaping. What plants should you use, where, and how many? 

First thing to consider is the environment

Shady, sunny, windy, sandy, clay, deer ridden, salty… all of these conditions can exist on the same property. It is important to choose plants that prefer the environment you are dealing with.

Every environment has plants that love it

You will need to know how the sun is tracking and consider existing large trees or other plants to know which areas will be sunny, shady, or both. Some plants are excellent for adapting to several different conditions. For instance,  Diervilla (bush honeysuckle) grows in sun, shade, dry soil, alkaline soil, or acidic soil, and is deer resistant.

Draw your plan to scale using plant's mature sizes

Plan your landscape, on paper, to scale, and draw your plants at mature or near mature size. Scale is important for determining how much material you will need. Drawing plants at mature size will avoid overcrowding, and that in turn reduces maintenance as the plants have the room they need to grow and don’t have to be chopped into ugly unnatural shapes to control their size. This way, instead of becoming overgrown and ugly and needing redoing, your landscape will continue to improve with age.

Use garden art or boulders to fill in gaps while plants grow

If this leaves some open spots while you’re waiting for the plants to grow, these are perfect spots for garden art, sculptures, containers, bird baths, fountains, and accent boulders. Accent boulders are usually a good idea intermingled with large perennial beds to maintain some visual interest in the winter.

Use some evergreens for winter interest

And speaking of which, plant some evergreens so you have some winter color, and leave your ornamental grasses up until spring for some winter interest.

Use beds large enough to layer different sizes of plants

Another good reason to know how big your plants are going to get, aside from overcrowding, is so you can plant "stadium seating" style. Taller plants in the back, shorter in front.

Follow these guidelines, and your customers will be recommending for years to come.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I do NOT follow fashion trends. In no way am I a fashionista! In fact, according to my wife I should go on one of those TV shows where the Dad gets a makeover on his wardrobe. On the other hand she knows all of the fashion trends. As a hair stylist, she keeps up on what is hot, what is not, and what is coming back around.

So how are landscape plants like the fashion industry? Well, new plants are constantly being introduced, replacing older models. Other plants fall out of use, some for good reason. We have watched flowering pear go from the tree that everyone planted everywhere, to one that goes on a landscape only rarely. Or how about creeping junipers? Anyone remember those? One of our veteran employees and I were recently lamenting how we used to get a semi-load of creeping junipers almost every week “back in the day”. Now we get them about once a month, and never a full truck load. They are still a great option but it seems that people are planting other things instead. I am betting it won't be long before they come back around.

So plants are like pants. They come into fashion, they go out of fashion, and sometimes they come back in again. And sometimes to be different, you have to look at what is old or out of fashion. For instance, Kolkwitzia (Beauty bush) is a cool plant that no one uses anymore, but should. You see them often where an old farmhouse once stood, or in older neighborhoods like downtown Plymouth. The masses of pink flowers in the spring are really striking and the dark green leaves turn an awesome yellow in the fall. A great plant to use in areas where viburnum or forsythia would go.

So change your p(l)ants! Look at using something old or different and your designs can appear fresh, new, and not like everyone else's. I would still avoid the pear, though.

The first time I saw a plant reversion, I wasn’t sure what I was looking at. A customer had called and said there was a TREE growing out of her Dwarf Alberta Spruce. I had never seen this before, so I had to get my Dad involved. He said it was a classic! One of the buds one year cast off the dwarfing gene and the regular white spruce began to grow instead. I have to admit it was pretty cool looking - the white spruce growing straight and tall - but the customer wasn’t thrilled. The reversion is always more vigorous and would eventually take over the plant if not addressed.

Many of the most interesting and unique plants in the trade come from a spontaneous mutation, like a witch's broom or a variegated sprout. The mutation is discovered, a cutting is taken, and the variety eventually propagated and introduced. Some of these mutations aren’t that stable, and you will see parts of or entire plants reverting to the original form. I would like to point out that this is different than when the rootstock takes over a grafted plant, in that case you can see the growth is coming from below the graft.

Reversion can be brought on by many factors, but environmental stress seems to be a common cause. If you are observant when you are out on landscapes, you can see reversions all the time. That spruce example happens now and again, and loss of variegation is another one that’s fairly easy to find.

So getting back to my “Classic” scenario, my Dad suggested to our customer that we should prune it out immediately, as it was only going to get worse. There was a good chance the plant would survive and eventually fill in around the removed portion. If we didn’t, the reversion would dominate, and the resulting tree was never going to be an attractive specimen. I’m a tree hugger and my Dad’s even worse so of course we recommended trying to save the tree. In the end, we replaced the plant - because of its location and visibility the recovery time was unacceptable.

Each case is a judgement call. If you catch it while the reverted growth is fairly small, a simple pruning may be sufficient to eliminate it. Perennials such as hosta can be dug up, split, and replanted.

So be on the lookout for reversions. They are kind of cool, sometimes a little weird but definitely more common than you think. Take some pictures, share with us what you are finding and I will pull together a follow up discussion on this topic. Remember: Prune out all you can to “nip it in the bud” - if it’s too late replace it - and get a picture for our discussion.

In 2006 Nintendo introduced its new home video game console called "Wii". Six years earlier the Austrian company Redbull introduced the advertising campaign “Redbull gives you wiiings!"  No, “wiiings” is not spelled wrong and it doesn’t really make you fly - my guess is that it mimics its German equivalent “flügel” which has an umlaut above the “u” - or two dots. And it does give you wiiings to soar, if caffeine and taurine work for you. A multi-sensory metaphor unparalleled in its success.

In 1753 Linnaeus introduced his binomial nomenclature system for plants in Species Plantarum. His system consisted of Genus - usually expressed as a noun in the Latin nominative case - and species expressed adjectivally. Simple enough! Then comes along the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature which spells out in rigorous detail its do’s-and-don’t’s.

In Division II Rules and Recommendations, Chapter III Nomenclature of Taxa, Section 4 Naming of species, Article 23 it describes in nauseating detail how to describe one plant within a Genus from another. Its awful! But this finally gets me to my point. On more than one occasion (but not many) a contractor has asked me “What’s with the double i?"

You’re probably going to be sorry they asked.

Using the Genus Viburnum because it happens frequently there, you will see V. x juddii, V. x burkwoodii, V. x sieboldii, et al. The double “i” is used with proper names of people and places giving credit to them as discoverer, propagator, caretaker, or in honor of. For example, in 1924 William H Judd of the Arnold Arboretum planted his hybrid seedling, observing its first bloom in 1929, and naming it in 1934. Viburnum x burkwoodii was introduced by the Burkwood and Skipworth Nursery in Kingston-on-the-Thames, England in 1924. Philipp Franz von Siebold was a German doctor who went to Nagasaki, Japan in 1823 acting for the Dutch government as physician, botanist, and political spy.

It is a simple but tedious process to Latinize English names and places. Adding “us” to masculine names converts an English noun to Latin. For species, inserting a long “i” before the “us” can turn a name into an adjective; similarly in English adding an ”y” ( or “ly”) to the word - “bump” becomes “bumpy” and “friend” becomes “friendly.” Finally, the adjectival species name must be in the possessive or genitive case to show ownership or origination which is “i.” Ergo, “us" becomes “ius” which becomes “ii” (which is pronouced long e, long i). In English we would add ”-’s” as in “Judd” which becomes “Judd’s.”

Hopefully that wasn’t too painful!

The usuage of “-ii” is so rare in English that it makes us stop and take notice. The advertisers of Redbull probably knew this and Linnaeus, by accident, makes us pause to wonder about some of the great contributors to horticulture and to many of the plants we commonly use but take for granted!

Selecting plants that can grow under dry conditions can be challenging. Selecting plants that can grow in the shade can be challenging as well. Finding plants that can grow well under both conditions? Well, that narrows your plant selection down a bit, but there may be more options than you think.

It must be realized that even though a plant is considered drought tolerant, this is only the case once their root systems are firmly established. Until that point, they must be watered regularly. This could take up to a year or more of effort before you can cut back on the watering, but during extended droughts, even established plants need a little help to survive. Using mulch will help by retaining water that is provided by you or mother nature.

Also, there is a difference between shade loving and shade tolerant plants. Some plants that grow well in full sun can tolerate shade, but they will be a bit thin and wispy and not blossom as much. If these plants are to survive, all of their other needs must be met to compensate for the lack of sun.

I will start with shade tolerant varieties. The one selection which, can in some cases, be considered a small tree, is hamamelis (witch hazel). Shrubs include buxus (boxwood), taxus (yew), aronia (chokeberry), and diervilla (bush honeysuckle). Hydrangea quercifolia (oakleaf hydrangea) are surprisingly drought tolerant once established, and of all the shrubs mentioned will tolerate the shade best as they are considered shade loving.

Shade tolerant perennials include campanula (bellflower), hemerocallis (daylily, especially stella d’oro), digitalis (foxglove), geranium sanguineum (cranesbill), liriope (lilyturf), euphorbia (spurge), and phlox subulata (creeping phlox).

You may have better luck with these shade loving varieties. Hosta (plantain lily), ajuga (bugleweed), pachysandra (spurge), vinca (myrtle or periwinkle), tiarella and huecherella (foamflower), hellebore (lenten rose), brunnera (bugloss), lamium (dead nettle), athyrium niponicum (painted fern), and bergenia (pigsqeak).

It may be difficult to plant a shady dry area, but if you put the time in to make sure the plants will be healthy and establish a good root system, I think you’ll do fine. It’s not the biggest plant list, and may not cover every possible candidate. Hopefully you don’t also have deer around making the list even smaller (as well as your hostas).

Designers need to consider many factors when choosing plant material. Evergreen, herbaceous, deciduous? Foliage or flower color, bloom time, preferred growing conditions and so on. One of the most important considerations is plant habit and "ultimate size".

What does "ultimate size" mean?

• Complete in natural development or growth.
• A tree or plant that has reached a desired size or age for its intended use.

Like the old saying goes “Right plant, right place”. Planning and research is vital when evaluating ultimate size to avoid future problems. In addition to knowing how large a given plant may grow, you also should factor in the growth RATE. Dwarf plants aren't always that small at maturity but if it takes them 50 years to get there is that really going to be an issue? On the other hand, popular plants like Colorado Spruce or Weeping Cherry tend to outgrow their siting in a decade or two.

Research is important, and not just on the habit and size of the plant but also the root system, which is often overlooked. For example, don’t plant a Willow tree over a septic tank. Yes, someone I will call ...John Doe... did this to get back at his landlord. Now that might be an example of someone who knew what “ultimate size” would do with the wrong intentions but, planning is everything.

Is it going next to the house? Sidewalk? Driveway? Near power lines? If it’s a row of pine, are you planting them too close to each other making them susceptible to needle diseases in the future? Will the property owner be able to shimmy past the planting bed to get to the building entrance a few years from now? These are just a few examples of what to consider when choosing the right plant.

Above image courtesy of the Arbor Day Foundation (www.arborday.org)

Last year while attending a business webinar I heard a story that really stuck with me. Frank Mariani from Chicago’s North Shore was talking about the early days of his landscape company and some of the challenges that he'd faced.

His client, from an exclusive community of high-end homes, asked him for a quote to plant two trees in the back of the house near the pool. The 75 year-old client wanted shade while watching the grandkids. Frank wrote up a quote for two 2.5” shade trees, explaining that the fence and stairs around the pool prevented the installation of anything larger.

Two weeks later, when he showed up for the weekly maintenance, he was appalled to see one of his competitors at the house using a very large crane to place 8” caliper trees in the requested spots - by lifting them OVER the house! When Frank asked the homeowner why, the response was simple. “You said you couldn’t, and we found someone who could. The money wasn’t an issue. We wanted the shade now.”

That lesson stuck with Frank. Years later his company was presented with a similar situation. Access only allowed for a 3” tree. Frank, thinking back, told his salesperson to quote in two ways. One, quote 3” trees ball-carted to the desired location. Second, quote 10” trees placed via HELICOPTER CRANE. Of course, the price difference was astronomical. But the client decided he had more money than time and Mariani Landscape placed 10” shade trees via helicopter crane, creating a happy customer and a profitable job.

This story made me think about the odd things that we have had requested of OUR company. Now, we have never had to "helicopter" a tree into place. But we have arranged deliveries to Mackinaw Island - picture a semi-truck on a barge with the waves washing over the bow and under the truck. Or the time we sent send a semi-load of material to Minot, North Dakota. If it is important to the client, money is secondary to the action.

Just last night my wife was flying home from a much needed vacation. Then at 2 AM the last leg of her flight was canceled. There I was, searching flights on my iPad to get my exhausted wife home. Price meant very little to me. Getting her home with the least amount of headache added to an already stressful trip was the most important thing.

Knowing your clients is part of what you do every day. Make sure you use this to your advantage. You never know when your biggest challenge may also become your biggest success, leading to one of your most successful marketing pieces.

Of all the questions I get about growing hosta the most common one is: which varieties will take sun - and how much sun is too much sun? Many shaded areas get SOME sun and choosing the right varieties for the conditions will be the difference between success and...

Maybe we won't talk about that.

All hostas prefer to have morning sun and maybe some late afternoon sun. It is that midday sun that is the challenge. Sun tolerance, is to some degree, leaf-color related.

Most hosta with whitish variegation will burn in hot afternoon sun. Those that have more green to chartreuse variegation will handle some of that midday sun as long as they are getting plenty of water. You should avoid putting blue hosta in the sun as the blue color is a waxy coating on the leaf and will melt off, turning your blue plants green. Golden hosta WANT sun. If they don’t get enough sunlight they will turn that sickly greenish-yellow chartreuse color. You know the one. Green hosta will typically take some midday sun, and I have found that the thicker the leaf the more sun they will take.

Do you have a shady area that merges into a more sunny area and looking for some continuity? Here is a list of sun-loving hostas to fill in the sunny areas. Remember, soil moisture is key to keeping the plants looking good.

Rhododendrons are considered among the more difficult plants to trim. Many sources of information about pruning Rhododendron come from the Southern and Western states. The usual complaint about Rhododendron is that they get too large. That is not a big problem in the Midwest.

"Disbudding" refers to two aspects of pruning Rhododendrons. The first is simply removing spent blossoms. I’ve heard arguments over the years that, unless removed, the old flowerbuds will inhibit production of new flowers. I found absolutely no reference to this in my research travels. Also, to me this makes no sense. Mother nature put those flowers there and she can take them off – the shrub will bloom again! The best reason to remove them is one of aesthetics.

The second aspect of disbudding is pruning a Rhododendron for shape, compactness, and size of planting area allowed. Most pruning recommendations include removing dead or damaged branches as well as removing branches along the ground. These danglers can be more easily affected by fungus and can be a highway for weevils.

Now for the tough part – pruning a Rhododendron for shape and size. In essence, any pruning one does is shortening the distance between growth years. You can prune the current year’s growth back by hand right after blooming when the new growth is sticky or by mid-June with pruners when new growth has hardened off a bit. Pruning deeper on bare wood does not usually give good results. That limb will often die back or result in new shoots that may be spindly. One aside is my own observation that some of the newer grafted Rhododendrons are producing growth buds on low, woody branches which may develop if apical branches are damaged or removed.

Rhododendrons also include PJM types and Azaleas - both evergreen (kaempferi) and deciduous (Exbury and Northern Lights series). Most of the pruning rules are the same, however, you can prune much deeper into secondary wood and even lightly shear with good results. Compactness for shape is encouraged but avoid the meatball-effect. Also, hard pruning can reduce respiration and recovery.

Pruning aside, the best results for Rhododendron will be had from good soil preparation (i.e. moist, well-drained conditions), the addition of organic matter, and application of acid fertilizers.