Landscaping and Gardening
- Natural history of Normandy Farms
- How to take care of your trees
- A warning about weeds
- Bagworms can damage trees and shrubs
- Beware of "volcano" mulch
- Austrian pines at risk for tip blight
- Coming features...
Natural History of Normandy Farms
Normandy
Farms lies on a large, nearly level glacial surface called the Tipton
Till Plain, which covers most of central
During the Ice Age, this area was covered by ice a few thousand feet thick. At least two glaciers came and went, grinding up and transporting the sedimentary bedrock beneath them and leaving behind deposts of till—a mixture of clay, silt, sand, gravel, and boulders—and no vegetation. A succession of plants returned to the area, culminating in a forest of beech and maple.
When
European settlers arrived in
A
good read: Marion T. Jackson, Editor. The
Natural Heritage of
How to Take Care of Your Trees
Trees are a part of what makes us feel "at home" in Normandy Farms. Some of us have forested lots with magnificent old trees that we want to preserve, others have newly planted trees that require care to become established. The International Society of Arborculture's website can tell you just about anything you'd like to know about trees: their benefits and value, selection, planting, pruning, avoiding damage during construction, etc. Check out their Trees Are Good website which is designed for the public. The site also tells about the services arborculturists can provide to help you care for your trees. Back to top
A Warning About Weeds
Every homeowner has done battle with the ubiquitous dandelion. But Normandy Farms offers even greater challenges. People living in parts of the subdivision that used to be farm fields must contend with an amazing array of old field weeds. Some have colorful names like lamb’s quarters, shepherd’s purse, pigweed, and henbit, but there’s nothing to like about the bully of them all—the thistle.
They say that Nature abhores bare earth, and that’s important to keep in mind in Normandy Farms. The soil of old fields acts as a “seed bank,” storing millions of dormant weed seeds until the day some hapless gardener scrapes off the turf to start a garden. The seeds revel in their sudden exposure to light and bam! The disturbed soil is soon covered with weed seedlings. In the blink of an eye some can grow four feet tall!
The lesson is this: Disturb the soil as little as possible once the initial preparation has been done. And MULCH, MULCH, MULCH to keep weed seeds from seeing the light. Back to top
Winter’s a good time to check your trees and shrubs for bagworm “bags.” Infestations of these caterpillars often go unnoticed because people mistake the protective bags for pine cones or other plant structures, and signs of infestation have been noted around our neighborhood.
Bagworms are caterpillars that make distinctive spindle-shaped bags on a variety of trees and shrubs. They attack both deciduous trees and evergreens but are especially damaging to juniper, arborvitae, spruce, pine, and cedar. Large populations of bagworms can strip plants of their foliage and eventually cause them to die.
To control bagworms, hand pick the bags off the trees and dispose of them in the trash. If you do not pick them off in the spring, the eggs contained in the bags will hatch in early June and the larvae will start consuming the surrounding foliage. Then you will need to control them with insecticide. Back to top
For pictures, further information, and guidance on the insecticide option, visit http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/ppdl/weeklypics/Weekly_Picture7-23-01-1.html
Beware
of "Volcano" Mulch
Mulching around the base of a tree is
great to prevent weeds, preserve moisture, and give the landscape
a finished look. But mulch misapplied can do more harm than good!
Don't mound mulch up the sides of the trunk,
volcano-style. This holds moisture against the bark, which encourages
rot and can lead to the death of the tree. Think of mounding the mulch
doughnut-style instead. Use two to three inches of mulch, and pull the
mulch back at least three inches from the trunk. Your tree will thank
you.
For a picture and more information, visit http://www.ces.purdue.edu/gardentips/landscape/volcano.html
Austrian Pines At Risk for Tip Blight
If the long dark green needles on your Austrian pines start to get brown tips and die-back in the lower branches, take note. The cause may be Diplodia tip blight, a fungal disease that stunts the tips and lower limbs and eventually kills off the interior branches, leaving only a shell of green.
According to Purdue’s pamphlet on the subject (BP-24), the Diplodia fungus is born on cones near the top of the tree. It infects current-season needles and developing shoots from late April to mid-June (earlier if the weather is mild). Diplodia tip blight affects Austrian, Scotch, ponderosa, and mugo pines and occurs most often in well-established plantings, especially trees 25 to 30 years old.
Normandy Farms is full of mature Austrian pines, probably all planted around the same time, so many are starting to develop the characteristic brown tips and die-back. All is not lost, however. The useful lives of most moderately infected Austrian pines can be extended with good cultural practices and supplemental chemical care. Spraying for Diplodia tip blight must be done before the developing shoots or “candles” are one inch long.
An alternative approach with these older trees is to trim the lower branches as they die back and underplant the pine with Japanese yew or some other non-susceptible evergreen that will grow up and take its place. Back to top
Under Construction
Coming Features...
Frost dates
What grows here
Plants to avoid
Soil preparation
Nearby garden centers and other resources
What topic would you like to see covered here?
