Some of the questions that I get asked quite frequently are “Are my trees ok?”, “Do I need to have an arborist come work on my trees?”, and “Is there anything I can do to help my trees without hurting my savings?”. Just like many questions, the answers are dependent on the situation. There are[Read More…]
Resources for landscapes and gardens in the Midwest
Landscape Report
Trees, Shrubs, Vines
This series will highlight unique and interesting landscape plants that are not as common in the landscape. Many of these plants aren’t readily available at your local nursery or garden center. If you are interested in purchasing one of these plants, I recommend contacting your local nursery or garden center about availability. Majestic Beauty Tuliptree[Read More…]
It’s that wonderful time of year again where temps are rising, life is coming back into the landscape, and people are thinking about how to improve the urban canopy around them. Well, maybe not that specifically, but we have the urge to plant trees. Whether it’s for Earth Day or Arbor Day or you just[Read More…]
There have been a number of samples we have received at the PPDL in recent weeks that bear similar problems worth noting. It is still relatively early for significant in-season disease development due to how cold it has been, although we have certainly had enough rainfall to encourage fungal growth. We have received multiple samples[Read More…]
Two short YouTube videos demonstrate how English and Spanish speakers can use the Purdue Plant Doctor Website. Diagnosing Plant Problems with the Purdue Plant Doctor Web Page (5 minutes -in English with closed captions) Guia Rapida Diagnosticar y Manejar Problemas de las Plantas con Purdue Plant Doctor ( 9 minutes in Spanish with closed[Read More…]
Remember the pre-Christmas freeze? What about the extremely long fall? The Midwest experienced above-average temperatures through most of the winter, but those extremely cold temps in late December made for more than a few pipes to freeze in the southern part of the Midwest. The dichotomy in weather patterns over the last several years has[Read More…]
All plants can fall victim to insects, diseases, and environmental problems. How they respond to this stress is often the same: Wilting, yellowing, holes, rots, blight—it’s a long list! With so much overlap in symptoms, it can be quite a challenge for people to identify their plant health problems accurately, quickly, and inexpensively. The Purdue[Read More…]
Lilacs (Syringa spp.) are some of my favorite plants alongside Ginkgo (males, at least) and while I could wax poetic about their great aesthetic characteristics I will just say that they have beautiful spring flowers and they smell great, too. However, they do have a handful of problems that cause them to look a little[Read More…]
When transplanting trees, it is important to consider the long-term viability. Since the typical life span of an urban tree is 7-20 years (USDA), proper establishment techniques are very important to decrease this mortality rate. When a tree becomes established, it is much more difficult to correct below ground problems. Root deformations can occur for[Read More…]
About ten years ago I was listening to a talk by a climatologist. She indicated that data is trending towards more floods and more droughts in the Midwest. At first listen this made absolutely no sense. How can a place simultaneously have more flooding and more drought? Well, if you’ve paid attention over the last[Read More…]
Join us at the Purdue Turf and Landscape Field Day on July 26th! The Purdue Turf and Landscape Field Day is an annual one-day event with the objective of providing professional turf and landscape managers exposure and educational opportunities with the latest research and technical resources. The Field Day features research tours, talks on current[Read More…]
Arborvitae (Thuja spp.) fulfill several crucial roles in the landscape, especially windbreaks and screens (Fig. 1). Their relatively fast growth habit, wide variety of available forms, and inexpensive price point make them one of the most common conifers in the Midwest landscape. Due to the ubiquitous use of arborvitae, and their perceived problems, the Green[Read More…]
If you have ever seen gooey neon orange branches on trees and shrubs you may have been observing a phenomenon commonly known by the very scientific name of ‘orange goo’. Appearing in cool, wet weather during spring sap flow, the goo is caused by fungi, bacteria and yeast colonizing tree sap, especially where an injury[Read More…]
One of the most common diseases found on boxwoods is Volutella blight and dieback, caused by the fungi Pseudonectria foliicola and P. buxi. Both fungi are considered weak pathogens, always around but not causing much damage until plants are injured or stressed, rarely infecting otherwise healthy plants. Volutella blight alone usually doesn’t kill boxwoods, but[Read More…]
Determining the cause of dieback and decline symptoms in landscape trees can be very difficult due to the many cultural, environmental, and biological factors that could be involved. The first place you should look for a culprit when dealing with this type of tree problem is the base of the trunk and the roots. Stem[Read More…]
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