F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 9

The GREENLEAFN E W S L E T T E R

WINTER HOURS: MON - SAT 8:00 A.M. TO 5:00 P.M.SUN 10:00 A.M. TO 5:00 P.M

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info@shadesofgreeninc.comwww.shadesofgreeninc.com

I’m sure this question is oftencontemplated by our customers purchasinga tree. There are many considerations to bemade before making this decision. If you’replanting a tree yourself to save money inlight of the recent economy turns, I canunderstand. But! Are you really saving thathard earned money if you need to purchaseshovels, rakes, and wheelbarrows in order

to plant? And how well can you work with these tools?Furthermore, do you need a truck or trailer for transportation?These guys are heavy.

A 15 gallon tree usually weighs between 35 – 50 lbs;and a 30 gallon between 75 – 150 lbs. From there, some 3”caliper balled and burlapped trees weigh as much as 500 lbs.depending on their moisture level. You cannot pull or drop ordamage these trees in any way, as it will fracture the tree ballmost of the time, resulting in a struggling or dying tree.[Continued on Page 5...]

To Plant a Tree,or Not to Plant a Tree?

By Jeff McCauley

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By Rob Wier

Continue to apply Bloodmeal on Pansies and otherannual color every two weeks for eye-poppingcolor.

Water … Leave the sprinkler controller inthe OFF position. If we don’t get a 1/2” of rain everytwo weeks, consider watering manually once everytwo weeks. A rain/freeze sensor installed on yoursprinkler system will save $$$ over the year andmost irrigators aren’t busy now so get one if youdon’t have one. Please continue to be responsiblewith your water use. I feel as if we’ll have anotherdry summer.

Pests … Use Dormant Oil to control scale onCrape Myrtles, Hollies, Live Oaks, and other plants.Remember, the first step is to identify the pest(s),then use an appropriate control. See article by BillFritts on page 5 for more information.

Weed Prevention … Mid-February tolate February is time to apply Corn Gluten Meal toinhibit weeds from developing from seed. This is apreventative measure, so it won’t cure existingweeds, but it can prevent new ones from comingup. [Pick up a copy of our information ‘Organics 101’along with the ‘Organics Calendar’ at the nursery ordownload it from our website.]

OTHER … Rabbit de-terrent – We have a new prod-

uct in the nursery we have beenusing to stop rabbit damage on our

plants. The product “Animal Stopper” isgranular and has been keeping the rab-bits at bay. The product is safe, organic

and comes with satisfaction guaranteed.This product is working for us, so if you have

a rabbit problem give it a try.

Plant … Cool season annual color such asPansies, Snapdragons, Kale, Cabbage, and Dian-thus. Plant Perennials, Shrubs, and Trees, too!! Wehave a great selection of the best and hardiest varie-ties of trees for our area. From large shade trees tosmaller sized ornamental trees … you can plantthem now. New arrivals fresh from our farm –include Chinese Pistache, Lacey Oak, and ShantungMaple. Now is the time to move or transplant dor-mant trees and shrubs.

Prune … Finish dormant season pruning(major pruning) on trees and shrubs this month.You may clean up your perennials to get ready forMarch’s spring weather. Come to our Pruning Classon February 7th, if you need guidance. Rememberprune with a purpose. Only you can prevent “CrapeMurder”! Prune Roses in mid-month. Prune ground-covers late in the month to tidy up.

Fertilize … Late February (around the 17th-28 th) is a good time to fertilize your whole yard withGardenville 7-2-2. Lawns, beds, vegetable gardens,shrubs, and trees all will benefit. Download our arti-cle ‘The Basics of Feeding Your Trees’ from ourwebsite, or pick up a copy at the nursery. We’ll behappy to clarify it all for you!

Apply Greensand now as well. Greensand is a natu-ral source of iron. Our clay soils hold onto irontightly, so I encourage you to apply Greensand inFebruary and in September to provide plenty of ironfor your plants, especially evergreens. Hollies, Mag-nolias, Live Oaks, etc., these plants maintain greenfoliage through the winter and utilize more iron intheir foliage to keep those leaves green in the win-ter. Applying Greensand on an annual basis re-places the iron that gets depleted as these plantsestablish.

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I went out to get the mail the other day andwas pleased to see that my favorite gardening cataloghad arrived. Although both front and back coverswere ripped, it was easily made whole again with alittle tape. I was glad it arrived on an afternoon whenthings were slow so I could fit in a little “dream time”after lunch. Yes, I love the catalogs too!

Wherever I’ve lived over the past thirty-oddyears this particular catalog has followed me. I mustadmit, I yearned a little more for the illustrations ofbountiful gardens in country-cottage style when Ilived up North, but I don’t think there is any time ofyear or any place when such beauty is not a welcomesight. Now that I work in the industry, I love goingthrough the book and identifying the plants that workfor us in Texas. Then I look to see what’s new andinvestigate what new cultivars are out there. I thinkthe best part is dreaming and getting ideas aboutwhat to put where. The illustrations of color andtexture combinations, container ideas and possibleplant companions are great food for thought andcreativity.

There is an important caveat, however, forthose who are acquiring their gardening know-howhere. What grows and blooms together in one areaof the country doesn’t necessarily do the same inanother. Zone differences, soil types, rainfall, andlight exposure are all variables that have to be evalu-ated when ordering from catalogs. Growing plants

Dream Away . . . Then do a Reality Check By Nancy Furth

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can be very complex and the hardiness zone mapsare the only guides. Because of these differences,ordering plants grown in other localities that weknow usually do well for us here can even be risky. Ialso receive another catalog from close by that Ilove. The plants have more of a southwest nativeflavor, but I use the same amount of caution withthis one and research the plants carefully as to suit-ability here in the Dallas area.

To be perfectly honest, I encourage you topursue these luscious pages of spring and summerbeauty, gather your ideas and jot down your lovesthis month -- perhaps start a scrapbook of photosthat appeal to you; then come into Shades ofGreen. We’d love to help you create a garden prettyenough for a magazine cover using plants proven tobe suitable for this area and grown here to boot. Ifyou’ve ever purchased plants by mail (I remembermy attempts), you’ll definitely be pleased with ourhealthy, well established gallon-size and five-inchperennials and other stock. You’ll also receive ourpersonal attention including our Texas gardeningtips on bed prep and plant care. After all, we wantto get you off to the right start so that your selec-tions not only survive but thrive year after year inyour garden. Then you can take your own picturesof spring and summer beauty to tide you over dur-ing winter . . . and share them with us!

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Is it still wintertime? Well as Iwrite there’s ice on the ground in thenursery with a wind-chill below 10degrees. So, in order to stay a little

warmer I’d like to share my story about a ‘hot’ plant…‘Rio Bravo’ Texas Sage. Oh, I paid for the plant sodon’t get the wrong impression. You might notknow this but nurseryworkers don’t enjoy a100% discount onplants.

What I meant tosay is that Texas sage isone heat-loving andwater-LESS kind ofshrub. It blooms whenothers can’t stand ouroven-like summers. Acouple years ago I reallywanted a Texas sage formy perennial gardenout by the street. Idon’t have a sprinklersystem and really have no time to water anything,so the sage would be a perfect addition. I looked atour selection and really didn’t like the mature sizesor the irregular bloom cycles of most. However,there was a variety that had blooms regularly andwe had it planted in the nursery sign bed out frontyears ago. ‘Lynn’s Legacy’ Texas sage (Leucophyllumlangmaniae) is gorgeous in bloom. The lavenderblooms cover the plant and don’t shed quickly -sometimes lasting three weeks. It grows slowly (as Ipersonally witnessed) and even doesn’t mind anoccasional shearing in the spring. However, I wasn’tthe biggest fan of the leaves. Oh, sure the othersage varieties have beautiful silver-gray or greenleaves, but gray-green just didn’t do it for me.

It was dumb-luck I stumbled upon ‘RioBravo’ Texas sage as I scanned down a plant listfrom one of our growers. I noticed that Latin namesimilarities at first. I guessed it would be a goodbloomer. But what color would the leaves be?

“Sage” Advice By Randy Stinnett

Rio Bravo ™Texas SageLeucophyllum langmaniaeHeight: 5’Width 5’Light green foliage with darklavender flowers. Needs well-drainedsoil, and full reflected heat. Zone 7.

Being in control of some duties at Shades of Greenhas its benefits. I ordered ten of them. They came tothe nursery with these dark lavender blooms on thegreen-leafed stems. I knew this was the plant Iwanted! So, into my rocky-gravely soil it went next tothe rosemary my wife got from a “white elephant”gift exchange. I even put some of the limestone rocks

out of the hole back ontop of the root systemwhen I was done plant-ing. Heck, this shrubNEEDS reflected lightand hot rocks. I wateredit twice during the firstmonth and it stayed inbloom for weeks! Hereat the nursery the plantsregularly have bloomswhile they sit under thewindmill by the Potterybarn. This picture wastaken in late June 2008and shows how really

stunning the blooms can be. During summer I hadseveral flushes of blooms like this and even hadblooms into early November. My plant stills holds amajority of its leaves right now in the coldestweather.

You know I just might move my Texas sagethis winter. Yes, it’s still winter according to thecalendar. Maybe western exposure can result in moreblooms sooner in Spring. Western… Hey, John Waynestarred in “Rio Bravo”! Now where’s that DVD, itlooks too cold out there for me!

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We are still having a lot of problems with Scale on our Crepe Myr-tles. Now is the best time to treat the problem. The Scale insect as an adultis a small fixed (not mobile) insect on the tree that is white and cottony intexture. Spray the entire tree this time of year with Dormant Oil, this willsmother them. The scale insect only fixed to the bark of the tree, not theleaves.

If the tree had or has Scale, there may be a black mold on the barkof the tree. This problem is purely cosmetic and by all means do not chopthe tree down. A fungus called Black Sooty Mold grows from the excrementfrom the Scale insect and will go away once the bark exfoliates.

Scale Insects have a natural enemy – the Twice Stabbed LadybirdBeetle. She is small and round, resembling a typical ladybird beetle, butblack, with two red dots on the back. If she is present do NOT spray. TheTwice Stabbed Ladybird Beetle will naturally take care of the Scale infesta-tion. They also have voracious offspring (grey in color, triangular on theback end) that will gladly take care of the problem for you, as well! Adult Twice-Stabbed Ladybird and her Larvae

Getting Level with Scale By Bill Fritts

You can never predict what is under theground where the tree is to be planted. Water lines,irrigation lines, cable lines, gas lines, roots of anothertree just to name a few. I’m sure you already knowthat wonderful Caliche rock and compacted clay thatTexas is so famous for could always be an obstacle, sodon’t rule out a rock bar or jack hammer while plant-ing. I can feel the blisters and back ache already! Thefootball game, favorite TV program or a book is look-ing better and better, all while sipping on your favor-ite beverage in the lazy-boy.

We encourage gardening, after all it is the #1hobby in the States, but don’t get in over your head.Some people just love to get some good ole’ dirtunder their fingernails and that’s okay too. Somehelpful hints when purchasing and planting a tree:

Call your service providers prior to plantingand they will mark your lines.

Know where to turn the water off in caseof emergency

Check with our knowledgeable staff foradvice and thorough tree planting instruc-tions.

Stake your new tree for the initial year toinsure a straight growth habit.

Trees are a great investment, continuouslygrowing in value while adding to the beauty andenvironment of your landscape. Come visit Shades ofGreen and check out the best selections of trees innorth Texas. Bring the kids and canines to enjoybrowsing all 7 acres of our nursery.

[Continued from Page 1…]To Plant a Tree, or Not to Plant a Tree?

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TheGREENLEAFNEWSLETTER

FEBRUARY2009

8801COITROADFrisco,Texas75035

Annual Open HouseSaturday March 7th!

More information in our MarchGreenleaf Newsletter

Another Pruning Class!Another Pruning Class!JJoin us...oin us...FFor aor a

HHandsands--oonn DDemonstration!emonstration!February 7th: 11:00February 7th: 11:00——NoonNoon

Rob will cover Crape Myrtles, Shrub RosesRob will cover Crape Myrtles, Shrub Roses(‘Knockout Rose’ Etc), Trees, Perennials, and(‘Knockout Rose’ Etc), Trees, Perennials, and

other plants of your choiceother plants of your choice

Dress to be outside, unless it’s snowing or raining!

Don’t forget about yourhoney on Valentines

Day! Gardengifts! ...Hint hint...