Fairfield County Lawn & Shrub Care
We’ve had a great summer here at Connecticut Green. We’ve been so busy, we’ve barely had time to post – but we did take the time to snap some photos!
Here are some of our favorite shots from Summer 2019. Just click to enlarge each image – and enjoy!
Weeds are the worst. Whether they’re sprouting up across your lawn or invading your flower beds, they’re an awful pest. Some people obsess about them, going outside every day to pull the dandelions out from between their cosmos or fretting over the crabgrass that never seems to be controlled. Others just mulch over them and hope for the best!
For the team at Connecticut Green, weeds are the cause of a great deal of stress and heartache because there are few things that upset our customers more. No one wants weeds! The truth is, not all weeds can be avoided. We can prevent some, and we can treat some once they start growing, but we can’t prevent all weeds. It’s just not possible. Crabgrass and chickweed are preventable, but some other weeds have to be treated after they’ve reared their ugly green heads.
Crabgrass is probably the most common weed, and the most despised. It can make any lawn look less-than-lovely. Fortunately, it can be treated before it germinates, so you may never have to see it. Crabgrass can also be prevented by having a complete lawn care program in place: a thick, healthy lawn doesn’t allow enough oxygen or water for grassy weeds to take root. Stressed lawn is a prime target for hostile takeover!
Weeds come in two main varieties, broadleaf and grassy. Grassy weeds, like the aforementioned crabgrass, can be treated preventatively, but will likely require follow-up treatments along sunny ages. Most broadleaf weeds require curative treatments to control. Here’s a rundown of some the more common ones you might see:
lawns, and recognizable by their spiky purple flowers. Stems can be full of dense, needle-like hairs (ouch!) so be sure to wear gloves if you’re pulling these up on your own.Of course, there are invasive weeds, as well. These include giant hogweed, which is new to Connecticut. Haven’t heard of giant hogweed? It’s pretty awful, and if you do find it, steer clear. Growing as high as 14 feet with white, umbrella-like blossoms, it’s hard to miss. (You can look at images of giant hogweed here to identify it.) If you come across giant hogweed, do not touch it. It can cause blistering burns, scarring and even blindness! A member of the carrot and parsnip family, giant hogweed is used as an ornamental plant in parts of southeast Asia.
Japanese knotweed is another annoying invasive. These fast-spreading plants aren’t harmful like hogweed, but they does threaten to take over riparian areas, and that’s a problem. In New Haven, the Friends of Edgewood Park have brought in goats to take care of their knotweed problem! “The Japanese knotweed is like candy for them. They will selectively find the Japanese knotweed. So, there were other plants that were around, plenty of them have leaves, but the goats preferred that.” The goats are expected to clear over 2.5 acres of knotweed and other invasive plants, including Japanese honeysuckle and poison ivy.
Of course, you probably don’t need goats to take care of your weed problem. The best way to avoid any weed is to take care of your lawn and garden. Aerate your lawn, water deeply, fertilize regularly. A healthy, stress-free turf will be more resistant to weeds. Beds require more maintenance but stay vigilant! Mulching can help, but pulling is often necessary, too.
And remember, not every weed can be prevented. Even the ones that are preventable can require follow-up treatments. The reason we hate weeds – apart from the fact that they grow exactly where we don’t want them to – is that they’re so stubborn. We use the best products on the market to keep your lawn and garden weed-free, but even then, there are no guarantees. Weather plays a big role in any plants success, and this year, it’s worked in the weeds’ favor! All we can do is our best work, and if the weeds come back, so will we.
If you’re vacationing this summer, we can still come and treat your garden. Let us know, and we’ll stop by and spot spray as needed. Just email us. And of course, if you have any questions or concerns about weed treatments, you can always contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Forsythias often get a bad rap, and I’ve never been sure why! With their brilliant yellow blooms, forsythias are – next to crocuses – among the first colors of the season, and a welcome sight after a long, cold winter like we’ve had. So why do so many people dislike this brightly colored bush? Is it simply because it’s so popular?
Let’s break down the pros and cons of forsythias and understand why they’vebecome so controversial among gardeners everywhere.
Bright yellow blooms are a welcome site in early spring. Like crocuses and cherry blossoms, forsythias are among spring’s first flowers. Their cheery color is not only a happy sign of warmer weather to come, it also makes a great backdrop for other spring plantings, like tulips and pansies. And if you’re bored by yellow flowers, know that there’s more than just one shade of forsythia! The palette ranges from buttery to orangey.
They’re easy to care for. Forsythias love the sun, and beyond getting a few hours of direct exposure each day (six is optimal), they’re not fussy about where they’re planted. They do prefer well-drained soil but will grow in just about anything if you water them well.
There’s a lot you can do with a forsythia bush. While they’re easy enough to prune, you don’t have to prune them. Weeping varieties make a lovely addition to any garden, even after the flowers have died off. Many varieties of forsythias can be pruned into hedges (and you know how we love hedges!) and can serve any of the many purposes hedges serve.
They’re common and everyone has them. While this is true, there’s a reason: they’re easy to grow and look so pretty in the spring! Plus, they mix well with other flowers and shrubs to create a pretty, all-season garden.
The flowers don’t last. Also true, but while deciduous, forsythias offer a simple green foliage to your garden, creating a nice backdrop for other plants. Plus, sometimes they’ll surprise you with pretty purple foliage in the fall!
They don’t serve a purpose. They don’t produce fruit for birds or offer any other benefit to indigenous wildlife. I would argue that anything you plant in your garden that isn’t invasive offers benefit. And, actually, forsythias are used medicinally. A member of the olive family, the tiny fruit of the forsythia has been used in herbal medicine to treat everything from upper respiratory infections to flu!
They take over if you don’t care for them. It’s true – forsythias can spread like crazy if you don’t stay on top of them, but they’re easy enough to tame with easy pruning. Plus, some gardeners are looking for something that spreads rapidly, perhaps to conceal an unsightly fence at the back edge of their property. Fast-growing, spreading bushes aren’t always a bad thing!
Overall, we’re pro-forsythia around here. We love their bright color, the ease with which they grow, and their versatility. But most of all, we love the first sight of them – a sure sign that the long winter is finally coming to an end.
When spring gardeners begin their happy work this year, they may notice some browning on their hardy evergreen plants. Rhododendrons may have dry, brown leaves. Needles on conifers may look rust or brown-colored. Shiny holly plants look dull and droopy. This is winter burn, and it’s due to the very long, cold winter we’ve had – and especially to these late-season storms.
Thankfully spring is here, if in name only. Our plants have suffered enough! When the ground freezes, plants just can’t move water from their roots to their thirsty leaves. The result, as the University of Maryland Extension puts it, is that “leaves curl and droop, then brown from the tips and margins, giving the leaves a scorched appearance. In many cases damage occurs during the winter months, but symptoms appear in the spring as the plant begins to emerge from the winter dormant period and move into the spring growth phase.” That means that spring gardeners are usually the ones who notice and must treat winter burn.
Fortunately, winter burn is both preventable and, in most cases, treatable. As we’ve noted previously on our blog, an anti-desiccant spray can go a long way in protecting plants.
Anti-desiccant products help evergreen trees and shrubs hold onto their moisture throughout the winter months. Anti-desiccant sprays basically seal off the pores in these plants, preventing the moisture from escaping. This can help save the plants we love in Connecticut, like boxwood, rhododendron, holly, and laurel.
Anti-desiccants need to be applied just before winter – that is, before the ground freezes and while the plants are still full of the water they need to survive. The spray is essentially a polymer, which puts a glossy coating on the leaves and prevents them from releasing moisture and wilting.
While these sprays can save your plants, one spray is not usually enough. Apart from anti-desiccant products simply not lasting through the winter, these late-season freezes and snow falls often cause damage. Warm spells, or “false spring” will encourage growth, then a subsequent freeze will kill it. A second anti-desiccant treatment will protect the plant.
The Missouri Botanical Garden offers additional tips to prevent winter burn:
Of course, there are other ways plants can be damaged in a long, cold winter like the one we’ve had. Not all of it is true “winter burn,” but it’s harmful nonetheless.
In every case, your best bet for healthy plants that weather the winter is to choose trees and shrubs that thrive in Connecticut’s temperate climate. A hardy plant will always have improved odds for success. Taking preventative measures like applying anti-desiccant will also help, as will ongoing maintenance, from fertilization to regular, well-timed pruning.
If you do have damaged plants, please contact us right away with any concerns. Damaged shrubs and trees are always more susceptible to disease and infestation, so we may want to take additional measures to care for them before the warm weather arrives.
As always, if you have any questions about the care of your garden’s plants, feel free to contact me.
When you think of hedges, what do you think of? Tall, natural privacy screens? Mazes? English gardens? There are so many uses for hedges! They can divide your garden into discrete sections. They can replace a fence to border your property. They can be styled into mazes and other interesting features.
If I’m excited about hedges, it’s because I honestly think they’re fascinating. Think about some hedges from pop culture: the maze in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, from Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, or even the huge, frozen one in The Shining. The popular Over the Hedge kids’ movies from the last decade will come to mind for some. And of course, Frances Hodgson Burnett’s Secret Garden, which was surrounded by a “laurel-hedged walk.”
Hedges have an interesting history, too, dating back literally thousands of years to Roman times, where they were used as everything from estate boundaries to the first lines of defense against invasion:
Hedges have been used as field boundaries in England since the times of the Romans. Excavations at Farmoor (Oxon) reveals Roman hedges made of thorn. The Anglo-Saxons also used hedgerows extensively, and many that were used as estate boundaries still exist. Although these early hedges were used as field enclosures or to mark the boundaries of one person’s property, there was no systematic planting of hedges in England until the first enclosure movement of the 13th century.
While England may be the historical home of the hedge, France was also home to some famous hedges, including a labyrinth at Versailles that was actually designed by the author of some of the world’s best-known fairy tales. Austria’s Hapsburg palaces also features hedge mazes, and the gardens at the Vatican display some stunning hedges that frame various plantings. Hedges are used similarly at the famous Mirabelle Gardens in Salzburg, Austria.
Of course, it’s not just palaces and cathedrals that use hedges so artistically. Homes all over the US put hedges to beautiful use, bordering properties, framing other plantings, or guiding visitors along pathways. Across the country, we try to replicate the English garden (like this California vineyard) or come up with unique ways to use these versatile plants.
If you’re thinking about adding hedges to your property, there are a number of types to consider. We’ll walk through some of the most commonly used varieties and share some important points to consider:
These are just a few options for hedges. There’s a whole range of conifers, and many, many other varieties to consider. Beyond using hedges as tall, property dividers, I hope you’ll consider the broad range of purposes these versatile plants can serve. Have a look on Pinterest and other sites, and allow yourself to be inspired by the magical effects you can achieve when you get creative with hedges!
Interested in learning more? Contact us about caring for your hedges.
Among the many gifts we give and receive over the holidays, my favorites are always the living ones: The poinsettias, the Christmas cacti, the fragrant paperwhite narcissus. The one I’ve always loved best though is the amaryllis. These easy-to-grow bulbs yield gigantic, trumpet-shaped flowers that come in shades of red, orange, pink, peach, white, pale green. There are over 600 named varieties available – including some with striped and variegated blooms. They make beautiful center pieces and bouquets, and they can bloom year after year.
The name amaryllis comes from the Greek word for “sparkling.” The flower got its name from the myth of Amaryllis, who fell in love the handsome young shepherd Alteo. He did not return her affection. Amaryllis went to the Oracle of Delphi for guidance, and the Oracle advised her to stand outside Alteo’s house each night and pierce her heart with a golden arrow. Amaryllis did this for 29 nights, and on the 30th night, all the blood she had shed on the path to his door blossomed into beautiful blood-red flowers. She picked a bouquet, and brought them to Alteo, who fell in love with her and her flowers. Her heart was instantly healed, and they lived happily ever after.
The word amaryllis itself is derived from the Greek words for horse and star, which ties nicely into the meanings it holds for us today. The flower became a symbol of strength and determination in the Victorian era, due to its impressive height and sturdiness. It also symbolizes success and is frequently given as a gift to honor an achievement.
Amaryllis became a symbol of the season as the result of the story that St. Joseph’s staff burst into blooms when it was announced that he would be husband of Mary. As a result, the St. Joseph Staff hybrid amaryllis is one of the most popular at Christmas time. It’s also true that the huge red blooms of hybrids like Red Lion fit perfectly into most holiday décor. (There’s even a Christmas Gift hybrid, reflecting how popular these bulbs have become!)
Apart from those amazing flowers, the best thing about amaryllis is how simple it is to grow. Indoors, the bulbs can be easily forced into bloom. They don’t even need soil! Here’s how to get the most out of your bulb:
Amaryllis is an easy way to bring color and joy into your home for the holidays. If you love plants as much as we do at Connecticut Green, we know you’ll enjoy the bright, exuberant display these flowers bring just in time for the holidays!
https://pixabay.com/en/amaryllis-flower-blossom-bloom-red-1860710/