As the years roll by, I find myself called on to do more and more diagnosis on why certain landscape plants are performing poorly. I am seeing Black Walnut Toxicity on a more frequent basis, enough so that I am training our staff to always keep this factor in mind when advising our customers on [...]
As spring rains have caused rapid growth of lawns and the need for frequent mowings, I have once again seen fresh examples of severe damage to landscape trees. Careless use of string trimmers is the most common cause of severe damage to trees that I see during the many site visits I make to help [...]
Few flowering crabs that are hardy in the upper Midwest can match the floral display of the Prairie Rose Flowering Crab. This tree has several distinctive traits. First, the Prairie Rose blooms a week to ten days after other flowering crabs, thereby extending the bloom season when used with other varieties. Secondly, Prairie Rose blossoms [...]
I have found myself looking forward to the blossoming of the redbuds that have been planted here and there around town. Redbuds consistently provide lovely purple blossoms, and usually lots of them. We recommend the Minnesota Strain Redbud mostly because of their demonstrated hardiness. As the Magnolia and Forsythia flowers of early spring begin to [...]
After a long Minnesota winter, many of us are craving the sight of the spring blossoms. Hardy Magnolias have proven to be one of the best landscape plants to provide early spring blossoms that are large and showy. While crocuses, daffodils, tulips and cilla are other great plants to get a fix of early spring [...]
Patience pays big dividends when doing tillage of the soil to prepare for spring planting. Whether you do your tillage with a 4 tined hand cultivator, a garden fork, a shovel, a roto tiller, or a plow behind a giant 4 wheel tractor, wait until the ground has dried well and crumbles when worked. If [...]
We would like to extend the opportunity for you, your child’s class, your service club, your church group, your softball/bowling team, your carpool, your neighbors…. to join us in sponsoring tree plantings for our city, to be planted in public spaces. Knecht’s will provide trees at half price. As a sponsor of a tree for [...]
Single digit temperatures this morning are an unpleasant reminder that gardening in Minnesota is not for the faint hearted. The good news may be that flood crests may be slightly reduced by this colder than normal weather that will last until about April 1st. Happily, the long range forecasts show a period of pleasant early [...]
This year the melting of the heavy snowpack presents a good opportunity to recharge soil moisture levels that have been depleted by several years of summer dry spells. In many areas of the landscape, the soil is not frozen, which is allowing water from melting snow to soak into the soil. Deeper levels of the [...]
This is the time of year when wild creatures are at the absolute end of their energy reserves. Even though the weatherman is predicting warmer weather and receding snowbanks, new growth and new food sources are 3-6 weeks from being available for wild animals. By planting trees and shrubs that produce various kinds of berries, nuts [...]
Snowbanks are receding, the sun is growing stronger day by day, sap is flowing in the Sugar Maple trees, the male wild turkeys are fanning their tail feathers to show off for the hens. The natural world is waking up from a very long winter of dormancy, a sure sign that it’s time for Landscape [...]
Snow Dance Japanese Tree Lilac Flowering trees have long held a great attraction. Most flower in the spring when we are desperately craving color and lush blossoms, but unfortunately most who produce fruit or seeds that eventually drop on gardens, walks, lawns and driveways, creating a mess of varying degrees. Bailey Nurseriesin St. Paul has [...]
As the heavy snowpack begins to disappear with some of the first warm days we’ve had since late December, it’s time to allow your imagination to dream of green grass, fragrant flowers and a more beautiful and functional landscape. If part or all of the landscape around your home is uninspired, overgrown or poorly arranged, [...]
Today, the groundhog came out at Knecht’s Nurseries and Landscaping, and got just plain scared. Looked up at the snowpiles that have grown to 8-10 feet high, turned pale and went straight back into it’s burrow. Thought I overheard some muttering about spring, and something else about 6 weeks, but I can’t be sure since [...]
The unrelenting winter of 2010-2011 has many of us suffering from cabin fever. Here are a few ideas for garden lovers to break out of the winter doldrums by doing something: Protect a tree. Younger trees may be vulnerable to bark damage from mice, rabbits, deer and sunscald. Unusually deep snow means rabbits and mice [...]
