How much damage your plants suffer will depend very much on your micro climate.  Areas with heavy tree cover and higher elevation, and small spaces surrounded by buildings will see the least damage as even partially formed leaves and seeds being found in the tree tops helped hold heat in.

Low areas, and open areas where cold settles, or heat escapes quickly, will see the most damage, and you will find some landscape plants very resistant to freeze damage while others have terrible damage.

Be patient with damaged plants.  Many have the capacity to re-grow and/or re-leaf.  Unforunately, a few plants will be unable to rebound, especially if they are already weakened by poor drainage/heavy shade/ or otherwise stressed.  You may have to look at very ugly plants for awhile, but many will bounce back and others will be completed unaffected by the cold.  After a few days, you will be able to ascertain exactly what damage, if any, your plants sustained.

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This is the time of year when it is unlikely that viruses, bacteria, insects and fungus will infect fresh pruning cuts, since these pests are largely dormant until late April.  Use a sharp hand saw, and a freshly sharpened hand pruner to make cleaner and easier cuts.

Some trees like maples will bleed sap when pruned during the next 30-40 days, but research has shown this does not hurt the tree, and will stop in early to mid-April.  The goal of pruning is to create a strong,  lasting and good looking structure in each tree.  Pruning before the trees leaf out makes it a whole lot easier to judge the structure since no leaves are present to obscure your view.

PRUNE EARLY AND  OFTEN.  This does not mean every day or even monthly.  It means that during the first ten years after you plant a tree, you should prune it every year, or every other year to gradually establish the best possible structure that can withstand heavy wet snow, ice storms, and violent thunderstorm winds.  By pruning often, you remove weak or problematic branches when they are small diameter, and the pruning wounds are small and heal over very quickly, minimizing the chance for rot to get going inside the tree.

Most deciduous trees have better structure when they have fewer and stronger branches.  Prune out branches that leave the trunk at very steep angles of 60 degrees to almost straight up (90 degrees).  Branches that form the strongest attachments to the trunk leave the trunk at lower angles from 45 degrees down to 0 degrees (horizontal).

Avoid cutting off a branch exactly flush with the trunk.  Cut close enough to avoid leaving a stub, but leave intact the branch collar, which is the slight widening of the branch where it meets the trunk.  This will sometimes leave the appearance of low bumps along the trunk, but assures smaller wounds that heal over quickly, and in one or two growing seasons the bumps will disappear as the trunk grows thicker.  If you leave a stub of a 1/2 inch or more, healing will take several years longer.  Same for cutting flush with the trunk, where the larger resulting wound will take years longer to heal.

Try to remove only about 20% to 25% of the canopy at any one pruning.  If a really steeply attached branch needs to be removed to avoid future splitting during a storm, do it right away, even if this leaves a large gap or unbalanced area in the tree canopy.  If you wait, the wounds and gaps only get bigger.  The sooner you create the gap, the sooner small new strongly attached branches can grow into the area due to available space and sunlight.

On young trees a really good structural pruning of a bare leaved tree often leaves a tree looking a bit like a stickman, and causes a lot of consternation for people who think the tree has been ruined.  Most trees that have been artfully pruned into an awkward looking silhouette in March will look fabulous by mid-June, turning the person who pruned the tree from a neighborhood villain into the local wiseman.

Good luck with your pruning and have a wonderful spring.  It’s just around the corner!

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It can also be very dangerous.  Know your equipment, keep it well maintained, work alongside another person, and train yourself to be cautious.  Be especially careful when felling standing trees, especially if they are dead, have rotten areas, or even just a few dead branches in the crown.

Deadwood can easily break off and drop on the chain saw operator.  Wear a safety helmet and face screen, always look up to evaluate danger before beginning felling cuts, and always have an escape path free of obstructions so you can skedaddle to safety as the tree begins to fall.

Enjoy a nice day in the woods, reconnect with simpler times and BE SAFE.  It’s mostly an exercise in training your mind to constantly think about proceeding safely and efficiently.  Master this approach to woodcutting and I’m sure you will give Paul Bunyan a run for his money.

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From the USDA – Minnesota

The USDA released it’s new Hardiness Zone Map.   Minnesota now can claim a portion of the State being a Zone 5!  (a small part – but a part nonetheless).   A big change is the portion of Zone 4a which now extends further north.  Mary Schier, editor of the Northern Gardener magazine, has a blogpost on this subject - ‘Big Changes for Minnesota in New Hardiness Zone Map.’

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When spring comes, the new plants are ready and waiting to quickly establish and flourish.  Well planned fall planting projects can also save substantial amounts of money, since great bargains are available at most nurseries.

An added plus for fall planting is the pleasant fall weather that makes time spent on a project outdoors enjoyable and easier.  October and November have quite a few fabulous fall days, so there’s still plenty of time to do that project you’ve been putting off.  Seize the opportunity.  It’s a wonderful time.  (to plant).

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Boring insects of various kinds can destroy Birch, Oak, Linden and Ash trees and Viburnum shrubs.  There is a chemical treatment that is effective at controlling and/or preventing borers.  The active ingredient is Imidacloprid and is available in many commonly available pest control products.  Applied to the soil next to the stem of a tree or shrub, Imidacloprid is absorbed by the roots, and prevents dozens of insect pests in addition to borers from attacking the plant.  Treatment is simple, safe and effective.

Japanese Beetles are showing up in greater numbers.   Soon they will be widespread in the Northfield area.  We are all going to have to learn more about controlling this VERY destructive insect. You may be interested to know that Imidacloprid gives pretty good control of the Japanese Beetle and about 35 other insects, which helps property owners avoid having to spray foliar applications of conventional insecticides.

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You have invested alot into your trees – monetary and with TLC – and the next step is to protect them going into the winter.  The heavy snows of the past two winters saw lots of trees with rabbit and mice damage to them.  When food is scarce – the critters will start nibbling away at the bark of young trees.   If the damage is too severe, the tree will not recover.   These protectors help to eliminate this from happening.  Heidi has set up a great display here at the nursery and there are descriptions and advice on each of the protectors we have available.  All of these protectors can be used for many seasons which makes it a very inexpensive investment.

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For recently planted trees, shrubs and perennials, more frequent waterings will be necessary, as often as every day or two until they are able to extend new roots outwards and tap moisture from a larger volume of soil.

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Now is the time to refresh your baskets, beds and planters!

Are your containers looking a little tired?  Did your baskets fizzle in the summer heat?  Maybe you have lots of green plants and not a lot of color in that perennial border this time of year.  Dress them up & refresh them! Add some seasonal color & fall beauty to your planters, beds & borders with plants perfect for late season displays.  Here are some of our favorites!

Minnesota Hardy Mums:  They are finally here everyone.  Come and get ‘em.  Bright eye catching colors on dense compact plants.   Perfect for filling those empty spots and containers.

Asters:  A late season surprise.  The first Asters are just beginning to open their daisy style flowers.  These hardy perennials will be blooming until hard frosts come.  Providing a reliable wave of color in the fall garden.  Excellent mixed with Mums and Kale.

Grasses:  Whether you go with an annual or a perennial variety it doesn’t matter, you’re going to add graceful, elegant movement and color to your plantings.  Many varieties have both showy plumes that appear late summer to fall as well as brilliant fall color.

Sedums:  Beloved by butterflies and gardeners alike! These are the “tough guys” in the Minnesota garden.  Reliable and vigorous these succulent plants add wonderful texture with their thick leaves as well as a multitude of foliage colors and variegation.  They like to build up a little suspense, making us watch their forming buds all season long before finally showing us what they can do.

Ornamental Kale:  Color and texture are packed into these interesting members of the cabbage family.  Perfect along edges, in containers or baskets.

Heuchera, Tiarella and Heucherella:  More commonly known as Coral Bells, Foam Flower, and Foamy Bells, these wonderful plants are compact and dense with foliage that ranges from chartreuse to green, rusty peach to maroon and purple.  Some are even variegated or veined.  Awesome in containers or the landscape.  These are very versatile plants!

Ajuga:  This popular ground cover is terrific in
containers as well as the ground!  Shiny
even metallic looking leaves are amazing next to some of the softer textured
plants.

Weigela:  These compact shrubs have variegated or maroon purple foliage and they bloom in the spring.  Mature sizes will vary by variety.  Hummingbirds love them too!

Tiger Eye Sumac:  Deeply cut leaves are golden chartreuse and turn orange with red in the fall.  Amazing paired with some of the darker leaves shrubs and perennials.

Hydrangeas:  What wonderful additions to the landscape!  Hydrangeas bloom from summer until frost and go through many, butterfly attracting, stages of beauty along the way.  The Hydrangea paniculata prefer full to part sun and send out white or lime green buds that open to a beautiful clean ivory that matures to a lovely mauve pink.  As our nights get cooler and the flowers dry they become a parchment color that carries us into winter.

Many of the plants I have listed above are Minnesota hardy.  If you use them in a container planting or basket remember, you can plant them in your landscape before winter and enjoy them for years to come.

I should mention that in Minnesota our winters are too cold for most plants to overwinter in an above ground container.   Proper planting and mulching before the ground freezes will help your perennial plants come through the winter!

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