Knecht's » Landscaping

‘Cupressina’ Norway Spruce

Leif Knecht — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 19:42:18 +0000

'Cupressina' Norway Spruce by Oregon Pride Nurseries

Tall, lean and handsome aptly describes a beautiful variety of Norway Spruce I saw recently. Dense and upright, ‘Cupressina’ Norway Spruce sports the beautiful deep green disease resistant foliage of Norway Spruce while offering a great choice for smaller spaces.

Useful as an attractive specimen or focal point evergreen, ‘Cupressina’ Norway Spruce could also be used as a screening plant where a wide spreading plant would be too large. ‘Cupressina’ looks interesting and attractive even when it is fairly small, so you won’t have to wait forever to enjoy this conifer.

Winter color is excellent, holding a true green throughout the long dormant season. ‘Cupressina’ might be a ncie choice for somwehere in your landscape that calls for a beautiful evergreen that is hardy and won’t overhwhelm modest sized spaces.

This beautiful tree is a fairly fast grower, reaching 20′-30′ tall with only a 6′-10′ spread. Hardy to Zone 3 makes it a top choice for Minnesota homeowners. We’ll have a limited amount of these trees this spring. Reserve one for your yard!

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Landscape Design

Deb Knecht — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:13:26 +0000

As this mild Minnesota winter begins to slowly slip away – it is the perfect time to start thinking about your landscape. Do you need a major landscape project done this year? Are you thinking of re-doing your front yard for more curb appeal? Have you lived in your home for many years and haven’t tackled any landscaping because you weren’t exactly sure what to do?

A landscape consultation and/or a landscape plan – partial or full – is the best place to start. Getting professional advice is money well spent. A plan or consultation by a professional designer will ensure that you get the best results possible and eliminate wasted money on plants that aren’t appropriate for your particular site conditions. Our lead designer, Amy Voight, is working with customers right now designing full yards, partial yards and planting beds. Amy has over 15 years of experience in landscape design and is a Certified Nursery and Landscape Professional through the Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Assn. You will find complete details our our design process under our Landscape section. Working with Amy now in February and March will guarantee that you will have all the necessary ideas and plans in your hands when spring officially does arrive! Give us a call and we’ll make all of your landscape dreams come true!

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New Zone Hardiness Map – USDA Update – 2012

Deb Knecht — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:18:13 +0000

: 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.’

Despite these changes, caution is advised if you don’t want to run the risk of losing plant materials that may be marginally zone hardy. On the other hand, it can be an awful lot of fun to experiment with marginal plants that can sometimes be a nice surprise on hardiness and a visual delight. We’re happy to visit with you about this subject concerning plants you might consider that are “on the edge”.

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Fall is for Planting

Leif Knecht — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 12:08:44 +0000

Fall planting of trees, shrubs and perennials has long been a tradition for many families. Landscape plants are going dormant, temperatures are cooler, water demands are reduced, and success rates remain high.

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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Painting the Landscape with Fall Color

Leif Knecht — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 14:45:12 +0000

The cool mornings we have enjoyed the last few days are a sure sign that the changing of the seasons will soon be well underway. Trees that are stressed out start to loose leaves in mid to late August, and by mid September, the first hints of fall color start to show up in some healthy red maples, sumac and a few birch.

As I notice these first colored leaves, it always fires my imagination with dreams of creating landscapes that show off great fall color for almost two months, rather than the usual one or two weeks. By carefully selecting a well balanced mix of trees, shrubs and perennials that show early, midseason, and late season Fall color, it is possible to paint the landscape with a feast for the eyes from mid-September all the way to mid-November.

Since there are many factors to consider when making variety selections, and placement decisions, it may be helpful to stop in the nursery and we will be happy to discuss trees and other plants to enable you in painting your landscape with eye-popping fall colors that don’t quit.

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Hydrangea Trees

Leif Knecht — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 15:31:57 +0000

Even as the dog days of summer are nearing an end, Hydrangea Trees are adding a delightful splash of lush blossoms to the late summer landscape. These small ornamental trees run from 5 to 10 feet tall, depending on how they are pruned, grow in a wide variety of soils and do well in light levels from full sun to partial shade, and produce lots of blossoms that last for 6-12 weeks.

Limelight Hydrangea trees are currently the most popular variety, displaying cone to oval shaped dense white blossoms on vigorous new shoots that present in upright fashion initially and gradually arching as the blossoms increase in size and weight. The picture here is of one of our landscape beds at home. We have a Limelight Hydrangea tree to the left and a Pinky Winky Hydrangea shrub to the right. Boulders, evergreen shrubs and shade perennials complete the bed which is so beautiful this time of year.

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Patio – Day 4 and 4 1/2

Deb Knecht — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 19:12:48 +0000

Today, Jim and Todd finished the patio. On Day 4, the caps were added to the top of the wall , backfilling behind the wall and smoothing out the uphill slope behind the patio was completed. The client added a small sidewalk that leads from the patio to the steps that lead down to their lower level. A thick layer of mulch was placed on the disturbed areas directly behind the patio. The photos show the caps being added to the wall, sidewalk, the view of the patio from their family room door, and the completed patio with sidewalk path. This patio is definitely a great addition to this home and Jane and Dennis will soon be enjoying their new outdoor room! We are exceptionally proud of our installation team of Jim and Todd. This was a difficult site and it turned out terrific.

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Patio – Day 3

Deb Knecht — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 19:23:40 +0000

Patio – Day 3. The patio will feature a sitting wall along the outside edge which will be approximately 20 inches high. With each level of wall block, Jim and Todd add the gravel backfill behind the wall.

The wall is almost complete except for the caps which will be installed once the patio is finished. A layer of sand is added to the top of the crushed rock and keeping this layer level is extremely important. Todd is using two pieces of conduit to make sure the sand is the same level throughout and it enables the skreeting process to be performed. The actual laying of the patio block is probably the quickest portion to the patio installation. The customer has chosen the Versa-Lok “Harvest” blend patio block which accentuates the color of their home. This outdoor retreat is gradually coming together!

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Patio – Day 2

Deb Knecht — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:08:58 +0000

Day 2 – Patio. Today Jim and Todd made excellent progress with getting the base preparation done. They brought in plenty of crushed rock/gravel and used our packer to ensure a very solid base to the patio. There is a slight slope out to the street so they have had to check the elevations frequently to make sure we have proper flow for water off of the patio. There will be an additional safeguard for water removal as we will be installing some drain tile close to the foundation of the family room.

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Boring Mailbox?

Leif Knecht — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 15:57:38 +0000

It really doesn’t take much to make hum drum spots in your landscape / property just a little nicer. Things like mailboxes, utility boxes, utility hookups and the like can all be softened, hidden or enhanced by the simple addition of the right plant materials. There is no absolute right or wrong except perhaps doing nothing. So take it as an opportunity to experiment a bit just as is done at this mailbox. This rural mailbox has coneflowers and ornamental grass. These plants can handle the tough site conditions along a gravel road and with snow loads – there’s no problem since perennials start from the ground up every spring – unlike some shrubs which may be damaged by a heavy snow load.

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