Leif - Knechts Nurseries & Landscaping

Woodland Wildflowers

Leif April 30, 2015

Southern Minnesota spring wildflowers are now blooming in our woodlands. Blood root and Dutchman’s Britches along with Trout Lilies have been lovely the last two weeks and the False Rue Anemone drifts are now sporting delicate white flowers. Spring Beauties are also making their appearance. For a couple of more weeks

Creating Diversity in our Urban Forests

Leif April 16, 2015

Communities that have lots of trees are more appealing, have cleaner air, lower costs for heating and cooling, higher property value, and more wildlife. Unfortunately, the health of many urban forests is threatened by a lack of diversity in the varieties of trees that have been planted. Even after the

Got the Itch? Try This…

Leif March 31, 2015

For gardeners who have spring fever and have the itch to plant something even though it’s only the very beginning of April, try planting trees and shrubs. If the ground has thawed enough to dig, trees and shrubs can be safely planted even though the ground is cold. I just

Forsythia

Leif March 31, 2015

Got Spring Fever?

Leif March 17, 2015

If you have a case of spring fever and are having your thoughts turn to spending some quality time working on your landscape, consider starting with pruning of trees and shrubs. The next three to four weeks are one of the best times of the year to prune. During late

Successful Summer Planting

Leif July 10, 2014

Contrary to what many people think, planting in mid-summer is an excellent time to get new landscape plants to establish themselves very quickly and very happily. All they need is just enough water and never too much, good planting technique, and just enough fertilizer and never too much. The long

The Mighty Oaks

Leif April 6, 2014

Yesterday, our crew peeled back protective layers of white plastic and closed cell foam blankets to reveal hundreds of small special air root pruning pots, each holding one or two acorns planted last October. When those acorns were collected, culled to select the very best, and carefully planted, it was

Winterburn on Evergreens

Leif March 30, 2014

We are starting to get calls about concerns people have for evergreen trees and shrubs with needles that are turning brown, which is a condition called winterburn. Winterburn is generally worse in years when there has been a really long period of snow cover, especially if continuous snow cover has

A Good Time to Prune

Leif March 26, 2014

As snowbanks disappear and soils remain frozen or too wet to work, it’s an excellent time to prune trees and shrubs. During the next couple of weeks, most of the stored energy of trees and shrubs remains in the root systems. When selected branches and twigs are pruned off to

Feel the Rhythm, Feed the Soul

Leif March 12, 2014

Our lives are woven of rhythmic threads of many kinds. With some of the rhythms of life, we are keenly aware of the dynamics involved, and others often go unrecognized as the demands of daily life consume our attention. Most obvious to us are the rhythms of sleep and wakefulness,

Fall Fiesta Sugar Maple

Leif March 5, 2014

Sugar Maples have earned the admiration of millions upon millions of people throughout North America for their breathtaking fall color, the strength and usefulness of their wood, wonderful cooling shade, and for providing the sap that makes maple syrup production possible. Fall Fiesta Sugar Maple is a selection by Minnesota’s

Peak Performance Trees

Leif February 20, 2014

At Knecht’s Nurseries we produce Peak Performance Trees by placing them into specially designed and constructed plastic pots that have dozens of openings in the side walls, and even on the bottom of the pots. When tree roots contact these openings they are soon root pruned by the air drying

Protecting Tree Bark in Winter

Leif February 20, 2014

Valuable trees in your landscape can suffer damage to the bark from winter sun, mice and rabbits eating bark, deer antler rubbing and scarring from weed whips and mower decks. If the bark on your younger trees is still intact, it’s not too late to protect them with inexpensive, easy

Wintergreen Arborvitae

Leif February 18, 2014

Wintergreen Arborvitae are hard to beat for applications where a tall, hardy, dark green, fast growing privacy screen or windbreak is important to make the function and feel of a landscape just right. Plant Wintergreen Arborvitae in a continuous straight or curving row, or group them in staggered clusters that

Sienna Glen Maple

Leif October 8, 2013

Sienna Glen Maples are displaying their electric orange/red fall color this week. A naturally occurring hybrid of red maple and silver maple that was discovered right here in the great state of Minnesota, Sienna Glen Maple is hardy and beautiful. Sienna Glen Maple has a more refined leaf and branch