When Redbuds bloom Spring is here! You can’t help noticing this tree growing along the edge of woods and in yards. (Especially along the Penn’s Woods Trail!). At this time of the year, the flowers are a stunning pink. Cercis Canadensis is an adaptable tree to add to your own yard. I have the cultivar ‘Forest Pansy’, which I photographed yesterday, and have not had any problems. The leaves turn purple which is also very attractive. Easy to grow…
Stop volcano mulching!! Spring is approaching when you see landscaping companies spreading mulch around the beds of corporate parks and shopping centers. Unfortunately many of these landscaping companies are not educated in horticulture. The practice of mounding mulch up high around the base of the tree trunk can lead to the death of your tree. I snapped this photo of a freshly over mulched tree victim while leaving a corporate area the other day. Do you ever see trees in…
Look closely and you will see… This interesting resident was spotted under our birdbath this past October. I am always fascinated when finding a Praying Mantis blending in with the background, most often around flowers. The native species in Pennsylvania is the Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis carolina), which is a pale green or brownish and 2-3 inches long. As I am not an expert about insects, here is information about Praying Mantis from Animal Diversity Web. Paula Ziegler is a local…
In 2010, along a quarter-mile stretch of Snyder Road, one of County’s most scenic, designated by the Montgomery County Planning Commission as “aesthetically unique,” contractors had taken down scores of mature hickories, oaks, beeches, dogwoods, and redbuds. What was once beautiful was now a bunch of ugly stumps. The property was privately owned at the time and the owners who had not been contacted were sickened. While many would have been lost in their frustration, the owner, who was already…
Notice the trees at the Arboretum that still have leaves in January? These are Beech trees. Younger trees and the lower branches of mature trees keep their leaves until Spring. There are theories but no sure reasons why! These trees can live to be 300 to 400 years old. They have thin, light gray bark and flowers in early spring, just as the new leaves appear. The Beech tree’s flowers are small and yellowish-green in color. The blossoms are unique…