Tag Archives: new york landscaping

Westchester Garden Guide

Cultivating a beautiful garden is an art!  Add property value with a well-manicured and lush, blooming yard this spring and summer.  Westchester Tree Life’s professionals are here to assist you with a plant health care management program, tree and shrub maintenance and more!  Our Westchester Garden Guide is a selection of our favorite perennials, shrubs and trees for your Westchester home!

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Westchester Tree Life has provided quality, affordable care to Westchester County since 1985!

Trees & Shrubs

Before you begin shopping around for flowers, select your trees and shrubs!  Selecting trees and shrubs give your garden or backyard structure.  Consider how your trees and shrubs will develop through the seasons!

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A Dogwood produces pink, white and red flowers. via continentalchicago.wordpress.com

The Dogwood Tree – A Dogwood Tree will produce beautiful blooms during springtime, and have a great compact shape!  The leaves turn an eye-catching reddish purple during fall time.

Shrub Care New York Westchester Tree Life

The Shadblow is a lovely garden addition year round. via plants.thegrowingspace.com

The Shadblow/Shad/Serviceberry Tree – Another beautiful flowering tree, the Shadblow tree is ideal for a partly-shady area of your yard.  This tree yields apple-like early spring flowers, June fruit and a pinstripe bark.

Tree Shrub Care New York Westchester Tree Life

This Spicebush gives an excellent pop of color, especially during Autumn.
via Pinterest.com

The Spicebush – If you are looking to add a colorful understory shrub, consider adding a Spicebush (or two, or three . . .) to your Westchester garden!

Bright & Beautiful Perennials

Perennials return to your garden year after year, when cared for properly!

Delphinium Westchester Tree Life Landscaping New York

via delphinium.co.nz

Delphinium – Hummingbirds love these bright perennials, and so will you!  Delphiniums require rich soil and cool summers.

Little Bluestem Westchester Tree Life

via midwestliving.com

Little Bluestem – This native prairie grass has grey-green foliage which turns bold shades of purple, red and orange in fall.  Plant this in full-sun, and it will reach heights of 2-3 feet tall, and a foot high.

Winter Plant Healthcare: Anti-Desiccant

Written by Westchester Tree Life’s  Jeff Gourion, Plant Healthcare Manager

Westchester Tree Life Winter Burn

Prevent “Winter Burn” with an anti-desiccant!

Winter Burn is the damage to our plants that we seem to notice every spring after the long  cold winter starts to lose its grip, and we start paying attention to our trees and shrubs again.  We notice that some of the leaves on our Hollies, Boxwoods and Rhododendrons and various other broad leaf evergreens turn brown or appear spotty and scorched.  This condition closely resembles drought stress; that’s because that is exactly what winter burn  is.

Winter Burn Westchester Tree Life

A closer look at damage due to “Winter Burn”.

What is an anti-desiccant?

An anti-desiccant spray is a bio-degradable acrylic coating.

What does an Anti-Desiccant do?

An anti-dessicant coats the leaf, especially the underside where the stomata are located, and lows the rate of transpiration.  This coating protects the plant from harsh winter conditions.

Anti-Desiccant-Tree-Care-NY

Don’t leave your trees unprotected this winter!

Why is an anti-dessicant important?

This method of protection is highly effective in reducing
Winter Burn damage.

Which of my plants will an anti-desiccant protect?

  • All broadleaf evergreen plants
  • New plantlings
  • Plants that are stressed from insect and disease damage
  • Small leaf plants (Arborvitea, Boxwood, Ilex, Holly, Rhododendron, Skip Laurel)

Winter Tree Care Chappaqua New YorkHow does winter harm my plants?

During winter, plants go dormant and shut down the normal growing process, however all plants will still transpire (give off water vapor and exchange gases) through the stomata (small pores on the under side of leaves) if conditions are right; an example of conditions are wind blowing across the surface of leaves; warm sunlight on a warmer than normal winter day is another.  These conditions working together are the worst case scenario. While cold wind alone is hard on plants, wind on a relatively warm day is even worse!  The soil is still frozen and any moisture that the plant would normally try to pull up from the roots is unavailable, making the outcome is almost exactly what happens in summer when you don’t water your plants.

We recommend that you consider calling us for a free evaluation and estimate today!

WESTCHESTER TREE LIFE- 914-238-0069
Ask for Jeff Gourion. Plant Healthcare Manager