Are You Ready?

Now that hurricane season is here and confirmed with the passing of Irene, it is imperative to make sure your shade trees are healthy and prepared. Urban trees give us aesthetic value along with a cooler environment, but if diseased or injured, can be a liability and accident waiting to happen. It is prudent to have an inspection made once a year to evaluate the care needed for your trees. Call us for an appointment.

Friend or Foe

Be on the lookout for silk webbing on the bark of Oak Trees. This is evidence of the psocid or bark lice and they do not harm the tree, in fact they help clean the tree of lichen, pollen, and fungi. It is a seasonal occurrence and the webbing can be removed with a garden hose and water if found aesthetically displeasing.

Summertime

Summertime is here with warm nights, hot days, and the rainy season. The usual Spring draught caused routine damage to plants and trees with turgrass showing the worst for wear. We have seen Pine trees stressed to the point that Borer beetles have attacked and warranted treatments and removals. With the start of hurricane season, now is the time to evaluate the condition of your trees and trim, treat, or remove potential problems. Call us if you need that consultation.

The city of Tampa has recently implemented their non scientific fertilizer restrictions as did Pinellas County 2 years ago, so be on the look out as it starts next year. Hillsborough County did their homework and are in line with the State of Florida in terms of water quality and fertilizer regulations. PHS has a solid fertilizer program to fit each requirement utilizing more organic type products and longer residual Nitrogens. Contact Greg or Michele to find out how you can stay in compliance and still maintain a beautiful lawn.

Which brings me to that exciting news I spoke of earlier. Greg and Michele Deiser are the newest additions to Professional Horticultural Services although they are certainly not new to the industry. They will be running the Turf and Ornamental side of the business allowing me to concentrate more on the Arborist end. They will also be growing the residential customer segment, so tell your friends, look at the website and give them a call. 

Early Summer came early

Well, the temperatures say it's June, but the calendar says April. Most all the plants and grass love it, but the humans are saying "wait one more month". We are seeing the caterpillars, in the Oak Trees, come and go along with other plant loving Lepidoptera. The Lubber grasshoppers are in their immature stage, so treat early and treat often. An early out break of Box Elders are appearing everywhere, but remember, they are not a big problem for plants, just a nuisance for people.

We here at Professional Horticultural Services are excited about some good news that we will be sharing soon. Keep posted and Happy Gardening

Spring Already?

Spring comes around fast in the Tampa Bay area, as it seems like just a few weeks ago we had freezing temperatures and brown landscapes. Now with 70+ degree weather and ample rainfall in January, it looks like Spring has sprung. You can now cut back your cold damaged plants, if you haven't already, but don't remove that "dead" plant just yet. Some of our more tropical plants die back severely, but can come back to life. If you're not sure, wait a few more weeks, time can save money.
Now is a great time to fertilize the landscape and treat the turfgrass for weeds. Insects are not a big problem yet, in the turf, but keep vigilant. Some of the waxy leaf shrubs are coming out of the Winter with scale insects and be on the lookout for caterpillars as the new flush of foliage, on other plants, is like candy to my grandkids.
This time of year is perfect for tree evaluations because you are able to see any mistletoe that needs removed, spot misguided branches, and monitor the new growth.
For most of us, we still have 2 days per week watering allowance and the landscape surely needs it now, so calibrate your system properly for the 1/2 to 3/4 inch of water per event, check the efficiency often, and don't waste our precious commodity.
Remember to cut your grass as high as your mower will allow, as this promotes deeper roots and will give you a thicker, healthier lawn.
Enjoy this "Chamber of Commerce" weather and Happy Gardening 

Winter News

Winter has now arrived and thankfully it was a mild hurricane season with no serious storms touching Florida. Now we have to watch for frost and freeze in regards to our turf and plants.

By now most turf grass have been treated for weeds for the Fall application. Be forewarned that Atrazine, which has been our herbicide of choice for St. Augustine, has relatively new restrictions that result in less weed control.  Also, we still do not have a viable herbicide to control crabgrass, but there are some pre-emergent herbicides that will help reduce the spread of this grassy weed.

There are also new laws and regulations forthcoming regarding fertilizers, especially involving Nitrogen and Phosphorous restrictions. Some of these management practices  are good and have already been implemented by most professionals; others are another example of micro-management from our over-powering government. 

Plants are getting a relief from caterpillars due to the cool weather, but scale insects are on the rise. Do not prune cold damaged plants too soon or remove them thinking that they are dead. Give them time.

We now offer pre-emergent weed control for plant beds. Give us a call for a free quote.

Winter is a good time to see mistletoe (a true parasite) in the trees as they lose their leaves. It is also a great time to have your Arborist perform a tree evaluation for your property. Give us a call if we can be of assistance.

Cold Hardy Palms are becoming more and more popular with the Mule Palm being a leader in sales. Check with us for specials on our field grown material.

Thank You and Happy Gardening,

Ken Miller

813-932-5100

Welcome!

We decided to try a different outlet for our newsletters, and blogging seems to be the most reasonable and user-friendly choice for our clients.  Remember to subscribe to our feed (see the box to the right) and get our updates sent directly to your email or Google Reader so that you never have to miss a posting!  Thank you for stopping by our blog.  Please leave a comment below and tell us what you think of our new format.