How to Protect Your Trees and Shrubs

Ornamental trees and shrubs are a popular way for home and business owners to introduce elements of drama and interest into their properties’ look and landscaping. Trees provide height, and many also are colorful during parts of the year. Shrubs are designed to draw attention to areas around a home, building, or landscaped area. These plantings are an investment, and you’ll want to take good care of them so that you’ll be able to enjoy them for years to come.

Maintaining Your Shrubs and Ornamental Trees throughout the Year

Keeping your shrubs and trees healthy involves a certain amount of care during the spring, summer, and late fall. Regular maintenance is important, since these plantings will grow and change over a period of years. A tree that was once a sapling will look much different once it’s starting to develop into a mature tree. While they may look sturdy, these plantings can still be harmed by insects, weather, and disease. To keep them healthy, it’s important to:

• Maintain trees and shrubs through fertilization. The custom fertilizer that works well on lawns is not formulated for trees and shrubs, so a custom-blended fertilizer should be used to ensure that trees and shrubs are growing, blooming, and healthy. The fertilizer strengthens roots and helps to protect against disease. In the late fall, deep root fertilization contains a balanced macro and micronutrient formula that’s delivered to the root system, enhancing the plant’s health and getting it ready for the winter.
• Prevent insects from making shrubs and trees their home. These plantings offer a hospitable place to live, and once they make their home and starting reproducing, they can be difficult to eliminate. You should have your plantings treated before bugs set up home in your trees. Springtime care includes dormant oil to control overwintering insects and egg masses. Early summer care treatments protect against insects like tent caterpillars, spider mites, and birch leafminer. In the summer, the treatment concentrates on insects that thrive in hot weather, like Japanese beetles, mites, lace bugs, and weevils.
• Keep shrubs and trees free of disease. A program for these plantings should always include protection against spring and summer diseases like twig blight, apple scab, powdery mildew, and leaf spots.

Healthy Shrubs and Ornamental Trees Start With Regular Care

Superior Lawn Care’s tree and shrub program keeps your investment plantings healthy and looking beautiful. We cover southwestern Pennsylvania, including Upper St. Clair, Wexford, Cranberry, North Huntingdon, Murrysville, Moon Township, Penn Township, and Indiana. To learn more about our program, call or contact us today.