summer
Changing Your Hydrangeas’ Color
Hydrangeas are one of the most popular perennials today. One reason may be that the large mop like flowers last a long time without them needing to be deadheaded.In fact, there is even a cultivar (a plant variety that has been produced in cultivation by selective breeding) called Endless Summer. This is a bigleaf variety, […]
Got Grubs?
The next generation of grubs has recently hatched. Checking your lawn for these destructive white larvae is easy and can be done before they get a foothold and begin damaging your lawn. Because they just hatched, grubs are quite small. As a result, they don’t have as big an appetite as they will when they […]
Best Summer Cut For Your Lawn – Long or Short?
If you get your hair cut short during the summer to beat the heat, don’t assume your lawn wants to be cut short too. Lawns actually fare the heat of the summer better when they are mowed no shorter than 3-4 inches. To many, seeing it that long is a culture shock, but the lawn […]
Plan To Water Your Valuable Plants This Summer
Meteorologists aren’t saying yet that we’ll see a drought in the Rochester and Finger Lakes area this summer, but they have pointed out frequently that June was a very dry month. If you really love your landscape and want to protect it, I suggest that you develop a watering plan now, before you need it. […]
Keep Your Landscape Green – Remove Yellow Foliage
Yellow leaves detract from a landscape even though yellow is a leaf’s natural color. When they’re alive and making food, chlorophyll masks the yellow pigment. Many people ask me what to do about yellow leaves. It’s one of those questions in which the answer is, “It depends.” If the plant is a spring flowering bulb […]
Are There Really Deer Proof Plants?
We’re frequently asked if there are really any deer proof plants. The answer is no. When a deer is really hungry, it will eat any plant that’s available. However, deer are no different from other animals. They have their favorites, others that are OK and those that will do in a pinch. So, there are […]
June Is For Pruning Conifers
June is usually when conifer (cone bearing) trees and shrubs are ready to be pruned. This year may be an exception, however. Our cold, wintery May has delayed many plants’ growth and flowering. And it is growth that determines whether conifers need to be pruned at all. This year, let the tree or shrub tell […]
Birchcrest Is Open And Providing All Services
As the 2020 landscaping/gardening season gets into full swing, I want to remind you that Birchcrest had been deemed an essential business throughout this pandemic and remains open for business. All services are being performed and our service personnel are in full compliance with CDC guidelines as well as state and local regulations. Because our […]
Keep Landscape Color Vibrant Until Fall
Spring bulbs are starting to fade, even though many of them bloomed late. Spring flowering shrubs, like lilacs, also were delayed by the weather but will soon lose their colorful flowers. Then they will spend the rest of the season as attractive foliage plants. How can you extend the bloom of these plants? The answer […]
Memorial Day Official Start Of Growing Season
Any experienced farmer or gardener in western or central New York knows that Memorial Day is the time to plant. I’m sure that’s why the folks in Waterloo, who began the tradition that turned into the holiday, picked the end of May to put flowers on the graves of Civil War veterans. We can plant […]