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Ashland, MA 01721
Ashland, MA 01721
One of an arborists’ main duties is diagnosing and treating insect problems in the landscape. Trees and shrubs act as the food for many different insects some of which reduce the vigor and health of the plant. Sometimes the insect pest is nothing more than a nuisance, but in other situations, the life of the […]
Part II – Installation
Welcome back to our ongoing three part discussion on new plant installation and tree planting techniques. In part 1, we discussed some simple steps that can be incorporated into your planning to make the most of your landscape design.
After you’ve carefully considered all the factors in determining which plant suits […]
As an Arborist and as someone who truly appreciates the natural flora that I’m privileged to work with on a daily basis, there are few things as exciting and gratifying as seeing a new addition to the landscape. Whether tree, shrub, groundcover, or herbaceous plants, each new addition to a yard adds […]
Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) is an introduced plant from Asia that was brought here primarily for reducing soil erosion and its fall display of colorful fruit. It is the fruit that allows easy recognition in fall. It has become an invasive species in more than half of the eastern US. It is a vining-type plant […]
Invasive plants are those which can take over and displace native vegetation. This week’s blog will focus on porcelainberry (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata), an introduced plant from Asia that was brought here in the late 1800’s as a landscape plant. It has become an invasive species in the northeast US and in several Great Lakes states. It […]
During the early fall season trees and shrubs will begin to reduce their photosynthate production capacity and transition to fall foliage senescence. For deciduous trees and shrubs this will involve a breakdown of chlorophyll molecules in order release nitrogen bound to it so it may be salvaged and reused by the plant. When chlorophyll starts […]
Hemock woolly adelgid has captured much of the press in recent years regarding our eastern hemlocks. There has, however, been a noticeable increase in the presence of another insect pest of hemlocks in the last few years. Elongate hemlock scale, an armored or hard scale, is being found more frequently here in parts of the […]
A new insect pest to be watchful for on your property is viburnum leaf beetle. The insect, which is native to Europe, was found in the mid 20th century in Canada and has now spread into Massachusetts and other northeastern states. Damage to plants consists of leaf feeding both in the larval and adults […]
The month of May is when two of our more common ambrosia beetles here in the Northeast start to become noticeable in landscapes. Ambrosia beetles are a group of small beetles that attack trees by boring into tree wood producing tunnels (galleries) that are used for rearing of young. Adult beetles carry a fungus that […]
The up and down temperatures this spring affected winter moth development and feeding. Abnormally warm temperatures early in the season brought on premature winter moth egg hatch. Many of the trees that the insect feeds on had yet to have buds swollen enough to allow entry into them for feeding. This was followed by colder […]