Maintaining Landscape plants Flashcards
What involves the Norwegian hugging concept with lots of plants and patio, and a fireplace and can be applied to East Atlantic landscape (ex. courtyard)?
Taking the Hygge outside
Define the landscape of “more sophisticated backyard BBQs
- doesn’t give priority to plants
- a couple conifers
- take away plants and have cut flowers
What kind of landscape has an insect attracting garden concept, increases the plant and insect diversity, has deciduous, broad leaf trees around and will attract small animals?
Purposefully pollinating
What kind of landscape can be found in Denver and Toronto, consists of rooftop trees and gardens, has many flowering trees in addition to plants and are used to reduce urban heat/improve storm water management?
Garden in the sky
What can be done for a smarter, more selective lawn?
- use the hybrid grass (less maintenance)
- leave gap between lawn and the tree (usually where mulch is placed)
What does the “greenery is in and outside” consist of?
- shade lilies, boxwood, ivy (can use different ivies)
- focus on hardscapes
- leave the trees exactly as they are and you add shade loving plants and enhance the natural woodland
- don’t remove too much, just make it attractive without removing the ES provided by nature
What are easy care perennials?
- Hostas
- Rudbeckia (black-eyed Susans)
- Butterflu attracting coneflower
- Rhododendrons
- Swedish ivy and dragon wing begonias
- Zinnias
What are the super vines?
- Major Wheeler (coral honeysuckle)
- My angel (clematis)
- Japanese morning glory
When do many gardens attain the appearance envisioned?
When the plants have matured
What does the maintenance of landscaping include?
- watering
- fertilizing
- aerating
- mulching
- edging
- pruning
- pest control
- winterization
Infrequent and deep watering up to a depth of what, is preferred over shallow, frequent watering?
12 - 16 inches
Shrubs will have lush growth, greater resistance to pests and less water damage is _____ properly.
fertilized
When fertilizer be applied to shrubs?
Early spring
Why should the foliage be avoided when fertilizing?
To prevent foliar burning
How many pounds of fertilizer should be spread over 100 sq ft of bed area? Why is this a stupid statement
- 1 - 3 pounds
- assumes that it is a balance soil
When will trees grow with greater health and vigor?
when they are fertilized annually
Trees are fertilized differently according to what?
- their species
- age
- adjacent plants
- terrain
- equipment available
Where does the take-up of nutrients occur in trees?
- at the outer extremes of the root zone and within the top 6-8 inches of soil
Where is the root zone of a tree?
is past the drip line (the line that goes directly down from the canopy)
By what different methods can nutrients be applied to trees?
- holes dug by augers
- high-pressure injection (in between xylem and phloem)
- direct application into the tree’s vascular system
What trees may be fertilized to promote their growth and ensure their health?
small trees
Why may mature trees be fertilized?
to maintain their health, but NO concern for size expansion
What are the best way to apply fertilization to a tree that is crowded by structures or other plants, or are on a slope?
- by direct incorporation into the soil
- injected directly into the tree
How many gallons of fertilizer should be applied within each 1,000 sq ft of zone of application?
200 gallons
Define soil compaction
When air is driven from the soil and water is unable to freely enter the root system (you get a hard pan formation and the nutrients won’t go down without air or water)
What is a tool that uses an air compressor to send a high volume of air into the soil in a way that breaks up compacted soil without injuring the root structure?
Air spade
What is occurring when 12 inch holes are drilled and filled with course mixture, permitting water and air to enter?
Vertical mulching
Why does mulch need to be replaced?
To prevent germination of weeds, decomposition, and plant death
What is radial trenching and what is it used for?
- when narrow slits are cut in a spoke pattern around the tree (critical root zone and filled with topsoil or compost)
- used for isolated lawn trees
What does edging refer to?
Cutting a sharp line of separation, usually between a planting and adjacent lawn
What does the act of edging use and what will it help reduce?
- uses an edging tool or flat-back spade to cut into the ground 6-8 inches and remove the wedge of sod
- the sloped cut will reduce root competition and improve the soil, and retain a sharp turfline
____ is the removal of a portion of a plant to improve its appearance and health to control its growth and shape
pruning
____ are used to cut branches up to 1/4 inch in diameter
Hand pruners
____ are used to cut branches up to about 1/2 inch and have handles longer than hand pruners
Lopper pruners
____ is the most task-specific of all pruning tools and are used to shear and shape hedges. They are available as a scissor-like hand tool or as a wand-like power tool
Hedge shears
____ is used when a branch exceeds 1/2 inch in diameter
Hand pruning saw
What permits you to reach the upper part of the tree and you need to be cautious not to cut until you are certain of what is being severed?
Pole saw
_____ is a dangerous tool that is powered by electricity or gas and is used to remove branches that cannot be cut with hand tools.
Chainsaw
_____ is the most important branch and is dominant over the other branches
Lead branch (the main trunk)
What do scaffold branches create?
the canopy, or the foliage of the tree
Define crotch
the point at which a branch meets the trunk of the tree or another large branch (kind of a joint)
Branches that originate from the underground root system are called
Suckers
____ ____ are the branches that develop along the trunk and branches of a tree (the latent/dormant buds that are waiting for the right circumstances to come, and sprout when those conditions arise)
Water sprouts
In shrubs, the best flower and fruit production are on the _____
younger branches
What differs younger branches of a shrub from the older branches?
- usually lighter in color
- thinner bark and in diameter
Define crown
the point at which branches and the root system meet
____ are prostate stems that are new shoots arising from existing roots (a long/thin stem that usually grows horizontally along the ground and produces roots and shoots at widely spaced nodes)
What’s an example?
- Stolons
- ex. strawberries
Define stock
- the root portion
- anything underground, anything keeping the root portion
_____ is if you want to grow a tree in an area where it’s not an option and then put it on something that is close to the species that you want
Grafting
What is a benefit of winter pruning?
It’s unblocked by foliage
What is a benefit of summer pruning?
Allows time for large wounds to heal (because you have a growing season left)
What kind of pruning is not for plants tha bloom in early spring, but can be done for late blooming species?
Autumn pruning
What is the benefit of spring pruning?
As buds begin to swell, it is obvious which branches are dead (done for beech and almond, etc.)
Why are branches in the center of the plant removed from healthy plants?
to improve the overall health and appearance of the plant
When are center shoots shortened or removed from plants?
When the purpose is to create denser foliage
What happens when you pinch back dormant buds?
you get a straight and two lateral buds, creating a denser foilage
What branch do you usually remove when you have branches that are crossing other branches that are healthy?
the younger branch
_____ is when the scaffold limb is removed without taking a long slice of bark with it when it falls and covering the wound with wood paint until it heals
Jump-cutting
What is the procedure of jump-cutting?
- make cut A
- then make cut B on the opposite side and above cut A (to reduce peeling)
- make cut C below both cut A and B (all the way across the branch to cut it completely off)
_____ is the removal of a shrub branch at or near the crown, or its point of origin
Thinning out
What is the shorteninf, rather than the total removal of a twig, and what does it encourage?
- Heading back
- encourages lateral growth
Define complete/gradual renewal
removing all mature wood over a 3-5 year period (gradual), or completely removing all stems to ground level (complete)
How should twigs be pruned?
To leave an outward pointing bud
What are the main focal points of a landscape and require lots of care?
Flower plantings
Flowering plants require more maintenance because of what?
- weeding
- insects and disease
- saggy if not pinched back
- one-time blooms
- bulbs need to be dug up
_____ lose their effectiveness if the soil is disturbed after application
Most herbicides
Shallow roots, shaded areas and ____ may need to be watered daily to prevent wilting
plants in containers
When should annuals be fertilized?
midsummer
When should bulbs be fertilized?
immediately after flowering (because the bulb has something for the shoots)
When should non-bulbous perennials be fertilized?
early spring (to enhance growth)
Define dead-heading
When dead flower blossoms must be continually removed
What is done with the thumb and forefinger right at the top of the stem?
soft pinching
What is done to shorten each stem bu one-third or more and cut at least 35% of the limb of the flowering branch?
hard pinching
