Current Tree Grower’s Diary Letters
Post your letters about trees here and I’ll do my best to help you find an answer! Keep in mind that I do not reply via email. I post my responses HERE in the hopes of SHARING with people who might have similar questions.
Disclaimer: I am not a tree expert, just a novice who has been studying trees for quite some time now. If you require an expert opinion, I suggest the forums over at TreeHelp.com or the tree forum at GardenWeb.
If you leave a letter, please state in the letter where you’re writing from so that we have a general idea of your climate zone. THANKS for all your encouragement and support!
Don’t forget to let us know where you’re writing from! City, town, or even a climate zone number will help! Thanks!
Their innocence and simplicity really get... on 
My family calls me "the mamarazzi."
18 July 2010
Julie-
You note that emerald arborvitae die easily. I now live in Portland OR where trees, flowers, shrubs really grow. Winters not too cold. Lots of rain spring and fall, but esp. winter. Summers tend to be dryer.
Here arborvitae seem a home-owner favorite for privacy screens. Many times they thrive quite well growing into tall, impressive fences of green. But others just die out of the blue. And strangest of all, individually and randomly, not two or three in sequence.
Nurserymen’s comments vary widely–from spider mites (which must stay in a colony until the shrub is finished) to gophers, which are native out here.
In your experience what kills arborvitae so easily and what encourages 15-ft growth? Planted at what interval and how long should 15-ft growth take? Am most eager for any I plant to reach seven to eight feet reasonably fast, (in relative terms). The last seven feet are not a pressing need.
Any of your tree-enthusiasts’ circle possibly live out here and would they know?
/s/ Max
Well, in my limited experience, what kills arborvitae besides deer and other creatures feasting on them is lack of water, not enough sun, and lack of nutrients in the soil. I guess you saw on my arb page that I planted arbs of two different sizes — little ones that were 2 or 3 feet tall and much taller ones that were 5 or 6 feet tall. The ones that were planted in good FULL SUN locations away from tall trees (that rob them of sun and nutrients in the soil) are all very tall now, at least 10 feet. Many of the ones that were planted too close to the big maples are all gone now, but a few are still hanging on, albeit with very sparse branches.
To encourage fast growth of an arborvitae that has been planted in a GOOD location (full sun, no moisture-and-nutrient-robbing trees nearby and no deer and hopefully the soil is nutrient-rich) all you need to do then is slow-soak water for the first year in spring, summer and fall. If you’re in a snow-prone area, you’ll need to be diligent about knocking heavy snow off the tree or you can build a little burlap tarp to drape over them when a storm is coming. My trees were not treated to much added fertilizer. I always believed that a good watering should be enough. Keep in mind, I am really NOT an expert on this stuff. Post your question in the Garden Web tree forum and you’ll get a more rounded discussion, I’m sure.
Good luck!
I live in northwest NJ, and recently just discovered a botanical garden in Ringwood NJ. It was the first time I was there, and I discovered at least 3 European purple beech trees. 2 of them were beautiful (located in front of the manor), but 1 of them made a real impression on me. I was telling my wife it was the most beautiful tree I have ever seen. It was located behind the manor. If you walk from the coy pond behind the manor, along the grass panel, to the long rectangular coy pond down the steps, it is about 2/3 of the way there, and on the left hand side. Its funny, because I also thought it reminded me much of an elephant. We had a great time, and I couldnt wait to research this tree when I got home. Glad to know someone else finds them as impressive as I did.
Cool! What’s the name of the garden? I’ll have to check that out!
Ms. Shaver,
I appreciate your respect for that Purple European Beech that was killed in 2004. I am embarrassed to be part of the same species as one who would destroy such majesty. Thank you for sharing its beauty & glory. I am planting a tricolor beech soon & in the fall will harvest some seeds from one such as you honored.
Thanks again,
L. E. Andrews
http://www.ehow.com/how_5465210_grow-beech-nut-trees-seeds.html?sms_ss=email
Dear Julie,
I just found your blog. I have been planting trees for many years in Oldwick, NJ on my little farm and naturally I follow their health very closely considering the time and expense to plant them. Most of them did well until the summer of 2008 when suddenly all their leaves wilted and many started dropping. It wasn’t just my trees though, it was trees everywhere, of every age, of every species.
This alarmed me and I started researching. One of the first things I learned was that once a tree loses leaves and has bare branches and a thin crown, the damage is irreversible and it is only a matter of time before it dies completely.
I found this quite serious and did even more research to try to understand why this could happen. At first I attributed it to gradually warming temperatures, creating more evaporation. However last summer this blight spread and included not just trees, and shrubs, but plants in ponds, and plants in pots getting water. So it couldn’t be drought.
Since then I have come to believe it is something in the atmosphere, quite likely ozone, which much research has proven is toxic to vegetation. The symptoms are evident on plants everywhere in New Jersey and in fact I have been from Virginia to Massachusetts and it is not different. Because a rapidly accelerating decline has happened relatively suddenly, I have thought perhaps the recently mandated addition of ethanol to gasoline could be the primary reason.
Given that even a cursory inventory of trees will turn up ubiquitous evidence of foliar damage characteristic of exposure to toxic greenhouse gases, it is difficult for me to believe that other tree-lovers and gardeners like myself haven’t noticed this existential threat.
Have you? I would be very interested to know your thoughts on this topic.
I have been posting photographs and links to scientific research on this topic at http://www.witsendnj.blogspot.com.
I am hopeful that when people become aware of this problem there will be much less resistance to a society-wide switch to clean energy, for which there are so many reasons anyway.
Sincerely,
Gail
Hi Julie
Thanks for the posts about trees. I just found your site after searching for some info about Gingko seeds. I mentioned your notes from 2007 (a long time ago!) in my post today: http://seanjustice.blogspot.com/2010/06/gingko-sprout.html
Great to connect with a fellow photographer/tree enthusiast…though you’re way more accomplished with trees than I think I’ll ever be!
Sean
Hy…. Your tree Red Maple is awesome beautyfull. My name is Maximiliano and i live in Buenos Aires Argentina. In my countri doesent have Red Maples like yours. I love that tree and i wonder if you coud take some few seeds and send them to me by simple mail. I can send you some seeds about trees near my city.
* Jacaranda
* Palo borracho
* Lluvia de oro ( nice yelow flowers )
* Paraiso
I was looking for somebody hu be lovely and help me to have some Red Sunset or October glory red maple but no looky.
I send you nice feelings
Sorry about my pour english
Maxy From Argentina
Hi Julie-
I have a patio in the front of my house. I would like to plant a tree next to it for some color and (eventually) shade. I’m concerned about the root system ruining the foundation of the patio. The foundation is aprox 4′of sand. The royal red maple is a beautiful tree and has awsome color! What would you suggest? Preferably something not too messy that won’t attract bees. Thanks for your wisdom!
Mia
To be honest, the royal red maple has nice color in April/May here. The rest of the time, it’s rather brownish and has no change in fall to speak kindly of. It’s a nice background tree for shade, very slow-growing, and requires little maintenance so if you want a hardy tree that will take its sweet time growing up, this is a nice tree. If you want color, I’d suggest a flowering tree that changes throughout the growing season, like a forest pansy redbud. Purple blossoms in spring, red leaves in spring and early summer, green leaves toward the end of summer, bright yellow in fall. Has interesting branch and leaf-bud patterns as well. As for the foundation, that’s a question best left to the experts. In general, if you’re worried about foundation damage, plant a small tree 15 or 20 feet away from any structure; plant a larger tree 30 to 40 feet away. Hope that helps.
Thanks Julie, I’ll check it out! Mia
my japanese red maple tree. I bought it about 1 months ago the leaves have browned and shriveled up,what’s happen,who can help me , i spend $350 !!
Doesn’t sound good. I’d call the nursery asap.
Julie,
I’m concerned. We have a gorgeous October Glory we planted in 2008, that was already about 8′ and 3.5″ trunk. It has prospered beautifully in our backyard. However this past year, the outside of it’s bark at the base and up about 6′, it has turned to a white crusty aging look. Do I have to worry about whether or not it is diseased. The leaves are still prosperous. It has perfect shape, but I’m concerned.
Mark
Mark, would you be able to send me a picture of the tree showing the trunk and some of the branch/leafy area, plus a closeup of the white crusty aging looking thingie?
Please help!!!!!!!!
My kids and I were given the opportu nity to purchase a townhome from Habitat for Humanity 5 years ago, I have since been laid off over a year now , we may lose the house this year to foreclosure, as many others have as well. I have always loved trees. The house they gave us had a small tree in front, the yard is only about 8feet by 10 feet, so the tree is predominant. Our tree dies the first year, as many others on our block, the sprinkler systems were not working then. We all had been given the same type of tree. But the new trees that came to replace any dead ones were all slightly different, we got lucky and got one with little nuts on it and sometimes little white flowers, the bees all flock to it, we think it is a linden tree. I was glad because everything else has to be the same in the association, but this makes us different and suppossedly, the linden tree is suppossed to bring prosperity ( ancient Rome) which we need… I am scared they have to dig it out and give us another tree, as my tree is the only one in the entire association with no leaves at all on it, and it is May 21st. We live in woodbury mn. we also have the only linden tree though, when do the leaves come out? Is it dead? There were alot of little white worms on it last year , I sprinklered them all off everyday to save the tree, did they kill it?When breaking small branches , it is all brown inside, should it be green? Some of the little buds are green inside when you cut them open , but again, otherwise there is nothing green on this tree. Do I have to call the association? They will take it and not give me another linden tree, it was luck to get it in the first place.. please email me at lisamaefrydenlund@yahoo.com
If there’s no green when you cut into the bark, then it’s likely dead. But a tree with little white flowers would probably not be a linden tree. Lindens have yellow flowers that are very elongated — they don’t really look like flowers at all, but sort of like an awkward yellowish leaf. They’re great trees though, the lindens. I fully recommend them! Good luck to you and your family. If there’s anything more I can do to help, please let me know!
Peace and blessings,
–jules
Hello, Love your site and plan many visits as time allows. I planted a Red Jap Maple, (bloodwood) four years ago. This spring warm weather came quickly and the maple sprouted leaves sooner than ever before. About five days ago we had 2 nights of below freezing weather and heavy frost. The leaves went from beautiful to all wilted and curled. Did the cold do this? Will the tree be OK? I assume that the leaves will fall off and I will have to wait till next year to see my tree in all its glory again. Can you give me some answers, I puzzled. Thanks in advance, Jay from Maine
At this point, it’s a waiting game. There’s a good chance the branches will send out new sprouts in a few weeks. Give it time. Do not apply any fertilizer, just give the tree a decent covering of mulch around the base, but not touching the trunk. Water slowly if there are any dry spells. If, after several weeks, there’s no new growth on any particular branch, scrap into the bark a little to see if there’s any green. If not, prune out the dead branches. I think you’ll have your answer whether the tree survived within the next 6 weeks. Good luck and keep me posted!
We have 2 sunset maple trees one gets more sun and it has leaves one is shaded and it produced buds but no leaves it has green inside the new growth we also had a late frost . Do you think there is hope ?
I happened upon your site by accident..I was trying to find info on my plum tree. It is a beautiful red plum like yours. It is about,I am guessing,3-4 years old and has grown quit fast.It took a year or so before I got all the pretty pink flowers in the spring,and now after all this time,I have started to get fruit! I was told when I purchased this beauty that it was strictly ornamental and not a fruit bearing tree which is what I wanted. It sits proudly in the center of my front yard greeting any guest that arrives. I have not had any problems with insects/pests. But now that we are getting fruit is it edible? Can I let my grand children pick it from the tree?
We live in Ft.Walton Beach Florida,along the panhandle. I loose all the leaves in the fall and then get pretty flowers in the spring. My winters are short as well as the spring. Just wanted to know if you had the answer about the fruit. Thanks
Georgene Martin
Hi Georgene,
When I bought mine, it specifically said “fruitless” on the tag. Sigh. It’s sooooo NOT fruitless. But yes, the plums are edible. I’ve never tried one though. It’s the scale bugs. They are so incredibly gross, and they look so much like plums, I could just never eat anything off that tree unless i was desperate. Hope that helps.
Hi Jules,
As I mentioned, a large limb of a 100 foot plus Norway maple street tree fell during a windstorm in early October. The combination of the damage of this event (Forest Pansy hurt badly), and the more extensive damage when the workers took down the maple, plopping it on my property (destroying my once great European Hornbeam)left things in complete disarray, and the lawn as a whole completely out of balance.
Well, things have turned around pretty well, although a lot different.
The Forest Pansy Redbud actually survived pretty well, and now has large red leaves. It has a large gap in the center (lost the central leader from the crash), but we compensated by moving a “toodler” 5 foot European hornbeam in front of it that had been growing from a stick in a corner of the backyard where it was being wasted. It was a monster job digging it out, but the tree seems to be doing well (knock on wood). The area where the street tree was was completely empty, and work here was difficult with roots to deal with. We ended up putting a seven foot Heritage River birch clump, not the largest available, but nicely symmetrical with five trunks. It’s a bit of an odd place for it (they’re usually by the corner of the house), but it seems to work pretty well, and provides a screen from one of the intersecting roads we have here. We found a promising European Hornbeam at Home Depot, not nearly as good as the one lost, but potentially a good “screener”. In addition, several Forest Farm sticks have found their way onto the yard. These include a whitespire birch clump, a whitespire “single”, an “Eddie’s white wonder dogwood”, an American Hornbeam, another european hornbeam, and yesterday a paper birch. A couple of nice Dura Heat River birch sticks are about to go in. So, needless to say, I went a little crazy. I think my grass cutters are beginning to wonder about me
Hi Julie,
I was trying to do some research on the Bloodgood Japanese Maple and came across your site. Since it appears you seem to have knowledge regarding this tree, would you happen to know how far the roots spread. Want to plant one in my front yard but want to make sure I plant it far away from the water line and septic tank. I look forward to hearing from you and thank you for your assistance. – Angie.
The roots of Japanese maple generally spread at least as far as the tree canopy is wide, so, typically, a Bloodgood’s spread at maturity can reach up to 30 feet. Hope that helps.
Hi,
I have a fig tree that was grown as a seedling from the ground next to the “mother fig tree”. The mother fig tree produces a ton of figs, the “seedling” i’ve replanted into a container is two years old now and has not produced any fruit. Do you have suggestions on how to get my fig “seedling” which is now about 4ft. tall to produce figs? I’ve seen fig trees at nurserys much smaller producing figs and i’m thinking my “seedling” might need alittle help.
Thank you in advance,
Dylan
Hi Dylan. Sorry, but I don’t know the answer to your question. Try the tree forums at GardenWeb.com. Good luck!