Author: Scott Geer
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What’s that “White Fungus” on My Post Oaks?
As we get into August this year, the post oaks in Denton County are showing a lot of white on their leaves. This is not a fungus or serious disease but is “wool” that is produced by a small sucking insect called an Aphid. The aphid produces the “cotton” or “wool” as protective covering and…
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Oak Tassels – what are those worms on my driveway?
Newly emerging leaves on a red oak in the spring with male flowers This spring season has brought with it an abundance of oak flowers or “tassels.” I have noticed it on all of the oak species: live oak, post oak, blackjack oak, shumard (red) oak, etc. They all have a bumper crop of male…
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Pruning – You Get What You Pay For
In our daily lives, we buy and sell many things. We all want value in these transactions and the adage, is still true, you get what you pay for? This is true in almost every transaction and is true when it comes to choosing who will prune your trees. The above picture is of two…
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Water – Trees Can’t Live Without It, But It Can Kill Them
We are having a dry spring so far and the trees need water as they begin the spring flush of growth. It would be a good idea to give the trees in your landscape a good soaking during this period of dry weather. This brings up the topic of proper irrigation (or watering) of your…
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My Palm Trees are Dying! Part II
Well, for the second year in a row, we’ve had very hard freezes. Last year (2010) we saw temperatures down to around 15 degrees and about 50% of the Mexican Fan Palms were taken out by the freeze. This year (2011) temperatures reached down to around 8 degrees and I’m afraid that any Fan Palms…
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Pruning Trees in the Spring – Not the Best Time
Spring is here! And we are noticing that our trees are budding out and starting to grow. We now notice them, while in the winter they seemed so docile, now they may look like they need to be managed with a little pruning. Spring is the worst time to prune your trees! The trees are…
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Pruning & Trimming- It’s Tree Surgery
Why do we prune trees? Don’t they do well by themselves without our help? We ask a lot of the trees that grow in an urban environment. Space is limited, the soil has been compacted, soil nutrients are constantly being depleted, people damage them, etc. Pruning is one of the management techniques that help a…
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Staking Trees at Planting Time
Trees are often staked with guy wire or straps at planting time. Sometimes this is necessary due to the size of the tree in relation the root ball and the soil type. However, it can cause real problems with your tree in the following years if not done properly. Staking of a newly planted tree…
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My Palm Trees Are Dying!
I am hoping that it isn’t true, but unfortunately, it may be. Palm trees are native where it rarely freezes, and we experienced a very hard freeze on January 9-10, 2010. Temperatures dropped below 20 degrees Fahrenheit for three nights in a row and two of those nights recorded 15 degrees Fahrenheit in Lewisville. Most…
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Root Flare Coverups – A Great Video Tutorial
One of my mentors is Tyson Woods, an arborist in Dallas who has been caring for the trees of Highland Park for a long time. He created this video a few of years ago which does a great job of explaining the problem of trees being planted to deeply along with the girdling roots that…