Winter 2020
The weather this winter is abnormally warm. I spent the week of Christmas/Hanukkah with my family on our back porch is shirt sleeves! Quite a shock for my daughter, who flew in from Alaska! We’ve had very few days (or nights) with the temperature below 32°F here in the Evansville area. Many of our landscape plants, especially shrubs and strawberries, are not even fully dormant yet.
The long, warm autumn which ended with a sudden (but brief) freeze caused a lot of ornamental plants to go into the winter without dropping their leaves. Japanese maples, for some reason, were the most obviously affected: they still are holding their leaves! Everything I’ve read indicates that this won’t hurt the plants’ long-term health, and that these dead leaves should drop off as the buds begin to swell as we enter spring.
The National Weather Service indicates that temperatures will continue to remain several degrees above normal until the early part of February, and then return to “normal” weather. Now, I’ve lived in Evansville for nearly 34 years, and I still don’t know what “normal weather” for February is around here…but I’m somewhat heartened to hear that there don’t seem to be indications of moving from abnormally warm to abnormally cold.
What Can Caplan’s Tree & Landscape Consulting Do For You This Month?
1. Winter pruning of ornamentals: I specialize in the delicate and complex art of pruning fruit trees, small ornamental trees, and shrubs. I can prune your overgrown Japanese maples; crabapples thick with watersprouts; or fruit trees that have missed a few pruning cycles. I will be gearing up to do actual pruning after the 15th of January but call me any time to come out and give you a free quote. And be sure to ask to see my Evansville Tree Trimmer’s License!!
2. Landscape Consulting: I am not a landscape designer…I don’t have the artistic talent. However, I can come out and examine your site and indicate how much room you actually have in your landscape, and how many plants (and of what size) should be planted. I can guide you through plant selection based on your individual site’s microclimate (the environmental factors unique to each part of your yard). I can provide you with lists of plants that will fit YOUR property’s needs. As I’ve said many times in my career: Plan Before You Plant!
3. Soil Sampling: I’ve always been a firm believer in getting your garden’s soil tested every 3 to 5 years. This way you know what fertilizers and other amendments you need to apply for the healthiest trees, shrubs, flowers, and crops. It’s not hard to do, but it can be a bit messy, and many gardeners have had problems figuring out how to make heads or tails of the reports. Now is a perfect time to hire me to do this for you! I will collect the samples, package them, send them to a soils lab in the tristate, and then write you up a simple, easy-to-follow fertilizer schedule based on the results.
4. Tree Risk Assessment: Are you concerned with how safe a tree is? Whether it’s your tree, or your neighbor’s, note that all trees can eventually fail as they get older or develop damage or other defects. My non-invasive assessment techniques can determine if there are any noticeable defects that may cause a tree to fail, and determine the potential and actual risk to people and property. With the leaves down, this is a perfect time for me to see any cracked, broken, or decayed limbs and trunks. Please note: I am the only Certified Arborist within 50 miles of Evansville who has undergone the ISA (International Society of Arboriculture) Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ) training.
5. Tree Appraisals: Trees have value. Not only to the environment and society, but financially as well. If a car crashes into your yard and destroys your tree, you are legally entitled to be compensated for its value. Likewise, if your trees need to be cut down by local governmental agencies to install sewer/water lines or widen the road, you are legally entitled to be paid for the loss to your property value. There are always such projects going on in the tristate: contact your city or county Board of Public Works to see what’s coming toward your neighborhood. Then, contact me to examine your trees and create a defensible value for your property’s potential loss of landscape value.