Hello Friend,

This week, we’re chatting about the proper way to plant a tree. Trees are your secret ingredient for a magical garden. They create a sense of privacy and structure and add so much personality to your landscape.

This week’s newsletter also includes helpful gardening resources to

Help you find a certified Arborist in your area
Learn how to prune lilacs
Answer all your burning questions about hydrangeas

Happy gardening,
Sue

Have You Made This Common Mistake?

If you plant a tree too deep, it can die. A tree needs to be planted at the proper depth so the roots get oxygen. A tree’s root flare needs to be planted even with the surface of the ground. Knowing the location of a tree’s root flare is your key to knowing how deep to plant a tree.

The challenge is that plant nurseries sometimes ball and burlap trees with the root flare planted below the soil surface. Just planting the tree even with the soil in the container doesn’t guarantee you are planting the tree at the right depth.

Luckily, learning how to find the root flare is easy. Check out this 2-minute video to learn how to plant a tree at the proper depth. Trust me, you’ll learn something new watching this.

How To Find the Root Flare

Everything You Need To Know About Hydrangea

There are roughly 49 species of hydrangeas. Luckily, Proven Winners published a document to answer all your burning hydrangea questions. It’s titled Hydrangeas Demystified.

Learn why your hydrangeas didn’t bloom.
Learn how to change the flower color.
Learn when to prune your hydrangea.

This downloadable PDF will help you grow beautiful hydrangeas.

Hydrangeas Demystified

Did You Know?

Pruning sealant doesn’t help a plant heal faster. Some research suggesting the sealant can slow healing. But there is one important exception to this rule.

If stone fruit trees are pruned during summer (June to August) and the branch you prune is bigger than the diameter of a quarter, apply pruning sealant to prevent peach tree borers from laying eggs in the pruning wound. If pruning is done when the plant is dormant, pruning sealant is not necessary.