Springtime Checklist
• Make sure all your tools, chemical supplies and fertilizers are ready for spring.
• Check all plants for unwanted pests and come in to get advice and products.
• Mulch! It saves on water and your back- less weeds.
• Check your irrigation system to make sure it functions properly, and all heads are working. Daylight savings time begins on Sunday March 12th, which brings different watering requirements- check what the requirements are for your area and remember-established landscapes only need 3/4 to 1 inch of water per week- from all sources.
• Spray citrus trees with Copper Fungicide when new growth starts flushing to prevent fungal disease. Repeat in two weeks. If you wait until you have fungus it will be too late- you need to try to prevent it instead. If you have a plant that tends to get fungus later on, this is the time to be treating them to help prevent it.
• Spray azaleas with a horticultural oil to prevent lace bugs. These bugs are microscopic and can play havoc with your plants as they tend to go unnoticed until damage is done. Spray preventively before 7am or after 7pm.
What you plant and where you plant outside your home can have a major impact on the amount of energy you use to heat and cool the inside of your home.
The goal is to block summer sun and winter winds and to allow access to winter sun and summer breezes.
In the summer, the sun rises in the northeast and sets in the northwest. In the morning, the sun’s rays are almost perpendicular to the east wall, so there is maximum heat absorption. However, the air and the house are not heated significantly because of the cooling that took place overnight. For this reason, tree plantings are probably not necessary to shade the east wall.
The south wall receives full radiation between 11 a.m. and noon, but the sun hits the wall at such a steep angle that the amount of heat absorbed is much less than might be expected. In general, the use of trees to shade the south wall is not effective because the shadow cast is minimal. A roof overhang does a much better job.
For most of the afternoon, the west wall receives the same exposure that the east wall did earlier. However, now the sun is at maximum heating capacity, the air is hot, and the house has lost its coolness. If there is space for only one tree to protect the west wall, place it up to 25 feet from the house on a line between the 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. sun positions.
In the winter, sunrise is in the southeast and sunset in the southwest. The south wall receives nearly all of the winter’s day sun. If you plant a tree on the south wall, make sure it is a deciduous tree, which loses it leaves in the all. The sun can shine through the leafless branches during the winter.
Crape Myrtles are beautiful medium sized trees that are perfect for shading hot walls, windows and sliding glass doors. Deciduous in winter allowing the sun to warm the home, lush green foliage emerges in spring and by the end of May a spectacular display of large, clustered flowers.
Other medium sized trees that can be planted are East Palatka or Eagleston Holly, Little Gem Magnolia, Japanese Loquat, Ligustrum, Weeping Yaupon Holly, Cherry Laurel, Bottlebrush, Japanese Blueberry and Fruit trees.