Pollarding is a type of over-pruning that entails lopping off the branches of a tree back to the primary “scaffold” branches, leaving just short stumps. The stumps then re-sprout, each with many thin vigorous shoots, producing an upright clump that forms a dense ball of foliage and flowers atop the trunk. A pollarded tree can […]
Sometimes prevailing winds can be more than just a nuisance. We all know strong winds, dust, and blowing sand can be damaging to structures and equipment, but constant winds, even of moderate intensity, can hurt ornamental plants, too. This is where windbreak trees come in to play. This is because plants lose more water through […]
If you garden near the seacoast, your plants are probably exposed to salt spray in the air and salt accumulation in the soil. Most plants require only trace amounts of salt (sodium chloride, aka NaCl), and when concentrations are too high it can be toxic to them. What does too much salt do to plants? […]
If you have big oaks or tall pine trees in your landscape, you can still have smaller trees with pretty flowers and showy foliage underneath. In nature, the tall canopy trees may rule the forest, but the sub-canopy trees create the mood. Perfect Plants offers several kinds of partial shade tolerant trees for the home […]
Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the male part of a flower (the stamen) to the female part of a flower (the pistil). Fertilization then occurs in the ovary when a sperm cell from a pollen grain unites with an egg to produce an embryo. This then develops into a seed. After fertilization, the […]
A viable pecan seed (the nut) is the product of cross pollination (sexual reproduction) between two pecan trees. It has a genetic makeup that is different from either parent, and the potential to grow into a pecan tree that differs in unpredictable ways from either parent. If you want to grow a pecan tree with […]
Thuja ‘Green Giant’ is one of our most popular trees for hedges, privacy screens and windbreaks. It is a fast growing evergreen, adaptable to a wide range of soil conditions, and grows fast. It can grow up to 20-40 feet tall at maturity and has an extremely fast growth rate of 3-5 feet per year […]
Limelight hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’) usually stays around six to eight feet tall, but it can put on two to three feet of growth per season and get as tall as fourteen feet. Left on their own, hydrangeas tend to grow as rangy, unkempt, multi-stemmed shrubs. But we can do better. We have pruning shears! […]
Sooner or later, we all come to the realization that a favorite tree or shrub is simply in the wrong place. Maybe it’s not getting the right amount of sun or shade. Maybe we can see that it is going to get too big for its place in the landscape. Maybe a new project is […]
If you’ve been thinking about a green privacy screen, springtime is the best time of the year to get started. Trees planted in the spring of the year will have the whole growing season to get established. In most cases, they will be on their own and not need any special attention the following year. […]
Nut trees are often overlooked by the backyard orchardist. They shouldn’t be. Of course nut trees take longer to reach maturity than most fruit trees, but once they start producing, nut trees will continue to reward for decades, even centuries. Most make handsome shade trees in addition to providing delicious and healthful nuts. The best […]
The ways that we live, work, play, and shop has forever been transformed by the power of the Internet. It may come as a surprise to some that shipping plants to your home has huge benefits over going to your local retailer, just because it seems so counterintuitive to buy plants online! But actually, not […]