Proper Tree & Shrub Care Going Into Fall

As summer comes to a close and temperatures start to drop, the rich and warm colors of fall are right around the corner. However, as your landscape begins to transition from green to gold, it's important to maintain proper tree and shrub care to prepare for the colder months.

Recovering from Heat Stress

After a long, hot southern summer, your trees and shrubs are wiped out from heat stress. Most of us are. Trees and shrubs are constantly losing water through porous holes in their leaves. And when it's hot, the rate of water loss increases.

The best way to combat summer heat stress in your trees and shrubs is to maintain an adequate watering schedule throughout the fall. This helps your landscape re-hydrate from heat, and also protects it from future damage going into winter.

Proper irrigation for your trees and shrubs is achieved by saturating the root zone. Trees have a deep root system that requires a slow feed of water to soak further into the soil. Younger trees and shrubs (1-2 years old) thrive on regular watering during the fall. This means they should receive 1 inch or so of water per week, approximately every 6-8 days.

For more established trees and shrubs, subsurface watering is still important. However, these plants can be watered less frequently, approximately every 8-12 days.

Just like watering your lawn, the earlier, the better is still the rule of thumb when it comes to watering trees and shrubs. Aim to water in the morning between 6 and 8 AM. This ensures the hydration will be soaked up before the sun hits.

Fertilization

Trees and shrubs in natural environments are self-serving when it comes to nutrients. However, when it comes to your landscape, they need a little TLC around this time of year.

Proper fall tree and shrub fertilization helps trees recover from heat and loss of nutrients, enabling your plants to better cope with the stresses of the colder months.

Turf Masters' custom blend of fertilizer includes all of the nutrients not provided by water and sunlight to keep your trees and shrubs healthy throughout the year.

Our fertilizer includes potassium in the form of potash, a potassium-rich salt mined from underground sea-bed deposits. Using potassium in the form of potash helps to increase the plant's cell wall endurance, protecting the plant against harsh winter conditions. Potash helps plants fight stress and disease and improves the overall quality of the plant, ensuring stability throughout the year.

The micro-nutrients in our Tree & Shrub Care Program are like a "vitamin pack" for your plants. This vitamin pack helps them recover from the heat stress of the summer as well as damage and disease.

Our Tree & Shrub Care Program is crafted carefully to treat your plant needs, ensuring your plants will have a blooming spring, be less susceptible to insects and disease, and have a longer lifespan.

To get started with our Tree & Shrub Care Program, contact us.