The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

15 Basic Ways To Landscape Your Homepage

New plants will suffer no damage if held for a week or so, providing they have been well watered and protected from sun and strong wind. When planting, leave the burlap around the earth ball, as it will eventually rot and cause no restriction to rapid growth of the new roots.

Plant all new stock absolutely straight and then brace or tie it well to prevent strong wind from bending the young branches and eventually the entire tree.

Pruning, which is often considered a thankless chore, assures the greatest satisfaction from ornamental evergreens. As purchased, they will develop into well-formed trees or bushes of fine appearance. But with careful pruning they can be shaped and improved to harmonize with your overall landscape plans.

The basic rules of pruning are: make a neat cut with no bruised wood left on the branch and never do all the pruning in one place. Prune cedars, pines and spruces with extra caution, otherwise you may destroy the fanlike layers of branch growth by removing all the new buds and green needles from one or more levels. Other types of evergreens are not nearly as sensitive, since new growth is started from many different points at once.

Working with a pruning knife or shears will be quite satisfactory if tools are kept sharp and clean. White gasoline will easily remove the pitchlike resin of evergreen trimmings from the tools.

Finger-nipping of dormant buds will retard growth in any direction you desire to hold back the new branches.

Wintertime poses few problems for the evergreen owner. Destruction of the plant structure usually results from only two sources—snow and wind. Bind the outside of your trees with strips of cloth, like an Egyptian mummy, to stop any chance of the main branches breaking off during a severe winter snowstorm.