http://happytrees.co/ Happy Trees - Blog RSS Feed 2.0 en-us Sat, 04 Apr 2026 06:01:28 GMT Sat, 04 Apr 2026 06:01:28 GMT http://happytrees.co/userfiles/1304/images/Drought%2Ejpg http://happytrees.co/ http://happytrees.co/blog/23374/2026-drought-causes-tree-doubt blog Every Colorado skier knows the winter of 2025/26 was sadly one of the worst on record in terms of low snowfall amounts and warm dry conditions across the Front Range and the Continental Divide. Low snowpack means less than full reservoirs and tightening water reserves to supply communities across greater Denver metro area. Local municipalities and water managers are anticipating drought conditions, and are considering or implementing outdoor watering restrictions for the coming summer season. Many homeowners and potential clients are under the impression that these conditions might prevent them from new tree planting and are delaying or cancelling plans to plant trees this year. The situation in reality is not so dire. The outdoor watering restrictions being considered or mandated in most communities simply follow common sense water conservation practices, and are intended to eliminate wasteful watering practices. For the most part, the regulations simply mandate or impose watering practices that otherwise ought to be practiced, even in water abundant years. This means operating irrigation systems efficiently, directing sprinkler heads off paved surfaces, and avoiding runoff to sidewalks and streets. Homeowners are directed to water only in the early morning or evening hours when the air is cooler to eliminate evaporation in the heat of the day. This regulation is always in effect, but may be more strictly enforced during this water stressed year. Additionally, residences may be assigned specific watering days to better manage system capacity. Bluegrass lawns can thrive under most conditions with efficient watering only three times per week. Most communities restrict watering to three days per week regardless of drought conditions. The strictest regulations under consideration that I could find are certain municipalities limiting lawn watering to only two days per week. Most jurisdictions are encouraging delaying firing up irrigation systems until May to allow reservoirs fill up to satisfy higher demand during summer months. So, is now a good time to plant new trees, and will new tree planting even be allowed? Great news, there are no current restrictions prohibiting the planting of new trees, nor are any under consideration! As always, newly planted trees should be watered efficiently no more than three times per week. Give them a good soaking when you water, but do not water again until the soil drains and somewhat dries out. How can you know when your tree needs water? Happy Trees installs a water gage, a simple pipe that extends to the bottom of the planting hole. Probing with a bamboo dipstick allows you to see if water is reaching the bottom of the hole, if water is sitting in the basin, or if the soil is drying out and in need of water. This Happy Trees exclusive gives you control and ensures that you provide only the water needed to help your tree thrive. The last thing I want to do is stir up an argument over climate change, but if climate change is to blame, trees are the answer! Trees soak up the energy of the sun, converting the sun's energy into sugars that feed the tree. They cool the ground and shade the lawn, reducing the water needed to keep the grass green. They shade paved surfaces which reflect heat back to the atmosphere. They shade houses and block sunlight from windows, reducing the energy needed to cool houses and lowering utility bills! They house and feed wildlife which may be struggling in drought-stressed seasons. Trees pump oxygen into the air to restore a balance of atmospheric gases. And they gobble up carbon, storing it in woody tissue and returning it to the soil. If you and your family are considering planting a new tree or trees this year, there is no reason to hesitate. Every year you delay is a year's growth lost that otherwise could be providing you shade, privacy, or just something pretty to enjoy. Planting trees this season is not only allowed, it's the right thing to do! Call Happy Trees today and let's beat the heat together!   Thu, 02 Apr 2026 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23374/2026-drought-causes-tree-doubt http://happytrees.co/blog/23371/Much-needed-moisture-returns- blog The winter of 2026 will go down as one of the driest and warmest on record. Friday, March 6th, winter finally showed up. Just as the Crabapple trees and Lilac shrubs were starting to bloom, temperatures plunged and a heavy wet snow arrived! Fret not, this is excellent timing and actually beneficial for Colorado's lawns and gardens. While the Front Range saw temperatures dip below freezing, it didn't get cold enough for the chill to do any harm. Most early blooming trees and shrubs, and especially flowering bulbs like Crocus and Daffodil, are well equipped to withstand minor polar plunges and will simply shake off the snow with a smile. The added moisture will surely benefit the grass and trees at the critical time of awakening from dormancy. Tree roots actually begin to stretch before you notice any top growth, which is why winter watering is so desperately important. I've been watering about every other week it seems like since new year's, just to keep some moisture in the ground. The warm temperatures allowed the Spring digging season to begin ahead of schedule, so farm dug trees are now arriving daily and we are planting! My vendors received many varieties of Maple, Oak, Linden, Honeylocust, and Elm over the past few weeks. Early flowering trees like Crabapple, Serviceberry, Pear, Canada Red Cherry, and Redbud are now on our lots. If you act quickly, we can get them planted before they blossom so you can enjoy the cacophony of flowers this year! Planting early also means the trees "wake up" from their winter slumber and begin establishing roots in your yard immediately upon installation. Evergreen trees like Pine, Spruce, and Juniper generally arrive a bit later in the season, but I have a great selection of Pine and Spruce in 6 and 8' sizes already. If you need Juniper or specialty evergreens like Norway Spruce, Arnold Sentinel Pine, or Bosnian Pine, let us know what you want and I'll notify you as soon as they drop and I'll send pictures for your approval. Vail received a foot of fresh powder over the past week, so I'm not quite ready to hang up the skis just yet. But business comes first! If you're thinking trees this Spring this is the moment to act, so give Happy Trees a call today!   Sat, 07 Mar 2026 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23371/Much-needed-moisture-returns- http://happytrees.co/blog/23364/ProGreen-2026 blog The 2026 ProGreen Expo has concluded, and this means that the planting season for the new year is officially underway! ProGreen is the premier regional green industry trade show at the Colorado Convention Center. Businesses that serve all aspects of the landscape industry showcase vehicles and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, soil and stone products, technology and business services, and of course, trees and all sorts of plant material. ProGreen offers a great way for leaders in the landscape industry to reconnect after the winter break, keep up to date with new products and best practices, and most importantly for Happy Trees, to receive updated catalogs and pricing from all our local vendors. I am vigorously updating our tree library online and loading prices for 2026 on our website. So far, we're seeing only modest price increases from last year. This is a welcome reprieve, as a national tree shortage and skyrocketing labor and fuel prices have led to jarring increases over the past couple of years. This is great news, and seems to be relevant across most suppliers and vendors. I am evaluating to make sure Happy Trees is offering the highest value in tree planting services at a competitive price. The most prevalent topic on everyone's mind is naturally the weather. It has been an extraordinarily warm and historically dry winter across the Front Range. Local growers are considering harvesting trees several weeks earlier than usual. Happy Trees may have new stock and fresh material for those wanting to get a jump on the planting season! Others prognosticate winter's late arrival, meaning wet weather may delay spring planting once winter finally decides to show up. Happy Trees will be nimble and ready to respond to whatever the weather throws at us! Meanwhile, homeowners should be dragging out the hoses and giving everything a good drink. Daytime temperatures are in the 60's and will be for the next few days. Dry ground is stressful on plants, and can actually suck the water out of tree and shrub roots! Turn your hose down to a trickle and set it at the base of newly planted trees for 5-10 minutes, or use a broadcast type sprinkler like a "Frog Eye" to water a wider area for 15-30 minutes for more established trees. Your lawn could use a drink too. Although most plants are technically dormant, everything will benefit from some moisture in the soil. Hopefully I'll get a few more ski days in before the phones start ringing off the hook. If you're looking to have trees installed this spring go ahead and give us a call and we'll get you to the front of the queue.   Fri, 06 Feb 2026 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23364/ProGreen-2026 http://happytrees.co/blog/23327/We-re-in-the-sweet-spot- blog It was a brutally hot summer with wildfire smoke blanketing the Front Range for much of July and August. While Happy Trees planted nearly every day with extraordinary success, cooler temperatures and natural precipitation provide better conditions for planting trees. If you were waiting for Fall to get trees in the ground, Fall has arrived and now is a great time to plant! Trees can only be successfully harvested while the trees are dormant, usually in February and March, and again in September, October, and November. Every tree that was sold over the summer months was dug in late winter/ early spring. True, supplies for many trees are somewhat or totally depleted by this time of year, but most wholesalers anticipate this and order quantities of the most popular trees sufficient to meet fall demand. If you're looking for Maple, Autumn Blaze remains one of the best sellers around the region. While Autumn Blaze is a perfectly acceptable tree for Colorado, they are exhibiting summer stress from sitting in the nursery through the heat of summer. This manifests by turning early fall color, and sun-scorched leaf margins. The trees will recover beautifully if planted in your yard, but more resilient varieties of maple with very similar characteristics are coming online in recent years. It should be noted that Autumn Blaze is the only variety that is seedless, so I still recommend them if this is important to you. Consider Redpointe Maple, virtually the same as Autumn Blaze, but with a more uniform branch structure, a dominant central leader, and better adapted to deal with our drought and alkaline soil. While I do observe some summer stress, they are faring much better than their AB cousins at the end of the season. Also noteworthy, Fall Fiesta Maple is a magnificent choice for our harsh environment. Still a quick maturing overstory shade tree, Fall Fiesta exhibits a diverse display of Red-Orange-Yellow fall foliage. If you need a more bomb proof plant for exposed sites or urban areas, State Street Maple is tough to beat. These are stout trees that are quite adaptable to our alkaline soils, they withstand our dramatic temperature swings, and are resistant to frost cracking. These stalwart trees are showing no signs of summer distress and are among the best looking trees in the nursery at this time. Brilliant Gold fall color, a great addition to any yard. If you don't mind acorns, I've still got plenty of Oak from which to choose. Northern Red, Shumard, and Texas Red are abundant in both 2" and 2-1/2" caliper sizes. If the beans don't bother you, I've got some of the best Western Catalpa I've ever seen on the lot! One of my vendors has Redmond Linden newly arrived in 2-1/2" that I could probably sell as 3", an exceptional value! Skyline Honeylocust are plentiful in all sizes, one of our cleaner trees for shading decks and patios. Fall harvested trees are beginning to arrive from our northern states and Canada. Spruce, Austrian Pine, and Pinion Pine are now arriving daily. The pickings were getting pretty slim on these popular evergreens, but if you act now you'll get the pick of the litter! It's been another sensational year for Happy Trees, with hundreds of newly planted trees now gracing the homes and yards of Coloradoans! If you're considering a fall planting, it's time to pick up the phone. Remember, it may take a few weeks for HOA approval if necessary, and a week for utility locates. We generally plant straight through October, although last year temperatures remained favorable for the better part of November which extended our planting season. The cover photo was taken 9/30 in the Mt. Evans wilderness. Aspen are displaying peak fall color, so hurry up and get scheduled today!   Tue, 23 Sep 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23327/We-re-in-the-sweet-spot- http://happytrees.co/blog/23315/Genetic-Regression blog The accompanying photo perfectly demonstrates an example of Genetic Regression. Genetic Regression occurs when a genetic mutation of a hybridized plant "regresses" back to it's ancestral form. In this instance, a Dwarf Alberta Spruce, which itself is a genetic mutation of a White Spruce, regressed back to its original form! All Dwarf Alberta Spruce are clones of mutated branches, often called "witches brooms",  originally found growing in an isolated stand of White Spruce in Alberta, Canada. Botanists took cuttings of the mutated branches, grafted them to a common Spruce root stock, and propagated the miniature, slow-growing, conical ornamental shrubs we now enjoy as Dwarf Alberta Spruce. For reasons that are not fully understood, and reasons that are irrelevant for this discussion, select cells at the top of this shrub reverted back to the parent White Spruce heritage. While this looks kind of cool, it is usually undesirable. The White Spruce is growing much faster and larger than intended by the design requirements and will continue to do so until it overtakes and eventually kills the host Dwarf Spruce. Genetic Regression is quite common in many types of variegated plants, plants hybridized and selected for variable or striated colors in the leaves. For example, Emerald Gaiety and Emerald 'n Gold Euonymus have been selected because they have white and gold margins around a green leaf. Often times, a branch or several branches will regress, displaying only green leaves, usually with more aggressive growth. Ivory Halo Dogwood, Tricolor Beech, and Purple Smoketree are susceptible to regression as well. The remedy is quite simple. Simply prune or trim off the affected branches as soon as the anomaly is detected. Easy! The sooner the better, as the abnormality can swiftly take over and wreck the integrity of the desired traits of the plant, as the cover photo can attest.   Wed, 10 Sep 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23315/Genetic-Regression http://happytrees.co/blog/23309/Colorado-Native-Quaking-Aspen blog Head west to any High Country destination in Colorado and you'll surely pass through or arrive at a magical forest of Aspen trees. With their towering bleached white trunks, densely packed stands, and trembling leaves that flutter in the breeze, a walk through an Aspen forest is a truly enchanting experience! Spend enough time lingering among these quaking giants and you will likely encounter deer, elk, or moose that feast voraciously on the tender leaves. As you cruise west on I-70 you may notice that south facing hillsides on your right are rather barren, hosting mostly grasses and the stray Ponderosa Pine, Pinion Pine, or Rocky Mountain Juniper. To your left, slopes are more lushly decorated with Spruce, Fir, and Aspen...lots and lots of Aspen! North facing slopes shade themselves, so they tend to be cooler and they retain more water. This is where Aspen thrive, particularly along valley floors along stream banks where soil moisture and humidity are abundant. So they grow well in Colorado and therefore should be an excellent addition to our yard in the Front Range, right? Not so much. As previously mentioned, they prefer higher elevations and cooler temperatures. East of the Hogback the sun bakes barren soil, much like the south facing slopes of our mountain passes where Aspen are rarely found. Even with ample irrigation, the dry air of Eastern Colorado stresses Aspen through the long, hot days of Summer. I like to say that I love Aspen...in Aspen. Down here they struggle, and weak trees become susceptible to various bacterial diseases and leaf blights. As you gaze upon a grove of Aspen Trees in the mountains, you are likely looking at a single Aspen tree with multiple trunks! Did you know that Aspen colonize by sending up trees from sprawling root systems? Technically a single tree even though you see dozens or even hundreds of seemingly independent trees. In fact, an Aspen grove spanning over one hundred acres in Utah, named "The Pando Tree", is considered the largest single living organism on earth! This information is useful on trivia night, but it also means that Aspen often send up trees in your lawn, gardens, your neighbor's lawn, and generally anywhere you didn't intend to plant a tree. The surface roots can tear up your grass, much like their close cousins the Cottonwood. And like Cottonwood, they have cottony seeds that can clutter up the garden and can also sprout trees. These attributes make them less than desirable trees for most residential gardens along the Front Range. Even if you can get them to grow successfully, Aspen tend to be short lived down here, usually expiring within 15-20 years. I see Aspen in various stages of decline whenever I drive through a mature neighborhood. Still, if you need a quick screen and intend to be in the house for only a few years Aspen might be suitable for your needs. I don't feature Aspen on my website so if you insist on Aspen call or email for availability and pricing. The best way to appreciate Aspen is by blasting turns on a powder day through a north facing Aspen glade at Steamboat, Beaver Creek, or, naturally, Aspen!   Mon, 11 Aug 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23309/Colorado-Native-Quaking-Aspen http://happytrees.co/blog/23303/To-plant-or-not-to-plant- blog Cottonwood are on the very short list of Shade trees native to the Front Range and Colorado's Eastern Plains. Always found growing in lowland areas along stream banks and river beds, or in dry arroyos where they receive seasonal water. They are close cousins of Aspen in the Poplar family of trees, and share many of the same characteristics, such as fast growth and adaptability. Cottonwood grow much larger though, soaring up to 100' and just as wide! I've seen ancient Cottonwood with massive trunks at least 10 in diameter. So should you plant one? Probably not. Cottonwood shed cotton. Lots of cotton, hence the name. The cotton carries seeds adrift on the wind where they can colonize anywhere they find water. Or the cotton covers your patio furniture and clogs your air conditioner. For that reason alone, many homeowners avoid them. There are, however, cotton-less varieties available, so perhaps a better choice if you need Cottonwood. There are other problems to consider as well. Cottonwood are shallow rooted, meaning they will spread surface level roots across your lawn in search of water. These roots often break the surface, creating ankle biter obstacles sure to ruin your frisbee game. Roots can spread as wide as the tree canopy, taking over the yards of most suburban properties. Cottonwood are also twiggy, and constantly shed their branches throughout the Summer. You'll be picking up sticks and twigs after every gusty storm. If you have a rural property in the Foothills or Eastern Plains, or are planting in a meadow or prairie, or perhaps in a neighborhood common area, Cottonwood may be an acceptable choice. They are quite drought hardy once established. They grow incredibly quickly and provide broad shade. They provide a sanctuary for wildlife. They are salad to deer and elk though, so consider deer fencing or deterrents if planting in habitat. They are quite picturesque as well. Walk into any art gallery and you'll likely see pictures or paintings of massive Cottonwood trees lording over abandoned farms. While Cottonwood are probably not likely candidates for most suburban landscapes and lawns, Native trees should always be considered where space and aesthetics allow. They are an excellent choices for mountain communities and can be found growing up to 9,500'. We don't feature Cottonwood on our website, so please call for availability and pricing.   Sun, 13 Jul 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23303/To-plant-or-not-to-plant- http://happytrees.co/blog/23276/Do-Japanese-Maple-grow-here- blog Japanese Maple are among the most graceful, elegant small trees to adorn any landscape. Their heavily serrated leaves evoke a tropical feel, with leaf color ranging from bright green to deep burgundy. Their many varieties can take various forms, from shrubby umbrella shaped weeping forms to upright vase shaped overarching canopies. Obviously at home in a Japanese garden, they have a place in any yard whether providing a focal point for a water feature or welcoming guests in an entryway. Unfortunately, Colorado is far removed from their island homeland, where the trees are bathed in tropical breezes and humid fog. Colorado soil is devoid of organic nutrients and beneficial microorganisms. Our dry air and intense sunlight a mile up in the air suck the moisture right out of their delicate leaves. Wild temperature swings and hard freezes are often the death knell for these tender garden elements. You might find success in protected sites in shady areas of downtown Denver with good soil in sheltered neighborhoods. I have tried and failed three times to nurture Japanese Maple to establishment in the Denver Highlands. While they can grow here in some microclimates, they are not a viable tree for most of the Front Range. Fortunately, there are a few plants that can substitute for Japanese Maple where a conversation piece or an unusual highlight is desired. Cutleaf Sumac is an often overlooked plant with shaggy, serrated leaves and explosive red-orange-yellow fall color. They thrive in our arid environment even in poor soil, and actually prefer it on the dry side once established. Usually available only as small container shrubs, it may take a few years to develop into a glorious multi-stemmed large shrub or small tree, but they grow very quickly and can be selectively pruned to achieve almost any desired form. Admittedly, they present as an anemic twiggy plant in the garden centers, I think because they like it dry but need to be watered every day to keep them alive in the containers. With a little patience and selective pruning and care, your friends will be amazed by the wildly extraordinary plant you cultivated for your garden masterpiece. But beware, Sumac are thicket forming and can self-sow, so some maintenance may be required to keep them in check. Elderberry are native to Colorado and hybridized forms may rival Japanese Maple for their leaf form and color! Consider Black Lace Elder, with burgundy, almost purple finely serrated leaves. They look more like plants you would find in Florida or Hawaii, but they're right at home in the Colorado High Country. In Portland, these plants will grow over the roof line, but expect more like five to ten feet in our less than desirable growing conditions. Again only available as container shrubs, give them a couple of years to provide that "wow" factor, but savor every moment of anticipation as they evolve. These too can be shaped and trained into small trees, and actually will respond well to a good haircut in late winter, reviving them and causing a flourish of new bright green growth above a deep purple base. Bonus points, they produce lacy white flowers in June for a pop of late spring interest! If you're looking for a larger tree in your landscape, but want something that maybe reminds you of your vacation in Tahiti, check out Golden Raintree. Perfectly suitable for our harsh climate, Golden Raintree is a fast grower reaching about 30' tall. Their serrated bipinnately compound leaves will have you thinking you're in an Asian jungle. Perhaps best in the multi-stemmed form, they're perfect for shading your deck or patio. Panicles of bright yellow flowers shower the tree in mid-summer, hence the name! Summer flowers, and especially yellow flowers, are rare. These trees will stop traffic if planted in the front yard! But the show's not over, flowers are followed by puffy, papery seed pods, often compared to Chinese lanterns, and not considered messy by any means. Perfect for uplighting as the light can penetrate well up into the overarching canopy, dump your Japanese Maple and plant Golden Raintree! Just because a tree is sold here doesn't mean it will grow here. If money isn't an issue and you have a high risk tolerance, then by all means give Japanese Maple a shot. Heck, I recently noticed one doing quite well in the Back Country in Highlands Ranch, where they have no business succeeding. Granted it was against a north facing wall in a raised planter with good soil in a protected spot, but I'd say they got lucky. You can achieve that Japanese Maple look with the above recommendations, and compliment with Fernbush, Fine Line Buckthorn, and Scarlet Yucca to complete the effect.   Mon, 26 May 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23276/Do-Japanese-Maple-grow-here- http://happytrees.co/blog/23268/April-snows-bring-May--er--flower-shows- blog How do you make it snow on April 18th? Untie all your trees and shrubs and fire up your irrigation system on April 13th! Yep, spent last night re-wrapping my trees and draining my system. Oh well, Colorado, right? Actually, the snow is a blessing and couldn't have come at a better time. Nature knows grasses, trees, and shrubs are "waking up" from their winter slumber, and desperately in need of water. Temperatures shouldn't be severe enough to do any serious damage, although heavy snow loads could be problematic. Colorado isn't always so kind, and some years see less early Spring precipitation. For this reason, Winter watering is essential to help your living landscape plants thrive. Roots actually start to stretch before any top growth is essential. Water begins to flow up the trunks to nourish swelling buds and crispy evergreen needles. It is very stressful on the trees if the ground is bone dry, so drag out the hoses and water if we've gone a week or two without any rain or snow. Just be sure to disconnect your hose from the tap to prevent any overnight freeze damage. Warm temperatures create heavy, wet snow. As it collects on tree and shrub branches the weight can bend or break loose limbs. Gently wrap multi-stem trees and shrubs with garden tie, twine, strap, or even bungee cords in the Fall. This will help support the trees and prevent breakage. Don't cinch the bundles tightly, just loosely wrap so the limbs have some support under heavy snows. Get out and gently shake the snow off tender plants as best you can as well. Hopefully your trees retain some flowers and the leaves can withstand the dip in temperature. Some years bring much greater late freezes, and these can damage the leaves of early bloomers. Fret not, evolution and nature has gifted trees with "latent" buds. These are leaf buds held in reserve for just such an occasion. Hormones are triggered upon the sudden loss of leaves, and most trees should recover beautifully within a few weeks. You can safely remove trunk wrap once the leaves emerge on your trees. The wrap does not keep the trees warm, it protects the trunks from sunburn, just like a long sleeved shirt. At this altitude, intense sunrays can penetrate the soft tissue of young trees. Continue to do this every year until the trees develop a corky protective bark. Good luck and get out to bag some late season skiing! And now is a great time to plant!   Fri, 18 Apr 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23268/April-snows-bring-May--er--flower-shows- http://happytrees.co/blog/23256/Spring-has-Sprung- blog Spring has sprung and trees are starting to trickle into our local vendors! Large caliper trees are difficult to source but for a limited time I have 3-1/2" caliper Flashfire Maple for $2,350 delivered and installed. These are in the 'Caddo' series of Maple, a hybridized version of a native stand of Maple found growing in a hot, dry, alkaline soil canyon in Kansas. They are proving to be the most appropriate trees for our harsh Colorado climate and consistently display the best Fall color and exceptional hardiness. 2-1/2" caliper also arrived for $1,575. I don't feature these on my website only because they are a newer introduction and I haven't found a mature example to photograph, but they are similar to the 'Fall Fiesta' Maple, also suitable for our climate. http://happytrees.co/products/7277/Fall-Fiesta-Maple Spruce trees are in and I have a healthy selection from 6-10'. Spruce are seed propagated and therefore they display a variety of characteristics, from very blue to deep green and many shades in between. They can also be full and bushy or layered with a more open habit. Please specify a preference when ordering. http://happytrees.co/products/7251/Colorado-Blue-Spruce Spring Snow Crabapple are among our most popular ornamental flowering trees. They feature an explosion of profuse white flowers in early Spring. When the petals drop, they carpet the grass in a blanket of white, hence the name. They are a truly fruitless variety of Crabapple, and make a welcome addition to any landscape. 2" caliper $1,160 delivered and installed. Also consider the multiple stemmed form. These have a wonderful branching structure that adds contrast and excitement to your landscape! 8' tall only $1,375! http://happytrees.co/products/7255/Spring-Snow-Crabapple Prefer pink flowers? One of my favorite trees is the Royal Raindrops Crabapple. They have fuchsia flowers in Spring and a burgundy leaf all summer. The leaf shape is unique as well, more like an Amur Maple than a traditional Crabapple, making them a great conversation piece. Their upright habit makes them a perfect selection for smaller yards. They produce small fruits, about the size of a blueberry, but don't worry, they persist on the tree and shrivel up like raisins, feeding the birds and squirrels all winter long. This is not your Grandmother's Crabapple with obnoxious apples that you would throw at your sister! Totally appropriate over a patio or pathway. http://happytrees.co/products/7256/Royal-Raindrops-Crabapple Need a smaller evergreen tree? A fresh batch of native Pinion Pine just arrived! These are collected off private ranch land or BLM land by permit. They have variable characteristics from tall and skinny to fat and bushy, even multiple trunked! Perfect for screening your hot tub so you can soak in your birthday suit, or to screen your neighbors spa. http://happytrees.co/products/7258/Pinion-Pine Want to add a truly exotic element to your Japanese Garden or a focal point for your patio? Golden Raintree beings a flash of mid-Summer color with Yellow flowers. Yes, Yellow flowers!!! The leaves evoke a tropical feel, and papery seed pods develop later in the season, often compared to Chinese lanterns. 3" caliper $2,275 delivered and installed. Get 'em while they're hot! http://happytrees.co/products/7266/Golden-Raintree This is just a small offering of what is currently available, and trees have only just begun to arrive. The flood gates will open up in the coming weeks when trees begin showing up in caravans of semi-tractor trailers. Now is the perfect time to plant, so long as the weather cooperates. Trees are still in their winter dormancy and will "wake up" in your yard without any transplant shock or summer stress. Pictures are available on my Google business page... https://www.google.com/search?q=Happy+Trees&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAA_-NgU1I1qLAwN0s2N01KSrZITUtLS02yMqgwTTNPTkw2NzA3NzIzN0tKXcTK7ZFYUFCpEFKUmloMADK8m7Q3AAAA&hl=en&mat=CQivzVZCe56uElYBmzl_pfEZwSJ7MPXHuEGlSLNk0DDkZ4ng2f32WtbOPV9hoHKMlb2imLQlcTeghaImnNe-O_nLyRtoN7oLPNaoep6CRrY2wvVzr2zRIlRZsG0Cak3BZw&authuser=0   Fri, 28 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23256/Spring-has-Sprung- http://happytrees.co/blog/23253/Fast--Clean--and-Green- blog The three most popular shade trees for Colorado are Maple, Linden, and Honeylocust. They are all fast growing, hardy for our climate, and relatively clean, meaning they don't drop obnoxious fruit or seeds. Having said that, all trees drop something, so you'll need to determine your tolerance for debris versus shade, privacy, and ornamental beauty.  Maple are probably the most popular trees in the state. There are dozens of varieties that perform quite well along the Front Range. Recent introductions include the 'Caddo' series, hybridized versions of a native stand of Maple found growing in a hot, dry, alkaline canyon in Kansas. Most varieties will drop samaras, the helicopter seeds that flutter to the ground. A small price to pay for the shade and explosive Fall color they display. http://happytrees.co/Maple-Trees Linden have flowers that aren't particularly showy, but offer a two-tone lime green effect against a deep green leaf. They have gold fall color. They drop a small hard seed, about the size of a peppercorn, which goes entirely unnoticed in the lawn or garden bed, but may be a nuisance over a deck or patio. http://happytrees.co/products/7223/Greenspire-Linden Honeylocust are perhaps the fastest growing of all our shade trees. The leaves are so small they shrivel up and blow away, so you don't even need to rake in the Fall! They are more of a filter tree, and will cool off the yard while allowing plenty of light to penetrate through the canopy. This also makes them excellent for uplighting at night! They shed pollen in the Spring though. Your patio furniture and windshields will be coated in yellow dust for a week or two, but still not a big deal for the benefits they offer. http://happytrees.co/products/7253/Skyline-Honeylocust Seedless cultivars of Kentucky Coffeetree should also be included among the best shade trees. These have an unusual canopy that would be considered coarse in Winter but almost tropical in Summer. 'Espresso' is a seedless male clone, 'Decaf' has more abundant, more graceful branching, but a little smaller in stature. http://happytrees.co/products/8513/Kentucky-Coffeetree I almost forgot Elm. Drive through almost any neighborhood in Denver and you'll find mighty Elm forming a complete canopy over most city streets. Incredibly hardy and drought tolerant. The elm encircling "The Oval" at Colorado State University are among the most cherished trees in the state! http://happytrees.co/products/11518/Elm You don't have a bad choice to make here. It all depends on your personal taste and preferences. Give me a call if you need further clarification or more information. Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and have a great day!   Tue, 11 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23253/Fast--Clean--and-Green- http://happytrees.co/blog/23251/State-of-the-Green-Industry blog Happy New Year! Crazy things are shaking up the Green Industry. We just attended the ProGreen Expo at the Colorado Convention Center. This is the B2B annual conference for nursery and landscape professionals. Prices are updated for 2025 at HappyTrees.co, and as always, the listed price includes the tree, delivery, planting, and everything the trees need to get off to a Happy start! The national tree shortage continues. Homes are being built faster than the growers are planting. Gratefully, prices for smaller caliper trees remain flat or show only modest increases. Larger caliper trees are in short supply, and 2025 prices reflect this scarcity. Growers are harvesting trees as soon as they reach the minimum salability size, forgoing higher prices for larger trees in the future, as who knows if there will be a market as administrations change. Pricing among my suppliers is showing greater disparity than I'm used to seeing. I use an average cost to post my prices online. I've been reluctant to discount trees in the past, as my costs have been fairly uniform and my prices reflected a fair markup. This year I may be able to find some savings, so it never hurts to ask for a bargain. The buzz around the convention center was rather electric. My friends in the industry are all highly optimistic that markets will pick up and prices will go down. We certainly live in interesting times, and it will be interesting to see where we go from here! Small businesses have been anchored by high taxes, record labor rates, runaway inflation, and an insurmountable regulatory environment. We may be seeing a reprieve, but nobody can look too far into the future with any clarity. Arbor Valley Nursery has been our primary supplier for almost a decade. The owner, Matt Edmundson, has expanded operations and now has multiple nurseries along the I-25 corridor spanning from Sante Fe New Mexico up to Cheyenne Wyoming. This is a truly remarkable achievement, as very few nurseries expand beyond their flagship stores. During an industry lecture, Matt confided that he has four sons, none of whom express interest in taking over the family business. Matt says he's not sure he wants them to. Things simply aren't as simple as they were when his grandfather started the company. Everywhere he turns there's another government bureaucracy breathing down his neck hampering his efforts. From pesticides and fertilizers, soil conservation, labor, OSHA, emissions standards, not to mention exorbitant taxes, somedays it doesn't seem worth the effort to get out of bed in the morning. These same pressures apply to growers as well. Sadly, many of them are going by the wayside. Since the housing crash of 2008, the market has remained volatile. Remember, farmers plant trees prognosticating what the demand will be 8-15 years from now. Many figure its wiser to rip out the ornamental crops which take years to realize a profit, and plant food crops instead so they can get paid this Fall. Farmland has gotten so expensive that many nursery owners have simply sold the land and retired on a beach somewhere. Who knows if trees will even be for sale in the coming decades? Meanwhile, a monster lurks among us. Site One, a nationwide mega-corporation mostly concentrated in irrigation and farming supplies like pesticides and fertilizers, is making a move toward the wholesale nursery market. They've been steadily buying up businesses around the country, and have acquired Harmony Gardens in Colorado. This could mean cheaper trees in the short run, but they may also knock off the competition and monopolize the industry. Site One also recently acquired Pioneer Sand and Gravel, a massive regional supplier of stone and other landscape products throughout the Intermountain West. Time will tell how this affects landscapers around the region. Benjamin Franklin famously said "in this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes". Truer words were never spoken, but we're cautiously optimistic about the economy for the coming year. The last time Trump was in office, diesel fuel was down to two dollars per gallon, labor rates were 40% lower than we now have, and nobody was telling us we needed to electrify our farm equipment. No matter where you are on the political spectrum, lower costs mean lower prices for the consumer, leading to higher sales, and Happier outcomes for all.   Mon, 03 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23251/State-of-the-Green-Industry http://happytrees.co/blog/23247/Winter-Freeze-Warning- blog Thursday, January 16th, 2025. Temperatures will be pleasant today and tomorrow, but that all changes late afternoon Friday. A Polar Plunge is expected to descend upon Colorado, bringing several days of single digit highs with overnight temperatures well below Zero degrees! These types of wild temperature swings are rather common along Colorado's Front Range, which is one of the reasons trees don't naturally grow here. You can help protect your trees and shrubs by dragging out the hoses and watering your plants before the cold weather sets in. Dramatic dips in temperature can be detrimental to plants in our high-altitude environment. Remember, most trees aren't native to the high chaparral, and they prefer more temperate climates with higher humidity. If the soil is bone dry, as is likely after several days without precipitation, frozen ground is stressful on your plants. Watering now will get some moisture in the soil that can help protect the roots during the upcoming Arctic Blast. If your trees are in a shady spot, the ground may already be frozen and there still may be snow on the ground. If so, you don't need to water, but it wouldn't hurt. In sunny spots, little to no moisture may be present from the last round of snow, so watering right away is highly advisable. This is true not only for newly planted trees and shrubs, but also for mature trees and plants, particularly evergreens. Your deciduous trees should already be wrapped for winter. This doesn't do anything to keep them warm, which is a common misconception. We wrap the trees to keep the sun off the tender bark of young trees. Otherwise, desiccating sun along with cold temperatures can dry out the bark, causing a sun burn much like we hairless monkeys experience. For more information check out the following blog... http://happytrees.co/blog/22314/Happy-Trees-Pro-Winter-Preparation-Tips- Trees are living beings that need care and protection to survive in Colorado's harsh climate. Please protect your investment and winter water today!   Thu, 16 Jan 2025 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23247/Winter-Freeze-Warning- http://happytrees.co/blog/23198/Fall-is-for-Planting- blog Hot air balloons lingered in the sky in the early morning hours above rural Longmont as I headed up to load the day's trees for planting. I noticed farmers hard at work harvesting corn, pumpkins, and other assorted crops as I traveled along highway 287. The pumpkin patches were stacking hay bales and cutting corn mazes readying for the trick-or-treaters soon to swarm small farms for the autumn celebrations. Fall is upon us, and Fall is for planting trees! It's a great time to plant. Temperatures are cooler, we're receiving more precipitation, and stocks are being replenished with Fall dug trees. Trees still have time to root in before the ground freezes, where they will then overwinter and "wake up" in the Spring with vigorous new growth. Trees are getting harder to come by, and some of the nurseries are fairly depleted from high demand over the Summer. Happy Trees shops from wholesale nurseries up and down the Front Range, so we can usually source the best available trees from Colorado's most reputable nurseries. Pine and Spruce, which have been difficult to find all Summer, are finally starting to arrive. Container grown Pear, Hackberry, and Linden are plentiful, and looking fantastic! If you're looking for a tree to plant this Fall, Happy Trees can find, deliver, and plant the best trees available. Snow is already teasing Colorado's highest peaks, and the Aspen are beginning to turn color at the highest elevations. Happy Trees plants successfully through October, and then will shutter our doors until trees begin arriving next Spring. Now is the time to call if you're ready to decorate your yard with trees that will grace your yard for generations to come.   Thu, 19 Sep 2024 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23198/Fall-is-for-Planting- http://happytrees.co/blog/23183/Native-trees-for-the-residential-landscape blog Colorado is tough on trees. So tough, in fact, that very few trees are native to Colorado. If you look at any undeveloped land (getting tougher to find) along the Front Range, you'll notice that there are no trees naturally growing on the High Chaparral. Long hot Summers, high altitude, low humidity, poor soil, wild temperature swings, extreme cold snaps, and heavy snow loads all contribute to an environment that makes it nearly impossible for trees to take hold. One exception to consider is the mighty Pinion Pine. Sometimes known as Pinyon Pine, these rugged survivors are found in native stands throughout Colorado and the Intermountain West. Their range extends from Canada down into Mexico. More impressively, they're found westward, thriving in the scorched deserts of Utah! The cover photo was taken in Arches National Park. Pinyon Pine is the official state tree of New Mexico. You'll see fine examples clinging to the cliffs and enjoying the music at Red Rocks Ampitheater! Pinion grow slowly, just a couple of inches per year, although with irrigation their growth can be accelerated a bit. The trees you find in the desert can be hundreds of years old! Native trees are often in various states of decay displaying twisted and gnarled dead and bare branches. This does not detract from their intrinsic beauty, however, as the exfoliating bark and bleached wood provide character and contrast to the surviving branches' vibrant green needles striving to survive in the relentless desert heat. In fact, Pinion Pine might be one of a few trees that may look just as good dead as they do alive, as their skeletons can remain standing for many decades, a fitting tribute to their immense struggle for survival. The Happy Trees Pinion Pine we plant for you shouldn't suffer that fate for generations to come though. Just like all newly planted trees, they will need regular watering until they're established, being extra careful to not over-water. Once the trees are established you can plug the emitters and it will thrive on natural precipitation only, although keep watering if you desire more growth. Pinion Pine are mostly collected trees dug off of private ranch land, land slated for development, or off of Bureau of Land Management land by permit. They are genetically variable, meaning that they each have unique appearances and expressions. They can be tall and slender, fat and bushy, somewhere in-between, or even multiple trunked! With so many traits and forms, there's a Pinion Pine appropriate for any landscape! They're perfect for anchoring the corner of the home, where their slow growth won't swallow up the house in the coming years. Consider Pinion for the corner of the yard, to screen utility boxes, or to provide privacy for a hot tub. One final fun fact is that Pinion Pine produce edible pine nuts! They're great for snacking, can be milled for baking, or they add a crunchy snap to a garden salad. You can collect your own, but probably better to buy some if you spot them in mountain town tourist shops.   Thu, 22 Aug 2024 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23183/Native-trees-for-the-residential-landscape http://happytrees.co/blog/23171/Anticipation blog In my former career as a landscape architect, I always tried to incorporate a progression of bloom when selecting trees and shrubs for my clients' yards. By picking a variety of trees with different bloom times, the property always had a seasonal splash of interest to admire. From the earliest blossoms of the Crabapple, Plum, Pear, and Cherry trees in late Winter to the last flourish of petals of Rose of Sharon that persist until frost, my customers always had something colorful to enjoy while anticipating the next display of marvelous awakening. After the Ornamental Fruit Trees already mentioned, Redbud and Hawthorn quickly follow. Lilacs and Elder liven up the understory. Then Viburnum, Serviceberry, and Japanese Tree Lilac reveal their true splendor. Serviceberry then offer up delicious berries that also have an ornamental appeal. They taste like blueberries if you can beat the birds to them. For most yards, late Spring provides the last show of colorful array. But adding a Golden Raintree would liven up the landscape in late June! Catalpa also explode to life in mid-Summer. Catalpa are white from a distance but have purple striations down the tube of the orchid-like flowers. Incredible! As I write this toward the end of July, my Seven Son Flower tree (featured in the picture) is budding up and beginning to open her flowers. This will soon be followed by cherry-red bracts (modified leaves) which decorate the tree until Fall. That about does it for the trees, but Roses, Spirea, and Potentilla bloom perpetually throughout the season and will produce through the Fall. Speaking of Fall, make sure you've got some Maple and Linden for one last gasp of brilliant color before the leaves drop. Winter interest is important as well. The Regal Oak Tree is just as impressive barren as it is fully clothed in leaves. The ridged, corky bark of Hackberry really stands out against a snowy backdrop. Christmas lights can dazzle the effect of any tree in the landscape, just don't be the guy who still has them on in May! Of course evergreen trees such as Spruce, Fir, and Pine will maintain privacy while offering some blues and greens until the snow finally melts and the whole cycle begins anew. If you've been contemplating how to add some interest for any season, Happy Trees has plenty of options to keep your gardens flourishing for generations to come. Browse the website at HappyTrees.CO or give us a call and we can help guide you with your selections. Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and as always, have a great day!   Tue, 23 Jul 2024 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23171/Anticipation http://happytrees.co/blog/23097/Why-Happy-Trees-are-the-perfect-trees- blog In the olden days, if you desired to plant a tree you would load up the family in the 'ole station wagon and motor over to your local garden center. There you would encounter thousands of trees over dozens of acres where you could wander through the mud for hours staring up through row after row of trees to find your perfect purchase. But do you really know what to look for when selecting a tree? Here's how Happy Trees ensures you'll be Happy when you allow us to select your tree for you. Happy Trees makes it far more convenient for you to shop for trees by category and to pick the right type of tree for your needs. We provide pictures of trees for all four seasons so you can see how they look when barren over Winter, when donned in Spring flowers, leafed out during summer months, and when shrouded in Fall color! We also do the shopping for you, so there's no need to waste a weekend driving up to Longmont or down to Franktown to fight crowds and pick through the trees remaining in stock. For shade and ornamental trees, the first thing most folks consider most important is a straight trunk. In my retail days I would wonder as couples fought over which tree had the straightest, most perfectly aligned trunk. In my professional view a straight trunk is desirable, yet hardly the most important predictor for a glorious tree at maturity. It is perfectly normal for trees to have slight bends or bows in their trunks, and rarely do we find perfectly straight trunks on many varieties. Good luck finding a Hackberry that likes to grow straight, yet as they age the bends and bows add character and become desirable characteristics for these and many other varieties. For most trees slight bends and bows don't actually straighten out but as the trees add layers of tissue through the years the bends become hardly noticeable. Still, I try to select the straightest trunks for the best possible initial impression. Probably a balanced basket is a more important consideration. This means that branching is evenly dispersed about the tree. This ensures that the tree looks marvelous no matter from which angle you view it. It's not the end of the world if a tree has a flat side or a gap in branching. It will fill in over time. Sometimes its desirable to have a flat side if planting near a house or where you need clearance over a driveway. For most trees a central leader is also preferred. This is the central vertical post from which the lateral branches will emerge. Closer scrutiny should be paid to ensuring that the tree is free from physical damage or any type of disease. This is often overlooked by the novice shopper, but I obsess over this as I abhor warranty. Nurseries commonly wrap the trunks of trees during transportation and storage to protect the bark from scrapes and scratches. Its important to lift or remove the wrap to inspect for gashes, gouges, or other damage. I also check the graft if its visible to make sure it's healed properly. I make sure the tree is solid in the root ball and not wiggling around. Minor snaps of twigs and branches are sometimes unavoidable, but I watch closely for major splits or broken scaffold branches.   Diseases can be difficult to spot, but for most varieties I know what to look for and am always vigilant for telltale signs. Oozing sap or any discharge would indicate a bacterial infection. Soft spots in the bark reveal canker. Discoloration of the bark or other anomalies are to be avoided. Pinholes indicate the tree may have been infected with borers. Its rare that I encounter any of these problems from my reputable vendors, but I'm aware and always verify that I'm bringing out a healthy tree.   Sun, 03 Mar 2024 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/23097/Why-Happy-Trees-are-the-perfect-trees- http://happytrees.co/blog/22841/A-December-to-Remember- blog Happy New Year! As we kiss 2022 goodbye, let's bid last December good riddance. Our Colorado Climate is brutal on trees, and December gave us a stark reminder why most trees don't grow here. In fact, without human interference, most trees can't grow here at all. Fortunately, with a little knowledge and a bit of effort, many of our favorite trees from similar climates around the world can thrive for generations to come, but last December may have been damaging or fatal to many of our leafy friends. The month started mildly enough, with temperatures comfortably in the 50s and even poking above 60 on a couple of occasions. Then on December 21st, the temperature plummeted from a balmy 51 degrees to 24 below zero overnight! This marked a 75 degree drop in temperature in just a matter of hours. How wildlife and livestock survive such a rapid shock is beyond me. It's remarkable that trees and plants can withstand such whiplash. Unfortunately, some won't. The most catastrophic consequence of such dramatic temperature declines is frost cracking. This occurs when water within the tissue in the trunks of the trees freezes. Water expands as it freezes, and rapidly freezing water within trees can split the bark and rupture the heartwood. Have you ever tried to chill a bottle of beer in the freezer and forget to take it out? You likely encountered a shattered bottle, as water in the beer expanded and cracked the glass. The same phenomenon can occur in trees. Trees have defenses to counter cold temperatures, but this historic event is sure to have wreaked havoc on trees all over town. There's really nothing that we can do to try to mitigate this. We winter wrap trees to protect from the sun, but there is really no practical way to prevent trees from freezing. Most seasons the trees own strategies can protect them from winters' wrath. December's nearly unprecedented drop will test even the hardiest of trees. Just as we were beginning to thaw out, even reaching 62 degrees on 12/27, the bottom abruptly dropped out and a ferocious snowstorm dropped almost a foot of heavy, wet snow over much of the Denver region Wednesday the 28th. Snow accumulated at the rate of several inches per hour. In fact, by the time I finished shoveling my driveway I turned around to find almost 2 inches piled up where I had started! Snow has an insulating effect and can actually protect the trees from freezing temperatures. The moisture it brings is of course welcome as well. The problem with rapidly accumulating heavy wet snow is the weight. Snow loads up on branches and boughs, bending them to the ground, and inevitably breaking some. Snows of this magnitude can clobber newly planted trees and can even rip mature trees completely apart. This is why winter tying of trees, particularly upright evergreens like Juniper and Columnar Spruce, and multi-stemmed trees like Serviceberry and Canada Red Cherry, is essential along Colorado's front range. It's also wise to run out during a snowstorm to gently brush or knock the snow off your trees. Check out my prior blog on tree tying and even link to a poorly made video detailing how its done http://happytrees.co/blog/22314/Happy-Trees-Pro-Winter-Preparation-Tips- Unfortunately, Happy Trees cannot warranty against physical damage as a result of unprecedented freezing or snow load. I'm not looking forward to the many uncomfortable conversations I'm predicting for this upcoming spring, as homeowners venture back outside and some discover fatal damage to recently planted trees. Happy Trees guarantees that trees are healthy at the time of purchase, and that trees were properly handled and planted. Even if we did everything perfectly, there's nothing we could have done to prevent frost cracking or storm damage. We wouldn't warranty your tree if it was hit by a car. Last December was more like a runaway freight train! I don't mean to sound overly pessimistic. As I walk the grounds of the Westminster Arboretum and the world headquarters of Happy Trees, I observe no evidence of frost cracking and only minimal damage from snow load. Still, a quick drive around the neighborhood reveals major damage to an unfortunate few mature trees. Winter is the bane of Colorado gardeners, only cherished by skiers and arborists.   Sun, 01 Jan 2023 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22841/A-December-to-Remember- http://happytrees.co/blog/22767/Late-Season-availability blog September 22nd marks the first day of Fall. As we approach that date, the nighttime temperatures are cooling down, even as the daytime temperatures stubbornly remain in the 90s. This temperature change, along with the subtle daily reduction of daylight, triggers plants to begin stretching roots deeply into the soil and storing nutrients for their winter slumber. This makes right now an ideal time to put trees in the ground. The trouble with waiting for fall to plant, is that many of the most common and popular trees are completely sold out or at least pretty well picked through. We may see stocks replenish as the leaves begin to turn and growers begin the fall harvest, but there are still plenty of great trees from which to choose if you know where to look. You might have to drive up and down the Front Range to find the particular tree you seek, or you could have Happy Trees do the legwork for you! Because we shop many vendors, your perfect tree is just a click or call away. Trees that have languished in the nurseries all summer may be showing signs of stress, such as leaf scorch or premature color change. These are cosmetic issues only, and should not deter you from planting at this time. The trees will hunker down this fall, overwinter in your yard, and begin to push roots into the ground before any signs of spring arrive. With proper water and fertilization, these trees should completely recover and display robust growth next year. Common trees like Autumn Blaze Maple, Greenspire Linden, or Skyline Honeylocust may not be available at this time, but did you know there are many varieties of all of these species that are lesser know but virtually indistinguishable from their ubiquitous counterparts? Fall Fiesta, Hedge, or Emerald Queen Maple are great for our climate and good substitutes for Autumn Blaze. Ever seen a Silver Linden? All of the attributes of Greenspire, but with silver undersides to the leaves, resembling Aspen leaves fluttering in the wind. I defy you to show me the difference between Imperial or Shademaster Honeylocust vs. the Skyline. All of these are in plentiful supply. Northern Red Oak may be difficult to find this late in the season. Consider Shumard, equally as regal and in abundance. Many varieties of Crabapple are still yours for the picking if you're looking for a flowering tree. One vendor has overstock of Kentucky Coffeetree, and still a few seedless Espresso trees ready for delivery. There's not an Austrian Pine left in the state, but check out Scotch Pine. Similar, but a little more funky if that makes sense. If you need a tree its still likely that I can source exactly what you need. But if not, there's always suitable substitutes that you may even find preferable to your original choice. Sun, 04 Sep 2022 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22767/Late-Season-availability http://happytrees.co/blog/22756/Trees-com-the-online-authority-for-hydroponics--gardening-advice--product-reviews--DIY--and-design-ideas-- blog Trees.com started out as a simple blog and has evolved into a company with a single mission: to help readers learn how to build their optimal outdoor space. As part of their mission, they research the best tree nurseries based on client reviews, available services, and professionalism. Trees.com thoughtfully reviewed and analyzed our business and we are indeed honored to have been included in their Best of Denver list! Truth is, there are very few retail garden centers in the greater Denver Metro area that still offer tree planting services. The land has simply become more valuable than the businesses. Paulino's, Silver Sage, and Arapahoe Acres have shuttered their doors. Today's nursery, Arbor Valley, James Nursery, and Harmony Gardens no longer offer planting services for the retail public. It is precisely because of this seismic shift in the green industry that Happy Trees was born. In the olden days, if you needed a tree you would load up the family in the ole' station wagon and saunter on down to the local garden center. You'd wait a while to get the attention of a salesman, then spent the next hour or two slogging around in the mud, staring at trees you knew nothing about, and making a decision with very limited knowledge. Happy Trees takes advantage of today's evolving technology to help homeowners select trees without ever leaving their living rooms. Happy Trees is not a physical nursery, but rather a service that provides professional tree delivery and planting. Descriptions and copious pictures are found on our online virtual nursery. No other company publishes prices online or makes tree shopping as simple as buying a handbag on Amazon. Happy Trees is the first company to use the power of today's technology to streamline the tree buying process. Happy Trees is the easiest way for homeowners in the greater Denver area to buy trees online and to have large trees professionally delivered and planted, usually within one week! Happy Trees specializes in larger trees that in most cases require a crew to transport and install. If you're willing to wait for shade, Trees.com offers mail order trees and shrubs in smaller containers delivered to your door for you to plant. Trees.com also maintains an extensive blog and offers all types of landscape design and gardening advice. Spend some time on Trees.com to get inspired, then call Happy Trees for your next big tree planting project! Sat, 13 Aug 2022 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22756/Trees-com-the-online-authority-for-hydroponics--gardening-advice--product-reviews--DIY--and-design-ideas-- http://happytrees.co/blog/22661/Introduction-to-Juniper-Trees blog When I try to suggest to folks that Juniper Trees might be the ideal plant for their screening and privacy needs, I often get an adverse reaction. "I hate Juniper" is the standard retort, and I get it. You're probably thinking about the old-fashioned Pfitzer Juniper that your grandmother had growing along her foundation. Every summer she's ask you to trim them down, and you'd dutifully get out the loppers and get to work. After much struggle, you'd be covered in pokes and small cuts from the sharp needles and your skin would break out into a rash from the astringent toxins within the plant. After all that effort, the result likely produced a plant that looked like you pulled it out of a dumpster, raggedy and half-dead. It's understandable that you might cringe at the thought of adding Juniper Trees to your landscape. Botanists, plant propagators, and nurserymen have been tinkering and cross-hybridizing these plants for generations, and the result is a remarkable collection of stately and finely textured plants appropriate for most landscape applications. The Juniper family consists of a wide array of cultivars encompassing every shape imaginable, from low-lying groundcovers to small foundation plants, to formidable trees! Most of the tree form varieties are hybridized derivations of our own Colorado native Rocky Mountain Juniper. Look around the next time you attend a concert at Red Rocks. Most of the trees you see clinging to the rocks and eking out an existence in this dry, harsh environment are Rocky Mountain Juniper. I encounter them along hikes around the Front Range, sometimes up to tree line, but always on barren, south-facing slopes. In more extreme conditions these ruggedly handsome ramparts take on krummholz characteristics, becoming gnarled and twisted in the relentless wind. They are so resilient they even grow among the cactus in the deserts of Utah and New Mexico! Have a look at my introduction to Juniper Trees… https://youtu.be/x1xI3dT1lxU This is precisely what makes them appropriate for Colorado landscapes. Colorado is brutal on trees, and almost none of what we like to grow here would survive more than a decade without supplemental water and fertilization. Our intense sunshine, dry air, and wild temperature swings are a death sentence for most imported trees barring human pampering, but the Juniper trees we plant today will survive for hundreds of years if abandoned. Builders are cramming homes ever closer together, and lots are shrinking to accommodate our exploding population. We desire to live close to the city, but not so close to our neighbors. If you need evergreen trees for privacy and screening but have limited space, there are Juniper trees ideal for your situation. Most spread 6-8' wide at maturity, and reach heights of 15-20'. Spearmint and Woodward Juniper have a deep green color, while Moonglow and Wichita Blue display vibrant blue foliage with a feathery texture. Blue Arrow and Blue Point fall somewhere in the middle, while Skyrocket has a grey appearance. Taylor Juniper form a tight column only 3 wide, while Trautman forms a stick only 12 wide! These trees are perfect for creating living fences for privacy, anchoring the foundation at the corner of the home, a bold accent in an English garden, or a Zen element in a Japanese garden. Check out some of the amazing selection of inventory available Spring 2022! https://youtu.be/GfheYDeVDD8 Hopefully I've broken down your objections and you're open to considering the utility of Juniper Trees. Maintaining them properly is the key to enjoying them for generations to come. If you know how to trim them and perhaps more importantly when to prune, you can keep your plants healthy and thriving for generations to come! Check back to see my next blog on Juniper maintenance.   Thu, 21 Apr 2022 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22661/Introduction-to-Juniper-Trees http://happytrees.co/blog/22607/Think-outside-the-Boxelder blog Snow is in the forecast, but trees are arriving daily and it's time to get planting! We're expecting a tree shortage this year so if you're looking for something rare or unusual or if you need larger evergreen trees especially, get 'em before they're gone. I was hunting for Maple Trees today and trials have shown promise for many new Maple varieties proven to perform well along Colorado's Front Range. For decades, Autumn Blaze Maple has been the standard go-to for a fast-growing shade tree with explosive red Fall color. Autumn Blaze is a hybridized version of the more ancient Silver Maple and Red Maple. Silver Maple grow incredibly fast, but fast growth means weak wood and those tended to break up in strong winds or late, heavy snowstorms after the leaves had appeared. Silver Maple are also shallow rooted, with roots often breaching the surface and killing the lawn under the tree canopy. Silver Maple are no longer in production, but Autumn Blaze combines the best attributes of Silver Maple with the explosive red Fall color of Red Maple. Many of my Arborist friends complain that Autumn Blaze is still prone to breakage at maturity, and highly susceptible to iron chlorosis due to our alkaline soil (check out our blog on chlorosis). Still, it is the most ubiquitously planted Maple in Colorado and with diligent watering and fertilizing, it should provide shade for generations. But you don't need to limit yourself to Autumn Blaze. Check out these more recent introductions! Redpointe Maple- This exciting introduction is proving to be perhaps the best replacement for Autumn Blaze, as it shows superior resistance to iron chlorosis! It sports a strong central leader and more refined branching, maturing into an upright, pyramidal form more narrow than AB. You won't sacrifice Fall color as the Redpointe Maple will illuminate your neighborhood with it's fiery red glow! Highland Park Maple- Properties seem to get smaller each year as developers seek to pack the most houses into the smallest conceivable space. This disqualifies most maple species for these postage stamp properties, but Highland Park is a smaller stature Maple tree perfectly suitable for our modern McMansions. Indistinguishable from Autumn Blaze but only grows 30' by 20' wide. State Street Maple- Prefer a golden Fall display? State Street Maple is a medium to large shade tree showing superior heat and drought tolerance as well as resistance to iron chlorosis. Stronger wooded and more densely branched, consider State Street for a hardy Maple that performs well in Colorado's harsh climate. Rugged Ridge Maple- When I ask, "what kind of tree would you like?", the response is often "the kind that won't die!". As the name suggests, Rugged Ridge Maple is one tough Mamba-Jamba suitable for exposed sites in outlying areas like Castle Rock or out on the plains. Fast-growing with golden Fall color. Its hardiness is perhaps due to its ruggedly handsome protective layer of deeply furrowed, corky bark which develops at a young age. This helps prevent sunscald and frost cracking which can plague young Maple in Colorado's harsh winter sun and wild temperature swings (check out our blog on sunscald). Rocky Mountain Glow Maple- If you've ever encountered a Maple while hiking the lower foothills just west of town, you've likely discovered our native Rocky Mountain Bigtooth Maple! This tree can be found growing into the deserts of Utah and New Mexico, and upwards of 7,000 feet in altitude. Thus, it is perfect for higher elevations or properties where irrigation may not be practical. Slower growing and smaller stature, Rocky Mountain Glow has been selected for its orange-yellow-red Fall color! Fairview Maple- Looking for a little more Summer variety in your tree canopy? Fairview is a Norway Maple with burgundy leaves! Especially vibrant in Spring, color dulls somewhat in the heat of Summer but will return with a vengeance in the Fall! Maple generally aren't considered for their flowers, but Fairview's small yellow flowers offer a brief burst of interest in early Spring. This is merely a sampling of the offerings available to gardeners in and around Denver, and Happy Trees couldn't possibly list them all! Production nurseries are constantly tinkering with plant genetics clamoring to be the first to bring exciting new species into being, and the botanists at CSU among other researchers are diligently testing new introductions to prove their usefulness for commercial production. If you're looking for something other than the standard offerings, simply ask what's available and Happy Trees will peruse our vendors for more exotic suggestions. Use "Fall Fiesta" for pricing.   Wed, 16 Mar 2022 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22607/Think-outside-the-Boxelder http://happytrees.co/blog/22480/2022-Tree-Pricing blog Happy New Year! The past two years have certainly provided extraordinary challenges that have permeated every facet of our society. I am eternally grateful to my employees and customers as we continue to navigate whatever trials 2022 has to offer. Inflation appears to be our biggest threat this year. The green industry has been hit with unprecedented cost increases that are resulting in higher prices for every aspect of plant production. One of my vendors sent out the following communication warning of what's to come. I think it's important to share that with you here… Dear Valued Customer: As we wrap up 2021, we wanted to send you an important update on the market's ongoing product challenges. We continue to see industry-wide supply challenges that are driving product price inflation on many of the products you rely on for your business. We hope our summary of the current situation and expectations for the months ahead will help you navigate these challenges as you prepare for the new year. We will continue to monitor these conditions and update you as the situation changes. Raw Material Shortages Demand for many common Green Industry raw materials (plastic resin, wire, printed circuit boards, urea) remains at record highs, thereby driving up product costs. Most indications are that these costs will remain inflated through much of the first half of 2022.     We are seeing the highest costs to date on fertility raw materials: Urea costs have increased 238% in the last 12 months and phosphate costs are up  more than 100%. Sulfate of Potash (SOP) is up 39% and Muriate of Potash (MOP) is up 200%.   Resin manufacturing capacity constraints, coupled with labor and raw material shortages, have driven plastic resin prices up 210% over the last 18 months, impacting PVC/poly pipe and fittings, storm water drainage pipe and fittings, irrigation rotors and sprays.   Copper costs have increased 45%, impacting irrigation and lighting wire.   COVID-related manufacturing shutdowns and increased consumer demand within the semiconductor industry have created an ongoing worldwide shortage, impacting irrigation controllers and lighting transformers.   Seed crop losses of up to 50 percent due to summer heat and weather conditions are anticipated to continue to drive up costs through the end of the year. Labor Shortages Many manufacturers have faced both labor shortages and wage increases.     More than 30 percent of manufacturers report that it’s more difficult to find talent now than before the COVID-19 pandemic, and nearly 80 percent expect to have trouble attracting talent going forward.   Significant increases in service industry wages (including restaurants) are drawing hourly associates away from manufacturing jobs. Freight Freight shortages and pricing continue to increase lead times and cost for many products â€" especially freight intensive products such as hardscapes, fertilizer, and plant material.     Record levels of congestion in major U.S. ports are contributing to shipping and freight delays.   Container shipping costs from Asia are up as much as 10x since the beginning of 2021.   U.S. freight shipments are up more than 10% and U.S. freight expenditures are up more than 40%.   U.S. diesel retail fuel prices are up nearly 40%.   Driver shortages and high demand now mean there are more than 150 loads waiting to be shipped for every available truck. Landscape Materials Outlook Based on our assessment of the current situation and industry conditions, we expect continued shortages and/or price inflation on many of the most frequently purchased products within our industry.     Global resin shortages are expected to limit PVC pipe production and keep costs unusually high.   Irrigation and lighting electronics will be in short supply for the foreseeable future due to ongoing semiconductor chip shortages.   Fescue seed supply is expected to remain constrained through much of 2022.   Plant material in larger than 7-gallon sizes is expected to remain in tight supply going into 2022 and beyond. Items such as large upright evergreen screening material, commodity items (hawthorns, loropetalums, hollies, ligustrums, etc), skip laurels, Japanese maples, and other specialty intrinsic items likely will remain in short supply for several years.   We also believe that manufacturers will implement further price increases for 2022 for core irrigation products, PVC pipe, plant material, and hardscape products. We are working diligently with our manufacturing partners to mitigate the impact of these factors and provide you with as much advance notice as possible. Sincerely, Jeff Domenick Regional Vice President SiteOne Landscape Supply The bottom line is that all this is resulting in dramatic price increases for trees for 2022. As of the date of this posting most of my vendors have not yet disclosed wholesale pricing. I will be updating my catalog in the upcoming months. Sadly, I may need to update pricing during the season if cost pressures continue to rise. I will be adding “contract pricing valid for 30 days' for all planting contracts this year. Thank you for your understanding. Please know that Happy Trees will continue to provide the greatest value in the industry to our customers with our products and services. We constantly strive to find efficiencies with our processes and will price shop our vendors without sacrificing quality. There's an old adage, "you may not be interested in politics, but politics is interested in you!". Inflation is the direct result of economic policy, and every bit of it was easily preventable. Please take some time to contemplate how the decisions of our overlords impacts us all, particularly small business owners and low wage earners. Perhaps it's time to reconsider your party allegiances. Thu, 06 Jan 2022 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22480/2022-Tree-Pricing http://happytrees.co/blog/22314/Happy-Trees-Pro-Winter-Preparation-Tips- blog Winter Watering- Winter is creeping in and you will soon be shutting down your irrigation system. Did you know that roots continue to grow even if the leaves have dropped from the tree? It's important to keep some moisture in the ground over the winter months. A hard freeze with bone dry soil can be very stressful on your plants. With our dry air your soil can dehydrate in just a few days. Keep checking your soil moisture and drag the hoses out to water as necessary, probably not more than once every other week. This advice is appropriate for all of your landscape plants, even your lawn! This is especially true for your mature evergreen trees like Pine and Spruce. You don't need to water if the ground is frozen or if there is snow on the ground. Be sure to disconnect your hose from the spigot after watering to protect from freeze damage, and you may want to drain the water from your hoses as well. Winter Wrap- Young trees are susceptible to sun scald over the winter months. Sun scald dries out the trunk, splitting the bark and potentially killing the trees. Please winter wrap your young trees to shield the vulnerable trunks from desiccating winter sun. You can learn more about winter wrap on my blog: http://happytrees.co/blog/16966/How-to-prevent-sun-scald- And see a video here!-   https://youtu.be/5s4hlWEWCew Unable or just don't want to bother? Happy Trees now offers this service for a $75 trip charge. Includes all 2021 Happy Trees! Additional trees $5 each. Tree Tying- Many upright trees, especially evergreens like Juniper and Fastigiate Spruce, are susceptible to damage from heavy snow loads or ice storms. Multiple stemmed trees such as Serviceberry or Columnar Buckthorn can have this problem too. Wrap the trees loosely with twine or tree ties that can be purchased at any big box store or your local garden center. You're not cinching the trees tightly. The idea is to loosely wrap the trees to give the branches support so they don't splay open under heavy snow loads. Follow this link to watch a very poorly made video of me tying a tree!- https://youtu.be/r44aHmdQIYw No time or just don't want to get poked by Juniper needles? Happy Trees now offers this service for a $75 trip charge. Includes all 2021 Happy Trees! Additional trees $15 each. Snow Removal- Heavy snow loads can snap branches or bend trunks of young trees over to the ground. Trees are particularly vulnerable if early snows strike before the leaves have fallen, or with late spring snows after leaves have emerged. Throw on the snow boots and gently shake the snow off your young trees during heavy storms if snow accumulates on the branches and twigs. Tree stake removal and disposal- If your trees were planted this year, please leave the tree stakes and supports in place through the Spring growing season. They can be removed in late June/ July. If your tree was planted last year or prior, you may now remove the stakes. They will usually wiggle out of the ground. If they break, pound what's left into the ground and bury it. Happy Trees now offers this service! $75 trip charge includes all Happy Trees. That's about all you need to know to keep your Colorado trees happy and healthy through our harsh winters. No landscape company can warranty against winter storm damage, so please protect your investment and follow our guidance! Call or reply with whatever questions you may have, or to schedule for our services. https://www.facebook.com/HappyTrees.co/ https://nextdoor.com/pages/happy-trees-llc-westminster-co/recommend/ Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and call or reply with whatever you may need! Sun, 10 Oct 2021 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/22314/Happy-Trees-Pro-Winter-Preparation-Tips- http://happytrees.co/blog/21987/New-trees-arriving-daily- blog Spring is a time of tremendous transformation. As the soil warms up plants begin pushing out flower and leaf buds and plunging their roots deeply into the soil. Grass blades and Dandelions sprout from the ground and millions of tiny insects awaken to start crawling all over the garden and buzzing about in the air. It's a time of amazing transformation in nurseries and garden centers up and down the Front Range as well, as convoys of tractor trailers begin delivering truckloads of trees and shrubs filling up display beds and storage lots. It's a flurry of activity that's dizzying to watch, as tractors rumble about unloading thousands of trees and organizing them neatly into assigned rows. Contractors begin piling into the nurseries as well, plucking newly arrived trees off the lots nearly as soon as they get off-loaded. The great news for the consumer is that inventories are filling up and we have a great selection of trees from which to choose. This includes large caliper 3-4' trees that will be difficult to source as time goes by. Many outlier varieties are stocking up as well. While most standard or popular trees are being dug in mass and stored for shipment later in the season, lesser known or rarely used trees will sell out and may not be available until next spring. Fruit trees, for example, are spring dug and delivered and stocks will typically not be replenished through the summer. As a result, if you're considering planting large caliper fruit trees now is the time to act! I currently have 2 to 2-1/2' caliper Plum, Peach, Apple, Pear, and Cherry in several assorted varieties, and some limited 3' as well. These should be considered for their ornamental flowering and leaf attributes as well as for their delicious fruits! I even have grafted 4-varieties-on-one-tree available in espalier form in both Apple and Pear! They are a bit of a hobby requiring pest management and of course, harvesting, but well worth the effort and you will be rewarded. Once they're gone, they're gone till next season, so plant yourself a fruit tree and enjoy the benefits of harvesting your own orchard. I have a bumper crop of Oak, Maple, Ornamental Pear, Linden, Honeylocust, and Catalpa in larger sizes up to 3-4'! These monsters will provide instant privacy and shade, and many can easily reach your roof line upon planting. We need open access and sometimes tractor access to get these planted, but if you have the space and the budget we can add these titans to your landscape. Large caliper shade and ornamental trees are in short supply later in the season, so if you need monster trees don't delay and call Happy Trees today! Under-utilized and lesser-known trees are now arriving as well. We'll see shipments of common trees throughout the summer, but the boutique trees can be hard to find once the spring rush is over. Make your yard stand out from the neighbors' Oak, Maple, and other ubiquitous trees with the addition of an exotic Yellowwood or Pagoda Tree! Sweetgum, Tulip Tree, European Mountain Ash, Horsechestnut, and Kentucky Coffeetree can all find space in our suburban landscapes but somehow get passed over for traditional tried and true standards. If you're one who prides herself on her yard, transform your home into your own private botanical garden with the addition of one or more of these exceptional specimen trees. Regular Pine and Spruce will be plentiful throughout the summer, but the hybridized versions may disappear as the weeks go by. Got a narrow space between houses that needs screening? Fastigiate Spruce or Arnold Sentinel Pine might be just the tree you need. Want the ultra-symetrical and electric blue "Baby Blue Eyes" Spruce? There are currently plenty of perfect trees in stock, but better hurry before they sell out. Planting at this time has additional advantages. Trees that are transported and planted while still dormant will "wake up" in your yard. This avoids the transplant shock that can sometimes (but rarely) affect trees planted during the heat stress of summer. You'll instantly enjoy the display on spring flowering trees and they will achieve a full season's root establishment. Happy Trees delivers and plants trees throughout the summer and even through October, but if you have tree planting in your future why not do it today? Give Happy Trees a call and have a great day! Wed, 31 Mar 2021 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21987/New-trees-arriving-daily- http://happytrees.co/blog/21972/12-Tips-to-get-your-yard-ready-for-Spring blog As the seasons turn from winter to spring you may have some home maintenance tasks to accomplish. If you live somewhere like Wisconsin where the winters can be long and frigid, getting your yard clean and ready may be at the top of your list. It's finally time to pull those weeds, plant new flowers, prune your shrubs and trees, and get your home looking its very best for the sunny months ahead. If you are ready to start on your outdoor to-do list but don't know where to start you came to the right place. We gathered tips from experts to help you prepare your yard for spring.  1. Don't forget to water your trees, plants, and lawn Did you know that trees, shrubs, and grasses start stretching their roots into the soil before any evidence of growth appears above ground? For this reason, be sure to drag out the hoses and water trees, garden plants, and even your lawn if precipitation is light and the ground is dry. Winter watering will help kick your landscape off to a healthy start. -Happy Trees 2. Add outdoor planters to your front porch Welcome the arrival of spring with container gardens planted with beautiful spring flowers. Adding outdoor planters to your front porch will dramatically increase your curb appeal. This attention to detail is an inexpensive way to create a fabulous and lasting first impression. -Adorn Planters 3. Think about the pollinators Remember that flowering weeds like dandelions are an important early food source for honeybees and that some "wild" areas in your landscape can provide season-long support for a variety of native pollinators. -Masterson's Garden Center 4. Make a plan for planting, soil prep, and cleaning Planning, soil prep, and cleaning are the keys to an upcoming gardening season. Have a good plan. Visit your local gardening experts for advice and recommendations on which plants/flowers perform best in your area, region, and hardy zones. It is best to shop locally. Clean and sharpen your garden tools and equipment for maximum performance and safety. Also, clean out your beds of weeds, old plants, and debris. -Brian J. Wheat, Owner, Lafayette Florist Gift Shop and Garden Center 5. Increase your curb appeal with shrubs One easy way to increase curb appeal is to use medium-sized shrubs with shallow root systems to plant in front of your home's foundation. Known as house huggers. These shrubs hide unsightly cement, give your home the appearance of being "grounded" in the landscape, and act as a great backdrop for smaller flowering perennials. This creates layers of visual interest and charm that frame your home's best qualities. We recommend Boxwood, Inkberry, Deutzia, Weigela, Viburnum, Juniper, or Spruce for the job. -Rolling Green Nursery 6. Use your garden to support local wildlife If you want your lawn and garden to support local wildlife such as birds, butterflies, and pollinators, consider planting native plants that encourage these beautiful visitors. Expanding your gardens to include more native plant varieties and increasing your garden's footprint can results in less lawn, meaning, less lawn maintenance. -American Native Plants 7. Turn your yard into a flowering bee lawn Pollinator populations are plummeting worldwide due to habitat loss, declining food sources, and pesticide use. The good news is that planting native flowers helps local bees, butterflies, and moths, and turning your entire yard into a flowering bee lawn really helps. You can mow and walk on a bee lawn just like turfgrass, and you'll be serving up a buffet of nectar and pollen for foraging wild and honey bees. -Minnesota State Horticulture Society 8. When pruning your trees, follow these rules: The leaf is the tree's food factory, so try not to remove more than 25% of leaves in any given pruning. How and where you make the pruning cut is much more important than when winter, spring, summer, fall. Make smaller diameter cuts if possible. Trees seal over wounds (pruning cuts) by adding new growth, so smaller cuts close faster. When in doubt, hire an arborist to inspect your trees and advise you on how to best care for your trees. -Cherokee Tree Care 9. Select plants that flourish in your climate Maximize your yard's potential by selecting plants that will flourish in your climate. Research your USDA growing zone before you shop.  This will help you design a drought-tolerant, water-wise, or low-maintenance landscape ideal for your zone. - Alder & Oak plants Simple l Good l Plants 10. Cut back native perennials  What is the best spring care for the native perennials in your yard and garden?  Woody perennials do best if they are cut back in late spring, leaving a good amount of stem intact, since that's where the new growth will form.  Most other native perennial wildflowers can be cut back to ground level soon after the snow melts. These dead stems and leaves have served their purpose over the winter months in providing cover and catching snow, which protects the roots from frost damage.  Clearing out most of this dead matter in the spring will help the ground warm sooner, and make your garden look tidier. -Steve Sykora, Everwilde Farms 11. Keep a gardening journal  One of my favorite tips to get the garden ready for spring is to begin by reviewing your gardening journal from last year. This is a helpful way to plan for the coming season that enables you to review past weather patterns, frost dates, watering schedules, plot arrangements, and more. So you can get a jump on the coming season with a fine-tuned plan that reflects the unique ins and outs of your own gardening space. And if you don't keep a gardening journal already, now's a great time to start! -Gardener's Path 12. Let the professionals help out Prepare your outdoor space for dinner parties and good times and leave the nutrient-dense edible gardening to us! Soil is the soul of the food you grow, but a raised bed can be a real bummer. Planted Places did the work and now you don't have to sacrifice soil. Come for the nutrients, stay for the yoga! Get Planted! -Planted Places Originally Published on Redfin Wed, 24 Mar 2021 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21972/12-Tips-to-get-your-yard-ready-for-Spring http://happytrees.co/blog/21485/Cooler-temperatures-and-rain-in-the-forecast- blog Halloween decorations are filling the shelves of the big box stores and pumpkin spice lattes are back on the menu of your favorite coffee shop. Fall is for harvesting, but fall is also great for planting! If you've been waiting for Fall to plant the trees on your wish list, now is the time to take action. A late summer cold front is descending upon us and cooler temperatures and rain is in the forecast. This is such a welcome blessing after the blistering heat of summer. August alone saw 15 days above 95 degrees! While Happy Trees plants daily all summer long with great success, trees appreciate fall's cooler temperatures and increased precipitation that help reduce the stress of transport and planting. Now is a great time to plant trees! Truth be told, there's never really a great time to plant in Colorado. Most of the trees we enjoy in our yards could never exist here without human assistance and care. The ground is frozen for most of winter making planting impossible. Spring brings late frosts, snow squalls, and hail. Summer's heat is stressful for newly planted trees. Fall can see early cold snaps, but for the next few weeks we have a window of opportunity where the weather cooperates to benefit the planting of trees. Cooler temperatures and diminished daylight trigger trees to plunge their roots deeply into the soil in anticipation of winter's wrath. We still have several weeks for trees to hunker down, in fact, now is a great time to fertilize established deciduous trees as they soak up nutrients to support root growth and other metabolic processes. The exception would be evergreen trees like Pine and Spruce. Don't fertilize evergreens in the fall as it could trigger new top growth that would be too tender to withstand winter's freezing temperatures. As long as we're on the topic of fertilization, now is the right time to fertilize your lawn. Bluegrass lawns are also triggered by shorter days and cooler temperatures. They stretch their roots deeply into the ground during this time of year. They need nutrients to do this, and nutrients are often in short supply after the stress of summer. Back east, the acronym for fertilizing is SOD, shorthand for September, October, and December, which are the ideal months for fall fertilizer application. In Colorado, bump that up a few weeks, starting in late August and finishing in November before the ground freezes for good. More on that topic can be found here…http://happytrees.co/blog/16542/Fall-Fertilization- This time of year some varieties of trees are in short supply, and those that remain may be showing signs of stress such as leaf scorch. Because Happy Trees shops wholesalers up and down the Front Range, we can locate and select only the healthiest and happiest trees remaining on the lots. I personally pick the trees you've requested, and I would never deliver a tree that I wouldn't be proud to display in my own yard. Pay attention to the weather in the coming weeks and be sure to adjust your irrigation system as needed. Your lawn and plants, particularly newly planted trees may not need as much water as you were pumping out over the summer, so check your soil moisture and water only when necessary. Having said that, make sure your plants have adequate moisture in the soil as winter approaches, even after you shut down your irrigation system. More on winter watering can be found here…http://happytrees.co/blog/20673/Warm-days-and-Cold-Nights 2020 has been a wild, whacky year. Many of us are feeling stressed and overwhelmed by the images and rhetoric flashing across our news feeds and social media. I am never more at peace than when walking through a shaded forest. Happy Trees can bring some of that calming sensation into your yard by planting trees that screen unsightly views, provide cooling shade, and give you something beautiful to admire in your landscape. Or maybe you're stuck at home and sick of looking at your neighbor. Whatever you desire, Happy Trees can help you select the best trees for your needs, and fall is an excellent time to plant the trees of your dreams! Chris Leinster www.HappyTrees.CO (720) 343-7263 Chris@HappyTrees.CO Fri, 28 Aug 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21485/Cooler-temperatures-and-rain-in-the-forecast- http://happytrees.co/blog/21410/Summer-Flowering-Trees blog We generally don’t think of summer as the best season for flowering trees, and with good reason. Most flowering trees release their cacophony of color just as the snow melts in early spring. These include all flowering fruit trees such as Pear, Cherry, and Crabapple, as well as Kentucky Coffeetree and Redbud. There are a few late bloomers however that when added to your yard can extend the season of bloom in your overhead tree canopy through summer and even into fall. Consider adding one or a few of these specimens to keep your neighbors talking about your garden all summer long! Japanese Tree Lilac, Hawthorn, and Catalpa begin blooming just as the petals of the aforementioned ornamental fruit trees drop. That is to say late May and extending through June. As the name suggests, Japanese Tree Lilac is a tree form of the Lilac or Syringa family, and is often displayed as a multiple stemmed tree with 3-5 main trunks branching up from the ground. The White flowers are typical of the Lilac you’re familiar with. The cinnamon bark adds winter interest. They are a smaller tree reaching 25’ with an upright habit of 10-15’ wide. There are many trees in the Hawthorn family with similar outstanding attributes. They are covered with white flowers in late spring/ early summer. They have glossy green leaves that turn a red-orange-yellow in the fall. The trunks and bark of most Hawthorn trees often becomes gnarled and twisted as they mature, giving the trees an enchanted feel. The brightly colored berries can be messy but put out a bright display of orange or red mid-summer interest. The mighty Catalpa have large, tropical leaves that invoke scenes from Hawaii rather than Colorado, but they are quite hardy here. The pitcher shaped flowers are tropical looking as well, appearing white from a distance but the throats reveal delightful purple-speckled coloring when admired up close. Bring them inside for table ornaments! These flower in June as well. The downside are the large, bean like pods that drop in the fall, but they are no more troublesome than raking up leaves and they can be left in the garden for a decorative organic mulch. Linden trees generally aren’t considered flowering trees but they do in fact bloom in late June and into July. The flowers are a lime-green and aren’t particularly showy, but they produce a two-toned light green against a deep green leaf, and the blossoms are quite fragrant. Tulip trees have among the most splendid and showy orange-yellow flowers appearing in June into July. They are in the Poplar family along with Cottonwood and Aspen, so they grow here but do best in protected areas like downtown Denver. The flowers sit atop the branches in an upright fashion, so they are best viewed from a second story deck or window. Purple Smoketree and Rose of Sharon straddle the line between large shrubs or small trees. Both can be purchased as small five gallon shrubs and allowed to mature, but larger specimens and even single-trunked tree form plants are commonly available. Purple Smoketree have burgundy leaves and get up to 15’ tall. The wispy flowers hover above the foliage and resembles smoke wafting over the plants, hence the name. Rose of Sharon are in the Hibiscus family and sport amazing tropical looking flowers from July through frost. They are available in a wide variety of colors and can be either disc shaped or star clusters that will bloom until frost! They make an excellent patio tree or focal point. http://happytrees.co/blog/21017/Large-shrubs-small-trees-for-your-landscape- Japanese Pagoda Trees have panicles of creamy white flowers that don’t bloom until late summer and into September. The green bark, fern-like leaves, and pea-like flowers evoke a Japanese garden in a far-off land. They do well here, but they are akin to Willow trees with shallow roots and messy habit. They are continuously shedding seeds and branches so they are perhaps best planted in your neighbor’s yard. A very under-used and little known small tree is Hepticodium or Seven Son Flower. The white flowers are just beginning to appear as I write this in late July. The flowers give way to bright red calyces for an additional burst of interest before winter reclaims the land. You can read more about Seven Son Flower on my blog… http://happytrees.co/blog/20987/Heptacodium-Seven-Son-Flower My personal favorite for summer color is the fabled Golden Raintree. Showers of bright yellow flowers sprinkle over the foliage in mid-summer giving the tree its name. It too has a tropical looking feel with a coarse appearance in winter. The flowers are followed by air-filled seed pods that resemble Chinese lanterns that decorate the tree into fall. Yellow is such an unusual color for a flowering tree. Plant one in your yard for your whole neighborhood to enjoy! Most flowering trees deliver their payload in early spring, but with thoughtful selection flowering trees can spice up your landscape well into summer and beyond. From tiny patio trees like Rose of Sharon to massive shade trees like Japanese Pagoda Tree, there’s a summer-flowering tree for every yard!   Mon, 27 Jul 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21410/Summer-Flowering-Trees http://happytrees.co/blog/21403/Too-hot-to-go-outside- blog We’re midway into summer and the sun’s scorching heat has us mostly huddled up inside. Fortunately, Colorado’s dry air cools off nicely in the evenings, inviting us to relax or even dine outside. If your outdoor patio is seared by the sun during the day or evening, you probably need a tree to provide shade for your outdoor living spaces. Trees with high canopies soak up the sun’s energy and provide cooling shade for your patio and even your home. Strategically placed trees can make it bearable to be outside even on the hottest days. Granted, it may take some time before you truly feel the effects from a newly planted tree, but if you’re in your home for the long haul, trees planted today will pay off within just a few short years. If you drive through a neighborhood that was built out during the middle of the past decade, you’ll likely be surprised at the maturity of the trees and the shade and privacy they are already offering. Check out the following list of some of our best shade trees for Colorado. Maple Trees are prized for their fast growth rate, durability and disease resistance, and their explosive Fall color, generally red, orange, yellow, or a combination of the three. They are generally classified into categories of Red, Norway, or Sugar, among others, but for most purposes they are relatively interchangeable and mostly do well under most conditions. Silver Maples should be avoided due to their weak wood and rot susceptibility, but hybridized variants such as ‘Autumn Blaze’ are outstanding for our climate and are even seed-less! For smaller yards or tight spaces, Ginnala or Tartarian Maple offer diminutive variants of their colossal cousins. Oak Trees are valued for their fast growth and hardiness. When you picture a tire swing hanging from a majestic tree by Grandma’s farm house, you are likely thinking of an Oak. Northern Red, Texas Red, or Scarlet Oak probably have the most refined branching habit and best fall color. Bur and Swamp White have a rather coarse appearance in winter, however they are rugged and adaptable to a wide variety of growing conditions. There are many varieties of Columnar Oak that are among our most slender trees for narrow spaces. All Oak have acorns, although it may take many years before trees produce them. Even then, not all Oak produce acorns every year. Still, it may be best to avoid planting over a patio or where cars park, as the nuts can pack a punch when dropped from 30’! Linden Trees have become increasingly popular as common species such as Elm and Ash have succumbed to disease and insects. Linden are fairly clean trees with a graceful appearance. There are several varieties that are basically interchangeable and even experienced arborists have difficulty distinguishing among them at maturity. The flowers are a light green which aren’t particularly showy but they do produce an interesting two-toned effect over the canopy, as well as a pleasant honeysuckle scent. Honeylocust Trees are among Colorado’s cleanest and fastest growing trees. The tiny leaves allow plenty of sunlight to reach the ground, keeping the area bright while providing cooling shade. The leaves also shrivel up and blow away in the fall, so there’s not much to rake up! Light penetrates upward too, so up-lighting your Honeylocust produces a glow high up into the canopy that reflects back down around the yard. These aren’t your grandparents Honeylocust that produced thorns and seed pods. Today’s hybridized versions are graceful and elegant, without either unwanted attribute. As with all newly planted trees, winter wrap the trunks to prevent sunscald. Catalpa Trees are massive and tropical looking. They hardly look like they belong in Colorado with their lush, large leaves and prolific orchid-like flowers. Yet, they do quite well here, often recovering from drought and hail with renewed vigor. In early summer, clusters of white flowers cover the tree. Up close, the pitcher shaped bells have delightful purple-speckled throats that make splendid table ornaments. The down side are the large, long seed pods that resemble giant string beans and that clutter up the ground. This is no more of a nuisance than raking up leaves though, so don’t let that deter you if you appreciate the finer attributes that are only found on these striking specimens. The bean pods can be raked into the garden to be left as an attractive garden mulch, so don’t be afraid to add these splendid Catalpa to your landscape! This is not an exhaustive list and many more shade and flowering trees can be found at HappyTrees.co. For more details or information visit our website or call Happy Trees at (303) 903-3341 today!   Tue, 21 Jul 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21403/Too-hot-to-go-outside- http://happytrees.co/blog/21374/Overstock-Sale- blog These Brandon Elm in excellent condition regularly retail for $1,125 each. For a limited time, Happy Trees can offer 25% off for a savings of $275 per tree! This amazing price of $850 includes delivery and planting. Installation includes our Planting Package which consists of organic compost to enrich the soil, stakes and strap to support the tree after planting, a water gauge to help you monitor your trees’ water needs, and top dress mulch to suppress weeds and to help cool the soil and retain ground moisture. Our planting package is a $50 value, but we offer it FREE with our professional installation services! We’ll even add microbial fertilizer from Fox Farm to introduce beneficial bacteria and fungi into the root zone. Bacteria and Fungi sounds disgusting, but these essential micro-organisms colonize in the soil and break down organic material into simple compounds that the trees can take up as food. The root zone below ground is a living, breathing ecosystem, and Fox Farm microbial fertilizers help establish a healthy environment to get your trees off to a great start. Brandon Elm are a fast-growing variety of American Elm with an upright, vase-shaped habit reaching heights of 50’ with a 30’ spread. They have an over-arching canopy and make an excellent street tree or shade tree over a patio. They are relatively clean, producing no fruits or seeds to clutter up the yard. It has gold fall color to brighten up any landscape. It’s about as cold hardy a tree as can be found anywhere in Colorado, and can be found growing far into northern Canada! Brandon Elm make a suitable replacement for your Ash trees which may have succumbed to the Emerald Ash Borer. They can be mistaken for Zelkova trees, which have graceful arching branches but are less hardy in our harsh climate. They are widely adaptable and can tolerate a wide variety of adverse conditions, such as drought or swampy soil. It must be noted that Brandon Elm is susceptible to Dutch Elm Disease which swept through the country in the early part of the 20th century and decimated Elm trees throughout Colorado. Dutch Elm Disease has largely run its course, mostly because there are few host species left to infect. Colorado’s harsh climate and dry air provide effective barriers to re-introduction of the disease, and Brandon Elm are seeing a resurgence in popularity. As with any tree planted in Colorado, good cultural practices to keep your trees healthy are the best preventative to help trees resist any biological attack. These 3” caliper Brandon Elm trees tower upwards of 20’ high! This is an exceptional price and is only available while quantities last. If you need instant shade or privacy on a budget Happy Trees is proud to offer these under-used quality trees at a discount. Call Happy Trees today or shop on-line at http://happytrees.co/Contact-Us.   Fri, 10 Jul 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21374/Overstock-Sale- http://happytrees.co/blog/21306/Colorado-is-brutal-on-trees- blog First, the good news. Happy Trees is having a break out year and our crews are booked solid for weeks to come! That’s great news for a tree planting company, but many of the trees we’re planting are replacements for trees that didn’t make it through the winter. That’s bad news for homeowners who may have moved into a new home and invested in shade, privacy, or ornamental value. So what happened? Why did so many trees die? Trees die for myriad reasons, but most deaths fall into a few categories. I remind clients all the time if you look around the next time you drive east of the airport, you’ll get a good sense of the types of trees that like to live here. That is to say, virtually none. Colorado is brutal on trees and plants of all types. Life is tough up on the high Chaparral, where only grasses, cacti, and a few wildflowers naturally squeeze out a subsistence. From wild temperature swings to high altitude/ high intensity sunshine, brutal winters and spring hail storms, dry summer air and low precipitation, Colorado punishes any and all plants we attempt to grow here. Still, with a little water, fertilizer, and potentially a little pest control, many of the trees from similar climates around the world can thrive for generations to come! The staff at Happy Trees will make sure you understand the care your trees require to help your trees get established and thrive for your grandchildren to enjoy. This year, winter slapped us with one last whiplash of plummeting temperatures and frigid conditions in mid-April- just as many plants were budding out or in flower. Water filled tissue within the outer layers of tree trunks froze and damaged the xylem and phloem that carry water and nutrients to the leaves from the roots, much like our own circulatory systems. This could explain why so many sensitive plants and trees didn’t make it this year. It’s a miracle that we can have trees planted in our yards in the first place. How fantastic is it that farmers can cultivate and plant trees, dig them up and wrap the root balls in burlap, truck them across half the country, and store them in nurseries? Then companies like Happy Trees can pick them up and plop them in your yard! Really cool when you stop to think about it. Trees need to be handled and planted properly though, and poor handling and planting is probably the #1 reason trees die within the first year. Trees are living, breathing entities, and loading, transporting, and planting are stressful for these magnificent life forms. At Happy Trees, our suppliers know we’re watching making sure the trees are handled delicately and professionally. When trees are in leaf, we tarp every load and keep speeds under 45 miles per hour- even on the highways. This was easy before COVID when it was impossible to drive over 45 on I-25, but now folks just need to go around, cause we’re not in any hurry. I also spray water over the trees before leaving the nursery to cool them off before the drive. This takes additional time, but I would rather go slow and do things right than have to warranty a tree. I have never been in the “production” end of this business, where landscape companies contract with home builders to install plants and grass. That’s a cutthroat business, and operators must slap is landscapes without concern for quality in order to make any reasonable margins. I’m working with an HOA in Parker to replace hundreds of builder supplied trees that failed to make it through the first year. We will take our time and make sure that we are doing everything correctly to ensure that these trees get off to a good start and improve property values with each year’s growth. Water. This is the most critical and essential element for all living things, and trees are no exception. Following the stress of planting, trees need consistent watering for at least the first three years to allow for establishment. This is the time that trees’ roots are penetrating the soil and hunkering in. Roots can’t grow in soil with no moisture, and just like us, no part of a tree’s metabolism can function without adequate moisture. Generally speaking, for most situations a good soaking 3x per week is sufficient. Soak when watering, but give the soil a chance to drain and somewhat dry out. It can be very difficult to remember to water without the aid of an automatic irrigation system. If your tree is in a drainage area or planted in heavy clay, it may need more time between waterings to drain and dry out. If in sandy soil or exposed to winds or reflected heat, more frequent irrigation may be required. If you go on vacation and the soil dries out completely for even a few days, you’re likely to lose the tree. Conversely, we probably lose more trees to over-watering than under-watering. Leaves wilt in response to both under and over-watering! For this reason, Happy Trees installs a water gauge with every tree we plant. This is simply a piece of pipe that we insert into the planting hole so that you can slide a dip stick into the pipe and get an understanding of the conditions at the bottom of the planting hole. If the stick comes out wet wait a day or two before watering again. if the soil is muddy and sticky that’s good, probably OK to water. If you poke hard ground and you can’t push the stick into the soil, you’re not watering frequently enough and you could lose the tree. Happy Trees can’t be on site to monitor so it’s your responsibility to check often and understand your trees’ water needs. Newly planted trees from Happy Trees receive adequate compost soil amendment and fertilizer to get off to a healthy start. We even add microbial fertilizer that inoculates the soil with beneficial bacteria and fungi that condition the soil and break down complex molecules into simple compounds that the trees take up as food. It is unlikely that any newly planted trees expired due to a nutrient deficiency, but long term trees need balanced fertilizers applied at the right times to maintain vigorous health. More on fertilizer can be found in previous blogs. Occasionally, trees can be attacked by pests or diseases that can ravage newly planted trees. This is rare, but consistent monitoring will help prevent most attacks. After you mow or some evening after work, take time to appreciate your trees and look closely for any symptoms of distress. If caught early most ailments are easy to cure. Love your trees and let Happy Trees know if you see anything amiss. Healthy trees are better able to withstand diseases and insects, so take the time to understand your trees’ water and fertilizer needs and treat accordingly. All this might seem overwhelming when considering spending money to provide privacy or shade to your home. The professionals at Happy Trees are passionate about trees and we want your trees to thrive as much as you do. We hate warranty work and will do everything we can to make sure you never see us again, unless you want additional trees planted in your yard! If it was easy, anybody could do it. In my next life, I’m hanging my shingle in Portland where you toss out an acorn and in a few weeks you have an Oak tree!    Wed, 17 Jun 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21306/Colorado-is-brutal-on-trees- http://happytrees.co/blog/21210/April-cold-snap-devestated-newly-awakening-trees- blog You may have noticed that trees and shrubs seem slow to wake up this year. You are not mistaken. Temperatures have been cool, and particularly night time temperatures have been chilly. More drastically, a snow storm clobbered the region just as tender leaves and flowers were budding out. Temperatures dropped from the 50s to the teens overnight. This obliterated tender new growth just as plants were awakening from their winter slumber. You may be wondering if your trees and shrubs are going to make it. Probably. Most trees and shrubs that are adaptable for our climate have defense mechanisms to deal with precisely this situation. Amazingly, trees and shrubs have ‘latent’ buds, or leaf and flower buds that remain dormant or suppressed. When the regular growth got frosted, a hormonal response triggered the latent buds to kick into action! You may notice new leaves and flowers, although perhaps sparse, starting to appear on your stunted trees. Now that things are heating up you should see trees recovering normally. We likely won’t get the flower show we anticipate and adore, but your trees shall survive to put on their magnificent displays in successive years. What can you do to help your trees recover? You should always be paying attention to your trees’ water and nutrient needs in order to cultivate happy, healthy trees. Trees in excellent health and vigor can usually withstand whatever ailments and environmental stressors that nature can throw their way. Trees that are struggling due to lack of sufficient water or nutritional support can be badly beaten and may expire without the necessary resources to recover. Trees need moisture in the soil in order to push out new roots and to extract water and nutrients from the soil. Roots begin to grow long before you see any leaves or flowers growing on the branches, and often before you turn on your irrigation systems each spring. You may need to drag out the hoses and hand water. Even if sprinklers are turned on it’s imperative to make sure that moisture is penetrating deeply into the root zone. Having said that, be sure not to over-water! Roots also exchange gasses with the soil and this can’t be achieved if the ground is consistently saturated. The key is to give them a good soaking when you water, but then give them some time to drain and somewhat dry out. Temperatures and precipitation fluctuate wildly in the spring so use your water gauges and try to get some understanding of what’s happening deep into the root zone. Just like us hairless monkeys, trees need a healthy diet and nutrients to produce the cells that make leaves, flowers, and other structural tissues. Trees have a remarkable ability to extract nutrients from the soil and from the air, but supplemental fertilizers may be required to provide your plants with everything they need to thrive. Trees need copious amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, plus micro-nutrients like iron, magnesium, zinc, sulfur, and calcium. Stay out of the big box stores and consult your local garden center professionals for fertilizer recommendations. Try not to get discouraged if plants don’t pull through a tough winter. I remind clients all the time that if you look around our open spaces the only plants that like to grow here are a mix of grasses, sage bushes, yucca, and perhaps some prickly pear cactus. With a little care and cultivation, your favorite trees and plants from around the world can grow here for future generations to enjoy!   Mon, 18 May 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21210/April-cold-snap-devestated-newly-awakening-trees- http://happytrees.co/blog/21074/Just-because-it-can-live-here--doesn-t-mean-you-should-plant-them- blog Galaxy Magnolia are among the most stunning and graceful trees to be found anywhere on the planet. They have massive rosy lavender flowers that smell like candy! The smooth grey bark supports an elegantly branched tree. The large, glossy-green leaves have a tropical appearance. They are rated to zone 5 which means that technically, they can grow here. So, should you plant one? Probably not. Even though Galaxy Magnolia flower weeks later than most of the varieties in its species, it still flowers very early in the season. The flowers are very sensitive to frost and turn to mush when exposed to cold. The photo accompanying this blog was taken in late March. As I write this on April 16th, there’s six inches of snow outside my window! Because our night time temperatures consistently dip below freezing well into May, it is unlikely you will ever experience a prolific bloom for more than a couple of days. Maybe if you live in downtown Denver, protected from winter winds by tall buildings and mature trees, nestled in the “heat island” effect provided by asphalt streets and tar rooftops, maybe you might get one of these magnificent trees to live past the first couple of seasons. But even if you do, the blossoms will likely be obliterated the day they open, and a year’s worth of anticipation will evaporate just like the frost on your windshield on a chilly morning. https://youtu.be/aDsoQt7phdQ Just because a tree can grow here, doesn’t mean it should. The opening statement on my Tree Care Guide states “If you look around the next time you drive out to the airport you’ll get a good understanding of what kinds of trees like to grow along Colorado’s Front Range. That is to say, virtually none”. Colorado is brutal on trees and shrubs. Our high altitude and dry air is tough on people and plants. Dramatic temperature swings are problematic also, and we’ve just experienced record highs followed by record lows. If trees are lucky enough to survive through establishment, they get pummeled by high winds and hammering hail. With all these extremes going against them, it’s a wonder any trees can survive here at all! Redbud trees face a similar dilemma. In my native Virginia they proliferate under the forest canopy and decorate the lowlands with delightful lavender flowers each spring. They can live here, but they have a high failure rate. Arborvitae struggle here also. The soft cypress-like needles are sensitive and we lose more than we get to see survive. You should probably steer clear of all broad-leafed evergreens, with the exception of plants in the Euonymus family. I just shake my head in dismay when I walk the nursery isles at the big box stores where national buyers order Pieris and Leucothoe that don’t have a prayer of surviving in our climate. My mission at Happy Trees is to help you select the perfect tree for your needs, whether you want shade, privacy, or just something beautiful to ornament your yard. Most nurseries have knowledgeable staff who can help with your tree selections, but there are very few nurseries left in the greater Denver area, and fewer still that offer planting services. Most landscape contractors aren’t interested in planting just one or a few trees, and those that do may not have a background in horticulture or be qualified to recommend the right tree for your situation. Happy Trees has the education and experience to make sure you purchase the perfect tree with confidence! Most Crabapple varieties are rugged and hardy, and their prolific blooms can withstand cold snaps. Many varieties have insignificant fruits, and they come in a variety of shapes, such as globular, upright, and even weeping! For bomb-proof vitality, Hawthorn trees are hard to beat! They are covered with white flowers in spring, followed by brightly colored berries and traffic-stopping red-orange-yellow fall color. There are many thorn-less varieties but the thorn covered shouldn’t be overlooked, as the attributes outweigh the stickers in my opinion. In my 20+ year career I can’t recall ever having to warranty a Hawthorn tree. Maple, Oak, Linden, and Honeylocust all have a place in our gardens along the Front Range, as well as evergreens such as Pine, Spruce, Fir, and Juniper. Flowering Trees like Japanese Lilac, Golden Raintree, Pear, and Plum can all thrive in our gardens, as can Serviceberry, Kentucky Coffeetree, and Catalpa. With the careful selection and a little tender loving care, many of your favorite trees from around the world can thrive here for many generations to come!   Thu, 16 Apr 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21074/Just-because-it-can-live-here--doesn-t-mean-you-should-plant-them- http://happytrees.co/blog/21067/Mites- blog Mites are tiny little spiders that crawl around on your plants and suck the juices out of the leaves and needles. A Mite is harmless, but females can lay hundreds or even thousands of eggs creating colonies that can decimate tender plants. Plants are particularly susceptible when they are waking up from winter slumber and starting to push out new leaves and needles. Mites hatch very early in the Spring before you may even be considering getting out to do yard work, so be aware of their existence and timing and get out to control the infestations on your landscape plants. Mites are insidious because they are so teenie they are difficult to spot, so you may not notice an infestation until you see severe damage to your plants. This usually appears as “stippling” or tiny yellow or black dots on the leaves, or browned out or yellow needles on evergreens. You may notice very fine webbing if you’re paying attention. Broad leafed evergreens such as Boxwood or Euonymus are particularly susceptible, but different species can infect practically any plant, even Spruce and Pine Trees. If you suspect Mite damage, get a clipboard or a sheet of paper and gently shake a branch over it, or lightly slap the branch on your clipboard or a piece of cardboard. The Mites will fall off the plant and begin moving about confused and disoriented. They are very small, but you can usually just make out the tiny dots moving about your paper. They can be almost any color, usually brown, black, red, yellow, or orange, but they can also be white, so use different colored paper if you don’t see them at first. Fortunately, their miniscule size and fragile exoskeleton make them easy to destroy. There are dozens of pesticides available that can do the job, but pesticides unfortunately target beneficial insects like Bees and Ladybugs. Horticultural oils work, and so do insecticidal soaps. These are mild and less destructive, but can be expensive. Perhaps the easiest way to rid yourself of these pests is to dig under the kitchen cabinet and get yourself some mild dish soap. https://youtu.be/uNVPGqI0FTo Dish soap works wonders because it is cheap and readily available. It won’t harm most plants (Google search or test a small part of your plant if you’re concerned), and shouldn’t harm most beneficial insects. Simply mix up a solution in your hose-end sprayer and wash your plants and trees down. The soap coats the Mites and they either suffocate, slip and fall to the ground, or as the soap dries it cracks open the macilent shell just like it dries out your skin when you wash your hands. If this sounds cruel, remember they are little Arachnids, and Spiders are unholy demons from Hell that must be destroyed at all cost. Besides nature will make more, I promise. Soap has other benefits as well. As it drips to the ground or washes down during the next rainstorm, it percolates into the soil and acts as a surfactant to break up tightly bonded clay particles. This assists water and nutrients to penetrate deeper into the soil. It will eventually get eaten by bacteria the same way it gets devoured in sewage treatment plants before water is released back into rivers, so it’s not a pollutant and it won’t build up in the soil. Plus it gives your plants that sexy healthy sheen that we so desire! Mites aren’t generally considered problematic, but almost none of the trees and shrubs we plant in our landscapes along the Front Range are native to Colorado, so often our plants are under stress whether we notice it or not. Mites can easily invade and destroy plants weakened by stress, so make sure you’re paying attention to your trees’ water and nutrient needs to keep them healthy and resistant to insect infestations and other diseases. We here at Happy Trees are always happy to analyze insect and disease problems, but we aren’t licensed pesticide applicators and we don’t perform pesticide services, even soap. Contact a licensed and certified Arborist for treatment if this is more than you are willing to perform. But for your tree planting needs always give Happy Trees a call!   Fri, 10 Apr 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21067/Mites- http://happytrees.co/blog/21017/Large-shrubs--small-trees-for-your-landscape- blog Happy Trees is your premier source to have large caliper balled and burlapped trees delivered and professionally planted for you. But if its mature shrubs you want, Happy Trees can provide those too! There are many shrubs that straddle the line between large shrubs and small trees, generally considered around 15’. Rose of Sharon, Purple Smoketree, Viburnum, Serviceberry, Lilac, and many others are generally considered shrubs or bushes but can be trained into multi-stem trees. Most of the aforementioned shrubs are commonly available only in 5 gallon containers that will take several years to reach maturity. Most homeowners can transport these and perform their own planting. If you need screening immediately or if you just want instant gratification, Happy Trees has a great selection of 4-6’ balled and burlapped Viburnum and Rose of Sharon, and expects to see Purple Smoketree and Lilac in the coming weeks. https://youtu.be/Qy8od-IzV_c Viburnum have a profusion of white flowers in late spring followed by glossy green leaves and colorful berries that add late season interest. Fall colors range from yellow-orange-burgundy, and they perform quite well for our climate. Most reach 15’, but smaller varieties are available. Rose of Sharon are slender shrubs with an upright branching habit that can reach heights over 10’ tall. They’re not a rose, but rather belong to the Hibiscus family. They have very large tropical looking flowers that bloom later in the season to give you a progression of bloom. They open up in late June or July and will continue to pump out flowers until frost. Lilac are among the most familiar shrubs for North American landscapes, and with good reason. They are one of the earliest shrubs to come into bloom and their delightfully fragrant blossoms signal winter’s end. Colors range from white, pink, lavender, and purple. We wish the flowers lasted longer, but they are hardy and adaptable for our Colorado climate. Purple Smoketree is an unusual shrub or small tree to give your yard a focal point or a conversation piece. Graceful branches support burgundy leaves. The flowers are lacy and airy, giving the appearance of smoke wafting off the plant in mid-summer. All of these are ideal for smaller properties or tight spaces. If you need a tree or shrub for privacy, shade, or just something unusual and beautiful to brighten your day, Happy Trees can help you find the perfect tree for your needs. CAVID-19 update- Happy Trees is committed to supporting our employees and serving our customers during this health and economic crisis. Agriculture and construction are exempt from the stay at home orders, and we perform agricultural construction. We are following the guidelines of the CDC and the WHO, as well as local and state health agencies. We are sanitizing vehicle cabins and tools, and our workers are able to distance themselves from our clients and each other while performing their work. If you’re stuck at home and you’ve been thinking about adding a tree, no need to wait, give us a call today!   Tue, 31 Mar 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/21017/Large-shrubs--small-trees-for-your-landscape- http://happytrees.co/blog/20987/Heptacodium--Seven-Son-Flower blog Plant geeks of the world unite! You pride yourself on the remarkable array of distinguished and unusual plants you’ve cultivated in your gardens. You gave up after your third attempt at Japanese Maple, but you’ve trained your Purple Smoketree shrub into a graceful and elegant multi-stem tree. You’ve failed with every type of Rhododendron you’ve tried, but your Bamboo is finally taking off after it’s third year in the ground. Your Tri-color Beech stops traffic when the pink leaves first emerge, but you’re still not satisfied and are seeking that next conversation piece to add that “wow” factor to your landscape. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Seven-Son Flower! Seven-Son Flower is a recent introduction from China that is swiftly gaining popularity and familiarity in commercial production. Rated to Zone 5, it is marginal along Colorado’s Front Range, but seems to be adaptable to our soils and climate. I planted one at the Westminster Botanic Gardens/ world headquarters of Happy Trees, and it has survived the winter and is budding out with no noticeable die-back as I write this on March 25th. https://youtu.be/9zT8Yxdvqwg Seven-Son Flower is a large shrub or small tree, often multiple-stemmed, but can be trained into a single-trunk form. Its slender upright habit will reach a height of 15-20’ with a 10’ spread. Its creamy white flowers appear late in the summer, long after most of your flowering trees and shrubs have shed their petals, so it provides that progression of bloom to give interest late into fall. After the flowers, ruby-red calyces form to add another burst of interest before winter reclaims the land. Another notable attribute is the exfoliating bark that peels off to reveal a calico patchwork of cinnamon, tan, and brown tones. Seven-Son Flower reminds me of the Crepe Myrtle trees that decorated the Virginia coastline of my misspent youth. A comprehensive description and pictures can be found at the Missouri Botanic Gardens. These are a bit of a boutique item, so they’re not featured on the Happy Trees’ website. For a limited time, 1-3/4” caliper trees can be delivered and installed for $715, and 7’ clump form trees are $825. As always, planting includes our planting package consisting of compost soil amendment, microbial fertilizer, lodgepole tree supports, and top-dress mulch. Hurry, the supply is limited and once sold we won’t see them until next spring. You don’t need to be a botanist or even an avid gardener to plant and appreciate Seven-Son Flower in your yard. They are actually fairly hardy and relatively care-free with minimal maintenance needs. You may want to trim some stray branches to give it a desired shape, but they will mature quite nicely all on their own. Seven-Son Flower is the perfect addition to any landscape, whether you need a small tree to shade a patio, another specimen for the “tropical” themed garden, a point of interest for a meditation garden or the Japanese garden, or a unique focal point for your entryway. CORONA VIRUS UPDATE- So called "shelter-in-place" laws are being enacted across the state, as if COVID-19 was an active shooter from which you need to katy-bar the door. The Colorado Nursery and Greenhouse association has lobbied hard to ensure that the green industry is included in the list of "essential" operations, along with construction, including landscape construction. Following guidelines from the CDC and WHO, landscape construction activities are considered low-risk. Workers can maintain a safe distance from customers and from one another, and precautions are in place to ensure the safety of our customers and employees. Tools and vehicle cabins are being sanitized and workers are using hand sanitizer and gloves. Happy Trees intends to remain open for business during this crisis. We pay among the highest wages in the industry for our labor, but still many of our employees live hand-to-mouth. If you've been contemplating planting a tree, please help keep the economy humming and give us a call! Wed, 25 Mar 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/20987/Heptacodium--Seven-Son-Flower http://happytrees.co/blog/20937/What-can-you-do-about-the-Corona-Virus- blog There is no reason to read this blog. I’m only writing this for the benefit of the Google web crawlers who continuously search my site for new and relevant content, and COVID-19 seems to be the buzzword that will get Happy Trees to the top of the search engine results. I don’t mean to make light of a potentially serious situation, but perhaps I can bring a little levity to a panic-stricken situation. Planting trees can actually help prevent the spread of the dreaded Corona Virus. I base this on absolutely nothing. I’m not a doctor, but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night. Trees serve as windbreaks that knock down dust that can harbor the virus. Trees purify the air and pump out oxygen. Pure oxygen kills the Corona virus, and again, I base this on absolutely nothing. Forget hording toilet paper, trees like Maple and Catalpa have large leaves that could serve the purpose in a pinch. Happy Trees also plants large caliper fruit trees like Apple, Pear, and Peach that can feed your family in perpetuity until reason returns and civilization is restored. As the stock market crashes and our health care system collapses, you may need to fortify your home against hording marauders. Washington Hawthorn have wicked thorns that when planted as a hedge-row can defend your realm as sure as razor wire. Pine and Spruce trees can screen your domicile so your neighbors can’t see you stockpiling the last few remaining cases of hand sanitizer. Truth be told a global pandemic isn’t without it’s upside. Traffic congestion is greatly reduced and oil has tanked to around $28 a barrel. This means lower fuel costs and reduced labor expense as crews aren’t stuck sitting on I-25. Happy Trees is operating business as usual so if you’re self-quarantining why not get some trees planted while you’re working from home! https://youtu.be/-sJ5P5LHK3M I should mention that Happy Trees is taking extra precautions to keep our workers and clients safe during this time of crisis. While the disease doesn’t seem to be particularly lethal, it is spreading like wildfire so we are of course taking the threat seriously. We are sanitizing vehicles and wiping down tools. Workers are required to wear gloves and we are vigilantly watching for signs of illness. We are following the recommendations from the CDC and local health authorities, and all factors indicate that our operations are low risk for spreading the infection. If you’re stuck home watching the kids while school is out, why not take some time to browse the Happy Trees website to consider your next tree to renovate your landscape. Whether you need something for shade, screening, or just something flowering to beautify your property, Happy Trees has exactly what you need. You can shop from home so you won’t risk exposure at the nursery, and our crews will deliver and plant your trees professionally as promised. If you feel helpless and have the urge to do something, plant a tree! You’ll feel better I guarantee it.   Tue, 17 Mar 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/20937/What-can-you-do-about-the-Corona-Virus- http://happytrees.co/blog/20885/It-s-time-to-get-planting--- blog It seems as though winter has been particularly relentless this season and much of our streets and shady spots are still covered in snow and ice. Spring is equally relentless however, and it is arriving regardless of what winter has to say about it. The buds are breaking open on many of our regions’ trees, signaling the end of winter’s wrath and the beginning of our wondrous and miraculous spring. It’s time to plant! The tree in the photo is a Maple tree I happened to notice just this afternoon, March 5th. We generally don’t think of Maple trees as flowering trees but there they are, although the flowers are rather insignificant. Night time temperatures are hovering near freezing, yet these Maple and many other tree species are awakening out of winter dormancy and casting out pollen in an orgasmic frenzy. We are entering a season of incomprehensible change. All around us trees that have rested in cryogenic slumber will begin bursting forth in a cacophony of flowers, leaves, fruits, and seeds. This will all occur in a matter of weeks. Then, nothing much will happen throughout summer’s scorching heat. Take time each day to appreciate the changes occurring all around you, and you might find yourself better connected to the natural wonders that help support human existence on this fragile planet. The best way to observe these wonders is to have stewardship over them in your own yard! Trees benefit our lives in myriad ways, providing privacy, shade, windbreaks, or just something beautiful to appreciate in our landscapes. Right now is an excellent time to plant. Trees can be harvested only when dormant and when the ground isn’t frozen. That means they can only be dug in the fall and spring. If spring-dug trees are planted while still dormant, they will “wake up” in your yard hardly noticing that they were moved at all! They avoid the transplant shock that can sometimes occur with summer planting. If you plant flowering trees like Crabapple or Serviceberry, you can enjoy the flowers now without having to wait another winter for your trees to put on a show. Many of the trees that are appropriate for Colorado’s Front Range are listed with photographs at HappyTrees.co. Pricing is provided, and shopping is easy! Please call with questions or comments, and thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees!   Thu, 05 Mar 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/20885/It-s-time-to-get-planting--- http://happytrees.co/blog/20673/Warm-days-and-Cold-Nights blog Ice is still clinging to storm drains and parking lots but it has been three weeks since it last snowed around town. Daytime temperatures have been reaching into the 50s, while dropping into the mid-20s overnight. This is really tough on trees and shrubs, especially newly planted trees that haven't spread their roots deeply into the surrounding soil. This pattern looks like it will continue through at least this week. Please get the hoses out and do a little winter watering to get some moisture into the ground. If the ground is still frozen or snow covered you don’t need to do anything just yet.  Just please keep an eye on the ground moisture and water on a warm day as needed.  A good soaking should be adequate to get us to the next precipitation event. If you have a recently planted tree from Happy Trees, your water gauge can show you if moisture is available in the root zone.  Otherwise you might dig a little in the vegetable garden or other inconspicuous place to see if there’s moisture in the soil or not.  With Colorado’s intense sunshine and Chinook winds it doesn’t take long for the ground to dry out completely. One last tip…temperatures are still dropping below freezing at night so disconnect your hose from the tap to prevent freeze damage.  Drain your hoses so they don’t freeze as well.  Winter watering helps protect roots when the ground freezes, so be aware of your plant’s needs and water as necessary.   Tue, 21 Jan 2020 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/20673/Warm-days-and-Cold-Nights http://happytrees.co/blog/19845/When-is-the-best-time-to-plant-trees- blog There are many hot days left in the season, but the stifling heat of mid-summer is behind us. With cooler temperatures and rain in the forecast, now is the perfect time to buy trees and to have them professionally delivered and planted in your yard! I’m often asked “when is the best time to plant a tree?” The answer, of course, is 20 years ago! Kidding aside, if I needed another tree in my own yard now would be an ideal time to plant. The temperature is cooler, precipitation returns, and we still have three to four months of the growing season left. This means trees have a chance to “root in” before winter creeps in. Truth be told, there is no great time to plant in Colorado. Spring is about as ideal a time as any, but late frosts and hail can ravage newly planted trees. We plant all summer long, but we must take special precautions to alleviate heat stress and transplant shock. Fall is an excellent time to plant, especially as the leaves drop from the trees as they transition into winter dormancy. The trees over-winter in the ground, and roots begin to establish long before any top growth is evident. Still, severe winter weather and frozen ground can take a toll on vulnerable newly planted trees. All things considered, now is an excellent time to plant! You still have a few months to admire your tree as it adjusts to its new surroundings and spreads its roots into the amended soil of our planting zone. These new roots give the trees an advantage as winter sets in. They will be better suited to handle the stress of wild temperature swings and deep freezes. As the soil warms up in late winter, the roots will “wake up” and begin to soak up nutrients. By this time next year, you should experience a flush of new growth and your trees should be well on their way to providing years of enjoyment for generations to come! If you look to the east the next time you head to the airport, you’ll get a good sense of what kind of trees like to live here- meaning, virtually none. In my native Virginia, abandoned farmers’ fields would be naturally re-forested within a decade. This is not the case in Colorado. While Colorado is blessed with about as an ideal climate as possible for us hairless monkeys, she’s about as tough on trees as it gets. Late snow loads and hail storms assault trees in the spring. Summer brings blistering heat and severe drought, intense sun and dry air. Fall can bring early snow storms and drastic temperature swings. Sometimes winters are so cold it will split the trunks of even established trees. Heavy snow can bring massive limbs crashing to the ground. All that said, trees have many benefits that enhance our lives and landscapes. With a little extra effort and lots of care we can enjoy many of our favorite trees from around the world in perpetuity. All they need is a little water and nutrition, especially during the establishment period. Downtown Denver is an urban forest with many splendid specimen trees- proof enough that you can successfully grow trees for your kids and grandchildren to adore. If you’ve been thinking about adding a tree to your yard, whether it be for shade, privacy, or just something beautiful to admire, now is a great time to get it done. Call Happy Trees today and we will help you select the perfect tree for your needs. It’s easy! Give Happy Trees a call today!   Thu, 08 Aug 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/19845/When-is-the-best-time-to-plant-trees- http://happytrees.co/blog/19722/Many-shrubs-are-available-in-tree-form- blog As the population continues to proliferate along Colorado’s Front Range, builders are cramming houses closer together. Yard space is sacrificed for expansive living spaces, and massive McMansions are crammed onto lots where quaint bungalows once stood. In many neighborhoods, roof top patios offer the only place to plant, and rooftop gardening is becoming increasingly popular. Happy Trees is receiving many requests for smaller stature trees that won’t outgrow the slender spaces afforded them. The following are the best picks for petite trees for smaller spaces. There are a few columnar or “fastigiate” forms of trees that provide screening and privacy where space is at a premium. If you need four season privacy, evergreens such as Juniper, Pine, and Spruce offer the best seclusion. There are many varieties of upright Juniper. ‘Skyrocket’ is the skinniest with about a 3’ span. ‘Wichita Blue’ spreads about 6’ wide and has lacy blue needles that give it a soft appearance. Check out ‘Arnold Sentinel’ for a columnar pine. If you like Blue Spruce, you’ll love the ‘Fastigiata’, an upright form. Since we’re outside mostly over the summer months, deciduous trees like Crimsonspire Oak and Franz Fontaine Hornbeam offer super slender screening or stately accents. Many families of trees have upright forms. Maple has ‘Autumn Gold’, which is still a big tree but with a skinnier profile. There are a few Crabapple varieties like ‘Red Baron’ with upright canopies. Crabapple even have dwarf varieties like ‘Sargent Tina’ with a weeping habit. ‘Coralburst’ makes a petite patio tree, and ‘Lollipop’ is almost comical with its perfectly globular 8’ crown. There’s even a columnar form of Golden Raintree! I hesitate to include Japanese Maple as they just don’t like Colorado’s dry air. They are irresistible though, and avid gardeners can try to pamper them to maturity. Another rarity for our climate is Seven Son Flower, which is about as close to a Crape Myrtle as we can grow at our altitude. Check it out! Japanese Tree Lilac, Saskatoon Serviceberry, and Winter King Hawthorn are smaller trees for confined areas. Where space is really restricted, you might look to tree forms of what are generally considered shrubs. Many of our favorite shrubs can grow quite large, and if pruned properly they can lose their bushy form and be trained into small trees. Viburnum, Ninebark, Rose of Sharon, Lilac, and Smoketree can grow upward of 15’, which is generally considered the transition where woody plants are classified as trees or shrubs. By selectively pruning out competing branches, these shrubs can be transformed into multi-stemmed small trees. As the plants mature, 3-9 stems can support an overhead canopy. If left alone, these manipulated plants will eventually revert to their bush form, so trim off unwanted leaves and branches like a Bonsai master as they appear. Single trunked forms of these plants are sometimes available where the growers graft the shrub onto a single stem. These are specialty items that are seasonally available. Happy Trees can provide the perfect tree for your needs whatever they may be. There’s the right tree for every situation, so if you don’t see what you need on our website, just call and we’ll fix you up with exactly what you need.   Mon, 15 Jul 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/19722/Many-shrubs-are-available-in-tree-form- http://happytrees.co/blog/19233/What-are-those-trees-with-the-magnificant-Pink-Flowers- blog Spring flowering trees are bursting into bloom bringing delightful color to our home landscapes. Happy Trees delivers and plants large trees so you can experience this beauty and wonder in your own yard! Follow the links for pricing and planting information… Pink Flowering Prairiefire Crabapple http://happytrees.co/products/7263/Prairiefire-Crabapple Fuchsia colored Royal Raindrops Crabapple http://happytrees.co/products/7256/Royal-Raindrops-Crabapple White flowering and fruitless Spring Snow Crabapple http://happytrees.co/products/7255/Spring-Snow-Crabapple Crabapple are among the hardiest flowering trees with the showiest display of colorful blooms. They have prolific flowers that can range from ruby red, pink, fuchsia, lavender, or white depending on the variety. I prefer to stick with varieties that produce tiny fruits that persist on the tree and dry up like raisins for the birds to snack on throughout the winter. Newport plum have delightful pink flowers and burgundy leaves throughout the summer http://happytrees.co/products/7225/Newport-Plum Canada Red Cherry have showers of white flowers followed by glossy green leaves that fade to burgundy. In June, new bright green growth appears on burgundy branches for a two-tone effect. Check them out! http://happytrees.co/products/7267/Canada-Red-Cherry Chanticleer Pear are valued for their upright oval appearance, abundant white spring flowers, and a burst of red-orange-yellow fall color! http://happytrees.co/products/7218/Chanticleer-Pear These are just some of the spring flowering trees available for planting right now. If you don’t see what you want just click or call and Happy Trees will help you find exactly what you are looking for and we’ll do the shopping for you. Happy Trees is the easiest way for you to buy trees! You don’t need to waste your weekend driving out to the country to shop for trees. Happy Trees will help you determine the best tree for your needs and we will email or text photos of the available trees for your consideration. Once you accept your trees our crews will deliver and plant them for you. It’s easy! Give Happy Trees a call today! (720) 343-7263.   Tue, 23 Apr 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/19233/What-are-those-trees-with-the-magnificant-Pink-Flowers- http://happytrees.co/blog/19132/Its-Time-for-Planting-Spring-Flowering-Trees- blog Another arctic storm is bearing down on Colorado, bringing much needed moisture but also worrisome freezing temperatures. This is happening just as flower and leaf buds are opening up on most trees throughout the region. Hopefully your trees are still holding onto winter dormancy. If so, this storm will pass with little effect. If buds have broken open, they could suffer damage as the temperature dips into the low twenties. Don’t worry, trees have latent buds for just such an occasion. They will open up after the storm passes in response to a late freeze. Nevertheless, as sure as the sun will come up tomorrow, your ornamental flowering trees are preparing to burst open with an array of colorful flowers. Here are the top five flowering trees for Colorado’s front range that will decorate your yard for generations to come! Flowering Crabapple- Crabapple are the undisputed kings of spring color! They have prolific flowers that can range from ruby red, pink, fuchsia, lavender, or white depending on the variety. Most Crabapple are small to medium sized trees that have a perfectly rounded form like a lollipop. There are some with a more upright habit like ‘Royal Raindrops’, and even a columnar form as with ‘Red Baron’. ‘Red Jade’ has weeping branches, and ‘Sargent’, ‘Coralburst’, and ‘Lollipop’ are petit patio trees for small spaces. Some varieties of Crabapple have rather hefty apples which can be a nuisance as they drop on your sidewalks and lawn. I prefer these in your neighbor’s yard, but if you have a naturalized meadow or pasture these are quite striking. ‘Bechtel’ and ‘Brandywine’ have the most stunning pink flowers that resemble roses, but those are followed by racquetball-sized fruit. ‘Radiant’ Crabapple has reddish-pink blossoms and bright red fruit that is actually quite showy, but again a little messy. If you want the beauty without the mess, look for varieties that produce tiny apples that shrivel up like raisins and persist on the tree. These include ‘Perfect Purple’, ‘Prairiefire’, and ‘Royal Raindrops’. ‘Spring Snow’ is the only sterile variety. It has abundant white flowers and will produce no fruit. There are hormone sprays that can be applied to disrupt fruit production, but don’t overlook the ornamental attributes of fruit or the forage value to wildlife. Crabapple tree leaves can range from glossy green to red to burgundy. With a range of shapes, flower colors, and leaf color, there is a Crabapple for every gardener to enjoy all year long! Check out our on-line catalog for more information or give Happy Trees a call for availability. Flowering Pear- Pear trees are very popular for their upright oval habit and abundant reliable flowers. Unfortunately, Pear trees only have white flowers, but they also pack a punch of fall color ranging from gold to red to burgundy. There are many varieties of Callery Pear that are virtually indistinguishable. ‘Jack Pear’ is a dwarf tree suitable for smaller spaces. Ornamental Pear are fruitless and mostly considered very clean trees. Plum- Ornamental Plum trees are peppered with delightful pink or white flowers in early spring and burgundy foliage throughout the summer. ‘Newport’ has showers of pink flowers and an upright oval appearance. ‘Princess Kay’ is a petit version with double white flowers, perfect for around the patio. Closely related to Plum is the Canada Red Chokecherry. These have sprays of delicate white flowers in early spring followed by bright green leaves that fade to burgundy over the summer. In June, the tree has a two-tone effect as bright green leaves emerge on burgundy branches. Serviceberry- a Colorado native that is found in woodland areas, usually along streambanks and marshy areas. It performs best in shade and will tolerate wet conditions. Dainty white flowers decorate the tree in early spring, and the fall color is an explosion of red-orange-yellow. Serviceberry produce berries that are quite delicious if you can beat the birds to them. You can pick them off the tree like blueberries or make jams or pies if you can gather enough. Serviceberry can be a traditional single-trunked tree, but is perhaps best as a multiple-stemmed tree or large shrub. ‘Autumn Brilliance’ has an upright vase shape. ‘Shadblow’ is smaller with a more shrub-like appearance. There’s even a newly introduced columnar form called ‘Rainbow Pillar’ with a spread of only 10’ and a very colorful fall display. Redbud- I hesitate to include Redbud as they just don’t like Colorado’s dry air and the failure rate is unacceptably high. They can grow here however, and the lavender flowers are so delightful I would be remis to make this list without including them. They are understory trees in the wild found under the forest canopy, and therefore they prefer shade. They are best planted downtown in established neighborhoods with protection from winter winds. Having said that, I often stumble across thriving Redbud planted out in the open and seemingly doing just fine. Because of the hardiness issue I can sell Redbud at a discount but with no guarantee. Redbud are still worth considering for the right location. They have very graceful branching with an upright vase-shaped canopy. The prolific flowers sprout right out of the branches and even grace the trunk of the tree! The chartreuse flowers have an orchid-like appearance and the trees stop traffic when in full bloom. They are a perfect compliment to a koi pond or cottage garden, and if you can get one established you will be the envy of your neighborhood each spring. All of these trees are in stock and available for planting as soon as this last gasp of winter passes this week. Happy Trees is a virtual nursery without a physical location. You can shop online without having to slog through a muddy nursery and Happy Trees will do the shopping for you! We will send pictures of the trees we select for your approval, or you can arrange to shop in person by appointment. Please visit our catalog of trees at www.happytrees.co, or call (720) 343-7263 and we will be happy to assist you.   Tue, 09 Apr 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/19132/Its-Time-for-Planting-Spring-Flowering-Trees- http://happytrees.co/blog/19063/Seasonally-available-large-caliper-Fruit-Trees-here-now- blog Seasonally available large caliper fruit trees are available and in stock now! Fruit trees usually appear only in early spring, and once they’re gone we won’t see them again until next year. Have you ever considered planting fruit trees in your yard? How about a small hobby orchard to feed the neighborhood? Nothing beats stepping out into your backyard and chomping into a juicy apple or peach freshly plucked from a tree in your own back yard. Before you commit here’s a few tips to help you achieve a bountiful harvest year after year. Be warned, fruit trees are a hobby and considerable attention is necessary to protect your tender fruit from voracious insects and pesky bacteria and fungi. This can be done organically, but timing and careful monitoring is required to treat the trees as pests appear. Horticultural oils such as sesame oil can be used to control most insects such as aphids, scale, mealy bugs, and mites. Oils are also effective in preventing the introduction and spread of many fungi and bacteria, and most can be applied up until harvest. Insecticidal soaps are also an effective way to control insects without harming your fruit or loved ones. The soap dries out the exoskeleton of most soft-shelled insects, and also helps control bacteria and fungi. Pyrethrins are organic chemicals extracted from geranium plants that act as a natural insect repellent. These are generally considered organic and safe, however care should be taken not to inhale or consume the chemicals, and fruit should be washed before eating. Trees that become infected may require more aggressive chemical treatments. Some are available commercially, but you may want to have your trees treated by a professional arborist. Even if you’re fruit survives the summer, ravenous squirrels often ravage the fruit just before harvest! Having said all that, spraying the trees a few times a year and warding off the squirrels really isn’t all that much work and the payoff is sensational! With a little patience and the right know-how you’ll have baskets of fruit for your family and neighbors to enjoy in no time. Don’t overlook the ornamental characteristics of fruit trees either. Most have stunning flowers and handsome leaves as well. After all, most of our ornamental flowering trees like Crabapple and Chanticleer Pear originate from the same parent lineage, they have just been hybridized for ornamental attributes rather than produce. If you’re going to plant a tree for screening or ornamentation anyway, you might consider one that produces edible fruit as well! Commercial fruit growers prune their trees into tortured habits. Some of this is to promote fruit production but mostly they do it to make the fruit more accessible at harvest. You don’t need to aggressively prune your home fruit trees to get results. Let them grow naturally, prune mostly for aesthetics or to thin out branches, and you’ll have more fruit than your family could possibly consume. I don’t include fruit trees in my on-line catalog, but here’s pricing for delivery and planting for 2” caliper trees currently available. Call for pricing and availability on larger caliper trees or just delivery only: Apple- Royal Gala, Honeycrisp, Red Delicious, Yellow Delicious-   $775 Apricot- Moorpark, Chinese-   $775 Cherry- Bing, Montmorency, Black Tartarian, Bali-  $775 Peach- Elberta, Polly-  $800 Plum- Santa Rosa, Mount Royal, Toka, Pear- Bartlett, Summercrisp-  $775 Price includes delivery, soil amendment, tree stakes and supports, and top dress mulch, just like our other trees. Other than treatments described above, care for your fruit trees just as you would any other tree as described in our tree care guide. Consistent watering is essential for fruit production, and winter wrap is definitely recommended, as it is for all newly planted trees. * This article is intended to introduce gardeners to the possibilities of growing fruit trees and is not intended to be an authoritative reference. Happy Trees can provide more information to prospective clients upon request. Always buy chemicals and seek advice from local independent garden centers. unlike the big-box stores, they usually have experienced experts on staff. Always follow label directions and wear protective clothing when applying any pesticides. Use caution not to harm bees or other beneficial insects. Take extra precautions around koi ponds and pets.   Wed, 03 Apr 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/19063/Seasonally-available-large-caliper-Fruit-Trees-here-now- http://happytrees.co/blog/18968/The-Crocus-are-here--The-Crocus-are-here- blog And just like that, spring arrived! You’re probably still shoveling out from the so-called Bomb Cyclone last week, but the Crocus have bloomed on schedule nevertheless. I love crocus in the garden as they are among the very first blossoms of spring and they cue us in as to when to start our spring garden chores. I always design every garden with low maintenance in mind. Nobody has ever said to me “what we’d really like is a labor-intensive garden that consumes all our spare time”. The key to low maintenance is knowing what to plant and how to care for it. Timing is critical for some tasks and the spring awakening is perhaps the most active time for gardeners. Yes, you’re going to spend some weekends toiling away in the yard, but if you perform these jobs now you can sit back and enjoy your personal habitat through the rest of the year. So, sharpen up the garden tools, here’s a list of the top 5 most essential tasks to accomplish over the next few weeks.   1              Clean up perennials. Perennial flowers are those plants that die back each winter but grow back each spring. Its best to leave the dead foliage on the plants through the winter, but now is the time to remove those dead leaves and vegetation. Some perennials remain evergreen or don’t die back entirely. Cut those back too. It will invigorate the plants and promote a burst of new growth. If plants are mature and overgrowing the space available, dig them up and divide the root mass. Re-plant half and transplant the rest wherever space allows in the garden. 2              Cut back ornamental grasses. Most ornamental grasses die back each fall, but the straw-like remains have ornamental value through the winter and most gardeners leave them standing until now. The arrival of Crocus means new grass blades will be resurfacing soon, so remove the old growth to make way for fresh foliage. Tip: tie up the bundle with twine or a bungee cord and chop away the base. The debris will be easily discarded with little clean-up. 3              Restorative prune semi-woody shrubs. Semi-woody shrubs are a class of plants that never develop rigid woody branches. These include Spirea, Potentilla, Caryopteris, Butterfly Bush, and Russian Sage. These plants reach mature size in one growing season and usually top out at a determined height. After 3-5 years they may grow too thick or gangly, flower poorly, or just generally lose their luster. Chop the whole plant down to about 6” from the ground to give them a restorative pruning. This advice may sound counter-intuitive and you may resist chopping down your valuable landscape plants. Many folks mistakenly go out in the middle of summer and clip these plants into cubes or balls, sheering off the soft flowering outer growth and exposing the coarse twiggy branches beneath. This is just wrong. Whacking back the whole plant encourages healthy new growth that will reveal a natural appearance and an explosion of flowers throughout the summer months. Timing is crucial however, so this must be accomplished now or just as the leaves appear on the plants. 4             Maintenance prune Juniper- To keep Juniper in check, selectively prune back now and allow the new growth to fill in as desired. Many homeowners wait until the Juniper have spread half-way across the sidewalk to take any action. They then go out in mid-summer and whack back the branches to the edge of the sidewalk. This lops off the lacy vibrant growth at the tips of the branches and exposes the barren twiggy branching underneath. If done late in the season, no new growth will appear and you’re stuck with this unsightly mess until next year. The plants spread across the sidewalk the following spring, and the cycle repeats itself. This is wrong! Instead, go out now and cut back Juniper 1-2’ from the sidewalk’s edge. Within weeks the new growth will emerge and spread toward the sidewalk or garden border. As summer advances the growth slows, and the lacy, desirable foliage remains on the plant throughout the season without encroaching over your walkways. You can also thin out the bushes by selectively pruning 1/4- 1/3 of the branches back to the base. Admittedly this may look like a disaster immediately after pruning, but this opens up the plant and allows for air movement and sunlight to penetrate to the interior, encouraging new growth and revitalizing the Juniper. Plus, you’ll recover all the baseballs and frisbees long forgotten under the dense overgrowth. 5              Plant trees! Everybody waits until the flowers burst open on the trees to rush down to the garden center to buy their trees. Sure, that’s a fine time to plant, but not as good a time as right now! The trees have a few more weeks dormancy until their buds open up. Its best to transport them before the leaves emerge. The roots will begin to establish themselves immediately, even before any signs of life appear above ground. The trees will blossom or leaf out in your yard, and you can enjoy the show for the duration of the season! If you buy trees in flower chances are the petals will decorate the roadways along the route to your home, leaving little for you to admire for the inaugural year. Trees can only be harvested when dormant, and a mad rush is on to get the trees out of the ground. New stock is arriving daily, and we have the best selection you will encounter until digging resumes in the fall. Happy Trees is a virtual nursery, meaning we don’t have a physical location for you to tour. The only retail places left to buy large caliper trees are beyond the suburbs off into the countryside. But you don’t need to waste your weekend driving across the state to slog through the mud to pick your tree. Use our Happy Trees website to shop online or give us a call and we’ll help you select the perfect tree to suit your needs. Whether you’re looking for shade, privacy, or just something to beautify your yard, let us do the shopping for you. We will send pictures of the trees we select for your approval and arrange for fast, professional delivery and planting. It’s easy! Happy Trees makes happy customers and happy memories for generations to come!   Tue, 19 Mar 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/18968/The-Crocus-are-here--The-Crocus-are-here- http://happytrees.co/blog/18945/Spring-is-coming--birds-are-returning- blog Winter is stubbornly holding Colorado in its icy grip with more storms lining up off the California coast. Nevertheless, as sure as the sun will rise in the morning spring is coming and signs of spring are already making their appearances. If you can brave the cold long enough to be outside for a few minutes you might notice song birds are starting to arrive. With the ground frozen and snow covering the ground birds may be having a tough time foraging for dried berries and seeds. Here’s a few trees that provide excellent nutrition to welcome back migrating birds to your backyard. Crabapple- Crabapple trees are abundant throughout Colorado and are venerated for their explosion of colorful flowers that decorate the trees in early spring. The apples they produce are often a nuisance for gardeners as they can drop on walkways and patios creating a sticky mess, however many varieties produce minute fruits that persist on the branches well into winter. The apples shrivel up like raisins and remain attached to the trees until they are plucked by grateful song birds returning from their winter hide-a-ways. Popular examples are ‘Royal Raindrops’, ‘Prairiefire’, and ‘Indian Magic’. Hawthorn- the berries on most Hawthorn trees are so vividly bright that they are considered an ornamental characteristic and a valuable visual asset. They are usually orange, but can be red or yellow depending on the variety. Mockingbirds, Cedar Waxwings, and even wild Turkeys will forage on Hawthorn berries. Most gardeners will opt for thorn-less varieties like ‘Cockspur’, but thorny trees like ‘Washington’ are extremely hardy and are preferred nesting hosts for many bird species. I suspect birds like the thorny defense that Hawthorn provide, as cats and other predators may find the tree canopy impenetrable. They also sport white flowers in spring and an explosion of red-orange-yellow fall color. European Mountain Ash- An underused small tree with tropical looking leaves, white flowers, and abundant red or orange berries that persist into winter. Mountain Ash are susceptible to a number of insects and diseases, but mostly these aren’t prevalent in our climate. The berries can be messy, so plant away from patios and walkways, but they are very tasty and will attract many bird species. The common name ‘Ash’ is a misnomer and it is not impacted by the Emerald Ash Beetle. Spruce and Pine- These mighty evergreens produce nuts in the cones favored by Finches. They also provide habitat for nesting and offer cover from predators. The common varieties grow quite large, so select cultivated varieties for skinnier, more slender selections if space is an issue. Pinion Pine produce delicious nuts that are tasty for us humans too! Birch and Alder- These closely related trees produce seeds popular with Chickadees. In the wild, these trees are found in the forest understory, usually by streams or marsh areas. They are weak-wooded and won’t stand up to snow loads and summer storms, so they are probably not a great choice for Colorado. Still, many fine examples exist in downtown Denver and around the state, so they’re worth a try if you understand the risks. Hackberry- I can’t tell if the Hackberry is an attractive tree or not. Maybe it’s the name that throws me off. Its growth habit could best be described as irregular. While I rarely find a symmetrical Hackberry, the bizarrely branched structures have a certain appeal I guess. The fall color is yellow, but not particularly bright or stunning. Its best attribute as a Colorado native is that it is extremely hardy and tolerant of a wide range of conditions, including heat, cold, and pollution. Its second best attribute is that it attracts Cedar Waxwings, Robins, Cardinals, and Mockingbirds. It’s a great choice for farms and rural properties, and makes a great street tree for cityscapes as well. In addition to trees that provide food throughout the winter, there are dozens of shrubs that feed our wildlife during the winter months.  Currants, Sumac, Barberry, Quince, Roses, Cotoneaster, Buckthorn, Viburnum, and Coralberry all offer a banquet of seeds and berries for our feathered friends. Also plant ornamental grasses and perennial flowers to provide seeds and nesting material. If your HOA will allow it, remove your rock beds and re-establish a native prairie with wildflowers. This will not only attract birds, but will also bring back bugs, worms, caterpillars, ants, and many other critters upon which birds prey all summer.  If you are interested in attracting birds to your yard, consider the food value of our ornamental trees and shrubs when selecting your plant choices. Happy Trees can help you determine the best trees to plant with the space and exposure you have available. Give us a call and we’ll plant the perfect tree for your family, and for all of the birds you welcome to your yard.   Thu, 14 Mar 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/18945/Spring-is-coming--birds-are-returning- http://happytrees.co/blog/18846/How-are-your-trees-doing- blog Colorado is experiencing its coldest winter in many years, bringing blankets of snow to the mountains and freezing temperatures to the Front Range. I don’t want to dive into the numbers or spark another pointless global warming debate, but needless to say its cold outside and its predicted to be that way for the weeks to come. How are your trees holding up? Quite well, actually. At least I hope so. Once the cold weather settled in this winter it has pretty much stayed consistently cold. We’ve seen some dalliances into the 50s here and there, and possibly some brief incursions into the low 60s. Those encounters have been fleeting, and not nearly warm enough or long enough to warm up the ground. While we haven’t had massive snow totals, the storms are coming in waves and snow is piling up on the shady side of the house. This bodes well for your trees and all of your landscape plants as they slumber through the winter. Cold doesn’t matter so much as long as it doesn’t warm up between cold snaps. Drastic swings in temperature can be detrimental to trees as tissue in the cambium (live cells underneath the bark) freezes and thaws. The best-case scenario is for it to get cold and to stay cold, which is what we’ve experienced so far. Waves of storms have brought coveted moisture to Colorado as well. There hasn’t been much need to winter water so far, as the weather has produced sufficient precipitation to most of the Front Range. More importantly, the snowpack in all of Colorado’s watershed basins is running over 100% of the median snow water equivalent (source https://www.usbr.gov/UC_SnowMap/), meaning most municipalities shouldn’t require water restrictions this summer! Be aware that despite all the snow, moisture may not be penetrating down to the deep roots of your trees. While snow melts in sunny spots, the water may run off and not seep into the frozen ground below. Conversely, in shady areas our dry air may wick the moisture right out of the snow before it gets a chance to melt into the ground! Your trees should be fine though, as we had sufficient rain before the cold settled in and the slumbering roots are awaiting warmer soil to break dormancy. As we head into spring, keep an eye on precipitation as roots begin to grow long before you notice any leaves break bud. While its still too cold to plant trees and digging into frozen ground is no fun at all, its not too early to plan your spring planting. Give Happy Trees a call and we can help you find the perfect tree for your needs and figure out pricing. Trees are currently being harvested and are arriving weekly. Soon the Crocus and Daffodil will be poking up out of the ground and tree planting time will spring upon us. Disclaimer: Colorado has vexing micro climates. Your neighborhood may be in drought conditions. Monitor your trees and water as necessary.   Thu, 28 Feb 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/18846/How-are-your-trees-doing- http://happytrees.co/blog/18643/Experience-blooming-gardens-in-the-middle-of-winter- blog Colorado is swathed tightly in winter’s icy grip, but spring is rapidly approaching and soon you’ll be planting your vegetable garden and adding new plants to your landscape. It’s time to start planning your new year’s landscape projects, as well as other home maintenance or improvement projects you may be contemplating. The best place to find inspiration, ideas, and even qualified professionals to perform the work is at the 2019 Colorado Garden and Home Show. The 2019 Colorado Garden and Home Show starts Saturday, February 9th and runs nine days through Sunday, February 17th at the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver. More than 650 vendors representing landscape design and construction firms and home products and services companies put their talents on display for you to explore. Are you hoping to install solar power? How about a deck or pergola? New roof? Windows and doors? Gutters or leaf guards? Does the house need new paint? A kitchen remodel? Or maybe you’re just looking for some furnishings for the home or patio? It’s all here waiting for you to discover. The main attraction and the real reason to attend are the magnificent and imaginative feature gardens that greet you immediately upon entry and that you encounter throughout the exhibit hall. Nine landscape companies build spectacular demonstration landscape gardens, complete with live fire features, waterfalls and koi ponds, and believe it or not, thousands of plants bursting with flowers! These companies pull out all the stops to showcase their talent and to demonstrate their creativity. On a cold winter’s day, stepping through the doors to the exhibit hall is like thrusting open the gates to the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory! Inside one discovers a fantasy land of leafy trees and shrubs, carpets of green grass, and of course tens of thousands of flowers in full bloom! The gardens feature everything you can imagine for your yard. Retaining walls, patios, fire pits, outdoor kitchens, decks, pergolas, and ponds are all on display for your consideration. Everything is ensconced among colorful gardens with actual flowering plants- such a welcome surprise amid months of snow and chilly temperatures! How do they do it? The landscapers get only one week to set up their garden displays. On the Monday before the show, an armada of semi-tractor trailers converges inside the exhibit hall delivering hundreds of tons of landscape materials to the convention floor. A fleet of front-end loaders and fork lifts scurry about unloading retaining wall block, landscape timbers, huge boulders and other decorative rock, and patio stone. Mountains of mulch, soil, and sand are distributed to the gardens. Crews of workers set about stacking exterior walls, laying patios, and erecting structures. By end of day Tuesday, the bulk of material must be moved into the display area and the main garden features must be completed. Other vendors start moving in Wednesday and accessibility becomes an issue. Many of the more elaborate components can be built off-site and assembled like Legos inside. The berms and raised gardens sit on mounds of light weight mulch which is recycled after the show. On Thursday and Friday all of the smaller vendors invade the hall and tempers flair as gardeners jostle for access and parking among the melee. Hopefully the displays are mostly built and with God’s grace the ponds aren’t leaking. Once the big hardscape jobs are complete the gardens are ready for planting. Just like real-world projects the larger trees and shrubs go first, then every nook and cranny is stuffed with colorful blooming flowers. The flowers are mostly bulbs that are forced into bloom inside heated greenhouses over the winter months. They are tricked into “waking up” and revealing their flowers. They’re collected by boy scout troops after the show and delivered to nursing homes and non-profit agencies where they bring a second round of joy to those that admire them. Many can be kept inside and planted outside once the weather warms up. In addition to the landscapers trying to earn your business, two student gardens showcase the imaginative talent of up and coming future landscape designers. Plant societies and garden clubs hope to earn your attention, and the Colorado State Agricultural Extension service is on hand to answer any diseased or pest related conundrum you may have. It truly is a site to behold, plus a huge convenience if you’re pursuing any home improvement or landscape projects this year. You can engage several companies to figure out which ones might best respond to your needs, and arrange for home site visits for estimates or design consultations. It may take a week or two to schedule an appointment, then depending on how elaborate a project you have in mind it may be a few more weeks to receive plans or proposals. Figure another week or two to work through revisions and fine tune your plans. If you need to get your HOA involved, it may take up to a month for approval and before you know it we’re into April or May- a prime time to plant. So I would encourage you to take advantage of the Garden Show and to get started setting a budget and planning your projects. Unfortunately, the Garden Show still isn’t a great place to showcase trees or to find contractors who are willing to deliver and install just a tree or a few trees. The best place to shop for trees is always HappyTrees.co, and the best company to provide, deliver, and install your trees is Happy Trees! Go ahead and give us a call. We’ll help you figure out the best tree for your needs and you’ll be first in line when the ground thaws in the spring. Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and have a great day!   Mon, 04 Feb 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/18643/Experience-blooming-gardens-in-the-middle-of-winter- http://happytrees.co/blog/18592/Winter-has-arrived- blog It’s late January and a surprise winter storm has washed across the front range, leaving behind a fluffy carpet of brilliant white snow 4-8” deep. Temperatures are on the warmer side, meaning that snow can pack a lot of water weight, potentially damaging young branches and tender shrubs. Hopefully you prepared for this last fall and tied up susceptible plants like Fine Line Buckthorn and Upright Juniper, which tend to splay open under the weight of heavy snowfall. Simply wrap a few loose strands of twine around the plants to help support the limbs and branches in the event of storms such as this one. Don’t cinch the branches tight, just secure enough so that they won’t bend over when the snow piles up. Bungee cords work wonders for this also. Some plants may need other physical supports to protect them from winter’s wrath. I use stakes to prop up my Weeping Norway Spruce. It’s broad arching branches could otherwise collapse under cumbersome snow loads. Young Aspen trees have been known to bend to the ground, however their elastic wood usually snaps back upon snow melt. Other trees like Japanese Tree Lilac and Amur Maple (particularly multi-stem trees) are not so fortunate. Once crippled under oppressive pressure they may not bounce back to their former stately position. Branches and entire trunks may need corrective bracing after the storm, or in severe cases they may need to be pruned off entirely. Regardless of whether your plants are tied or not, you may need to head out during and after the tempest to gently brush accumulated snow off of your precious plants. Use a long-handled broom or other soft brush to sweep and knock the snow down. Plants may become brittle with severe cold temperatures, so use caution and go at it easy. I know everyone wants low maintenance trees and landscapes. Nobody ever says “what kind of tree requires constant attention and care?”. I get it, but I don’t consider this preventative exercise “high maintenance”. Take some time in the fall to tie up vulnerable trees and shrubs, and head back out in the spring to remove the ties and winter tree wrap (see my October 8th blog on “how to prevent sun scald” http://happytrees.co/blog/16966/How-to-prevent-sun-scald-  ). You’ve got to shovel the driveway anyway, so take a few minutes to brush off your plants. Protect your investment and your trees and shrubs will give you and future generations plenty of shade, privacy, and aesthetic beauty! On the bright side the snow is providing bountiful moisture desperately needed by your lawn and all of your landscape plants. Its important to not let the ground dry out entirely over the winter months, and nature is doing a fine job this year nourishing the soil and supplying moisture to the roots. It may not look it, but spring is headed our way! Soon the Crocus will be pushing up out of the ground and those pesky Dandelion will start popping up in the lawn. Roots begin to grow long before any leaves appear on the branches, so keep an eye on the weather and winter water if the need becomes prevalent. Now is also a good time to start planning your spring tree planting! If you’re considering buying and planting trees this spring go ahead and give us a call. We can help you determine the perfect type of tree for your needs, whether you need shade, privacy, or just something to bring a cacophony of color to your yard. We can help you determine your budget and you’ll be first in line when the ground thaws. I actually prefer to plant before the trees break dormancy. They will “wake up” in your yard and you have less risk of transplant shock that we sometimes see later in the season. Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and we look forward to serving your tree needs for generations to come!   Mon, 28 Jan 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/18592/Winter-has-arrived- http://happytrees.co/blog/17948/Clemson-wins-the-2019-National-Championship- blog It’s January and no one is much thinking about buying trees, so this week’s blog is going to be a bit different. I’d like to talk about the Clemson Tigers who just won the Collegiate National Championship! I’m proud to be a Clemson alumnus, class of ’92. I’m even prouder that the character of head coach Dabo Swinney and the culture that he brings to the Clemson Tigers beat the despicable vitriol of Alabama head coach Nick Saban. The success culture that Swinney nurtures among the Tigers is the same ethos that I try to incubate within the Happy Trees community, and it turns out I’ve had a small influence upon the Tiger culture into which Dabo Swinney built a championship team! Let me explain… I discovered Rugby upon my arrival at Clemson. I had been a high school athlete with some promise but it wasn’t until Rugby that the pure essence of sport was unveiled to me. Rugby evolved from Soccer and spawned Football. It marries the physicality and violence of Football with the fluidity and finesse of Soccer. With Rugby I learned that every player has a specific role to perform and each must perform with intense exceptionalism in order for the team to succeed. But to be a champion, every player must know and exploit the talents and habits of his fellow mates as well as his opponents. When this happens, you can execute plays with inspired brilliance, as if playing in the Matrix able to bend the physical universe to your will. I’ve experienced this level of synergy with other pursuits like restaurant and construction work. Great restaurants depend on hostesses, waiters, bus boys, cooks, bartenders, dishwashers, and managers all working harmoniously under a high-pressure environment. If anyone in the chain of service is off her game the whole assembly stumbles and the customers suffer. Same with home construction. If the foundation guy is off by a fraction, it jeopardizes the entire structure! Great companies strive to make sure that everyone involved is maximizing their efforts to achieve a flawless execution of an impeccable product. Again, these are principles I try to instill within the Happy Trees organization, but I digress… In April 2017 I traveled back to South Carolina to celebrate Clemson Rugby’s 50th anniversary. It was great to reconnect with old friends and to revel with generations of players who proudly formed a brotherhood around the sport of Rugby and the college of Clemson. The keynote speaker at the banquet was Sir Graham Henry, former head coach of the Rugby World Champion New Zealand All Blacks, widely regarded as the best Rugby club in the world. Sir Graham Henry is recognized one of the most successful Rugby coaches of all time. During his stay we arranged for coach Henry to meet Dabo Swinney, who had led the Tigers to National Championship victory the previous year. They spoke for over an hour about sports culture and success, but it was later reported that Swinney didn’t fully grasp that he was courting Rugby royalty. This is forgivable given that while Rugby dominates much of the rest of the globe, it struggles to find an audience in America. But imagine chatting with Joe Sakic or John Elway not realizing you stood among giants! Henry gifted Swinney with a copy of the book “Legacy”, which chronicles the feats of the All Blacks and delves into Sir Henry’s philosophy that creates and sustains a culture of greatness. Reportedly Swinney absorbed the knowledge contained within and inspired his team to perpetually escalate their efforts. Some of Legacy’s notable quotes are as follows… “The challenge is to always improve, to always get better, even when you are the best. Especially when you are the best.” “You get nowhere without character. Character is essential to individuals and their cumulative character is the backbone of your winning team.” “The challenge of every team is to build up a feeling of oneness, of dependence on one another,” said Vince Lombardi. “Because the question is usually not how well each person performs, but how well they work together.”” “if you develop your people, your business is going to be more successful. It’s just a matter of creating an environment where that becomes a happening every day.” I’ve read the book and I aspire to incorporate these principles within myself and my company in order to deliver the greatest possible consumer experience with the services I offer. But the point of all this is this; I played Rugby for Clemson, the Rugby club introduced Dabo Swinney to Sir Graham Henry, Sir Graham Henry introduced Dabo Swinney to the book “Legacy”, and Dabo Swinney used the principles within to propel his team to greatness. So, essentially I’m responsible for the Clemson victory over Alabama for the national title in 2019! But seriously, while I don’t know Dabo Swinney personally, I know personal stories through close friends that attest to his extraordinary dedication, faith, and compassion. I aspire to be more like him, and to run Happy Trees the same way he runs the Clemson Football organization. Dabo inspires Clemson not to be better then their opponents, but rather to be better than the standard that they’ve set for themselves. Contrast that to Nick Saban’s kill or be killed standard, and it becomes clear how Clemson slayed the giant 44-16 against all expectations. Having said all that, the weather has been mild and it’s a great time to plant trees! If you are thinking about planting a tree this spring, I would encourage you to go ahead and get it done now. As long as the ground isn’t frozen, we can plant trees. The trees will “wake up” in your yard and you’ll avoid any potential transplant shock when the trees break dormancy in the spring. Don’t forget about winter watering, which I’ll discuss when the need reveals itself. Happy New Year, and have a blessed 2019!   Thu, 10 Jan 2019 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/17948/Clemson-wins-the-2019-National-Championship- http://happytrees.co/blog/17456/When-is-the-best-time-to-buy-our-Christmas-Tree- blog Ski lifts are spinning, cold weather is settling in, our planting season is winding down, and that means that once again the holidays are sneaking up on us! It seems hard to believe but its time to start thinking about selecting the perfect Christmas tree for your family to enjoy through the holiday season. When is the best time to buy my Christmas Tree? Many folks believe that it’s best to wait as long as possible to buy a tree so that they get a “fresh” tree that will hold onto its needles through Christmas morning. Did you know that all of the trees that will be sold this season have already been cut and are sitting in cold storage? Get your tree early so that you can get it inside and into a basin of water so it can rehydrate as quickly as possible. Hopefully it will soak up water like a sponge and the needles should hang on through new years’ day. Cells are dying every day cut trees are sitting outside and the longer they languish out of water the less likely they are to maintain their vigor for Santa’s arrival. Our family tradition is to buy and decorate our tree the day after Thanksgiving. You should have a great selection of trees from which to choose and it’s a great activity for the family over the holiday weekend. What is the best variety for a Christmas tree? As you head out to the tree lot, you’ll find many types of trees from which to choose. Each have their attributes and drawbacks, so here’s a quick guide based solely on my experience to help you decide which way to go. Pine: Pine have long needles and most have a deep green color. The branches tend to be widely spaced with an open habit so the ornaments have room to dangle. I fear Pine seem to dry out and the needles drop quickly indoors, so I pass over the pine in most seasons. Spruce: What better way to celebrate than with Colorado’s state tree? Needle color can range from deep green to almost florescent blue for vibrant color. Needle retention is good, but seems to be fickle and inconsistent. Stout branches hold heavy ornaments well. The biggest problem I have with Spruce is that their short stiff needles are prickly and will leave your arms shredded as you wrestle the tree off your car and into the house! I prefer to plant Spruce outside and decorate them for a living outdoor Christmas tree. Fir: Winner winner chicken dinner! Fir have soft needles that are forgiving on the skin. There are many varieties that range from forest green to silvery blue. They guzzle water once inside and hold fast to their foliage. In fact, their needles are often still attached and as good as new when I pull them out of the burn pile in May or June the following year! Grand Fir are deep green with needles that are arranged in flat sprays across the branches. Their open habit shows off ornaments well. Concolor Fir are native to Colorado and have a cobalt blue color. Noble Fir are green with a graceful shape. My absolute favorite is the Fraser Fir. The needles are green on top with silver undersides, and I believe them to have the best fragrance. How do I care for my Christmas Tree? Once trees are cut, living cells seal up the wound. A fresh cut is imperative to expose healthy tissue and xylem (vascular tissue) to carry water up branches and into the needles. Many tree lots will offer to cut the trees for you, but I prefer to treat them like a flower bouquet and cut them immediately before I get them into water. Plus, I never pass a chance to break out the power tools! A chainsaw or Sawzall works wonders, but hand saws work too. Make a fresh cut an inch or two above the bottom and get them inside and into a water basin directly. Get a tree stand with a large basin for water storage. The best types sit on a broad disc base and not three or four legs that are prone to tipping. Keep a close eye on the water level in the basin especially for the first few days. The tree can guzzle up a gallon or more when first brought indoors! It is typical for this to slow down and even stop altogether as Christmas day approaches. Mind the dogs too as they seem to love lapping water from an extra festive water bowl! You may trim up the lower branches to make room for Christmas bounty. This will make it easier to monitor how much water the tree is drinking and to add water as well. Many tree farms sheer the trees which makes the branches grow full and thick. You can thin out the branches to open up the tree to allow for ornaments to dangle and to be seen on display. The internet abounds with home recipes for making nutrient cocktails for your trees to drink in order to preserve their vigor. I’ve seen everything from bleach, soda pop, vinegar, and corn syrup. I’ve never had a problem with just plain water as long as I buy the tree early and make a fresh cut. The nutrient packets the florist gives you to preserve flower bouquets work as well as anything I suppose. Just never ever allow the water basin to dry up! Can I buy live trees and plant them after Christmas? Yes, but this can be difficult. Live trees can be bought balled-and-burlapped or in containers with roots intact. They have hopefully settled into winter dormancy at the nursery and extended time inside a warm house can cause them to “wake up” and start growing. It’s best to bring them inside for not more than a week or a few days. They will need to be re-acclimated before taking them back outside by putting them in the garage or somewhere where they won’t freeze suddenly. Dig the hole in the fall so you won’t have to hack through frozen soil in January, and keep your excavated soil and soil amendments in the garage or somewhere they won’t freeze as well. Live trees are heavy and hard to move, so consider if it’s not better to buy a cut tree for Christmas and let Happy Trees plant your landscape trees as soon as the snow melts in spring! Conversely, you can plant your tree anytime and decorate and celebrate outside for the holiday. Are Christmas Trees ethical? Yes, absolutely! Most Christmas Tree farms are in places like Oregon or Michigan where rainfall is abundant and growing conditions are ideal. Trees at the farms are every bit as beneficial to the environment as the trees growing in natural forests. They support a vibrant economy and can be recycled for mulch or burned for firewood. Most importantly, they bring joy and smiles to children’s faces on Christmas morning, so enjoy your tree guilt free! What about cutting down trees out of the forest? Trees are a renewable resource and Colorado encourages residents to harvest trees on state lands. Christmas tree cutting thins out tree stands and removes fuel for forest fires. You may be disappointed at the selection though. We look at a forest and marvel at the woodland’s beauty, but finding a single perfect tree is beguilingly difficult. You may need to cut down a fairly mature tree and trim the top eight feet or so to bring into your home. Cutting trees on public land requires a permit which you can obtain at the following link: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/r2/recreation/?cid=fseprd562604 Shouldn’t I just get one of those pre-lighted artificial trees? Sure, they’re easier to set up and they’re getting more lifelike each year. If it’s just another chore for you and you’re trying to save some hassle I suppose that’s a solution. I think you’re robbing your family of the experience though. I always look forward to bundling up and bringing my boy out to hunt for our special tree. I don’t mind standing each one up as he darts through the isles shouting “what about this one Dad?!” I enjoy bringing it in and setting it up, making selective cuts like an ancient Japanese Bonsai master. I prefer a little rum in my hot cocoa and watching football as we untangle strings of lights to see which ones still work after a year’s storage. It’s a tradition that makes Christmas a little more magical and brings the family closer together. We cut the tree up on new year’s day, and the boughs make our spring fire pit fires a little more memorable. You can have your artificial tree, but for me there’s no substitute for a delightfully beautiful and deliciously fragrant natural Christmas Tree!   Sun, 18 Nov 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/17456/When-is-the-best-time-to-buy-our-Christmas-Tree- http://happytrees.co/blog/16966/How-to-prevent-sun-scald- blog Young trees are susceptible to sun scald over the winter months when trees have lost their shading leaves and when the sun strikes at a low angle. This is exacerbated when freezing temperatures and dry air sucks the moisture out of the bark. Until trees develop a thick, corky, protective outer bark, they can get sunburned just like you and me. Sunlight can skip off snow covered ground magnifying the intensity of the sun’s rays. Sun scald dries out the trunk, splitting the bark and potentially kills the trees if left unchecked. Fortunately, sun scald is easily preventable with a simple and inexpensive task that any homeowner can effortlessly perform. Please winter wrap your young trees to shield the vulnerable trunks from desiccating winter sun. Tree wrap is simply a weather resistant paper tape that you wrap around the trees to cover the bark. You can buy tree wrap at most big box stores or at your favorite local garden center. Start at the ground level and wrap the trunks up to where the branching starts. You can secure the tree wrap with duct tape or electrical tape. Wrap snuggly to prevent sagging, and make sure to overlap each course as you spiral up the tree. Remove the wrap when leaves emerge in the spring. This is one of the simplest chores you can perform to protect your investment. Other winter considerations: Nature knows trees and all plants need moisture in the ground as they settle in for their winter slumber, and this year rains arrived just in time. Roots will continue to store nutrients even after the leaves have fallen, so if the rain stops and the ground dries up please drag out the hoses and give the trees a drink. This is usually not necessary, but we don’t want the ground to freeze with the soil bone dry. Be aware of the weather and water only if necessary. Heavy snow loads can snap branches or bend trunks of young trees over to the ground. Trees are particularly vulnerable if early snows strike before the leaves have fallen, or with late spring snows after leaves have emerged. Throw on the snow boots and gently shake the snow off your young trees during heavy storms if snow accumulates on the branches and twigs. Now is actually a great time for planting and fall-dug trees are arriving weekly. We keep the crews running though mid-December so please share this article if you think your friends would find this advice helpful.   Mon, 08 Oct 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/16966/How-to-prevent-sun-scald- http://happytrees.co/blog/16542/Fall-Fertilization- blog Right now is a great time to fertilize your lawn and garden plants. As summer heat wanes Bluegrass and other turf species start sending nutrients to the roots and storing energy for winter dormancy. Apply one pound of nitrogen per one thousand square feet two to three times during the fall season to supply your lawn with necessary nutrients during this critical growth period. Fall fertilization encourages roots to penetrate deeply into the soil resulting in healthier and more drought tolerant turf. This advice may sound counterintuitive if you’ve been conditioned to fertilize in the spring. Spring fertilization can promote excessive top growth leading to a stressed and burned out lawn when summer’s scorching heat arrives. While Iron and micronutrient fertilizers are beneficial in the springtime, nitrogen-based fertilizers are best applied in the fall.  You can review our advice for spring lawn fertilization here: http://happytrees.co/blog/14784/Spring-Lawn-Fertilization All fertilizers carry an analysis which indicates the percentages of the three primary plant nutrients, which are nitrogen, phosphate, and potash, and displayed as 20-10-10 (or any combination of numbers relating to how this particular brand of fertilizer was formulated).  In this example the bag contains 20% nitrogen, 10% phosphate, and 10% potash. Along the Front Range, our soil generally contains sufficient phosphate and potash, so select a formulation with less than 10% of these nutrients. Nitrogen is major building block of plant cells and is primarily responsible for stimulating growth. Applying nitrogen in the fall stimulates desirable root growth rather than excessive top growth. The Colorado State University Extension Service recommends that one pound of nitrogen per thousand square feet should be applied to lawns from mid-August to mid-September, and another one pound of nitrogen per thousand square feet should be applied from early October to early November. Therefore, you should look for a fertilizer with no more than 20% nitrogen for a fall application. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture has a simple guide to help you calculate how much fertilizer to apply in order to achieve one pound of nitrogen per thousand square feet of turf: http://www.ncagr.gov/cyber/kidswrld/plant/label.htm. One of the most exciting advances in agricultural science is the introduction of live cultures of beneficial bacteria and fungi into our soil for the benefit of agricultural crops and landscape plants, including lawn grasses. We are only recently beginning to understand the essential role that beneficial bacteria and fungi contribute to promote a healthy soil ecosystem that supports plant life above ground.  These products are now becoming commercially available and I would encourage you to seek them out at your local garden center or nursery and incorporate them into your gardening practices. With a good spreader fertilizing is perhaps one of the easiest chores that any homeowner can accomplish with the right information. Knowing what type of fertilizer to apply at the proper time of year can help you achieve a lush landscape sustainable for many generations to come. Check back often for other seasonal gardening tips. Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and have a great day!   Tue, 21 Aug 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/16542/Fall-Fertilization- http://happytrees.co/blog/15232/What-are-those-trees-with-the-remarkable-yellow-leaves- blog You may be wondering “What are those trees with the remarkable yellow leaves?” With rare exception, what you are witnessing is not a tree with ornamental yellow leaves, but rather a tree whose leaves ought to be green but is suffering from a nutrient deficiency called iron chlorosis. Iron, the same element that holds up our bridges and skyscrapers, is a major building block of chlorophyll at the cellular level. Chlorophyll is responsible for photosynthesis, the process that converts sunlight into sugars and other nutrients. Iron gives leaves their vibrant green color. Iron is abundant in our soils but often in a form chemically unavailable for plant uptake. When plants are unable to extract iron from the soil, they can’t manufacture chlorophyll. Without chlorophyll, the plants can’t produce the food they need to survive. The leaves turn yellow, weakening the plant until eventually it dies. Treatment: The old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is appropriate here. It can be difficult and expensive to try to resuscitate a severely afflicted tree, but it is relatively easy to prevent the condition from occurring. There are many commercially available iron-based fertilizers with beneficial micronutrients such as manganese, copper, zinc, and boron, which can also lead to chlorosis if deficient in the soil. If you are using regular iron-based lawn treatments in the spring time you are probably giving your trees the iron they need as well. See our blog on spring lawn fertilization for more information. Please note iron will stain concrete and masonry so sweep or otherwise remove all iron fertilizer from hardscape surfaces immediately after application! If you notice yellowing of leaves, particularly on Maple and Oak, liquid iron foliar sprays should be immediately applied for a swift but temporary therapy. For mature or severely distressed trees consult an arborist for more aggressive treatment. For wide spread or persistent symptoms you may want to look into Sulphur-based fertilizers to lower your soil’s pH level, which can temper our alkaline soil and potentially release iron for the trees. One of the most exciting recent advances in agricultural science is the introduction of live cultures of beneficial bacteria and fungi into our soil for the benefit of agricultural crops and landscape plants. While more research is needed, these microbes consume complex molecules and may be able to release iron and other micronutrients in simpler forms, making them chemically available to the plants. These products are now becoming commercially available and I would encourage you to seek them out at your local garden center or nursery and incorporate them into your gardening practices. As you look around the next time you drive out to the airport you’ll get a good sense for what kind of trees like to live here, meaning virtually none. This is due in part to our alkaline soils binding up iron and other micronutrients, making them unavailable for our trees’ nutrition. With a little observation and fertilization, your favorite trees from similar climates around the world can be enjoyed all along Colorado’s Front Range for generations to come.   Wed, 13 Jun 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/15232/What-are-those-trees-with-the-remarkable-yellow-leaves- http://happytrees.co/blog/14784/Spring-Lawn-Fertilization blog Quick summary: When emerging from winter dormancy, your lawn will greatly benefit from an application of fertilizer with no more than 5% nitrogen, but rich with micronutrients such as calcium, sulfur, copper, zinc, magnesium, and predominantly iron.  Iron is a major building block of chlorophyll, which is responsible for photosynthesis and is basically the engine of the plant.  Iron gives tree leaves and grass blades their rich, green color.  Note: iron will react with water and will stain concrete and masonry, so sweep or otherwise remove all fertilizer pellets from hardscape surfaces after application!  Continue reading for a detailed explanation and other helpful advice.  The Daffodil are in full bloom and that means the big box stores are aggressively advertising sales on their spring lawn fertilizer.  While right now is an optimal time to apply fertilizer to your lawn, use a little caution and take a moment to educate yourself before heading out to the lumber yard or your local garden center. As you walk the isles the choice and selection can be overwhelming.  Not all fertilizers are the same and many can be outright detrimental to your lawn if applied at this time!  All fertilizers carry an analysis which indicates the percentages of the three primary plant nutrients, which are nitrogen, phosphate, and potash, and displayed as 5-10-10 (or any combination of numbers relating to how this particular brand of fertilizer was formulated).  In this example the bag contains 5% nitrogen, 10% phosphate, and 10% potash. Nitrogen is major building block of plant cells and is primarily responsible for stimulating growth.  The Colorado State University Extension Service recommends that no more than one pound of nitrogen be applied to lawns per 1,000 square feet at this time of year.  Therefore, you should look for a fertilizer with no more than 5% nitrogen for a Spring application (higher is acceptable if available in a slow release formulation).  Many of the brands you encounter may contain upwards of 20% nitrogen, and this is potentially harmful for the long-term health of your bluegrass lawn.  If you apply high nitrogen fertilizers to your lawn at this time, you will be amazed at the results.  Your winter-brown lawn will green up instantly and you will soon be mowing twice a week to keep up with the rapid growth.  By mid-June you may be gazing at your lush lawn quite pleased with your results.  However, the intense heat of July and August will bake your stressed-out grass and your lawn will likely burn out, resulting in patchy, weed infested, and browned-out turf.  I think the national brands do this intentionally to sell you more lawn conditioners and weed killers later in the season. You think you’ve done the right thing because you saw great results initially, and the good folks at brand X have all the products you need to keep your lawn healthy and weed free all summer long, right?  Please be a responsible steward of your property and heed the following advise for a more sustainable landscape. When emerging from winter dormancy, your lawn will greatly benefit from an application of fertilizer with no more than 5% nitrogen, but rich with micronutrients such as calcium, sulfur, copper, zinc, magnesium, and predominantly iron.  Iron is a major building block of chlorophyll, which is responsible for photosynthesis and is basically the engine of the plant.  Iron gives tree leaves and grass blades their rich, green color.  Feeding your lawn with iron and micronutrients at this time will result in a greener, more water efficient lawn throughout the summer.  Note: iron will react with water and will stain concrete and masonry, so sweep or otherwise remove all fertilizer pellets from hardscape surfaces after application!  One of the most exciting advances in agricultural science is the introduction of live cultures of beneficial bacteria and fungi into our soil for the benefit of agricultural crops and landscape plants.  We have long thought of bacteria and fungi as pathogens to be eradicated from our gardens.  We are only recently beginning to understand the essential role that beneficial bacteria and fungi contribute to promote a healthy soil ecosystem that supports plant life above ground.  These products are now becoming commercially available and I would encourage you to seek them out at your local garden center or nursery and incorporate them into your gardening practices. With a good spreader fertilizing is perhaps one of the easiest chores that any homeowner can accomplish with the right information.  The North Carolina Department of Agriculture has a simple guide to help you calculate how much fertilizer to apply in order to achieve 1 pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of turf: http://www.ncagr.gov/cyber/kidswrld/plant/label.htm. Check back often for other seasonal gardening tips.  Thank you for your consideration of Happy Trees and have a great day!   Wed, 11 Apr 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/14784/Spring-Lawn-Fertilization http://happytrees.co/blog/14439/Weeding blog Its still snowing along Colorado’s front range but spring has arrived nonetheless.  The crocus are in full bloom and the daffodils and tulips aren’t far behind.  As our ornamental flowers emerge from their winter slumber unwanted weeds are now waking up too.  The garden can quickly become overrun with tenacious weeds if left unchecked, so spend a little time over the weekend to eradicate them before they get out of control.  Most weeds can be physically removed by simply grabbing them at the base and gently tugging them out of the soil.  Weeding forks or other tools can be stuck into the ground at the base of the weed to loosen the ground around the roots, making it easier to extract them from the garden.  Pulling weeds out by the roots can help aerate the soil as you work, improving the habitat for your desirable flowers.  If the weeds have gotten away from you or if pulling them is simply too much work, glyphosate based herbicides (such as Round-Up) are a marvelously effective treatment for weed control.  The use of glyphosate herbicides is somewhat controversial, but mostly as it relates to commercial farming and the use of genetic modification to produce glyphosate resistant crops.  According to the National Pesticide Information Center, glyphosate herbicides are safe for residential application so long as basic safety precautions are followed.  I prefer to buy the concentrated form as the ready-to-use product is 99% water.  The concentrate is rather pricey, but a gallon can last several seasons.  I have a dedicated one-gallon pump sprayer that I use only for herbicide, and I keep it handy so I can destroy weeds as they are discovered.  If you spray the weeds as they emerge and use a precision nozzle, you use only a small amount of product with very little waste.  Just mind the wind as drifting spray can kill your ornamental plants. Whether you pull weeds by hand or treat with herbicides, spend a little time each week to control weeds early and often.  If you forget about it for a few weeks or months your yard can quickly be taken over by obnoxious interlopers.  Wed, 21 Mar 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/14439/Weeding http://happytrees.co/blog/14441/Spring-Watering blog Happy spring!  As the weather warms up and your plants begin to wake up from their winter slumber, be aware that roots begin to develop long before you see any leaves emerge or flowers pop open.  The roots need moisture in order to begin pushing through the soil and transporting nutrients to the developing buds.  We generally don’t turn on our irrigation systems until late April or May, and spring snows may not adequately provide moisture deep into the root zone.  Its important to drag the hoses out and water your plants if natural precipitation is deficient. If we’ve experienced rain or snow, or if the ground is still frozen or snow covered you don’t need to do anything just yet.  Just please keep an eye on the ground moisture and water on a warm day as needed.  A good soaking once a week should be ample until you get your irrigation system fired up.  If you have a recently planted tree from Happy Trees, your water gauge can show you if moisture is available in the root zone.  Otherwise you might dig a little in the vegetable garden or other inconspicuous place to see if there’s moisture in the soil or not.  With Colorado’s intense sunshine and Chinook winds it doesn’t take long for the ground to dry out completely. One last tip…temperatures are still dropping below freezing on some nights so disconnect your hose from the tap to prevent freeze damage.  Drain your hoses so they don’t freeze as well.  Spring watering can help your plants and trees get off to a healthy start, so be aware of your plant’s needs and water as necessary. Wed, 21 Mar 2018 06:00:00 GMT http://happytrees.co/blog/14441/Spring-Watering