Garden Talk - Trees on the mind

In October, it?s inevitable that trees ? or at least their leaves ? will be on our minds. Sunny days offer golden glows and red flames providing a visual feast. If the bounty in your own garden is unsatisfactory, this is the right time to note where more color would be welcome.

To add more red to your autumn palette, consider the Freeman maple (a hybrid of red and silver maples). Its leaves in fall will range from orange to red. Popular cultivars include Celebration, Autumn Blaze and Sienna Glen. Red maple cultivars, Red Sunset and Redpointe will provide dark red fall foliage, and red oaks offer leaves that will turn wine red.

A smaller source of red foliage for fall in Iowa is the winged euonymus or burning bush. This shrub does require full sunlight for best color. Another hardy source of red is staghorn sumac.

Both Norway maples and sugar maples are good sources for yellow tree foliage. Spicebush and common witchhazel offer smaller sources of autumn yellows.

If you already have some trees and shrubs planted this year, the dry conditions we?ve had this fall prompt some concern. A good, slow soak weekly or twice a week will be valuable. Another technique to try is this: place a five-gallon bucket with a 1/8 inch hole in its bottom on the mulch at the young tree?s base. Fill the bucket and let it drain. Move the bucket a quarter-turn around the tree with each watering to be sure that the entire root system is well-watered.

Finally, a sadder source of tree concern is a dead tree or one that is very vulnerable. Ash trees in our area fit into that ?vulnerable? category. If you have a dead or vulnerable tree in a high traffic area or close to your house or outbuildings, it may be time to discuss removal with a reputable tree service.