Public Horticulture Intern Katrien de Waard discusses how to water your garden beds.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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Public Horticulture Intern Katrien de Waard shares tips and tricks to watering your containers.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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Public Horticulture Intern Katrien de Waard discusses how to water your lawn.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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Summer Horticulture Intern Jake Cammarota discusses sumac and making sumac-ade, a tangy, lemonade-like drink from our native sumac.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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Why do my beech tree leaves have stripes? Join Assistant Horticulture Supervisor Beck Armstrong as she discussing Beech Leaf Disease and how it is moving through the beech trees in our area.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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Summer Education Intern Moss Graves teaches us about the difference between soil and dirt as well as how to conduct a soil separation experiment.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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2024 -2025 Public Horticulture Intern Seamus Lewin reviews how to identify and remove invasives plants commonly found in PA woodlands.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

The post Gardener’s Almanac: Winter Invasive Plant Removal appeared first on Scott Arboretum & Gardens.

Summer Intern Zoe James demonstrates how to dig and divide irises and hostas.

Tune into the Gardener’s Almanac to learn what we are doing in the garden at this moment. Learn from Scott Arboretum staff which plants we are pruning, planting, weeding and which pests we are monitoring and removing right now. This virtual almanac is a great reference guide for gardeners.

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The newest emerging disease affecting shade trees, Beech Leaf Disease, is spreading across the Northeastern states and it is on campus. This disease affects American beech, European beech, and Oriental beech. It is currently having a devastating effect on the predominant beech/birch/maple forest in New York state and has been present in Massachusetts since 2020.

Symptoms include leaf striping, curling, and leathery texture. These symptoms can be observed from May to October by looking up into the canopy. Microscopic worms, known as nematodes, feed on plant foliage, affecting the leaf tissue and photosynthetic process, which in turn weakens the tree. As the disease progresses, leaf and bud production is impacted along with heavy leaf loss. A single tree can have heavily infected branches and unaffected branches. 

The beech genus, Fagus, lacks any natural defenses to this disease. The two options for treatment are foliar sprays and trunk injections. Foliar sprays are typically for young specimens while mature, large specimens require a trunk injection. Many homeowners are choosing to protect their large, mature specimens with these treatments. 

Here at Scott, we are proactively treating approximately 30 specimen trees in the heart of campus, where we are seeing little to no symptoms at this time. 

Unfortunately, our predominantly maple/beech forest along the Crum Creek is extensively affected. We are letting nature take its course in the woods and are developing plans to replant the beech-dominated areas with native trees. We plan to use a selection of white oaks (Quercus alba), hickories (Carya spp.), and maples (Acer rubrum), and also allow our tulip poplars (Liriodendron tulipifera) to seed in. In the understory, we are planting redbud (Cercis sp.), chokeberry (Aronia sp.), and native dogwood (Cornus florida). 

Learn more about this disease in Pennsylvania here. 

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This August, Scott Arboretum & Gardens created its latest ephemeral environmental art piece, Little Princess! Horticulturist Josh Coceano and Arboretum interns painted a lifeless tree an efflorescent pink to encourage reflection on the fragility of trees and to inspire people to notice the landscape, rather than take it for granted.

This Chionanthus retusus (Chinese fringe tree) was an older specimen that had been in decline and was ultimately lost earlier this summer. It is the fourth tree that Scott Arboretum & Gardens has transformed in this way, using striking color to draw the community’s attention to the ever-changing landscapes in a beautiful and meaningful way. The bold pink gives new “life” to the dead tree, honoring its presence and history while prompting reflection on impermanence and renewal. 

Delightfully named Little Princess, the ephemeral art piece will be on display until natural decay claims the tree. Come visit our princess in all seasons as she makes a charming and thought-provoking statement adjacent to the Dean Bond Rose Garden. 

Learn more about how this ephemeral art will age in the landscape with the story of our 2016 ephemeral art installation, Tsuga canadensis Pendula Purpurea. Check out this great recap of ephemeral art installations at the Scott Arboretum & Gardens with this 2021 Hybrid article (page 6.)

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