Tree & Shrub Care

By Trish Grenfell, Master Gardeners of Placer County Q: Our Blue Oak trees on the perimeter of our property are losing much of their leaves. I know they are deciduous trees but their leaves normally don’t drop until the fall. Do you know what could be the cause? I fear it is Sudden Oak Death.A:…

Article and photos by Nicole Harrison, Master Gardeners of Placer CountyFrom The Curious Gardener, Spring 2022  How we prepare for fire can mean the difference between dead trees and trees that are resilient to fire. In an evaluation of a fire damaged tree, there are a few key things to consider…

From Forestland Steward, Winter 2007 newsletter, courtesy of California Forest Stewardship ProgramFrom The Curious Gardener, Summer 2007Trees die even in healthy forests; it’s part of the cycle of life. But if you notice large numbers of previously healthy trees with brown needles or other signs of disease…

Article and photos by Nicole Harrison, UC Master Gardener of Placer CountyFrom The Curious Gardener, Winter 2022  To a large degree trees are just biological organisms that progress through a predetermined life cycle, like us. They sprout and grow (infancy) and then enter a vigorous growth phase …

By Nicole Harrison, UC Master Gardener of Placer CountyFrom The Curious Gardener, Spring 2023  After the extreme weather of January, anyone with trees still standing probably felt lucky. The unfortunate truth is that many of the failures were likely predictable by a qualified consulting arborist…

Why are conifers dying?Across the state, but in the Sierra Nevada in particular, unprecedented numbers of trees have died on both public and private land. Many trees stressed from the four-year drought and overcrowding have succumbed to bark beetles. Aerial detection surveys done in 2016 showed that 102…

It’s almost Halloween, so many of us are thinking about jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, and mummies. When you think of a mummy, you probably imagine the scary kind inspired by the ancient Egyptian ritual of preserving the bodies of the dead. When we talk about mummies at UC IPM, we mean something completely…

The Basics of Pruning Pruning isn’t just about keeping plants tidy, it’s about enhancing the health, structure, and appearance of your landscape. With the right tools and a little know-how, you can promote stronger growth, reduce disease, and even increase flowering in your trees and shrubs.Pruning…

California’s urban forests deserve nothing less than “Fancy” trees. Jessie Godfrey, UC ANR Environmental Horticulture and Water Resource Management Advisor, is elevating the work of “Team Fancy,” a group of nursery professionals advocating for state-specific tree quality standards. These standards aim to…