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We are having some nice fall weather now after a long hot summer. Glad that is behind us. Now is the time for fall planting. FALL IS THE BEST TIME OF YEAR FOR PLANTING TREES AND SHRUBS Fall fertilizing should be done now as well. If you have not done your fall fertilizing yet you should do it as soon as possible. This fertilizing is important because it gives plants a good boost and also gives them stored food for winter. Next spring they will use that stored food for growth as soon as the weather warms. A balanced fertilizer is good for almost everything in the landscape. Citrus trees would like a citrus fertilizer and this should be the last application for them for the season. Don’t feed them in the winter. Rhododendrons and azaleas should not be fertilized now unless it is with a bloom fertilizer. This will help give more blooms next spring. The same could be used on Dogwoods if you have one that does not want to bloom well. It may help. The weather is now ideal for fall planting of trees and shrubs. Fall planted trees and shrubs develop roots through the cooler fall …

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June has gone like the rest of the spring this year as far as the weather goes. It has been very warm and then cool. We have some rain and cool weather for about another week. And looking at the long range forecast on my weather app, it looks like it will be nice. WATERING Watering becomes much more important to make sure it is done well with the warmer weather. When watering trees, be sure to give established trees a deep soak once or twice a week depending on temperatures. Newly planted should be watered daily for the first week oor so then cut back to about three times per week. Do not give short daily waterings. Give good deep soaks. A good rule to use is to give 10 gallons of water per week for every inch of trunk diameter and be sure to soak to a depth of at least 12 inches. On larger trees you’ll want to soak to a depth of 2 to 3 feet. Use slow drip and let it run long enough to soak deep. Add 3″ of mulch around your trees and shrubs to hold the moisture in the ground and not …

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May 2017 marks 32 years in business for us here at Bald Mountain Nursery. My parents, Richard and Cecilia Rice started the business in 1985. Richard Rice (Dad) passed away in 2005. I joined the business in 1992 and have been fortunate enough to raise my son here and have him grow up around the business. He used to be here all the time as a kid and worked here too. Truly a family business. He’s now off on his own and living in Wisconsin. Mrs. Rice (Mom) is still here almost every day. She is supposed to now be moving out of the customer service capacity at the nursery. She still likes to do it but is not as fast at it as she used to be. She is always there to answer questions and water and tend to plants but she is not there for writing up sales. Her vision is not what it once was and she prefers to not be in that capacity any more. So she will be in a capacity of doing some of the maintenance chores around here she enjoys and also enjoys talking to folks. But myself and those who work here …

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WE WILL BE CLOSED EASTER SUNDAY. Well, it seems that winter is not wanting to end this year. But really with the moisture and the cooler weather, it is a great time for planting. Many things are needing to be done in the landscape during April. Rhododendrons should have the flower trusses that are spent snapped off at the base as soon as they fade. Don’t wait until all the flowers have finished blooming to remove them because the plant will expend energy making seeds that would be better used to add new foliage when it has completed the bloom cycle. Fertilize them right after flowering with a rhododendron azalea camellia fertilizer now and then again in 30 days and a final time 30 days after that. The same treatment applies to azaleas when they are done blooming. All those daffodils that were so beautiful earlier are no longer beautiful. Don’t cut off the leaves while they are still green. While the leaves are green, fertilize them with a high phosphorous fertilizer or one labeled “bulb food”. They bloomed early this year but here at the nursery the leaves are still green and the fertilizing can still be done. Hopefully …

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