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Flowering Trees: Glamour Stocks of the Garden
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16451 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
5 / 1989 |
1,509 Words |
| Author
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Virginia Greiner
Virginia Greiner writes a weekly gardening column for the
Washington Times. |
Trees are the biggest investment most homeowners make in their landscapes. They offer dividends of shade, pleasure, usefulness, and increased property value. Flowering trees pay an even more attractive return. The blooms that transform them into giant outdoor bouquets are a bonus that ranks them among the glamour stocks of the garden.
Wall Street investors may not get another chance if they miss a stock run-up or a bull market. But even if gardeners miss the prime planting time, which is spring in most parts of the country, they can prepare for autumn, an equally good time to plant.
Gardeners can also determine when they want to collect their flowering dividends. Depending on which trees they chose, they can enjoy Gulliverian bouquets in spring, summer, winter, or fall. The Chinese witch hazel, for instance, blooms as early as February and as far north as Pennsylvania and Delaware, while the common witch hazel is among the last shrubs to bloom in the fall.
Blue-chip trees
Smart buyers do as much research as possible before they risk any capital. Don't rely solely on a stock prospectus or a garden catalog, because neither points out weakness and dangers. Mildew, for example, is one of the risks to know about in growing crape myrtle in humid climates. Even a blue-chip tree like the native flowering dogwood may not be as safe a choice as it once was. Scientists now fear it is being threatened by anthracnose, a fungus disease as serious as the horrendous Dutch Elm disease that killed off most of those mighty trees over the last generation.
A good place to do garden research is in your own neighborhood. Take a walk around and see what's flourishing and what looks scrawny and spindly. Ask neighbors who lived in the area at least two or three years what has grown well for them.
Or you can take a book or magazine with pictures of varieties that appeal to you to a local garden center or nursery for advice. Local garden clubs are usually a better source of regional information than national associations. Experts at a nearby arboretum, botanic garden, or country extension service are usually knowledgeable.
Also determine whether the trees you're considering are practical investments. If a tree is costly, has a chancy outlook in your climate, and
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