Your home outside the city limits.
Diseases, insects, drought and age take a toll on windbreaks, resulting in the need for renovation or tree replacement. For example, the windbreak above is compromised by the loss of Scotch pine trees to pine wilt. Winter is a good time to assess your windbreak and order trees for spring planting. Most windbreaks, even those... Continue Reading →
I won’t even offer a feeble excuse, but this will be the November-December “On The Fence” for several reasons. The greatest of these is there is not a lot to write about what is happening on farms at this time of year. Almost all harvest has been completed. I have some farmers locally, and I’m... Continue Reading →
National Wreaths Across America Day!
Let’s talk trivia thanks to some facts from the Nebraska Christmas Tree Growers Association webpage:
Photo by freestocks.org on Pexels.com
Q: For every real Christmas tree harvested, how many seedlings are planted in its place? A: 2 to 3
Q: How many acres are in production for growing Christmas trees in the U.S? A: About 1 million acres
Q: What is the average growing time for a tree to reach average retail height of 6 feet? A: 7 years
Q: What are the top selling Christmas trees? A: Balsam Fire, Douglas Fir, Fraser Fir, Noble Fir, Scotch Pine, Virginia Pin, White Pine
Q: How many Nebraska counties have Christmas tree growers? A: 15
I wish you and your family a very blessed Holiday season!
Justin Evertson, Nebraska Statewide Arboretum Although most conifer trees are considered to be evergreens, all of their needles eventually fall just like deciduous trees. What makes them evergreen is that their leaves/needles persist more than one year before falling. Since new needles are added every year, there is always an overlap between green needles... Continue Reading →
From time to time, you’ll see Acreage Life blog posts that mention various tools and equipment that you may not heard of, have never taken the time to buy, or wish that someone else would buy for you.
When discussing beneficial critters, it’s easy to forget about the ones we don’t see, especially those below ground. Yet the soil is where it all starts, so they deserve recognition and admiration too. From cycling and retaining nutrients to improving structure, suppressing disease and moving and holding water, air and carbon, soil fauna do an... Continue Reading →
Water conservation is important in home and business landscapes. While leaving automatic irrigation systems turned off, and only turning them on when plants need water, is a much needed practice change in many residential and business landscapes, selecting drought tolerant plants is also important. This article focuses on drought tolerant shrubs for different functions. While... Continue Reading →
Deciding on an artificial versus real Christmas tree is a matter of personal preference. Growing up, we had an artificial tree mostly because my mom’s allergies were very sensitive to the smell of pines and our house was pretty small so having a small tree we knew would fit in our dining room was preferred.... Continue Reading →
The holiday season is upon us. It is at this time of the year that we begin to decorate our homes for the holidays. One of my favorite holiday decorations is the Christmas Tree. This plant of the month article will not focus on one specific plant, but the many different types of trees that... Continue Reading →
Cranberries are a common part of holiday celebrations, whether they're used as garland decorating a Christmas tree or in the holiday meal. One of the few native North American fruit crops, cranberries provide plenty of health benefits, too. Health Benefits Cranberries prevent harmful bacteria from wreaking havoc on the body. Research by Cornell University reported that... Continue Reading →
Thanksgiving is a holiday that is quintessentially American (or North American, since our Canadian friends also have their own Thanksgiving). A commemoration of not only the arrival and survival of the pilgrims in Plymouth in 1621, but of our thankfulness for what we have. It is a time for us to gather with family or... Continue Reading →
