|
Proper Tree Watering
Trees that are native or adapted to living here and that have been in the ground over two years shouldn't require any watering except under really exceptional circumstances. If your soil is very compacted or very poor in organic matter you may need to water young trees longer than that. But even native trees need some additional water for the first two years after they have been planted from a container. Trees in containers have much smaller root systems than if they had been grown from a seed in the place they are.
We recommend at least 2 gallons of water per week (week that it doesn't rain at least one inch) per gallon of container size. So a five gallon trees should have ten gallons of water per dry week. You should water very slowly so that the water penetrates the soil rather than running off. You can back off a bit during the dormant season but still check the soil moisture and water if the soil is dry an inch below the surface.
Of course, a three or four inch layer of mulch from a couple of inches from the trunk out beyond the drip line of the tree is very important for conserving soil moisture. It also provides organic matter that will help the soil retain moisture in the future.
Mascot Named!
We had over two hundred excellent entries and lots of votes for the finalists but the winning entry in our "name the mascot" contest is "Barkley". We also held the premier for the tree costume version of Barkley at KGSR, radio Austin's Blues on the Green concert in Zilker Park on June 13 featuring Ruthie Foster and again at on July 11 with Storyville providing the music. Many thanks to our great, good friend Big Jyl for allowing us to parade around. Come to the next Blues on the Green to meet Barkley for yourself. Here's a complete schedule for Blues on the Green and here's a glimpse of Barkley at work: 
TreeFolks Commits to Planting One Million Trees
In researching a grant offering money for capacity building we found ourselves asking "how many trees should we plant?". Of course, we've always planted a few more every year but we had never looked at a specific, long term goal.
In the process of gathering data we looked at a study conducted by American Forests for Austin in 1996. They had an enormous list of tree benefits associated with increasing the tree cover in Austin by 6% (from 34% to 40%). Now 6% didn't sound like very lofty goal until we started looking at how many trees that added up to. Considering the surface area we'd need to cover it came to just over 990,000 trees. We rounded that up to one million and decided that is what we should commit to.
At our current rate of planting it would take about 90 years to reach that goal so we decided on twenty years as a deadline. In order to plant that many trees in that period of time, we'll have to plant 14% more trees every year. Needless to say, that's a lot of growth but we have a comprehensive plan. To get details of that plan and how to help us achieve it, please contact us at your nearest convenience.
Playing Favorites!
Is there a tree that you pass on your way to work that really catches your eye? Or maybe there's a tree in your yard that you think is really exceptional? We're not necessarily talking BIG, just a really exceptional tree: shape, form, really great location or even a great story attached to it. Now you can honor that tree by entering it in the City of Austin's "Tree of the Year" contest. There are categories for large and small trees. All you need to do is fill out a short nomination form and send it back to the City. Hit this link for all of the details!
Feed Me!
As a rule, TreeFolks advocates planting native trees. Natives are time-tested experts at surviving in our harsh, unpredictable climate. Being so good at living here they don't generally need any fertilizer. They should NEVER be fertilized during the first two years in the ground. After two years a good dusting (1/2" or so) of compost in a two foot wide band straddling the drip line of the tree will almost always be all the food a native tree will ever need. The best time to apply compost is in the fall but it isn't too late now, if you rake it in so that it makes good contact with the soil and is covered by the grass or undergrowth.
The exception to the feeding and "natives-only" rule is fruit trees. Any improved fruit or nut tree will need some supplemental feeding for the life of the tree if you expect to get good quantities of fruit. That food is best given as two applications of low-yield organic fertilizer. The yield of a fertilizer is written on the bag as a series of three numbers. The first is the percentage of nitrogen, the second is phosphorous and the third is potassium. Too much nitrogen can break down valuable organic matter in the soil and too much phosphorous can chemically bind other nutrients in our alkaline soil. Avoid fertilizers with more than ten percent nitrogen or five percent phosphorous.
You can purchase prepared fertilizer or make you own with five pounds of greensand (available at your local nursery) per fifty-pound bag of cottonseed meal (available from your local feed store). Apply one pound of the home-made fertilizer per inch of trunk diameter in the early spring in a band around the dripline of the tree and always water vigorously right after you apply so that the fertilizer settles into contact with the soil. Repeat that application when the weather starts getting over 95 degrees or around June.
If you really want to WOW your friends and neighbors with bushels of yummy, fresh fruit get a copy of our Fruit and Nut Tree Growing Guide.
Shop for the Environment!
On your way through the checkout stand at your Central Texas HEB until May 5, you can tear off a donation card and throw it on top of the salad mix, peanut butter and recyclded paper towels to benefit EarthShare of Texas. Our good friends at HEB have set up this pilot program to benefit our good friends at EarthShare of Texas and your response is how they'll measure the success of the program. TreeFolks, Inc is a member of EarthShare and will share the proceeds with the other 28 Central Texas members of EarthShare. You KNOW you're going shopping anyway, please help us make this a glowing success!
Plant Now or Forever Hold Your Shovel!
Okay, that's an exaggeration. If you intend to plant trees this spring you should definitely get them in before the end of March. Trees planted after that point won't put on any growth this year and they stand a much greater chance of dying due to heat and drought stress. Proper planting technique is most important when you plant this time of year. Click here for complete planting instructions.
 Remember that a nice thick layer of mulch is a key to tree success in our hot climate. Mulch cools the soil, preserves moisture, adds valuable organic matter and acts as a passive barrier around the sensitive root zone of your newly planted tree. Don't feel like you have to spend a lot of money on mulch. If you see line clearing trucks or an arborist in your neighborhood, ask for some freshly ground wood. It will last longer than the expensive, partially decomposed stuff you might buy.
If you absolutely, positively can't get it done yourself, TreeFolks, Inc. can plant trees that you buy anywhere for a very reasonable fee (if we say so ourselves). Go to our online store to order. We're really, really good at it and money from planting your trees goes to our programs to plant trees in public spaces all over Central Texas.
If you don't get your trees in the ground this month don't worry about it. October will come around before you know it and it will, once again, be safe to grow the urban forest. We'll be holding our giant benefit tree sale again in October and we'll have lots of great deals on a vast selection of trees.
Fall is Falling!
The weather is cooling down and the days are getting shorter. We've set back the clocks and we're finally ready for tree planting season. Being tree lovers you all know that fall is the BEST time to plant trees. The dormant season gives your new trees time for the soil around them to settle and the roots to start spreading before the heat of spring and summer. It's also time to spread compost and wildflower seeds.
Fall is also the time to enjoy the leaves turning  color. Now, Central Texas isn't New England  but there are things that you can plant for a beautiful fall display. Texas Red
Oak (upper right picture) and, if you live east of I35 Shumard Oak are reliable producers of red to purple foliage. Flame Sumac (right)is an excellent small tree for blazing fall color. Cedar Elm (picture on left), Texas Ash and Black Hickory produce brilliant gold leaves. Sprinkle some Maxmillian Sunflower, Purple Gayfeather and some of our beautiful native bunch grasses and your landscape will celebrate the season right along with you.
For some more suggestions about what to plant for fall beauty check with our friends and the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.
Benefit Tree Sale a HUGE Success!!!
Our first annual Benefit Tree Sale was held on Saturday October 14 at the Sunset Valley Farmers' Market (at the Toney Burger Center). TreeFolks staff, board members and volunteers gave away free trees (courtesy of Austin Energy and Randall's Supermarkets), answered tree questions and sold high-quality native and fruit trees to hundreds of happy attendees. We don't have numbers finalized but we do know that we grossed over $30,000. That's over three times what we expected.
Many thanks to all who participated in this exciting new project and especially to the volunteers who gave up a beautiful Saturday to help Keep Austin Shady.
TreeFolks Commits to Planting One Million Trees
In researching a grant offering money for capacity building we found ourselves asking "how many trees should we plant?". Of course, we've always planted a few more every year but we had never looked at a specific, long term goal.
In the process of gathering data we looked at a study conducted by American Forests for Austin in 1996. They had an enormous list of tree benefits associated with increasing the tree cover in Austin by 6% (from 34% to 40%). Now 6% didn't sound like very lofty goal until we started looking at how many trees that added up to. Considering the surface area we'd need to cover it came to just over 990,000 trees. We rounded that up to one million and decided that is what we should commit to.
At our current rate of planting it would take about 90 years to reach that goal so we decided on twenty years as a deadline. In order to plant that many trees in that period of time, we'll have to plant 14% more trees every year. Needless to say, that's a lot of growth but we have a comprehensive plan. To get details of that plan and how to help us achieve it, please contactus at your nearest convenience.
Shop for Sustainability
You have two opportunities during the week of December 3 to help TreeFolks while filling out your holiday shopping list! On Thursday December 7 you can join us at Ten Thousand Villages for fair-traded crafts from around the world as well as free tree saplings. For more information click here. Also, please join TreeFolks, Inc. at the Sustainable Shopper's Ball on Saturday December 9, 2006. The Ball is a quarterly event held at the Sunset Valley Farmer's Market. It features over 60 vendors of environmentally responsible merchandise and services. There will be live music, yummy organic food and fun for the whole family. Follow this linkfor more information about the Sustainable Shopper's Ball. We'll be there with free saplings (courtesy of Austin Energy and Randalls Supermarkets) and we'll be selling our Tree Growing Guides, certified organic t-shirts, gift Memberships to TreeFolks and one-gallon "gift trees". If somebody on your Christmas list wants to make the world a cleaner, greener place this is your shopping experience! |
