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Tree Care

Caring for Fruit Trees and Bushes: Blackberry

By Kim Peacock | July 18, 2018

How to Plant, Care, and Prune Arapaho Blackberry Bushes

Blackberries are often considered one of the easiest fruits to grow at home. They are a native species to the United States and grow as a small shrub or trailing vine. The fruit from this plant can be used for table fruit, syrup, jams, and jelly. Proper care starts when you select a proper plant, and what you do in its first few years of life will affect its shape, strength, and even its life span.

This guide will take you step by step, from selecting and planting the right fruit trees, bushes, and vines for your backyard garden or orchard, all the way to upkeep of your mature tree.

Choosing a Site
Light: Full Sun

Soil: Prefer acidic to slightly basic (6.0-7.0), well-drained, organic soil. However, they adapt to most soil types except alkaline and wet. If you have clay soil, you will need to amend with organic matter. To increas..

Arbor Day Member Stories

Arbor Day Foundation Member Story: Robert Frey

By Nina Burkey | July 16, 2018

It is not hard to continue to be inspired by nature when the images above are your view. Robert Frey, (Bob) of Lakeside Advisors, Inc. in Seattle, WA has been a member of the Arbor Day Foundation for the past 22 years. He enjoyed watching the baby seedlings he received grow from their tiny size into their full grown majestic beauty.

Bob first became a member of the Foundation because, “the Arbor Day Foundation provided a simple and easily understandable way of benefiting trees and forests.” The contributions of trees that are necessary to life such as; absorbing pollutants, producing oxygen, preventing erosion and creating strong communities have always been apparent to him.

Having spent his childhood in the Midwest, Bob carried his love of nature with him into adulthood. He believes he was, “destined to end up in a 111-year-old barn on 2.5 acres in Normandy Park, wher..

Rain Forest Rescue

How Well Do You Know Rain Forests? [QUIZ]

By Bradley Brandt | July 13, 2018

Have you ever visited a rain forest? Do you realize how important they are to the earth? These dense forests are teaming with life and provide numerous ecosystem services to people around the globe. Take the quiz below to see how knowledgeable you are on rain forest facts.

1. There are two main types of rain forests. What are they?

Temperate and Mild

Tropical and Temperate

Tropical and Aesthetic

One forest is situated near the equator and receives abundant rainfall throughout the entire year, the other is found in areas with milder climates and located in North and South America, Europe, Eastern Asia, and Southern Australia.

Continue >>

2. Rain forests are home to more than ____ of the world’s flora and fauna species.

35%

50%

65%

75%

This is a large number considering thes..

Landscape Design

The Best Low-Maintenance Fruit Trees

By Arbor Day Foundation | July 11, 2018

Guest post by Katie Kuchta of LawnStarter.

There is something special about being picking a piece of fruit off a tree in your own garden. Some trees can grow to take up a lot of space while others can be kept quite small to adapt to your garden size. If you live in an urban jungle with little space on your patio or a home in suburbia with plenty of surrounding space in your backyard — there is always a way to create a thriving outdoor space full of fruitful plants, shrubs, and trees.

Depending on the variety you choose, some fruit trees are self-pollinating and some require a pollinator. Self-pollinating fruit trees include apricots, nectarines, peaches, and sour cherries; whereas fruit trees that require pollinators include apples, pears, plums, and sweet cherries. Trees requiring a pollinator may seem like additional work, however, it’s really just a strength in numbers game…

Corporate Partnerships

Planting Purpose with the Arbor Day Foundation

By Arbor Day Foundation | July 9, 2018

Guest post by Dalila Wilson-Scott, Senior Vice President of Community Impact for Comcast Corporation.

Comcast Cares Day is the nation’s largest single-day corporate volunteer effort and a powerful representation of Comcast NBCUniversal’s year-round commitment to community service. I have the privilege of working with a team to lead this effort, and this year for the first time, one of our focuses was working with the Arbor Day Foundation to restore communities devastated by natural disasters. Its mission is simple: to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. And that is what we did on April 21, 2018 in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation at four different sites across the U.S. Each project had a different purpose and a unique story.

· In Miami, Comcast NBCUniversal and community volunteers helped to renovate Sweetwater Elementary school with t..

Landscape Design

Fast-Growing Small Shade Trees

By Sheereen Othman | July 5, 2018

It can be hard to find the right tree for the right place when you have a small space to work with. But that shouldn’t stop you from planting trees. There are plenty of small trees that are meant for small spaces. But before you plant, decide what purpose you want your tree to serve: are you planting for beauty? Shade? Privacy? Windbreak? Determining what you want your tree to do will help you narrow down your tree selection.

These fast-growing small shade trees and bushes are great for small spaces. Best of all, they’re nice to look at and will provide great shade.

Fruit Trees
Early Harvest Apple

Malus domestica ‘Early Harvest’

As its name suggests, this high-yielding apple tree is of the first to be ready for harvest. The golden apples are ready to be picked as early as July in some locations, with the latest harvest in September. The creamy white flesh is juicy and tart when ripe.

Z..

Misc Trees

13 Stunning Trees Around the World

By Sheereen Othman | June 29, 2018

Nature is full of wonder and beauty. The more time you spend outdoors, the greater your appreciation is for the natural world. Trees are some of the most fascinating phenomena, and these rare trees around the world prove it. How many of these trees do you recognize?

1. Lacebark Pine
Pinus bungeana

Forbidden City, Beijing, China. Lacebark pine

This conifer grows naturally in central and northern China. It has exfoliating bark that peels back to reveal a patchwork of colors including white, olive, light purple and silver.

2. Banyan Tree
Banyan tree in Waikiki, Honolulu City, Oahu Island, Hawaii, USA. The Banyan tree features a long root roots from the broadly spread side branches.

This unique tree sends shoots down from its branches to form new trunks, causing it to become very expansive. In fact, a single specimen can resemble a small forest.

3. Coast Redwood
Sequoia sempervirens

Redwood..

Lied Lodge

If Timbers Could Talk

By Arbor Day Foundation | June 27, 2018

If stately timbers in the lobby of Lied Lodge & Conference Center at Arbor Day Farm could speak about what has passed beneath them in the 25 years since they were erected, what tales they could tell.

Since its dedication in 1993, Lied Lodge has played host to hundreds of thousands of visitors from all walks of life. Some are families on vacation or seeking a unique place for a weekend together. Some are wedding parties or reunion gatherings or business groups making plans or seeking ways to motivate their sales forces. But many are conservation and natural resource organizations of every imaginable kind.

The key concept behind the creation of Lied Lodge was to provide a place to facilitate the discussion of natural resource issues and problems facing our nation’s environment — and to work together on solutions. Toward this end, every major agency has held conferences at Lied Lodge including the U.S…

Corporate Partnerships

Warranty Solutions Empowers Consumers to Leave A Greener Footprint

By Arbor Day Foundation | June 26, 2018

Guest post by our friends at Warranty Solutions.

Everything we do releases energy, energy that is converted into carbon dioxide and released back into the atmosphere. Every time you switch on a light, turn on your computer, or drive your car, you’re emitting carbon. It may not seem like much, but collectively we’re leaving a giant carbon footprint, 6-7 billion metric tons of carbon annually to be exact. These emissions contribute to climate change, which is negatively affecting the environment.

In 2007, the Environmental Protection Agency released a major carbon emissions study that showed that poorly maintained or malfunctioning vehicles can release as much as ten times the emissions of a well-maintained vehicle. Our company, Warranty Solutions, which specializes in Vehicle Service Contracts, was so alarmed by the finding that we felt compel..

Landscape Design

12 Fast-Growing Shade Trees

By Sheereen Othman | June 25, 2018

Quaking Aspen

Populus tremuloides

If there were a Guinness Book of World Records for trees, the quaking aspen would be in it – several times. First, it has the widest natural range of any tree in North America, spanning 47 degrees of latitude (equal to half the distance from the equator to the North Pole), 110 degrees of longitude (nine time zones) and elevations from sea level to timberline. It is also the largest living organism, growing in clones that reproduce primarily by sending up sprouts from their roots. And as far as the oldest … a clone in Minnesota has been estimated to be thousands of years old!

It is not a tree for all places. But planted in the right location, the quaking aspen is a delight of color, movement and sound.

Zones 1-7

2. Northern Catalpa
Catalpa speciosa

This is a tree that demands your attention. White, showy flowers. Giant heart-shaped leaves. Dangling bean-like ..

Replanting Our National Forests

These Wildlife Species are Disappearing from North American Forests

By Sheereen Othman | June 19, 2018

Our forests are home to critical wildlife habitat. When our forests are threatened, it also threatens the homes of all the diverse wildlife habitat that live there. Natural disasters, urbanization, and agriculture are just a few of the common causes of deforestation. But as deforestation continues to rise, the animals that call it home start to disappear. These are just a few of the endangered and threatened animals disappearing as recorded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Jaguar
Panthera once

The jaguar is the second largest cat species in North America (after the cougar). Jaguar live in a range of habitats like forests and tropic forests, open terrains, swamps, and woodlands from Arizona and California to Louisiana and New Mexico. The jaguar also plays a key role in stabilizing ecosystems.

Ocelot
Leopardus pardalis

Native to t..

Featured Replanting Our National Forests

These Animals are Disappearing from North American Forests

By Sheereen Othman | June 19, 2018

Our forests are home to critical wildlife habitat. When our forests are threatened, it also threatens the homes of all the diverse wildlife habitat that live there. Natural disasters, urbanization, and agriculture are just a few of the common causes of deforestation. But as deforestation continues to rise, the animals that call it home start to disappear. These are just a few of the endangered and threatened animals disappearing as recorded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Jaguar
Panthera once

The jaguar is the second largest cat species in North America (after the cougar). Jaguar live in a range of habitats like forests and tropic forests, open terrains, swamps, and woodlands from Arizona and California to Louisiana and New Mexico. The jaguar also plays a key role in stabilizing ecosystems.

Ocelot
Leopardus pardalis

Native to th..