LAND DESIGNS UNLIMITED LLC

A Patient Craftsman Creating Exceptional Landscapes

Author: John Holden

CT Landscaping Tips – December 2013
The end of the 2013 CT landscaping season is here. Below are some tips to prepare your home and landscape for winter.

In the Landscape
1. Cut back perennials to prevent the overwintering of insects and disease. Cut most perennials to the ground. Some perennials, such as coral bells, should not. It’s better to post a question below than to cut prematurely.
2. Cut ornamental grasses 3-6 inches from the ground either now or in late winter. Here in CT I cut ornamental grasses in the fall, they tend to get beat up and look ratty through the winter.
3. If you have tree hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata) it’s OK to prune them once the leaves fall off. Tree hydrangeas flower on the current seasons growth. They will bloom next year if pruned this winter. If you have bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) only cut spent flowers to clean up the shrub, otherwise you’ll be removing next years blooms.
Household Maintenance
1. Turn off the valves to your hoses on the inside of the house and then open the valves on the outside to drain water. Once the water drains close them again to prevent accidentally running water all winter if someone turns the wrong valve. Disconnect and roll up your hoses on a warm day to flush all water from them. Bring hoses indoors for longest life. You can keep them coiled, without water inside, outside your home or in the shed or garage over the winter. If you use the hose over the winter disconnect it and remove all water before coiling it up again.
2. Is your snow blower tuned up and ready to go? Do you need to replace any snow shovels before they are all gone?
3. Have you called the oil company about your winter tune-up?
Might I Recommend
1. Winter is a great time to prune deciduous trees and shrubs in CT landscapes. If your landscape needs pruning call today!
2. Now is the time to begin planning your landscape design if you are thinking about landscaping next year. Spring comes fast. Now is the time to start the design.
3. Need firewood? We have a limited supply available so don’t wait to call.
If you have any questions about your CT Landscape please post them below.

By John Holden
November 30, 2013
What are the Beautiful Red Berries by the Road?

As I drove down the road this week I spotted the most beautiful red berries. They caught the morning sun and lit up the bare Fall landscape.

The shrub was winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata). It has bright red berries in the Fall and early Winter that are about 3/8″ in diameter.

Winterberry holly is a deciduous shrub. You usually see it growing along the edge of a swamp or stream in the wild. If you are going to plant winterberry holly in your landscape plant it in the dry soil next to the stream or swamp, not in the stream or swamp.

Winterberry holly grows six to ten feet tall depending on the light. There is a lot of variation in fruit set between.

Gorgeous!

This group of winterberry holly is on the edge of a wetland.

I often plant winterberry holly in woodland plantings because it is a native shrub and very easy to grow.

If you’re looking for a reliable and easy to grow shrub that provides winter interest give winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) a try.

By John Holden

November 22, 2013
Tips for a Low Stress and Peaceful Life
I wrote the list a while ago. I hope you’ll take a moment to read it and add your own tips in the comments below.
1. Live in the moment.
2. We are on a continuum. It’s not yes or no, up or down, good or bad. Every day varies.
3. Nobody is perfect and that’s ok.
4. Exercise. Some exercise is always better than none.
5. Focus on the positive, let the negative go.
6. Stop multitasking. Get one thing done well not three things poorly.
7. Just say no. You can’t do everything.
8. If you don’t like something say so.
9. Spend time with the right people who lift your spirits and accept you the way you are.
10. Take everything people say to you is a compliment.
11. It’s ok to make mistakes. That’s how we learn.
12. When having a bad day think of good things.
13. Admit you need help or don’t know the answer, even if only to yourself.
14. You don’t have to know everything.
15. Bad things never happen at good times.
16. We don’t have to correct everyone. Do we correct others to help them or feel better about ourselves?
17. Get up at the same time every day.
18. You define who you are, not your job or how much money you have.
19. If someone wants to ruffle your feathers say, “No thank you.” and walk away.
20. It’s better to know than to avoid. If there is a problem seek a solution.
21. We are all different and that’s ok.
22. When distracted by negative thoughts distract yourself. Count windows or bricks on a wall, do something physical or go to a movie.
23. We can always learn something.
24. Never brag.
25. Where you found happiness as a child is where you will find happiness as an adult.
By John Holden
November 20, 2013
Lessons Our Pets Teach Us

The kitty on the left is Spice. Spice is the mother of Sugar on right. All Spice wanted was a warm lap. The day we went to the shelter to choose our kitties Spice was shy. When I rubbed her chin she leaned into it and I knew she was the kitty for me.

Sugar grew up on the streets of Waterbury with Spice. Sugar and Spice were abandoned. Sugar was 5 to 6 months old when we brought her home. Sugar wasn’t socialized as a kitten. With Sugar’s temperament I don’t think it wouldn’t have made much of a difference. Sugar sees people as a source of food and warmth.

Sugar is growing affectionate as she matures. When I’m working in my office she meows at me even though there’s food in her bowl. If I give her a few pets the purring starts.

Sugar has bonded with Madison, our high-strung, though calming as she matures, collie. I often see them laying one or two feet apart with sugar copying Madison. Madison never moves into Sugar’s space for fear of ‘The claw.’ Sugar freely move into Madison’s space.

Both of our children have suffered from ‘The claw’ because they didn’t listen to Sugar. If you ask what noise a cat makes my children will make a hissing noise. Sugar is the reason neither of my children want a cat for a pet. I plan on getting a fluffy and affectionate kitten for my children, and myself, when the time is right.

I have taught my children to rub their fingers together and let Sugar come to them, not to walk up to Sugar and start petting her. Sugar is ok with about 5-8 strokes on her terms before you get a gentle reminder that she is in control, not you.

Some people might think a cat-like that is a bad thing to have in the house. I disagree.

Sugar shows incredible restraint. When she strikes she does the least necessary to get the point across. No more, no less.

If either of my children did not listen to Sugar I would have to find her a new home because she could injure one of them. Sugar has taught my children to respect animals.

We lost Madison our Collie about a year and a half ago. We now have a Great Pyrenees puppy named Theo. Sugar has dealt with the situation very well.

CATS RULE!

By John Holden

November 10, 2013
What Arsenio Hall Taught Me

In the early 90’s The Arsenio Hall Show was on TV. It was a carbon copy of every late show since Johnny Carson except Arsenio sat on an arm chair, not behind a desk, while interviewing his guests. Part of Arsenio’s audience, called the “Dog Pound” was given a funny title every night such as “People who are experiencing déjà vou for the first time.”

I was in my early 20’s and I watched the show because I like Arsenio’s style. Arsenio is a warm and friendly man. He respected his guests and if they didn’t want to talk about a subject he wouldn’t push it.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever received came from the Arsenio Hall show.

One night Arsenio was interviewing a guest and they talked about what his guest did for a living. Arsenio’s guest explained how he loved his job and got up every day eager to go to work because it was his passion. You could hear the conviction in the man’s voice and see it in his posture.

That moment must have affected me because I still remember it twenty years later.

Life is that simple.

Are you eager to go to work tomorrow?

By John Holden

November 3, 2013
A Berm for Curb Appeal

Here are some great landscaping ideas for your front yard featuring a berm planted to give curb appeal to a lovely colonial. A fieldstone wall compliments the colorful plantings.

By John Holden

October 16, 2013
How to Renovate a Lawn
In this video I show you how to renovate a lawn using a tool called a Rotodairon.

If your lawn is not growing well look at the big picture to see what is causing the trouble.

Some, of the many, causes of a poor lawn are:
- Sandy soil
- Too much shade
- Soil has a low ph
- Soil has a high ph
- Low organic matter content
- Buried debris under the soil
- Too damp of an area
- Too dry of an area
- Mowing too short
- Too many tree roots (Please don’t cut them all, there’s a better solution.)
The key is to look around and figure out why your lawn isn’t growing well and don’t make assumptions. This is a situation where like Joe Friday says you have to look at, “Just the facts.”

If you have any questions about lawn renovation please post them below.

By John Holden
October 9, 2013
Front Yard Landscaping Ideas by a Trumbull CT Landscaper

I installed this front yard landscaping over 9 years ago and been involved in the maintenance ever since.

I hope you can learn a few tips when it comes time to design your own landscape. If you are looking for a Trumbull CT landscaper or landscape designer please call today.

October 7, 2013
How to Prune a Tree Hydrangea – Part 3

In the last video in my series on How to Prune Tree Hydrangeas I show you the results of our effort. A tree hydrandgea full of flowers.

This winter I hope you will get out and try pruning your tree hydrangea. I know you can do it!

By John Holden

August 25, 2013