...and I don't mean cider or donuts. No, it's COLOR TIME! 

Mums. Burning bush. Maple trees! You can probably name a dozen fall color plants without even thinking about it. But what about choosing from some of the lesser-known plants that also shine every autumn? Here are my top ten favorite fall color plants that may not be on your radar.

• Hydrangea quercifolia and cultivars: The large, rough-textured leaves are especially striking as they turn shades of red and purple every fall.
• Viburnum x juddii: Beloved for it's sweetly-scented spring flowers, this medium-sized shrub has great burgundy-purple fall color accented by blue to black berries.

• Itea virginica cultivars: This medium-sized native shrub deserves to be planted more often. The orange, red and burgundy fall color is outstanding and is extremely long lasting.
• Epimedium cultivars: An underused perennial tolerant of dry shade that gets brilliant red to purple fall colors.
• Amsonia hubrectii: This North American native perennial grows to about 3x3'. The fine, feathery foliage turns a striking golden-yellow in the fall.
• Clethra alnifolia ‘Hummingbird’: Usually planted for the amazingly fragrant flower spikes in mid-to-late summer, this smallish shrub turns a gorgeous golden yellow each fall.

• Fothergilla ‘Mount Airy’: This is a handsome 3-5’ shrub that gets wonderful fall color in hues of red-purple, orange and yellow.
• Amelanchier: OK, so this one is not that obscure but it has to be in my top ten.
• Vaccinium hybrids: These ericaceous shrubs (best known are blueberries) will surprise you with their beautiful red-orange fall color.
• Panicum virgatum cultivars: ‘Shenandoah’ and ‘Hot Rod’ are two that turn beautiful red or burgundy.

Various parts of the country are known for their vibrant displays of fall foliage colors, none more so than the Midwest, and in particular, Michigan. It seems odd that we get such joy from the annual death of leaves from deciduous trees, shrubs, and even some perennials. Why do leaves change colors in the fall, and why can’t we guarantee that fall color to our customers?

I'm going to super-simplify the scientific part of this explanation so here goes:

• Chlorophyll produces carbohydrates (sugars) plants need for growth and is responsible for the green color in leaves and stems.
• Carotenoids express as yellow and orange and are generated during the growing season alongside the green.
• Anthocyanins are only produced in the fall after sugars are trapped in the leaves, and create reds and purples. More reds, and earlier reds, can come from plant stresses, low nutrition, and near-but-not freezing temperatures. Freezing stops the process of making red pigments.

During spring and summer chlorophyll masks the other pigments so you pretty much just see green, however shorter days, longer nights, and cooler temperatures trigger an abscission layer to form, cutting off the flow of sugars and replacement chlorophyll. As the green color fades, the underlying yellow and orange colors are revealed, and reds and purples develop. Eventually all the colors break down, leaving brown tannins.

What colors are produced, and in what amounts, and when in relation to other plants, is due to the genetics of a particular plant, growing conditions, and weather.

Similar environmental conditions as those causing red color in leaves also may cause fall colors to come sooner, or later, or to last longer some years than others. Drought during spring and early summer may signal the plant to form the abscission layer early, shutting down growth and causing color change sooner than usual.

So while moisture is good earlier in the season, too much late in the season means more clouds, less sun, and more muted colors. Too much rain in fall plus strong winds, may cause many leaves to fall prematurely. Cooler temperatures in late summer, and plenty of sunshine, often leads to brighter colors sooner. Cool is good, but too cold (freezing) can be bad, killing leaves early.

So ideal for fall color would be a moist growing season early, dry late summer and early fall, with sunny warm days and cool nights during the latter.

Choosing cultivars with known fall color-producing ability will certainly help, but as you can see there are other factors that come into play, and you really cannot guarantee fall color.

That’s what they say when they light your Saganaki cheese with a lighter and it erupts into a fireball from the brandy they poured on prior to serving. Just as the flames die out, they squeeze some fresh lemon juice to extinguish the last of the flames and add some zest. I am not a big fan of that particular cheese dish, but I sure do love that fireball! I’m not the only one who loves to watch this blazing spectacle, as surely half or more of the restaurant’s patrons are watching too. I believe it’s the fascination of watching a controlled ball of fire in a public place.

Natural gas or propane fire pits and fireplaces are becoming more popular with each passing year, and our partner Firegear Outdoors is leading the way. Their products offer a variety of controls and safety features that the wood burning counterparts do not. Some examples are push button ignition and remote controlled ignition that can be linked to work with swimming pool controls. Safety features such as a flame sensing automatic shutoff if the flame happens to go out and easily accessible valves to shut off the gas to the unit. I like the convenience of being able to simply turn it off, and not have to wait for the fire to die by itself. You will no longer have to buy and store wood, and best of all, you have virtually no maintenance! The list goes on and on, and with many different types and styles, your choices are almost limitless. They even have a portable fire pits for the convenience of mobility.

Installation and design can appear to be complicated, but in reality it’s a breeze! Firegear offers many product resources such as help guides that show from start to finish including specs and diagrams. They have a tech help line number to call that has a real live person on the other end to help answer more complicated questions, or help walk you through trouble shooting a problem. Firegear Outdoors offers complete kits or just burning systems for just about everything. If you have something unique in mind Firegear will do custom work to create the perfect fire feature for you.

One of the only drawbacks to a natural gas fire pit or fireplace is the reduced amount of heat that they produce. Natural gas and propane burn at a cooler temperature, which is one of the reasons you can decorate the bottom of the kit with ceramic logs, reflective glass pieces or a glass enclosure. These units were designed for ambiance, not cooking or heat distribution. With that being said, they will still keep you toasty on a crisp fall night.

So pull up a chair, get a tasty beverage and enjoy some fire with the snap of a finger and push of a button. And don’t forget to see us at the Hardscape Center; we can help you decide which buttons to push!

Even though Red maple is on the Fall Hazard list, the Freeman Maple hybrids (Acer x freemanii ) like Autumn Blaze® (‘Jeffersred’) are not considered a poor risk. Being a cross between silver and red maple, they are tough, fast growing, adaptable trees. They are drought tolerant when established and hardy to Zone 3, making them good candidates for fall digging. Norway (Acer platanoides) and Sugar (Acer saccharum) maple also tend to move well in the fall.

Some others to consider are Ginkgo and ‘Ivory Silk’ Tree Lilac (Syringa reticulata) - even though that last is not technically a shade tree we do see demand for them in landscapes where space is at a premium.

Any of our knowledgeable staff would be happy to help answer questions or give you the most suitable substitutions regarding fall hazard trees.

Visit these links for more information about Fall Hazard trees:

Fall Hazard tree lists explained (Sticks & Stones, Jeff Good)

Transplanting and a Deeper Look at “Fall Hazards” (NYC Parks Director of Street Tree Planting Matthew Stephens and Taking Root Editor Michelle Sutton)

If you read last week's post you know how easy it is to figure out what transformer to spec when you're designing with LED fixtures. Now we'd like to help you out some more by giving away FREE Sollos Modern Bullet fixtures - one for every $500 you spend on lighting at CPC.

These are one of our most popular fixtures and can be used in virtually any lighting installation. We're letting you know about this promotion today so you can lay out your lighting scheme in plenty of time to take advantage of this giveaway! 

This is a limited time offer that runs from September 10th through the 22nd, 2018.

You may have heard of a new fungus that has been damaging and killing boxwood in the US. It was first identified in Connecticut in 2011. Called Boxwood Blight, it has now been seen as near as Ohio. It has been predicted that it will continue to spread. Spores can be transferred by physical contact, splashing water, or wind.

Christensen’s Plant Center is taking the necessary steps to make sure that we have clean boxwood in stock for you at all times. This means following the best practices that have come from growers and distributors across the country.

Boxwood Blight is easily transferred by physical contact. Even brushing up against an infected plant means that you can transfer the fungus onto other plants later that day. To that end we must ask that you observe the following when visiting Christensen’s Plant Center.

• Please do not bring Boxwood plants or parts of a Boxwood into CPC. We will continue to do our best to identify any plant material via a photograph, but we can not have possibly infectious plants brought into our clean nursery.
• We will no longer accept any returns of Boxwood for any reason. Again, we cannot accept materials back once they have left our clean environment.

These practices are for your success as well as our own. Maintaining a clean facility ensures that we will be able to provide you with material that is free of Boxwood Blight for all of your projects now and in the future. Thank you for your help!

In the links below are PDFs with more information about this disease.

MSU Extension - Boxwood Blight Disease in North America (2.33 MB)

CAES - Boxwood Blight - A new disease for Connecticut and the U.S. (1.05 MB)

Guess what! We sell these! I don’t care how you say ‘em or spell ‘em as long as your check clears. I’m pretty sure my boss would agree with me. Hardly a day goes by that we don’t get contractor lists of hybridized and spell-’em-as-you-hear-’em names. I personally love the challenge! And yes, we do sell junipers - and yews.

In particular, Christensen’s sells a number of species of upright Junipers, the Eastern Redcedar. They are somewhat interchangeable with Arborvitae. Junipers require and tolerate hot, dry, sunny conditions but can have difficulties in poorly drained areas. They can be planted as backdrop accent evergreens or hedged into a living fence. A caveat is to avoid planting them too close to some members of the Rose family such as Crabs, Pears, Hawthorn, and Quince due to host/parasite rust occurrences.

The species of Juniperus that Christensen’s typically stocks are:

J. virginiana

• ‘Keteleer’ - a soft, green needle with loose habit; often used for native plantings
• ‘Taylor’ - a newer introduction with a bluish-green, tight habit; similar in form to Thuja occ. ‘Emerald Green’

J. chinensis

• ‘Blue Point’ - a bluish-green, full habit; often used for topiary
• ‘Hetz Columnaris’ - green needles with broad, architectual habit; best of the fruiting varieties we stock
• ‘Spartan’ - a green needled variey with a tight, upright habit

J. scopulorum (Rocky Mountain Junipers)

• ‘Blue Arrow’ - a soft, bluish upright with a very tight form
• ‘Skyrocket’ -a grayish, green variey similar in form to ‘Blue Arrow’
• ‘Wichita Blue’ - a broad, very blue form with very soft growth, but a rugged look

Availability for this genus is not quite as reliable as Arborvitae. We usually see periodic waves of uprights appear throughout the season. Junipers do, however, offer a greater range of color when compared to Arborvitae.

Next time you need an upright evergreen, ask to see some of the varieties just mentioned. Exact spelling not required!

Should I be fertilizing my trees and shrubs in August?

Ask five experts that question and be prepared for five different answers, at least that happened to me. Regardless of the type or size of your new landscape, maintenance will be required to ensure it stays healthy and looking the way it was designed to look. Although 95% of all problems with new plant material can be attributed to improper watering, fertilizers are going to play a big part in getting things established and staying healthy.

Early spring and late fall are obviously your major fertilizing moments, but let's look at right now. New plantings will be aided by the use of some starter fertilizer, especially at new housing and businesses where a lot of good soil has been stripped away. Some cities have poor soil to begin with, lacking nutrients to give plants a good start. We carry some great organic starter fertilizer containing bacteria and mycorrhizae to increase root mass and help avoid transplant loss due to difficult conditions. Light application of these starters and plenty of water will be key during this month.

Fertilizing established plants in August is a little tricky. To avoid stressing the plant, avoid fertilizing during drought or heatwave conditions. Know your soil and fertilize only when plants are truly nutrient deficient. Why? Because new growth forced by fertilizing during this period may not harden off before the onset of winter resulting in tip dieback that won't show until next spring sometime. That's a phone call you won't want to get!

Come by our store and we will help you choose the best product for your particular situation.

I love going to Costco on Saturday mornings. Down almost every aisle you’ll find somebody doling out samples, whether it be a tasty snack, a new beverage or an amazing cleaning product. I’ve even had someone showing me how soft their pillows are. I’ve learned to go only after I’ve eaten a large breakfast, and to leave my credit cards at home. If not, I’m often left wondering how I can fit $500 worth of food in my vehicle, in my fridge and in my belly!

Sampling is a great selling technique, but an even better tool. Customers will look at a catalog and find the perfect color, only to later find that it may look different in person. Like every other catalog, brick catalogs are carefully photographed and edited. The product you receive may be a slightly different shade, or have a blend of colors you may not have noticed. A few sample pieces that you can take to the site is a great way to see how it will work in your project.

At Christensen’s Hardscape Center, we will gladly sample out most of the products we stock. The exceptions are large items such as steps that require more than a single person to manage. However we can likely match the color with a similar product in a more manageable size. We can also get samples of products that we don’t have in the yard such as those from Fendt, Oaks, or Belgard. We work closely with our vendors, and they are happy to bring us samples upon request. It may take a few days depending on what you are looking for.

As a wholesaler, we do not sell to or give out samples to the general public. Your customers may come in for samples, but we ask that you please call us in advance so we know who they are and that they are legitimately working with you. Samples are free and do not need to be returned. We do request everyone who is looking for samples to please visit us in the showroom first so we can assist you in picking up what you need. Our yard is large and busy, and I don’t want anyone getting a sample of an accident.

Colorado blue spruce is one of the most popular evergreens we sell. The straight species is usually green, but the cultivar 'Glauca' ranges from bluish-green to an eye-popping silvery blue. The color is genetically determined and before grafting ornamental trees became the norm, the brightest blue seedlings were known as "shiners" and were selected out and sold at a premium. Now we have numerous cultivars with consistent, bright blue color. 

So why might you get calls from customers complaining that their expensive blue tree is turning green? Firstly, the blue color is only present on the new growth, weathering off in time. Pesticides can strip off this waxy blue coating from the needles as well. Other culprits can be air pollution, or poor growing conditions that keep new foliage to a minimum.

Once the blue color has worn off the needle, nothing will bring it back and the tree is going to look green until that flush of new growth each spring. However, you can encourage the best possible color by providing ideal growing conditions and care. Spruce prefer moist, well-drained soil, and you may fertilize established trees in early fall or mid-spring.