We have a yard full of ornamental grasses at home (evergreen grasses, like oatgrass or ryegrass), and we don't cut any of them. In mid spring, you can usually see a lot of dead wet growth hanging on from the winter, so here's what you do: Wrap your hands around the base of the grass clump and slowly pull your hands up around the grass and out, like it's a ponytail. Do it a few times. All the dead wet grass will come away easily in your fingers, and the live blades will stay. The end product looks great, and there's no unnatural-looking flat-top.

There is not one answer for all ornamental grass types. You have to look up each one by name.

This is a good tutorial of sorts that explains why each is done differently and offers some specific info per plant type as well.

http://www.northcoastgardening.com/2009/01/pruning-ornamental-grasses/

As to your friend in Ohio...he may be right or wrong, as the "chopping down" usually happens when the plant is fully brown. If yours never becomes fully brown (and they shouldn't due to our milder temperatures) then the answer is yes IF they ever become fully brown. General rule of thumb, but check each plant species by its name to know for sure.

As example, I know Hydrangea (not a grass plant) should be pruned all the way down, but our sun season is just too short to do that every year. You would never have a decent sized plant if you did that, even though it is recommended.

Andrea's right - its just flagging! This is completely normal and nothing to worry about. Notice how most of the brown bits are deeper towards the trunk, but the needles towards the branch tips are still green and bright? That's an indicator that you're looking at the death of older, more shaded (and therefore, less likely to pull their own weight photosynthetically) than the newer foliage on the tip. Western red cedar loves shade, but when the summer is especially dry a tree's gotta make sacrifices - and since this species has leaves that can be as old as 16 years (!) its best to sacrifice the oldest ones.

If you saw browning on the new growth, or localized browning (all on one side, for example), that would be trouble! this, though, is just fine.

Sorry to have missed this one until now.

This is common and natural with cedars. you'd be hard pressed to find a western red that doesn't have this right now.

I've planted hundreds (thousands?) of these trees and the same thing happens to nearly all every year. I assume it's a old foliage die off but do not know for sure.

I have noticed that is seems to occur less or, at least, with less intensity in riparian areas but have no real data to back that up.

I offer no answer but am kindred in your concern. The Cedars in my yard are displaying the same symptoms as yours. Not just one but all the Cedars on the property, most would classify as old growth. From top to bottom, rusty discoloration on the tips of the branches. You could have taken that photo from my yard. Oddly, this is also a new phenonoma for our trees, never noticed before. I wonder if this is some kind of blight. I refuse to ascribe “global warming” as we’ve had the same consistent crappy weather as always.

Yes! I've got an improved meyer lemon on my dining room table in front of a west-facing window, and I LOVE it. I've had it for two years now, and its first lemon is finally ripe. (What to do with it, I still haven't figured out.) It blooms 2-3 times a year (100+ blossoms each time), filling my apartment with the unbelievable scent of lemon blossoms.

It is definitely a fickle tree, though. If I let it get too cold, it will droop and drop the tiny unripe lemons, if I water it too much, it will do the same. I know they do not tolerate temperature shocks all that well -- when I got mine it had spent a week in my mother's garage. As soon as I brought it inside, it dropped most of its leaves (and I was convinced I'd killed it).

It needs lots of light (which it gets) -- but I've heard that if you can't give them enough light, they won't survive. I also feed mine every 3-6 months with an organic fertilizer designed for fruit trees. My tree isn't very big, but it's definitely happy.

Citrus can definitely be grown in the PNW as indoor/outdoor potted plants.  Raintree Nursery located in Morton, Washington, stocks citrus plants suitable to growing indoors.  They state, The best way to grow citrus in the North is to keep the pot outside in the summer and bring it in when the temperature goes below 50 deg F.  

Raintree stocks lemons, calamondin, kumquats, tangerines, limes, oranges, mandarins, blood orange, and grapefruit.  They provide growing instructions, including soil and cultural requirements, yields, size at maturity.  Additionally, Raintree stocks citrus food and Botani Wipes, which are bio-degradable wipes made with neem oil to wipe plant leaves to prevent insects and fungus.

I have found the staff at Raintree to be extremely helpful when I've had any fruit tree question.  They have a horticulturist on staff.  

I purchased a New Improved Meyer Lemon tree over the summer and placed it outside and moved it indoors when the temperatures began to drop at night.  My tree produced lots of blossoms and I now have some baby lemons.  When I pulled the tree indoors, some of the fruit dropped, which is likely because of the change in environment, specifically humidity.  I mist the tree in the morning and again late-afternoon.  I also keep it in a very bright area away from heat ducts.  

I found my tree at Squak Mountain Nursery in Issaquah.  I've seen citrus trees, mainly New Improved Meyer Lemon trees, at other local nurseries.  The benefit of finding a plant at a local nursery rather than ordering on-line or over the phone is that you can select the shape and size of the tree.  I would not hesitate ordering from Raintree.  They have such a great variety of trees.

I hope this helps and encourages you to try citrus growing.  Happy planting!

Check these out:

http://www.rollingrivernursery.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=67&Itemid=26&vmcchk=1&Itemid=26

http://mckenzie-farms.com/photo.htm

Better to kill it now than let it grow any more and still kill it.

i loooove trees. i especially love opportunists. however, that black locust doesn't realize how much more enjoyable it is to sit in the sun than it is to sit in the shade when your summer only lasts two weeks.

i vote for letting it turn that pretty yellow color in the autumn for its swan song and then cutting the bastard down.

Without seeing the tree, it's difficult to know whether your tree is suffering from the usual winter damage we often see after a cold, snowy winter OR whether it's something more insidious such as a disease or pest. In order to give you the advice you need I recommend getting a diagnosis. Without an accurate diagnosis, it's impossible to determine any method of control, much less the most effective and least toxic.  Fortunately, most "problems" turn out to be beneficial insects, normal plant structure, weather-related damage, with absolutely no need for costly and potentially hazardous chemical treatments.

Here a several options:

1.Take a cutting (see note below) to a Master Gardener Clinic.  Master Gardeners are trained to diagnose plant problems. If they are unable to give you a definitive answer, they will send your cutting to our diagnosticians who will evaluate the problem and contact you with an answer and possible solution. 

2. Take a cutting to nursery such as City People's (Madison Valley), Swanson's, or Skye.  Certified nursery professionals are available to help.

NOTE:  If you decide to take a cutting to a MG Clinic or nursery, follow these guidelines:  Take as much of the plant as possible. . . Samples should show the margin between affected and healthy tissues.  Include healthy tissue as well as diseased tissue so a comparison is possible.  Specimens that are completely dead, dried, or rotted are useless for diangosis.  . . .  For a diagnosis of a tree or shrub, take samples of both healthy and affected tissuse, including at least one speciment showing the margin between healthy and diseased tissues.  Place in a clear plastic bag to avoid infecting healthy plants if a disease or pest is present.  

3.  Use WSU Hortsense to make your own diagnosis.  WSU Hortsense is a website for home gardeners and consists of"fact sheets for managing plant problems with IPM or Integrated Pest Management.  Cultural Controls and and Washington-registered pesticides are included."  To find information related to Maples, click on Ornamentals and then Maples.  Common pests and diseases are described and include photos.

4.  As a last resort, especially given the expense, you could contact a certified arborist to visit your home.  To find a certified aborists, contact Plant Amnesty.  Be careful of big tree services, they often are very expensive and do not employ certified arborists.   Plant Amnesty is an excellent resource and promotes healthy pruning practices.  

Hope this help!  

Does it look like certain whole branches died and others didn't? If so, you can go at it and clip or saw off the dead wood. Trim into a twig to see if it's dead (brown and crispy vs. green and bendy). If brown and crispy, trim it and work your way down until you find green, then stop.

If the whole tree has leaves but they're just really sparse, you may have something else going on (disease? fungus?).

You don't have to poach from the National Forest. They often issue permits (ranging from free to $20) for removal of forest products for personal use. Your permit will probably be restricted to one type of product, say Oregon Grape or river rock, and you won't be able to get a permit for uncommon or rare plants. Give the North Bend or Skykomish ranger station a call, see if they can help you out.

Alternatively, you might consider doing volunteer trail work. Especially on "new trail construction" projects, plants are often dug up and tossed to the side. Bring a bag, and take a few home.

Great question and congratulations in your choice to be lawn-free! Check out the Washington Native Plant Society for their comprehensive nursery list: http://www.wnps.org/landscaping/nurserylist.html.  The WNPS is a great organization and worth supporting.  They often organize work parties to salvage plants before areas are bull-dozed for development.

I “second” Tom's suggestion to visit King County's web site for great information related to native plants: http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/stewardship/nw-yard-and-garden/native-plant-resources-nw.aspx.

Finally, I recommend checking out local plant sales throughout the year to find good deals on native plants. The Master Gardener Plant Sale in May always has tons of natives and volunteers who specialize in PNW native plants. The Arboretum Foundation’s annual FallAbundance sale is Sunday, September 25th and is always worth attending and, besides seeing lots of plants, it benefits a good cause. thttp://www.arboretumfoundation.org/?page_id=1952.  

P.S. Don't forget to water carefully for the first year while the plants get established.  Happy gardening! 

check out: http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/stewardship/nw-yard-and-garden/native-plant-resources-nw.aspx

Lists of nurseries as well as native plant salvage.

You can do salvage on your own by checking out empty lots and contacting the owner for permission to remove plants.

Good luck.

Sumacs produce suckers, aka runners. When first planting, it is sometimes desirable to containerize them. In your case, here is some guidance: http://mr.fusspot.net/p7U711

There are insects that attack the tender ends of branches of trees and shrubs like these such as the willow-branch borer, Oberea ferruginea, a beetle, and feed on the branches and cause deformities.

It appears that this or a related species occurs here and so that may be the cause. I will defer to one of the tree experts or master gardeners to confirm or correct this and give you ideas on treatments.

Don't despair. It’s not unusual to hear about a wisteria not blooming for years. The reason you haven’t been rewarded with those glorious flowers may be that your wisteria isn’t old enough. I grew a wisteria, trained as a tree, in a container and it was years before my wisteria rewarded me with blossoms. I thought I must be doing something wrong and decided to ignore it.  Then, as if by magic and a lot of neglect, it started blooming. 

According to “Growing Wisteria” by Carolyn Pauw Barden, W.S.U. King County Master Gardener: Wisterias with lots of leaves but few blooms are a common complaint--and why have it if it won't perform? The problem can be that the plant was raised from seed--no flowers there for many, many years--so always get a vegetatively propagated plant. Either own-root cuttings or grafted plants will work. A second reason for scant bloom is too little sun. Like most Northwest gardeners, I have a lot of shade so I must prune back competing trees to open up that part of the garden and let the sunshine in. Wisteria wants sun and more sun. Don’t over-fertilize. Too much nitrogen (or even too much balanced fertilizer) can give you lots of leaves with no flowers. For more care information read Carolyn’s informative article: http://gardening.wsu.edu/column/02-02-03.htm

 I hope one of these reasons makes sense and is helpful.  If you have any additional questions, please let me know and I'll do my best to help.  -Andrea

Do you have enough bees? When I had wisteria, it only flowered when we had plenty of spring-time bees.
(not an expert answer for sure, just my experience)

Pine needles will take ages to decompose on their own and will also make the soil acidic. Does neighbor have a plug in blower you can use? They are useful for this sort of thing.

Why can't you just rake them up, or push them to one side? They shouldn't stop you from planting anything you want. Pine needles make excellent mulch, too.

More than likely you can find this Photinia cultivar at a local garden center or nursery. Most nurseries will probably caution you about planting this shrub.  Before purchasing any Photinia, here’s some information about this commonly planted hedge or species shrub.

While Photinia serrulata ‘Frazeri’ (12-15’) is prized by many for it’s fast growth and bright red new growth in spring, it is susceptible to a leaf spot disease, much like blackspot on roses, which can ruin the appearance of the new red leaves. It is also susceptible to winter damage. If you really want to grow it, make sure it’s planted in FULL sun, has good air circulation (to avoid powdery mildew), and planted in well-drained soil. (Check out http://pep.wsu.edu/hortsense/, click on ‘Ornamentals’, and ‘Photinia’ for more information related to problems you might encounter growing Photinia in the PNW.)

While we see Photinia planted in many gardens, I would caution you about planting Photinia in the PNW. My neighbor planted a hedge of P.serrulata ‘Frazeri’ along our shared property line. As pretty as it was in early spring, by late spring or summer, most of the leaves were dropped on the ground and, upon inspection, spotted.  During winter months it often looked like it was dying.  My neighbor frequently consulted an arborist about the sad state of the hedge, but it was never clear whether the diagnosis was leaf spot disease or something else. Eventually, the neighbor moved away and the hedge was replaced by the new homeowner.

It's also a very high maintenance shrub and, without careful pruning, can get out of control very quickly.

There are many lovely shrubs available and a good nursery could advise you. I hope this information is useful to you. Best of luck and happy gardening!

You are lucky to have a tree peony, which is actually a deciduous shrub, in your garden. While thinking about your execellent question, I found advice from three sources:

1: Washington State University Extension (December 17, 2007):
Regular peonies are herbaceous perennials, which means they die back to the ground each year and are not pruned. Tree peonies have woody stems that remain year round. Japanese peony trees are naturally leggy. If you just cut back the branches, it may take several years for it to re-flower, and then it will be leggy again.

You can prune tree peonies where the stem remains alive after going through the winter. Pruning the tree is not recommended the first several years because it needs to grow many branches. After that you may prune out the extra growth in the interior of the shrub.”

2. Nursery Supplier DeGroot, Inc:
No pruning is required, except to cut out dead wood or suckers in early spring. If plants become leggy, a moderate pruning in early fall can be done to shape plant and encourage additional growth on the lower part of the plant. Remove spent flowers after bloom. These long-lived plants usually take several years to establish, and are best left undisturbed once planted.. After the plant has blossomed, remove the seeds to promote size of blooms for the following year

3. Big Dipper Farm’s peony care sheet for tips about tree and herbaceous peonies: http://www.bigdipperfarm.com/CareSheet-Peonies.pdf

The Bellevue Demonstration Garden has a gorgeous tree peony. You may want to check out the tree peony at the garden and talk with the Master Gardeners who maintain this beautiful specimen. For more information: www.kingcountyMG.org

I'm glad to say that I have not encountered this problem, Jim, so I tried to find the answer to your question in a couple of my gardening books but had no luck. Then I discovered a site on the internet: www.treepeonygarden.com, that has a wealth of information. According to them, remove unwanted shoots from the ground in the spring and limit the number of lateral buds per twig so as not to crowd the blossoms. Thin out flower buds so that only one or two buds remain per twig. If the plant growth appears to be weak the first year after planting, remove all flower buds when they get to marble size. This will promote vigorous vegetative growth and produce a stronger plant.

Excellent question!

Good luck.

Nita-Jo