It's Time to Prune Your Fruit Trees!

If you have fruit trees but haven't had much success with them, you may be just 

a few steps away from the most rewarding season yet.

It's time to get outside on a Sunday morning armed with

 a couple of good tools and a good strong cup of coffee.

Pruning is often avoided because of the labor commitment and the intimidation of making the wrong cut, but it's a key component of boosting your personal fruit factory's production.

A good pair of bypass pruners can usually do the trick for younger trees as long as you're pruning limbs that are an inch in diameter or less.

Look to remove limbs that are crossing other limbs that can cause friction and damage to the branches you want to keep.

Make sure not to remove more than 25% of the branches in one pruning season.

Once you've successfully pruned your trees, you'll want to spray them with a Horticultural Oil to kill any overwintering insects or their eggs.

It's best to use a tank sprayer to get the best coverage. Mix the oil into the sprayer according to the directions and coat the limbs, trunk, base and surrounding ground of the tree.

If you're worried about fungus you can do the same thing with a liquid Fungicide.

Taking these precautionary steps during the dormant season is a small price to pay for the extra fruit that you're bound to see come spring and summer.

Don't miss out on our Free Star Seminar of Fruit Tree Pruning and Care this Saturday at 10am and 2pm at All Star Nursery Locations

Also, see our Star Note on Fruit Tree Selection, Planting and Care.

This Saturday, July 4th!

Having a Fourth of July Party this Saturday?

Well, stop by and get some last minute tips on how to keep your yard cool so that everyone can have a great time!

All Star Nursery Locations at 10am!

Spring Talk with Dr. Angela O'Callaghan

Tucked away behind The Ranch at the beautiful Floyd Lamb park, Dr. Angela O'Callaghan of the University of Nevada's Cooperative Extension gave a talk on spring and summer vegetable gardening this past Saturday at the Master Gardener's Community Garden.

If you've never heard Dr. O'Callaghan talk about veggies then you're missing out on a comically entertaining, as well as deeply informative, good time.

Whether you've been pondering the relationship between mycorrhizal fungi activity and root systems, or if you simply want to know how much real estate your artichokes will take up, you need to make it to one of her talks.

This was definitely a time for some good note taking.

Here are some of the highlights and answers to the great questions that she received:

• Fertilizer - Don't confuse your plants by sending mixed signals with improper fertilizing. In short, know your NPK. 
• N=Nitrogen=green leaves. P=Phosphorus=flowers and fruit. K=Potassium=roots.
• Potassium - This nutrient is essential for the movement of water from the roots to the stems and leaves so be sure not to overlook this nutrient.
• Pesticides- Go easy on them. Remember that chemicals do not have a brain and will not be discerning when killing things. You will be killing the good bugs with the bad ones. Use pesticides as a last resort and always read the label for proper applications. The label is the law.
• Aphids - Inspect your plants early and often to make sure you get a handle on these sucking pests. Not only will they damage your plants, but they can carry viruses that will be transmitted to your hard earned crop. Just like people, plants can't take anything to cure a virus. They either pull out of it or they die. Use a high pressure spray of water to remove the aphids or dilute a small amount of dish soap into a quart of water and spray the plant to assist in pulling them away from the stems and leaves. If you have an overwhelming infestation then you should pull the plant and make sure it goes into the trash, not the compost bin.

Severe aphid infestation on flowering kale plant.

• Squash bugs - (Everyone groans) Plant them late as a prevention. Think Fathers Day. Again, inspect your plants early and often. If you see one or two then you can easily pick them off and kill them. If you see the small golden eggs on the underside of the leaves make sure to destroy those too. If you missed the early boat and have more bugs then you can pick off, pull out the plant and throw it in the trash. Sometimes it's not worth the endless battle.

Angela also gave a run down of often overlooked summer veggies that are really easy to grow:

Sweet Potatoes

Asparagus (be patient and harvest the third year)

Melons

Okra

and of course the most popular:

Peppers

Tomatoes

Squash

Beans

Corn

This Saturday, March 21st!

If you're looking to tackle a new or existing irrigation project before the heat turns up, then you won't want to miss our Saturday seminar on Understanding Irrigation Systems. 

Join us at all Star Nursery locations this Saturday, March 21st at 10am or 2pm for this free and informative seminar.

This Saturday, March 7th!

Craving some color in your garden?

Join us this Saturday, March 7th, for a free seminar on Spring Flower Gardening!

10am and 2pm at all Star Nursery locations.

See you there!

This Sunday, February 22nd!

We're having a free Spring Vegetable Gardening seminar at 

Craig Ranch Community Garden!

You don't have to be a member of the garden to attend.

10-11am at Craig Ranch Regional Park.

This month's topic- Preparing soil for spring: Compost, compost, compost!

Having a spring plan and crop rotation to ward off pests.

Starting seeds indoors: germination tips and tricks.

See the full seminar schedule here!

This Saturday, February 21st!

Are you planning a veggie garden this Spring?

You won't want to miss our free Saturday Seminar at all Star Nursery Locations!

Come join us for some expert tips and advice on growing your own vegetables and herbs.

At 10am and 2pm. 

See you there!

This Saturday, February 7th!

If you've experienced some plant damage or loss this winter you won't want to miss our free Saturday seminar on Taking Care of Frost Damaged Yards..

Visit us at any Star Nursery location at 10am or 2pm.

Don't forget to bring your photos!

Looking Good!

Ok, so we're looking at six more weeks of winter. One look at these winter greens and I say bring it on! I took a trip over to our demonstration garden bed at Craig Ranch Regional Park and noticed that the winter has been very kind to us. We have lots of greens! This bed was planted this past October with romaine lettuce, pak choi, asian greens, sweet peas, red and green cabbage, spinach, and broccoli raab.
These hearty greens are pretty tolerant of the cold temps that we get toward the end of December and into January.

This bed is a demonstration for our monthly seminars to teach anyone who is willing and interested to learn about growing fresh veggies here in our desert.  Thank you to all of our friendly fellow gardeners who water this bed for us!

Our next seminar will be Sunday February 22nd at 10am. See the full schedule here. It's free to attend and you don't have to be a member of this community garden to participate. This garden has been getting a lot of media attention recently and it's no wonder why. Take one trip and you'll know that the folks who rent these beds are not only devoted to tending to their plants, but they're creating an inviting space with personal touches that welcome all who enter the garden.

If you'd like more information about obtaining your very own space in this neighborly and inspiring garden, call 702-633-2418 or click here.

Hope to see you out there!

This Saturday, January 31st!

Come join us at Vegas Roots Community Garden this Saturday, January 31st at 10am and get
 a free, hands-on lesson in pruning fruit trees.

If you haven't been out to Vegas Roots yet, this is a perfect opportunity to see the gardens and their miniature orchard of fruit trees.

Vegas Roots is located at 715 N. Tonopah Dr. LV NV 89106

Our resident horticulturalist and very own gardening celebrity, Dr. Q., will be showing everyone the techniques to trim your fruit trees.
Bring your questions and your pruners!

This Saturday January 24th!

Don't miss our Rose & Fruit Tree Care & Pruning Seminar!

At all Star Nursery Locations 10am & 2pm

Bring your questions!

This Saturday!

Join us at all Star Nursery locations for our Fruit Tree Care & Pruning Seminar!

Morning session is at 10am and afternoon is at 2pm.

Don't forget to bring your questions!

Too Much Fruit?

Come Join us for a fruit filled afternoon!