Sacramento Digs Gardening: Keep your Christmas tree looking green

How do you help your Christmas tree stay healthy, merry and green?

According to the National Christmas Tree Association, the answer is water.

Make sure your real tree has its trunk in a sturdy stand that can hold plenty of clean water. Check the water every day and replenish as necessary so the tree is standing in at least 2 inches of water.

Firs and other popular Christmas trees need about 1 quart of water per inch of trunk diameter, says the association.

And keep the water clean; added preservatives and home remedies such as aspirin, bleach, corn syrup or sugar have little impact on extending the tree’s freshness.

Daily watering is important, say the experts. If the trunk dries out, resin forms that can block the uptake of more water – and the tree dries out much sooner.

Keeping the stand’s basin full should help the tree – which likely was harvested before Thanksgiving – hold its needles through Dec. 25. Holiday evergreens stay fresh looking and hold their needles about four to six weeks after harvest, says the association.

Position your real tree away from windows or heater vents; both light and heat prompt the tree to need more moisture. It will last longer in a cool corner.

What about potted living Christmas trees? They have to have a spot next to a sunny window and as much light as possible. Because these trees really don’t like being in your living room and want outside ASAP.

Give the tree as much light as possible, but keep it away from heat. It doesn’t want a spot next to the heater, either.

Although a potted tree is appealing (it’s reusable!), evergreens aren’t meant to grow indoors; there’s not enough light. Once your celebrating is done, get your tree or other potted evergreens outdoors as soon as possible to limit their stress. Otherwise, they’ll start dropping needles en masse – just like a cut tree without water.

While it’s indoors, make sure the living tree stays watered. Keep the soil moist, not soggy. Check the soil moisture daily and remember that 1 quart per inch of trunk diameter guideline.

When transferring outdoors, move the plant back into full sun gradually. Let it acclimate on a semi-shaded patio for a few days as the tree re-adjusts to outside temperatures and light. The shock of cold temperatures and full sun may be too much – and your living Christmas tree won’t be around for next year.

GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

holiday plants Christmas trees container plants holiday traditions Sacramento gardening firs nurseries live trees needles

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Garden checklist for week of April 19

After this midweek storm, start getting serious about spring gardening. Flowers are blooming about three weeks ahead of schedule. That includes weeds!

* Get ready to swing into action in the vegetable garden – if you haven’t already. As nights warm up over 50 degrees, set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash; wait on pumpkins until May. Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias. Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom. Late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Give citrus trees a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants. If leaves look yellow, your tree may need an iron boost -- apply some chelated iron fertilizer.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden needs nutrition. Give shrubs and trees a slow-release fertilizer. Mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost, which helps the soil, but keep it a few inches away from trunks and stems.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

Send us a gardening question, a post suggestion or information about an upcoming event. sacdigsgardening@gmail.com

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