Martin Ford
Early Blooms of Redbuds - A Spectacular Sight! 🌸
Redbud (Cercis canadensis) is a small tree, a size perfect for town gardens. It has so many wonderful features that it is a question as...
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Martin Ford
- Jul 7
- 2 min
Watering trees is essential in summer heat...
The trees we plant in our gardens and streets have been grown in nurseries where their roots have been pruned and controlled to create a...
Martin Ford
- Jun 2
- 1 min
A Balancing Act – Balancing Water and Air for Newly Planted Trees in Cities
When planting a tree its primary need, until it grows out new roots, is available water. This is because during its time in the nursery,...
Martin Ford
- May 26
- 2 min
Taproot – the word describes its importance!
Literally, the word ‘tap’ describes both essential functions, that this first root to grow from a seed is designed to do - go deeply into...
Martin Ford
- May 19
- 2 min
Reasons to Have a Group of Trees as Part of our Small City Gardens
A grove of trees can be three or more trees of various sizes, but when we also add shrubs that grow to be 10' and 20' high, such as...
Martin Ford
- May 12
- 2 min
How Do You Put A Dollar Value On Trees?
In these changing times, “What is the dollar value of trees?” is an emerging question. How do you put a financial number on the health...
Martin Ford
- May 5
- 2 min
Designing Three Dimensionally Gives All-season Pleasure
When we ask for a design for a garden or other landscape setting, we are normally given a two-dimensional drawing showing the placement...
Martin Ford
- May 5
- 2 min
Serenity
Why do we think of a garden as being a peaceful place to ‘be’? Gardens were created to bring the feeling of nature, the nature we used to...
Martin Ford
- Apr 28
- 2 min
The many values of trees around our homes
It has become widely acknowledged that established trees will add between 6 - 11% to the market value of your home – especially in the...
Martin Ford
- Apr 21
- 3 min
Pocket Woodlands® And Why They Enable Trees To Thrive
Today, when we grow trees in nurseries, they are often placed in a pot of loose ‘soil medium’ where both their water supply and nutrient...
Martin Ford
- Apr 20
- 2 min
Pruning Without Fear
New growth (generally springtime) is the most effective time to help a plant understand/recognize the circumstances that we want it to...
Martin Ford
- Apr 4
- 1 min
Where To Plant Trees In Your Garden
Five important factors which will influence your decision on where to plant trees in your garden: Framing views you prefer while at the...
Martin Ford
- Mar 31
- 1 min
The Art of Pruning Trees
Pruning is done to create the shape we desire and for the long term health of a tree. When we prune every 2nd year it puts less stress on...
Martin Ford
- Mar 30
- 3 min
Pruning The Traditional Way
The present day ‘art’ of pruning evolved from fruit production skills which has managing size and maximizing production as its focus. For...
Martin Ford
- Mar 24
- 2 min
120 Year Old 2"x6"
A 2”x6 “which is a 120 year old tree? Some of the 2x6 lumber I purchased recently weighed differently when I picked it up and here in...
Martin Ford
- Mar 20
- 3 min
Getting Your Yard Ready For Spring
Spring is calling – what to pay attention to? Our gardens include hard spaces and paths and sometimes play areas which we clean up after...
Martin Ford
- Dec 13, 2022
- 2 min
Christmas Trees – A Good Idea or Not?
Why do we choose to cut down a young tree and take it indoors each Christmas? Is it because we have a love of trees and want to have one...
Martin Ford
- Aug 18, 2022
- 1 min
2022 Annual Downtown Tree Walk
Sept 17, 2022 at 2pm What: Short tree walk in downtown Guelph with focus on how to plant city trees for optimal health, success, and...
Martin Ford
- Sep 18, 2021
- 1 min
Tree Walk in Downtown Guelph
Saturday, October 2, 2021 at 2pm to 3:30pm Learn how to read the health of a tree, its history, and anticipated lifespan. Find out how we...
Martin Ford
- Sep 7, 2021
- 2 min
‘Tidy’ versus ‘natural design’ in your landscape
When our home gardens and naturalized public spaces are subject to the formal expectation of being tidied easily and designed to look...
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