1. Choose and plant camellias, azaleas and Chinese magnolias
2. Purchase clivias.
3. Plant gerberas and gladioli.
4. Plant lilies of the valley.
5. Plant asparagus from bare-root.
6. Prune kiwi vines.
7. Cut back fuchsias once they begin to grow.
8. In coastal zones: prune begonias, ginger, cannas, asparagus ferns, ivy and pyracantha.
9. Deadhead cool-season flowers to keep them blooming.
10. Propagate running bamboo in coastal zones.
11. Continue to fertilize citrus trees in coastal zones.
12. Continue to fertilize epiphyllums.
13. Fertilize avocado trees in coastal zones.
14. Feed deciduous fruit trees.
15. Fertilize roses.
16. Fertilize fuchsias.
17. Fertilize cineraria with to promote blooms.
18. Fertilize cane berries as they begin to grow.
19. Keep roses and bulbs well-watered.
20. Bait for slugs and snails.
21. Control pests on citrus trees, sycamore, ash and alder trees.
22. Protect cinerarias from leaf miners, aphids, and slugs and snails.
23. Mulch young avocado trees.
24. Don't forget Valentine's Day!

Are you considering a new landscape for next year? If you're tired of your old garden look or have a brand new yard that needs landscaping, consider our team for all of your design and installation needs.

Green Arrow Nursery are experts in landscape design. We know which plants grow well in our area, and our design team is knowledgeable in all of the latest plant introductions and landscape techniques.

We work with you to design and create a look that is unique for you and truly reflects your needs and desires. But many people make the mistake of contacting us in spring when we are already booked up for most of the year. It takes time to design a landscape plan for your home, and we invite you to plan ahead and let us design your landscape plan now so we can add you to our work schedule when the weather warms in spring.

Give us a call today at (818)894-8306. We're here to make sure all of your garden dreams come true!

One of the plants that we always look forward to after a long winter is the forsythia. This early blooming plant is a focal point of early spring, heralding the warming months with a brilliant display of golden yellow blooms. Forsythias bloom before they leaf out, and during full bloom the bare stems are completely covered from base to tips. In early spring, they become the focal point of the landscape, then blend in well with other plants when the rich green foliage emerges after blooming.

These deciduous shrubs are native to eastern Asia, where they have been used in Chinese medicine for their antiseptic effect in treating wounds. They are fast growing, with dwarf varieties reaching 4-5 ft high and almost as wide, while taller growing varieties can reach 8-10 ft high and half as wide. The plants have great structure with an upright arching growth habit that has a somewhat fountain-like effect.

Forsythias not only look great in the landscape, but their branches also are perfect for flower arrangements, thanks to the uniformity of blooms on the branches. They are frost-hardy and easy to grow in well-drained fertile soil. They grow best in a full sun location, so are often used as a living privacy fence after they have fully leafed out. The taller varieties make great individual specimens in the landscape, and can also be used for erosion control on slopes.

Most people prefer the somewhat wild natural look of forsythias, but they can be shaped with regular pruning. This is best done after they have finished blooming, because they flower on the prior year's growth (pruning either too late or too early interrupts the growth/blooming cycle). But no matter how you shape this hardy plant, it will reward you with years and years of spectacular color every spring!

The mouthparts of insects have adapted over time to suit the feeding style of each type of insect. Mouth parts differ from insect to insect, so the damage that they cause is useful in the classification and identification of the pest. Differentiating the type of insect damage will help you determine how to control the pest.

A chewing insect is any insect that has teeth. Most winged chewing insects (such as beetles, caterpillars and grasshoppers) feed only on leaf tissue, working from the leaf edge towards the center and eventually to the leaf stem. Crawling chewing insects, such as cutworms, will also eat roots and even stems of small plants.

Rasping insects (such as mites, snails, slugs and thrips) actually scrape off the surface of the leaves as sandpaper would. They suck up the fluids from the top layer of cells until all the green tissue has been consumed, leaving only the skeleton behind.

Sucking insects (such as aphids and whiteflies) have slender mouth parts with which they pierce leaves and stems to suck out plant fluids. Large populations can cause curling, yellowing and distortion of leaves, as well as stunting of shoots. Most sucking insects also produce large quantities of a sticky substance known as honeydew, which often turns black with the growth of a sooty mold fungus.

If you're not sure what type of insect is attacking your plant, just bring in a sample and one of our nursery experts will recommend a remedy to help your plant.