4 minute read
From Your Architectural Liaison
By Diane Botica SRCA Architectural Liaison
End of Summer Landscaping
As the heat starts to wind down and we look at our landscape that struggled its way through the summer heat, think wisely about those trees that bring shade. Many of the trees planted throughout the community were planted 30 or so years ago. Many of these were planted too close to party walls and sidewalks now causing damage or neighbor to neighbor issues with encroachment problems. We are seeing that many people are now having to remove those troublesome trees.
As the SRCA Architectural Guidelines get updated periodically in order to best serve the community as a whole, those relating to landscape get updated as well. Previously, there were no setback rules for planting trees. However, many years back, a guideline was adopted requiring a minimum of 15’ setback measurement from shared walls and/or the inside edge of the sidewalk. This rule came about as trees that were planted too close to shared walls and neighboring properties did damage to property and neighbor relationships. This 15’ setback rule pertains to BOTH front and back yards. Please remember that any trees you plant on your property have to be approved by SRCA and your sub association (if you live in a sub association) before being planted.
If you are bored with your garden beds and most of your plants are matured and not terribly colorful, consider planting some annuals in cheery colors to brighten up your environment. You would be surprised how a few plants here and there will maximize the enjoyment of your outdoor space. At our office, the annuals in the planter outside the entrance are changed twice a year. In the summer, we put in the durable heat tolerant plants that will last through the summer. When summer is over, these annuals are changed out for another colorful annual that is more temperamental regarding temperatures and cannot take the heat of summer.
Enjoy your outdoor space. After all, isn’t that one of the reasons we live in Arizona?
Stay well and remember…when in doubt submit.
City of Scottsdale Collection Services
Upcoming Weeks of Brush Collection:
August 24th & September 28th
The earliest items can be placed out is the Wednesday prior to the week of pickup and must be placed out no later than 5:00 am on Monday the week of the scheduled pick up. Residents, please be considerate of your neighbors - do not put your items
By Randy Zellers SDL, Director of Operations
Just like humans, the landscape is merely trying to survive the hot temperatures and high humidity of August and September. These months typically present damaging monsoon winds and often quick and heavy rainfall. In combination, this can be quite devastating to our landscapes by knocking trees completely down, snapping branches within the canopies of trees and massive erosion gullies in our granite areas.
If we properly prepare the landscapes, we can minimize the damages caused by summer monsoons. Prune trees with heavy canopies by taking some weight off the outer branches to lessen the chance of snapping in high winds. The old school of thought by Arborists was to open the canopies of trees to allow winds to pass through the canopy. The current horticultural practice is to lessen the weight of outer limbs of the tree, which will cause winds to go around the tree due to the strength of the inner and stronger points of connection with the truck of the tree.
You can take advantage of the rains during the monsoon by turning off the irrigation system for 3 days for every .25 inch of rain. With the additional humidity of August and September, plants will not go through the evapotranspiration process as quickly and retain needed moisture within the plant.
Weeds can be prevalent in our granite and turf areas this time of year. A good pre-emergent program in granite areas to prevent weed seeds from sprouting should have happened in July. In turf, a healthy Bermuda stand will choke out most competing weeds so proper fertilization of turf will help.
During the late summer months, keep new planting to a minimum as October and November are more suitable months to install plants once soil and air temperatures have become more moderate. Trimming should be kept to a minimum to reduce new foliage from exposure to the hot sun. September should be the last time to fertilize trees, shrubs and turf until later in the fall. If you overseed turf during the fall, start to lessen the water and lower your mower heights in preparation of applying rye seed.
Fall temperatures will soon be here and we all can rejoice in making it through another summer in Arizona.
out before the designated dates. Please be patient as the City has all week to pick-up in our area.
NOTICES FROM THE CITY OF SCOTTSDALE:
Please separate your brush and bulk pickup into two piles – one for green waste and one for everything else. The piles will be picked up by separate trucks during your designated brush and bulk pickup week.
