# Alberta Spruce care



## mainerich (Feb 2, 2010)

OK, So, I've planted over 40 Dwarf Alerta Spruce this past year.

So the question begs, what, if anything should I do to keep them from browning, drying out, dying over the winter? Just for reference, I live in the southern part of Maine.

Thanks

Rich


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Big article in the current issue of Garden Railways on that very subject. I've found spider mites to be the biggest problem. I just sprayed mine good with a nozzle, then sprayed them with Home Defense insect stuff. Did the same last fall and they came through the winter just fine. If you have plenty of snow cover it makes it better for them. If it is a dry winter, I try to run some water on them.


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## Nicholas Savatgy (Dec 17, 2008)

Dont forget if you bought them from Lowes or Home Depot

They have a year warrentie on them so if they die over the winter

you can return them for replacement in the Spring

I have also found if you mix a little dish soap in a spray bottle with water

And spray the plants with it it keeps the bugs away and doesnt harm the plants.


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## Biblegrove RR (Jan 4, 2008)

dish soap...really? sounds cheap enough. What? several drops per gallon?


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## SteveF (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Biblegrove RR on 04 Nov 2010 05:44 PM 
dish soap...really? sounds cheap enough. What? several drops per gallon? 
Does anybody know the answer? How many drops per gallon? Are we just looking for "wet water," or a more concentrated solution.?


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

I used ivory liquid soap in a hose end spray dispenser, turned the mix up until I saw soapy froth worked great... very easy... 

You are using a concentrated solution... 

Greg


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## Mike Reilley (Jan 2, 2008)

OK...the sprayed soap therapy REALLY works. But it don't end there. Spider mites lay eggs. What the soap is doing is coating the eggs and killing them...and it's killing the alive mites too. To rid the plant of spider mites there are two things you need to do with the soapy water spray.

1. Spray the WHOLE PLANT...left to right, opposite side left to right, top to bottom, bottom to top, then do the opposite side again....GET ALL THE FOLIAGE WET ON ALL SIDES...right, left, up, down. For a few trees you can use a pump/pressure sprayer. For a lot of trees, use a garden hose sprayer. Dont' be afraid to leave bubbles everywhere. (By the way, using soap helps water penetrate your soil...so this is a good thing too for the general health of the plant.)


2. Repeat #1 weekly....for 3 weeks...maybe 4. Here's the deal. The soap kills the mites...and screws up their eggs....for 80% of the bugs. Somehow, 20% thereabouts seem to survive. Application 1 kills 80%. Application 2 kills 80% of the surviving 20% from round 1. Application 3 kills 80% of the surviving 4% from round 2. You're now down to having under 1% of the bugs left. You can do a fourth application if it's not a big deal to you. You're approaching zero mites on your plants IF you really did what I said in #1 above.


The KEY POINT is #2...doing it weekly for 4 weeks in a row. 


One last point...most folks WON'T spray their stuff 4 times...or they won't do #1 four times. They'll do #1 once or twice...and then quit. If you really want to preserve your investment, do it 4 times. 

By the way...this process works on any tree/bush that suffers from mites.


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## pie2mats (Mar 30, 2011)

howdy everyone! 

Did you amend the soil before planting it? Sometimes when this is done, it creates a bowl of free-draining soil that the rain goes through and when it hits the surrounding soil, the rain tends to back up and create a bowl of too-wet soil which drowns the roots. 



_____________________________ 
www.ontarioslandscapinginc.com


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

I have had real great luck with all my Albertas'. The only time I lose one is when I get too close with Roundup. Otherwise they don't die. No trouble with spidermites either....lucky I guess!

Keep them topped every season and it stunts their growth.

Bubba


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## jcopanos (May 29, 2010)

My problem is they look too much like a fire hydrant to my male lab. He kills a couple every year.


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## Steve Stockham (Jan 2, 2008)

This is the first year I have had some browning but it's only on one side. I wonder if that just means that I need to water them better (it's been a dry winter...)


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## mpaterso (May 11, 2009)

Dwarf Alberta Spruce can suffer sunburn. If the browning is only on one side and affects multiple trees in the same area then look for reflective surfaces near the plant. There is a commercial product on the market "Cloud" that is a spray and can be applied during the summer without hurting the plant that may help with your problem. The soapy water solution procedure should be done first and then one or two weeks after the last application you can apply "Cloud".


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

Sun does often winter burn many of our evergreens. Also exposure from salt spray from nearby roadways can do a lot of harm.


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## SE18 (Feb 21, 2008)

I've had some that are real troopers and others that seem more susceptible to mites. It's probably easier to just buy new ones than mess with them all year. Maybe you'll get lucky and get some troopers

Dave V


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## Doug C (Jan 14, 2008)

It does depend where you're at ! 

Some people wrap them in burlap which I've never done mainly 'cause we don't wrap the forests trees  I was told to toss as much snow 'round them as possible BUT as i mentioned to him I've seen 1-2 blue stars come out of a snow blanket dead from i presumed as suffucation so I only lightly cover them with some snow which seems to be okay process for the blue stars junipers !} 


Up here when the ground is frozen for the majority of the winter months ya don't water till spring when the grd is thawed out again ! If we have a chinook (warm wind) ya don't water 'cause when it refreezes ya then have a solid block of ice suffocating the roots an' very likely a dead tree will emerge in the spring (so I've read) 


This yr I've noticed mine are showing more brown than usual although more of a reddish brown ! They are saying in the media (coincidentally the last couple days) this is "red belt" out in the natural forests 'cause the trees are also anxious for this winter to end fooled into thinking it is spring wake up to soak up some moisture just when it goes into a deep freeze again where nature causes them to express shock in the form of reddish-brown needles which (worst case scen') are likely to fall off, but may grow back in a few yrs ! 
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2011/03/28/calgary-kananaskis-red-belt-spring.html

SO more prototype modeling within your railway empire !!! 

doug c 

p.s. a couple yrs back a household had planted a couple doz. $$$, 2ft., fantastic lookin' conical cypress (?) . . . . during their first chinook (mid-winter) the lady of the house was out watering them in, in passing on my a.m. stroll down the hill, i mentioned to her (what i just said now) she kept watering likely 'cause "what does this dude know..." vs popping inside and calling their supplier, . . . . they all sadly died at some pt. in the spring and the household spent $$ more on a couple dozen scraggly lookin' deciduous shrublets !! up here cypress are iffy at best but my next door neighbour has a nice (back fenceline) half dozen growing still at 10ft. tall


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## mainerich (Feb 2, 2010)

It looks like all of trees made it through the winter. All of the snow has melted off and there are only a few spots where there is some browning.

I also scored 15 dwarf english boxwoods and did not plant them in the railroad area before the winter. I planted them in the vegetable garden. They also came through OK.

The disclaimer here is, we are expecting some more snow tomorrow.....

I have yet to do anything to the plants. I will be transplanting a bunch of the spruces, as I will be laying down Split Jaw railbed for the entire layout and want to have one area where there will be a major cluster of trees.


We'll see how that goes.

Rich


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

I agree with Mike, I got winter burn on the south sides of mine because the sun reflecting off the snow. 
Every fall I soak the plants very well right before the first few freezes, so they have plenty of mositure all winter.


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## Steve Stockham (Jan 2, 2008)

Yep, that seems to be what happened to me! They all came through it so I'll just start up the watering schedule again and they should be fine.


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## Jim in MO (Feb 28, 2010)

Wished I would have read this BEFORE I lost 4 of mine!


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## Biblegrove RR (Jan 4, 2008)

What would you have done differently Jim?


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## Doug C (Jan 14, 2008)

jcop' ;

Mix well eight drops of tea tree oil, 32 ounces of water, plus 16 drops of 3% hydrogen peroxide into a large spritzer bottle spray around the areas ya don't want 4-legged entities relieving themselves ! 

Need reapp' every once and while, especially after a rain but does seem to successfully deter them from lifting their legs (or squatting) at spots sprayed ! 


A home brew said to be a good anti-mold spray for the bathtub, etc. but i found best works to deter the four-legged . . . . 

doug c


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## Biblegrove RR (Jan 4, 2008)

ok.... 1/2 of my yards trees have brown spots on them and the other 1/2 do not...... ? all get the same amount of sun..... cannot see anykind of a bug or spider on them!!!! 

Going to thoroughly rinse my pump sprayer and fill with dish soap right now!!!!


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## snowshoe (Jan 2, 2008)

I have been very lucky with my trees. Have not lost any yet. I dont do anything special other then make sure they got a lot of water from May through oct. I water my layout almost every night. Alot I think is where you live and exposure.


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## KathyRRozier (Oct 11, 2011)

The dwarf Alberta spruce is a plant for which I have developed a new appreciation, especially when used in packaging. Whether left in its natural conical topiary forms or trained in these tiny evergreen trees are an easy way to add a formal touch to your garden. 

This evergreen tree that grows in most regions. Cold tolerant to 50 degrees F, which develop in areas of strength 2 to 8. Warmer climates and the south may have a little difficulty with this plant because you do not like long periods of hot weather (AHS heat zone through 6). 

You can move the tree outdoors at any time. In fact, the sooner the transfer is better, because the hot, dry air inside your home is not an ideal environment for it. 

Before placing the fir outdoor home permanently, you will need to be hardened. Store in a protected area with filtered sunlight or morning light and afternoon shade. Give a few days in this place of transition, as it went inside before moving to full sun. 

Dwarf Alberta spruce will grow in full sun or partial shade. Plant in well drained soil constantly moist. If planted in a container, the water when the top 3 inches of the soil is dry. 

Once the plant is growing out, a problem that it is possible that this plant is mites. Mite damage usually results in patches of brown needles, dried. You can check their presence gently shaking the ground while holding a sheet of white paper under the branches. Mites appear as tiny specks in motion. 

To treat mites first try an insecticidal soap. That is more environmentally friendly than other methods. You want to saturate the foliage. It may require several applications of 7 to 10 days apart. Now, if this fails, you may have to resort to harsher pesticides. Only vegetable oils to avoid, since they are harmful to the dwarf Alberta spruce. 
silk flower arrangements


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