iTrees News

Trees Grow Dollar Signs

admin — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 13:20:45 +0000

Growers must convey the value of trees.

KELLI RODDA June 23, 2011

It’s time for trees to be the powerhouse of the industry. Sales have been minimal while nursery burn and compost piles have been excessive. It’s been a frightening and maddening situation.

As the downturn slowly rights itself, albeit painfully slowly, tree growers need to push the message of the value of trees to anyone with a pulse. Trees are a necessity, not a luxury.

Study after study points to the millions of dollars trees provide in benefits to cities.

The New York City Parks Department determined the nearly 600,000 street trees in its five boroughs provide an annual benefit of $122 million—more than five times the cost of maintaining them.
Studies by Geoffrey Donovan, an economist and research forester at the Pacific Northwest Research Station, and David Butry, an economist with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, found that Portland’s street trees have a capital value of $1.1 billion, which translates to $45 million in benefits annually.
The Ohio State University Extension’s Why Trees Matter Signature Program discovered Toledo’s street trees provide $15.1 million in annual benefits, including energy benefits (electricity and natural gas savings) and stormwater remediation.
In Minneapolis, street trees resulted in savings of $6.8 million in energy costs and $9.1 million in stormwater treatment. The trees also increased property values by $7.1 million.
Shade trees in Washington, D.C. provide more than $10 million in annual carbon, air quality, stormwater, energy and property value benefits.

Although these amounts are impressive, let’s take it down to the homeowner level. Tell the buyer how trees put money back in their accounts.

Homes shaded by trees have 10-30 percent savings in air conditioning costs compared to homes without shade. And homes with trees sell for an average of 10-20 percent more.

The city of Portland wants to plant 33,000 yard trees and 50,000 street trees by July 2013 as part of its five-year, $50 million Grey to Green initiative. The city’s Treebate program offers a utility-bill credit to homeowners who plant trees in their yards. And it’s still funded for this year. Applications will be available in September.

These are quantitative dollar amounts that consumers can grasp.

Bailey Nurseries in St. Paul, Minn., created a tag and point-of-purchase program called Trees are Cool. The program informs customers that a healthy tree cools the air equivalent to 10 room-sized air conditioners operating 20 hours a day.

Urban trees also provide natural resource management jobs including tree inventory, inspection and care, landscape maintenance, and environmental impact field work and planning.

Street trees benefit business. Studies show that consumers are willing to spend 12 percent more in stores with trees in front of them than without.

Other benefits
Spring Grove Nursery in Mazon, Ill., touts the benefits of its trees to current and future customers. Owners Becky and Jamie Thomas spend a lot of time at schools teaching children how trees clean air pollution, provide oxygen and offer a home for wildlife. The Thomases also teach the school-agers how to plant and care for trees in the landscape.
“Being involved in the community and making sure our trees are part of the community is important to our business,” Becky said in between sessions at the ANLA Management Clinic this year.

Treed neighborhoods reduce crime compared to those without trees. Research also shows that trees reduce stress in the homes, schools and even behind the wheel.

The message must be simple. Use a couple of talking points that speak to the customer’s wallet and their conscience. There’s no need to use scientific terms such as amelioration or transpiration.

Possible partnerships
The Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES) was created to promote sustainable land development and management practices that can apply to sites with and without buildings including. And trees are an integral part of these projects, such as local, state and national parks; conservation easements and buffer zones; transportation rights-of-way; industrial, retail and office parks; military complexes; airports; and public and private campuses.

SITES will provide tools for those who influence land development and management practices and can address increasingly urgent global concerns such as climate change, loss of biodiversity and resource depletion. They can be used by those who design, construct, operate and maintain landscapes, including but not limited to planners, landscape architects, engineers, developers, builders, maintenance crews, horticulturists, governments, land stewards and organizations offering building standards.

This effort began as separate projects of the Sustainable Design and Development Professional Practice Network of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. In 2005, the two groups joined forces to hold a Sustainable Sites Summit in Austin, Texas.

In 2006, the United States Botanical Garden (USBG) joined as a major partner in the Initiative. A Steering Committee representing 11 stakeholder groups was selected to guide the Initiative.

There are more than 150 projects participating in the SITES two-year Pilot Program through June 2012. These projects represent a diverse cross-section of project types, sizes and geographic locations in various stages of development from design to construction and maintenance.

One of the SITES pilot projects is Casey Trees’ offices in Washington, D.C. The Casey Trees Brookland headquarters design uses trees to maximize canopy cover and manage stormwater. The site design showcases trees in various applications including infiltration planters for trees along 90 linear feet of sidewalk, two rain gardens with a diverse planting of trees and soil cells that create large soil volume for tree growth under the sidewalk. At maturity, the tree canopy will increase by 25 percent. The goal of the project is to demonstrate what is possible when public and non-profit institutions work together.

Get ready for Fall Planting Season!

admin — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 12:50:43 +0000

Fall is a great time to plant trees, and at iTrees.com you can plant your way to a colorful fall display! The fall season is a perfect time to plant trees: the weather is mild, and the trees respond well to transplanting this time of year. When trees are planted in the fall, they get a jump start on all of the early spring rain the following season. This helps them establish well before the following summer season. Experts agree that fall planting is an excellent option for tree planting.

Fall is best known for brilliant colors in the landscape, and at iTrees.com we have a spectacular array of trees to choose from! If you are looking for more color in your yard this fall, then click on our Fall Color Trees category at www.iTrees.com for an assortment of fantastic fall color choices. Our selection of locally grown trees is sure to have the fall colors you are looking for. Join us this fall & plant a tree and watch your yard transform into a beautiful explosion of color!

Is It Really Cooler in the Shade?

admin — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 19:16:39 +0000

Here is a link to a great story about how much cooler it is under the shade of a tree. The report was generated by Trees Forever based in Iowa, and it was recently published on the Alliance for Community Trees website. Both of these great organizations we are proud to support!

If you click on this link http://actrees.org/site/news/newsroom/it_really_is_cooler_in_the_shade.php?tag=news you can read about this interesting study. They used the 4-H youth to test temperature differences around the community in the summer & found temperature differences of up to 55 degrees coller in the shade!

Basically this supports what we already knew - TREES ARE COOL!!!

Social, Economic, & Environmental Benefits of Trees

admin — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 19:14:42 +0000

Here are a few facts about trees that all tree lovers should know:

· 1 Tree reduces stormwater runoff by over 4,000 gls per year.

· 100 trees remove 5 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere per year.

· “The net cooling effect of a young, healthy tree is equivalent to ten room-size air conditioners

· operating 20 hours a day.”—U.S. Department of Agriculture

· “Landscaping can reduce air conditioning costs by up to 50 percent, by shading the windows

· and walls of a home.” — American Public Power Association

· Healthy trees can increase property values by an average of 10%. Trees provide habitat for

· birds, mammals, & insects.

· The roots of trees help reduce soil erosion by holding soil in place.

· “If you plant a tree today on the west side of your home, in 5 years your energy bills should

· be 3% less. In 15 years the savings will be nearly 12%.” —Dr. E. Greg McPherson, Center for

· Urban Forest Research

· “Trees properly placed around buildings can reduce air conditioning needs by 30 percent and

· can save 20 - 50 percent in energy used for heating.”—USDA Forest Service

· Through photosynthesis, in 1 day an average tree can provide enough oxygen for a family of 4

· for that day.

· Trees planted along highways & city streets have been shown to help reduce drivers’ stress &

· reduce speeds.

· Mature trees in business districts have been shown to positively affect shoppers’ behaviors.

· Neighborhoods with more trees have been shown to have a lower crime rate.

· Trees help people feel better – both mentally & physically.

· Trees help reduce flooding by helping to reduce runoff.

· “One acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide and puts out four tons of oxygen. This is

· enough to meet the annual needs of 18 people.”—U.S. Department of Agriculture

· “There are about 60-to 200- million spaces along our city streets where trees could be planted.

· This translates to the potential to absorb 33 million more tons of CO2 every year, and saving

$4 billion in energy costs.”—National Wildlife Federation

iTrees.com now offering trees delivered to your door!

admin — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 19:04:10 +0000

New for the 2011 season, iTrees.com is unveiling even more options for Illinois customers looking for quality trees. In the past, iTrees.com only planted trees for its customers. New this season iTrees.com will offer a delivery only option for homeowners wanting to get their hands dirty & plant their trees themselves. Of course for those tree lovers that still prefer the full service option, iTrees.com will continue to deliver & plant as well.

In addition to more delivery & planting options, iTrees.com has revised the Green Rewards Program. With our new green rewards program you are in charge of your discount destiny! Your volume discount will be a percentage off your total tree purchase that is equal to the amount of trees you are ordering. The volume discount will be applied on orders from 3 to 15 trees. If you are ordering more than 15 trees, please call or email us for a personalized quote. For example if you order 3 trees you will receive a 3% discount, if you order 7 trees you will receive a 7% discount, if you order 11 trees you will receive 11% off - the savings go on & on!

But let’s talk about new trees! The 2011 Collection this season is outstanding – some of the best selections available for Illinois landscapes! Browse our extensive list of species to see all the new varieties ready to deliver right to your door. We look forward to serving all our Illinois customers this spring!

National Arbor Day in Illinois April 29, 2011

admin — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 18:51:09 +0000

Help us celebrate Arbor Day this spring & plant a tree! Across the globe, millions will be joining together to plant trees in communities & back yards. Keep your eye on our website for special Arbor Day Sales in April – you won’t want to miss out! For more on the National Arbor Day Foundation click here.

A Sweet Deal when you Buy Mature Trees: How to Turn Maples into Syrup

admin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:37:45 +0000

It’s always exciting to have your trees produce for you, and with a couple of maples in the yard, your pancakes can be complemented with some homemade syrup. It might sound difficult, to buy mature trees then actually use them to produce syrup, but it’s far easier than it sounds.

Maple syrup is a classic favorite at breakfast tables everywhere. English chemist Robert Boyle said it best in 1663 when he wrote “There is in some parts of New England a kind of tree whose juice that weeps out its incision, if it is permitted slowly to exhale away the superfluous moisture, doth congeal into a sweet and saccharin substance and the like was confirmed to me by the agent of the great and populace colony of Massachusetts.”

Well, move over New England. It’s time for Chicago to make some syrup!

The first (and most important) step to creating syrup is to have maple trees in your yard. We highly recommend against tapping someone else’s maple. After having maple trees, it is important to understand the process of sap production.

Many factors affect sap production (which is the base of syrup):

Seasonal Differences. In the late summer and autumn, maple trees begin to stop growing. It’s best to buy mature trees before they completely stop growing, because that’s when the fun begins. As the plant’s temperature sinks below 40 degrees, the tree stores starches and almost completely stops growing. When the wood hits about 40 degrees, enzymes in the tree turn its starches into sugar, mostly sucrose. As it rises toward 45 degrees, the opposite occurs but that’s when sap flow begins, which is helpful for, well, collecting sap.

Time of Day. Mornings tend to yield higher sucrose content than evenings.

Size of Tree. Your maple tree must be at least 10 inches in diameter and 4.5 feet above ground. The following ratio should be followed for taps.

10″ — 20″ diameter: One tap.

20″ — 25″ diameter: Two taps.

Diameter > 25″: Three taps.

Never more than three taps. Don’t get greedy! Also, the bigger the tree’s crown (the aboveground parts), the better for sap production.

How to Tap a Maple Tree.

According to the University of Maine, the average yield of a maple’s taphole is five to 15 gallons, though it can reach up to 40 to 80 gallons a year. Ten gallons of sap can yield about one quart of syrup, so it’s important to get every drop.

To tap a maple tree, use a 7/16 inch bitstock and drill into the tree’s truck at a slightly upward angle.
Either buy a spout or create one by cutting an elderberry stem to about 4 or 5 inches and sharpen one end to fill the taphole. Then use a small rod and push it through the stem to knock the wood out the way and leave an open hole for the flow.
Place a covered bucket (or a good household container, such as a milk jug) either under the spout’s opening or simply (in the case of milk jug-type object) force the spout into the object.
Wait as the sap collects. And note, store the sap in a cold place. It can sour fairly easily, especially in the heat.

How to turn Sap into Maple Syrup.

Ahh, finally. The best step. The step that brings you ever closer to sweet, thick syrup covering warm pancakes and getting trapped in the gridiron traps of waffles. The main purpose here is to boil water off. Be careful when making your syrup. The heat is extreme, and sap creates a good bit of steam when being boiled, so it’s best to do this outdoors or at least under stove ventilation.

And while there are many ways to turn sap to syrup, this is the simplest method for those who haven’t received a Ph.D. in syrup production.

Take a pan and start filling it with sap. Make sure you have a lot of room in the container, as the sap will boil up and possibly spill over the sides. Rubbing some butter or oil around the rim will help with this.
Continue adding sap as the water naturally present in it evaporates. If it begins foaming, don’t stop boiling. Simply scrape the foam off, but, again, be careful as it will be extremely hot.
Watch the heat levels, as not to burn the syrup, and keep the pan filled with 1 to 1.5 inches of liquid.
Your first step is finished when you have your desired amount of syrup, and it is 7 degrees above the boiling point of water in your area.
Take this syrup, while hot, and remove the sediments in one of two ways (like coffee grinds from Turkish coffee): pour through a special filter purchased at a maple store or pour into a jar and let sit for 12 hours (for sediment to settle at the bottom), then pour carefully into another container.
Finally, reheat your syrup to 180 degrees and pour it into your containers, which should be airtight. Then place in a very cold place (preferably a freezer, as properly-made syrup will never freeze) and wait.

Voila! Your very own maple syrup made from your very own yard! It’s a small step away: all you have to do is buy mature trees, plant them, tap them and make syrup. And you can have warm, sweet syrup for years and years to come.

Illinois Landscaping: Create A Winter Wonderland In Your Yard

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:54:01 +0000

More and more homeowners are seeing their Illinois landscaping not only as a warm-months investment, but also as an opportunity for their very own winter wonderland.

As the days become shorter and the sky becomes grayer, it’s no wonder that people often want to buy mature trees to enliven their Illinois landscaping even when it is covered with a blanket of white. Conifer trees like pine, spruce and hemlock are some of the season’s most popular landscaping beauties, and with their rich greens, and painterly textures, your winter blues are sure to fade when you look out your window.

Though your Illinois landscaping really needs no artificial embellishment, it is a fun and whimsical tradition to decorate one’s yard with lights and other ornaments during the holiday season.

Some unique ways to adorn your Illinois landscaping for the caroling and gift-giving months include:

- Highlighting trees and shrubs instead of just stringing them with lights. Tuck white, green, red, amber, or other colored spotlights under bushes and tree to provide a warm glow.

- Hanging lights from tree branches. One way is to wrap strings of lights around tomato cages (or anything else you can think of in a pleasing shape) and hang them at varying heights from different branches.

- Hanging faux candles from trees. Place them in lanterns. They’ll look great during the daytime as well as the night.

- Hanging ornaments specifically made for the outdoors on trees. Or use fun items like old tin cookie-cutters. To keep it from looking tacky, don’t just place them sporadically. Choose one or two trees in the yard and decorate them in ornaments all one color.

The winter blues can easily be chased away with lovely Illinois landscaping ideas from iTrees.com!

Fighting the Winter Blues with some Beautiful Evergreens in your Illinois Landscaping

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:19:22 +0000

It’s almost wintertime, and those nasty wintertime blues can start to sneak up on you. So fight it the best way possible: buying mature trees for your Illinois landscaping project.

Winter-onset depression is not unlikely in the mid-west, where the sun starts to dip early in the day and the cold creeps into the bones. But a beautiful evergreen tree in your front yard is a nice way to combat it. Green to combat the blues. And it’s not to late to add it to your Chicago landscapin g project.

In fact, planting season doesn’t end for a couple of weeks, so there is still more than enough time to adorn your yard with a beautiful tree to sway in the winter breeze, because it’s the simple things, the elegance of it all, the joy of life in the cold winter … it’s not too late to have an Illinois landscaping project that can turn your snowy white lawn into a veritable collage of illustrious colors.

Of course, it also isn’t too late to buy mature trees and plant them, even if they are not ones to keep color in the lawn, they will be waiting reminders of the breath of life Spring will bring, waxen statuettes waiting to come alive when the first bit of sunlight begins to seep back over Lake Michigan and flood the beautiful streets and unique Illinois landscaping that is one of the reasons we all call this mighty city home.

Christmas Tree Chosen to Add to the Beautiful Illinois Landscape

admin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 22:17:41 +0000

It’s that time of year again. The jingles and carolers start appearing on the radio and on street corners, Bing Crosby replacing Bruce Springsteen. And the Illinois landscape changes as well, becoming perhaps even more beautiful than ever. One of the reasons: the addition of the Daley Plaza Christmas tree.

The tree was chosen and cut down on Thursday, and its addition to the city is usually a highly anticipated event. Many flock from miles around to get a piece of the holiday cheer it brings, the peace it instills in this stressful city’s heart, the majesty of its towering form that blithely reminds the world to slow down for a moment and appreciate the little things. The things that make the holiday season such a special and wondrous time.

But why go all the way to Daley Plaza to enjoy this serenity. It’s not hard to buy mature tree s online, especially when using iTrees. And we have evergreen trees akin to the leafy ornament that offers such joy in Daley Plaza. All you have to do is choose an evergreen tree, and we will take care of the planting. And since it is already a mature tree, you can have that peace as soon as you so choose.

Just remember, planting season ends as December begins, so if you want a mature evergreen tree as part of your Illinois landscaping project before they start appear indoors, then time is of the essence.