Best November Landscape Tips for Arizona

November is here, and that means we get to spend more time outside with family and friends and enjoy the weather right in our own backyard! Not only can you smell fall in the air, but you can also smell more cookouts and fire pits being turned on all over the neighborhood!

In the last couple of months, you may have noticed how much your yard, and the landscapes around you, have been growing and filling the streets with lush foliage and fall color. We love this time of year because we know you are spending more time in your yard and enjoying the beautiful surroundings you created for your home.

We want to make sure it stays that way through the fall, the holidays, and beyond! Keep reading to learn about the essential areas to take care of this month, such as November watering, fertilizing, and which trees can be planted today. Now is the best time to care for your yard and give it the best health boost through the rest of the year.

Monitor Your Watering Schedule

The cooler months are the time we get to reduce the frequency in which we water our landscape. It is still important to make sure you are watering deeply to give root systems enough water to continue growing strong and deep. This watering routine will produce the strongest possible root system and keep them thriving through the winter.

By the next growing season, those strong root systems will bring your landscape vigorous plant growth, creating thicker foliage, brighter flowers, and greener lawns. A healthy root system also keeps your trees and plants more resistant to local pests or disease infestations. 

Prevent Weeds

Nobody wants to spend more time doing unnecessary yard work than needed. So, take preventative measures now and make your life easier this month! Apply pre-emergent herbicides as directed regularly to maintain a clean yard and keep the weeds away.

This will give you more time to hang out with family and less time trying to fight off new weed growth. November, and going into the winter, is an excellent time to continue using preventative measures to keep weeds from growing in your yard and stealing nutrients from your plants and lawn.

Our nursery professionals can help you choose the best product for your yard. Stop by your nearest nursery and let us help get your yard in perfect shape!

Keep Your Landscape Fertilized

Fertilizing your shade trees, evergreen trees, flowering trees, palms, and even your dormant trees in the fall gives them the chance to go through the winter in top health. We recommend using our custom blended fertilizers for your landscape needs as they are formatted explicitly for common conditions found across California.

Now is the perfect time to apply Moon Valley Nurseries custom fertilizer, Moon Dust, and feed everything in your yard from your most massive tree to your potted plants. For an extra boost before and during the winter season, our Super Charged Moon Juice can be used monthly. This will keep your trees and shrubs thriving and developing stronger roots.

For all the palms in your yard, we carry an exclusive product specifically to get the perfect blend of nutrients for every palm. Our Super Palm Juice optimizes palm tree performance, helping create thicker trunks and greener, healthy fronds.

Maintain a beautiful green winter lawn with our Moon Royale Turf Fertilizer. Our fertilizer blend helps break down any hard soil in your grass while enhancing a deep, vibrant green color across your landscape.

To make sure your plants are getting the most out of our fertilizers and supplements, apply Soil and Water Conditioner to help amend the soil and allow more nutrient absorption to your plants.

These and other custom products can be purchased at all Moon Valley Nursery locations or online here.

Finish any Last-minute Planting Projects

Chinese Elm

The Chinese Elm, or True Green Elm, is one of the best shade trees to give your home a break from the Arizona sun. This elm is an attractive tree that can be planted as the focal point in any landscape, front or back, and loves full sun exposure.

Our variety is a fast-growing tree that grows upright and round, for maximum shade coverage. Its leaves are small and grow densely into each other, creating a gorgeous green canopy.

Brazilian Pepper

The Brazilian Pepper is one of the best water-wise trees we carry at Moon Valley Nurseries, and it absolutely thrives in our sun and heat. It's lush and wide-spreading canopy is supported by its dense branches that crisscross around and spread out from the main trunk.

This Brazilian native can produce white flowers in late spring. In the fall and winter, it bears pinkish colored fruits in clusters. For some holiday repurposing, many homeowners use these berries during the holidays for crafty, festive displays.

Majestic Ash

The Majestic Ash is an evergreen tree that stays glossy green all year and doesn’t produce any seeds, saving you time with no mess to clean up! Its narrow, upright shape makes it an ideal shade tree for a wide range of landscapes.  

This ash variety can give your yard and home more privacy and shade when planted in groups or rows. Once established, the Majestic Ash requires less water and is great for a low-maintenance style.

Schedule a Tree Care Consultation for Your Trees

Our Tree Care Division is available to help with any of your tree care needs or concerns. Our ISA Certified arborists and nursery professionals can handle any job such as storm clean-up, tree trimming/pruning, tree and stump removal, and deep root fertilizer injections.

Now is the best time to prep your trees so they can stay strong through the winter months and bounce to life by spring! Click here to check out our Tree Care Division and schedule a consultation or ask any questions you may have about your tree maintenance.

Learn More from Moon Valley Nurseries

Click here to learn more about fall planting season and why it’s the best time to plant trees in Arizona.

Click here to learn more about our consultation process. See how easy we make it for our customers to get the job done right and get it done fast.

Click here to find out what to expect when you visit Moon Valley Nurseries.

How to Battle the Bugs Organically

Many homeowner's goals for their yard is to achieve a perfect tropical, desert, or Mediterranean landscape. While this can be easily done by speaking to your local Moon Valley Nurseries professional, many times, troublesome bugs and pests can get in the way. 

Dealing with Bugs and Pests

The key to maintaining your property and garden is by using Monterey BT for organic gardening. It's a safe alternative to harsh chemicals that many spray on their vegetables and shade trees. The main ingredient in the Monterey BT for organic gardening is active, safe toxins that are poisonous for caterpillars and worms but are safe for humans to consume regularly. 

Using Organic Products

We recommend that homeowners apply BT for organic gardening when worms or caterpillars are first spotted. It's crucial to repeat the process at a five to seven-day interval while they are still active. Apply the product more frequently to control the heavy infestations on trees, shrubs, and vegetable plants. 

Applying Monterey BT to Your Plants

The best way to use the product is to spray it from top to bottom of any affected foliage, then liberally reapply after heavy rains. This product is beneficial before, during, and after the monsoon season. 

The key factor to remember is that the product must be eaten by the bugs to eliminate them. That's why you should use a large amount of it. Here at Moon Valley Nurseries, we supply it for you in a spray bottle, a hose attachment bottle, and in a concentrated form. This way, you can mix it yourself in an applicator of your choice. 

After these bothersome insects eat the BT, they will immediately stop feeding. It might appear as if they are still active because of previous feeding leaving marks on the leaves. Old foliage will not repair itself from the marks left, but new growth will not be affected by the bugs that were previously feeding on the old leaves. 

Moon Valley Stamp of Approval

The best benefit of using BT is that you can apply it up until the day you pick the fruit or vegetables. It reinforces the fact that it is entirely safe for you and your family to use. BT is the organic product that Moon Valley Nurseries has put their stamp of approval on for the most effective tool against any worms and caterpillars. 

Click here to find the nearest nursery to you and let our nursery pros help you with all your yard needs.

For the best trees on Earth, go straight to the Moon! 

Take Back Control of Your Surroundings

The best part about owning a house is that it’s yours, and you can make changes, add new things, and re-invent it to be your perfect home. In part 1 of “Tackle Your Landscaping Issues,” we focused on trees and plant suggestions for adding privacy and creating landscape designs for your new home. This time we are focusing more on blocking out noise and unsightly views in your front and back yards. While this can be a new homeowner issue, it also applies to older homeowners!

As a new homeowner, you may not have noticed just how close your home was from a local park or school or that your street has more traffic than you expected. For older homeowners, you may be dealing with similar problems that have escalated over the years and you need help blocking noise and views.

To reduce noise around your home and block out unsightly areas, we have a wide selection of trees and shrubs that can get the job done. We can even help you design your beautiful landscape upgrade! Keep reading for some of our favorite trees and plants to help you with your landscape goals.

Trees and Plants for Blocking Noise

Maybe you didn’t realize your home was located so closely to noisy areas such as parks, schools, busy streets, or loud neighbors, or perhaps these issues have slowly increased over time.

Whatever the problem is, a well-organized design can help reduce noise around your home and let you feel more at home than before! Planting trees and large shrubs in a hedge-like order or designing a living wall, to construct a solid barrier will be most useful for noise reduction.

Ficus Columns

Our improved Ficus Nitida Columns are perfect for creating a dense barrier to block out anything you want! They love the heat and get more drought-tolerant as their roots establish. They grow quickly and are easy to take care of throughout each season.

Podocarpus

Podocarpus is a low-maintenance tree that is most often used in landscapes as a screen. This fast-growing tree can handle regular trimmings to fit your exact design needs or neighborhood restrictions.

When left alone, they can grow large and create a dense structure of branches and foliage to help block out noise and increase privacy.

Trees and Plants for Blocking Unsightly Areas

Another landscape issue we hear about in our nurseries is that our customers have an unsightly spot in their yard or their neighbors’ yard that they want to cover up. Some issues that you might run into are noisy pool pumps and A/C units, or bland block fence.

As important as they are to your home, you don’t need to see them every day, and there are many ways to block them from sight with attractive plants from palms to shrubs. 

Pygmy Date Palm

The Pygmy Date Palm is a small palm that can fit in tight spaces and bring a unique look to your yard. This palm can be grown in single and multi-trunk form. The Pygmy can grow in full sun to partial shade and require little maintenance.

Hopseed

The Hopseed is a sun-loving shrub that can fit easily into any landscape as a filler plant to make sure your pool pump is well disguised! Hopseed can grow as tall as eight to ten feet and block out quite a bit of unsightly space!

Our Green Hopseed variety will add bright green foliage to your landscape while our Purple Hopseed variety adds a pop of purple that will contrast beautifully with your other plant material.

Ask a Nursery Professional

Now is a great time to plant! Stop by Moon Valley Nurseries and speak with a nursery pro about where to get started with your new landscape project. We can help you pick out the perfect plants for your specific situation and design the best set-up for your yard.

More from Moon Valley Nurseries

Click here for PART 1 of “Tackle Your Landscape Issues [New Homes and Needed Privacy].”

Click here to learn more about our consultation process. See how easy we make it for our customers to get the job done right and get it done fast.

Click here to find out what to expect when you visit Moon Valley Nurseries.

Visit Moon Valley Nurseries Near You

Click here to find your nearest nursery and check out these and other gorgeous plant material options in person. Our nursery professionals are ready to help you find the best plants for your home and landscape today.

Benefits of Planting Evergreen Trees in Your Front Yard

• Add instant curb appeal to your home and neighborhood.
• Blocks viewpoints from neighbors or street traffic and unwanted views.
• Increase the value of your home tremendously.
• Creates a natural sound barrier – ideal for properties near busy streets.
• Enhances the architectural design of your landscape.
• Adds shade to your yard and can help cool down your home during the summer.

You can sense it when it feels like you’re on display in your personal outdoor space. It’s a feeling that can make it a little harder to relax and enjoy your front yard. With the right evergreens, you can create a personal fortress that feels peaceful, and most of all, private.

Planting for privacy is a breeze with evergreen trees. Using trees to create privacy in your front yard means that you get to add color, texture, form, or anything else you can envision! We carry a wide selection of evergreens that can create any aesthetic for your landscape design and provide you and your family with plenty of peaceful solitude.

Yes, you could install an expensive fence or build a wall made from brick, stone, or some other solid material. The thing is, those tall fences and walls can make us feel confined in our space. Not to mention that there could be local laws or HOA restrictions based on height, placement, and style. Over time, those fences start to show wear and tear that can be expensive to fix or replace.

Five Best Evergreens for Arizona Yards

Evergreen trees hold onto their leaves all year long, so their foliage can add wall-to-wall privacy year-round. As they mature, evergreens create a consistent look that makes them an ideal privacy screen.

They do much more than just create a private yard. Evergreen trees also help absorb ambient noise. Privacy never looked so good! Here are five evergreen trees for front yards in Arizona – all available at your nearest Moon Valley Nurseries location.

Ficus Indian Laurel

The Ficus Indian Laurel, also known as Ficus Nitida, is a medium-to-large tree that grows in single and multi-trunk form and thrives in full sun. The Ficus produces a wide-spreading and dense canopy that creates a beautiful privacy screen around your yard.

Ficus trees handle pruning into many shapes, so you can trim the foliage any way you need to fit perfectly into your landscape. To give you the most privacy, we suggest planting these fast-growing trees in rows along the borders of your front yard.

Live Oak

Live Oak, sometimes known as Southern Live Oak, is another of our beautiful evergreen trees to consider for privacy. These are long-lived trees that grow at a moderate rate. The produce dense, gray/green foliage that will block unwanted views, especially from larger homes nearby.

Besides creating privacy, these evergreens feature a wide-spreading canopy that will provide lots of shade for your yard and home. Live Oak trees are also noted for being very drought-tolerant once established, and for the minimal care required to keep their good looks intact all year.

Ficus Columns

Ficus Nitida (or Indian Laurel) Columns are one of the best evergreens you can find and perfect for building a living privacy "fence." Our Indian Laurel Columns are a favorite throughout Arizona! Plant them along a fence or border to create instant privacy and a lush, dense backdrop.

These evergreens are water-wise and love the heat, which means they can thrive in our desert environment. There is no doubt that Indian Laurel Columns are perfect for creating a living wall. Not only do these columns create a private oasis for your front yard, but they also block out neighbors and reduce local noise.

Oleander

Oleanders are an excellent choice for adding privacy and combining different colors to your design.  From late spring to fall, it blooms fragrant flowers that cluster at the ends of the branches. The flowers range in color from pink to red, white, and pink, so you can use one color or add different colors for a more unique, informal hedge.

Its dense, upright growth habit makes it an excellent screening plant. Its narrow leaves are dark green, leathery, and semi-glossy.  There are many ways you can plant them in your landscape for privacy. Plant them along property lines, lining walkways, or driveways. Whichever way you let them grow, Oleanders will add privacy and color to your landscape.

Carolina Cherry

Sometimes called the Cherry Laurel, the Carolina Cherry is an evergreen tree that makes an outstanding privacy screen. It features bright green foliage and small, fragrant, cream-white flowers that bloom in late winter to spring.

It has a dense, compact growth habit that is ideal for screening and helping to create a private front yard. Everyone loves their near-perfect shape and low maintenance requirements. You can line them up along a fence line to build a natural wall or against an existing fence to block more vertical space.

Come Home to a Private and Beautiful New Yard

Speak with our nursery pros today and allow us to help you select the perfect evergreens that will give you the privacy you need. Plant evergreen trees for privacy and spend more quality time in your yard. Not only will you gain privacy, but you will also add so much more shade to the area and have another reason to spend more time in your front yard!

This summer has been a hot one, and your landscape needs some help recovering and getting ready for fall! This time of year, you’re going to start to see your landscape come back to life thanks to the fantastic fall weather coming back. This is also an excellent time to check your trees, plants, and lawn to see if there are any issues such as damaged branches, yellowing foliage, wilted leaves, dry patches of grass, and so on. You’ll want to spot that now and help as much as you can to guarantee the best growing season for your yard.

So, how can you help your yard recover over the next few weeks? We asked our nursery professionals and compiled the top recommendations to help your trees, plants, and lawn gain back their full strength and bring your beautiful landscape back to life!

Tips to Help Your Yard Recover from Summer

Are the leaves on your trees looking a bit yellow? Has the heat gotten the better of your plant materials? The best way to help combat the heat stressors and help your trees and plants grow healthy is to use fertilizers and supplements. Our custom products help trees, palms, and other plants grow to their full potential. Healthy trees and plants will handle the changing weather much better than those still weak from heat stress.

Add Fertilizer to your Trees and Plants

Our Moon Dust fertilizer is an organic blend developed especially for tough, compact alkaline soils found in our region. Our custom fertilizer is made with the perfect ratio of nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus for healthy living. Moon Dust can be used on every plant material in your yard from large trees to potted flowers!

To learn more, click here.

To purchase, click here.

Amend your Soil

Moon Valley Nurseries Soil and Water Conditioner is the perfect primer for fertilizers. Our Soil and Water Conditioner helps provide more nutrients to your trees and plants by loosening up the hardened soil in your yard. It is great for making sure your trees and plants get all the water and fertilizer it needs without wasting any of it!

To learn more, click here.

To purchase, click here.

Supplement Plant Growth

Our Super Charged Moon Juice is specially formulated with Furst liquid technology including a blend of organic enzymes and amino acids that help stimulate the growth of trees and plants, along with new root hair growth, which helps plants increase moisture intake. Moon Juice was made to help recover from seasonal stress!

To learn more, click here.

To purchase, click here.

Make your Lawn Green Again

If you have grass in your landscape, then you know how much it can struggle during the summer with full sun exposure all day long. Our Moon Royale Turf Fertilizer acts fast to restore your grass to a healthy, luxurious green while also decreasing weed growth and disease problems.

To learn more, click here.

To purchase, click here.

Adjust your Watering Schedule

Quick Watering Tips

• Water early in the morning while it is still hot
• Water deeply to saturate the entire root system
•  Allow your soil to nearly dry between watering sessions

Watering is one of the most important aspects of keeping trees and plants healthy. Soon, we will have shorter days and cooler nights; so, you want to be careful that we are not over-watering. You will also want to transition our water systems from summer to fall settings as it starts to cool down, which is where our watering guides come in handy!

Clean Up your Trees

By applying fertilizer and supplements that we talked about and watering your landscape correctly, your trees will recover from our tough Arizona summer and regain their greenness and health! Another way to help your trees out is to remove any fallen or damaged branches from the monsoon season, or that aren’t doing so well. This will pave the way for new growth to take over!

Plant New Trees for Fall

Fall is the best time to plant in our region and right now is an excellent time to check your yard and see what you might need, or want, to add to your landscape. Maybe you lost some plant material from heat stress and want to replace it, or perhaps you see a need for large shade trees to help keep your house cooler for future summers.

Planting now is best because the weather is cooler, and the ground is nice and warm from the summer. This creates the perfect conditions for planting new trees. It also gives your new trees and plants time to establish their root systems, so they flourish next spring!

Let our Tree Care do the Work for you!

Our Tree Care team of professionals is ready to help you! Our team is staffed with ISA Certified Arborists and Certified Nursery Professionals. They guarantee the highest quality of services for your trees and landscapes. Whether you need tree or stump removal, trimming, soil fertilizer injections, or any other tree care issues you need help with – our team can do it!  

No matter how hard your landscape was affected by the hot Arizona summer, Moon Valley Nurseries is here to help. Visit your nearest Moon Valley Nurseries location and see what we have to offer for yourself!

Now is the Best Time to Plant Trees in Arizona

The fall season has finally arrived, and as always, it's the best time to plant in the desert! Warm sunny days and cool nights create the perfect condition for trees and plants to establish strong vigorous root systems while getting a break from the sun above ground. This ideal balance encourages root growth all season and offers even more benefits to fall planting.

Benefits of Planting in the Fall

Better Root Establishment

In our region, the soil usually never freezes, which allows your newly planted trees an opportunity to establish its root system throughout the fall/winter.

Less Water Usage

Because of the shorter days and the cooler weather, newly planted trees and shrubs will require less water than they would need if they were planted during the spring.

Quality time to Grow for Spring

By the time spring hits, your tree or shrub will have a solid, better-established root system and will be able to focus its energy on top growth.

Best Landscaping Tips for Arizona

Change Watering Schedule

If there is one thing that Arizona homeowners with beautiful yards are good at, it's that you stay on top of your watering game. Now that we are in October, you must re-adjust yet again, except this time you can finally start cutting back on your water usage!

The weather change is going to help the ground retain moisture longer, therefore, permitting us to use less water going forward. Make sure that you are watering less often but still watering with the right amount of water each session. The soil should be saturated about two to three feet deep around the tree.

Remove Weeds

The first step when fighting off weeds in your yard is prevention. You will save yourself so much time if you apply pre-emergent herbicide to your yard before the weeds even start to grow!

If any weeds do get past the pre-emergent herbicide, you should try to pull them out as soon as you see them pop out of the ground. As they grow, they drop more seeds, and then you have more weeds! If you pull them early, you can terminate new growth before it even starts. Consider adding mulch to areas to reduce the number of sprouting weeds. Ask our nursery professionals what the best option might be for your landscape.

Fertilize Trees, Plants, and Lawn

We cannot stress the importance of fertilizing everything in your landscape, and we mean everything from trees, flowers, and plants to your lawn! Because fall is a prime growing season in our region, this is when your trees and plants are going to be utilizing the most nutrients from fertilizers.

Once the temperature drops, the material in your landscape will decrease its top growth and focus on root growth. This creates the best environment for your new trees to establish a healthy root system. Fertilizing now and throughout the winter will allow the plant to soak up those much-needed nutrients and store them for explosive spring top growth.

Everything should be fed with the proper fertilizer and supplements to ensure optimal growth during this crucial time.

Our Moon Dust Fertilizer is our top-selling product because it works on everything in your yard! Moon Dust can be used on all your trees and plants. It boasts larger and tastier fruit production when applied to citrus and fruit trees and significantly increases bloom cycles in flowering plants and trees.

Our custom blended Super Charged Moon Juice is a staple that should be used on all your trees, plants, flowers, vegetables and more all year round. Moon Juice helps boost growth and helps your existing trees recover faster from any heat stress it endured over the summer.

If you have a lawn in your yard, you will want to add our Moon Royale Turf Fertilizer to bring your grass back to life! Lawns can sometimes take the hardest beating from the sun, so it’s important to help give it optimal nutrients going into fall. Moon Royale will help break down the soil and quickly green up any lawn type.

At a Moon Valley Nurseries location near you, you can find fertilizers and other beneficial products for every plant in your landscape. Our fertilizers can be used on everything from turf, palms, desert trees, shade trees, palms, and more. Now is the best time to give your landscape a helpful boost!

See our full line of products here to help your yard flourish this fall.

Trim Your Trees

Making sure you have your landscape well-cared for is a vital part of keeping your yard beautiful and protecting your investment. You should trim off any dead or sun-damaged branches, cut back any excessive branches, or branches that may have been damaged by summer storms.

If you have citrus and fruit trees in your landscape, take time to examine them and remove any suckers (green branches that grow fast and steal nutrients from your tree). Once the suckers are removed, your tree will have better nutrient intake to focus more effort into growing delicious fruit. 

Moon Valley Nurseries Tree Care Division

Our Tree Care Division is available in Phoenix and surrounding areas to help with any of your tree care needs or concerns. Our ISA Certified arborists and nursery professionals can handle any job such as storm clean-up, tree trimming/pruning, tree and stump removal, and deep root fertilizer injections.

Reach out to our Tree Care Division to schedule a consultation or ask any questions you may have about your trees.

Learn More from Moon Valley Nurseries 

Click here to learn more about fall planting season and why it’s the best time to plant trees in Arizona.

Click here to find out how our nursery pros can help you design your own Hollywood-style hedge!

Click here and learn how to pick the perfect tree for your landscape.

Design a Festive Landscape

The fall season is coming up quick in Arizona.  With local schools being back in session for a few weeks now, and football season already starting, it feels like fall already!  The shift in the weather is also helping us feel the season change. It's getting colder and more beautiful outside, and now we can enjoy it again. Soon enough, our landscapes will be changing and transitioning into fall and showing off some spectacular fall colors along the process.

Many of our trees at Moon Valley Nurseries have the outstanding fall reds, purples, yellows, and oranges that we have come to expect and love this time of year. Fall is the best time to plant trees, and these fall-color trees would be perfect and just in time to WOW your neighbors all season long.

Arizona Ash

Arizona Ash is a deciduous tree that has striking, smooth, bright green leaves and can cover a lot of area in your yard with shade in the summer. Native to Arizona and other southwestern states, this tree loves the sun. While traditionally very green most of the year, the canopy will start to turn into a yellow-golden color in early fall.

It is cold-hardy and heat-resistant, so they are ideal for planting in our desert climate. If you’re looking for a fast-growing shade tree, you’ll love the Arizona Ash tree. We find the Arizona Ash to be very adaptable for all uses such as being planted for shade, which keeps your house cool in the summer but will also keep your home warm in the winter when the leaves drop.

Raywood Ash

A popular choice when landscaping your yard in the Arizona desert is the Raywood Ash tree. It is known for its extraordinary display of dark red to deep reddish-purple foliage in the fall that gives any landscape that classic seasonal look. The leaves of the Raywood Ash drop off soon after the fall season, allowing for easy clean up just once a year.

During the summer, the Raywood Ash offers a much-needed service by adding shade to your yard! When the leaves come back in the spring, it becomes the perfect shade tree again, especially once they mature to their full height.  The Raywood produces darker foliage than most trees, which makes it stand out in landscapes and makes a great statement tree for the design.

Crape Myrtle

One of the best plant options for striking bursts of color throughout your yard is the Crape Myrtle tree. This tree blooms from the spring through the fall months and is a perfect addition to any yard, parks, and other properties. In the fall, the Crape Myrtle tree produces exquisite flowers that bloom brightly in many colors such as pink, purple, red, and white.

The Crape Myrtle can be planted nearly anywhere because it stays small-to-medium in size. They look lovely when they are planted in clusters and rows or as an accent tree full of color that will pop against green foliage or deciduous trees that share the landscape. For ultimate blooming potential, we recommend pruning in the winter while the tree is dormant.

Shumard Oak

Another awesome fall choice to include in your landscape for ultimate shade is the Shumard Oak Tree. This oak tree is a medium to large sized tree and grows into a canopy with a wide spreading reach, which creates a large area of shade all around it. This tree is a fast-growing species of oak that is very tough and long-living, so it will be part of the family for generations!

This tree is known for its antique look with large dark green leaves that can grow up to eight inches long. Another benefit of having the Shumard Oak is the beautiful vibrant red orange colors that take over the canopy during the fall season that will get you into the holiday festivities!

Flowering Pear

The Flowering Pear tree might seem like an odd choice for fall colors, but it will definitely add color to your landscape! This moderate-to-fast growing tree produces bright white flowers from winter to spring, creating a huge contrast to any evergreen plant materials or deciduous trees in the same area.

The Flowering Pear is easy to care for and can be pruned to fit your needs or grown out naturally to add more shade to your yard. With leaves that turn from dark green to vibrant purplish-red coloring in the fall, it also helps guide you into the changing of the seasons. Ask our nursery professional about the different varieties we carry, and which ones would be best for your home.

Get Started with your FREE Custom Design at our Nursery

Find a Moon Valley Nurseries location near you to see the best fall trees for your region. Our nursery professionals are always ready to start designing yards and achieving our customers' goals.

Does this sound like you when you bought your new home?

“We finished unpacking the house and set up everything the way we want it to be. We had painted the house already inside and out. Now that we finished the inside, it was time to start on the outside. Our yard was looking pretty rough. It was one issue we had upon purchasing the house. Can you help us?”

The story above is something we hear every single day. Doctors, lawyers, and, even the barista at Starbucks need trees for their house. They might want to remodel an existing yard or create the backyard they have always wanted. You can probably relate to this exact scenario. If you are, what is the next step?

How to Pick the Perfect Trees and Plants

You have probably mentally prepared for this visit because you have been researching for weeks! You’ve spent time reading all the articles you can find online about the trees you want in your yard. You have driven all over your neighborhood and talked to your community members, asking every question you can think of about the trees you like that they have.

The next thing you do is drive over to Moon Valley Nurseries. Once you get out of your car, your jaw will drop from the large size and vast amount of trees and plants on the property.

Once you come to the nursery, you will be greeted and helped by one of the nursery professionals who will walk you around the property to see the trees you are interested in for your project. Even when you think you know what you want, it can be overwhelming. Which do you pick? How do you know they are the best option? Keep reading to learn some tips from a Moon Valley Nurseries professional!

5 things to Ask Yourself When Picking Trees

When you are planning your new yard and choosing trees, think about the five questions below to make sure you pick the best tree for your yard, your situation, and your taste.

Do you want a tree which will be taller first or wider first? 

The trees which will be taller first will probably have a branching structure that goes higher more than wide, while a wider tree will be the opposite, having branches looking wider instead of taller. 

How does the branching structure look?

 Some trees and plant material grow dense from a very young age while others take more time to create a fuller canopy or branch structure.

How does the canopy look?

 The canopy should have a healthy green, or whatever color the leaves are supposed to be. Look for trees with full canopies as well. The fuller canopies usually can be an indicator that the root ball is further developed so that it is pushing out more consistent healthy growth. 

Do I understand the maintenance that this tree will require?

Trees require nutrition and “haircuts” just like people. Be sure you understand the maintenance that goes into the type of trees you are considering. If this is an issue, our nursery pros can help you find better alternatives for you.

Does this tree complete the look I want?

The tree you are looking at, does it finish everything you want? If you want shade for your home, make sure the tree will grow big enough, and the canopy will grow thick enough to create the shade you need. 

If you want to add color, make sure you choose a tree that will bloom in the right seasons. Some trees bloom for a few weeks and some bloom off and on all year!

Moon Valley Nurseries cares about its customers and spends the time to show it in every tree and plant in the nursery. They employ professionals who are well trained and have a deep passion for making sure that you have the perfect trees for your yard, and we make it a point to pick the healthiest trees. Click here to find the location near you.

More from Moon Valley Nurseries

Click here to learn what to expect when you come in for your free consultation.

Click here to learn about our FREE in-store landscape consultations. Our design consultations are as easy as 1-2-3.

Click here to learn more about growing and harvesting fruit trees in Arizona.

One common disease that occurs in Arizona, especially during the summer, when we experience extreme heat for a few weeks, is called Gummosis.

What is Gummosis?

Gummosis is the formation of patches of a sticky, gummy substance that form on trees. It occurs when tree sap comes from a wound from the trunk or damage on the tree.

In the summer months, many customers prune their trees, which can do some damage to the trees if not properly clipped or if the tools are not entirely disinfected from previous uses. Improper care can lead to tree wounds that allow Gummosis to appear.

The majority of the customers that visit the nursery with concerns of Gummosis are usually asking about specific trees. The trees affected tend to be fruit, citrus, and mesquite trees that have already recently suffered from damage, such as bugs, disease, or severe pruning.

Treating Gummosis in your Trees

The proper way to treat this first and for most is to remove any areas that look infected. So that you don't destroy or damage your tree any further, make sure you use disinfected tools for this process.

The next step is to use a systemic Fungicide, which is available at any Moon Valley Nurseries location and typically comes in a liquid form. Apply that to the tree to help with the Gummosis disease.

You want the tree to recover rapidly for aesthetics reasons as well as for the health of your tree. We strongly recommend that you began a routine care program using Super Charged Moon Juice monthly and also using Moon Dust to fertilize the tree.

These two are a winning combination when you are trying to bring your plants back to perfect health.

Think Your Trees Might have Gummosis?

If you believe that you see this problem in your yard, make sure you call, or even better yet, visit your local Moon Valley Nurseries.

Please bring pictures or samples so we can help correctly identify what is wrong with your tree and help you get your tree on the path to recovery!

Plant and Tree Disease - Gall FAQ

One of the popular topics we get asked about at the nursery is plant diseases that could be a problem for our area. One that specific disease that can show up in Arizona is something called 'Gall.' 

Which Plants and Trees does Gall infect?

Gall is most common on plants, such as oleanders or trees such as some ash varieties. It is sometimes found on oak trees but not often. Mainly, it's caused by a bacterium that's most commonly spread by the use of landscape tools that have not been cleaned properly in between uses. 

Do my Plants and Trees have Gall? 

The signs that your plant material might be struggling with Gall disease are pretty noticeable. If your trees or plants are infected, you will see a large knot that looks a ball growing on a stem. (pictured)

How Did My Plants get Gall?

Often, Gall is brought on by landscapers who don't do a professional job and don't understand how to care for their tools or equipment properly. Make sure you hire a true professional when you have them come out to your house and take care of the significant investment you made on your property.

How do I get rid of Gall on my plants?

When you see this problem in your trees or plants, the only way to get rid of the disease to remedy the infection entirely is to remove the branch that has visual damage. If you notice that your plants or trees are showing signs of Gall, it is time to start trimming!

All you need are properly disinfected tools to remove the branches that show the visual damage of Gall. Once you remove the infected area from the stem below the area that's been affected, you should be good to go! Be sure to monitor your plants afterward for a few days for any signs of Gall returning. 

Always disinfect your Landscaping TOOLS

The easiest way to disinfect your tools is to mix half water and half bleach into a bucket. While trimming your branches, dip your yard tools into the bucket after each clip of your plants. We recommend dipping after each use so that the infection doesn't spread. Once you are done trimming your plants, immediately treat your tools and disinfect them again before you put them away.

Future Plant Care 

Make sure that you start the process of a proper care plan for those plants. Get them back to health using products like our custom-blended Moon Juice and Moon Dust help your plants recover faster.

 Talk to a Nursery Expert Today

If you think you see some damage on your plant, come into any Moon Valley Nurseries location and see a nursery professional who can give you the proper advice for your yard.