Winter Pruning Tips

Fall/Winter Tree Pruning Tips In October • You can safely prune most trees; however: • Ensure temperatures don’t drop below freezing. • Be careful not to prune frost -sensitive trees too heavily. • Desert Trees have large growth in spring/summer: trim trees in October so that they will “hold their prune” longer through the winter months. In November • Frost…

Read More

Plant of the Week- Chaste or Pepper Tree – Vitex Angnus

Long, narrow spikes of purple flowers cover this plant in the summer months. Although the flower color can range from white to dark purple, most trees have been selected for the darker flower color. To be sure, try to select this plant when it is blooming. These fragrant flowers attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. After blooming, narrow spikes of round,…

Read More

Sowing Seeds of Success – Caretaker Landscape Celebrates 25 Years

Many small businesses start the same way — usually with a forward-thinking entrepreneurial person or group passionate about the opportunity to make a living doing something they love. Caretaker Landscape is no different. Twenty-five years ago, Susan Stephenson Harris, a retired banker from Oklahoma, moved to Arizona to relax and play golf. Six months later, in 1988, she started Caretaker…

Read More

Pre-Monsoon Pruning

Pre-Monsoon Pruning Did you know Caretaker Landscape has 4 ISA Certified Arborists? Proper tree pruning practices are important when attempting to limit storm and wind damage.  During monsoon rains, the wet ground makes trees more susceptible to failure due to what we call the “sail effect”.  The sail effect happens when trees have been primarily lifted – meaning the tree…

Read More

Caretaker at The Forefront of Landscape Construction and Development at Sienna Hills- AZRE Magazine

Check out this article published by AZRE Magazine.   With more than 1,000 new homes coming to Buckeye, Caretaker Landscape is poised to transform one of those new communities, Sienna Hills. Sienna Hills is nestled along the base of the White Tank Mountains. Located in Buckeye at McDowell Road and Verrado, this landscape of rocky ridgelines, russet earth, majestic saguaros and…

Read More

Chilean Mesquite & Their Pods

Have you noticed all the Chilean Mesquite pods dropping? History – Native Mesquite trees dot southwest Arizona’s desert landscape, but the Chilean Mesquite is an interloper that has edged its way into drought-resistant gardens.  The Chilean Mesquite, Prosopis chilensis, is originally from Chile, hence its name, and it’s a relative of the pea family.  The thornless tree produces an edible…

Read More

Safety First – Tree Worker Certification

Caretaker Landscape Is All About Safety First When Working in Trees Aerial Rescue Caretaker Landscape’s Tree Management team promotes Tree Worker Certification as an important element to promoting safe tree practices.  The goal is and always has been to be a leading expert in Tree Management.  As part of that mission, we are certifying our tree climbers and crew to be WCISA…

Read More

Why You Should Never Top Your Trees

Did you know Caretaker Landscape has 6 ISA Certified Arborists? Have you noticed that ever since the big frost hit the valley, trees have started to look a little scary, like their tops are missing?  The Caretaker Tree Division would like you to be aware of this improper pruning technique, called “tree topping” that can leave your beautiful trees exposed to…

Read More

Chaste Tree – Tree of the Week

Common Name: Chaste Tree; Monk’s Pepper; Hemp Tree Botanical Name: Vitex agnus-castus Native Distribution: Southern Europe Hardiness:  15 degrees Sun: Full sun; Partial shade Water:  Moderate water needed; can be weaned off water as it matures Growth (rate, size and form): 20 x 20; Wants to be a large shrub Foliage (e/d, color, texture): Dark Green, deciduous, five-point. Flowers (color…

Read More

The Importance of SLM and Our CAI Trade Show Contest Winner

Did you know Caretaker Landscape has 18 Certified Sustainable Landscape Managers? Some of you may have attended AACM’s CAAM graduation lunch where Judy Gausman, CEO of ALCA, spoke about the importance of Sustainable Landscape Management.  To request for a Landscape Maintenance or Tree Pruning Proposal, please contact Michelle Izquierdo, Business Development Manager for our HOA Division at michellei@caretakerinc.com.   Michelle is SLM Certified…

Read More