​Are the needled trees in your landscaping looking brown & sickly? There's a good chance it's due to one (or both) of the needle cast diseases sweeping though our area. Rhizosphaera Needle Cast & Stigmina Needle Cast diseases are devastating local needled tree populations. Both are caused by fungi and both can infect your trees at the same time.

The best way to prevent tree loss and the spread of both diseases is to AVOID PLANTING ALL TREES SUSCEPTIBLE TO THESE INFECTIONS. Unfortunately, most nurseries & plant catalogs are still full of them!

When a large blue spruce in our front yard began losing needles we started looking for answers online. What we found was all bad news. Most articles we read warn there is still much to be learned about Rhizosphaera & Stigmina Needle Cast Disease. Limited information is available online, even fewer options exist for successfully treating these diseases. Bottom line, we expect to lose a few of our trees and you probably will too. Here's what we know so far.

He was so small, about the size of a quarter. It's a wonder he was noticed at all. Jason placed the turtle inside the truck's cupholder & offered him a splash of water. Turtle had quite a distance yet to travel for water & safety but as luck would have it, Jason was on his way to a painted turtle's paradise. His next job site was a beautiful home down a quiet, private trail. A little stream snakes through a naturally wooded side yard connecting acres of swampy lowlands to a private beach on Lake Michigan.

Quiet waters with dense vegetation & plenty of rocks to bask in the sun are ideal habitats for Midland painted turtles. We hope Turtle does well in his new home.