Desert Messenger

February 17, 2021 www.DesertMessenger.com 9 BREAKFAST ALL DAY! SOFT SERVE ICE CREAM! Chicken Quesadilla Quail Burger Arizona Omelet Crepes Arizona Burger Refried Potatoes ~ Free Wi-Fi ~ Ask About our Delicious Desserts! MOUNTAIN QUAIL C AFE 928-927-8890 & Gift Shop 500 N. Moon Mt. Ave., Quartzsite (corner of Moon Mt. & Quail Trail) B-10, Main St. Moon Mountain X Quail Trail N Hwy. 95, N. Central • DAILY SPECIALS • Friday FISH Special • Sunday POT ROAST Enjoy our Famous Bread Pudding ! We're Open Every Day! 205 E. Main Street, Quartzsite 928-927-4163 Serving Breakfast & Lunch Open 7am - 1:45pm Closed Wednesdays The Main Street Eatery "WHERE COFFEE IS FREE WITH EVERY MEAL" OPEN 7 DAYS/WEEK 11AM-6PM 335 N. Central Blvd., Quartzsite (Hwy. 95 at No Name St.) Fresh Ground 1/3 lb Burgers, Fresh Cut Fries, Wisconsin Cheese Kurds, Grilled Chicken Breast, All American Ground Beef Tacos(served every day) Walley on Thurs 2pm, Cod on Friday NOON. Many more items to choose from on our Menu! Stop in or call for our specials or Like us on Facebook Sunset Grill CALL IN YOUR ORDER! 928-662-8632 OPEN 7 DAYS/WEEK 11AM-6PM Dorothy & Toto's Ice Cream Shoppe & 205 W. Main St. Quartzsite In front of D&B Leather, next to Silly Al's Drive up Kettlecorn Indoor & Outdoor Seating Real Hand Dipped Ice Cream Old Fashioned Shakes & Malts VOTED #1 FAVORITE DESSERT Follow us on Facebook for updates! By Alex Taft Last month I went into Dennis's notebooks looking for ideas for an article. I found a treasure. In 2006 the Town of Quartzsite Parks Depart- ment offered a seminar in tree planting, watering and pruning. Over 25 people attended the free seminar conducted by Parks Department staff that included a landscape specialist, a certifi ed arborist and two master gardeners, one of whom was also the instructional specialist for the La Paz County Extension Offi ce. What I forgot was that we collectively produced a pamphlet that spells out in simple language, tree installation, establishment and care after planting, including pruning. I no longer have a copy, but Dennis did. The Quartzsite Library Friends are providing free copies of the pamphlet to anyone who is inter- ested. Since the library is currently closed due to Covid-19, a few copies will be available at the Quartzsite Chamber of Commerce. If you call the library, perhaps they can make arrangements for you to obtain one. Otherwise, they will be avail- able when the library re-opens. "Avid gardeners have long known that money is often spent more wisely by planting a $5.00 tree in a $20.00 hole than the reverse." – Plant- ing Trees in the Desert by the Quartzsite Parks Department, supported by the University of Ari- zona, La Paz County Extension. Most of the trees come in pots from the nursery where they are watered frequently. Planting cre- ates stress for the tree. The younger the tree, the more resilient and less stressful transplanting is which translates into a taller and bigger tree soon- er. Plan to water more frequently when the tree is fi rst planted because that is what container trees from a nursery are accustomed to. One inch of wa- tering will, in most of our areas, provide moisture to the one-foot level. "The most basic principle of watering is that enough water should be supplied to the soil to replace what the plant uses and what is lost to evaporation and percolation." – ibid. If insuffi cient water is supplied the tree stops grow- ing. Adding fertilizer is useless if the tree does not get enough water. Trees usually come thoroughly fertilized by the nursery and don't require any more until they have been planted for a year. Then a time-release fertilizer can be used. Pruning is something all of us see bad examples of all over town. Branches should be removed at the collar just above where the branch joins the trunk. Whacking off portions of a branch create an ugly looking tree. It is akin to topping a tree which is not recommended and often jeopardizes the health of the tree. Unfortunately, we now have a few ex- amples of that "pruning" on town properties. I have covered in brief, some of the topics that are within the pamphlet, "Planting Trees in the Desert" and some excerpts, but they do not re- place the detail of what we wrote then. So if you plant a tree that grows successfully, what do you get? Besides the obvious shade, you get a cooler home that costs less to cool, happier plants and cactus in your yard because the tree gives relief from the relentless summer sunshine and birds claim it as their own. Landscape that in- cludes trees increases the value of your property. A house on a lot with mature trees or in a neighbor- hood with mature trees makes the property 20% more saleable. For me, a tree reminds me there is grace in the world, even if our rhetoric and day to day conversation lack it. It can be a memorial of someone loved and lost and it is a witness to life without criticism or judgment, but simply obser- vance of what has been and what is to come. Gardening with Dennis Planting trees in the desert

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