How to protect or heal trees damaged by snow
The deadly winter storms that have wreaked havoc in large swaths of the country recently can also damage trees and shrubs.
Snow can of course enhance the look of yards and gardens, visually knitting together the plants, fences, even lawn furniture in a sea of white. But it also can bring down branches. Or worse, snap a major limb on a tree or split a bush wide open.
Most trees and shrubs will recover from such trauma, sending up new sprouts in the spring to replace missing limbs. But there are steps you can take to mitigate the damage and help the plant heal. There also are ways to help protect trees from the weather.
Tree first aid
The ragged edge from a broken branch exposes a lot of surface area, which slows healing, so cut back any break cleanly to leave a surface that heals better.
Many gardeners' first inclination, however, before doing any pruning, would be to save what is broken, merely putting the broken limb back in place and holding it there the way a doctor sets a broken bone. It can be done, just as if it were a large graft.
As with any graft, success is most likely if plant parts are lined up, held still and not given the opportunity to dry out. So attempt this fix immediately, especially for evergreens, which lose water through their leaves all winter. Realign the break and then immobilize the joined parts with stakes and splints. After binding everything together tightly (I like to use electrical tape), seal in moisture by painting every cut part with “Tree-kote” or some other moisture-resistant barrier.
Leave the “cast” in place throughout the next growing season. Keep an eye out for strangulation from the bindings, slitting and reapplying them if they become too tight. Depending on the size of the branch, it may need some staking for an additional year.
There's really no harm in attempting to “set” a broken limb. If the repair fails, the plant most likely will send out a new sprout below the break, just as if you had cut it back. In that case, do cut the broken stub back cleanly.
Pines are among the few trees that will not send out new sprouts from old wood. You can sometimes still coax such a plant back to its former glory by bending a younger branch near the break to about the position of the lost limb. The stub from the lost limb makes a convenient handle on which to tie the younger replacement, but should eventually
be cut back cleanly to its origin.
Take steps to avoid damage
Limb breakage, like many other gardening problems, can in large part be avoided by thinking ahead. Like deciding what to plant: Expect more limbs on the ground beneath fast-growing trees such as silver maple, willow and cottonwood, because their wood is weaker.
And any tree is stronger if trained in its youth to have just a single, upright main leader, off which grows wellspaced branches at wide angles. The reason the widely planted, ornamental Bradford pear trees have such a tendency to split their heads – from snow or even just age – is their natural tendency to grow many upright limbs clustered together.
Limiting the number of upright limbs on an evergreen such as arborvitae leaves fewer to break off, and a narrower top to better shed snow.
For at-risk plants, forget about shoveling your walkways when you see snow starting to accumulate. Instead, run outside with your broom to brush snow from plant limbs. Don't knock the branches and don't bother with them at all if ice has formed, or they might snap off. Sweep snow gently upward and off.
Tying up evergreen shrubs helps avert damage; just brush off the snow and loosely tie the limbs upright.
There were many small potteries making stoneware and other ceramics for use in the kitchen, bedroom or farm. Most utensils made in America by the 1800s were made with thick pottery sides in simple shapes with almost no decoration.
The most expensive examples collected today have a design or name on the crock to trace for the age and maker. But unsigned pieces are often identified when sold at auctions. That takes an expert; a family legend is not enough.
Conestoga Auction Company often sells antique and vintage stoneware. Is the side curved or straight? Is there a shaped rim? Is the interior glazed in the same color as the outside or is the inside different? Are there quirks in the shaping of the bottom? These clues can be recognized from a picture, but contact the auction and ask how they knew the maker of the unsigned piece.
This crock is similar to others attributed to Shenfelder Pottery of Reading, Pennsylvania. It has an impressed mark of the numeral “1” inside a coggle wheel circle. It has a blue hand-painted leafy branch on the outside. “Daniel Peter Shenfelder Reading Pa.” is a known mark. The Conestoga catalog said it was “attributed,” not definitely identified, but the auction house is close to the pottery building and has sold many stoneware utensils. This crock sold for $170 after 10 bids.
Q: Can you tell me what a vintage plastic Coca-cola cigarette lighter shaped like a bottle of Coke is worth? It’s about 2 1/2-inch long. It’s been in my family as long as I can remember, and I’m 77 years old. The “bottle” comes apart in the middle to reveal the sparking mechanism and the bottom is the snuffer.
A: This vintage Coca-cola cigarette lighter was made in the 1950s. The contour
fluted shape is a replica of the pre-1955, 6 1/2-ounce Coca-cola bottle. It usually sells online for $10 to $20.
Q: I have four Windsor sack back and knuckles armchairs. I’d like to know their value. Should I have them refinished or leave as is? They are in fairly good shape. Carved or burned into the bottom it reads “Nichols & Stone Co., Gardner, Ma.”
A: This company traces its history to 1762, when Charles and Marcus Nichols founded Nichols Brothers Chair Manufactory in Westminster, Massachusetts. Chairs were made in workshops until 1857, when the company opened its first
furniture factory. Charles bought out his brother in 1894 and went into partnership with Reuben Stone. The company became Nichols & Stone and moved to Gardner, Massachusetts. Chairs, tables and beds were made. The company closed in 2008. Find out how much it would cost to refinish the chairs. If you’re using the chairs, it might be worth it, but if you plan to sell them, let the buyer decide whether or not to refinish them. You might not make enough money on the sale to cover the cost of refinishing them.
Q: I have a sizable collection of Snowbabies. They are displayed, and I have the boxes all packed away. I’ve always been told to keep the original box for value purposes. Is this true for something as mass-produced as Snowbabies? I’ll keep the boxes if it will help the value in the future, but if it isn’t necessary, I’d like to free up the space.
A: Snowbabies, white bisque figurines of young children playing, have been made by Department 56 since 1986. They look similar to the original Snow Babies made of unglazed clay covered with crushed bisque “snowflakes” that were made in Germany beginning in 1864. Some Department 56 Snowbabies are retired each year. The molds are broken and new figurines are introduced. The original box adds value, especially if the box has good graphics. You can find suggested retail prices for retired Snowbabies on the company’s website retiredproducts.department56.com.
Q: How can I tell new from old milk glass?
A: Antique bottles have become collectors’ items, especially those made in rare colors. Less-expensive bottles with secure closures were used by the 1930s. Milk glass bottles with attractive women’s portraits as the label-under-glass were often the decorations in a Victorian barber shop. Modern copies have been made. Old milk glass is opaque and may be pure white, pale green, robin’segg blue, pink or black. Milk glass was not used for dinner plates but was used for doorknobs, lamps, vases and knickknacks like salt and peppers. They even made reusable figural milk glass store contains for mustard. When buying, look at milk glass carefully. Old glass is smooth and often marked with a shape or pattern number. There are many vintage and new copies that sell for very low prices.
Tip: Use protector pads on the bottom of furniture feet. Replace them periodically when they become dirty or flat.
Questions that are answered will appear in Kovels Publications. Write to Kovels, Columbus Dispatch, King Features Syndicate, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803 or email us at collectorsgallery@kovels.com.
During the pandemic, some people have put their homes on the market because they need more space. Why not try to find more space in the home you have?
How many times have you looked in a closet, a room or a drawer and thought: I need to straighten this out?
If you find it hard to get organized, professional help is here. Ron Shuma spent two decades in New York City before moving to Pittsburgh last year with his company, A Plus Organizing LLC (aplus-organizing.com). He and his team aim to create a chaos-free environment by finding a place for everything and helping you discard the excess, transforming your home into an oasis of calm.
With so many of us essentially homebound last year, the professional organizer had a dilemma: More people were in need of his services, but they were fearful of allowing a stranger into their home.
“The pandemic has been a disaster for business on so many levels. Nobody wants one more person breathing in their house and rightfully so,” said Shuma.
However, A Plus Organizing is prepared to take on clutter and COVID-19.
“I am trained in virtual organizing, and a few of my clients have taken advantage of those services,” he said. “It works quite well, especially when we are working with information or time management. It works as long as the client is motivated and willing to do their homework between sessions.”
Shuma started his business in New York with condos, apartments and homes of all shapes and sizes. He says he has always been a neatnik.
“I have always kept things ordered. Maybe it’s OCD, but it has worked for me,” he joked.
It apparently works for his clients, too. Some use him only once and others have worked with A Plus Organizing for years. Shuma recently returned to New York to help a client straighten out everything from medicine cabinets to closets to drawers in a four-story townhouse.
Potential clients are sometimes reluctant to call and expose their mess to a stranger, he said.
“They all want to know, ‘Is this the worst you have seen?’ There is no worst.”
He has clients with multimillion-dollar condos that look pristine, but he has been able to straighten what is unseen – those overstuffed closets and random junk drawers. A Plus Organizing charges an hourly rate that is under $100 an hour, with a four-hour minimum.
“I have had hoarding clients,” said Shuma, noting that he is trained and certified to help.
“I have worked in places where you can’t touch the floor because there is just so much stuff. There is a skill to it, and there is a lot to understand so you don’t do more harm than good,” he said.
Most people tend to fill empty spaces to capacity, jamming stuff in closets, cabinets, attics and basements. Shuma’s talent is rearranging for efficiency and breathability. “I can look at a space and see how to make it work for everything.”
The professional organizer has come across many unique items in his career. “The most interesting ones are not for print, but I have found a collection of guns, and in one estate, $7,000 stashed all over the place in all kinds of denominations.”
The other side of his job is deciding what you really need. It’s the Marie Kondo approach: Does it bring you joy?
“Barely a day goes by that I don’t hear dear Marie’s name,” he said, laughing. “She didn’t invent organizing, but she found a way to present it that really spoke to people.”
Shuma tells his clients to decide: Do you use it, need it or love it?
“At the end of the day, it’s not really about joy. It is about utility,” he insisted. “Clutter is essentially delayed decisions. It is easier to ignore it than make a decision about it.”
That is why so many of us have things we don’t need, don’t use and don’t like.