Terra Verde Landscape Designs

03/29/2026

https://positivebloom.com/common-crepe-myrtle-mistakes-north-carolina-gardeners-still-make/?utm_source=fblink&fbclid=IwZnRzaAQ2EKZmZGlkFlA9tR7HjcVAIMHQ6wruP0wy6HJabv9leHRuA2FlbQEwAGFkaWQBqzY0L_AyxXNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR56uYU7SCAbNqRef1d5rsMco-Wf5Rpo6dl2qggzJ8T92gofxv6coR2wZX6w2Q_aem_UEP5GK8PbkkkGI_AwDU8iw&utm_medium=paid&utm_id=120249248089180197&utm_content=120249248116500197&utm_term=120249248089210197&utm_campaign=120249248089180197

Learn 8 common crepe myrtle mistakes North Carolina gardeners still make and how to avoid pruning and care problems that limit blooms.

10/09/2025

After 23 years in Charlotte, 15 years serving as an independent Landscape Designer, I have now relocated to the Raleigh area. I am looking forward to serving my new community in fulfilling their landscape needs. I would like to give a huge thank you to the hundreds of clients in the Charlotte area that trusted me with their landscapes. I’ve loved working with each and every one of you! I am still available to you whenever you have questions or need landscape advice.

02/13/2025

I'm back. And I'm back with good news! Serve Scape which is a landscape company out of Georgia has now expanded into South Carolina, the Nashville area of Tennesse AND Charlotte. I have been named their Charlotte affiliate designer and I couldn't be more proud to work with them. I will remain and independent designer in the process which is the best of both worlds for me. With that I can now offer all of you a 10% discount on all plants ordered from Serve Scape! They have a terrific catalogue of available plants which is how I found them and discovered their affiliate program. They didn't just hire me. I had to submit my resume, several designs that I have done and interviewed with them before they offered me this wonderful opportunity.
So. With that being said. Go to: https://servescape.com/TVLD. When you order with them, enter my promo code: TVLD10 in the discount code line for 10% off of your order. And. Delivery is very reasonable- $19.99 for orders under $100; $9.99 for orders between $100-$200 and over $200 delivery is free. For design clients I can get a 25% discount for orders over $500.00.

10/07/2024

I’ve been seeing a lot more Bark Scale on Crape Myrtles here in the last couple of years. With this article from the CBS station in Washington DC where I’m from, shows it is spreading north.

They're called bark scale. They're tiny little insects but they're destructive and causing big problems across the DMV.

09/26/2024

To all of my followers in the path of Hurricane Helene, please stay safe.

Send a message to learn more

09/03/2024

Many of you probably started noticing trees like this Maple starting to turn fall colors. This actually has nothing to do with fall weather being upon us (oh, how I wish). This is a result of the trees being stressed from the drought we experienced a month and a half ago. When trees stress out, they don’t turn to a glass or 3 of wine, they start to shut down. This means nutrients and water are not sent up to the canopy so that energy is concentrated in the roots where it is needed the most. When that happens, the leaves no longer produce Chlorophyll which is what plants use to Photosynthesize and therefore you get the yellows, oranges and reds of Maples.

08/03/2024

It’s been a hot (literally) minute since I last posted. I’m going to work on doing better!! Today’s topic, Leaf Scorch. This beautiful Dogwood which is several years old suddenly developed this hideous condition many weeks back according to my client. Well, that coincided with the excessive heat and drought conditions we experienced in the Carolinas. Fortunately, it is not fatal. When we do hit conditions like the few weeks previous, simple regular watering is all you need. Japanese Maples also tend to suffer from leaf scorch if they are in too much sun and the soil is dry. Again, regular watering is all you need.

12/08/2023

My Fall Blooming Camellia in full glory. This cultivar is ‘Kanjiro’. Because of it’s size, I trained it to tree form. Unlike Winter Blooming Camellias, many Fall Blooming Camellia cultivars such as this one, love full sun.

10/28/2023

This is a bed of mine I had to rehabilitate. It had been out of control with builder “specials” of Needlepoint Hollies (Ilex cornuta ‘Needlepoint ‘)that grow too large to be along a house foundation and grow too quickly to keep in line and Liriope, also known as Monkey grass, covering the entire front portion of the bed. In the center is a Fragrant Tea Olive (Osmanthus fragrans) and surrounded by Temple Bells Pieris (Pieris japonica ‘Temple Bells’) in back, Mojo Pittosporum (Pittosporum tobira ‘CNI THREE’) and Obsidian Coral Bells (Heuchera x ‘Obsidian’) in front. I now have an easily maintainable bed with a variety of seasonal interest. And, instead of the ugly accordian plastic tubing for our downspout, we now have a more attractive stone basin that I randomly lined with Everillo Golden Weeping Sedge (Carex oshimensis ‘Everillo’) Best yet, I not only designed it, but I installed it. It always feels good when I can do it for myself!

09/25/2023

Today's topic: Black Walnut, Hickory trees and Juglone. What is "a" Juglone you ask? It is a natural growth suppressant that comes from Hydrojuglone produced by Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) and to a lesser extent, Hickory trees. It becomes Juglone when it comes into contact with air. All parts of Black Walnuts contain it- the roots, leaves, nuts and bark. It is especially problematic in clay and sandy soils. Anything not tolerant to it and planted within a 30' radius of the drip zone (the reach of the tree both in roots and canopy) will slowly die due to Allelopathy. A fancy word for preventing other plants from growing. The list of plants tolerant to it is a lot shorter than plants that don't. Add to that, that most of the time, you will be dealing with shade which makes it even harder to find plants to grow near it. In my research over the years of Juglone, I did find 1 article that cites Juglone and allelopathy is a myth. But, I have seen 1st hand plants not listed as tolerant dead or struggling near Walnuts. It is suggested there are a number of chemicals put out by Black Walnut, such as flavonoids and others that could be the culprit. But, because every extension University in the country are in agreement that Juglone is the problem, I'm sticking with my story. When out at a project site, when I see struggling plants with no apparent cause, the 1st thing I look for is Black Walnuts & Hickories. Shagbark Hickories (Carya ovata) are very common in the suburbs and city of Charlotte. If you have either a Hickory or Black Walnut and are struggling regarding what to plant near it, please reach out to me and I will give you a list of plants you can consider. Below is the telltale sign of a Shagbark Hickory.