Utah's First
Family Nursery
Did you know landscaping isn’t just for aesthetics? It is of course an enjoyable aspect - who doesn’t love a beautiful yard - but a properly landscaped yard can also save you money on your energy bill. Plants, trees, and shrubs planted in suitable locations are not only pleasing to the eyes but can cool your yard and home during the dog days of summer by providing shade and cooling breezes.
The summer months can be almost unbearable when exposed in the sun, but a shade tree can turn a hot backyard into a cool oasis. Shade trees are not only great for escaping the summer heat, but they will also help cool your home. A US Department of Agriculture study found that shade trees reduced annual energy use for cooling by 10 to 50 percent.
Roofs, especially when they are a darker color, absorb heat from the sun, raising your home's temperature and making your Air Conditioner Unit work overtime. Shade trees can help alleviate this effect.
Speaking of AC Units, the same effect that cools your roof can help keep your AC from working overtime. Planting a shrub or bush near the unit can help cool your AC unit. The shade and transpiration from the bush keeps your AC unit from having to work as hard to cool your house, saving energy and lowering your electric bill.
Trees and shrubs planted along the west side of your home will help protect it from the peak afternoon sun. Another sun deflector is ivy, either grown on the outer wall of your home or on trellises.
You may also like to read about The Many Benefits of Shade
Properly placed, a tree can make shade during the day and create a cool breeze in the evenings.
A landscaper can help with placement but your best pruning practices are to prune low branches as air moves the fastest in the area beneath the lowest branch. In tandem with the trees, shrubs planted beneath a window will push the breeze up into your home.
Planting hardy evergreens along the northwest part of your property will also direct southerly winds towards your home. 
Get your trees planted soon to start saving money on your energy bills ASAP.
Some of our favorite fast to medim growing shade trees & shrubs are:
This tree is fast-growing and grows to a height of about 40' and a width of 35-40'. It enjoys the sunshine and is vase-shaped, but a bit more rounded than its Green Vase counterpart. It turns rusty-red in the fall.
The Northern Red Oak is another fast-growing tree that reaches heights of 50-60' with a width of about 40-50'. It turns a lovely dark red during the fall season. The leaves persist on the tree into the winter months. It’s a hardy tree, resistant to pollution with a moderate salt and alkaline tolerance.
This tree is medium growing with a mature height between 45-60' and a width of 30-40'. It thrives in sunny spots and produces green, orange, and yellow tulip-shaped flowers in late spring. Its pale green leaves turn yellow in fall.
These fast-growing bushes reach a height & width of 18-24". It’s a hardy shrub that also likes to be in the sun. It has purple-blue blooms in the summer and attracts pollinators such as butterflies and hummingbirds.
This is a deciduous shrub or small tree with beautiful purple-pink smokey plumes and purple leaves. It is a medium growth rate plant, growing 1-2 feet per year with a mature size of about 10’ tall and wide.
6.Ninebark
Ninebark is a great ornamental shrub that is a favorite among gardeners in cold areas because of its hardiness and four-season appeal. Plant the ninebark in sunny spots that get a little bit of shade. Its flowers are attractive to butterflies and other pollinators.
Give us a visit and let our experts help you pick out the right trees & shrubs to help keep your home and yard cool all summer long.
To learn about how trees and shrubs can also help with a waterwise landscape, tune into our live with arborist James Batton on May 26th.
How Planting Trees Affects Air Quality
Here at Glover Nursery, we are definitely Team Tree. We even made a list of our 12 favorite trees for Utah.
We all know trees are an important part of our ecosystem. They provide so many benefits to the earth and its inhabitants, helping to keep our water clean, shelter and shade, and they’re a great food source. Tree’s are even known to help reduce stress and boost our immune systems - how cool is that? Tree-filled neighborhoods are reported as being safer and even more sociable.
One of the most beneficial services trees provide to life on earth is cleaning our air and providing us with oxygen. We wouldn’t be here without them!
There are a few different ways that native trees clean up the air we breathe. First, they remove pollutants from the air. Leaves will hold particles like dust, ash, pollen, or smoke on their surfaces. They will also absorb air pollution that is gaseous.
Trees have a natural cycle of carbon absorption which removes carbon dioxide from the air and in return, gives us oxygen. Carbon dioxide in the air creates a greenhouse gas effect which is harmful to the atmosphere and increases ground temperatures. To be even more basic about it, trees inhale pollution and exhale clean oxygen. We love them for it.
Planting trees in urban settings has become increasingly important over the years to maintain healthy air quality for city residents, reduce temperatures, and protect the environment.
Growing trees really are amazing. As you know, any advances trees or fruiting trees can also provide shade. When buildings and AC units are shaded, not only will the cost of running them be reduced but you’ll use up less energy which leads to less pollution.
Once the ground isn’t frozen, we’ll be able to start planting trees in Utah again and we couldn’t be more excited planting tree species. When you’re ready to get started, reach out about our tree selection as well as delivery and installation.
Related Reading: How to Water Your New Trees
We are inching closer and closer to spring!
It’s not spring yet but I swear we can already smell it. February is another month of maintenance and preparation to help ensure a successful growing season. We are gearing up at the nursery with new shipments of gardening tools, seeds, water plants, and more! We’re also bringing on new team members to help better serve the Utah gardening community come March and April.
If you think you, or someone you know, would make a great fit here at the garden center, make sure to send in an application.
Here are some of our top monthly tips for February but definitely check out even more seasonal planting tips & tricks.
The end of February is the time of the year to prune your shade trees because they are dormant and less susceptible to bugs and disease. You can also prune apple and pear trees. When you prune, you will cut off broken or dead branches and trim the top branches. Make sure that your cuts are angled and clean. Pruning your trees encourages new growth so your tree can provide even more shade in the summer month.
Related Reading: Need more shade in your backyard? If you live in Utah you're in luck. Our shade trees will turn your backyard into an instant oasis for all your summer activities. We've got a wide variety of instant shade trees and we deliver and install them too!
Read more: Instant Shade For Your Yard
Check Your Garden Ponds
There are a few things to keep an eye on in February when it comes to your pond. Make sure to check the heaters and aerators often to make sure that they are working properly. Ponds also must have a hole in the ice to release noxious gasses that form from decomposing matter in the pond. Pond owners will also want to check for ice dams. Ensure they are not forming on waterfalls or streams that might divert water level over the liner.
Related Viewing: In this video, Glover Nursery's water garden manager, Shane, gives you a quick checklist to go through when preparing your pond for winter. Watch here
New seeds are rolling into the garden nursery all the time! Now is the time to look through plant catalogs for plants and ideas you may want to incorporate like companion plantings into your garden beds. Order / come pick out your seeds or plugs now to get them started early indoors and for the best selection.
Growing plants from seeds is an exciting and fulfilling undertaking. If you haven’t done it before, Glover Nursery is here to help. Utah gardeners now’s the time to start your seeds inside (also known as seeding indoors). We’ve got you covered with all the tips and tricks (& seeds!).
You may also check out our seasonal tip videos here.
We are available for all of your gardening questions - that’s what we do! Come down and visit us at the garden center, give us a call, or reach out on social media.
Updates, Sales, and Gardening Tips
9275 S. 1300 W. West Jordan, UT 84088 Phone: (801) 562-5496 Fax: (801) 562-5595 Email: [email protected]
Updates, Sales, and Gardening Tips
