I agree. I just released lady bugs on my roses. They immediately started munching on the aphids that were covering my roses.

Ash trees are prone to have Wooly Ash Aphids this time of year which sip the fluid from the cells of new leaves leaving them curled or crinkly. In the process they excrete 'honeydew' which is a sticky, shiny, sugary substance which can fall on leaves, sidewalks and lawn furniture. A strong blast from the hose can dislodge them if the tree isn't too big. Here is a link that might be useful: Wooly ash aphid

My impression of this problem is that a proper watering technique is required. For example, a very slow drip over several hours will cause the roots to go deep with the water and not out in a shallow pattern around the tree. We planted our Shamel Ash in the front yard about half-way between the dwelling structure and the street. But it's not a large front yard so there is maybe 20' from the house and another 20' to the sidewalk. The nursery where we bought the tree has a mature one growing out front right next to the sidewalk and there is not a root problem. I say go for it and keep the tip about watering in mind.....a long, slow drip. Maybe others will add their comments re: the issue. HTH. Mary

Hello Hechmo, You'll need to moisten the soil volume from the planting containers plus a little surrounding soil as well. Keep in mind that one gallon of water moistens about 1 cubic foot of soil. Your 36" box tree has about 27 cubic feet of container soil, so you'll need at least 27 gallons of water. The 24" box tree has about 8 cubic feet of soil to moisten - so at apply at least 8 gallons. The frequency will depend on the time of year and when you planted. The schedule from page 14 of Landscape Watering by the Numbers recommends the following for plants installed in fall through spring. Weeks 1 & 2 - water once every 3 - 4 days Weeks 3 & 4 - water once every 6 - 7 days Weeks 5 & 6 - water once every 7 - 10 days Weeks 7 & 8 - water once every 10 - 14 days By week 8 it will be the first of February and you can stay on the 10 - 14 day schedule until the end of that month or even mid March, depending on the weather. When temperatures begin creeping up, you'll need to increase the frequency gradually so by summer you are watering twice a week. Here is a link that might be useful: Landscape Watering by the Numbers