2010 Green and Growing Show
Sunday, January 17th, 2010On Friday 15th January a couple of us made our annual “trek” around the Green and Growing show right here in Greensboro, NC.
Here’s a couple of highlights:
(more…)
Archive for the ‘News’ Category
New Year, New Products
Sunday, January 10th, 2010Winter doesn’t leave much for the gardener to do outside, but it does serve us with an opportunity to plan for the warmer months to come, and here at the garden center we are doing the exact same thing!
We have to contemplate in the next couple of months where we are going to place any new products that we get in to make sure that they are shown at their best.
How about a sneak preview of some of the items we’re hoping to get this year so you can be first in line when they arrive at the store!
All In One Bucket
All in 1 bucket
The All In One Bucket is kinda like a bucket on steroids! It has a nice, tall, handle and a wheel base so that it can easily be transported around your home and yard
The promotional image gives you some ideas of what you could use this thing for, but we’re sure you could probably come up with plenty more all on your own!
Maybe pulling bags of bird seed? Or perhaps carrying your hose to the veggie garden? Or taking the leaves to the compost pile? You get the idea…
Two New Gardenias
It’s what we’ve been coveting for many years, a double blooming Gardenia that will not just survive, but thrive in our area, and now, it seems, we not only finally have one, but we actually have choices!
Gardenia augusta 'Crown Jewel'
The first of these Gardenias is ‘Crown Jewel’. This variety is a dwarf form, only growing to about two feet tall, but with a spread of about four to five feet.
These characteristics make it ideal for bordering natural areas, in mixed plantings, and also for use in mixed containers.
‘Crown Jewel’ is hardy to zone 7 (yup, that’s the zone the Piedmont Triad resides in folks) and will bloom heavily in Mid-Summer.
It prefers some afternoon shade in our region, but otherwise is pretty easy to manage.
Gardenia jasminoides 'Summer Snow'
The second Gardenia of interest this year is a variety called ‘Summer Snow’
‘Summer Snow’ is another double blooming variety, but this one will get to a bigger size. Average mature size on this particular variety is going to be about five feet tall, and four feet wide, so a substantial addition to any landscape.
‘Summer Snow’ is hardy all the way down to zone 6, so it is going to fair extremely well in our positively balmy zone 7!
It’s preferred site is in a location that gets some nice shade during the afternoon to stop it’s leaves from burning up, and if treated correctly will give gorgeous, large, and fragrant blooms in the Summer months.
What makes this particular variety even more interesting, however, is that it’s been produced by one of our local growers right down the road in Browns Summit!
Coles Blazing Hot Blend
Blazing Hot Seed
The war against squirrels rages on, and the people at Coles Wild Bird understand this, which is why they continue to improve upon their anti-squirrel products, and bring in new introductions to combat their wily ways.
Blazing Hot Blend is a great mixture of seeds that birds really love:
- Black Oil Sunflower
- Sunflower Meats
- White Proso Millet
- Cracked Corn
- Safflower Oil
Added to this mix, however, is liquid Habanero peppers. Woooh that’s some hot stuff!
Of course the birds don’t care, but the squirrels absolutely detest it! Pour some in your feeder and stand back and watch the show. Oh yeah, and you don’t need to wait for this item, it’s already arrived!
Easy Change Doormats
Easy Change Doormat
These doormats are decorative rubber material with a nice, thick, coir insert (Coir is made from coconut husks, so not only is it tough, but it’s also a sustainable material, we like that!) which lasts and wears well outdoors.
Well, whoopdedoo, I hear you say, that’s great but nothing terribly exciting. You’re correct. What does make them exciting, however, or at least as exciting as doormats can get, is the fact that they have an interchangeable insert so you can give your doorway a different look depending on the season, the weather, the holiday, your mood, etc.
Each assembled mat measures about 18×29″, so is plenty big enough for most situations.
The inserts are sold seperately, so you don’t need to worry about buying the whole ensemble every time you want to change the look.
Of course that’s just a wee sampling of the new items we’ll be carrying this year. If you know us at all, you know why like to put little surprises in every corner of the store! So just come on by and see what we have in the store, you never know what you might find.
Poinsettia Varieties
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009Pretty much every year you tend to find the same thing when it comes to Poinsettias. A whole bunch of varieties get touted, but a lot of them look pretty much like all the others.
We try our best here at the garden center not to overwhelm you with hundreds of choices, but rather just have in stock the varieties which we, and our grower, think are the best.
Here’s a little sample of some of the varieties we are carrying in the store this year, there’s sure to be one that you’ll enjoy.
‘Ice Punch’
This is the first year that we have carried this variety. It has a nice, strong, central tone which has a subtle pink coloration which lightens to a whiter color as the season progresses. This is a great variety to use if you are looking for something a little bit different, but that still gives a nod to traditional Poinsettia colors.
‘Freedom Peppermint’
My favorite Poinsettia used to be a variety called ‘Monet’, but the problem was that it colored up so late in the season that Christmas was just about done by the time it looked it’s best!
Well, luckily for me, there’s a variety on the market now called ‘Freedom Peppermint’ which has two things going for it which makes it my new favorite
First of all, the color on this variety is a lot more consistent than on ‘Monet’. The speckled pattern is more evenly distributed, and the tonal varieations are a lot more pleasing to the eye.
Also, as with all the varieties in the Freedom series, ‘Peppermint’ comes in much earlier, meaning it can be enjoyed through the whole holiday season, rather than just toward the end.
‘Winter Rose’
Here’s another one with a little different look.
‘Winter Rose’ has actually been on the market for quite a few years, but it continues to be a popular one among those who want a traditional color, with a contemporary look. This variety definitely fits the bill in that regard!
The beautiful red tones definitely shout loudly about what season they belong to, but at the same time the loosely curled bracts add an air of contemporary flair that looks great in a variety of settings
Chianti
This is by far my favorite red Poinsettia!
Not only does this variety have the most incredible deep red, but it also has a great oak leaf shape to the bracts, adding a touch of elegance and sophistication.
This particular variety tends to stay nice and full and compact, so it would make a really good choice for a centerpiece.
‘Chianti’ comes in a little later than most other reds, (though not so late that it’s too late!) so your best time to look for it is usually about mid-month.
‘Shimmer Surprise’
Another nicely variegated variety, ‘Shimmer Surprise is often called ‘Jingle Bells’, but it differes from that variety in a couple of ways:
Firstly, the bract colors have a bigger color range on them, and will have some pink and yellow splashes as well as the creamy colored speckles associated with this type of Poinsettia.
Also, because this is an improved variety, color tends to come in earlier and more consistently, and also shows better disease resistance than the ‘Jingle Bells’ of old.
Of course it’s tough to break old habits, so if you hear us calling it Jingle Bells, then you’ll know why!
‘Fireworks’
Here’s another really nice red variety. This one is one of the earlier reds, so is of course available a little earlier in the season.
One really nice facet of ‘Fireworks’ that really can’t be seen in the picture is the nice dark veining that the younger bracts take on. While they are not a prominent feature of the plant, they add a nice subtle difference that gives it a little uniqueness without being overwhelmingly so.
Of course we also have traditional Red, White, and Marble available too. We promise we haven’t left those out!
The sizes we have available go from 4″ up to 10″, and we can wrap and bow all sizes as well as add glitter sticks to them. Be forewarned, however, we do not and will not carry fake looking spray painted poinsettias!!
Congrats to Mike – Certified Plant Professional
Thursday, September 10th, 2009
We have always known that Mike knew his plants pretty well, but now he’s gone and got himself certified just to prove it!
Over the Summer months Mike studied hard to become a Certified Plant Professional, which is a qualification endorsed and taught by the NCNLA.
The test is a two part affair, with the first part being a written test where Mike had to demonstrate his knowledge of various aspects of the horticulture industry, such as pest management best practices, understanding climactic conditions, conservation of resources, maintenance of plants, etc.
The second, and most challenging, part of the test was being able to identify 125 different plants. These included trees and shrubs as well as annuals and perennials. No easy task, especially when the flowers are removed from them just to make it a little more “interesting”!
So next time you see Mike tell him congrats, he deserves a pat on the back for passing such a tricky test.
Let the Veggie Growing Begin!
Friday, April 17th, 2009We figured it was about time, so we went ahead and planted our vegetable bed. Now some people may not find that particularly enthralling, but we’re very excited about it.
So far we have some tomatoes in there, as well as a few different varieties of peppers, and a couple of cucumbers.
Dave also put some bean seed in there but I suspect they already went the same way our pea seeds did. A tasty breakfast for the birds! I’m glad to see that Dave over at Leave me alone I’m digging is having better luck with his. Of course, you never know, maybe the birds have been nice and left us a couple.
The next thing we will do is put some herbs along the front, and of course we have had the blueberries in there toward the back for a few weeks now. The green you see in the back corner is our Romaine lettuce, it’s done really good for us. I just wish somebody would invent some lettuce that produced at the same time as tomatoes!
Anyway, we’ll keep you posted on the progress. Hopefully we’ll have a bumper crop to show off this Summer.