May finally brought some nice weekend weather, and we did get busy this past month. Mother’s Day weekend lived up to its reputation for being the busiest weekend in the nursery business. Of course it helped that it did not rain like it did the previous weekend. Memorial Day weekend was busy too, specially with some of the staff having made other plans. We are hoping that things stay fairly busy through June to make up for March and April.
We have a lot of inventory, and when new things become available, we are having a hard time finding a place to put it. Recent fresh arrivals are numerous. One is Silver Brocade Artemisia. I really like this low-growing perennial for its habit and silver foliage. Another just in arrival is Angelonia. These are nicknamed Summer Snaps. They do not winter over but bloom the whole summer and are perfect additions to summer containers. We have 4 colors in stock now. We had some requests for Celosia, those Amaranth family colorful annuals with feather-like flowers, and we just got some today. Do you like yellows? Low-growing Sanvitalia and Little Freckles Mercardonia are another good addition to your summer containers. Looking for fragrance? Try rich purple Heliotrope, but do not overwater them. Looking for heat and sun-tolerant color? You can not go wrong with Portulaca, Scaevola, and Lantana. Our spring containers are looking done, and we figure yours can use a redo, too. A little fresh soil, some EB Stone Sure Start, and some of the above selections, along with great standbys like Salvia, Coreopsis, and Gailardia, will get you going, not to mention Callies and Petunias. To help you out on summer color, all 4-inch pots of ‘perennials’ and petunias are buy 4, and 5th free this month.
We figure it is time to stop ordering vegetable starts and sell what we have. Do not despair. We still have lots, including two more flats of some excellent varieties of tomatoes, still in our little greenhouse. We also have more squash, melons, and cucumbers started, so there is no need to panic yet if you have not had time to get your edible garden going. We also have fresh heat-tolerant lettuce and spinach in, along with beet starts, since some of you were asking for them. We are offering a 20% discount on veg starts in June.
We ordered fewer bare-root fruit and shade trees than last year, and we still ended up overstocked at this time of year. I do not know if it was the wet winter that kept bare root sales suppressed or if the demand has fallen way off since fire rebuilds are mostly over and the insane demand during Covid closures is over (and hopefully gone for good). We already have to order for next year and will be slashing quantity and varieties for 2025. Edible fruit, not including Citrus or Olives, will continue to be 20% off the regular price for now. As it stands, we have no room in our tree area for Crepe Myrtles, which we will want to stock soon.
The latest bug issues are Flea Beetle and the nymph stages of the Bordered Plant Beetle. The nymphs are shiny black ovals, and as they mature, they get an orange spot. We are recommending Take Down Pyrethrum or Neem to help battle these pests. I am not sure any warm weather pest is worse than Earwigs, who hide in dark, moist places during the day only to come out at night and devour. Our poor Lambs Ear and Rudbeckias are really taking a hit. Lambs Ears??? One would think nothing would like those fuzzy grey leaves, but ours are so munched you would think it is a delicacy. The same goes for the rough leaves of the Black-eyed Susans. Well, you know what they say. There is no accounting for others’ tastes. Sluggo Plus is our answer, but we were late to the game.
So, what is on the June to-do list? Time to fertilize your acid-loving Azaleas, Rhodies, and Camellias. Continue to feed Citrus. Finish planting summer annuals and vegetables. Mulch to conserve water and make sure your irrigation is working properly. Hot days are ahead, and it is better to water deeply and less frequently. Watering deeply encourages roots to grow deep and be more resistant to heat and drought. It is okay to run your lawn sprinkler stations for a short amount of time, like 10-20 minutes, but plants on drip should be on for at least 30 minutes, if not 45 min to one hour, in my opinion, depending on what size emitters were used.
Another product that we have over ordered is glazed pots. We have a nice selection in most sizes and colors. I guess they can be considered a ‘luxury’ but a few nicely planted colorful glazed pots can really spruce up a deck, front entrance or houseplant. We are putting all our glazed pots at 20% off regular price in June.
Some of you were at the nursery as we were trying to catch the kittens that appeared under our soil pallets. We think the mama might live across the street and thought they would be safer here. We never did catch the 5th kitten, and his or her fate is unknown, but we did find homes for the other four.
June Specials
20% off
- Edible fruit trees and vines (not Citrus or Olives)
- All Glazed Pottery
- Summer Bulbs
- Vegetable starts
Buy 2 Roses, 3rd Half Off
Buy 4 ‘four-inch’ pots perennials or petunias, 5th Free
