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TRIBAL NOTES
It' has been a roller-coaster train ride this winter, but I think we've finally pulled into the station named SPRING. How do we know? Around here we each have our own ideas about what’s the sure sign spring is here. Ted swears by the fact that when the Jujube tree at the back gate breaks dormancy, then winter is over. I follow the rule that the wild grapes are the smartest at not getting caught in a late spring frost. Well it must be officially spring then, as both of these are shaking off the winter browns with a new coat of green.
It is truly is a great time of the year, each new day brings a more intense shade of green and the spring flowers are just glorious this year. In fact, you may just need to put down this newsletter and go outside and take a good long deep breath of air. Wow, it’s beautiful! It makes me want to plant something.
We’re in high frenzy at this point of the year. The nursery is buzzing with folks that are eager to get their gardens in shape and plant some spring beauties or tasty additions to their collections. We’ve still got a great selection of fruit, nuts and berries; we’ve worked hard at growing enough this year so we wouldn’t run out.
The nursery is taking on a more colorful look as the spring shipments of butterfly plants, annuals and natives plants arrive. Each week is a constant change of color and plants so plan to visit often.
The gardens are starting to look more like spring, the last cold snaps set some things back but within a few weeks it will be gorgeous.
The orchard is a sea of emerald greens. The cover crop is maturing and lush and the lady bugs are flying! The mustard greens turned out to be the star growers, it’s an awesome sight to see that much on them., tasty too….
You know it's time for a road trip to clear the mind, get some seafood at the coast and visit Just Fruits and Exotics . We'd love to see ya.
CHOOSING SMALL TREES FOR SMALL YARDS
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One of the major concerns facing many of today’s gardeners is how to fit a flowering or shade tree into the tiny yards of modern suburbs. Choosing the right plant material is crucial to the success of any landscape project, and trees especially require extra thought. Although it is tempting to plant a large and fast growing tree to provide some instant shade, this can lead to future problems. Fast growing trees will quickly outgrow their allotted space, shading out nearby beds and lawns, both yours and your neighbors. If planted too close to driveways or foundations, large trees can damage concrete with their powerful roots. Fortunately, the range of small to medium-sized trees that grow in our area is immense... READ MORE
GREAT NATIVE CHOICES
- Chickasaw Plum (
Prunus angustifolia). Grows 15 to 25 feet. Provides a fantastic spring display of pure white blossoms.
-Ashi Magnolia (
Magnolia asheii). Enormous leaves and huge white, fragrant blooms.
INTERESTED IN A TRADITIONAL LOOK TRY
-Taiwan Cherry (
Prunus campanulata). . One of the few long-lived flowering cherries for the Deep South .
-Japanese Magnolia (
Magnolia lilioflora x
Magnolia stellata). Some of these are really small growers.“Ann” grows to 15 feet,
TASTY EDIBLE LANDSCAPE SELECTIONS INCLUDE:
- Mayhaws are probably one of the most over looked small trees. They grow in dry soils as well as wet spots.
-Pomegranates are small growers with emerald green shiny leaves and attractive red fruit.
WEIRD AND BEAUTIFUL TREES
-Chaste Tree (
Vitex agnus-castus). This 15 footer has deeply cut maple-like leaves.
-Weeping Yaupon (
Ilex vomitoria ‘Pendula”). This super-tough, easy to grow tree has such character!
The Wildflowers are Here!
Every year we get an assortment of wild flower starts from Dan Miller. This year's bench is loaded with great choices like native rain lilies, rudbeckia, coreopsis and native purple cone flowers. There's some interesting hard to find natives like Carolina catchfly (
Silene caroliniana) and Eastern Bluestar
Amsonia tabernaemontana. Help Mother Nature out and plant some wildflowers.
Tomatoes, Peppers and Eggplants Weird Squash and Pumpkins
Despite the last cold snap we do have the the first of the tomato and pepper plants ready. This year's collection includes Cherokee Purple, Green Zebra, Mr. Stripy and many old heirlooms.
There's a new crop of odd squash and pumpkins this year,
Seminole Pumpkins, Trombone Squash and more.... The herb bench is awesome this year, lots of unusual plants like tea camellia, lemon grass and Keiffer Lime . Our collection of vegetables is a mix of University of Florida recommended varieties, and heirloom non-GMO varieties. We trial many varieties in our gardens so we’ll have local knowledge on what and when to plant as well how to grow them. We’re good at helping you get success
Find Some Great Stuff in the SALE AREA
Make sure you stop off at the sales area on your next visit as there is always some good deals to be found.
This week's collection includes:
PEACH, PLUM and PEAR these are some we grew too many of, our loss is your gain $11.99
MYSTERY Pomegranates $14.99 These are ones that have lost their name tags, all great varieties just a mystery as to what they are.....
CRINUM LILIES Busting out of their pots $6.99 these old fashion bulbs are tough and reliable, often the only thing that marks where an old homestead was
50% off selected perennials, cell pack veggies and ornamentals.
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