Blog

Behind the Scenes: Early Veggie Production

March 18, 2024

Knowing when to plant early spring vegetable plants can be tricky. Mother Nature does not always play nice, like this February & March. We have had days near 80°, then next night it is 15°, then near 80° again. How and when do I or don’t I protect my plants from Mother Nature? What do I need to do to prepare my garden for harvest success? This...

Fruit Tree Care in March

March 8, 2024

March 19th is the vernal equinox, or the long awaited first day of spring. March is the perfect time to prune your stone fruits (cherries, peaches, apricots, nectarines, and plums). Weather depending, I like to have my pruning done by mid-March. There are many benefits to proper pruning of your fruit trees, especially stone fruits. By...

Behind the Scenes: Flower Production

February 26, 2024

Have you ever wondered what it takes to grow the irresistible hanging baskets and planters you see at Colonial Gardens? In this blog series, I hope to enlighten you on the challenges and processes of growing quality healthy plants for you to beautify your home! There are many steps in the process of growing these gorgeous hanging baskets...

Japanese Maples

February 19, 2024

When it comes to Japanese maples, one is often overwhelmed by the shear amount of diversity within this species. One of the most beloved ornamental trees in modern cultivation! It’s easy to see why, given the scope of diversity amongst the different varieties. With some growing into trees around 20’-25’ to varieties being smaller, diminutive...

Fruit Tree Care in February

February 5, 2024

With a cold and snowy January behind us, it’s time to look towards the next step in caring for our fruit trees, pruning. February is the perfect time to prune pome fruits like apples, pears, and quince. While it can seem daunting to an initiate just getting into fruit tree cultivation, pruning is necessary for the overall health of your trees.

Sowing Success: A Quick Guide to Planning Your Vegetable Garden

January 20, 2024

As winter's chill really begins to set in here in January some folks are thinking thoughts of sledding, ice skating, and keeping the steps by their front doors from being a death trap. On the other hand, us gardeners and farmers are eagerly turning page after page of seed catalogs, and binging reel after reel of our favorite green-thumbers...

Trav the Tree Guy: The Top 10 Trees

January 15, 2024

There’s something that is so satisfying about planting a new tree in your lawn or in your landscape. It can be a large tree to provide shade, a small blooming tree for a flowerbed, or a lovely tree to mark a special occasion. No matter what the reason, planting trees has long term benefits to creating biodiversity on your property. While...

A Mycological Adventure

January 4, 2024

It might be an understatement to say that I’m a Plant Nerd. Between working in the industry, having a small greenhouse at home, and more plant babies than any sane person should have; plants take up a large portion of my time. A few months ago, I came across a Netflix documentary called Fantastic Fungi. I was enthralled at the process of...

Is it Really Winter? And What Are these Plants Doing?

December 18, 2023

It is now the 3rd week in December and for the most part the grass is still green, and some of the shrubs and the underbrush still have not lost all of their leaves. There has been only one light snow event, and the coldest overnight low so far was in the low twenties. Many perennial plants still have some green leaves, and I have seen some...

Deciduous Conifers

December 11, 2023

People often ask, “What are the trees in Colonials courtyard?” Well, it’s a curiously beautiful type of tree called the Debonair pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens “Morris”) This particular tree, under proper growing conditions will reach roughly 60’ tall and have a spread of 20’. This tree is part of a genera of plants known as deciduous...