Hi everyone,

    It's hard to believe that we are already into our second week in May and that Mother's Day is this weekend. I always used to bring a blooming rose bush to my Mom on Mother's Day, feed and tune up her garden, and plant a couple of annual pots as my gift. How I miss those days. If you are still lucky enough to have a mom or grandmother or special aunt to honor, I hope you can do what I did and give them the gift of a beautiful garden. The weekend looks promising, with sunshine and warm weather predicted. It is an ideal time to visit the Natureworks gardens, stroll around, take pictures, and browse our benches. The trucks continue to roll in with all kinds of nursery stock, perennials, and a huge load of unusual annuals all arriving on Wednesday. Of course! Murphy's Law of the Garden Center states that if you are getting in one truck, why not get in THREE at the same time?!

   Petunia 'Pinstripe'

    Yes, it's time for annuals and we will have an outrageous selection. They will arrive in waves over the next 4 weeks as the crops get ready. Tropicals too. We are gearing up for our Connecticut Horticultural Society 125th Anniversary Party when Steve Silk will be here to demonstrate awesome container plantings. Until then, we will hold a few more workshops with our staff, including one this Thursday evening to showcase all of this bounty. The selection will never be better than this weekend!


    What's bugging you? In my own gardens, slugs are the major pest of the week. I found 7 slugs on my white giant Allium foliage. I immediately got out the Sluggo which is an all natural iron phosphate. This kills the slugs without harming the environment, your pets, your kids, your water, or you. Don't wait until your plants are devastated. With all of the rainy and overcast weather we've been having lately, expect slugs and aphids on new growth when the sun comes out and most likely some fungus among us. We have safe, organic solutions for all of these problems.


I found pine sawfly larvae on my newly installed dwarf Scotch pine and immediately sprayed the candles with Neem. My vegetable garden is growing very slowly due to the many rainy and overcast days and I am on the lookout for cabbage worms on my bok choy. Jane Ketterer, our resident expert on insects, diseases, and organic solutions, is offering a FREE workshop this Saturday morning. Bring your questions and problems and hear how we deal with these things at Natureworks. For more information, you can click on the HANDOUTS link on the left to see the section named Disease and Pest Control.
    Now that we have just passed the full moon phase, it is time to start planting root crops. On Monday I headed out to my raised beds and planted carrots, baby beets, and radishes. I rolled all of my seeds in Organic Plant Magic powder. This dehydrated fresh brewed compost tea gives the seeds a wonderful start.


The rain that has immediately followed this ritual is a blessing. Our workshop this past Sunday with the owner of Organic Plant Magic taught us many ways to use the innovative product. We have put O.P. M. (as we call it) on sale for the rest of the month, perfect timing for vegetable planting season. Next week I will show you how to use it as a root dip.


    I am hitting the road on Friday and Saturday, setting up a vendor booth at the Hill-Stead Museum May Market in Farmington. This is a really fun event, with all sorts of plant and garden related vendors, music, food, and tours of the museum that houses tons of famous, original masterpieces of art. Next Thursday evening, May 17th, I will be speaking at the CT Horticultural Society meeting in West Hartford on organic pest controls. It's crazy to take on anything besides Natureworks retailing and landscape jobs in May, but somehow I agreed to do both of these things! Perhaps you can join me at either or both of these venues.
    Have you been enjoying your spring bulbs? I make it a special point to feed my bulbs when they first emerge, when they are in bloom, and right after bloom by sprinkling a bit of Pro Gro organic fertilizer at the base. This is especially important for tulips as their foliage doesn't last for long and there is a very short window for the leaves to produce food to feed the bulb for next year. The last of my tulips are opening, with 'Blue Parrot' winning as my favorite tulip of the week. My Alliums are all starting to pop. They so conveniently follow tulips so there aren't any color gaps in the garden.
    Color gaps? Are you kidding? You should see my gardens. I have peonies open already and our tree peonies are outrageous. The dwarf, intensely fragrant Korean lilac (Syringa meyerii 'Palabin') is scenting the nursery yard and my own backyard. Perennial bachelor's buttons blend with orange Geums. Early perennial Salvias interweave with pink Silene. Doronicums and wood hyacinths fill the shade garden with color. It is such a beautiful time of the year. Even my bearded irises are opening early!
    The merry month of May beckons. Make time to come in for a visit this week, you will be thrilled at what you will find. I hope to see you soon....
 

             Nancy

P.S.  Please click here for an update on Incredible Edibles seedling deliveries and order processing.

WEEKLY PLANT SPECIALS
  ----------------------------------------------------
Thursday, May 3 through
Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Fothergilla
This is one of our FAVORITE native shrubs. White bottlebrush flowers, gorgeous fall foliage, thrives in woodland gardens, not usually eaten by deer. We even have 'Blue Shadow' which features blue foliage.

Lupines
We LOVE lupines and so do our customers. Amazing colors, star shaped foliage, a classic old fashioned plant.

Special Sale!
Organic Plant Magic is on sale
for only $9.99
till the end of the month!
(Reg. $14.99)
One package makes up to 16+ gallons
of compost tea!
"Organic Plant Magic is a soil and plant microbiological inoculum product containing millions of diverse individuals, colony forming units, and propagules of Beneficial Microorganisms for the establishment of a healthy food web."

50% off

Summer Bulbs
These bulbs need to be planted! Elephant ears, dahlias, callas, and a lot more are begging for a home in your garden. Last chance for a great bargain before we plant them in OUR beds!

25% off

Seed Savers Heirloom Seeds
We have some very unusual varieties on our racks. Stock up for warm season planting or stash some away for fall crops.

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Natureworks offers organic and ecologically friendly products, services, and information to our customers. We are deeply committed to education in all we do. We beautify our surroundings with colorful, creative designs and cutting edge plant material. We proudly provide fair living wages and benefits to our employees, and constantly strive to further their knowledge of plants, design and organic practices. We are a stable, financial entity working to strengthen and build our local economy.
 

Monday  9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Tuesday  9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Wednesday  9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Thursday  9 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Friday  9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Saturday  9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

    


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