Fall Planting

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Why Plant in Fall?

There are many reasons.  The soil is still warm enough to encourage roots to grow whereas in spring the soil is still warming up from the winter.  Due to the fact that the plant no longer produces many flowers or foliage, the plant is able to spend a lot of its energy building roots.  There is less shock and stress to the plant as it is about to go into dormancy.  Planting in fall gives your plant a 6 month head start against spring plantings.  Your plants will have less insects to deal with.  Then there are the benefits of less weeds and less watering.

Fall is also a time to divide some  perennials.  Some perennials that benefit from dividing in fall are asters, native coneflowers, monardas (bee balms), day lilies, liatris, peonies, black eyed susans, garden phlox and creeping phox, siberian iris, bearded iris and veronica.  This is not an all inclusive list but tries to list the most common perennials.  If you are unsure if your plant should be divided in fall, google the plant or talk to a knowledgeable person.

Fall planting is not just for perennials, but shrubs and trees also benefit from fall planting.

Our nursery still has lots of perennials in stock available for immediate planting.  Stop in before fall turns into winter.

 

Staff Designs

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Our staff is very talented with putting together flowers and shrubs that go together.   If you need help, they are here to help guide you to choose plants that go together not only in appearance, but plants that have the same requirements for water, soil and light.  They are more then happy to assist you.  Below are two designs they did.  They are very conscience in determining how colors blend together.

Display features Congo Line sedum, Russian sage, Scotch moss and Evolution Fiesta coneflower.

 

Fountain, Scotch moss, Pandora ligularia and Younique silvery pink astilbe.

Good News!

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Good news. Our perennial tables are full again with a variety of perennials and our shrubs and trees have been replenished.  Plus, we are getting another truck load of plants in this week, the week of June 18th. We should now have your favorites in stock, from grasses to cone flowers, from dogwood to oak trees and everything in between. We still have a good selection of annuals at 50% off.   Stop in before our selections become limited.

Rose Care

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Do your roses look as good or better then the following pictures?   If not, perhaps next year, or even this year yet, give them a scoop or two of Fertilome Rose & Flower Food.  I was always skeptical about using fertilizer, except for Miracle Grow, as a waste of money.  Well this spring when it was time to prune my roses, I put two scoops of this fertilizer by each rose bush and what a difference!   My roses, and I have about 15, all look wonderful this year and as of today, June 5th, they have started blooming.   I also used this same fertilizer around many of my perennials and they, too, are looking fantastic.  At first I was wondering why everything looks so good this year, then I remembered that I used this fertilizer.   Well from now on I am a believer and will be using this every spring and whenever else I think a flower needs a boost.  It is recommended to reapply every 30 days.   Stop in at Trees Today and pick up a bag of this fertilizer.  It is a systemic, meaning that it is taken up by the roots of the plant, PLUS it is an insecticide.

Fertilome Rose & Flower Food

 

Red Double Knock Out Rose

 

Pink Double Knock Out Rose

 

Niitty Gritty Yellow Rose

 

The Itoh Peony

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Have you seen the new Itoh peonies yet?  They are a cross between the tree peony and the common herbaceous peony.   The main differences are that the Itoh stems are much sturdier, the Itoh’s bloom for 3-4 weeks and can have 30-60 blossoms per plant and up to 6″ wide,  depending on the variety.   Itoh blossoms are exquisite, coming in more colors like yellow, apricot, coral, purples and then the usual array of pinks.  If Itoh flowers are protected from the hot afternoon sun, they can last as long as 14 days in your garden.  They are very fast growing, maturing to about 3 ft tall by 3-1/2 ft wide.  Planting in the morning sun is preferable although they can be planted in filtered to full sun.  The lush mound of Itoh foliage is another plus as it makes a nice looking shrub and often turn color in fall.  Deer generally avoid them.  It is recommended that for a real WOW, plant 3-5 in a cluster although one single specimen alone, or in a pot puts on quite the show also.   The downside is that they are more expensive then the herbaceous peonies, but once established they viturally are carefree and can last up to 50 years.  Consider them an investment.

 

Itoh Takara Treasure peony

Itoh Keiko pink peony

 

Itoh Cora Louise peony

Itoh yellow peony

 

Itoh Singing in the Rain peony

Itoh Julia Rose peony

Cut back perennials in fall or winter?

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

We have prepared a chart for you in hopes it may help you determine which perennials you should cut down before winter.   If you still are uncertain, you can always “google” your perennial for more information.

 

Click on the “cut back perennials in fall or winter” below and the chart should appear.

 

Cut back perennials in fall or winter?

Spectacular Tiger Eye Coneflower

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Almost every week we get in around 200 coneflowers.   They are our number one perennial seller.   Customers flock to get them as they really perk up a garden.   The colors they come in are amazing:  the purples, pinks, oranges, whites, reds and it seems like each week we get a new variety.  The one that really struck our eye in this last shipment is the Tiger Eye coneflower. It is just a wow orange with a rustic brown center.   This is a Zone 4 hardy and reaches 18″ tall and wide.   If you want one of these we advise you to stop in very soon as we are certain they will not be around long.

Tiger Eye Coneflower

Tiger Eye Coneflower

 

Put a Smile on your Face

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Well we survived winter and most of this awful spring.  Soon it will be summer.   Cheer yourself up and put a smile on your face.   Buy some beautiful perennials or shrubs to perk up your yard.  Presently our tables are full of perennials. We have many, many different types of shrubs and trees.  The last couple of years hydrangeas and coneflowers have been the big sellers.   We have at least 15 different types of hydrangeas, maybe even more as we get trucks every week.  Last week over 200 blooming or budded coneflowers arrived and more will be coming this week.  However, there are so many other plants that will bring color and joy to your garden.  The new variety of phlox bloom for weeks;  day lilies are improved every year so that many more are becoming rebloomers;  grasses are still hot and we have lots of them, hardy habiscus plants plus so, so many more;  shrubs like winterberry, new varieties of spireas, cheesehead potentilla, viburnums, ninebark, lacy elderberry, shrub roses, etc.   Stop in and spruce up your garden and thoroughly enjoy it before winter hits us again.

Late Season Blooms

Posted on by Beth

There may be frost on the rooftops in the morning, but that doesn’t mean plants stop blooming. There are some great plants still in bloom as we enter the end of October. Here are just a few late season bloomers that are still available. Stop in and grab one today!

Mums: Garden versus Fall

Posted on by Marietta Buchner

Now is the time of year when beautiful mums appear at Trees Today Nursery, grocery stores, and home stores.  These are called “fall” or annual mums.  Their colors are an assortment of reds, oranges, bronzes, yellows, whites, and many more.  They look beautiful sitting in pots on front porches or placed in gardens.  However, they generally do not survive being replanted in the garden in  Zone 4 (our area of Wisconsin and Minnesota).  If they do survive a winter, chances are they will not survive the following winter.  If you succeed in overwintering a fall mum in your garden, to get a bushy blooming mum in fall you need to start pinching it back in July or chances are it will become stringy and lanky.

Garden mums are the perennial mums hardy to Zone 3.  At Trees Today we carry Mammoth Mums that were bred at the University of Minnesota for endurance and cold.  Once planted in your garden they may grow to 3-3 1/2  feet wide by 3-4 feet tall.  Their colors are limited, but their abundant blooms are very showy and last for weeks.  Also, these mammoth mums do not need any pinching.

Orange fall mum
Photo from Trees Today Nursery

 

Mammoth lavender mum
Photo by Trees Today Nursery

 

 

Dianthus Days

Posted on by Beth

Look at these beauties! Is there something missing from your landscape? Are you struggling to find a plant small enough to round out your garden borders? The perfect plant does exist, it’s a dianthus! Petite in size these plants give off enormous amounts of color. Typically found in hues of white, red, pink, and purple.

 

Check out these dainty beauties while supplies last!

  • Scent from Heaven Angel of Peace Dianthus