Brent and Becky's Bulbs

Brent and Becky's Bulbs is another company whose catalog I look forward to every single year.

They're a small, family company, located in Gloucester, Virginia.  Their catalog features the typical bulbs: daffodils, tulips, crocus, and hyacinths.  It also has unusual selections, such as Bellevalia, Ornithogalum, Rhodophiala, and dozens of other bulbs I've never seen anywhere else.  They have a really large selection of daffodils and even sell some they have hybridized themselves.  I've never purchased tulips from them (mainly because I'm not a huge tulip fan), but they seem to have a large selection of those as well, especially of more reliable species type.

In the past, I've mainly ordered grape hyacinths, crocuses, and the shade garden collection.  Buying a collection was a good way to become familiar with some bulbs I had never heard of before.  I grew quite fond of Arum italicum and Crocus tommasinianus, so I'll be ordering those individually this year.

This past spring, I found two plants in the new yard I've never grown before: Fritillaria meleagris and Nectaroscordum siculum Bulgaricum.  Both were growing without much care, so I don't have to worry about whether they're suited to the yard or not.  I'll be buying more of both.

Finally, there are two plants I'm going to go out on a limb for.  Erythronium is a type of native lily sometimes called a trout lily or a dog-tooth violet.  They seem like they might be a Spring ephemeral plant and are best suited to moist woodlands.  The cultivar I'm choosing from Brent and Becky's is Erythronium revolutum 'White Beauty', which is marked as one of their favorites.  The other new-to-me bulb is Amarcrinum, also known as Crinodonna.  The big selling point of this bulb is it is rodent and deer proof.  It also blooms in mid-summer through fall.  They're not cheap, so I'm going to try one and see how it does.

Do you have any favorite unusual bulbs?

Favorites: Homestead Gardens

If you're a gardener and live in Anne Arundel County, you've probably been to Homestead Gardens.  Homestead Gardens is easily the best nursery in the county.  They have a huge selection of plants, most (all?) of which are raised locally by Homestead Growers in a no-runoff facility.  They also have a huge selection of garden supplies and accessories, ranging from basics like mulch and seeds to things that are questionably garden-related (like Troll Beads or Laura Ashley accessories).

I love visiting Homestead Gardens.  However, up until the last few years, I didn't really buy much from them. 

Mainly because they are NOT cheap.

I mean, they're really, really NOT cheap.

But I still buy plants there.  This year I've probably bought more than I ever have before.  This is silly, right?  Why not just buy the flat of marigolds from Walmart or Home Depot?  Why would I spend more money to buy the same plants at Homestead Gardens?

Recently, I've been trying to support locally owned businesses, especially when it comes to plants.  I've found locally grown plants perform better.  I also feel better knowing my hard earned money is staying in the county/state, rather than being sent up to a big-box store CEO's pockets.  But the most important reason is:  I think Homestead Gardens is a great local resource and I want them to stay in business.

It is wonderful to visit a nursery filled with employees who know about gardening and care about plants.  Homestead Gardens has a diagnostic center, where you can bring in samples and get advice about your pest, disease, or other plant problem.  The staff is also happy to answer questions about how to plant, prune, and otherwise care for the plants you purchase at Homestead.

Photo from www.homesteadgardens.com

The variety of plants available at Homestead is astounding.  They have plants I have never seen anywhere else, either in person or online.  I think this has contributed to some of my flops from Homestead -- I buy something exotic on a whim without researching whether it is appropriate for the spot I end up planting it in.  This is the downside of having access to a wide variety of plants...you have to know what you're doing.  I guess I should have consulted the greenhouse staff!

Homestead Gardens constantly hosts events: Winter workshops, a Flower show in March, a Perennial Affair in June, the Crapemyrtle Festival in July, the Tomato Festival in August.  And that doesn't even include the random guest speakers who visit Homestead throughout the year.  It seems as if they have something going on every weekend, which brings me to...the holidays.  Every single year we visit Homestead gardens at least once in December.  They have a light display outside and deck out the greenhouses with trees, Christmas ornaments, enormous stuffed animals and set up a huge model railroad/village display.  This is truly a family tradition for us.


Photo from www.marylandlife.com

Regular customers can look into joining their garden club, which gives you access to an e-Newsletter, specials and discounts.  Senior citizens can join the Golden Spades gardening group, who meet monthly at the garden center.  If you're not confident with the design aspect of gardening, Homestead has a garden designer on-staff.  The designs aren't free, but you do receive a 10% discount on any plants you use from Homestead.  If you're not local, they have a great blog with a ton of gardening advice, seasonal recipes, and information about what is happening at the gardening center.

Finally, the weirdest reason I love Homestead is they have a herd of over 30 llamas at the garden center available for visitors (or for sale).  The llama barn is open daily and you can even schedule a birthday party there.

Photo from www.homesteadgardens.com

Homestead recently opened a new garden center in Severna Park last year, but I prefer to visit the original.  Do you have a favorite local garden center?

Homestead Gardens
http://www.homesteadgardens.com/
743 West Central Avenue
Davidsonville, MD  21035
410.798.5000

Monday - Friday: 9:00am - 8:00pm
Saturday: 8:00am - 8:00pm
Sunday: 9:00am - 6:00pm

Favorites: The Baltimore Herb Festival

This Saturday is the 24th annual Baltimore Herb Festival.

The Baltimore Herb Festival is a great day out - it is fun for the whole family.  I've been going since I was a kid. 

Even when I was an awful teenager, I enjoyed going to the Herb Festival with my parents.  I remember, during probably my worst years, I decided I was going to start an herb garden.  This was in the mid-nineties when herbs were getting pretty popular.

I did some research and came up with a list of completely random plants to buy.  Vervain (because it was mentioned in the Vampire Diaries), pennyroyal (from a Nirvana song), and valerian (to treat depression).  Hard core research, huh?  Pretty typical for teenager me.

The herbs were so "interesting", we couldn't find there anywhere except for the Herb Festival.  Well, the valerian smelled like a rotting corpse after it flowered.  The vervain self-seeded so readily  it took years for my parents to eradicate it.  The pennyroyal jumped over the edge of the bed and is still in parts of my parents lawn.

Good times!

Besides the typical plant vendors, there will be people selling bulbs, soaps and cosmetics, food, art, crafts, books, garden decorations and antiques.

I'm particularly excited to see:

• Carnivorous Plants!
• Specialty Hellebores
• Botanical Prints

 A complete list of vendors is available here: http://www.baltimoreherbfestival.com/vendors.htm.

There will also be speakers, bands, and exhibitors at the festival.  Admission is $5 for adults and children 12 and under are free.  (If you're planning on bringing your kids, there's a miniature train that gives rides to children just outside the festival entrance -- not really gardening-related, but still pretty cool.)

http://www.baltimoreherbfestival.com/index.html
May 28, 2011 - 10am-3pm
Held in Leakin Park
1900 Eagle Drive
Baltimore, MD  21207

Favorites: Bluestone Perennials

Did you guys notice my new header?  Isn't it awesome?  My coworker, Nate, made it for me.  He doesn't currently have a blog, but you can see some more of his design work on his wife's blog: Rumspring Forever.

For my birthday, my completely awesome sister got me a gift certificate to one of my favorite online nurseries, Bluestone Perennials.  Just to make sure it's clear, I'm not affiliated with them in any way and am not receiving any compensation from them for writing this.

Bluestone Perennials is based out of Madison, Ohio.  They one of the top 30 rated companies at Dave's Garden, and are in the Top 5 rated companies for both Perennials and Ornamental Trees and Shrubs.  This is one of my favorite catalogs -- every year, I use it as a reference to help plan out what I want to do for the year.  Their website is also easy to navigate and provides clear pictures and valuable information for each plant.

They have a really wide selection of perennials, but there are also some plants in which they specialize (Mums, astilbe, clematis, and hosta, just to name a few).  They also offer shrubs, grasses, and bulbs.  I've gotten shrubs from them before, and they did well, but were very small.  You might remember I'm not a huge fan of grasses, but if I do pick up some hakonechloa it will probably be from here.  As far as bulbs go, I've never gotten bulbs from here before and I probably won't in the future (I have another favorite bulb company that I'll spotlight at a later date).

Most of their plants are offered for sale in groups of three.  The Bluestone philosophy is that planting in threes helps garden design.  The downside of this philosophy is that the plants they sell are smaller than you might be expecting.  The three-pack plants are grown in 2.35" x 2.2" x 2.75" deep containers and are 6 - 12 months old.  Some plants are offered in a single larger pot as well - these are grown in 3.5" x 3.5" x 5" deep containers and are 12 - 16 months old.  More details about the different plant sizes can be found on Bluestone's FAQ page.

I personally prefer to pay less for three smaller perennials -- after all, they'll grow, right?

Compared to my local nurseries, Bluestone has great prices, but they also usually have an annual sale the week before Memorial day where all remaining plants are marked 50% off.  In fact, they have frequent specials throughout the year - right now there are about 270 items that are 50% off.  Finally, with every catalog and order, you get a series of coupons that are usually good for up to a year.

Most of the complaints on the Dave's Garden website relate to the shipping method (in pots with packing peanuts) or plant size.  I haven't had issue with either, but it looks like if you notify them about a plant that has died in shipping, they'll replace it without hassle.  It also looks like they'll be changing their shipping method sometime this fall.  In the past, they offered recycling credits if you sent the packing peanuts back to them -- it looks like they're trying to be even more earth friendly...I look forward to seeing what they've come up with.

I've ordered from Bluestone Perennials every year for at least four years.  I've always been happy with their plants and service and I can't wait to use my gift certificate.  (Thanks, again, Sarah!). 

Do you have any favorite online nurseries?

Favorites: Knopp's Farm

Not this past weekend, but the weekend before, we took a quick trip over to Knopp's Farm in Severn.  It's just down the road from Papa John's and in many ways, the farms are quite similar.  They both sell plants in the spring and produce in the summer.  They're both family owned.  You'd think that I would only need to visit one of them, but every year, I always end up going to both and buying plants from both.

Knopp's farm is a little smaller and, in my opinion, has more of a personal touch.  I get a chance to talk to whoever is working to get an idea about how the business is going for the year.  The day we visited was quite rainy but there were still a handful of crazy dedicated gardeners out looking for plants.  As we checked out, the man at the register explained how much a rainy day sets them back.  As long as it was sunny for Mother's Day weekend, he said they'd be fine.  I'm glad they got the good weather they were hoping for.

I got a handful of annuals: some potato vine, some coleus, and a couple of six-packs of celosia and ageratum for our deck planters.  I also got two exotic geraniums - I'm a sucker for foliage and these had the most gorgeous tricolor variegation I've seen.

The main reason I always visit Knopp's Farm is their affordable selection of shade perennials.  Six inch pots cost only $5.00 and are extremely vigorous.  I've had really good luck with their perennials in the past and last weekend I got three heucheras, three foxgloves, and the husband picked out one hosta...



...which was chomped on by a deer as soon as we got it home.

If you're in the local area and have never been to Knopp's, I highly recommend you give them a visit.  They're just off of New Cut road, on Old Oak road in Severn.  There are signs on either side of Old Oak road, so it's pretty easy to find.

If you're not in the area, I found a great interview online with Mr. "Bunk" Knopp on a blog relating to Eastern Market in DC.  It paints a vivid picture of the life of a Maryland farmer and makes me proud to support my local farmers in some small part.

Address:

565 Old Oak Road
Severn,  MD  21144
(410) 969-3620

Hours:
9:00am - 6:00pm daily

Favorites: William Paca House Plant Sale

The William Paca House and Garden is a landmark in Annapolis.  It was built by William Paca between 1763 and 1765 and was one of the first five-part Georgian homes in Annapolis.  After Paca sold the house in 1780, it changed hands several times until it was acquired by William A. Larned and restyled as a hotel in 1901.  The hotel, known as "Carvel Hall", was in operation until the 1960's. 

 

 

In 1965, there were plans to demolish Carvel Hall, but the Historic Annapolis Foundation purchased it and restored the house and garden to their original colonial-era state.  The William Paca House and Garden was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

 

The William Paca House and Garden is a great resource in Annapolis.  It is open for tours daily and there are concerts, summer camps, art classes and more hosted on the grounds.  It is even possible to use the house and garden for weddings or other special occasions.

 

It is probably no surprise that my favorite event at the Paca House is their plant sale, which is held on Mother's Day weekend every year.


This plant sale is crazy.  Even thought it opens at 10:00am, people start lining up at 9:00am.  Certain plants have very limited numbers, and as soon as the gates open, people charge through the garden to get them first.  All of the plants are grown locally by Paca Garden volunteers.  Most plants are native, heirloom, or hold some historical interest (for instance - cuttings of William Paca Holly or Washington's Buckeye).

A list of plants available for sale this weekend is available online at www.pacagarden.org.

I've had very good luck with the plants I've gotten at this sale in previous years.  The prices are also quite good - from what I can remember, the plants are usually between $3 and $6.  The only problem I've ever had with the sale is that the shrubs and trees they offer are a bit on the small side.  Again, though, if you're paying $5 for an oakleaf hydrangea, you can't expect it to be in a gallon pot.

Although I'm not supposed to buy any plants until July, I am willing to make an exception for the sake of tradition.  I've looked through the plant catalogue and will try to get a couple of of the following:

• Asarum canadense - Wild Ginger
• Chelone lyonii - Turtlehead
• Sanguinaira canadensis - Bloodroot
• Sedum sp. - Creeping sedum
• Sedum ternatum 'Larineum Park'
• Stylophorum diphyllum - Celandine or Wood Poppy

If you're going to attend the plant sale this weekend, I recommend getting there early.  

1 Martin Street
Annapolis, MD

 

Saturday 10:00am - 4:00pm
Sunday 12:00pm - 4:00pm

Favorites: Papa John's

No - not the pizza place.

Most people in Anne Arundel county have driven past the big red barn and know that Papa John's is a great place to buy plants in the spring, produce in the summer, and pumpkins in the fall.

Papa John's has been around for as long as I can remember.  When I was a teenager, some of my friends even worked there during the summer.  The farm is run by the Schillinger family and is one of the few working farms left in northern Anne Arundel County.  With the exception of tropicals, all of the plants they sell are grown on the farm from seed or plugs. 

My daughter and I visited the farm on Saturday and left with a flat of mixed annuals (10 four-packs) and a 4 inch potted fuchsia for about $19.  We enjoyed walking through the greenhouses (there are nine total), which were packed full of annuals, herbs, and vegetables.  They had a wide range of hanging baskets and other "pre-made" garden items.  My daughter really liked a large pink plastic pig which looked like it might be a watering can, but was planted with annuals.  There was also a smaller selection of perennials out on the lawn.

One of the things I like best about Papa John's annuals is you have some choice in the size of the plant you're buying.  At the nearest big box hardware store, the annuals they're selling are tall and blooming.  This may seem like a good thing, but it really means the plants are most of the way through their short growing cycle and probably won't put much effort towards growing more roots and getting bigger once they're planted.

Papa Johns has those plants as well, but they also have plants that are only a few weeks old with buds and even plants that don't have buds yet.  After reading an article about annuals on the Renegade Gardener's website, I always try to buy the annuals that are the least mature.

I've been getting my annuals and herbs from Papa John's for about five years.  In my experience, they are cheaper than the hardware store plants and they consistently outperform them.  I don't know whether it's because they're grown locally and are suited to the weather, because I choose the smallest plants, or for some other reason, but they always do well.  I spent about $50 at Papa John's last year, and I swear those annuals helped sell our old house.

More background information about Papa John's in available in this 2010 article from Examiner.com.

Address:
8065 New Cut Road
Severn, Maryland 21144
(410) 969-8810
http://www.papajohnsfarm.net/Home.html

Hours:
8:00am - 7:00pm, Monday - Saturday
9:00am - 6:00pm, Sunday

Favorites: Paghat's Garden

AKA In the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl

This site seems pretty strange at first.  The combination of font color and background color is different.  Some of the articles meander off into odd directions.  I've never actually heard the term "Ratgirl" before, and I'm not quite sure what it means.

This is what I am sure of: Paghat's Garden is one of the best gardening resources out there.  Since it was moved to its own domain in 2002, it has grown to be the largest temperate gardening website in the world and contains over 1,600 articles and 3,500 photographs.  The amazing part is most of the plants highlighted are from Paghat's own garden, which overlooks the Sinclair Inlet of Puget Sound. 

I remember reading once that the Pacific Northwest is the only area in the US with a climate similar enough to Great Britain to be able to copy some of the great English gardens.  This might be true, but Paghat has a wide variety of plants.  Although her zone is very different from my East coast 7b, I still find sound advice on her site.

Each article is different, but they usually give the scientific and common name for the plant, the species' origin, where the specific plant was purchased, and where it is currently growing (including soil and light conditions).  There are typically one or more pictures, showing details and habit.  Sometimes, there are pictures to show growth over the course of several years or to show the plant in fall or winter.

Frequently, the articles will discuss folklore, myths, or legends associated with the plant and origins for the plant's common name(s).  Paghat cites many historical sources, ranging from the Bible to the Doctrine of Signatures.  She has a interest in the human health benefits of herbs, but cannot tolerate "quackery" and is not shy about pointing out the plants (*cough* echinacea *cough*) that have been scientifically proven to be no better than a placebo.

Most of her site is broken up by plant type: Shade Perennials, Ferns, Sun-garden Herbs, Evergreen Shrubs, etc.  There is also an index by scientific name, which is useful if you're looking for something specific.  Finally, there is a Miscellaneous section which contains some really great garden "tours" and other gardening-related essays.  I'm actually late posting this today because I was reading an essay on the harmful affects of earthworms.  That is what I love most about this site: every time I visit, I find something interesting to read.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Paghat:

"There's also just no such thing as "finishing" a garden & saying, "there, that'll last forever." The garden also imposes its own changes."

What are some of your favorite gardening websites?