Season's Greetings! Plant of the Week: North Pole Thuja

Tis the season for decking the halls...and as the popularity of container gardening continues to grow,

'Filip's Magic Moment' Thuja

evergreens that can be decorated and used indoors, and then taken back outdoors after the season is over, seems like a natural fit, right?

Not so fast... bringing an evergreen or conifer inside, then taking it outdoors again and successfully re-acclimating it to the winter environment can be tricky business. As you probably know, sudden temperature changes and dry indoor conditions can doom a once-healthy little outdoor plant.

Some shrubs, like 'Filip's Magic Moment', will withstand this treatment better than others...and imagine having this sweet little guy ready and waiting on your patio to bring inside and brighten your indoor décor each Christmas?

Do you have tips about reintroducing live 'trees' to the outdoors after Christmas? How about other ideas for holiday container gardening? I'd love to hear them!

On to the plant of the week...

This week Jane celebrates the season with a clever take on a popular holiday place, the North Pole. Her plant of the week blog post is below...thanks for reading and we'll see you in the New Year.

Natalie

All eyes are on the North Pole!

The little ones are looking for Santa Claus, of course. Have you heard the story of how NORAD started to track his progress on Christmas Eve? It's delightful.

Those of us who have aged out of the jolly old elf's system can content ourselves with North Pole Thuja. It, too, is delightful. And unlike many of the presents under Christmas trees, it will last for many years.

Thuja is a fast-growing, very narrow selection of our native arborvitae. Developed in Minnesota, this is a plant that was literally made for cold weather. It's quite hardy (USDA Zone 3) and has good resistance to winter burn. I think you'll find that this is a very appealing plant both in the landscape and at retail. The tight, narrow form is really attractive and quite useful for smaller sites. Check out this cool video about the plant.

Finally, a very Merry Christmas from everyone at Spring Meadow Nursery. 


Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles

Winter Interest - Plant of the Week: Berry Heavy® Gold Ilex verticillata

Hello and happy Monday!

This week Jane writes about the winter interest plant, Berry Heavy® Gold Ilex verticillata. As you know, most people don't produce gardens and landscapes that have year-round interest by sheer luck...it's something that takes planning and nurturing.

When my family moved into our house about 12 years ago, we took all the grass out of the sloped front yard and replaced it with a huge perennial and flowering shrub garden. It's quite a beautiful sight all summer if I do say so myself...but I have always bemoaned the lack of winter interest in my yard.

But now I've seen the light! I've been wanting to remove some tall ornamental grasses that have gotten a little invasive over the past few years, and my plan for next summer is to replace them with a Berry Heavy® Gold and a Berry Poppins® Ilex (with a Mr. Poppins® close by!) and probably a couple Arctic Fire® Red Twig Dogwood as well. Yes, I know summer is a long way off, but you have to think warm thoughts, right?

What are your favorite winter-interest plants? What do you write about this time of year that seems to get gardeners the most excited about celebrating the season, or preparing for the next one?

Jane's plant of the week blog post is below, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for reading and we'll see you next week,

Natalie

May your days be merry and bright...

I'm pretty sure our Christmas will be white.

Berry Heavy® Gold

The lake effect snow machine kicked in last week, and we've had another several inches since Monday. So I'd say we're on track here for a Currier and Ives-like Christmas here in West Michigan.

That's why we need these bright berries in winter. Truthfully, if you've got good snow cover the red berries stand out a little more. But on gloomy, cold-winter-rain days a golden winterberry is, well, golden.

We selected Berry Heavy® Gold Ilex verticillata for its big, bright golden fruit. It's a stunning choice for landscapes and cutting gardens. Berry Heavy® Gold grows 6-8' tall and wide and is hardy to USDA Zone 3. It will grow in full sun or partial shade.

Like other Ilex, it will need a male pollinator to produce fruit; we recommend Mr. Poppins®.

This cold-hardy native plant will grow fairly far south (USDA Zone 9) so even folks who have sleet instead of pretty snow can grow it.

It will grow in most situations as long as the soil isn't alkaline. Wet soils? It loves them. Clay soils? Those are OK, too. Winterberry will tolerate the air pollution of urban locations, and can shore up the stream banks in more rural settings. How wonderful is that?

The only limitation of winterberry is that it doesn't look like much until fall and winter, which makes it a tough sell to the spring impulse shopper. So let's do the world a favor and get the word out about this awesome species.

Here's a 30 second video that you can share with your fans if you want to share a little more inspiration.

Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles

Magic Moments and Plant of the Week

Happy Monday! 

I'm Natalie, Spring Meadow's new marketing and promotions specialist and your new "Through the      Greenhouse Glass" blogger. I'm looking forward to connecting with you, sharing ideas and inspiration, and also of course, sharing Jane's fabulous "Plant of the Week" posts. 

This week Jane posted about the Filips Magic Moment® Thuja, a sunny spot in what can sometimes be a drab winter landscape. But before we get to the Plant of the Week post, I wanted to share another magic moment. Last week our videographer Adriana captured the first snow at the Deppe garden here in Grand Haven. It's simply breathtaking...enjoy:

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'Filips Magic Moment'

Hello gloom,

Winter finally decided to show up. In West Michigan, that means clouds and lake effect snow. It's fifty shades of gray but slushy, not smutty.

So we need some bright evergreen color to cheer us up. 'Filips Magic Moment' Thuja does the trick. It's a compact evergreen with golden foliage that is a welcome sight in these dreary days.

I planted a couple of these in my mom's yard and saw them this weekend. I commented to her that I always forget how much I like this plant until the cold weather comes. They were beautiful!

'Filip's Magic Moment' grows 6-8' tall and is hardy to USDA Zone 3. It will grow in full sun or partial shade. Use it as you would a Dwarf Alberta Spruce - it's a better choice in warmer areas where the Picea can struggle.

Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles