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Grasses on the High Line
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TopofPageIn This Issue

Expand Your Palette

More great picks you will want to know. Chuck Hinkle from the Scott Arboretum has plenty to say about these workmanlike sedges.

 

The Latest at HNI

It's trade show time, and John Hoffman is on the road and talking grass. Catch a preview of his talk at the OFA Short Course!

 

New Plants

We have a new palette of uncommon grasses and sedges that can be grown upon request. They're GrassSolutions Plus™ plants that come to the rescue in tough situations.

 

Finding Great Grasses

Hover above a fabulous green roof where grasses make an outstanding statement. You'll find it on the campus of Swarthmore College.

 

Comments 

Our new catalog makes its debut, and we give you the first look inside! Also, customers continue their kind words.


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 UnderusedExpand Your Palette with Underused Grasses (and Sedges!)

Underused Plants CollageOur series on underused grasses continues with suggestions from The Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College. Chuck Hinkle is a Garden Supervisor there with a particular interest in sedges. He recommends several sedges that easily serve as ground covers or alternatives to traditional turf grass. He includes a rush that can surely find a place in most gardens: 

 

  • Carex flacca 'Blue Zinger' 
  • Carex pensylvanica 
  • Carex platyphylla
  • Carex plantaginea
  • Juncus tenuis

For photos and Chuck's comments on these grasslike plants, read more.

To see other lists in our underused grasses series, go to the March, April, and May 2011 issues in our GrassSolutions™ archive.


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TheLatestThe Latest at HNI: Upcoming Trade Shows

OFA Short CourseTweak Your Growing Style to Succeed with

Problem Perennials: Grasses

OFA Short Course, July 7, 2011, 2:30 - 3:45pm, Ballroom 4
 
Our own John Hoffman will be on the docket at the OFA Short Course next month. In the landscape, grasses have few pest and disease problems. When grown in a nursery setting, insects, diseases, light exposure, air circulation, and irrigation practices have a more pronounced effect. John will take the audience through best practices and take questions from the audience about specific grasses. We'll give you a preview with the session handout.
  
If you're at OFA, you can also catch John at our trade show booth #2522. Come on by and say hello!

Perennial Plant Association Symposium
You'll have another chance to see John if you miss him at OFA. He serves as President of the PPA logoPerennial Plant Association and will be at this year's symposium in Atlanta. Hoffman Nursery will have a booth at the trade show, so stop by and see what we have to offer. Join us at the PPA Symposium Trade Show, July 19, 20 & 22, at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta.
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 NewFeatureSpotlight on New Plants for 2011

Carex divulsa

Carex divulsa (Grassland Sedge), one of our new GrassSolutions Plus™ Plants

GrassSolutions Plus 

This season, we introduce a palette of uncommon plants to address common landscape demands. While not part of our regular production, we'll grow them on request to fit your project needs. Mostly North American natives, they include sedges and a few true grasses. Expect to see more and more of them for restoration projects, BMPs, and eco-friendly landscaping. 

Andropogon elliottii (syn. A. gyrans) - Bouteloua dactyloides - Calamagrostis canadensis - Carex annectens - Carex bicknellii - Carex crinita - Carex divulsa - Carex frankii - Carex lacustris - Carex lupulina - Carex lurida - Carex normalis - Carex squarrosa - Carex texensis - Carex tribuloides - Carex vulpinoidea - Diarrhena americana - Elymus virginicus - Koeleria macrantha (syn. K. cristata) - Panicum amarum - Tripsacum dactyloides

 

For more info about these selections, try our Quick Facts. You can also see them listed by function in our updated GrassSolutions Indexes.

 

Call (800-203-8590) or email us for more information or to book your order.Back button     

 

 

 

FindingGGFinding Great Grasses: Green Roof at Swarthmore College

Kemp Hall Green Roof

Green roof atop Kemp Hall on the campus of Swarthmore College. 

Photo courtesy of Jared Barnes.

Serendipity can be a lovely thing. Last month we saw a post by Jared Barnes, a PhD student at NC State in Horticulture. He had just been to The Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. We were struck by his photo of a green roof, which was one of the most amazing we'd seen. The roof incorporates grasses beautifully and takes advantage of their unique habits. Jared kindly shared his photo and more info about the project.

 

The green roof sits atop Kemp Hall on Swarthmore's campus, and features both extensive and semi-intensive areas. Read more about the project in blog posts that cover planting sedum and plants for the semi-intensive portions. To see how it progressed, take a look at the roof one year after planting. Jared's photo was taken in May 2011, which is at the beginning of the second full growing season. Now that's some great grass.

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CommentComments & Features

Get Ready! Our New Catalog is Heading Your Way.

The Hoffman Nursery 2011-2012 Catalog of Grasses will soon be in the mail! While you're waiting (and we know the waiting is painful), we have a few highlights. Our GrassSolutions readers are the first to see.

 

Finding the right grass can be challenging with all the cultivars that are available. We've made it easier to choose with two of our most popular grasses. Get started on Miscanthus and Panicum with our new Quick Reference.

 

GrassSolutions SpreadOur GrassSolutions™ resources have become important to our customers, and we feature those in our our catalog spread (see photo to the right). The fabulous photo was taken by our owner, John Hoffman, on his visit to the High Line in Manhattan. To see the full-size version of the spread, click here.

 

We're also updating our offerings with GrassSolutions Plus plants. They're uncommon species that help solve common landscape demands. They're now included in our updated GrassSolutions Indexes. For more info on the specific plants, see our New Plant Preview in this newsletter.

 

What They're Saying...

While we must be coy about who said it, we can share what was said by some of our customers: 

 

One customer issues a yearly "supplier report card", and we consistently earn an A! The report includes these glowing comments:

"Magan [our Sales Rep] is a pleasure to work with, responds quickly, and ensures we are taken care of! [Your] product arrives in good health and requires no extra prep work at potting time."

 

A new customer was desperate for plants to be delivered to a job site as soon as possible. We worked hard to make it happen and were gratified to hear:

"Everything worked out perfectly. I really appreciate everything you guys did for us. The driver was as nice as could be and he was here when he said he would be here and the plants look GREAT!!! Thanks again for all your help."

 

One of our newer customers received several shipments this spring. After the latest shipment, he told us, "Thanks for the high quality plants that seem to be free of any weeds!!!"

 

If you have something to tell us, we'd like to hear it. Call us (800-203-8590), email your comments to GrassSolutions, or contact Magan or Brendan on our Sales Team. 

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