Triple Oaks Nursery & Herb Garden
Email Newsletter
May 17, 2013
Dear Friend of Triple Oaks,

Spring has sprung and this past week's frost HOPEFULLY is the last frost until deep into fall!   Now its REALLY annuals and perennial planting time!  We are stocked up with healthy beautiful blooming annuals, baskets, herbs and wonderful blooming perennials!

We always focus on the environment and insect pollinators, and the nursery is abuzz with activity including honey bees sampling our many blooming perennials, they seem to love Salvia 'May Night' with long season blooming rich purple flowers in full bloom now!  Hummingbirds have been seen in the nursery sampling Aesculus pavia or Red Buckeye in full bloom, and Bee Balm (Monarda) is not blooming yet but big beautiful plants are ready to go.

Bluebirds are nesting out back in Triple Oaks display gardens, and the Pitcher Plants in the bog garden and in the nursery, are in full bloom now!

So come by and pick up some garden stuff, the weather is perfect and the weekend is going to be sunny in the lower 70s!
Citrus Trees in stock
Mandarins loaded with fruit

Just in 4 kinds of Mandarins in stock and they have fruits on them!  There are 2 sizes and 4 cultivars, including Satsuma Mandarin, Okitsu Satsuma Mandarin, Seto Satsuma Mandarin & Miho Satsuma Mandarin.  They are delicious especially when you grow your own!   They are known by some as Christmas Oranges:

from Wikipedia:    "This custom goes back to the 1880s, when Japanese immigrants began receiving Japanese mandarin oranges as gifts from their families back home as gifts for the New Year. The tradition quickly spread among the non-Japanese population, and Eastwards across the country: each November harvest, "The oranges were quickly unloaded and then shipped east by rail. 'Orange Trains' - trains with boxcars painted orange - alerted everyone along the way that the irresistible oranges from Japan were back again for the holidays. For many, the arrival of Japanese Mandarin oranges signaled the real beginning of the holiday season.""

 

Color in the garden!

Salvia 'May Night' blooms all summer long and pictured here is a honey bee lower center feasting up its flowers!
Come in and see great perennials and annuals to really boost the color in your garden all season long!    It takes skill and experience to have a garden that reinvents itself all year long making for 4 season interest, but one of the easiest aspects of this is color in late spring, summer and fall using annuals and perennials!

Step display of 'Bloomerang' reblooming Lilac, hanging baskets & Salvia 'May Night' in the nursery
Plant annuals in the landscape, or hanging baskets to hang or planters for a porch or patio, for long bloom time and summer interest that will last long into fall!

Mix these colorful plantings with your favorite trees and shrubs and plan when they bloom.  People always ask us for a tree that blooms for 8 months, and outside of the tropics they just don't exist, unfortunately!  But pick your favorite tree or shrubs and enhance their blooming power by using annuals and perennials!
 
Hollyhocks!!!  Old fashioned cottage garden look!
 
In stock now, come and see this old fashioned flower with an old fashioned cottage garden look.  Be sure to allow Hollyhocks to go to seed as they are "biennual" meaning they live for 2 years but reseed prolifically.   Seedlings will come up mixed colors with a wide range and diversity of blooms!

Many different Hollyhocks in stock now, come and add one to your garden!!!
Tomato Time - Pepper Time!!!
Basil too!
Delicious Heirloom JERSEY tomatoes!  Realize the rest of the world can't grow these!

Party poopers for so long, we are happy to announce now is the time, to safely and successfully plant tomatoes and annuals!  We had a frost alert this past Monday and frost was seen on car roofs locally and tomatoes really hate this!  Temps have warmed up and it is now time to plant out the beloved "Jersey Tomato"!!!  

Triple Oaks has many heirloom tomatoes in
Indigo Rose Tomato is DARK purple wherever the sun hits it quite striking and delicious!
stock now, as well as new hybrids and new  heirlooms such as Indigo Rose pictured to the left, which is a purple tomato developed by the University of Washington for high levels of antioxidants in the attractive dark purple skins!  Modern agriculture and innovation can bring a new class of super foods that are extremely healthy to eat and beneficial, and on top of that, gardening is extremely healthful activity that gets you out with low level stretching and excercise in weeding, planting, watering and it is like therapy, an escape from the world and stress that takes you to a relaxed place and that pays double once you harvest fresh, vibrant healthy foods!


Not to forget the Basil, Triple Oaks has flats of sweet Basil and many varieties of Basil, with different subtle colors and flavors!  They go great together with tomatoes and on so many other things!
 

Asian Pears!!!
Small fruits forming today in the nursery on the Asian Pear cultivars!


I love to shop at H Mart which is a Korean supermarket chain with one in Cherry Hill.   One thing right when you walk in the door into the produce section they always have is large magnificent Asian Pears imported from South Korea. 

These are round like an apple and huge, with a crispy fresh sweet flavor too.  We have 3 varieties of Asian Pear in stock now in good 6' sizes which bloomed like crazy and are filled with forming fruits right now!   They do great in our area and fresh and local is the way to go and you can't get any more local than your own garden!
 
We have 3 cultivars including 'Chojuro' 'Hosui' & 'Olympic Giant' and with Pears its always better to plant 2 different varieties. 
Monarda - Bee Balm for butterflies and hummingbirds
Monarda is beautiful in bloom!

 Monarda is a wonderful native perennial that is great for attracting butterflies and hummingbirds.

Growing to between 3-5' tall, it forms a clump and blooms in early summer onwards.  It does not mind full sun if moisture provided and can also thrive in deep shade.

We have a great selection of many sizes and colors!
Triple Oaks at Haddonfield Farmer's Market this Saturday 8:30 to 1 pm in King's Court
Triple Oaks will start our 6th season at the Haddonfield Farmer's Market in King's Court in Haddonfield right off King's Highway near Starbucks in downtown historic Haddonfield.

We will be bringing our own Kale, Radish & some herbs like oregano, rosemary, parsley and mint.  We bring in local spinach, arugula and mushrooms including shitake, crimini & maitake in addition to cipolini onions!

We'll have some plants including Japanese Maples, Camellias, Perennials and Herb plants as well as setting up Landscape Consultations!  

Haddonfield Farmer's market has added several specialty vendors and there are some exiting new additions including a seafood purveyor!    It has become an established market with great specialty market!  Come by and say hi if you are in the area, 8:30 to 1 pm.




Herb Festival Weekend at Triple Oaks

For almost 40 years herb enthusiasts and gardeners have trekked to a little town in
The Herb Garden at Triple Oaks Nursery
This was the first display garden at Triple Oaks!
Southern New Jersey to sit under the trees and enjoy herbalist's 'show and tell' all about their favorite plants. Triple Oaks Nursery and Herb Garden located at 2359 Delsea Drive in downtown Franklinville will once again host their annual herb Festival on May 25-26th

The festivities include free lectures, informal talks and demonstrations, food samples and walks in the herb and display gardens.

This year snacks will be available both days provided by a Garden Club and by the Herb Society of America S J unit. All proceeds will go for horticultural education or projects.
  
Herb weekend Special Guest Presenters
The festivities start both days with an herb garden walk and talk with Lorraine Kiefer resident herbalist. Members of the herb society will man a table for questions and answers and  have herbal presentations throughout the day. 
 
On Saturday there will be talks on tea, butterfly herbs, elderberry , native herb of the year ,lavender and herbal crafts.
 
On Sunday there will be several special presentations.
A 12:45 Tomatoes are herbs! Mints make mojitos! Salsa demonstration & Sampling: Eric De Jong and Joe Kiefer, organic heirloom farmers "School house" tomatoes will show and tell!! Learn how to make Mojitos! Samples!

2:00 pm Scarborough Faire -- Are you going? Guest Speaker Holly Cusumano

Program: This old, old tune fills our hearts and draws on ancient memories. Sung long holly before Simon and Garfunkel made it famous; what does it mean? Get some background on the song and the medieval festival. Learn everything you need to know about growing and using parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. make theives vinegar.
Make it and Take it: Let's learn to make herbal vinegar together. We will concoct a legendary recipe used by cooks since the 1300's. Delicious, yes! But its protective powers are truly magical  Put your name on a list by calling or emailing triple oaks to have a take home $5 bottle of this vinegar. Pay at table. There are many other talks and demos and a schedule is available online on www.tripleoaks.com

HERB WEEKEND SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Saturday: May 25, 2013
more programs may be added . 

 

9:30 Garden Walk in herb garden Lorraine will tell all about herbs
10:15 pot up some herbs with Jola and Lorraine  (make and take an herb planter.  Kits ranging from $10 up the sky is the limit.
10:30 Herbs for Butterflies by Lorraine Kiefer
11:00Am Planting favorite culinary herbs- Joe
12:00 noon - " Elderberry- Herb of the Year"- Lorraine Kiefer
1:00 pm Lovely Lavender  with Lorraine and Luann
2:00 Crafting with Herbs- HSA member Luann & other members  - Learn to make a wreath and other craft items,
2:30 pm All About Tea : talk and demo Sarah Outlaw
3:00 pm Herbs for Health and favorite herbs for tea- Ursula
3:30 Potting up Herbs choose a pot and herbs...costs vary meet at herb table. Staff
3:30 End of Day Garden Walk with Joe

Sunday: May 26, 2013
10:30am Garden Walk (repeat from Sat.)-emphasis on butterfly plants
11:30   Planting culinary herbs- Joe
11:55 am pot up some  herbs make and take an herb planter.  Kits ranging from $10 up the sky is the limit.
12:15 pm Elderberry  Native plant of the year with Lorraine Kiefer
12:45 Tomatoes are herbs! Mints make mojitos ! Salsa demonstration & Sampling: Eric De Jong and Joe Kiefer, organic heirloom farmers Learn about growing tomaotoes ! "School house" tomatoes will show and tell!! Learn how to make Mojitos! Samples! 

 

2:00 pm Scarborough Faire -- Are you going? Guest Speaker Holly Cusumano
Program: This old, old tune fills our hearts and draws on ancient memories. Sung long before Simon and Garfunkel made it famous; what does it mean? Get some background on the song and the medieval festival. Learn everything you need to know about growing and using parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. make theives vinegar.
Make it and Take it: Let's learn to make herbal vinegar together. We will concoct a legendary recipe used by cooks since the 1300's. Delicious, yes! But its protective powers are truly magical. Call ahead if you want a $5 take home bottle of this. 

 

All Day Herb Society of America (HSA) SJ Unit Herbal cooking Free recipes and talks
3:00 pm End of Day Garden Walk in gardens with Joe  

 

The festivities include free lectures, informal talks and demonstrations, food samples and walks in the herb, perennial, kitchen and display gardens.

Bletillia striata - Hardy Orchid blooming plants in stock now!
Exotic flowers on Hardy Orchid a plant you can grow outside in your garden!

Bletillia striata is a rare Hardy Orchid blooming now in the Herb Garden at Triple Oaks.  We have plants propagated from this mother ship which are also in bloom and for sale. 

This exotic looking flower is exquisite and if given a sunny spot in the garden it steals
Exquisite tropical looking flowers on the cold hardy Orchid - Bletillia striata!!!
the show in late spring with fine delicate tropical looking blooms that almost out of place here looking like a fancy tropical greenhouse plant but this one loves our climate!
 
This plant pictured has been in the Triple Oaks Herb Garden for over 20 years and blooms like crazy every year!  Plant this in a nice sunny spot where you and others can really enjoy it!.
Cladrastis lutea - Yellowwood An exceptional and unusual flowering fragrant native tree!

When our yellowwood tree blooms everyone asks what it is!  When it first bloomed I had no idea what it was, Joe planted it and until it bloomed in the back border I didn't even know it was there.  Now it is a large tree that is so very beautiful!   Although a native to areas of the Eastern U S it   often  gets over looked because of its rarity.

 Its native range is from North Carolina to Kentucky but it sure grows well here at Triple Oaks.  We do little or nothing to the tree and it is awesome.   A few cups of lime  would be good where soil is extremely acid.

I have read in some articles that the  tree is extremely rare and difficult to find in the wild and in nursery production. In fact, it is on the endangered species list for many states. However it is beginning to appear in the trade and some New Jersey growers are growing it.  We were lucky to get some small ones this year and offer them in stock now!

A medium size tree , it does get wide.  The trunk tends to fork very low sending out several branches covered with a smooth smoky gray colored bark. The flowers are a white and very fragrant. The flowers usually appear in early June  and can range in length from four to sixteen inches long. Sometimes the tree may rest a year and not have many blooms. Ours is usually covered with fragrant flowers!

The tree received its name from its heartwood, which is a deep yellow color. It was quite commonly at one time used to manufacture yellow dyes.

Since Yellowwoods grow pretty tall and will have quite a spread,  it is best to  plant it in the center of a sunny lawn for a great specimen tree. Ours is on the edge of a back border, but has lots of room There are very few disease and insect problems with yellowwood. It does well in USDA Hardiness Zones 5-8. So if you like something different plant a yellowwood now.


New Plants in the Nursery

Boomerang reblooming lilac

Encore Reblooming azeala

We also  have reblooming iris, and BLACK Iris!   And many new daylily varieties

Many poppies from our garden including the Legion of Honor Poppy as well as Opium Poppy that will have big huge beautiful flowers.

Sangu Kaku Japanese Coral Bark Maple

Indigo Rose Tomato

 
This should be the most beautiful weekend of spring, come out and enjoy some sunshine and good healthy fun and plant up your garden!!!
 

Lorraine Kiefer
Triple Oaks Nursery & Herb Garden
Save 50%
2-3' White Pine, while supplies last, price is $21.99 half price is $10.99 which is a steal for these beautiful little trees!
Offer Expires: 5/20/13