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Greetings from Christianson's!
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This issue marks the beginning of the sixth year of Garden Notes. As its editor for the last two and a half years, it's been my goal to provide useful and interesting information for you about various gardening topics and what's happening at the Nursery. When I started, we had under 500 subscribers. Now we have over 2,000 and counting. Such a milestone is a cause for celebration and to think about what's next.
Over the last 5 years that Garden Notes has been running, many changes have happened at the Nursery. We've added several big events - the Antique Fair and Giant Pumpkin Festival - and have expanded the Nursery's greenhouse space and parking. We've also added a small cottage behind the Schoolhouse with restrooms and a bridal changing room as part of our newly established wedding venue. And now there's wi-fi at the Schoolhouse for our instructors and vendors who use the space during special events.
It's good to take stock of what has been accomplished in your life from time to time and not just for the typical New Year's resolutions. It keeps you on tract and you get to see that you really have made progress. Whether you keep lists or just have goals in your head, writing down such milestones lets you realize that you haven't been static. I'm more of a keep-it-in-the-back-of-my-mind sort of list maker for long term projects but will make short-term, immediate lists. Shopping lists are the classic short-term list, although I often shop without one, loading my cart with habitually bought products (and admittedly, impulse buys). I bring a list when I'm trying out new recipes.
One risk of not making written lists with deadlines is that projects can get strung out longer than they should. Perhaps it's because these projects are often painful to do even when producing desirable results. Take garden projects, for instance. I've been working on installing a garden path along the north side of my house for the last 10 years. It came down to doing a lot of taxing preparation including dealing with creeping buttercup and hauling dirt and gravel. I would only get so far before petering out for the season. Then, the next season, I would have to go back and repair what I did last time and try to move forward. Finally, I just did it. I was sore for a week afterwards (moving loads of gravel which I had to haul home in bins in the back of my Subaru!), but now I have a nice path that I only have to rake on occasion. Just recently, I did the short path along the back of my house, using urbanite (broken concrete slabs) as stepping stones. I'll be planting ground cover around it to soften the rough edges. Woody mulch helps keep the weeds under control.The front yard needs some major rehab and I've been tackling that mess in bits and pieces, utilizing the "eat an elephant one bite at a time" approach. It's a tiny yard full of overgrown shrubs that are becoming rather rangy looking. Time to edit. Time to plant more perennial edibles. As we evolve in our garden ideology, so does the garden.
Spring is when you notice such things. Which coincidentally, is the best time to come into the Nursery because it's bursting with color and selection. The new annuals available are so much fun and add loads of color to your landscape and containers. This issue highlights several distinct callibrachoa and verbena varieties of note. And the hanging baskets! Wow! Hundreds grace the greenhouses and they look fantastic thanks to our three basketeers, Toni, Laura and Elisa. And if you don't see something you like already planted, they will customize containers and baskets to your needs. Baskets and container gardens make great Mother's Day gifts to boot!
So, take stock of your own garden and enjoy the bounty of spring!
Debra Lacy,
Certified Professional Horticulturist & Editor
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Where To Find Us
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15806 Best Road
Mount Vernon, WA 98273
Map and directions
www.christiansonsnursery.com
360-466-3821
1-800-585-8200
Spring Hours
Now Open daily 9 am - 6 pm
Fridays in May open 'til 7 pm
Weekly Radio Broadcast:
Sunday Mornings at 10:30 am
The Garden Show
with John and Mike
KAPS AM 660
Voted Best Greenhouse and Nursery
in Skagit Publishing's
People's Choice Awards for
2010 - 2014
Award at the 2015 & 2016 Northwest Flower & Garden Show for Outstanding Plant Market Display
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Tips on Hanging Basket Care For The Best Results All Season!
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There are five requirements for a beautiful hanging basket that will last from May to October. A large container (contains more soil to nourish the plants), premium soil (lightweight with water retaining properties), slow release fertilizer (no need to remember to fertilize often during the summer) and the perfect hanger (one Mom can turn one quarter around every time she waters so she doesn't have to lift the basket from the hook and turn it). This helps the flowers and trailing plants grow evenly around the basket and not become lopsided from growing toward the sun. The fifth and most important requirement is the addition of old/new favorite flowers. Old favorites like lobelia and bacopa had to be groomed to continue blooming all summer. The new favorites including lobelia, bacopa, petunias, allysum and other annuals have been hybridized and are self-cleaning. They will bloom all summer without deadheading. So, all Mom needs to remember is to water and turn the basket If her basket has a geranium or a begonia, it will need to be deadheaded. But that's it. No fail, stunning hanging baskets for Mom. Please ask our staff to point you toward our custom baskets. They are in the new addition to our greenhouse.
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The three Basketeers - Elisa, Toni & Laura.
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Beautiful custom hanging baskets.
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A closeup of a lovely
custom basket creation.
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May Specials
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May 2-8
Basket Stufferspremium annuals for baskets or gardens,
growing in 2" pots 20% off
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Geraniums
zonal, ivy, scented and fancy-leaf,
growing in 4" pots
20% off
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: May 7-8
Mother's Dy Weekend Special
Eastern & Asiatic dogwood trees in bloom
20% off
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May 9-22
Shady Days
shade-loving tuberous begonias, fancy double impatiens
and New Guinea impatiens, in 4" pots
20% off
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 May 23-31
Fuchsias hardy, upright and trailing fuchsias in baskets
and 2, 4, & 6 inch pots
20% off
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Upcoming Classes & Events
.: MAY :.
CLASSES:
No classes in May
EVENTS:
Mother's Day Weekend:
 We hope to delight all of your senses when you come to Christianson's Nursery during Mother's Day weekend, May 7th and 8th. The brilliant colors of blooms and sweet scents in the air invite you to join in this classic tradition. This year, in addition to our spectacular hanging baskets, we are creating darling tabletop containers and baskets with spring flowers, ferns, ivy and moss tucked in for an instant centerpiece for your table or porch. These tabletop baskets will be available all of April through Mother's Day. We also have a fine selection of gardening accessories, such as vintage or modern hand tools, containers and statuary. Bring a picnic if the weather is warm and enjoy our Schoolhouse Garden and the amusing antics of our llamas, sheep and chickens. And, as always, we will be serving complimentary homemade chocolate chip cookies and coffee.
.: JUNE :.
Classes:
June 4
Events:
Third Annual Antique Fair at the Schoolhouse
June 17 & 18
Special Antique Fair Event!
 Sips, Savories and Sweets Party
Friday, June 17, 2016
5 - 8 p.m. $10 at the door or go to www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2522214. Free parking Must be 21 or older to attend
Get the first chance to shop our lovely Antique Fair and enjoy a  fantastic evening of complementary wine tasting provided by Silver Bell Winery of La Conner and delectable chocolate truffles from Evolve Truffles of Bellingham. Purchase a delicious entrée from Random Acts of Food. Enter the drawing for Door Prizes. Enjoy the lovely blooms of the Rose Garden while you shop for antiques and collectibles on a beautiful June evening! The Nursery will also be open. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Saturday, June 18, 2016
9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Complementary admission, free parking
 Located under the 'Big Tent' and in the 1888 Meadow Schoolhouse. With Skagit farmland, the Cascades and Mount Baker in the distance, our Rose Garden is the perfect setting for a garden party featuring antiques and vintage collectibles gathered together in our very antique one-room Meadow Schoolhouse and under the 'Big Tent.' We will have both returning and new vendors gathered together for a wonderful weekend of fun and laughter. A Rosy Day Out: Thirteenth Annual Rose Festival Saturday, June 25 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Complimentary admission, free parking  Keynote speakers Lorene Edwards Forkner and John Christianson will discuss the many perennials that work well with Roses: Creating Something Great from the Sum of Their Parts. Author, speaker and avid gardener/cook, Lorene Edwards Forkner lives and gardens in the Pacific Northwest. She is the author of 5 garden titles including The Timber Press Guide to Vegetable Gardening: Pacific Northwest, and Handmade Garden Projects, bestselling titles from Timber Press. Lorene is editor of Pacific Horticulture magazine, a quarterly magazine for West Coast gardeners, and she is passionate about the beautiful, fruitful, and innovative landscapes of our region. Observing nature, digging in the garden, mixing things up in the kitchen, or on the written page-Lorene believes there's always a good story to tell. Before Lorene, we are pleased that Rosarian, John Harmeling will be teaching a complimentary class on Rose Culture and Tri-Valley Rose Society will give a talk on How To Rejuvenate An Old Rose, all located in the Big Tent. And, as always, we will have our Rose Ice Cream Social at the end of the day. For more information and a schedule, go to www.christiansonsnursery.com
For more information visit our web site at
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| Bedding Plants of Note... |
We have our best selection of bedding plants perfect for containers, hanging baskets, a path border or color spots in the garden. Annuals provide the opportunity to to have fun adding on-going seasonal color to the garden. Here are several new varieties of note; highly recommended by our Annual Expert, Nancy Stewart. Calibrachoa Punch series:
Originally from Latin America, calibrachoa were discovered in the same general region of the continent where petunia originated. In the early years after they were introduced into the nursery trade, they were called mini-petunias and then later split off into their own genus, which has about 18 species. Beginning in 2007, Proven Winners began adding the Punch types to the Superbells series. This group of calibrachoa relies on the same basic genetics as the existing line, but goes back to some species from Latin America to give earlier flowering, better disease resistance and the distinctive dark eye that is really the main feature that differentiates the Punch varieties from the general Superbells series. They prefer full sun to part-shade, grow 6-12 inches tall and wide and bloom Spring through Fall. All are bi-color and offer a wonderfully playful look to containers and baskets. 
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Apricot Punch
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Blackberry Punch
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Coralberry Punch
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Grape Punch
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Pomegranate Punch
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Strawberry Punch
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Two petunia varieties of note that have unusual coloring:
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Cappuccino
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Night Sky
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Verbena Lanai Twister series:
Here's a more compact series of verbena that performs well in mixed containers and hanging baskets. They have large, uniquely bi-colored flower clusters and excellent powdery mildew resistance. 
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Twister Pink
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Twister Purple
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Twister Red
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Verbena Wicked Series:
The Wicked Series have bright, fun bi-colored blooms on medium vigorous growth with a semi-upright habit. The flowers on this series provide stunning visual excitement to any planting combination. |
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Wicked Mad Magenta
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Wicked Cool Blue
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Wicked Great Grape
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Wicked Pink Pepper Improved
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Nursery Expansion Update
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Our greenhouse expansion is shaping up and is now stocked with hundreds of wonderful bedding plants and baskets! It's bright, airy and loaded with color! 
The south entrance to the new greenhouse.
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Inside the new greenhouse.
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Primrose Antiques & Gifts
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Featured this month...
Our ship has finally come in! We waited eight months for our antiques to arrive from England. They were loaded and unloaded ten times on their voyage from Europe and were actually lost for a few weeks while they sat on a dock in England.
This picture is a sampling of vintage and antique garden art and embellishments for outdoor and, in some cases, indoor use. Hand-woven and crimped wire cloches help keep the rabbits from eating your lettuce and hand-blown French glass cloches will protect your early starts from the cold. Useful and beautiful - our favorite combination! A French seed rack with original packets of seeds and a potting bench from an old farm somewhere in England would also be a great addition if creating a look of garden history is your goal.
If you need a Mother's Day gift for a mother who loves to garden, any of these one-of-a-kind treasures would be delightful and could also be paired with a special plant, a gardening book or a gift certificate.
Authentic pieces always add interest and beauty to one of the oldest and most important endeavors in mankind's history...gardening. Antiques
armoires, cupboards, tables and chairs
❁ small treasures and gift items from England and France seasonal antiques for decorating and entertaining ❁ garden urns, cloches and tools French floral fabrics and hemp and linen sheets ❁ European bridal tiaras and coronets antique and vintage gowns, camisoles, and accessories
Fancy 'New' Goods one-of-a-kind gifts ❁ home decor for everyday, special occasions and holidays specialty soaps, lotions and bath products ❁ decorative candles ❁ seasonal paper napkins hats from practical to fancy ❁ jewelry ❁ umbrellas, totes and travel bags ❁ ladies clothing fine linens, kitchen towels and aprons ❁ kitchen accoutrements and edibles books ❁ music ❁ greeting cards
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Fresh Ideas
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Here's a collection of interesting ideas, helpful tips and great recipes gathered together to inspire and inform. Always on the look out for information on best practices, new approaches to horticultural related topics and delicious recipes, we hope you enjoy this month's collection of fresh ideas!
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Garden Notes Editor:
Debra Lacy, Public Relations
Christianson's Nursery & Greenhouse
360-466-3821
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