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Winter is a crucial time for the birds that remain in our area. They spend their time facing the elements of bitter cold and snowstorms. There are no insects to eat and the natural seeds are covered with snow; the berries and crab apples are gone. Birds need enough food to maintain their body temperatures and must search for food from sun up to dusk. Fortunately, for the birds, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 41 million Americans …
Fall planting gives garlic a crucial head-start. Plants will be stronger and bulbs will be bigger at harvest. October is usually the best month to plant garlic in North America. Planting garlic in the fall for the following year gives your garlic time to grow sturdy, solid roots which keep it firmly anchored in the ground. In Michigan, the best time to plant garlic is right around Halloween. Garlic Planting Step by Step… Break up your garlic heads. Simply separate …
Allium is an easy to grow, absolutely amazing plant. It’s best when you plant it from a bulb in the fall and then it blooms well into spring. Allium Globemaster is the variety that we planted in the flowerbeds in front of the store, along Sprinkle Road. I also planted this in my yard. When spring came, it developed into one of the most amazing and beautiful plants that I have ever seen. This had to have been the most …
This colorful succulent plant is easy to grow and almost as easy to bloom. Kalanchoe has thick, rich green, succulent leaves with clusters of small, upright flowers in a rainbow of colors, which can include red, orange, pink and yellow. Most often grown in pots as a brightly-colored houseplant, Kalanchoe can also be used as a landscape plant provided you live in the right climate. However, their needs vary slightly depending on whether they are planted indoors or outdoors. Indoors, Kalanchoe …
A new twist on old garden favorites Tomatoes are some of the most versatile veggies and Wenke Greenhouse offers many different varieties for you to choose from, each with a delicious and different flavor and purpose they work best for; whether it’s a fresh garden salsa, creamy homemade tomato sauce or canning for later use. New for 2017; we will have available some Heirloom Marriage™ tomatoes. These “heirloom hybrids” consist of two top-tasting heirlooms have been crossed to create a hybrid …
Strawberries – the Luscious Taste of Summer! Strawberries are delicious! And when they come from your own garden, they taste even more delicious. Now’s the time to get your strawberries started. The information tells you to wait to harvest the second year but we won’t tell anyone if you harvest and eat them the first year instead! The strawberry’s incomparable sweet fragrance, fresh red color and superb flavor are the essence of summer. One of the few fruits that originated in …
Fuchsia are beautiful, delicate plants loved by many. They’re known for cascading out of hanging baskets and attracting hummingbirds. The botanical name for fuchsia is pronounced FEW-shah. It’s a diverse genus of plants where some are cascading types and some are more upright. Some do well in sun but most prefer shade. Fucshia have beautiful flowers for sure! They are typically double, tubular types of flowers that hummingbirds and people both love. It’s a favorite for many. So why do …
Fabulous perennial ferns add texture and contrast to any shade garden. Their names are complicated and there are many different varieties – but don’t let that scare you! I”m pretty comfortable with annuals and many perennials but when it comes to ferns, I still have a lot to learn. The good news is that most of the ferns we offer are pretty easy to grow. The hardest part seems to be deciding what type of ferns will work best for …
If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me what “that” plant was… I’d be almost rich! “That” plant is Ensete. It’s dramatic and so much more. Ensete is frequently called a banana plant because it looks like a banana plant. The real name for the redish variety we are coming to love is Ensete Ventricosum Maurelii. In Michigan, these plants grow and grow and grow. In a single summer, ensete can grow over 5 ft tall. They …
