Because February is Houseplant Month here at the Great Big Greenhouse and we offer free repotting for the month, we’ve been spending a lot of time with our hands buried up to the wrist in potting soil. So let us share with you a few observations. When you buy a new houseplant, it doesn’t usually … Read more
It is only mid-February and many customers have come into the garden center or called the store with concerns about seeing their lawns being torn up with mole tunnels. The customers are wondering, why now? With the cold winter we are having, aren’t the grub worms still down deep in our soil? A COMMON QUESTION … Read more
Valentine’s Day: A day of gentle sighs, pink ribbons, red roses—or a pagan festival rich with drunken revelry and young men and women being matched up by lottery—at last for the duration of the festival? The ancient Roman festival called Lupercalia was celebrated every year on February 15th. It was a festival of fertility in … Read more
February is finally here. Sure, we are still in winter and will have some cold days and maybe some more snow days. But, on the nice days, there are plenty of outdoor chores to get done this month. Hold off on pruning your shrubs just because they look bad. A lot of our evergreens, such … Read more
One of my New Year’s resolutions for my garden was to get back in the habit of trying something new instead of sticking with the tried and true. So in keeping with that resolution, I dug through our full selection of 2018 seeds here and found some new seed varieties I’m going to try this … Read more
Hellebores are truly winter’s most interesting evergreen perennial. We can have color from any time between December through April when nothing else is growing let alone in bloom. Not only do hellebores bloom at a time of year when we are desperate for some color, they are also deer resistant. We just experienced our coldest … Read more
This coming Friday is Groundhog’s Day. So here are a few interesting facts about Groundhogs… Groundhogs are not related to hogs at all but are marmots closely related to squirrels. They are basically a giant ground squirrel. They’re widely distributed across North America from northern Alabama all the way up to Alaska. They truly hibernate … Read more
These past three weeks sure has taken a toll on us gardeners. It is hard to spend any time outside. But, most of all, we are all concerned about the health of some of our outdoor plants. Here we are on the 24th of January. One bright side to all of this worrisome is that spring … Read more
Sunday, January 21, was Squirrel Appreciation Day. What? I’m supposed to appreciate these fuzzy little things that destroy my garden? Well…Yes. The word ‘squirrel’ comes from the Anglo-Norman word esquirel with roots in the Greek word skiouros meaning ‘shadow-tailed.’ A group of squirrels is called a “scurry” (a Scurry of Squirrels—appropriate). They are native to every … Read more
If you have a Cyclamen now or you want to try cyclamen for big, bold winter color, here are some care tips to keep in mind for this plant. First, are you aware that Cyclamen plants are actual a bulb, called a corn, planted in the soil? Keep this information in mind as you continue … Read more
