Support Simsbury

Pictured here is the 2010 Simsbury collectible ornament. It is the second in a series of ornaments, designed by Simsbury resident Susan Singer. The 2010 ornament features a likeness of the Drake Hill Bridge of Flowers just down the way from us here on Riverside Road. We sell the ornament here at the Nursery, as well as the 2009 ornament portraying our fellow inhabitant, the black bear! A portion of the sales of this year's ornament benefits the Simsbury Land Trust!

To us, this bridge symbolizes a couple of different things. Firstly, it memorializes the past...back to the times when Riverside Road was much less traveled and the Drake Hill Bridge could only accomodate traffic from one side at a time. It was a one lane bridge, in other words.

Secondly, now that this bridge is strictly for pedestrians, and filled with gorgeously growing planter boxes and well-tended hanging baskets and perennial gardens during the Summer and Fall, we find it to be a peaceful spot.

The bridge tends to attract active community members who like to bike, walk, boat, or just hang out and enjoy the view from the bridge. More recently, we've seen some wedding ceremonies happening there as well. It represents a peaceful spot, filled with the natural beauty that is found everywhere in our Farmington Valley, with a real community feel!

Christmas!

Our Christmas Shoppe is open and has been in full swing for a few weeks now! Hence, the lack of new posts on this here blog. The Warner's elves are busy decorating, cutting and tying on trees and creating beauty all around them! Our store is filled with goodies...

See here a picture of our first dusting of snow, arriving last Friday night and leaving a perfect light blanket on our greens, trees and wreaths!

The Queen of Japanese Maples?

Fall Foliage Series, Japanese Maples...Part 2, cont. I am featuring Acer palmatum dissectum 'Crimson Queen' in this photo in the foreground, Acer palmatum dissectum 'Viridis' is the yellow foliage behind, as mentioned in my previous post. With its scarlet red fall color and deeper red season-long foliage color, Crimson Queen is one of the most fantastic Japanese Maples on the market!!! I absolutely love this plant.

It will eventually reach 8-10 feet high by 10-12 feet wide, but grows amazingly slow...as is the case with Japanese Maples in general. Being part of the dissectum group of Japanese Maples means the leaves on this plant are very finely cut and contribute to the delicate appearance of the plant as a whole.

This mound-shaped tree is perfect for featuring as a specimen in a special spot in your yard or in a Japanese style garden. Prone to early Fall or late Spring frosts, do not feed your Japanese Maples late in the season, or too early in the Spring. Dappled shade or part shade is ideal as an exposure for most Japanese Maples.

Japanese Maple in the Fall Part I

Up until now, I've been mentioning shrubs in my Fall foliage series. Today I choose a tree! Pictured here is an Acer palmatum dissectum 'Viridis'. This is also known as a green laceleaf Japanese Maple.

'Viridis' possesses a traffic-stopping brilliant yellow foliage in Fall. The very dissected and divided leaves are a medium green all season long, until Fall when they pop with this yellow color. I consider Viridis to be one of the showiest of the dissectum type Japanese Maples.

Maturing at 8-12' x 10-14', Viridis Japanese Maples are a manageable size for a small planting bed or as a specimen in a remote garden. The frilly texture of the foliage creates a delicate effect. Jap Maples look good with many perennials, ornamental grasses and are one of my favorite groups of plants!!

Cabbagehead!

Featured today in my fall foliage series is a favorite plant only seen at this time of year. Brassica oleracea, or Ornamental Cabbage, as pictured here, is a very cool looking and cool weather loving plant.

I choose it as part of this series due to the intensity of color, which increases as Fall progresses. The center of these ornamental cabbage and kale plants are usually shades of purple, pink and white, contrasting with the outer green and bluish foliage. As temperatures drop, this center area deepens in color!

Ornamental cabbage and kale are a seasonal plant in Connecticut. They will generally not survive the entire winter looking good and will not return as a perennial from year to year. However, they do tend to last into December or January looking quite good until they eventually become covered with snow and ice!

In the Spring, they can be pulled out as the ground thaws! Try these cool foliage plants, instead of, or in addition to mums! They last much longer than mums will and they really make a foliage statement!! They are best planted in mass or in containers. They prefer full sun to part shade and will eventually grow 18" tall and wide. Best to plant them after frost as they are less likely to be affected by cabbage loopers and other garden pests!

Fothergilla...Fall Foliage Series, Part 3

Pictured here is a fabulous fall foliage shrub that is also a native to our area...New England in particular. Fothergilla major 'Mt. Airy' achieves a mature height of 5-6' high x 3-4' wide and so it fits nicely into most landscapes, even the smallest of properties!

During the growing season, it's foliage is a cool dark bluish-green, bearing white cone-like flowers in Spring. This amazing plant, as you can see, turns a striking combination of yellow, orange and red through Fall. It is still bearing leaves in early November and generally starts to turn in early to mid-October! Deer resistant and tolerant of most soils.

Cotoneaster...one of the most mispronounced plant names...ever!

Part 2 of the Fall Foliage Series is about...Cotoneaster apiculatus, or Cranberry Cotoneaster, which is a wonderful fall berry-producing plant! However, it is almost always mispronounced. We actually enjoy torturing our new employees by laughing at their mispronunciation of this plant! Kinda fun in a sick plant geek kind of way!

Anyhow, back to the subject at hand...All Cotoneaster falls into the Rose family (Rosaceae). Different varieties reach different sizes, but Cotoneaster apiculatus grows to about 3' high and 3-6' wide. It grows in Zones 4-7, but maintains best color in colder climates.

The habit of this plant is low, wide-spreading and stiff-branching. The foliage is alternate and simple, about 1/4" to 3/4" long and wide. Leaves are dark, glossy green and hold as such all summer long. In autumn the leaves turn an amazing bronzy red to purple and hold into late November oftentimes! Tiny pink flowers form in late May to early June up and down the arching branches.

In addition to the hot fall color on this plant, bright red fruits are borne in August and hold until October. They are often loaded up and can be spotted from a distance due to the heavy berry set and bright cranberry color of the berries.

Cotoneaster in general prefer full sun, well-drained soil, but will tolerate all but permanently wet areas. Cotoneaster is often used along a border or over a rock wall. Good in Japanese gardens and Native to Western China, this is a very useful and strong fall-interest plant!

Salt Marsh Hay Is In!

Time to come and pick up your Salt Marsh Hay today! We have oodles of bales ready to be used to winterize (sorry, I know, it's a terrible thought) your gardens! Salt Marsh Hay is a weed-seed free product which is harvested in Cape Cod.

This particular type of hay is very useful in protecting plants in perennial and shrub beds from being damaged by cold winter temperatures. It provides wonderful root protection for all of your favorite plants. If an entire bale is not needed, keep the hay for overseeding portions of your lawn or for keeping weeds down in the vegetable garden in the Springtime!

On a side note, it will be happily loaded for you by our helpful and friendly staff!

The King of Insects

Mantis religiosa or Praying Mantis is named for its prominent front legs which are bent together and suggest the position of prayer. Praying Mantids (pluralized) have a triangular head perched on a long neck, which allow the insect to turn their heads 180 degrees to scan for prey. Mantids use their front legs to snag their prey with lightning fast reflexes. Their legs are also equipped with spikes for ease of pinning prey. Mantids feed on moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies and most other insects. They can achieve anywhere from 0.5" to 6" in length!

Praying Mantids do not have discerning tastes when it comes to their victims. They will even eat their own kind. Interestingly enough, the female mantis will often times eat her mate either during or just after mating.

If you see one of these cool insects in your garden, you will be amazed. Pictured here is a sample of the mantis population here at the nursery.

We're out of our Gourds!!

These beautiful gourds appeared in the compost pile and in other random spots around the nursery on healthy and vigorous vines!! Turns out the birds helped us to spread the seeds and therefore produce our own fruits throughout the late summer and fall! Nature rules!

Fall Foliage Series, Introduction

This is the first of a series of fall foliage highlights. I am going to feature 2-3 plants per week which possess amazing fall foliage color, strong berry sets or other fall interest points. I will show a photo of said plant from our very own nursery and discuss some of the significant features. These are plants that would make great additions to a home landscape by adding fall interest!!

Today's Fall Feature Plant is Viburnum plicatum tomentosum 'Mariesii'. Commonly known as a Doublefile Viburnum, Mariesii Viburnum possess a magnificent reddish purple fall color. The leaves are heavily corrugated and large. The plant has a wonderfully tiered horizontal branching habit, bearing white flat flower clusters in late Spring. Mariesii Viburnum bear a red fruit set in Fall followed by the foliage burst. Generally plants prefer moist but well-drained soil. Mature specimens can achieve a size of 8-10'H x 10-12'W.

See this informative article on Viburnum for more info. on this great group of versatile shrubs!
http://www.finegardening.com/plants/articles/viburnums-are-versatile-shrubs.aspx

Umbrella Factory

One of my favorite things to do on a road trip is to stop in and visit local nurseries and other funky spots in order to take photos and also to just feel the vibes of a location. Snooping around and seeing what other greenies do with their display space is very enjoyable for me. Pictured here are some planters found at the Umbrella Factory in Charlestown, RI.

These pots hold an assortment of truly magnificent tropicals, mainly Begonias, Caladium and Colocasia (Elephant Ears). These are all interesting foliage plants...good for part shade. Impressive!

The Umbrella Factory hosts several small shops and boutiques, ecclectic and unconventional in nature. It's a fun place to spend a couple of hours poking around. The property is reminiscent of an old hippie commune and the gardens hold much charm and many plant surprises, as they ramble past old farm equipment and broken down cars. This is all part of the draw here. There is a small nursery here as well.

'Totally Tubular!' Coneflower

This snazzy 'Plants that Work' selection is a great choice for a hot spot in your yard! Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers' has really cool petals that are tubular in nature, reminiscent of a lonicera or honeysuckle bloom. This preceding characteristic is one that makes this particular variety different from the majority of Rudbeckias. These quill-like petals are surrounded by a raised center cone which is a warm brown. The leaves of the plant are sweetly aromatic.

When people think of Rudbeckia, the most commonly thought of is Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii 'Goldsturm', or more simply put...Black-Eyed Susan! The Black-Eyed Susan is very overplanted and to tell you the truth...we are getting a little bored! So, we are now carrying 3 or 4 different varieties of Rudbeckias. All bloom summer to early Fall. Come check them out!!

The Queen of Cleomes

Cleome hassleriana, or Spider Flower, as it is often called, is an amazing, long-lived annual in the garden. Pictured here are 'volunteer' Cleome plants living at our nursery. Volunteers are plants that grow up from seeds left in the ground from a previous gardening season. They were unplanned and found themselves a perfect spot in our front garden bed.

This particular variety of Cleome is 'Pink Queen' and like all cleome of this particular species, it grows to 4 ft. tall and spreads about 18" wide. The plant has large palmate leaves and the hairy and very prickly stems are sturdy enough to hold up the huge, globe-shaped, spidery flowers for which this plant gets its' common name! Cleome needs full sun and well-drained soil to be most successful. Regular watering during summer is helpful to keep it blooming until after first frost!! We sell already started plugs in May-June and seeds throughout the season. We may even be willing to share seeds from our volunteers if you ask nicely!! They are still flowering now in early October and looking like the garden 'Queens' that they are!

Fuzzy Wuzzy...flowers?

Chenille plant or Acalypha hispida is a great indoor/outdoor plant for the novice or experienced gardener alike! What a very interesting flower it produces...usually 3-4" long and fuzzy like a cattail or, well, like chenille! The color is a light red and the plant is prolific. Chenille plant likes bright light if indoors and partial shade if outdoors in the summertime. Keep the soil barely moist for best results. Feed every two weeks with an all-purpose water-soluble plant food, at half-dose. If you have a fuzzy wuzzy plant already, don't forget to bring it indoors for the winter, as they are not winter hardy here!!

Time to Harvest.

With the cooler temperatures finally having arrived and the glorious weather here, it is so pleasant to be outdoors! No more humidity...hurrah! I see my garden winding down for the season, but I am still getting mad harvests of tomatoes, zucchini and cukes! Yum! Tomato and cucumber salads galore!

Hummingbirds!

Come see our new hand-blown glass hummingbird feeders, made from recycled glass! They are uniquely gorgeous and come in various shapes and sizes. They make great holiday gifts too!!


This is an important time of year for feeding hummingbirds -- a time that people don't always think about, since the summer is coming to an end. With the southern migration of hummingbirds starting, it is very important to have feeders ready with lots of fresh nectar for them to load up on. It not only helps them build up their body weight for their long journey back to their winter homes, it also proves that you will be a dependable feeding station for them to come back to next year. Hummingbirds do come back to the same gardens every year!!

Check out the Hummingbird Society's website for more great information at www.hummingbirdsociety.org/.

WNC staff

Myself and my wonderful coworkers on just another long, hot summer day. Hard to believe we have had 31...count 'em...31 90 degree plus days! Holy hotness batman. What a tough season to keep everything watered, but they do and they do it well! Pictured from left to right we have, Amanda, Kyle, me Jessica and Sheryll. Missing: Tami and Susan.

Cornus canadensis

On a recent trek in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, I spotted alot of alpines, sub-alpines and cool woodland plants, as well beautiful mosses, growing in nooks and crannies of the terrain we passed over. Pictured here is Cornus canadensis, or Bunchberry. This native plant is in the dogwood family. It generally grows 3-8" tall and prefers cool woodland areas. Native Americans made a tea from the leaves for aches, pains and fevers. The scarlet colored berries were eaten or stored for the long winter. Generally the white flowers come out May-July.

Amaryllis in July?

Our Amaryllis bulbs are a bit confused, rightly so with this crazy weather! Blooming in July is a bit unorthodox for an Amaryllis living in Connecticut. Usually these bulbs, which are forced for indoor bloom, are known to bloom sometime between mid-December and mid-late March.

Meet Kyle...

Our newest employee here at Warner's. We are lucky to have found a knowledgeable and enthusiastic young man who seems to really enjoy his work! Kyle Reynolds is our new addition this season and he is doing a great job so far!! We hope you all get to meet him in the near future.

Texas Scarlet Quince

Chaenomeles speciosa 'Texas Scarlet' or 'Texas Scarlet' Quince is a flowering and fruiting marvel. It's gorgeous red flowers cover the plant in mid-Spring, usually April. Despite its thorny stems, it is a marvelous low maintenance plant for the landscape. It will produce ooooodles of early Spring blooms and is very zone hardy. Full sun and salt/sand tolerant, Quince makes a wonderful addition to any landscape. Pictured here are the blossoms of the Texas Scarlet type.


We also sell Toyo-Nishiki Flowering Quince, a softer colored pink and white flower, with the same upright, fast growing habit as the Texas Scarlet variety. Toyo-Nishiki has a wider, more spreading habit.

Fabulous Fothergilla!

What a great plant Fothergilla is! Also know as Witch Alder, Fothergilla is a native plant that does well in a mixed shrub border, in a foundation planting or in mass groupings in the residential landscape. The variety pictured here is called 'Blue Shadow', or Fothergilla major 'Blue Shadow'. Its honey-scented, cute white flowers come out in mid-to late April atop bluish-green leaves. This rounded, multi-stemmed shrub turns a stunning colors of red, orange and yellow in the Fall and lasts for weeks. Ultimately topping out at 3 - 5' high by 4 - 5' wide, it is an excellent addition to the home landscape!!

Recycle!!!

Earth Day is coming up on Thursday, the 22nd of April!! We are running some cool specials on earth friendly products this week...so come check it out.

On a recycling note, we are super pscyhed to be able to offer plastic pot and plastic tray recycling on an 'official' basis. Instead of accepting pots and trays and trying to reuse them here at the nursery, now these used pots and trays will go to an actual recycler and be re-made into new pots and trays!! Hooray!!

Come find our new green bin in the parking lot and leave your plastics here. We will do the rest. Thank You!!

Welcome Spring or is it Summer?

Boy this weather is unbelievable! Feels like August already? What is the deal...could it be global warming?! Anyhow, we are in pansy mode...the traditional harbinger of the start of the gardening season for us here at the nursery!! Yeah!!

Happy Spring 2010!

We are open and really excited for the upcoming gardening season!! Pansies, Seeds, Easter Plants and Spring Flowering Shrubs and Trees are here!! Come visit us soon and see what's new!