Weekly News, 5.12.21
Hi there,
Are you one of the 16 million people who just started gardening last year? If so, I hope you had a successful season last year and have come back for more! When I started working here 23 years ago during my summer breaks from college, I knew not. one. thing. about. plants! Russ and I started dating 25 years ago and after his parents tried recruiting me to work here for a couple years, I finally gave in. I learned by listening to Bob answer customer’s questions. I learned from planting a small perennial garden that Suzi let me put in her yard before I had my own yard. I learned by studying plant tags, ordering plants, talking to plant vendors, taking classes and also teaching. My in-laws’ and husband’s love of horticulture and farming became engrained in me too. This land and business has totally transformed me into a plant nerd.
My point is, if I can do it.. then you can too! Gardening is so worth the time, effort and investment. It’s good for your body, mind and soul. It can be frustrating sometimes. Yes, there are challenges and set backs. But anything worth doing isn’t easy. It’s a labor of love and so rewarding.
Even if you aren’t new to gardening, there is always something to learn, right? One of our Core Values here is Education— we are continuously learning ourselves by taking classes, reading, and talking to others on our Team. We are also continuously teaching– passing on our knowledge to fellow staff members and the visitors to the greenhouse. We also learn from YOU. As we teach each other, we learn ourselves. “When one teaches, two learn,” as Robert Heinlein said.
Here’s the scoop this week–
- the winter plant challenge was so much fun so we are kicking off a summer challenge this month, called Bulbs to Blooms. The challenge is to plant dahlia tubers sometime this month, care for them all summer, then cut your best bloom to bring back in September for a blue ribbon judging event.
- last year I had a blast doing a Garden Tour of several of our customer’s home gardens, and this year I’m doing it again! I’ll be visiting some time in July to interview about your garden and take lots of photos. Then I’ll share it in the newsletter, on our website and social media. Can I come visit you? Send me an email at newsletter@bednersgreenhouse.com with subject Garden Tour 2021 to show your interest. I’ll be selecting three gardens to visit.
- fruit trees have arrived! We have the apples ‘Pink Lady’, ‘Red Fuji’, and ‘Red Macintosh’, cherry trees are ‘Bing’ and ‘Black Tartaria’, the peach tree ‘Contender’ and plum varieties ‘Santa Rosa’ and ‘Satsuma’.
- we’re still in search of a couple more good people to join our Team as a Garden Center Sales Associate or Wine Sales Associate. Visit out website to fill out an application.
- save the date for our weekly Community Market Days starting this July! Learn more here and stay tuned for vendor information.
- In case you missed it, here is a link to my Spring Shopping Tips. Make the most of your plant shopping this spring.
Always learning,
Melanie
