Wow! Isn’t this exciting? We’ve waited all winter for this, getting out there amidst the greenery and the blossoms of the spring; it really gets the adrenaline going!
First thing in May – May 3, to be exact – the Greenthumb Society will be holding their annual Spring Garden Sale. It will be outside, just next to the greenhouse, adjoining the Mail Room. We will have a good selection of hanging baskets, geraniums, flats of annuals and vegetables, and – for the first time this year – a selection of a few varieties of perennials which we know to be dependable; to whet your appetite, so to speak!
One word of caution: As we’ve mentioned before, there is a problem this year with impatiens being felled by something called “downy mildew.” It’s a fungus disease rampant in the soils of the northeast, which includes us! So DO NOT plant impatiens in the garden, or you’ll be in trouble. They will be OK in hanging baskets, window boxes, and planters provided that garden soil is not used in the planting medium. Incidentally, the New Guinea variety of impatiens is not susceptible to this disease.
In making up planters and larger hanging baskets this year, don’t overlook coleus and spider plants to achieve a sense of interest with the coloration. In reviewing some garden magazines, I’ve seen some striking pictures of planters and baskets replete with assortments of coleus in differing leaf sizes and colorations. In the greenhouse, we have been propagating several coleus varieties over the winter which we hope will strike your fancy.
— Bob Jack