This week’s forecast: nothing but sunshine. While the webbed-feet crowd can bemoan that spring’s rain has transitioned solidly to dry summer weather, we can all appreciate the fact that summer brings with it the abundance of a garden harvest, days spent at the lake or the bay, and relaxing in the cool of the day outside on the deck. As you work in the garden this month, here are a [...]
As you may have discovered in the last few years--or at least gained a fresh appreciation for--growing your own food is both enjoyable and rewarding. Whether you're a first time gardener or have shopped with us for years, we're excited to help make your gardening budget go further with Tomato Days! Each year, in late April or early May, we offer a selection of some of our most popular [...]
We are sold out of fruit trees for the remainder of 2024. Our 2025 spring inventory will arrive in early February. Thank you for your interest! Spring is here, and along with it comes the perfect time to plant fruit trees in your your garden for a great harvest in the years to come. At Vander Giessen Nursery, we carry a great selection of fruit trees ready for [...]
To borrow the words of a late, dear friend of mine, this time of year offers an “embarrassment of riches” in the garden. From hydrangeas to zinnias, roses to dahlias, and a huge array of summer-blooming annuals, there’s certainly no shortage of color to enjoy this time of year. Vegetable gardens are beginning to yield their abundance as well, and who can resist the mouth-watering taste of fresh-picked berries? We’re [...]
In gardening, timing is everything. Whether getting your vegetable seeds or starts in the ground at the proper time, feeding your lawn and garden when needed, and spraying or treating for insects before an infestation ruins your fruit or flowers—the success of your endeavors hinges largely on doing things at the right time. As you wrap up planting your vegetable garden for summer and begin to focus on maintaining your [...]
I love gardening, and chances are if you’re reading this, you do too. Unique among many hobbies is gardening’s accessibility—just about anyone of any age with any amount of skill living in any sort of home can exercise their green thumb and discover the joy of growing something. Along with successes come challenges, though, and I’m not immune to the failures we all experience in the garden. With hopes that [...]
In the last two months, as the world has adjusted to the reality of COVID-19, more people than ever before have taken up gardening. Deemed essential businesses in most states, nurseries and garden stores are open to sell vegetable seeds and starts, flowers--and hope. Gardening is a hobby that relieves stress and gives you reason to get outside, so if you’re new to the hobby, welcome! This month, I’d [...]
Given all the seismic shifts to our way of life in March, it feels like far longer than a month ago I last sat down to write about gardening. And while much has changed over the last month, spring flowers continue to bloom, grass is still growing, and gardens are bursting back to life right on schedule. Gardening, unlike many events in our world today, is not cancelled—and for multiple [...]
Although it’s the shortest month of the year, this February just as well could have been the longest, with seemingly endless wind, snow and bitter cold putting a hard stop to most outdoor activities. Now, with spring weather here, it’s time to get on with early spring tasks around the yard and enjoy some fresh air and the warmth of sunshine on your face. First, if you haven’t already, [...]
As a lawn and garden enthusiast, I find spring particularly invigorating—new life is bursting forth throughout the garden, shrubs and trees are in bloom and the lawn is waking up from a winter’s sleep. As you start to tend the yard and work up your flower beds again this spring, here are some tips to keep things looking their best as well as a few of my favorite new plants [...]
