Discover the Natural Beauty
Spring Hours: Mon-Sat: 9am-5:30pm, Sun: 10am-4:00pm
THIS WEEK
Arbor Day - Today (Apr 8) is Washington Arbor Day. All trees are 25% off. Ax will demonstrate tree pruning (starting at 1pm).
Final days of The Egg Hunt - We decided to leave the Egg Hunt up for a few more days (for you lucky people who aren't on Spring Break). Twelve eggs are placed around Bainbridge Gardens! How many can you spy? Ask for a map to get started. Bring your finished map to the counter for a little treat!
Sun, Apr 12 - Houseplant Clinic - The doctor is in. Lisa will be here to diagnose any houseplant issues, help you repot, and recommend the best houseplant for your scenario.
Miss our last What To Do In The Garden? Here is our March Checklist. Click here
POLLINATOR-FRIENDLY
GARDENING
Did you know that one out of every three foods we eat rely on pollinators? Pollinators fertilize flowers, which then produce seeds, which you can find buried in that apple you eat or on the outside of the strawberry that you pick. In the non-edible world, pollinators help maintain a thriving ecosystem by continuing plant species and adding biodiversity.
As you garden, think about what you are doing in your garden to encourage bees, birds, and butterflies. And also to ensure that we aren't doing to anything detrimental to our flying and buzzing friends.
- Create a pollinator-friendly environment in your backyard. Plant flowers that encourage bees and birds, like asters, coneflowers, lavender, sunflowers, yarrow, etc. Have water dishes in a safe place for pollinators to get a drink.
- Check the labels of any insecticide, herbicide, or fungicide that you use. Be aware of spraying where the bees are and minimizing spray drift.
- Take care of the environment. Climate change not only affects humans.
- Come on in to pick up our list of pollinator friendly plants.
APRIL IS FULL OF DAYS:
EARTH AND ARBOR
It might be confusing, but April is full of planting celebrations. Washington Arbor Day is Wednesday, April 8th. Earth Day is Wednesday, April 22nd. National Arbor Day is April 24th. Why so many days?
Well, for starters, the Arbor Day mission is get people to plant trees, which is a day that we can get behind! Earth Day is more broadly about encouraging people to get involved in environmental stewardship and educate them about the environmental movement. Yes, we support that too.
And why are there two Arbor Days? Well, states are able to choose a day that they think is best for planting trees. In Washington state it apparently is the second Wednesday in April. Okay, sure. And Arbor Day may be different in other states. Different countries celebrate their version of Arbor Day in different months.
So why should we do that? Many reasons. Trees provide beauty, shade, and privacy. They clean the air and cool down cities. They create a habitat for birds, animals, and other creatures.
So, how are we celebrating Earth Day and Arbor Day? Well, with activities and sales, of course!
On April 8th and April 24th (the two Arbor Days), all trees are 25% off. Yes, that's how much we want you to plant trees on that day!
What kind of trees should you plant?
Here are a few trees (of many) that we are fond of this year:
Japanese Maple 'First Flame' (Acer Palmatum) - First Flame (picture above) is named because the spring growth is fiery orange-red, then the leaves turn a coppery-green in the summer, and then back to orange in the fall.
Katsura (Cercidiphyllum japonica) - Katsura is great for areas of the garden that are naturally moist. We currently have the classic Japonica variety as well as the weeping Morioka and Pendula varieties. All have leaves that go from reddish in the spring to green in the summer and yellow in the fall.
Japanese Cedar 'Sekkan Sugi' (Cryptomeria japonica) - The Sekkan Sugi stays chartreuse to gold year round stays columnar even though it can grow to 20 plus feet tall.
Serviceberry 'Autumn Brilliance' (Amelanchier x grandiflora) - The Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry has small blue berries that provide food for songbirds, like Cedar Waxwings. They also bloom eraly in the spring and have orange fall color.
If you are interested in any of these trees, call us for availability. We also have many, many other choices. We can show you some if you come in!
HOUSEPLANTS DURING THE WINTER
Although it's grey and dark outside, you can make your indoors bright and colorful with houseplants! With shorter, cooler days, less light, and less humidity, make sure your houseplants are comfy and happy during the winter.
- Houseplants need less water during the winter, as they grow slower during the shorter days. Slower growth also means that houseplants need little to no fertilizer during the cold months. If you have flowering houseplants, you can give them a little boost of fertilizer though.
- You may need to add a grow light or move some of your plants to a brighter location. Or move some away from spots that were warm during the summer but cool in the winter.
- You may also need to add a humidifier as the indoor air is pretty dry during the winter.
- Oh yes, don't forget to buy some new plants to give your existing houseplants some company. We are continuing to bring in new houseplants almost every week. Check our Facebook or Instagram accounts to see some of the cool things that Lisa finds each week!