Though I gratefully sell 700+ yards of double-shredded hardwood bark mulch every year, you might consider the free mulch that is falling from the sky at this moment. Get your leaves off the lawn, but leaving them in your beds does no harm. Think about it. Rakes have only been around for maybe 1000 years, but leaves have been building forest and prairie soils for millenia! Use your mower to chop them up and blow them right into your beds. Evergreen groundcovers love to be buried with them. Herbaceous perennials enjoy the protection. Leaves are full of micronutrients and are organic matter personified. Compost them if you can’t stand an untidy bed.

Or call us to collect them for you, we can use the work, and need to replenish our compost pile, so we can have humus to sell in 2 years… Schedule your fall clean-ups now: 774-6981

Root growth! While the visible parts of plants are beginning dormancy, the roots are moving out into new territory. The soil is moist again, plant tissues have plenty of stored energy from photosynthesis all summer, so roots take the opportunity to grab a firmer purchase on the earth. It is late enough now to fertilize without pushing any foliar growth, but help plants with root growth and mineral uptake in preparation for next year. This is a great time to correct any deficiencies observed during the growing season, including adjusting pH (see earlier blog posts). To this end we have lime or sulfur, micro-nutrients, and slow release fertilizers. We have spikes for trees and shrubs, organic lawn fertilizers, and sweet-peet compost for top dressing vegetable or perennial beds. Fall investments in the garden show great rewards next year. Open 9-2 Saturdays or by appointment. We can also deliver if you leave a message: 774-6981.

Though Arbor Day is in April, October is the best time to plant trees and shrubs. Why? Because you don’t have to water for 8 months and you get 6 extra months of root growth before new leaves emerge. We have many native (Sycamore, River Birch, White and Scarlet Oak, White Pine, Hemlock, Crabapple, Kentucky Coffee Tree, Red and Sugar Maple) and other environmentally appropriate trees (Honey Locust, Carolina Silverbell, Dawn Redwood, Blue Spruce, Whitespire Birch, Zelkova, etc.) to choose from. I do not discount in the fall, but all of these trees have grown considerably this year and they can be purchased before their price goes up next spring. Of course if you purchase 10 trees… we can make a deal. We also can plant them for you (that is extra), and sell amendments, stakes, and fertilizer. Planting a tree is one of the most generous things a human being can do–it expresses hope for a future you yourself may never behold. Mitigate your carbon footprint today! All of our trees have been sourced from nurseries in northern Ohio.
Though we are now open officially only on Saturdays 9-2, we are working daily and in and out of the GC several times a day and would gladly make arrangements to meet you any time. Just call: 774-6981 and leave a message or send me an e-mail. Sincerest thanks for supporting local business! Please share this with your friends and business associates.