Why are Our Plants So Healthy?

John Miller has been our grower at our growing range in Hydes, Maryland since 1991.

Early spring 

 Each year, John orders plants and seeds to be started at our farm greenhouses, grows them on in one of 12 greenhouses (and one huge mum field), and sometimes even delivers the plants to the store. He has help from Vernon, Barb and several seasonal members of our team in Hydes.

John and his right-hand man,Vernon, grow poinsettias.

 I'm a tad biased, but it is my opinion that our vegetable plants, flowering hanging baskets, flowering annuals, pansies, mums and poinsettias are the healthiest, best-looking plants available to area gardeners. How does he do it?

John works seven days a week for a good portion of the calendar year. He is married to Tracy and has two beautiful girls, Madelyn and Meredith.

Miller family vacation 2014

 Both daughters have an incredible knowledge of plants. Guess where John went to college?

I'm betting his life keeps him pretty busy. So, what does he do to relax? He runs! Not a little bit, either. He is currently training to run in the Baltimore Marathon slated for Saturday, October 18. At a bit over 40 years old, he appears to be very healthy and happy. I guess that's part of the reason that the plants he grows thrive as well.

On the NCR Trail

John, all of us at Valley View Farms are pulling for you to have a great run on Saturday. We're proud of you and the plants that you provide to our garden center. I'll try not to call a plant order in until later Sunday morning.

Aloha From Scott and Amy's Garden

Many years ago, Dr. Scott Hubert stopped in Valley View Farms to ask us to order some pineapple plants. 

The pineapple in the lower corner is almost ripe!

After growing the plants on for a summer, Scott brought in a photo of his family celebrating the harvesting of the pineapple in a special ceremony. Little did I know how passionate  Scott and his wife Amy are about their garden. A few weeks ago I asked the Hubert's if I could use their garden as a setting for a segment John Collins and I do on WBAL TV every Sunday. Here is that episode of the  Sunday Gardener. 

The Hubert family enjoy their tropical vacations, so it isn't surprising that they wanted to bring back a bit of the islands with them.

An island resort garden? Nope; curbside at the Hubert's Baltimore County home

 Some folks might settle for a bottle of rum; not Scott. He saw beautiful palm trees in a nursery in Homestead, Florida and managed to have them shipped close to his home in Baltimore County. Scott added other tropical plants to his gardens until he achieved a feel for the islands

Beautiful date palms, sago palm, croton, and a pineapple surround a working volcanic waterfall.

Hibiscus, mandevilla, philodendron, pygmy date palms, Chinese fan palms, birds of paradise, bouganvillea and many tropical plants love our hot, humid summers. But that can be an issue in the winter time. The Hubert family can use help in the fall when its time to move all of the plants inside. There is an older greenhouse in the backyard that serves as a winter home for the hobby plants. Some of the trees have gotten tall enough that they actual have to be dug into the ground inside their winter home.

A sign posts actual mileage to the Hubert's favorite island destinations

Big trees mean big root systems

The garden is not without challenges. Larger palms have to be fastened down to avoid being blown over by the wind, or "borrowed" by curious passers by. A large steel cable makes sure that doesn't happen. And, guess what? Deer like a lot of tropicals mixed into their diet plan, so deer repellents may be applied during times when Scott is not on duty in the garden. 

Scott and Amy's zest for life and fascination with plants has connected them to so many people, including me, who find their passion for their gardens inspiring. Thank you for making our part of the world a more beautiful place.

Beautiful Gardens... Destination Pittsburgh

Thanks to Valley View Farms' owners Andy and Bill Foard, I was able to attend the national Garden Writers Association symposium, held this year in Pittsburgh. I have been in, out and around that city many times in my life, but this was my first chance to stay for 5 interesting, busy, fun-filled, days.

Rooftop garden at Phipps Conservatory Center of Sustainable Landscapes

 A typical day started with a breakfast meeting, followed by several information gathering seminars, lunch on a bus en route to beautiful gardens, an afternoon of touring and then dinner at a garden venue with 400 garden writers/bloggers, TV and radio garden show hosts, public garden administrators, book authors, photographers, and other garden communicators. The bus ride offered a chance to get to know writers from all over the US and Canada. This year, we were treated to tours of beautiful gardens in the Sewickley Valley, Phipps Conservatory, Schenely Garden Plaza, the East End and other areas in and around the Pittsburgh.
Here are some photos of some of the gardens. The plants, flowers, and venues were incredible. I fell in love with the Phipps Conservatory. The outdoor gardens were spectacular!

Perennial gardens outside the Conservatory

Great garden performers 

Two formal water gardens could be seen from inside; I had to check them out!

 The indoor conservatory was just plain fun, with trains, dinosaurs and displays of Chihuly glass in unexpected places.

Trains were featured in several of the indoor rooms

Chihuly glass

Symmetry

Annual and tropical plants with the choo-choo train

Interesting desert room reminded be of Baltimore's conservatory

The private gardens were over the top. Beautiful tree hedges, mulched "lawns", old garden gates and, again, dinosaurs provided whimsy and unexpected storytelling in many gardens. The hosts opened up their grounds to hundreds of us.

Texture and color; flowers are secondary

Too much sun? This garden seat offers comfortable shade.

Peek through the garden wall for a look at the pool

This extensive pruned tree hedge bordered the upper lawn beautifully

Layers of shrubs on an emerald lawn-Wow!

Ivy covered walls

Dinosaurs need strong legs to cover the many hills in and around Pittsburgh

All of our  garden hosts were super friendly and knowledgeable 

Footbridge across Fern Gully

Lions were a common sight at many of the entrances 

 One of the gentlemen even started up his 1957 tractor, connected it to a cart and picked up some of the more physically challenged of our group, so that they didn't have to make the long trek up his driveway.

Our host talks to plants-man LLoyd Traven about his garden

Bit out of my price range, but beautiful just the same

Even the parking area gets the garden treatment

The planning committee did an extraordinary job. The garden tours made me wonder about the hidden gardens in our own community here in Baltimore.

One day, I played hooky with 3 other garden writers- Susan Reimer, from our own Baltimore Sun, Ginny Smith, from the Philadelphia Inquirer and Susan Harris, a garden writer, blogger and green activist here in Maryland. We struck out on our own and found Randyland.

Randy Gilson  of Randyland

Quirky garden! That's an understatement!

Randy re-purposes junk and creates jaw-dropping gardens

Look up, down and all around; you don't want to miss anything

Buy lunch down the street and bring it back to enjoy in Randyland

This Pittsburgh neighborhood is forever changed

Container gardens bring flowers to the street front

 Susan Harris wrote about this unique garden in her blog, Garden Rant. Talk about passion! Randy's view of the world and the joy and enthusiasm he brings to it is extraordinary. The four of us wandered in amazement while listening to Randy talking about the "junk", (his term, not mine) and plants in his garden. He is a waiter in downtown Pittsburgh and used his tip money and donations to create a one-of-a-kind city-scape.  While we were there, people stopped to say hi and donate to Randy's mission. He has gardens all over the city, but this is the one he calls home. For more photos, google Randyland.

Thank you to all of the people connected with GWA. Pittsburgh has become a new place to travel to and spend time in after my attendance to the 2014 symposium.

Pittsburgh was a wonderful host town

 Next year, Baltimore plays host to another horticultural group, the Perennial Plant Association. What a great chance to show off our city and the gardens in our area. Grow, Baltimore!

Summer To-Do List

Summer is the time to enjoy the beach, pool, the family's yard, vacation and gardening.

Planted containers compliment the pool's shape and surrounding architecture

 Harvesting vegetables from the garden, cutting flowers to be displayed on the patio table, and flavoring a grilled dinner with herbs plucked from just outside the kitchen are terrific rewards for all the time spent planting and tending the garden. Here are a few tips to keep plants growing through the rest of summer.

Now is the time to mow lawns high and let the grass clippings lie.

Lawns are an important part of our landscape

 The heat will decompose the clippings fast, adding nutrients to the lawn. Longer grass shades the roots, keeping the sun from drying them out too fast. And, best of all, the longer blades inhibit weed growth. We recommend a 3" mowing height for most lawns in our area.
If weeds, especially crabgrass, are a problem, apply Crab-E-Rad now. Read label directions carefully for best results.
Wait until fall to feed the lawn. Most of our lawns contain cool-season grasses which may be dormant now, but will green up with autumn's cooler temperatures.

Flower beds benefit from a light application of slow release fertilizer. Organic gardeners can use Flower-Tone or Dr. Earth's Rose and Flower food. I might use Osmocote in my flower beds. It is a timed release fertilizer that lasts for up to 4 months. Osmocote is great for plants in containers too, though we recommend using a water-soluble food also to keep plants healthy and blooming.

Formal planting beds containing beautiful summer begonias

Now is a good time to cut back some annual and perennials that may have spent blooms. Pinching and deadheading old blooms encourages new growth and gives plants a fresh, new look.

Weeds aren't just ugly, they take valuable resources away from other plants. Remove them to keep the garden looking good. Use a bark mulch or compost over the soil to keep weeds out and moisture in. Maximum depth should be about 2 inches. Be careful not to pull mulch all the way up to a plant's stem for best results. Trees and shrubs benefit from an application of mulch over their roots as well. In addition to the aforementioned reasons, mulch can protect tree bark from the dreaded weedeater disease. String trimmers do a lot of damage to trees and shrubs this time of year; adding a protective border of mulch can be very useful.

Replant favorite vegetables from seed to keep the garden growing. Beans, and herbs like cilantro and dill, can be planted 2 weeks apart for a progressive harvest.

Billy's beans are harvest ready!

Basil and other herbs create a beautiful border.

 For tomatoes and peppers that continue to produce, provide a feeding of you favorite fertilizer to keep the vegetables coming. Plant cole crops, like broccoli, kale and cabbage around August 1 for fall harvest.

The water garden has tasks that should be completed to keep the pond healthy. Plants like water lilies and marginals should be fed one last time before fall.

Gorgeous water lily flowers

 Keep the plants cleaned up and follow-up with a bacteria to keep sludge from building up on the bottom of the pond. Fish should be getting fed daily and transitioned to cool weather food by mid-September. And, for those using barley straw for algae control, now is the time for a second batch.

Monitor the garden for pests and diseases and treat as necessary. A healthy garden, properly spaced, fed and maintained, will have a natural ecosystem of beneficial insects that will keep the bad guys away.

More than anything this summer, enjoy the fruits of your labor. Gardening is a wonderful way to enjoy each season.

These are a Few of Our Favorite Plants

What's your favorite plant? We've asked this question of each other several times this year. Some of the answers have stayed the same each time they've been asked. Others change from season to season. Here are a few of our staff's favorites.

Owner Andy Foard spends the spring procuring plants for our annual greenhouse and shadehouse and assisting customers with their plant choices. He is a big fan of Dragon Wing begonias and the large-leaved Whopper and Big begonias.

We first saw these Whopper begonias at a field trials site

All do a tremendous job in sun and shade, are deer resistant, somewhat drought tolerant and are easy to maintain.

At his home in North Baltimore County, Andy has planted many varieties of hydrangea. His favorite is Hydrangea paniculata Limelight.

One of a few spectacular Proven Winners varieties

 Limelight grows six to eight feet tall and wide. It blooms on new wood, so is best pruned in late winter. This hydrangea is very hardy, drought and sun tolerant and a true star performer in the garden.

Colleen Harlan and Ruth Engel enjoy the bright, colorful blooms of  Gerber Daisies. Gerbers are nice container plant that loves full sun and plenty of space to allow for good air circulation.

Gerber Daisies add tons of color to our greenhouse each spring 

The color range of these gorgeous daisies is just part of the reason for their popularity. Ruth likes to take them home and grow them indoors where the daisy flowers freely for a month or more. Ruth suggests watering Gerbers early in the day and fertilizing them with a plant starter when planted out in the garden, following up with Osmocoate fertilizer throughout the growing season.

Cindi Fielder loves all orange flowers. Luckily, plenty of flowers are available in her favorite color, including pansies, violas, petunias, begonias, fuchsia, vinca, coleus and so much more. Her singular favorite this year was the Santa Cruz Sunset begonia.

Begonia Santa Cruz Sunset is great for full sun or part shade

If it was up to Cindi, our entire plant selection  would be featured in color-blocked displays, with orange taking center stage.

Nurseryman Scott Carbone had a hard time picking just one. He likes the perennial Asclepias tuberosa, also known as butterfly weed. Butterfly weed is both a larval host plant and a nectar producing plant for Monarch butterflies. Sometimes called orange milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa does not produce milk.

Even young plants on our perennial benches attract Monarch butterflies

Our water gardens and store manager Tim McQuaid choose one of his favorite plants to be---surprise--- a water lily.

So many tropical water lilies are blooming right now in our water gardens 

It has unique variegated foliage and knock-your-socks-off lavender flowers.The tropicals do have to be protected over the winter. Tim does a seminar each year on winterizing the water garden and always provides wonderful tips to overwinter plants.

So, what's your favorite? We know that the hardest part of choosing your favorite plant is narrowing down the choices as we have gotten to know so many of them. We will revisit this subject again soon.