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Official Garden Grove Huntersville Website. All Rights Reserved. Website and design by Craig Rainey
| 16008 Old Stateville Rd., Huntersville, NC 28078 ~ Ph: 704.875.1802 |
| Come to Garden Grove for a Beautiful Experience! One Stop Landscape Design & Installation, Nursery, Gift Shop & Complete Garden Super Center |
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| Luther Beaver Garden Grove General Manager General Caretaker, Nursery Plant Guru & 'Know-It-All' |
| Biology & Horticulture, Graduated Lenoir Rhyne College 1972 36 years experience in landscape and grounds maintenance work and 12 years experience working in retail nursery. Certified and experienced in ornamental/ turf pest management. |
Luther Says...
LAWNS
Take a break from routine lawn care. The mower and string trimmer can rest awhile.
But for the truly diligent, there are some things you can stay on top of to make the
spring lawn more beautiful:
The extended warm fall may have created a serious problem with henbit and
chickweed. The Fertilome product called Weed Free Zone is formulated to work at
cooler temperatures and should help control these weeds through the winter.
Have your soil tested to at least get an accurate pH reading. When your soil is too
acid, the grass cannot absorb nutrients as well. Adding lime is the accepted method of
raising the pH to get it within that ideal 6.2 to 6.5 range.
Don’t get anxious and jump the gun on adding fertilizer and preemergents. Wait until
at least mid-February to start encouraging spring growth.
PLANTS FOR WINTER INTEREST
Helleborus (Lenten Rose) and pansies are two of the best flowers for this time of year.
Helleborus is a perennial and does best in shadier spots. It will provide what is
essentially year-round foliage, but blooms nicely from mid-winter through early spring.
Camellias are an evergreen shrub that can display beautiful blooms anytime from fall
through late spring, depending on the variety. They will grow best in a partly shady
area with a good, well-drained soil.
Many types of conifers look great through the winter. Color choices include olive
green, blue-green, gray, reddish-bronze, and golden yellows. Sizes range from ground
covers to trees. Forms include a large variety of shapes, densities, and textures.
MISCELLANEOUS WINTER CHORES
Be sure that the irrigation system and fountains have been winterized to avoid freeze
damage.
Repair fences, trellises, arbors, patios, and walkways.
Open up drainage ditches and clogged drain pipes.
Attract a variety of overwintering bird species by making feeders and food available,
especially when the weather is bad and natural food is limited.
Have ice-melt on hand for when ice and snow collect on steps and walkways.
Place a “Tanglefoot” barrier on trees which are likely to be affected by cankerworms in
the spring. This involves placing a wide band around the trunk of the tree and later
smearing the sticky Tanglefoot material on it. This prevents the wingless female
cankerworms from climbing up into the tree where they do some serious foliage
consumption.
Now is a good time to transplant trees and shrubs which are not ideally located or are
causing problems where they are.
Now is a good time to install larger trees where they are needed. The plants then have
time to adjust to the new location and are better adapted for the inevitable stresses of
the coming summer.
Until Next Time...
Luther
LAWNS
Take a break from routine lawn care. The mower and string trimmer can rest awhile.
But for the truly diligent, there are some things you can stay on top of to make the
spring lawn more beautiful:
The extended warm fall may have created a serious problem with henbit and
chickweed. The Fertilome product called Weed Free Zone is formulated to work at
cooler temperatures and should help control these weeds through the winter.
Have your soil tested to at least get an accurate pH reading. When your soil is too
acid, the grass cannot absorb nutrients as well. Adding lime is the accepted method of
raising the pH to get it within that ideal 6.2 to 6.5 range.
Don’t get anxious and jump the gun on adding fertilizer and preemergents. Wait until
at least mid-February to start encouraging spring growth.
PLANTS FOR WINTER INTEREST
Helleborus (Lenten Rose) and pansies are two of the best flowers for this time of year.
Helleborus is a perennial and does best in shadier spots. It will provide what is
essentially year-round foliage, but blooms nicely from mid-winter through early spring.
Camellias are an evergreen shrub that can display beautiful blooms anytime from fall
through late spring, depending on the variety. They will grow best in a partly shady
area with a good, well-drained soil.
Many types of conifers look great through the winter. Color choices include olive
green, blue-green, gray, reddish-bronze, and golden yellows. Sizes range from ground
covers to trees. Forms include a large variety of shapes, densities, and textures.
MISCELLANEOUS WINTER CHORES
Be sure that the irrigation system and fountains have been winterized to avoid freeze
damage.
Repair fences, trellises, arbors, patios, and walkways.
Open up drainage ditches and clogged drain pipes.
Attract a variety of overwintering bird species by making feeders and food available,
especially when the weather is bad and natural food is limited.
Have ice-melt on hand for when ice and snow collect on steps and walkways.
Place a “Tanglefoot” barrier on trees which are likely to be affected by cankerworms in
the spring. This involves placing a wide band around the trunk of the tree and later
smearing the sticky Tanglefoot material on it. This prevents the wingless female
cankerworms from climbing up into the tree where they do some serious foliage
consumption.
Now is a good time to transplant trees and shrubs which are not ideally located or are
causing problems where they are.
Now is a good time to install larger trees where they are needed. The plants then have
time to adjust to the new location and are better adapted for the inevitable stresses of
the coming summer.
Until Next Time...
Luther
| What Now? |
| with 'Luther Beaver' for January - February |
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| Nursery Hours: MON-FRI 9-5:00, SAT 9-5 Closed on Sunday |
