AUGUST GARDEN TIPS

August 1, 2025 Karen Logan

(L to R) Coreopsis, Rudbeckia, Agastache & Allium

AUGUST

GARDEN TIPS

Late summer brings a shift in the garden. Some perennials begin to fade, but many late-blooming shrubs and perennials are just getting started. Here’s how to keep your landscape thriving through the month and into fall.

Annuals & Containers

Deadhead and lightly prune to keep annuals looking fresh.
Add a diluted liquid fertilizer when watering to encourage continued blooms.

Trees, Shrubs & Perennials

Fertilize trees and shrubs through the end of August. This helps strengthen them before dormancy.
Avoid fertilizing beyond August to prevent tender new growth before frost.

Garden Maintenance

Cut back spent perennials; some may reward you with a second flush of blooms.
Deadhead flowering perennials to prolong their show.
Stake any top-heavy or rain-weary plants.

Vegetable Gardens

Harvest warm-weather crops regularly to encourage more production and prevent them from going to seed.
Now’s the time to sow cool-season crops: lettuce, spinach, arugula, carrots, beets, beans, kale, and peas for fall harvest.

Weeding

Stay vigilant, crabgrass and blackberry thrive in summer heat and can spread quickly.

Enjoy the buzz of late-summer pollinators darting from bloom to bloom, it’s one of the season’s sweetest rewards!

native summer blooming shrubs

JULY GARDEN TIPS

July 8, 2025 Karen Logan

JULY

GARDEN TIPS

As the heat ramps up there are many ways to keep your garden looking beautiful. With a few smart strategies, you can keep your plants vibrant and healthy, ensuring a spectacular display late into the season.

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Season Extenders

Want to keep color bursting in your garden as summer winds down? Now's the perfect time to plant late bloomers and season extenders. They'll get established nicely and then light up your landscape when other plants are fading. Consider adding:

Tender Salvias: 'Black and Blue' Salvia guaranitica for deep indigo, Pineapple Sage for a fragrant punch, or Dalvia uliginosa with its charming baby blue flowers.

Classic Fall Favorites: Asters and mums are always reliable. Or Chrysanthemum pacificum for something different.

What to Prune and When

Say Goodbye to Spent Bulbs: Now is the time to cut back any yellowing daffodil foliage. Remember, leaving it intact for as long as possible is crucial, as the plant uses this time to photosynthesize and store energy in its bulb for next spring's display.
Shaping Perennials: Give asters, chrysanthemums, and other late-summer perennials their final pinch in early July to encourage branching and a fuller form. If some perennials look a bit congested, don't hesitate to thin stems to improve air circulation.
Hard Cuts for Fresh Growth: After their spring flowering, give a hard cut to catmint (Nepeta), lady's mantle (Alchemilla mollis), and perennial geraniums. They'll thank you with a fresh flush of growth!

Container Plants

Container plants are heavy drinkers and eaters, especially in the summer.

Feed Regularly: Opt for compost tea, fish emulsion, or seaweed extract every 7-10 days. These organic liquid feeds provide essential nutrients.
Water Wisely: On sunny, hot days, your containers might need daily watering. We recommend a deep watering once per day, letting the plants "hold" between waterings encouraging them to develop stronger, tougher roots. Only water when plants show signs of wilting.

Weeds & Mulch

Nip Weeds in the Bud: The golden rule of weeding? Catch them before they go to seed! This prevents countless new weeds from sprouting.
Mulch! Add organic mulch to any bare spots or plant another "season extender." Shredded leaves saved from fall cleanup are a fantastic, natural, free, and local mulch for annuals, perennials, and even vegetable gardens. They break down over the season, enriching your soil.

Biennials: Plan for Next Year's Blooms

Get a head start on next year's garden by sowing seeds of biennials now. Plants like foxgloves, Angelica, Salvia sclarea, Lunaria, and Dianthus will produce leaves this year, overwinter, burst into glorious flower next year and set seed their second season.

Vegetable Gardens

Succession Sowing: Keep the harvest coming by direct sowing succession crops like radish, lettuce, carrots, chard, and beets for your next harvest.
Feed the long season crops: Fertilize heavy-feeding crops such as corn, tomatoes, squash, peppers, potatoes, onions, and eggplant now to support their continued growth.

Smart Watering: Efficiency is Key

Irrigate borders and lawns infrequently but deeply. Generally, gardens and lawns need about 1 inch of water per week, or a deep watering that penetrates 6 inches into the soil.
Monitor Rainfall: Use a rain gauge to keep track of natural rainfall and only supplement with irrigation when truly needed.
Consider Alternatives: Thinking long-term? Consider converting parts of your lawn to lower-maintenance groundcovers, shrub or perennial borders, or even meadow plantings. This reduces water needs and boosts biodiversity!

Hellstrip Gardening

Pollinator Containers

JUNE GARDEN TIPS

June 24, 2025 Karen Logan

Achillea (Yarrow) & Purple Prairie Clover

JUNE

GARDEN TIPS

June is here, and gardening season is in full swing! With longer days, warmer temperatures, and flowers in full bloom, it's a wonderful time to be outside. Now is when you truly get to enjoy the fruits of your labor: gathering fresh-cut flowers, nibbling on garden veggies and berries, watching pollinators hard at work, and soaking in the rich, fragrant scents of summer.

VEGETABLE GARDENS
We’re still in the thick of planting season and it’s a great time to get your warm season crops in the ground! Now’s the moment for tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans, corn, and squash. You can also sow a second round of cool-weather favorites like lettuce, arugula, carrots, and beets.

Be sure to stake your vining plants to keep them tidy and productive. And don’t forget to mulch or top-dress around your veggies to suppress weeds and conserve moisture. Our current favorite is Leaf Mold, an amazing natural mulch that improves soil structure and retains water. Ask about it at the nursery!

PRUNING TIPS

Pinch back rhododendron buds now to encourage even more blooms next year.
Prune spring-flowering shrubs (like lilacs) right after they finish blooming.
Give boxwoods a light shaping once they flush out with new growth, just enough to keep that tidy form.

STAY AHEAD OF WEEDS
Weeds love June sunshine too, so stay on top of them early. A great trick? Fill in gaps with more plants! Dense plantings help crowd out weeds naturally and keep your garden looking lush.

TIME TO MULCH
If you haven’t freshened up your mulch yet, now’s the time. Leaf Mold makes an excellent natural mulch, or choose from our bagged Coast of Maine mulches, available at our nursery.

FEED YOUR PLANTS
Everything that’s in the ground can benefit from a mid-season meal. Use an organic, time-release fertilizer to feed gently and consistently over the coming months. We recommend Espoma fertilizers, they’re packed with micronutrients and break down slowly to nourish your plants sustainably. For a quicker boost, water in a liquid organic fertilizer, perfect for fast-acting support. Ask us about our favorite blends when you visit!

ANNUALS & CONTAINERS
It’s a perfect time to plant out annuals in your containers, window boxes, and garden beds. For the best blooms, deadhead regularly and keep them fed! Add a slow-release organic fertilizer when planting, then follow up with a weekly treat of quarter-strength liquid fertilizer to keep them thriving.

Need help picking the right products or plants?

Stop by the Garden Center, we’re happy to help you choose the best options for your space and soil.

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Phlox divaricata (woodland phlox) with Euphorbia polychromatic

Water

Water constantly! All newly planted or transplanted plants need deep watering 1 to 2 times a week, depending on rainfall and sun exposure.

For trees and woody shrubs, a good rule of thumb is:

Once a day during the first week to saturate the root zone
Once a week for the first year, unless we’ve had a soaking rain

July and August are especially critical months to stay on top of watering.

What’s a “deep water”? It depends on your watering method:

Holding a hose at full flow on a shrub may only take a few minutes
A sprinkler covering a large area should run for about an hour, as long as there’s no runoff

Morning is the best time to water. There is less evaporation, and plants can absorb the moisture before the heat of the day.
It’s a myth that watering during the heat of the day will cause leaf burn. If that were true, every rain shower followed by sun would scorch your plants!

A 1 to 3-inch layer of mulch slows evaporation, protects roots, and gradually breaks down to improve soil structure and moisture retention.

Need help with watering?

Vineyard Gardens offers everything from basic watering services to full irrigation installations. We even hand-water, especially for newly planted beds, trees, or shrubs. Let us know if you'd like an evaluation or quote, we’re happy to help.

Delphinium, Foxglove with Yarrow and Oenothers Siskiyou Pink

POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PERENNIALS, SHRUBS & TREES

[PLANT PROFILE] HYDRANGEA MACROPHYLLA

MAY GARDENING TIPS

May 5, 2025 Karen Logan

Fothergilla photo by karen blackerby logan

MAY

GARDENING TIPS

May brings warmer sunnier days, cooler nights and springtime rains, the perfect combo to get your newly planted trees, shrubs and perennials established! Here are some timely tips to make the most of your May garden.

Viburnum burkwoodii photo by Keith Kurman

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SOIL CARE: Feed the Foundation

Nourish your soil! Healthy soil = happy plants. Now is the time to enrich your soil with nutrients that support strong roots and vibrant growth. Whether you’re using bagged compost like Coast of Maine or Fafard, or creating your own from kitchen and yard waste, your plants will thank you.

Pro Tip: Test your soil! We’ve got easy-to-use soil testing kits in stock, so you can give your plants exactly what they need from the ground up.

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FERTILIZE: Give Last Year’s Plantings a Boost

Time to fertilize last years new plantings. Sprinkle organic fertilizer around the drip line (not too close to the base), where roots are actively growing. Organic fertilizers are best for slow, steady feeding and include secondary nutrients like calcium and magnesium, along with the essentials: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K).

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MULCH: Nature’s Blanket

Leaf compost is a great island resource to use in your garden beds! This imitates the annual forest leaf fall and provides established plants with all the nutrients they need. Use leaves from your own yard and and/or leaf compost (shredded leaf mulch) that we carry to return local island nutrients to your gardens. We carry shredded leaf compost (island grown) as well as bagged Coast of Main mulches.

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ANNUALS: Cool-Weather Favorites Are Ready

Get planting! These hardy varieties love the cooler weather, so take advantage while spring is in full swing. Ready to brighten your beds and containers.

Pansies, Violas, Alyssum, Calendulas, Bachelor Buttons, Argyranthemum Daisies, Osteospermum, Lobelia

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PERENNIALS: Time to Plant and Divide!

It’s prime time to start planting your perennials. Already have some in the ground? If they bloom in summer or fall and are starting to emerge, now is a great time to divide them and spread the beauty.

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VEGETABLE GARDENS: Plant Now, Harvest Later

Prep and plant those garden beds! May is the season for cool-weather veggies, small fruits, and fruit trees. These are available at the nursery now! And a heads-up, mid to late May we will be bringing our basil and tomatoes out from our production facility to the nursery, but hold off planting them until nighttime temps warm up a bit more.

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TREES & SHRUBS: Perfect Planting Weather

Now is a great time to add trees or shrubs to your property. Early May brings sunny day, cool nights and springtime rain which are all great ingredients to get your trees and shrubs established! It’s the sweet spot to help them settle in and thrive through summer and beyond.

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PRUNE: Out With the Old

Now’s the time to prune away dead or diseased wood from trees and deciduous shrubs. Focus on plants that bloom on new growth.

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LAWN CARE: Out With the Old

Want a lush lawn all summer? May lawn tips:

Water less often, but deeply, to encourage deeper roots.
Mow a bit higher to prevent browning in the heat of summer.
Apply fertilizer if you skipped April.
Lime your lawn if you missed it in the fall, this helps balance soil pH over time. Lime now to ensure a healthy fall lawn.
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Always think ahead when gardening. Timing is everything!

APRIL GARDENING TIPS

April 1, 2025 Karen Logan

Dogwood illustration by karen blackerby logan

APRIL

GARDENING TIPS

Kickstart Your Garden for the Season!

Spring has arrived, and with it comes the excitement of a new gardening season! April is the perfect time to prep your yard, nourish your soil, and start planting for a lush and vibrant summer. Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting, here are some essential tips to get your garden in top shape!

Chiondoxa photo by karen blackerby logan

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Garden Clean-Up

Before diving into planting, clear away the remnants of fall and winter—dead leaves, broken branches, and debris that can harbor pests and diseases. We have a variety of gardening tools at the nursery to make clean-up easier!

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Soil Care

Healthy soil = healthy plants! Give your soil a boost by adding nutrient-rich compost and manure. We carry Coast of Maine compost and manure as well as Fafard products. Not sure what your soil needs? Use a soil testing kit (available at our nursery) to check its composition and adjust accordingly.

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Spring Annuals

Brighten up your garden beds and containers with spring annuals! Pansies are now available, and Sweet Alyssum will be ready soon. Plus, we’re excited to introduce a new selection of fall-sown Hardy Annuals, grown from seed by Andrew Wiley. Look for poppies, bachelor buttons (Centaurea cyanus), Queen Anne’s Lace (Ammi majus Select White), and more! Want to learn how to extend your blooms? Check out our blog post on Hardy Annuals.

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Edibles: Time to Plant!

April is the season to plant cool-weather vegetables, small fruits, and fruit trees. Whether you’re dreaming of homegrown lettuce, berries, or apples, we have everything you need to get started. Learn more about Cool Weather Veggies.

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Trees & Shrubs

Now is an ideal time to plant trees and shrubs! Adding them to your landscape provides beauty, shade, and long-term benefits for the ecosystem.

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Pruning

Spring is the time to prune any diseased or dead wood from your trees and deciduous shrubs. This keeps them healthy and encourages strong new growth.

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Lawn Edging

A crisp lawn edge isn’t just for looks—it also keeps mulch, rocks, and soil neatly separated from your grass. We carry heavy-duty black plastic edging in 10-foot sections to help define your garden beds.

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Winter and early spring are great times to clean and sharpen tools.

Tool Maintenance: Sharpen & Clean

Before tackling your garden projects, take a moment to clean, sharpen, and oil your tools. This makes your work easier and extends the life of your equipment.

Tool Care Essentials:

A good pair of gloves, bypass pruner, lopper, disinfectant spray, and anti-bacterial wipes will make a big difference.
Need help sharpening your pruners, loppers, hedge shears, or pruning saws? Bring them to Vineyard Gardens, and Jeremiah Brown will sharpen them for you! (Fee applies.)
Don’t forget your spades and shovels—keeping them sharp ensures smoother digging.
Pro Tip: Store your tools in a 5-gallon bucket filled with sand and old motor oil to clean and prevent rust.

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Lawn Care: April is Prime Time!

April is the best month to fertilize and reseed your lawn. Grass thrives in cool weather, making spring the perfect time for new growth.

Fertilization Basics:

Grass needs a balance of macronutrients (N-P-K: Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium) and micronutrients.
We carry organic fertilizers that release nutrients slowly and inorganic options with higher N-P-K concentrations.
If you skipped liming your lawn in the fall, now is the time! Lime lowers soil acidity, but it takes months to take effect.

Weed Control & Seeding:

Apply pre-emergent weed control before Forsythia blooms.
Looking for an organic option? Try Corn Gluten, which prevents weed seeds from sprouting while adding nutrients.
For best results when seeding, add a layer of rich soil under the seed and keep it moist.

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Important Fertilization Law on Martha’s Vineyard

🚨 Reminder: Fertilizers cannot be applied until April 15. This law helps protect local water sources by ensuring nutrients go into the growing grass instead of leaching into the groundwater.

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April is a month full of gardening possibilities—clean up, plant, and prep for a beautiful season ahead. Stop by the nursery for all your gardening needs, and let’s grow something amazing together!

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[Plant Profile] Hellebores

Learn About : Hardy Annual Cut Flowers

MARCH GARDENING TIPS

March 6, 2025 Karen Logan

Lilac illustration by karen blackerby logan

MARCH

GARDEN TIPS

Vineyard Gardens Landscaping is available to help with your gardening needs!

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PRUNE

Its a good idea to sterilize the pruning shears with a 10% bleach solution to avoid passing diseases from cut to cut
Good time to prune fruit trees, raspberries and grape
Grapes should be pruned now before the weather warms up as they will “bleed sap” if done during warmer weather
Fruit trees should be pruned now to maintain healthy branch structure and to reduce the total number of fruits per branch. If a branch has too many fruits they will tend to be small and often fall off. If allowed to reach maturity the branch could break from too much weight.
It’s easier to see the branch structure before the plant leafs out. Remove damaged or crossing branches, and especially for fruit trees waterspouts which are small branches growing straight up through the tree.
Prune any trees damaged by winter storms
Prune PG Hydrangeas but NOT macrophyllas
Prune Crape myrtles and any late season blooming plants, like hypericum, caryopteris

Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ needs to be cut back before they start to awaken in Spring, now is a good time to do it if you haven’t already.

SPRAY

One spray to prevent Peach leaf Curl (Sulfur or Copper based fungicides). Peaches should be sprayed with a lime sulfur solution which is organic and highly efficient at stopping peach leaf curl, a very common disease that weakens the tree.

GARDEN CLEANUP

If you haven’t cleaned up your garden beds definitely do it now

DESIGN

Plan and design your plantings and garden beds

TOP DRESS

Add a 1-2 inch layer of compost, rich in organic matter, over the top of your garden beds. Plants will come up right through it. The organic matter in compost is already broken down. The nutrients will slowly leach down with the spring rains and be available to be up taken by roots when plants are ready to grow. Do not use mulch as a top dressing as the larger bark chunks rob the soil of nitrogen in the breakdown process. If you are going to mulch on top of the top dressing of organic matter, spread some fertilizer under the mulch to supply nutrients for decomposition. For new beds or vegetable gardens waiting to be planted you can add more than 1-2 inches of organic matter on top, or the organic matter can be rototilled in, mixing it a few inches into the soil.

Top dressing bulb areas and lightly fertilize bulb areas before they come up any further
Top dress your veggie garden
Its still a bit early to fertilize as the plants aren't actively taking up nutrients and with a lot of rain the fertilizer could leach or run off instead of being used by the plants.

SEEDLINGS

Start cool weather seedlings indoors to be planted out by the end of March or beginning of April
Later in the month start your warm weather seedlings indoors. These will get planted out in May
There is still time to order flower and vegetable seeds
Do not work wet soil in vegetable gardens as that leads to compaction the last thing you want to happen to your soil

plant of the year 2025

**Clustered Mountainmint**

spring checklist

need help this spring?

POETIC GARDENS

July 22, 2024 Karen Logan

Andew Wiley, working on Vineyard Gardens display bed

A PASSION

FOR PLANTS

Vineyard Garden’s Andrew Wiley, a creative plant ‘genus’

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It’s not just a job for Andrew Wiley, his passion for plants is infused in his bloodline. As a child he grew up at Vineyard Gardens, watching his horticulturalist parents, Chris and Chuck Wiley develop a singular greenhouse and lawn mowing business into the vibrant establishment it is today. Not only did Andrew soak in the atmosphere and information as a boy, he now embraces everything about plants, landscaping and design. After an unmatched year at Great Dixter House & Gardens, Andrew’s plant knowledge and creativity in the landscaping world has been unleashed. His ethereal and poetic gardens are a wonderful demonstration in succession planting, filling garden beds with continuous blooms throughout the year. His front bed display at Vineyard Gardens is constantly evolving, never a dull moment from one plant finishing it’s bloom cycle to a new one opening up. Within the display bed there are many beautiful vignettes that seamless work together as a whole.

Next time you are at Vineyard Gardens take a meditative walk along the display garden and you will notice something new, fresh and exciting each time.

“This photo is reminiscent of my time in England at Great Dixter All three of these plants can be found in the garden there. This Phlox was originally a seedling given to Christopher Lloyd by Margery Fish and is known at Dixter as Phlox paniculata ‘Margery Fish.’ Piet Oudolf decided to name the phlox ‘Dixter’ as it was never given a trademark name, something Great Dixter does not do with their plants for various reasons. The Salvia is one of my favorite biennials, best practice is to always plant all biennials in the fall. This will always give you bigger and better plants with much longer bloom time than if planted in Spring. The Marigold (Tagetes) was used on the Long Border at Dixter where Fergus received the seeds from a conference in France. I collected and brought back seeds from these plants. A true scrambler this Marigold gets huge and is best planted where it can tumble over and sprawl around.” Andrew Wiley

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July’s Display Bed

Have you ever had the chance to walk through a garden with Andrew? His energy and excitement for designing with plants is unmeasured. Spewing off latin names and talking about the evolution of gardens and biodiversity you feel like you just had a master class in horticulture. Andrew’s contagious spirit will have you walking away from Vineyard Gardens with a million plants because he made you fall in love with every single one of them!

Take a virtual walk to learn about July’s display bed.

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EVERGREEN TREES AND SHRUBS FOR SHADE

July 19, 2024 Karen Logan

Camellia illustration by Karen Blackerby Logan

EVERGREEN TREES &

SHRUBS FOR SHADE

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Broadleaf Evergreens are known to tolerate shade and many will also grow well in full sun. With their year round foliage they can add interest to your beds, woodland borders or create screening in a shady spot between you and your neighbor. Broadleaf evergreens can give you the privacy you need. They can also create fabulous backdrops to deciduous plants that flower. Plant them young and they will grow larger every year. We also carry several species of smaller broadleaf evergreen shrubs that can take shade. These work well in foundation plantings or in your shrub or perennial beds.

Deer resistant broadleaf evergreens we like to recommend are Pieris japonica, Mahonias and Osmanthus heterophyllus.

Pieris japonica illustration by karen blackerby logan

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EVERGREEN TREE & SHRUB VARIETIES

Azaleas
Leucothoe
Osmanthus heterophyllus (False Holly) : Seldom severely damaged by deer. Looks like holly. We have found the species heterophyllus to be hardy, able to survive in dense shade and they are deer resistant. The flowers are fragrant! We carry a popular variegated variety called Goshiki.
Pieris japonica (Andromedas): Blooms in spring with panicles of beautiful bells mostly in white. We do carry a pink blooming one. Can grow 6-8ft tall and 5-6ft wide. We carry dwarf ones as well. Deer resistant.
Skimmia japonica: Needs a male and a female to be planted together for the female to berry up.
Skimmia reevesiana: Rarely damaged by deer. Does not need a male to cross pollinate like Skimmia japonica.
Prunus schipkaensis (Skip Laurels): They will easily get 6-8ft tall. Good for flowers and for screening.
Photinia fraserii: At the margins of its hardiness zone. It has handsome evergreen foliage. The new growth is reddish and in cold weather the leaves turn reddish again. It can grow over 6ft tall and wide.
Leucothoe, Skimmia and some Pieris japonica are examples of smaller broadleaf evergreen shrubs that can take shade.
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CAMELLIAS & AUCUBAS

Camellias and Aucubas should be planted near foundation plantings or by a stone wall for the heat they absorb during a sunny day. They may get some die back during a very cold winter. Prune the dead ones out in the spring. Camellias have shiny lovely evergreen foliage and flowers that look like Peonies. Aucubas need a male to berry up. Aucuba Mr. Goldstrike will pollinate Aucuba serratifolia, which is known for producing large red, berry like fruit.

Aucuba japonica
- serratifolia
- Mr. Goldstrike
Camellia April Pink

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BUXUS

(Rarely damaged by deer)

Buxus Winter Green
Buxus Green Beauty
Buxus Variegata

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RHODODENDRONS

Roseum Elegans & Catawba Rhododendron get over 10ft tall. Plant them young and they will grow larger each year. Great for flowers and for screening.

Catawba Rhododendron (Native)
Maximum Rhododendron (Native)
PGM Rhododendron
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MAHONIA

(All Native) (Rarely damaged by deer)

Mahonias are also known as Oregon Grape Holly. They bear panicles of purple fruit after flowering that look like grapes.

Mahonia repens
Mahonia Winter Sun
Mahonia Charity
Mahonia Arthur Menzies
Mahonia nervosa
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HOLLIES

Hollies are always a good choice for shade. We carry American, English, Japanese Chinese and hybrid Hollies. Several of the Japanese Hollies (Ilex crenata) are smaller shrubs. Blue Hollies (Meserve Hybrids) are like shrub Hollies instead of tree Hollies and can be pruned and kept a bit shorter. The Hollies need a male to pollinate the female to get the berries. We also grow specialty Hollies from cuttings. Ask at the nursery about our collection.

Meserve Hybrids (Blue Hollies)
Ilex Dragon Slayer

Ilex mes Blue Maid
Ilex Robin
Ilex x Greenleaf
Ilex crenata
- Ilex Steeds (Ocassionally severely damaged by deer)
- Hoogendorn
- Soft Touch
- Sky Pencil

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Pieris japonica

Ilex Dragon Slayer

Ilex Robin

Azalea 'PJM'

Rhodendron screening

Winter Sun Mahonia

Buxus

Skip Cherry Laurel

Camellia

Camellia sasanqua

In general we do not recommend you plant conifers in shade. They may not die but they will grow long and leggy. Your much better off planting a Holly, Mahonia or Osmanthus (if you have deer).

native plant finder

for trees and shrubs

PERENNIALS FOR SHADE

July 12, 2024 Karen Logan

Gorgeous combination of Thalictrum ‘Elin,’ Aquilegia, Euphorbia and the leaf and seed pod of Paeonia delavayi. The glowing spikes on the right are from a bedding pocket of a pale yellow Digitalis [photo by Andrew Wiley]

PERENNIALS

FOR SHADE

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SUMMER BLOOMING PERENNIALS FOR SHADE

Even if your yard is shady, you can still have beautiful flowers and foliage! If your yard needs more sun but you don’t want to cut down trees you can limb up or thin out a few trees to let in more sun. On the other hand, If you have a very sunny garden and want to grow some of these wonderful shade perennials, plant a few small trees or large shrubs in the beds. Not only will they provide a little shade but height and size will add interest to perennial beds.

***Alchemilla***
***Anemone***
***Asarum***
***Astilbe***
***Cimicifuga***
***Clematis***
*Dicentra*
***Epimedium***
***Euphorbia***
***Ferns***
***Foxglove***
*Galium*

***Geraniums (perennial)***
*Hackonechloa*
***Heucheras***
***Hostas***
***Ligularia***
*Pachyhsandra*
*Polygonatum*
***Rodgersia***
***Sanguisorba***
***Thalictrum***
*Vinca*

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Perennials that thrive in shade often do quite well with more sun, as long as they get enough water. The reverse does not apply. Perennials that need sun often grow long and leggy in the shade. Plants that evolved in shade, usually in the understory of other plants, often have larger leaves to capture as much sun as possible. Some good examples are Rodgersias, Hostas, Astilboides and many Heucheras, like the popular Autumn Bride. These plants usually like a rich moist but well drained soil.

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Hosta

Sanguisorba ‘Lilac Squirrel’

Astilbe

Alchemilla, Lady's Mantle

Astilbe Pumila

Anenome

Clematis Boulevard Acropolis

Clematis Sweet Autumn

Ferns

Athyrium Brilliance

Osmunda regalis

Filipendula Kahome

Geranium Max Frei

Geranium Rozanne

Heuchera Dolce Cherry Truffles

Heuchera Berry Smoothie

Heuchera Primo Wild Rose

Heuchera Snow Angel

Hosta Frech Fries

Thalictrum Black Stockings

Thalictrum flavum glaucum

Euphorbia

Foamflower

DEER RESISTANT PERENNIALS FOR SHADE

Ferns, Thalictrum, Rodgersia, Bleeding Hearts and Heucheras are all good choices for summer blooming shade if deer are a problem in your garden. Astilbes can add color to shade beds with their plumed flowers available in many colors and sizes. Many Heucheras also called Coral Bells, can add color with their foliage which comes in reds, bronzes, deep purples and green. The Heucheras will bloom for 3-4 weeks in summer and their foliage will last all summer. Everblooming Bleeding Hearts start blooming in early summer and continues blooming until late summer. Unlike it’s cousin, Dicentra spectabilis, only blooms in spring and goes dormant in summer. It will thrive in partial shade and spread and is also deer resistant.

PERENNIALS GROUNDCOVERS FOR SHADE

Plant ground covers and fill up the spaces with plants instead of mulch! Perennial groundcovers thrive and spread in partial shade. Pachysandra is the most shade tolerant. Vinca minor, Asarum and Epimedium are all good choices as well.

Perennial Geraniums and Campanulas will bloom in partial shade. Geranium Rozanne is our best selling Geranium. Geranium sanguineum Album, with white flowers and Geranium cantabrigiense Karmina, with pink flowers and fabulous fall color, are also great plants. The peach leaved Campanula persicifolia comes in blue and in white, both tall and short. The Takion series is the more compact one. We also carry Campanula poscharskyana, Campanula portenschlagiana Blue magic and Campanula rotundifolia, all shorter wider plants that can handle more sun and thrive in walls and cracks in walks. This always indicates they don’t need rich soil. New this year is Campanula cocchlearifolia in both white and Blue. We grew these from seed which was seeded in June of 23

pollinator month

national wildlife federation

SUMMER BLOOMING PERENNIALS

June 21, 2024 Karen Logan

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JOIN US THIS SATURDAY MORNING

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GARDEN

WORKSHOP

PLANTING FOR CLIMATE RESILIENCE

SATURDAY JUNE 22ND // 11:00AM // VINEYARD GARDENS NURSERY

We are very excited to welcome Andrea Berry, Executive Director of Wild Seed Project in Maine. She will share her knowledge about planting climate resilient habitats in northeast landscapes.

Scrub Oak Barren- Sandplain Grassland : Scrub oak, little bluestem, sweetfern,Northern blazing star, butterfly milkweed, wood lily & flax leaved aster. Illustration by karen blackerby logan

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SUMMER BLOOMING

PERENNIALS

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SUMMER BLOOMING PERENNIALS AT THE NURSERY

* Salvia Purple Rain

* Nepeta Walkers Low

* Nepeta Prelude Blue
* Monarda

* Stachys
* Coreopsis Gold
***Standard, Zagreb***
***& Uptick Red***
* Filipendula Kahome
* Alchemilla mollis
***Thriller***
* Lobelia Queen
***Victoria, Starship***
***Scarlet***
* Clematis Boulevard
***Acropolis & Nubia***
* Hibiscus Ballet Slippers

***Asclepias tuberosa Orange ‘Butterflyweed’***

* Rudbeckia Herbstone
* Gaura Sparkle White
* Gaura Belleza Dark
***Pink***
* Rudbeckia Goldblitz
* Asclepias tuberosa
***Orange & Hello Yellow***
* Incarnata Ice Ballet
***& Cinderella***
* Kniphophea
* Thalictrum flavum
***glaucum***
* Thalictrum
***rochebrunianum***

* Thalictrum black
***stockings***

* Thalictrum elin

Clematis Boulevard Acropolis

Clematis Boulevard Nubia

Lady%27s+Mantle%2C+alchemilla+thriller.jpg

POLLINATOR-FRIENDLY PERENNIALS, SHRUBS & TREES

June 1, 2024 Karen Logan

St. John’s Wort & Cleome (pollinators and deer resistant) photo by keith kurman

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FLOWERING PLANTS

ARE POLLINATOR

PLANTS

Do you want your garden to come alive this summer with bees, butterflies, birds and beneficial insects?!

Imagine your garden buzzing with bees, fluttering with butterflies, and alive with birds and beneficial insects—nature in action, right in your backyard. Want to make it happen? Here's the secret: every flowering plant is a pollinator plant.

Pollinators—like bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and beetles—are drawn to flowers because they offer nectar and pollen, their essential food sources. While feeding, these tiny visitors perform one of the most magical tasks in nature: pollination. As they move from bloom to bloom, pollen grains hitch a ride on their feet and bodies, landing on the female parts of the next flower and sparking the creation of seeds and fruit. The pollen grain grows a tube that travels all the way down the stigma to the ovary of the flower where it then fertilizes the female egg inside the ovary. It then develops into an embryo within a seed. The flower is the reproductive structure of flowering plants. The fruit is the swollen ovary of the female reproductive structure. And inside the fruit are the seeds.

Next time you bite into a strawberry, take a closer look—the seeds on the outside and the tiny hairs (stigmas) are the remnants of this beautiful process.

[Videos] Allium buzzing with bees. Oak Leaf Hydrangeas on the Highline in NYC.

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Why Native

Plants Matter

Some pollinators rely on very specific plants to complete their life cycles. That’s why planting native is so important—native plants have co-evolved with local pollinators, making them the best hosts for supporting their life cycles. At Vineyard Gardens, we’re passionate about helping you create vibrant, pollinator-friendly gardens using native and well-researched perennials. Whether you're starting fresh or enhancing an existing landscape, your choices make a real difference for pollinator health and biodiversity. There has been a surge of understanding around the importance of caring for the native ecosystem through native plants to protect our pollinators. Horticulturalists are continually doing research and trials on plants that stand out as pollinator favorites. More and more customers are looking to grow pollinator friendly gardens and to cultivate a healthy native landscape.

Not sure where to begin? Check out the Cape Cod Native Plants website for a fantastic online tool to help you select the right plants for your site conditions.

More and more customers are joining this movement to support a healthier planet—and you can too.

Learn more : Native Plant List / Cape & The Islands

Learn more: Native Plant Finder / National Wildlife Federation

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Pollinator

Power Plants:

Our Favorite Perennials

Here’s a list of powerhouse plants that will invite pollinators and energize your garden all season long:

🌱 Native Pollinator Perennials:

Ageratum (Coelestinum)
Goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis)
Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium ‘Gateway’)
Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum)
Blazing Star (Liatris spicata)
Mallow ‘Rose’ (Hibiscus moscheutos)
Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis)
Aromatic Aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolius)
Woods Purple Aster (Eurybia divaricata)
Baptisia (Baptisia australis)
Beebalm (Monarda didyma)
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida)
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata)
Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia)

🌿 Perennial Pollinators:

Agastache (‘Kudos’ Coral, Ambrosia, Mandarin, Blue Fortune, Black Adder, Little Adder)
Bluebeard (Caryopteris)
Coneflower (Echinacea) – Sombrero Series, White Swan, Green Twister
Coreopsis – Solanna™ Bright Touch, UpTick™ Gold & Bronze
Goldenrod (Solidago)
Lavender (Lavandula)
Milkweed (Asclepias)
Phlox (Phlox paniculata)
Salvia
Perennial Sunflower (Helianthus)
Stonecrop (Sedum)
Yarrow (Achillea)

Goldenrod, Rudbeckia photo by keith kurman

Sedum, Butterfly Milkweed, Quickfire Hydrangea

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POLLINATOR FRIENDLY SHRUBS

Native Pollinator Shrubs:

Lowbush Blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium)
Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)
Beach Plum (Prunus maritima)
Arrowwood Viburnum (Viburnum dentatum)
Inkberry (Ilex glabra)
Sweet Pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia)
American Elderberry (Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis)
Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum)
Sweet Fern (Comptonia peregrina)
Willow (Salix)
Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)

Pollinator Shrubs:

Butterfly Bush (Buddleia)
Double File Viburnum (Viburnum plicatum)
Fothergilla
Lilac (Syringa vulgaris)
Ninebark (Physocarpus)
Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)
St. John’s Wort (Hypericum)

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POLLINATOR FRIENDLY TREES

Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis Pendula) photo by keith kurman

Native Pollinator Trees:

Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
Tulip Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
White Oak (Quercus alba)
American Holly (Ilex opaca)
Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Magnolia virginiana
Dogwoods – Gray, Silky, Red-twig, Pagoda, Flowering

Additional Pollinator Trees:

Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora 'Little Gem')
Stewartia

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Ready to Grow a

Buzz-Worthy Garden?

Let your garden be a living, blooming, buzzing celebration of life.

Visit us at Vineyard Gardens to explore our curated selection of native and pollinator-friendly plants.
Talk to our team for personalized advice on what will thrive in your space.
Start planting and be part of the pollinator movement—one flower at a time!

Native Eastern Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)

DEER RESISTANT PLANTS

May 24, 2024 Karen Logan

Vineyard Gardens garden bed. Amsonia hubrichtii (center with blue flowers) and Bronze Fennel, a perennial herb (in the background) are both deer resistant perennials

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DEER IN YOUR GARDEN

Deer show distinct preferences to certain types of flowers. Plants that are soft to the touch with high water content (like hostas) are favorites, as well as buds and rhododendrons. Deer don’t seem to like plants with coarse, bristly, fuzzy, or spiny textures, nor do they enjoy those with intense aromas. That said, if hungry enough, deer will eat anything. They will leave jagged damage on your plant leaves so you will know they have been to your house for dinner. The heaviest browsing by deer will occur from October through February, especially during difficult winter months.

Note: Even “resistant” varieties can be vulnerable in the first few weeks after planting. If you have major deer problems, we recommend spraying new plants with a deer-repellent for 3 to 4 weeks after planting to prevent them from being nibbled on and damaged. The plants should survive even if they are feasted on, as long as the root systems of the plants are not damaged.

*Black Chokeberry, a deer resistant native shrub*

Forget Me Nots & Bleeding Hearts are both deer resistant plants.

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CONTROL AND PREVENTION

How to Get Rid of Deer

There are many techniques you can try to deter deer from munching on your plants. Try some of these methods for your garden:

Spray flowers and shrubs with a deer repellent that contains a mixture of dried bovine blood, sulfured eggs, and garlic. These repellents are available at most home and garden stores. They will not harm your plants and are usually effective in deterring deer.

Scatter or hang bars of deodorant or cheap motel soap around the garden; if you leave the wrappers on, the soap will last longer. Irish Spring is particularly recommended.

For your garden, choose flowers and shrubs that are unpalatable to deer, such as forsythia, lilac bush, marigolds, zinnias, daffodils, lavender and snapdragons. Contact your local cooperative extension for suggestions in your area. Here is the Almanac’s list of deer-resistant plants.
Put strong-smelling plants that deer don’t like on the outside of your garden and smaller plants that need more protection on the inside. Deer tend to stay away from poisonous plants, strongly flavored plants, and plants with hairy or furry leaves.
The most reliable method is to fence in your garden. We sell a black vinyl fence for keeping deer out. The fence needs to be at least 8ft tall. A strong 8ft metal fence would work nicely but that can get quite expensive.

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DEER RESISTANT ANNUALS

Calendula Bon Bon mix. A dwarf Calendula. Blooms all summer in full sun or part shade.

DEER RESISTANT ANNUALS

Acroclinum (Paper Flower)
Ageratum
Angelonia: Dwarf Serena, tall Angelonias and our favorite tall one is the Angel Face Series
Bachelor Buttons (Corn Flowers)
Bracteantha (Strawflower)
Brugmansia
Calendula (Angel's Trumpets)
Cleome (Spider Flowers)
Cosmos sulphureus: Cosmos Xanthos,Cosmos Apricotta and our new Cosmos Diablo
Datura (Trumpet Flower)
Delphinium (Larkspur)
Dusty Miller (Silver Ragwort)
Euphorbia marginatá ‘Snow on the Mountain’

Geraniums (Crane's Bill)
Geraniums (scented)
Gomphrena (Globe amaranth)
Gypsophila (Baby's Breath)
Heliotropium (Heliotrope)
Herbs (annuals): cilantro / parsley / dill / chervil / lemon grass / lavender / lemon verbena / marjoram
Lantana
Limonium (Statice) (Sea lavenders)
Lobularia maritima (Alyssum)
Papaver (Poppies)
Salvias
Tagetes (Marigolds)

Salvia “Amistad” (annual and season extender)

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DEER RESISTANT PERENNIALS

Pennisetum Moudry-black fountain grass blooms in late summer

DEER RESISTANT PERENNIALS

Achillea (Yarrow)

Aconitum (Wolf's bane)
Agastache (Anise hyssop)
Allium Ornamental Onion)
Alpestris (Forget-Me-Nots)
Amsonia (Blue Stars)
Ariseama (Jack-in-the-Pulpit)
Arum (Arum Lilies)
Aruncus (Goatsbeard)
Artemesia (Mugworts)
Asarum (Wild Gingers)
Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Weed)
Aster
Astilbe (False Goatsbeard)
Baptisia (Wild Indigo)
Borage
Bronze Fennel
Cimicifuga (Bugbane)
Coreopsis verticillata ‘Zagreb’ and ‘Moonbeam’ (Whorled Tickseed)
Corydalis
Dicentra (Bleeding Heart)
Digitalis (Foxglove)
Dryopteris (Wood Ferns)
Echinops (Globe Thistle)
Epimedium (Barrenwort)
Euphorbia (Spurges)

Festuca glauca (Blue Fescue)

Helleborus (Hellebore)
Herbs (perennial): Rosemary / thyme / sage / tarragon / mints / Rue
Iris: Bearded, Japanese and Siberian Iris
Kirengeshoma (Yellow Wax Bells)
Lavandula (Lavender)
Liatris (Blazing stars)
Lily if the valley
Marrubium vulgare (Horehound)

Melissa officinalis (Lemon balm)
Mint family perennials
Monarda (Beebalm)
Narcissus (Daffodils)
Nepeta (Catnips)
Oregano Drops of Gold Jupiter (new)
Oregano: ornamental and edible
Ornamental Grasses
Osmunda Fern (Royal Fern)
Pachysandra
Paeonia (Peonies)
Papaver (Poppies)
Perovskia (Russian Sage)
Salvia
Stachys bizantina (Lambs Ears)
Teucrium (Germanders)
Yucca

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DEER RESISTANT TREES & SHRUBS

DEER RESISTANT TREES & SHRUBS

Abelia
Acer (Maple)
Aesculus (Horse Chestnut)
Amelanchier (Serviceberry)
Aralia (Spikenards)
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (Bearberry)
Aronia (Chokeberry)
Aucuba (spotted laurel)
Betula (Birch)
Buddleja davidii (Butterfly Bush)
Buxus (Boxwood)
Callicarpa (Beautyberry)
Calycanthus floridus (Sweet Shrub)
Calycanthus virginicum (Carolina Allspice)
Caryopteris (Bluebeard)
Cercidiphyllum (Katsura)
Chaenomeles (Flowering Quince)
Chamaecyparis (False Cypress)
Chionanthus
Clerodendron trichotoma (Harlequin Glorybower)
Clethra (Sweet Pepperbush)
Cotinus (Smoke bush)
Cornus (Dogwood)
Cotoneaster (Bearberry cotoneaster)
Cryptomeria (sugi)
Daphne
Deutzia
Enkianthus
Forsythia
Fothergilla
Gleditsia
Hamamelis (Witch-hazel)
Hibiscus syriacus (Rose of Sharon)
Hypericum (St. Johns Wort)
Ilex opaca (American Holly)
Ilex verticillata (Winterberry Holly)
Illicium floridanum (Florida Anise)
Itea virginica (Virginia sweetspire)

Juniperus (Junipers)
Kerria japonica
Kolkwitzia (Beauty Bush)
Symphoricarpos (Crepe Myrtle)
Leucothoe fontanesiana (Fetterbush)
Lindera (Spicebush)
Liriodendron tulipifera (tuliptree)
Magnolia
Mahonia aquifolium (Oregon Grape Holly)
Mahonia nervosa
Mahonia repens
Metasequoia (dawn redwood)
Microbiota decussata (Siberian Cypress)
Myrica pensylvanica (Bayberry)
Nellia sinensis
Osmanthus (Devilwood)
Oxydendrum (sorrel tree)
Philadelphus (Mock oranges)
Picea glauca (Alberta Spruce)
Pieris japonica (Andromeda)
Pines
Potentilla (Cinquefoil)
Prunus laurocerasus (Cherry Laurel)
Prunus maritima (Beach plum)
Prunus serrulata (Japanese Cherry)
Rhus (Sumac)
Rubus (Trailing Blackberry)
Salix (Willows)
Sambucus (Elderberry)
Sarcococca hookeriana (Sweetbox)
Skimmia
Spirea (Meadowsweets)
Symphoricarpos (Coralberry)
Syringa vulgaris (Lilac)
Viburnum dentatum (Arrowwood Viburnum)
Weigela
Wisteria

oh deer!

Monrovia deer resistant plants

EAT LOCAL, GROW IT IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD

April 12, 2024 Karen Logan

Blueberry Bush illustration by karen blackerby logan

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JOIN US THIS SATURDAY MORNING

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GARDEN WORKSHOP

SEED SOWING

SATURDAY APRIL 13TH // 11:00AM // VINEYARD GARDENS

Do you want to learn to sow your plants from seed? Chris Wiley, owner and expert horticulturist, shares her tricks of the trade.

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GROWING EARLY

SPRING EDIBLES

SMALL FRUITS & FRUIT TREES

Spring is the best time to prune your fruit trees, grapes, raspberries and blackberries. It is also the best time to plant small fruits and fruit trees. We have a great selection of strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. The early spring selection is best!

All these should be planted very soon!

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STRAWBERRIES

TIPS FOR PLANTING STRAWBERRIES

There is a small window of time in the spring to plant strawberries. Strawberries can be grown in garden beds, containers or hanging baskets. Strawberry flowers attract honeybees and butterflies who pollinate the flowers and ensure fruiting success.

This year we are carrying 4 cultivars of strawberries
Strawberries in 3"black pots / $3.95
- Honeoye is our favorite, but all of them are good. Honeoye bears heavy yields of large fruit with a rich color.
- Fort Laramie
- All Star
- Quinalt
Growing potted Strawberries
- Provide well drained soil with medium moisture. Amend beds in spring and fall with quality Coast of Maine Lobster Compost or Fafard Premium Compost (we carry both!).
- Strawberries are heavy feeders- feed with organic fertilizer from spring to mid summer.
- Mulch beds to retain moisture, keep down the weeds and to create a nice clean place for the strawberry fruits to lay on.
- Thin beds every few years, favoring the strongest runners.

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BLUEBERRIES

We have a wonderful selection of early, mid season and late variety blueberries. Now is the time to get them in the ground. We recommend planting early bearing variety, a mid season variety and a late season variety to extend your blueberry picking season.

Blueberries must be planted in early spring!!

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GRAPES & FRUIT TREES

GRAPES: Grapes should be pruned as soon as possible on cool days. If pruned much later they will “bleed” sap, much like a maple tree when its tapped for making maple syrup. Pruning for grapes and most fruit trees involves limiting the number of fruits produced as the tree or vine will try to make many more fruits than the tree has the energy to fully mature. Often excess fruits will fall off and the ones remaining may be smaller than on a tree properly pruned. This is also the best time to plant grapes!
FRUIT TREES: We carry apple, pear, peaches, cherry and sour cherry. The sour cherries make the very best pies. Spring is the great time to plant them!
- Pruning apple trees: When you are done pruning an apple tree there is usually more on the ground then left on the tree.

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ASPARAGUS & POTATOES

Now available bare root asparagus and potatoes! We have Asparagus Bareroot Millenium & Asparagus Purple Passion. The Potatoes we carry are Amarosa, French Fingerling, Russet Burbank, Russian Banana and Red Norland.

Asparagus Bundles of 5 / $12,95, Bundles of 10 / $19.95 & Bundles of 25 / $31.95

**Asparagus Purple Passion Bundles of 25**

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GREENS & COOL

WEATHER VEGGIES

Grow your own Greens

Salad material, lettuce, spinach, endive, mignonette

The lettuces and the cilantro, in particular, can be done by direct seeding in Mid April.

Start the other herbs and cool weather veggies inside first and then plant out as seedlings.

WE GROW ALL THESE IN PACKS FROM SEED . WE HAVE A WONDERFUL SELECTION OF SEEDS & WILL HAVE A GREAT VARIETY OF PACK SELECTIONS!

COOL WEATHER VEGGIES

Brassicas (like broccoli), Cauliflower, Cabbage, Kale, Swiss Chard, Mustards, Collards

TIMING IS KEY IN GARDENING! DON’T WAIT TO GET STARTED!

POPPIES

April 10, 2024 Karen Logan

POPPIES:

SPRING FAVORITE!

We love our poppies at Vineyard Gardens! We grow a lot of different varieties. There are both annual and perennial poppies. Some are truly perennial, some are short lived perennial and some are annual poppies. The annual poppies love to colonize by reseeding and return year after year. We raise our annual poppies from seed and grow a fine selection for your garden. One perennial poppy we grow from seed is the Spanish poppy, Papaver rupifragum, Double tangerine Gem. It is the latest blooming of the poppies with pretty apricot blooms in late summer. It grows wild in the mountains of Spain along with Spanish lavender.

Poppies like a rich, well drained soil in full sun. Deer Resistant!!

PAPAVER ORIENTALIS/ORIENTAL POPPIES

The most famous of the perennial poppies are the Oriental Poppies. They are long lived perennials that bloom in early spring, go dormant in the heat of summer and then come back bigger and better the next year.

Oriental Poppies are known for their dinner plate sized blooms. The red with the black center is probably the best known. This year we have Crimson Red, Orange Red and Royal Wedding, a white one with a black center. We also have Turkenlouise, a red one with ruffled edges on the petals, and Princess Victoria Louise, a salmon colored one. Oriental Poppies are very dramatic flowers!

Make sure to mark the spot so that you don’t disturb the sleeping poppy!

PAPAVER NUDICAULE/ICELAND POPPIES

Icelandic poppies, Papaver nudicaule (meaning bare stems), are another type of poppy that is considered perennial, but seem to be shorter lived than the Oriental Poppies. Iceland poppies are just gorgeous! Their crepe paper like flowers are very delicate and bloom on tall, thin 1ft stems. Plant 2-3 in a pot and enjoy them all spring and into early summer.

We carry Iceland Poppies in the Champagne Series (individual colors) and the Wonderland Series (a mix of colors). We have the Champagne Series in scarlet, pink, yellow, orange, and red for the individual colors. These are hardy but short lived perennials. They are native to sub polar regions of Asia and North America.

Iceland Poppies are blooming now!

ANNUAL POPPIES

Papaver rhoeas, Papaver commutatum, Papaver paeoniflorus, Papaver somniferum

The great reseeding poppies are the annual poppies. We grow these from seed, seeded in early to mid February and sell them in packs and 2” pots.

Following the spring through early summer flowering, annual poppies have beautiful seed pods that extend the season from summer into fall. These seed pods ripen and spill out into the surrounding soil and baby seedlings emerge the following year. I know of many sunny gardens where annual poppies have colonized and make a fabulous easy to grow display year after year.

This year we are growing:

Shirley Poppies
Papaver rhoeas, including Double Choice Mix
Select Seed, White Bridal Veil
We are growing the peony flowered poppy in Lauren’s Grape, Hungarian Blue and White Cloud.
Ladybird Poppy, Papaver commutatum, a red flower with a black blotch at the base of each petal. It is a prolific bloomer.
Papaver somniferum, in Imperial Pink and The Giant with a red flower.
Ready to be planted now!
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GROWING & CARE

Plant your poppies in a full sun garden with well drained soil.
They have beautiful seed pods that extend the season beyond bloom.
The annual poppies can be dead headed to extend bloom but at some point let the beautiful seed pods develop and let them ripen on the plant.
Poppies will reseed and you may have lots of little poppy seedlings for years to come.
If they are happy, they will colonize in your garden. It is wonderful when plants colonize! Other plants do this too!

Come to Vineyard Gardens to find out what other plants reseed and colonize in your garden!

SUCCESSION GARDENING

March 15, 2024 Karen Logan

Digitalis purpurea illustration by karen blackerby logan

SUCCESSION

GARDENING

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There is a time in early summer when groups of perennials are either ending their season or just starting their growth spurts. During this ‘in-between’ period in June, the addition of hardy annuals effectively bridges the blooming gap filling in the empty space of spent perennials. This strategic planting is known as succession gardening, a layered gardening style that has continuous blooms throughout the season. Succession gardening breathes more color, cut flowers, birds and bees into the garden.

We seeded an assortment of hardy annuals last fall, such as Cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus), Ladybird poppies (Papaver commutatum), Rose of Heaven (Silene ‘Blue Angel’), Larkspurs, Feverfew, Queen Anne’s Lace (Ammi Majus), Snapdragons (Antirrhinum) and some biennials like Lychnis coronaria, Digitalis purpurea (hybrids) and Verbascums that bloom early and will flower through June and some into July. In addition to blooming in June, these annuals knit together a beautiful planting scheme with the evolving summer perennials.

Hardy annuals can be used both in formal gardens and natural settings.

SUCCESSION GARDENING TIPS

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The flowers of hardy annuals can occupy negative space in June and then the foliage of neighboring perennials fill that space in July.

Hardy annuals are best planted early, typically around mid march, depending on the weather. Planted early they will give you the maximum desired effect.
Vineyard Gardens has a great selection of our fall sown hardy annuals that are available now and ready to plant.
These plants can be directly sown in the spring but will not give you the size, vigor or highly anticipated jaw dropping display due to the warmer temperatures as spring progresses.

Alternatively, hardy annuals can be removed in July and replaced with tender annuals.

Tender annuals include Cosmos, Dahlias, Tagetes, Browalia, Ageratum, Coleus, Impatiens or Cleome.

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WINTER PROJECTS

February 5, 2024 Karen Logan

As we prepare for spring, pouring over seed catalogs and drooling over our friends’ Instagram posts from Colombia to the Mekong Delta, it is a good time to get outside and accomplish some garden tasks that will be put aside once the bulbs begin to break ground. If the prospect of tree climbing and brush hauling is deterring you, remember that Vineyard Gardens’ landscape crew is working year round and available to help. Below are a few of the garden tasks that you could be chipping away at during these mild February days.

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PRUNING GRAPE VINES AND FRUIT TREES

Grapes may look a mess this time of year and it may be tempting to simply cut them back, but the process of pruning them is best demonstrated. Like riding a bike, once you’ve done it a few times it gets easier.

Fruit trees are a bit trickier due to variety, special growth patterns and fruiting strategies but the basic rule of thumb is to open up the inside allowing for good air circulation and access to sunlight. Remove dead or diseased wood and a few of the older branches and crosses. Remove about 1/3rd of the older wood but preserve a balanced structure.

Once the pruning is complete and the weather has warmed up, spray with Dormant, aka Horticultural Oil. This is a non-toxic spray that coats the stems and bark with a mild pesticide that helps control most types of pests that can plague fruit trees and plants in the Rose family.

pruning fruit trees in winter

watch & learn

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SHAPING AND REMOVING DEAD WOOD FROM CONIFERS AND EVERGREENS

Evergreens often outgrow their allotted space. They tend to keep their foliage on the sunny side of the plant, leaving the back sparse and leggy. They also tend to hold onto old wood that can harbor mold, mildew and fungus. Thinning out the old dense branching and accumulation of discarded foliage can lighten up the overall structure and make for a healthier plant. Some evergreens have a hard time producing new growth on old, hardened off wood. Hollies and Boxwood are a couple that appreciate being cut back hard, called “hat-racking”.

A "hat-racked" Holly from this year. Stay tuned to see how it looks throughout the growing season.

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CUTTING BACK ORNAMENTAL GRASSES

A perfect late-winter project! Ornamental grasses hold up well through most of the winter, providing volume, screening and an attractive feature in the winter landscape. Make sure to cut them back in early Spring or you’ll end up cutting off new growth. The grasses do not need to be flush cut, they can be cut at angles or domes, the object is to clear away old canes before new growth begins to emerge. A hedge trimmer or hand pruners can be used.

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HEADING BACK LATE SUMMER FLOWERING SHRUBS

Martha's Vineyard homeowners tend to favor late summer flowering shrubs such as Pee Gee Hydrangeas, Bluebeard Caryopteris, St. John’s Wort, Butterfly Bush and Rose of Sharon. These shrubs perform best with a hard cut back before new growth begins to emerge. Be careful not to cut back your common blue type of Hydrangea, Hydrangea macrophylla, because these hold their flowering buds at the tips of last years’ growth. Wait to prune lilacs until after they have flowered.

Winter is the best time to prune most deciduous trees and shrubs. Removing dead wood and reducing their size. A couple of exceptions being lilacs and Hydrangea macroph

These tip buds hold this season's flowers. Be careful not to trim them off

Last year's cuts on a Pee Gee Hydrangea. This year leave a couple of buds beyond for a big, full flowering.

A fall cleanup cut. Notice last year's cuts on these Annabelle Hydrangeas. The Annabelle's are very forgiving, but if you leave this much stem length on them they'll tend to flop more.

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ROSES

This can be the time to cut out dead, broken and/or diseased wood from roses as well.

Most roses will benefit from a hard structural pruning at this time. Be sure to keep your pruners clean and sharp. Carry with you alcohol wipes to clean the blades when moving from one plant to the next. This will help prevent spreading virus and fungal spores. Always keep the area under roses clean from debris and refresh top-dressing every year. This is where pests can deposit eggs and where fungus spores collect. These steps may not eliminate black spot, Japanese beetles or aphids but it will make it easier to keep them under control. Later you can spray with Horticultural oil, as with your fruit trees.

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REPAIRING SETTLED STONEWORK

Now would be a good time to reset cobble edging and patio pavers that have settled and become uneven.

You can get a couple buckets of sand from Keane’s or Goodale’s
Pull up a section of pavers
Spread out the sand. A trick when doing this is to spread the sand under the edges of the stone leaving it lower or a little hollow in the center to prevent rocking.
Reset the stones. The stones can be left slightly higher than grade to allow for settling.

While doing this, observe where you have standing water and erosion problems. These can be corrected by digging a shallow trench towards lower grade and back-filling with pea stone. Plan ahead and fill some pockets at the joints with a sand/compost mix to allow for planting “Stepables” like Thyme or Blue Star Creeper Isotoma fluviatillis when they come available later in the Spring.

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CLEANING AND SHARPENING YOUR TOOLS

Be prepared! If you don’t have the equipment to sharpen your pruners, loppers, hedge shears and pruning saw’s you can collect them together and drop them off at the Vineyard Gardens office across from Keane’s to have them sharpened for a modest fee. You should also clean and sharpen your spades and shovels, it will make your garden tasks so much easier and safer. Its good practice to keep a 5gal. bucket with sand mixed with old, used motor oil in it around to clean your tools after using them. This is also a good time to oil the wood stocks of any tools with wooden handles, it will give it a chance to soak in and renew the grain making them stronger and last longer.

Winter is a great time to clean and sharpen tools.

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CLEARING OUT GUTTERS AND LEAVES COLLECTED AROUND THE FOUNDATION OF THE HOUSE

With all the spring rains you’ll want to be sure that the gutters are running clear, even if you cleared them out after the fall leaf drop. It is best practice to check again. It also gives you a chance to make sure there was no damage during the winter from the weight of ice and snow.

It's generally good to keep debris from accumulating around the foundation of the house as well. This is where rodents and general pests will tend to nest, protected against a nice warm foundation.

During mid-Winter mild spells we are encouraged to get out and accomplish some neglected garden chores.

............................................................................................................................
If all this seems daunting, do what you can and Vineyard Gardens can take care of the rest. Please call the Vineyard Gardens Landscaping office at (508) 693.8512

Time waits for no one and spring is just around the corner. The Nursery will open in March, giving you a month to prepare.

DECIDUOUS TREES AND SHRUBS FOR SHADE

June 29, 2023 Karen Logan

Fothergilla illustration by Karen Blackerby Logan

DECIDUOUS TREES AND SHRUBS FOR SHADE

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***Sorbaria sorbifolia*** *(Tree Astilbe )*

FOTHERGILLA
(Native) (Deer Resistant)

Fothergilla Mt. Airy
Fothergilla gardenii (Dwarfed)

SPIREA
(Seldom severely damaged by deer)

Spirea Anthony Waterer
Spirea Snow Mound

VIBURNUM

Viburnum dentatum (Native) (Rarely damaged by deer)
- Viburnum dentatum Blue Muffin (Rarely damaged by deer)
- Viburnum dentatum Sparkler (Rarely damaged by deer)
Viburnum plicatums (a non native species)
- Viburnum plicatum Mariesii
- Viburnum plicatum Popcorn
Viburnum carlesii Spice Baby

DECIDUOUS TREES & SHRUBS

Amelanchier canadensis, Serviceberry (Native) (Seldom severely damaged by deer)

Aesculus parviflora (Bottlebrush Buckeye) (Native) (Rarely damaged by deer)
Deciduous Azaleas (Native) Deer love evergreen Azaleas but are less likely to eat deciduous ones.

Heptacodium micinoides (Seven-Son Flower) (Rarely damaged by deer) Fragrant flowers late in the season followed by beautiful fall display.
Rhus aromatica 'Gro Low' (Rarely damaged by deer)
Sorbaria sorbifolia (Tree Astilbe ) (Rarely damaged by deer) Spreads vigorously. Try 'SEM' for a more compact and controlled cultivar.

CLETHRA alnifolia
(All Native) (Rarely damaged by deer)

Clethra Vanilla Spice
Clethra Hummingbird
Clethra Ruby Spice

HYDRANGEA

Hydrangea arborescens (Native)
Hydrangea Macrophylla (Big Leaf) (Occasionally severely damaged by deer)

Hydrangea petiolaris (Climbing) (Occasionally severely damaged by deer)
Hydrangea quercifolia (Oakleaf) (Occasionally severely damaged by deer)

Amelanchier canadensis, Serviceberry

Oakleaf Hydrangea

Hydrangea macrophylla

Fothergilla Major Mt Airy

Fothergilla

Spirea Snowmound

Viburnum plicatum

trees for wildlife

national wildlife federation

[PLANT PROFILE] HYDRANGEA MACROPHYLLA

June 27, 2023 Karen Logan

Hydrangea

macrophylla

Big Leaf Hydrangea

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HYDRANGEA MACROPHYLLA (Big Leaf Hydrangea)

The genus name Hydrangea comes from hydor meaning "water" and aggeion meaning "vessel", in reference to the cup-like capsular fruit.

A deciduous shrub with a rounded habit that typically grows 3-6’ tall and as wide unless damaged by harsh winters or pruned smaller.
Generally features serrate, obovate to elliptic, dark green leaves (4-8” long) and large clusters of long-blooming summer flowers in either lacecap form (flattened flower clusters of small fertile florets with scattered showy sterile florets often forming a marginal ring) or mophead form (globose flower clusters of mostly showy sterile florets).

'Penny Mac' was first introduced into commerce by Penny McHenry of Atlanta, Georgia

(founder of The American Hydrangea Society)

GROWING HYDRANGEA MACROPHYLLA

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Best grown in rich, medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade. Tolerates full sun only if grown in consistently moist soils.
Soil pH affects the flower color of most cultivars except white (blue in highly acidic soils and lilac to pink in slightly acidic to alkaline soils). Add aluminum sulfate to the soil to make the flowers bluer or add lime to the soil to make the flowers pinker. Begin soil treatments well in advance of flowering, as in late autumn or early spring.
Plants generally need little pruning. If needed, prune immediately after flowering by cutting back flowering stems to a pair of healthy buds. Prune out weak or winter-damaged stems in late winter/early spring.
Best to mulch plants year-round with 3" of shredded bark, peat or compost.
Winter hardy to USDA Zone 6. For added protection, however, plants grown in USDA Zone 5 should be sited in sheltered locations and given additional winter protection, as needed, for the purposes of minimizing the risk of loss of significant numbers of flower buds or possible die-back to the ground in an extremely harsh winter. A burlap wrap of stems or circle of chicken wire filled with leaves or straw to 8-12" are time-consuming and visually unattractive landscape options, but can be effective. Regardless of protective measures taken, most bigleaf hydrangeas simply will not bloom (or will bloom poorly) in some years because of a variety of winter occurrences beyond the control of the gardener (e.g. low temperatures, sudden wide temperature fluctuations, icy conditions, late frosts). Some newer cultivars have been selected that flower on both old and new wood. Their pruning and flowering can differ from that of the species.
'Penny Mac' blooms on both old and new growth and is winter hardy to USDA Zone 5. This means ‘Penny Mac’ will reliably flower each year, regardless of winter temperature or added protection.

USES

____________
* Group or mass in the
shrub boarder.
* A specimen or accent
for foundations and
other locations
near homes or patios.
* Hedges
* Containers

Late season spent flowers of Hydrangea macrophylla

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FERTILIZE HYDRANGEAS IN EARLY SUMMER

All hydrangeas tend to grow better when they are fertilized, even the native ones.

If you missed feeding your plants early in the season when you did your spring clean up, you can make up for that now (before August 1). The plants that respond best to fertilizer this time of year are the rebloomers: big leaf (macrophylla), mountain (serrata) and woodland/smooth (arborescens) varieties. You want to help them produce those reblooming flowers to carry your garden through to the end of the season

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ANNUALS

June 6, 2023 Karen Logan

ANNUALS

Annuals are plants that are glorious during the summer but do not survive the winter. They produce flowers and seeds all in one season and then the mother plant dies. The seed falls to the ground and often germinates the following spring and the next generation of seedlings emerge. Often the seedlings are identical or very similar to the mother but they also can be somewhat different and different from each other, like brothers and sisters. When the plant reseeds in the area where the mother plant was, it is called colonizing. Poppies, Bachelor Buttons, Cleome, Larkspur, Browallia americana and Nigella are annuals that colonize. Some biennials, like foxgloves, do this as well.

Annuals usually have a much longer bloom season than perennials. Some bloom all summer long. Many reseed and colonize.

Calendula Bon Bon mix / A dwarf Calendula blooms all summer in full sun or part shade. Calendula flowers are edible. Other edible flowers to use as garnishes include Bachelor Buttons, Borage Borago officinalis, Nasturtiums and Violas.

Calibracoa Sweet Peach. Annual blooms all summer.

Calendulas(Taller). Taller calendulas make good cut flowers. Edible.

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Reseeding Tips

* Deadheading flowers will keep the plant blooming longer. If your goal is for the plant to reseed, stop deadheading later in the season to let the seed mature. Seeds need to mature in order to reseed.

* Do not mulch heavily around the mother plant if you want it to reseed. A lot of annuals need light to germinate.

* Many people mulch their beds after gardens get cleaned up in fall. You should do it lightly or not at all if you want annuals and biennials to germinate.

These are details that will enhance reseeding success.

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TRY THESE!

We have many favorites! The tried and true ones are still around.

There are new introductions of cultivars within each of these.

Geraniums / Impatiens / Cosmos / Cleome / Portulacas / Salvias / Marigolds / Alyssum / Ageratums / Nasturtiums / Nicotianas / Dahlias / Asters / Zinnias / Morning Glories / Amaranthus / Gomphrenas / Pentas / Lisianthus / Scabiosa / Snapdragons / Dusty Miller / Callas / Caladiums / Coleus / Agapanthus / Tropical Hibiscus / Fuchsia

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LONG BLOOMING PROVEN WINNER ANNUALS

Argyranthemums / Osteospermums / Lobularias / Calibrachoas / Euphorbia Diamond Frost / Petunias / Torenias / Diascias / Phlox / Verbenas

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LESSER KNOWN ANNUALS THAT ARE STRONG GARDEN PERFORMERS

Browallia americana / Orlaya grandiflora / Ammi majus / Erigeron karvinskianus / Nigella / Ceratotheca triloba / Rhemania angulata / Emilia coccinea / Tithonia / Sanvitalia / Dahlberg Daisies / Daturas Ricinus / Clary Sage (Blue Monday and Pink Sundae) / Tibouchina urvilleana

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RECOMMENDED DEER RESISTANT ANNUALS

Lantanas / Salvias / Daturas / Ricinus

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TRY ADDING ANNUAL VINES TO CONTAINERS & HANGING BASKETS

Mina lobata / Thunbergias / Cobaea scandens (Cup and Saucer Vine) / Mandevilla

Nasturtiums

Salvia Amistad / Salvia Hummingbird / Verbena Vanessa Purple / Nemesia Bluebird / Petunia Vista White / Hippo White Polka Dot / Dichondra / Euphorbia Frost

Dahlia

Cosmos Sonata Pink

Geraniums

Osteospermum Serenity Bronze

Petunia Easy Wave Blue

Portulaca Fuschia

Portulaca Fuchsia

Salpiglossis

Thunbergias

Calla Lily_Zantedeschia Snow Storm

Ipomoea Heavenly Blue

Calibrachoa_Million Bells

Sweet Alyssum

Nicotiana langsdorfii

Coleus

Cleome Senorita Blanca

Cleome Senorita Rosalita

Hibiscus Tropical Jewel Amber

Hibiscus Tropical Jewel Ruby

Lanatana Bandana Mango

Lantana Sunrise Rose

Lantana Bandana Lemon Zest

Lantana Bandera Red

Lantana Lucsious Golden Gate

Lantana Samantha

Tibouchina urvilleana

Tithonia

Eschscholtzia Californica Orange Poppy

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Add annuals to your perennial beds, containers & hanging baskets

Annuals long bloom season offers a consistency in color that defines the border. The reseeding characteristic helps tie the garden together with repeating blooms throughout the bed. They seem to come up between and within the perennials in a random fashion with no apparent pattern. It is best not to overcrowd perennials but you can plant plenty of annuals between your perennials. Learn to identify the seedlings so you don’t pull them out, thinking that they are weeds.

We Grow an Assortment of Annuals!

______________
* Fillers in perennial
beds.
* Use in hanging baskets
* Use in container
plantings
* Many annuals make
great cut flowers.

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Hanging Baskets

We currently have a large variety of hanging baskets available at the nursery!

***MORNING GLORIES***
***Heavenly Blue***
***Chocolate***
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***BEGONIAS***
***Solenia Dark Pink***
***Bossa Nova Orange***
***Encanto Pink***
***Miss Miami***
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***PETUNIAS***
***Headliner Banana Cherry***
***Headliner Raspberry Swirl***
***Headliner Night Sky***
***Surfinia Magenta***
***Surfinia Heavenly Blue***
***Heavenly Amethyst Burst***
***Patio Radiant Dark Blue***
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***LOBELIA***

***THUNBERGIA***
***Orange Wonder***
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IMPATIENS
***Double Sparkler Hot Pink***
***Dark Red***
***New Guinea Impatiens***
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***GERANIUMS***
***Great Balls of Fire Light***
***Caliente Orange***
*****
***FUCHSIA***
***Wind Chimes Basket***
***Red/White***
*****
TORENIA
***Summer Wave***
*****
***SCAEVOLA***
***Whirlwind Blue***

Geranium Great Balls of Fire Light Lavender

Begonia Bossa Nova Orange

Begonia Encanto Pink

Begonia Miss Miami

Begonia Solenia Dark Pink

Fuchsia Aretes Upright Rio Grande

Fuchsia

Geranium Caliente Orange

Geranium

Impatiens Double Sparkler Dark Red

Impatiens Double Sparkler Hot Pink

Ipomoea Chocolate (Morning Glory Chocolate)

Petunia Headliner Banana Cherry

Petunia Headliner Night Sky

Petunia Headliner Raspberry Swirl

Petunia Heavenly Amethyst Burst

Petunia Surfinia Heavnely Blue

Petunia Surfinia Magenta

Torenia Summer Wave Large Blue

pollinator plants

perennials, shrubs & trees

[PLANT PROFILE] LOBELIA

September 12, 2022 Karen Logan

LOBELIA

30% off

A North American native plant that has spires of colorful hood-like flowers that open from bottom to top. Lobelias are typically found in wet, swampy soil or woodlands. They are a perfect choice for low spots in your garden that stay too wet for most plants. Although, given enough water Lobelias will be fine with more sun. They are an excellent choice for partial shade gardens.

Two perennial species we carry are Lobelia siphilitica, the Native Great Blue, and Lobelia cardinalis, Cardinal flower.

We carry the Lobelia cardinalis in its native green leaf form, as well as Queen Victoria, a red leaf form that won the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit. A newer cardinalis hybrid we are offering is the Starship Series. This series is a little shorter and better branched. We usually have it in scarlet, rose and sometimes blue.

**Lobelia Starship Deep Rose & Scarlet Bronze Leaf**

**Lobelia Starship Deep Rose & Scarlet Bronze Leaf**. Rich bronze or purple foliage throughout the growing season. Adds a bold color for the late summer to early autumn garden.

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CARE

Prefer fertile, evenly moist soil.
Can be divided every 2-3 years in spring.
Allow to self sow.
Winter over with stems on.
Can be pinched back before flowering to produce more compact plants

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USES

Woodland paths
Perennial beds and border gardens with moist, well-drained soil.
Given enough water they can be fine with more sun.
Great choice for partial shade gardens
Well-suited for use in rain gardens, around ponds and streams and other moist areas.

AUGUST

GARDEN TIPS

Annuals & Containers

Trees, Shrubs & Perennials

Garden Maintenance

Vegetable Gardens

Weeding

Enjoy the buzz of late-summer pollinators darting from bloom to bloom, it’s one of the season’s sweetest rewards!

JULY

GARDEN TIPS

Season Extenders

What to Prune and When

Container Plants

Weeds & Mulch

Biennials: Plan for Next Year's Blooms

Vegetable Gardens

Smart Watering: Efficiency is Key

JUNE

GARDEN TIPS

Need help picking the right products or plants?

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Water

Need help with watering?

MAY

GARDENING TIPS

SOIL CARE: Feed the Foundation

FERTILIZE: Give Last Year’s Plantings a Boost

MULCH: Nature’s Blanket

ANNUALS: Cool-Weather Favorites Are Ready

PERENNIALS: Time to Plant and Divide!

VEGETABLE GARDENS: Plant Now, Harvest Later

TREES & SHRUBS: Perfect Planting Weather

PRUNE: Out With the Old

LAWN CARE: Out With the Old

Always think ahead when gardening. Timing is everything!

APRIL

GARDENING TIPS

Kickstart Your Garden for the Season!

Garden Clean-Up

Soil Care

Spring Annuals

Edibles: Time to Plant!

Trees & Shrubs

Pruning

Lawn Edging

Tool Maintenance: Sharpen & Clean

Tool Care Essentials:

Lawn Care: April is Prime Time!

Fertilization Basics:

Weed Control & Seeding:

**Important Fertilization Law on Martha’s Vineyard**

April is a month full of gardening possibilities—clean up, plant, and prep for a beautiful season ahead. Stop by the nursery for all your gardening needs, and let’s grow something amazing together!

MARCH

GARDEN TIPS

PRUNE

SPRAY

GARDEN CLEANUP

DESIGN

TOP DRESS

SEEDLINGS

A PASSION

FOR PLANTS

Next time you are at Vineyard Gardens take a meditative walk along the display garden and you will notice something new, fresh and exciting each time.

July’s Display Bed

Take a virtual walk to learn about July’s display bed.

EVERGREEN TREES &

SHRUBS FOR SHADE

Deer resistant broadleaf evergreens we like to recommend are Pieris japonica, Mahonias and Osmanthus heterophyllus.

EVERGREEN TREE & SHRUB VARIETIES

CAMELLIAS & AUCUBAS

BUXUS

RHODODENDRONS

MAHONIA

HOLLIES

In general we do not recommend you plant conifers in shade. They may not die but they will grow long and leggy. Your much better off planting a Holly, Mahonia or Osmanthus (if you have deer).

PERENNIALS

FOR SHADE

SUMMER BLOOMING PERENNIALS FOR SHADE

DEER RESISTANT PERENNIALS FOR SHADE

PERENNIALS GROUNDCOVERS FOR SHADE

Important Fertilization Law on Martha’s Vineyard