Good Seed Farm 2009 Fall Newsletter

Volume 8

Issue 4

Fall 2009

Growing With Us

We Have It! For a pleasant surprise, take a drive to GoodSeed Farm on a sunny fall day. You’ll be amazed how much fresh color we have and how healthy our plants look. Fall is the best time to plant perennials and shrubs, and we have plenty to choose from right now.

We have a thousand mums to choose from, each one perfect. The orchard house is full of fruit trees, blueberry bushes, grapes, asparagus, strawberry plants and more. Our “quilt barn” is full of bagged mulch and soil, and our bulk mulch piles are full.

GoodSeed Farm is your personal garden center.

Bring a friend and shop in peace and quiet, no crowds, no lines, no traffic, no hassles, just lots of COLOR on a fall day!

GoodSeed Farm Hours: Fall Shopping Hours Monday through Friday Saturday Sunday

10AM to 5PM 8 AM to 6 PM Noon to 5PM

BEEN HERE LATELY? We’ve switched things around; our new post & beam barn marks the MAIN ENTRANCE. Grab a cart and follow the “color trail” around back where we’ve really expanded…

Mark your calendar for our first annual

FALL CLEARANCE SALE September 19 through September 30 See details inside!

Growin g With Us

Page 2

“Steve’s Soapbox:” Time to Start Something...

Life is fleeting. We see this all around us as our children (and then grandchildren) grow up. Things we built just a few years ago somehow become decades old, and we find ourselves repairing them. Our faces in the mirror somehow morph into the faces of our parents.

Here at GoodSeed Farm we measure time by watching sapling trees we planted years ago become giants. When we moved into our 160-year-old farmhouse, we planted a young London planetree in the front yard, in hopes of someday getting some afternoon shade. At that time the perennials along our front porch were sun-lovers like phlox and catmint, and the porch planters were filled with petunias.

Today we find ourselves replacing our sun-starved perennials, and planting impatiens in the big planter pots on the porch. Our house is noticeably cooler, and we can relax in the shade after work in the exact spot where we once baked in the evening sun.

The scrawny young oaks we planted to shade the store parking lot have become stately landmarks with pools of shade underneath. Our greenhouses enjoy filtered shade beneath rows of Shademaster locusts that Imagine that, not long ago, this Willow Oak was a were mere sticks when we planted them. As we travel scrawny “runt of the litter” leftover at the end of the sea- around Adams County we drive past many, many trees son. “Parking lot shade”, we thought as we planted it… we’ve planted over the past thirteen years.

Have you ever enjoyed walking down tree-lined streets or relaxing in the shade of a park or college campus? Someone, long ago, wanted you to find respite there and planted some trees. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Without exception, any piece of fruit you eat today came from a tree that once, years ago, someone thoughtfully planted.

In uncertain times there is one thing you can do that, without fail, offers pleasure and satisfaction lasting beyond your own lifetime, something future generations can enjoy effortlessly even before they, themselves, feel compelled to make a lasting mark of their own. You can plant a tree. What could be more calming or satisfying?

In pioneer days a large swath of cleared land was a sign of success and prosperity. At this point in modern life we’ve turned a corner, and planting trees is the way to mark our progress in life. In addition to all the benefits trees provide, they are a symbol of permanence and plenty. As difficult as our circumstances may be at any given point in our lives, we should always find the time and resources to create something lasting for the future. Planting and nurturing a young tree is just such an investment in our own humanity. It’s something small you can start, today, that will someday be bigger than you are.

Today, start something bigger than you are. Plant a tree. Let us help.

CHECK OUT OUR EVERYDAY 50% OFF SPECIALS! Each time you come to GoodSeed Farm pay special attention to our 50% Off Unadvertised Specials.

These are top-quality, stunning plants at their peak, at a special price for a limited time. Don’t miss out!

“I should have bought it when I saw it…”

Growin g With Us

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Ornamental Grasses Make A Difference Fast and Easy Ornamental grasses make excellent screen plants to hide unsightly propane tanks and air conditioners, or for privacy around patios and decks.

They develop faster than shrubs. Designers mix them with perennial flowers and woody plants, sometimes massing them for showy effects.

Grasses range in size from tiny pillows to huge clumps over ten feet tall. They come in a range of Maiden Grass (Miscanthus gracillimus) in our show gardens... colors from dusty blue to pink and purple.

A good way to compare grasses is by looking at the size they will be when they are fully grown. This way you can space them properly and allow enough space for them to develop to their fullest. Most grasses do best in full sun with plenty of moisture, but grasses are quite adaptable and will do well almost anywhere. Most are perennials and will return each year larger. The only maintenance they need is to be cut to the ground in late winter each year and fertilized.

Here’s a rundown on some of our favorites: Miscanthus, commonly called “maiden grass”, have a very graceful habit, softly drooping and waving gently with the slightest breeze. Some have “zebra stripes’, others have stripes along the leaves. Our favorites are “Gracillimus”, “Little Kitten”. “Adagio” and “Purpurescens”, which turns gradually turns purple during the fall season.

Pennisetums or “fountain grass” work well in perennial borders or mixed with shrubs in foundation plantings.

Most have showy upright seed heads. We like Pennisetum “Hamelin” the best.

“Karl Foerster” feather reed grass has attractive wheat-like seed stalks that stand straight up, great for mixing with foundation shrubs and hiding unsightly utility meters. “Shenandoah” switch grass gradually turns purple during the season, and grows in a tidy upright clump that looks great in foundation plantings.

Fluffy dusty-blue clumps of ornamental fescue like “Elijah Blue” are terrific mixed with low perennials in the front of the border. They are very drought-tolerant once they’re established, and stay nice and compact for years.

Pay attention to the hardiness zone when buying ornamental grasses, or you could buy varieties that aren’t hardy perennials in this area. People often ask us for “pink pampas grass”, shown often in mail order catalogs but not hardy in Ohio winters. Red Pennisetum is popular for planters. We think of both of these as annuals, so we don’t warranty them and charge less for them than perennial grasses.

Marjorie’s

Perennial Pick “Chicago Sunrise” Daylily (Hemerocallis) This spectacular daylily has been blooming continuously since June! We originally picked it for its striking gold blooms on sturdy two-foot stems, expecting a few weeks of color, but months later it’s still forming new buds.

A perfect contrast with pink, purple or blue foliage and blooms in your perennial garden, this is a very special daylily. It’s easy to grow in full sun.

For a terrific combination, plant it with “Palace Purple” coral bells or Gaura “Passionate Rainbow”, or next to a “Crimson Pygmy” red barberry.

G oodSeed Farm COUNTRY GARDEN CENTER

200 Storer Road 200 Storer Road Peebles, Ohio 45660 Peebles, Ohio 45660 937-587-7021 www.goodseedfarm.com

PRSTD STD US POSTAGE PAID PERMIT 111 CHILLICOTHE OH

HARDY MUMS GoodSeed Farm is the place for premium quality perennial mums.

They’re worth the trip!

GoodSeed Farm COUNTRY GARDEN CENTER

CALENDAR Sept. 1919-30

October 3

October 31 November 24

CHRISTMAS TREE HOURS

Our retail store closes October 31, but we’ll be offering fresh cut and live Christmas trees FALL CLEARANCE SALE! Our entire tree and shrub inventory discounted from 10% to 66%! Closeout prices from Thanksgiving on roses. 50% Off on all our ornamental grasses. week through December MILLER’S ANNUAL BBQ PICNIC See us at Miller’s on 13th. Christmas tree Wheat Ridge for gorgeous mums, fall pumpkins and hours are 3PM to 6PM select plants. Stop at GoodSeed Farm afterwards!

LAST DAY OF THE SEASON! We’re closing earlier this weekdays, Noon to 6PM year! See below for limited Christmas tree hours. weekends, closed CHRISTMAS TREES ARRIVE! Hours 3PM-6PM weekThanksgiving day. days, Noon-6PM weekends through December 13th.

13th