January Landscape Blog: Planting Seeds for 2015

By: Thom Morgan, Springmoor Landscape Manager 

Thom Morgan

  

Each year the big nurseries offer up new plants that they think will be the next big thing in the landscaping industry, and each year I get excited to try all of their new specimens.

For 2015, those that are considered “new” have actually been around for a few years as trial plants in places like North Carolina State University’s JC Raulston Arboretum. There, staffers graded the trial plants on whether they performed as promised, and if the plants were marketable. If a plant made the grade, it became available to you and me.

This year, we have a group of more compact and disease-resistant forms of our old favorites.

Here is a list of the various growers that contributed and their new specimens:

November Landscape Department Blog: Holiday Lighting

Thom Morgan

How to Make Holiday Lights Liven up any Landscape

After the pumpkins have been thrown on the mulch pile and the Thanksgiving turkey is almost ready, it’s time to hang those holiday lights. Festive lighting can make a great accent to any well-designed landscape.

Choosing the Lights
LED lights last a lot longer than incandescent lights, and they last longer, and are more cost-efficient. LED lights also come in a variety of styles such as chains, snowfall, icicle and those that flash.

Making Connections
Please waterproof: Make sure that all of your connections are off the ground, and waterproofed by using silicone or petroleum jelly. I wrap grocery store bags around the two connecting cords for further protection and to ensure the connection is protected from the elements.

October Springmoor Blog from the Landscape Department

Thom Morgan

Going Gray

As we get older, some of us consider the color gray a bad thing, but in the landscape Gray is Great!

Gray goes well with any color, so you can’t go wrong using it in any color scheme. If used with the warm colored plants, gray plants seem to make the red, orange, and yellow plants really pop. If used with cool colors such as green, blue, and purple gray adds to the softer, more relaxing color scheme.

How to Harvest Rainwater

Thom Morgan

By Thom Morgan, Springmoor Landscape Manager

Although the North Carolina Piedmont is not currently in a drought, many of us remember 2007, when large portions of Falls Lake, our primary water source, dried up and the City of Raleigh issued mandatory watering restrictions.

Things to Consider

Cost will be a big consideration when building a rainwater storage system. Summer is mainly when we need to water our vegetables and ornamental plants. Gardens in the Raleigh area should receive about 60 gallons of water a week per 100 square feet.

Visiting an Arboretum or Botanical Garden

Thom Morgan

By Thom Morgan, Springmoor Landscape Manager

If you are planning to travel this summer and have an interest in horticulture, you might want to go online and get a list of botanical gardens and arboretums along your route.

In Raleigh, we are fortunate to have the J.C. Raulston Arboretum, which is located on Beryl Road, just west of the NC State campus. It is managed by the Horticultural Sciences Department at NC State, and serves as a model for what an arboretum or botanical garden should do:  provide access and information about the widest possible variety of plants to the public.

Zone Pushing

Thom Morgan

By Thom Morgan, Springmoor Landscape Manager

On the US Plant Hardiness Zone Map, I am in zone 7b so plants that are hardy in zones 9 and above need special attention if I want to keep them.

Why do I go through the trouble?  I like collecting plants no one else has, and I enjoy the challenge of pushing my zone.