Dayton "Dirt" - July 18, 2014

Tomorrow is the Blueberry Fest with music, hayrides and other activities to celebrate the summer season with its bountiful harvest. Getting ready is quite the chore as the grounds are groomed, weeds pulled, flowers planted, tables set up and so on. Then, more balled and burlapped stock  has been received, bare root plants have to be quickly potted, more nursery stock has to be brought out. . . . . all amongst the potting, getting ready for the fest and regular chores is getting the site ready for the new greenhouse construction that somehow has to be “sandwiched” in all the other activities.

Monday in Columbus was the trade show for new perennials, annuals, equipment, pots, planting mixes and so on. New dahlias caught my eye that were bred with strong stems that don’t allow the plants to fall over. So strong were the stems that the plants almost approached a plastic-like structure. Six colors will be available next year but will not include a bright pink, yellow, orange or red but instead only a white and shades of purple and lavender. Another item of interest was a  square 10" pot with a snap-on tower that would be perfect to grow dinner-plate dahlias that are of the weaker stem type but are available in a rainbow of colors. New perennials, roses and annuals were everywhere so that the question is what to eliminate from the new list as it is impossible to grow everything!

Beginning next week it will be propagation time with cuttings of all kinds of shrubs that will be available for sale in two to four years depending on the type of plant and the size for market. Then, clematis plants arrive afterwards that will then be ready for sale next April and again with some new varieties. Right now is the Blueberry Fest prep time so that we’ll see you on Saturday!

Tom