Tis the season!

Nov 30

With the holidays well on their way, our nursery has dramatically transformed to accommodate all the seasonal plants and accessories. Most notable are the rows and rows of fresh cut Christmas trees.

For years now we’ve sourced our trees from Bear Canyon Tree Farm. Located in Washington, this family-owned farm supplies us with absolutely stunning Noble Firs and Douglas Firs, and we’ll happily keep ordering from them for the foreseeable future.

This year we’ve received a shipment of over 500 trees, ranging from 2 feet tall all the way up to 13 feet tall! It took us about two days to set them all up. First on our to-do list was to separate the ones already sold through pre-orders from the ones that would be placed on the floor for sale. As we’ve done for many years, we listened carefully to your requests when choosing your tree. These pre-ordered trees reside safe and sound in our holding area until they are ready for pick-up or delivery.

The others are all set up throughout the nursery, sorted by size and species. After giving them a fresh cut they are placed in a bucket of water and mounted to the posts that hold them upright.

For the following month we all get to enjoy the wonderful scent they spread through the nursery. Be sure to stop by to check them out for yourselves!

Pines and spruces and cypress

Besides fresh cut trees, we’ve also brought in a nice selection of spruces, firs and cypress to give your garden a wintery feel. Many of these can be kept indoors and decorated as you would a Christmas tree. After the holidays you can take them outside and plant them in your backyard.

A popular option is the tropical Norfolk Island Pine. This conifer, originally found on a small island in the Pacific Ocean, does great both indoors and outdoors in our local Bay Area climate. Thanks to its slow growth rate, it is perfect to be kept as a container plant.

The Dwarf Alberta Spruce is another great option for outdoor growing. Don’t get fooled by the “dwarf” in its name though! This conifer will grow to 13 feet height, which is small compared to its 100 feet tall siblings. Luckily, it only grows about 2-4 inches a year, making it a great choice to bring back indoors each year for the holidays.

For people looking for more color, there is the ever popular poinsettia. After years and years of breeding there are many colors and varieties available on the market. Besides the popular red and white, there are now pink and variegated poinsettias. Thanks to artificial coloring, you’ll even see a blue one pop up every now and then.

Poinsettias get a bad rep for being toxic. While they are not meant to be eaten, this plant isn’t toxic to either humans nor pets. Being part of the Euphorbia family, their stems contain a milky sap. This sap is an irritant that can cause a itchy rash on some people. To prevent this you can wear gloves while pruning or pinching this plant. If pets were to ingest the leaves it may cause slight vomiting due to indigestion.

And other things…

Of course we’ve also thought of wreaths, garlands and amaryllis bulbs, as well as a nice selection of gift items perfect for the season.

A new addition for us are the Sassafras switch mats. These rugs come in two parts, a rubber tray and a decorative insert. With dozens of designs to choose from you can switch up your entryway rug with the changing of every season. At around $10.99 for each insert, they are great value too!