Somehow the holidays snuck up on me and BABOOM – they’re here! I am scrambling to get the house decorated and there are still some chores to do out in the gardens. The climbing rose canes and big leaf hydrangea stems still need to be sprayed with an anti-dessicant for extra winter protection and the shrub protectors are still leaning up against the garage. On the up side, I will be doing less decorating inside due to a new family member…check out Evan and Mom’s Corner for details. I know most of you will zip to the end of the newsletter right now to discover who this is, but please do ready the ‘guts’ of the newsletter afterwards. (:
In this newsletter: Special Holiday Sale on Perennially Yours Top Ten Lists gardening books PLUS PowerPoint presentations on CDs; the 10th Annual Great Gardens and Landscaping Symposium makes a great gift; December happenings at Faddegon’s Nursery, forcing bulbs for the holidays, new organic deer proof product for winter shrub protection, winter shrub protection; and Evan and Mom’s Corner.
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DECADE CELEBRATION OF THE GREAT GARDENS AND LANDSCAPING SYMPOSIUM
April 12 – 14, 2013
The Equinox Resort in Manchester, VT
This symposium is going to be the big kahuna of them all! The event will spread over three days, hosted once again at the world-class Equinox Resort
(www.equinoxresort.com) in Manchester, VT. The festivities begin on Friday evening and running through Sunday noon. Day-only registration is available as well as overnight packages that include the symposium fee. Nationally recognized speakers will cover a range of topics from:
• The Art of Shade Gardening – Seeing Your Way Out of the Dark
• Design Strategies for Great Gardens
• The Benefits of Beneficials
• Sensational Flowering Shrubs for the Landscape
• Successful Gardening in Deer Country
• The Dazzling New Perennial Line-Up for 2013
• Ask the Experts Panel and
• Forgotten Garden Combinations
The symposium crescendos with ‘The Heirloom Life’, presented by the Fabulous Beekman Boys who are authors; owners of the Beekman 1802 organic farm and product line in Sharon Springs, NY, featured guests on Planet Green reality TV series and are one of 11 teams that embarked on a global adventure Season 21 of “The Amazing Race,” that premiered Sunday, September 30, 2012. They are now also guests on the Cooking Channel, aired Thursday nights, 10:00 pm ET.
Combine this fantastic lecture line-up with gourmet food, luxurious accommodations, a charming setting in a Vermont village that also supports remarkable shopping outlets, and hundreds of fun-loving gardeners from around the Northeast and beyond, and superior pricing, and you have the ingredients for a sell-out event. No surprise. The symposium has sold out or been close to selling out for the past four years!
For the complete agenda, speaker profiles, lecture descriptions and registration details, please visit www.pyours.com/symposium. Below are the rates. If you have questions, please call me at (518) 885-3471. (photo of Jessica Walliser – best selling author, national speaker and will present two lectures at the symposium)
Symposium Overnight Packages at the Equinox Resort:
One night (Friday, April 12): $288.87 for a single or $412.74 for a double ($206.37 per person). The package includes Friday night’s accommodations; full breakfast, lunch; refreshment break; Friday night’s lecture, five lectures on Saturday, symposium handouts, garden gift, door prizes, and all taxes and gratuities. Two-night packages (Friday and Saturday) are $509.48 for a single or $690.30 for a double ($345.15 per person) and include the above one night amenities PLUS Saturday night accommodations, Sunday breakfast and three symposium sessions on Sunday (experts panel and two lectures) and all taxes & gratuities.
To make reservations for packages, call The Equinox Resort at (877) 854-7625 Monday – Friday between 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (EST) and specify the Great Gardens package. You can also book online on their web site, www.equinoxresort.com.
Day Only Symposium Registration Fees: ALL Day Only registrations go through Perennially Yours. Click here for day only registration.
Saturday Lectures: $98 per person includes five garden lectures on Saturday, coffee, refreshments, lunch, handouts, garden gift, and door prizes. You may attend the Friday evening lecture at no cost if your schedule permits.
Saturday and Sunday Lectures: $129 per person includes ALL symposium lectures & experts panel (9 sessions), Saturday & Sunday a.m. coffee, refreshments, Saturday lunch, handouts, garden gift and door prizes.
Sunday Only lectures: $49 per person includes Experts Panel, two lectures, a.m. coffee, garden gift & door prizes.
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Fun Holiday Events at Faddegon’s Nursery
I am so enjoying my position at Faddegon’s Nursery in Latham, NY that includes event programming. We’ve hosted a range of terrific events including wine and beer tastings, llama walks and a pumpkin festival, lawn and garden lectures, pet photos with Santa, hands-on gardening workshops, and much more. December follows suit with lots of fun including a special 30% off all ribbons and bows (December 1 & 2); Jewelry extravaganza sale featuring 25% of all jewelry, including two premier vendors (December 8); buy two ornaments and get the 3rd one free (December 8 & 9) and 25% off all Fairy Garden supplies (excluding plants) and a chance to win a gift certificate from Faddegon’s (December 15 & 16). For more about these events and more, visit www.faddegons.com.
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TOP TEN LISTS GARDENING BOOKS MAKE FAB HOLIDAY GIFTS – ESPECIALLY AT THESE PRICES!
As many of you know, I am a huge fan of saving time and money in the garden. So why not with holiday shopping? For the month of December I’m offering special sales on my two softcover books: The Ultimate Flower Gardener’s Top Ten Lists and Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens – Seeing Your Way Out of the Dark. Both books are written for gardeners in zones 3 – 7. The Ultimate Flower Gardener’s Top Ten Lists has 70 top ten lists; 42 of which feature topnotch plants for sun and shade (perennials, annuals, flowering shrubs, groundcovers, climbing vines and more). It also covers design tips, what to do when in the garden, fertilizers, mulches, dividing perennials, dealing with plant disease, insects, and critters – all from an organic perspective, and much, much more. The Top Ten Lists for Beautiful Shade Gardens focuses on an extensive range of plants, perennials, flowering shrubs, annuals, bulbs, evergreens, climbing plants, ornamental trees and more, and design tips for shade. I initially wrote this book to complement the Ultimate Flower Gardener’s book. The books retail for $23.95 and $21.95. More about these books may be found at www.pyours.com/books.
The December special offers either book, signed, for only $19, with FREE SHIPPING. Or buy BOTH books, signed, for only $35, with FREE SHIPPING. No joke! But don’t dilly-dally. The prices change back on January 1st!
To pay by check or credit card, click on www.pyours.com/books.
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MY OFFICE STORAGE PROBLEM IS YOUR GAIN!
This past year I started putting my PowerPoint presentations on CDs so that folks could purchase and take it with them after a lecture. That way they could click through the slides, which coordinate with the provided handout, and have the luxury of moving at their own pace and making more detailed notes in reference to their own gardens. These CD’s were a great success! I sold them for $5 per PowerPoint CD, including the handout and tax.
In an effort to make room for my 2013 projects, I am putting the remaining CD’s on sale for only $4.50, with FREE SHIPPING! These are only available by check. I cannot afford to take a loss via Paypal administrative fees. Lectures include Top Perennials by Season, Not Tonight Deer, Right Plant, Right Spot and others. Please click here for the list of garden lectures/PowerPoints available and order form.
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Forcing Bulbs for Holiday Cheer
This is the time of the year when flower gardeners start having bloom withdrawal. Our gloveless hands start shaking and our eyes desperately seek flowery photos in gardening magazines. Why settle for anything other than the real thing? It’s easy to force some bulbs to burst forth with dazzling blooms in December and January. Read more
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Protect Sensitive Shrubs from Winter Damage
This is a great month to give selected evergreens a ‘winter jacket’ to help protect them from Old Man Winter’s havoc. Climbing roses and bigleaf Hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) can also benefit from additional insulation. Applying an anti-transpirante, also known as an anti-dessicant, reduces damage from drying winds, winter sun scorch and moisture depletion due to frozen ground. read more
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STOP DEER DAMAGE THIS WINTER
Now is the time of year to protect your trees and shrubs against deer damage and harsh winter wind. Check out this new product called Deer Free Winter Armor, made by Garden Girls LLC. Deer Free Winter Armor is both an anti-desiccant (winter wind protector) and a deer repellent. It is completely organic and lasts up to 6 months, as opposed to other products that need to be re-applied after 3 months. Plants that benefit from this treatment include all needle and broadleaved evergreen trees and shrubs. Arborvitae, hemlock, and rhododendron are particular deer favorites.
To learn more about this product and the retail stores where it is sold (Faddegon’s Nursery provides the application service for this product!), visit the company’s web site at http://www.deerfreeproducts.com.
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EVAN AND MOM’S CORNER
It didn’t take long. The empty nest was driving me crazy. Surprised? Welcome Zoe! Zoe is part beagle and yellow lab, a gem from Mutt and Labs Rescue. She was rescued from a high kill shelter in South Carolina and arrived at 44 Chapman Street on October 28th. She was 10 weeks old and about 10 pounds at ‘delivery’. She was skin and bones. Initially she was incredibly timid, wary of everything and everyone. Now she is coming out of her shell, fattening up and blossoming into a fun, extremely smart, loving pup. One of the things I love about her markings is what I call ‘Angel wings’ on her back. Evan met Zoe seven days after she joined the family. We took her to a soccer game and the two bonded. Heart warming. We all had a group hug! Evan is excited to spend time with Zoe and help train her over a long Christmas break. Zoe is looking forward to training Evan to put his shoes away when he comes in the house. Big learning curves for both! Sergio and I will sit back and enjoy the circus. Ahhhhhh…..
Warm wishes for a blessed Christmas, holiday season and New Year!
Perennially Yours,
Kerry Ann Mendez
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