What are you favorite bulbs to plant in the Fall?

It’s the time when days are getting shorter and the temperatures are getting cooler. Your garden will soon be seeing its last of summer flowers and it will be time to start checking things off of your Fall garden clean up list. This is Whispering Springs Nursery’s list of top ten things that we like to do in our Fall gardens before they are put to bed for the winter:

1. Add leaves and grass clippings to your compost pile.
2. Before the first frost comes (usually mid to late October for our region) dig and harvest all of your veggies. Place any green tomatoes on a shelve in a cool area so they can ripen slowly.
3. Mulch your roses and tender perennials with peat moss or straw to help prevent winter damage.
4. Stake any newly-planted trees to help them get through their first winter.
5. Pull up annuals and prune perennials
6. Do final raking of leaves and make a to do list of projects for the spring.
7. Remove old fruiting cane of berry bushes. Prune grape and blueberries.
8. Give all of your plants a good drink, especially your trees. Just because it’s cooler, doesn’t mean they don’t need moisture!
9. Shop for your favorite bulbs. Make sure you choose a variety that will bloom in early, mid, and late spring.
10. Plant hardscape and give the trees and shrubs time to become established before having to weather the summer heat.

Did we leave off one of your big Fall garden “to-dos”? Leave it in the comments below! Or, come by Whispering Springs Nursery in Jasper, GA and tell us about it! We’d love to help you with your Fall gardening and planning for the Spring.

Squirrels. Squirrels everywhere! They are in the trees, on your bird feeders, and in your birdbaths. You’ve even taken precautions against the cute, but still annoyingly pesky critters and bought “squirrel proof” bird feeders that had virtually no effect. Up here in Jasper, GA, Whispering Springs Nursery knows exactly how you feel about these rodents, and we’ve got a few tricks up our sleeves to help you keep them away from your precious bird seed.

squirrel eating from bird feeder (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

5-7-9

Believe it or not, squirrels actually do have limits as far as how far they can jump up, over, or drop down. According to wildlife biologists, squirrels cannot jump more than 5 feet off of the ground onto a baffled feeder, and they are reluctant to drop down more than 9 feet. So, when placing your feeder, try to put it at least 7 feet from a tree or house and make it at least 5 feet tall and you will eliminate many squirrels ability to even reach the bird seed.

Soda Bottle

Despite their best acrobatic efforts, a simple soda bottle placed around the wires leading to your bird feeders will deter even the most graceful of squirrels. As your furry friends climb along the wires to the bird feeder, they will hit the soda bottle and roll right off! Keep in mind the first rule though, and make sure the feeder is at least nine feet below their nearest drop off branch or roof.

Slinky Trick

Threading the post of the bird feeder stand through the slinky will give the squirrels a downward ride every time. Attach one end of the slinky to the bottom of the feeder and when the squirrels try to climb up the post to the feeder, they will ride back to the ground on the slinky every time.

Cage in Your Feeder

A small sized wire mesh – like hardware cloth – will be perfect to protect your feeders from the squirrels. It will be large enough to allow the birds in, but small enough to keep the squirrels and big bully birds out.

Try out these anti-squirrel methods on your bird feeders – either one or all of them – and let us know what kind of success you have. You should be able to finally enjoy watching the birds feast on you feeders, and make the squirrels go back to watching from the trees.

The days are growing shorter and as soon as the time changes on November 3rd, the sun will be going down at nearly 5:30 pm leaving us with several hours of darkness before we are all actually ready for bed. So during these dark evening hours, don’t let your landscape go unappreciated. Whispering Springs Nursery can install a low voltage lighting system to highlight your beautiful home and landscape, even in the dark hours of the mornings and evenings.

When you’re ready to install lighting in your landscape, your first decision you have to make is where do you put it? Here are a three ideas that you should keep in mind when you plan your outdoor lighting at your Jasper, GA home:

1. Make it Eye-Catching

   When your neighbors pass your house, you want them to stop and take a second look at the beautiful place you’ve created. Approach your landscape from a creative direction, and try to make the light accentuate the most unique features of your home.

2. Guide Your Way

   Landscape lighting not only creates beauty, but of course also serves a purpose. Adding lighting to the foot paths around your home and your from your driveway to your house will help you get in and around your house with and early sunset.

3. Mix and Match Your Style

   Using different types of lighting helps create interest and avoid a monotonous appearance. If you use lights on stakes, you can simply pull them up and move them around each year if plant growth has blocked the light.

Whispering Springs Nursery would love to help you create interest in your landscape with the perfect lighting. Give us a call today to schedule a design consultation!

Roses are by far one of the most popular flowers for gardeners. They come in varieties by the thousands that vary in color, size, bloom time, growth type, and preferential growing conditions. Some roses can be relatively hardy and maintenance free, while others are susceptible to disease and attack by insects. Whispering Springs Nursery has some tips for you on how to encourage the best growth from your roses. 

Disease

Most roses are susceptible to powdery mildew and black spot. Black spot manifests itself as black spots on the leaves of the plant. The leaves will turn yellow and fall off which can lead to severe defoliation. Powdery mildew appears as a white-grey powdery substance on the leaves. The foliage and flower buds can be distorted as a result. There are two options for control: Buy rose varieties that are resistant to these diseases or treat with fungicides labeled appropriately.

Insects

Aphids are the most common insect that you will see feeding on your roses. They suck out the moisture from the undersides of leaves and attack buds before they open. They are easily controlled with insecticides for roses.

Fertilization

Roses should be fertilized once a month, March through September with about three tablespoons of general purpose or 10-10-10 fertilizer. If your roses are larger than 5′, feed them with 5 tablespoons of fertilizer.

Now is the time that you should be applying your last round of fertilizer to the roses in your Canton, GA landscape. Apply now to encourage another flush of blooms in the Fall and to help protect them from Winter damage. If you have questions about maintaining your Canton, GA landscape, give us a call or come visit today!

Fall is in the air. Even though it’s still August, up here in the north Georgia mountains you can almost taste the crisp Fall air starting to blow through the pines in the mornings. Along with campfires, hot chocolate, and changing leaves, Fall brings with it the time for planting once again. Now is the time to spruce up your patios and outdoor seating areas so you can enjoy them when the cool weather is finally here to stay. One of the easiest ways to make your outdoor areas beautiful is to add hanging pots and containers. To help you add beauty to your Jasper, GA deck or patio, Whispering Springs Nursery has found a few tried and true container recipes. 

The basic container recipe is easy. All you have to do is choose a filler, thriller and spiller. From that basic formula, there is an unlimited combination of plants you can choose to make the perfect container that shows off your personality and coordinates with your garden.

Black mondo grass, (Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’), bishop’s weed (Aegopodium podagraria var. variegatum) and pink oxalis (Oxalis crassipes).

Fall Grasses

Growing grasses in the fall is a surefire way to add color to your gardens. This container recipe combines blue fescue, Chrysanthemums, strawflower, and purple fountaingrass for a container that is not only colorful but combines several different textures as well.

Soft Flowers

On the other end of the texture aspect from the hard edges of grasses, you can choose these soft flowers and dark colors to invite Fall to your patio. Linaria, pandsies, and plox look great together in a small, 12-inch container in complimentary colors of dark purple, burgundy, and a soft white.

Do you need help figuring out what to plant in your containers? Bring them with you to Whispering Springs and we will help you find the perfect plants for the Fall.

Img via Flickr. 

Summer was high time for your vegetable garden, but just because the days are getting shorter doesn’t mean that your veggie crops have to dwindle, too. With creative thinking and planning, your gardens can yield a great crop of cool weather plants. Whispering Springs Nursery offers advice on how to get the most out of your Jasper, GA garden through the cooler months.

A Starting Place

The place to start when planning a Fall garden is with your region’s estimated first frost date, which in Jasper is somewhere between November 1st-November 10th. From there, you will plan backwards. Find the number of days to harvest for each vegetable you wish to plant. This can typically be found on the seed packet or online. Use that number to subtract back from the first frost date then add two more weeks. The additional time accounts for the slowing of growth as days shorten.

A Variety of Crops

What kind of crops can you look forward to harvesting this Fall? Stick with crops that do will in the cooler temperatures, and grow quickly. These include lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, turnips, onions, carrots, and more. Buying some of these as pre-grown seedlings will help you get a jump start on your Fall garden, but others such as the lettuce, radishes, and turnips grow quickly and will do well if you sow them directly in the ground.

Whispering Springs hopes that you continue to grow a great veggie garden throughout this Fall. If you need help figuring out what or when to plant, just give us a call! We’ll be happy to help!

August is one of the hottest months of the year here in Jasper, GA and the increased temperatures mean that you need to pay special attention to your plants and their needs. Even with the frequent rain that we have received, it is important that you water your gardens when they are looking dry. Often times, we think that it has been raining for days on end and when it finally stops, it takes us a week or more to realize that the skies have finally cleared. During this week, while you may think that the ground is wet and your plants should be fine, what is actually happening is that their roots and the soil have begun to dry out. To help keep your gardens alive through the sweltering heat of August, here are some tips from Whispering Springs Nursery. 

Watering Established Plantings

Your established trees, shrubs, and plants do not need daily, light watering. Instead, these plants benefit most from one deep watering a week. The amount of water your established plants need each week should amount to about an inch including the rainfall in your area and irrigation. If you water these plants frequently and lightly, it encourages shallow root systems and high water loss through evaporation. Deep, infrequent watering encourages deeper rooting and stronger, healthier plants.

Watering Annuals and New Plants

If you have chosen annuals for your gardens that are not drought tolerant, you need to be especially thoughtful with your watering. Make sure to water your annual beds early in the morning to reduce evaporation and give them plenty of moisture to make it through the hot day. These beds will probably need more than one inch of water a week, so just keep an eye on their leaves and the soil moisture to know when they are ready for more water.

With these simple tips, your gardens should do well through the rest of the hot summer months. When you’re ready to plant again this fall, make sure you come by our garden center in Jasper, GA – we’ve got the plants you’re looking for!

How is your yard looking these days? Overgrown with weeds or completely eaten by deer? Whispering Springs Nursery in Jasper, GA can help! We provide yard maintenance services and landscape design services – specializing in creating deer resistant gardens. 

Our yard maintenance package includes everything you need to keep your yard looking well cared for.

• Expert pruning of shrubs and small trees
  • All trees and shrubs need to be pruned to help promote their natural beauty and keep them at a reasonable size within your landscape. We can prune your trees, shrubs, roses, and more in a way so that they are able to grow healthy and strong, yet not overtake the look of your yard.
• Clean up of planting beds
  • Garden beds are beautiful when they are first planted, but as they grow, they need to be regularly cleaned and maintained. We will perform weed control, mulching, fertilization, leaf removal, and seasonal maintenance of plant material such as dead-heading perennials. These services keep your garden beds clean and tidy throughout the year.
• Maintenance of ponds and water features
  • Whether you have a pond of your favorite fish, a water fall, or other water feature, each of these require specific maintenance duties year long to keep them fully operational and keep their flora and fauna healthy. Ponds in particular that contain fish require special attention during the colder months to help your fish stay healthy until the freezing temperatures lift.

Our yard maintenance services are offered on a schedule that fits your needs. Call us today to schedule a consultation and take your landscape from blah to beautiful!

In the North Georgia mountains up here around Jasper, GA, trying to get grass to grow is almost as difficult as trying to make a water lily grow on dry land. When Whispering Springs Nursery does landscape designs, instead of using grass for groundcover, we like to use one of these several options as a beautiful alternative to grass.

Thyme – Not only does this plant cover ground, it makes your space beautiful with its pink or white flowers in the spring or summer and fills the air with its fresh aroma.

Sweet Woodruff – This is a great plant for groundcover that you won’t have to worry about becoming invasive. It forms in well mannered clumps about 12 inches tall and when crushed smells like freshly mowed hay.

Brass Buttons – If you need a groundcover that you can walk on, this is a great option. It grows tiny, bronze colored flowers and only grows about 6 inches tall. It likes full sun and well-drained soil.

Bishop’s Weed – For a shade-loving groundcover, look no further. Bishop’s weed loves full shade and well drained soil. It also grows quickly so make sure it has plenty of space to wander.

Lamium – This groundcover is easy, peasy. It blooms through the summer with pink or white flowers, and even when it’s not blooming it still provides visual interest with its silver foliage.

Epimedium – If you have one of those places that is shady, yet dry, this is a great option for you. And it sprouts interestingly shaped purple or pink blooms.

Lily-of-the-Valley – One of our all time favorites, this plant is one of the easiest growing ground covers and will fill your yard with a wonderful fragrance.

These are just a few of our favorite groundcovers for both sun and shady areas. Do you need help creating a landscape design for your Jasper, GA yard? Give us a call! We’d love to help!

Water features create a beautiful centerpiece for your landscape, and provide the tranquil, relaxing sounds of running water. But, many people shy away from water features because they have heard about how high maintenance they can be – skimming, scrubbing, filling, and carefully balancing the ratio of fish to plants to try to keep the water healthy. But, all of these hassles only come with water features that include some sort of pond. Have you thought about installing a pond-less water feature? Whispering Springs Nursery in Jasper, GA brings you the 3 benefits to going pond-less.

1 – Less Maintenance

When you have a pond-less water feature, you don’t have to worry about balancing the water conditions, the health of your water plants, or your fish. You will never have to empty and scrub out your pond, or worry about its water level, because you won’t have one to deal with! Once pond-less water features are installed, they are virtually maintenance free.

2 – Safer For the Family

Without a pool of water for a child or pet to fall into, you don’t have to worry about them playing in the yard. You will still get the benefits of the tranquility that a water feature can provide to your outdoor living space, without the safety hazards of someone, or something, falling in.

3 – No Space Too Small

When you are working with a pond-less water feature, there is virtually no space too small for an installation. Simply select a design to fit your desired area and let the installation process begin.

James Gyrno specializes in water features. Not only will he design and install a feature for your Jasper, GA garden, but he will spend extra time adjusting stones and water flow to create the perfect music of trickling water through your landscape.

If you are interested in a water feature for your landscape, give us a call today! We look forward to seeing what we can create for you!