Spring is coming… this weekend as a matter of fact.
Here are some signs:
I will be digging up a lot of helleborus orientalis and foetidus for the sale.
Lewis Ginter has begun the process of swapping out bulbs from the Conservatory every two weeks. They pull them, bag them and give me a call. My garage starts filling up with large trash bags of bulbs to be processed and prepared for the sale. So far I have about 15 bags full of bulbs. Here are some photos of flowers that are still intact (click on an image to see a larger photo):
'Winter Aconite' from my side yard
I was so excited to spot this Winter Aconite a couple of days ago! I purchased it at the plant sale last year and was not aware of this plant previously. It is an exciting foreshadowing of Spring. Thanks for donating this Kristin!
It is time to change as the seasons march forward. Thank you for your service winter header:
Photo taken in my front yard. Sedum 'Autumn Joy'
Yes, I’m dreaming about what is happening underneath these mounds of snow! Soon it will be all gone and we will launch into spring where there is something new to see in the garden each day. But for now, I am enjoying the winter landscape.
Sedum 'Autumn Joy'
For those who donate plants, there are excellent PERKS! There will be a PREVIEW sale just for plant donors on Thursday, Apirl 29 from 4pm-dark. On this day, plant donors may purchase up to the number of plants donated by that person. Some items actually sell out on this day. So the more plants you donate, the more purchasing power you have. It is permissible to bring a friend and share your “credits” with your friend. Saturday at 1:00, all leftover plants are given to ANY plant donor in ANY quantity. Those who are not plant donors can still purchase plants at this time until they are gone.
The procedure for the sale is this: If you have plants to donate, you can leave them on my front porch any time during the week before the sale (please leave your name so I know who donated what). If you can label them, that’s great, but most people (like myself) are lucky to get them in the pots in time. No invasive alien plants will be sold and we love to see Virginia native plants at the sale.
Then, if you are a donor, show up at the preview or any of the sale times if you would like to purchase plants. Donors who would like free leftover plants can show up at 1:00 or later after the sale is over (there’s always good stuff left). And, of course, you don’t have to donate plants to shop on Friday and Saturday.
Feel free to post comments or helpful tips and any gardening info you want to share. As we get closer to the sale, I will be posting more information so stay tuned!
Hi Folks. Welcome to the backyard plant sale blog! The main purpose of this blog is to tell you about the plant sale I hold in my backyard in Ashland, VA each year. And I throw in some other stuff too.
The plants at the sale are donated by interested people like you and come from our own gardens. Last year, we had over 1600 plants donated and, additionally, over 2400 bulbs were donated by Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. Proceeds from the sale benefit The Nature Conservancy’s Chesapeake Rivers Program specifically for land acquisitions in our area.
The dates this year will be (rain or shine — if it’s thundering we wait it out on the porch):
Friday, April 30th from 4:00 pm – dark
Saturday, May 1st from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
The location is my backyard at 203 Howard Street in Ashland, Virginia.
For those of you who love to garden, this is a wonderful way of making a donation to an organization that preserves land in our area. And it’s a whole lot of fun too! I hope to see you there.
Julie Ericksen
