Behind the scenes, potting up never really seems to stop here at the nursery. Right now, all the cuttings are graduating from their jiffy pots into their 2-litre pots. It really does feel a bit like a ceremony — the babies are off to school. This stage is one of my favourites because it’s where…
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If you think rhododendrons are only for large gardens, think again. Dwarf rhododendrons – often called alpines – are absolute gems, especially for small town gardens or those tricky, exposed borders in bigger country gardens. These tiny, mat-forming evergreen shrubs come from some of the toughest environments on earth – the high Himalayas and other…
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Summer Pruning: The Secret to More Rhododendron Flowers Early January is one of my favourite times in the garden. With a bit of spare time over the holidays, Steve and I can finally slow down, observe what’s really happening in the garden, and focus on the jobs that will make the biggest difference long term.…
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Steve’s Secret to Perfect Hedges (and why mine was… politely removed from duty) One of the most common questions we get from visitors is: “How do you keep your hedges so full, green, and dense right to the ground?” The answer is simple — it’s all in the way Steve prunes them. All of our…
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Rainwater vs Irrigation: Why Plants Always Prefer a Natural Drink If you’ve ever walked around the garden after a good downpour and thought everything looked greener, brighter, and somehow happier, you’re not imagining it. Rainwater really is the best drink your plants can get. While well water, bore water, and treated town supply certainly keep…
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Although the weather has been wildly unpredictable this season — snow, severe hailstorms, late frosts and everything in between — the rhododendrons have still managed to shine. They’ve taken every bit of extreme weather in their stride, and honestly, I think this year they’ve proven just how tough and resilient they really are. Over the…
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🌿 Lisa is Going Potty Potting Up! If you’ve ever wondered what happens before a rhododendron ends up ready for sale at RhodoDirect, let me take you behind the scenes. There’s never any downtime here in the nursery — it’s a constant cycle of growing, potting, pruning, and re-potting again! And now that we’ve added…
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Stop and Smell the Rhodos – Discover the Fragrant Rhododendrons One of the questions I often get asked at the nursery is, “Are there any rhododendrons that are fragrant?”The answer is a resounding yes! And once you’ve grown a few of these beauties, you’ll find yourself seeking them out again and again. While colour often…
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Hot Winds, Cooked Flowers, and Resilient Rhododendrons What a windy start to our flowering season! Initially, our display garden was at least two weeks later than normal, but then one hot, windy Saturday arrived and everything seemed to change at once. The warm blast encouraged the flower buds to open — and at the same…
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Fighting Thrips the Natural Way 🌿 If you’ve ever noticed silvery patches on leaves, distorted flowers, or tiny little critters hiding inside blooms – chances are you’ve met thrips. These tiny sap-sucking insects might be small (less than 2 mm long!) but they can cause a lot of damage in the garden, especially when numbers…
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