Memorial Day Weekend is almost here and with it often come family picnics. One of our family's favorite picnic entrees and one that is easily transported to the picnic location is Fried Chicken in a Bread Basket. We like it so much that a few years ago I put it in our Herman Family Cookbook. I have copied it here so you can enjoy it too. If you prefer, you can oven-fry the chicken (a healthier way to fix it). The recipe calls for dried thyme but I often snip fresh thyme out of my herb garden to use. Remember that it takes 3 times as much fresh herb as the equivalent in dried product. The Herman family hopes you enjoy this family recipe. Have a delightful Memorial Day Weekend!

Our 2013 shipments of nursery stock will begin arriving this week or next. We will have a fabulous selection of trees and shrubs for you. Among them will be several new varieties. Following are a few that we are offering for the first time this year:
 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•  

 

Deutzia 'Chardonnay Pearls' -- This lovely deciduous shrub has crisp lime-yellow foliage and then sports white pearl-like buds which open into fragrant flowers soon after. Growing only two to three feet tall, 'Chardonnay Pearls' is a lovely addition to a perennial bed or can serve as a border plant in your shrub bed. Deutzia thrives in partial shade.

Willow 'Flamingo' -- This dappled willow has beautiful foliage in mottled colors of pink, white, and green. New foliage shows the pink dappling while mature foliage becomes dappled green and white. 'Flamingo' likes sun or part shade and, when trimmed, will stay about 4' to 6' tall. Trimming helps keep the bright new leaf growth coming -- an added plus with this plant.

Buddleia 'Lo and Behold Ice Chip' -- This Butterfly Bush, a Proven Winner selection, has many attractions. Its fragrant blooms of pure white grow on branches of silvery foliage. It needs no deadheading and the blooms recur. It has a spreading habit, growing 18" to 24" and 3' wide so it can serve as a shrub-type ground cover. Butterflies love it! It is a heat and drought tolerant plant.

Hydrangea 'Vanilla Strawberry' (Rehny) -- This is a new "must have" hydrangea for your landscape! Its blooms begin in July and continue through September. They begin as white but soon turn pink and then progress to strawberry red and burgundy. Since the shrub continues to produce new blooms during this period, it will sport blooms of all these colors at once. 'Strawberry Vanilla' likes sun or part-sun and grows six or seven feet tall. This is a spectacular shrub!

Spiraea 'Japanese White Gold' -- This spirea sports bright yellow foliage that stays yellow all season. In late May beautiful snow-white blooms appear. 'White Gold' likes full sun and grows 2 1/2' to 5' tall, another lovely addition of color for your landscape.

Weigela 'Wings of Fire' -- This sun-loving shrub has lavender pink flowers in the spring but its real claim to fame is its distinctive red foliage in the fall. 'Wings of Fire' provides color and texture while growing 3' to 4' high and wide.

Stop by Norway Gardens often during the coming weeks to see all the beautiful trees and shrubs as they arrive. If you are wanting to refurbish your existing landscape or create a new one, let our professionals help you. We can design what you want and then you can install it or let us do that for you.

 

 If you are in the market for grass seed, there are facts you need to know. Not all grass seed is created equal! Know what you are buying. Check the label and know what grass seed varieties are in the blend. How much weed seed and filler is in the blend? How large an area does the blend cover per pound? What are the characteristics of the seeds in this blend? Is this the best choice for the area you wish to seed?

Here are some of the grass seed varieties offered at Norway Gardens. All are Execu-Turf grass seed blends. We consider them to be the best in quality and value for our growing conditions in this area. Included here are kinds of grasses included in each blend, where the blend might be used, and area covered per pound of seed.

Execu-Turf Grass Seed Blends at Norway Gardens:

• Executive Sun: This blend of 60% assorted fine ryegrasses and 40% elite bluegrasses, is an excellent all-purpose blend for sunny areas. It gives an "executive" look to your lawn. Use 6 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for bare ground and 2 to 3 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for overseeding .
• Premium Shade: Containing fine fescues, ryegrasses, and some elite bluegrasses, this is the best blend for shady areas. Use 6 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for bare ground and 2 to 3 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for overseeding .
• Fairway 4 Blend: If you are looking for grass seed with very quick cover, this is the blend you want. It is composed of 4 elite varieties of perennial ryegrasses. It is fine-bladed and looks beautiful, but since it contains all rye grasses, it lacks the self-repairing qualities of bluegrass and is more disease-prone than blends of different kinds of grasses would be. Use 7 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for bare ground and 3 to 4 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for overseeding .
• Playmaker: A great blend for your backyard, for play areas and other heavy-traffic parts of your lawn or a good choice if you want a truly easy-care lawn. Playmaker is made up of 80% turf-type fescues and 20% fine rye grasses and bluegrasses. This makes a lovely lawn through not as deep a green as those containing bluegrass. Use 8 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for bare ground and 4 to 5 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for overseeding .
• Showplace: If you want a stunning showplace lawn, this blend of 80% elite bluegrasses and 20% fine rye grasses is the choice for you. It requires more attention in watering and fertilizing than do some of the others and it takes longer to germinate because it is mostly rye. However, it give you a truely stunning lawn. Use 4 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for bare ground and 2 to 3 lbs. per 1000 sq. ft. for overseeding .

Note that the various blends cover different areas per pound. Showplace Mix, for example, is the most expensive per pound. However, one pound goes much further. (Bluegrass seeds are much tinier than other grass seeds so there are many more seeds per pound of bluegrass.)

When you purchase a tree or shrub and are ready to plant, follow these steps to help your new plant thrive.

1. Dig a hole twice as wide and a little deeper than the root ball of your new tree or shrub.
2. Put part of the soil you removed back into the hole. You want to plant your tree or shrub the same depth it was planted in the pot. Loosened soil at the bottom of your new plant will make its roots easily able to penetrate the dirt beneath them.
3. Remove your plant from its pot and put it into the hole. If your tree's roots are in a burlap-covered ball, you can leave the burlap but cut the twine around it.
4. Replace 1/2 the soil around the roots of your planting and then give it a good dose of Fertilome Root Stimulator mixed in a bucket of water.
5. Finish filling the hole with dirt up to the level of the dirt surrounding your plant.
6. Put mulch around your new planting about 3" deep. This helps hold moisture in the soil around the plant's roots and prevents "lawn mower disease" (a mower getting too close to the plant and hitting it.)
7. Make sure your new tree or shrub gets about 1 1/2" of water a week -- either from rainfall or from watering.