Wrapping things up for the winter here at MSG, with fond memories of a summer filled with life.

Pale Purple Coneflower (Echinacea pallida) and Prairie Larkspur (Delphinium virescens)

It’s July! Did you know that the birth flower for this sweltering month is the Delphinium (Larkspur)? This fact is actually quite puzzling considering that Delphinium virescens, the Larkspur carried by Morning Sky Greenery, becomes dormant during the hotter part of the year including – you guessed it – July. It has been a while since our last update because June was a quite busy month. Everyone here is hard at work on various projects. Sally is currently working diligently on native flower arrangements for the wedding of a previous employee this weekend. Beautiful arrangements of Echinacea purpurea (Purple Coneflower) and Ratibida pinnata (Yellow Coneflower) are being gathered.  This has been a nice change of pace for student employees who have been working tenaciously on a project well suited to their youthful, limber bodies. They have been working to expand our outdoor nursery space by almost 25% by re-purposing a previously landscaped area. Also with large orders winding down, storm damage to our outdoor lattice fencing is being repaired this month. We look forward to seeing local plant lovers at our booth on Horticulture Night, July 29th at the University of Minnesota’s West Central Research and Outreach Center.

A view of some of the wind damage to our native grasses.

Tuesday morning, bleary eyed and still half asleep, Jen and I arrived at Morning Sky Greenery. Habitual and necessary coffee in hand, we slunk through the greenhouse to activate the new automatic watering system for the outdoor plants. Casually opening the door and conversing normally, we stepped out to activate the spigot which provides water to the automatic system. Gasps. Stepping into the back, it looked as though many of our grasses had been picked up by a crane and dropped forcefully into a pile on our forbes. Packs, flats, and plugs were strewn about in a scene that proved instantly stressful. Standing around and muttering generically surprised phrases was all we could do for at least ten minutes, as we wandered the grounds assessing the damages. A large diseased tree, thankfully destined for removal anyway, was downed by the wind directly beside our building. Luckily it fell perfectly, missing the building and also taking care of some unwanted shrubbery. Waiting for one of our supervisors to arrive, we marveled at what the wind had done. We had known that a storm occurred the night previous, but had no reason to believe that significant damage may have accompanied it. Mary and Sally soon arrived and the cleanup began. Because grasses could now be identified with some accuracy, a salvage operation was in order. As many plugs as possible were identified and organized, but the botanical horde was not without its casualties. Since Tuesday, a majority of time here has been spent organizing and replacing grasses most greatly affected. Fortunately, our stock will not be negatively affected and all grasses will be available as normal. The summer is just beginning here at Morning Sky, but we can already tell that it will be a beautiful one. Get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend!

Well, OK, winter is finally here and we have stacked up all of our plants for the winter. ( Make sure you listen to our little ditty on the SHOP ONLINE page!) It is a very laborious task, but it needs to get done. It feels good to work hard and sweat even when your nose is cold and then have to peel off your winter coat because you are way too hot! Hard work is rewarding and when the days are done you can kick back and feel good about the accomplishment! All the perennials, trees, shrubs and vines all tucked in for winter.  Now we can all rest…. a little.

In Minnesota, winter is on it’s way and now is the time to finish up last minute raking, gardening and seeding before the snow and the cold is upon us! I planted a few new plants this fall that I wanted to try in my home garden including; Lady slippers, Ben Lear Cranberry, and Pennsylvania Sedge. I anxiously await their awakening in the spring! Why don’t I ever get tired of this? Every year I can’t wait until the fall, when it is my turn to plant the gardens after a season of helping others plant theirs. I love fall plants with their other pigments revealed or even all brown and withered…yet the roots so vigorous and new, ready to take hold of the earth as the ground begins to freeze and thaw, freeze and thaw freeze and freeze and brrrrr freeze to the depths beyond any shovel or post hole digger. Then of course the wait, yes the wait, seemingly endless, until one day the snow begins to melt and the earth thaws and then warms up again, revealing buds a new….

Now is the time to plan for your fall seeding project. In West Central Minnesota the optimal time for planting native wildflower and grass seeds is after the 15th of October. For more information on site preparation and maintenance schedule go to our “Shop Online” page and click on “Seeding and Planting” If you have any questions, please inquire! Order your seeds online under the “Categories” section and click on “Seeds“.

Please note that your newly purchased native wildflowers and grasses are going into dormancy. Do not be alarmed by their fall color (actually, very pretty), browning tops  or, even, the lack of leaves. This is a normal process for your natives plants. Shorter days, cooler temperatures and a light frost will trigger the slow down of the top growth of these plants. You may notice that the root systems are vigorous and may even appear “root bound”. This is a natural process and very desirable. These plants continue to produce roots, and even accelerates root production, at this time of the year. Don’t be alarmed!  Plant these root plugs.  After the ground freezes,  place 3-4″ of mulch over top to protect them from frost-heaving (Popping out of the ground!). Uncover your natives in the spring to allow the ground to warm up. Most of our native plants love the heat and will start to grow when the ground starts to warms! In Minnesota, watch for them to come up May or early June! Enjoy these remarkable plants!

Fall is a great time for planting your native wildflowers flowers and grasses! You will get a “jump-start” on the spring by doing so!

Send a green gift that will bring enjoyment for years to come!

Morning Sky Greenery offers gift certificates for $10.00 and up. Each certificate is sent with a lovely hand-painted note card with your special message on the inside.