Time To Start Planning Your Spring Garden!

 Even though the weather has been bitterly cold recently, the spring planting season is not too far away, and now is the time to begin planning your garden!

Blueberries are a relatively pest free plant and need minimal care once established. They prefer acidic soil that has plenty of organic matter. You need to have at least two different varieties for good cross-pollination, and they need to be blooming at the same time in order for them to set fruit. A few seasons after planting, blueberries have the potential to produce up to two gallons of berries per bush. The varieties for sale are early bloomers (‘Climax’ and ‘Premier’), mid-season bloomers (‘Brightwell,’ and ‘Powderblue’), and late spring bloomers (‘Delite,’ and ‘Tiftblue’).

Blackberries are easy to grow, are relatively pest-free and require minimal care. They are self-fruitful, meaning you only need to plant one variety for the plant to set fruit. They can be planted as close as two feet apart for a hedge or screen. Three varieties of blackberries, which are all thornless, are available this year: ‘Arapaho’, which ripen in mid-June, and ‘Navajo’, which ripens in mid-July.

Raspberry bush types we'll have available: ‘Caroline’, which is an erect variety and can tolerate the summer heat, and ‘Dorman Red’, which is a trailing variety. They are ever-bearing varieties meaning that they produce fruit in the summer as well as the fall. Both varieties are self-fruitful, have medium to large, flavorful fruit that are excellent for cooking and for making jams.

Fig trees thrive in our climate and are easy to grow. They can be eaten fresh, preserved and have a variety of culinary uses. Two varieties of figs are available: ‘Celeste’ with its light brown to violet colored fruit, and ‘Brown Turkey’, which has a dark brown fruit.

Pomegranate is new for us this year. They are semi-tropical attractive shrubs that can grow six to ten feet in height and have thorny slender branches. Red to orange flowers appears on the new growth.

Gardenias fill the air with their fragrance in June. They make an excellent foundation hedges. Unlike most other gardenia varieties, the variety ‘Frostproof’, available at the sale, will not lose its flower buds after a late season frost.

Two types of low growing evergreen ferns that add beauty to shaded areas are also available. The autumn fern has green foliage during the summer that changes to a coppery color in the fall while the tassel fern has attractive green fronds. Both are great additions to the landscape and are low maintenance.

Deciduous azaleas have showy springtime blooms and are hardy plants once established. Four selections of are available: ‘My Mary’, which can grow to height of 5 feet tall and has flowers in varying shades of yellow; ‘Camellia’s Blush’, which has a pink color; ‘Summer Eyelet’, which is white; ‘Lucky Lady’ with its red to yellow colored blossoms.

Heucheras, also known as coral-bells, are herbaceous perennials. They prefer shady locations and have an excellent tolerance to heat and humidity. Our sale includes the varieties ‘Caramel’, which has apricot colored foliage and pink flowers, ‘Snow Angel’, which has variegated light green leaves with a creamy mottled appearance, and ‘Blackout’ with glossy black leaves and cream colored blooms.

Viburnums are hardy plants for the landscape and have outstanding foliage with fragrant white to creamy pink flowers. They are easy to grow and favor full sun to part shade. The plant sale offers two varieties: ‘Spring Bouquet’, which has dark black-blue fruit and an upright growth, and ‘Shasta’, which blooms continuously throughout the spring with the leaves taking on a purple to red color when planted in a sunny location. ‘Snowflake’ has clusters of white flowers of both sides of the stems, creating a double row of blooms on each side.

Apple trees are relatively easy for the homeowner to care for once they are established. The varieties ‘Red Delicious’ and ‘Gala’ are available at our sale. The ‘Red Delicious’ has large red fruit that ripens in late August to early September. ‘Gala’ apples ripen in early August and are an attractive combination of red and yellow. At least two varieties are required for pollination.

If you are interested in purchasing these excellent plants, they are available at affordable prices at the 2014 Annual Gwinnett County Extension plant sale. Follow the link, complete your order form, and please include payment in full. We accept checks (made out to The Gwinnett Cooperative Fund) or cash only for our prepaid orders.

The deadline for ordering is Tuesday, March 11, 2014, and the order pick up day will be Wednesday, March 19, from 10:00am to 6:00pm at The Gwinnett County Fairgrounds, 2405 Sugarloaf Parkway, Lawrenceville, Ga. Your receipt will be at the check-in office.

 Additionally, on Monday evening, March 3 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM, there will be a free class on Growing Blueberries, Blackberries, Pomegranates, Figs, and Apples at:

Registration is required by February 28 by contacting Timothy Daly at timothy.daly@gwinnettcounty.com or 678.377.4010.