Adams Gardens Nursery

A full service nursery and garden center in Nampa, Idaho.

Christmas Trees Now in Stock

Our shipment of live (potted) and cut Christmas trees are in stock and ready for you to take home!  Come visit us for great selection and knowledgeable, friendly service.  Mention that you saw this post on our website to receive $5 off your tree.

Special Holiday Hours:
9am-6pm Monday - Thursday
9am-8pm Friday & Saturday (Dec. 2-3 & Dec. 9-10 ONLY)
10am-5pm Sunday

2011 Fall Sale on Now

Fall is a great time to plant and it’s also a great time for us to clear out our inventory to make room for next year’s!  Come visit us early for best selection.

GARDEN SHOP

MISCELLANEOUS

EVERGREENS

FALL COLOR

TREES

SHRUBS

Planting to Attract Wildlife

As spring approaches you may be considering what you want to plant in your gardens and flowerbeds. If you enjoy the presence of song birds, hummingbirds, butterflies and other pleasant creatures, your garden can be customized to draw them in!

Here are a few suggestions to increase your backyard wildlife population.

Hummingbirds are attracted to: Abelia, Ajuga, Hollyhock, Azaleas, Beebalm, Begonia, Blue Queen Salvia, Bottlebush, Canna, Columbine, Dahlia, Delphinium, Foxglove, Geranium, Gladiolus, Hibiscus, Impatiens, Petunia and Trumpet creeper.

Butterflies are attracted to: Abelia, Azeleas, Beebalm, Blackfoot Daisy, Blue Queen Salvia, Butterfly Bush, Cosmos, Daylily, Dianthus, Fennel, Hackberry, Heliotrope, Honeysuckle, Impatiens, Mexican Petunia, Milkweed, Parsley, Petunia, Purple Coneflower, Sedum, Snapdragons, Sweet Alyssum, Verbena and Zinnia.

Other wild birds are attracted to: Asters, Beautyberry, Am., Calendula, Cosmos, Dogwood, Dusty Miller, Elderberry, Hackberry, Portulaca, Purple Coneflower, Sunflower, Viburnum and Zinnia.

These flowers, shrubs and plants are good starting points, but there are many other options to explore in you wildlife attracting endeavor.

For more tips, tools and advice contact Adams Gardens at 208.461.6101 or stop by.

Adams Gardens
4500 E Greenhurst Rd.
Nampa, Id 83686

How To Grow Onions and Potatoes

 

It may seem less than economical to grow your own onions and potatoes, however, the taste of these fresh vegetables more than return that investment. It takes only a minimum of effort which will lead to a bountiful harvest. In this article we will discuss a couple of different growing tactics as well as planting, fertilization, and harvest.

Due to the possibility of transference of disease and other factors, onion sets and seed potatoes must carry certification from the Idaho Department of Agriculture. This can limit some of the varieties that are available. Do not fret though, even common varieties will have a great and unique flavor in the home garden.

The first stage will be the preparation of the soil or growing medium. For those who will be planting directly into the ground it is a good idea to work compost, preferably a forest or Claybuster, along with some soil sulfur and bone meal prior to planting. A quick trip to our nursery and we can help you decide quantities and mixing ratio for success. Now if growing above ground a variety of approaches can be used, such as: raised beds, containers, weed fabric sacks, and even old tires. The idea behind growing above ground comes with several advantages. These include the ability to better control growing medium and fertilization as well as easier harvests and in many cases conservation of gardening space. With these methods a great deal of different potting mediums can be used. It is best to consult with us to help you decide what will be the best and most economical path for your endeavor.

We should discuss the ways to plant onions. Onions have three stages that they can be started from. The seed stage will be sown at a depth of a quarter inch around a month before last frost (or midsummer for a fall harvest). Starting from seed will most likely result in onions ranging from greens to small in size. The seedling stage usually comes in packs jammed with many starts. These should be separated and planted with just the white below soil level. Seedlings should yield onions small to medium in size, sometimes large if started early, and can be planted as soon as frost stops. The last stage is an onion set, basically a small onion, which can be planted approximately a month before last frost at a depth of one to two inches (Depending on bulb size). An onion set should yield medium to large onions. As a note it is important to remove any attempt at flowing while the onion is growing because the energy of the plant will be directed there.

Onward to planting potatoes. Potatoes are sold in a seed potato form that basically looks like a regular eating potato. This is then cubed into pieces containing between one and three eyes. These cubes are then left to dry for one to two days, away from direct sun. These are sown at a depth of about four inches around six weeks before the last frost. A watchful eye should be kept out for Colorado Potato Beetles, as the name implies, you might be able to guess their favorite food.

Watering can be crucial. Usually a healthy garden will need to stay moist in the beginning and finally when established be able to handle some drought. Our experience has been that some gardens are doomed with a “killing it from kindness” approach. Root crops such as onions and potatoes can be specially sensitive to the application of excessive water due to the possibility of root rot. This can be greatly increased or reduced by two simple variables: frequency/duration of watering and the growing medium.

A good growing medium is often sufficient for growing onions and potatoes, however, with proper fertilization the bounty can be increased significantly. The fertilization can range from combating our alkali soil to pumping maximum growth and productivity in our garden. We can range this application from light to aggressive organic or not. It would be best to discuss your personal gardening goals and interests with us to allow for the best possible program on this front. Also, it is essential to monitor the plants’ health and take samples to the nursery early if anything suspicious occurs. Fast diagnosis is often key to recovery and the ultimate goal of a tasty and abundant harvest.

Harvesting is fairly simple for these two crops. Potatoes are generally dug with a spade starting a safe distance from the plant and slowly working closer so as not to damage the edibles. This can sometimes be avoided with above ground methods that allow a full to segmented harvested without a shovel. Onions on the other hand need to have the tops snapped and laid over at the soil line. By damaging the green but allowing some to remain attached the plant will bring energy from the green to be stored in the desired root. This should be done approximately two weeks to harvest.

Hopefully you will enjoy bringing these two culinary classics to life in your backyard. The flavor and freshness should be exquisite. As always feel free to come to the nursery with any questions or concerns on your garden.  Thank you and best of luck in your quest for fresh sustenance.

Composting Tips

It is trash day and you have a few cans on your curb waiting to be picked up. Think about all the things that go into your garbage can. Perhaps some of those things include lawn clippings, leftovers from meals over the last week or other organic materials. Many people have found that a compost bin is the most economical and environmental solution to getting rid of their organic wastes while providing their gardens with highly nutrient soil.

We can look at communities across the country for examples of success. Nantucket, an Island in Massachussettes, began their move toward zero waste about a decade ago. Read more about how they used composting to stop their community’s production of waste.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/20/science/earth/20trash.html?ref=compost

Composting is a simple process which involves a pile or bin where all organic waste (leaves, lawn clippings, kitchen scraps and other organic materials) is collected, mixed and moistened regularly. This mixture is then used as nutrient rich soil for gardening. Here are a few tools you will need before getting started:

Tools:

• Pitch Fork or Turning Fork - to mix your compost.
• Shovel - to transfer your compost to your garden cart.
• Garden Cart - to transport your compost to your garden.
• Compost Thermometer (optional) - to check the core temperature of your compost pile.

Some specific examples of materials to include in you compost are:

Green Materials:

• Fresh Grass clippings
• Fresh manure (horse, chicken, rabbit, cow, etc.)
• Kitchen scraps (fruit, vegetables, coffee grounds, tea bags)
• Green leaves

Brown Materials:

• Brown, dry leaves
• Dried grass
• Straw

A good mixture of four parts “browns” to one part “greens” will produce the best results. Regular mixing and moistening will encourage decomposition of the materials with air flow and insects. Having great composting ready for the garden will take several weeks.

For more tips and advice about composting, contact Adams Gardens at 208.461.6101.

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4500 E. Greenhurst Rd. - Nampa, Idaho 83686 | 208.461.6101

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