Hyla Brook Farm: News and Events

Plant Sales Open Houses and Demonstrations Welcome Letter Natives in the News
	2007 Plant sales: March 31 Lahr Symposium Native Plant Sale at the National Arboretum—Washington DC April 20-22 American Horticulture Society Friends of River Farm Plant Sale—Alexandria, VA April 21 Reston Native Plant Sale - Reston, VA April 28 Parkfairfax Native Plant Sale—Alexandria, VA May 3-5 Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Spring Plant Sale—Richmond, VA May 5 Virginia Native Plant Society - Fredericksburg Chapter - Native Plant Sale, Caledon Natural Area - King George, VA May 11-13 Garden Fair at Blandy Farm and the State Arboretum of VA —Boyce, VA May 19 Friends of Green Spring Plant Sale at Green Springs Gardens Park -Alexandria, VA May 26 Herb and Garden Festival at Edith Carrier Arboretum - James Madison University —Harrisonburg, VA June 14-17 North American Rock Garden Society National Annual Meeting, Canaan Valley Resort State Park - WV July 18-21 Native Plants in the Landscape Conference - Western Carolina University - Cullowhee, NC August 18 Irvine Nature Center's 16th Annual Native Plant Seminar and Sale - Stevenson, MD September 13-15 Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Fall Plant Sale—Richmond, VA September 29 Parkfairfax Native Plant Sale—Alexandria, VA October 6-7 Arborfest at Blandy Farm and the State Arboretum of VA —Boyce, VA	OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY April through October Call us and we'll be happy to give you a personal tour of the nursery and help you pick the perfect plants for your project. Open Houses & Demonstration Classes at the Farm Come join us in the greenhouse! Saturdays 12 noon to 5 p.m. (Demonstrations begin at 1:30pm) The schedule for the 2007 season is: June 9th - Butterfly Gardening July 28th - Perennial Propagation August 25th - Creating a Drought Tolerant Garden September 8th — Shade Gardening October 13th - Creating a Deer Resistant Garden Directions: From Points East: Take 64W to Louisa/Ferncliff Exit #143. At stop sign go N on 208 toward Louisa for 2 miles. Turn L on 640 at Bells X-roads. Go 4.5 mi. to the intersection of 640/613. Turn R at Maddox Store on 613 and go 2 miles to 695, Hamilton Road. Turn L and make an immediate R onto 636 – Valentine Mill Rd. Go .2 mi. and turn R into driveway. (Hidden Creek) From Points West: Take 64E to Gordonsville/Palmyra Exit (Rt. 15). Take 15N toward Gordonsville for 3 mi. Turn R onto 617 –E. Green Springs Rd. Go 2 mi. to St. John’s Chapel, turn L onto 640. Go .6 mi. to 695 –Hamilton Rd. Go 2.1 mi. and turn L onto 636-Valentine Mill Rd. Go .2 mi. and turn R into driveway-Hidden Creek. From Orange/Gordonsville Take 15 S to Boswell’s Tavern. Go L on 22 toward Louisa. Cross the river then turn R on 636 Valentine Mill. Go approx. 1 mile to lane at big oak tree on L – Hidden Creek. If you get to the stop sign you’ve passed it.


2007 Welcome Letter Happy New Year and welcome to the 2007 season at Hyla Brook Farm! In a January that, at times, has felt like April, it’s easy to catch a case of spring fever. We are spending our winter preparing for another busy season, covering the shade houses, seeding, potting, and organizing our office with visions of colorful spring ephemerals dancing in our heads. 2006 was an exciting year for us, full of growth, goodwill and a few challenges that go along with running a business. We wholeheartedly thank all of our customers for thinking of Hyla Brook Farm and for choosing to “go native.” This past year, we were fortunate to have on staff, Ryan Cooper, Kathy Craig, and summer staff, Daniel Primiani, who all worked hard potting thousands of perennials, watering, weeding, and even babysitting on occasion. The nursery has grown so that their creative minds came up with location names for the different shade houses, including Ferngully, Shady Grove, Sunnyside and The Big Bog. Our fastest grower, our daughter, Grace, who will be two in April, has spent many fun-filled hours at the nursery, switching labels, un-potting, riding the tractor, and splashing in the sprinklers. She loves the frogs, dragonflies and busy bees that make the nursery their home. As we begin our fourth year managing the nursery, we realize how much we have learned, not just about running a business, but also, about the wonderful plants we grow. We are always amazed to learn more about new plants and as well as some of the intricacies of our old favorites. Each of our plants has a story to tell – how it was discovered and where, Native American and historical uses, wildlife uses, pollination and cultural requirements. This year, we are proud to offer over 300 varieties of natives. We have added to our inventory some interesting and hard-to-find species including Cranberry Viburnum, Yellowwood, and Calico Aster. We love to share what we have learned and will update information on our website and in our catalog. Be sure to check our website soon for our newest feature which will highlight a native plant of the month. We will continue to offer advice on plant pallets and design options as well as delivery. Deliveries will be made twice a month within 150 miles. We are happy to say that our plant prices have not increased since we started our business four years ago, but our plant size and quality has dramatically increased. You will notice an increase in our delivery and shipping charges which reflect the increases in transportation costs and time. Please refer to our order form and the delivery and shipping section of the catalog/website. This season, we will host five open houses on June 9^th, July 28^th, August 25^th, September 8^th and October 13^th. The nursery will be open for sales each of these days between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Also at the open houses, we will present hands-on workshops for a fee of $10 to cover materials. (Please pre-register by phone, fax or email.) The workshop schedule is: June – Butterfly Gardening, July – Perennial Propagation, August – Creating a Drought Tolerant Garden, September – Creating a Shade Garden, October – Creating a Deer Resistant Garden. The rest of the season, April through October, the nursery will be open for you to visit by appointment, rather than being open for regular retail hours. If you are looking for a landscape architect or landscape designer that specializes in the use of native plants in their designs please check our website for one near you. You can also find a schedule of all of the plant sales and garden fairs that we will be attending for the season. If you are a landscape contractor, designer, architect, retailer or nonprofit and have a Taxpayer ID number then please call or email for a current wholesale price and availability list. We’d love for you to call or email us to make an appointment to visit us here at the farm or attend one of our open houses or plant sales during 2007. Let us give you a tour and show you the plants we have to offer. We hope that you will enjoy some of the new pictures on our website and browse through our new online catalog. Don’t hesitate to call us with any of your plant questions. It is so encouraging to see that planting natives seems to be catching on. We’re looking forward to spring and another great season of growing with you! Good Gardening to You! Brian and Marcy Wagner
Natives in the News Audubon Recommends Planting Natives Citing habitat loss as the leading cause for the decline in bird populations, John Flicker, President of the National Audubon Society in the August Audubon Magazine writes: From what plants we use to landscape our yards, to when we water our gardens, to how high we mow our lawns, we are making decisions every day at home that affect the health and quality of not only our private space but also the larger environment - our local ecosystems, watersheds, and beyond. If homeowners, for example, used native plants in their yards - which would enable them to control pests without using pesticides - it would represent the largest habitat-restoration program for birds ever undertaken. And their homes would be healthier for people at the same time. Further, homeowners could avoid using invasive ornamentals, which threaten nearby natural habitats when they spread beyond backyards, overwhelming the native vegetation so crucial to birds and other wildlife. Ivy Creek Natural Area Grassland Restoration Project Each spring along with the Department of Forestry, City of Charlottesville and the Albemarle County Dept. of Parks and Recreation, the Ivy Creek Natural conducts controlled burns in an effort to restore hay fields to native grasslands. Grasses include Big Bluestem, Little Bluestem and Indian Grass.