It is no secret that we are mad about roses around here. They are standouts in our gardens, love the sun and can be quite drought-tolerant once established. A new rose for the garden would make a wonderful Valentine’s Day gift. Remember, we are happy to foil wrap and add a bow for a perfect presentation. Here are a few Valentine’s inspired roses to consider:

Choose your Camellias now! Seeing is believing, so choose now while they are in bloom. The selection is sizable, and you’ll be able to pick just the right color for your winter garden.

Feed the lawn monthly especially during cold, wet winter months. Feeding often not only maintains its attractive green color all winter it also minimizes rust disease and other problems resulting from malnutrition (let winter rains water it in). Masters Fall and Winter Lawn Fertilizer is formulated for the winter season.

We are eagerly awaiting our shipment of bulbs which will arrive this month. All the bulbs you plant this spring will fill your summer gardens with armloads of beautiful cut flowers. Think about what great addition dahlias, gladiolus, and lilies will provide to a summer bouquet.

Prevent crabgrass in your lawn before it starts. Apply Bonide Crabgrass & Weed Preventer now to prevent crabgrass seeds from sprouting.

Place three inches of mulch around trees, shrubs, and flower beds to keep weeds under control. Keep the mulch away from the trunks of trees and shrubs as well as the stems of bedding plants to prevent crown rot.

Prevent Petal Blight. Pick up and remove old flowers on camellias and azaleas to reduce the chance of petal blight. If you have had trouble with petal blight before, treat soil around the plants with Captan before flowers open.

Seed Potatoes are available January into March. Choose from certified disease-free white, red, blue, and gold varieties. Harvest new potatoes when plants begin to bloom in June and more mature potatoes when plants start to die down midsummer. Pick up our handy planting guide.

A new houseplant for your love this Valentine’s Day says it best! Choose from an assortment of fragrant flowering bulbs, African violets and lush houseplants.

Sweet Daphne – An old-fashioned fragrance for your garden! Budded and blooming now. Perfect for bright shade. Great container plant. Waxy pink and white flower clusters will perfume a room.

Prune evergreen shrubs and hedges such as boxwood between mid-February and early March so that pruning cuts are quickly covered with spring’s new growth. (Leave frost tender plants like citrus to prune later.) Prune strap leafed New Zealand Flax and African Iris to 4″ if a biennial renewal is wanted. Foliage will grow back with a fresh crop of gorgeous leaves.

Apply Iron-Sulfur or non-staining Iron Plus now to help restore and maintain green color in acid-loving plants such as citrus, camellia, azalea, gardenias, Japanese Maples, and Blueberries as well as many others including jasmine and photinia.

We typically reach for flowers when thinking about adding a dash of color to our gardens. But for true season-long interest in the garden, consider a shrub that will give you lasting color. When you plan your garden using colorful shrubs, their leaves lend a rainbow of hues to enjoy. The different shades and textures offer a burst of color – some even change colors throughout the year.

Take a look at these colorful shrubs which are real standouts in the landscape:

We carry a wonderful selection of gifts for any occasion. During the holidays, we add even more unique items for you to consider. Some of these items are located in the Garden Store with our Christmas Shoppe.

Here are a few of our favorites:

Wind Chimes – Wind chimes are a gift that can be enjoyed by everyone, but you may not think to buy yourself. Many sounds and styles available.

Wall Art – We have a variety of wall art for indoors and outdoors in different mediums including wood, metal & canvas. Themes include trendy farmhouse, inspirational quotes and gorgeous botanicals. Some of it is on sale!

Gourmet Products – Another great gift idea for many to enjoy are some of our wonderful gourmet goodies. Soup, desserts, olive oil, honey, and candy galore. We would be happy to help you put together a selection to make a basket.

Lotions & Soaps – Always a welcome gift available in a wide variety of scents. We have lavender, lemon, grapefruit just to name a few scents.

Kid’s Section – If you are looking to inspire the next generation of gardeners, we have tools that are just their size. We also have some unique toys and plush animals.

Books – We can help you out with a nicely curated selection of gardening & plant books.

Garden Flags & Doormats – If you are looking to add a splash of color to your front porch or yard, consider a flag or bright doormat. We have some fun ones!

Bird Feeders – Give someone a gift that will attract feathered friends into their yard. Our assortment of styles, sizes & food options is sure to ruffle your feathers.

Garden Decor – We have all sorts of fun things to which can be the perfect addition to a yard or patio.

We are happy to help you select the right thing for everyone on your list. The best part is that we are happy to gift wrap your items in our signature wrapping for FREE.

We have lots of gift ideas for the gardener including some unique tools gardeners may not be aware of that others cherish. Buy a gift a gardener might too lavish for him or herself but will ease the tasks and leave them thanking you.

Hori-Hori Knife

Discover one of the most useful tools in a gardener’s toolbag. The Japanese Hor-Hori knife is part spade, part serrated knife. Excellent for dividing perennials and squeezing a new plant in an established pot. Those gardeners who own one, swear they are their most useful tool.

Felco Tools

Felcos are well-made Swiss made pruners. They are simply the best! They are the pruner of choice for landscape & vineyard professionals. Give a Felco tool to a gardener and expect them to be astonished.

 

Garden Kneelers

A folding kneeler serves as a seat too. One of our more popular gardener gifts. Makes gardening tasks more comfortable and enables greater mobility.

 

 

 Trowels

Buy a Book!

We have a wonderful selection of books for experienced and new gardeners alike Learn to Prune – One of the most comprehensive, easy to understand pruning books in out there. This is our most popular selling book, explains in easy terms with illustrations, how to prune a large variety of fruit trees and roses.

We also have Livermore specific books including Livermore history and local family cookbooks.