Rain, snow, gray skies or blue, we open our gates for the 2023 gardening season on Friday March 3, from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. This season will be bigger and better than ever!
From 9 – 11:30 a.m., join us for a free cup of coffee in our newly warmed Garden Center. Yes, we’ve heated the barn to make it more enjoyable to peruse all the new décor & plant products. Along with a newly curated collection of home décor, you will find garden tools, gifts, seeds, seed starting kits, heat mats, and supplies – everything you need to get that beautiful garden going. Come be enticed by local crafters and producers – Stevie D. Pottery, Ravens Roost Co., and Clove Hitch Macrame are some of our local artisans featured in the garden center this season. There is something for everyone from hip pottery, to locally branded items, charcuterie boards, macrame wall art, and so much more.
What’s the Buzz for Spring?
Now is the time to purchase your fruit trees, hanging baskets and roses. The fruit trees go quickly, and while it’s still too early to plant them, you can pick yours out, and we’ll hold them in our greenhouses until after the last frost, which is typically in mid-May when it’s safe to plant. This year, we are planting more of our own hanging baskets, and if you remember them from last year, they were stunning. These baskets are a hot commodity and sell out quickly. We will hold them, as well as any rose bushes you may purchase, and keep them happy until after that last frost.
Looking for soils and bulk landscaping supplies? We have large supplies of all your landscaping products. Please note that we have moved our bulk materials yard to the south end of the property. Enter off N. Government Way and follow the signs. See the map in the next story for more parking information.
Double Points for Seed Rewards Members March 3 and 4
If you’re a Seeds Rewards member, you will earn DOUBLE REWARDS POINTS on any purchase in the nursery on March 3 and 4. Yes, DOUBLE!
If you aren’t already a member of our Seed Rewards Program, you can sign up at the bottom of the New Leaf home page. It’s fun and easy, and the rewards keep growing, especially with DOUBLE REWARDS.
From 5 -7 p.m. on Saturday the 4th, experience After Dark in the Garden Center. The barn is so pretty all lit up. After we close our doors to the public, Seed Rewards Members are invited to join the team at New Leaf Nursery inside the garden center for a wine reception. It’s our way of saying WE APPRECIATE YOU and welcome the new gardening year.
Come see what the buzz for spring is all about! We can’t wait to see you!
New Entry to the Nursery
We have a new entrance to the nursery! Parking is now in the lot south of the Garden Center Barn. You’ll enter from N. Government Way using the new, wider, and safer entry into our expanded parking lot. If you came to our Fall Festival or if you purchased a Christmas tree from us this year, you’ve already used this new entryway. The entrance off Lancaster is now closed, and should you turn into the old entrance in front of the barn, you will be diverted to the new lot. You would use this same entrance to get to our bulk soil and landscape supplies area as well as contractor sales.
By making this change, the entire north side of the nursery is open to pedestrian traffic only, offering garden paths and walkways to peruse the many trees, shrubs, annuals, perennials, and more. With our contractor sales and bulk materials moved to the south portion of the property, there will be no worries of cars, trucks or trailers coming through the retail areas of the nursery. We know you will enjoy the lovely park-like setting and a much safer environment for all.
Start Your Own Seeds This Spring!
This year, why not try your hand at growing your own seeds to get your garden started sooner. Our plant expert, Jen C. offers these great tips and ideas for propagating seeds to grow healthy plant starts for your vegetable and flower gardens. (Pictured here are a few of the starts we have in our new propagation house.)
Pruning Roses
Now is the time to prune roses and other perennial shrubs in your garden. In this video, Elaine, our plant buyer extraordinaire and co-owner of the nursery, offers a quick look at pruning rose bushes for lush blooms all summer.
When you get ready to prune, don’t forget your thick, sturdy gloves to protect yourself from thorns! And while these pruning tips may seem extreme, Elaine says roses respond very well to aggressive pruning. With fewer canes and stems, they can focus more energy into growing new canes and beautiful flowers.
Join us at New Leaf for many exciting classes being taught this year. We’re offering something for everyone — from learning how to macrame and decoupage, pruning basics, landscape design, how to deal with nasty garden pests, and gardening in the Inland Northwest, to name just a few of the upcoming classes. Our first class on basic landscape design is being offered on March 2. All of our classes are available for registration on New Leaf’s website. Hurry to sign up early as many class sizes are limited.
Visit New Leaf at the Upcoming Home & Garden Shows
North Idaho Home and Garden Show
Visit us in booth #48, Building 1 at The Coeur d’Alene Home and Garden Show at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds, March 3 – 5.
Visit us in booth #64 at the Sandpoint Home and Garden Show at the Bonner County Fairgrounds, April 1-2.
Come say hi, and get a coupon for a discount to use at the nursery!
Spokane Home and Garden Show
The largest Home & Garden Show in the Inland Northwest rolls into The Spokane Convention Center, March 10 - 12, and New Leaf Nursery will be there in booth 102.
Be sure to pick up your discount coupon to use at the nursery when you stop by to visit.
Employee Spotlight: Meet the Voice of New Leaf
Meet Kelly, pictured here with her daughter enjoying the Fall Festival last October.
If you’ve ever called the nursery, you’ve probably already heard Kelly’s dulcet tones, as she answers most of the calls that come in. She is our “behind the scenes” guru keeping the nursery humming. In addition to helping customers who call in, she manages bookkeeping, compliance, accounts payable, a little human resources, and ensures the accounting team has what it needs to manage the nursery finances. Be sure to say “Hi” to Kelly next time you call in.
March and Early April Bloom Report
Those first blooms of spring bring out the gardener in all of us. Mother Nature is in charge, but with any luck at all, you may see hellebore (Lenten Rose), crocus and forsythia. These bursts of color are welcome reminders that a new year of gardening has begun! Along with the others, witch hazel and maybe, just maybe, a daffodil or hyacinth may show themselves.
March & Early April Gardening Calendar
While it’s early in the season, it’s already time to start working the gardens for the lush goodness that we know is right around the corner. Here are a few garden tips you can work on for March and early April:
Spray deciduous trees and shrubs, especially fruit trees with horticultural oil (dormant or all-season) as buds emerge but before green leaves appear.
Give the lawn a good rake to remove winter droppings and wake up the earth.
Apply fertilizer to the lawn, perennial beds, fruiting and flowering trees and shrubs.
Prune out dead wood from everything and cut back perennials.
Plant summer blooming bulbs (gladiolas and dahlias).
Start vegetable, herb, and flower seeds indoors – see the video above for tips from our gardening expert Jen C.
