Knecht’s

We’ve been busily potting up perennial plugs for the last few weeks in our greenhouses. Even if Mother Nature says it’s not quite time for spring yet - it is definitely spring here!

We have brought in several new varieties of Heuchera this year. Heuchera is a part sun/part shade perennial that is classified in the “evergreen” variety (meaning you don’t prune it back in the fall) and offers a wonderful array of colors and textures to its leaves. They offer a tiny flower on a long stem during the season - it’s common name is “Coral Bells” but you use the Heuchera for its foliage value more.

Every perennial garden should have at least one clump of ornamental grass. Ornamental grass offers a backdrop to annuals or colorful flowering perennials or looks stunning by itself. Some varieties of ornamental grass provide visual interest all winter long as well. This is just one variety that was on the potting table this morning when I was out taking pictures. We typically carry about 20 varieties of ornamental grass.

We start about 1000 little “tissue culture” trees each spring. Here are some birch trees, some Prairiefire Crabapple and several varieties of maple trees. It is so much fun to see that little twig in a pot of dirt all of a sudden produce these little tiny colorful leaves when there is still snow outside on the ground!

Even though the weather forecast for tomorrow (our first full day of spring) is for 6 inches of wet, slushy snow - we just need to open one of the greenhouses for a taste of spring!

We spent a week on the Georgia coast last month! The temps were in the 60’s and 70’s and spring was just starting to emerge. Except for the Azaleas - they were beautiful. The picture here is from an Azalea shrub in Forsyth Park in Savannah.

Even though we don’t have the wide number of varieties of Azaleas available here in Minnesota that they have in Georgia - there still are several varieties that are Zone 4 hardy. Yellows, pink, oranges… we’ll have our Azaleas in at the nursery the last part of April!

Savannah is an absolutely beautiful city. In the historic district, there are 24 small parks laid out on a grid system so that you only need to walk 2 or 3 blocks in any direction and you come upon a small city square park. Then - there is Forsyth Park. Centered around a huge white fountain, the sidewalks form the spokes of a wheel and lead you in and out of the park along pathways of flowers and trees!

The Redbud trees were just starting to blossom. This is always an exciting time in Minnesota at the beginning of Spring as it beckons the other flowering trees to follow.

There is a strain of Redbud that grows well in Minnesota. It needs well drained loamy soil with a little protection and it’ll thrive for years! We have a clump at home that is doing really well and we have a more mature clump here at the nursery! A small ornamental tree that will complete an area in your yard.