The Importance of Dormancy
Dormancy is much more than a long winter’s nap. It’s Mother Nature’s way of preparing for spring. Dormancy is also a chance for the nursery to wind down the year and prepare for a new growing season. Plants take up moisture and nutrients through roots in the soil as they progress through seasonal cycles. They…
Timeless Selections for Fall Planting
As long as the ground is not frozen, anytime is a good time to plant a tree. Fall is a particularly good time because, planted early enough in the season, cooler temps and fall rains help trees establish their root systems before winter and the stress of summer heat and drought sets in. If you…
Extend Fall Color With Plants
While the calendar inches ever closer to winter, the Midwest is still generally experiencing mild temperatures – and a gorgeous array of seasonal colors. We’ve selected a few of our favorite plants that put on an autumnal show. Make a note to add these to your landscape in spring for fall blooms next year. Quick…
Catching Up with Loma Vista Nursery's Interns
The choice to follow a green career path is born from passion and a desire to leave the Earth a better place. That value is shared by all of Loma Vista Nursery’s past and more recent interns. To cap off Green Career Week, we thought we’d catch up with a few of them to see…
Maximize Season Interest in the Landscape
What’s not to love about ornamental grasses? They’re versatile, attractive and virtually maintenance free. With plumes, arching branches and interesting colors, many come into their own in early fall. Here are a few we love from our nursery. Adagio Maiden Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Adagio’) Adagio Maiden Grass Showy plumes emerge as delicate wisps of gold…
Giving Young Trees a Healthy Start
The recommended time to prune a mature tree in the landscape is during its dormant period. In the Midwest, that generally means late fall and early spring. But at Loma Vista Nursery, we prune trees that are at the start of their lives. We grow 1.5- to 4-inch caliper field-grown trees at our 650 acre-farm…
What's Up with Buxus?
For its numerous forms and distinctive foliage, Boxwood (Buxus L. spp., Buxaceae) is a staple in residential and commercial landscape projects. Among its many uses, these versatile and attractive woody shrubs define borders, anchor foundation plantings, provide privacy and screen utilities. They’re in demand, too. At a market value of $126 million, more than 11…
Plants for Tough & Tricky Spaces
Good design doesn’t have to take a back seat to slopes and swales. Rather, tricky spaces are perfect places for perennials such as milkweed, coneflower and goldenrod. These workhorse plants can withstand climate change adversities while holding their own in color, texture and form. Here are a few other favorites we grow at Loma Vista…
Plants that Protect Precious Pollinators
You may have heard that the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) recently added the North American migratory populations of the monarch butterfly to its Red List of Threatened Species. Climate change and loss of habitat, especially milkweed, are top reasons they’ve become endangered. Milkweed is the only plant on which monarch caterpillars…
Getting to Know Loma Vista Nursery's Intern
“Experience the View” is more than our mission statement at Loma Vista Nursery. It is an actionable training tool that is educating the next generation of horticulture professional. Each May through August, our on-nursery internship provides experience in horticulture and agriculture business and communications, as well as in environmental sciences and sustainability management. Interns participate…