Look What We Have Growing On
A fresh growing season always begs the question, “so what’s new?” Every year, breeders launch hundreds of new plants, including in the perennial and shrub categories that we grow. While some, but not all, of the following plants may have seen a season or two already, all of these are new for the growing season…
Hardy Plants Make Their Seasonal Comeback
Hardy plants are “tough” choices for landscape designs because they stand up to a variety of environmental stresses and bounce back year after year with reliable color and form. From extreme temperatures and poor soils to drought, flooding, high winds and tricky light conditions, hardy plants are garden workhorses. Their ability to withstand environmental anxieties…
Loma Vista Nursery Tree Farm
Ever wonder what really happens on a plant nursery? In this installment of our continuing Site Tour Series, we will take you on a blog tour of various aspects of the Loma Vista Nursery growing sites. We produce in-ground trees for business-to-business sales at our tree production nursery in Willow Springs, Kan. Loma Vista Nursery…
Ornamental Grasses - the Stars of Fall
Long may they wave! Big on textures, colors, varieties and styles, ornamental grasses bring bold personality to landscapes large and small. And just when other plants begin to lose their summer appeal, grasses get going, unfurling their foliage and sending up creamy plumes, adding mystique to late-year seasons. Flame Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Purpurascens’) – At…
All About Hostas
They run along the edges of sidewalks and lounge in perennial beds. Although some don’t mind sun, they relax when trees lend their shade. And sometimes, they offer shade, too – to a heat-weary frog or wayward toad, even to a few sleepy insects. They almost always play a supporting role, and won’t have dramatic…
Supporting Thriving Populations
It is beginning. Populations of monarch butterflies, traveling from as far north as southern Canada, are beginning their 3,000-mile-plus winged journey southward to roost in the fir forests of central Mexico. They’ll stay there through our Midwest winter until spring, when they begin their flight back to us. And, hopefully, they will do so in…
Intern's Experience Helps Shape Her Career Path
Loma Vista Nursery’s summer-long paid internship program is a win-win for the company, the industry and for college students and young professionals interested in exploring a green career. The rotation-based program, which began in 2018, has contributed to the growth of promising futures in all aspects of horticulture. Each year at the beginning of summer,…
Deer Resistant Plants, Please
It never fails. You plant a new flowering shrub. It’s one you’ve been wanting for a while now, and you dream of how it will look in a couple years, in that developing back border bed. With great care you dig it in so as not to disturb the nearby mixed forbs and other perennials.…
The Allure of Roses
With about 150 species of wild roses and another 30,000 cultivated varieties, the first rose described for science – Rosa hilliae – was discovered in 1883 by Charles Leo Lesquereux, a paleobotanist. Lesquereux’s rose was initially found by geologists in samples collected in 1877 from the Colorado Florissant Fossil Beds. While that’s pretty impressive, roses…
Conserving Water in Summer
Do you have an efficient landscape? You know, one that kicks in when temperatures soar and there isn’t a rain event in the forecast for days. As our climate changes, it’s more important than ever to conserve water into the soil so healthy plants can continue to grow and thrive. Healthy plants are the backbone…