Christmas 2003 Newsletter

Where did the summer go to??? It’s hard to believe another gardening season has passed, but looking out over the garden leaves no doubt in my mind. The trees have littered the ground with their leaves and the once lush hostas are now little more than tired mounds of dried foliage.

It seams that the gardening season is full of challenges and the past year was no different. Spring started out on a soggy note with days on end of rain. The hostas loved all the extra water and grew like mad, but so did the weeds. Once it decided to stop raining, it didn’t rain for weeks! As usual, we went from one extreme to another.

One thing that we definitely can’t complain about was our second annual ‘Spring in the Country’ Open House. The day couldn’t have been better! Sunny and warm with a light breeze and a great crowd of people! Our two guest speakers, Jamie Beyer and Jim Childs, made the day fun and educational.

About mid season we began a major remodeling project. We installed our first pond about thirteen years ago and we decided it was time for a change. The pond is now nearly 20’ x 30’ and has two waterfalls along the back. The rock edging will be completed in the coming year.

One of the driving forces behind the remodeling project was the fact that we wanted more room to grow Victoria water lilies. A single pad from these plants can easily be over three feet across and we now have space to grow these plants to their full potential. We were excited to see our plant bloom several times this year. The beautiful, huge flower opens at night. The first night it is snow white and the second night it magically opens deep pink! We will have a very limited supply of Victorias for sale next year, so let us know as soon as possible if you are interested in growing one of these amazing jewels.

The first event of the coming season will be the first weekend in March when we set up a display at the Garden & Landscape Expo at the Cedar Rapids Exhibition Center. It is like walking into spring in the middle of winter. We’ll post details on our website as the time nears.

We are also very excited about Midwest Regional and National Hosta Conventions coming to Iowa next year. If you are a hosta collector, you won’t want to miss out on all the fun!

In the mean time, we’ll be planning for the coming year and searching out new plants for your garden. We’d like to thank you for your support over the past year and we can’t wait to see you in the spring!!

Don't forget you can visit us anytime you like on the web by logging on to www.inthecountrygardenandgifts.com. We update the Garden Journal several periodically with news and happenings going on at In The Country.

If you're feeling blue this winter, what better way to pass the time than by browsing through beautiful garden photos? The photo gallery has been revamped and now includes hundreds of photos from our garden as well as photos our customers have shared with us. Iowa certainly has some talented gardeners!

Be sure to drop by the gardening forum for a little chat and sign up for our “E-News” to receive online updates.

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