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Home » tools of the trade

Putting up a Building in Five Hours!

Updated : January 1, 2017

3 Comments

From the inside looking out.

We were running out of room at the nursery and decided to add an extra storage building that we intend to Use to Pack and Ship Small Plants, Liners and Rooted Cuttings. We have a local company run by an Amish Family that builds all kinds of outdoor storage buildings and this is the second… Click here to read more…

The Ten Minute Plant Show.

Updated : December 13, 2016

4 Comments

Annabelle Hydrangea.

In Our Members Area we are always discussing new and interesting ways to sell more plants.  Many people live in an area where it’s just not feasible to invite a bunch of people to their house for a plant sale, so they are always looking for new ideas. This simple idea starts with a simple… Click here to read more…

The Magic Candy Dish

Published : December 4, 2016

4 Comments

The Magic Candy Dish

How to sell hundreds if not thousands of plants with “The Magic Candy Dish”. Crazy right? Crazy like a fox.  Follow along. I am actually doing this blog post for Our Members, not really interested in showing it to the general public, but putting it here is the easiest way for me to convey my… Click here to read more…

The Art of Stacking Plants in a Truck.

Updated : December 30, 2015

16 Comments

One gallon plants stacked in a truck.

What???  Why would anybody want to do that or need to know that? Legitimate question for sure. The reason that I decided that this was a post worthy of putting on my blog is because when I mentioned In Our Members Area that I purchased 400 one gallon Lilacs for my sale last spring at… Click here to read more…

Backyard Nursery Tools of the Trade, Things to turn you into a successful grower.

Updated : March 16, 2023

126 Comments

Mike McGroarty hugging miniature donkey Finnegan.

I, Mike McGroarty, am committed to turning you into a successful Backyard Grower.  This post is all about you and your success.  There truly are handful to things that you need to get started and be successful as soon as possible. One of those tools is education.  I work really hard to bring you as… Click here to read more…

How to Sharpen Pruning Shears

Updated : August 17, 2015

3 Comments

These Corona pruning shears are one of my favorite tools to use all year round, and I work the heck out of them! After a while, the blades become gunked up with sap, and nicked from cutting hard branches so it’s very important that I regularly maintain the shears so they will perform properly. I… Click here to read more…

Backyard Nursery Tools of the Trade.

Updated : May 20, 2015

20 Comments

Mike's Legless potting bench now has legs.

Over the winter I spent some time building/inventing a few things that I needed to make the nursery run smoother and my life easier.  Some of these are interesting, some are kind of boring, but here they are. Originally this was my “Famous Legless Potting Bench” but once I bought a frontend loader it was… Click here to read more…

Rooted cuttings of variegated weigela in bunches to harden off.

Over Wintering Rooted Cuttings.

Posted On January 8, 2023 By Mike

Mike's Big Perennial Bed.

Mike’s Big Perennial Garden

Posted On January 8, 2023 By Mike

A Profound Thank You from Mike.

Posted On September 1, 2022 By Mike

Finnegan keeping the sun off his head.

An Old Guy, Two Donkeys, a Puppy and a Hammock. What could possibly go wrong?

Posted On July 17, 2022 By Mike

This upside down donkey is a hoot!

An Upside Down Donkey and Cute Puppy.

Posted On July 14, 2022 By Mike

'Rockin Raspberry' Bee Balm.

‘Rockin Raspberry’ Bee Balm.

Posted On June 26, 2022 By Mike

'Bubblegum Blast' Bee Balm.

‘Bubblegum Blast’ Bee Balm

Posted On June 26, 2022 By Mike

Blue Angel Hosta.

‘Blue Angel’ Hosta.

Posted On June 25, 2022 By Mike

Big Daddy Hosta.

‘Big Daddy’ Hosta

Posted On June 25, 2022 By Mike

'Humpback Whale' hosta.

‘Humpback Whale’ Hosta.

Posted On June 25, 2022 By Mike

Complete Guides

Growing, Rooting and Propagating Dappled Willow in Tree Form from Cuttings.

Growing Seeds, Winter Sowing, in Milk Jugs and Kitty Litter Jugs.

The Correct Way to Pot Rooted Cuttings, Nursery Stock Liners and other Plants.

Training Arborvitae and other Conical Evergreens to Grow with a Single Leader.

How to Propagate, Root Cuttings, of Dwarf Alberta Spruce.

Recent Posts

Blue Angel Hosta.

‘Blue Angel’ Hosta.

'Blue Angel'hosta is by far one of my favorite blue hostas. A big hosta like this in a perennial bed covers a lot of area and that keeps a ton of weeds at bay! These giant heart shaped leaves are very slug resistant. We have this plant in full sun. With … Read Full Article

Big Daddy Hosta.

‘Big Daddy’ Hosta

'Big Daddy' hosta is one of my favorite big hostas, mostly because it's big, it's blue and it has very interested leaves that are a bit dimpled. Big Daddy hosta gets about 24" tall and 36" wide. It's hardy in zones 3 through 9, the flowers are blends of … Read Full Article

'Humpback Whale' hosta.

‘Humpback Whale’ Hosta.

We sold out of 'Humpback Whale' hosta pretty early this year. Humpback Whale is pretty impressive hosta and this one really hasn't matured yet because they can get three feet high and 7 feet wide. I've also seen photos of them that show them to be a lot … Read Full Article

Ice Plant, delosperma

Ice Plant, delosperma

How pretty is that? And it's a ground hugging perennial that comes back year and year. These plants were new to our nursery last year so Pam and I planted three of them in our landscape at home. Not only did they do really well last year but they wintered … Read Full Article

Electric Red Dianthus

‘Electric Red’ Dianthus

I've been working on my perennial bed at the nursery and this Electric Red Dianthus caught my eye and was screaming "make my picture". So I did! Dianthus in general are great perennials for your garden. They are super winter hardy even here in cold … Read Full Article

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