New Page 1

I welcome any comments, helpful hints, and constructive criticism that will aid in the improvement of the nursery and the selection, the catalog, and the web site, to make the Variegated Foliage Nursery a valuable plant source for you.

Visit Our Nursery!

Here at the Variegated Foliage Nursery, we display everything we sell plus hundreds of other plants in over 15,000 square feet of display gardens, and adding more all the time! Visitors are welcome any time by appointment or during our regular nursery hours, Sun. - Wed. from 12:00 noon to 6:00 p.m., Thurs. - Sat. from 10:00 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST May 1 to November 15. A picnic grove and tables are available - bring lunch or just relax. Group tours (by appointment) can be arranged by contacting Stan at (860) 974-3951.

Picnic Area with Concert Bandstand

New Policy— 10% Off Every On-Site Purchase, Every Customer, Every Day! Several gardening clubs have asked us to give 10% off to their organizations. Since it is difficult to give discounts to some customers and not to others, we decided to give 10% off the listed regular prices to all our customers! (This does not include sale items.)

We are discontinuing our e-mail address. Correspondence, other than our newsletter to people who furnish their e-mail address, can be done by mail, fax or phone (which will effectively be quicker than by e-mail). Please include your phone number with all contacts. We do not sell, trade or give out any customer contact information.

Gift Certificates - For those who have friends or relatives who are serious gardeners, a gift certificate can be a welcome and thoughtful surprise for any occasion. They are available in any amount from $30.00. Good for Christmas, birthdays, weddings, housewarmings, and many other occasions. The avid gardener NEVER has enough plants. Just send the amount wanted with the names and addresses and we will mail them to you or the recipient of the gift certificate.

SEARCHING FOR NEW VARIEGATED FOLIAGE PLANTS! I am always looking for new variegated plants, both as a collector and to introduce into my catalog or nursery stock. If you have a new sport or cultivar or know someone who has and would be willing to sell or trade a pup or variegated seedlings, PLEASE contact me. I am interested in any quantity from one for my garden to enough to propagate or sell. You may consider propagating items yourself and then trading or selling to me. I will make equitable arrangements and introduce your find to the whole country. If your plant has merit, a royalty agreement can be arranged. Anyone who does this will be listed in our catalog as a source, will be in our Preferred Customer Club with advance notice of any new varieties available here, and will have my eternal gratitude.

Slide Programs

I have 1, 1 ½, and 2 hour slide programs at the nursery or at your location available for groups, clubs, gardening shows, etc. Programs are of variegated foliage, including some older standards, the newest varieties just coming to America, those not yet available in America, and gardening with variegated foliage. Call Stan for details at (860) 974-3951.

On Planting

I am a gardening nut, but far from expert. One thing that saves me is that, because of the extreme rocky conditions, I do most of my gardening in aboveground beds and use my own mix. My soil mix is composed of about 30% good loam, 20% coarse masons sand, and 50% of organics. The organics include peat moss, cow manure, leaf compost, mushroom compost, composted pine bark, and any other finds. All of this ends up on the acid side. Whenever I plant, I mix dehydrated cow manure and alfalfa pellets from a feed store into the planting hole soil (being mindful to disperse and mix the manure or pellets into the soil very well). I use about 1 to 2 handfuls of each for a 2 qt. sized plant. I seldom modify this and most everything grows well and is very drought resistant when established. At the time of planting, I water in with liquid seaweed or ½ strength water-soluble fertilizer. Alfalfa pellets, in addition to fertilizing the soil, contain a chemical that stimulates plant growth. There are thousands of you out there that are more knowledgeable than I, but this is for the newer gardeners looking for different ideas.

Variegated Plants All variegated plants have the ability to revert or change back to green. Some of them can’t stand ‘show biz.’ If you see a green branch on a plant, simply cut it out. This happens rarely. You will only spend a fraction of the time snipping the green branches that you might spend dead heading, staking, or otherwise attending to your “plain Jane” green babies and your garden comes alive all season with these variegated beauties.

Hosta Display Area

FAX and TELEPHONE ORDERS Fax and phone orders can be placed at (860) 974-3951, Monday-Friday, from 12 noon to 6 p.m. EST. Please have order ready including plant names, codes, quantities, and charge card number and expiration date.

Heuchera Display Area