In the Garden this Week

IN THE GARDEN August 8, 2025

We are in another dry spell, so here is your friendly reminder to soak all of your containers every morning. Raised beds dry out fairly quickly too, so be sure to give them a deep soak 2 to 3 times a week. It is always better to water deeply once or twice a week rather than to water lightly every day.

We are fertilizing our containers once a week, and alternating with fish emulsion from Neptune’s Harvest and Compost Plus from VT Compost Company. The planters on our bridge are looking great, and this is why. Along with our team of careful waterers who give the plants lots of love every day.

It is a good time to replant lettuce, chicories, broccoli, cabbage, sprouting broccoli, kale, and more! We have new generations of all of these seedlings and also beets, our custom blend of zesty mustard greens, our staff favorite gem lettuces, and so much more.

Are you growing herbs for tea? We have a great selection and it is not too late to get them in the ground and have plenty to dry for winter use. Lemon Verbena and Tulsi (a.k.a holy basil) are staff favorites. And if you already have some herbs growing in the garden, start drying them now. Future you will appreciate curling up with a warm cup of tea this winter. Here is a blog post that will explain how to do it.

And here is another friendly reminder that late summer and early fall are ideal times to plant perennials. The days are cooling down, reducing transplant shock and there is still plenty of time for the plants to set roots and establish themselves before winter comes around. Next spring they’ll be ready to take off. Are you curious about how to take care of perennials at various times of the year? Read this helpful article for more info and resources.

A NOTE FROM JULIE

We get lots of questions about garden pests and diseases, and this year more than ever, we seem to have a slight uptick in concern over what I consider to be tolerable situations. Let me explain.

When you farm or garden ecologically, you are working with living things that have life cycles, threats to their health, symbiotic allies, and opportunistic predators. It is easy to focus just on the problems, and to enter a cycle of worry followed by a desire to fix it.

Here is what I recommend when you have a plant that looks less than optimal.

  1. Assess the problem. Is the damage on just one part of the plant, or is the whole plant affected and weak? Can you trim off the damaged leaf or stem and does that make you feel better? If so, go for it. The plant won’t mind.

  2. Is it a perennial more than a few years old? Does it need to be divided? Just like us, plants age. And while our wrinkles and liver spots are easily recognized as signs of aging, your plant’s flopping and stretching and lack of flowers is trying to tell you the same thing. Unlike us, perennial plants can be refreshed by being cut back, dug up, divided and replanted with more space. If this sounds like too much work, consider your plant selection, and look for plants that do not need to be divided given enough room to grow - Baptisia, Amsonia, Rudbeckia, and many grasses come to mind.

  3. On the flip side, is your plant very young? In the case of shrubs, trees and perennials, they sometimes need a year or two to acclimate, and it is best to recalibrate expectations with the situation and the life cycle of that plant. They are babies in your midst, and it is ok to watch their growing pains without needing to fix them. Be patient.

  4. A certain amount of insect damage is ok. There I said it. A garden can be perfectly healthy and still have a few insect pests. It is a question of balance. Here at RWP, and at home, we never spray to kill insects in the ornamental gardens or our kitchen gardens. We very occasionally use sprays approved for organic production on our herbs and a few of our potted greenhouse plants. In the gardens, we conduct visual checks and hand pick bugs and their eggs on a regular basis. I use row cover as a physical barrier against flea beetles, cucumber beetles, and squash bugs. Caterpillars and insects are part of someone’s food chain, and usually if we let the predators come in and do their job, things can stay in check.

  5. Prevention is key. Good soil, good airflow, water and mulch (in some cases) are your friends. By keeping the plants as healthy and vigorous as possible, they will be able to put up with a little insect damage. If a plant is really struggling, I usually just pull it out so that I don’t give insects and disease a vulnerable host to take advantage of the situation. Be ruthless in your culling and understand when something has gone past the tipping point of saving it. A few holes in a few leaves is not the tipping point, but a whole plant withered and browning at the edges has no chance. Learn to recognize what is worth saving and what needs to get pulled out.

  6. Create diversity in your gardens. This will attract beneficial insects and birds that keep the bad guys in check. If you look at the raised beds behind the Bake Shop, you will see that I have interplanted annual flowers and herbs with all the vegetables and it makes a huge difference. The cucumber beetles and squash bugs have a harder time finding their favorite host if they have to crawl through a jungle of California poppies. The birds swoop in and grab the larva of Colorado Potato beetles and then rest on the sunflower perch conveniently provided close by. Observation of these spontaneous cycles will make you a better gardener. Create a haven for everyone and they will thank you in return by doing the work they are meant to do.

  7. Understand that some problems are “cultural”. This means that it is not a disease or a pest, but rather something in that particular plant’s experience….too much water, bad soil, not enough water, a dog peed on it one too many times, it got too cold or too hot. It takes lots of experience and observation to understand the difference between cultural damage, insect damage, or disease damage. Again, we are all learning, and sharing what we know, and the process is fun. Most of all, remember to speak kindly to yourself….it is not always your fault. And it is not always the plant’s fault. Things happen.

If you are reading this, you are likely someone who has chosen gardening as a hobby. You have chosen to get a new chance every year. You can work on building up your soil so that future gardens are improved. You can take notes on what has worked well and improve on that. You can put up bird houses, plant native plants in the hedgerows, and learn about beneficial insects over the winter. We have endless opportunities to learn and try again. Enjoy the process and all of the hard work you put into it.

Summer Recipes

What to do when it is too hot to cook? Salads and iced teas are the answer along with some simple ideas like these garden to kitchen solutions:

  • slice radishes, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers and dip in herb salt

  • have a salad bar ready to go at all times - washed greens, a big batch of vinaigrette or other dressing, containers of chopped herbs, peeled and sliced cucumbers, beets (cooked, peeled, sliced), grated carrots, some cheese or cold chicken chopped up

  • hard boiled eggs in a bowl in the fridge. Peel, cut in half, sprinkle with herbs and herb salt.

  • herbal teas in half gallon mason jars made with sprigs of mint, lemon balm, and/or lemon verbena

  • grill up zucchini and summer squash in the cool of the evening and toss with olive oil, herbs, and flaky sea salt. Serve as a room temperature salad with some freshly grated parmesan, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon.

  • pre-salt your vegetables to tenderize them and make them crunchy at the same time. Our herb salts are a great tool for this technique. We suggest about 1/2 tsp of salt for every 4 cups of sliced cucumbers, summer squash, zucchini or cabbage. Slice or julienne or shred the vegetables, toss and gently massage with the herb salt, and let drain in a colander for an hour or so. After this rest period, the vegetables will have a great texture. Taste for saltiness, and rinse if they seem too salty. They are ready to eat in salads dressed simply with herbal flower vinegar or lemon juice, a good olive oil, and a generous shower of herbs such as basil, parsley, dill, cilantro, oregano, marjoram, mint or chives. The flavors will pop!

SUMMER SALADS

We leave behind those tender lettuces that wilt and bolt in the heat and embrace some hardier textures. And maybe you did not replant lettuce to have some nice fresh heads right about now. Have no fear, shame or guilt…other options for summer salads out of the garden are bountiful. Here are a few favorites that all work well at room temperature and hold up reliably for picnics or packed lunches:

Fennel and herbs - using a sharp knife or a mandolin, shave fennel bulbs into thin slices. Toss with a handful of chopped herbs, thin slices of sweet or white onion, and a simple lemon and olive oil dressing. Sprinkle with herb salt generously, and then let the mixture sit for at least an hour before serving. The fennel will soften and become tender and crunchy at the same time.

Summer Squash - follow the same exact instructions as above, but use raw summer squash or zucchini sliced into thin ribbons with a mandolin or vegetable peeler. We love this one with a little garlic in the dressing and marjoram as the herb.

Grilled eggplant and cherry tomatoes - roast or grill 1/2” thick slices of eggplant that have been brushed with olive oil until they are tender. Allow to cool, then cut into wide strips. Toss with halved cherry tomatoes, scallions that are thinly sliced, and torn basil leaves. Dress lightly with olive oil and balsamic and shower with our herb salt or a flaky sea salt.

IT IS THE SEASON OF BEANS

We love green beans, wax beans, and Romano beans for simple, weeknight meals:

Salad - Blanch them in boiling, salted water for a few minutes until tender. Drain and cool down under cold, running water. Dry well on clean kitchen towels, then toss in a big bowl with sliced scallions, halved cherry tomatoes, herbs, and a simple vinaigrette.

Stir fry - If you have more blanched beans than you can eat in one meal, save some for another night to make a quick sauté in olive oil with sweet onions, sweet peppers, and herbs of your choice. This is a great side for roast or grilled chicken.

Roasted - Lay raw beans on a sheet pan, drizzle with sesame oil, finely chopped garlic and/or ginger, hot pepper flakes, soy sauce or tamari, and toss together. Place in a pre-heated 400F oven (or grill if you don’t want to heat your house) for about 20 to 25 minutes, flipping part way through. They should be charred in places, and soft in others.

This blog post was written by Julie Rubaud and Kat Consler.

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Growing Elderberries

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Elderberries have become somewhat of a superstar as a home remedy for wintertime colds and flus. The berries can’t be eaten raw - they are actually toxic and cause stomach upset - but they cook down to a wonderful syrup or jelly. Elderflowers are equally delicious with their delicate floral notes and can be made into a syrup or cordial. Another way to enjoy elderflowers is by turning them into fritters and serving them as a savory snack or sweet treat.

Birds are just as excited about elderberries as we are and they will eat them all away if you don’t cover them - or you can grow them just for wildlife to enjoy.

Download as PDF

This blog post was written by Kat Consler.

Perennial Garden Care for all Seasons

Early Spring (Late march)

Berries Now is a great time to plan out a garden project such as a berry patch. It is also a great time to prune raspberries and other brambles. If you are interested in starting your own raspberry patch, you can read our blog post here . Curious about pruning your berries? Lily wrote about pruning her raspberries, which you can see here.

Once the snow melts, is it time to clean up - yes or no? If you left your perennials standing over the winter - which is best practice for creating pollinator habitat - you can start cutting them back once the snow is gone. We recommend that you leave 8-24” of growth standing and pile up the cut stems, so that insects that have overwintered in the cavities of the stems can emerge once the season warms. It’s still too early to rake leaves and do a spring cleanup as many butterflies and bees are using the leaf litter to stay warm and protected. The Xerces Society has some of the best info on pollinator habitat maintenance, for example this handy “Nesting & Overwintering Habitat” guide.


Spring (April and MAy)

Pollinators that overwinter in the leaf litter take their time to emerge in Spring, they don’t jump awake on the first warm day of the year, but rather wait until it has warmed up consistently. So we recommend that you wait with them, until we have consistent warm weather with both day and night temperatures above 50F. Keep in mind that insects still need cover later on and use leaf litter as a home year-round. Here are some Spring Perennial Garden tasks that keep in mind both beauty and pollinator habitat throughout the seasons:

  • Start with clearing debris like branches that have fallen over the winter, while leaving the leaf mulch intact. Established perennials will easily grow through it and the mulch helps keep weeds down while providing habitat for little critters. If you have a lawn, instead of raking or using a leaf blower, just mow right over the leaves. Their shredded remains add nutrients to the lawn.

  • Cut back non-woody perennials to varying heights, leaving some stems 8-24” tall. Cavity nesting bees will use these old stems to lay their eggs later in Spring and Summer. Very quickly, the new growth of your perennials will grow past the height of these stems and make these bee hotels invisible to the human eye. Make piles with the cut back material to provide more habitat, or add them to your compost.

  • Weed. Early season weeding can significantly reduce the need for weeding later in the season!

  • Divide fall-blooming perennials.

  • Mulch with plants instead of bark mulch. Bark mulch robs the soil of nitrogen as it breaks down, and it can harbor invasive weeds, jumping worms and other unfavorables. We recommend creating a living mulch by using plants that grow low, can tolerate some shade, and can easily be divided so that you can, over the years, create a beautiful carpet in the lowest canopy of your garden. Here are some suggestions: (see blog post on alternatives to bark mulch)

  • It is a great time to look at the garden with an eye on bulbs for fall planting. Taking photos now and marking them up with areas you would like to see spring daffodils, tulips, and other flowering bulbs will make fall bulb planting much more successful. The bare spots of the early garden are much easier to identify in April than in October. A photo album can be a type of garden journal and the mark up tools on your phone can help jog your memory from season to season or year to year.


Midsummer

August is the perfect time to assess the perennial garden and cut back any spent plants, unsightly foliage, and make decisions about plants that need to be divided or removed. It is easy to save these tasks for spring and fall, but mid-summer is when garden spaces show just how crowded they are, so take notes and act accordingly later in the fall or early next spring.

If you are planting shrubs during the heat of summer, make sure to water them well for the remainder of the season. They will need about the equivalent of a 5 gallon bucket’s worth of water once a week. It is always better to water deeply once or twice a week than to water lightly every day. This encourages the roots to go grow and search for water rather than stay at the surface where the effects of the light watering happen.

To take the heat stress off of plants, give them a little love with Compost Plus or Fish / Seaweed emulsion. It is always good to fertilize after pruning too. Anytime a plant is shocked, it benefits from a little feeding and extra attention. The summertime heat and humidity can certainly feel like a shock to all of us.

Do you have a wild, ecological garden as part of your landscape? Or are you curious about what it would take to grow one? Big or small, these types of gardens require less maintenance than more formal or ornamental gardens, but they can easily feel overwhelming with their lush growth and self-seeding tendencies. We recommend this blog post from North Creek Nurseries to help you get a grip on the tasks required to keep these gardens looking good. The authors explain how the horticulture teams at Manhattan’s High Line and Delaware’s Mount Cuba center approach garden maintenance. It is geared towards professional horticulturists, but you know we like to give you pro-tips, and it can all be applied to a residential scale.


Late Summer

Late summer and early fall are ideal times to plant perennials. The days are cooling down, reducing transplant shock and there is still plenty of time for the plants to set roots and establish themselves before winter comes around. Next spring they’ll be ready to take off.


Fall

Here are some early fall cleanup tips from Kat’s garden:

  • Enjoy your garden work while the weather is still warm. The more you get done now, the less you’ll have to spend in possibly rainy and cold days later on. You don’t need to go crazy, but a little cleanup goes a long way.

  • Weed now - your garden will be a lot easier to plant and maintain come Spring.

  • I highly recommend covering your soil with mulch. Once the leaves start dropping, I rake them into my garden beds to keep the soil covered over the winter. Bare ground will erode more quickly and nutrients leach out. Covered soil can act as a protector to roots of perennials and create habitat for pollinators to overwinter in.

  • If you haven’t yet, now is a good time to add a layer of compost to asparagus and berry beds. If you’re planning on adding these crops to your garden next year, start preparing their beds now. (You can read more about growing raspberries here).

  • Remove all diseased plants like tomatoes with fungal problems or cabbage stems containing maggots. You don’t want those to overwinter in your yard.

  • Move perennials around. If you have noticed plants that need dividing or that you’d prefer in a different location, you can either move them now - they still have time to establish roots before winter - or flag them for Spring. It is sometimes hard to remember how your garden looked during peak bounty once we’re in stick season.

  • Would you like to plant spring bulbs? Tulips, daffodils, and more should all be ordered now for planting in October and November. It is nice to plant a little every year, and over time, your spring display will be a show stopper. We like Brent and Becky’s .


This blog post was written by Kat Consler and Julie Rubaud.

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IMPORTANT SCHEDULE CHANGES

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As we head into summer, our Bake Shop and Plant Shop hours change each year. Please read carefully to avoid disappointment!

BAKE SHOP SUMMER HOURS STARTING JUNE 19

Open Thursdays through Saturdays 8 am to 3 pm

PLANT SHOP SUMMER HOURS STARTING JULY 5

Open every day 8 am to 5 pm

BOTH THE PLANT SHOP AND THE BAKE SHOP ARE CLOSED ON JULY 4th

THE BAKE SHOP WILL BE CLOSED THE FOLLOWING WEEKS:

JULY 3-5

JULY 17-19

AUGUST 21-23

Las Hermosas Tacos at Red Wagon Plants 2025

An addition to our food & plants offerings.

Las Hermosas will be back at Red Wagon Plants with their delicious cooking every Tuesday evening throughout our season. Walk-ins are welcome or you may pre-order using this link.

Veggie Garden Tips for every Season

Early season mustard greens add vitamins to your meals.

Mid TO LATE April

In April, when the soil is workable and there is no snow in your garden, you can sow peas outdoors. If your garden isn’t ready yet, seed them indoors in a tray of soil and eat the shoots once they’re a few inches tall. You can even try transplanting them outdoors once your garden beds are prepared. Peas, like all legumes, don’t like their roots disturbed, so don’t try to separate them out individually but instead plant them as a mat and harvest them for shoots. Some people successfully start their snow, snap and shelling peas indoors in fiber pots and transplant them outside when they’re a couple inches tall without taking them out of the pot. We recommend you put up a trellis for the peas right away before the garden tempo picks up and you are too busy to do it.

Hardy mustard greens such as the Zesty Mix we grow in little pots are a great way to get a jump on the season. They can be planted in little clumps in garden soil that is dry and thawed (a raised bed for example) and protected with row cover. They can be eaten small as leaves in a salad, or they can be planted in separate clumps that get large for steaming or braising. Those little pots of Zesty Mix are the best value because they are so versatile and mulit-purpose.

Onions and leeks don’t mind the cold, and it is important to get them in as early as possible. We have a whole blog post dedicated to growing onions, take a look at it here.

While you’re waiting for the temperatures to warm up, a good way to satisfy our gardening itch - instead of planting out tender crops too early and watching them perish in a late frost - is to set up our garden instead: Pull out any overwintered weeds, clean up last season’s debris, build a raised bed, put up a trellis, spread a layer of compost, make a succession planting plan, or start some seeds indoors.

May

This is the time to plant all cold season crops: radicchio, lettuce, broccoli, cabbages, beets, fennel, lettuce, kohlrabi, chard…

Potatoes can be planted 2-4 weeks before the last expected frost, when the soil has warmed up to at least 50F. Here in the Northeast this is typically in the month of May. Find our varieties for 2025 here.

late may / early june

After the last chance of a frost has passed (in Vermont, traditionally this is around Memorial Day), it is safe to plant all heat loving vegetables, what we call hot crops: tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, tomatillos, husk cherries. Cucumbers, zucchini, and all types of squashes can be planted as well.

Make sure you harden them off properly before putting them in the ground. Especially if you kept starts under grow lights, they will need to adjust to the outdoor world over the course of several days. Place them outdoors in the shade, protected from wind, during the day time and take them back inside for the night. Repeat this for several days, gradually increasing their exposure to sunlight and the elements, before planting them in the ground.

Peppers come in so many different flavors, heat levels, and colors.

June

Weed your onions and leeks. Remember to fertilize them every 2-3 weeks with a handful of Compost Plus or a balanced liquid fertilizer like fish emulsion.

After your first round is harvested, you can replant more radicchio, lettuce, arugula, and beets.

Late June is not too late to get your garden going: Plant a tomato, plant a zucchini, sow green beans, put some cut flowers in the ground! If you’re working with a patio garden, you can always add more pots: Mediterranean herbs like rosemary, thyme and lavender are especially well suited for sunny locations.

Here are some plants you can direct sow outdoors this time of year:

  • cilantro, dill

  • green beans

  • edamame

  • heat tolerant mustard greens like Yukina Savoy, Mizuna, Wasabina and Ruby Streaks

  • carrots, beets and radishes

  • bolt resistant lettuce varieties like ‘Purple Fusion’

  • cukes and summer squashes

Vegetables and herbs that you can plant as starts in the summertime:

  • All the herbs. For example basil, oregano, parsley and anise hyssop.

  • cukes and summer squashes

  • lettuce

  • fennel

  • chicories

  • kohlrabi

  • chard and kale

  • beets

Early Summer

Any spots in your veggie garden that have freed up from harvested lettuce, garlic, spinach or peas can be replanted with chicories, herbs or annual flowers.
To still get a good harvest, now is your best chance to direct seed the following vegetables:

  • summer squash like Patty Pan or zucchini

  • carrots

  • green beans

  • flowering herbs like calendula and borage

If you would like cilantro at the same time as tomatoes for salsa, now is the time to either transplant it or direct seed it. Scallions too.

It is likely time to harvest onions, and the best way to check is to see if the plants have flopped over and the skins have started to form on the bulbs. Onions need to cure before going into storage, and this is usually best accomplished by laying them out in a dark, dry, and airy space for a couple of weeks so that the green tops can dry and the skins can fully form. Sweet onions such as Ailsa Craig, Walla Walla, and Sierra Blanca should go in the fridge. They don’t store well.

If you would like peppers to ripen from green to red (or orange / yellow if that is the variety you have), it is recommended to pick one or two at the green stage. This will help the others ripen to their mature color.

A tomato trellis in Red Wagon’s display veggie garden.

Mid TO LATE Summer

During the heat of summer, here are some ways to take the stress off your plants:

  • water early in the day.

  • if you are planting some new plants, do after 4 pm so that they have the cooler night ahead of them as they adjust to life in the ground. Water well when planting.

  • fertilize with Compost Plus or with a liquid fish / seaweed fertilizer. It will help plants cope with the heat stress.

  • most importantly, we hope you keep yourself cool with dips in the lake or river.

If you are growing leeks, mid summer is a good time to hill soil around their base so that they form more of a tender white part.

It might be tempting to stop weeding as summer winds down, but this is when weeds are setting seed, so you should probably focus a little extra on taking out the weeds that are flowering. Otherwise, they’ll have plenty of time to leave you with thousands of weed seeds for years to come. Preventing weeds from flowering and setting seeds will save countless hours in the future.

If you are going away for a long weekend or vacation in summer: In just a few minutes, you can get your garden vacation ready by harvesting a few things, watering all the containers and putting the most delicate potted plants in the shade while you are away. All smaller pots can go on a tray partially filled with water so they look not so dead when you get back.

Is it time to rip out the old zucchini plants and cucumbers? Maybe you have a generation of beans that have gone by? Don’t let empty garden space go to waste, and take time to pop in radicchio, escarole, broccoli, or other fall greens. Turnips and rutabagas can be seeded directly outdoors in mid summer for a late fall harvest.

Late summer veggie garden: We love to add flowers to attract pollinators, beneficials, and to satisfy our sense of beauty.

FALL

Once the temperatures cool down, most hot crops will slow or stall their production and ripening process. You can clip the tips off of tomato plants in late summer to encourage them to send energy into ripening fruit instead of growing taller, or you can simply harvest your green tomatoes. Either turn them into a delicious green tomato salsa or let them ripen on the kitchen counter and use them for sauce.

Any plants that are diseased or otherwise unhappy should be pulled and added to your compost pile. Don’t let veggie plant debris - especially tomatoes - overwinter in your garden, you could accidentally be harboring unwanted pests and diseases that will flourish next spring.

Some plants can be left standing though, if you want them to reseed or offer the seeds as food to the birds. Examples include dill, cilantro, or tulsi seed heads and any perennial plants you might have in your veggie garden, like asparagus, anise hyssop, lovage or rhubarb.

WINTER

This is the time for us and our gardens to rest, but there is never a season when we can’t be gardening. We can plan and dream, make plant lists and order seeds. It is also a wonderful practice to review our garden notes and re-evaluate what went well, what we’d like to improve, and where we feel like experimenting. And then there are houseplants…

Red Wagon’s cold frames and greenhouses at rest.

Happy gardening!

This blog post was written by Kat Consler and Julie Rubaud.

POTATO VARIETIES for the 2025 season

It’s true: When the dandelions are blooming in your neighborhood, it is time to plant potatoes. In New England, dandelions can be used as a reasonable gauge to tell if the soil has dried and warmed enough for potatoes to be comfortable. All potatoes like well-draining soil, but some of the varieties we carry are well suited for heavier soils.

If you’re working in clay soil, give Dark Red Norland a try. This is an early season potato with high yields and great flavor, firm white flesh and red skin.

If you’re at the other end of the spectrum, working in sandy drought-prone soil, All Blue is a great performer. Blue skin, blue flesh and blue flowers make this one extra special.

If you’re growing in containers or grow bags, varieties with small tubers are your best choice. Banana is a buttery yellow fingerling variety with good storage qualities. Upstate Abundance boasts very early, golf-ball-sized potatoes with white flesh and a creamy texture.

Our overall Red Wagon favorite variety is called German Butterball. Its delicious flavor and texture lends itself to many culinary uses and never disappoints. If you’re looking for an earlier season variety with similar flavor qualities, Carola is a great choice as well. Both have yellow flesh and skin.

Find instructions on how to plant and care for your potato patch here.



This blog post was written by Kat Consler.

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A Closer Look At Pea Varieties

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The optimal time to seed peas here in Vermont is in April as soon as the ground can be worked. You don’t want to start too early or the seeds may rot if the soil is too wet. And you don’t want to wait too long or the pea plants will suffer in the heat later in the season and produce a smaller crop.

Following is a selection of open-pollinated pea seeds you can find in our retail store. All parts of these peas are edible - flowers, pods and shoots. All of them can be grown as micro-greens as well.

In our climate we recommend providing support for pea plants of all sizes. Four posts with a line of string surrounding a pea patch is sufficient to prevent shorter varieties from flopping over in the wind and rain. Anything taller than 4’ will benefit from a trellis. Chicken wire, cattle fence, hardware cloth or Hortonova netting attached to t-posts or wooden stakes are all great options.

Our selection for the 2025 season:

SNAP PEAS - ideal for fresh eating, they’re crisp and sweet

Sweet Gem (High Mowing) - around 4’ tall, sweet and crisp with strong powdery mildew resistance.

Sugar Magnolia (Hudson Valley) - 5’ tall with gorgeous purple flowers and pods.

Amish Snap (Seed Savers Exchange) - 5-6’ tall, sweet and crisp pods on prolific vines.

SNOW PEAS - harvest when they’re small for a stronger pea flavor or let them grow slightly puffy for sweet and crisp pods

Blizzard (High Mowing) - 3’ tall, prefers being trellised. Sweet and easy to pick.

Swiss Giant (Hudson Valley) - 5’ tall. beautiful bi-color flowers (they’re edible too). high yield of large 3-4” pods.

SHELL PEAS - these involve more work with shelling, but the tender sweet peas are so worth it

PLS 595 (High Mowing) - short, 3-5’ tall plants with high yield. Very long pods with an average of 11 peas per pod.

Champion of England (Seed Savers Exchange) - grows up to 10’ tall! A historic variety from the 1840s. Prolific and sweet, with 8-10 peas per pod.

This blog post was written by Kat Consler and Julie Rubaud

Planters for all seasons

An early Spring planter with lamium, viola, stock and alyssum.

SPRING

OUR FAVORITE FROST HARDY ANNUAL FLOWERS

Pansies and violas: The obvious first choice for springtime color, they withstand a frost or a snowstorm with ease. With their wide range of colors, patterns and sizes, they match any color palette - and they smell so good! Edible flowers.

Nemesia: Snapdragon-like flowers float above deep green foliage. You’ll need to lean in, but it’s worth sniffing these blooms: Their scent is amazing.

Alyssum: Lovely low growing plant with fluffy white or purple flowers who’s smell is sweet as honey.

Lobelia: Shades of true blue make this plant special. They are a great ground cover or filler for springtime planters.

Lobularia: Their intoxicating scent will win your heart instantly. They mix well with pansies or shine on their own, spilling over the edges of a hanging basket.

Stock: This cold loving cut flower blooms for weeks while exuding a wonderful perfume.

Osteospermum: Not quite as cold hardy as the other plants, but still well able to tolerate temperatures in the 30ies. Cute daisy like flowers in many shades of the rainbow.

Argyranthemum: Similar cold hardiness as Osteos. Fine foliage with multi-stemmed daisy like flowers in pinks, yellows and white. If kept deadheaded, they will bloom all the way through fall.

Cold Hardy Herbs and Vegetables that we love to mix in for texture, color and flavor:

  • Chervil

  • Curly and Flat Parsley

  • Cilantro

  • Dill

  • Sorrel

  • Mustard Greens like Tokyo Bekana and Ruby Streaks

A sun loving summer basket filled with purple petunias, lobelia, and verbena.

EARLY SUMMER

A SEASON FOR ALL COLORS

Once all chance of frost has passed, the palette of flowers widens: Geraniums, Begonias, Zinnias, Bidens, Petunias, Verbena, Lantana, Angelonia, Marigolds, Ageratum and so many more are now safe to grow outside.

Especially beloved by bees and hummingbirds are Agastache, Salvias, and Cuphea.

Options for foliage plants to create a green (or multicolored) backdrop range from trailing Plectranthus, Dichondra, and Sweet Potato Vine, to bushy Eucalyptus, Coleus, and Iresine, all the way to spiky upright Cordyline, and ornamental grasses.

Great choices for planters in part shade: Begonias, Coleus, Browallia, Impatiens, and Torenia.

MID SUMMER

TIME FOR A REDO

By July most planters that were created earlier in the year are starting to fade and can benefit from a makeover. Cool weather plants just don’t enjoy the heat, but you don’t need to pull them out. You can keep them tucked away in a shady spot, idly awaiting their time to shine again later in Fall. Oftentimes pansies, violas, stock and other cool weather flowers will stay alive through the heat of summer if they are kept in the shade of other plants and they will send out new flowers once the weather cools later in the season.

Make sure to fertilize your planters with a handful of compost or a dose of liquid fertilizer at least every two weeks. Gently trim back plants that look overgrown by cutting a few branches by a third or to half their length. Remove dead leaves and flowerheads to prevent diseases from spreading.

Excellent choices for their heat tolerance: Chrysocephalum, Gazania, Portulaca, and any silver leaved foliage plants.

LATE SUMMER INTO FALL

A SECOND CHANCE FOR COOL LOVING PLANTS

Cannas, ornamental grasses, Rudbeckia hirta, begonias, fuchsia and foliage plants are a great way to create a colorful look that will transition from high summer into early fall. We love to use perennials in our summer pots too. Heuchera, hosta, and anemone are all fun plants for adding color and texture and they transition well into the garden after serving dutifully in your planters.

Fall color provided by rudbeckia.

You can find our full annual flower plant list here.

This blog post was written by Julie Rubaud and Kat Consler.

Starting Seeds at Home

Onion starts with the black seed hulls still clinging to the new growth.

Late February is when we start onions, leeks, and shallots in the greenhouse. If you are doing your own seeding at home, you can start those at the same time as well. Growing seeds at home is so fun, but we encourage you to get set up with good grow-lights and to use good soil.

If you need potting soil for your seed starting, we recommend VT Compost Fort Vee. This is the soil we recommend for everything, not just seed starting. Please note that many soils labeled “Seed Starting Mix” are devoid of all nutrients. They are sterile growing media that is intended to be used solely for germinating seeds. Once the seeds are germinated they must be taken out of that soil and potted into something with nutrients or they must be fed soluble fertilizer. If you would like a simpler and more ecological approach, we suggest that you simply start with a compost based soil like the one from VT Compost Company and you don’t have to fuss that much or wonder why your plants are turning yellow and not growing.

A couple weeks later you can start to seed cold hardy greens, peppers and eggplants. We don’t recommend seeding tomatoes until the end of March, or even early April. They just grow too quickly and then are too big and leggy for most indoor growing set ups.

Pro Tips

When seed-starting at home follow these guidelines for best results:

  • Only cover your seeds with a small amount of soil, about the same thickness as the seed itself. Many newer gardeners bury their seeds too deeply and lament the poor germination results.

  • Find out if your seeds need light to germinate. The seed company you use should have some information about that on the packet or on their website. Those light loving seeds are simply pressed into the top of the soil and not covered at all.

  • When seeding, first make a firm seed bed by pressing 4 fingers down onto the soil surface to ensure it is smooth and solid. Then sprinkle on your seed(s) and either press the seed into the soil if it needs light to germinate or sprinkle more soil on top (a very small amount) and gently pat the soil down again.

  • When first watering seeds, use the most gentle nozzle or rose on a watering can. It is best to not disturb the soil and seed with pressurized water. You can even water the seeds from the bottom by setting your seeded pot into a pan of water until the soil wicks up enough water to be damp. If you use this method, remember to take the seeded pot out of the dish of water within a few hours so it is not sitting in water for too long.

Baby artichokes.

The most common mistake is to seed things too early. Remember that our average last frost here in Vermont is not until late May. Some plants can tolerate a frost, and some cannot. Some plants grow slowly and some grow quickly. To have good seedlings at the right time of year takes some knowledge and planning. If you are looking for more information on seed starting, we recommend looking at the seeding specs on the Johnny’s website. They are geared towards professional growers and give the most detailed information about timing and planning.

The other most common mistake is to give your plants insufficient light. Grow-lights need to be just an inch or two above the germinated seeds and they need to be raised up as the plant grows. A south facing window is not enough light and will generally lead to leggy plants that lean towards the window.

Given all of that, we certainly hope you start seeds at home! Seeing new plants pop out of the soil is a miraculous process and brings joy every single time. Don’t let a not perfect set up stop you.

Tomato seedlings at two different age stages.

This blog post was written by Julie Rubaud and Kat Consler.

Holiday Crafts Pop-Up at Red Wagon Plants

Craft Workshops, Baked Treats, Garden Goodies, House Plants and more

We can’t promise snow and a stunning view of Camel’s Hump. But we do promise delicious scents from the Bake Shop kitchen, creative inspiration at our workshops, and warm vibes from good company. On Sunday, November 17th, 2024 we are open for a pop-up shop and crafty workshops. You are invited to join us between noon and 4pm to browse our herb products, gardening tools and Red Wagon Plants merch, peruse the garage sale, enjoy treats from the Bake Shop or participate in one of our workshops. More details will follow as we get closer to the event, so we recommend staying in touch via Newsletter (you can sign up at the bottom of our welcome page). Below you can find some of the offerings for the day.

Workshop Schedule

10:00am - 12:00pm Herbal Mocktails FOR WINTER FESTIVITIES with Sophie Cassel

Get ready to entertain in style this winter. By stocking your bar with herb-infused syrups, vinegars and bitters, you can enjoy delicious mocktails all holiday season. We will use a variety of garden-grown herbs and essential kitchen spices which do double duty as tasty ingredients and health-promoting tonics. Participants will go home with lots of recipes and some handcrafted samples to enjoy. Ages 14 and up. $48. Sign up here.

1:00pm - 5:00pm Birch bark ornaments with Penny Hewitt

Enjoy the simple pleasure of creating a decoration or gift from materials responsibly harvested in VT. Utilizing techniques common to the Scandinavian and Russian style of basketry, you will craft birds and stars using strips of inner bark from the paper birch tree. Included is a discussion on how these materials are harvested and prepared. Everyone will leave with three ornaments. Ages 14 and up. $135. Sign up here.

2:00pm - 4:00pm RUSTIC Dried flower WREATH with Susan Lepple

Do you appreciate the whispyness of grasses, the mounding greens of mosses, the complexities and colors of flowers, the texture and form of seed pods and the irregular nature of branches, twigs, and vines? In this workshop Susan will provide instruction on how to use natural materials to create a beautiful rustic wreath to adorn an interior space. All materials have been grown or collected by Susan and she is happy to answer questions on the process of growing, foraging, drying and storing. Each participant will have enough materials to make one large wreath or two small wreaths. Please feel free to bring your own special materials, if you like. All ages, kids under 11 need to be accompanied by an adult. $65. Sign up here.

All Day Activities
12pm - 4pm

pop-up plant shop

with houseplants, pots and containers, our favorite garden tools and amendments. There will be staff members to aid you with any gardening related questions and it’s a great chance to inhale the scent of being in a greenhouse one last time before they go dormant.

garden related garage sale

This is our second edition of a garage sale with garden and plant related items. All profits go to the Hinesburg Community Resource Center that runs the food shelf and many other offerings benefiting our local community.

KNIFE SHARPENING

Linda Furiya of Madam Cutler and Co. will be back in time to sharpen your knives for the holidays. You can find more info and a price list on her website.

bake shop

We will be offering treats from the Bake Shop: Soups and flatbread, cookies, muffins and cake. Also, the beloved chocolate sourdough is back. Take a look at our menu below.

To pre-order items, follow this link.

We look forward to seeing you!

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We would love to share our space with you.

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Use our beautiful space for your next meeting, birthday party, luncheon, book club, and more.

Our indoor gathering space has been a big hit with our Bake Shop customers, taco lovers and we are now ready to share the space as a rental for small events and meetings. The views of meadows, woods and Camels’ Hump are stunning, and in nice weather, the outdoor terrace and gardens are available for use as well. We think our space is perfect for

  • celebrating a big birthday

  • dance parties (tango lovers have been here already)

  • analog work meetings (the space cannot be darkened for digital presentations)

  • a catered meal (kitchen rental is extra)

  • a small rehearsal dinner or micro-wedding

  • art groups, book clubs, meditation groups

The space measures 17 by 34 feet and features up to 3 large wooden tables with seating for up to 30 people. Standing capacity is up to 40 people. The large windows display a view of Camel’s Hump and in winter there is a wood stove that makes for a cozy feel. Indoor and outdoor speakers are available for music too.

The Red Wagon Plants commercial kitchen (17’ by 26’) includes the following:

  • 5 burner induction range and stove with hood

  • Rackmaster hearth oven

  • 3 basin sink

  • produce sink

  • hand sink

  • commercial dishwasher with a 4min wash cycle

  • commercial coffee grinder and coffee maker

  • refrigeration space for the rental period

  • plenty of work space

The whole space is barrier free and rental includes the use of the ADA compliant bathroom.
Tables and benches can be rearranged or removed depending on your needs.

If you have specific questions, please let us know. Contact us at info@redwagonplants.com.

If you are interested in renting our space, please contact us at info@redwagonplants.com.

Please include preferred time and dates, what type of event you are organizing, and any questions you might have. We look forward to hosting you!

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The Bake Shop - Fall Edition 2024

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Delicious baked goods from our very own Red Wagon Plants kitchen.

To find current information about our Bake Shop, please visit our Bake Shop page.

At the bottom of this page you will find a sample menu of your September Bake Shop items including delicious Apple Hand Pies and Sweet Corn & Maple Muffins. But first:

Sandwich offerings in September

For Saturday morning breakfast Carey and Amy will be preparing two types of egg sandwiches:

Cheddar & chive egg sandwich on focaccia

Spinach & Swiss egg sandwich on a biscuit

On Sundays Sara is our sandwich chef with these two delicious offerings:

Crispy tofu with herbs & veggies on O’Bread baguette
this banh mi style sandwich is vegan

Roasted turkey, smoked gouda, apple, and fig spread panini
this pressed hot sandwich is made with O’Bread sesame wheat

Sample Fall Menu

Our September hours are Thursdays through Sundays 8am until 3pm or until we sell out. Our last day of regular hours will be Sunday, September 29 2024. We look forward to seeing you and enjoying fall together!

Pest and disease resources

Squash bug eggs on the underside of a zucchini leaf.

All throughout the growing season we get a lot of questions from our customers about pest and disease issues. Here are some guidelines and resources that we hope you find helpful.

My plants have a pest or a disease, what do I do?

Don’t panic.

Take a closer look:

  • What triggered the “my plant is sick” alarm? Is it holes in the leaves, yellow leaves, visible pests, rotten parts of the plant? Try describing the damage in words, this will help you use the right words in a Google search or describing it to someone else.

  • How many plants are affected? Is it just one type of plant or all plants in one area?

  • Can you detect an insect, caterpillar, slug or other animal?

  • Are there eggs? Look at the underside of leaves.

  • Does anything in the immediate surrounding give you clues, like a soggy spot in the garden, a vole hole nearby? Has the weather been exceptionally rainy or dry, hot or cold?

  • Take photos. Make sure the lighting is good - shade is often better than harsh sunlight. Take pictures from various angles. Take whole plant photos as well as close-ups.

Now that you’ve familiarized yourself with your situation, you’re ready for the next step:

  • See what a Google image search with the name of the plant and a description of the symptoms brings up.

  • Visit THIS helpful University of Minnesota Extension page and click through the questions.

  • Contact the UVM extension gardener helpline here. You can either fill out a form with detailed information on your plant issue and submit photos or give them a call during their hotline hours.

  • Send us a description and photos to info@redwagonplants.com. Give us a few days to get back to you, especially during our busy season. We’ll do our best to help.

What to do next:

  • This will greatly depend on what your disease or pest turns out to be. Some situations will require no action, other times you may need to remove leaves, squish bugs or use an organic spray. We’re happy to give you our tips on best practices once you know your disease or pest.

Things we don’t recommend:

  • Give up gardening.

  • Please don’t bring diseased plants or weeds to our nursery (or any other place that grows plants) for ID, not even in Ziploc bags. You could unintentionally be spreading diseases to our plants. Send photos instead.

  • Spray with insecticides without knowing if an insect you found is really a pest. Many bugs on your plants are either harmless or beneficial.

This post was written by Kat Consler.

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The Bake Shop - Summer Edition

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Delicious baked goods from our very own Red Wagon Plants kitchen.

Seven Days wrote an article about our Bake Shop. It’s very sweet. You can read it here.

It's what your friend might serve you at their house, if that friend were an excellent cook.


Our Summer hours are Thursdays through Sundays 8am until 3pm or until we sell out.

Below you can find a sample summertime menu.

Three ways to trellis and prune tomato plants

Staff garden cherry tomatoes grown with a string and clip method in a greenhouse

First of all: Why trellis and prune tomato plants? Many gardeners let their tomatoes grow without ever trimming a branch or adding any support. This may produce some great fruit, but here are a few reasons why I recommend trellising and pruning your tomato plants:

Ease of harvest - Trellised and pruned tomato plants make for easier harvest. Easier access to the fruit also means you’re less likely to damage the plants when reaching in to get a ripe tomato. Less damage means less diseases and you’re less likely to miss ripe fruit that is hidden behind overgrown foliage.

Disease prevention - Good airflow, through spacing of plants, and pruning away some branches and leaves, is the best prevention for fungal diseases. Other diseases spread when leaves come in contact with soil, so keeping your tomato plants up off the ground and trimming the lower leaves will greatly reduce this from happening.

More fruit that ripens - You can force a tomato plant to put its energy into ripening existing fruit by removing some of its foliage. This is especially helpful at the end of the season. Three to four weeks before the first expected frost, I clip the head off of my tomato plants, so they will put their energy into turning the last fruits red.

The Cage

This is the most common way to keep tomato plants upright in a home garden. Typically the cages used are too short for tomatoes and better suited for pepper plants. It can be a good option if you have limited garden space and are only growing a few tomato plants. Find the tallest cage possible, ideally 5 ft or more. The sturdier the wires, the better. Square folding cages are made of sturdier wire and won’t fall over easily. They are also more expensive.

Set up your cage right after planting your tomato starts in the ground, this way you’re less likely to damage the plant. Push the bottom wires as far down into the soil as possible.

Since tomato cages are rather short, I aim for a branched plant or choose determinate varieties that won’t grow as tall. I prune all leaves and suckers from the bottom of the plant up until right beneath the lowest flower cluster. Once that fruit is harvested, I continue pruning leaves up to the next flower cluster, always working my way from the bottom up. Always leave some foliage to shade the fruit to prevent sunscald. When the plant gets very dense inside the cage, I prune out some weaker suckers and leaves that are pointing inward. Anything that looks diseased or discolored is always my first choice for cutting off.

Basket Weave

This is a great method if you are planning to have a row of tomato plants. You could use it with as few as 2 plants and up to the full length of your garden. Mark your tomato planting holes in a straight line about 18 inches apart. Then drive a 8 ft t-post (or other tall, sturdy stake) between every 2 or 3 plants and at the ends of the row. Anchor the outer posts so they won’t pull towards each other under the weight of the plants. I usually add two shorter stakes at an outward angle to the end posts. Once your structure is in place, plant the tomatoes. When they are about a foot tall, I start weaving. Attach one end of your string to one of the end posts and start weaving between the plants: Right of the first plant, left of the second and so on. When you reach a post, loop the string tightly around it. When you reach the other end of your row, tie a knot to the last post, run the string between anchor and last post a few times and tie it off. Now do the same with an opposite weave. Each plant will now be held up by string on either side. I weave every 6-10 inches, which is about once a week. Take leaves out as described with the cages. I usually thin each plant to 6-8 strong leaders and remove all other suckers. This creates a kind of espalier look where all fruit is easy to reach and there is lots of airflow.

String and Clip

My wild veggie garden on August 1st 2021 with tomatoes trellised along front of house

The easiest pruning and harvesting will be achieved with a string and clip set-up. I grow tomatoes along the south side of my house and attach the strings with hooks to the overhang of the roof. This picture was taken August 1st - Tomatoes get tall if you let them! 

If you have a greenhouse, this is a great method. Or you can build a frame of 2x4s as was done in our display garden last year. As with any of these methods, you want to sink the posts as deep in the ground as possible. I have grown tomatoes in pots on a patio and attached their strings to a nearby building. The string doesn’t have to be perfectly vertical either, you’ll just want to anchor the bottom of the string in the ground, so any wind won’t tear the plant out. In our display garden set-up we ran a horizontal string a few inches above the ground between the wooden frame and attached the trellising strings to it. You could use tent stakes or tie the string to a stick and poke it into the ground.

Next you’ll need tomato clips. These are made of plastic and can be used for many years until they break. They clip tightly to the string and then encircle the stem of the tomato plant without strangling it. I recommend clipping every 10-12 inches, beneath a leaf. Don’t place them directly under a cluster of flowers/fruit as the weight of the plant could eventually snap them off. 

If you don’t have tomato clips, you could tie a piece of string tightly to your supporting string and then loosely around the tomato stem.

Pruning with this method is pretty straightforward: Each vertical string gets one leader. This means you’ll prune off all side branches. You can grow two leaders per plant, but they each need their own support string. Let your freshly planted tomatoes grow for a bit before you choose the strongest side branch as a second leader. Typically it will be the branch right beneath the lowest set of flowers.

The string and clip method can also be used for cucumbers!

Cucumbers in a greenhouse using string and clip method

Pruning best practices

  • Tomatoes are very susceptible to fungal diseases that can be spread from one plant to the next through your hands or tools. Avoid pruning and harvesting when the plants are wet as water can be a great vector for diseases. 

  • Use sharp clean snips when pruning. Don’t touch the wounds and avoid tearing off branches as the large open wounds created can be entry points for diseases. Start with the healthiest plants and prune diseased plants last. You can also disinfect your snips between plants or after each pruning session. A bleach solution or alcohol works great for this.

  • When watering, direct your hose at the base of the plant, not the foliage itself. Mulching can be a good way to prevent water from splashing soil onto the bottom leaves when watering or from rain.

  • Some diseases live in the soil and can overwinter there. I recommend a good clean up of all tomato plant material at the end of the season to minimize future disease issues.

I prune and trellis once every week. All it takes is a few minutes per plant. If you have never done anything to your tomato plants but are curious to try, start with one plant and see how it compares to the others.

This post was written by Kat Consler, RWP’s tomato pruning genius.

Las Hermosas Tacos at Red Wagon Plants 2024

An addition to our food & plants offerings.

Las Hermosas will be back at Red Wagon Plants with their delicious cooking every Tuesday through May and on select Saturdays in Summer. The first edition sold out pretty quickly, so it is highly recommended to pre-order using this link.

Very Berry Weekend

Let’s celebrate berries in all their colorful delicious beauty.

To celebrate the start of berry season, we invite you to a weekend of very berry fun. We are offering a palette of berry themed workshops and classes as well as free activities and learning opportunities with topics ranging from growing your own fruit and plant care to turning your harvest into tasty treats. You’ll also have a chance to weave your own harvest basket. To round out the weekend fun, we will have delicious berry-packed lunch, snack and drink options available for purchase.

VERY BERRY WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Saturday June 8

10:00 am - 5:00 pm BASKET WEAVING workshop: BLACK ASH BERRY BASKET with penny hewitt

Here is a unique chance to make your own basket and in the process learn one of the oldest crafts in human history. For thousands of years, baskets have served as indispensable objects in every culture. Let's carry on this tradition and take home a beautiful, durable and useful berry basket, crafted from local and responsibly harvested, hand-pounded black ash logs. This is a great introduction to the extraordinary qualities of the black ash tree. In this class, participants will weave a square to round basket, approximately 6”x 6” with optional leather strap. Included is a discussion on how the material is harvested and processed.  

Cost: $165. Limited to 12 participants. Sign up here.

12:30 PM - 1:30 PM BERRY GROWING Drop-In

Drop in for this free berry growing session. You may learn how and when to plant strawberries, which blueberry varieties might suit you best, or how to prune raspberries. Bring your berry curiosity. No sign-up required.

Sunday June 9

10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Growing berries in Vermont with Jacob Holzberg-Pill

From the common to the lesser known fruit, this class will cover all the bases to get your backyard berry patch going. Vermont’s climate brings its unique challenges and opportunities for berry production. Participants will learn which varieties to choose depending on their site and how to care for them. This includes propagation to multiply your plants, and pruning to keep them healthy.

Cost: $25. Sign up here.

12:30 PM - 1:30 PM BERRY GROWING Drop In

Drop in for this free berry growing session. You may learn how and when to plant strawberries, which blueberry varieties might suit you best, or how to prune raspberries. Bring your berry curiosity. No sign-up required.

4:00 PM - 6:00 PM HANDS-ON, honey-Based jams with v smiley

What better way to celebrate berries than turning them into jam with local honey and fruit. In this class with V Smiley from V Smiley Preserves, you will learn how to make delicious berry jams with local ingredients. The class covers selecting, preparing and preserving fruit with honey and without added pectin. V Smiley will teach the fundamentals of flavor construction and the stages of jam cooking, using honey instead of sugar. Through tasting a wide selection of preserves and making variations on two berry jams, you’ll open up your jam making to the spice cupboard and herb garden. This is a hands-on workshop and you’ll head home with multiple jars of berry jam.

Cost: $120. Limited to 12 participants. Sign up here.

We look forward to seeing you! Our greenhouses will be open regular hours, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM.

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Gardening 101 Extravaganza

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A full day of learning in support of newer gardeners.

This is our first ever all day learning event. Our goal is to be welcoming and supportive of new gardeners. Throughout the day we will offer many opportunities to explore the basics of growing your own food and flowers and dreaming up your ideal landscape. In this new learning format, we have a whole day of activities planned and you are welcome to come for just one component or stay the whole day.

GARDENING 101 SCHEDULE

Saturday, April 20th

ASK ME ANYTHING ROUNDTABLES — 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Join us around the table to discuss your gardening questions with a Red Wagon expert as well as fellow gardeners. This is a free drop-in station where you can get inspiration and find answers, and no sign-up is required. Different members of Red Wagon’s team will be staffing the table and each block of time will focus on a specific theme.

10:00 am - 12:00 pm Plan your garden and create a vision board with Julie Rubaud

We are going analog! Whether you’re designing your veggie garden or your perennial beds, we invite you to get creative and dream big. All materials will be provided but feel free to bring in your own pictures, magazines, Pinterest board or favorite garden journal. This is a free “drop-in” program and you can come and go as you please. No prior registration required.

12:00 PM - 2:00 pm FOCUS on soil, from testing to amending with Chad Donovan

If you have ever sent in a soil sample and don’t know what to do with the results or you’re curious what healthy, fertile soil looks like, this is the time to stop in. This is a free “drop-in” program and you can come and go as you please. No prior registration required.

2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Focus on Seeds - starting them indoors, outdoors, reseeding and more with Kat Consler

Some plants like to be transplanted, others prefer to have their roots be undisturbed. Kat will help you determine the best way to get your plant babies off to a great start. This is a free “drop-in” program and you can come and go as you please. No prior registration required.

WORKSHOPS

Three workshops fill out this Gardening 101 day. They cost $25 each and are limited to 12 participants so we recommend that you sign up ahead of time.

10:00 am - 11:30 am Vegetative Propagation with Jacob Holzberg-Pill

Learn how to make more of your favorite plants with Jacob Holzberg-Pill. This workshop will offer a broad overview on many different types of vegetative propagation: crown division, root cuttings, scaling, tip layering, softwood and hardwood cuttings. In this hands-on workshop we will explore which asexual techniques work best for different species and genera. Participants will practice some of these techniques and take home some fun new plants. Sign up here.

12:30 Pm - 2:00 pm Favorite tools for the veggie garden with Julie Rubaud and Kat Consler

We all have our favorite tools to use in the garden. From trellising supports and row cover to weeding tools and gloves. Julie and Kat will talk about their successes and failures with various materials and how to get the most use out of their favorite garden tools without having to purchase too many things. Sign up here.

3:00 PM - 4:30 pm Growing Cut Flowers with Lily Belisle

Are you dreaming of endless summer bouquets? Lily will help you make that dream come true. In this class, she’ll talk about her favorite cutting flower varieties and which flowers and foliage plants to grow and harvest to keep bouquets on your table throughout the seasons. You’ll get tips for successful growing and learn which tools to use to increase abundance and ease. Please bring all your cutting flower questions and leave with inspiration and plant wish lists. Sign up here.

We look forward to seeing you! Our greenhouses will be open normal hours, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM.