This is a key time to get some fabulous fall foliage into your garden.

The days may be getting cooler, but the ground is still warm, which makes it a great time to plant trees, shrubs, and perennials that are at their finest in the fall.

Here are some plants (all of which are in stock at Warner’s) to consider:

TREES

Autumn Blaze Maple & Sugar Maple. Both of these trees boast of amazingly beautiful foliage in the fall. The Autumn Blaze, true to its name, has fiery orange and red leaves, while the Sugar Maple has a slightly wider range of color and includes gold as well as orange and red. Both require some space as they grow pretty tall (up to 55 feet for an Autumn Blaze and up to 75 feet for a Sugar Maple). In the summer, Autumn Blaze has lovely light green leaves, while the Sugar Maple has deep green glossy leaves.

Amur Maple. The Amur Maple is a smaller (20 foot high) tree that is known for its tolerance for harsh conditions, including cold winters and poor soil. They have leaves that are longer than they are wide and turn a brilliant red in fall. Amur Maples are relatively small trees, typically reaching heights of 20-30 feet.  In the spring and early summer, clusters of yellow-white fragrant flowers will appear as young leaves are unfurling.

Flowering Crabapple. Flowering Crabapples have showy fall foliage (with colors ranging from yellow to purple) but they are best known for their beautiful spring blooms in a variety of colors, including white, pink, red, and purple. This is another smaller tree and typically grows to heights of 15 to 25 feet.

Flowering Pear. Ornamental Flowering Pears are smaller trees with a general teardrop shape that are very tolerant. They thrive in a variety of soil types and while they prefer moisture, they can stand heat and dry conditions. This is another smaller tree that has both spring and fall color. When the weather is cooler, it will produce striking claret and purple hues, and then a gorgeous burst of white flowers during the spring.

Honey Locust. The graceful oval foliage of the Honey Locust (also known as a Thorny Locust) turns a beautiful shade of gold during the fall. Meanwhile, these trees have beautiful spreading canopies, which provide a generous amount of shade during the summer months. 

SHRUBS & GRASSES

Aronia (Chokeberry). Chokeberries are ornamental shrubs (although they can be trained into small trees) that produce the aronia berries, which can be eaten raw off the bush, but are more frequently processed into jam, syrup, juice, and even wine! Leaves can turn yellow or red in the fall, depending on the species.

Burning Bush. The Burning Bush is a popular ornamental shrub that is known for its bright red leaves in the fall. Burning Bushes can grow to heights of 10-15 feet and have a dense branching habit, often making the bush wider than it is tall.

Karl Foerster Grass. Also known as Feather Reed Grass, this plant has beautiful and tall red-bronze feathery flower spikes that last throughout the fall. 

PERENNIALS

And we couldn’t do an article about the fabulous colors of fall without a mention of two of our favorite perennials – mums and asters.

First cultivated in China, chrysanthemums or “mums” were first developed more than 600 years ago. A staple of most fall gardens, the colors range from bright white to deep bronze. Fun fact: Mum flowers look like they have a multitude of petals, but those “petals” are actually individual “ray” and “disc” florets. (The rays looks like the petals and the flat disc florets serve as the center button of the mum.) Clustered together, they give us what we know as a mum bloom.

Asters have a starburst arrangement of bright petals, which most often surround a yellow center. The flowers are small but numerous, and bloom around the autumn equinox, which will be later in September this year.

We look forward to seeing you this fall at Warner’s and helping bring some beautiful foliage color to your home.

Happy Gardening,
Misti

Blood supplies nationwide continue to be at critically low levels.

Summer brings a surge in need coupled with low donation rates as people go away on vacations and fewer businesses and organizations host blood drives.

To help combat this situation, Warner’s Nursery will be hold a blood drive with Vitalant on Friday, September 15 from noon to 5 pm.

Please register today to make your appointment to save a life by giving blood.

“If enough blood is not available at any given moment, delays in patient care can have life-threatening consequences,” Vitalant Chief Medical and Scientific Officer Dr. Ralph Vassallo said. “By making an appointment today and donating tomorrow, next week, even next month, you become a lifeline for patients.” 

It’s estimated that every two seconds, someone in the U.S. is in need of blood. And the blood that is donated doesn’t have a long shelf life: platelets (critical for people with clotting problems, cancer, or undergoing major surgery) are only good for about five days and red blood cells (needed for acute blood loss or transfusions) only last for about 42 days.

That’s why your donation is so very vital, particularly while supplies are so low.

Basic Eligibility Requirements to Donate Blood

• Must be at least 16 years old
• Weight at least 110 pounds
• Be in good overall health
• Bring some form of identification
• Eat within two hours ahead of donation

In addition to the good feeling you’ll get from donating blood, there’s some other benefits, including a coupon for 15% off regularly priced items at Warner’s. You’ll also be entered into a  drawing for a chance to win one of two $50 gift certificates from Warner’s.

All you need to do to sign up is go to the Vitalant website, click on “blood drive code” and enter the code “P2AFN.”

Thank you so much and we look forward to seeing you on Friday, September 15.

Happy Gardening (and Lifesaving),
Misti

There are so many great reasons to add houseplants to your home, office, or dorm room. They add color and life to any space, help improve air quality, and reduce stress. Plants can even make you more productive!

The great news is that you don’t need to be a certified horticulturist in order to enjoy the benefits of having houseplants. There are several houseplants that don’t require a “green thumb” in order for them to flourish.

Here’s some of the easiest, most forgiving plants to cultivate:

Sansevieria

You might know this plant as the Snake Plant or Mother-in-Law’s Tongue. Some call it Viper’s Bowstring Hemp because the strong fibers were once used for bowstrings. The plant’s bold and slender upright leaves, typically edged in a green-gray color, make it quite a stunner. It’s also quite forgiving; the only thing you need to worry about is overwatering it. 

Among this plant’s variations is the “whale fin” sansevieria (Sansevieria Masoniana) which takes its name from its wide, paddle-like leaves. Typically dark green with lighter mottling, these leaves can grow to a whopping four feet long by 10 inches wide. Learn more about Sanseviera here. 

Peace Lily

Spathiphyllum, better known as the “Peace Lily,” is a great example of a spadix type of plant, where a spike of tiny little flowers is encased in a curved leaf-like structure known as a spathe. (Peace Lilies are sometimes called Spathe flowers.) Besides being beautiful, Peace Lilies are easy to take care of and can acclimate to lower levels of light. Peace Lilies symbolize purity and innocence. They are often given as a gift to those who have suffered a loss, as the white lily represents the rebirth of the soul. Find out how easy it is to cultivate this plant here.

Pothos

The easy-going nature of Potho makes them a very popular first plant for houseplant newbies. They have thick, waxy, heart-shaped leaves that are typically green with yellow or white sections (known as variegation). These versatile houseplants look great in a pot or hanging in a container, with their vine-like stems cascading down. They grow well in bright light or low light, meaning they will flourish anywhere in your home. Find out why this is one of the most popular species for first-time plant owners here and check out the “neon” version too.  

Succulents

Because they are able to store water in their leaves, stems, or roots, succulents have adapted to survive in dry conditions, such as deserts. The come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, and there are many different species to choose from. Among the most popular are aloe vera, echeveria, kalanchoe and the jade plant. 

Philodendrons

In addition to being easy to care for, philodendrons are very diverse; there are more than 400 subspecies of this plant! This includes the ever-popular Monstera deliciosa, more commonly known as the split-leaf or swiss cheese philodendron for the holes that develop in its large heart-shaped leaves. Then there’s the Philodendron Birkin, a man-made plant created from two cultivars, which has pinstripe vegetation on lush dark green leaves. Rumor is that the name ‘Birkin’ came from the expensive Hermes handbag. One of the newest plants in this family is the Philodendron ‘Atom’ which is a dwarf cultivar. This compact plant will only grow about 12 inches high and has a very bushy appearance with deep-green leaves that are ruffled, which is why it’s also known as the “lacy” philodendron.

These are just a few of the plants that are relatively easy to care for and will bring beauty to your home without requiring you to be a plant expert. To learn about these and other houseplants, visit our houseplant experts at Warner’s Nursery.

One of the great things about being in a gardening business in Northern Arizona is the talented horticulture experts you get to work with. We truly value our relationships with other gardening organizations, and one of our most special partnerships is with the Coconino Master Gardeners Association.

The association is part of the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, a statewide network of knowledgeable faculty and staff that provides lifelong educational programs for all Arizonans.

The Master Gardener program’s volunteers provide free science-based horticulture information for our region, including data and guides on plant selection, insects, plant diseases, planting, pruning, irrigating, fertilizing, and more. They are probably best know for their program to train new Master Gardeners, a 15-week course, followed by 50 hours of volunteer gardening work to become certified.

But you don’t need to to become a Master Gardener yourself in order to benefit from the extension program’s expertise. Coconino Master Gardeners are our partners in Root Camp, Gardening 101 series, providing more than a dozen excellent one-hour seminars throughout the spring and summer for our customers.

Later this month, Coconino Master Gardeners will be hosting its annual Garden Tour, a chance to view and learn from the creators of seven beautiful vegetable, flower and native plant gardens around Flagstaff. The self-guided tour will be from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday, August 12.

Tickets for the tour will be sold from 9 am to Noon at Warner’s Nursery the day of event. Tickets are $15 and all proceeds will benefit the Coconino Master Gardener Association community grants. (You can also buy tickets on EventBrite, but the ticket cost is $17.85 to cover processing fees).

We hope you will take advantage of this unique event, and avail yourself of the terrific programs that the Coconino Master Gardener Association provides, including their classes here at Warner’s Nursery.