Hairy Sunshine

Morning all,

Brace yourselves, it looks like a beautiful bank holiday weekend and all that pent up demand could explode into frenzied activity. Let's hope so, time is slipping by. Perfect timing for the bedding producers, perhaps not so perfect for the hardy growers but we should all benefit with luck. After a very busy and challenging week we are here all weekend trying to catch up on nursery stuff, potting, picking out, spacing plants, tidying up, releasing more predator nematodes it's all go. Big gang in today and Monday so hoping to be super productive, I'm sure it will all get done.
We got our troublesome hire van back this week with no reported problems found by their garage, good news or not? Not. Broke down twice on one trip on Friday so got it replaced with a different one. Luckily one of our busiest weeks passed by nicely with just two off ill, one crashed car (not mine), one broken down car (not mine either) and one trolley tipped over (it wasn't me this time). What fun. At least no one was hurt and all back at work by Friday and the sun is out.
We seem to be continuing to attract our fair share of media interest despite me trying to keep my head down. We are in the printed version Hort Week this month, with a nice big piece, can't say I have read it, too embarrassed, it might say something nice about us.
Hope you all have a good weekend and don't get too stressed with all the excitement. I have to go and get the potting machine purring seamlessly and the pricker outers doing their thing.

New Data Protection Stuff
Just a note to say that we will be sending out a separate email very soon to ask if it ok to continue holding your email address here so that we can contact you with news, info or admin stuff for our wholesale business. Although many addresses may not be personal ones we will have to check them all because some definitely are and we can't always tell which. If at sometime in the near future you stop receiving our lists it may be because we haven't received confirmation that all is well or possibly I have slipped into the junk folder again.

Ordering header boards for your trays of plants.
We are very happy to send out our little header boards that slip into the front of each tray, whenever you want them, but in the interest of reducing waste, resources and sustainability we try not to over produce them. So if you do want them, please don’t forget to tick, or mark, the right hand column on the availability list . Thanks.

Availability highlights
Strong and chunky Camassia Maybelle looking perfect. Flower spikes are on show, no blue colour yet but best at this stage before they get too far out. The massively popular Erigeron karvinskianus Stallone is sprouting flower buds, probably a couple of weeks away from colour but full of promise. All of the Polemoniums are now in bud, Bambino Blue is the most compact one and looking really strong. The others have plenty of shoots bursting forth.
Erysimum are looking fantastic with plenty of chunky growth and bud in all the varieties still available. The spring flowering Ajuga's are shooting into flower now, very strong bushy plants with plenty more bud to come. Very pretty Viola Rebecca in bud and flower now. Achillea Paprika is now showing flower shoots as are the last few of the Moonshine. First signs of bud now appearing on the compact Dessert Eve varieties too.
Anthemis Sauce Hollandaise is in bud. Symphytum Wisley Blue showing plenty of bud and pretty pale blue flowers. Hostas are shooting through now, a fab range from our own home propagated stock. The ever popular compact Geums Cooky and Koi are now showing their little bright orange flowers. Lady Stratheden and Mrs Bradshaw are not far behind with flower shoots bursting out. The over-wintered Digitalis are looking strong and chunky with flower spikes appearing.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.