Big Hair

Morning all,
Just can't find enough hours in the week at the moment. So many new projects on the go, loads of tunnel clearance and potting to get done, as well as orders to go out. At least the weather seems to be with us at the moment. I had been thinking I might get up to the big Four Oaks trade exhibition last week, but time got the better of me and a holiday exodus meant I might be missed, difficult to believe I know. I would have been interested to see the non-plastic offerings on show as this seems to be flavour of the moment. From the press reports it seems that various different coloured pots is a popular direction and there are a few bio-degradable versions out there too which is good to see. The heightened level of interest from other growers can make me anxious at times as they are all potential extra competition for us, although we have so much more than a non- plastic pot in our package they have a way to go before catching us up. There is plenty of coverage in the current Horticulture Week with a couple of pages devoted to it, including a paragraph on ourselves, buried in the middle, covering our exciting exhibit a few weeks ago at the DEFRA summer reception in the big city. Fame at last.
On the theme of further reducing single use plastics, we have just given the go ahead for a new label cutter to be made so that we can take away the last main bit of plastic in our deliveries. Our range of perennial plant coloured pot labels are already made from 100% recycled plastic and are recyclable, but from next spring we will be ushering in a new era with card labels waterproofed with plant cellulose. The labels, printed for us by Floramedia, will be made from a material called B500 which
can be recycled through paper waste schemes or composted in the garden. The labels aren't quite as indestructible as the plastic version but when used in conjunction with our bamboo skewers which hold the label away from the worst of the damp compost, the label life is pretty good. After trials over the last year we feel it is certainly worth a go.
Another new project is going to be the replacement of the nursery office and print room. As a temporary mobile cabin, it has served us well for over thirty years but the holes and leaks, very thin and poorly insulated walls, bendy floor, broken floor beams and loose walls means that time is up. We spend most of our waking hours in or around here so it will be very exciting to have a cosy and efficient replacement. With a limited budget we are sticking with a similar design to the lab store and the staff rest room buildings we have put over the last few years, twin walled log cabins with extra insulation in the walls, floor and roof. Although not permanent structures they should last for ages and judging by the others we already have, they are very comfortable and the running costs will be minimal. I've started clearing out the old office in preparation, with a massive recycling binge of old records and catalogues. It's scary how much rubbish you accumulate and even scarier when you come across pictures of young people with big hair starting up a new nursery!
Apologies to anyone who may have tried to call us over the last week or two and got cut off, we are still having issues with our cordless handsets playing up. The engineers keep coming out to play but disappear again with them sort of working, but not quite. If you have trouble, do leave a message, or drop us an email, and we will get back to you as soon as we are back in the office using the reliable ones that are tied to the wall.
WOODEN BOX RETURNS
If anyone is ready to send back their collection of empty wooden boxes please do let us know. Over the next month or so we would like to collect as many as we can, so we can get them out of your way and cleaned, dried and mended before the cold damp winter arrives. Thanks.
Availability highlights
The late summer flowering Anemones are looking great in the gardens and we have some looking good now, some with bud coming. Anemones are always a tricky one as the natural tendency is for the plants to go tall. looks fab in the garden but not so easy in a pot. We have some stonking September Charm and Honerine Jobert at the moment. Autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium are coming into flower. Fresh batches of Salvia Sensation in blue, rose and white are in bud and about to show colour. Viola Konigin Charlotte traditionally flowers in the spring with its deep violet colour and stunning scent, but we find it does produce a pretty smattering in the late summer too and sure enough that is what's occurring now. Looking and smelling great. We have a couple on fresh patches of Achillea in bud on short stems, the red Paprika and silver leaved Moonshine. A few of the Asters are beginning to show signs of flowering. Fantastic plants of the mildew resistant Asmo are throwing up plenty of bud, compact and chunky, just beginning to open their pale lilac flowers. Lady in Blue and Rosenwitchel are both also in bud, nice compact plants with colour showing on some.
The massively popular Erigeron karvinskianus Stallone is sprouting plenty of flower buds, full of promise and dainty colours. Both Erodium varieties are in bud and showing a few open flowers, neat and floriferous. Foliage starts to be of interest at this time of year and there are some good shows of colour from the Carex Evergold, Ajuga, Heuchera, Lamium and Euphorbia.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.