Spring is a season of new beginnings – out in the landscape, in our own businesses, & in the Green Industry. We recently planted our new crop of liners in the field, and it was a great few days for several reasons.

First, we planted a beautiful crop of trees from some great suppliers!  We work with J.Frank Schmidt Nursery, Carlton Plants, & John Holmlund Nursery – all terrific growers that do a great job producing quality trees.  We planted some new trees in the nursery this year that we are excited to try out like Hot Wings Tatarian Maple, Celebration Maple, Emerald City Tulip Tree, Exclamation London Planetree, Street Keeper Honeylocust, Heritage Oak, Kindred Spirit Oak, Emerald Sunshine Elm, & City Sprite Zelkova.

Second, planting trees in the nursery is a positive look ahead for our business & our customers.  Despite the tough economy the last few years for the green industry, we have worked hard to stay the course & continue to plant new trees every year.  Like everyone, we have made adjustments along the way where we can, but we have not waivered on the quality of the liner stock that we start with or the attention to planting a diverse selection of tree varieties for our customers.  We recently read a terrific article that addresses the problems ahead for our industry written by John Barbour of Boldspring Nursery, a fellow J. Frank Schmidt Nursery customer.  His article titled “Why Tree Prices Will Increase”  gives an excellent account at what nurseries have been facing the last few years & what lies ahead for tree supply & pricing. We are confident that we will be able to supply our customers with what they need in the years to come!

Finally, we love tree planting time because at our nursery it is truely a team effort! When we plant, the entire crew & both our families chip in to get the job done. Becky’s Dad drives the tree planter & her Mom makes everyone lunch. Becky’s brother Chris delivers trees to the planter & shoots great video (thanks Chris!). Even our kids help out – in this picture Joey is riding along helping Jamie check tree depth as the trees pass through the planter.  We feel a great deal of pride knowing that every tree planted at our nursery was planted by us, a great team of employees, & a terrific family of support.

So that’s why we like spring at the nursery -not only is it a new beginning for a new crop of trees, but it is also a fresh start for a new season. We hope you have a great spring in your business!