(Why beneficial insects really are beneficial!)

Release the hounds! Not literally, but I do want you to release the Ladybugs, Lacewings, Praying Mantids, and Nematodes. They are fantastic hunters and a huge benefit to your lawn, flower garden, and veggie garden.

These beneficial hunters have many things in common. They are meat-eaters. They never eat your plants. They only eat bad bugs. Ladybugs and Lacewings will eat aphids, whitefly larvae, mealybugs, scale, mites, and many other soft-bodied insects. Ladybugs can easily eat over 50 aphids a day. Lacewings are voracious and eat as many as 1000 per day. Nematodes are power eaters of bad bugs in the soil. They will eat over 200 insects such as cutworms, armyworms, grubs, sod webworms, fleas, fungus gnats, etc. They are the best hunters ever because you do not have to care for them, feed them or train them. Their instinct is to go where the food source is.

There are a few things you can do to make these beneficials even more beneficial. Be sure to release them all at night. Ladybugs fly away in the day. Lacewing eggs and nematodes can dry up in the hot sun. Water the garden. The first thing Ladybugs do when you release them in your garden is drink. Lacewing eggs like the moisture for hatching. Nematodes spread more quickly when kept damp. Release these hunters at the source of their food. Place Ladybugs and Lacewings at the bottom of plants. Ladybugs naturally crawl up. Lacewing eggs will hatch and the larvae will immediately eat insects dwelling on the plant. Nematodes need to be in the soil, where they can attack their unsuspecting food source. Praying Mantids can hatch right in the container but you have to release them right away so they don’t gobble each other up. Otherwise, place the Praying Mantis egg case in the crutch of a plant outside and wrap it with dental floss or thread to hold them in place.

Ladybugs don’t always stick around for a long time but this is ok! Ladybugs will feed for a little bit but most importantly, they quickly begin laying eggs on your plants. Those eggs will hatch and give you voracious Ladybug larvae. The larvae are very cool. They look like mini black alligators with orange spots and they are hungry for bad bugs in your garden. When the Lacewing larvae hatch from the eggs you released, these Aphid Lions have serious munchies and eat over 1000 bad insects per day. Lacewings can have multiple generations in one season. How awesome is that!? Nematodes have been known to hang around in the soil, eating plant damaging insects for 2 years straight. Praying Mantids will mate and lay more egg cases on your plants for next season hatching.

These hunters are so easy to have around the yard. You will barely notice them but they will be very busy helping you eliminate plant damaging insects. Let them go and they will reduce your need to use pesticides in your gardens, they will keep your plants healthier, and they will become an integral part of your garden community.

Note: The Ladybugs that you buy from Van Wilgen’s are not the ones you see inside your homes. The beneficial Ladybugs are native to the USA and do not invade homes.

SHOPPING LIST:

*Ladybugs

*Lacewings

*Nematodes

*Praying Mantis

If you are like I am I love noticing the landscapes of houses and neighborhoods as I’m driving around town. I like to see what people have done but not only give thought to the potential that many homes have for fresh landscape projects. This spring I see many neighbors are going to have landscape projects in common. Living Fences! Since the beginning of March, I have spoken to many people. By far the most asked question has been “what I can do with my privacy screen that isn’t so private anymore”. Many rows of evergreens were severely damaged during our string of late winter storms. In some cases, these wonderful old hedges can be rehabbed but in many more, the only option is to start fresh. In the past weeks, we received many shipments of some of the nicest Emerald Green and Green Giant arborvitaes I have seen in some time. They are bombers, fat and full, with many sizes to choose from. It is so nice to see fresh stock rolling in.

I hope most of you have great neighbors like I do. However, for those of you that don’t, a lush living fence will prevent a Hatfield and McCoy feud from breaking out. None of us want that!

When most of us hear the term privacy we think of passwords and electronics, and handheld devices. Being a plantsman, the first things I think of are living fences and privacy screens. Emerald Green and Green Giant arborvitaes make the perfect living fence. Emeralds have a tall, narrow growth habit maturing to 12-15’ tall and 4’ wide. Their natural shape makes them the perfect choice for planting along property lines. We recommend planting on three-foot centers, this will ensure a dense screen for years to come. Watch out for deer they love Emeralds as well.

If you are in need of a larger screen Green Giant is the way to go. They grow up to 3 feet a year truly living up to their name. They will mature to 25-30’ tall and about 10’ wide. They are very easy to shear if you would like to keep them a bit smaller. We offer them in many sizes from small 3’ tall all the way to 12’ for an instant living fence. Oh, did I mention they are deer resistant!

I invite you to visit us at the garden center and we will be happy to help you get started with your project. We offer delivery and planting services anywhere in the state or we can coach you through the planting process for all do-it-yourself projects as well.

Jason Scire

Nursery Manager

Show your lawns some love this spring. Not only did trees & shrubs suffer from this snowy & windy winter, but our lawns also struggled quite a bit too. Snowplows scraped up edges of lawns along roads and driveways. Snow shovels scuffed up the lawns alongside walkways. Heavy, wet snow sat on our lawns causing bare patches and diseased areas. Salt dropped for melting ice burned out many lawn edges. Don’t forget about damaging tree limbs and branches fallen all over the ground. Now doesn’t all that make you want to show your lawn some love?!

The snow has melted (I hope). First things first…

1. CLEAN SLATE: Take a good heavy-duty rake, get outside, get some exercise and clean up all the winter debris on your lawn. If some of the grass tears up easily, that is okay. It means it was not going to make it through the year anyway.
2. SOIL TEST: Go to the CT Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven to get an initial reading of your soil. Knowing the Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, and pH levels of your lawn will get you off to a great start. Bring your tests to me at the Van Wilgen’s Solution Center!
3. GYPSUM: If salt damage from the winter storms has affected your lawn health, apply Gypsum. This is a wonderful, underused product that greatly reduces saline in your soil, improves soil conditions, and loosens compact soil.
4. FAST-ACTING LIME: If you got a soil test and checked your pH, we will know exactly how much lime you need to apply. If you just want to wing it, that’s okay because we always need at least a maintenance rate of lime every year to help our acidic CT soil.
5. MOSS OUT: The absolute best time to get rid of moss is when the temperatures are cooler out. Moss grows most actively when it is chilly out. Eliminate the moss now and seed after.
6. SEED: Do not leave bare patches on your lawn. If you do, beware! Weeds will take over big time and this is a battle you just don’t want. The best defense against weeds is a thick stand of turf, so seed, seed seed.

The attention you give your lawn now will pay off in spades later so show your lawn some spring lawn love.

SHOPPING LIST:

*Encap’s Fast Acting Gypsum

*Encap’s Fast Acting Lime

*Lilly Miller’s Moss Out

*Van Wilgen’s Grass Seed

*Starter Fertilizer

*Greenview’s Grass Seed Accelerator or Seed Success

*Mainely Mulch

This time of year we are all itching to get in the garden. All it takes is a few warm days, some sunshine and we are all ready to dig in the dirt. At the garden center we get asked all the time, what can I plant now? There are many choices for early spring perennials, and with proper planting, you too can have beautiful blooms this time of year. Just be sure to amend your soil with Van Wilgens Premium Planting Mix and add Jump Start to push root growth so your perennials have a healthy start. Top with mulch so your blooms stay nice and cozy and your good to go! Here a few of my early spring favorites.

1. Hellebore- Great shade-tolerant deer-resistant perennial that comes in a rainbow of colors
2. Candytuft (Iberis)- profuse white blooms and neat mounding habit make for a perfect early season edging plant
3. Columbine (Aquilegia)- Eastern US Native with distinctive show-stopping flowers
4. Creeping phlox- Gorgeous mounding groundcover with pastel flowers giving way to mossy green foliage
5. Forget me not (Myosotis)- Long-lasting, true blue flowers make for an unforgettable plant
6. Rockfoil (Saxifraga)- a super cold hardy plant with early blooms that’s at home in any alpine planter or garden
7. Yellow Alyssum (Aurinia)- traditional cottage garden border plant that’s also at home in alpine gardens or as a border groundcover
8. Windflower (Anemone)- The early spring entry in this broad plant family provides huge blooms in an array of colors to brighten up any spring landscape

Will O’Hara

Perennial Manager

We have all heard the phrase ‘April Showers bring May Flowers’ but it turns out there are few things we need to do to freshen up our gardens. April is the perfect time for spring clean-up! Starting with simple raking and going for a clean slate in the garden, prune any broken branches, and fix any uneven ground by adding Van Wilgen’s Topsoil or Compost. Next is the all-important new layer of mulch. Mulching is the perfect way to get your garden off to a great start. Not only does it help settle in the roots, but it will provide warmth, hold in moisture, suppress weeds, encourage growth, and make your beds look all around beautiful.

We understand that everyone has their own style when it comes to mulch. Whether it’s the classic look of Black Mulch or Van Wilgen’s favorite Pine Bark Mulch we have one that’s just right for your landscape. Probably the biggest question we get is “how much mulch do I need?”, no problem, visit VANWILGENS.COM click on the mulch tab and we have a handy mulch calculator. Pop in the dimensions of your bed and how thick you would like it and we do the work for you! Would you rather have your mulch delivered? We just made that a little easier for you, you can also order mulch online and schedule delivery right to your home. Easy peasy!

Not quite sure what you are looking for and need a visual to get your creative juices flowing? Our North Branford store has several display gardens for you to walk through, sometimes seeing it in person is just what you need for inspiration. We hope to see you soon!

Jason Scire, Nursery Manager

1. Nature & Art now that’s fun! Solar Print Kit
2. Every little gardener needs their own tools
3. Grow your own Beanstalk, clever grow kit – castle included!
4. Light the way with a seasonal snowman lantern (battery operated)

Still don’t know what to pick up, try everyone’s favorite: