A Day in the Life…

The 2008 GWA Symposium in Portland was truly a memorable experience. Great weather, great plants, and great friends is a tough combination to top. I especially enjoyed my visit to Terra Nova Nurseries. What a treat it was to spend the afternoon amidst the horticultural wonders of Terra Nova Nurseries and Dan Heims. The gardens and greenhouses were filled with so many delightful plants; I do not know where to begin.

I was particularly impressed with Terra Nova Nurseries' vast collection of heuchera. Shade or sun, purple or chartreuse, 'Southern Comfort' or 'Peach Flambé,' there was certainly a heuchera for every taste. Thanks to the folks at Terra Nova Nurseries, gardeners are no longer limited by zone to enjoy these diverse beauties because many heuchera from Terra Nova are now bred to thrive in the heat and humidity – a very unique quality in these good-looking foliage plants. My favorite heuchera had to be the 'Amethyst Myst,' which I can now happily grow in my home city of Atlanta.

Check out the purple metallic tones of the 'Amethyst Mist'

Heuchera may have stolen the show but another somewhat
"aristocratic" plant stood its ground. The fiery red, green-veined Begonia 'Madame Queen' was a marvelous new variety. What’s a queen without a poodle? I am not sure but, the Echinacea 'Pink Poodle' was quite stunning with double blooms that make it a first of its kind.

Terra Nova Nurseries is a magical place, and I am looking forward to my next visit.

With all the breakthroughs in tissue culture and breeding; what will Terra Nova Nurseries think of next?

~Adam

The Time Warp with Terra Nova Nurseries!

So, for those of you who passed by the Terra Nova Nurseries booth, you may have noticed a couple of themes – the past and the future!

Revealing a unique marketing spin with cleverly-edited, 70’s album covers on their catalog and bright shag carpets throughout their booth, Terra Nova Nurseries showed off their newest plant introductions for 2009.

Some of the plants to look forward to in the upcoming year from Terra Nova and their grower- and garden center customers:

• Agastache ‘Cotton Candy’
• Begonia ‘Curly Fireflush’
• Echinacea ‘Tomato Soup’
• Echinacea ‘Mac ‘n’ Cheese’
• Echinacea ‘Pink Poodle’
• Heuchera ‘Plum Royale’
• Heucherella ‘Tapestry’
• Tiarella ‘Mystic Mist’

Just goes to show you – Without fun, inspirational pasts, we have nothing to build the industry innovations of the future!

What inspires you?

~Leslie